Chapter 64
Terminally Ill, but It's Okay — Episode 64
Trinity
This famous art gallery in Seongsu-dong was, despite its lofty reputation, relatively quiet.
That was because most of its clientele were wealthy, and it operated on a strict reservation-only basis.
It was a sunny Saturday in mid-May, when the strengthening sun had begun to drive people into lighter clothes.
The entrance to Trinity had grown unusually crowded with unexpected visitors.
"You must have a reservation to enter."
"No, I'm telling you I'm an influencer. Do you know how many followers I have?"
"......It's still not possible. I'm sorry."
"Wow, this is seriously ridiculous."
The conversations repeated in much the same way, with only the people changing.
"Even if I try to make a reservation, the whole year is already booked. This is what happens when you only accept a measly five people a day."
"Sir, Trinity is normally a gallery for a small number of members......."
"Ah, forget all that. Tell the owner to come out here."
The young visitors' fierce protests continued without end.
That was, until a luxury sedan pulled in and someone stuck their head out through the half-open window.
"What's going on here?"
Jeong Ae-ri briefly frowned at the unfamiliar sight, then soon stepped out of the car with a bright smile.
Lush emerald hair.
Striking features to match, and an outfit adorned with luxury brands.
Her presence was far from ordinary, and even the protesting visitors took a step back.
"M-Madam Chairwoman."
The employee who had been waiting for a savior rushed over and explained the situation.
According to the employee, the circumstances were as follows.
About three days ago, a work uploaded to Trinity's official account had been the trigger.
A portrait of a girl.
It had merely been posted as an introduction.
But people who recognized its aesthetic quality and value began pressing "like" one after another, and it quickly became a hot post, bringing in more and more visitors who had seen it.
"I see."
Having grasped the situation, Jeong Ae-ri wore a rather intrigued expression.
"Shall we respond firmly?"
"Wait."
She cut the employee's question short and pulled out her phone.
"Chief Choi? It's the chairwoman."
She called the operations department, exchanged various details, then hung up with a satisfied expression.
She approached the gathered visitors and raised her voice.
"Our Trinity is a gallery that exists for one guest rather than ten visitors."
At that single remark, the surroundings buzzed.
Her frank management philosophy, along with an attitude of supreme aloofness, was more than enough to provoke resentment.
"However......."
Jeong Ae-ri's words were not yet finished.
"I do agree with the opinion that the more art walls itself off from the public, the more it will be left behind."
She paused for a moment, then revealed what she had wanted to say, her true intention.
"Since a good opportunity has come up, we’ll be opening free of charge for one week starting today, reservations or not. Please forgive us for turning you away earlier, and enjoy the gallery."
Then she bowed her head politely, and the reactions that had been filled with complaints quickly turned positive.
"A-Are you really letting us in?"
"Do I look like I'm joking? Guide them in courteously."
Jeong Ae-ri gave the order with a rather solemn air, then got back into the car.
For someone who had just made a major decision, she seemed composed, but as soon as the heavily tinted window rolled up, she began making calls left and right.
"Marketing? Put up a post on social media right now. Announce that Trinity will be open free for a week to celebrate the exhibition of Portrait of a Girl."
"Chief Kim, please ask for the understanding of our existing members. Call each one individually and send a nice bottle of wine as a gift."
Jeong Ae-ri rattled off one concrete plan after another.
Trinity's free opening timed to the exhibition of the girl's portrait.......
She had merely been flustered because the timing had come sooner than expected.
In fact, it was something she had planned to some extent.
Looks, for one. Skill, for another.
She had planned this from the moment she rented D.H’s work—Park Ha-yul had both sides of the equation, talent as an artist and work worth exhibiting.
Because he had star power strong enough to guarantee one hundred percent success.
It was a shame it wasn't an exclusive contract, but that made her all the more eager.
Before other galleries could start eyeing him, she had to plant the impression that he had a close relationship with Trinity.
