Chapter 84
Chapter 84
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 84
Chapter Title: Butterfly Effect for the Writer (4)
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***
The time when dawn held its breath, and morning slowly approached.
Yeomyeong quietly rose from the bed. He didn't even stretch, just scanned the room with impassive eyes.
It was a lavish room. A large window overlooking the academy grounds, marble-finished floors, antique furniture—nothing here was anything less than luxurious.
According to the faculty member who had guided him here, it was a special room for hosting external VIPs...
As they said, it was far too grand for a mere student.
Simply put, it meant the academy was treating him as more than just a student—someone on par with a VIP.
His feat of saving the entire first-year class from the mysterious assailants and the zombie horde was worth that much, at least.
'...But the world isn't that straightforward.'
Yeomyeong didn't believe the academy had provided this room out of pure goodwill.
The world he knew wasn't that sweet.
Even a lowly cleanup guild was rife with political maneuvering and dirty dealings. An academy was hundreds of times more entangled in complex interests.
And the reason they were giving him this treatment...
It wasn't hard to guess.
'Are they misunderstanding my connection to the Holy Sword?'
None of the faculty had outright asked about his relationship with the Holy Sword, but their eyes told the story.
The academy—at least those familiar with the Holy Sword—were treating him practically like its disciple.
Whether it was coincidence or the Holy Sword's intention, he didn't know...
'Troublesome.'
Yeomyeong rubbed his throbbing forehead. No matter what grand future being the Holy Sword's disciple promised, it was utterly useless to him.
No, considering his revenge plan, it was nothing but a drawback.
The Holy Sword was something the Australian government had defended even against religious backlash.
If word got out that Yeomyeong was the Holy Sword's disciple—or something equivalent—Australia would desperately block any contact between him and Korea.
Even a mid-sized nation like Korea employed monsters like Shepherds in the shadows. What about a superpower like Australia?
But that wasn't the only problem. Even if he achieved revenge under the Holy Sword and Australia's favor...
'Trying to assassinate the Korean president and key politicians as the Holy Sword's disciple.'
It would be an unimaginable mess. Yeomyeong shook his head.
...Yeah, he needed to avoid getting too close to the Holy Sword. The clueless saintess getting too chummy was bad enough.
'Next time we meet, I'll return the Comet Sword relic... and make it clear I can never be its disciple.'
Yeomyeong mulled this over for a while.
He grabbed his clothes, got dressed, and stepped out of the room. He had no particular destination in mind; he just wanted some fresh air.
Unless there was booze, it was the only way to ease his stuffy chest.
He traversed the empty hallway with no one around, then headed up the stairs to the rooftop via the staircase.
Rooftop garden, was it? The rooftop, which overlooked the entire academy, featured flower beds and rest areas.
Given the hour, it was deserted. In the familiar solitude, Yeomyeong sat on the nearest bench.
Alone on the rooftop, gazing at the dim sky, a sea breeze blew in from the horizon.
A cold wind reminiscent of Incheon's.
Yeomyeong closed his eyes and let time pass in the flowing breeze.
A moment later, as he rose from the bench feeling somewhat better.
"...Ah."
Yeomyeong sensed a presence and turned his head.
"...."
He locked eyes with a blue-eyed girl entering the rooftop garden. She, clutching several convenience store bags, blinked upon spotting him.
A brief silence.
The belated sea breeze swept between them, and Yeomyeong let out a soft chuckle.
"Bit early for breakfast."
He nodded toward her bags, and she looked down, her face flushing.
"...I have a constitution where using power means I need to replenish just as much."
"Not really into instant food?"
"...."
No sooner had the oddly familiar conversation ended than the girl scurried over and sat beside Yeomyeong.
"Why are you moping around alone?"
"...Just couldn't sleep? And why'd you come all the way up here instead of eating in your room?"
"Unlike you, us girls only got one room."
She grumbled as she set the bags at her feet.
There were at least five heavy bags, as if she'd cleared out the entire convenience store food aisle.
"Waking you to eat together—it's too early, like you said... But eating alone, I'm scared of getting caught."
"...What's wrong with getting caught? We can just eat together."
"After being seen stuffing my face like a mountain?"
She muttered something like you're so oblivious, it must be nice, and pulled out a cream bun.
A bun that was fairly large for its price, popular even among cleanup crew folks.
It vanished into the girl's stomach in less than ten seconds.
'...How does such a small mouth eat that fast.'
Yeomyeong watched silently, then spoke as she reached for her third bun.
"Long time no see, Seti."
The sudden greeting froze her mid-tear of the bag. She chuckled and replied.
"...Long time no see, Yeomyeong."
"Somehow, we're finally alone together."
"Yeah... haven't had the time lately."
From the academy airport to yesterday's attack.
Incidents had been nonstop. No time for the two to meet secretly.
But...
"...If you'd just kept in touch via the burner phone I gave you, we wouldn't have needed to meet alone, right?"
"...."
Yeomyeong smiled awkwardly and averted his gaze, while Seti shot him a pouty look.
Of course, she wasn't truly blaming him. He'd been in chaotic Manchuria; calls weren't feasible.
Still... at least texts could've worked.
Dozens of messages sent since the saintess and knight left. Even replies once every few dozen would've prevented this frustration!
...The words rose to her throat but stayed put, thanks to the bun in her mouth.
Seti chewed and swallowed the bun, downed a can of cola, and finally spoke.
"I'll let the no-texts thing slide... You're Yeomyeong, not some all-powerful being."
"...."
"So now, just... tell me what I missed. What happened in Manchuria? Was everything in the articles true?"
"No idea which ones you saw, but mostly, yeah."
"...You really kissed the saintess?"
Yeomyeong chuckled, thinking it a joke, but wiped the smile seeing her serious face.
"...No. That was tabloid trash."
