Chapter 141.

I forced myself to lie down, but I couldn’t sleep . My stomach churned, and my head spun .

“Haa… . ”

Without any other choice, I opened my eyes in a daze .

Vivid memories flashed before my eyes .

Kim Hajin who was holding me in his arms, and the tattoo that was shining on his arm .

That was… undoubtedly proof of the murderer .

But why did Kim Hajin have that tattoo?

And that white shining symbol… was it really a tattoo?

“Ah . ”

I kicked the blanket and got up . Then, I threw the window open . Because my body was burning, I couldn’t sleep . I could barely withstand the pain .

“…?”

However, an acrid smoke flowed in from the window .

The smell of cigarette was coming down from the roof .

Immediately, my eyes shot open .

It was a familiar smell .

Ever since that day, I had to constantly smell it to be near that person .

I turned around and faced the door .

I had to check if what I saw was real or a hallucination .

The only way I would find out was if I asked him .

And only then would I be able to live on .

**

I climbed up the stairs to the roof of the hospital . Although the door was locked, I could easily pick it using Dexterity .

There was only one reason I came all the way to the roof – to smoke .

Of course, there were smoking zones inside the hospital, but I was a cadet . Even though I was going to drop out soon, I didn’t want to smoke in front of so many instructors and cadets .

“Huu . ”

After a sigh, I lit a cigarette and put it in my mouth . An acrid smoke filled up my lungs .

“…Haa . ”

Leaning on the guardrail, I exhaled and looked down at the ground .

I could see a panoramic view of the hospital’s entrance .

The scene could only be described as chaos .

A total of 3583 people were pulled into the broken mirror phenomenon .

Of these 3583 people, 44 were killed, 66 were kidnapped, and the instructor who was attacked by Destruction, Kim Soohyuk, was undergoing a surgery while in critical condition .

“In the original story… . ”

Chak!

I slapped my mouth .

Original story, the damned original story .

I kept describing it as a story .

But what else should I call it?

…Fate?

“Ehew . ”

In any case, 66 people were kidnapped just like in the original story .

However, Destruction’s appearance was completely unexpected . He was a boss-level character who easily ranked in the top 500 strongest of this world .

As for Yoo Jinwoong who drove him away… I expected him to come .

Speaking of which, I received a message from the helper who called Yoo Jinwoong .

[Hajin-chan! I saw the news! Are you okay?]

[Yeah, thanks to you, the losses were minimal . ]

[Hehehe, I got praised for it too!!]

With my smartwatch being linked to my laptop, I could send messages unhindered by electrical signals . As soon as I realized Destruction was here, I sent my exact coordinates to Kim Hosup . There was simply no way Kim Suho could fight Destruction now .

Thankfully, Kim Hosup was quick to act . He even hacked into Yoo Jinwoong’s smartwatch to relay my coordinates to him .

[Thanks once again . Message me if you need anything in the future . ]

[Got it!]

After that, I turned off my smartwatch .

Then, I saw three familiar faces talking to each other in the hospital’s garden .

It was Kim Suho, Rachel, and Shin Jonghak .

They seemed to have gotten close in the short period of time they were rescuing other cadets, as they were talking about a rather serious topic .

—I couldn’t move at all . When I heard the name Destruction, my body froze… .

Rachel was criticizing herself . In truth, Kim Suho and Shin Jonghak were the strange ones for being able to attack Destruction in that situation .

…At that moment .

Tak, tak .

The sound of footsteps struck my ears . To be exact, it was the sound of someone climbing up the stairs .

The sound was growing closer .

I put out the cigarette I was smoking and waited for the person who was walking up to the roof .

The moonlight touched my shoulders .

The footsteps stopped nearby .

She seemed to be hesitating .

“…Haa . ”

A sigh rang out, followed by a familiar voice .

“…Hey . ”

She called me . In response, I turned around .

In front of the rooftop door, she was staring at me .

Chae Nayun .

She didn’t look good . Her complexion was pale, and I could see that she was mentally exhausted .

“Kim Hajin . ”

She called my name .

“…How did you know I was here?”

I didn’t know what else to say .

“The smell of your cigarette came into my room through the window . ”

“Oh, sorry . ”

“… . ”

Chae Nayun trudged up to me silently . Then, she leaned against the guardrail . She didn’t show me her eyes . Her fluttering hair was covering them .

Chae Nayun spoke .

“Hey . ”

“…Hm?”

Her voice was heavy .

Chae Nayun looked up at the night sky and continued .

“Remember what I asked you a long time ago?”

