Chapter 39
Chapter 39
Translator: Penny
Episode 39: Wearing a Mask
Episode 39: Wearing the Mask
"Haa... haa! Finally, finally I killed her!"
At last, she had avenged her enemies.
The images of her comrades, who had been toyed with and killed by Yun Se-a, flashed through her mind.
Seong Arin, her mana circuits severed, thrown as monster fodder. Sakura and Ecclesia, their hands severed, helplessly succumbing to Yun Se-a's attacks.
Even Seo Jian, burned alive from head to toe... She clasped her hands together, offering a final farewell to her former companions.
"Everyone... I've avenged you all. Rest in peace now."
Using past experiences, they kidnapped the unconscious Yun Se-a with a Camouflage Cloak that evaded Detection Magic and a Subspace Pouch capable of storing any object. They transported her to a location guided by their accomplices, where they killed her. The incident was then closed as a missing person case, allowing the perpetrators and their accomplices to return without suspicion—a flawless operation.
It was a success.
"I thought you were just leeches sucking Father's money dry, but you're actually quite capable."
The accomplices turned out to be none other than Yun Seong-ho's maternal relatives, who had long coveted his wealth.
Their vile desire to kill Yun Se-a and inherit her fortune aligned perfectly with Yu Eun-ha's determination to eliminate her, forging a temporary alliance.
Their plan to secretly kill Yun Se-a and pour concrete over the scene to destroy the evidence seemed quite sound. After all, Yu Eun-ha had returned without leaving a single fingerprint or strand of hair, ready to testify that her maternal relatives had committed the crime if necessary.
"I can't... give up Father's inheritance."
With only a few steps remaining to reach the surface, Yu Eun-ha was about to ascend, report the completion of Yun Se-a's disposal to her collaborators, and return when...
"So it's you, the vile creature who betrayed our comrade."
Something materialized instantly, and Yu Eun-ha immediately swung her sword.
Clang!
But the blade was blocked with effortless ease by the newcomer...
Crack...!
"Kuh...!"
A violent impact to her abdomen sent Yu Eun-ha flying out of the building, knocking her unconscious for about two seconds.
In that eternity-like span of two seconds, Yu Eun-ha realized her left arm wouldn't move.
"Do you understand the weight of your actions?"
When she finally saw her enemy's face, it was a monster that shouldn't have appeared here.
Azathoth, one of the Seven Demons.
A member of the Seven Demons whom Yu Eun-ha and her Academy comrades had barely managed to defeat in a life-or-death battle, guided by Yun Se-a.
"Damn it, why did you have to show up here...?!"
"For harming our comrade, we shall scatter your blood across This Great Earth to mourn their death."
Having faced Azathoth in the past, Yu Eun-ha believed she could capture him without much trouble. But...
KWAANG!
"Gah...!"
"Slow. Even falling takes you too long."
She was defeated with shocking ease.
In just three minutes, all her limbs were completely fractured, leaving her utterly powerless—unable to even twitch a finger.
Her body felt heavy, making even simple skills difficult to activate. The Orichalcum Sword she had used in the past shattered instantly under Azathoth's relentless assault.
Stone fragments embedded throughout her body disrupted her Mana flow. When Azathoth's fist slammed into her abdomen, Yu Eun-ha vomited a torrent of dark, crimson bile.
"I despise weaklings who resort to trickery, vermin I'd tear to shreds and scatter across the fields."
Azathoth, growing weary of toying with and attacking Yu Eun-ha, casually hurled her against the wall as if she were a nuisance.
"Kaaaaaah...!"
The despair of facing death so soon after her regression, coupled with the uncertainty of whether she would regress again, overwhelmed her.
"It's over now."
Yu Eun-ha lowered her head, consumed by these emotions. Before her appeared...
"...What? My body?!"
"...Don't move, Azathoth."
It was Yun Se-a, her body battered beyond recognition, struggling to restrain the Demon's assault. She had somehow managed to drag herself here, her every movement a testament to her desperate resolve.
"Ugh...!"
Too bad. Should have charged in when her organs and legs were bursting.
The wounds Yu Eun-ha inflicted still throbbed with pain.
The crimson haze blurring my vision suggested blood was weeping from my eyes.
Not surprising, considering every orifice on my body had been bleeding since I pushed myself too far earlier.
If it weren't for Recovery (S), I'd have bled to death long ago.
The problem now was that my Natural Healing's recovery rate had diminished, leaving me constantly bleeding. Still, I was fortunate the blood flowed endlessly, preventing fatal blood loss.
"...Comrade, you're still alive?"
By the way...
Why is that bastard coming out here?
Azathoth, the giant clad in a thousand suits of armor, was the Demon standing before him.
