Chapter 14
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: 13. Preemptive Strike Wins!
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Meanwhile, at Kim Seung-jun's house.
"Argh! We've poured every penny into your tuition to get you into Hansung, and now you're saying you won't go?!"
"Shut up! What business is it of yours if I don't wanna go?"
A middle-aged woman and a teenage boy were locked in a fierce argument.
The boy's name was Kim Seung-jun. Ever since middle school, he'd begged and pleaded to attend Hansung Academy, scraping by with backdoor bribes and barely passing the entrance exam. But when he saw the academy homepage announcement about the dungeon training exercise, thoughts of Choi Si-woo and Yoo Eun-ha shining made his blood boil in reverse—he'd ditched school entirely.
"Your sister worked her ass off to pay your tuition just to get you into Hansung!"
"Ugh, shut it!"
The hot-blooded, fire-attribute filial son Kim Seung-jun brushed off his mother and stormed into his room, pounding the wall alone.
"Damn it! Choi Si-woo! Yoo Eun-ha! I won't let you off easy!"
He was beyond furious.
He couldn't take it anymore. Where could he vent this rage?
From childhood, he'd craved the Divine Sword, yet he hadn't been chosen by a constellation—all because of those two bastards.
Yeah. He needed to find a way to kill those two. That was the only path.
"Hoh, if you're not letting them off easy, what do you plan to do?"
"Poison their food or something."
"Kukukuku. A petty, small-minded idea, as expected."
A strange voice echoed, prompting him to look around. Before he knew it, Kim Seung-jun's room had turned pitch black.
"W-Who are you?"
"A lowly worm dares to wonder about me?"
Kim Seung-jun bit his lip.
What nonsense was this intruder spouting, barging into someone else's home like that?
He was already fuming at the thought of those two bastards thriving in the dungeon—why did he have to endure this injustice?
"Why must you endure this injustice?"
"!!"
"Because you're simply too incompetent, of course."
Was this unidentified entity here just to mock him?
He wanted to jump up in anger, but his body wouldn't budge.
"But I can give even a deficient worm like you the power to stand against those two."
"R-Really?"
"But that's all it is. How you use that power to take down Choi Si-woo and Yoo Eun-ha is up to you."
"Th-Thank you! Thank you so much!"
Kim Seung-jun bowed at a perfect 90 degrees toward the invisible owner of that eerie voice, over and over. But it was only for a moment—a black hand emerged from the darkness and pierced straight through his chest.
"Gahk!"
Kim Seung-jun felt something embed in his chest and promptly lost consciousness.
Meanwhile, Divine Sword user Choi Si-woo was at the academy.
He was supposed to head out for the dungeon expedition, but now that he'd regressed, it held no meaning. Better to use this time preparing for the enemies ahead.
That's why he was still at the academy.
[So, what's your plan?]
"First, we take out Kim Seung-jun and whoever's backing him. Kim Seung-jun himself is no match for Reina or Han Su-ji, so I asked the instructor to swap in Reina for me."
Kim Seung-jun on his own was nothing. Priority was the smug bastard pulling strings from behind.
[The problem is Yoo Eun-ha. That power she has isn't ordinary. Even to me, a constellation, it feels... alien.]
"I sense it too. But that's exactly why I trust her. Still, we need to take out whoever's behind Kim Seung-jun. Otherwise, Yoo Eun-ha dies."
The entity that empowered Kim Seung-jun: the Black God Cult.
A fanatical group spreading harm across the world alongside the Seven Deadly Sins.
Scum who pulled every dirty trick to topple Hansung Academy, the one thing standing in their way. And their next victim was none other than Yoo Eun-ha.
[Mm. True, but...]
"I can't let Yoo Eun-ha die. For her sake... and for humanity's."
In the past, the monster core embedded in Yoo Eun-ha had gone berserk, creating a massive gate.
The academy suffered heavy losses, with countless casualties.
They'd destroyed the gate hastily under America's tacit approval—instead of slowly shrinking and sealing it—spreading demonic energy everywhere. Gates began appearing in Korea far more frequently than before.
Even setting aside his personal feelings for Yoo Eun-ha, the Black God Cult's freaks had to be stopped.
They'd started out preaching worship of the Black God, but when cornered for extermination, they'd allied with the Sins to save their skins.
[There's the one breaking the academy's barrier.]
"I see him."
Near the academy's back gate, some guys were prepping their sabotage.
Precisely today, when every student was off on dungeon expeditions—the Black God Cult was overlaying their own ritual on the academy's barrier.
They ensnared the hatred-consumed in darkness, swallowing them whole.
"Made thorough work of it?"
"Wouldn't ambushing inside the dungeon have been better? Get a taste of those young girls too. Heh heh."
"Idiot."
A mob worshiping the Black God according to their doctrine, yet committing every crime under the sun. Trash.
Because of scum like them, Korea faced a gate crisis.
"I won't forgive you."
Light gathered on Choi Si-woo's sword.
My head throbbed. Just a bus ride, and I nearly puked from motion sickness.
Damn Blazing Bat. She knew I get carsick and still made me ride. One day, I'll snatch that fire bat of hers and tan her ass good.
Should've just used Acceleration and Parallel Circuits.
But a sudden thought hit me.
If the original story was already twisted, wouldn't even more things have changed? Like, maybe someone other than Kim Seung-jun shows up?
Suppressing the bile rising in my throat, I stepped off the vehicle. In the distance, a pink-haired woman with washboard abs came sprinting over, hollering.
"Hawa wa! Hawa wa! There you are!"
"Oh, Bbeom-mi Jang."
It was Bbeom-mi Jang.
She showed up right on cue. In her hands was the weapon I'd requested.
"Here ya go. Your white-haired self wanted this."
"Looks expensive as hell."
