Correcting the Villainess of the Academy – Chapter 193

Chapter 193

The magic of the moment had been shattered. The cost of daring to break the rules was far too severe.

“…Answer me.”

Each syllable uttered by the man seeped into Seoyeon’s bones with a chilling frost. His voice, more laden with despair than anger, made the situation all the more hopeless.

“Ah, uh…”

Seoyeon’s throat felt clogged, rendering her unable to say anything recklessly.

Watching her trembling helplessly without a response, the man let out a sigh filled with lament.

There was no need to press her for an answer—they knew each other too well.

The only reason the man had stayed by Seoyeon’s side all this time was for one simple reason.

The man standing here now was the Heir of Heukryeon, the one to whom Seoyeon had extended her goodwill.

He was no longer the powerless child from the Backwater Village, the one she had mercilessly abandoned and left behind.

The masquerade ball had been their shared rule. But since Seoyeon had been the one to break that rule first, the man no longer had any reason to remain here.

“Ha…”

The man, standing tall, let out a hollow chuckle.

Clutching his head, he spoke into the emptiness.

“Showing goodwill to the Heir of Heukryeon… I can understand that.”

At some point, his voice had become irreparably hoarse.

“Whether you had ulterior motives, were tired of a loveless engagement, or for whatever reason—I thought it was possible. But, but…”

His voice trembled so severely that he couldn’t even finish his sentence. He hung his head low.

“…You said you wanted to tie up the past for good.”

“What…?”

“You said it was a nightmare. A memory so unpleasant and disgusting that you wanted to erase it from your life.”

Each word he spoke pierced her skin like the sharp point of a needle.

“You said I wasn’t worthy of being by your side.”

It felt like someone was squeezing her heart with their bare hands.

-I came here today to tie up the past for good.

-Yes, a nightmare. A truly disgusting and unpleasant memory that I wish I could erase from my life.

-Don’t you get it yet? You’re neither strong nor reliable. The only thing you had going for you was your face, and even that’s useless now.

-You don’t deserve to be by my side.

“Ah, ah…”

Seoyeon clutched her hair, trembling. The words she had uttered two years ago had come back as a noose, tightening around her neck.

“But now… have I suddenly gained the qualifications I lacked before? Just because I can use some magic now? Or because I’m part of a good family?”

“No, no…!”

Seoyeon, barely regaining her composure, shook her head violently.

“That’s not it. I didn’t mean those words. I only said them to protect you, Hyun…”

“To protect me, you say.”

But before Seoyeon could finish, a cold, scoffing chill clamped down on her words once more.

The man now looked directly at her.

Raising his hand to the back of his head, he untied the strings of the fox mask on his face.

-Clatter!

The mask fell limply to the ground, shattering with a loud noise. In the silence that followed, the man’s tall and striking appearance was revealed in full.

Sadness, disappointment, despair, emptiness. In his eyes, Seoyeon could clearly see the emotions he carried.

“Ah, ah…”

Yet, there was no trace of hatred or anger directed at her. This only made Seoyeon shudder even more.

Unconsciously, she began to beg. She wished he would get angry at her instead.

“Do you see?”

The perfection revealed. Within it, a single glaring dissonance.

“This is proof. Proof of a pathetic and foolish man who couldn’t protect his family, friends, or lover.”

Beneath his left eye, stretching from the ear to the direction of his nose.

The long scar spoke to Seoyeon.

“…The one you engraved on me.”

“No, that’s not it…! I told you, I had no choice but to do it to protect you!”

Momentarily overwhelmed by the atmosphere, Seoyeon desperately shook her head.

“I thought you’d be able to overcome it!”

“What…?”

The man asked back, as if he truly didn’t understand. Seoyeon pleaded tearfully, almost begging.

“You’re a strong person, Hyun. You were always steadfast and resilient. That’s why…!”

Just as she was about to continue her desperate persuasion.

The voice that pierced into her heart rendered all her words meaningless, scattering them into nothingness.

“You were all I had left.”

“What…?”

“You were my only hope in life. The last remaining light. And yet. And yet…”

Seoyeon stared blankly at him, stunned. The man, however, remained cruelly calm.

“You extinguished it.”

By now, there wasn’t even a tremor in his voice.

“I’m sorry. But I think I’m too…”

“Ah, ah…”

“…exhausted to believe your words anymore.”

Once again, silence fell upon the alley. Seoyeon, at a loss for words, could only look at him.

As the fog of fear dissipated, things that had been invisible began to come into focus.

Her regret was overwhelming. She regretted every unnecessary act, every word left unsaid. She wished she had just spoken honestly before he found out.

If only she had done so earlier, long ago…

“No, that’s not it…”

Forcing her unwilling legs to move, she wiped away her brimming tears and stammered.

“There was a misunderstanding. After all, we met again like this. You have no idea how happy I was to see you again.”

The man’s strangely calm demeanor only made her feel more desperate. A sense of foreboding clung to her like a shadow, swallowing her whole.

“We can start over, can’t we? I’ll explain everything. So please…”

“No.”

But at his resolute voice, Seoyeon stopped dead in her tracks, the courage she had mustered vanishing in an instant.

“Starting over is impossible.”

“What…?”

Seoyeon stared at him blankly. Impossible. Just hearing those three words made her heart pound uncontrollably.

“What… What do you mean by that…?”

“The person you knew no longer exists. That boy died a long time ago.”

With a trembling voice, Seoyeon asked, but the man simply shook his head.

