Competitors, people they had to kill. Lee Su-yeon had spoken about challengers from the different dimensions countless times, but in fact, it didn’t feel very real. After checking the notebook, he first wondered if he had to kill those in the meeting.
‘There’s no need to fight here.’
Even if all of them were killed, the only thing b Predation} could do was get b Planet Guardian} from one person anyway. And among them, there weren’t any specific skills that he liked.
‘This makes me feel like I’m playing a game.’
Yoon-seok smiled bitterly. When did it start? He wasn’t weighed down by the thought of murder anymore; he was just numb. Sometimes he even thought that he didn’t even see others as people, but a sacrifice to become stronger. Prey.
It wasn’t wrong, either. Yoon-seok no longer killed people based on emotion but only saw two things. What was the benefit of killing? And what damage would sparing someone cause?
“I’ll spare you.”
In that respect, he had no reason to kill them. Of course, that assumed they accepted this proposal.
“…Is that a threat?”
It was a threat. If Lee Su-yeon died or were hurt here, it would pose a problem for Yoon-seok. He would kill them all to prevent that from happening. Instead of answering, Yoon-seok’s eyes sparkled sharp like a beast’s. Witnessing that, Cardinal Nephren clenched his fists while the old warrior laughed and shouted.
“Gahahahaha! What are you doing, Cardinal? You’re not going to tell me what to do after hearing that, are you?”
He thought he was only protecting himself because he was just watching, but that wasn’t the case. When Cardinal Nephren began to frown, a woman spoke up.
“Five.”
“…?”
“If you fight, you should kill at least five and leave us out. Are you going to risk your life for at least a 50% chance? I’ve never really had a grudge against her in my home country. Don’t you think the ratio is off?”
The Red Flame Wizard. The court was shaken by her understanding and reasonable words. Everyone felt the same. The Seheranbad Alliance. In the end, it was only good on face level, but the members had no choice but to only pursue their interests.
‘Is it division…?’
Cardinal Nephren sensed the mistake. If he knew this would happen, he would have fought immediately or accepted that offer. The poison had already spread before he knew.
‘Did he make that suggestion in anticipation of what would happen…?’
One person was already stepping out, and even if the battle took place, everyone would be busy taking care of themselves. Even if the Seheranbad Alliance were launched, the memories of this day would make them lose trust in each other.
‘I can’t believe he’s that calculating despite his youth. He must be killed.’
At first, he was going to accept that proposal. Revenge against the woman named Lee Su-yeon wasn’t worth the lives of the people here. But, he changed his mind. Lee Su-yeon was good timing. Even at the expense of their lives, that man must be killed. It wasn’t too late.
He could drive public opinion to get through if he brought their wills together. Cardinal Nephren made a bold decision, but as soon as he opened his mouth-
「You are registered in the Death Note.」
「Due to the weak state, all stats are downgraded by 1 level.」
A phrase appeared before his eyes. Death? Did that mean this man was the grim reaper? He didn’t know, but seeing how everyone looked equally flustered, he wasn’t the only one seeing it.
‘This kind of curse makes things more tedious.’
Cardinal Nephren injected magic into his ring and took out his weapon, the Devil’s Crusher. If he attacked first, the others would have no choice but to participate. But…
「Your death has been registered as death by explosion.」
「The date and time of death are five seconds later.」
The Cardinal froze at the following phrase. He couldn’t understand. He would explode and die? In five seconds?
“…”
Even though he thought it was ridiculous, the anxiety that something had gone wrong crept up. Time flew slowly. One second, two seconds, three seconds… in that endless time, Yoon-seok stood still. However, Cardinal Nephren was engulfed by the sense that something invisible was squeezing his throat.
‘I’m dying…’
The message said it would take five seconds later. He no longer thought about whether that was true or false. How much time was left? One second? Two? Or none at all?
Even now, accepting that proposal was the only way to survive. Only such thoughts dominated his mind. But at that moment-
“Stop it.”
