episode_0139

Whoosh-

Soon, the fierce wind died down, and the seawater that had drenched the campus naturally receded.

I was pinned to the ground, my neck gripped in Haru’s hand.

Squeeze—

I knew it was futile, but as I struggled to break free, her grip only tightened. It wasn’t just brute force; it felt as if space itself was pressing down on my upper body.

I didn’t know how Haru manipulated space, but the fact that she could apply it in such a way meant she had already transcended Archmage-level. Even the Special S-ranks I knew—the Sword Saint, the Fist Emperor, the Dragon King, or even my mother-in-law—might not be able to properly lay a hand on her.

The only ones I could imagine being able to contend with her were Yang Chan-ho and Seol Hayeon. Even then, the latter was an exaggeration because I considered her my master.

Well, my point was simple, despite the lengthy explanation.

How could I possibly defeat such a monster?

‘I wish I’d had a little more time.’

I swallowed my regret inwardly. Objectively, my growth rate was comparable to any monster, and I had already reached a level where I could easily handle a mediocre S-rank by myself. The problem was that the cult leader I had to face was a monster of Special S-rank or higher.

“…Hey.”

I let out a hollow laugh and asked.

“By any chance, how old are you?”

“Oh my.”

A somewhat enigmatic expression appeared in Haru’s golden eyes.

“You shouldn’t ask a woman’s age carelessly. …That’s what I’d like to say, but I suppose that’s not what you’re really asking, is it?”

I didn’t answer, just gazed up at her, and she placed a finger on her chin.

“How many years have passed since I was reborn in this world…? To be precise, how many more years of training have I had than you?”

“…”

“That’s what you’re curious about. Alright, I’ll tell you.”

Haru then held up three fingers.

When I quirked an eyebrow, she continued to elaborate.

“Thirty… No, not thirty, but very close to that age, twenty-nine.”

“What…?”

Then I widened my eyes, looking at her with a complicated expression. I spoke to Haru, who tilted her head as if asking why.

“You’re older than I thought.”

“…”

Thwack!

I was slapped. It hurt. My head snapped to the side, and I made a sour face, while Haru’s facial muscles twitched as she gnashed her teeth.

“…You’re ruder than I thought. Then again, you were unbelievably arrogant during our first encounter, even though you were just a first-year back then.”

“Couldn’t you say I possess the virtue of honesty?”

“Oh, go on. I wonder if you’ll still be able to speak so well after a hole is drilled into your forehead.”

With a frosty expression, Haru created a cross-section of rotating space with a whirring sound, and I immediately changed my attitude, raising both hands.

“I spoke too harshly.”

It was a sign of surrender. “Hmph,” Haru snorted, lowering her hand and her eyes glinting sharply.

“Watch your step.”

“Well…”

I felt strangely uneasy. While wondering if there was any need to be careful around a villain, the situation was so comical that I couldn’t feel its gravity at all.

That was probably also influenced by the sights I had seen while crossing this artificial island. I briefly turned my gaze to the side, at Swordsman Lee Cheonsang, who was lying motionless near where I had originally stood.

…Including him. I hadn’t seen any fatalities inside this campus. The occasional faculty members I saw were all unconscious, as if asleep… Even Eileen and Haru, just moments ago, seemed to be trying to kill Lee Cheonsang.

As a result, these cult bastards oddly weren’t causing any casualties. Of course, that wasn’t a bad thing. But it felt… unsettling, somehow.

‘…What a villain group, seriously.’

I felt my tension suddenly drain away. I looked back at Haru and curtly uttered.

“Hey.”

“Use polite language. I’m older.”

“Go screw yourself.”

“Is it this mouth that says such bad words?”

Slap, slap! Haru smacked my lips with her dainty palms. I scowled intensely and tried to swat her arm away, but failed. Apparently, while subdued, my resistance wasn’t very effective.

“No, tsk, let me ask you something, please.”

In the end, I had no choice but to painstakingly speak while still being slapped in the face.

At that, Haru readily retreated from my annoyed swing.

“What is it? What do you want to ask?”

“…Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue slightly and pondered for a moment. Even if I was subdued, was it right for me to ask something like this of a villain group’s leader? Of course, I wasn’t a principled awakened being, but it still felt awkward trying to open a dialogue with a villain.

