Chapter 388: The Unfathomable Abyss (1)

I thought about acting on my own, but Ryozo stopped me. She said that if I had just gotten out of the hospital, I couldn’t go around brandishing a weapon. With that sharp look she gave me, I ended up yielding to her authority.

Thinking about it for a moment, I realized that for the Prime Minister, that was actually the direct road to hell. As always, Ryozo was completely right.

Rather than become her enemy, I’d rather beg for my own death.

***

From the impression he gave me, the Prime Minister wasn’t a villain. If he were, Choi Seol-Ah would have realized it long before I showed up.

“The Prime Minister must just be a middleman. Normally, middlemen tend to stay in the gray area, so I figured he wouldn’t be a villain.”

Ryozo, watching the Prime Minister in profile as they put the cuffs on him, explained it to me.

“The supposed connection between the military installations and the villain cells was actually just an assumption. The important thing was to find, among those who can move the armed forces, the person with the strongest motive. That was the key point.”

The Prime Minister was very popular among the citizens. He was registered in the Do You Know Club. His political position was solid.

If someone from Earth saw him, they’d probably find it strange.

On Earth, the president is the supreme authority, but here, heroes exist. The president and the prime minister monitor each other, sharing executive power. For an Earthling, it’s a somewhat peculiar power structure.

I don’t know all the details, but I think it’s due to the peculiarity of this world—the existence of “heroes.” The president is elected by the people, while the prime minister is chosen by the heroes and has a strong image of being appointed by the nobles.

This Prime Minister was a special case—he enjoyed a good reputation among the nobles and also great popularity among the citizens. Arresting someone like that would bring me enormous opposition. And if I did it for personal reasons—oh, shit.

Before getting into the police car, the Prime Minister shot me a sidelong glance.

In his trembling eyes I could read several emotions—fear, despair.

“It won’t be a life worth living.”

Ryozo said it with absolute coldness.

“I’ve already spoken with the minister—the process of gathering evidence will be made public in real time. Just with that, he’ll want to die. And, on top of that, he’ll live with the constant fear of not knowing when the Villain Union will come to kill him.”

She was right.

“I think the opposite of expectation is anxiety. Just like the emotion you feel before an ending, I think death works the same way.”

“…”

“The worst punishment you can give is to make someone live tormented by not knowing when they’ll die.”

That was Ryozo.

“You may think it’s excessive punishment, or that it leaves a bad taste in the mouth, but given the current public opinion, it’s the best option.”

“I know. Thanks for always thinking of me.”

My smile made Ryozo form a small one of her own. I smiled too and looked away.

Mmm.

Watching the Prime Minister’s back, I let out a sigh. And no, it wasn’t just because a member of the Do You Know Club had fallen—though, actually, yes. It was painful. That someone who had raised Korea’s prestige turned out to be a traitor—rather than anger, what I felt was pure disappointment.

“Then we’ll proceed with the transfer.”

The Minister of Planning and Finance informed us with a forced smile. With those half-closed eyes and uneven beard, he wasn’t exactly someone I’d trust at first glance.

“Yes. I’m leaving it in your hands. I know it wasn’t an easy decision, so thank you, Minister.”

“Hehe, thanks to you.”

The police took him away and we watched as the red and blue lights receded. The Academy members passing by began to murmur, but the secretaries from the director’s office, as if they’d foreseen it, quickly contained the commotion. Just how much had Ryozo calculated in advance?

Shortly after, as the tension began to dissipate, Ryozo spoke again.

“At first glance he seems like a sycophant, right? But the curious thing is that the minister didn’t ask me for anything at all.”

“Giving him the pretext to bring down the Prime Minister must be the greatest gift for him.”

“…!”

Ryozo turned to me in surprise.

“Did you study on your own while you were in the hospital?”

“No, but you know what they say—old dog that lives near the school learns poetry. Being by your side has taught me and made me realize a lot of things.”

“Hmm… I feel good, but also a bit uncomfortable.”

“And why’s that?”

Ryozo hooked herself onto my arm. If it weren’t for the curious stares, it would have been a pretty heated scene for broad daylight.

She stayed close to me for a few seconds and then spoke.

“It’s just that I want to be useful to you, Geom-Ma, even if it’s in this way. But if in these things you also do everything yourself, I feel like my value as a person is diluted.”

“Ryozo.”

I moved her back a little and took her by the shoulders. Her torso trembled slightly, and that tension traveled from my hands to my heart.

“I don’t like you or Abel for what you’re worth. I like you just because. You don’t need to prove anything to me.”

I knew Ryozo’s past. She grew up under Saki Kojima’s constant testing, having to prove her worth to survive. Because of that, she even had to part from her mother Cynthia.

“The day we went to the dungeon, you told me you didn’t like the Seven Star heroes.”

“Yes.”

“I’m not like my father-in-law.”

Ryozo looked at me for a moment and then threw herself into my arms. She rested her face on my chest before slowly pulling away.

“Even so, I’d like you to trust me more. To trust us.”

“I will.”

“Just words?”

“Hmm.”

As we spoke, we headed somewhere else. Ryozo had a mountain of work and I also had to tend to my own affairs. At the very least, I had to show up at the graduate school after being discharged. And while I was at it, visit Choi Seol-Ah.

