Chapter 383
Chapter 383
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 383
>Chapter Title: The Dream's Collapse
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Everything came back to me.
The scattered puzzle pieces gathered one by one, finally revealing their original form, and that's when I realized it.
However, I would answer that I wasn't sure if that picture was the one I had originally hoped for.
“Sniff… Sob…”
Yurim was still crying with the mask on.
The iron bars shaped like a mask—it was a prison from which there was no escape.
“…Yurim, take off the mask.”
“But… I…”
Kang Seol looked at the hesitant Yurim and realized one more fact.
Yurim was Yaksha-like but not a Yaksha.
The time spent here had denied her identity as a Yaksha.
At least, there was still a possibility.
Swish…
Of course, Shinyu’s thoughts couldn’t be the same as Kang Seol’s.
“Yurim, no… We have to kill the Yaksha, Kang Seol.”
“She’s not a Yaksha.”
“You saw it yourself! She knows it too! She knows she’s the Yaksha!”
She had merely nodded reluctantly.
There was a girl named Yurim inside the Yaksha, but she couldn’t bring herself to say it, even though she wanted to.
“I… I don’t want to stay in this horrible dream for even a moment longer. I’m going to kill her and get out of here. Answer me, Yurim. Right? That’s the only way?”
“……”
Kang Seol stood between Yurim and Shinyu.
“…What are you doing?”
“Shinyu, give us some time. I’ll find a way.”
“You’re not thinking of stopping me, are you, Kang Seol?”
“Yeah.”
His entire body screamed that he had to, that he absolutely had to.
Whoooosh…
At that instant, an unknown power began to rise from Shinyu’s body.
“Don’t get the wrong idea, Kang Seol.”
A rough, violent power stretched out from Shinyu’s body.
‘She’s gotten stronger than before!’
He might soon find out what happens when time is given to a genius like Shinyu.
“You can’t match me. Not before… and not in the future either. And yet you still intend to stop me?”
There was no need for long thought.
He needed time.
“Yeah.”
Crackle…
Lightning gathered in Shinyu’s hand.
“Then, I have no choice. Since it’s all just an illusion anyway, I’ll…”
That was when it happened.
“What… are you all doing here?”
Thud…
Thud…
A man who had slipped out alone from the castle where chaos reigned.
‘Come to think of it…’
The noise from the castle was no longer audible. That meant the violent clashes inside had all come to an end.
“Kang Seol, Yurim.”
“Master!”
It was Yuhyeon.
“Explain yourselves properly. What is that bizarre mask… and what is Shinyu talking about right now?”
Yuhyeon’s eyes pierced into Kang Seol.
Eyes that craved the truth.
But…
‘There’s no way I can say that…’
The words he wanted weren’t something you could say to a precious person.
You are merely an illusion left in someone’s soul, just a memory from my past. In other words, Yuhyeon’s life is a lie, all fabricated.
‘How could I…’
However, someone else thought differently.
“Long time no see, Master.”
“…Shinyu. Glad to see you look healthy.”
“I’ll give you that answer instead. Since we spent some time together once.”
Shinyu had changed somewhere, though Kang Seol wasn’t sure what she had gone through.
“No, Shinyu!”
“You’re a fake.”
“……A fake?”
Yuhyeon’s eyebrow twitched.
“This world is nothing more than someone’s dream, and aside from me, Kang Seol here… and a few who died, everyone else is just fabricated fakes!”
At Shinyu’s shout, Yuhyeon smiled faintly.
“What nonsense…”
“It’s hard to believe, but…”
“I believe you.”
“…You believe me?”
“My disciple was a child who didn’t know how to lie. Even now… that must be the case, right?”
“……”
Before Shinyu became aware of the dream, she had been taken in by the Veil. She had swung her sword under Yuhyeon alongside Yurim, preparing for the future.
Grit…
Shinyu clenched her teeth.
The past had already passed.
“But there’s one thing I want to ask.”
The master asked his former disciple.
“If the current me is a fabricated being… then is Yurim here also fabricated?”
“That’s…”
“You really can’t lie, can you?”
It was as Yuhyeon said.
Shinyu couldn’t lie, even if she had a purpose.
“Yurim… isn’t.”
“Then why are you targeting Yurim?”
Shinyu clutched her head.
“No… No… Everything’s wrong, Yurim has to disappear. Then, all this will be undone.”
At his abnormal reaction, Yuhyeon’s eyes widened more than ever.
“Shinyu, did you take the medicine those Faces gave you?”
Even Yurim lowered her head at those words.
“Dru… g?”
“You… that’s why…”
A drug?
‘No way!’
The Faces didn’t just recruit people with ideals and purposes. There were rumors that useful individuals were constantly brainwashed through drugs.
The side effects were severe: drastically shortened lifespan, hallucinations, and delusions.
“…Shinyu.”
“It’s all… not my fault… but it turned out like this. But it’s okay. Because it’s a dream, an illusion. Once I wake up, it’ll all be undone.”
Swish…
Shinyu lifted her upper garment.
“My god…”
Incredible scars covered her body. Horrific wounds that Yurim would have endured.
