Chapter 59
Terminally Ill, but It's Okay — Episode 59
[Judged that the development up to Joo A-rin's abduction was too slow-paced]
[Decided to move the timeline up quickly to create tension and a sense of speed.]
[Main Quest #1]
[Objective: Rescue Joo A-rin (Contribution 60% or higher)]
[Reward: +20 days to Remaining Time, 35 SP provided]
The moment I saw it, I let out a string of curses.
"X—. Seriously."
Getting blindsided wasn't a once or twice thing for me, so I was confident I wouldn't be surprised by much, but this was too much.
A D-day pulled forward by a whole week.
I was so dumbfounded that sweat suddenly beaded all down my back.
But I shook my head hard and pulled myself together.
The fact that my preparations weren't quite finished was a flaw, but I'd still caught it before it was too late, so I had to move.
I'd have to handle the rest with improvisation somehow.
As I gathered the Star Flower seeds, I asked Cheol-soo.
"You can track locations too, right?"
-Yeah. But Ha-yul, isn't this a pretty big incident? Wouldn't it be better to report it first.......
"No, you don't need to worry about that. I'll handle the rest myself. Just text me as soon as you find the location. And..."
I thought of Cheon Seo-yoon and Baek Sa-young.
If things went according to the original, contacting both of them would be the proper response.
But the phrase "contribution 60% or higher" nagged at me.
If the three of us entered together and things went even slightly wrong, the quest could fail.
Therefore, Baek Sa-young was out...
"Send just one text to Cheon Seo-yoon."
After concluding that I'd only call in Cheon Seo-yoon, I bolted out of the dormitory.
Roberto's location information arrived without delay.
[Dodam's club hall. Roberto is still inside Taehak.]
Fortunately, it wasn't far.
The rain outside was coming down hard enough to make everything chaotic, but I reached the club hall at a run.
Looking like a drowned rat, I flung the door open and scanned my surroundings.
Before long, I found traces of the bastard.
A canvas that, despite being blank, occupied an entire wall of the hall...
But its hidden true nature was Roberto's Demonic Space Canvas.
He had probably dragged her inside it.
A space where he could face anyone who came, a world where he was the master.
"It's about time for her to arrive."
I had things to relay, so I waited for Cheon Seo-yoon, who would come crashing in soon.
Before long, the sound of a door bursting open as if breaking and thudding footsteps drew near.
And our eyes met.
"......Why are you here?"
Between her ragged breaths, a sharp tone leaked out.
I looked straight into Cheon Seo-yoon's eyes, which showed a hint of suspicion, and shook my head.
"Wrong person to ask. I came running as soon as I got the message too."
"You got one too? Then who..."
I pointed at the canvas and explained the current situation.
Roberto's true identity was a Demonkin of Allure, and Joo A-rin had been abducted into that Demonic Space Canvas.
I didn't forget to tell her that the space itself was a rare Armament that served as a weapon, and that it was a field where his abilities were buffed.
"So how do we get in?"
With time being of the essence, Cheon Seo-yoon paid no attention to the source or authenticity of the information.
"Take this first."
"What's this?"
I held out something we had practically obtained together.
"Seeds from a flower that resembles a star. They'll help against Allure."
"This tiny thing?"
I nodded silently.
In truth, the seed reacted to emotions heightened to the extreme under Allure, but either way, it was definitely a key to waking her up.
"If there's a flash of light, it means it's a false space, so don't look away."
"...Just tell me how to get in."
Contrary to her curt reply, Cheon Seo-yoon didn't refuse. She took the seed and gripped it tightly in her hand.
* * *
Her hazy consciousness revived like a light flickering before it finally came on.
Joo A-rin reached out to clutch her throbbing head...
"Ugh."
...and soon realized she couldn't.
She was seated in a chair, bound tightly with rough rope.
The question of why she was here gradually answered itself as her missing memories returned.
Kim Hye-jin, whom she'd met after running through the driving rain. The moment Joo A-rin sensed something was off about her, Roberto's sinister hand had reached out.......
She remembered being helplessly taken down by the sudden ambush, and when she opened her eyes, this was her state.
She didn't know why, but she'd probably been dragged somewhere and detained.
Joo A-rin, now fully alert, first tried to summon Hae-rin by drawing up her mana.
"...?"
But something was strange.
The vital energy that should have responded immediately remained utterly still, as though fast asleep.......
"This can't be."
Flustered, Joo A-rin adjusted her posture. She focused again, and just as she pictured Hae-rin—
"You're already awake?"
A voice suddenly rose from behind her.
When a hand appeared and gripped her shoulder, Joo A-rin trembled.
"But what a shame. It looks like you won't be able to use mana for a while."
Roberto spun around and appeared, mockingly shaking the medicine bottle in his hand.
"...Do you think you'll get away with this?"
Clenching her teeth, Joo A-rin shouted and thrashed violently.
But Roberto remained completely at ease.
With a light wave of his hand, red Demonic Energy stretched out and settled over Joo A-rin's head.
As master of the Demonic Space Canvas, his abilities were amplified enough that even a casual gesture could trigger hallucinations.
"Ah."
It didn't connect directly to a dream, but Joo A-rin's strength drained in an instant and she swayed.
Roberto smiled with satisfaction and murmured softly.
"Listen carefully, Joo A-rin. The show will begin soon. Quite a few executives are curious to watch a masterpiece being born."
His tone was polite, but the emotion lurking beneath it was vicious greed.
