Chapter 76.1

Chapter 78 – Rule 24. The Leader Pursues to the End (13)

“Ahsung High Disciplinary Committee….”

The disciplinary committee members from major academies could not fail to recognize the leaders from other major academies. Especially between Mayeon High and Ahsung High.

Therefore, the squad leader of Mayeon High’s disciplinary committee immediately recognized Ahn Woo-jin, Oh Baek-seo, Ha Yesong, and Park Minhyuk.

Looking around, the scene depicted the intense large-scale battle that had occurred. It was evident that the Ahsung High disciplinary committee, along with several collaborators, had caused a major incident within Mayeon High’s jurisdiction.

By the time Woo-jin and Baek-seo were loaded into the vehicle, Woo-jin could barely lift his head to observe the situation.

‘We secured Moon Chae-won and planned to leave immediately. They arrived much earlier than expected….’

With Woo-jin, Baek-seo, and Yesong in terrible condition, the Volunteer Department was sent to secure Moon Chae-won’s custody instead.

Initially, Minhyuk was supposed to accompany them, but Woo-jin decided to send only the Volunteer Department.

They needed to leave as quickly as possible.

Sending Minhyuk, who wasn’t a combatant, could have delayed the mission, and the task itself was just transporting Moon Chae-won, so Woo-jin made that decision.

In the end, the Ahsung High disciplinary committee faced only the officials of the Mayeon High disciplinary committee and members of the Do-hwa Group.

If the Volunteer Department brought Moon Chae-won out, she would likely end up in Mayeon High’s custody.

‘What should I do?’

Woo-jin frowned.

Moon Chae-won was an extremely valuable asset.

She could provide information about the Head Principal.

They had to secure her at all costs.

Step, step. The squad leader of Mayeon High stepped forward towards the detachment.

“Go, Park Minhyuk! I’ve chosen you!”

“What? Me!?”

Following Yesong’s shout, Minhyuk, the most intact among the Ahsung High officials, faced the squad leader.

As mentioned before, Minhyuk was not good at fighting, so he looked particularly nervous in front of the squad leader. The difference in their physiques was also significant.

“You had a large-scale battle. In our jurisdiction, no less.”

The squad leader spoke bluntly.

“There were unavoidable circumstances….”

Minhyuk stammered, glancing around for help. His eyes pleaded for assistance.

However, no one could explain the specifics.

It was clearly illegal to capture a villain in Mayeon High’s jurisdiction without reporting to Mayeon High, the governing academy.

“Unavoidable circumstances…. We’ll hear about that in the later investigation. Officials of Ahsung High’s disciplinary committee and other collaborators. You are hereby judged as caught in the act for unauthorized combat activities within Mayeon High’s jurisdiction, and are under emergency arrest.”

The Ahsung High detachment showed signs of caution.

The relationship between Ahsung High and Mayeon High was not good.

The squad leader’s attitude also clearly indicated his dislike for Ahsung High.

Everyone present could sense the hostility dripping from the squad leader’s tone and expression.

Click, click. The Mayeon High disciplinary committee members began to handcuff the members of the Ahsung High detachment.

‘No. If this happens, we can’t take Moon Chae-won…!’

As his fear became reality, Woo-jin bit his lower lip.

If the Ahsung High detachment was detained, Moon Chae-won would be handed over to Mayeon High for investigation. During that time, if anything happened to her while out of Ahsung High’s custody, it would be a disaster for the Ahsung High disciplinary committee.
That’s why they had to escape before the Mayeon High disciplinary committee arrived.

If they had escaped, even if disputes arose later regarding jurisdiction, Ahsung High could have secured Moon Chae-won’s custody immediately. They could have bought time to plan their next move.

“…….”

Meanwhile.

Lee Jeong-mi, the bodygurad of Lee Se-Ah, narrowed her eyes discontentedly as she saw the handcuffs being placed on the injured students.

Soon, Se-Ah approached Jeong-mi and whispered.

“Senior Woo-jin seems to want to secure the Technomancer’s custody, right? I actually want to do that too~. If we can get out of this situation, we might manage somehow….”

