novelraw Chapter 83 : Chapter 83
Chapter 83 : Chapter 83
Chapter 83: Prelude (2)
[Super Sweet Ice Cream]
The sweet scent of ice cream tickled my nose.
A total of three kinds of ice cream were held in my hands.
Chocolate, vanilla, and mint chocolate.
For reference, I do not like mint chocolate.
I belong to the so-called ‘anti-mint-choco faction’.
But why is mint chocolate held in my hand?
“Looking at it, Ryu Jinwoo seems to have a crazy appetite. Eating three ice creams? Earlier you ate three churros too.”
“Seeing you guys order, I craved other flavors too.”
The reason is simple.
After choosing chocolate flavor, I additionally ordered the vanilla flavor Do Haru chose and the mint chocolate flavor Seol Hayun chose.
“Still, I want to give points for choosing ‘Mint & Chocolate’ flavor.”
“Ha, how come both people hanging out with me are mint-choco faction? Something is wrong. Why eat toothpaste?”
When Seol Hayun showed favor regarding mint chocolate, Do Haru shook her head.
“There is strawberry flavored toothpaste too, but you don't say you eat toothpaste when eating strawberries, right?”
“Strawberry flavored toothpaste is for kids!”
“Then since mint flavor is used by everyone regardless of age or gender, it's rather a popular taste.”
“That is! Hmm, is that so? Anyway mint is toothpaste! No grabbing strawberry by the hair.”
An untimely mint-choco debate broke out, but it wasn't something for me to intervene in.
It didn't matter how mint chocolate was.
Rather than that, another debate topic existed now.
“……But it's strange.”
While Seol Hayun and Do Haru were sharing a profound discussion about mint chocolate.
I put on a serious expression and opened my mouth.
“What is?”
“No, I mean the wrappers. Yours and mine, aren't they slightly different?”
At my words, the two people's gazes headed alternately to their own ice creams and my ice cream.
“That's true. Haru's and mine have characters drawn on them, but yours only has the brand logo and the words HAPPY CORN written on it. And all three of them at that.”
The three ice creams I ordered were all contained in the same wrappers.
Among them, 2 were given different wrappers even though they were the same flavors as Seol Hayun and Do Haru's.
“It would have been nice if mine had characters too.”
Citing the reason that I wanted to take a look, I received Seol Hayun and Do Haru's cone wrappers and examined them closely.
The wrappers with characters drawn on them had silver coating on the joints.
Touching the aluminum-coated joints, faint silver powder smeared on my hand.
‘So it was like this.’
In this terror, Edward uses ‘Galaxy Grass’.
Galaxy Grass.
A transdermal poison effective only on Awakened, and a substance so rare and expensive that using it in large quantities is virtually impossible.
However, the ‘Alliance’ processed that substance to create poison effective even in small amounts, and testing that poison in actual combat for the first time was exactly this terror.
On the other hand, I was curious.
Anyway, since it was only at the testing stage, they wouldn't have a sufficient amount.
Even so, this poison incapacitated quite a few heroes in the original work.
That implied one thing.
That they induced the limited medicine to reach heroes as much as possible.
I wondered what method on earth they used to make it possible.
Thanks to these ice creams, I finally learned what that method was.
Edward, the supplier, cast suggestions like this on snack shop owners with his ability.
[Give normal wrappers to Non-Awakened.]
[Give aluminum-coated wrappers to Awakened.]
With just these two suggestions, they could achieve the purpose simply.
By making them supply wrappers without medicine to Non-Awakened, and wrappers with medicine only to Awakened.
‘If it's Edward's ability, making them distinguish Awakened is no problem either.’
Then the remaining problem now was how to use this information.
“Okay then, we rested well. Shall we go ride amusement rides in earnest again? Getting bored of watching parades gradually!”
Do Haru shouted lightly handing over the ice cream cone wrapper to me.
We hadn't ridden other rides since riding the Mega Viking.
Above all, my condition was very bad since then.
It couldn't be good. How could my condition be good after riding that damn centrifuge.
Frankly speaking, torture disguised as amusement rides is enough once.
“Wait, before that I have something to do for a moment.”
To divert Do Haru's mind from riding other rides, and to achieve another purpose, I opened my mouth quietly.
***
[Super Sweet]
A place composed of an ice cream stand and outdoor tables used as a meeting place within Hero Land.
As afternoon came, perhaps due to the hot weather, it began to be exceptionally crowded with people.
In front of the shop was full of midday heat and laughter.
Family customers and couples gathered in twos and threes, holding ice cream cones and taking pictures or posting on SNS enjoying themselves.
Amidst that peacefulness, a subtle energy lingered at some moment.
Someone approached the front of the shop and began examining the surroundings with a serious expression.
It was a pair of young man and woman couple.
“Excuse me, just a moment. Can I check just one thing?”
The woman side of the couple asked a customer cautiously.
“Yes? Ah, yes.”
“By any chance are you an Awakened?”
“Yes, that's right?”
The couple looked at each other, then this time the man asked a customer sitting at the table right in front of the stand.
“You over there are a Non-Awakened, right?”
“Yes? Yes, right?”
At the second answer, the couple shook their heads as if absurd and began to look around the shop.
“That person in red hoodie over there is Awakened, and the person wearing a blue hat next to them is Non-Awakened. The tables outside there are all Non-Awakened. The back side is correct too, right?”
When his words ended, the surroundings became strangely quiet.
Surprisingly, because all were correct.
“……My magic power isn't that strong though? Moreover, I usually hide magic power with a magic power controller, how did you know? Is it that obvious?”