The hell she experienced had been split in half between Shinyu and Kang Seol.
She had been saved, if only briefly, but others had fallen into hell in her place.
Swish…
Shinyu’s gaze turned to Yurim.
Yurim, still wearing the mask, trembled and spoke.
“I… am the Yaksha. Born as a Yaksha… I killed many people… and always brought misfortune.”
Yurim clutched her head.
“It’s my fault! It’s all my fault!”
“Yurim.”
Yuhyeon placed his hand on Yurim’s shoulder.
“Take a deep breath.”
“Sob… Sniff…”
“Don’t cry. You are not a Yaksha. You are my disciple, Yurim.”
Kang Seol realized something from Yuhyeon’s demeanor.
How he could be so certain.
Of his own actions, his own judgment.
“I’m sorry… Sorry for being born… It’s all my fault. If only… if only I disappear, it’ll be fine. I’ll let go of everything. I received something beyond my station…”
Swish…
Yuhyeon grabbed both of Yurim’s arms as she tore at her hair.
“Take off the mask.”
“But… I…”
“Don’t cry, Yurim. Don’t crumble under hardships you didn’t choose.”
Kang Seol recalled something as he watched Yuhyeon.
The Yuhyeon before him was an illusion, but he was imprinted with the image of Yuhyeon in life.
Kang Seol knew well what kind of person he was.
He did not waver.
“You are still my proud disciple.”
“……”
“Sometimes acting like a fool, blushing often, no different from any other girl…”
Yurim stopped her self-deprecation and slowly lifted her head.
“My disciple. I won’t allow you to wear that mask now. If you didn’t choose it, then don’t accept that mask either.”
Yuhyeon stood abruptly and looked at Shinyu.
“Shinyu, I’ve always been sorry toward you.”
“I… I…”
“You’ve changed a lot. The drug seems to have seeped into your bones.”
“I’ve… changed?”
“There’s thick killing intent in your eyes. Your energy is rough too.”
“……”
“Did many things happen?”
“Stop… Don’t come any closer to me…”
Shinyu’s eyes turned red.
“I have to… end it all. With my own hands…”
He placed his hand on his sword sheath.
“I’ll end it, me… all of it…”
Kang Seol was just as taken aback by Shinyu’s twisted appearance. He remembered who she was and how they had met.
‘Shinyu…’
If he really woke from this dream, would everything return to normal? Would it all be undone?
“Yurim, and Kang Seol.”
Yuhyeon faced Shinyu and spoke.
“I can’t avoid a fight with my old disciple. But I’ll try to postpone the fight with this twisted Shinyu and you two somehow.”
Yuhyeon also placed his hand on his sword sheath.
“…Shinyu, this will be your worthless master’s final lesson. Come at me with all sincerity.”
“You’re… a fake…”
“As a commemoration of becoming a fake, I won’t hold back.”
“I’ve already surpassed you! There’s… nothing left to learn from you.”
A refreshing smile.
“Is that so?”
Yuhyeon still hadn’t drawn his sword.
Yet Shinyu tensed.
Whoooosh…
The wind rose.
A thick smell of blood emanated from Shinyu’s sword.
A sword soaked in blood.
He had shouldered part of the path the Yaksha walked.
Boom-!
A movement as if his form stretched long.
Shinyu’s sword dropped like lightning.
[Shinyu uses Geohap: Strong Slash.]
[Quickly draws the sword from the sheath and inflicts massive damage on a single target.]
[An unavoidable attack.]
[Against large targets, 50% fixed damage is applied.]
‘Shinrip’s Thunderclap Sword!’
Clank…
KABOOM-!
Yuhyeon drew his sword and parried the falling blade from above.
Rumble…!
He endured the ensuing shock with both arms.
“…A swordsmanship I’ve never seen before.”
“My brother’s sword…”
“So you had a brother.”
“That’s why… I have to get out of here…”
Scrape…
[Shinyu uses Fox Rain.]
[Consecutive defenses convert 20% of reduced damage into defense-ignoring damage.]
Boom-!
Three consecutive thrusts.
Yuhyeon blocked them effortlessly.
“From heavy sword to swift sword… Interesting.”
Whoooosh…
Crackle-!
In that moment, flames sparked in Shinyu’s eyes.
The sword wavered.
‘That sword!’
Kang Seol quickly leaped and shielded Yurim.
The impact slammed his body into the ground, but it was better than being shredded.
Swooooosh…
[Shinyu uses Gentle Breeze.]
[Sword winds flow over a wide area.]
……
Rumble…
Rumble…
Crack…
All nearby trees toppled.
But something was off.
‘…The feel is different?’
The sword from Shinyu he had felt before was much softer than this—and more destructive.
Even with ample time in a new life, Shinyu’s sword seemed regressed compared to before.
‘Why?’
Of course, by her standards; by general ones, she was already a swordsman worthy of fame across the continent.
“Good sword.”
“How…”
“And poor footwork.”
“Howww!”
Yuhyeon stood firm after withstanding the fierce assault.
His robes were only slightly torn; he was unshaken.
