Chapter 287
Chapter 287
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 287
Chapter Title: Episode 90. Black Flower (3)
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"How do I look?"
A black dress with her arms fully exposed, cool and bare.
"Not bad."
"……."
Apparently "not bad" wasn't good enough, because Bom went back into the room to change.
This time, it was a red evening gown.
"How about this?"
"Pretty."
"Not that. Something else."
"Your shoulders are way too exposed. You heading to an awards show?"
"……."
At Yoo Ji-tae's words, Bom retreated into the room again. Rustling sounds followed.
Now it was a career woman vibe. White blouse with matching suit pants.
"Off to the office?"
"……."
"I said keep it casual. T-shirt and pants."
"No way."
"Why not."
"I'm a prophet. I need to look the part."
Today was the day Bom would make her debut at the Federation.
Up until now, Yoo Ji-tae hadn't explained what his "prophecy" was based on. He'd only vaguely mentioned the existence of a prophet. Today, in front of everyone, he would reveal that the prophet was real.
"One hour left."
― Hm hm.
"You're gonna be late. Hurry up."
― Hmmm.
"Faster."
― Hnnng.
When Bom finally emerged from the room again, she was in a plain black dress.
"Better."
"Really? Let's go."
But just as Bom turned to leave, Yoo Ji-tae called her back.
"Hey. You really planning to wear that?"
"What's wrong with it?"
"Put on something else."
"You said it was fine."
He had.
He hadn't realized it was see-through on the back.
"Change."
Amid the pitch-black fabric.
A snow-white nape. A flawless back.
And just below, the faint outline of her wing bones.
Too provocative for a prophet.
With nowhere safe to look, he turned his head slightly aside.
Bom touched her back and panicked a little. In her rush, she'd grabbed the wrong similar dress.
She glanced at Yoo Ji-tae, and seeing he was even more flustered than her, her embarrassment faded. An amusing thought struck her, so Bom approached him. Then she leaned her back against his standing body.
"Now no one else can see…."
"Hey."
Of course, it was a joke.
As Yoo Ji-tae looked troubled, Bom chuckled and changed back into her original dress.
"This one's good."
"……."
It was the first one she'd tried on.
Winter.
A sky thick with clouds even in broad daylight, dim and overcast.
On a chilly road, a sedan glided smoothly toward the Federation headquarters.
While driving, Yoo Ji-tae spoke.
"From now on, stay on your guard."
"Yes."
Bom, in the passenger seat, replied with a tense expression.
They'd only joked around briefly that morning. Bom understood the gravity of the situation. From here on, her voice would echo across the world.
"Prophecy is an absurd power. It shouldn't exist. Even if it does, it can't. If an ordinary person could know what's coming, they could achieve the impossible."
Bom nodded.
"So you need to appear godlike."
"I have to act the part."
"Exactly. Can you do it?"
"Hm…."
She seemed a bit unsure.
"Don't overthink it. Just carry yourself with gravitas. Plus, the more authority you gain, the more weight your words will carry."
And granting Bom that authority was simple.
Yoo Ji-tae just had to treat her like the most important person in the world.
"Should I drop the formal speech?"
"No."
"Then you'll use honorifics with me, oppa?"
"Of course."
Bom briefly entertained a fantasy.
But soon, something odd appeared in the distance.
People were gathered in front of the Federation headquarters.
Nearly a hundred strong, holding picket signs and shouting in front of the main entrance.
"Dirty Federation! Reveal the truth!"
"Stop the war!"
Stop War.
The protesters bellowed in unison. Some wielded bats and steel pipes, but most were ordinary "humans," not superhumans.
"What's that?"
"Anti-Federation protesters. G12 supporters."
"Protesters? Why here? The Federation isn't some humanitarian group. They won't listen just because of a protest."
"Why do you think. Look at that."
Yoo Ji-tae pointed to the camera crews.
Ridiculously, there were far more cameras than protesters.
Dozens of international news outlets filming the scene. Their lenses focused on the fragile humans who could drop dead from a tap. Given the recent uproar over the Federation's "excessive suppression," the intent was obvious.