“Ah, that?”
The man pointed to the shop owner.
Sarcasm was mixed in his voice.
“It's thanks to this person. This person distinguished directly.”
“Yes?”
“Look at this! It's chaos on SNS right now.”
On the phone screen the man held out, a post already shared tens of thousands of times was floating.
[Day After Day]
[Wow guys are they crazy lol My friend is Non-Awakened and bought three ice creams and they are all this wrapper lololol Only letters written…… But me(Awakened) and my other friend(Awakened) all received character wrappers. Isn't this discrimination? HeroLand #SuperSweet #Discrimination #NonAwakened #WhyIsThisReal]
One SNS post someone uploaded was spreading instantly riding the wave called ‘discrimination’.
Soon the atmosphere around the shop twisted subtly.
The ice cream shop owner rolled eyes as if flustered, but it was already too late.
“Wow, mine really doesn't have a character. Only letters.”
Someone's mumbling was heard.
At the same time, the crowd's gazes headed to their own wrappers and the shop alternately all at once.
“Is it real?”
“Seems real? Hey, ours is like that too. What is this?”
“No, they really discriminated? Between Awakened and us?”
“Ha, f*cking insidious…….”
“Hey hey, they said the churros place and other places were like that too. Seems they determined to do this today. Crazy really.”
Of course, among them there were cases where Non-Awakened received wrappers with characters or Awakened received cones with only letters written.
However, they were only a minority, and compared to the ‘discrimination proof posts’ coming up on SNS and the vivid ‘discrimination proof’ of people gathered in front of the shop, they were nothing more than a grain of sand on a sandy beach.
As a result, hot flames began to spread among the crowd. Helplessly.
***
“Meow-.”
At the gently stroking touch, the cat made a languid cry.
Feeling the soft sunlight shining through the window, Edward closed his eyes.
Edward changed ‘channels’ with his eyes closed.
The pitch-black vision seen when closing eyes began to static, then soon the first-person perspective operating the ice cream shop floated in his vision.
It was a peaceful moment.
To Awakened whose magic power wave is detected, take out the wrapper on the right and hand it over naturally.
To Non-Awakened where nothing is seen, give ordinary wrappers with no treatment.
Staff borrowing Edward's discrimination ability were continuing the familiarly set pattern.
All staff were moving for Edward's will with their own natural appearances.
This moment where a huge incident is created with simple suggestions.
Edward savored the afternoon leisure quietly.
But that was brief.
Some unusual images were transmitted to Edward.
Faces of people angry holding out ice creams began to be seen respectively.
Someone even peeled off the wrapper roughly and threw it on the floor shouting ‘Don't need something like this’.
What happened.
Edward opened his eyes quietly and looked out the window.
Some change occurred.
People's movements are unusual.
Just when he felt the anomaly.
With bustling footsteps, someone entered the room.
“What is the matter, Jack?”
“Tsk, what matter.”
Shaking his head, Jack held out his smartphone.
“This, isn't it related to Galaxy Grass?”
Edward began examining the screen Jack held out.
Inside the screen, a user named ‘Day After Day’ was talking about discrimination in Hero Land.
A post angry exposing the fact that they gave different wrappers to Awakened and Non-Awakened.
The reaction was hot.
The post the user uploaded soared to trend ranking in an instant and was drawing out numerous discourses related to it.
While there were posts saying it's nothing more than simple coincidence, posts saying they also received discrimination similarly were uploaded successively.
“It was because of this. I wondered why people were suddenly angry.”
Edward nodded quietly.
“Did you know. It's a proper mess.”
Edward, stroking his chin, began examining the screen Jack showed again.
“Jack, by any chance how did you come to know this? You don't use SNS.”
“Ju Ara sent it to me. Asking if some problem occurred.”
“Hmm, if so.”
Edward's mouth corners slowly curved up.
It was the moment the puzzle was completed.
“This account must belong to Miss Do Haru. Since Ju Ara-nim and Miss Do Haru have been interacting after visiting Beetle Comics previously. So she could know immediately.”
“So what about it?”
“Miss Do Haru is Ryu Jinwoo's friend.”
“…….”
“The content is also 2 Awakened and 1 Non-Awakened. Since Ryu Jinwoo is hanging out with these two, Seol Hayun and Do Haru. The combination fits perfectly.”
At Edward's explanation, Jack looked at the ceiling for a moment and opened his mouth as if realizing.
“Then does it mean Balzac might have interfered with this case?”
“Please call him Ryu Jinwoo. Anyway, it is so.”
“Wait, what's the reason for him to interfere with our work specifically?”
“Well. Since he is living as Ryu Jinwoo for now, he must have his own thoughts. You know. Taking care of one's own business oneself.”
Jack frowned and glared out the window.
“Tsk, isn't the money received decreasing for nothing? Supplying Galaxy Grass is also one of the requests. Balzac that bastard is ruining others' business.”
“Do not worry about that. Since it's already supplied to some extent anyway. There are also those on whom the drug effect is already circulating.”
Edward continued speaking stroking the cat quietly.
“There will be no setback in the Alliance's plan.”
“Tsk, plan my ass. Just make sure to receive money properly.”
“Do not worry about that part. I will join the Chief gradually. By the way, Ryu Jinwoo wouldn't have known this operation. Should I say I took a hit.”
“Isn't that guy angry because of the sh*t you pulled at the sauna? Try talking later.”
“That would be fine too. Meeting and talking.”
At Jack's rebuke, Edward smiled brightly.
Thinking he looks forward to the next meeting with Ryu Jinwoo.
Cats that don't listen are attractive as expected.