"Things are working out better than expected."
Jeong Ae-ri leaned back in her seat with a satisfied heart.
Come to think of it, she could hardly have asked for a better benefactor.
Hadn't the matter with Roberto also been resolved thanks to that person?
"I'll repay him properly......."
Jeong Ae-ri intended to make D.H the signature star of Trinity.
He might be hopeless at romance, but being an artist would be a considerable advantage with someone who loved art.
* * *
[Remaining Time: 39 days 9 hours 11 minutes]
Time flowed quickly, and before I knew it, Monday had arrived.
A week had flown by since the duel with Roberto.
Grateful for the ordinary days I hadn't had in a while, I had been living quite diligently.
Every day I woke at five in the morning, went straight to the fitness training ground, hammered the weights, and after a protein-heavy breakfast, attended classes.
Strictly speaking, I pretended to listen while repeating Cheonjam Thread training.
I had developed a fairly novel training method and was putting it to excellent use.
I tied a pen to the Cheonjam Thread and wrote characters.......
But that was easier said than done. It was anything but easy in practice, and I had broken several pens at first.
Anyway, after classes ended, I went back to the same tedious training.
I practiced Samjaegong for a full five hours without fail, and spent about two hours focused on learning the 2-star sorcery I had received.
I had started by appraising Fire-Style Sorcery, the one I was most confident in, but given the nature of sorcery where the gap between star grades was large — which also meant the performance was outstanding — it seemed I would need to grind hard for about a month to get it on track.
If I worked without a break through all of that, it would be around ten at night by the time I finished.
So did I stop there......?
No, not that either.
I still had the newly added practical-training session left.
First three, then four. I was facing opponents while increasing the number.
Since my starting point was late, I was living a life more otherworldly than the otherworlders.
"How did it come to this?"
When I thought back to about three months ago, when I had been stammering and fumbling, it truly felt like a different world.
Back then I had been completely terrified and had even swung around a Seven-Branched Sword that didn't match my level.
It probably meant I had grown that much, but I was still thirsty.
For survival and rescuing Yoo So-young, I had to keep training without rest—and there was always the chance of hitting some unexpected jackpot(?).
I also could not forget to give blood to the flower bud.
Who knows.
Like a genie from a lamp, an incredibly powerful fairy might appear and grant a wish.
Still, I had grown quite attached to it.
There was no major change in its appearance, but the way it flinched every time it drank blood was very cute.
['Greed' retches and dry-heaves.]
Of course, Greed was still jealous.......
['Greed' says that as a sublime being, it does not feel such base emotions.]
Ridiculous.
Did it think I didn't know it flinched every time I stroked the flower bud?
[.......]
Anyway, trading jabs with Greed all morning kept me entertained on the way to the private training ground.
"Hey, did you see the news?"
"Yeah. Almost choked on my breakfast."
"Why? What happened now?"
But what was this.......
The atmosphere that had been quiet for the past few days was in an uproar again, as if that quiet had never happened.
"Whaaat? So when is she coming?"
"She's probably already entered the country. The date she visits Taehak is Thursday."
I soon figured out what was going on.
The fact that most of the people going wild were men.
"Wahahaha, spring has finally come to my bleak, single-minded life."
"Tsk, making a damn fuss this early in the morning."
Lee Dae-ho was already counting his chickens, while Cheon Seo-yoon looked at him like he was pathetic.
"Why is she coming here?"
"They're signing some kind of exchange agreement. Arin, are you going to go watch?"
"No. I'm busy."
The fact that the female students, including Lee Min-ha, didn't particularly care — for reference, Joo A-rin, who had been discharged from the hospital the day before yesterday, had little interest in events other than grades to begin with — when I considered all that.......
The topic was clear.
"The Vatican's visit to Taehak."
The real purpose was to sign a student-exchange agreement, but that wasn't what interested the public.
The delegation included Reina, the Vatican’s sixth Saintess.
