877

 [Chapter 218]

[Covert Operations (3)]

"You have only one job to do."

Somewhere in Seoul, in deep darkness.

The slayers who served only one person as king snickered as they watched the prisoners hurriedly eating food as soon as permission was given.

At that time, the 'king' spoke to Gil Seong-jun, who was eating with his cheeks bulging.

"A nationwide search order has been issued for your escape. As time passes, the Twelve Seats and S-rank clan players will also be actively deployed in the search."

"..."

Gil Seong-jun looked at the king.

The king, with a cigar in his mouth, soon exhaled a long stream of smoke.

The smoke the king exhaled filled the room.

At that moment, Gil Seong-jun was terrified.

"Ugh...!!"

The people eating food collapsed.

They had seizures.

It wasn't that poison was mixed into the food.

There was poison in the smoke.

No, it's not poison.

"Hehe, it's been a while since I've seen this. Was it made with an artifact made from an Eulji-grade treasure? It's amazing that just keeping it in a case imbues the cigar with brainwashing magic. No, it's probably not just brainwashing magic... If it's Eulji-grade, there might be an even greater effect..."

The only ones who didn't collapse after inhaling the smoke were Gil Seong-jun and <Puppeteer > Lee Dong-hyuk.

Lee Dong-hyuk noticed the nature of the smoke and snickered.

"You've become quite talkative after being in prison for so long. As I said, the mouth is the source of all disasters..."

"I'm sorry. I dared to try to know too much. Please forgive me."

Hearing the king's words,

Lee Dong-hyuk quickly hardened his expression and banged his head on the table.

There was a thud.

No one opened their mouth.

The king merely spread his cigar.

Lee Dong-hyuk bowed his head.

Gil Seong-jun was frozen.

The first to open his mouth among them was the king.

"The people who have collapsed now will cause disturbances in Seoul from now on. Because I brainwashed them to do so." "..."

"Then the Twelve Seats and players will be busy trying to capture these guys. You just need to use your gift while their attention is on these guys."

"...From where to where should I read the past?"

"Everything."

"..."

"You need to find all the weaknesses of those who are hindering me. The weaknesses of all those who have become the Fairy's sword, including Noh Eun-ha, Kang Hyeon-cheol, and Lee Do-jin."

"When I finish that..."

"Then you'll be free. No. Then you can truly be said to be on our side."

Gil Seong-jun put down the utensils in his hand and bowed his head.

"Please keep that promise."

And so he looked into the past of people in Seoul, except for Noh Eun-ha.

☆

The 4 nights and 5 days passed in an instant.

Now Ryu Yeon-hwa naturally felt Eun-ha next to her when she woke up in the morning.

It was the morning of the last day.

"Now that we're going back, I guess we can't sleep together like this every day."

Ryu Yeon-hwa smiled bitterly.

It was unavoidable.

Eun-ha, she, and the other wives had decided on this taking that into account.

Rules were important.

From now on, she had to spend her newlywed life following the rules.

Unfortunately, there wasn't much he could do.

"So we should enjoy it to the fullest until we get home. Is there anything else you want to do today?"

"Hmm... I want to wake up a little later. Let's stay like this a bit longer."

"Okay, then let's sleep a bit more."

Ryu Yeon-hwa rested her head on Eun-ha's chest.

Eun-ha hugged her and went back to sleep.

Then they woke up late and prepared to return to Seoul.

Since both of them were players with a lot of physical activity, they didn't feel any discomfort in their movements.

Only Ryu Yeon-hwa's walking became very careful.

"Let's go, noona. Although the newlywed house might not feel like a newlywed house, it will be the house you'll live in from now on, so consider it your home." "Okay, I'll try." "Ah, let's buy some gifts for the kids when we get to the airport. Otherwise, they'll be upset."

Eun-ha held Ryu Yeon-hwa's hand.

After subjugating Lilith,

The two would hold hands when they were alone.

Soon they left the hotel, pulling their suitcases.

A car was waiting in the parking lot.

The driver came out and loaded the suitcases they were pulling into the trunk.

"Here, go in and sit down."

"Okay, thank you."

Eun-ha opened the back door of the car.

