Chapter 133 (2/2)

Walking along with them wasn't just someone famous. She was an Executor, one of the strongest Earthlings in Paradise and one who had created countless legends with a man named Sung s.h.i.+hyun.

Because of this, everyone was rather careful around her. After all, even Kazuki found it difficult to interact with her.

However, while Seo Yuhui might appear aloof, she wasn't a woman who enjoyed loneliness by nature.

In fact, it wouldn't be strange for someone of her position to see herself as special and privileged. Not only was she exalted among humans, but even the Parasites acknowledged her existence as special. In the first place, the Daughter of Luxuria was a privileged cla.s.s.

Despite all this, Seo Yuhui didn't act haughty. In fact, she acted just like any other Earthling.

Because she always treated others with affection and gentleness, she merged into the team in only one or two days.

For dinner, she personally volunteered herself to be the chef. And even with simple ingredients, she made dishes that brought out deep flavors and aroma. Her skill was truly at a mastercla.s.s level.

“Keu! To think I would get to taste the food handmade by Luxuria's daughter!”

Sakamoto Jun was deeply moved and made a big fuss. Seo Yuhui returned a gentle smile.

“Eat as much as you want.”

“Ah, can I get more!?”

“Me too! Me too!”

Hugo shouted as if he didn't want to lose out. When he shoved his plate out compet.i.tively, Seo Yuhui refilled his soup with a wry smile.

The two of them combined had already finished over ten plates, but as the cook, Seo Yuhui couldn't help but feel happy.

“Mm….”

Seo Yuhui was slowly stirring the soup ladle when she caught sight of a youth.

Seol Jihu was eating quietly. Although he was moving his spoon mechanically, there were times when he paused and blankly stared into the air.

After silently watching him for a while, Seo Yuhui carefully opened her mouth.

“Um….”

“Is it not to your taste?”

It was rare for Seo Yuhui to take interest in someone first. Naturally, everyone's attention became focused on them. Seol Jihu was still staring at the air below him with a blank look.

Only when Kazuki nudged him with his elbow did he respond.

When Seol Jihu raised his dazed face, he saw Seo Yuhui who looked a bit embarra.s.sed.

“You looked like you weren't enjoying the soup….”

“Ah.”

That wasn't the case. It was just that….

“It's good.”

Seol Jihu forced a smile and began to take one spoonful of soup after the other. However, Seo Yuhui's worried gaze didn't leave him so easily.

She wasn't the only one who was worried.

After the dinner ended, Sakamoto Jun and Hugo finished setting up their tent and went to chat with Seol Jihu.

“Seol! You're pretty good! I learned a thing or two from ya!”

“Learned what?”

“Don't pretend you don't know! 'Even if you're an amazing woman, I'm different~' Weren't you trying to attract attention by acting aloof?”

“Is it that? The bad guy trope.”

Hugo giggled as he whispered into Seol Jihu's ear. However, Seol Jihu only stared at him quietly.

Taken aback, Hugo continued.

“Anyways, you can look forward to tonight.”

“Look forward… to what?”

“Jun and I only set one tent. And we threw the rest away.”

“Why?”

“Isn't that obvious? We can sleep in the same tent as the Daughter of Luxuria! We'll be sharing a bed!!”

Hugo shouted excitedly, then crossed his arms triumphantly.

“For the record, I'm taking the middle. That's decided. No matter what.”

“…Go ahead.”

Seol Jihu nodded his head, signaling that he didn't care. Seeing this, Hugo blinked his eyes and spoke awkwardly.

“Um… Seol.”

“Yes?”

“Are you worried about something? Or did something happen?”

“No, I just have a lot to think about. It's nothing, really.”

Hugo smacked his lips. With Seol Jihu saying it was nothing, he could only accept his words at face value.

On the entire way back home, Seol Jihu barely said a word. He spent most of his time staring dazedly into the air, and his expression didn't change much either.

Although he immediately responded when someone initiated a conversation, there was a huge difference compared to when he would smile brightly and make jokes or pull pranks.

One could say that the atmosphere around him changed.

“Sorry for making you worry. I'm really fine.”

Although he put it in a nice way, he was essentially shooing them away, saying he wanted to be alone. Even Hugo was able to take the hint.

“Mmm….”

Hugo turned around with a disappointed face.

Time pa.s.sed and the camp out began.

As there were seven members in the group, one person had to stand as a night watch alone. While everyone wanted to become paired up with Seo Yuhui, Seol Jihu volunteered to stand watch alone.

One benefit was being the first to stand watch, but the bigger reason was that he wanted to think without disturbance.

