Chapter 105
Chapter 105
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 105
Chapter Title: Nighttime Q&A (2)
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Na Ju-yong couldn't help but be flustered by Min Chae-ryeong's sudden appearance. He had anticipated some kind of contact if word of this incident reached her ears, but he never imagined it would happen this quickly—or that she would come looking for him personally.
"You're going to kill me just for seeing what I'm up to? That cocky attitude of yours hasn't changed a bit."
He was taken aback, but he didn't let it show on his face. Min Chae-ryeong smirked at his relaxed demeanor and spoke.
"Cocky? What, you think I can't kill you?"
"Our interests are too tangled for that."
"Maybe. But didn't it occur to you that if things go south, I might just ignore all that and kill you for real?"
Na Ju-yong let out a faint chuckle at her sharp words.
Min Chae-ryeong was no one to take lightly, but he was a man who had rolled around in the dark underbelly for decades, thick-skinned and seasoned. Even her pointed threats seemed like the adorable antics of a child to him.
"Do you know when a dog barks the fiercest?"
"What?"
"A dog never barks right before it tears into its prey. It just lowers its stance, glares with wide eyes, and growls low. Dogs bark fiercely only when they have no intention of attacking. No matter how savage the howl, it's usually just bluffing out of fear."
"So you think I'm some cute little puppy?"
"Given your temperament, the fact that you haven't attacked right away means you didn't come here to kill me today, right?"
"Hah."
A hollow laugh escaped Min Chae-ryeong's lips. She pinched the bridge of her nose in disbelief and shook her head.
"They say people lose their sense when they get old, and it looks like that's true. Fine, you're right. I just came to give you a warning today. But this is the last one."
Na Ju-yong grinned slyly, as if to say he knew it all along. Min Chae-ryeong delivered her message.
"Stay away from Kang Ha-neul. Like I said, this is your final warning."
"Why are you protecting Kang Ha-neul so fiercely?"
"What?"
At Min Chae-ryeong's retort, Na Ju-yong rose from his seat. Leaving the sofa behind, he strolled leisurely toward the shelves, as if taking a relaxed walk in a park.
"I get worrying about the well-being of that 'student' Kang Ha-neul. No matter what you're scheming behind the scenes, on the surface, you're the Academy Security Force team leader."
He rummaged through the shelves cluttered with miscellaneous items—piles of documents, various glass bottles, and random knickknacks. Na Ju-yong's hands busily sifted through them.
"But when the opponent is Ye-il Group, that's a different story. You know better than anyone the risks of interfering in their business. Any rational person would have quietly given up on Kang Ha-neul once they learned Ye-il was after him. No—with your usual personality, you would've handed him over yourself to rack up some debt on their end."
Soon, his hands pulled out a pitch-black box. A matte black metal case about the size of a laptop, with small grooves running along its surface. Na Ju-yong cradled it carefully in both hands.
"But you didn't. Which means there's enough merit in opposing Ye-il over Kang Ha-neul to make it worth the risk. And you're a rational thinker."
"...You've been running your mouth quite a bit. So what's your point?"
"Are you—or maybe Greenhouse Academy behind you—doing multiple ability research like Ye-il? That's what I thought at first. But no matter how much I investigated, nothing pointed to that. Multiple ability research is illegal, after all. And surprisingly, this country's government agencies stick to their word."
"So?"
-Beep.
Na Ju-yong operated the device, and a green light lit up on the lens attached to one corner of the box in his hand.
"So I dug into it. About you. Your past. Who is Min Chae-ryeong? What drives her? Why is she so obsessed with Kang Ha-neul...?"
As he spoke, Na Ju-yong met Min Chae-ryeong's gaze. A thick smile spread across his face.
'Just as I thought.'
Min Chae-ryeong was shaken. The woman who never lost her composure, always looking down on others no matter the situation, was clearly rattled.
"Min Chae-ryeong. You..."
Her reaction confirmed it for Na Ju-yong. What he had uncovered through his investigations. The faint traces he had pieced together, leading to one possibility—it had to be the truth.
"...Turns out you're from the 'Cradle' too. Just like Kang Ha-neul."
-Crunch.
At that moment, Min Chae-ryeong's shadow twisted grotesquely.
-Whirrr!
The next instant, crimson tentacles erupted from beneath her feet. Dozens of thorny whips lashed out at Na Ju-yong in unison.
However.
-Splat! Splatter!
"Oh."
A translucent barrier appeared in front of Na Ju-yong. The blood-red tentacles slammed harmlessly against it.
-Kiiing.
A shrill resonance echoed from the barrier. A sound all too familiar to Min Chae-ryeong.
"You, that ability..."
It was identical to her superpower, the Absolute Defense barrier. Min Chae-ryeong shook her head in denial—no way—but she couldn't mistake her own power.
"What's this now? Tentacles from the shadows? That's not in the intel I have! Did you devour a new ability in the meantime?"
Na Ju-yong, meanwhile, muttered in fascination as he watched the writhing tentacles before his barrier. Stifling her shock, Min Chae-ryeong demanded,
"How do you have that ability...?"
"You recognize your own superpower right away, huh? Yes. This barrier is exactly the same as yours—Absolute Defense. I got lucky and acquired it while investigating you."
"No way. Did you artificially implant someone else's superpower into yourself?"
"Kahahahaha! As if! That's still impossible! If research had progressed that far, I'd have no regrets left!"
"Then what the hell...?"
Na Ju-yong flashed a leisurely smile from behind the impenetrable Absolute Defense barrier.
