Chapter 239: The Dawn of Kim Ga-eul’s Era!?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 239: The Dawn of Kim Ga-eul’s Era!?
For the record.
There was one person who noticed that Kim Ga-eul wasn’t in any pain at all, despite what Kang So-hyun’s artifact suggested.
Kim Ga-eul’s luck had finally exploded. It had cleared the massive hurdles of Kang So-hyun, who was too emotional to notice the truth, and Sun Wukong, who was in poor condition due to her broken Ruyi. Yet, it had almost faltered before one final wall.
Beyond the Touch of the Devil, there was a monarch of the Demon Realm who had formed an even deeper contract with Kang So-hyun, allowing her to observe his surroundings.
In other words, only Lucifer knew that the girl was currently faking her illness.
From Lucifer’s perspective, the girl named Kim Ga-eul had a surprisingly high affinity for demonic energy.
Among humans, she was likely at the highest level.
Now that she had obtained demonic energy, she could probably handle summoning a low-level demonic beast with ease.
If Lucifer were to point this out, the soft, sentimental atmosphere would freeze over in an instant, and the usual Kim Ga-eul would surely return.
However, surprisingly, the Demon King did not expose the girl’s feigned illness.
Was it a reward for the fact that, thanks to Ga-eul, she had been able to forge a closer contract with Kang So-hyun? No.
Was it mercy born of pity for a girl who had almost suffered a major illness? That wasn’t it either.
Had Kim Ga-eul’s sudden streak of luck even surpassed Lucifer? Absolutely not.
The throne of a Demon King was not a seat one could occupy with such a soft mindset.
It was simply because this fake illness benefited her as well.
“If it’s discovered now that she’s fully recovered—or rather, healthier than before—So-hyun might go soft when he faces Leviathan.”
For Lucifer, it was advantageous for the girl to remain in a frail state for now!
“He might notice if he calms down, so shall I help a little?”
A touch of illusion magic to make her look even more sickly and strained to those around her should suffice.
And so, without her even knowing it, Kim Ga-eul’s fake illness became a little more perfect under the protection of a Demon King…!
* * *
Consequently, there was one person who was becoming quite flustered.
It was Kim Ga-eul herself, who had intended to act spoiled for a bit before admitting she was actually fine.
The atmosphere inside her hospital room was currently sharp enough to cut.
“Ga-eul.”
“Ye-yes! Professor.”
“It must hurt a lot. It must be hard to endure.”
…No? Actually, it doesn’t really hurt that much?
Kim Ga-eul wasn’t an idiot.
Well, maybe she was a bit of a fool compared to others, but she wasn’t such a tactless psycho that she would keep faking an illness when people were this seriously worried about her.
“I-I’m really okay now…?”
Because of that, she had already tried to confess the truth several times.
That she was fine now, that it didn’t hurt at all.
Honestly, she had just wanted to act a little spoiled because she couldn’t resist the temptation, but she never expected things to escalate like this!
Unfortunately, the truth doesn’t always prevail. Professor Cathy’s expression twisted as she looked at her.
She looked almost exactly the way she did back when So-hyun was coughing up blood.
“…Right, you’ve grown strong, Ga-eul. It might sound irresponsible of me to say this, but hang in there. I believe you’ll overcome this.”
With a grim face, the Professor adjusted her gloves and stepped out. Next, Ha-ni approached.
…Staring off into space with a cold gaze Ga-eul had never seen before, Ha-ni forced a slight smile and teased her like usual.
“You look like a mess, Ga-eul~ Who did this to you? Just say the word. So-hyun and I will wreck them.”
Her tone was playful, but the aura around her was anything but.
If looks could kill, someone would have been sliced into ribbons by now.
“So-hyun said you’ll be okay. You might not trust me, but you trust So-hyun, right?”
“Ha-ni. I’m telling you, I’m really fine! I was just faking it to act spoiled for a second!”
“Hey, look at your face before you talk. Would you believe yourself if you were me?”
She had a point.
For some reason, her face—which had been perfectly fine—had turned pale and took on a tragic, sickly beauty since this morning.
Even she had thought she was dying of some terminal illness when she first saw herself in the mirror, so it was serious, but it really wasn’t true…!
“Then I’ll be going too, Ga-eul.”
“Ha-ni! Don’t go! Listen to me! I’m really okay!?”
“Yeah, you’re okay. Of course you are. Everything’s going to be fine.”
No, this is driving me crazy! Isn’t the karma for a little prank way too heavy!?
It didn’t end there.
Lilac and Lee Yu-na, of course, and even Cheon Yu-hak and Ju Ri-ra came by to check on her before leaving with determined faces. And why on earth were the Chairperson and Professor Park A-ram coming by to see her?
Professor Park A-ram even wore a frustrated expression, remarking that the demonic energy felt throughout Ga-eul’s body was substantial.
…At this point, she started to wonder if her pain receptors had just shut down and she actually was sick. She pinched her cheek to check, but even a little tug hurt quite a bit.
Heeing.
If she had known it would turn out like this, she would have said she was fine yesterday.
No, she shouldn’t have been stupid enough to get caught by a devil in the first place.
Is she going to get in huge trouble for this later…? No, but I did say I was fine. I really am fine…!?
“Ga-eul.”
While she was mentally tearing her hair out, the final visitor of the day appeared.
It was So-hyun, holding a bouquet of flowers and a gift in his arms.
“So-So-hyun. I’m really okay? I was just faking it yesterday.”
She didn’t know it, but unfortunately, his Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils could clearly see the demonic energy swirling inside her. Furthermore, the advice from the Touch of the Devil told him she was in a very precarious and dangerous state, so there was no way he would believe her.
“Right, Ga-eul. You’re okay.”
