Chapter 159
An uncomfortable silence settled over the room.
Chun Ga-eun's face froze in shock.
Her gaze turned toward me.
“We're screwed.”
Don't say it like that.
Who could have possibly imagined we'd get a reply so quickly?
Still...
I couldn't understand it.
The Swordmaster had neither the loyalty nor the obligation to grant the Association's request.
So why had he accepted it so readily?
Had the Association offered him an outrageous bribe?
Impossible.
The treasures in the Swordmaster Family's vault were worth far more than anything the Association could offer.
Then why in the world was that old man coming here?
Even after hearing that the Swordmaster was coming, I had only thought, No way...
But now that word had arrived saying he was coming immediately, my mind went completely blank.
Because I had never even considered the possibility that he would personally come looking for me.
Still...
There should have been some time.
He had only just informed them he was coming to the Academy.
Surely it would still take several days for him to arrive.
“Let's calm down first. We still have time.”
“Right... that's true.”
Before then...
I had to create a reason the Association couldn't kill me.
No matter what.
Among Demons, the Swordmaster had reigned as the embodiment of fear long before the Heavenly Demon ever appeared.
He was just that merciless toward Demons.
Even if I tried to explain myself...
He would probably cut me down before giving me the chance.
To be honest...
I had no desire to fight him.
He wasn't just anyone.
He was the powerhouse who had carved an enormous wound into the End itself.
I wasn't confident I could win.
More importantly...
He was someone who absolutely had to survive until the final battle.
The Swordmaster's final strike against the End was one of the game's core events, balancing the difficulty so the player could actually challenge the End.
At that moment, the prison door burst open and someone rushed inside in panic.
“Instructor! Th-The Swordmaster...!”
“I've already received the report.”
“No... the Swordmaster is on his way here. Right now.”
“...What?!”
Chun Ga-eun's expression twisted.
“No, they just informed us a moment ago that he would be coming to the Academy...!”
“I-I don't know either.”
“Does the head of the Swordmaster Family seriously have nothing better to do?!”
For once...
I completely agreed with Chun Ga-eun.
A thought suddenly crossed my mind.
Could it be...
The Swordmaster simply disliked my existence?
And had deliberately come immediately so I wouldn't even have time to escape?
If that was true...
Then he was an absolutely terrifying man.
Refusing to give me even enough time to flee meant...
He didn't trust the Academy.
It meant he had already assumed Pandemonium had spies within the Academy, and that any advance notice would eventually reach me.
Just then...
An aged chuckle echoed through the open doorway.
“The older one gets, the more diligent one becomes.”
A gentle...
Yet firm voice.
Standing beyond the doorway was an entire group of people.
The Swordmaster hadn't come alone.
How many people had he brought with him?
The gazes fixed upon me felt painfully sharp.
They were faces I hadn't seen in quite some time.
But I wasn't exactly happy to see them.
Then again...
Given the state I was in, that was only natural.
Sweat beading on her forehead, Chun Ga-eun respectfully bowed to the Swordmaster.
“Swordmaster, it's an honor to meet you.”
“Oh, I'm nothing more than an old man with too much free time.”
Apparently...
He had heard Chun Ga-eun complaining about him just before arriving.
Hearing that, Chun Ga-eun broke into a cold sweat.
Seeing her—someone who normally acted so carefree—looking like that was a rather rare sight.
“What brings you here...?”
“To see that Demon. He dared infiltrate the Academy as a spy and cloud my grandson's judgment.”
“Grandfather...!”
Dan Chun-woo was about to object.
But the Sword Empress stopped him.
The Swordmaster's gaze shifted toward me.
I didn't avoid his eyes.
Such profound eyes.
Despite his advanced age, they remained perfectly clear and immeasurably deep.
I wondered...
What did he see when he looked into my eyes?
Without saying another word, he slowly approached me.
Everyone around us swallowed nervously.
I was no different.
Finally...
The Swordmaster spoke.
“What is your name?”
“...?”
The question completely caught me off guard.
Just moments ago he had sounded openly hostile.
Now he was suddenly asking for my name?
I knew the Swordmaster hated Demons.
There was no way he hadn't sensed the unsettling Aura emanating from me.
Even Chun Ga-eun had instinctively recoiled after noticing the changes caused by my increased Corrosion Rate.
Honestly...
I had considered myself lucky if he didn't immediately draw his sword.
“No answer? Are you unable to speak, like your younger sister?”
“No. I can speak, sir.”
“Then why don't you answer?”
Do you really have to ask?
It seemed the Swordmaster was measuring me.
The fact that he hadn't immediately killed me suggested he hadn't come here solely for my execution.
“My name is Yoo Seongwoo. Though the public knows me better as Devil Knight.”
“Yoo Seongwoo... A fine name.”
“What do you intend to do with me?”
The Swordmaster fell silent for a moment.
The others looked as though they had plenty to say.
But none dared interrupt.
“I have not yet decided what to do with you.”
“What do you mean...?”
“My grandson wasn't the only one. Every child who came with him defended you. They all insisted you had your reasons and begged me to hear your side.”
“......”
I looked past the Swordmaster toward the others standing behind him, awkwardly fidgeting.
They...
Defended me?
Now I understood why the Swordmaster had come.
