Chapter 31
Chapter 31
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: Demon Eye
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Cheryl Bloomingrose asked me what a "supernatural anomaly" was.
I inwardly cheered and opened my mouth. Naturally, I planned to satisfy her curiosity.
But if I jumped right into the explanation like I'd been waiting for it—which I had—even I would think I looked obnoxious, so I decided to stall a bit.
"Why are you asking me about monsters like that?"
Cheryl turned the monitor on her desk toward me.
What it showed was none other than a video.
The footage captured a masked man smashing a goat-headed monster and a goat-legged monster to pieces.
The quality was poor, and the shaking was intense, but Cheryl spoke to me with near certainty anyway.
"Three days ago, right when the Experimental Awake incident happened, this video was uploaded to a community site. That's this one. As you can see, it's a masked man beating down monsters that are neither Dimensional Beasts nor Psykers."
The protagonist in the video Cheryl had just shown me was me.
It captured the moment I pulverized the Satyr brothers at Noah Tower.
I already knew about this video.
This footage, still heating up the internet with debates over whether it was real or fake, had been uploaded to a community under the title "Mysterious Monsters."
📰 Mysterious Monsters
Video taken at Noah Tower the other day... My friend sent it to me after filming it. What the hell are these guys? They don't look like Dimensional Beasts...
💬 Comments
— Anonymous1
If this is fake, we're in for a shitstorm... For real, those monsters look creatively ugly. Thought it was a knife-ear at first lol
— Anonymous32
I'm a video expert, and something this natural can't be done with CG. Prove me wrong and you're an idiot.
— Anonymous721
But that masked guy fights insanely well. Is he a hunter? Scary...
— OP
↳ Reply
My friend who filmed it said he seems Korean, but not sure... Do we have a male hunter in our country who fights this well?
Videos of hunters fighting Dimensional Beasts had always been mega-hits on video sites, and in this information age, knowledge about Dimensional Beasts was even compiled in wiki portals.
A flood of attention poured in for these bizarre new creatures, and my bold takedown of them seemed to deliver a cathartic thrill to viewers.
Anyway, once the video ended, Cheryl released my necktie and dusted off her hands.
"The mastermind behind this incident, Antonio del Piero, wasn't human. Nor was he a Dimensional Beast. He called himself a monster, confessed that others like him are hiding in this academy city, and admitted they form an organization."
Aren't you one of them? That's how you were able to pass info about Experimental Awake to Yubyeol-ha, right?
Are you a monster too? Cheryl asked me.
I glanced at the clock. Ten minutes had nearly passed since the interrogation stopped. I'd stalled enough.
Cheryl Bloomingrose would be a huge asset if I could recruit her as an ally.
In the original story, Kim Si-hu and his group got a lot of help from her.
With her high authority in the academy city, she'd surely be a great help in turning the tides of fate.
I opened my tightly shut mouth.
"Then let me tell you the story from here on. About the 21st Century Secret Society and what they're plotting..."
And so the long tale began.
The existence of monsters and the secret society.
That I belonged to the society.
That they were plotting a human reduction plan.
That a not-insignificant number of humans were already cooperating with the monsters, and others were opposing them.
I laid it all out.
"..."
Cheryl's expression remained perplexed throughout the grand-scale story.
It must be hard to believe.
Yubyeol-ha had known about monsters since childhood, so she accepted the info I spilled without much resistance, but Cheryl had only just become aware of them.
Anyway, I revealed the truth: that the 21st Century Secret Society had orchestrated this to steal the "Queen's Data." With that, the long story ended.
Cheryl slowly opened her mouth.
"What's this 'Queen'?"
"The queen of the Dimensional Beasts. That's all you need to know for now."
"..."
Silence stretched on for a while.
A heavy air hung in the room.
It was quiet all around.
The only sound was Cheryl's fingers tapping the desk.
About five minutes passed like that... then Cheryl broke the silence and stated her position.
"Honestly, it's hard to believe right now."
"I understand."
"But you wouldn't come all the way here just to feed me bullshit."
Cheryl sighed.
"If what you say is true, it roughly lines up with Cuvette getting half-destroyed that day and the attack on the oversight committee... Wait, what were you doing on the day of the incident?"
Cheryl's sharp gaze bore into me.
I deflected her stare with a playful shrug.
"What could a mere C-rank Psyker do? I holed up at home, eagerly waiting for Star-ha to resolve it."
Cheryl alternated glances between the video and me, her face a picture of disbelief.
"The guy in this video is you. And the culprit who destroyed the school..."
"Hey! Let's wrap this up and get to the real point."
The bad guys were the 21st Century Secret Society. The academy city had just suffered unavoidable sacrifices because of them.
The school was smashed by Lee Gyeo-ul and Aria anyway. Sure, my share of blame wasn't zero percent...
Anyway, terrified that Cheryl might seriously consider sending me to juvie, I hurriedly changed the subject.
"I think the guidance chief called me to her private office for more than just interrogation. Time to tell me your real purpose."
"Haa... Fine."
Cheryl slid a piece of paper toward me.
"Your goal is to stop the 21st Century Secret Society, right? Same as me. Forget human reduction plans or whatever—I'm the guidance chief tasked with protecting this city's students. I won't turn a blind eye to their evil deeds here."
She set a ballpoint pen down with a tap! and looked at me with serious eyes.
"Let's make a deal. Share what you know with me. In return, I'll clear your charges. We can pin all the disasters from the Experimental Awake mess on Antonio and his organization."
It was a good deal.
This meant she wasn't just clearing my name—she'd help steer future turning points.
"Deal. But one request."
"A request?"
"Let me see Antonio in holding. I have urgent business with him."
Cheryl eyed me curiously, then nodded.
"Everything said in holding is recorded, so keep that in mind."
And so, my alliance was newly forged.
With the guidance chief card in hand, I left the Federal Guidance Bureau building satisfied and headed straight to the holding cell where the goat was locked up.
With Cheryl's permission as my shield, I entered the visitation room. The goat, shackled head to toe, sat in a chair.
Visitation was 30 minutes—I had to get the show on the road.
"Y-you bastard..."
The goat glared at me with eyes full of murderous intent.
He must have realized I'd snitched on him.
He wasn't completely stupid, after all.
But I wasn't here to threaten him or be his emotional punching bag.
"How could you do this to me...!!"
At that moment, my eyes glowed red.
A ruby-like blaze etched a pentagram into my pupils.
"Evil eye...?"
The goat's dazed voice echoed.
I silently fixed my newly awakened Demon Eye on him.
👁️ LEVEL 2 - PHANTASMAL DEMON EYE 👁️
The eye that plants illusions, proof of dominion. Those who gaze upon it cannot distinguish reality from dream. It is the symbol of the ancient Vampire True Ancestors. Manipulates all sensory organs of any target gazing into the eyes, implanting illusions. However, higher-rank foes may shatter the illusion. Evolution Conditions: 200 Evolution Points, Obtain ■■ from Yubyeol-ha.
To me, a major in art and design, illusions were like a canvas.
With a blank white canvas, I could always create new worlds.
The worlds I created could be hells boiling with lava and fire, or heavens rippling with wind and clouds.
As long as inspiration existed, I could even paint landscapes that didn't exist in reality.
"Consider it an honor. Right here, I'll paint a world just for you."
I turned this tiny holding cell into my canvas.
Using illusion as my brush and paint, I began dyeing the world the goat saw with my imagination.
I imagined that scenery would be utterly beautiful, seductive... and agonizing.