Chapter 212
Chapter 212
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 212
Chapter Title: Confirmation Through Silence
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‘Her lips are heavier than expected.’
Unfortunately, Seo Woojin hadn’t gotten a single word out of Jenonia.
Even on the brink of death, she had clamped her mouth shut tight and hadn’t uttered a peep.
But Seo Woojin didn’t mind.
‘Whatever. It’s not like I’m a cop.’
He had no intention of gathering evidence and punishing them through the law.
He just needed a bit of certainty.
A sliver of conviction.
And that’s exactly what Seo Woojin had obtained.
Paradoxically, because Jenonia had refused to say a word.
‘Nothing’s more suspicious than invoking the right to remain silent.’
Seo Woojin had asked her two questions.
Did the Demon King’s followers start this war?
And are you at the heart of Iair?
Jenonia hadn’t answered either one, so Seo Woojin took it as a yes.
‘Now all that’s left is figuring out who…’
To push Iair into something as extreme as war, you’d need serious power. Not something just anyone could pull off.
At most, no more than five people.
Seo Woojin marked three bishops and the Holy King as prime suspects for now.
‘That cardinal too, of course.’
The woman who carried the same energy as Sung Yura.
Of course, he had no plans to go confront them right now.
All the emperor had asked was for him to stop Iair’s advance.
But sooner or later, he’d have to check them out.
If any of them were truly Demon King followers, this kind of thing could happen again.
Seo Woojin didn’t kill Jenonia.
There was still plenty he needed to learn.
He just knocked her out, bound her, and hid her amid the rubble of a collapsed building.
She was injured, but restraining someone at Jenonia’s superhuman level wasn’t easy.
No rope, no matter how sturdy, could hold her—she’d snap it like thread.
So Seo Woojin used a different method.
“Didn’t know I could do this.”
An application of the skill ‘Yama.’
He extracted just the iron chains that rose from hell and used those.
Impossible under normal circumstances, but doable now in Demon King Transformation.
‘If I can pull this off, think of the other possibilities…’
A few similar applications flashed through his mind.
But right now, there was something more pressing.
Seo Woojin glanced around after hiding Jenonia.
“That way?”
He sensed the strongest presence nearby.
Seo Woojin headed in that direction.
Whoosh—!
Like the wind itself, he crossed the space in an instant and came to a stop.
Step.
With a small footfall, a knight turned around.
‘Holy Knight.’
The pure white armor marked him as one of Iair’s famed Holy Knights.
‘Top-tier, by the looks of it.’
His stern face and firmly set lips—despite the surprise—suggested a man of resolve.
‘Black Existence…’
A groan-like sound escaped the knight’s lips.
But only for a moment.
The knight, Oien, immediately drew his sword and pointed it at Seo Woojin.
“No more slaughter! I won’t allow it!”
Pure white aura, matching his armor, rose from his blade.
It brimmed with holy power, giving off a fierce intensity.
Seo Woojin watched the knight for a moment before speaking.
“I’m not planning to kill anyone else.”
He’d already taken down nearly a thousand soldiers.
They’d deserved it, so no guilt weighed on him.
The plundering had stopped, and the garrisoned troops were fleeing the city—no need to chase them down.
Seo Woojin shrugged as he spoke, and bewilderment crossed Oien’s face.
He hadn’t expected the ‘Black Existence’ to sound so… ordinary.
Not the voice of a monster brimming with malice, but surprisingly youthful.
Stunned into silence, Oien heard Seo Woojin continue.
“But you’ll have to answer a few questions first.”
“I refuse. The god’s knight makes no deals with Demon King followers.”
Seo Woojin let out a scoff at Oien’s firm rejection.
“Demon King follower? Me?”
If he’d been called the Demon King himself, it might not have been this amusing.
“I get why you’d think that.”
Seo Woojin scratched the horn sprouting from his head.
“But I’m not what you imagine. If anything, the opposite.”
Oien’s eyebrow twitched.
“The opposite? What do you mean?”
No way he’s claiming to be the Demon King’s enemy, Oien thought, dismissing it internally.
“Exactly what you just thought.”
But Seo Woojin spoke as if he’d read Oien’s mind.
Flinch.
“I’m not a Demon King follower. I’m running around like this to smash those bastards.”
Seo Woojin grinned at the startled Oien.
“But…”
Oien shut his mouth mid-sentence.
The rumors he’d heard were true—the ‘Black Existence’ had slain apostles and the wyrm.
“You killed Iair’s soldiers, but honestly, didn’t they have it coming?”
