Ch.148The One Who Cannot Stop – 2

Information obtained from the relevant person was as follows.

The location to resume previous research and experiments is underground, not above ground.

It was established beneath an inactive defense equipment factory.

Though not fully operational due to insufficient personnel, some parts have already begun.

‘A perfect opportunity.’

Once the research and experimental facility becomes fully operational, security will become even more stringent.

If I were my normal self, no amount of security would matter.

As always, I would simply break through whatever stands in my way.

But now the situation is different. My body isn’t normal.

Forget S-rank, even an A-rank ability user might be too much for me.

I could handle three or four somehow, but any more would be difficult.

That’s precisely why now is the perfect time. If not now, never.

To destroy the entire facility, find the remaining people involved and exact revenge.

And then to reveal this horrific, disgusting truth to everyone!

Swish swish swish!―

I move quickly past the city center toward the outskirts.

Meanwhile, Changwon seems to have completely bought into the story of villain terrorism.

Police, firefighters, and even ability users are all heading toward where the branch office was located.

Sujin Hyun turned her head after looking at that scene.

Things seem to be going according to plan, but something felt unsettling.

‘Perhaps, just as I did, that man might have noticed too.’

The moment I attacked, I inevitably exposed my magical energy.

Not everyone in the world can read magical energy in detail.

Especially the magical energy of someone they’ve never encountered before.

The problem is, one of the people at the branch office has exceptional talent for sensing magical energy.

And he has already clashed with me several times.

‘Seojin Baek.’

Why does he keep appearing wherever I go to interfere?

At this point, I’m starting to wonder if someone planted a tracking device on me.

Sujin Hyun bit her lip and increased her speed.

I could handle other A-rank users without much trouble.

But with Seojin Baek, it’s a different story.

I already know his level from our previous encounters.

Seojin Baek could hold me off alone in my current state.

If an S-rank shows up during that time, I’m finished.

‘…No. That can’t happen. Absolutely, absolutely cannot happen. Now? When I’ve barely started?’

If I must die, I’ll die. I’ll die with a satisfied smile.

But that’s only after this mad revenge is complete. Until then, I’ll rage on.

‘This is it.’

Arriving at a nearly deserted location, Sujin Hyun surveyed the surroundings.

A closed defense equipment factory, surrounded by a desolate atmosphere.

Anyone else would just think “abandoned factory” and turn away.

But not for Sujin Hyun, who, despite her betrayal, had genuine skills.

‘…They’ve hidden it very deep. Even most A-rank users wouldn’t notice this.’

With a cold sneer, Sujin Hyun closed her eyes.

Soon her body transformed into a hazy shadow and disappeared into the abandoned factory.

Drip, drip―

Perhaps because she was using her ability while injured.

Red droplets of blood dotted the path where the shadow had passed.

And not far from where Sujin Hyun had departed.

“…”

A figure stared at those drops for a moment before beginning to follow.

The deeper Sujin Hyun went inside, the more nauseous she felt.

She saw everything. The atrocities that would unfold once this place became operational.

That empty space over there would be filled with children created without parents.

And beyond that, all kinds of experiments devoid of ethics would be conducted.

No matter how much they screamed in pain or begged for their lives, no one would listen.

Since they were “created” rather than born, no one would show them compassion.

It was clear they would be used and used again until they all met a tragic end.

Even if by some miracle they survived, most would share the same fate.

“Cough, cough!”

Even now, when she closes her eyes, that scene appears vividly.

The sight of him, once so brilliant and beautiful, dying like a corpse.

A person who maintained the warmest heart despite enduring those cruel experiments.

He wasn’t someone who deserved such an end. He was truly close to being a hero.

There were times when she wished their fates had been reversed.

‘Now such things will never happen again. My love. The ones who hurt you. The things that caused you pain. I’ll erase them all from this world so they never appear again.’

Sujin Hyun spread her arms out to both sides.

Shadows began to emerge from her fingertips.

Shaaaa―

Like black fog, or dark smoke.

Without anyone noticing, it began to spread throughout the facility.

Carrying a chillingly sharp magical energy within.

“…Cough, cough!”

With a harsh cough, dark red blood gushed from between her tightly closed lips.

The previous fight with The Elder, then the battle with Rina Lee, followed by the confrontation with Seojin Baek.

In that condition, using up all her magical energy led to this inevitable result.

“If you push yourself one more time, you might really die.”

Those words came back to her. Death, the end everyone instinctively avoids.

Sujin Hyun is human after all. How could she not feel regret about life?

For a brief moment, attachment to her own life tried to hold her back.

But she had something more important than her own life.

For that, she had denied and tainted her own past.

She can’t back down now. No, there’s nowhere to retreat to anyway.