People were cheering at the news of the visit of the third heroine of [Epic of Balance], a saintess also famous as a beauty of the century.
Just then, Cheol-soo came over and asked, his face slightly flushed.
"Are you going too, Ha-yul? They say she's much prettier in person than in photos."
"Well, I suppose so. I drew her with great care."
"Huh?"
"Never mind. I'm not planning to go. If you want to go, go alone."
I responded curtly for someone about to face the appearance of a new heroine, and moved to the back seat.
This time, she was only making a cameo-like appearance to become acquainted with the protagonists.
Her full-fledged appearance would be in the second semester, when she transferred in as part of the student exchange.
"What a shame. It's a rare chance to see a living angel."
Cheol-soo muttered as if regretful, but I snorted.
Only her face resembled an angel. Her personality was close to the opposite.
Pure good was, rather, close to darkness — one might call her the embodiment of that truth.
Seemingly naive yet cold-hearted, benevolent yet with a cruel side.......
She was a fairly complex character, and by no means easy to deal with.
That was why I tried to keep my distance whenever possible.......
"Now, everyone, attention. You all worked hard taking the formative assessment for the past two weeks."
Anyway, when the professor in charge entered, the buzzing hall settled down.
"The formative assessment results and the updated rankings should have just been sent to your phones. Everyone check them."
No sooner had the professor finished speaking than the students' phones vibrated.
The training ground, which had barely quieted down, buzzed again with a mix of anticipation and worry.
Bzzzz.
I was also about to take out the phone in my pocket.
But before that, my vision flickered and spat out a satisfying message.
[Inter Quest, overall ranking, achieved within top 650]
[As a reward, 10 days are added to your Remaining Time.]
[As a reward, you acquire 20 SP.]
[Remaining Time: 49 days 8 hours 28 minutes]
[Remaining SP: 111]
Oh-ho.
At this point, I thought there was no need to check.
"......What the. Is this right?"
"That's insane. Isn't this basically cheating?"
But then, one gaze after another began turning toward me.
I had expected my score to be good, but when the commotion grew unsettlingly loud, I hurriedly checked my phone.
Then I froze for a moment.
"First place?"
* * *
That night, in the bustling streets of Gangnam, Seoul.
Two figures in robes with hoods pulled down low were walking along a street flashing with neon signs.
"So this is Korea's night street......."
One of them was busy glancing around as if dropped into a new world, while the other clutched the first one's sleeve tightly, unable to hide their anxiety.
"Shouldn't we head back soon? If the cardinal finds out, we'll really be in huge trouble."
"We won't be caught. I'll just look around quietly and then go."
"How am I supposed to believe that? You always say that and then cause trouble every single time."
"Me? When?"
"What do you mean, when? Just the day before yesterday. You turned all of Paris upside down saying you were catching a pickpocket, Saintess."
And now, here.
In the Republic of Korea, there was only one person who could be called a Saintess.
The one entrusted with the mission of “Sanctification”—punishing evil and guiding it onto the right path.
The Saintess of Sanctification, Reina von Bien Hildegard.
Reina spoke to her attendant with a deeply serious face.
"I promise. At least in Korea......."
"Let go. You fucker."
But at that moment, a shout came from nearby.
"Fucker? Has this bastard lost his mind?"
"I-I paid back all the money. So why are you coming all the way here and making a scene?"
"Paid back? Paid back my ass. That was interest. The principal's still all there."
As it happened, a hulking man covered in tattoos was grabbing a scrawny man by the hair and dragging him along.
Why, of all times, now.......
"S-Saintess."
The attendant called Reina the moment they sensed trouble.
But it already seemed too late.
Before anyone could stop her, Reina walked up to the hulking man and poked him in the back.
"What? You not gonna get lost?"
The hulking man scowled and raised his hand sharply, but Reina murmured with an innocent air.
"Satan has taken root in you. I will purify it."