Ch.120Turbulent World – 2

Friday. A day that comes every week, yet one everyone always looks forward to.

A time when hearts flutter with anticipation for the approaching weekend.

But today, even Friday couldn’t bring any of its usual vitality.

[As the nationwide casualty count continues to rise…]

[Today, both ruling and opposition parties have suspended all operations for the victims…]

It was the sudden, massive gate incident that occurred just yesterday.

What’s worse, the gate appeared not in a regular emergence zone, but right in the middle of the city.

Naturally, there were human casualties, and criticism of the suppression devices immediately surfaced.

[Nationwide inspection of suppression devices shows no abnormalities. Cause of this incident cannot be determined…]

[Zero possibility of villain involvement. This gate incident is becoming an unsolvable mystery]

There was nothing wrong with the suppression devices. Villains weren’t involved either.

The world had been turning just the same as two days ago.

Yet yesterday, that world was completely flipped upside down, painting a scene of hell.

[News Investigation – Are monster levels different from before?]

[Interviews with returned superpower users: “They’ve gotten stronger. They’ve gotten faster.”]

Meanwhile, reports emerged that monster levels had generally increased.

As if the fear from the suppression device criticism wasn’t enough already.

The monstrous creatures from hell are getting stronger?

This is no ordinary situation. It could potentially cause major social chaos.

[The same situation is occurring in all countries, with worst-case estimates exceeding millions of…]

Most critically, this wasn’t limited to just South Korea.

Every nation on Earth was caught in the same crisis.

Though it lasted just over an hour.

During that time, suppression devices had no effect and gates flooded everywhere.

Monsters appeared, and their power was far greater than before.

It’s the same everywhere in the world. There’s nowhere to hide anymore.

In this situation, it was only natural that no one could celebrate a happy Friday.

*

“It’s quiet as a mouse.”

Indeed. It really is quiet. Eerily quiet.

Just last week, Friday was so lively and bustling.

This Friday was so quiet it gave you goosebumps, even desolate.

Well, that makes sense. After such a shocking event just yesterday.

Fortunately, there were no gate incident casualties within the Academy.

Thanks to the professors’ quick initial response and the students’ rapid reactions.

Plus, my team and I somehow managed to defeat the boss.

But some of those Academy students suffered tragic losses.

Some lost friends, others lost family members.

They survived, but had to say goodbye to their loved ones forever.

Because of this, today became a truly bitter day.

All lectures ended early, and everyone returned to their homes or rooms.

Some even went to training grounds to improve themselves further.

“Are you alright, Arbiter?”

At Hyunwoo Lee’s words, I turned to look at him, wondering what he meant.

Hyunwoo shrugged once before continuing.

“You don’t look well. I think you’re dwelling on yesterday’s events.”

“How could I not? The whole world is stained with tragedy. Are you okay, Student Hyunwoo?”

“Yes. Fortunately, my family is safe. Thank you for your concern.”

Thanks, even. Hyunwoo’s family are external figures that must be protected at all costs.

Even someone like Hyunwoo couldn’t be cruel enough to abandon his family.

So they must be looked after all the more. This time, it was almost a disaster.

“Over thirty students lost family members. If we include those who lost acquaintances, it’s just over a hundred. It’s… truly unfortunate.”

Hana Kang, sitting beside me, relays the situation in a gloomy tone.

As student council president, she seems to be inevitably exposed to such information.

Dasom Yoo appeared to feel the same devastation, only sighing.

“It’s not just our country, which makes it worse. I never expected the whole world to be in such chaos. The news is absolute madness. They’re already saying the world is ending, that hell has arrived. What on earth is happening…”

They really love talking about hell. Even though no one actually wants to go there.

Of course, the current situation is indeed a great terror for people today.

Suppression devices breached, countless people dead and injured, and the whole world in chaos.

Anyone would call it the end of the world or the arrival of hell.

But if we’re comparing, it was much worse when gates first appeared.

Back then, there were hardly any proper superpower users.

In other words, there were almost zero people who could fight.

Conversely, although there’s chaos now, it’s not completely impossible to deal with.

Even if suppression devices were breached, superpower users still remain.

That means the devices can be modified and used again anytime.

‘Just looking at the situations described later… it wasn’t world-ending level.’

Clearly, many superpower users died due to the overall growth of monsters.

Gates appeared randomly, requiring a state of extreme tension.

But ultimately, the world didn’t end. Humanity didn’t go extinct.

