Chapter 29
I’ll translate the chapter into polished HTML, preserving the required `
` structure and styling any special in-universe text if it appears. Then I’ll quickly verify the output starts with the chapter title and contains no Korean text.CHAPTER_TITLE: Chapter 29. Find the God of War
At Baek Hyeonho’s words, I swallowed hard.
…Huh?
Something felt off. Find the God of War…?
…An unregistered superhuman, and the biggest danger factor…?
When had that glorious little string of labels started getting attached to me? Just hearing him talk, I felt my eyes practically start to spin. My mouth even watered at what Baek Hyeonho had just said.
“The God of War…?”
Irene frowned as she spoke. It was the clearest expression I’d seen on her in a long time.
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly what I said. Right now, the Association and the government believe the God of War is Korean.”
“……”
At that, her eyes twitched.
“And the timing lines up too. If we consider that the very first gate to appear was one that only had Koreans in it—then the odds only go up.”
The first gate.
He must have meant the one I’d taken part in. There’d been plenty of talk about that one back then. It had been a gate composed entirely of Koreans. Which meant that if the God of War had appeared there, then he was Korean too.
“You’re having the Knight Order search for the God of War…? Why…?”
Irene asked, her brow still tightly furrowed.
“Because it’s important to identify dangerous elements before they become a problem.”
“……The God of War is… a dangerous element to you?”
“Can you say with certainty that he isn’t?”
Baek Hyeonho asked Irene with an expressionless face.
“……”
At that, Irene couldn’t answer.
“I’m sure you already understand. Hale Irene. The God of War is an extremely dangerous individual.”
That hit a nerve.
“He’s not only an unregistered superhuman, but—surely even you can see how strong he is.”
“……”
“The government estimates him to be at least SS-class. In other words—”
Tap, tap. Baek Hyeonho drummed his fingers on the desk.
“An SS-class, a human disaster, could also be involved in terrorism. Do you really think only Korea would be concerned about that?”
As he spoke, Baek Hyeonho handed something to Irene.
“This was sent to you from the United States.”
“……From America?”
“That’s right. Irene, not only the United States but other countries are also keeping a close eye on the God of War. Knowing how dangerous he is only makes that more true.”
“Hmm…”
“That is also why he was described as being connected to terrorist matters.”
If the God of War were, by some chance, a man opposed to the government—or one with malicious intent—
“Then the problems that would arise from that would be serious.”
“……So. The newly founded Knight Order won’t just be catching terrorists and wiping them out. It’ll also be searching for the God of War?”
“Correct.”
“Then—”
I cut in then.
“What will you do if you find the God of War?”
If they found him—what then? Baek Hyeonho turned his gaze to me. The weight in that look felt oddly heavy, almost burdensome.
“First, we would try to speak with him. We’d need to ask why he’s unregistered, and what it is he wants, wouldn’t we?”
“……Hmm.”
So they were searching for him for that.
But.
[■ Hero’s Super-sensory has activated.]
……Why didn’t I trust that at all? As my heightened senses kicked in, it felt like the warning signs in my gut were being fed fresh kindling.
“……Fine.”
Irene cut him off.
“I’ll do it…… But how exactly am I supposed to do that?”
“We’ll provide information as we obtain it. I’d ask that you conduct the search accordingly.”
Was Korean law really that simple? Just go around hunting people?
“In the end, it amounts to finding a criminal. An unregistered superhuman is an offense under government regulations.”
“Mm.”
Irene nodded at that.
“……Got it.”
With those words, she stood. Looking at me, she said,
“Get up.”
“Huh?”
“Let’s go.”
“……Ah, yes.”
I pushed myself to my feet. Only then did Baek Hyeonho speak to me.
“I’ve already informed Miss Irene, but since matters are moving rather quickly, we plan to recruit members a week from now. Jinwoo, please attend according to the schedule.”
“……A week from now?”
“Yes. It will be a simple examination. Also, considering the terrorist incident, if possible, I’d recommend moving your residence.”
“My residence?”
“Yes. If possible……”
Baek Hyeonho looked at Irene.
“……?”
“I believe a room near Miss Irene’s would be best.”
“……What?”
At that, Irene’s face twisted.
“In my room…? This…?”
This?
Irene pointed at me as though I were some unpleasant object.
“Ahaha.”
Baek Hyeonho laughed and clarified.
“No, not the same room. Since your current residence is accommodation provided by the Association, I thought it would be better to have Lee Jinwoo stay nearby.”
“……So you mean—”
Clicking her tongue briefly, Irene said,
“I’m supposed to be his bodyguard too…?”
“I’d be grateful if you would.”
“……”
Her brow knotted hard.
Irene turned away. Then, all at once, my body floated up.
“Wah?”
“……I’ll take you.”
* * *
The door closed. Even as we walked down the hall, I still had to hover in midair.
“U-um, Miss Irene.”
“Be quiet……”
“Y-yes.”
At her warning, I shut my mouth. With a sharp snap of her fingers, something layered over the space around Irene and me.
What was this transparent membrane?
“Soundproofing……”
“Ah.”
Sound too?
“There are ears everywhere……”
She kept walking, eyes forward. She didn’t look back. A small crown of dark hair came into view.
She’s got a lot of hair. That thought slipped through my head before I could stop it. Then—
“And.”
“Uh, yes.”
“……What’s that reaction?”