This Boss possessed a unique ability to drop stone fragments that disrupted the accuracy of his opponent's Mana circuits, and a mechanic that forced players to move to avoid meteor strikes (instant-death attacks) that fell every 30 seconds.
As the first Boss to use instant-death attacks, he should be a pushover if you just watch out for the stone fragments. His AI is so buggy that most players can clear him on their first try...
So why is he appearing here?
Just like Shena, the Seven Demons seemed utterly unwilling to follow their original storylines.
Gurgle
"Cough!"
Drip... drip... drip...!
Crimson blood gushed from the corner of his mouth.
"Comrade, are you being manipulated by that damned woman?"
"Ugh..."
Even in this situation, the blockhead is misunderstanding the situation entirely.
Why am I your comrade?
I'm here to take your boss's head and go home.
"Just hold on a little longer. Once you get used to the comrade's attacks... I'll sever that loathsome woman's neck in a single strike!"
"Unfortunately, this is 100% my own will."
"?!?"
There's no time to check behind me, though I did hear something clattering back there. Will Yu Eun-ha actually listen to me?
Just moments ago, she was trying to drown me.
I felt trapped between two murderers trying to kill me from both sides.
"Ugh..."
"You're awake? I'll overlook what you did to me earlier... Just do me one favor."
Honestly, if I refuse... I'm in a hopeless situation.
My Staff is gone, and the only thing I have left is the knife Baek Sia made for me.
Crack, crack...!
From behind me, I heard a sound that shouldn't have been there. Yu Eun-ha struggled to her feet and approached me.
"So, why should I do this?"
"Hmm... A survival alliance? You know, like those temporary alliances that say, 'Just for this time only'?"
Summoning every last bit of strength, I tossed the knife to Yu Eun-ha. She caught it and stared at me.
Just moments ago, she was speaking to me politely, but now she's dropping honorifics and speaking casually as if they never existed. It's truly infuriating.
I desperately wanted to break the Suggestion on Azathoth right then and there and have him kill Yun Se-a. But if I did, Yu Eun-ha would simply regress again.
That's something I absolutely cannot allow.
"I know all about your past, Miss Eun-ha. I was the one who called myself the ultimate scumbag who killed you three times, right?"
"Yes, you killed me every time."
"But I'm different from that person. I swear it on my Mana."
"......!"
Yu Eun-ha seemed slightly shaken by my words.
"Even if you can't trust me, can't you trust magic? The same magic that caused your regression?"
Well, it's like a mage betting their Mana to prove they're not a psychopathic killer... I'm starting to struggle to hold on.
"Comrade! Just hold on a little longer! I'll break your brainwashing and split that damned bitch's head in half—!"
"We don't have time for this. Could you make a decision already?"
"...Fine. Just this once."
Without hesitation, Yu Eun-ha picked up the knife I had thrown and approached Azathoth's core.
Azathoth struggled desperately to break free from my control, but his immense power came with corresponding Constraints. He had become so weakened that he was vulnerable to my near-death Suggestion.
"Kuaaaah! I, Azathoth! If it weren't for these Constraints, a mere mortal like you would be nothing more than a punchline!"
"...Then you shouldn't have emerged in the first place. I'll make sure you can never return."
"You wench...!"
Crack!
"Kaaaaaahhhhhh! Azathoth, defeated by such a paltry trick...!"
With a dull thud, Azathoth, one of the Seven Demons, collapsed lifelessly.
Crack! Crunch!
Watching Yu Eun-ha limp on one leg, yet crush the Demon's skull with all her might, I imagined myself in her place and felt a dizzying sense of dread.
As the Demon's arm twitched slowly before finally falling limp, Yu Eun-ha sighed in relief and slowly walked toward me.
"Hmm... I suppose I could grant you time for a final word or two..."
"Forget it. I won't kill you. I promised, remember?"
Clang!
With those words, Yu Eun-ha tossed the knife she had used earlier at my feet.
...For now, can I consider myself alive?
"Let's go. We need to get you to a hospital first."
"Oh, are you going to help me up?"
Yu Eun-ha responded to my teasing with a sharp stomp on my foot.
"Ow!"
"Fine. If I let you die here, I'll get caught. I still have things to do."
"Haha, of course."
"You promised to turn a blind eye to what happened today. Today's events..."
"A Gate suddenly appeared in the sky, and you and I defeated the Demonic Beasts that fell from it. How's that?"
"...Fine. By the way, your recovery is slow."
"That's probably because of the drugs you injected. Unlike Miss Arin, I don't have infinite Mana."
Yu Eun-ha glanced at me with a slightly apologetic look.