Silent night.

Seol Jihu stared fixedly into the air again. Although he might look this way to an outsider, in truth, he was staring at his Status Window.

To be exact, he was thinking about his Nine Eyes.

[Your Innate Ability, 'Nine Eyes', is evolving.]

[The right direction (1) of your Innate Ability – Nine Eyes, Blue color: Destiny Selection, has been unlocked.]

The first direction of the right side – Destiny Selection.

He couldn't grasp what it meant at all. No, the meaning was too ambiguous.

Looking back, it was the same when the Golden Commandment was unlocked.

Although he could directly look into it just as he had always done….

[You. Never forget.]

[The decision you made today…!]

Ira's voice was still echoing in his ears.

It wasn't just anyone who said these words. When spoken by a G.o.d, the word 'never' carried a much heavier weight.

He couldn't help but think there was some greater meaning behind the advice to not take the right direction lightly.

And when he remembered Gula saying 'he isn't ready' and vehemently trying to stop Ira, he became convinced.

It wasn't as if he wasn't given any hint.

Of course, it was only a theory, one that he currently had no way of proving. But the same thought had crossed his mind when he went to provoke the Medusa in Arden Valley.

That the Nine Eyes were related to the Future Vision in some way.

[Your Innate Ability, 'Future Vision', responds to the awakening of a new ability!]

Otherwise, this message wouldn't have appeared during the first awakening of the Nine Eyes.

Furthermore, through the Banquet, he experienced what he could consider the evidence. This was what he could deduce so far.

Just like how the left and lower directions were connected, the right direction's Destiny Selection and the upper direction's Golden Commandment were related. The left and right sides were also related to 'choice'. There were simply too many questions he didn't have the answers to.

But what could he do? The Nine Eyes, as an ability, was extremely unkind as it didn't give detailed explanations.

When Seol Jihu flicked his cigarette away, sparks of ember swayed in the air. Seol Jihu pulled his legs in. Wrapping his arms around them, he stared at the campfire endlessly.

As the fire burned vigorously, Oh Rahee's face suddenly popped up in his mind. Then, Lara Wolff, the white headband girl, the burly man, Audrey Basler, and Slick Hair flashed by.

The same went for the man and woman duo.

Seol Jihu stared at the duo's contorted faces inside the wavering flames.

“Why did you have to kill?”

His subdued voice….

“Why couldn't you just go to the portal? You wouldn't have been summoned to Stage 3.”

…was frighteningly calm.

Not a single emotion could be felt.

“Was it really worth it…?”

Even though he knew he was seeing a hallucination, he continued to talk.

All the way until the duo's faces disappeared.

Glaring at the campfire, Seol Jihu took out a new cigarette. His gaze slowly fell down and stopped at his hand that was searching for the lighter.

Until the Banquet, he had never killed a human being. There were times when he had left people to die when he could have saved them. But he had never killed anyone personally.

And in Stage 3, he experienced his first murder.

Seol Jihu looked at his hand with an indifferent look.

The hand didn't look any different than usual. It wasn't shaking, he wasn't paying attention to it subconsciously, and he wasn't having nightmares either.

He had killed them because they did something to deserve it. Besides, this was something Seol Jihu expected to experience eventually.

Even if he tried to imbue some sort of meaning into this experience, this was all felt. And that was what made him feel uncomfortable.

It didn't make sense from a common sense standpoint.

A twenty-six-year-old who didn't even know the 'mur' from 'murder' was fine after killing two people?

The feeling of slicing the woman's neck was still vivid in his mind. The same went for piercing the struggling man's stomach and skewering him to the wall.

Yet, he really was fine.

A sudden thought popped up in his head.

Seol Jihu had thought that the future was changing, even by a little, insignificant amount. He still believed this now.

But what about 'me'?

Was I also changing along with the changing future?

Or was I moving toward the same direction Future Vision showed me?

He couldn't make a hasty conclusion. But if he treated this uncomfortableness as something insignificant, he felt it would be the latter.

The moment he acknowledged and accepted this numbness, he felt like he would become the monster he saw in his dream— the one who rampaged in battlefields like a demon and enjoyed drenching himself in blood.

If he were to change like that, should he be happy? Or should he be wary?

Seol Jihu closed his eyes in deep thought.

That was his 'first' murder.

He had even killed two people.

They must have had their own lives. Perhaps, they had made that extreme decision due to being unable to overcome a wall they were facing.

Seol Jihu buried his face between his knees.

He had really hoped… that he would at least feel a tinge of guilt.