So there are no regrets. No hesitation. Just doing what needs to be done…

“You might really die if you keep this up.”

A male voice penetrated Sujin Hyun’s ears.

Greatly startled, she quickly turned around as a figure gradually revealed itself.

A man wearing tattered clothes.

With dust and blood caked on his face as if he’d just escaped an explosion site.

“I told you. That was my first and last act of compassion.”

“…Seojin Baek.”

Sujin Hyun slowly bit her lip.

*

Irritation rises. No, should I call it anger?

That was the emotion I felt the moment I saw The Elder before me.

Not fear or tension like before.

As soon as I sensed Sujin Hyun’s presence, I quickly embraced my team members.

Hana Kang and Dasom Yoo were one thing, but including Hyunwoo Lee was a bit uncomfortable.

However, the situation was so urgent that I had no choice.

Immediately after, a tremendous boom and vibration shook my entire body.

Debris from the collapsing building scraped various parts of my body.

The throbbing suggests I took a direct hit. Damn, it stings.

“Ice Wall!”

Amid the chaos, Hana Kang’s excellent judgment shone again.

She managed to cast and manifest the spell in that chaotic moment.

Debris raining from above bounced off the ice wall, unable to penetrate it.

Fearing she might interfere, Dasom Yoo curled up as much as possible and assessed the situation.

And Hyunwoo Lee… what did he say? Something about cutting debris with his sword?

“Stay still, junior! I can’t concentrate!”

Throughout all this, I had only one thought. What happened to Soohyun?

These three were together, so they could protect and be protected.

But Soohyun was alone, and if something happened, there was no way to know.

Finally, as the booming and vibrations subsided, I got up with the three of them.

Fortunately, no one on our side seemed injured.

The issue was the whereabouts of others who had been at the branch office.

“Arbiter!”

As we emerged from the debris, the first person I encountered was none other than Soohyun.

She had a man and woman in each hand, both branch office personnel.

“Soohyun! Are you hurt?! Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. What about you, Arbiter? Are you okay?”

Only after realizing everyone was without major injuries could we feel relieved.

Meanwhile, Hana Kang and Dasom Yoo were clearing debris to rescue people.

Before long, police, firefighters, and ability users swarmed in.

Everyone asked if it was villain terrorism, suggesting this had happened several times before.

Perhaps she had ended it like this deliberately, counting on that assumption.

Creating a smokescreen of villain terrorism, focusing attention here.

Then quickly entering her target location, taking what she wanted, and escaping.

‘Not so fast.’

I clearly told her then. That compassion was my first and last.

That I too was seeking revenge, so she should be careful from now on.

I said that, yet this woman stubbornly returned.

And this time, she nearly endangered my team members.

It’s over. There’s no reason for compassion anymore.

What I had was a little compassion for someone who lost a loved one.

Sympathy for someone suffering the same miserable fate as this body’s original owner.

That’s all. Nothing more. No reason for anything else.

And now, Sujin Hyun has touched what’s precious to me.

They’re all essential people. I can’t lose them.

…No, that’s not the only reason anymore.

They’re my acquaintances. People who struggled, laughed, and talked with me.

I can’t lose them. I’ll protect them, and we’ll live together.

We’ll fight together for a better future in this changed world.

“Soohyun. Come here for a moment.”

The opponent is The Elder. Weakened by injury, but still The Elder.

Hana Kang, Dasom Yoo, Hyunwoo Lee, and Soohyun too.

All will be the best someday, but not yet.

That’s why I should go alone. I must finish this alone.

“People will arrive soon. Then tell them this wasn’t terrorism, but The Elder. That Sujin Hyun did this.”

“Aren’t you going to tell them yourself?”

“I need to find her. And make her stop, once and for all.”

As expected, Soohyun insisted on coming with me.

It took some effort to convince her, but I finally made her understand.

…Though her strange request bothered me slightly.

What was it again? Something about making time for her later?

Not with the team members like before, but strictly just the two of us.

So I left that place alone and followed Sujin Hyun.

The trail led through the city center to a place with barely any people.

If I had been a little later, even those traces might have been erased completely.

‘Inside here?’

I don’t have the ability to transform into a shadow like Sujin Hyun.

Fortunately, there was a slight gap in the underground facility’s security.

After some time, I spotted Sujin Hyun doing something ahead.

She seemed to be dispersing magical energy, apparently intending to blow up the entire place.

Even though her body isn’t normal, making this extremely difficult for her.

“You might really die if you keep this up.”

This isn’t concern. This statement is a warning to myself not to weaken.

A caution not to be swayed in taking what’s necessary, as the opponent has already prepared for everything.

“I told you. That was my first and last act of compassion.”

And what I’ll be taking is her life.