Chapter 252. If You Run While You’re Drunk (1) (1/2)
The Eva Royal Palace was bustling from early morning as the royal family received news of internal conflict after years of peace.
Like being struck by a bolt of lightning out of a clear sky, Sorg Kühne woke up in a hurry. And when he saw a group of Earthlings being dragged in one after the other, he became lost for words.
The members of Royal Pattaya were bound up and showing dazed expressions, dozens of haggardly Federation members were expressing their anger behind them, and one young man remained silent within this uproar.
It was true.
He was half in doubt when he first received the news. But now that he saw the truth with his own eyes, Sorg Kühne was struck with an indescribable emotion.
If he had to describe it, it would be… delight.
‘That Earthling…’
He’s real.
It was only a few months ago that he declared he would pull out Eva’s deeply-rooted evils, but he had gouged them out entirely. No one dared to touch Eva’s alliance of organizations, but this young man had grabbed them by the collar and punched them straight in the face.
“You’re here, sir administrator.”
Sorg Kühne barely collected his mind when a soldier brought a woman over. Looking at her, he immediately noticed that the edges of her eyelids were red.
Sorg Kühne stared fixedly at the woman, who had a hood pulled down deep. Kim Hannah bowed respectfully.
“We’re ashamed to cause such trouble on the very day we moved in.”
“You really caught me by surprise. To think you would strike on the first day….”
“We admit that what we did was a little tough. But it was all to follow Her Royal Highness’ will and to protect Eva’s law. It had to be done.”
Kim Hannah mentioned the law, appealing their case.
This incident had already happened. How the matter was handled from now on would determine the intensity of the aftermath. Before then, Kim Hannah needed to prepare a secret hill to rely on.
Sorg Kühne wasn’t a fool, understanding Kim Hannah’s intentions fully. The royal administrator had the authority to meet her expectations.
“I already heard the backstory.”
Sorg Kühne said with a hoarse voice.
“I trust that you have solid evidence?”
“We spared… no, detained ten members. We liberated all the foreign races held captive in the auction house and brought them here.”
“Um…”
At that moment, the soldier cut in carefully.
“We just received a report about a basement in Royal Pattaya’s building.”
“Basement?”
“Yes. Um… it apparently had corpses of foreign races on display…”
Sorg Kühne’s expression contorted. But soon, he regained his composure and nodded his head.
“There’s nothing more to see then. Internal conflicts leading to violence are prohibited, but it’s a different story if these were carried out for lawful purposes. Depending on how we frame the incident…”
As Sorg Kühne murmured to himself, Kim Hannah’s eyes flickered with light.
Sorg Kühne walked past her and stopped in front of Seol Jihu, who was sitting on his knees silently.
“Please leave.”
Seemingly random words came out. Seol Jihu looked up at Sorg Kühne.
“This place is where criminals come. Non-criminals do not belong here. We’ve heard your testimony, so you can go now.”
Sorg Kühne stared at him for a moment.
Understanding his intent, Seol Jihu stood up. As he was being treated as a testifier and not a criminal, he wasn’t bound up in the first place.
After giving a bow, Seol Jihu turned around and headed to the door. Sorg Kühne blankly stared at the young man’s back as he walked away.
[One of the reasons I’m trying to relocate to Eva is to improve humanity’s relationship with the Federation.]
[The main character of that game said this: evil is evil.]
[Lesser, greater, middling… makes no difference. The degree is arbitrary. The definition’s blurred. If I’m to choose between one evil and another, I would rather not choose at all.]
[It means I won’t let either side have their way.]
Seol Jihu had kept his promise.
Although Sorg Kühne never made a promise with the young man, he knew this was a matter he was obligated to take care of.
Saying ‘good job’ or ‘well done’ wouldn’t mean anything. He had to fight with him, take the blow for him, and protect his back when he wasn’t looking. Sorg Kühne knew this better than anyone else.