“…Understood, Se-Ah. I will try.”

Jeong-mi answered the slyly smiling Se-Ah and stepped forward to the squad leader.

“You have the right to remain silent, and the right to an attorney….”

“I’m from the Hanyang Federal Academy’s General Student Council Inspection Department. Cease the arrests immediately.”

“What?”

As Jeong-mi showed her student ID from the General Student Council, everyone was shocked.

Under the Federation Council.

The top academy in Neo Seoul.

Hanyang Federal Academy.

At its pinnacle stood the General Student Council.

The appearance of such an elite member was unexpected, and everyone was astonished.

“H-Hanyang…!?”

Both Yesong and Minhyuk were left speechless by Jeong-mi’s unexpected identity.

The squad leader was also surprised but soon composed himself and carefully examined Jeong-mi’s student ID before verifying her identity.

“Your identity has been confirmed.”

Since the other party was a member of the General Student Council, the squad leader spoke politely.

‘So, she’s from the General Student Council….’

Woo-jin looked at Jeong-mi as if observing her.

Later, one member of the General Student Council would go missing.

It seemed that the person in question was Lee Jeong-mi from the Do-hwa Group. This happened when the Do-hwa Group collapsed, and Se-Ah died mysteriously.

‘It’s reassuring that she’s from the Inspection Department…, but I’m not sure if that guy from Mayeon High will back down easily.’

It was unwise to get on the bad side of the Hanyang General Student Council.

Especially the Inspection Department.

If a school was targeted by a retaliatory inspection from the Inspection Department, it would be utterly devastated. Naturally, it was something to be feared.

Even the student council president of Ahsung High would act submissively before the Hanyang General Student Council. However…, this was all about weighing pros and cons.

“I’ll ask later why a member of the Hanyang General Student Council is here. Provide a valid reason if you want to oppose the arrest.”

The squad leader remained firm.

‘How exemplary.’

Woo-jin thought that it was indeed the correct attitude for the disciplinary committee.

Not swayed by the status or position of the other party, rigidly insisting on rules and laws was a fundamental virtue for the disciplinary committee.

‘He won’t back down easily.’

Woo-jin sighed softly.

“I see that you’re the squad leader of Mayeon High’s disciplinary committee. For now, shouldn’t you move the injured first? Isn’t rescue the priority?”

Jeong-mi glared at the squad leader, speaking aggressively.

There was clear animosity from the squad leader towards Ahsung High. Jeong-mi guessed it was because of past conflicts over jurisdiction before Woo-jin became the disciplinary committee leader.

That’s why Jeong-mi deliberately displayed her displeasure.

Revealing her affiliation with the General Student Council’s Inspection Department was her strategy to intimidate the opponent. Although it was somewhat petty, it was necessary in this situation.

“Moreover, we have no intention to flee or destroy evidence. Our means of transportation was damaged in the battle, and we plan to fully cooperate with the investigation. Also, we captured one of Neo Seoul’s greatest menaces, the criminal known as Great Villain. The illegal act of protecting public interest is not excessively unjustified. No citizens here were harmed, so our actions aren’t disproportionate to the public good we protected. Arresting us isn’t appropriate. The battle is over, so calling us caught in the act is just an excuse, isn’t it?”

Although her argument was not wrong, it was all about deflecting the main issue.

In this situation, the one with the authority to arrest was the Mayeon High disciplinary committee, specifically the squad leader standing before them.

Since the situation favored Mayeon High, Jeong-mi planned to exploit any sign of fear from the squad leader.

“Indeed! We captured the Great Villain! You should be thanking us, not… Ack, my muscles ache…!”

Yesong, trying to agree, suddenly experienced intense muscle pain and rolled on the floor.

Jeong-mi glanced at Yesong with a look of pity and continued speaking as if nothing had happened.

“Even if there are other issues to debate, the arrest itself cannot be justified. If you proceed with the arrest, we will formally protest. So, let’s focus on handling the situation first. We will cooperate fully with the investigation, so you don’t need to worry about that.”

Se-Ah had said that if they could just get out of this situation, they would somehow secure Moon Chae-won. Chae-won quickly guessed what Se-Ah intended to do.

