Chapter 23
I’ll translate the chapter into natural English, preserve the exact glossary terms, and format all special in-universe text as styled HTML blocks. Then I’ll do a quick pass to ensure the chapter opens with `CHAPTER_TITLE:` and contains no stray Korean.CHAPTER_TITLE: Chapter 23
Jin Yeonhui.
Same age. She was known as Jin Gyeongbeom’s fraternal twin.
A superhuman affiliated with the company he belonged to, Taesung Enterprises. Not someone who worked under the Association, but a mercenary who moved whenever a job required it—or so I’d heard.
It wasn’t strange. In the first place, Jin Gyeongbeom’s family were people from Taesung Enterprises themselves.
If she was his twin, then it might even be more advantageous to work for the company and earn a fortune.
Honestly, I had no interest in any of that. I wasn’t interested in other people’s business to begin with.
...not really.
We weren’t especially close, either. By the time Jin Gyeongbeom and I were going to school, Jin Yeonhui had already awakened and was operating in the field.
If anything, Yu Jin was the weird one.
Even after awakening and becoming the best in Korea, he still kept showing up at school.
Thanks to that, the superhuman school got plenty of publicity.
But normally, once someone reached S-class, there was no reason for them to keep attending school.
Just like Jin Yeonhui.
Maybe because of that, my ties to her were never very deep.
Well.
There had been some when we were little.
Very little. Back when my parents were still alive. There had been some connection then, but it belonged to a far too distant past.
Now she was just someone I wasn’t really close to.
Basically, the older sister of my friend.
And yet.
I never expected to find her here.
Had there been so many superhumans around that I hadn’t noticed her arrival?
Well, she’s S-class too.
Of course she could come. But still.
Why did she talk to me?
And on top of that—was I Korean? It was strange enough that she’d approached me out of nowhere, but suddenly asking whether I was Korean made it even more bewildering.
“You can’t hear me?”
Jin Yeonhui narrowed her eyes as she stared straight at me. The others nearby flinched when they saw that.
“...She really just asks it that boldly?”
“It’s famous that Lightning Empress has that kind of personality, but... wow.”
Amid the murmuring, I spotted Yu Jin. He’d been trying to approach me, then had stopped awkwardly in place.
“I asked if you’re Korean.”
I looked back at Jin Yeonhui.
“Can’t you speak?”
“...?”
“Or are you the dangerous type, like that crazy bastard Wei Ajun? Do you just ignore anyone below your rank?”
Her narrowed eyes swept up and down my body.
“Well, if you don’t want to answer, that’s fine. I didn’t really expect you to anyway. But...”
Her gaze had turned oddly sticky. What exactly was she trying to look at?
“Hmm.”
Then she raised a hand and compared her head with mine, as if checking our height.
“We’re about the same, I guess. But no matter how I look at it, the vibe is different.”
What is she checking?
I was just watching her in silence, wondering what the hell she was doing, when...
“Guess not, then.”
With a look of waning interest, Jin Yeonhui turned around.
“I came just in case, but I guess not.”
She strolled away lightly. Then—
“Yeonhui.”
Yu Jin called after her. At that, Jin Yeonhui’s expression twisted hard.
“I was—”
He faltered for a moment, trying to continue, but Jin Yeonhui spoke first, faster than him.
“Don’t talk to me.”
“...?”
The waiting room grew colder than before. Her voice was soaked in that kind of emotion.
“I told you. Don’t ever speak to me again for the rest of your life.”
“...Yeonhui.”
“And don’t call my name, either. I hate hearing it.”
“...”
“So annoying...”
After snapping at him with all her might, she turned away. Then she said,
“I forfeit.”
She gave a slight wave of her white hand. The moment she did, an alarm rang out, and her body began to blur.
Participant Lightning Empress has declared forfeiture.
Forfeit accepted.
Participant has exited the arena.
Jin Yeonhui’s body crumbled away just like that.
She vanished in an instant. Watching it, Yu Jin scratched the back of his head.
“...Well, damn.”
Just as he was smiling awkwardly—
“What’s this? A lover’s quarrel?”
The Russian superhuman Lirias asked Yu Jin with obvious interest.
At that, Yu Jin gave a faint smile.
“No, nothing like that.”
“Sure doesn’t look like nothing. I’d heard the rumors, but maybe they were true?”
“What rumors...?”
“That thing about you and that lightning brat.”
So there had been rumors like that? It was the first I’d heard of them.
“You like a girl with that nasty of a temper? What an unusual taste. Then how about this older sister?”
Wearing an outfit that showed quite a bit of skin, Lirias leaned in on Yu Jin.
Yu Jin visibly jerked back.
“Why are you backing away? I’m not losing to anyone when it comes to personality, either.”
Finding his reaction amusing, Lirias tried to close the distance again, but—
“That’s far enough.”
Someone cut in. It was Derek Opher, an S-class superhuman from America.
“I don’t think this is the time for jokes.”
“...What? Who do you think you are, interrupting—”
“Look behind you.”
“...”
At Derek Opher’s words, Lirias turned around. Our eyes met. Only then did she click her tongue.
“...Well, now. You’re so scary I can’t even joke around.”
What was I supposed to have done? The moment she saw me, Lirias quietly put some distance between us. What was that? As I was wondering at the incomprehensible situation—
“And you as well...”
Derek Opher spoke to me.
“I don’t know what you’re upset about, but if you’re not planning to explode in here, could you calm down a little? I can’t breathe.”
Calm down?
Me?
I frowned, genuinely puzzled by what he meant.
Ah.
Could it be?
I hurriedly checked my skill window.
It was a skill I’d obtained moments ago, right after clearing the quest the second I entered the Colosseum.