"Hmm... really?"
"I had no reason to."
"...Good enough."
Good enough? For what? As Yeomyeong opened his mouth to ask, Seti started on another bun.
Chewing away as if she had no intention of speaking soon.
Yeomyeong watched and gathered his thoughts. He had plenty to say.
The mercenary entry exam.
Stepping on Blue Rat's tail, meeting the saintess.
The Korean government's involvement in Manchuria, the North Manchuria incident.
The saintess and Kahal Magdu.
His fake resume already being exposed, and the saintess's mother being Blue Rat's boss.
And the story of the dragon slumbering in Manchuria.
It would be a long tale, but luckily, Seti had brought plenty of food.
Yeomyeong pulled a canned coffee from the bag and leaned back against the bench.
As dawn approached, he began his story in a calm voice.
***
The tale dragged on.
It could have been dull, but Seti's reactions kept it engaging to the end.
She flinched at every saintess mention, and when the resume exposure came up, a bun got stuck in her throat—he had to thump her back.
Anyway, Yeomyeong recounted nearly everything honestly, without omission.
Except his encounter with the dwarf king's ghost.
A foreboding certainty that the so-called 'fate' the king mentioned tied to Mignium.
Seti seemed to sense something off but didn't press.
By the time the long story ended, Seti's food had run out too.
After splitting the last tuna sandwich with Yeomyeong, she finally shared her thoughts.
"You went through a lot."
Yeomyeong meant to brush it off, but Seti's hand overlapped his first.
"And... thank you."
Seti stroked his cheek with her other hand. Her blue eyes met his.
"For coming back safe and sound."
"...."
"No joke. The Manchuria mess, the resume... it all felt like my fault for not helping properly... If something happened to you, I..."
As she seemed about to confess something, Yeomyeong couldn't bear the awkwardness and looked away.
Only then did she realize what she was saying.
"...."
Flushed faces, awkward silence.
They both turned to the sea at the same time. Dawn was breaking with the sunrise, hiding their blushes.
Yeomyeong watched the sunrise silently, then stole a glance at Seti.
Her lips reflecting the faint sunlight, her blue eyes sparkling like jewels.
Countless emotions surfaced in Yeomyeong's mind, rippling away beneath the surface.
It was a feeling he'd never experienced before, but one thing he knew for sure.
Say nothing now.
After what felt both long and short,
Yeomyeong brought up another prepared topic.
"...Seti."
"Yeah?"
"There's something else you should really thank me for. Wanna hear?"
Seti blinked, wondering what he meant, as Yeomyeong continued with a suppressed smile.
"The restraint in you and your sisters' minds."
"...Why bring that up suddenly?"
"What if I said I found a way to break it... what would you do?"
Before she could ask back, Yeomyeong explained the golden seal.
A magic tool that could unlock any lock or restraint in this world.
Seti stared at him wide-eyed, her expression screaming joke?, but Yeomyeong just smiled faintly.
"...Ah."
Joy, or some overwhelming emotion—he couldn't tell—but Seti bowed her head deeply.
After suppressing her feelings for a while, she lifted her head as if remembering something.
"Yeomyeong, that golden seal... you got it from the dragon, right?"
"Yeah. How'd you know?"
"...."
Seti's face hardened. She gripped his hand tightly.
"No way... you didn't trade it for letting the dragon live, did you?"
"...."
Yeomyeong admired her deduction reaching that point without hearing about the dwarf king.
Regardless, Seti's expression grew stiffer.
"...You gave up the dragon for me?"
"No, not that. There were other reasons. I built rapport with it, screwed over the Manchurian army, and..."
He'd spared the dragon for complex reasons, but Seti seemed shocked just by the fact.
In a deflated voice, she said.
"Sorry. Because of me, needlessly..."
"It's not like that."
Silence fell again.
They went quiet for different reasons. Yeomyeong couldn't find words; Seti didn't know how to repay the favor.
Moments later, as the sun fully rose above the horizon, Seti broke the quiet with a long sigh.
"...Thank you, Yeomyeong."
"I'll take your thanks after breaking the restraint. We'll do it when all your sisters are gathered."
Yeomyeong dusted off and stood from the bench. Time to part; faculty would check rooms soon.
But he couldn't leave the bench. Seti wouldn't let go of his hand.
"...Yeomyeong."
"Yeah?"
"I'll cancel the plan to pretend we don't know each other at the academy."
"Why the sudden change?"
"...Just because."
"Hmm, but getting chummy out of nowhere—won't other students think it's weird? We fought at the airport, remember?"
Teasing her, Seti made a strangely annoyed face.
"Say we bonded during the fight. We fought zombies together—who'd think it's weird? And if they do, so what?"
Hearing that, Yeomyeong unconsciously stroked her head with his free hand.
Attacked on the crown unexpectedly, Seti started to protest, but his words were quicker.
"Then drop the formal speech."
"Uh... that's..."
"Can't do it?"
"Fine... Got it."
"Oh, and don't call me oppa."
"...What?"
Absurd, her grip loosened. Yeomyeong slipped his hand free and stepped away.
"See you later, Seti."
"Yeah, later..."
With a brief farewell, Yeomyeong left the rooftop. His steps were much lighter than when he'd arrived.
Left alone, Seti gazed at the academy's morning for a bit, then covered her face with both hands and stomped her feet.
The bench shook with belated regret, silent screams lasting a while.
Hearing footsteps approaching, Seti snapped to and hurriedly gathered her bags, leaving the rooftop.
The rooftop garden fell silent again.
Or so it seemed.
The next moment, a boisterous voice echoed from empty air where both had left.
"...My god. Oh, my god."
The voice, shrouded in invisibility, mumbled incoherently for a while before forming proper words.
"Five Gods, what have I just witnessed?"
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