Even at a glance, it wasn't some mass-produced junk.
A long katana that fit perfectly in my grip.
Ah, this cool, hefty feel. After endless humiliation and oppression, I was sick of it all...
But.
"...It really is heavy."
Not even a greatsword, but why so damn heavy? Without Body Enhancement, swinging it would be a joke. The weapon itself seemed fine, though—the sheen on the blade looked good.
"Only ten million."
"Wait, I don't think I did ten million worth of favors?"
"Truth is, it's hush money too."
Hush money? Was this a bribe?
Never thought I'd live to take a bribe.
"What do you mean?"
"See, my guild bros registered that dungeon as a false report—said it didn't exist."
"Ah."
"But if the association finds out now that it really exists, we'll get slapped with a massive fine. Hawa wa, Bbeom-mi Jang almost got in deep shit."
"..."
Hey, if I report this to the association, I could rake in some serious cash.
Hunters' lives are on the line—this ain't covered by ten million.
And Bbeom-mi Jang. She sure talks a lot.
"Listen, Bbeom-mi Jang. To keep me quiet, you gotta do one more thing."
"Hawa wa! What is it?"
Her face paled at my words, clinging like she'd do anything.
"Just in case, stand guard near this dungeon for me."
"Hoee! Got it!"
At my kind, gentle request, Kim Bbeom-mi stuck right by the dungeon entrance.
This covered any other interlopers from the twisted plot, beyond Kim Seung-jun.
But where the hell was Choi Si-woo?
I couldn't spot him. He was supposed to come here with us. Didn't he get off the bus too?
No, I don't think I saw him on the bus either.
Where'd that jerk go? Ditching me to goof off somewhere?
"Yoo Eun-ha!"
"Whoa, what? You scared me."
"Who was that woman just now? The washboard one!"
The washboard from earlier could only be Bbeom-mi.
"Can't you see? A washboard."
"That's not what I'm asking! How can you pull that crap on me and then eye another girl?"
What ridiculous misunderstanding. Oh, karma?
"What's your deal? She owed me a favor and helped out—that's it. See the weapon? I don't have myth-grade gear like you, so I had to borrow from someone."
"Hmph."
Was this bitch trying to pout?
Looked like she wanted some shady fun from me in the dungeon.
I had no hobby of stealing heroines, but this Choi Si-woo guy seemed to get off on it, unlike the original.
With his massive harem left, losing Han Su-ji wouldn't hurt.
Han Su-ji pouted and ran off to gossip behind my back with Reina, who was chatting with the others.
Those two were useless right now. What mattered was Choi Si-woo.
"Hey, didn't expect you to show for the dungeon."
I was deep in thought about where he'd gone when the Blazing Bat—who'd been laughing with the other instructors—patted my shoulder and said that.
"Only 'cause certain people kept yapping about it today."
"That's life, kid."
That's why Yoo Jin-seok dumped you.
No, she wasn't important anymore. Choi Si-woo was. That blockhead skipping out on powering up made my hands shake and head spin.
"Where'd Choi Si-woo go, anyway?"
"Your hubby? Said he's skipping the dungeon."
"Who're you calling hubby, you hag? You check the anonymous boards too?"
The academy forums were still a shitstorm.
Choi Si-woo as my husband, me banging anything that moved—endless slander tormenting me.
Reporting them all? No clue how many, so I was just enduring.
"Who're you calling hag?"
Kim Ji-hye flicked my forehead hard.
"Yes, ma'am."
"Brat. Anyway, Choi Si-woo said he had business. Kid nails it every time."
"Shouldn't we grab him now?"
That lunatic grinned at me every time, then went full psycho. Like the world hung on his shoulders.
If he was really skipping, I'd have to shove Yoo Jin-seok back into the protagonist spot.
Wait—he said he asked to swap in Reina?
So Reina's in my group? Then we can take Kim Seung-jun.
"How? I'm hands-off."
"He's just lazy."
At my words, the Blazing Bat's temple vein bulged as she scribbled on the group list.
"Anyway, time to call the groups. Everyone, listen up!"
If Reina was with us, it'd be fine. That's what I thought.
Group 3: Kim Cheol-su, Yoo Eun-ha, Kim Seung-jun, Park Jae-sang.
Two no-name cadets, Kim Seung-jun, and me.
We're screwed, right? Where the fuck was that dog Choi Si-woo?
Even using Kim Cheol-su and Park Jae-sang as meat shields, no way I win.
At least I had the weapon as insurance. Kill with this?
"You said you'd swap in Reina?"
I puffed my cheeks and confronted the Blazing Bat, but she smacked my head with the group list.
"Gotta balance the teams, dummy."
Ah, we're doomed.
Thanks to the Blazing Bat's bullshit trolling, I was stuck with nameless extras.
"Yoo Eun-ha, let's do our best."
"Same here. I might suck, but please take care of me."
I had zero expectations from you two.
"You got it. Let's cooperate in the dungeon."
I exchanged perfunctory greetings with the extra cadets. The problem was Kim Seung-jun—his glare was still off.
Now it felt like full-on visual assault.
This was dangerous. A twisted world from the original. I could die anytime.
His vibe was all wrong. Some Black God Cult tattoo-ish mark near his neck.
Wait, we hadn't entered the dungeon yet, and that cheap freak was one-shot fodder for the Blazing Bat.
Time for my best survival play.
The rapist finally dropped his glare, flashed a friendly smile, and approached.
"Hey, Yoo Eun-ha. Looking forward to working with—"
Preemptive strike wins!
Thwack!
I kicked Kim Seung-jun square in the balls with all my might.
In an instant, his eyes bulged, and he clutched his groin, writhing.
I yelled at the Blazing Bat, who'd turned to look.
"Instructor! This guy's Black God Cult!"