Saving My Favorite in a Doomed World Chapter 76

Come out. I won’t kill you.

 

Was the situation that just occurred reality? With a dumbfounded face, Park Sodu grabbed his head.

 

“Wow, that guy’s in huge trouble too.”

 

“What is?”

 

Heo Mugong, who was sitting with bent knees and a hunched back, asked.

 

“Daecheol?”

 

“Yes? Not Vice Commander Hyung-nim. That silver-haired bastard…… No, the silver-haired applicant. The applicants up until now were strong too, but Daecheol Hyung-nim still handles light like you do, Hyung-nim.”

 

Park Sodu recalled the days when Kim Daecheol was the vice commander.

 

“Our Daecheol Hyung-nim was a talent that Enet wanted to take.”

 

“He lacks the absolute quantity of Light, though.”

 

“Still. Anyway, I’m just glad he returned even like this. Aren’t you too, Hyung-nim?”

 

Heo Mugong didn’t answer and smiled. His gaze looking at the arena with sunken eyes was cold.

 

In the end, Kim Daecheol stepped onto the arena following Hwashin’s words. It was a space he wouldn’t visit again after today anyway.

 

Hah. What kind of hardship is this in my old age?

 

“Are you nervous?”

 

“…Yes. Will I really be enough? I told you, but I’m really a guy who has absolutely nothing.”

 

“But the only one who can stop Heo Mugong is you, Kim Dae-cheol-ssi.” 

 

Kim Daecheol’s eyebrows twitched. What is he saying right now? Before he even had time to answer, Park Sodu’s whistle blew. At that moment, Kim Daecheol thought time had stopped. No, it actually had stopped. Everyone except him was not moving.

 

“W-what on earth is this?”

 

“It’s my ability. 「Moment of Destiny」. They say people feel as if their destiny has stopped when they face such a moment.”

 

“…Huh. That’s an ability that wasn’t on your status window.”

 

“It’s probably because it’s a concept included in Word Command.”

 

Kim Daecheol let out a sigh.

 

“Why did you stop time? An ability of this scale must be consuming quite a bit of light even now.”

 

“To persuade you, Kim Dae-cheol-ssi. How about joining the rebels again? With us.”\

 

“I don’t want to.”

 

“And the reason?”

 

“…..Do I need a reason for not wanting to do something meaningless?”

 

Kim Daecheol was firm.

 

Could a mere group of rebels take down Enet? It was impossible. No, perhaps it was better that way. Better to let things flow without anything happening.

 

“Is that so?”

 

Hwashin put on an expression of pondering for a moment.

 

“Then shall we just stay trapped here forever like this?”

 

“Excuse me? …..No, what are you talking about.”

 

“Like you said, Kim Daecheol-ssi, there’s no reason to continue something meaningless. By my standards, if you don’t join the rebels, nothing else matters. Then there’s no need for me to keep this going.” 

 

Hwashin plopped his bottom down on the floor just like that. He even went as far as to lie down completely. In the stopped space, Cha Jaeha, Yoo Jian, Jeong Mueum, Lee Suho, and the heroes from the US were not moving.

 

With a flustered face, Kim Daecheol expressed his opinion.

 

“No, that’s not something for you to decide as you please. Isn’t my job done once I’ve brought you here? This kind of—” 

 

“But Kim Dae-cheol-ssi.” 

 

Hwashin, who had been lying down, abruptly raised only his upper body.

 

“You said it at the restaurant with that heavy voice. That this kind of life is meaningless.”

 

“….That’s just what I thought about myself.”

 

“Well, I don’t think so. Your life has meaning, Kim Dae-cheol-ssi. I’ll guarantee it. The choice is yours. You saw at the shop, you know my Light is at an immeasurable level, right?” 

 

“….Did you go through that whole display just for this?”

 

“If you’re smart enough to see it that way, then I’m grateful.”

 

Hwashin looked at the karma subtly connected to Kim Daecheol. His thread was still faint.

 

The thread of fate given to all humans often changed color according to the sins they committed.

 

But what exactly is a sin? In the place where Elric lived, killing was not necessarily a sin. If necessary, killing someone didn’t matter. 

 

But it was different in Yoo Hwashin’s world.

 

If so, do sins change depending on time and space? 

 

Elric, or rather Hwashin, had yet to find the answer to that. 

 

The Kim Daecheol standing here thought he had committed an unredeemable sin. He was living today crushed by that guilt.

 

“….You’re being unreasonable.”

 

Even so, he lived on. Even while thinking it was meaningless, he somehow, tenaciously survived.

 

「 Kim Daecheol pondered. Would it be okay if an opportunity was given to him? Was he not just being swayed by the sweet words of the man in front of him? 」

 

I just need to push him a little more. Removing the plot window to the side, Hwashin added one more sentence.

 

“If you can’t endure it, I’ll kill you.”

 

“….Excuse me?”

 

“I mean it. I have that much ability. Well, there are various restrictions on Word Command, so I can’t give a command to die right away.”

 

Hwashin spoke in an infinitely light tone. That he would kill him. He didn’t look like someone who cherished life. Nor did he look like someone who would join the rebel army for the Illusion City.

 

“Yoo Hwa-shin-ssi, why… are you trying to join the rebels?”

 

“Will you return if I answer?”

 

“Please answer first.”

 

“That’s…” 

 

After Hwashin’s answer ended, Kim Daecheol eventually accepted his proposal.

 

***

 

“I’ll admit defeat.”