“…About what you said earlier.”

But what could I do? I had used all my strength to its limit, and still, I lost. The only achievement I could claim was making her bleed a little. It wasn’t just by a hair; I was defeated by almost four or five hair-breadths. Maybe after I’ve grown more, but for now, she was an impossible opponent.

“Ultimately, why did you… why did you come into this novel’s world and create a cult like the Moonlight Cult? For what purpose, exactly?”

Left with no choice, I asked her. The reason and purpose for founding the Moonlight Cult. She said she wanted to talk more with me, and that she hoped I would understand her ‘will’ through it. If so, what was that will? How grand was it that she wanted my understanding? It was a bit embarrassing to ask after boldly boasting I’d throw her in a detention center and then getting thrashed, but one way or another, I had to ask.

I gazed at Haru with an attitude of serious attentiveness, and Haru remained silent for a moment. As the silence stretched, just as I was about to narrow my eyes, thinking there was probably no ‘will’ or whatever after all.

“…First, I have a question.”

Haru’s tightly sealed lips parted. Her eyes held a serious gaze.

“Lee Hyunjin, exactly how much of that novel have you read? Did you even finish it?”

So I decided to answer her seriously as well.

“I read the prologue and dropped it.”

“…”

“…”

“…”

A silence, slightly shorter than before, flowed. Haru soon collected herself and looked down at me with a bewildered expression.

“The prologue, you say? You dropped it there? Then, you didn’t even read the first episode?”

“No, I didn’t.”

“Do you even know the characters…?”

“No, I don’t, do I?”

Still, I know Yang Chan-ho. An ability user who can turn a mop into a holy sword—how rare and unique is that character? I met Haru’s gaze with bright, clear eyes.

“S-shit.”

Soon, a harsh word burst from her lips. She was smacking my lips for saying bad words, yet she herself was cursing.

Haru then pressed her forehead, letting out a groan, and glared at me with half-lidded eyes.

“So that’s why you can be so carefree… Because you know nothing, you just! Enjoyed your school life to the fullest, didn’t you!?”

“Why are you suddenly getting so angry?”

“How can I not be angry!!”

Haru gnawed at her lips, muttering to herself that for fellow transmigrators, their first meeting felt subtly out of sync. As for me, I had no idea what she was talking about.

However, I could roughly guess that the original novel’s content held great significance.

“What kind of development makes you react like that?”

I asked with a certain degree of doubt in my voice, and Haru gave a hollow answer.

“A destruction ending.”

“Ah.”

I quickly understood and nodded. Right, a destruction, or apocalypse ending…

“…”

Shit? I, who had been lost in thought for a moment, lifted my head again and looked at Haru.

At my gaze, which seemed to ask if she was serious, Haru’s shoulders slumped.

“…First of all, the novel’s content is largely divided into Part 1 and Part 2. Part 1 is a story centered around Cheongsong Academy’s 4th-generation students, based on this world’s timeline…”

She continued her explanation with a frown.

“What’s important to us right now is Part 2. None other than you, Lee Hyunjin, the 9th-generation students who entered as the second-highest scorer, are the protagonists of Part 2.”

“…Oh…”

And I could only close my mouth after that short exclamation.

It was something I had anticipated at some point. The 4th-generation students of death and the current 9th-generation students, which side were the true protagonists of this world? Had I entered at the end of the story, or was it just beginning? Surprisingly, it seemed neither of the two possibilities I had pondered was entirely wrong.

“Then, that destruction ending happens in our generation?”

“…That’s right. Just for reference, in the original story, despite the valiant efforts of various characters, including Cheon Soyul, with whom you are close, the Earth is split in half.”

“What?!”

“The planet itself is blown away. Haha…”

Haru, who had briefly let out a hollow laugh, soon changed her expression to a frosty one and fell silent.

Amidst my confusion, I looked at her with an incredibly complex gaze.

“Therefore, I’m going to the moon.”

Haru then presented the answer to my initial question, ‘What is your purpose?’

“If we stay on this Earth, there’s no way we’ll survive. Everyone will die.”

It was the first time her golden eyes revealed a trace of fear.