Giant Prison (2)
Ahajaka Eldark glared at Seong Hyun-jin with a fierce scowl, but even under the Dragon Emperor's intimidating gaze, the young man kept his smile firmly in place as he continued speaking.
"Come on, don't be like that. Didn't you already acknowledge me? You said you'd hold me responsible, and I've been ready to do just that…"
"So, have you actually married my daughter yet, or what!? Why the hell should I be called 'father-in-law' by the likes of you!?"
Seong Hyun-jin blinked in surprise at Ahajaka's retort, then nodded as if conceding the point.
"…Yeah, that's fair enough."
"…You're admitting it so readily for once."
"But we're getting married anyway, so isn't it fine to practice calling you that in advance?"
"Who gave you permission to decide you're marrying my daughter on your own!?"
"Wasn't 'take responsibility' supposed to mean exactly that?"
This time, Ahajaka had no comeback. It had meant exactly that, after all. All he could do was let out a frustrated sigh born of exasperation.
Gone was the cold ruthlessness he'd shown the guards earlier; now he was just a father fretting over his daughter's well-being and future.
"To begin with, why are you even here? Did you drop out of the academy and turn to crime or something?"
"Do I look like the type?"
"……."
Ahajaka wanted to say yes, but Seong Hyun-jin struck him as eccentric at worst—not some irredeemable villain. Especially knowing whose disciple he was, the Dragon Emperor couldn't see him that way.
Reading Ahajaka's reaction, Seong Hyun-jin realized how the man viewed him and grinned happily. He turned to the Dragon Emperor.
"You recognized me right away, though. Haven't I changed a lot?"
"How could I not? That smug face of yours is exactly the same."
Ahajaka replied flatly, as if it were nothing remarkable.
"I don't know what happened, but an elf suddenly shooting up in growth isn't all that surprising."
"But I'm still pretty young."
"…Are you going to nitpick every little thing?"
As Ahajaka shot back sharply, Seong Hyun-jin realized he'd pushed far enough and shook his head slightly.
"At least you've grown into someone worth looking at. If you'd turned ugly, I'd have told you to break it off with my daughter right then."
"Happy to have such a handsome son-in-law?"
"I didn't say that. Is jumping to conclusions your problem?"
As Ahajaka spoke, his eyes caught sight of the two people behind Seong Hyun-jin. He addressed the old man who seemed most likely to have brought him, his tone probing.
"Holy Emperor, why exactly did you bring this fool here?"
"It's been a while, Dragon Emperor."
Jerónimo VIII greeted him politely, then quickly cleared up any misunderstanding.
"Student Seong Hyun-jin will be the key to resolving this incident."
"What do you mean by that?"
Ahajaka looked back and forth between Jerónimo and Seong Hyun-jin with puzzled eyes. The Holy Emperor elaborated.
"You know full well that this incident was the work of an evil spirit, don't you, Dragon Emperor? But we've hit a wall because there's no way to track its traces…"
"Does this one know a way?"
"Yes."
Jerónimo nodded and glanced at Seong Hyun-jin.
"Since Student Seong Hyun-jin is contracted to an evil spirit, he should be able to trace its remnants."
"……!"
Ahajaka stared at Seong Hyun-jin in shock, then scowled fiercely.
"He never mentioned that to me. Were you deliberately hiding it?"
"People around me advised keeping it under wraps for now… And at first, I didn't even know my spirit was an evil spirit."
"You didn't know? You expect me to believe you didn't even know what spirit you contracted with?"
Seong Hyun-jin faltered slightly. He'd expected it wouldn't look good, but not this level of hostility. Sensing the awkward tension, Yeonhui stepped in.
"It's true. The evil spirit contracted to Junior Hyun-jin first appeared pretending to be a chaos-affinity spirit, so he had no way of knowing. It only revealed its true nature during the clash with Wise Star Abraham."
"……."
Ahajaka's expression softened a fraction at the words of the next Saintess, but he still frowned in clear displeasure.
"It's really true, Father-in-law. Why would I lie to you?"