“Why… Why would you say that? You’re not dead. You’re alive. You’re right here in front of me…”

“No, I’m dead.”

The man remained calm. His tone was devoid of emotion, like that of a judge.

“I died two years ago. Captured by a Dark Sorcerer, I died. Miserably, alone, on those desolate ruins. The person you knew as Lee Hyun… no longer exists.”

“No! No, that’s not true! Don’t say that…!”

Ultimately, it was Seoyeon who broke into sobs.

“You’re alive, right here in front of me! You’re breathing!”

Seoyeon cried out, shaking her head violently. What followed a happy dream was a terrible nightmare. She now desperately wished to wake up from this dream.

“I was wrong, okay? It’s all my fault…”

As Seoyeon staggered toward him, she desperately tried to grasp the hem of his sleeve.

“So please, just listen to me for a moment…”

-Thud!

But the man coldly brushed her desperate hand away.

With that, he began retching violently.

“Ugh, ugh…”

It was as if his body instinctively rejected her approach. Only then did Seoyeon see it.

The face of the man staring at her. The fear that was so plainly etched upon it.

“Ah, ah…”

Seoyeon’s eyes, which had been trembling as if she might collapse, lost their light entirely.

“Ha, ha…”

The man, gasping for breath, pulled out a white mask from his coat and put it on.

“Please… just stop now.”

His voice, though barely composed, carried an unmistakable weariness as he spoke.

“…I’m begging you.”

“No, no… wait…”

The man’s words, crafted to sound polite as if addressing a stranger, only deepened her pain. Just as Seoyeon reached out, fumbling to grab hold of him again—

-Bang!

An explosion echoed in the distance, and with it, the commotion in the alley quieted once more.

***

-Bang!

-Boom!

Without warning, the explosions continued one after another, and soon, massive flames shot up into the sky. The next thing to follow was the screams of hundreds of people.

-What’s going on?!

-Aah!

The sounds that reached her ears were ones that should never have been heard within the Cradle. The clash of Blades, the metallic screech of steel grinding against steel, and the sound of offensive magic spells—strictly forbidden within the Cradle—being unleashed.

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-Code Zero. Code Zero situation in progress. Distinguished guests, please evacuate immediately according to protocol. I repeat. Code Zero situation in progress. Distinguished guests, please…

With a dull thud, the power throughout the entire Cradle went out. Moments later, the emergency power system activated, and sirens began to wail loudly, piercing through the air. The explosions and screams only intensified.

“What is this…”

Momentarily distracted by the chaos, Seoyeon muttered to herself. The man stood still, staring in the direction of the Main Building where the explosion had occurred.

And then, he uttered a name that should not have been spoken aloud.

“No… Yeon Minha…”

Seoyeon’s heart sank. An unsettling feeling washed over her. She felt as though, if she let him slip away again, she would lose him forever this time.

Desperately, she tried to block the path of the man who was preparing to leave.

“Wait…!”

-Thud.

But the man brushed past Seoyeon without a word, disappearing into the chaos. He didn’t spare her so much as a glance.

The alley was left empty and desolate. Seoyeon collapsed where she stood.

Her knees trembled uncontrollably; she couldn’t bring herself to move.

Lying there on the stone floor in utter misery, she could only stare vacantly at the spot where he had disappeared.

And this time, no one came to help her up.

The sting of that reality hurt far more than the wounds on her bleeding knees.

There were so many things she wanted to say to him when she saw him again.

How difficult the past two years had been for her. How hard she had worked for his revenge. How much more beautiful she had become in his absence.

After saying all that, she wanted to bury herself in his arms, to be pampered like she used to be, and to have him stroke her hair again.

There were countless things she was curious about too.

How he had been all this time. How he had come to use magic. How he had ended up entangled with Heukryeon.

The Great Flame of the Sky. The remnants of military-grade torture magic left behind at the ruins.

Though the man had now become her benefactor in a way, it was because of those remnants that she believed him to have been killed by Sa Jaehyuk in collusion with Jeokhwa.

But what intrigued her the most was the eerie mask that concealed his face.

The mask—white and smooth. The mask that had earned him the nickname of the Eerie Masked One.

To Seoyeon, it was the most hateful object of all. If only it hadn’t been for that mask, she could have recognized him sooner and prepared for a better reunion.

Of course, she understood that the mask was meant to hide the scars on his face. But so what?

It was just a scar. A small mark, nothing more. She even thought it gave him a wilder, more rugged charm.

The words Seoyeon had uttered two years ago were nothing more than a desperate ploy to keep him from following her. If she hadn’t done it, he would have continued to chase after her and inevitably been exposed to danger again.

She knew full well how much it must have hurt him. After all, she had felt immense pain herself when she said those words.

But she had believed he would overcome it quickly. To Seoyeon, he had always been strong and dependable. Someone so resolute that it took such extreme measures to push him away.

“Ah, ah… ah…!”

But now, Seoyeon realized.

He too had the heart of a fragile person.

And the boy, who had harbored such deep affection—an affection she couldn’t even begin to fathom—had been betrayed by her.

And since that day.

The boy had lost his face.

Because of no one else but her.

“What… what have I done…”

Seoyeon, collapsed on the ground, let out a cry like that of a wounded beast. She clutched her head, screaming in anguish.

What surfaced in her mind at the end of her tears was the image of the emaciated boy lying on a hospital bed, his face contorted in sorrow.