Someone stepped in. The time that slowed down found its original speed. One second, two seconds, three seconds… it was way past the promised time, but nothing happened. Cardinal Nephren finally breathed out and shifted his eyes to the woman who cut in.
“I’ll accept your proposal.”
Ragna Hambledon, located against a relatively safe wall with normal people such as the Princess, looked at Yoon-seok.
“Lady Count Hambledon! What does that mean? Levant may not have suffered much damage, but this crazy woman killed one of my countrymen! You can’t let her go!”
“…”
“Moreover, you haven’t become the chairman yet, isn’t that right? So you’re not in a position to make this decision on your own, and if so, I’m honestly concerned about entrusting such power to you.”
Was this what perseverance was like? The man, who was humiliated countless times during the talks, showed his face again. Ragnar sighed.
“…The Duke is still thinking about such gains and losses at this moment.”
Working hard for the benefit of one’s own country even under unfavorable conditions. This might be a good quality as a diplomat. However, the significance of this alliance’s existence was for a cause that transcended the individual states.
Of course, not all of them would have such noble will, but this problem could be fixed gradually after creating the alliance. However, after seeing their unity disappear instantly in front of the strong opponent named Yoon-seok, she changed her mind. There was a crisis just around the corner.
The wizard stepped down, saying she had nothing to do with it, and the warrior rejoiced at the thought of fighting, all while the politician was blind to their power. The Cardinal was a little better, but… after all, there were only a few.
Now she understood what she was building was a sandcastle that would collapse in the rain.
“Hurry up and leave.”
At Ragna’s words, Lee Su-yeon cautiously approached Yoon-seok, still wary. Her assailants were on-guard but didn’t make any moves.
“Oppa…”
“Let’s get out of here for now. Don’t worry about it; I have something in mind.”
Yoon-seok left the hall with Lee Su-yeon. Nothing was damaged or destroyed, but it felt like a big storm had passed by. Without having the time to deal with it, Ragna shook her head.
“We’ll end the meeting here.”
“End the meeting? What are you talking about?”
“The union was formed to overcome a crisis that could not be overcome alone. But I’ve found that impossible, so is there a need to continue?”
“You’re going to end it here after all that effort? This doesn’t make sense! Do you know how much time and resources we’ve spent on this?”
Time and resources… this was not what the envoy of Geronian, who joined the team last after testing the waters, should say. Ragna smiled sadly.
“If you want, why don’t you persuade the rest?”
“…Don’t you regret it.”
Afterward, the Duke persuaded the envoys from each country to form the coalition among themselves, but nobody listened. Geronian wasn’t at the center of the continent like Levant. In addition, the Duke wasn’t someone with both skills and trust like Lady Hambledon. If it weren’t for Ragna, they wouldn’t have gathered here in the first place.
“If there are no disagreements, I’ll leave now.”
Lastly, Ragna’s powerless declaration. The two-day meeting ended.
“Incredible. This works?”
Lee Su-yeon, who pretended to have left and now eavesdropped on their conversation, was shocked. The alliance, which would later be the center of Seheranbad, disappeared from the stage before it could reach the history books.
“Did you ask to fight because you knew this would happen?”
Lee Su-yeon asked, looking up with respect in her eyes. Yoon-seok dry coughed a couple of times and nodded.
“Uh, yes…”
The collapse of the alliance? He didn’t think of that. Yoon-seok’s specialty wasn’t that level of scheming. But, when he saw those pure eyes, he couldn’t answer honestly.
“But it was still dangerous. What if the opponents become more united when things go wrong?”
Yoon-seok remained silent at Lee Su-yeon’s words. To answer the question, well. He thought he would have killed everyone as planned except for a few… anyway; Lee Su-yeon seemed to think that Yoon-seok had done too much for her.
“If that happens next time, please just take a step back. Even if I’m in danger…”
“I can’t promise that.”