“N-no, it’s just… flying like this is a little amazing……”
“……You notice the strangest things……”
Fortunately, she didn’t seem bothered and kept talking.
“Pay attention next time……”
“Huh? To what…?”
“That power. The one you used.”
The power… She meant the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword?
“It would be best if you kept it well hidden. Especially that sword.”
“……!”
She’d noticed the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword? My eyes widened, and I heard Irene’s laughter.
“It was so obvious. Only an idiot wouldn’t notice……”
“……That’s…”
“I’m not going to say anything.”
Swish.
A staff appeared in Irene’s hand. It was a neat-looking wooden one.
“That sword too—it’s a high-grade relic. S-class?”
“……Ah, yes. That’s right.”
I said yes, though it was actually SS-class. There was no need to explain further.
“A weapon above your own rank. Hard to handle. If the relic’s rank is even higher than yours… then it adapts to its owner……”
“Yes…? It adjusts its rank?”
“A relic that follows you even into your next life shows its potential…… Sometimes its rank rises too……”
“Ah, I’ve heard of that.”
I had heard of people who’d started with C-class relics and seen them rise to B-class. They called it a miracle-level probability.
“A relic reveals its potential. It only looks different because your body hasn’t yet caught up to it.”
“……Ah.”
“If you’re going to hide it, then hide it properly. I don’t really care either way……”
Irene gave me a sidelong glance.
“But if that relic gets exposed in Korea… it’ll be a pain, so I’m telling you this. If you don’t have the strength to protect it, then hide it well.”
“……”
If you can’t protect it, then hide it and live that way.
Her words pierced straight through me.
“You have luggage to move?”
“……Uh, ah. I do.”
“Then handle that yourself. Right now, we’re going……”
“Huh? Go where—whoa?!”
Suddenly, the wind whipped around us. Irene had opened a window and flown straight out. And unbelievably, she was fast.
“Mis— Miss Irene…!!”
I tried to speak as if my life depended on it, but Irene ignored me. Before I knew it, she’d even put on her sunglasses and was moving at a mad, terrifying speed.
How long that hellish ride lasted, I didn’t know.
“We’re here……”
Thud—!!
“Ghk……”
The moment I landed, I dropped to the floor and clutched at it.
“Ahhh, the ground…!”
Dammit. I never knew I’d long for the ground this much. Trembling all over, I spoke, and Irene looked at me with disgust.
“Coward……”
A coward?
First of all, the very idea of flying had nothing whatsoever to do with humanity. Of course I’d be startled.
“People usually can’t fly.”
“You’ll see even scarier things now……”
“What kind of terrifying thing is that supposed to be…?”
“Hurry up and go inside…… Want me to carry you again?”
At Irene’s urging, I looked ahead. A large building stood there.
It was an officetel, and this place was……
……Where is this?
I’d come so far by air I had no idea. Still dazed, I heard Irene say,
“This is the residence the Association gave me. I’m on the very top floor. You, well… anywhere is fine……”
“Just like that…?”
“How else would I protect you if you were far away?”
“Ah… no, still.”
“The floor below mine… should be fine.”
Whoosh—!
“Ack!”
My body lifted again. And just like that, I was dropped straight from the top floor to the one below.
Perched on the railing, Irene said to me,
“Handle your own luggage…… And I’m going to rest from now on…….”
I could feel something cold in her gaze even through the sunglasses.
“Don’t disturb me…… Got it?”
“……Y-yes……”
Somehow, that was a truly terrifying thing to hear.
* * *
Just like that, I’d moved. Without having been able to pack a single thing.
Clumsily, I opened the door—and froze.
“……Why is this so huge?”
The place was enormous. Come to think of it, there seemed to be only one unit on each floor. Was that why?
“Whoa……”
To think I’d see a house like this in my lifetime. Was I really allowed to live somewhere like this?
I was so distracted by that thought that my mind wobbled for a moment, but then—
“Ah.”
I quickly pulled myself together.
This isn’t the time to be thinking about this.
Right now, what mattered was that terrorists had targeted me, and the Association and government were moving to find the God of War.
“……Haa.”
My head hurt. What was I supposed to do?
Then—
Ring-ring.
My phone rang. Jin Gyeongbeom.
“What?”
-Where are you?
“At home.”
-What do you mean, at home? I’m the one at your house.
“……”
Why the hell was that lunatic at my house again? I pressed two fingers to my brow.
“Then why are you at my house?”
-Forget that. Where are you?
“How is that the thing you’re just going to skip over?”
-Ah, hurry up!
“I moved. I moved houses.”
-Huh?
My answer left Jin Gyeongbeom sounding flustered.
-What do you mean, moved? Since when do you have money for that?
“The Association gave it to me. Because it’s dangerous, they told me to stay somewhere close to Irene, so they gave me a place—”
-What?
My words cut off in an instant. Jin Gyeongbeom’s voice had gone unnaturally cold.
-……What did you just say?
“No, I mean……”
“Uh……”
“Whoa, holy—!”
I jumped at the sudden voice out of nowhere. My phone slipped from my hand and hit the floor.
-Hey! What was that voice just now—!
“What…? What is it?”
Irene was standing in front of me.
In my apartment. Right after I’d walked in.
“Do you have… money……?”
“……Huh?”
At the abrupt question, I widened my eyes.
What was this, a shakedown?