Eva had long been suffering from an illness, slowly rotting away from the core. But finally, a saving grace had appeared.
If he missed this opportunity, he would regret it for a lifetime.
Sorg Kühne clenched his fists.
‘Come to think of it, during the Haramark incident…’
Sorg Kühne investigated the intelligence report before calling a soldier over.
“Go give the Assassination Guild a visit.”
*
Light was leaking out of the first floor of Carpe Diem’s new building. Seo Yuhui and Jang Maldong waited through the night without sleeping, and the Yi siblings must have fallen asleep from fatigue as they were sprawled on the couch.
“You haven’t slept?”
“How can I when my brain is wide awake?”
Jang Maldong smiled bitterly, then asked.
“What happened?”
“We settled the matter for the time being.”
For the time being. It meant they had only completed the first step in a series of important processes.
“We attacked the auction house, freed the Federation’s foreign races, and attacked Royal Pattaya in the process of rescuing an already sold Sky Fairy.”
“…I see.”
With that, the two of them fell silent. They both looked like they had a lot to say and a lot to hear. But Jang Maldong massaged his nose bridge and nodded calmly.
“It must have been hard. Go get some sleep.”
“…Yes, you should catch some sleep too, Master.”
Seol Jihu quietly walked up the stairs without explaining every little detail. Only then did the other members scatter one by one.
Chohong and Hugo followed Seol Jihu, complaining about lack of sleep, while Maria and Phi Sora walked down to the basement, saying they would check out the hot spring.
Only Marcel Ghionea stayed and sat down on the couch. Turning to the entrance, he took out a white crossbow.
Jang Maldong gave him a strange look as he looked ready to fight, and feeling his gaze, Marcel Ghionea spoke.
“It’s just to be safe.”
“?”
“We crushed Royal Pattaya beyond recovery. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t other organizations in Eva.”
Jang Maldong went, “Ah.”
An Archer had to take every possibility into account, no matter how unlikely it was. In this sense, Marcel Ghionea was truly worthy of his title, Archer of Steel.
“I’m fine. I’ve stayed up for four nights without sleep. You should go catch some sleep, Master.”
Jang Maldong grinned.
“Good work. I’ll leave you to it then.”
Marcel Ghionea loaded the crossbow with bolts and replied calmly.
“No problem.”
*
When Seol Jihu opened his eyes, the sun was already in the middle of the sky. But even after waking up, Seol Jihu stayed in bed for a while.
Lying there in a daze, the things he’d done last night flashed through his mind quickly. Although only a few hours had gone by since then, last night’s memories felt like a dream.
Suddenly raising his upper body, Seol Jihu looked down at his hands.
Last night, he had killed people with these hands. Several people.
‘…It’s the same.’
He still didn’t feel a single thing. Even though he killed other human beings, not a hint of guilt or torment was felt.
Seol Jihu was entirely calm, both physically and mentally, so much so that he felt it was strange.
But if there was one thing that remained on his mind, it was Sombat La-ongmanee.
Of course, Seol Jihu thought La-ongmanee fully deserved everything that had been done to him. But at the same time, he knew his usual self wouldn’t have gone to such lengths.
Something inside of him had snapped, almost as if he had been possessed.
‘Future Vision definitely didn’t activate.’
This ability had a side-effect of making him lose his memory during the time the skill was active. But he clearly remembered last night’s events.
‘Maybe it’s because of Future Vision’s influence…?’
Do I have bipolar disorder or something? Murmuring inwardly, Seol Jihu sighed and looked around.
Then, he made a dumbfounded expression. He realized a part of the reason he felt so out of place.
His room was simply too different from the one he had in Haramark.
‘This is going to take some getting used to.’
Seol Jihu laughed faintly before clenching his fists. Then, he hopped off the soft bed and walked forward on the even softer carpet.
Although he walked in a somewhat stately manner, he faltered the moment he opened the door.