“Hey, pretending to be cool is…”
Lee Su-yeon grumbled and shied away from his gaze. Despite her grumbling, she looked touched.
“I like that the alliance was disbanded, but what about the b Planet Guardian}? First of all, I followed you out so you wouldn’t be worried. Shall we wait and tail him?”
Yoon-seok shook his head at Lee Su-yeon’s concerns.
“You don’t have to do that.”
If that were what they planned in the first place, then they would’ve attacked the {Planet Guardian} in the meeting. Well, he would become enemies with Ragna and the other countries in Seheranbad, but if they got {Planet Guardian} as scheduled, he didn’t have to care about them anymore. Wouldn’t that make it impossible for them to go to Earth anyway?
However, Lee Su-yeon was worried that they wouldn’t reach out when their help was needed in the future. She knew just by looking at Yoon-seok. Yoon-seok once considered a tentative enemy, became her colleague and turned into a very powerful helper. The future was something that couldn’t be hastily concluded.
“As I said, you don’t have to worry. I think I can handle it quietly, as you said.”
“Quietly? How?”
Yoon-seok explained the active effects of {Death God}. Lee Su-yeon, listening with interest, suddenly asked.
“Come to think of it, I’m on the list, right?”
“R-right?”
Yoon-seok flinched. On the day he met her, he registered her on the list to check her name and information. In other words, this meant that Yoon-seok could find and kill Lee Su-yeon anytime. Of course, he had that intention before, but he didn’t want this to cause a disagreement with Lee Su-yeon now.
Contrary to Yoon-seok’s worries, Lee Su-yeon had always been an unexpected factor.
“I feel good for some reason. You’re saying that you can come to find me anytime, anywhere, right?”
“…”
He wondered if it could be interpreted that way, but Yoon-seok kept his mouth shut.
“Oh, and…”
Lee Su-yeon smiled and trailed off.
“You’re important to me, too.”
Looking at those sparkling eyes, he felt extremely embarrassed.
Over time, people continued to filter out from the mansion. After they all left, Ragna had several wagons drive in various directions to hide her departure. Yoon-seok didn’t follow after her. Instead, he went around the beach with Lee Su-yeon, ate local food, and spent time sightseeing.
And when night fell, he opened the list.
「Lee Su-yeon」
「Orlene Versiace Katlan」
「Ragna Hambledon」
「Varhille Nephren」
There were many newly added names on the list. Yoon-seok specified one of them with Lee Su-yeon’s help. Lee Su-yeon didn’t know the b Planet Guardian}’s name. However, once those they knew at the meeting were removed, it would be the only one left.
「Felic Timbuckle」
It didn’t take long. Looking at the brief information below, it seemed that he was the b Planet Guardian}’s owner.
“Then I’ll be back soon.”
“Alright. I’ll be waiting for you at the inn.”
After nodding to Lee Su-yeon, Yoon-seok pressed the name Felic Timbuckle.
「Moving behind the target registered in the list.」
「The unavoidable characteristic is given to your first blow.」
Whirlllll!
As darkness swirled and swallowed Yoon-seok’s body, his surroundings changed. The place he arrived was a space under a bed.
‘With this skill…’
Yoon-seok slid out silently and checked the hall. They were in a small bedroom. There were no windows, and there were no glass lamps, so it was dark. Of course, that was meaningless to Yoon-seok.
‘Is it him…?’
As if today had been a long day, the man was snoring loudly in bed.
‘Anyway, this is good.’
Yoon-seok smiled. Even if he hid in the same place as Ragna, it was expected for them to be in different rooms during the night. If he killed him now and got rid of the traces, who would know?
It was a perfectly quiet way of handling things.
“…”
Yoon-seok slowly approached in the darkness. Then, he put his hand on the cheek of the sleeping man.
It was then-
“It’s useless because he’s not the one you’re looking for.”
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