He changed the water in the vase and tucked the new flowers in. He was smiling so radiantly that her conscience stung.
“Everything will go back to the way it was. I’ll make sure those who dared to lay a hand on you pay the price for their arrogance.”
Wow, she didn’t know if this was the right time to think this, but So-hyun’s smiling face was really beautiful, wasn’t it?
Because his expression was so serious, he looked even cooler than usual.
“So just hang in there and wait. This time, I won’t be late. Never.”
…Maybe the ‘sickly beauty’ concept isn’t so bad? Could she enjoy this just a little longer until she gets caught?
No.
No matter how she looked at it, this wasn’t right. Everyone was so worried; what was she doing!
The loyal Kim Ga-eul couldn’t just reap benefits from a lie.
“So-hyun…! I know you don’t believe me…! But I really don’t feel any…!”
“Right, let’s make a promise.”
…Huh? They already made one yesterday, so what now?
“Yesterday, I only promised to fix you. That’s a given. So this time, it’s a promise to keep you motivated. If you hang in there and wait for me to return, how about I grant you one wish as a reward?”
“…A wish?”
“Yeah, a wish. Anything is fine. So please, just endure and wait a little longer until I get back.”
In that moment, a fierce war broke out inside Kim Ga-eul.
A three-way battle between the desire to immediately accept the offer with a “Hell yes, obviously!”, the conscience that asked how she could say yes so easily when So-hyun was so worried, and another desire that noted how strangely haggard yet sexy his expression looked today.
Honestly, she just wanted to say yes.
There was no guarantee a chance like this would ever come again…! It was the first time in her life that the world seemed to be moving so positively in her favor…!
Honestly, even the narrative of the story was perfectly set up for Kim Ga-eul.
The desire to just close her eyes and go along with it, thinking of it as a reward for not giving in to the devil’s temptation, surged within her.
But Kim Ga-eul held back.
Because this wasn’t fair.
Just yesterday, she had said she wanted to be a cool, confident woman like the Professor or Ha-ni. Relying on luck to take the easy way out felt wrong!
Kim Ga-eul restrained herself and tried to speak clearly.
That she was fine! That she had been faking it since yesterday! Honestly!
“You’ll wait for me, right?”
Suddenly, his hand brushed back her bangs, and his soft lips touched her forehead.
She really was going to tell him, okay?
“Heh…”
“Heh?”
“Hee-eugh…”
“…Was that too much stimulation?”
“I’ll wait… Yeah, of course I’ll wait. I can wait forever…”
After receiving a kiss on the forehead, she ultimately put on the most pitiful expression she could muster and threw herself into the mood.
Ah, honestly, she’d been unfairly screwed over by fate so many times until now; couldn’t she be unfairly favored just once? She decided to believe her luck had finally returned!
And surprisingly.
This was indeed the signal announcing the dawn of Kim Ga-eul’s era.
* * *
“So-hyun. What do you mean by that?”
Professor Cathy spoke as if she didn’t quite understand, but well, that didn’t change what I had to say.
“It’s unfortunate, but we can’t be the ones to invade.”
Anger is not a very helpful emotion when it comes to making decisions.
If you lose your reason, even possible things fall apart, and if it was something with a low probability of success to begin with, it becomes even more impossible.
Therefore, no matter how angry one is, for the sake of perfect revenge, anger is an emotion that must be suppressed until the very last moment.
So, I too must think rationally and form a plan.
In this world, the race known as demons has a significant difference in strength between the human realm and the Demon Realm.
Not just demons, but most beings from the Otherworld are set up so that their power is restricted if they cross over by any means other than a Dungeon Break.
If it weren’t for that setting, it would have been impossible for Lilac to slay a Demon King at the end of his first year.
There’s no reason to leave a battlefield that favors us to go fight where the enemy has the advantage.
Well, of course, if the enemy was extremely rational and had no intention of leaving the Demon Realm unless we invaded in a rage, the story would be different.
Fortunately, our current enemy isn’t that type.
I’ve experienced Leviathan firsthand, and according to the reliable advice of the Touch of the Devil, it seems she has taken an interest in Ga-eul and me.
And for better or worse, Leviathan, the Demon King of Jealousy, never gives up on an object of interest.
So, if I dangled an appetizing bait, she would eventually crawl up to the surface, even if it meant accepting some loss of power.
“Uh, wait a second.”
Ha-ni, who had been listening quietly, interrupted me.
“Hey, So-hyun. I know you’re mad, but you’re not thinking of being the bait yourself, are you?”
“…I am, though?”
“Hey, that’s a bit much.”
“He’s right. It’s dangerous.”
As expected, Lilac and Cheon Yu-hak chimed in with their objections, but I had already anticipated this.
Naturally, I wasn’t volunteering to be bait without a plan.
“It’s okay. I’m not trying to sacrifice myself or blindly charge in because I’m angry.”
Right. I don’t know about the other Demon Kings, but when it comes to Leviathan, I’m confident I won’t lose.
Well, the story might change if the fight were in the Demon Realm, but it would be accurate to say I’m certain of victory as long as we’re in the human realm.
After all, I have a record of killing that thing with my own hands before the regression.
“You’re not just doing this recklessly because you’re mad about what happened to Ga-eul, right?”
“Absolutely not. And I only said I’d be the bait; when did I say I’d fight alone? Aren’t you guys going to help me?”
In the past, I killed her alone, so I had to push myself, but this time, I’m not alone.
“Ah, whatever. We’re just worried you’ll overdo it again.”
“…Are you sure she’ll invade soon?”
“Yeah, I’m sure.”
I ended up facing a fight with a Demon King sooner than expected, and against a different opponent than I originally thought, but my own specs had also risen much higher than anticipated.
As long as I handled it calmly, there was no reason to lose.