episode_0213

All personnel to be mobilized for the Moonlight Cult subjugation operation had been decided. Including mere support staff, the number reached dozens of people…

Among them, the Awakened who would directly strike the Moonlight Cult’s main headquarters were set.

First, as commanders, there was the Hero Yang Chan-ho, Archmages Seol Hayeon and Cheon Sehee, Ryu Seeun, the Flame Emperor Hong Myeongseon, the Sword Ghost Lee Cheonsang, and the next S-rank, Lee Hyunjin.

A whopping seven individuals were close to Special S-rank. In addition, there were several elite Awakened, including Violet, who surpassed A-rank.

The prevailing sentiment was that this would be a battle they couldn’t lose even if they wanted to.

At least among the Awakened, that is.

‘…Well, I’m not sure if it will really go that smoothly.’

In other words, I was an exception. After all, I had directly witnessed Haru, that woman’s power.

Even if all these S-ranks rushed in, would they truly be able to successfully subdue that monster?

Yang Chan-ho, for example, was considered an anomaly, a uniquely powerful individual even among all the Special S-ranks in Awakened society…

What would the gap be between him and Haru? Even I couldn’t dare to guess.

Perhaps, contrary to expectations, Yang Chan-ho might even hold a slight advantage. Well.

It was impossible to know unless the two monsters clashed head-on right now.

*Whoosh…*

“…”

I was standing on the deck, quietly looking up at the dark sky. The cold wind blowing in at that moment made me frown slightly.

Near me, several other Awakened were also passing time, facing the sea breeze.

According to Violet’s testimony, the Moonlight Cult’s main headquarters was an underwater cave beneath the sea.

The coordinates required descending deep into the Arctic Ocean, making approach difficult without a ship.

Fortunately, they had acquired a warship from the Korean government, which operated on magic, similar to Yang Chan-ho’s Lightning Storm.

There would likely be no better conditions for a covert surprise attack than this.

“…Hmm.”

As I quietly alternated my gaze between the sky and the sea, I suddenly sensed a presence and turned my head.

“This is the first time we’re greeting each other like this, isn’t it?”

A man stood there. His complexion looked more tired than when I’d met him before, and his eyes seemed gaunt.

I straightened my posture and greeted the man, the Sword Ghost Lee Cheonsang.

“It’s been a while, Sword Ghost-nim. Back then, things were so chaotic… we couldn’t properly greet each other. My name is Lee Hyunjin.”

When I lightly bowed my head, Lee Cheonsang awkwardly scratched his cheek.

“Uh, hmm. You don’t have to use honorifics. We’re both S-ranks, Hyunjin-gun.”

“No, well, aren’t you my senior? Still.”

“…You’re very polite.”

Lee Cheonsang reacted with a hint of surprise to my answer, which showed I felt a bit burdened.

Not knowing what exactly was surprising, I blinked my eyes. Soon, Lee Cheonsang chuckled and came to stand beside me.

“Why, you know. Back then, at Jeokho Academy, your mouth was incredibly rough.”

“…Ah.”

And only after hearing that did I understand the reason. Come to think of it, was this person next to me when I was bickering with Haru?

I wore a blank expression for a moment, then quickly startled and had to ask back in a hurry.

“No, were you awake then? I thought you were definitely unconscious.”

‘If that was the case, why didn’t you help me?’ When I asked with a sharp gaze conveying exactly that meaning, Lee Cheonsang gave an embarrassed laugh.

“I’m not trying to make excuses, but just listening to the conversation was my limit. As you know, I was in quite a state.”

“Hmm…”

I hummed and nodded. Indeed, recalling Lee Cheonsang’s ruined state after being ravaged by Eileen back then, it was hard to press him further.

So as I simply kept my mouth shut, Lee Cheonsang changed the subject first.

“Well, anyway, thank you for back then, Hyunjin-gun. If it hadn’t been for you, I would have almost certainly lost my life right there.”

