Chapter 92
Under the full moon, clear and cloudless, a blue bolt of lightning struck down.
Kwa-rrr-rung!
His attention had been drawn to the collapsing ceiling, so he couldn’t evade the lightning that fell upon him.
The Villain’s body convulsed as he writhed in agony.
And along with that lightning, a person fell before him.
Fluttering white hair, eyes gleaming like the blue sea.
Seo Da-hee’s eyes trembled violently.
‘Iseo…? Why on earth is Iseo here?’
Seongwoo had never once mentioned Yoo Iseo separately.
If Yoo Iseo had been targeting this place, Yoo Seongwoo wouldn’t have bothered to move her at all.
For Yoo Iseo to be here while she moved as well—it would have been nothing but a waste of strength. Besides, it wasn’t yet time for her and Yoo Iseo to meet.
Above all, she wasn’t ready to face Yoo Iseo directly.
Yoo Iseo’s gaze turned toward Seo Da-hee.
Unconsciously, Seo Da-hee averted her eyes.
Yoo Iseo reached out her hand.
“Can you stand up?”
Because of Seongwoo’s Authority, Yoo Iseo couldn’t recognize her.
Cautiously, Seo Da-hee took her hand.
At that moment, Lia’s urgent voice rang in her mind.
[Be careful!]
Before she even realized it, Seo Da-hee pulled Yoo Iseo into her arms.
Kwachik!
A sharp pain tore through her as a sickening sound of flesh being pierced followed.
“Kyaa!”
The dagger in the Villain’s hand had flown and impaled her forearm.
At the end of the dagger hung a chain.
“What a shame. I was aiming for the white-haired one.”
With those words, he yanked the chain.
The dagger was pulled out, bringing a searing wave of pain with it.
Lia’s and Yoo Iseo’s panicked voices overlapped.
[Da-hee, are you okay?]
“Are you all right?”
Seo Da-hee pressed her bleeding arm to stop the flow and nodded.
But Yoo Iseo shook her head, clearly not agreeing.
“You’re covered in blood—how can you say you’re fine?”
Seo Da-hee took a potion from her pocket and handed it to her.
“We’ll talk about it after the fight.”
Blue currents rippled through the strands of her white hair.
It was a clear sign that she was furious.
Lia spoke in a worried tone.
[Will she be all right against that Villain?]
‘You don’t have to worry.’
Who was she to be worried about?
The woman before her was the strongest among all the Academy’s cadets.
As Yoo Iseo swung her hand, three lightning spears formed in midair and rained down.
Boom, boom, boom!
The Villain, charging toward her, zigzagged to evade the lightning spears.
At the same time, he swung his chain wildly.
The dagger, accelerated through rotation, shot forward.
With a loud pang, the dagger tore through the air toward Yoo Iseo.
Faster than sound.
A normal person wouldn’t even have the chance to react before dying instantly, but to Yoo Iseo’s eyes, its trajectory was perfectly clear.
Pazit.
Yoo Iseo’s body vanished into a flash of lightning.
While in her thunder form, she could let physical attacks pass through her.
But the Villain before her wasn’t one to be underestimated.
“Ignoring physical attacks? Impressive ability, but it’s not without a countermeasure.”
At once, his chain ignited with mana.
The trajectory of the dagger’s chain, now infused with blue energy, wrapped around Yoo Iseo.
“Hah-hah!”
With a loud laugh, he yanked the chain, the loop tightening like a snare around her legs.
Yoo Iseo, still in her thunder form, was slammed into the ground.
Thud!
“Kh…!”
“I wondered what kind of uninvited guest had shown up—but it seems quite the big shot has graced us.”
Yoo Iseo grimaced as she released a surge of powerful electricity.
Lightning crawled up the chain, striking the Villain’s body.
“Ghh—!”
Even as he groaned, he refused to release the snare.
“Stings a bit.”
Seeing how unscathed he seemed, Yoo Iseo was taken aback.
The current she had unleashed was meant to kill.
So it was true—those in the Rapid Response Unit trained their bodies and mana resistance to the extreme while concealing their power.
“Damn human weapon…”
Grinding her teeth, Yoo Iseo charged at the Villain.