They managed to adapt and endure to some extent.

They even showed signs of gradual growth to match the world’s changes.

So there’s no need to be too afraid.

We can overcome this. We overcame the gate crisis when we had nothing.

What we need now is people’s firm resolve, and to make a leap forward.

“Oh, Arbiter. Look. Students are coming.”

At Hyunwoo’s words, I raised my head to look toward the front of the examination hall.

Indeed, a group of students was approaching.

“Hello, Arbiter.”

“Hello.”

The students greeted me as soon as our eyes met.

They seem to be here for an examination. Yes, that part is the same as before.

But unlike just a few days ago, no one was laughing or chatting.

Everyone had a very subdued atmosphere. Heavy, gloomy, and silent.

“We’re here for the examination.”

“Yes. Please prepare one by one, starting with whoever is ready.”

I think I understand why. Directly or indirectly.

They must have seen and experienced something from all those accidents yesterday.

Some saw their own helplessness, others saw crumbling fear.

And yet others felt the desperate need to change.

I can sense it. Something desperate from this student standing before me.

He’s a student who has come for examinations several times. He works hard, but that’s his limit.

Without any particular motivation or purpose, his limitations quickly become apparent.

“Arbiter.”

Even he seems to have properly realized something now.

His eyes are different. That is the strongest of human will.

It’s incomparable to desires like wanting to kill or protect.

It’s the will to live, the desire to survive.

“Please, do it properly. You can even beat me up like you do with other students, not just an examination.”

Now they’ve realized it too. That stagnation means certain death.

That to survive in these chaotic times, they themselves must change.

It would have been better if they had realized sooner, but it doesn’t matter now.

It’s not too late. They didn’t realize it only when facing death.

“If that’s what you want, I can do that. But you should be prepared.”

The student answered by rushing straight at me.

Yes, it’s better to feel some pain and soreness here.

At least there are no monsters here with crazed eyes looking to devour people.

*

Ding!―

At the phone notification sound, I casually slipped my hand into my pocket.

Looking at the screen, I saw Rina Lee’s name prominently displayed.

She must have time for messaging despite being busy with aftermath cleanup.

[Seojin oppa]

[Yes]

[You haven’t told anyone about what I sent you yesterday, right?]

By “what she told me yesterday,” she must mean “that incident.”

But if she’s going to worry about it, she shouldn’t have told me in the first place.

[Of course I haven’t. Do you think I’m stupid? It clearly said confidential.]

[Some people actually talk more when they see “confidential” attached. Didn’t you know?]

Hmm. That’s true. There definitely are people like that.

…Wait. Hold on. The more I think about this, the more annoyed I get.

[What are you saying? Are you implying I’m that type of person?]

Yeah? Say it, you crazy woman.

[No way! Our Seojin oppa has such a tight lip! Someone who puts up such strong walls must have an equally tight mouth, right? Wait, are your lower walls also so strong that you have no intention of putting it in?]

[Stop saying weird things. This is why people call you crazy]

After sending a slightly sharp message, there was no reply from Rina for a while.

She was probably laughing too hard to type.

[Anyway, thanks to that, management of S-ranks has suddenly become stricter]

[Can stricter management really stop the Elder?]

[Of course not, but they have to do something to feel at ease]

Bernard Shaw, the S-rank from Britain reportedly killed by Elders.

From what I know, he was Britain’s most powerful magic-class superpower user.

He even received knighthood from the British royal family at a young age.

They said his excessive arrogance was a problem, but half of all S-ranks are like that, so I’ll give him a pass.

[Those Elder bastards. They only ever did their own thing, so I never expected this. We got blindsided hard]

As Rina said, Elders are beings who absolutely never cooperate.

How could people who throw tantrums because they don’t want to mix with society get along with each other?

It’s so bad that people say the day all Elders die won’t come from S-ranks conducting a massive purge.

Rather, it would happen faster if they fought among themselves and mutually destroyed each other.

Buzz―

[Be careful]

When I received Rina’s next message, my body flinched.

It’s just a messenger conversation, not even face-to-face.

But the seriousness in that one phrase is no illusion.

[The world, those villain bastards. Now we don’t know which way things will go]

I hesitated for a moment. Should I say this? It’s Rina I’m talking to.

But because it’s Rina, I feel I should say it even more.

[You be careful too, Rina. Don’t get hurt.]

She definitely saw my reply. The read receipt appeared. But there’s no answer.

…Could she be angry? Does she think I’m underestimating her?