Sparks Ignite the War – Part 2
Crack! Crunch! Snap! Boom!
Kang Seojun’s body swelled as though an internal bomb had detonated, bones jutting outward in painful, grotesque spasms.
—Snap!
“Hah… hah!”
A bone-cracking sound rang out as Seojun’s hunchback twisted violently backward, vertebrae cracking and shifting with audible horror.
The sight was so nightmarish that Seo Eunha clamped both hands over her mouth.
“I-It’s okay, right!? Seojun!! Seojun!!”
Seo Eunha paced frantically beside him, unable to stand or sit, her wide eyes trembling with barely contained panic.
“Of course it is! Heh heh!”
—Shiver! Thud! Flutter! Flutter-flutter!
Even though he insisted he was fine, nothing about his appearance suggested otherwise.
Despite his entire frame convulsing, Seojun forced out the words with gritted determination.
“I’ll… finish this… soon! Yow!”
—Gulp! Swell!
—Crack! Boom!
“You… must be in pain… I should’ve said something earlier… I’m sorry… heh heh!”
At that moment, a heavy weight settled in Seo Eunha’s chest.
“D-Do you… really…”
She spoke in a voice struggling to suppress her surging emotions.
“How many times have you repeated this…?”
—Thud! Crunch! Snap!
Kang Seojun answered casually, as if discussing the weather.
“More than two digits… yow! I… forgot… the… count! Waugh!”
“W-What…!”
Seojun had merely been recounting his game loops, but to Seo Eunha the words carried an entirely different weight.
Two digits… that means at least ten times…!
Those terrifying times…!
Flash after flash of her own “karma” from the Destiny Record passed through her mind.
The Destiny Record did not simply show videos. If that were all, she would not have been so emotionally shaken.
It was a powerful item that faithfully inherited the accidents and emotions from previous timelines.
Through the Destiny Record, the emotions left in her heart like brands had stirred overwhelming guilt in Seo Eunha.
The reason Kang Seojun had been forced into infinite painful regressions was because, in a past life, Seo Eunha had demanded too much from him and hurled him into the Altar of Regression.
What have I done to Seojun…
Seo Eunha bit her lower lip hard enough to draw blood, her face already on the verge of tears.
Even though I did that… why doesn’t he hate me…?
—Last dawn.
The words Kang Seojun had whispered while holding her flashed through her mind in perfect clarity.
There was no regret.
No regret for any moment they had shared.
And in this life she would definitely save him.
That’s not just faith or forgiveness…
Seo Eunha squeezed her eyes shut tightly.
Large teardrops splashed onto the floor.
Anyone would wear down emotionally after such repeated suffering…
—Sob!
He doesn’t have any regrets about me… but after countless loops, even his resentment toward me has been worn away…
Yet his heroic spirit had remained untouched even after so many long years.
And even after declaring he would save her too.
Seo Eunha believed the only reason was that his temperament remained pure.
After being ground down and worn away by hellish loops, only his pure heart remained.
And the one who had twisted such a good person…
It’s all my fault.
Seo Eunha tried to muffle her oncoming sob with both hands.
“Ah… this… this is so unfair!”
Kang Seojun mistook her gesture for disgust.
The power that protected the mind from hatred or fear was the Willpower stat.
Although Seo Eunha possessed an A-rank Willpower of 26, he imagined that suddenly witnessing such a grotesque scene without any preparation would naturally cause mental damage.
“It’s… not good, right? You must be in pain… please, just sit back a little! Hah!”
—Crack! Snap!
—Stumble! Stumble!
Kang Seojun turned his back, thinking he had been lacking in consideration.
At that moment—
—Whoosh!
Seo Eunha suddenly threw her arms around him from behind with tremendous force.
“……!”
Seojun’s eyes flew wide open in shock.
Her trembling breath brushed directly against his ear.
“Eunha…?”
—Crack! Snap!
For a long while, only the sounds of two people breathing and bones creaking filled the darkness.
“This time… I will definitely… save… you…”
Seo Eunha pressed her vow against Seojun’s ear with a heavy, resolute voice.
“I will save you.”
“?”
[Constellation "Queen of the Deepest Abyss" is looking forward to the events that will happen in the future.]
[Constellation "Tree That Tends the Flower World" is looking forward to the events that will happen in the future.]
[Constellation "Queen of the Deepest Abyss" is looking forward to the events that will happen in the future.]
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[Constellation "Tree That Tends the Flower World" is sponsoring dimensional currency to you.]
[Constellation "Golden Fox of the Sun and Moon Palace" is sponsoring dimensional currency to you.]
[Constellation "Indomitable Shield" is sponsoring dimensional currency to you.]
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Seo Eunha could not understand why she had suddenly hugged him from behind and spoken those words, but she could not pull away.
Instead of pulling back, Seojun gently held her trembling hand.
And even if that had not been the reason, it was uncomfortable to simply watch her hand shake so pathetically.
Seojun answered with a gentle smile, hoping she would calm down a little.
“Well, I have always believed in you.”
At those words, her hug grew even warmer.
—Crack!
“Gah…!”
The embrace was so tight that her tongue nearly protruded, but Seojun endured the pain with gritted teeth.
—Drip. Drip.
After only a short time, the bone-cracking sounds gradually faded.
Kang Seojun, still holding her hand, slowly loosened his grip and spoke.
“First, let’s properly finish this task.”
—And now the transformation was almost complete.