“The moment you were caught, your defeat was sealed!”
With a twisted grin, he swung the chain violently, causing the one binding her legs to jerk.
Yoo Iseo lost balance midair, her body swaying.
The Villain didn’t miss the opening.
“You don’t seem to be on the contract’s list, so killing you shouldn’t be a problem, right?”
He reversed his grip and thrust the dagger downward.
Bang!
With a violent crash, the Villain was sent flying.
Yoo Iseo’s eyes widened.
A woman wielding a shield and lance had blocked the attack and knocked the Villain away to protect her.
Staring at the woman’s commanding figure, Yoo Iseo found herself entranced.
Shield and lance—
Those were Seo Da-hee’s signature weapons.
Her appearance was completely different, and yet… somehow, it felt as though Seo Da-hee herself was standing there, protecting her.
After confirming the Villain had been thrown far, Seo Da-hee approached.
Having drunk the potion Yoo Iseo gave her, she had recovered some of her stamina.
Lia’s voice burst out, sharp and indignant, making Seo Da-hee frown.
[You said not to worry! You almost died!]
‘I blocked it, didn’t I? He’s strong, but Iseo couldn’t use her full strength because of that chain. I think that chain’s an Artifact.’
Seo Da-hee immediately went to Yoo Iseo.
“You’re all right… right?”
Even after charging up her full strength, that monster would undoubtedly rise again soon.
There was no winning by trading blows like this—they had to join forces.
Before that, they needed to free Yoo Iseo from the chain binding her leg.
Inspecting the chain, Seo Da-hee summoned Lia.
‘Can you destroy it like before?’
[Of course.]
Lia’s confident voice replied.
A magic circle spread over Seo Da-hee’s hand as she gathered mana.
Pachik!
With a sound like shattering glass, the chain broke apart.
“Looks like we’ll have to work together.”
“Understood.”
At Seo Da-hee’s proposal, Yoo Iseo nodded.
Normally, she wouldn’t have trusted anyone so easily.
Especially now—when she distrusted everyone, even her fellow Student Council members.
But this person…
For some reason, she felt a strange familiarity.
Boom!
From the direction the Villain had flown, a deafening explosion rang out, and a shadowy figure shot upward.
His chains moved like serpents, coiling around his body.
Soon, the mana-infused chains spread out in all directions, rippling through the air like waves of blue serpents.
‘An all-directional area attack.’
Sensing danger, Yoo Iseo moved to react—but Seo Da-hee, who stood beside her, acted first.
A powerful surge of mana flared from her lance and shield.
At the same time, her blue-tinged spear left countless afterimages as it pushed back the chains.
Yoo Iseo’s eyes gleamed at the sight.
Her body turned into lightning, slipping through the gaps Seo Da-hee had opened.
In an instant, she became a streak of lightning and shot toward the Villain.
“You’re walking straight into your grave!”
He swung his arm, trying to reel back the chains that filled the air around him.
It was a trap meant to deal with any reckless moths that charged at him.
But the chains didn’t move as he wished.
“What the—?!”
Seo Da-hee had already read his intent and, with Lia’s magic, destroyed the organic core of his living chains.
“When did you—”
The Villain’s eyes fell on the ornate magic circle engraved on Seo Da-hee’s spear.
‘So she didn’t just coat it with mana?’
Realizing the chains had been destroyed, he boldly abandoned his weapon and charged straight toward Yoo Iseo.
His main arsenal included numerous weapons, but his body itself was a product of countless combat styles—Kali Arnis, Krav Maga, and many more real-world martial arts, all honed for killing.
‘She could’ve stayed back and thrown lightning spears, yet she’s closing in like an amateur. I’ll kill her.’
His fists came crashing forward.
Kang! Kang! Kang!
He frowned.
Yoo Iseo, wielding her lightning spear, blocked his attacks with skillful precision, even countering between his strikes.
Even in close combat, Yoo Iseo wasn’t being pushed back at all.
She swung her spear freely, trading blows with flawless control.
Sparks flew as lightning poured from the electric spear.
The Villain dodged with minimal movement and sought an opening—
Or at least, he tried to.
Bang!
Just as he went for a strike, a rough shock sent his arm flying back.