Plunder, rape, every war crime in the book.
Those scum had no ground to complain.
Oien, who’d despised the troops’ actions, found himself nodding unconsciously before catching himself in shock.
“Believe me or not, up to you.”
Truthfully, Seo Woojin didn’t care if Oien believed him.
If he really wanted answers, he had ways to get them.
Chaotic energy began to flow.
He’d been suppressing it on purpose until now, but this meant he’d use force if uncooperative.
Oien’s body trembled under the horrific pressure.
Moments ago, it had just been a bizarre-looking man.
Now? Like standing before a colossal ‘catastrophe.’
“…What do you want to know?”
Oien barely steadied his shaking body and asked, figuring he’d hear him out.
Seo Woojin grinned.
“Who decided on this war?”
* * *
“That’s weird…”
Lee Ji-ah kept glancing around, tilting her head.
“Still looking for Woojin?”
Kye Soo-ji smiled at the sight.
“No, it’s just odd. We came here for training, but it’s been days and he hasn’t shown his face once.”
“The instructor said he had business and stepped out.”
“That’s the thing. What kind of business does he have in a foreign kingdom like this?”
It was suspicious, no denying it.
Even Kye Soo-ji found it strange.
But she figured Seo Woojin must have his reasons—something they didn’t know.
No need to dig deeper.
He’d explain when he got back, like always.
But Lee Ji-ah couldn’t contain her curiosity, her eyes sparkling.
“We’ve already hunted thousands of Ancient Orcs, right? But Woojin hasn’t joined a single subjugation since day one.”
Ancient Orcs were tough.
Individually weak compared to heroes, but their strength shone in groups.
The heroes had been in real danger several times during the hunts.
Yet they’d overcome every crisis, making the subjugations a success.
Many heroes had leveled up in the process.
With numbers like that, the experience points added up nicely.
And Seo Woojin had sat out the whole thing.
“In a situation like this, what’s more important than leveling up? We need to max out before the Demon King descends if we’re gonna win the war.”
Not knowing Seo Woojin’s true power, Lee Ji-ah couldn’t help worrying.
Even if he was the strongest hero, he probably couldn’t face the Demon King yet.
So she couldn’t fathom why he’d skip prime leveling ops for some side errand.
“You think it’s weird too, right Dahye? Yeah?”
Lee Ji-ah sought agreement from Kim Da-hye.
“Yeah.”
Kye Soo-ji smiled at Kim Da-hye’s indifferent nod.
Then, perhaps to change the subject, she asked.
“You’ve been training separately with Woojin lately. Mind sharing what you’re working on?”
Lee Ji-ah whipped her head around, eyes wide—she’d clearly been dying to know.
“Uh…”
Kim Da-hye fidgeted as all eyes turned to her.
Kye Soo-ji waved her hands quickly at the awkwardness.
“No need to say if it’s private.”
She worried she’d made it uncomfortable.
But after a moment’s thought, Kim Da-hye nodded.
“Wait a sec.”
She pulled out her sketchbook and started drawing.
Thanks to her skill, it finished in seconds.
“‘Summon.’”
Flash—!
Light poured out.
The drawing came to life as a summon.
Lee Ji-ah and Kye Soo-ji watched eagerly, eyes widening.
“…Iron Man?”
Beside Kim Da-hye stood a metallic suit.
It screamed iconic hero from a blockbuster movie era.
“You fight by wearing this?”
Kye Soo-ji stared in disbelief, but Kim Da-hye shook her head.
“…Then who wears it?”
Lee Ji-ah asked.
Kim Da-hye bit her lip before answering.
“The soldiers.”
The other two blinked at her shy response.
“Why?”
Kye Soo-ji especially couldn’t grasp it.
Kim Da-hye’s summons guzzled mana.
Why waste it on soldiers?
Focusing on herself would yield far more efficient, powerful weapons.
Plus, how many suits could her mana equip? A hundred? Two?
In a war this scale, that was negligible.
Kim Da-hye stared straight at Kye Soo-ji.
Then, just like she had with Seo Woojin, she answered firmly.
“I want to save as many as possible. Minimize meaningless sacrifices.”
It was the most she’d ever said at once.
The first time.
The first time she’d stated her thoughts so clearly.
Lee Ji-ah and Kye Soo-ji could only watch Kim Da-hye’s earnest eyes in silence.
They’d never once deeply considered the soldiers’ lives.
But Kim Da-hye was different.
She didn’t see them as numbers.
She faced the truth head-on: their lives weighed the same as their own.