"Enough with the 'father-in-law' already… Hah. You didn't recognize your own spirit and contracted it anyway? And Karin just let that slide?"
"When I first made contact with the spirit, Master was out hunting for meat to feed me…"
"……."
At a loss for words, Ahajaka sighed deeply. Jerónimo offered some consolation.
"It's turned out for the best in the end. Now we can uncover the truth behind this incident."
"The idiot who stole my daughter is contracted to an evil spirit."
Seong Hyun-jin shot Ahajaka a pouty, displeased look at being called an idiot, but the Dragon Emperor ignored it entirely.
"So, can you control it properly?"
"…Yes, it's under control. It has a habit of popping out on its own sometimes, but it listens when I tell it not to."
"…That's something, at least."
Ahajaka seemed to accept the explanation for now.
"Then we should go inspect Abraham's corpse immediately."
"That would be best. Yeonhui, stay here. Just Student Seong Hyun-jin, come with us."
"Understood."
"Yes, Your Holiness."
#
"Are you used to viewing corpses?"
"Not used to it, but it's not my first time, so I'll manage."
"Good. Seeing it firsthand will be quickest."
Following Jerónimo and Ahajaka, Seong Hyun-jin came face-to-face with Abraham's body. Pulling back the cloth draped over the pristine white bed revealed the Wise Star's coldly stiffened face. Until just recently, this Palstar Hero had clashed against him with raw passion; now he slumbered in eternal silence.
Lifting the cloth further exposed the cause of death: a gruesome diagonal slash from shoulder to hip. The gaping wound was utterly devoid of bone, organs, or muscle—as if they'd never existed. No human force could inflict such a wound, confirming that some supernatural power had been used in the murder.
Moreover, Seong Hyun-jin felt a familiar chill from the scar. The traces left behind matched the residue of Astaroth's power.
"I'll summon the spirit for a moment."
"Do it."
With a pang of unease, Seong Hyun-jin called her name.
"…Astaroth."
Dark smoke billowed from his body, coalescing beside him into human form—a stunning silver-haired woman. Her beauty was undeniable, but the ominous aura she exuded ensured no one dwelled on it.
"Master, long time no see."
The evil spirit of ruin, Astaroth, greeted Seong Hyun-jin with a venomous smile. She paid no mind to Ahajaka and Jerónimo at his side, her full attention on him alone.
Watching this, Ahajaka whispered to Jerónimo.
"First time I've seen an evil spirit so fixated on its contractor. I figured it'd growl at me on sight."
Dragons were akin to spirits themselves, so evil spirits typically reacted with instinctive hostility toward them. Yet Astaroth ignored Ahajaka completely, devoting herself solely to Seong Hyun-jin.
"You popped out on your own not long ago."
"That was days ago."
"We're not the type that needs to meet every day."
Brushing off her inexplicable whining, Seong Hyun-jin pointed to the corpse.
"Anyway, take a look at this."
"Huh?"
Astaroth only noticed Abraham after he indicated the body, as if she'd been utterly disinterested before.
"The human who threatened Master back then? He's dead?"
"Yeah. Guessing he got hit by a spirit, but not a normal one, so I want you to check it out."
"Hmmm. Should've killed him myself back then if he was just gonna croak like this."
"…Astaroth, I never asked you to."
"Got it, kidding."
Astaroth glanced at the wound, then examined the traces within. She spoke up almost immediately, as if it were child's play.
"…What, this super-easy riddle?"
"Know who did it?"
"Of course. Looks like that guy's after you now, Master?"
"That guy?"
As Seong Hyun-jin tilted his head, Astaroth looked surprised he didn't know.
"Huh, humans don't know? It showed up once before."
"Who're you talking about?"
"Why."
Astaroth answered simply.
"The arrogant blowhard called the worst spirit in human history."
"……!"
Everyone present except Seong Hyun-jin froze at her words. That could only mean Abraham's killer was none other than…
"The evil spirit of destruction?"
The malevolent force that had once ravaged the world, etching its infamy into history forever.