Enemy or Ally
Drip.... Drip....
Blood began to spill across the floor of the arena. Lee Hyunseung’s bullet hadn’t pierced through Baek Soyun’s hand, but it had lodged deep enough to tear through flesh and force a steady flow of crimson.
Lee Hyunseung stared at the sight and felt a surge of genuine shock ripple through him. What a monster…
In one sense, it was perfectly natural that Baek Soyun had blocked his attack. She had awakened ten times earlier than he had. She’d had that much more time to train, to refine her power. On top of that, her strength had already been proven beyond doubt; she sat as an Elder of the Artemis Guild.
The real problem was that she had been in a state of perfect vulnerability only moments ago.
Her vision couldn’t have fully returned yet… and she still blocked it?
Baek Soyun had been temporarily blinded by the flashbang. Even when her sight began to recover, she couldn’t possibly have predicted that Lee Hyunseung would launch an immediate counterattack. She had been in a pursuit stance, body fully committed to chasing him down. That posture had left her completely exposed.
And Lee Hyunseung had driven a bullet straight into that opening.
I thought it would at least punch through her palm.
It had been a perfect surprise attack. She hadn’t had time to reinforce her body with mana. Under those terrible conditions, most people would have suffered a fatal wound. Yet Baek Soyun had done nothing more than bleed. She must have instinctively concentrated mana into the targeted area in that split second, minimizing the damage. It hadn’t been calculated—it had been pure reflex.
Drip. Drip.
There was no time to stand around in amazement. The real issue was Baek Soyun’s reaction.
Did I… do well?
The reason Lee Hyunseung had forced such a reckless attack was simple: he understood her personality. Baek Soyun liked capable people. She liked those who were fearless, a little unhinged, the kind who seemed to have a few screws loose. In short, she liked strong psychopaths.
Simply blocking the dagger would have been enough to survive the moment. But would she really have spared him? He couldn’t be sure. It was hard to take her word at face value when she had thrown a deadly blade while telling him to dodge it.
So he had chosen a different path. If the odds of survival were low anyway, he would make a lasting impression.
Anyone could defend. But in that exact situation, choosing to counterattack by trying to put a bullet in her face? That was something only a madman would attempt. Only someone with an abnormal amount of courage could even consider it.
Of course, deep down he had also wondered whether this single strike might actually kill her. But, as expected, Baek Soyun had endured it. It wasn’t surprising.
This much was within expectations.
What remained was her reaction. He could only hope she wouldn’t feel offended or displeased. He prayed this act had stimulated her curiosity. No—it had to. Only then would his chances of staying alive rise even slightly.
Drip… Drip…
Her blood fell to the floor. Then, just as suddenly, it stopped. She appeared to have used mana to staunch the bleeding.
She slowly raised her head and looked at him. Her voice was ice-cold.
“I distinctly remember saying I would spare you if you blocked my attack. So why did you dodge? And why did you attack me? I’m asking because I genuinely don’t understand what you were thinking.”
It wasn’t a bad reaction. She was curious. Curious about the reasoning behind his actions. Curiosity was the seed of interest.
Lee Hyunseung deliberately paused for a moment before answering in a calm, natural tone.
“How could I trust a stranger who suddenly appeared, pressed a blade to my throat, and announced she was going to kill me? I didn’t believe a single word you said—not about throwing the dagger, not about sparing me, nothing. You attacked me with clear intent to kill, so I dodged. Then I saw an opportunity to kill you instead, so I took it. Most importantly, you were looking down on me. That’s why I thought this attack might actually work.”
He shrugged lightly, as if it were no big deal, and added, “Though judging from your condition, it seems my judgment was wrong.”
“....”
Baek Soyun muttered to herself for a moment, seemingly deep in thought, then asked him directly.
“So… you were really trying to kill me?”
“If possible, yes. Weren’t you trying to kill me too? If I had been weaker, I would already be dead from the dagger you threw. So is it really that strange that I attacked you?”
On the surface, Lee Hyunseung spoke smoothly, but inside he was repeating a single mantra like a madman: I must judge and speak entirely from Baek Soyun’s way of thinking, using her own logic.
He mimicked the mindset she had displayed in Broad Academy Online as closely as possible, speaking as if those thoughts were his own. Only that way could he make her accept the justification behind his actions. No matter how logical your argument, if the other person doesn’t understand your frame of reference, persuasion is impossible. But even nonsense will be accepted easily if it matches the way they already think.
“Pfft.”
Baek Soyun let out a short laugh, then began to cackle in a way that sent chills racing across his skin.
“So you really tried to kill me?”
She paused, tilting her head.
“You? Tried to kill me?”
Lee Hyunseung answered without hesitation.
“If possible. Of course, as you can see, I failed.”
Step. Step. Step.
This time, Baek Soyun began walking toward him. Lee Hyunseung remained rooted in place, unmoving.
“Oh my. You dodged my attack earlier, but now you’re not dodging even though I’m coming closer? If you tried to kill someone and failed, shouldn’t you be running away?”