Ryu Yeon-hwa responded.

She went in and sat down first.

Eun-ha followed and sat down.

The car started.

Ryu Yeon-hwa gently rested her head on Eun-ha's shoulder.

"...It would be nice." "Huh? What would?"

While they were silently feeling each other's warmth,

Ryu Yeon-hwa spoke in a small voice.

Eun-ha tilted his head.

Then Ryu Yeon-hwa opened her mouth with a slightly flushed face.

"If we had a baby, it would be nice."

"You want to have a baby too?"

"Yes. Seeing the others, it seems like they've become closer to you, so I just felt envious..."

"Then your newlywed life will end here, and you'll start a childcare life?"

"..."

Eun-ha said with a chuckle.

Ryu Yeon-hwa's fine eyebrows furrowed.

She muttered in a tiny voice so it wouldn't be heard.

But Eun-ha heard it all.

"But I don't want that... I want to do it with you more..."

Ryu Yeon-hwa seemed lost in thought.

Eun-ha gave a bitter smile.

He decided to pretend he didn't hear, in case she would avoid his gaze out of embarrassment.

Meanwhile, he looked out the car window.

They would soon arrive at the airport.

Now I've reached the age where I need to eat a lot of healthy things to live.

Royal jelly is hard to get, is there anything easier to obtain?

☆

While Eun-ha was on his honeymoon,

The escaped criminals ran wild in Seoul.

Players who were dispatched after receiving reports captured those who were causing terror using artifacts they had obtained from somewhere.

Meanwhile─

"─Okay. I've fully grasped <Thunder God>'s attack patterns. My, to think that guy is called <Thunder God> now, time has really passed."

With the help of the slayers,

Gil Seong-jun was able to read the past of players who were battling the escaped criminals from a distance.

Gift <Past Vision>.

The gift that reads a person's life when their eyes meet had neither difficult conditions nor high mana consumption.

32 people.

That was the number of people whose past Gil Seong-jun had read in four days.

"Now who's left?"

"Only <Lord > and <Divine Spear> are left." "Ah, Noh Eun-ha and Ryu Yeon-hwa?"

Gil Seong-jun chuckled.

As he read people's pasts, the slayers' treatment of him was improving.

Thanks to this, he was regaining the confidence that had been broken by 17 years of prison life.

No, his confidence was sky-high.

As a result, his behavior became even more frivolous.

He got up, swaggering.

"Then let's go see their past. Where are they?"

Among the slayers, there was one who could freely handle subspace.

Thanks to this, Gil Seong-jun only had to cross the subspace and read the past of the target the slayer pointed out.

"Wait one more day." "What? Why?"

"They'll return to Seoul tomorrow after finishing their honeymoon. We'll cause terror to match that timing, so wait."

"Honeymoon?"

Gil Seong-jun was puzzled.

Having been imprisoned for a long time, he knew nothing about outside news.

At best, he had heard from the slayers that Noh Eun-ha was called a national hero and had received the alias <Lord >.

So he was only now able to hear what kind of person Noh Eun-ha was.

"Ahaha! So you're saying this national hero has set up a harem and has four wives? And these women are all beauties with some outstanding qualities?"

Gil Seong-jun burst into laughter.

He had to change his thinking.

Was it called a heroic womanizer?

Noh Eun-ha was truly a hero without a doubt.

Therefore─

"─When he falls, I want to take everything he has."

"If you're of great help in our work, nothing is impossible to consider."

Gil Seong-jun licked his lips.

He became even more eager to bring down the hero and take everything he had.

Greed flickered in Gil Seong-jun's eyes.

A day passed from then.

"They've come." "Is it that car?"

On a road somewhere in Gangnam, Seoul.

Gil Seong-jun was hiding in a tall building, watching a car entering the road.

The exterior was tinted so the inside couldn't be seen.

But the car was clearly different from other vehicles on the road.

It was a car that quite high-class people would ride.

"Let's send out the last remaining prisoner to draw their attention."

"Please do."

The man moved the subspace.

The escaped criminal who was standing dazed and drooling was moved through the subspace.

Soon after, the escaped criminal appeared in the middle of the road where the black car was passing.