“…”

“…Everyone else doesn’t seem too tense, but you and I are a bit different, aren’t we, Hyunjin-gun?”

Leaning both arms on the ship’s railing, Lee Cheonsang continued, sounding bitter.

“Of course, the power on this ship right now is filled with individuals capable of wiping out a decent-sized nation. But from another perspective, none of them have actually seen that woman directly.”

“…Are you referring to Haru?”

“Yes, the Moonlight Cult Leader.”

As soon as I heard that, my expression must have darkened slightly, even if I didn’t realize it.

Lee Cheonsang sighed deeply, as if fully understanding my change in expression.

“It’s embarrassing, but just dealing with Eileen Lewis was my limit, so strictly speaking, I couldn’t even properly fight her…”

“…Yes.”

“But I could certainly confirm her power.”

Lee Cheonsang took a short breath, then added a remark in a stiff, rigid tone.

“She is a monster beyond Special S-rank.”

At that, I couldn’t say a word. I could only keep my mouth shut… and silently agree with his words.

‘A monster beyond Special S-rank, huh.’

Of course, that level wasn’t light enough to be discussed so simply.

Haru’s strength was so overwhelming that one couldn’t help but utter such words.

I still hadn’t grasped how that spatial magic unfolded, so her mastery as a mage was probably also superior.

I suddenly pressed my aching forehead and spoke in a weak voice.

“What can we do, though?”

“…”

“We just have to do as much as we can. If those cult bastards have their leader, then we have a Hero, don’t we?”

It was something I said to try and lighten the mood, and Lee Cheonsang also let out a small laugh, a chuckle mixed with a bit of humor.

“Haha, right. We have Chan-ho. Come to think of it, they’re not the only ones with such an asymmetrical power.”

Then he subtly extended his fist towards me.

“Let’s do well, Hyunjin-gun. Let’s not die… and if possible, not even get hurt.”

“I wish you good luck, ‘Senior-nim’.”

I also replied with a softer address and bumped fists with him. *Thud*.

Lee Cheonsang then said the wind was chilly and returned to his cabin.

And so I, planning to rest a bit until the warship reached its destination, went down below deck…

“…Se-Senior.”

“…”

Soon, I encountered two women inside a cabin that was surely assigned to me.

One was my most cherished junior, Black Heaven Ryu Seeun—

“You’re here?”

The other was.

“Come here and sit down.”

“…”

“Because I have a few things I want to ask.”

The strongest in the scout lineage.

Hidden Sword Yeon Seobaek.

As far as I knew, she definitely shouldn’t be on this warship right now… She surely wasn’t on the subjugation force roster, a…

“…Mother?”

My biological mother.

My whole body stiffened.

*****

Ryu Seeun had rarely experienced a day when her body trembled as much as it did today.

At most, perhaps the time her foster father, Ryu Jinseong, was almost killed due to the black mages’ invasion was the last time.

Of course, this trembling now was very different from the feeling back then, when her heart seemed to drop with a thud.

At least the chilling sensation running down her spine from tension was the same situation.

She rolled her purple eyes to look beside her. Specifically, at the middle-aged woman sitting on the cabin bed.

‘Se-Senior’s mother, she said…?’

First of all, Ryu Seeun didn’t know Yeon Seobaek’s true identity. The existence of the Hidden Sword was known only to a very small number of Awakened in South Korea.

But in truth, such external status was utterly unimportant at this moment.

Only the fact that she was the mother of the young man Ryu Seeun adored mattered.

Ryu Seeun swallowed dry, her whole body trembling like an aspen leaf.

The reason she tried her best to straighten her posture was nothing else. After all, wasn’t this someone who might one day become her ‘Mother-nim’?

Of course, Lee Hyunjin had a fiancée, but that fact was irrelevant.

