Chaper 31: Never do anything that will make you hate someone
by fnovelpia
One thing I learned in my twenty years as a hero: To save lives, you must never fear sacrifice.
This isn’t about choosing between a hundred or a thousand people.
It’s about whether you’re prepared to kill a thousand villains to save a hundred innocents.
Or ten thousand.
Or even wipe out an entire race if necessary.
Half-hearted benevolence.
Naive kindness and tolerance.
Pretending to be virtuous while sparing enemies and letting allies die—I was too old for that foolishness.
Drawing my sword was never an issue.
And I had no regrets about killing those who deserved it.
[The goddess smiles brightly.]
Let things flow as they should.
***
The Aftermath
Abandoned Factory: Completely incinerated.
Crime syndicate “Black Chronicle”: Boss, executives, and all members—annihilated.
Notorious dark mage “Face Collector”: Missing, presumed dead (traces of ash found).
Black Knight Vermouth: Executed.
Demonic Cult strategist “Mane”: Executed.
All criminals attending the auction that day—massacred.
“Shin Yuseong… you’re really terrifying.”
A few days prior, the underworld organization Black Chronicle had been completely wiped out.
This wasn’t some weak, struggling criminal group.
Had they not lost their hunter licenses, many would’ve been A-rank or higher—stronger than most mid-tier guilds.
For an organization like that to vanish overnight, without a trace, was unthinkable.
Even more shocking?
They hadn’t been alone—infamous figures like the Face Collector, Mane, and the Black Knight had been present.
Monsters who could dominate any region of the world, rivaling S-rank hunters—yet they died like nothing.
Something was wrong.
No signs of an S-rank hunter’s battle were found in the factory ruins.
Even stranger—none of the victims had managed to send a single message before dying.
The Demonic Cult, known for its ruthlessness, went silent for days.
No movement, no retaliation.
The entire underworld—Korea, East Asia, the globe—held its breath.
No one dared investigate.
Even the First Shadow Sect, which had some idea of what happened, pretended to be blind.
“If we want to survive, we must ignore this.”
Their leader, Imir (now going by Lee Jin), took a deep breath before addressing a servant outside the sect master’s chamber.
“Vice Guardian Lee Jin requests an audience regarding the sect’s future.”
The door soon opened, revealing Cheon Juyeon, the next sect leader—her face pale, her demeanor weakened.
“Vice Guardian, you need not send word through servants.”
“Protocol must be observed.”
“Survival matters more than protocol.”
She coughed violently, her once-powerful aura diminished.
Lee Jin was stunned.
How had their mighty future leader been reduced to this?
Only one person had foreseen the disaster—Cheon Juyeon, blessed with the Eyes of Spirit Perception.
She had seen the light that night—the divine radiance that no one else witnessed—and collapsed in illness the next day.
Was it her vision that was extraordinary?
Or the one who wielded that light?
Either way, the sect chose to bury the incident.
“Do not attempt to erase this matter—as the previous sect master ordered.”
“Understood.”
“And never provoke his wrath. He wields a blade that severs even fate itself—yet he does not draw it lightly.”
In short: If you want to live, stay on his good side.
Lee Jin bowed.
“Yes, I shall obey.”
The sect’s survival came first.
***
[The goddess cheerfully waves.]
Lately, her greetings had been extra vibrant—as if replenished by recent events.
“Good morning!”
Not just her—Professor Shin Arin at school had also been unusually enthusiastic.
“Yuseong! You came again today!”
Ever since my “kidnapping,” she’d been overly worried.
‘Was taking a sick day really that shocking?’
I wasn’t used to this much concern.
‘Honestly, I thought rumors would spread.’
About the factory’s destruction.
The underworld massacre.
But nothing.
No news articles.
No online chatter.
As if nothing had happened.
‘Must be the goddess’s doing.’
[She nods proudly.]
Or perhaps the underworld itself had covered it up to avoid further bloodshed.
Either way, it worked in my favor.
Being a carefree civilian was far more comfortable than playing the hero.
“Maybe I’ll try that new game at home.”
***
The Blue Spire’s Genius
Seol Yeonhwa of the Frozen Blossom had a new problem.
A minor one—but irritating.
[Icelcicle: I’ll go mid.]
Since the last real-life duel, she’d switched games.
Bang! Bang!
[Stardust: Hahahaha!]
[Stardust: Should’ve dodged if you didn’t wanna die!]
The genre was different, but the aggravating opponent reminded her of that man.
[Stardust: Too slow.]
Bang! Bang!
[Stardust: My bullets are faster~]
[Stardust: HAHAHAHA!]
“……Should I just kill him?”
Seol Yeonhwa clenched her fists.
The urge for another real-life fight surged—but she held back.
‘I probably won’t run into him again… but you never know.’
Just as she suppressed her rage, her phone buzzed.
A call from the Blue Spire’s Tower Master—a woman she respected but saw more as a nosy grandma than a superior.
“Yes, yes—wait, what?”
Her bored expression vanished.
“A… cure has been developed?”
***
Translator’s Notes: Imir was a name used as a cover his real name is Lee Jin and he is the leader of the First Shadow Sect.
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