Presence Manifestation (S)
Manifest the rank of the soul and display your presence.
So this is what it meant.
I’d been wondering what “display your presence” was supposed to imply, but looking at this, I thought I understood.
I looked down at my hand. Something rippled at the tips of my skin. It seemed this was that skill.
Then how do I turn it off? The moment I wondered, the method naturally surfaced in my head.
Click—
The instant I deactivated Presence Manifestation, gasps rose all around me.
“Hah...”
“...Huah...”
People rubbed their chests as though they’d just been released from something crushing.
It must have been rough on them.
...Manifesting rank, huh.
Thinking of the God of War’s rank being EX, maybe it was the kind of power that released that level of force and pressured others with it?
Something along those lines, I figured.
Hmm.
So there were skills like this too. I nodded to myself at the realization. Then I headed for the wall. As I moved, I saw the superhumans flinch.
I ignored them and leaned my back against the wall.
Standing there with my arms crossed, I could feel everyone swallowing hard.
Good. At least they’re not coming over.
Maybe because I’d made the atmosphere so heavy, no one dared approach me. That at least made things a little easier.
The problem is...
That bastard Yu Jin from earlier had been trying to come over.
He’d glanced at me a few times, but he hadn’t made any more moves.
Was it because of his conversation with Jin Yeonhui?
I wonder what he was going to ask.
I was curious, but I didn’t pry. It would have been ridiculous to walk up and ask what he wanted.
And so—
The uncomfortable Colosseum simply kept moving forward.
* * *
-As information brokers continue to move regarding the newly appeared S-class Gate—
-Fortunately, this Gate is not affecting the Contamination Rate...
-The catastrophe-class Gate that appeared for the first time in years. And now, concerns are growing over what impact the no-death Gate will have on superhumans...
-Meanwhile, A-class broker Misato Toshimo’s exclusive replay is being aired in Japan...
Click.
The noisy news playing on the television shut off. At the end of the screen going dark, a woman holding the remote came into view on the other side.
A woman wearing a very irritated expression.
Hale Irene glared at the middle-aged man seated at the desk.
Under that gaze, Baek Hyeonho stiffened slightly.
“You seem somewhat uncomfortable.”
“Somewhat...?”
“Very.”
It seemed she was taking offense at the wording, so Baek Hyeonho hurriedly corrected himself.
“I...”
Irene said to him,
“If you called me over for some pointless reason, I might get a little angry.”
“...Hahaha.”
The Gate had opened. If things had gone normally, Irene would have taken part in that Colosseum Gate as well. No—she should have.
Misato said it.
That the God of War had appeared in the Colosseum.
With just that one sentence, it would have been enough. For that reason alone, Irene should have headed there.
If not for this matter.
“Irene.”
Baek Hyeonho called to her.
“It is unfortunate that you were disappointed. However... I feel the same.”
Baek Hyeonho was also an S-class superhuman. He, too, had wanted to go to the Colosseum Gate, and there was no difference there. He said so plainly, but—
Also?
It didn’t sound especially meaningful to Irene. What he wanted and what she wanted were likely on completely different levels.
He simply didn’t show it openly. Remembering that, she waited in silence for him to continue.
“We received information concerning terrorists.”
Baek Hyeonho spoke to Irene.
Terrorists. At that word, Irene changed her posture. A faint flicker of interest entered her eyes.
“...Did you find them?”
“Not exactly, but—”
Baek Hyeonho paused briefly before speaking again.
“It seems we’ve at least caught their tail.”
“Their tail?”
“Yes. If all goes well, three days at most. We expect something to happen around then.”
“Three days?”
That was a very specific date. Hearing it, Irene asked immediately,
“How...?”
How had they obtained the information? That was the important question, so she pressed him.
“Hahaha...”
Baek Hyeonho simply glossed over it with a laugh. Ah, he had no intention of saying? As she considered whether to get irritated at that, he continued,
“Please understand this part. We can’t allow the information to leak, no matter what.”
“...Hmm.”
She gave a small nod. If she wanted, she could probably pry it out of him, but for now Irene held back.
“So... you called me here just to tell me that?”
It wasn’t time for it to break out yet. She didn’t think that was the reason.
“I thought the safest situation would be when everyone’s attention was focused on the Gate.”
“...Safe?”
The barrier spread through the room. To Irene, it looked frankly flimsy.
“Hale Irene. It may seem inadequate to the Great Archmage, but with you here, the story changes, doesn’t it?”
“Ah... so you’re using me...?”
“Would it be better to frame it as assistance?”
“Simple and easy words... I guess...”
He wasn’t wrong. The first thing Irene had done after arriving was reinforce that flimsy barrier.
“It’s not that I don’t trust you. The issue lies elsewhere. Surely we wouldn’t doubt the world’s strongest.”
Baek Hyeonho smiled as he went on.
“If you wanted it, this Association could be erased in seconds.”
“Mm.”
He was quick to self-assess.
As expected.
The man was a fox, more than he looked. That was how Irene saw Baek Hyeonho.
“...What’s the point?” she asked. “Three days from now. So what are you trying to do about it?”
“...Three days from now, Lee Jinwoo will return to the Association. For a proper rank assessment.”
“Hmm?”
Hearing that, Irene’s eyes narrowed.
In other words—
“Yes. That’s right.”
Baek Hyeonho, seeing that she had understood, answered.
“The terrorists will be aiming for that moment. The moment Lee Jinwoo comes to the Association. And even more...”
He took a breath before continuing.
“They’ll do it while fully aware that you’re here.”
“...”
At those words, the corners of Irene’s mouth lifted.
“Ha.”
Her mouth was smiling, but her eyes were not.
What rose in her was pure, dismissive amusement.