Chapter 26: Debut ⑤

“Wh-what…?”

Lee Seoran, who had been thrashing wildly, suddenly froze. Her eyes, trembling as if shaken by an earthquake, were unbearably lovely.

Without thinking, I stroked her cheek, then closed my eyes.

Within the gray-tinted mental landscape, a girl dressed in a burial shroud lay fast asleep. Beside her, a black cat was desperately shaking its head.

---

[Compose yourself, My Lord! This wasn’t part of the plan! You are currently under mind cont—]

I returned to reality.

Seoran looked dazed, as if my words were still sinking in.

Mind control? Who cares.

“What do you think Iran went through after being kidnapped?”

Seoran’s eyes widened once more. Her breath was ragged, like she’d just finished a sprint.

I savored the sight of her gasping like a newborn kitten and kept feeding the flames.

“The villains live by survival of the fittest. When she first arrived, she was too weak. Everyone treated her like prey.”

I vividly recalled the times I was barked at like a dog, tormented in every imaginable way. In hindsight, it was nothing more than childish cruelty.

Before it got too serious, I grew stronger, so they never crossed the line.

But Seoran didn’t know that. My words clearly shook her.

I could feel her desperately trying to break free. When I didn’t budge, she thrust her face right in front of mine.

“Tell me.”

Eyes bloodshot red. Hate swirling in the depths of her pupils.

She spat the words out like she was chewing them.

“What. Did. You. Do.”

Electricity sparked in my brain and raced through my body.

So this is how my sister would react if I died.

She’d get this furious. She’d hate the ones who hurt me.

Is there anything sweeter than feeling someone’s love?

Especially when that someone is none other than my proud big sister.

Unable to contain the joy, I gently cupped her cheek.

She ignored my touch, eyes locked onto my face. The moment itself was too sweet.

How could I drag her even deeper into despair?

Then, an irresistible idea struck me.

I waved a finger in front of Seoran.

“That’s not important.”

“Say it!!”

“What matters… is that she blamed you.”

“…!”

Seoran froze, as if time itself had stopped. Her eyes blinked wordlessly.

Deep within her blue irises, wounds were etched. Moisture welled over the sharp scars.

“…….”

Each time her eyelids lifted and fell, pretty droplets rolled down like beads.

Her head slumped back.

I caught it before it hit the floor and whispered poison into her ear.

---

“Hey, Sis.”

“…….”

Expressionless, but with a hint of sincerity, I asked,

“Why did you break your promise?”

“…Hhng.”

Tears burst forth, pouring down her face like a broken faucet.

I gave a soft snort.

“That’s what she said. I don’t really get what she meant, though.”

“…….”

The light faded from her eyes. The instant her carefully built persona began to collapse—I could see it all.

‘Beautiful.’

How could a human be this beautiful?

“Kill me.”

“…….”

“Please… please kill me…”

But her plea left a bitter taste in my mouth.

‘What was I trying to do again?’

A fleeting question.

Oh, right.

‘I was going to punish my sister.’

You’re doing well.

Now it’s time to reap the fruit.

“You can’t die.”

“…Kill me, I said kill me!”

“You’re going to die without even seeing your little sister’s face?”

My eyes curved into crescent moons.

***

Lee Seoran sat there blankly, tears streaming down her face. It looked like she couldn’t even comprehend what I was saying.

There’s a reason people say seeing is believing.

I looked into my mental plane.

Even after two years, my corpse had lost all color. But it hadn’t decayed or been damaged.

Maybe because there are no bacteria or microorganisms in this space, it stayed perfectly preserved with just a bit of maintenance.

‘Summon.’

Iran’s body floated up. The chattering black cat clung to the shroud with its claws, but it wasn’t nearly strong enough to stop the summoning.

A black hole opened up in the floor—and something began to rise.

“Kyaaah!”

The students watching screamed.

Seoran, frozen in place, slowly turned her head.

Slowly. Very slowly.

And the moment she saw the girl who looked exactly like her, she inhaled sharply.

“…….”

She looked unchanged on the outside, but the strength with which she pushed away my hand had multiplied.

Since I had no more reason to restrain her, I let go.

Seoran shook off my hand and turned her body.

“…….”

Crawling. Pathetically scrambling toward the corpse.

When she finally reached it and confirmed the face, Seoran grabbed my dead body in a tight embrace.

“Uhh… hh…”

Her slender shoulders trembled violently. My corpse swayed lifelessly, like a balloon reacting to the tremors.

“Uaaaah.”

In the end, Lee Seoran cried out loud.

“……!!”