It was a hassle. There was an underground passage, but he'd come through the main gate on purpose to show Bom the place where she'd be active from now on.
Of all mornings, today.
"Hey! What's that? Federation scum?"
Then it happened. A protester spitting as he approached the passenger side. Swaggering gait. Waving bat.
"He's coming…. What now?"
The protester reached the driver's side and bellowed. "Hey! You Federation bastard? Yeah?!" Heads turned.
As Bom looked at Yoo Ji-tae tensely, he rolled down the window. Then he beckoned the protester with his finger.
"What the hell, you bastard! You Federation?!"
The man leaned in. As his body blocked the cameras, Yoo Ji-tae struck his jaw.
Crack―
The man crumpled to the ground.
As stunned Bom blinked wide-eyed between the fallen man and Yoo Ji-tae, protesters approached from afar.
"Don't freak out."
"Huh?"
Then he floored the accelerator.
Speed surging. Engine roaring wildly.
Like he might actually run them over.
Bom gripped her seatbelt with both hands in fresh alarm.
"Aaah! Dangerous!"
"M-Move!"
The startled crowd scattered. The protesters felt a chill. They'd come expecting violence, but dodging just now had been life or death.
The sedan slipped through them effortlessly and entered headquarters. No issue. No deaths, no story.
"……."
Bom was reminded anew of Yoo Ji-tae's reputation outside. His kindness was reserved for Room 301.
This was his "natural" self.
"Shocked?"
When Yoo Ji-tae asked, Bom shook her head.
If that's who he was….
"Feels good."
From now on, Bom had to become that person too.
But it wouldn't be as easy as she thought.
As she stepped out, the air grew heavy. The Federation's mood was foul. Superhumans bristled everywhere. Shouts echoed from all sides.
She'd barely thought to match his demeanor when the unfamiliar atmosphere pressed down.
Bom tried to link arms with Yoo Ji-tae.
"Scared?"
"No. To look close."
"No need."
Yoo Ji-tae slipped his arm free.
Bom's hand fidgeted in the air before she followed behind.
"You've arrived, Season!"
Jefferson and Kang A-jin hurried out to greet Yoo Ji-tae and Bom.
Tipped off in advance, they knew of the prophet. They bowed deeply to Bom with reverent expressions.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm Haru."
Her prepared alias, delivered in a rehearsed tone.
High. Clear. Yet somehow melancholic and elegant.
Bom's voice perfectly suited a lonely prophet.
"We'll escort you to the conference room."
They led Yoo Ji-tae and Bom inside, briefing them on recent events along the way.
As the conference room neared, Yoo Ji-tae dismissed Jefferson and Kang A-jin, then turned to Bom.
"Don't tense up. Just be yourself."
"Yes."
"Don't forget our script."
Bom nodded.
Before revealing the prophet to the world, first to the Federation. Imprint her in their minds.
Everything was prepared.
Yoo Ji-tae opened the door and entered.
Bom bit her lip lightly.
Here, before her eyes, gathered Earth's most powerful figures.
The Five Transcendents. High rankers. Kalliovan. Zhuge Ha-yeon and the Federation's top warriors and power brokers.
All immensely powerful. Thirty of them together could rival an adult dragon.
Tenser than expected. Unconsciously, Bom reached for Yoo Ji-tae's sleeve, then stopped herself.
"The Prophet has arrived."
Someone announced it. Everyone stood rigidly at attention.
As if routine, Yoo Ji-tae walked to his seat. Bom followed and sat beside him.
"Then, we'll begin the weekly report."
Zhuge Ha-yeon stood and took the podium.
"Please look here."
A hologram displayed massive letters.
Q
The one pulling terrorist strings behind Quesai. Who killed Christoph's grandson. Orchestrating anti-Federation sentiment worldwide. Inciting G12 (Group 12: the 12 nations with top superhuman militaries).
The enemy at the center of it all.
"First, based on visible evidence, Q is unlikely to be an individual."
Several graphs appeared on the display.
October 8: Hannyabal Siplrekov's South Sudan terror attack.
