Chapter 64
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 64
Chapter Title: Connections are Power (2)
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We followed the waitress to Room 19.
Sis. Im coming in.
Go on.
Yuhwa coolly entered the room without knocking.
I followed her inside.
Took you damn long enough.
The moment I saw her, I understood.
Ah. So this is Meiden Keuritineseu.
The reporters held us up, so were a little late. Wait, are you already drinking?
Meiden was sitting casually on the floor with her legs stretched out, leaning against the wall just as comfortably, and tipping back a glass.
When in Okhwadang, isnt it only proper to start with traditional soju? Ahhh~
Meiden downed the soju in one shot and let out a satisfied sigh.
Judging by her actions, she was every bit a 41-year-old man,
but she looked like a woman in her twenties.
She was the spitting image of her description in the novel.
Geez. I cant with you. Anyway, Seoyul. Have a seat.
Sighing, Yuhwa had me sit across from them, and she sat down next to Meiden.
Youve already finished a whole bottle? My goodness.
What do you mean, already? Its only one bottle. You know I can hold my liquor.
In reality, Meidens tolerance for alcohol was immense. In the original story, she even had a drinking contest with a dwarf, which said it all.
What? You want a glass?
Meiden, noticing my gaze, offered me her glass and gave it a little shake.
Sis! Why would you offer a drink to someone who just got out of the hospital?
Jeez. Hwa, youre nagging a lot today, arent you?
Meiden covered one ear at Yuhwas shout and grumbled.
What kind of disgraceful behavior is this in front of a guest?
Disgraceful? Whats so wrong with having a drink?
It was entertaining, like watching a married couple bicker.
Anyway, put the glass down for now. It's not polite, especially after I went to the trouble of bringing him here.
You stubborn wench. This is why you cant get a man. Youre almost thirty, what are you doing?
Wow. She was hitting her with the big three-oh?
Yuhwas brow twitched.
Her expression was one of pure irritation.
Sis. Lets get one thing straight. Im literally *choosing* not to date, okay? Because I dont have time.
Meiden scoffed.
The no time excuse. Thats the classic line for people who cant get a date. You think everyone else has all the time in the world to be in a relationship?
...Ugh.
Struck by a truth bomb born of experience, Yuhwa bit her lip.
Wh-what am I lacking that I cant get a man? I have the face. I have the body. I have the skills. This is all proof that I'm choosing not to
Your personality is rotten. It's a well-established academic theory that dating a woman like you is only good for the first month. Got it, you brat?
Yuhwas expression hardened instantly.
Wow.
Vicious. Absolutely vicious.
It was so harsh it made my own chest ache just listening from the side.
Seeing Yuhwas reaction, Meiden chuckled.
She looked satisfied.
Anyway, I get it. I suppose its not polite to drink before an important conversation.
She said, placing her glass on the table and staring intently at me. *But you were already drinking,* I thought.
No need for introductions, right? I know your name, and you know mine.
Yes.
Just as straightforward as Id expected.
So, whats your deal, really?
Her way of speaking was direct, with no beating around the bush.
How in the world do you know so much about my labyrinth?
Youve already looked into me. Im just a perfectly ordinary cadet.
Ordinary, my ass.
Meiden snorted.
If youre ordinary, then everyone else is
Sis. Theres something you need to say first.
Yuhwa cut Meiden off.
Ah. Right. Look at me, getting sidetracked.
Meiden cleared her throat with an "ahem."
First, Im sorry for putting you in a dangerous situation due to my negligence. I apologize.
It was a very cool apology.
Its alright.
But it was awkward to accept her apology.
Strictly speaking, it was all because of my [Spirits Flame].
And thanks for taking care of something I should have handled.
That was also basically me cleaning up my own mess.
Of course, Meiden was also slightly at fault.
She did say the safety inspection wasnt perfect.
Still, it was 80 to 90 percent my fault.
Dont mention it. I just did what any aspiring superhuman would do.
Still, its always good to have someone in your debt. I put on a bold face.
In any case, its a fact that thanks to you, my career and the operation of the Great Labyrinth werent seriously compromised. So I should reward you. Is there anything you need?
True to her straightforward personality, she moved right on to the reward.
Rather than a material reward, Id like your help, Ms. Keuritineseu.
My help?
Yes.
With what?
I paused for a moment.
Its about the Seekers of Truth.
