Chapter 318: Ironclad (2)
I was stunned for a moment after hearing him.
What did this guy just say?
I just wrap my head around why Cheol Jiseon chose to tell me this in the middle of our meal.
The Meteor Sword had asked him for help in his mission to kill me.
And it was Cheol Jiseon who decided to confess this to me.
Cheol Jiseon had invited me to eat, which was unexpected. I’d even canceled my plans with Moyong Hi-ah to come here.
However, I didn’t expect this to happen.
As I sat there, I wondered,
Why?
It wasn’t that I didn’t already know about Jang Seonyeon’s plan. It was that I never expected Cheol Jiseon to snitch.
Just why?
Why did he choose to?
I tried my best to think of a reason, but nothing made sense.
I was already informed from Pe Woocheol about how Jang Seonyeon approached Cheol Jiseon a few days ago.
Even if he hadn’t, I would’ve expected it.
Jang Seonyeon trying to come up with a plan to harm me?
CGiven what happened in my past life, it was inevitable.
The only difference was that, last time, his target had been the Water Dragon, not me.
However, unlike the Water Dragon, who didn’t react to him in my past life, I wasn’t going to just sit back.
That difference made it more likely for Jang Seonyeon to act sooner than he had before.
I wasn’t entirely sure he’d act the way I expected, but judging by his attitude, I was confident it wouldn’t take long.
Moreover,
I prefer that anyway.
I wanted him to.
I was hoping he’d make his move sooner rather than later.
For that to happen, it required Jang Seonyeon to approach Cheol Jiseon.
After all, the key to everything lay in Cheol Jiseon’s hands.
This was why I was confused.
I couldn’t understand why Cheol Jiseon would betray Jang Seonyeon and tell me all of this.
I asked with confusion.
“Why are you telling me that…?”
“Because we are friends…?”
His response made me smirk inwardly.
Friend huh?
Did he really think we were friends just because I called him that?
Funnily enough, I was sure neither of us actually believed that.
I kept him close because I needed him, but did he really think of me as a friend? Unlikely.
“Right, we are friends.”
I chewed on a side dish and glanced back at Cheol Jiseon.
His pupils were trembling, and I couldn’t read the emotions behind them.
“But that’s not enough reason for you to tell me this, you know.”
“…”
“You seem to have a better reason for it. I wonder what that is.”
If Jang Seonyeon approached Cheol Jiseon the same way he had in my past life, then Cheol Jiseon must’ve had a good reason to take his side. Though I didn’t know what he was offered.
So why would he throw away that offer and tell me everything?
Just because we were “friends”?
I’m not some naive fool with flowers in my head.
It was hard for me to fully believe him.
Cheol Jiseon’s pupils trembled as my question sank in.
He must’ve thought long and hard before telling me this, but that didn’t mean I could go easy on him.
As I was about to question him more,
“…When you heard from me,”
Cheol Jiseon’s nervous gaze locked onto me as he spoke.
“You didn’t ask why that was happening, but instead why I told you this.”
“…Hmm?”
That felt a bit out of nowhere.
However,
“It’s almost like you already knew this would happen…”
“…!”
Those words were critical.
I opened my eyes wider in surprise.
That was a mistake on my part.
It was my mistake, but now I was starting to think differently about him.
This bastard?
Did I underestimate him too much?
“How can you be so sure?”
“I’m not. It’s just my thought. But…”
His pupils slowly calmed down as he spoke.
“It feels like what I’m thinking might actually be true.”
“…Woah.”
“You… hated the Meteor Sword. You despised him.”
“Why do you think that?”
“There isn’t anyone in the Academy that doesn’t know that.”
Fair.
The whole Academy knew about the time I caused a scene with Cheol Jiseon’s group and argued with the Meteor Sword.
Because of that, rumors spread—nonsense about me feeling guilty toward the Meteor Sword or being jealous of him.
How nonsensical it was.
Though, one thing was true.
“Yes, I hate that bastard. But what’s wrong with that?”
“There isn’t anything wrong with it. However, it does help me in my current decision.”