If they were not arrested, they could use the remaining members to snatch Moon Chae-won while pretending to cooperate with the investigation at Mayeon High. Although this would cause problems later, Se-Ah would likely manage to escape and extract valuable information in the meantime.

However.

“Then prove it.”

The squad leader’s monotonous response came back.

“…What?”

Jeong-mi’s eyes narrowed. She tilted her head to the side, crossing her arms in a puzzled expression.

“You need to prove that we have no intention of fleeing or destroying evidence, Mayeon High Disciplinary Committee. Surely, you are aware of this responsibility?”

“No, that’s not it. Don’t pretend you don’t understand.”

The squad leader shook his head once and looked at Jeong-mi with a fierce gaze.

“You disrupted the order within our jurisdiction without any report to Mayeon High. Although capturing the Great Villain is commendable, you ignored the law and procedures without any urgent danger, and you are still within Mayeon High’s jurisdiction. Therefore, you must prove that your actions are not illegal.”

“We were acting for the public good…!”

“Isn’t your mission to capture the Great Villain still ongoing?”

The squad leader pointed to the entrance of the underground facility while keeping his eyes on Jeong-mi. Her gaze followed his gesture.

Just then, the Volunteer Department leader emerged carrying the restrained Moon Chae-won on his back, followed by other volunteer members. Chae-won was still unconscious.

“Kekeke…! Thinking about this evil woman getting her just punishment makes me excited…!”

“Kakak…! Justice is served…! Huh? Something feels off…?”

The Volunteer Department were taken aback by the scene.

Jeong-mi sighed.

“Regardless of the public good or whatever, you can discuss that at the judicial academy. Since Ahsung High’s disciplinary committee intervened in this incident, securing the Great Villain’s custody is also part of your goal, right? In other words, we intervened in the middle of your ongoing illegal activities. The results of your actions for the public good are yet to be determined, aren’t they?”

“…….”

“Moreover, there is still the possibility that your goal is not ‘capturing the Great Villain for public good’ but simply ‘securing the Technomancer.’ It’s hard to see how the justification for arresting you as caught in the act is unfounded.”

Jeong-mi clicked her tongue.

‘He figured it out.’

The squad leader seemed to have realized that Woo-jin and Se-Ah’s goal was to secure Moon Chae-won.

‘It’s understandable. Only the officials from Ahsung High’s disciplinary committee acted, along with other collaborators, and they moved discreetly. It’s clear they took great care with this operation.’

The primary reason Ahsung High’s detachment moved discreetly was to rescue Oh Baek-seo.

How did they know the location of the hideout and carry out the rescue operation?

It was thanks to the goblin sent by the Great Villain, Kim Dalbi.

This was a reason that anyone would find absurd, and it couldn’t be used as an official defense.

In other words, the situation was disadvantageous for Ahsung High.

‘Threats won’t work on this guy.’

Given that someone from the General Student Council’s Inspection Department had gone to such lengths, it was clear enough of a threat.

The problem was that the squad leader of Mayeon High was as steadfast as a rock. It felt like reading scriptures to a cow.

Threatening someone like this with the suggestion of a retaliatory inspection wouldn’t work.

Jeong-mi’s least favorite type of person.

‘If we could just get out of this situation…!’

If they could just shake off Mayeon High, they could achieve their goal.

Jeong-mi was anxious but did not show it. However, the fact that she was at a loss for words gave the squad leader confidence in his victory.

“If you have nothing more to say, we will take custody of you and the Technomancer. The arrest will proceed as planned.”

The squad leader signaled his subordinates, and the arrest continued.

The members of the Mayeon High disciplinary committee took Moon Chae-won from the Volunteer Department leader.

“And the disciplinary committee leader of Ahsung High.”

From beyond the open back door of the vehicle, the squad leader addressed Woo-jin, who was lying down.

“You will have to take responsibility for this incident. I will recommend disciplinary action to the Ahsung High Student Council and the Hanyang Federal Academy. You should feel ashamed for abusing your authority and committing illegal acts as a disciplinary committee leader.”

“…….”