The moment those words were spoken, Meidens expression soured instantly.
Just like in the original novel, Meiden Keuritineseu clearly despised the Seekers of Truth.
Go on.
Im planning to deal them a major blow. And I need your help for that plan.
...Deal them a blow?
Yes.
Meiden had lost her parents, husband, and daughter to the Seekers of Truth. Her hatred was only natural.
What do you know about them?
At the very least, I know more than you do, Ms. Keuritineseu.
Proof? Proof that you have more information on the Seekers of Truth than I do.
Meiden has a direct personality, but shes also very suspicious.
As a woman whos navigated the world of superhumans for over twenty years, its impossible for her not to be.
In a normal situation, it would have been difficult to persuade her.
More likely, I would have just ended up under suspicion.
Doppelganger, Kim Shinwoo, Vagabond.
But with Yuhwa here, it wasnt impossible to convince her.
I was the one who gave Ms. Yuhwa the information on those three incidents.
Meiden looked at Yuhwa, asking, Is that right? with her eyes.
Yes. Its true.
Yuhwa nodded.
Meidens expression grew even harder.
She seemed to be deep in thought.
Her suspicion hadnt been dispelled yet.
*Im a villain from the Seekers of Truth, doing this to cause internal strife.*
*And Yuhwa is being deceived by me.*
She was probably thinking something along those lines.
In that case, Id have to start by pulling out the root of her suspicion.
Its only natur
Okay.
Meiden suddenly cut me off.
Pardon?
I said okay. O.K. Dont you get it? I agree.
Meiden picked up her glass again and downed the soju in one gulp.
I was dumbfounded.
Jeez. You were so sharp in the Great Labyrinth, why are you so clueless now? Im saying Ill join your plan to screw over those Seeker of Truth bastards. You punk.
Ah, yes. Thank you.
I was just stunned.
She was accepting this easily?
*The* Meiden Keuritineseu?
Even with Yuhwas testimony, she agreed way too quickly.
Knowing Meidens personality, she should be considering the possibility that Yuhwa was being deceived by me.
What? You dont like it? You look a little pissed.
No, of course not. Im extremely grateful.
I was just bewildered, not unhappy about it at all.
Good enough, then.
Meiden refilled her glass and brought it to her lips.
So, tell me the details. Whats the plan?
Really?
Was it really going this smoothly?
Are you mute? Arent you going to speak?
Ah, yes. Ill explain.
Well, I wasn't about to question a good thing.
I began to tell Yuhwa and Meiden about the high probability of a large-scale terrorist attack by the Seekers of Truth during the national competition.
And the plan to counter it.
***
After Kang Seoyuls long explanation was over,
Meiden sent him away first.
That was unexpected.
Only Meiden and Yuhwa remained in Room 19 of Okhwadang.
What was?
Meiden asked nonchalantly in response to Yuhwas comment.
Ive never seen you trust someone so easily, sis. I was sure youd be 100% suspicious.
Yuhwa prided herself on knowing Meidens usual personality better than anyone.
So it was incredibly strange to see her drop her suspicions without a single word of protest.
Suspicion
Meiden swirled the drink in her glass and smiled bitterly.
You should be suspicious of those who deserve it.
Her eyes held a strange mix of longing and sorrow.
Sis?
It was a side of her Yuhwa had never seen before.
Hwa.
Yes.
You know Im chasing the Seekers of Truth, right?
It was a sudden question.
Huh? Yes, of course.
Twelve years ago.
Meidens parents, her husband, and even her daughter were murdered by the Seekers of Truth.
It was never officially announced to the media, but it was an open secret among those in the know.
Do you know how they were killed?
That.
Yuhwa trailed off.
No one knew how Meidens family had been murdered.
If anyone did, it was only one or two people.
And Yuhwa, of course, was not one of them.
You wouldnt know. I never even told Jinho, so how would you? That they died fighting villains. Thats probably all you know.
Meiden tossed back her drink and said casually.
My parents were killed in a single blow, their throats slit.
Meidens eyes flashed with rage.
Sangjae was hacked to pieces all over his body and bled to death.
Kim Sangjae.
Meiden Keuritineseus husband, a promising up-and-comer who had just reached the rank of A-Class superhuman at the time.
Im a superhuman too. So I can understand that much. My parents were superhumans, and so was my husband.
