Chapter 102:
While my other initial novels have their share, none has contributed as much as this; I'm very grateful for you loyal readers. I haven't updated the adv chapters for some time, and I'm sure everyone's itching to know what other madness Seora will take part in. I'm now focusing on finishing shorter novels I'd been delaying since 2020 so I can focus better on finishing the longer ones when I'm free, and I promise you: I will finish Seora's adventures before the end of 2024. Once again thank you so much, and I'd hope you continue to enjoy our administrator's pettiness~!
Before he knew it, they had both grown into adults.
“What did you protect? You couldn’t even keep your promise. You didn’t do anything.”
Desperate cries choked Do Junyeong’s throat. Seora, who had been smiling just moments ago, was now covered in wounds, as if a wolf had attacked her. The sight took his breath away.
“I died over and over again. Once, twice, three times… Five times. Do you even realize that?” Seora’s hands tightened around his throat. “While I was dying alone, out of reach of any helping hand, what were you doing? Why did you make promises you couldn’t keep?”
“Gasp, cough…”
“In the end, you didn’t do anything. Those promises were just for your own satisfaction.”
A dreadful sound echoed. The view became blurry. Yet, amidst it all, Seora’s tear-stained face filled with anguish remained vivid.
Don’t cry. Don’t hurt. It’s my fault.
That was the most painful for Do Junyeong.
“Do Junyeong!”
“Ugh!”
The flickering view regained clarity with a short cry.
At the airport, Yun Jaeheon, holding his suitcase, looked at him with confusion.
“Are you okay? What’s wrong? Are you so upset that I’m leaving? To the point of losing your mind?”
‘What’s happening?’
He touched his neck. He was certain he had died, but he felt completely fine.
“Am I… alive right now?”
“Did you just space out and have a dream?” Yun Jaeheon smirked and patted his shoulder to snap him back to reality. “Endure your sadness. I’ve had my share of worries too… But still, it seems like this method is the best after all.”
Ah. Ahh. He understood the situation now.
At the age of twenty, they both awakened and became S-class. However, their paths diverged. Do Junyeong decided to join the association, while Yun Jaeheon joined Athena.
Today was the day he was leaving Korea to go to Athena.
“…Don’t overexert yourself, and don’t get hurt. Your sister is worried about you.”
“So only my sister will worry and not you? You really know how to make me feel bitter. Lately, you’ve been acting like you don’t know Seora.”
Do Junyeong pretended not to hear. It was true. Since becoming an S-class, his physique and appearance had changed slightly, and Seora didn’t recognize him well.
But it didn’t matter. Being by her side didn’t solely rely on recognition.
“Auntie said that when Seora becomes an adult, she’ll call her to join the association. You’ll be her superior in about seven years.”
“I guess so.”
“Take good care of Seora while I’m gone. It might be a bit much to ask as a friend.”
“It’s okay. I think of Seora as my sister too.”
“I feel relieved knowing you’re there. Thank you.” Yun Jaeheon chuckled and patted his shoulder. “Take good care of Seora.”
“Of course.”
“…Since you made that promise, then why couldn’t you protect my sister?”
Thump. Do Junyeong’s face turned pale as blood drained from it. He lifted his head in a daze, only to be met with Jaeheon’s cold and intense gaze.
“While Seora was suffering alone in the Werewolf’s Dungeon, where were you and what were you doing?”
“…Yun Jaeheon?”
“You’re just lying. In the end, you didn’t protect anything.”
Tears of blood streamed down Yun Jaeheon’s face, his anguish evident. He was tormented by his inability to protect his parents and sister.
“Seora is dead. You ultimately killed her. You said you would protect her! You killed my sister!”
Yun Jaeheon collapsed, and Do Junyeong’s eyes widened in shock. Suddenly, his friend cradled the lifeless body of Seora, who had died before his eyes.
“…Why?”
Why is Seora here? Why is she dead?
Seora didn’t die. Seora, Seora…
…Is Seora really alive?
Has she ever been anything but dead?
“Do Junyeong, in the end, you’re the only one who survives. Selfish bastard. Despicable scum. Even in death, I will curse you.”
Yun Jaeheon’s gleaming white blade glimmered, its brightness blinding. Reflexively, Do Junyeong closed his eyes. His friend’s lifeless body lay on the ground when he opened them.
Thud, thud, thud. Unwanted sounds filled the air as something struck against flesh.
Eyes filled with a mixture of resentment and madness stared at him intently.
Jaeheon had taken his own life. Seora was dead.
Ah. Despair filled Do Junyeong as he raised his head. Seoul crumbled and burned around him. Amidst the chaos, there lay a motionless body, barely recognizable.
What is that? Ah, Park Jinyong. Right. It’s Park Jinyong.
Seora died in the dungeon, Yun Jaeheon went mad, and in his madness, he killed Park Jinyong before taking his own life.
But Yun Jaeheon was not the only one who lost his sanity.
A surge of heat approached from behind, drawing Do Junyeong’s attention. He saw Song Hanna wreaking havoc in the city center through his blurred vision.
Her telekinetic powers brought buildings crashing down, uprooted trees, and tore apart roads. The golden patterns on her skin shimmered violently. Her Entity, devoid of reason, mindlessly perpetuated the cycle of destruction.
Yes, he remembered now. After Yun Jaeheon’s suicide, Song Hanna had lost her sanity and succumbed to the influence of her Entity…
This was unsettling. When had all of this unfolded?
Had it ever happened before?
