Chapter 11 – The Butterfly’s Dream

“…Did she get a little riled up?”

Na Yoona must be holding back her rage behind her poker-face.

There’s nothing more infuriating than to be lectured by someone who was far beneath her. 

Even for her, it’d be difficult to brush off the words which invalidated her entire life.

“I hope she doesn’t kill me.”

Don’t tell me that she’s gonna kill me just because I gave her a tip?

When the thought crossed my mind, it occurred to me that Yoona might just do it.

If it’s the Na Yoona from V. AGE, she has killed plenty of people who wronged her.

So, I have no choice but to believe in her.

“I trust you. Yoo Hayeon.”

I gave Hayeon a look which told her to take good care of me.

You get what I’m saying, right?

Protect me if things get dangerous.

I don’t know if she got my message, but Hayeon was waving to me with a bright expression.

It seems like she’s yelling something to me.

What’s she even saying?

“Just shoot yourself in the head, then leave!”

“…”

I lifted my middle finger slightly, and moved to the end of the stadium.

I don’t care how hard Kim Kiok tried, he should not have given up.

Expulsion is not the problem, but the act of giving up is the matter of a hero’s mindset.

In order to avoid flunking out, I had to at least get good grades.

“Now, then. Get ready, both of you…!

Following Kang Suho’s command, I raised and aimed the Desert Eagle at Yoona, so that I can shoot it simultaneously when it starts.

At the same time, I could hear the bustle of the students who saw my weapon.

“Pfft… Hey, what is that? You’re better off attending police school if you’re gonna use that. Why even come to this academy?”

“That’s what I’m saying. It’s not like you’re a dumbass, so why choose that kind of weapon…”

You think I chose this because I wanted to?

This is the only thing I can do something with.

Their mocking got even worse. 

“Must be nice for Yoona. To have someone like him as an opponent. It’s practically a free win.”

“For real. An old-fashioned weapon like that is what criminals from the back alley use.”

A body which could not even form a muscle.

A physique that could be mistaken for a woman’s.

Their mockery kept on going and going. 

But it didn’t have much effect on me, as my fortitude is 8.

“Having fun, guys?”

It’s not fun for me.

Hayeon’s expression said, turning ice-cold.

She then started to approach the students who had been mocking me.

“Sit down and just quietly watch the match. You’re distracting.”

“W-Wha.. Why me…”

“You don’t wanna sit down? Want me to sit you down by force?”

When Hayeon said she’d use force, the student who had heard of Kim Kiok’s defeat when he returned to the seat, could no longer protest.

“Tsk…”

The brunette student who had been dissing me, sat down in lament, wondering why Hayeon was getting involved when the insults had nothing to do with her.

I sent Hayeon a thank you with my eyes, then took my stance again.

“Both sides…ready. Then, let’s get started.”

 Kang Suho started counting down.

“Three.”

A nerve-gripping moment.

“Two.”

Na Yoona also began to get in stance.

“One.”

When I saw her yellow eyes, it hit me.

“Begin!”

Ah, she’s definitely not going to go easy on me. 

Bang!

With the sound of my trigger going off, Yoona’s body disappeared before my eyes.

Had she even been there in the first place?

Her movements were so fast they leave afterimages.

“It’s dangerous!”

Hayeon cried out.

Instinctively, I roll off from where I’m standing and escape it.

Swoosh!

I could hear a hollow sound ripping through the air.

The dust slightly rose and I heard Yoona’s voice coming from it.

“…So you dodged it.”

The dust subsided.

Yoona stared at me in a condescending manner at where I was standing.

Her eyes, which were full of spirit and the determination to obliterate me.

“Mr. Kang! She’s actually trying to kill him!”

Hayeon, with her sharp senses, read Yoona’s intent and shouted out loud.

You’re doing well, Hayeon. 

But Kang Suho showed no signs of stopping the match.

“No one can die from a spar. The match will continue. I’m the supervisor.”

The way I see it, Kang Suho is a bona fide psycho.

I mean, she’s trying to kill me, are you really a supervisor?

Rather than my survival, he looked like he trusted science and technology more.

“Are you that angry?”

“…”

So you’re not even going to reply, is that it?

Honestly speaking, it was pure luck that I managed to avoid her first attack.

I wonder, will I be able to dodge her next attack?

What do you mean, I wonder? I have to do it.

Enough with the useless thoughts.

After I assumed the shooting stance again, I pulled the trigger.

Bang! Bang!

The sound of gunfire echoed throughout the stadium.

Bullets dropped on the floor.

Even so, the bullets did not reach Na Yoona.

This is the worst matchup.

The highest part of Yoona’s stat is agility.

In the future, it’ll go up to 11, which is right below the max value.

With exceptional vision and ample speed to cover for it, Yoona’s body gracefully soared into the sky as she dodged the bullets.

