novelraw Chapter 47
Chapter 47
Chapter 47: There Is No Absolute in the World (5)
The Reverse Heaven Sect hideout exuded a gloomy atmosphere.
In the massive hall of the abandoned cathedral, a man sat still, his eyes closed as he drifted deep into thought.
‘...A half-moon shaped scar.’
The man’s identity was Yu-hyeon.
Yu-hyeon was recalling the details of the phone call he had earlier. Specifically, the information related to a decisive piece of evidence that could potentially weed out a traitor.
‘Scars do not typically take a half-moon shape. It would certainly be visible enough to track someone down.’
It was a valid point.
Since a half-moon shaped scar was not something that occurred naturally, it was an undeniable fact that it would be a significant help in identifying a traitor.
However, Yu-hyeon’s thoughts were only growing more complicated.
A half-moon scar—it felt somewhat similar to a scar held by a person in Yu-hyeon’s memory.
‘I did not see it clearly, but if I were to visualize its complete form, it would look like a half-moon.’
Under normal circumstances, he would have taken action immediately.
He would have sought out the owner of that half-moon scar and held a blade to their throat, demanding the truth even if he had to torture them for it.
But he could not do that.
The owner of that scar was a man whom even Yu-hyeon could not easily provoke.
‘Is Brother Yu-seong's information truly the truth? However, to say he wants to cause discord through lies... Brother Yu-seong has never even met this person, so that does not seem right...’
What was truth and what was a lie? What should he believe, and what should he reject?
Yu-hyeon’s thoughts were spinning so rapidly that if he had an engine inside him, it would have been roaring loudly. It was at that moment.
Click. Click.
The sound of dress shoes began to echo through the quiet hall.
A man who looked too old to be called young, yet too young to be called middle-aged, walked toward Yu-hyeon.
Soon, the sound of shoes filling the hollow space stopped. The man, who had approached within arm's reach of Yu-hyeon, spoke very slowly.
He spoke with a benevolent voice that was difficult to associate with a member of a fanatical cult.
“It has been a while since Apostle Yu-hyeon has stayed here for so long. Is something weighing on your mind?”
“Ah, Sect Leader. What brings you here...?”
The man Yu-hyeon addressed as Sect Leader continued the conversation with a hearty laugh that matched his gentle voice.
“You do not have to address me so formally. Those of you who work hard for our holy mission are far more remarkable than I am.”
“That is not true. Even if we have a holy mission, are we not all gathered under your word, Sect Leader?”
“Hahaha, Apostle Yu-hyeon always tries to flatter me.”
“It is only natural. So, what brings you here...?”
“It is nothing major. I heard from others that Apostle Yu-hyeon seemed to have a lot on his mind, so I came to check. It seems the other members were worried seeing our pillar of the sect in such a state.”
At those words, Yu-hyeon scoffed inwardly at the absurdity.
The members were worried? To be honest, even if they did not say it out loud, the Reverse Heaven Sect was not exactly a beautiful place.
People gathered under a noble goal and purpose? Yes, that sounded nice.
However, as with any organization, how could everyone gather with the exact same goal?
The Reverse Heaven Sect was not much different from any other place.
Some were there because they had nowhere else to go, some were just crazy for slaughter, and others wanted to lean on a strong power.
Surely, the scum he just described made up the majority rather than those with noble goals.
‘And that minority probably would not care much about what I am doing.’
Those who have a clearly defined task do not meddle much in others' business.
Likely, the ones blathering about being worried were those who belonged to that majority.
As he thought that, a surge of irritation rose within him, and his killing intent almost leaked out, but Yu-hyeon managed to suppress the malice in his heart.
‘Sigh, I felt so much more at peace when I was with Brother Yu-seong.’
He was not a member of the Reverse Heaven Sect, but at the very least, was he not someone who also possessed a noble goal?
It was a case of like recognizing like.
No matter how much he thought about it, his mind was filled with the idea that the other side was the kind of person he belonged with, but Yu-hyeon eventually cleared that thought away.
‘Well, the Brother has his own path, so I should not interfere. I would be quite sad if he ended up hating me.’
Therefore, he decided to leave his relationship with Brother Yu-seong at this level for now and focus on his own duties.
Yu-hyeon thought as much and spoke to the Sect Leader standing blankly before him with a refreshing smile and a tone that suggested there was nothing to worry about.
“It is not a major concern. I was just wondering if the Saintess would be alright at Glory now that it is open to the public.”
“Haha, everyone should follow Apostle Yu-hyeon's example of deep thoughtfulness.”
“Not at all. Others surely have their own roles to play.”
“Hahaha, your broad understanding is truly a model for the Reverse Heaven Sect.”
“I am simply grateful you say so. Well, I have things to do now, so I will be on my way.”
“Yes. Then I shall tell the other believers that there are no issues.”
With those words, the conversation between Yu-hyeon and the Sect Leader came to an end.
After exchanging polite bows, the Sect Leader of the Reverse Heaven Sect walked away first.
Yu-hyeon did not take his eyes off the Sect Leader, watching him until the very end.
He watched with a look in his eyes that was, in a way, deeply meaningful.
‘Well, I just have to find out what the truth is.’
Personally, he hoped that what Brother Yu-seong said was wrong this time, but things in the world never flow exactly as one wishes, do they?
Yes, even if it was something he believed would absolutely never change.
“Because... there is no such thing as absolute in this world.”
Eventually, the figure of the Sect Leader vanished into the darkness, and Yu-hyeon finished his mutterings before turning around to depart.
His expression was not his usual smiling face, but one filled with enough killing intent to murder anyone who crossed his path.