“Decision”, that’s what Cheol Jiseon said.
“Hating him isn’t enough of a reason for you to rat him out.”
“Snow Phoenix.”
That caught my attention immediately.
“Poison Phoenix… Sword Dancer, Water Dragon, Sword Dragon…”
“What are you- “
“The descendant of the Sword Venerable… and even the Dragon Warrior.”
A strange, cold energy seemed to radiate from Cheol Jiseon’s fidgeting fingers.
“It’s the people around you. Just having one of them as a friend is already an incredible achievement, yet you stand in the center of all of them.”
It sounded like he’d done some background research on me, but he was just pointing out what he observed.
Still, why was he bringing this up now?
Cheol Jiseon’s pupils had steadied by now.
“All rumors about you make you seem terrifying and cruel. Your face too.”
“Hey, did you have to mention my face there? Do you want to die?”
“…Sorry.”
That comment irritated me for a second.
“But despite that, everyone around you is pure and impressive…”
“So what? You think it’s weird that they’re around me, even with all those shitty rumors?”
“Yes, very.”
“Then what do you want me to- “
“It’s strange that those rumors even exist, considering the people around you.”
He tapped the table repeatedly, watching me with a strange look.
“On the other hand, the rumors about the Meteor Sword are oddly strange when it comes to you.”
As Cheol Jiseon kept speaking, his demeanor shifted.
He was somewhat getting colder, and a bit more serious as well.
“The biggest thing… is that you keep me by your side.”
I crossed my arms and responded.
“So what?”
“…From the entrance exams until now, you’ve been keeping me close.”
How amusing.
I’d only ever thought of him as a bastard with some special powers.
Since when did he become so observant?
“The Meteor Sword warned me about you, and asked me for help to kill you. Despite that situation, you continued to keep me by your side. This means that I must have some value to you.”
“Since when? When did you start thinking about this?”
“Ever since… the Meteor Sword approached me.”
So it hadn’t been that long.
Cheol Jiseon was proving to be much sharper than I’d expected.
It was one thing to read into the situation, but being certain was a different level entirely.
“You need me.”
Cheol Jiseon spoke,
“That’s right, I do.”
And I didn’t deny him.
There was no point.
I needed Cheol Jiseon.
More specifically, I needed the power he possessed.
“So,”
I leaned forward, locking eyes with him.
“Why are you telling me all of this?”
“…Because you asked why I told you what Jang Seonyeon said.”
“All of that is interesting, but it’s not enough of a reason to tell me about your chat with that bastard from Taeryung Clan. There’s something more.”
All Cheol Jiseon had pointed out was my bad blood with Jang Seonyeon and that I needed him.
But that wasn’t reason enough for him to betray Jang Seonyeon.
Jang Seonyeon needed Cheol Jiseon too, and he promised Cheol anything he wanted if he joined him. So why choose me over him?.
I didn’t even know what Cheol Jiseon wanted, and I had no plans to give it to him.
Cheol Jiseon paused for a moment before responding.
“…The Meteor Sword didn’t feel good.”
“Feel?”
“Yes… Something felt off about him.”
He didn’t feel good?
That was a simple way to decide whose side to take.
If Cheol Jiseon were as immature as I’d thought, he might have sided with Jang Seonyeon. But he was turning out to be different.
“Also,”
He seemed like he was going to add another reason, so I pushed him.
“…Also?”
Cheol Jiseon started trembling again for some reason.
Starting from his shoulders, his pupils began to shake.
This wasn’t the same nervousness as before.
Instead, there was fear mixed inside.
Why was he showing such a reaction?
“The Meteor Sword threatened me, but you…”
“Me…?”
As I urged him, crossing my arms, Cheol Jiseon answered with his eyes shut tight.
It seemed as if he couldn’t look into my eyes.
He spoke.
“…It felt like you were going to kill me.”
In the midst of the rowdy cafeteria, that chilling phrase left his mouth.
There were many people walking by, but no one was able to hear it.
Because I’d set up a barrier the moment Cheol Jiseon started talking about Jang Seonyeon.