His gaze snapped toward Seo Da-hee in the distance.
“Damn it! That bitch keeps interfering at the worst moments!”
His furious shout never reached its end.
In that brief instant, countless lightning spears Yoo Iseo had prepared came raining down upon him.
Kwagagagang!
With devastating power, the entire street was plunged into darkness.
The discharge from her unrestrained attack had overloaded the area’s power grid.
When the thunder ceased and the dust finally settled—
The Villain lay unconscious on the ground.
“Persistent bastard.”
A normal Demon wouldn’t have even been able to maintain form.
The fact that he’d only lost consciousness was proof of his strength—he truly was an A-rank Villain.
Yoo Iseo approached the fallen Villain, cuffed him with mana-suppressing restraints, and contacted the Association for support.
Fortunately, thanks to the earlier commotion, police and Heroes who had already arrived evacuated everyone from the club, leaving no casualties behind.
As the situation wrapped up, Yoo Iseo’s gaze drifted toward Seo Da-hee.
She was sitting down, taking a brief rest—clearly having used up a lot of energy.
“Thanks to you, we managed to capture the Villain. Are you perhaps an active Hero?”
“Ah… yes.”
The woman hesitated before nodding.
Normally, Yoo Iseo would’ve simply thanked her and left.
But this time, she couldn’t.
For some reason, her heart felt tangled, and before she knew it, she was asking questions.
‘Who is she, really?’
The weapons she used, her fighting style, even her ingrained habits—
Everything was identical to Seo Da-hee’s.
So much so that if someone told her Seo Da-hee had come back to life in disguise, she might have believed it.
But her friend was dead.
Killed by a Demon—her heart pierced through mercilessly.
Yoo Iseo had personally held that cold body and placed it in the morgue.
A storm of emotions churned in her eyes.
“If you’re an active Hero, may I have your name and affiliation? I’d like to repay you for your help today.”
Determined to learn who she was, Yoo Iseo asked.
Seo Da-hee gave the cover identity she had prepared.
“I’m Jung Hye-yeon, an intermediate Hero from the Neo Guild.”
“So, you’re with a major guild, then?”
Hearing the information, Yoo Iseo immediately opened her device and searched her name online.
Jung Hye-yeon of Neo Guild.
A real person.
Not famous, but she existed—listed as a spear user from the Neo Guild.
‘Was it… just a coincidence?’
Still, it was strange.
How could someone so perfectly mimic not only the habits but even the techniques of the dead?
Suspicious.
Seeing Yoo Iseo cross her arms and tap her forearm with her fingers, Seo Da-hee realized she was being doubted.
That habit—tapping with her fingers—was something Yoo Iseo always did when deep in thought.
She needed to redirect her attention.
Seo Da-hee began rummaging through the unconscious Villain’s belongings.
Startled, Yoo Iseo asked, “What are you doing?”
“Finishing my mission. The task I received from my guild was to retrieve this—no, to destroy it.”
By some stroke of fortune—or misfortune—the glass vial had survived the battle intact.
As Seo Da-hee prepared to destroy the vial filled with essence, Yoo Iseo quickly stopped her.
“It could be important evidence. Please, leave it be for now.”
Seeing that Yoo Iseo’s focus had shifted, Seo Da-hee smiled inwardly.
“This is Essence. It entices people, and when overused, it drives their mana into berserk overload. That man was collecting and distributing it to others.”
“What? Is that true?”
Yoo Iseo’s eyes widened.
If what Seo Da-hee said was true, it could explain the sudden rise in the Cheongwol Faction’s power.
It might even lead to the missing persons.
Seo Da-hee continued,
“If you search the club, you’ll likely find drinks or other items containing this Essence. Our theory is that it’s connected to the Demons.”
Yoo Iseo’s expression hardened.
‘Even related to Demons…?’
She immediately thought of the Demons hiding within the Academy—
How they moved in perfect coordination, as if organized.
Which meant that something similar might also be happening within the Academy.
With a sigh, Yoo Iseo dropped her line of suspicion toward the woman before her.
Her doubts hadn’t completely faded, but there were more pressing matters now.
Taking the glass vial filled with Essence from Seo Da-hee, Yoo Iseo quickly turned and left.