Chapter 142: Rising Dawn, a Past Surpassed (4)
While Choi Yu-seong solidified his resolve after surpassing the past that had long shackled him, a chilly aura lingered elsewhere after a fierce battle had concluded.
“Sigh, you certainly hold your own life quite dear.”
Yu-hyeon’s voice echoed through the ruined vacant lot, which bore no trace of its former appearance. His voice was laced with a sigh, and looking at his condition, it was clear the sigh was not for nothing. He looked quite battered compared to his usual tidy self, suggesting he had engaged in a truly intense struggle.
However, his sigh contained only exhaustion, not a hint of anxiety.
“Khu… Khu-heuk…….”
That was because the condition of the Sect Leader was even more wretched. Unlike Yu-hyeon, whose attire was merely ruined, the Sect Leader’s once-neat white hair was now disheveled, and blood flowed from various parts of his body. Not only that, but he had already lost an arm and a leg, making his collapsed state almost too difficult to look at. Much like the case with Choi Yu-seong, if he had not been a Player, he would have been long dead.
Yet, Yu-hyeon continued to speak without showing much reaction to the Sect Leader’s appearance.
“Just how much have you been embezzling behind the scenes? It seems you possess far more artifacts than you did before.”
Indeed, that was the reason Yu-hyeon’s battle had taken so long. Although the Sect Leader’s skills were better than those of an average Player, they were A-rank at best. Once he failed to escape, it was only natural that he should not have lasted even ten minutes against Yu-hyeon. Yu-hyeon was an individual whose skill was incredibly high and who possessed hundreds of experiences in real combat.
However, the Sect Leader possessed a vast number of artifacts to compensate for his lack of skill, and thanks to them, he had been able to hold out for this long.
“Well, it is meaningless now.”
It was not a question he asked expecting an answer. The Sect Leader had lost, and he had won. There was only one conclusion that outcome would bring: the death of the loser. Therefore, what did it matter what or how much the Sect Leader had embezzled? He was a man about to bid farewell to this world.
“Therefore, let us bring this farce to an end.”
Yu-hyeon reached that conclusion and raised his sword. Then, he immediately brought it down… but he could not strike.
“Cough……! Y-you…….”
Something was spilling out of the Sect Leader’s mouth. Was he afraid now that death had arrived before his eyes? His expression did not show a desire to live, perhaps because he knew all too well that there was no chance of him surviving this place, no matter what happened.
‘Then what is he trying to say?’
He was trying to speak, even though it was not a desperate struggle to live. It piqued Yu-hyeon's curiosity slightly. Thus, Yu-hyeon specifically waited for the Sect Leader to finish speaking.
“W-with what right do you… punish me……! Are you going to… cough! Act like you are clean now?!”
The words heard during that wait were quite amusing. Why was it amusing rather than unpleasant to hear such drivel? It was a simple question.
“It seems you truly think that way.”
The Sect Leader was in a physical state where even saying a few words could kill him. The fact that he was vomiting blood while speaking like that meant he truly believed what he was saying. Therefore, it could not be anything but amusing. He was hearing the kind of nonsense a villain from a novel would spout right before his eyes.
“You are ultimately… no different from me. No, you are an even more repulsive piece of trash!”
“Oh, and why is that?”
“You are just trash… acting like you are good now… Keu-heuk!”
Perhaps it was too difficult to continue speaking, as the Sect Leader stopped there. Even though they were quite insulting remarks, Yu-hyeon nodded rather than getting angry.
“You are right. I am also trash. After all, no matter how much I package it, I am just a Villain.”
The fact that he had killed someone did not change. The fact that he had lived a quite violent life did not change either. Just as the Sect Leader said, if he was trash, then he was trash. However, he did not acknowledge and accept everything.
“But at the very least, I do not believe I am a murderous maniac who kills people because I am obsessed with power and wealth.”
Yes, this much he could guarantee. Even if he were called trash, he was at least less of a piece of trash than the man before him.
‘How did it come to this?’
When he first entered the Reverse Heaven Sect, things were not like this. Although there were certain degrees of friction and death, the fundamental goal was clearly the annihilation of Gates. However, they say that stagnant water eventually rots. As time passed, the Reverse Heaven Sect gradually changed, and as a result, their goal had now become financial reward rather than the annihilation of Gates. Sometimes, they even targeted humans directly rather than focusing on the rewards from the Gates.
‘I suppose I have nothing to say if I am called the same kind of trash for overlooking that.’
It might just be an excuse, but he could not help it. An ‘organization’ and an ‘individual’ were different. He needed an organization to achieve his long-held wish, and because of that, he overlooked everything as long as they stayed within a certain line he had set.
But the thing was, as he just mentioned, there is a line, and if that line is crossed, it becomes an issue that cannot be overlooked. In short…….
“You crossed the line I set.”
Loving rewards? He could understand that. After all, humans are beings who find it difficult to survive without money. Killing people for financial gain? Normally, that was something he should not even try to understand, but even that was understandable to him. After all, it was a place where those who were born Villains gathered, so their evil nature could not be helped.
However, there was a line that should never be crossed.
“At the very least, you should not have touched a child. Do you understand now? The reason you are dying by my hand?!”
Yes, that was the reason he was going this far. They had touched a child. Although the situation had turned out like this because they targeted the life of the Saintess, he would never have accepted it even if it had not been the Saintess.
Hearing Yu-hyeon’s thoughts, someone might say that a seventeen-year-old should be treated as an adult, and ask what kind of talk about children this was from someone who had also killed people. They would not be wrong. However, at the same time, they would not be right either.
