episode_0127

127.

“…It’s already autumn.”

Suddenly, Yuseolhyun muttered to herself as she leaned against the window, gazing out at the scenery outside.

The weather had already turned into early autumn.

The leaves in the distance had started to display a variety of colorful hues, and the bountiful fruits looked tantalizingly ripe.

It feels a bit cooler now.

It was just summer not too long ago.

Looking back, time really flies.

“…It’s been about a month since the Busan Great Fissure Incident.”

The Busan Great Fissure Incident.

It referred to the time when numerous monsters appeared, wreaking havoc throughout the city of Busan.

The appearance of the massive snake monster named Ouroboros and hundreds of other monsters caused significant loss of life and property.

Even now, the people of Busan trembled in fear at the memory of the Great Fissure Incident.

The possibility of another heinous monster appearing and trampling over their daily lives was a constant source of anxiety.

Just a few years after the Busan Outbreak, another large-scale monster incident occurred before the wounds from the previous incident had fully healed.

And it was during the Busan Great Fissure Incident that one villain began to emerge.

Yudahee.

The individual suspected to be the mastermind behind the Busan Great Fissure Incident.

The young girl who first gained notoriety during the Union Attack incident. The fact that this girl openly revealed her name and was implicated in summoning monsters caused alarm not only among heroes but also the government.

The ability to summon monsters was akin to a natural disaster.

Being able to call forth dangerous monsters at will?

In essence, it meant that an individual could wield significant influence over the safety and security of the nation.

Therefore, the government classified Yudahee as the worst villain and terrorist in Korean history, and made efforts, in collaboration with hero associations and clans, to isolate her.

However, despite the government’s efforts, Yudahee’s influence and notoriety continued to grow day by day.

It was like an unwanted noise marketing campaign by the government.

Even individuals who were wary and fearful of the government, associations, and clans were drawn to her.

It was akin to heralding the birth of a new evil.

Yudahee eventually began to gather various types of villains.

Villains oppressed by the government, those dissatisfied with societal laws, those seeking revenge against heroes, those wanting to earn substantial amounts of money, those simply wanting to commit evil deeds, and so on.

Under the banner of rebellion, she united villains who had previously only been cautious of the government, associations, clans, and heroes.

Rebellion.

It meant defiance, insurrection.

In other words, a rejection of the current regime.

Therefore, Yudahee was plotting rebellion.

A rebellion against the current regime, alongside villains who harbored grievances against the current system.

“What is the world coming to, sigh.”

The political situation in South Korea was rapidly changing.

Villains who had been suppressed began to run wild under Yudahee’s name.

Some people idolized and praised Yudahee.

A normal person wouldn’t praise a criminal like Yudahee, but on the internet, all sorts of praises were posted.

Her beautiful appearance, unnaturally strong power for her age, innate talent, and the worst superpower imaginable.

Whether in a positive or negative light, she was undeniably charming, leading to many falling for her.

In fact, there were cases where even serial killers who had committed heinous crimes received support if they were attractive.

In Yudahee’s case, it was particularly severe.

“She killed High Ranker Oh Junho, huh…”

The reason villains followed and worshipped Yudahee wasn’t just because she could summon monsters and turn a city into chaos.

Yoo Da-hee proved herself by killing a high ranker.

Not just as someone who could call forth monsters, but as a villain and the head of an organization.

Killing a high ranker hero who had experienced all sorts of trials and tribulations at such a young age was proof that Yoo Da-hee possessed talents and potential of at least level 10.

Perhaps in the future, Yoo Da-hee might become an unstoppable monster that no one could handle.

The worst villain in Korean history, blessed with talents of level 10 or higher, using them for evil deeds…

Yoo Seol-hyun let out a sigh.

Then she glanced at her watch.

It was already lunchtime.

She should probably go check on Jin So-yeon’s condition soon.

“What is Jin So-yeon doing?”

She was slightly worried because of the harsh words she had said to Jin So-yeon yesterday.

The image of Jin So-yeon looking at her with tear-stained guilt still lingered in her mind.

She was even a little afraid that Jin So-yeon might make an extreme choice.

So Yoo Seol-hyun cautiously tried to message and call Jin So-yeon, but as expected, there was no response.

Is she still sleeping?

Or is she deliberately ignoring her?

…When she had decided to visit again around lunchtime yesterday, Jin So-yeon had nodded as if she understood, so it probably wasn’t intentional ignoring.

Yoo Seol-hyun hurriedly moved with an uneasy heart.