“Just as I expected. Too weak.”

A view of the bottom from above.

It’s a sight she’d always seen, and she believed it would last forever.

Yoona, who was holding a spear in the air, began to charge the mana in her body.

“Blossom.”

Innate Ability[The Butterfly’s Dream]

Butterflies were flying about in the vast blue sky.

But that was a momentary dream.

A trapped butterfly in a cage was experiencing an illusion.

Ah, how fleeting.

Was it the dream of the caged butterfly, or the dream of the flying butterfly in the sky?

It’s probably something like that.

An innate ability which trapped the other person’s soul in an illusion.

It then vanished with the fleeting dream.

Yoona’s attack came at me without warning.

Poof!

The strike hit my right shoulder.

It looked like she hit me with her spear.

“How particular of her…”

I dusted off the shoulder that had been struck.

The attack just now was Yoona’s illusion.

If I couldn’t identify it, the strike turned into a reality.

Well, it was just a rough hit.

Much of Yoona’s original first attack was an illusion.

For a pro gamer like myself, the attack pattern was no sweat.

I pulled the trigger on Yoona, who kept popping up.

Bang! Bang!

Four bullets left.

Ah, this seriously won’t do.

I couldn’t come up with a way to win no matter what.

Several Yoonas were approaching me as I was like that.

“Give up.”

With her voice, dozens of spears showered down on me.

For me who had a huge gap in terms of stats…

That attack was impossible to avoid.

I could hear several blows hit my body.

She swung, she pushed, and she struck.

As long as her mana didn’t run out, the indiscriminate attacks continued.

I could no longer tell apart what’s real and what’s an illusion.

Everything has to be an illusion.

That’s the only way to reduce the damage.

It’s the most optimal way to receive damage only from reality.

Why am I doing this though? It’ll be easier if I just give up.

Honestly, that guy who lost to Hayeon is probably going to get expelled. 

Didn’t I do enough?

All I have to do is cling to Hayeon and ask her to protect me every day.

There’s no way I can do that. In order to clear this world, my role in this is absolutely needed.

The first step is to prevent Yoona from being driven to insanity.

If I leave her as is, millions of people will die.

To prevent that from happening, I have to land a blow to that mass of arrogance of her somehow.

As to how I’m going to land a blow…

No ideas are forming in my mind.

No, you do know.

I just said I don’t know, so what are you talking about?

But the moment I took notice of the voice, I could understand what those words meant.

You already know what to do.

Is it an illusion?

If not, a dream?

The owner of the voice was none other than “Han Sijoon.”

What are you hesitating for?

…I’m scared.

I’m scared of this world collapsing and dying.

I’m scared of driving a nail into someone’s heart.1

I’m afraid I can’t stop what’s to come even if I know the future.

This is all because of my naturally weak body.

You’re wrong. You’re not like that. You wanted to help others more than anyone else.

That’s right.

Even I, who holed up in a corner of the house playing games, had a vague dream of helping other people.

Han Sijoon of this world had a weak body, but also wanted to be a hero who saved people.

Although the worlds are different, I possess both memories of “Han Sijoon”, so which one am I?

Does that even matter? Just think as you always do.

Truly a clear-cut answer.

Words that seemed to indicate that the path I was taking was the answer.

It was normal for me to state the obvious.

I’m just Han Sijoon.

“Na Yoona.” I said towards her direction in a muffled voice.

“…I see you have strength left to talk. I’ll finish this soon.”

Yoona, who changed her spear stance, closed in on me as if she was going to end me at any given time now.

Yeah, that’s how it should be.

That’s Na Yoona of the NAVI family.

The dust spread throughout the stadium from Yoona’s attack.

I plopped the magic supplements that were in my pocket into my mouth.

One won’t do.

Two more.

A total of three magic supplements.

I don’t know what effects it’ll have on my body.

But, this is the only way to save Na Yoona.

“You know something? I’m only starting now.”

Don’t underestimate me. 

Stats aren’t everything.

My path, which I told myself in the illusion…

I have to walk it even if it is perilous.

If the world of V. AGE isn’t cleared, there is no future for this world.

“…What?”

You’re saying that despite knowing what state you’re in?

Yoona laughed at the absurdity.

At the same time I said that, I began to charge weak mana in my body.

“I’m making a contract.”

My Innate Ability[The Scale, Libra]

The Scale.

By putting weight on one side, an equal amount of weight will be added on the other side.

Pay for what I desire.

That is my innate ability.

“For 10 minutes, create a magic core in my body.”

I didn’t want to use it if I had to.

I don’t possess anything.

There’s only one thing I can give you.

“I’ll give you my life.”

–I approve.

At that moment, the scale’s weight is even.

Footnotes

1It’s a saying which means to hurt someone emotionally.