Bound for Heaven
Orange light spilled through the gaps in the windows.
The hour of dusk. Seo Yebin gazed at me, her golden hair spilling loose down her shoulders.
"...Honestly. Every time I lay eyes on you, you find some new way to astonish me."
So spoke the woman the world called the Emperor. With a faint smile, she stretched out a slender finger and flicked the severed head of the brigade commander to one side.
"Let me tell you now. You wiped out the notorious Weicheon Brigade, so the top spot will be yours. And I shall see to it that no one dares whisper otherwise."
"Thank you."
Absurd as it sounded, within this school her authority was omnipotent. After all, even across all of Korea, whatever the Emperor declared simply came to pass—that was the weight of her name.
And if she said as much in this place that was as good as my home, then that was simply how it would be.
"Will you be taking part in this exchange?"
"Yes."
The exchange event. A gathering where the students of Korea Hero Academy and America's Divine Academy took each other's measure and pushed one another to grow stronger.
And the trip to America, unlike anything I had been through so far, was going to be monstrously hard.
"Good. I shall make it known. It seems you have drawn quite a bit of interest yourself."
"...There is that, too."
But for two of the first-years, the story was a little different.
Because Kim Seohyun had a rival. And not just any rival—a being who, in every playthrough except those where a veteran player had already won Kim Seohyun over, was all but guaranteed to defeat the protagonist.
"Then I shall look forward to this exchange."
"Yes. Please do."
I answered with a wry smile. Something enormous was going to happen at this exchange event.
Namely, the event that had raised America to its throne as "Heaven": the death of gods.
The Hundred Gods War.
Because most of them were beings who stood shoulder to shoulder with Transcendents.
In terms of raw rank alone, that was true. But most of the Hundred Gods fought by refining the power they possessed into divinity itself.
Take Paewang, for instance—he could single-handedly beat ten of the War's lower-ranked gods to death.
'If I had to put it one way: their stats and skills are monstrously strong, but they have no idea how to actually use them.'
Of course, with a stroke of bad luck even Paewang could die. Every last one of them held the same rank as he did.
Hands in my pockets, I headed for the classroom. It was already abuzz.
"So with the exchange coming up, do we actually get to stop by Divine Academy? Can't wait."
"I'd love to learn how Heaven's system works."
"Oh, come on. That's a place where the Hundred Gods step in personally to sort truth from falsehood and divide up the rewards by merit themselves. It's a nation of true and equal communism."
And in this world, America really was all but a communist country.
Because the gods existed.
Beings who wielded power approaching omniscience within their own domains, they had turned their nation into a place where effort was rewarded in exact measure.
Wasn't there a saying that communism could only succeed not when humans stood at the top, but when beings who had transcended humanity acted for humanity's sake alone?
A friend's words drifted back to me out of nowhere.
"Now, everyone, get ready. I understand you're giddy now that midterms are over, but from this moment on, you are the face of Korea Hero Academy. Each and every one of your actions will become a yardstick by which this school is judged."
"Yeees~" the students answered in unison.
I cracked open the cola I'd bought from the vending machine and took a sip.
"So you're going too, Seoha."
"Am I not allowed to go?"
"No, it's just—someone at your level doesn't really need to, I figured."
Kim Seohyun had crept up beside me at some point, holding a drink bearing the bizarre brand name Eyes of Mint Choco.
"Want a sip? It's really good."
"...I'll pass."
It was the drink Kim Seohyun was obsessed with, so I'd tried it exactly once, and the taste had been truly horrific—like the Eyes of X from my past life stirred into mint-chocolate milk tea. Truly. Genuinely. Absolutely horrific.
Sipping my cola as I waited, I spotted the second-years approaching in the distance.
The first to come into view was Seong Hanbyeol.
The reason I'd sought her out was, of course... because she was my favorite character. That was right. After all, the second-year class had hardly anyone else worth keeping an eye on.
I walked up to Seong Hanbyeol.
"Are you going to the exchange event as well, senior?"
"Yeah. The third-years are all busy with job hunting right now."
"Then here's to the top students of each year getting along well."
"...No. I'm fine."
Seong Hanbyeol edged a step away from me.
Why, though? What did I do wrong? Was there some third-rate villain out there smearing my name? If so, I'd have to kill that bastard—
"As expected of the first-years' devil of charm. Casually making his move on the student council president."
"I wish somebody would make a move on me..."
"…………………………………………?"
The reactions of the students around me threw me off. Who had I seduced? Of course I'd be delighted to end up with Seong Hanbyeol, but I had resolved, first and foremost, not to pursue romance. Saving this world was hard enough without trying to date at the same time. But if it were Seong Hanbyeol... wouldn't that be fine? To save the world, I had to save her anyway. And if I was saving her regardless, then ending up with Seong Hanbyeol couldn't hurt, could it?
"Looks like everyone's here! Gather round in front of me!"
The students murmured among themselves as they assembled before Seo Wooju. I stretched out my arms and fell into line.
