Chapter 354: Nightmare (1)

According to the original schedule, the exchange program was supposed to end with a festival, organized under the direction of Parsy Academy.

From the very beginning, this event had been an exchange where Parsy tricked Joaquin into participating.

Although it all started due to some impulsive actions by Abel and me…

In any case, the absolute influence was Joaquin’s, but the official perspective was Parsy’s.

That’s why the opening of the festival also belonged to Parsy Academy.

Strictly speaking, Joaquin had merely agreed to take part in that “entertainment” that brought him no benefit.

But in the end.

The festival was canceled. Parsy Academy didn’t even get to launch the fireworks.

A golem suddenly appeared—but that was the least of it.

An unknown enemy that enraged both heaven and earth, Ragnarok, announced the end of the world.

Very few beings can bring about such an end. But what everyone had to acknowledge was that this power far surpassed that of the former “Corps Commanders.”

That was thanks to the TV channels capturing the entire beginning and end of the incident with their cameras.

Their professionalism went beyond admirable duty.

I don’t know how they ended up in that disaster, but there they were.

‘Of course, even after becoming the Heavenly Sword, the media and reporters kept chasing me like hyenas.’

In any case, thanks to that journalistic spirit, the whole world came to understand the gravity of the situation.

Everyone saw just how disastrous things were at Parsy Academy.

And even though the final festival was canceled, no one dared to complain.

Still, the hype of the event needed to be released somehow.

And there was no better place for that than online communities.

There, a different kind of festival was taking place—a more toned-down one, given Parsy’s tragedy.

***

Title: Why those giants are stronger than the Second Corps Commander Kuarne

– First of all, I think everything was over the moment the Heavenly Sword barely managed to last twenty seconds. No doubt about it.

But the real issue in this “Parsy Tragedy” was that, if not for the help of other heroes, even the Heavenly Sword wouldn’t have been able to stop Parsy from becoming a shattered, forgotten academy in just ten years.

At this point, anyone who doesn’t know he’s the only one capable of suppressing the entire magic sword system is either playing dumb or downright ignorant.

Heavenly Sword carefully controls what he reveals and what he doesn’t, holding back just in case of emergencies.

In the end, it’s thanks to that one existence called “Heavenly Sword” that the academy system doesn’t collapse.

Which means that unless you’re him, nothing else works against those monsters.

Damn, just summarize it.

ㄴ1. Basically, a guy who matches the Heavenly Sword showed up and took on the entire hero community solo.

ㄴ2. And it looks like he’s not the only one.

ㄴ3. So, what the hell do we do?

ㄴWe’re screwed. Thanks.

ㄴㄴThanks.

I agree with the author. This isn’t something to be taken lightly.

ㄴBut what can we even do?

ㄴI guess trust the heroes and support them.

ㄴHmm… to that extent? In the end, they’re just charging a fortune for their work.

====================

But there’s a blind spot all of you are missing.

ㄴ?

ㄴ22.

ㄴ333.

====================

– No one doubts that the Heavenly Sword is strong. But listen… what if that guy one day decides to turn his back on humanity?

What would we do then?

ㄴNext comment: Mass-report the anti-HeavenlySword post.

ㄴThere are always morons like this. Can’t we trace their IP?

ㄴSend him to another universe.

ㄴJust the thought gives me chills… Heavenly Sword betraying humanity. I don’t think we could handle it.

ㄴHonestly, I’ve thought that too. Everyone saw what happened. Even his form completely changed… doesn’t that look a little too familiar?

ㄴYou mean the demon king from those old fairy tales?

ㄴNot fairy tales, I mean mythology, you idiot.

====================

– …This is a bit of a late question, but come to think of it, are we really sure the power Heavenly Sword uses is actually a “Blessing”?

ㄴHe’s using lightning and all kinds of stuff, it doesn’t even fit the hero category anymore.

ㄴHe’s too strong, so we just let it slide.

ㄴThen… what the hell is Heavenly Sword?

====================

“The greatest thief of all time!”

ㄴ?

ㄴThe man who stole it all: the Sword and the Gold.

ㄴHeavenly Sword, I wanted to be you!!

……End……

====================

***

“…What… is this…?”

Balor Joaquin (real name Ho Ah-Hyun, age 53) was watching YouTube videos of his disciple’s feats.

Up until that point, he had managed to stay composed.

But deep down, his heart had skipped a beat.

He hadn’t imagined his disciple had already mastered that power to such an extent.

And on top of that, he was using Lycan’s lightning magic at the same time.

He had reached the pinnacle of Mu (武, martial technique).

It felt like just yesterday when his disciple was learning to swing a sword while taking hits to the back.

Now, as a master, he felt a mix of pride and melancholy at that dazzling growth.

In any case, Kang Geom-Ma’s performance against the “End Ragnarok” was understandable.

‘I had already seen his potential long ago…’

Ho Ah-Hyun had sensed it the moment he saw those dark eyes.

The fact that Balor Joaquin used the “Ring Eye” to consume both his life and Lycan’s and send them to this world had been the most important decision of his life.

However—

“…Something feels off in the air…”

While Lycan (full name Ramzy Thunder, age 4,578) was browsing online communities next to him, a hushed murmur slipped from his lips. Lycan, elegantly scrolling with his coiled tail, also furrowed his brow.

(“That sword guy… he used too much power this time. It’s no longer just affecting the timeline or the world’s consistency… the way everyone sees him is going to change drastically.”)

The squeak of the rodent dropped into a serious tone. Ho Ah-Hyun narrowed his eyes with concern.

“…I don’t mind you being serious, but could you at least change form for this?”

(“Why would I? I like how I am.”)

“…Well…”

All of Lycan’s subordinates were part of the Squirrel Legion. Entirely squirrels.