October 13: 4.4 tons of artifact trafficking busted in Syria.
October 27: Ichimaru's seizure and blockade of Federation operations rift.
November 1….
Countless incidents, with Q suspected of direct involvement.
A groan escaped someone.
"Unbelievable."
Zhuge Ha-yeon voiced the sentiment.
"Rank 177, magician Hannyabal Siplrekov. Neutral superhuman. The Federation once requested special cooperation for a Level 3 artifact long-term loan, but was refused."
"Not the first time, right?"
"Yes. I stopped after eight tries. Zhuge Liang did three visits and nine bows. Even Meng Huo required seven captures and releases."
Q had swayed that very Hannyabal Siplrekov.
"What about the others? The 4.4 tons recovered in Syria were all strictly controlled explosive artifacts. The Japanese 'Ichimaru' was a colleague of the collapse-class demon 'Hasegawa,' who died two years ago. Suspected collapse-class himself."
"Ichimaru captured?"
"Myeong Yong-ha and Minamoto are handling it, but that's not the point. These are beyond what capital alone can buy."
Q tried to traffic 4.4 tons of those artifacts.
Q moved the collapse-class demon Ichimaru.
Pieces no one else could touch, Q maneuvered freely.
"It's been barely a year since Prophet Season foretold the long night. Not enough time to rally demon networks built over decades or lone neutral superhumans."
"Hah…."
"In a drama, they'd call it bullshit."
"Yet here we are."
"Exactly. It makes no sense, but it's reality."
Zhuge Ha-yeon spoke bitterly.
"Which leads to this thought."
Her voice dropped, ominous.
"What if Q is an individual. With brainwashing powers?"
An absurd hypothesis.
Yet the most plausible from the evidence. She pegged it at 15.5% likelihood.
"A way to enchant everyone they meet into helping?"
If true.
The smart woman could only assume the worst.
"That's why I've gathered all field commanders here for this weekly briefing."
The room flipped.
Murmurs rose.
Zhuge Ha-yeon's expression was that grave.
"I thought: If I were Q, with brainwashing. What first?"
She adjusted her glasses.
Her gaze swept the room.
A hypothesis.
If Q had brainwashing.
And they'd just realized it.
Then this room must contain a brainwashed individual.
Some staff objected.
"…You saying there's a brainwashed traitor in the Federation?"
"Such suspicion is harmful!"
"Right, Ha-yeon. Morale's already low. Plenty think we lack justification internally. Suspecting each other? What then?"
One jumped up, warning of danger.
Yoo Ji-tae and Bom watched silently.
The moment neared.
Tense Bom fidgeted, reaching for Yoo Ji-tae's sleeve, then dropped her hand. This time, he briefly took hers.
Bom didn't look at him. She knew the timing.
"Truth is, this hit me last Saturday around 8:13 PM."
"What?"
"Suspicious, but no way to confirm. Don't know the method or sequence…. No convenient power exists to brainwash high rankers or collapse-class demons. If it doesn't exist, can't detect it. But then…."
Zhuge Ha-yeon smiled calmly.
No one missed the meaning.
All eyes turned to Bom.
"Isn't that why she's here?"
Zhuge Ha-yeon bowed politely to Bom.
"Please, Prophet."
Bom nodded and stood.
Every gaze converged.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm Haru, the future seer."
As rehearsed. Bom spoke.
Gasps escaped. Some lost themselves briefly in her face. Others marveled that this young woman moved the almighty prophet.
Future sight.
A power unseen in over a century of the New Era.
Held by this girl.
"To the point. I'll check if anyone here shares goals with the enemy, individual or group Q."
Bom walked to the center. Yoo Ji-tae followed like a guard at her back.
"I'll ask questions. Answer yes or no."
No one knew how this related to prophecy.
No one cared.
"Has anyone here met Q or agreed to align with them?"
No magic invoked. Yet Bom's voice, gaze, gestures filled the room with presence.
"You first. Look me in the eye and answer."
Right then, from behind Bom, Yoo Ji-tae invoked his power.