“Even if the world is in this kind of state, should we not at least maintain the minimum duty of being human?”
Gates, dungeons, monsters, and Villains. It was a world where it was not strange to die at any moment. But even in such a world, did there not exist an ironclad rule that a human should never forget?
“They are the future, not a fading twilight like you.”
Whether they were seven or seventeen, they were ultimately the future. The future that must live through the next generation of this trashy world. The future of the next generation that might fulfill the secret wish that could not be achieved in this generation. Therefore, even he, who had sent many lives away with his own hands, never touched a child. That was the minimum consideration he could offer as an adult who forced them to live in such a gutter-like world.
However, the Sect Leader and those Apostles had crossed the line that should not be crossed, and in his eyes, that was a reason deserving of death.
“So, die and repent, O one who was once my brother.”
“Y-you……!”
The Sect Leader tried to say something more, but Yu-hyeon did not give him any more time. His emotions had boiled over, making his speech longer than usual, but he could not forget his important duty. Regardless, even if he continued the conversation, there would be no useful information to gain from a man who had already given up on life. Thus, Yu-hyeon carried out his decision without any further delay.
SLICE-!
With a single cold sound, Yu-hyeon’s sword fulfilled its master’s purpose.
THUD-!
The Sect Leader’s head fell with a heavy sound. Although he had given up on life, perhaps he could not hide his sense of injustice, as his eyes remained wide open even in the moment of his death.
“…It is truly futile. Is it not?”
If he were to estimate the years they had spent together, it would likely be ten years. And yet, the end was a head fallen futilely with its eyes wide open. If this was the result of ten years, was it not truly transient and futile?
“It is only natural since we became enemies… but it is also a bit bittersweet.”
He was not a man he particularly wanted to follow, but they had spent ten years together. After that much time, is it not inevitable for some degree of attachment to form? This bittersweet feeling was likely because of that. Perhaps that was why a conversation they had in the past suddenly came to mind.
“In the past, you asked me why I joined the Reverse Heaven Sect.”
When he first stepped across the threshold of the Reverse Heaven Sect, it was not a large organization. Not only were the other three current Apostles absent, but the number of people was so small it was ambiguous to even call it an organization. So, at the time, the Sect Leader had asked him why someone with his level of skill would come to such a small organization.
“I just brushed it off back then.”
Because he felt there was no need to explain everything in detail, he had just brushed it off. But… perhaps it was because he was feeling a bit bittersweet, but Yu-hyeon softly muttered the answer he had not given then.
“I knew it was just an outward goal, but even so, I wanted to see it: the will of Reverse Heaven, a peaceful world without the threat of Gates.”
He wanted to see a world where no one had to live on the boundary of death from a young age like he did. That was why he chose the Reverse Heaven Sect. In this world where interests and practicalities were heavily intertwined, there were almost no cases where Gates were cleared for the pure purpose of eliminating danger. To achieve what he wanted, the clothes of a Villain in the shadows were a better fit than those of a Player in the light.
“Well, you will not be able to hear it, but that is how it is.”
There is no answer from the dead. In the first place, he did not think he would have wanted an answer even if the man were alive. It was a philosophy that an ordinary human would not even be able to understand, so what kind of answer could he hope for? It was merely the delusion of one man, with almost no possibility of being realized.
“Still, should there not be at least one person who dreams such a delusion?”
If everyone just conformed to reality, what would change and what would be revolutionized? So, he thought this much was fine. Thinking that, Yu-hyeon shook off his remaining emotions and prepared to move. In any case, wasting emotions on someone who was no longer in this world was nothing but a loss.
“Because there are many things to do to make the delusion a reality.”
He had no intention of ending his life as a mere dreamer. Therefore, it was time to move to turn the delusion into reality.
“I have to put new leashes on the masterless dogs, and I also have to find out what kind of guy you were involved with to pull a stunt like this. There is so much to do.”
With the death of the Sect Leader, the Reverse Heaven Sect had lost its head. And today, not only the Sect Leader but the remaining three Apostles would likely also be included among the dead. Therefore, it was necessary to properly bind the Reverse Heaven Sect again, as it could potentially collapse. Of course, unlike before, a significant amount of blood would flow since they would not be able to act foolishly under him.
“At the same time, I must launch an investigation immediately.”
Although the Sect Leader did not have high talent, he was a man who knew his place. He would not have come up with the plan to target the Saintess on his own. In the first place, there was no profit to be gained by targeting the Saintess, so why would he do such a thing? Therefore, there was definitely someone who influenced the Sect Leader with the promise of rewards.
‘The numerous artifacts were likely part of that reward.’
He had no idea who it could be. In this situation, if he left it alone, it was certain that even the faintest traces would disappear. Therefore, it made sense to look into it as early as possible.
“Of course, there is one thing that must be done first.”
Saying that, Yu-hyeon shifted his gaze away from the Sect Leader. His gaze moved toward the abandoned cathedral he had rushed out from—the place where Choi Yu-seong, the Saintess, and the others would still be fighting.
“Then, shall I go fulfill my promise?”
He had been anxious while the battle with the Sect Leader took longer than expected, but after a pillar of light erupted from the abandoned cathedral, those thoughts completely vanished. It was as if his instincts were telling him everything was fine. However, that did not mean he could afford to be slow. He had said he would return as quickly as possible, yet he was already this late.
“Haha, I think I am going to get an earful from Brother.”
But that would also be fine. Being able to get an earful would mean they were safe.
With that final thought, Yu-hyeon began to move his feet quickly toward the abandoned cathedral.
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