C269. To break a hero (4)
“Come on, what about your techniques? You didn’t buy my book? Watch. With this part…”
While Skaya was giving a free lesson in a corner of the auditorium, Rahmadat ran into her former lover, Joya Vishuta.
“…It has been a long time.”
“Yes! Do you have it?” Rahmadat said coldly. Actually, it didn’t feel like it had been a long time for him. It felt like it was only a few days ago when she cried while telling him not to leave before she will tear off her hand from her. “Did it go well, Jewel?”
“…And it is.” Her shoulders slumped and she looked down. There was nothing more she could say. While Rahmadat had been trapped in the cold ice, she had lived a good life.
‘If you compare my pain with yours…’
It would be a sin to even say that she had fought.
While she remained silent, Rahmadat looked at her watch. “Wow. Unfortunately, I have to go. I’m worried about the other places.”
“Oh yeah. It was nice seeing you.”
“It was good to see you too.” Rahmadat smiled and extended her big hand to him. “Then, I’ll see you next time.”
“…And it is.” She took her hand from her and squeezed it slowly. Unlike her wrinkled hand de ella, Rahmadat’s hand de ella was as hard as rock, as she always had been.
“Staying healthy.” Rahmadat turned around and raised her head. “Hey, nerd! It’s time to move!”
“Yuck! Stop calling me that!”
Jewel watched as Rahmadat’s back disappeared like the wind. “Thank you, Rahmadat,” she whispered.
She was finally able to say goodbye to her ex-lover after 26 years with no regrets, along with a strong sense of guilt in her heart.
‘I pray that your future is filled only with happiness.’
He had always acted cool, but she prayed that the kind jerk didn’t get hurt. She prayed that he would find someone much more beautiful and better than her and that he would find happiness.
Jewel prayed with all her heart.
***
It was getting dark. A man was walking through a shanty town in Seoul. He had been walking aimlessly towards the moon when he suddenly stopped.
“…”
This was a sight that could only be seen in the slums, not those fancy penthouses. Unlike the lively air of the city center, the air of this town was dead.
The man watched the scene silently with his own eyes.
“So you were in a place like this.” Isaac Dvor appeared out of nowhere, wearing a bottle green suit. “I have scattered the demons throughout the world as you ordered. Everyone should be having fun right now.”
“What about Nazard and Valencia?”
“They are carrying out the orders you gave them, President.”
Everything was going well.
The Heavenly Demon studied the impoverished landscape for a long time before speaking: “Then, we should also start moving.”
“Where do you want to go?”
‘“…Somewhere bright. Somewhere very bright, somewhere that has a lot of people.”
“Hmm~” Isaac thought for a second and nodded slowly. “I’ll escort you.”
He lightly clapped his hands and the area around him changed.
“Waaaa! Waaaaa!”
“Baek Du-Gi! Baek Du Gi!”
“Come on, Radish! [1] Show us what you’ve got!”
“Make that third-rate batter strike out!”
“Let’s gooooooo!”
It was a baseball stadium. Cheers and boos rang through the air.
‘Not bad.’
This was the Seoul Jamsil Baseball Stadium, which had 25,553 seats. A large audience had gathered, and it was hard to find a single empty seat. It was the top of the ninth inning, and the air was thick with excitement.
“Hey?”
The first to notice the two people was the pitcher on the mound. They suddenly appeared right in front of him.
‘Players?’
In the current age, teleportation was not something to be surprised by. However, he hadn’t expected them to interrupt the game.
He was Dusan Panda’s ace as well as the pitcher for the national team. Baek Du-Gi sighed. “Look here. I’ll give you an autograph after the game is over, so please go back to your seats. Okay?”
They were already losing the game. And these audience members who suddenly interrupted the game made their frustration boil over. “Hey… You should listen when someone is talking to you…”
The two men had their backs to each other and ignored him. Baek Du-Gi placed his hand on the white-haired man’s shoulder.
Or rather, tried to…
“How dare you try to touch it? Know your place.”
“…What? Huh?” Baek Du-Gi snorted, confused. The balance of his body had changed.
It was because the left hand that he had for 30 years had completely disappeared.
‘Hurts.’
It took her brain about three seconds to process the fact that her hand had been cut off.
‘Ithurtithhurtsithhurtsithhurtsithhurtsithhurts!’
He let out a piercing scream. “Ahhh…!”
However, their screams were soon cut off. Isaac pressed his index finger to Baek Du-Gi’s lips and shook his head vigorously. “Shut up. Don’t you know? The president hates loud noises,” he said as if he were sharing a big secret.
Satisfied, he released the head he was holding.
The national ace’s head rolled onto the mound.
“…”
“…”
The audience fell silent. Until that moment, they had assumed that the two men had been part of some kind of performance.
The part-times selling beer and snacks…
The cheerleaders dancing intensely in support…
The commentators who should have known better than anyone what was going on inside the stadium…
Everyone remained in silence.
“Ah, I’m asking you, please don’t yell…” Isaac asked, clasping his two hands together.
“Kyaaaaa!”
“A murderer! Assassin!”
“The police…Call the police!”
“No, call the Players Association first!”
The stadium was instantly thrown into chaos. They all pushed, trying to get to the door before anyone else.
“You can’t leave,” Isaac proclaimed. Just like he said, no one was allowed to leave the ballpark.
“A-an invisible wall?”
“What the fuck! Let us go!”
“Don’t push! No, no… Gahhh!”