"Rest well. I'll wake you when everything's ready."
As the red Demonic Energy rippled once more, Joo A-rin's head drooped and she lost consciousness.
Soft jazz resonated through the room.
As if savoring it, Roberto closed his eyes and paced for a moment, then lightly snapped his fingers.
The back door opened and Kim Hye-jin walked out.
Holding crystal orbs with built-in recording functions...
"Install them thoroughly, front, back, left, and right."
After giving the brief order, Roberto sat down across from Joo A-rin, where her face was clearly visible.
Holding a wine glass and swirling it, he rechecked the composition, colors, and props of the work he would soon create with his own hands.
Everything was proceeding smoothly according to plan.
Rumble.
Until a faint tremor ran through the old castle.
Roberto's head, which had been swaying lazily, snapped around.
* * *
I now stood in a field thick with reeds inside the Demonic Space Canvas.
Whooosh.
There was no sense of foreignness in the fluttering wind.
Only the old castle looming nearby felt unfamiliar, evoking a distant medieval age.
"Did we get split up when we entered?"
I realized I'd been separated from Cheon Seo-yoon, but decided not to look for her.
The space wasn't that big anyway. Considering the battle to come, it was better to move separately.
Without acting rashly, I retraced the original story.
Cheon Seo-yoon and Baek Sa-young stormed the old castle in one rush, broke through the enemies' resistance, and stood before Roberto.
Inside the Demonic Space Canvas, Roberto's abilities were amplified several times over.
Merely meeting his eyes triggered the first stage of Allure: a dream.
Cheon Seo-yoon returned to her good childhood, to that happy time, and Baek Sa-young...
Well.
Honestly, even as the webtoon artist, I don't really know.
I could only guess it was related to the secret of his birth, a plot thread that would drive the middle-to-late part of the work.
Yoo So-young had kept it hidden and never revealed it, so the manuscript itself simply omitted it.
Moreover, since it was depicted as being shaken off quickly, it was actually more reasonable to say he wasn't caught at all.
It was thanks to his upright mind and the Demonic Energy resistance of the Martial God Physique.
Anyway, while Baek Sa-young was fighting alone, Cheon Seo-yoon also broke free from the dream and awakened a new trait.
And the battle resumed.
Although Roberto's abilities were amplified, he wasn't a combat type, so if his Allure didn't work, his power was practically worthless.
In the end, the two defeated Roberto and rescued Joo A-rin.
That was the flow of the original as I knew it.
But the situation had changed a bit.
Baek Sa-young wasn't here, and I had to take on his role, but I couldn't fight like him.
I wasn't a Martial God Physique, nor an upright paragon of virtue.
Therefore, the only one who would face Roberto directly was Cheon Seo-yoon.
I planned to be a thorough supporter.
With a single strike packed with every ability I had, the strongest move prepared...
32-stroke 1-star, Wind-Style Sorcery Concealment
[Manifestation Accuracy 79%]
After blocking the traces of my mana, I approached close to the castle wall.
The old castle followed a typical medieval style.
A narrow moat surrounded the high walls on all sides, so the only way to enter normally was through the gate.
But since I had no intention of moving openly, I extended my right hand.
I fired Cheonjam Thread at one of the spires jutting up as if piercing the sky and wound it around tightly.
It contracted rapidly, and I shot upward in one burst.
After finding a suitable perch, I began Enhancement.
[Attempting to grant the setting of 'Clairvoyance' to your eyes.]
[Calculating required SP.]
[This will take a moment.]
[Calculation complete.]
[Required SP: 200]
It was an ability absolutely necessary for observing the interior, but as expected... it was quite expensive.
But I couldn't give up.
I added several additional restrictions.
"Make it so it doesn't apply to people, limit the usage time to 30 minutes. Set the cooldown to 2 hours."
[Calculating required SP.]
[This will take a moment.]
[Calculation complete.]
[Required SP: 40]
It had dropped sharply, but it was too early to be satisfied, so I tried adding one more condition.
"Add the condition that it cannot be used during combat."
[Calculation complete.]
[Required SP: 20]
Then the required value dropped once more.
Deciding this was good enough, I attempted Enhancement.
Fwish—
Suddenly, blue paint spread across my vision and then faded.
I opened my eyes wide to test the performance.
When I focused and stared, the inside of the wall soon revealed itself clearly.
Oh-ho.
With a bit of exaggeration, it was as clear and vivid as if I'd gone inside and was wandering around.
The performance was satisfactory, so I quickly scanned the entire old castle.
Before long, I found it: a massive hall at the very center of the main building's second floor.
There, where colorful banners fluttered and the chilly presence of knight statues lined up beneath them like a formation swirled densely...
"Found them."
Roberto and Kim Hye-jin in a red dress.
And Joo A-rin, sprawled out and bound to a chair.
Seeing her chest rise and fall regularly, it fortunately didn't seem to be a serious problem—she just looked unconscious for the moment.
But there didn't seem to be much time to simply feel relieved.
The crystal orbs being placed one by one around Joo A-rin meant Allure would be activated before long.
"It's about time for her to show up."
I waited for my party member, who was taking her time appearing.
BOOM!
At some point, a powerful bursting sound rang out from the direction of the gate.
As Roberto, who had been holding a wine glass with feigned elegance, whipped his head around, I followed his gaze as well.
There was a short-haired swordswoman charging in, gripping a mana blade swollen to half the height of the wall.