He did not want to remain in the form of Park Sinhu while being hugged by Seo Eunha.
“I apologize for showing such a shameful sight.”
Fortunately, Seo Eunha stepped back without resistance.
“What? Shame is what I showed you, isn’t it?”
Whatever.
If Seo Eunha’s form was shameful, then what should he call the abomination transformation show he had just performed—twisting his entire body?
—Sob!
Seo Eunha turned her head, wiping away tears.
—Drip! Drip!
By now the transformation was nearly finished.
His body moved as though the broken bones were being realigned, gradually regaining its perfect human shape.
“…Eh?”
After wiping her tears, Seo Eunha looked back at Seojun and let out a single cry.
Because the silhouette was exactly the appearance she knew.
It was the person ranked as the number-one target Jin Serin had to watch out for among this academy generation.
“Taesan Group… successor?”
Seojun’s form had already become a perfect copy of Park Sinhu.
“Yes. That’s right.”
Kang Seojun, now in Park Sinhu’s body, slowly turned toward Seo Eunha.
A rugged, masculine face overflowing with testosterone.
Yet the calm expression that had always been uniquely his.
“Ah!”
Seo Eunha clapped her hands as if she had just realized something.
“So that’s what Seojun-ssi was thinking.”
Shifting the attention of the mind to the successor of the Taesan Group.
Then one question arose.
“But why the Taesan Group?”
“For the future.”
Seojun continued while checking with his smartwatch for any irregularities in the transformation.
“If we don’t do something now… there’s a very high probability that the Taesan Group will join the mind faction later.”
The Taesan Group was an organization that spared no means to protect its headquarters’ profits.
In the later scenarios, it was one of the fastest to betray humanity when the mind faction grew explosively.
“That’s why I want to make an early enemy of the minds.”
If the two factions were made to hate each other from the beginning, the chance that the Taesan Group would later ally with the minds would drop dramatically.
“So that happened…?”
Seo Eunha nodded in understanding.
“They are certainly the type who would do it.”
Thinking of the atrocities the Taesan Group had committed so far as Jin Serin’s rival, she felt they were certainly capable of it.
—Clap!
After finishing the transformation check, Seojun clapped once.
“Now then, let’s move on to the next stage. I’ll explain the situation acting in detail.”
“Yes.”
Seo Eunha stepped closer to Seojun and perked up her ears.
“I will act out a situation where I deliver information about the minds to Eunha.”
Seojun pulled a folded sheet of paper from his pocket and handed it to her.
“I also wrote the script. Please review it. There’s no need to memorize it word for word—just look at the general flow.”
Seo Eunha shone her smartwatch on the script and rolled her eyes rapidly.
After three seconds.
“I’ve memorized it all.”
“What? You memorized it all?”
Seojun blinked in surprise.
“Yes. Following the script exactly is fine.”
Seo Eunha smiled confidently and burned the script in place, disposing of it.
“Memorization is my specialty.”
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
—Creak.
The two of them opened the rusty container door and stepped outside.
Indeed.
The moment they emerged, the presence of the hidden minds was instantly felt all around.
During their conversation inside the container, the minds had taken their positions and were monitoring them.
Seo Eunha, with her A-rank instincts, also noticed and sent Seojun a signal with her eyes.
Seojun gave a tiny nod.
Seo Eunha immediately began acting according to the script.
“Y-You… you’re delivering information to us… for our sake… is that true?”
“?”
Seojun’s eyes shot open wide.
Wait, acting???
“R-R-Really?”
Seojun closed his eyes tightly.
What kind of acting is this!!!
It was a mistake.
Thinking back, among the original Grand Hunter Academy, there was no character as far from “acting” as Seo Eunha had been.
She was straightforward and hid her true feelings poorly, so she had received debuffs in most deception judgments.
And her Charisma talent had been among the lowest playable characters.
Still… I didn’t expect this much.
[Intelligence: 9]
Because her intelligence was E-rank?
I miscalculated.
[Willpower: 30]
But the plan isn’t ruined. This much is still okay.
The hidden minds were not watching right next to them.
Fortunately, they’re quite far away.
So even if the intonation was awkward, it wouldn’t be heard clearly.
Even if the expression was odd, it wouldn’t be obvious.
The plan continues. Seo Eunha’s acting ability is beyond expectations, but this level is fine.
In just a short moment, countless thoughts raced through Seojun’s head.
Seo Eunha, unaware of his rapid calculation, wore an eager expression as if asking, Am I doing well?
Pay attention and focus.
The hidden minds were listening to this conversation in real time.
Now it was Seojun’s turn to deliver the lines.
“We know a lot more.”
Seojun spoke with force.
“If the Sungjin Group wants information about the minds, we can provide as much as you desire. We could even dry up every single cell of the minds stationed in Stellaport.”
—Thud!
At that moment, the pressure of the minds Seojun’s Eye of Providence had been reading suddenly spiked.
They’ve swallowed the bait perfectly. Good.
It was the signal that the spark had properly ignited the war.
After all, there was no other phrase that could provoke the opponent more surely than mentioning their own deaths.
This war must happen.
It was not only to prevent the Taesan Group from joining the mind faction.
If we use this war well…
Of course, dimensional currency.
From the Taesan Group’s support to the treasures the minds had hidden.
The benefits Seojun could obtain were limitless.
And those benefits would be used directly.
To help me obtain the Heavenly Demon Divine Art for my late-game build.