The escaped criminal used an artifact to cause terror around.

"Is it them? The brown-haired man and blue-haired woman."

"Yes."

"Who should I look at first?" "Noh Eun-ha first."

Due to the commotion,

The road was paralyzed.

Nearby players moved to capture the criminal.

At that moment, Noh Eun-ha and Ryu Yeon-hwa got out of the black car.

Gil Seong-jun seized that moment.

With the help of a slayer, he was able to see the eyes of the two through the eyes of the escaped criminal.

Gift <Past Vision>

The gift activates.

Gil Seong-jun decided to check Noh Eun-ha's past first.

Then a vast amount of information rushed in, confusing his brain.

At that very moment─

"─......!!"

Gil Seong-jun felt as if his brain was about to burst.

☆

The moment he entered Noh Eun-ha's past,

Until then, Gil Seong-jun had been quite confident.

But that mindset crumbled miserably as he stepped into his past.

"W-what is this..."

Noh Eun-ha's past is two.

Left eye and right eye.

The incoming information is different for each.

Gil Seong-jun couldn't help but be bewildered by this phenomenon he had never seen before.

Two pasts? How is that possible?

His head throbbed.

Different amounts of information from the same time period rummage through his head.

Nevertheless, Gil Seong-jun endured the pain and stepped into the mental world.

Rustle

The timeline shifts.

Noh Eun-ha grows up gradually in the two pasts.

Gil Seong-jun tried to quickly pass through unnecessary information.

"...He fought a Kraken at 6 years old?"

But he couldn't just skim through like other people's pasts.

The past that entered his right eye.

Young Noh Eun-ha is fighting a Kraken with scissors.

An extremely unrealistic scene.

Gil Seong-jun was at a loss for words.

A child fights like that?

Is that possible?

Gil Seong-jun asked himself.

There was no answer.

He focused on his left eye.

This side was somewhat more realistic.

Noh Eun-ha trapped in a car was tightly hugged by his sister, trembling in fear.

Soon after, the Kraken swung its leg and collapsed the bridge, and the car fell into the water.

"Ugh..."

Gil Seong-jun groaned.

He had deeply immersed himself in the past.

As a result, he ended up sharing the pain the child felt.

Moreover, the past seen through the right eye was also conveying pain.

This won't do.

At this rate, I'll disappear.

Gil Seong-jun instinctively sensed it.

Noh Eun-ha's past was bizarre.

How could two pasts coexist at the same time, violating the hypothesis of impossible existence?

If he continued to immerse himself in this world, his self would collapse.

In fact, it was amazing that he was enduring.

It was because his gift <Past Vision> was so powerful.

He waved his hand.

Since there's not much time to stay in this world, it might be better to search the recent past.

He skips time in one go.

Gil Seong-jun moved to view the past from the end.

Then he realized.

The past on the left is 32 years.

The past on the right is 28 years?

The lengths of the pasts are different.

Gil Seong-jun harbored doubts again and focused on the past reflected in his left eye.

He somehow pulled the past of the left eye and decided to check the past of the last moment when the memory was cut off.

That was his mistake.

"Kuh...!!"

His breath was suddenly cut off.

It feels like his mind is about to crumple.

A black world was reflected in his left eye.

In it, players were dying helplessly.

By just one being.

Gil Seong-jun ended up capturing that being in his eyes out of curiosity.

Grin

Red eyes blooming in the darkness.

A being that seems like it would make one's mind collapse just by looking at it.

Those eyes looked at Gil Seong-jun and smiled.

M O N S T E R

M A D... Impossible to exist.

No, a being that should not exist.

If such a being existed, the world would have perished long ago.

Facing a being that gives overwhelming fear just from memory, Gil Seong-jun's self began to collapse.

R U N A W A Y

He must run away.

Gil Seong-jun hurriedly tried to cancel the gift to escape from the past.

But the red eyes didn't want to let him go.

From the moment he saw those eyes,

Gil Seong-jun was as good as dead.

Grin

The being in the memory giggles.

The red eyes erased Gil Seong-jun's self just by blinking.

☆

On the way to the clan headquarters,

Suddenly, an escaped criminal appeared in front and caused terror.