These memories had been absent from his mind, so why were they resurfacing now with such vividness?
“Ah.”
No, this was reality. All of this was happening in the present.
He had yearned to restore the light, to see that house basked in sunlight again. But in his moments of inaction, two precious lives were lost.
And once again, the woman who had lost her family became a puppet of destruction, shattering the world.
Ah. Aah. Aaaaaah! Aaaaaaaaaah!
The pain was unbearable. It felt like an endless nightmare with no escape.
“No, I must be going insane. What am I witnessing?”
With a soft voice, the blood-stained and fiery sky above Seoul split open.
A beam of light cut through the nightmarish haze that had consumed Do Junyeong’s mind. A reassuring, pale hand gently touched him, and he wept tears of anguish.
It felt so familiar, as if…
“But that’s not reality, you know? Just snap out of it. Nightmares are just nightmares.”
The hand seized him by the collar, pulling with all its might. His body, forcefully lifted, slowly disappeared into a halo of white light.
The light that engulfed the world was the beautiful radiance he had desperately yearned to see again.
***
“Ugh!”
Do Junyeong jolted upright. The sudden movement caused a searing pain to shoot through his head and eyes, as if he were being pricked by needles.
“Be careful. The influence of the Demonic Boss’s magic hasn’t completely worn off yet.”
“…Yun Seora?” He looked up in surprise at the familiar voice. Seora was there, looking at him. She wasn’t injured. She was completely unharmed.
“How…? You, you were supposed to be dead…”
“It was all an illusion, a trick of the Demonic Boss’s powers. Everything you witnessed was just a hallucination.”
An illusion? So Seora’s death, Jaeheon’s death, and Song Hanna destroying Seoul were all just illusions? But they felt so incredibly real. It was as if he had personally witnessed every tragic event.
“Take it step by step. We are currently in the waters of Japan, dealing with a Level 1 Dungeon that emerged here.”
The Japan Dungeon… Ah, yes. He had come here with Seora, Jeong Hoyeong, and Kang Sejun. The monsters they encountered inside were Phantoms, ghost-type creatures.
Amidst a fierce battle, the red cube that emanated a distinct presence suddenly vanished, leaving a sense of unease. Then an icy coldness swept over him.
The Embrace of Night. That was it. He had fallen victim to the Phantom Overlord’s ability, which manifested people’s deepest fears.
“I remember now. Ha. The abilities of a Level 1 Demonic Boss are truly formidable.”
While he had experienced mental invasions by ghost-types in the past, this was by far the most terrifying encounter. If that pale hand hadn’t reached out and pulled him back at the last moment, he would have crossed a point of no return.
“Did you save me?”
“To be exact, he did. Say hello.”
Right before his eyes, a tuft of fur appeared. A long snout, fluffy fur, and a swaying tail.
“Is that… a fox?”
“Yes, he’s my summoned creature. Isn’t he adorable? His name is Elizabeth.” “Did you acquire taming skills?”
“No, this was a reward I obtained… well, let’s say that I ‘ripped off’ from the United States. I brought the Summoner’s Contract along with me.”
“You got yourself something good.”
“Yes, I adore him because he’s adorable and possesses the ability to ward off nightmares. Despite his appearance as a baby fox, he’s actually a nine-tailed fox.”
When there was a fox bead imbued with magical power, it could effectively dispel nightmares. Understanding the situation, Do Junyeong bowed his head. “Thank you for saving me.”
“I should be the one apologizing. If I had defeated the Phantom Overlord properly, this wouldn’t have happened.”
“Is the creature dead?”
“Yes. With the assistance of Guild Master Jeong Hoyeong, we were able to decisively handle it.”
Do Junyeong surveyed the area. There were hardly any signs of monsters remaining amidst the ruins of the fortress.
“Don’t worry, everything here has been thoroughly cleaned up. The only casualties are you and one Japanese Hunter. The others are currently pursuing the remaining monsters.”
Beside him lay Shirabu Keigo, a Japanese Hunter and Healer, still unconscious and struggling to regain consciousness.
“He has been greatly affected by the mental erosion. It may take some time for him to wake up, but compared to Director Do, who was directly attacked by the Overlord, he should recover well.”
“You’ve worked hard.”
Seora smiled warmly. In that smile, there was no trace of darkness. It brought a comforting sensation to Do Junyeong’s chest.
She was no longer the eleven-year-old child who couldn’t smile in his nightmares, nor was she the image of her being killed by a werewolf. His racing heart gradually settled. He didn’t want to experience such nightmares again. He made up his mind to stay away from ghost-type dungeons for a while.
“Oh, everyone is coming.”
Seora approached Jeong Hoyeong, waving her hand. Do Junyeong observed her from behind.
The pale hand that had rescued him from the nightmare.
The hand that had shattered the sky consumed by flames undoubtedly belonged to Seora. She had witnessed everything, questioned why he had seen such horrifying things, and saved him like a lifeline descending from above.
‘Could it be that both the nightmare and that hand were mere illusions? Could it be that Yun Seora didn’t truly enter my dream and save me? If that’s the case, did she witness all those dreadful scenes?’
Even if it was a far more terrifying experience for Seora than it was for him, she displayed no signs of distress. Lost in his own thoughts and unable to think clearly, he ultimately chose to remain silent.
And thus, he remained unaware.
He remained unaware of the frozen expression on Seora’s face as soon as she turned around. He remained unaware of the firm grip of her hand clutching the fox.
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