She's still confused, isn't she?
I could see her clearly struggling to figure out which version of me was the real one.
"Shoulders up."
Yu Eun-ha, who had been radiating murderous intent just moments ago, now seemed genuinely intent on getting me to the hospital.
Does she not know about my Demonic Eye of Suggestion?
She said I killed her in all three of my previous lives... which means she died around the time of the Yun Se-a Boss fight in the original timeline. Either Yun Se-a was so powerful in that world that she didn't need to use mind control, or Yu Eun-ha and the Protagonist's party were just incompetent.
Thump!
...It's over without any problems, after all.
Even though I was kidnapped, tortured, and forced to kill all the people from my maternal family... no, they weren't people.
Anyway, I've cleared out all the useless data fragments, and the Barrier seems to be dissolving. Now I just need to entrust myself to the Heroes entering from outside.
"You'll also need to explain why Azathoth called you 'Comrade'."
"Hmm... If that strange fellow truly considered me his comrade, wouldn't he have simply let Miss Eun-ha die?"
"............"
"I overheard her calling me 'Sister'."
Yu Eun-ha's heart began to race. Her reaction was as if she'd heard something she shouldn't have... I found it rather endearing.
Good, she's almost convinced.
"What kind of sister would stand by while her younger sibling was on the verge of death?"
"..........."
Until now, the support had been as indifferent as carrying a corpse, but the moment I finished speaking, it became noticeably more attentive.
She must be thinking, 'Could this person really not be the Yun Se-a I knew?'
Just moments ago, I was writhing in agony, as if needles were piercing every inch of my body. The pain was so intense, I felt like I was on the verge of madness.
But now... now, I'm preparing to drive a nail of guilt into Yu Eun-ha's heart. The pain has vanished, replaced by an overwhelming sense of anticipation.
A Regressor... If things go wrong, they might interfere with my plans and cause an accident.
The Regressor is an unnecessary variable, a mere byproduct in the story I'm crafting.
Such a variable's leash... I'll keep it firmly in hand, even if it means breaking it entirely.
Thunk!
With lightning speed, Yu Eun-ha plunges the cross-shaped dagger I had thrown at her earlier into her thigh.
"Damn, that hurts like hell."
I'd originally planned to just act it out, but for this kind of performance, realism is key. No choice but to go all in.
Thud!
"Ugh... Aaaahhh...!!"
As I writhed on the floor, convulsing wildly, Yu Eun-ha panicked. She grabbed my collar, desperately trying to calm me down.
That's the face. Not the look of someone facing an enemy... but the genuine concern for someone truly precious.
Her expression was a stark contrast to the cold detachment she'd shown moments before. Now, genuine panic was etched across her features.
If you were so afraid of the Academy's retaliation, you shouldn't have kidnapped me in the first place.
If you hated Yun Se-a from the past so much, why didn't you kill her back then?
And why, after being utterly defeated three times and regressing, are you taking your anger out on me, who just wants to go home in peace?
You need to suffer.
You deserve to suffer.
It's time to rebuild our twisted relationship, Yu Eun-ha.
Clang!
A sudden, ominous sound from behind.
A very familiar sound.
"Where are you taking our comrade?!"
Shena hadn't seen it because I'd used the Void to send him away in one swift move. But with the power of the Seven Demons, even in his final death throes, he could still muster enough strength...
At least enough to casually take a human life. More than enough, in fact.
Whether it was blood or something else, Azathoth's crimson-stained body transformed into a colossal, razor-sharp spear.
"At least... I'll take you down with me, bitch!"
The crimson spear wasn't aimed at me, but at Yu Eun-ha's heart.
"Eun-ha... Miss Eun-ha!"
Despite my body convulsing, I somehow managed to shove Yu Eun-ha out of the way.
Perfect!
By pushing Yu Eun-ha aside, I had secured a front-row seat for the spectacle I'd been preparing since earlier.
My body, propelled forward as I shoved Yu Eun-ha, landed precisely in the path of the crimson spear.
Thwack!
Enjoy the show from your VIP seat...
The target you were trying to kill just moments ago... wasn't the one you truly hated.
"...Sister!!"
After three regressions, I had lost all faith in people. Yet, I finally found the "truly kind Yun Se-a" I had been searching for, only to watch her die because of your trolling.
Then, the High-Grade Demon's final strike, fueled by its own life force, pierced my side and exited through the other. I collapsed without even a scream.
This time, I'm really going to die, I thought, as I lay in the silent void, feeling nothing, hearing nothing. Through the barrier, I watched Yu Eun-ha's face contort in anguish as golden lightning crashed down around me.
Ah... that face... it's perfect.
And with that, I closed my eyes.