"Multiple ability research hasn't advanced that far yet. Artificially transplanting another person's superpower into a superhuman is impossible. But us researchers always come up with new ideas inspired by dead ends!"
Na Ju-yong held up the black box in his hand high. The lens on its corner now glowed red, unlike before. He shouted in excitement.
"It's a reversal of thinking! If extracting or copying superpowers from superhumans for transplantation is impossible! Then process the superhuman themselves to..."
Na Ju-yong was a researcher with a strong urge to show off. He enjoyed flaunting his knowledge and was about to explain the current situation to Min Chae-ryeong in detail.
"...No. Wait, no."
But at the precarious moment, his rationality barely overrode his ego.
"No reason to explain this nicely. You're the enemy, after all."
"Quit the bullshit and spit it out! How the hell do you have that ability?!"
"My knowledge isn't free. If you want it that bad, apply as an auditor at Ye-il Academy next semester. I'm planning to offer an in-depth elective on superhuman superpowers and their origins."
"You've been flapping your gums way too casually, banking on that one barrier..."
-Boom!
Min Chae-ryeong stomped irritably, cracking the marble floor.
"...Don't get too cocky. It's called Absolute Defense, but it has some sneaky weaknesses."
"You think that's my only trick?"
"I'll throw that right back at you. You investigated me, so you should know. How many superpowers I have—"
At that moment.
-Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Ding!
The electronic chime from the front door made both of them freeze.
'Who is it?'
Min Chae-ryeong's mind raced. Na Ju-yong's wife had died three years ago. No other family lived with him except his two daughters. The eldest was at Greenhouse Academy dorms, so out of the picture. That left...
"Dad?"
-Click.
The living room lights blazed on, and Na Eun-joo appeared.
"Huh?"
Na Eun-joo looked shocked. Tears welled up in her eyes—a perfectly natural reaction for a ten-year-old spotting an intruder bursting into the house.
That response brought a flicker of conflict to Min Chae-ryeong's face. Not from any moral qualms. She was simply debating whether to kill Na Eun-joo on the spot now that she'd seen her face or use her as a hostage to threaten Na Ju-yong.
In that split second, countless thoughts flashed through Min Chae-ryeong's mind.
Meanwhile, Na Ju-yong calmly uttered just one word.
"Eun-joo."
Na Ju-yong nodded meaningfully.
Then.
"Yes."
In an instant, all innocence vanished from Na Eun-joo's expression.
-Crunch.
Na Eun-joo bit down on a candy-shaped enhancer with her teeth.
The third use today.
Her body was already at its limit from the two prior instances of mind control. Forcing it one more time would push past side effects into life-threatening territory. Yet Na Eun-joo didn't hesitate.
"Sister, what's your name?"
"Min Chae-ryeong... Huh?"
"Min Chae-ryeong? Pretty name."
Min Chae-ryeong blurted out her name without thinking and looked stunned. Na Eun-joo's finger pointed straight at her. Seeing it, Na Ju-yong smiled triumphantly.
'Perfect timing. A gift from the heavens.'
Na Eun-joo returning right on cue after heading out to support Kali's call was pure luck for him. Though her mind control was matchup-dependent, stopping movement was well within her capabilities. And Na Ju-yong had plenty of ways to finish off a helpless Min Chae-ryeong.
"Kneel."
"Wha—"
Before Min Chae-ryeong could grasp the situation, a throbbing headache pierced her mind.
"Urk?!"
In the brief moment before her mind was overtaken, Min Chae-ryeong instinctively realized Na Eun-joo was interfering mentally. She didn't hesitate.
-Tap.
Min Chae-ryeong's index finger pointed at her own temple.
"Bang."
-Splurt!
The next instant, crimson blood sprayed from her head.
"Eh?"
"What?!"
Na Ju-yong and Na Eun-joo recoiled in horror. Their movements froze at Min Chae-ryeong's sudden self-harm—suicide?
However.
"...Bang!"
Even with her head blown open, Min Chae-ryeong's eyes gleamed as she pointed at Na Eun-joo and shouted again.
-Thud!
"Kek?!"
Na Eun-joo's body slammed powerlessly into the wall. A pencil-thick hole pierced her shoulder, gushing bright red blood. She was in no state to activate any superpowers.
-Dash!
Min Chae-ryeong seized the opening and bolted for the terrace. Clutching her still-unhealed temple wound, she called out to Na Ju-yong.
"I told you. This is the last warning."
-Leap!
With those final words, Min Chae-ryeong kicked off the terrace and vaulted up. She jumped several meters to the rooftop and swiftly vanished from the scene.
"Hic! It, it hurts! Dad, hurts, hnggh!"
The wrecked living room. Blood splattered everywhere. Na Eun-joo groaned, bleeding from her pierced shoulder, eyes, and ears.
In the midst of it all, Na Ju-yong stared blankly at the terrace where Min Chae-ryeong had fled.
"...To think she even has immortality..."
He muttered in utter astonishment. Min Chae-ryeong's parting words echoed endlessly in his mind.
'I told you. This is the last warning.'
"Why are you so obsessed with Kang Ha-neul?"
Memories of his earlier investigations into Min Chae-ryeong flooded Na Ju-yong's mind.
"Is it just because you're both from the 'Cradle' that you're shielding him? Or... are you trying to fulfill their unachieved wish yourself?"
His trembling lips stretched into a wide grin. Staring ecstatically at the terrace, Na Ju-yong murmured, unable to contain his excitement.
"Their unfulfilled wish. The dream of becoming the perfect superhuman..."
Even as his daughter lay dying, he rambled on like a man lost in a drug-induced haze—clearly not in his right mind, to anyone who saw.