Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Protagonist
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Yubyeol-ha finished her conversation with Cheryl and stepped out of the Federal Guidance Bureau.
The sky, where the sunset had been fading, had already darkened.
After a grueling two-hour chat with the chatty Cheryl, Yubyeol-ha—who wasn't one for small talk—felt even more exhausted than after training.
"I'm beat..."
Letting out deep sighs, she pulled her smartphone from her pocket and made a call.
A moment later, after three rings from the speaker, the call connected.
"All done?"
The person on the other end was, of course, Baek Do-hyun.
When he asked how she was doing, Yubyeol-ha replied in a weary voice.
"Yeah, it's over. You think it wouldn't be?"
"What happened?"
"Eh, it's a hassle for me, but I passed on all the info..."
"Something go down?"
Yubyeol-ha kept walking and continued the call with Baek Do-hyun.
She recounted everything that had happened at the Federal Guidance Bureau, and Baek Do-hyun responded with an infuriating chuckle.
"Haha, classic guidance chief move. Hey, sometimes protecting folks beats killing them, right?"
"Easy for you to say when it's not your job, asshole..."
Yubyeol-ha grumbled about not having enough time for training and studying as it was.
"Anything else noteworthy?"
Yubyeol-ha was about to say no to Baek Do-hyun's question, but she remembered Cheryl's cryptic comment from moments ago and turned the question back on him.
"There's this guy who keeps showing up near the crime scenes. He's an Arcana second-year, same school as me. Name's Kim Si-hu. Know anything?"
"How would I know your school's students?"
"If you don't know, just say so—don't get snippy, dickhead. Wanna die?"
Yubyeol-ha snapped with a ferocity like she was ready to devour him right then.
Baek Do-hyun backed down immediately.
"Sorry."
"Hmph. Anyway, one more thing I wanna ask."
"Shoot."
"You think straight-up calling them 'monsters' is counterproductive too, right?"
For a split second, Yubyeol-ha thought the call had dropped.
Baek Do-hyun stayed silent for a long while before finally answering.
"Human society has way more monsters and their sympathizers hiding in it than you'd think. That's all you need to know for now."
"Got it."
Yubyeol-ha acknowledged his serious tone.
"From here on, I'll be working with the Federal Guidance Bureau to catch that yellow-haired kid I saw on the rooftop back then. Sucks I can't kill my prey right now, but whatever—I'll snap his neck later..."
"Good luck."
"You too. Hit me up when you've got the 'next plan' ready."
Yubyeol-ha hung up.
Before she knew it, she had arrived at the training facility where she always holed up after school.
After checking her surroundings, she changed out of her uniform into training clothes, adjusted the elastic waistband, and muttered to herself.
"So there are special cases like Baek Do-hyun among the monsters, huh..."
Yubyeol-ha had always believed every monster belonged to the 21st Century Secret Society and was out to destroy humanity.
And for good reason—monsters were the blood enemies who had killed her parents.
She had witnessed their countless atrocities firsthand in Academy City: Psykers getting kidnapped, drugs circulating, and more. She was convinced her worldview was spot-on.
She thought killing every monster she came across was the way to wipe out the 21st Century Secret Society.
But...
"If I want more efficient revenge, I might need to rethink things..."
There was a flaw in her doctrine.
Yubyeol-ha did some light stretches to sort out her tangled thoughts.
Cooperate with monsters she could use for her goals.
That was the conclusion she'd reached on her own in a short time.
With a much lighter expression, Yubyeol-ha began her training session in the room.
The lights and sounds from the training room didn't fade until past midnight.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Every story has a protagonist.
Since the world's description centers on this character, they're the reader's first window into understanding the tale.
The protagonist of Red Ark was Kim Si-hu.
Red Ark followed the events unfolding as Kim Si-hu got involved in incidents around Academy City.
An Arcana second-year cadet like Yubyeol-ha, a hunter hopeful dreaming of being a righteous hero.
His superpowers and combat skills were nothing special compared to other students, but his grit and bright energy inspired those around him—a classic heroic protagonist.