“You seem a bit lost. Shinyu, you might not believe me… but you are my disciple too.”
“……”
“I don’t have much time. So for your growth, I’ll have to instruct you a bit harshly.”
Whoooong…
An eerily pristine energy.
“Again… with that. That’s no longer…”
“I only know this from the start.”
Clank…
“Shinyu, I will cut you.”
“Arrrghhh!”
Swoooong…
In reality or in dreams.
A single swordsmanship honed for a lifetime.
[Yuhyeon uses Ultimate: One Mind Slash.]
[Cuts the target.]
KAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-!
Every breathing being here was overwhelmed by that swordsmanship.
Clank…
Yuhyeon’s sword returned to its sheath.
Crumble…
Shinyu’s sword shattered into pieces.
And then.
Swish…
Thud.
“…Huh?”
Shinyu’s one arm fell.
“Grrrr… Arghhh!”
“Shinyu!”
Kang Seol and Yurim ran to the agonized Shinyu without thinking.
“I… Why… It’s a dream, why does it hurt like this…”
Drugged and delirious, Shinyu backed away mumbling nonsense.
“No! Not that way…”
Drip…
“…Huh?”
Shinyu vanished over the cliff.
Flash-!
Fortunately, someone’s hand grasped Shinyu’s remaining one.
“Don’t… fall…”
“…Yurim.”
Yurim, masked as the Yaksha, shed tears.
“Don’t fall, hang on!”
Drip…
Drip…
Yurim’s tears fell onto Shinyu’s face. His red-tinted eyes slowly regained their original light.
“Yurim… my precious friend. My god…”
“Come up! You have to come up!”
Drip…
Drip…
Rain began to fall.
Rumble-!
Lightning crossed the sky.
“What have… I done…”
Kang Seol tried to help Yurim pull Shinyu up.
Splash…
SPLASHHH…
With the rain, the waves grew fiercer.
Soon, Shinyu’s expression hardened.
As if he had resolved something.
“Next time we meet, you’ll have to make a choice.”
Swish…
“All of you.”
“Nooo! Shinyu!”
Shinyu released Yurim’s hand.
Splash…
Shinyu disappeared into the waves from the cliff.
“Sob… Sob… Why…”
Kang Seol forcibly lifted and supported the anguished Yurim. The situation wasn’t dire only for Shinyu.
Kang Seol and Yurim both startled simultaneously.
“Cough…”
Yuhyeon, barely leaning against a fallen tree trunk, gasped for breath.
His robe was soaked entirely in blood.
“Master!”
“Urk…”
Spurt…
Yuhyeon vomited blood.
“Haa… Haa…”
Kang Seol quickly parted Yuhyeon’s robe to check his condition.
“No way…”
Countless wounds.
All the wounds were fresh, brimming with blood, and there were even sword injuries that looked like they were from just now.
- I don’t have much time. So for your growth, I’ll have to instruct you a bit harshly.
‘No way, the “no time” meant…’
He was already in a state where collapsing at the meeting place wouldn’t have been strange.
“How… with a body like this…”
“Cough… Today’s events… Haa… will buy you time.”
Time…
Time to make a choice…
Yuhyeon murmured.
He was right.
He had no time left.
“Kang Seol… my disciple… There’s something I must tell you…”
“…Speak.”
“Yurim follows you.”
“……”
“Not pretending to die if you say die… She’s the kind of fool who would really die.”
Yurim quietly shed tears.
“So you must… make the right choice. You… What form do you want Yurim to exist in?”
Yaksha and Yurim.
Kang Seol’s choice wasn’t one to hesitate over.
Swish…
Kang Seol placed his hand on Yurim’s mask.
“Take off the mask, Yurim. It’s Master’s final wish.”
“……”
Swish…
Yurim removed the mask.
Her face, smeared with tears and snot.
“Yurim, you look better smiling.”
“Master!”
Clank…
Yuhyeon undid the sword at his waist and handed it to Yurim.
“I give you the time I’ve walked. Even if… it’s fake.”
“……”
“To think my entire life was fake… Heh… Still… wasn’t it decent for a fake?”
“Don’t say that…”
“If the time I honed… can open your future… how valuable is that.”
Haa…
Haa…
The end approached.
“Shinyu is now the strongest, with the Veil and Faces gone. He’s already surpassed me. And probably… he’ll grow even stronger later. Opposing his will… requires that much resolve. Kang Seol.”
“Yes.”
“Can you do it? Fight with everything to protect Yurim from such a one?”
“I… don’t know yet.”
What the right judgment was.
“Then, I’ll watch your choice from underground.”
“……”
“The hardships that came to you weren’t your choice. But… this long… and false world’s story, its ending!”
Grip-!
Yuhyeon tightly grasped Kang Seol’s hand.
He had already lost his sight.
His eyes were gray.
His final strength.
“At least the ending… choose it yourselves.”
Drip…
Splashhhh…
Buried in the sound of rain, the people departed.
The many fabricated ones were swept away by the rain.
They were fabricated, but they had lived sincerely. That much wasn’t washed away.
[The edge of the dream approaches.]
[The dream’s collapse begins.]
…