Chapter 181

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The Supernatural Liberation Front.

A terrorist organization of extreme supernatural supremacists.

Fanatics with a twisted belief in liberating the new humanity from the shackles of the inferior old humanity.

The branches of the Family existed everywhere, without regard for location.

They disguised themselves as ordinary schools in academic districts.

They hid among the many shops in bustling commercial areas.

In churches, factories in industrial complexes, and the outskirts of slums.

Literally, the Family’s tentacles reached every corner.

This was why the Family had survived for so long.

During normal times, they blended into their surroundings and lived ordinary lives, but when orders came from above, they transformed into the Family. 

In other words, until orders came down, they had nothing to do with the Family and focused on their daily lives.

If their identity was at risk of being exposed, they fled.

If fleeing failed, the higher-ups would cut off the tail.

The Celestial Corps was an organization designed to fight monsters. Most of its resources were devoted to dealing with monsters. 

Since monster invasions occurred continuously, they couldn’t devote their full strength to eradicating the Family. 

Even when they managed to take down a branch, the Family didn’t disappear. More new branches were created than the ones destroyed.

It wasn’t until the commander personally stepped in that the Family’s ambitions came to an end.

The boss was executed, and the core was dismantled.

The countless branches that had spread out were cut off.

As a result, the current Family was nothing but a shell.

Perhaps because they had already experienced downfall.

The remnants of the Family were obsessed with hiding their identities.

If they were discovered, it would mean total annihilation.

They desperately erased their traces, lying low.

This didn’t change even after a new boss took over.

They were so desperate about security that, even though the Celestial Corps knew survivors of the Family existed, they couldn’t root them out. 

The 6th Division occasionally discovered and focused on eliminating the Family, but the Family’s lineage continued to survive.

Growing their forces again.

Dreaming of the glory they had lost.

In the darkness, the fanatics waited for their moment of resurgence.

“A familiar smell.”

A gray-haired boy half-opened his bluish-gray eyes.

Surrounded by an atmosphere as if he had stepped out of a black-and-white photograph.

He shook off the blood clinging to his wolf-like sharp claws.

“(But) it’s not welcomed at all.”

The glint in Class D’s Carlos’s eyes was far from human. It was the gaze of a wolf. A beast that could never be tamed.

He glanced around. Outwardly, it was disguised as an ordinary delivery company, but in reality, it was one of the Family’s hideouts. 

Fanatics of the Family were writhing on the ground, groaning. But Carlos’s attention wasn’t on them. He sniffed the air. 

As a beast-human hybrid, his sense of smell was incomparable to that of a human. It was even more sensitive than that of an ordinary wolf.

“She’s not here.”

The person he was looking for wasn’t here.

The scent of the girl etched in his memory wasn’t present.

“…This is troublesome.”

Ethan, the vice-captain of the 6th Division, clicked his tongue.

At first, he had wondered why the captain had allowed an academy student to participate in the operation. 

But seeing this, he thought he understood. He had heard that Carlos was once a hunting dog raised by the Family. 

Indeed, his skills were far beyond that of a student.

Using the Family’s own hunting dog to hunt the Family.

The captain really has a twisted sense of humor, Ethan muttered to himself.

The captain of the 6th Division, Elijah, had a different way of thinking compared to the other captains.

If the ability was outstanding, age or status didn’t matter.

Carlos had the skills to participate in the Family Subjugation War without issue.

He himself had strongly expressed his desire to join the operation.

So there was no reason to refuse.

Elijah accepted Carlos when he came to her.

“We’re done here. Let’s move immediately.”

“…(Understood).”

“Could you at least give a proper response?”

“?”

“Don’t give me that clueless look.”

Ethan let out a frustrated laugh. Carlos looked puzzled but didn’t pay much attention. 

He watched Ethan and the other Celestial Corps members move ahead, then followed behind.

There were several reasons Carlos had joined the Family Subjugation War.

A desire for revenge against the Family that had ruined his life.

An altruistic wish to ensure no one else suffered as he had.

And to find a girl who had disappeared.

Eugene had heard from Karma.

Angelica had heard from Isabella.

The speculation that Lucia might have been captured by the Family.

Carlos had heard the same.

Originally, the information the other captains had was provided by Elijah.

Elijah, who had thwarted the Family’s abduction activities in District 6 and provided crucial clues, had also shared various information with Carlos.

The Family was abducting people.

There was a Devil behind the Family.

The perpetrator who abducted Lucia was connected to the Devil.

Therefore, Lucia might be held by the Family.

There was no concrete evidence, only circumstantial evidence.

But the possibility was more than enough.

‘If I hadn’t prioritized the Family back then…’

That girl might not have been abducted.

If I hadn’t taken Lucia to that place.

Then maybe she wouldn’t have gone through such an ordeal.

It was all because of my own mistake.

“…Please (be safe).”

It’s late, but I’ll go save her now.

Carlos moved to the next Family hideout.

Hoping that Lucia would be there.

◈

Many Family hideouts were simultaneously attacked at the same time.

Most of them were lower-tier branches.

The Family was a hierarchical organization.

Higher-tier branches could interfere with lower-tier ones, but lower-tier branches had no means of contacting the higher-ups.

This factor worked greatly in their favor for security.

Even if one was caught, the lack of a proper communication system made it impossible to track the entire organization.

However, this also meant that the absence of a communication system made seamless cooperation impossible.

The advantage quickly turned into a disadvantage. Lower-tier branches were being wiped out. 

Despite their persistent security measures, the Family’s hideouts were being exposed one after another. The Family’s strength lay in secrecy. 