Sis
For a superhuman to die fighting villains is an unavoidable part of the job.
Its tragic, but not incomprehensible.
To live as a superhuman is to live with such a death always by your side.
But, Hwa.
Meidens eyes shone with a murderous light that would put any demon to shame.
My daughter. Leahs death no matter how I try, I just cant understand it.
She was kidnapped, and her whereabouts have been unknown ever since. Wasnt that it?
Thats what I thought at first, too.
Leah Keuritineseu.
Meidens daughter.
Hwa. My daughter. Leah
Meidens voice trembled.
She died being subjected to human experimentation.
Yuhwas eyes widened like saucers.
Hu-human experimentation?
Yes. It happened at a place called Sunshine Church.
Meiden handed Yuhwa a file. It detailed the inhumane experiments conducted by the Seekers of Truth.
Ugh.
Yuhwa gagged at the sight of a photo of a person who no longer looked human.
Wh-what is all this?
The System Transcendence Project. The Species Fusion Project. The Trait Modification Project. And a whole lot more.
A photo of children, no older than ten, screaming.
A photo of a child with scale-like growths all over their body.
A photo of a child left in a horrific state with their internal organs ruptured, and so on.
It was filled with all sorts of indescribably gruesome photos.
It was then that Yuhwas pupils began to tremble violently.
L-Leah.
The last page.
She had found a photo of a little girl who looked like Leah.
One year.
*Crack.*
Blood trickled from Meidens clenched fist.
Leah endured those damned experiments, crying out for me, for a whole year.
The experiment log contained detailed notes.
[Test Subject 207 Report: Day 1.]
[Only screamed, Mommy, save me.]
[Day 13.]
[Began repeating only the words, Mommy, Daddy, it hurts. Mommy, Daddy.]
[Day 43.]
[Decided to observe changes in the System based on sight. Both eyes were severed.]
[Day 342.]
[Test Subject 207 deceased.]
Reading the report, Yuhwas eyes trembled in shock. Her hand, holding the papers, tightened unconsciously, wrinkling the pages.
Th-these inhuman sons of bitches!
Tears welled in the corners of Yuhwas eyes.
Tears of grief and rage.
Hwa. Do you know how I found out about the experiments at the Sunlight Chapel?
That.
Meiden passed her another report.
It was thanks to a top-secret report from the Korean side. The first experimental site was discovered in Korea, and they obtained information on sites in other regions.
The moment she checked the name of the report,
Yuhwas pupils dilated as wide as they could possibly go.
The Sunlight Orphanage Human Experimentation Incident?
Yes.
The Sunlight Orphanage was definitely
The place where Kang Seoyul lived.
Ah.
Yuhwa gasped.
Kang Seoyul. That kid. Hes probably the sole survivor of those fucking human experiments.
His age matched, and there were records of a single survivor from the Sunlight Orphanage.
It had to be him.
N-no way.
Thats why he knows so much detail about the Seekers of Truth. While he was being experimented on, he must have overheard all sorts of things from the researchers.
No one watches what they say in front of a lab rat.
There are no detailed records, but I think that kid, Kang Seoyul, might be the only successful case of the Species Fusion Project.
Species Fusion?
Yuhwas lips trembled.
Yes. Handling two attributes might be difficult for a human, but for another species, its a simple matter.
Dragons, angels, elves, vampires, spirits, fairies, and even beastmen.
Records of other species that can wield two or more elemental magics are everywhere.
Another species?
In that instant, something clicked in Yuhwas mind.
Relics.
Ancient Relics.
Kang Seoyul had been collecting the Ancient Relics of other species.
She had always wondered why he needed to collect such antiques.
But what if they werent just antiques to Kang Seoyul?
If Meidens hypothesis was correct,
it meant that Kang Seoyul carried the genetic factors of another species in his body.
And carrying the factors of another species meant
Could it be that he can equip the Ancient Relics of that corresponding species?
Goosebumps spread all over Yuhwas body.
Im sure of it.
Yuhwa was certain.
If Meidens hypothesis was right, everything fit perfectly.
The reason for Kang Seoyuls hatred of the Seekers of Truth.
The reason he was so knowledgeable only about the Seekers of Truth.
And even the reason he was collecting Ancient Relics.
I think youre right, sis.
All the pieces of the puzzle fell into place.
Kang Seoyul was a survivor of the Species Fusion Project.