People died while being pushed and trampled.
Isaac smiled as he watched the chaos unfold. “That’s fun. All I did was block the doors, but they’re already killing each other.”
“…They are pitiful. How are humans so short?
The Heavenly Demon looked at the people with sad eyes. Isaac looked at him and shrugged.
“Whenever he gets that look on his face, he just goes ahead without a second thought.”
It was all an act. Well, he could really feel sorry for humans. But…
“Her actions suggest the opposite, so I don’t think so.”
Isaac held back a laugh. “What should we do now? Should we just kill them all?” he asked.
“…Hmm.” The Heavenly Demon stood on the mound with his hands behind his back, observing the scene.
The gardeners were running towards the fence, trying to get away from him. People were making their way to the basement level, trying to find a different exit.
He watched them as he spoke, “Isaac. What do you think he is a hero?
“A simple question. They are the same as these flippants, ”he immediately replied. “They use restraint to understand the deception of black magic… They are beings that magicians, like me, hate.”
“I don’t understand what you’re saying…” The Heavenly Demon gently shook his head and gave her a beautiful smile. “I believe that heroes are those who plant seeds of hope.”
“Wow… You speak like a poet. However, I suppose it is those who have fallen into despair who wish for heroes.”
“So I’ve always wondered…” The Heavenly Demon smiled. He showed his white teeth as if he was delighted just thinking about it. “If you were forced to choose, would you save countless citizens who need your help? Or… Would they choose to save a precious friend of theirs?
“…That is.” Isaac’s face went stiff as a corpse, even though he always smiled. He looked at the Heavenly Demon with piercing, emotionless eyes before silently clapping his hands. “That’s a great idea. Amazing! Thanks to you, my art has reached a higher level.”
The Heavenly Demon had no idea what Isaac was saying, but he understood that Isaac was very happy.
“Now lead the way so we can start the game.” He nodded slightly. “First we will invite the players.”
His feet moved lightly.
***
“Dammit!” Shim Deok-Gu tossed the mouse into his hand. However, the items displayed on his monitor were still there.
[Breaking news! Fiend appears in Seoul, confronted by the players and the police.]
[The Statue of Liberty in New York falls. The large-scale invasion of Fiend causes panic.]
[Players associations act as fast as they can, but it’s not enough.]
[Gaming associations around the world send out evacuation alerts via text message.]
…
“The fact that the Dimensional Elevator has been seized means that Gilleon has been captured.” Shim Deok-Gu was pacing the room with a serious look on his face.
The situation was also serious. The news channels were showing the latest battles between the demons and the players. The censorship of the live mosaic was not enough to cover the horrible scenes.
“I was expecting the demons to make a move, but I didn’t think it would be a large-scale takeover…”
“…” Seo Jun-Ho silently pressed down on his Vita.
They do not answer.
After heading to the Nest, Skaya and Rahmadat became unreachable. The demons had probably gone there too.
[Breaking news! Two unidentified assailants suspected of being demons attack the Jamsil baseball stadium…]
Shim Deok-Gu turned up the volume on the television. The three of them looked at the screen with serious expressions.
[All I want is Specter.]
The man had wavy white hair that fell to his shoulders and a slim line. At first glance, he almost seemed like a dainty lady. But if one took a closer look, he seemed bigger than Rahmadat as he stood there as he gave off a strange aura.
“Who is that bastard?” Seo Jun-Ho muttered.
“…Impossible.” Shim Deok-Gu shook his head and ran to a wall and peeled off the painting. Behind it was a small safe.
“Geez, you’re so old-fashioned.”
“Shut the fuck up! That’s not important right now.” The safe scanned her iris and fingerprint. Then, she entered a password.
The safe contained no sparkling gems or gold.
“Are they all documents?”
“They are not just any document. These are top-secret files that only the president of the Korea Players Association can see.”
Shim Deok-Gu scattered those precious documents haphazardly and crawled on the ground, frantically searching for something.
“Here it is!” She picked up a photograph and looked up at the television and then down again. “Shit, I suspected, but…” Deok-Gu rarely spoke harshly, but he began to swear.
Seo Jun-Ho’s brows furrowed at the sight and he walked over to his friend. “Hello what’s going on?” He carefully took the photograph of Shim Deok-Gu’s trembling hand. It represented a man and a woman.
‘This man…’
The photograph was quite blurry, but the wavy white hair was recognizable.
I think it’s him. His hair was a bit short back then.”
“Deok-Gu, who is this man?” Gilbert asked.
Shim Deok-Gu collapsed on the sofa, trembling as he looked at the other two. “…This is the President of the Devil Association, with Valencia Citrin.”
“…”
They didn’t get it at first. But when the words repeated several times in Seo Jun-Ho’s mind, his face fell. “The president is the heavenly devil, isn’t he?”
“Yeah, I didn’t think the same bastard would come down. This is much worse than we had predicted…”
The big shot had arrived. In addition, he was currently holding more than 20,000 citizens hostage in the Jamsil baseball stadium.
“Jun-Ho, you do know that this is obviously a trap, right? She’s going to kill you! You can not go.
“…”
Seo Jun-Ho stared at the television.
He could see the smiling Heavenly Demon, as well as the thousands of frightened citizens crying.
– Specter-nim. Specter-nim.
They were chanting his name like they were praying for him to come.
“I…”
Seo Jun-Ho made up his mind and spoke.
—-
1. Its name sounds similar to kkakdugi, which is a type of Korean pickled radish.