In the past few days, security had been greatly strengthened as escaped criminals had caused terror in Seoul.

Not long after the terror occurred, players were deployed to the scene.

Blaze Crasher

Han Mae-ryu

Jang Mat-bi

Eun-ha and Ryu Yeon-hwa also joined in.

Thanks to this, they were able to quickly deal with the escaped criminal without casualties.

"Ah, Pandora Clan Lord. I heard you got married. It's unfortunate to encounter something like this on your way back from your honeymoon. Still, congratulations on your marriage."

"Yes, hello. Thank you."

Eun-ha exchanged greetings with the person commanding the search team.

He was an employee of the Dispatch Bureau.

He clicked his tongue looking at the escaped criminal whose life had ended.

"I heard the escaped criminals caused terror with artifacts, where on earth did they get those?"

"We're investigating that now. It seems the group that helped them escape gave them those... We'll have to investigate where those artifacts came from to know."

 "How do you know it's a group?"

"They wouldn't have attacked the vehicle carrying the prisoners alone. Moreover, there were even escort vehicles around. It's absolutely impossible for one person."

"I suppose you're right."

On the way back from Jeju Island,

Eun-ha had heard about the situation from clan members.

He knew that escaped criminals were running rampant in Seoul and using artifacts.

He nodded after hearing the employee's words.

For even Chang-jin hyung and Twenty-five not to know... Who could be plotting this?

Just who is it?

Eun-ha fell into thought.

It was strange that he couldn't figure out the enemy's identity even with the darkness he controlled.

He should have completely mastered darkness.

Yet for someone to boldly do this while evading his eyes meant─

─Either there's something even greater than darkness, or perhaps high-ranking people of darkness who can catch darkness off guard...

There was something that came to mind.

But he didn't want to think about it.

It couldn't be.

Eun-ha decided to erase the thought.

"So have all the escaped criminals been caught now?"

"No. Two are still left." "Who?"

"<Puppeteer > and Gil Seong-jun."

"Gil Seong-jun..."

Currently, <Puppeteer > was considered the most dangerous player among the escaped criminals.

The Dispatch Bureau employees said they were trying their best to catch <Puppeteer > as soon as possible.

He will be caught soon.

Eun-ha's darkness was already tracking his movements.

The problem was Gil Seong-jun.

Where on earth is that guy?

Is he with <Puppeteer >? It's going to be quite difficult to find him...

Eun-ha frowned.

It was then.

"..."

"Pandora Clan Lord? What's wrong?"

"Someone is watching us."

Eun-ha felt a gaze.

He hadn't noticed until now.

Someone had been peeking at him using magic precisely.

Then for some reason, the mana wave became disturbed.

Eun-ha immediately called Ryu Yeon-hwa.

"Yeon-hwa."

"Yes."

"I'll leave this to you, I need to go somewhere. It seems there are people monitoring us." "Should I come too?"

"No. I'm enough alone."

"Be careful. Um... honey."

"Okay, I'll be careful."

Ryu Yeon-hwa speaks while looking sheepish.

That appearance was lovely.

Eun-ha softly laughed and stepped on the ground.

Ubbo

He had already pinpointed the coordinates.

Eun-ha moved to a place close to where the mana wave had been disturbed.

"Is it here?"

There was a building under construction.

Eun-ha entered the building and detected presences with Sonic Wave.

Nothing was caught.

Then just one thing was caught.

"...What's this?"

Some person was collapsed.

Foaming at the mouth.

Eun-ha kicked the person lightly and realized he was dead.

"Wait, isn't this Gil Seong-jun?"

Then Eun-ha frowned.

There was no way he wouldn't recognize Gil Seong-jun.

How could he forget the face of the person who had become Im Baek-yeon's enemy before regression?

Although he looked much thinner than in his memory, it was definitely Gil Seong-jun.

Why did he die?

It doesn't seem like someone killed him...

Eun-ha examined Gil Seong-jun's condition.

There were no signs of homicide.

He couldn't determine the cause of death.

"What on earth happened?"

Judging by the remaining warmth, he hadn't been dead for long.