“Trust me with something for real!”

Ryozo puffed her cheeks, demanding an answer. I scratched my eyebrow.

“Then… teach me to play chess.”

I blurted it out without thinking too much, but the truth was I wanted to learn. It seemed fun. However, Ryozo hesitated with an uncomfortable expression.

“The truth is… I don’t know how to play chess.”

“What…?”

“Then that earlier…?”

“I took and analyzed, in my free time, all the previous matches the Prime Minister played when he was still active. They were around 1,300 games. Even so, it only took me a second for each, so it wasn’t a big deal. Looking at them, you can see a pattern.”

“You beat the Prime Minister just with the pattern? Without knowing the rules?”

I was speechless. I couldn’t think of a proper comparison—it was like solving a hard math problem just by looking at its shape, without knowing how to add or subtract.

“Finding the answer in prior material is my specialty.”

“That’s expert level…”

“If you ever face an obstacle that seems impossible to overcome, consult me. As long as there’s prior material, I can find the answer for you.”

“Even if the odds are absurd?”

“Yes.”

Ryozo nodded with determination.

“Even if they were almost infinite. If it’s for you.”

***

It had been a long time since the so-called “golden generation,” a crucible of geniuses that might only be born once or twice in a century. And now, a new cadet had shaken up the first year.

There was no need to say who Chaerina was—publicly announced as the cousin of Kang Geom-Ma, the Heavenly Sword.

She didn’t carry the “Kang” surname because she was related through her mother’s side. And judging by her looks, that part of her heritage also seemed maternal.

Chaerina’s face brought together every element of beauty that existed. Kang Geom-Ma was a very handsome man, but in his case, his gaze slightly lowered his score.

She, on the other hand, had black hair and black eyes, without a single flaw, with a face of flawless beauty. To that, she added overwhelming skill.

As expected from her family, she primarily used dual swords. Her skill was such that among the instructors there was a rumor she was the reincarnation of Abel, the Lady of the Sword.

For both the cadets and the staff, Chaerina was a subject of maximum interest.

***

“Ah, damn it…”

A male cadet shook his leg nervously as he stared at her. His friends laughed at his jitters.

“Hey, are you gonna start an earthquake with that shaking? Why don’t you shake your danjeon too while you’re at it?”

“Go confess already so she can reject you. What will you do if our precious Rina wears herself out from having to keep rejecting you?”

“Shut up!”

The boy ground his teeth.

“You think I like being like this? It’s because people confess to Rina every hour—it’s driving me crazy!”

“Not every hour—ever since the exchange with Parsy, it’s almost every minute. And you, Jaewoo, you just don’t want to lose, so you don’t even try.”

“You wanna keep provoking me?”

His friend B grinned maliciously.

“Then do it. Act like a hero, not like someone shaking in fear that Rina will get a boyfriend.”

“Exactly. And careful—if you keep shaking like that, something else might fall off. To confess to Rina, you’ve gotta be a man.”

“So what? Even some girls confess to her.”

“Yeah, but they mostly do it to meet the Heavenly Sword rather than for her herself.”

“Exactly.”

Maybe out of irritation from all the chatter, or to divert attention from his own nervousness, boy A suddenly blurted out:

“Honestly, even for a man, the Heavenly Sword is incredible. But he’s way too anti-noble, and that kind of bothers me. Am I the only one?”

“Yes. Just you.”

“Wait—come to think of it… huh?”

A female voice?

He turned his head quickly. In front of him was Chaerina, her black hair falling to her collarbones and shining as if it were translucent.

It was as if she had teleported there. She looked down at them like they were the most insignificant lifeforms in the world.

“You’re the only one who thinks that.”

“I-I-I… Ri… Rina…” he whimpered, tears welling up in his eyes as he bit his tongue trying to speak.

“This world is full of arrogant people who don’t appreciate what they’re given and only have pride.”

“Rina…”

“That’s why I hate this world.”

“No, that’s not it—”

Smack.

Everyone turned. Chaerina had slapped A, making his head turn to the side. In this world, where violence was an everyday thing, a slap was nothing.

“And because I hate this world, I’m going to turn it into hell.”

She turned on her heels and walked away, repeating her vow to herself.

“I already turned it into hell once—this time…”

Ignoring the stares boring into her skin, Chaerina left the classroom. Boy A touched his cheek with a stunned expression.

“You okay?” B asked, glancing toward the door.

“Wow… what a personality. Definitely the same bloodline. Hey, get over it already. It’s not like Chaerina’s the only girl in the world.”

“But… there’s no one as beautiful as her…”

“Idiot, that was just to comfort you—can you shut up?”

While B and C argued, A’s gaze was empty.

“…I like her.”

“Wow, this guy’s stubborn.”

“No, it’s just… I feel good.”

Huh? He feels… good?

“I feel good…”

“…Like my heart’s on fire.”

“….”

“….”

B, C, and the rest of the class slowly stepped away from him, as if he had a contagious disease.

Unaware of it all, A muttered to himself,

“…Hell.”

Maybe it was his imagination, but in the instant he was slapped, he thought he saw that “hell” she spoke of.

A scene, through the crack of a door—a boy, looking like a middle schooler, being beaten.