Kim Si-hu was the archetypal hero: extending a hand to the innocent weak and delivering iron-fisted justice and reform to the wicked.
I like that kind of straight-laced protagonist.
A beacon-like figure who dyes their surroundings in their own colors and draws crowds of followers.
Impossible not to love.
Every kid dreams of being a hero at some point in childhood.
The hero in a skintight suit saving a crisis-stricken Earth.
Defeating villains, winning them over to his side, and steering the story to a happy ending.
Any kid glued to the TV must've harbored that dream at least once.
I'd been putting off meeting Kim Si-hu for various reasons, but after my call with Yubyeol-ha, I resolved to seek him out.
Even if, unlike the other key players, all he had was his mental fortitude...
I concluded that his spirit alone could be a huge help in achieving my goal of twisting the story's pivotal points.
However...
Was it because I'd been meddling with the story since the prologue?
Because I'd been poking around various spots to warp the narrative?
The fate of the protagonist meant to drive the original story, Kim Si-hu, ended up massively derailed.
After school.
I headed to Academy City's District 5 to find Kim Si-hu snooping around crime scenes.
White noise rain poured down from the sky onto the city.
I shielded myself with a cheap pink umbrella from the convenience store as I walked.
Streets usually buzzing with students were eerily quiet.
Using the rain's patter as background music, I hurried along—until I missed a puddle and soaked my sneakers and socks.
"Ugh..."
Feeling that gross squish, I quickened my pace.
I was sure I'd run into Kim Si-hu at this rate.
A vampire's senses were several times sharper than a human's.
And a righteous guy like him would be out investigating the scenes rain or shine, doing his utmost to solve the cases.
About thirty minutes later, I spotted the site of the "incident" and headed there.
What I saw was a rain-slicked alley.
Puddles dotted the dingy backstreet.
Garbage bags overflowing and cigarette butts littered the filthy scene.
And right in the middle of it all was Kim Si-hu.
Black hair like Lee Gyeo-ul's, black eyes.
Not his usual Arcana cadet uniform, but plain clothes speckled black.
A boy painted black from head to toe—save his skin—was in the shadowy alley.
Kim Si-hu lay there.
In a relaxed pose, eyes closed as if dreaming peacefully in his own bedroom.
"..."
Blood oozed from his abdomen.
The fresh downpour washed it away, but the red stain on his black T-shirt wasn't going anywhere.
"Dracula."
Standing before the fallen Kim Si-hu was Aria Blood von Direwolf.
Her bloodied hands made it clear she was the one who'd done this to him.
Only then did the sweet scent of blood waft sweetly to my nose.
Aria fixed me with eyes that felt endlessly cold.
Our gazes met, and chills ran through me.
Cold sweat dripped down my body; I trembled.
What should I say? My mind went blank.
Aria's voice snapped me out of my daze.
"Why are you here?"
I desperately scrambled for an excuse.
I steadied my voice with deep breaths and finally managed to talk to her.
"...I saw Goat's post yesterday."
I opened my mouth.
"Post?"
"Yeah. On the Secret Society board. It said there've been a lot of Psykers turning into Dimensional Beasts in District 5 lately, so I thought maybe I'd see one if I came here..."
I babbled incoherently.
Even as I spoke, I couldn't grasp what I was saying.
My pounding heart wouldn't calm down.
What the hell was I seeing?
Why was Aria here?
Why had Kim Si-hu fallen to her hand?
It was a nonstop chain of incomprehensibles.
"And why are you here, Lady Aria...?"
"I heard there's been a high schooler desperately sniffing out our traces lately... Antonio—Goat—told me. I figured he was the murderer who's been killing monsters up till now."
Memories flashed of the day at the pier when I'd told Aria about the "murderer."
I'd twisted the fate of the character Baek Do-hyun so far, but in doing so, I'd derailed the protagonist Kim Si-hu's fate too.
"So I killed the bastard right here."
Any questions, Dracula?
Aria's answer was crystal clear, dissolving all my doubts.