Chapter 37
I’ll translate the chapter into polished HTML, preserving the special in-universe content as styled blocks and keeping the chapter title on the first line. Then I’ll do a quick pass for consistency and formatting.CHAPTER_TITLE: Traces of the God of War
“...A trace?”
I asked without relaxing the crease between my brows. They’d found a trace? What on earth did that mean?
“Yes.”
Irene took a bite of the cake in front of her and said, “We found a trace of the God of War.”
“...”
It was exactly what I’d just heard. Whatever I’d thought I’d misheard was meaningless.
“...Out of nowhere?”
It was too sudden. Until just moments ago, she hadn’t found anything at all, and then suddenly there was a trace?
What kind of trace?
I was confused.
...Did I drop something somewhere?
And then I was anxious, too. Had I left something behind? If so, what could it possibly have been?
No matter how many times I thought about it, nothing came to mind.
“What kind of trace did you find?”
As I asked in confusion, Irene drummed her fingers lightly against the table.
Wooooong—!
Something brushed past my side in that instant.
The Hero’s Super-sensory is activated.
The heat rising through my senses caught the foreign presence. It looked like Irene had done something.
“Not a proper trace, exactly...”
Irene said flatly, “...I tampered with the network a little.”
“...Excuse me?”
Tampered with the network?
No way.
“The Reincarnator Network...?”
“...Yes.”
“...That was something you could tamper with?”
What did it even mean to tamper with the Reincarnator Network? I hadn’t even thought it was something you could touch in the first place.
“Not completely tampered with. Just dug into it a bit...”
“How did you even...”
“...There are ways. If it were up to me, I wouldn’t have done it.”
After finishing the cake, Irene set the fork down with a soft clink.
“...But I had no choice.”
What exactly had left her no choice?
“...”
“Anyway, I found a trace.”
“...When you say a trace...”
I didn’t know exactly how she’d tampered with the network, but if she truly had found a trace, then what did that mean?
I could feel a cold sweat breaking out.
Whether she noticed my reaction or not, Irene gave me a strange look and said, “First of all, the God of War seems to be Korean.”
That much had already been known. Based on the circumstances, that had already been the most likely possibility.
But then—
“The coordinates where the network was active were in Korea...”
Irene said with more certainty than before.
Coordinates?
So she’d been able to verify something like that? That was surprising.
“I can’t see it clearly, but it does seem like he’s Korean... And the important thing is...”
With a dry rustle, the bowl in front of her floated into the air and moved on its own toward the sink.
She was apparently cleaning up after herself.
“There’s nothing confirming the God of War’s rank.”
“...”
“...I can’t verify it.”
“Pardon?”
“Normally, it should have been possible to check that, but it isn’t. There’s only one case where that happens...”
Holding the fork she’d been using, Irene pointed it at me and said, “...If they’re the same rank as me, or higher.”
“...”
“That means the God of War is also SS-class...”
She didn’t seem to be considering the possibility that he might be even higher. Well, of course.
There’s never been anyone like that in history.
The ceiling was SS-class. No record had ever produced a rank above that.
So Irene must have been regarding the God of War as SS-class, too.
“...I see. Then this trace you mentioned...”
“There are these two, and one other thing, but... I think I need to verify that part. For now, keep it to yourself...”
“Just me?”
Why only me?
“Yes. Ideally, not even the Association should know.”
“Is there a reason?”
“...Because I haven’t... verified it properly... If they find out, the Association will make a fuss...”
“...Ah, yes.”
So when she said she’d found a definite trace...
That meant—
It isn’t a definite trace.
What Irene had found wasn’t entirely conclusive. That realization gave me a sliver of relief.
“Tsk.”
Unlike my thoughts, Irene reacted as though she were dissatisfied with something.
The only question was—
“Irene. May I ask one thing?”
“Yes.”
“...Then why did you bring me here, in the end?”
It didn’t seem like such an urgent matter, so why had she bothered bringing me here right now?
As I asked that, wondering, Irene’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“Because I thought I might need you.”
“Pardon?”
“...Didn’t need you? I thought I might...”
“...”
Hearing that, I widened my eyes. Could it be she’d stepped in because I looked uncomfortable?
“How did you know I was there...”
“I didn’t want to know, but the Lightning Empress did something annoying...”
Jin Yeonhui? What did that mean?
“Do you remember why we’re in the same building?”
“...Yes.”
I knew that reason very well.
“You were protecting me.”
“Yes. That protection.”
With an expression that said the whole world was a nuisance, Irene told me, “The Lightning Empress was letting off her energy... so I gave up snack time and came over...”
“...Ah.”
At that moment, when Jin Yeonhui had used her energy toward Yu Jin...
Irene had sensed it and moved.
From that distance?
The training grounds were quite far from here. And yet she had sensed something beyond that range and come here in an instant?
That’s absurdly powerful.
Once again, I was reminded of Irene’s position and strength.
“So which is it?”
“Pardon?”
“...Which one of the two is making that face because they don’t like something?”
“Ah.”
Had I really been making a face like that? I couldn’t remember.
“It’s nothing. I’m just a little tired.”
I forced a smile as I answered. Irene gave a small nod.
“...I understand.”
Ping.
When Irene flicked her finger lightly, the surrounding presence vanished in an instant.
“Now then, on to the main point.”