Something inside my chest felt strangely warm.
It was a feeling I wasn't used to.
“Grandfather, I wasn't exactly defending him.”
The first to speak was Dan Chun-woo.
Without changing his expression in the slightest...
He lied through his teeth.
This was the same guy who had nearly lost his mind when he heard the Swordmaster was coming to see me.
“Me neither. He's just someone who only knows how to make people worry.”
“Everyone certainly worried because of him.”
Park Siwoo and Helena grumbled as well.
Yet mixed within their expressions was unmistakable embarrassment.
Watching them...
I couldn't help laughing.
How long had I struggled alone within Pandemonium?
Learning one cruel truth after another...
Feeling as though every effort I had made until now had been meaningless.
But looking at them now...
None of my efforts had been wasted.
“Ugh... this is so unbearably cheesy.”
Watching the scene, Chun Ga-eun crossed her arms and shivered dramatically.
She looked physically incapable of enduring such a sentimental atmosphere.
“You're all seriously unbelievable... So, Swordmaster, does this mean you don't intend to kill him?”
“It seems you're on the boy's side as well.”
“He's a hundred—no, a thousand times better than those incompetent idiots at the Association who can't do their jobs but still demand all the privileges.”
Thanks to the Swordmaster...
The atmosphere inside the prison gradually changed.
He genuinely wanted to hear my story.
And one by one...
Everyone began telling him about me.
Everything I had done.
The countless incidents throughout the Academy.
Even the trivial little happenings no one else had paid attention to.
At first, Chun Ga-eun led the conversation.
But before long, everyone else gradually began sharing their own stories about me.
“That guy once told me Helena's name started with 'Hell' because she came from Hell!”
“Seriously. I laughed once, and then he just kept making jokes like that.”
...Were they just talking behind my back now?
Little by little...
Misunderstandings were cleared away.
Stories that had remained hidden finally surfaced.
Of course...
Some truths still remained buried.
I never mentioned that the Demon of the End was sealed within my body.
The truth was far too heavy to reveal here.
And it was still too soon for them to know.
Only three people within the Academy knew that secret.
Lia.
Seo Da-hee.
And Joo Sarang.
Most importantly...
The people listening weren't only those standing here.
Unlike everyone else excitedly talking over one another...
The Swordmaster simply listened in silence.
If he ever learned that the Demon of the End was sealed inside me...
There was a very real chance he wouldn't let me live.
After all...
Pandemonium's assaults would only become more intense because of me.
No one knew what kind of catastrophe that might eventually bring.
Just then, Park Siwoo suddenly pointed at me.
“Hey! Seongwoo's face turned red!”
“It really did. He looks like a ripe tomato.”
“So you do know how to feel embarrassed by your own actions.”
Listening to other people recount stories about me was surprisingly painful.
It made me wonder...
Did I really do all that?
At the same time, memories of my days at the Academy resurfaced one after another.
So it wasn't entirely unpleasant.
Still...
Not one of them expressed admiration after hearing everything I'd gone through.
That was honestly disappointing.
Do they have any idea how hard I worked behind the scenes for their sake?
What a bunch of ungrateful brats.
Even so...
A faint smile formed on my lips.
I must have missed this scenery more than I realized.
I wanted to savor this atmosphere a little longer.
But...
I couldn't.
I didn't have much time left.
I looked toward the Swordmaster, who had silently listened to everything.
“After seeing and hearing all of that... what do you think of me? Are you still considering killing me?”
“......”
Everyone's attention shifted toward the Swordmaster.
His next words would determine everything that followed.
If he decided to kill me...
Then I would destroy this prison and escape.
I wasn't confident I could defeat the Swordmaster.
But with everyone else's help...
Escaping should be possible.
Afterward...
I could simply return to the Academy.
But I hoped it wouldn't come to that.
Not only because I didn't want to waste the time the Heavenly Demon had bought with her life...
But because I wanted to remain here just a little longer.
Beside them.
Without shame.
The Swordmaster slowly opened his mouth.
At some point...
A sword had appeared in his hand.
I hadn't seen when or how he summoned it.
It was simply...
Already there.
At the same time—
An overwhelming Aura descended.
Pouring strength into my body, I shattered the restraints binding me.
Then I tore the Mana Suppressor from around my neck with brute force.
At that exact instant—
The Swordmaster's blade filled my vision.
Time split into dozens...
Hundreds...
Of fragments.
Within that fractured flow of time...
Only the Swordmaster moved.
Even Chun Ga-eun and I could do nothing more than follow his movements with our eyes.
The Swordmaster's swordsmanship had reached such a realm that it severed time itself...
Allowing only him to move within it.
His sword drew closer.
I hurriedly tried to gather Demonic Energy.
But within a span approaching 0.001 seconds...
There was no way Mana could properly respond.
Move!
Please...
Move!
At that very moment...
The body transformed by my increased Corrosion Rate finally began to react.
An almost imperceptible movement.
Far too little to stop the Swordmaster's blade.
Bang!
The air exploded.
My hair was blown backward.
The Swordmaster's sword had stopped...
Just before my eyes.
An intrigued smile appeared on his face.
“Now I understand who you are through the words of others. Which only makes me even more curious.”
His smile deepened.
“To know who you believe yourself to be.”