It didn’t take long for her to reach Jin So-yeon’s house.

But what’s this? Isn’t that the back of a familiar man near Jin So-yeon’s front door? Why is he there?

“I Si-woon?”

“Yes.”

I Si-woon, who was hesitating about ringing the doorbell, turned his head slightly at the familiar voice.

And he could see Yoo Seol-hyun’s figure.

“Yoo Seol-hyun.”

“You’re quite impressive. Very sincere.”

Yoo Seol-hyun smiled wryly at I Si-woon.

He had made quite an effort to comfort the heartbroken Jin So-yeon.

He had visited Jin So-yeon’s house, tried to encourage her through messages and calls, but Jin So-yeon only showed rejection.

She didn’t properly meet him when he came to her house, barely answered his calls, and replied to messages half-heartedly.

But I Si-woon didn’t seem to mind.

Most people would feel hurt or discouraged by continuous rejection, but I Si-woon, who hadn’t been asked by anyone, had been sincere for a month.

“Unrequited love is quite difficult, isn’t it, I Si-woon?”

“…”

“Her attention is probably elsewhere.”

“…”

I Si-woon fell silent for a moment.

It was true.

He knew well that his actions wouldn’t change anything.

But…

“You must have had a hard time too, Yoo Seol-hyun.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s unrequited for you too.”

“Haha.”

Yoo Seol-hyun chuckled.

Unrequited, he said.

What nonsense was this?

Did he think Yoo Seol-hyun seemed interested in Lee Jin-hyuk? It was a bit ridiculous.

“That’s a boring thing to say.”

“If it’s boring… well, let’s leave it at that.”

Although Yoo Seol-hyun’s brows furrowed slightly at I Si-woon’s attitude of brushing it off with a nod, she didn’t want to waste any more time in front of Jin So-yeon’s door.

– Ding dong.

Yoo Seol-hyun pressed the doorbell and waited for the door to open.

But there was no response.

The door remained closed.

She tried pressing the doorbell again, but it was of no use.

“Ugh, seriously.”

Yoo Seol-hyun pushed open the front door as if there was no other choice, just like last time.

Although Lee Si-woon was slightly taken aback by her actions, Yoo Seol-hyun briskly walked forward, and before they knew it, they had reached the entrance door.

“Yoo Seol-hyun, you…”

“Wait, what’s this?”

As soon as they opened the entrance door, they were met with a living room that looked like it had been punched hard.

“Is that a phone? It’s broken, isn’t it?”

There were broken phones scattered around the room.

Judging by the marks on the wall, it seemed like the phone had been thrown against the wall and broken.

“What on earth happened here?”

“Could someone have been attacked?”

A sinister thought briefly crossed Yoo Seol-hyun and Lee Si-woon’s minds.

“Jin So-yeon!”

“So-yeon!”

They called out Jin So-yeon’s name and searched the house thoroughly, but they couldn’t find a trace of her anywhere.

What could have happened?

If something did happen, it was a big deal, a really big deal.

They couldn’t have just left Jin So-yeon alone.

Lee Si-woon bit his lower lip slightly.

“…It’s unlikely that she was attacked by bad people.”

“That’s not it, there’s no sign of a fight at all.”

Carefully scanning the living room, Yoo Seol-hyun realized that there had been no fight here.

It seemed like the broken phone and the damaged floor were most likely her own doing.

“Shoes… So-yeon’s shoes that she always wore are missing. It seems like she went out for a while…”

“If that’s the case, then it’s a relief.”

Yoo Seol-hyun and Lee Si-woon decided to wait for a while, thinking that she might have gone out to buy a new phone to replace the one she had broken in a fit of anger yesterday.

However, as time passed, Jin So-yeon showed no signs of returning.

Out of concern, they even reported her disappearance to the police, but they couldn’t find Jin So-yeon.

Despite using all the resources available to them, Yoo Seol-hyun and Lee Si-woon were unable to locate Jin So-yeon.

And so, Jin So-yeon disappeared without a trace.

From the academy, from the house, from everyday life.

The figure of Jin So-yeon had completely vanished like an illusion.

***

“Hyuk.”

“……Hm?”

“Hyuk, wake up!”

“……Wait, what is it?”

“Get up! Hyuk! Jin Hyuk!”

“……Ah, huh?”

I slowly opened my heavy eyelids at the playful voice of a young girl.

And there she was.

“You’re awake?”

“You?”

The So-yeon from our kindergarten days was smiling brightly at me.