The moment that secrecy was broken, they were reduced to mere prey. Knowing this, the Family had lain low in the shadows, but this time, it didn’t work.

Discovered lower-tier branches were quickly eliminated.

They sent requests for support or warnings to other lower-tier branches that could be contacted.

But those places were already under attack.

Less than 30 minutes after the Family Subjugation War began.

Most of the branches spread across the country like a spider’s web had been disabled.

But the operation wasn’t over.

No, it was just beginning.

The lower-tier branches, regardless of their size, were nothing more than tails.

Tails that could be cut off at any time without issue, convenient to have but not essential.

But the higher-tier branches were different.

If the lower-tier branches were the tails…

The higher-tier branches were the limbs.

Arms and legs. Essential parts of the body.

And the very top branch was the torso and head.

The most important stronghold of the Family.

“So far, so good.”

Kallad, the captain of the 2nd Division, listened intently to the reports coming in one after another.

Reports of successful subjugations continued to pour in.

Scratch, scratch. 

He marked X’s on the points marked on the map.

Soon, most of the points were marked as “subjugation complete”.

All that remained were the points highlighted in red.

One in District 9.

One in District 17.

Two in District 25.

These were the Family’s main strongholds.

If Elijah’s intel was accurate, these were the only major strongholds left.

‘They’ve definitely fallen from grace.’

In the past, there were double-digit major strongholds, but now there were only four at most. Considering that the commander himself had personally intervened, this was to be expected. In fact, it was impressive that they had survived the thorough grip of the God of War.

“Now comes the real deal.”

At the words of Ariene, the vice-captain of the 2nd Division, Kallad nodded heavily.

The preliminary battles were over.

Elijah’s long efforts had finally paid off.

Most of the branches had been wiped out in an instant.

Now, all that remained was to strike the torso and head.

“Shall we move out as planned? I’ve been itching to get going.”

Karma smiled faintly. He stood up from his chair, stretching as if he were stiff. His narrowed eyes became even thinner. 

Crack. Crack. 

The sound of his knuckles popping echoed eerily.

While the Family’s branches were being wiped out, all the captains had been waiting in the rear. 

They were wary of the Devils presumed to be behind the Family. 

If a Devil appeared during the subjugation of a branch, a captain would have to be deployed immediately. Only the captains could handle a Devil.

But even as the lower-tier branches were being eliminated, there was no sign of Devils.

In that case, they would simply follow the prearranged plan.

District 9, presumed to be the Family’s headquarters, would be handled by the 2nd and 4th Divisions.

District 17, corresponding to the torso, would be handled by the 3rd Division.

District 25, which could be considered the limbs, would be handled by the 5th, 6th, and 7th Divisions, along with the Knights.

As soon as the captains moved in, the other Celestial Corps members would guide nearby residents to safety.

If a Devil truly appeared and a battle broke out, the aftermath would be anything but light.

The battle with Astaroth during the cherry blossom festival.

During that battle, the captains had not gone all out.

If they had fully unleashed their power, they would have had to redraw the map of the surrounding area.

The number of civilians and Celestial Corps members caught in that tragedy would have been incalculable.

Thus, they had imposed restrictions on themselves, which had allowed Astaroth to escape.

But this time, such a disaster would not occur.

They could go all out without worrying about collateral damage.

◈

Do you know what a lucid dream is?

A lucid dream.

It’s when you realize you’re dreaming while you’re still in the dream.

Reality checks, dream signs, dream control, natural lucid dreamers—there are many technical terms, but I don’t know much about them.

Lucia is a smart honor student, but she doesn’t know everything. Alice might know more. She’s read a lot of books.

Thinking about it, I’m suddenly worried. I hope Alice is doing well. I hope she’s eating three meals a day, sleeping well, and living diligently as usual…

Anyway, the reason I suddenly brought up lucid dreams is very simple.

‘This is a dream, right?’

Because I’m having a lucid dream.

[Hello. Good morning.]

The me in the dream… no, the Lucia in the dream is standing in front of me.

Her golden hair shines like the sun.

Her pink eyes are like blooming cherry blossoms.

Her tall nose and soft lips.

The girl I see every time I look in the mirror is there.

But there’s a huge difference between this Lucia and the one in my memory.

[Eu■]

Uh, Lucia doesn’t make that kind of expression.

There’s a girl here who looks like she’s head over heels in love.

So this is what I look like when I’m love-struck.

An expression of being so immersed in happiness that she doesn’t know what to do.

Looking at her makes my chest feel all fluttery… wait, what am I saying?

More importantly, this dream.

For a lucid dream, there’s nothing I can do.

I heard that in a lucid dream, you can control the dream as you wish.

[Yeah, good morning.]

A boy stands opposite to the Lucia in the dream.

His familiar blue eyes curve gently as he smiles softly.

[Luci■]

Ah, my beloved.

Today, as always, you shine brightly.

I woke up early and got ready, but I wonder how I look in your eyes.

Well, you’re so oblivious you probably didn’t even notice—what am I saying?

…This is bad.

A sense of crisis sent chills down my spine.

My instincts screamed at me to wake up from this dream as soon as possible.

I looked at the “Lucia” in the dream with trembling eyes.

The girl’s sparkling eyes were filled with happiness.

That happiness transferring to me.

It was dyeing my heart pink.

Quickly, somehow, quickly.

I need to wake up from this dream.

Before I’m buried in that happiness and become love-struck myself.

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Lucia hates female corruption.

Though, it would be different if it was arm cut corruption.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
The quest to save the truly pitiful princess from her kidnapping begins now~!