Eun-ha looked around.

There was nothing.

"..."

Why Gil Seong-jun was here.

What he had been doing.

There were no clues to know.

This is unsettling.

We found an escaped criminal, but to find him dead...

Eun-ha clicked his tongue.

He decided to report to Han Seo-hyeon.

Then Han Seo-hyeon would contact the Mana Management Organization to inform them of Gil Seong-jun's location.

"Seo-young noona will be disappointed. She said she wanted to catch him herself..."

Eun-ha muttered to himself while calling Han Seo-hyeon.

As he thought, Shin Seo-young was very upset when she heard the news later.

☆

Gil Seong-jun's corpse was found.

All escaped criminals except <Puppeteer > were captured or killed.

The Fairy government put all its efforts into finding <Puppeteer >.

Eun-ha's darkness was the same.

""""...."""

Then one day,

Suddenly, a body presumed to be <Puppeteer > was found.

A dead body was found on a mountain, but the entire body was burned so the identity couldn't be confirmed.

Then the DNA analysis results showed it matched <Puppeteer >.

Also, a suicide note was found near the body saying he was sorry to those he had hurt and would pay for his crimes with his life.

After checking the handwriting, this too was confirmed to be <Puppeteer >'s.

So he died by burning himself?

Does that make any sense?

Including Eun-ha,

Many people harbored doubts.

But the results didn't change no matter how many times they checked.

In the end, the Fairy government had no choice but to conclude the investigation for public stability.

"Something is happening somewhere I don't know about."

An incident that didn't exist before regression.

Eun-ha couldn't shake off the unsettling feeling.

☆

"So? You left your position leaving Gil Seong-jun as he was?"

"I had no choice. Noh Eun-ha reacted too quickly."

The king asked the man.

His tone seemed displeased.

The man answered politely, trying not to upset him.

"Hmm... Why did he die?"

"Judging by the cause of death... It seems his self collapsed and he died from being consumed by the gift. He must have suffered side effects from using <Past Vision> so many times."

"That's unfortunate."

The king ended his words there.

To the king, Gil Seong-jun was nothing more than a dispensable chess piece.

It was regrettable, but that was all.

The king decided not to dwell on it.

"Then you couldn't read Noh Eun-ha and Ryu Yeon-hwa's past."

"Instead, I grasped the past of all other people. I've finished analyzing what they're weak against, what they're strong against, how they'll act in what situations, and so on."

"That's good enough. We can devise strategies just keeping them in mind."

Click.

The king lit a lighter.

He lit his cigar.

In the light, the king's face was faintly revealed.

"I'll give you an artifact."

"What kind of artifact?"

"An artifact that has the power to control even 3rd rank overranks."

"...I didn't know such a thing existed."

"It's known to have been destroyed because it shouldn't exist in the world."

"I see."

"Use that artifact to lure the Twelve Seats and Noh Eun-ha."

"But will monsters alone be enough?"

"We'll have to bring Mines too."

"..."

"Do you feel bad because I called them Mines? I'm sorry, but I have no intention of acknowledging you as a new human species."

"No, it's fine."

"Samael, Mammon, Abaddon. Even if they're inferior versions of those guys, they'll be quite a threat if we push with numbers. Take them with you."

"Yes, understood."

"And─"

The king cut off his words.

He stubbed out his cigar in the ashtray.

Then the king continued.

"─I too will make a move." "..."

"If Noh Eun-ha manifests myths, someone on this side who can manifest myths must come out too."

"Won't <Abyss > join as well?" "No, that's not enough. On their side, there are at least three people close to myths besides Noh Eun-ha."

"You mean <Thunder God> and <Yama >. The other one is..."

"<Divine Spear> Ryu Yeon-hwa."

"I see."

"So I must make a move. Also, Noh Eun-ha has overcome situations beyond expectations so far. So we must make thorough preparations to kill him."

"He's not someone we can be careless about. I agree with your words."

"This is our only chance. We absolutely cannot fail this opportunity, so I can't just sit still."

The king stands up from his seat.

Then beings in the darkness revealed their presences one after another.

They follow the path the king walks.

Eventually, the man, Mastema, also joined their procession.