Chapter 128
Krrg, krrrrgk...
Left alone, Jin-Seo walked aimlessly, her sword dragging by her side. Although she should have gone up to her classroom earlier, she didn’t feel like it. She crossed the field to peek around the building that Sun-Woo had gone into and even went in and explored buildings she had never been to.
The school grounds were extremely big. She vaguely remembered exploring the school with her mother under her father’s guidance. However, the school seemed to be bigger than what she remembered.
She had grown bigger since her childhood days. Had the school grown in size as well?
It was an absurd thought. She laughed.
The reason why the school was strangely quiet was probably not just because other students were still in class. The school was as empty as it was spacious, and even the bustling students couldn't fill all that space with noise. In other words, the school was quiet because it was simply too large. Amongst all that spacious and quiet space, she was utterly alone.
"...."
The air was cold, and the sky hung low. She felt lonely and scared. She tightly gripped the blade handle to suppress the trembling of her fingertips.
With no clear destination in mind, she soon returned to where she started. Tired from walking, she sat down and stared at the ground. Five ants were walking in a line.
Crunch.
“Oh.”
Someone had approached her and stepped on the ants. Four out of the five ants died. The remaining ant circled around the dead ants.
Jin-Seo jerked her head up. The culprit was looking down at her with a slight smile.
"What were you up to?"
"...I was looking at the ants."
"Ants?"
"You just killed them."
Hearing that, Sun-Woo jumped up and lifted his foot.
"Oh, my bad. I really didn't know..."
"You don't have to apologize to me," Jin-Seo said with a smile.
She found his flustered appearance funny and cute. She put her hands on her knees, stood up, and looked at Sun-Woo. He was staring at the ground as if he still felt sorry for the ants he had accidentally stepped on.
"What did they say at the principal’s office?” Jin-Seo asked, gently nudging Sun-Woo's shoulder with her head.
Sun-Woo observed his shoes and the ground when he started walking away as if he had been pushed. Jin-Seo walked beside him. Sun-Woo then looked up at the sky absentmindedly.
"We didn't talk about anything serious."
"Okay, but what did you talk about?"
"Various things. Well... there seemed to be a misunderstanding, you know, about the Satanists," Sun-Woo said nonchalantly.
Jin-Seo nodded slightly. After hearing the phrase ‘considered an act of rebellion against the Romanican Church’ from the announcements, she vaguely suspected that it would have had something to do with the Satanists. That was why she had been anxiously circling the building.
Anyway, according to Sun-Woo, it seemed like the misunderstanding had been resolved. This also meant that Sun-Woo was not a Satanist. Although she had never doubted him, she couldn’t help but feel relieved. Sun-Woo looked at Jin-Seo as if he was looking at something cute.
"Were you waiting for me?"
"...No."
"Really?"
"Y...Yeah," Jin-Seo said while glaring at Sun-Woo with narrowed eyes.
Sun-Woo smiled faintly.
They walked in silence for a while. Suddenly, Jin-Seo realized that her grip on the handle of her blade had loosened. Her body was no longer trembling. She looked up and saw the remnants of the wound near Sun-Woo's neck. It hadn't completely healed yet.
"It's almost healed."
Jin-Seo gently touched the wound with her fingertips. Sun-Woo cautiously nudged her hand away.
"The wound wasn’t that deep in the first place."
"What about your hand?"
"Hmm... that wound was a bit deeper."
Sun-Woo clenched his fist, covering up his wound. He seemed reluctant to show it.
‘I would like to see it,’ she thought.
However, Jin-Seo understood Sun-Woo's feelings to some extent, so she nodded and turned her gaze elsewhere. Something sharp was sticking out of his pocket, swaying with each step he took.
"What's that?"
"Oh, this."
Again, Sun-Woo took the object out of his pocket as if it were nothing. The object he brought out was an anti-demon mask. Her father had told her in the past where the anti-demon mask was stashed.
Jin-Seo tilted her head in confusion. Why was the mask that was supposed to be in the chairman’s office in Sun-Woo's pocket? Although she was curious, she didn’t become suspicious of Sun-Woo because of how confident he seemed. Sun-Woo put the mask back in his pocket.
"The chairman asked me to take it. The Satanists might take it if it was left in his office."
"Aha." Jin-Seo nodded.
It was unlikely that Sun-Woo, who even made a fuss about stepping on a few ants, would steal the mask from the chairman's office. Sun-Woo probably wouldn’t have known that there was an anti-demon mask in the chairman's office, so it seemed like he was telling the truth.
Silence fell upon them once again.
At this point, it seemed as if they would circle the entire perimeter. The school felt small when she was walking with him, just like how it felt when she wandered with her mother during her childhood.
"...Hey, where are we going?" Jin-Seo asked after realizing she was gradually following Sun-Woo toward the school's walls.
Without responding, Sun-Woo put on his mask and looked at Jin-Seo through its small eye holes.
"I’m running away."
"Running away?"
Sun-Woo nodded and looked up at the sky. Dark clouds were gathering. The sky was slowly engulfed by darkness, giving off ominous and eerie vibes.