 

Kim Daecheol raised both hands and shouted surrender. The people were bewildered. Why is he saying he lost just 1 second after starting…?

 

“Huh, Hyung-nim! Why are you suddenly doing this?”

 

“Just because. And Heo Mugong, let’s talk privately for a moment.”

 

Kim Daecheol and Heo Mugong disappeared just like that. The heroes were also unable to understand the situation. It seemed the information about the new S-rank hero, Yoo Hwashin, wasn’t widely known in the US yet either. Other than the fact that an S-rank was born and that he was a crazy b*stard.

 

“Wow, what exactly is his ability? Isn’t that amazing?!”

 

“Hey. He recently awakened as an S-rank, right? What’s the reason?”

 

“Hahaha, ask one at a time.”

 

Amidst everyone being noisy, Park Sodu approached them.

 

“Since the Hyung-nims aren’t here, it’s difficult to administer the applicants’ tests. There’s still one person left, right? Who is it?”

 

“Ah, our kid probably doesn’t even need to take the test.”

 

“…Oh, come on. Just how amazing is your kid that they don’t even need to take the test-.”

 

Right then, Park Sodu’s back grew warm. No, rather than warm, it was a hot feeling….. Moreover, it felt as if a light other than the lighting was shining behind him. His shadow stretched long.

 

A sea of fire appeared in the eyes of the man who slowly turned around.

 

This place was a ruin. Combustible materials were scattered everywhere, and there was even a possibility of an explosion if things went wrong.

 

“Wait, what on earth is—!”

 

It became a scene of chaos in an instant…..

 

Snap.

 

The sound of a finger snapping was heard from behind the completely pale Park Sodu. A man stood at the end of it.

 

“Is this enough proof?”

 

“….Excuse me?”

 

“Should I show you one more time?”

 

Fire blazed up behind his back once again.

 

“N-n-no! That’s enough! ….Good grief. To think such a Light ability user was in the Illusion City, that’s even more surprising. How… how am I supposed to relay this to Mu-gong hyung-nim? F-first of all, please just wait a moment.” 

 

Saying so, Park Sodu left to find his Hyung-nim.

 

“Did you really have to do that?”

 

“This is faster than going out of my way to take the test. Besides, we’ve wasted a lot of time. We don’t know what will happen to the gate outside while we’re dawdling.”

 

“Ah, about that.”

 

Adam answered Jaeha’s words.

 

“It hasn’t been made public yet, but if you go inside through a Red Gate, the flow of time here is several times faster. I think I heard that 24 hours here is roughly about 4 hours over there. There is a difference, but you probably don’t need to worry that much.”

 

At Adam’s answer, Nathan nodded his head vigorously and gave a thumbs up.

 

“And I heard that if we interfere from this side first, monsters won’t come out through the Red Gate anymore. So don’t worry, friend!”

 

“….Even so.”

 

Cha Jaeha still didn’t bend his opinion.

 

“My role is to minimize the damage by closing the gate in a short time. I don’t work while considering things like that.”

 

“Truly living up to being a nagger. Just accept it.”

 

Hwashin slung an arm over Jaeha’s shoulder. 

 

“No matter how much you rush. The one who can finish this place isn’t you, it’s Kim Dae-cheol-ssi.”

 

“I know that too….But.”

 

“But?”

 

“It would be best to avoid getting close to that man, Heo Mu-gong. So I have no intention of wasting any more time with that human.”

 

“….Really?”

 

“He’ll only be a hindrance to our plan. If that man’s goal is to destroy Enet through the rebel army, it doesn’t matter, but it’s hard to think of him as someone who will be of help to Kim Daecheol.”

 

Is it because he’s the protagonist, his intuition is definitely good. Even in the original work, Cha Jaeha considered Heo Mugong unpleasant.

 

But Cha Jaeha didn’t go out of his way to mess with the man. Because Cha Jaeha considered it more important to close the gate with a fast development.

 

“Then you keep a closer eye on him. I’ll provide the support.”

 

“…As if.”

 

“You’ve received my help quite a few times.”

 

Cha Jaeha didn’t deny those words.

 

—Man, that Cha Jae-ha fellow’s lack of honesty is subtly charming.

 

—Oho, the dimension you’re reading is more interesting than I thought! Youngest! Tsk tsk, but that-that-that protagonist brat needs to be more polite—!

 

Now even the voice of Riel’s great senior is interfering.

 

Has the dimension gotten weaker? It felt like the number of times I heard voices had also increased. I should ask Riel about this later or something.

 

“I heard the entrance tests are all finished?”

 

Heo Mugong’s voice was heard from afar. Blowing out smoke, Kim Daecheol was standing next to him as he approached.

 

“There are quite a lot of talents this time. Yes, very good. Shall we consider the entrance test passed with this? Lastly, open your status windows so I can just confirm your city of affiliation. I can’t let in people from Enet.” 

 

Phew. He blew out smoke once again. The final verification conducted in the pure white smoke ended just like that. The SH 1st Squad, Lee Suho, Adam, and Nathan, everyone in total.

 

“Welcome to the rebel army.”

 

Successfully joined the Illusion City Rebel Army. At the same time, Kim Daecheol. Reappointed to the position of Vice Commander.

 

And.

 

“How could you announce that you’re going to pull off something like that as soon as we joined?”

 

Kim Daecheol shouted at Heo Mugong.

 

“Daecheol, then were we supposed to just stay still while you were gone?”

 

D-3 until Operation ‘Sky Reclamation.’