(“Our sovereign is the commander of the Squirrel Legion!”)

(“You insolent human! He’s trying to deceive our Commander with sweet words to trigger a revolution in our squirrel ecosystem!”)

(“Oh no, this damned human! We must declare Jindo-level alert!”)

Lycan crossed his arms coquettishly and nodded nonchalantly.

“…Do what you want.”

Once upon a time, the two had been fierce rivals vying for dominance over various worlds.

But that terrifying presence as the First Corps Commander now had to be laid to rest.

(“Corps Commander, Founder Hero… may I say something?”)

A red squirrel stroking her chin while staring at the screen lifted her head. She was Lycan’s strategist.

Lycan arrogantly gestured with his chin.

(“You have permission.”)

(“Thank you. First of all, I believe this isn’t something we can just overlook.”)

“And your reasoning?”

(“According to your words, that individual is ‘from another world,’ right?”)

“That’s correct.”

The Squirrel Legion, led by Ho Ah-Hyun and Lycan, already shared many secrets. While Lycan knew a lot from his time with Kang Geom-Ma, that wasn’t the case for the others.

The secrets Ho Ah-Hyun revealed to the legion about Kang Geom-Ma were a massive shock.

As the saying goes, “birds hear by day, rats by night.”

Even if they thought they had keen ears for the world’s secrets, what Ho Ah-Hyun revealed shattered their previous assumptions.

And he shared it all because he knew that, appearances aside, they were clever.

If language wasn’t a barrier, they were even more insightful than humans with pens.

‘There’s plenty of time to talk.’

Balor Joaquin’s body still lingered between the spiritual and human realms.

He had made progress.

Thanks to camping at the bottom of the crater with the broken egg, he had recovered about two-thirds of his true form.

‘But it’s still not enough to intervene in the human world.’

Ho Ah-Hyun was a man deeply grounded in reality.

If he had only cared about his own time, he wouldn’t have bothered founding the Joaquin Academy.

He suppressed his desire to cross over to the demon world and help Kang Geom-Ma.

Instead, he chose to continue learning about the world while maintaining active communication with the squirrels.

In this way, through conversations and shared opinions, they had built a bond strong enough to make even important decisions together.

The red squirrel spoke again.

(“Bearer of the Demon King’s fate… an existence sent to end this world with uncontrollable power. That, according to my understanding, is Kang Geom-Ma’s role and reason for being.”)

She was precise. She continued.

(“In that case, Kang Geom-Ma’s true attribute is demonic and evil. But he’s separated that evil through his humanity. What lets him maintain that humanity are the people who believe in and rely on him.”)

“You could say that.”

(“But if, unfortunately, people were to define him not as good but as evil… if they all began attacking him and pushing him steadily toward the side of evil… what would happen then?”)

(“I don’t even want to imagine it.”)

Lycan’s curled tail gently drooped.

(“Evil doesn’t come from nowhere. It’s shaped by its surroundings. If a seed of evil were to grow in his heart, it wouldn’t be his fault—it would be because of everything around him.”)

Her words were heavy. Lycan was once the leader of the demon world.

The rivalry between Lycan and Balor Joaquin had stemmed from ideological differences.

In the first Great Human-Demon War, humanity had narrowly won, and the defeated demons were branded as evil.

From a human perspective, it was natural to consider those who devoured people as evil.

(“But just because a hawk eats a mouse doesn’t make the hawk evil. When the values of species that dictate the natural order clash… humanity, which considers itself the pinnacle of this world, arbitrarily decides what’s good and evil. Perhaps… that’s what Kang Geom-Ma will have to confront in the future…”)

Lycan murmured bitterly.

“Don’t worry.”

Ho Ah-Hyun gently patted his shoulder with his index finger.

(“…Do you have some sort of certainty? Something between you and Kang Geom-Ma that I don’t know about?”)

“It’s not about proof. I just believe in him.”

Ho Ah-Hyun smiled. The warmth of that smile reached even the deepest frozen caverns of the demon world.

“He already overcame it once.”

He had once said, rather shyly, that it was thanks to having a good master.

But Ho Ah-Hyun thought very differently—he had overcome it on his own.

Kang Geom-Ma’s true talent wasn’t his sashimi skills.

It was that he didn’t break, even in the harshest of environments.

Even if he lost the world, he would still do what’s right. Fiat justitia, pereat mundus.

(Let justice be done, though the world perish.)

“…Just hold on a little longer.”

Ho Ah-Hyun’s chin tensed with resolve.

‘Soon, I’ll come to see you, my son.’

***

== ==

[Up to the ■■ of □□□ (1/4)]

[You have completed the first trial……]

[Reward obtained: (???) ]

== ==

***

“Pfft.”

Sticky spit slid down my cheek. I let it fall without a care.

The edge of my sleeve, which I used to wipe it off, was tattered and ragged.

They say the birth of a life is a blessing.

“We never should’ve birthed something like you.”

In my past life, I grew up drinking in the curses of my parents.

“You say we’re bad parents? What a joke. Hey, hey.”

Every time they pressed that thick, filthy thumb into my cheek, I thought about how badly I wanted to break each of their toes, one by one.

“Kim ■■. You and your brat were born weak. It’s not how we raised you—you were always like this.”

“In a way, we’re good people! Because we’re educating you properly!”

I…

“I’m not Kim ■■…”

“What did this bastard just say? Denying the name we gave him as his parents? He’s hopeless. Honey.”

“Is it raining? Open the window, let the dust in.”

As I watched my father slowly unbuckle his belt, I moved my lips, my mouth bruised.

“I am…”

In my eyes, a black crow ignited.

“I am Geom-Ma, the Heavenly Sword.”