"Was getting rejected by the student council president really so devastating?"
Erciel asked from beside me, sounding utterly incredulous.
"...A sulky Seoha is cute and all, but the reason he's sulking kind of pisses me off."
Kim Ara said, hoisting her greatsword—a blade taller than she was.
"...Want me to hold you?"
"Yeah. Hold me."
I buried myself in Kim Ara's arms. She faltered for a heartbeat, but soon her hand was gently stroking my head.
"Wh-what are you t-two doing right now! No, wait—more importantly, Seoha, you're telling me you ended up like this over something that trivial?"
Erciel was so flustered her polite speech crumbled at the end.
Well, she had a point; I was being awfully pathetic. I hugged Kim Ara a little tighter and gazed straight ahead.
I could see Seo Gayeon staring at me with dead eyes, while Kim Seohyun watched with a conflicted look. Hong Yuhwa's gaze was flicking back and forth between her own chest and Kim Ara's.
In any case, I stayed right where I was in Kim Ara's arms and looked at the warp gate.
"...Want to touch my chest?"
"..."
"Wh-what the—! What did you just say!?"
At Kim Ara's out-of-nowhere offer, I very nearly nodded on pure reflex. Erciel had saved my life. I sighed inwardly and said:
"Chest... trouble."
"...You really must be hurting badly."
Erciel's reaction only made me sadder.
Wooooong!
The warp gate hummed to life.
In this world, airplanes had long since fallen out of use.
They lingered on only in backward nations, or in the Nazi Empire that had made an enemy of the entire world.
Installing a warp gate cost roughly as much as an average nation's entire annual budget, and upkeep devoured sums every bit as astronomical—these gates were, in effect, the badge of a developed nation. Korea, with a spiritual dragon vein flowing beneath its land, could install them more easily than most countries, but even so, the price was staggering.
Zeeeiiing!
A pane of blue space unfurled into a doorway. The scenery of the warp gate on the far side melted into it, mirroring that place in miniature.
"Right, let's move out."
At Seo Wooju's word, I stepped toward the warp gate, still cradled in Kim Ara's arms.
"...I know the Emperor favors you. But isn't this taking things a bit far?"
One of the professors moved to block us. Kim Ara shot him a glare sharp as a blade.
"Our father is the Overlord."
"..."
'...Our?'
We passed straight through.
What caught my eye first were the uniforms. Nuns and priests in black clerical robes stood in immaculate order, each within their own assigned zone.
In other zones, all such order fell away—people in suits and sunglasses, or Hawaiian shirts and shorts.
Because their leanings differed according to the god each of them served.
"Whoa. This is seriously something else."
Erciel drifted up beside me as she spoke. I nodded.
"We will now conduct a brief entry inspection. Please step forward and answer a few questions from me."
The speaker was a priest bearing the emblem of a set of scales—a devotee of the God of Truth and Falsehood. Beside him stood another, marked with the emblem of a red thread: the God of Bonds.
The questions he posed were simple.
"Do you intend to bring harm to this nation of Heaven?"
"Do you share any bond with a being, or an organization, that would endanger this place?"
The devotee of Truth and Falsehood asks the questions. The instant an answer is weighed and judged true or false, the devotee of the God of Bonds goes searching for connections.
Whether the one being questioned is tied to some other being, or to no one at all, becomes plain to see.
'Their preparations are flawless.'
And these people were nothing like the corrupt officials elsewhere.
Devotees managed directly under the Hundred Gods. They were grateful simply for the chance to be of use to their gods.
'Honestly terrifying.'
That was why America was called Heaven.
That was why America was called the land of absolute safety.
"Looks like Divine Academy has come out to greet us."
Park Unhyeok said, standing beside me before I'd even noticed him arrive.
"Divine Academy has?"
"Indeed. No doubt they've come because they wish to know what manner of men you and I are."
Park Unhyeok wore a smug expression, jerking his chin up with theatrical arrogance.
'What's gotten into him this time?'
Come to think of it, back when I fought Tak Yoonil, a bond had been established between us.
That bond was Yearning Admiration.
I mulled it over for a moment before the reality of my situation hit me.
I was currently cradled in Kim Ara's arms, being comforted, after being misunderstood (falsely, I might add) as a playboy who seduced every woman in sight, Seong Hanbyeol included.
'...How is "yearning admiration" supposed to come out of this?'
I looked over at Park Unhyeok, but he simply stared back at me as if nothing were amiss.
"Ah, I see how it is. Planning to strike first and show them the class of Korea Hero Academy?"
"...No. There's no need for that."
"Oh."
I climbed out of Kim Ara's arms. I missed the soft warmth the instant it vanished, but my head had more or less cleared.
"Are you feeling better now?? Or, if you'd like, you're always welcome to lean on me instead."
Erciel offered with a bright, teasing smile.
"...I'm fine now."
"Just say the word whenever you need me~"
I gave the smallest nod I could manage.