"According to what I heard in the principal's office... It seems like the school is in danger. So I’m going to run away."
"...What about the others?"
"I have to put myself first, you know?" Sun-Woo said, quickly walking toward the walls without waiting for Jin-Seo.
She hurriedly followed him, trotting closely behind. Sun-Woo was walking fast. Jin-Seo realized that he had been adjusting his pace in order to match that of others.
"Wait, then what is the mask f–?"
"There's demonic energy surrounding the walls. Without the mask, I can't cross over."
"Are you really going to run away?"
"What about you? Are you just going to stay here?" Sun-Woo asked, standing in front of the walls.
The walls were high, but not too high that it was impossible to climb over. Someone like Sun-Woo could easily jump over them.
Sun-Woo urged the hesitant Jin-Seo, "So, what are you going to do?"
"I..."
"Let's just run away together."
"..."
"I'll go first and pass the mask over the wall. Then you can run away too."
Sun-Woo reached out his hand to Jin-Seo. She hesitated to hold his hand, bowing down her head. Countless thoughts raced through her mind.
She understood that in the current circumstances, the school was a dangerous place. However, she felt a strange sense of unease listening to Sun-Woo's words. Something felt off. He was not the type of person to choose to run away, even in dire situations. He was the type to sacrifice himself if it meant he could save everyone else.
Of course, that kind of sacrifice was not desirable. Instead, Jin-Seo hoped that Sun-Woo would be a little more selfish and wanted him to focus more on keeping himself alive than saving others. However, even considering that, she felt a sense of discomfort and unfamiliarity coming from the Sun-Woo standing in front of him.
It felt as if... he wasn't the real Sun-Woo.
"So what are you going to do? Hurry, make a choice," Sun-Woo asked urgently, his expression completely cold.
Jin-Seo felt anxious—it looked as if he could take off at any moment. The option of grabbing his hand and running away with him didn't seem so bad.
Suddenly, she was reminded of the taxidermied creature that had rushed to hug Sun-Woo this morning. Instead of blood, sawdust, cotton, and chemicals flowed through the body of the taxidermied creature.
Jin-Seo raised her sword.
"...I’m sorry."
"Huh? What are you sorry for?"
Sun-Woo took a step back, his face flush with surprise. Jin-Seo approached Sun-Woo by taking two steps forward.
Stab.
Jin-Seo bit her lips and pierced her sword through Sun-Woo's palm. Jin-Seo breathed heavily in front of Sun-Woo, who was withering in so much pain that he couldn’t even scream.
Her heart was pounding fiercely, threatening to burst out of her body at any second. She had come to the conclusion the Sun-Woo in front of her was a taxidermied creature. She didn’t really have any evidence. It was just that his actions and personality were slightly different from usual. Nevertheless, Jin-Seo didn't hesitate to plunge the blade into Sun-Woo's palm.
It was an action born from the conviction that she alone could distinguish between the real Sun-Woo and a taxidermied creature.
“You, what are you doing now...! Ahhh!"
"..."
Jin-Seo's expression hardened coldly.
From the struggling Sun-Woo's palm, sawdust spewed out instead of blood. He was indeed a taxidermied creature. Thankfully, he wasn't the real Sun-Woo. She felt pathetic and miserable for thinking it was the real Sun-Woo, even for a second.
Slash!
She pulled out the sword she had impaled into Sun-Woo’s palm and sliced it in half. Sawdust scattered on the floor. She looked down at the sawdust with a cold and icy gaze, then raised her head to stare into the taxidermied creature’s eyes. The horror that arose from the eyes of the taxidermied creature made her hesitate.
However, that fear was not real.
Jin-Seo bit her lip until it bled and gripped the blade handle. Her blade hurled down toward the taxidermied creature's neck.
Slash.
The left hand that the taxidermied creature had used to block the blow was severed. Jin-Seo exerted more force, trying to cut the taxidermied creature's neck with a single strike.
"..."
However, the blade stopped in front of the taxidermied creature's neck. Jin-Seo's shoulders trembled uncontrollably as she stared at the taxidermied creature with bloodshot eyes.
"Ah, ha. It hurts. It hurts... Please, why? Why are you doing this...!"
She could see Sun-Woo's face, tears streaming through the small holes of the mask. Jin-Seo knew that it was just a taxidermied creature. She knew that those tears were fake. Jin-Seo clenched her teeth, mustered up her determination, and swung the sword.
Srrk, srrk, srrk...
Using her exhausted arm, Jin-Seo swung a few more times, almost as if she was chopping with an ax. Finally, after being decapitated, Sun-Woo's head rolled on the ground.
It didn't take long for the remains to turn into black smoke and rise into the sky. Only Sun-Woo's clothes and the anti-demon mask remained in the place where the taxidermied creature had died.
Jin-Seo picked up the anti-demon mask, put it in her arms, and started to walk briskly without a clear destination in mind.