‘I don’t think I’ll ever fall in love with any man other than Senior…’

With both hands clenched into fists on her knees, Ryu Seeun tried to appear as dignified and proper as she could.

This wasn’t the time to look at Lee Hyunjin, who was also showing a tense expression.

At this moment, there was only one person to focus on.

The person whose favor she had to win was none other than…!

“Did you sleep with this child too?”

“Cough, cough!”

At Yeon Seobaek’s sudden remark, Ryu Seeun let out a dry cough, as if she were about to spit blood.

This was because it coincided with the timing when she had taken a deep breath to calm her nerves.

She covered her mouth and bent her body downwards. Yeon Seobaek looked down at her with an impassive gaze, then turned back to Lee Hyunjin.

Lee Hyunjin avoided his mother’s gaze, but she paid no mind and spoke.

“You are my son, Hyunjin.”

“…Yes, Mother.”

“It seems you’ve accumulated a great deal of sin. I’ve already met or heard about at least three girls…”

“…Ahem, hmm. Right.”

Looking at Lee Hyunjin, who was abruptly coughing, with cold, cynical eyes, Yeon Seobaek added one more remark in a tone that expressed certainty about the future.

“Even if I hear news someday that you’ve been torn into five pieces, perhaps I won’t feel anything at all.”

“…Huh?”

“At that point, well. It would simply be what was meant to happen.”

Yeon Seobaek casually shook her head and rose from her seat.

Ryu Seeun, who had been catching her breath, flinched and tried to stand up as well, but Yeon Seobaek stopped her with a gentle smile.

“You don’t have to follow, child.”

“Uh, Mother-nim, that…”

“Of course, I did give birth to a handsome son, but I didn’t expect him to be this popular…”

“Yes, yes?”

“There’s still some time until we reach the Arctic Ocean. I expect it to be about two days.”

Yeon Seobaek put her hand into her inner pocket, pulled something out, and placed it on the cabin table before leaving.

She glanced back at the two of them and clicked her tongue as if to say it couldn’t be helped.

“It’s good to relieve tension beforehand with ‘such acts,’ but make sure you don’t make any mistakes before a dangerous mission. Both of you.”

“No, Mo─.”

Before Lee Hyunjin could even grab her, Yeon Seobaek instantly concealed her presence, despite having two Archmage-level individuals in front of her.

She simply vanished like a shadow.

“…”

“…”

In the cabin, as if a massive wave had swept through, Lee Hyunjin and Ryu Seeun could only remain silent in awkward poses.

Soon, Ryu Seeun, who had idly shifted her gaze to the table, immediately turned scarlet.

“…Ah, ah, ugh.”

This was because she had seen the item Yeon Seobaek had coolly left behind.

Ryu Seeun’s head steamed, and Lee Hyunjin covered his face.

The item’s identity was…

A condom.

“That, um.”

In that utterly embarrassing silence, Lee Hyunjin was the first to speak.

Lee Hyunjin subtly glanced at Ryu Seeun and tossed out a remark.

“…Are we going to do it? On the ship?”

“…”

“Do you want to?”

Ryu Seeun, tearing up from extreme embarrassment, nodded silently.

That had been the reason she came to this room in the first place.

Although she had been caught by Yeon Seobaek first. What was done was done, so Ryu Seeun slowly picked up the condom and bit it with her lips.

And she looked up at Lee Hyunjin, her affectionate eyes sparkling brightly.

“…Ha.”

“Se-Senior…”

Lee Hyunjin wasn’t so self-controlled as to be able to endure seeing such a sight.

Twisting his lips into a cold smirk, Lee Hyunjin immediately raised his palm.

And—

*Smack!!!*

“Kyaah?!”

Towards Ryu Seeun, who was hastily covering her buttocks while holding the condom in her mouth, Lee Hyunjin uttered a single, concise command.

“Take off your clothes and spread your legs, you brat.”

“…!”

At those words, Ryu Seeun’s face brightened with the happiest expression in the world.