***
The second day had passed, and it was finally the last day of the practical exam.
Although there were other complicated matters, since today was the day of Do Gang-ho's duel, I sat in the cadet spectator seats and looked around while waiting for his match.
Some people looked hollow, feeling regretful that they could not show everything they had, while others had satisfied faces because they had shown exactly what they intended.
However, there were also those who belonged to neither group.
First were the remaining cadets who were nervous because they had not yet taken their exams, and second was...
‘Sigh, now that the day is actually here, I do not know if this is the right thing to do.’
It was me, letting out a sigh about the events that were about to unfold.
‘Damn it... I feel like I might actually die if I mess up even slightly.’
It was only natural for me to show such anxiety.
I was not meeting some common thug on the street; I was going to meet an S-Rank Villain.
Furthermore, considering my own skills, it was no different from a day-old puppy going to meet a tiger, so my reaction was perfectly normal.
‘And I do not have any insurance.’
Meeting the S-Rank Villain was something I had to do entirely on my own.
Shin Yu-hwan, Im Seong-cheol, Cha Yu-na, and so on. It meant I could not receive any help from other high-ranking players.
Of course, it was the same during the gate incident caused by Yu-hyeon where I could not get help from other players, but this was a problem on an entirely different level.
‘At the very least, Yu-hyeon acted with restraint because of Ha Eun-ha's existence.’
However, the person I had to meet this time was someone who had none of that.
She was a complete lunatic who did not care in the slightest about the lives of Glory cadets and would show exactly why a villain is called a villain.
‘Still, it is a problem I have to solve one way or another.’
In my heart, I wanted to act like none of this had ever happened, but I could not do that.
If I thought about my future plans, I had to conclude this matter successfully no matter what.
This was something necessary for both myself and the heroes.
“Sigh... I cannot help but feel anxious, though.”
“Boy, what are you so anxious about?”
“Huh?”
As I let out a deep sigh, I heard a voice from behind me. I turned my head to see Shin Yu-hwan smiling at me as if he found this entertaining.
Shin Yu-hwan tapped my shoulder and naturally took the seat next to me.
“Boy, are you anxious because you think I might not be able to stop the villains properly?”
“It is not that.”
Since Shin Yu-hwan was the one in charge, there was no way I could be anxious about that.
I do not know if this is the right way to put it, but I felt no anxiety because it seemed like Shin Yu-hwan could track down and catch even a villain who did not exist.
“Haha! That is a relief. If you were anxious because of that, I would have been a bit sad.”
“How could I not trust you when it comes to dealing with villains?”
“Well, that is true. Ah! Or is it because of that article?”
“What article?”
“In the article that came out this time, your name barely appears, does it? To be honest, that was because I requested it.”
“...Pardon?”
“For some reason, I thought you would not like becoming famous, so I specifically asked Big Sister... If that is what is making you feel troubled, I will step in again.”
This was something I had never imagined.
I was a bit taken aback because my name was mentioned strangely little, but to think that was because Shin Yu-hwan had requested it.
“No. It is not because of that.”
“Hmm, really? If it is just because you are uncomfortable speaking up, you can tell me. I like you, after all.”
It made me feel good to hear Shin Yu-hwan say that, but it was true that there was no problem.
Becoming famous was quite a burden for me as well.
I do not know how Shin Yu-hwan’s thoughts reached that conclusion, but I was truly grateful.
“It really is not because of that, so you do not have to worry. I am actually thankful.”
“Haha! I am glad to hear you say that. Well then, what is the matter?”
“Ah, it is nothing major, so you do not have to concern yourself with it.”
“Mmm...”
Shin Yu-hwan began to ponder deeply at my words.
Was he going to keep digging to find out what was wrong?
If that were the case, I would feel bad, but I would have no choice but to lie to him.
Fortunately, however, the words that came out of Shin Yu-hwan's mouth were completely different from what I expected.
“Boy, it might be a bit awkward for me to say this, but I would like you to just listen for a moment.”
“Yes.”
“I do not think I have lived a long life, and I try my best not to be an old-fashioned bore. However, speaking as someone who has lived a little longer...”
“…….”
“It is not good to do everything all by yourself. No matter what the task is. I also like moving alone, but I do not do everything by myself, do I?”
Unlike Shin Yu-hwan’s usual atmosphere, his voice continued in a very serious tone.
Because of that, it felt even more sincere.
“Well, I am not telling you to change right this second. How can a person change all at once? I am simply saying this.”
“…….”
“I am telling you to make a friend who will understand and stand by you no matter what you do. For me, that is Big Sister, and also... no, let us stop here.”
“Yes...”
“Haha! Was that too heavy a topic? Still, think about it later. Make sure to remember, Boy, that there is no such thing as absolute in this world.”
There is no such thing as absolute in this world. Those words seemed to carry a lot of meaning.
I instinctively nodded at his words.
If anyone else said it, it might be different, but Shin Yu-hwan was a person fully qualified to say those words.
‘He is right.’
There is no such thing as absolute in this world.
That was an important phrase for what was to happen today and when thinking about the future.
His advice to make a precious friend was also something I could not just ignore.
‘Right. I cannot keep walking a tightrope forever, hoping I do not get caught.’
Still, I would have to delay finding a friend to whom I could reveal everything.
The task at hand was my priority, and today, I was planning to do something I could not easily tell others about—something that was more than just a simple villain extermination.
‘A deal.’
Yes, today, I am going to make a deal with a villain.
The kind of deal that one must absolutely never make in this world, unless they are a villain themselves.