Her arm felt powerless. What she had killed was nothing more than a taxidermied creature imitating Sun-Woo's appearance, but the fact that it was an imitation of Sun-Woo tormented her. The image of Sun-Woo, looking at her with tearful and sorrowful eyes, floated in front of her eyes like a hallucination.
"...What...run away..."
"...Save...what..."
Aimlessly wandering around the school, Jin-Seo was suddenly met with a cascade of students. Their faces were distorted in fear, and they were all screaming about something. A broadcast was flowing from the speakers installed throughout the school. The sound echoed in her ears but soon disappeared.
Thump.
She collided with one of the students who was running away. Her legs gave out. Staggering, she wanted to collapse and sit down. She had met the taxidermied Sun-Woo earlier and had killed it by hacking away at its throat with her sword.
Then where was the real Sun-Woo? Even amongst the pouring students, Sun-Woo's face was nowhere to be seen. The Satanists could have kidnapped him. Or he could have disappeared for some other reason. Or maybe the broadcast telling him to come to the principal's office was a trap, and Sun-Woo might have gotten caught up in it and died.
What about her father?
The anti-demon mask had been in Sun-Woo’s possession, and that was originally supposed to be in the chairman’s office. Her father might have been killed, too.
"Ah..."
Her head hurt. She kept walking in a random direction. It felt like she was lost. The school was too vast, its empty space so large that it couldn't be filled even with the screams of the students pouring out.
Shoosh....
By the time she came to her senses, it was raining. Her school uniform and hair were soaked. A cold and cool sensation stuck to her skin. Her steps felt heavy as if they were tied to lead. Her consciousness was clouded.
Keeyaaak─!!
At that moment, a gigantic demonic beast suddenly appeared in the field out of nowhere. The eerie scream, which was neither human nor animal-like, brought her back to her senses.
With its six legs, the demonic beast was chasing the students who were running away, making it hard to make out their faces. Sun-Woo might have been among the fleeing students, but she couldn't tell because of the demonic beast.
Her whole body was on edge. The sudden threat against her life sent a jolt of signals throughout her body. Nevertheless, she didn't stop walking. Instead, she inched closer to the demonic beast.
"Please, just go away..." Jin-Seo muttered as she approached the demonic beast.
The demonic beast stared at her with its six eyes and revealed its dirty and rough teeth. Her heart pounded fiercely as if it would burst out of her body. With each step, the ground of the field sank deeply. It felt like her body was sinking below the ground.
The demonic beast rushed toward her. She raised her sword. The demonic beast had three heads. She couldn't cut off all three heads with one blow. So she simply aimed at the head in the middle.
She had no particular reason for it. She had simply chosen the head that seemed easiest to cut.
Keeiiieek!
Jin-Seo swung her sword toward the demonic beast that was charging at her while letting out a terrorizing scream.
Boom!
At that moment, a strike of light momentarily took away her eyesight. Her vision turned white and soon returned to normal. As she came to her senses, she saw that the demonic beast in front of her had fallen, with the head in the middle completely destroyed by the lightning strike.
Kieeek, kieeek...
The demonic beast groaned in pain.
Crack! The beast's body twitched, sparks surging from it. Another lightning strike descended upon the beast. Its movements ceased completely as its body turned into ashes, melting into the ground, staining it black.
Crash!
It wasn't over yet. Another lightning strike came down. The light sliced through the demonic beast's abdomen.
The situation felt similar to when she was surrounded by the bird demonic beasts at Eiden Hill. The only difference was that Sun-Woo was there back then, but now he was not. Jin-Seo looked around.
It felt like he was secretly watching her from somewhere.
"Where are you..."
She couldn't see him anywhere. She was delusional to think that he would be watching her in the first place. It was only natural. She just wished that Sun-Woo was watching her.
"..."
She silently lowered her head. Raindrops fell on the back of her head.
Plop, plop.
The raindrops trickled down her hair.
Kieeek, kieek...
At that time, the demonic beast let out a weak roar.
Its spilled intestines from its burst belly had turned into smoke. The smoke looked like it was rising up to the sky, but with a sudden change of pace, it settled on the ground. The black smoke wrapped around the students.
Seeing this, Jin-Seo belatedly regained his senses and fixed her stance with her sword. She was going to put an end to the remaining breath of the weakened demonic beast.
Keyaak... Kek!
However, the breath of the demonic beast finally ceased completely. Along with its last breath, something poured out from its mouth. It was covered in gastric acid and saliva, but it contained chunks of gold and swords.
"I-it's gold. It's gold...!"
"Is it real gold? Really?"
"It must be real gold! It's like a reward for defeating the boss monster! It came from the demonic beast!"
The students who had inhaled the smoke from the demonic beast's intestines approached the gold eagerly.
Even the students who hadn't inhaled the smoke showed interest at the mention of gold and hesitantly approached the demonic beast’s corpse.
The only one who kept their distance from the gold was Jin-Seo.
"Look, it's real gold! If I sell this..."
"Hey! That's mine!"
"Why is it yours? You damn idiot, have you gone blind?"
The demonic beast's intestines continued to emit black smoke. The eyes of the students who had inhaled the smoke started to lose focus.
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