“The main point?”
What else was there?
“Why this Knight Order was created...”
“You mean—”
“Terrorists. I think we need to clean those people out...”
At the word terrorist, my heart stirred.
A prickling sensation crawled over me, as though my pores were all opening at once.
“...I can’t seem to find them properly. I even set bait...”
Bait. At her words, someone came to mind.
I think his name was...
O Jimin?
An S-class reincarnator with the shadow-star power.
He’d disguised himself as an A-class superhuman named Kim Jincheol and infiltrated the Association.
Irene was calling him bait.
Someone she’d deliberately allowed in, thinking it was more convenient to keep the enemy close.
...So she thinks he’s a terrorist.
It seemed she believed he was tied to the same people who had attacked the Association.
Of course.
I’m no different.
I also thought he was one of theirs.
“He’s a pretty valuable piece of bait, so I’m debating whether to use him now, even if it’s a little early... or whether to try a different method...”
“There’s another method?”
“Yes.”
Answering me, Irene pointed at me.
“You.”
“...Me?”
“...They’re most focused on you right now.”
“...Me?”
“So... I’m curious...”
Her gaze was strange. It felt like she was simply asking for my opinion, and yet at the same time, like she was testing something.
My opinion.
While I was thinking about that—
“If nothing comes to mind, you don’t have to—”
Irene went on, but before she could finish, my mouth moved.
“If possible, it’s better to use a card that’s already been revealed.”
“Hm?”
“If they’re really targeting me, then we should make use of that. As bait they can come after whenever they want. Or...”
Feeling my emotions cool just a little, I said, “We can turn it into a trap and use it against them.”
“...”
At that, for just an instant, something unfamiliar flickered in Irene’s eyes.
* * *
Seoul Superhuman Association Headquarters.
In the Association president’s office, which had nearly finished being rebuilt, Jeon Yuseon came to meet Baek Hyeonho.
“These are the records of those who passed the Knight Order selection.”
As soon as he arrived, Jeon Yuseon handed Baek Hyeonho the documents.
“Hm.”
As if he’d been waiting for them, Baek Hyeonho accepted the file and checked it over.
“The ranks are all over the place.”
“That’s right.”
Inside were the details of the knights Irene had chosen for herself.
Some of the lower ones barely brushed C-rank, while the higher ones were all the way up to S-class.
Once he confirmed that there were S-class superhumans among them, Baek Hyeonho’s expression changed.
“I’d heard the reports, but I never thought she’d really come.”
The Lightning Empress, Jin Yeonhui.
A powerhouse from the Taeseong Group had truly joined the Knight Order.
To Baek Hyeonho, that was baffling.
“Why, I wonder?”
He couldn’t understand the reason. An S-class superhuman would have been more than capable of taking a commander-level position in the Knight Order.
And yet she’s joining the new Knight Order.
It was more than he’d expected, especially through an interview, of all things.
Though I did hear from the Taeseong Group.
Even then, the only thing they’d said was that Jin Yeonhui would be attending the interview. Even Baek Hyeonho had been stunned when he heard that.
...That Lightning Empress.
Not just anyone—the Lightning Empress.
The child of the Taeseong Group chairman.
And with that being the case—
She was someone who didn’t need to belong to the nation at all.
Yet Jin Yeonhui had walked into the Knight Order of her own volition.
“The reason is...”
Baek Hyeonho’s gaze dropped below her name.
It landed on Lee Jinwoo, the young man seated beside Irene.
“Hm.”
Could it be this side? They didn’t seem to have much of a connection, but one never knew.
No, it’s not as though there’s nothing at all.
Not now, perhaps, but things had likely been different in the past.
Even if that past had been ugly.
“President.”
At Jeon Yuseon’s voice, Baek Hyeonho looked at him.
“What is it?”
“May I ask you one thing?”
Baek Hyeonho nodded.
“Why do you keep paying attention to that superhuman Lee Jinwoo?”
Jeon Yuseon looked genuinely puzzled. At his rather transparent reaction, Baek Hyeonho let out a laugh without realizing it.
“Do you find that so strange?”
“I do, yes. An A-class superhuman isn’t ordinary power, but if you set aside the matter of the terror attack, he’s not exactly someone you need to worry about this much...”
“Jeon Yuseon.”
“Yes.”
At Baek Hyeonho’s voice, Jeon Yuseon stopped speaking. His expression had shifted.
“Do you know about the Reverse-Colored Earring incident, from about ten years ago?”
“...The Reverse-Colored Earring?”
Jeon Yuseon’s face hardened.
“I do.”
The Reverse-Colored Earring incident. It was something most superhumans knew about.
It had once been an S-class cursed relic in Korea.
Now it was a thing of the past, erased by a certain incident.
And not just any incident, either—it was a disaster that had claimed a great many victims.
But why was he bringing up the Reverse-Colored Earring now?
Just as Jeon Yuseon’s confusion peaked—
“Lee Jinwoo is a survivor of the Reverse-Colored Earring incident.”
“...!”
At Baek Hyeonho’s words, Jeon Yuseon’s eyes widened beyond belief.
That meant—could it be?
“That’s right.”
Baek Hyeonho answered as though confirming it.
“The hero of Mapo. He’s the child of those people.”
It was one of the hidden aftersides of history that most superhumans had long since learned to keep quiet about.