“Because you seem to want to talk. When you threw the dagger, I felt clear killing intent in your eyes. But I don’t feel it now. There’s no need to run from someone who isn’t emitting bloodlust. I have no desire to provoke you unnecessarily and die like an idiot. In this changed situation, I judged that my survival chances are higher if I talk with you rather than flee.”
He suppressed all emotion. He thought rationally. He spoke honestly without watching her expression. He conveyed the cause and result of his actions exactly as they were, without exaggeration, sarcasm, or embellishment—even if it came across as rude.
“You really are honest. Should I call it pure? No, that can’t be right. A pure person wouldn’t have the crazy idea of shoving a bullet into someone’s face. Even if they did, they would have felt at least a little fear.”
She drew close, leaned in until her lips brushed his ear, and whispered.
“You’ve killed a lot of people, haven’t you? What did you think the first time you took a life?”
Lee Hyunseung considered her question for a moment. First kill…
He hadn’t killed many people. But he had killed for the first time after arriving in this world.
Hilleon…
The group that had framed him, the lackeys who had planted the stalking evidence in his locker and then fled into the cave. They had tried to kill him, so he had killed them first. Recalling that memory, he answered.
“It felt refreshing. They were trash.”
Baek Soyun stared blankly into his eyes as he spoke. A slow smile spread across her face.
After observing him for a long time, she suddenly grabbed his hand and brought it to her own face.
His knuckles brushed slowly, deliberately across her cheek. He could feel the texture of her skin clearly.
Then she leaned in and planted a short, light kiss on the bridge of his nose.
She pulled back slightly and spoke.
“You’re a very interesting kid. I like you. I hate people without ability. I hate people who aren’t honest. And I especially hate idiots who pretend to be human. But you don’t seem to belong to any of those categories. For now, I’ll give you a pass.”
She reached out and gently stroked his hair, then murmured almost to herself.
“Maybe… you could understand me?”
With that, she spun around.
Lee Hyunseung called out to her retreating back.
“Are you sparing me?”
She answered without turning.
“Oh my, how modest. I didn’t spare you. You survived on your own.”
Step. Step.
She walked a few more paces, then stopped and spoke again.
“See you next time, cute kid.”
Step. Step.
The moment she completely disappeared from sight—
Thud.
Lee Hyunseung collapsed on the spot.
His hands began to shake violently. His heart hammered like it was about to break. Cold sweat poured down his back and his throat tightened.
Fuck…
He had lived. He had survived. His mind was flooded with those thoughts.
And one more thought rose above all the others.
“I need to become stronger.”
He vowed to become far stronger than he was now. So that even if something like this happened again, he wouldn’t die.
The door to the Artemis Guild’s executive office creaked open.
“Mmm~♪”
Baek Soyun was humming pleasantly. Her secretary, Pyo Kang-woo, asked carefully.
“It seems your meeting with Lee Hyunseung was enjoyable.”
Baek Soyun grinned.
“It was. He was much more fun than I expected. It’s a shame he’s younger, but my heart fluttered a little.”
She pulled the crumpled bullet from her hand and dropped it into a small display case.
Clink.
Pyo Kang-woo’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“Elder… surely that bullet is…”
“Yes. Exactly what you’re thinking. I let my guard down, but that’s just an excuse. He was stronger than I expected. And he’s only been awakened for less than half a year. Impressive, right?”
She spoke with the bright pride of someone showing off a puppy she was raising. Watching her, Pyo Kang-woo thought to himself.
In all the time I’ve served her, the First Elder has never once shown this kind of reaction. Just what kind of person is Lee Hyunseung that she became so favorably disposed toward him in such a short time?
She had kept the bullet that had wounded her in a glass bottle. She was humming when she normally never did. The strange signs kept piling up.
She even began pulling out additional documents related to Lee Hyunseung.
“By the way, there’s a record that he requested access to the Mana Database to prove he wasn’t a stalker by checking the mana traces on his phone. Why hasn’t it been approved yet?”
“Ah… that’s…”
Pyo Kang-woo started to speak, then abruptly clamped his mouth shut.
Baek Soyun glanced sideways at him, her voice dropping.
“If you don’t tell me everything you know, I’ll kill you.”
“I-I wasn’t trying to hide it. I’m sorry. It’s just that the information isn’t confirmed…”
“Tell me what you do know.”
“It appears Madam Kim Heera is applying external pressure. Approval for Mana Database access requires review by multiple institutions, and she has connections in several of them. So the circumstances suggest…”
“Hmm… Is that so? What are the names of the related institutions?”
Pyo Kang-woo searched briefly, then pulled out a document listing every institution connected to Mana Database permissions and handed it to her.
Baek Soyun scanned it, thought for a moment, then spoke.
“I know all these kids.”
She checked the names of several individuals beneath the institution titles, then passed the paper back to Pyo Kang-woo.
“Contact the people I’ve marked. Tell them to approve the Mana Database access as quickly as possible.”
Her voice turned freezing cold.
“And add that if they keep wasting time, I will come visit them personally.”