I turned his words over in my mind.
Kill you, huh.
Why did he think that way?
I did my best to be kind.
I was rather shocked by Cheol Jiseon’s answer.
Not because he thought I would kill him, but because,
How did he know?
The fact that I planned to get rid of Jang Seonyeon along with Cheol Jiseon.
The fact that he’d figured it out was surprising.
I thought I did a good job hiding it.
How did he notice?
…How fascinating.
I’d thought of him as nothing more than a whiny, weak crybaby.
Unexpectedly, he was way more observant.
“Why did you think in such a way? I had no plan to kill you.”
I smiled as I said it, but Cheol Jiseon didn’t seem convinced.
Sure, I’d killed a few people since my regression, but not so many that killing intent would constantly hang around me.
Seriously, how did he know?
I guess he’s not going to answer this one though.
“Fine, let’s say I did plan to kill you.”
“…”
“But friend,”
Slide.
I slid my chair back slightly, shifting my posture.
“Do you think I won’t kill you now just because you chose to take my side?”
“…”
“I don’t think you believe such a thing.”
I thought highly of Cheol Jiseon’s power, but it came with its own risks.
It was a power that went beyond martial arts, making it hard to control from the start.
I might need his power, but the truth was, I planned to dispose of Cheol Jiseon once I got what I needed from him.
Only then, it would make my future easier.
“Plus, don’t you think that Jang Seonyeon will do the same?”
“…The Meteor Sword, he will use me until the end.”
“But not me?”
“…Yes.”
“How strange. Then you should’ve taken Jang Seonyeon’s side so that you have a higher chance to survive.”
It would make more sense for him to stay alive, even if it meant being used for the rest of his life.
I couldn’t understand why he came to me even though he knew that I was going to kill him.
Cheol Jiseon’s hands shook as he responded to my smirk.
“It’s all pointless if you beat the Meteor Sword anyway.”
“Friend, why do you speak as if I’m going to kill everyone? That’s scary.”
I didn’t think Cheol Jiseon was going to be like this.
Why is he smart? I thought he was fully incompetent.
Maybe because his opponent was Zhuge Hyuk?
Being compared to the brain of the Demonic Cult probably made him seem incompetent in contrast.
But now, this was becoming a hassle.
I didn’t think Cheol Jiseon was going to find out about all of this.
In short, he believed I would beat Jang Seonyeon and preferred to take my side rather than be killed along with him.
“But why should I accept you?”
“Because I’m useful.”
“How narcissistic of you.”
You are useful, alright.
The problem was, I didn’t know how to use that yet.
I stared at Cheol Jiseon for a moment, then shifted the conversation.
Maybe I could learn more about the other side now that things had taken this turn.
“There is one thing I keep failing to comprehend.”
“…What is it?”
“You said that Jang Seonyeon asked you for help in his mission to kill me.”
The fact that he even asked Cheol Jiseon this meant…
“But how can you help him?”
That meant Jang Seonyeon believed he could kill me with Cheol Jiseon’s help.
Which meant Cheol Jiseon’s power was dangerous enough to make it possible.
“He didn’t ask me to kill you directly…”
Cheol Jiseon gave a different answer to my question, but it wasn’t all too different.
For Jang Seonyeon, the outcome would be the same.
I knew what kind of power Cheol Jiseon had.
I’d experienced it firsthand and watched it from a distance.
“So, you have that much strength for you to be capable of doing such a thing?”
“…”
“What is it?”
I asked, though I already knew.
I was curious if Cheol Jiseon would answer truthfully.
But what if Cheol Jiseon does actually tell me about his power?
I don’t know then. I’ll have to think about it afterwards.
“Uh…”
His fingers fidgeted nervously.
I wasn’t sure what he was doing, so I kept watching.
“I…”
Cheol Jiseon thought for a long time.
However, I was able to wait for him.
If he actually told me, the silence would be worth it.
Finally, Cheol Jiseon clenched his fist and spoke.
“…I’m able to open the gate to Abyss.”
It was the answer I’d been hoping for.