The cry of a wounded animal filled the classroom. Sorrow and remorse melted into something shapeless, unrecognizable as human speech.

No one watching could even breathe in the face of a human being’s complete collapse.

Some students turned their eyes toward me. Then they started trembling—as if they were staring at some kind of monster.

…What kind of expression am I making?

All I know is, my ears feel like they’ve reached my cheeks.

And my face feels hot.

Aside from that—I’m not sure.

Still, as for how I feel…

“So beautiful…”

Could it get even more beautiful than this? Then what kind of masterpiece would that be?

Overwhelmed by maddening curiosity, I decided to follow my instincts.

One step. Then another.

I walked toward Seoran and the corpse. Whether she hadn’t noticed me approaching, or simply didn’t care anymore, I didn’t know.

She was still clutching me, crying her heart out.

Darkness bloomed at my fingertips. Materialization.

I wrapped my fingers around the grip of a sword and smiled with delight.

“Looks like you really liked your toy?”

Still, no reaction from Seoran.

What, was she planning to just die here?

How dare she.

I graciously offered a question.

“Want me to share a piece?”

With this, her punishment would be complete.

I snapped my fingers.

The darkness spreading from the floor bound Seoran in an instant.

Only then did she turn to look at me. Her jaw was trembling uncontrollably, clearly in shock.

“Wha… hic! …are you, hic, doing…?”

Her diaphragm convulsed so hard she couldn’t even form a proper sentence.

I grabbed her head and turned her toward the best seat in the house.

Then I stepped toward my corpse.

Sword in hand.

“Don’t… please…”

Guessing what was about to happen, Seoran trembled like a leaf.

I reached the body and raised the sword.

“Where should I start?”

I pressed the blade against the ankle.

“The foot?”

“Pleashe…”

I brushed my lips like I was pondering it.

“Hmm, maybe not?”

“Please…”

“Then the hand?”

This time, I brought the blade to the wrist. Seoran shook her head furiously.

***

“Just holding hands wasn’t enough for you?”

Finally, the tip of the blade touched the thinnest skin.

“Yeah… Still, she is your big sister. Gotta take the neck, right?”

“…….”

I raised the sword high.

Show me your greatest beauty, unni.

And I swung.

“Uwaaah!”

My hand froze mid-air.

“Uuhuuuh! Waaah!”

Seoran was wailing like a child who lost her mother.

She looked at my sword. At my corpse. And threw away all her dignity, sobbing like a tantruming child.

“Aaaah!”

A woman twenty-three years old, bawling like a brat.

How far must a human fall to end up like this?

How much had I shattered Seoran?

‘What…’

The sword slipped from my hand. I was trembling.

Not with joy—but fear.

‘What the hell am I doing…’

As the image of my actions replayed in my mind, nausea surged up.

‘Why did I…’

My chest ached. Guilt and regret slashed through me like knives.

[……My liege. Are you back with us now?]
‘Cleo, I…’

I want to die.

Should I just slit my throat right here?

Seoran’s cries echoed through the room.

I didn’t want to hear it. I wanted to plug my ears—or better yet, cut them off entirely.

---

[This is not your fault. First, pull yourself together. Owen seems to be at his limit as well.]
‘…Okay.’

I forced my trembling body to stand.

The moment I released Seoran from the bindings, she shot forward like a bullet.

“Th-thank… thank you…”

She clutched my corpse, bowing her head again and again.

“…….”

I want to die.

I reached out, and the corpse was sucked back into my mental space. In that instant, despair returned to Seoran’s face like a storm.

“Give it… back…!”

She lunged at me.

No body enhancement, no Talent—just a desperate charge.

I subdued her easily, restrained her again, and walked to the window.

“Lana… Lani…”

Behind me, Seoran mumbled something I couldn’t understand.

Before leaving, I turned to look at her one last time.

Originally, I planned to declare my return with confidence. But the plan had completely fallen apart.

‘Maybe… there’s no turning back now.’

There’s no one else to blame. I made her like this.

‘I’m sorry…’

Maybe I should’ve just told her I was alive—like Yu Hyesun advised.

—If you become a Reminis, unni…

Still, I wanted to believe in a single, fraying thread of hope.

“Iran killed four people.”

“…….”

“She said she’s going to hell.”

Seoran’s shoulders flinched.

Whether it would poison or heal her—I didn’t know.

But hoping she remembered our old promise, I left her with one last message.

“Still, she said if her sister kept that promise… she’d be okay.”

“…….”

“I… really have no idea what you’re talking about.”

With a shrug, I jumped out the window.

And the last thing I saw of Seoran—though it may have been my imagination—was that her eyes looked just a bit clearer.