“What . ”

“I… I asked if you had a tattoo . ”

“Did you?”

“Yeah, I remember it vaguely . When we went to Norway, I overheard you talking about it in front of our cabin . ”

I recalled our trip to Norway . I vaguely remembered it .

—So you used to smoke? A real delinquent, huh . Do you also have tattoos?

Almost a year ago, when I went to Norway as part of the hunting club, Chae Nayun overheard me saying that I quit smoking . It seemed Homer’s Ring really improved my memory . Or was the memory etched in my mind because I was surprised?

“…Yeah, I remember . ”

As I replied, I felt bitterness inside . I couldn’t help but think that if I could go back to that time, I could do things better . I once again understood why there were so many novels where the main character went back in time . In the present, things barely went my way .

“…So . ”

Chae Nayun interrupted my useless thoughts .

“I want to ask again . ”

She wasn’t looking at me .

“If I don’t, I think I’m going to die . ”

I couldn’t understand what she was talking about .

“If I don’t confirm that it’s false, I don’t think I can live . ”

Chae Nayun shook her head slightly . Something glistening scattered in the wind… tears .

“Kim Hajin… do you have a tattoo on your arm?”

“… . ”

The grave atmosphere and her strange question caused me to hesitate . I needed more time to analyze the situation .

“Answer me . ”

However, Chae Nayun didn’t give me any time . She looked at me straight in the eye and spoke .

“Answer me . ”

“… . ”

It was only then that I could see her eyes . When I saw her trembling pupils, I couldn’t speak . It was as though my body was frozen .

“Why won’t you answer me?”

Chae Nayun asked again .

“…Why? You just have to say you don’t have one… hic . ”

Chae Nayun suddenly sniffled . She dropped her head, and tears began to fall onto the concrete .

“…Why, just why . ”

“You should explain what’s going on fir— uuuk!”

Chae Nayun suddenly ran into me . Her sudden charge made me fall on my back, and Chae Nayun jumped on top of me . She grabbed the hem of my clothes, clearly trying to rip my clothes apart .

“Ah, hey! What are you doing!?”

Shocked, I wondered if she was having a psychotic episode . I couldn’t think calmly and could only try to get her off with my weak strength .

But without Stigma’s magic power, I was easily overwhelmed by her physical strength .

“H-Hey! Are you crazy!?”

“Yeah, I’m crazy, so stay still—!”

She moved quickly . Shouting loudly, she grabbed my shirt with her hands and easily ripped it apart with her strength .

“… . ”

Immediately afterwards, Chae Nayun’s gaze fell on my upper arm, where Stigma was placed . I quickly covered it with my torn shirt .

“Ah… . ”

However, it was too late .

Chae Nayun dropped her head with a dazed voice . Then, she clutched her head and glared up at me with teary eyes .

“…Hey . ”

“… . ”

“What tattoo is that?”

Chae Nayun clenched her teeth . Many words came out of her mouth, but none of them connected to a sentence .

“Some, some organization tattoo? Secret society? Some, something like that?”

When I didn’t answer, Chae Nayun’s eyes shook fiercely .

“What is it!? I’m asking what that is!! What is it—!!?”

It was only then that I began to grasp what was going on .

“Tell me—!”

Chae Nayun shouted .

However, I couldn’t say or do anything . Almost as if my brain stopped working, I could only stare at her blankly .

“…No, no . ”

Chae Nayun’s face distorted . She grabbed my shoulders strong enough to crush them and hit my chest with her head .

“Why… why would you kill Oppa… . ”

Immediately, my heart sank .

How did Chae Nayun know about Stigma? And how did she connect it to the murder?

“Right? It’s not you, right?”

Chae Nayun muttered as she cried .

I could only listen to her desperate voice .

“… . ”

‘It’s not me . I didn’t do it . ’ That’s what Chae Nayun wanted to hear from me .

“Someone… someone might have framed you . In the first place, you have no motive… why would you… . ”

However, I couldn’t lie .

A lie that could easily be proven wrong, a lie that she already knew was wrong, I just couldn’t bring myself to say it .

“But why… why aren’t you saying anything?”

Chae Nayun tightened her grip on my shoulders . Her pupils were already empty .

“Just say it . Just say that you didn’t do it!”

Sharp pain struck my shoulders . My shoulders were broken .

However, that was it for both me and Chae Nayun .

Tak .

Chae Nayun’s head touched my chest .

Overwhelmed with great shock, she had fainted . Her feeble body was now lying on my chest .

I didn’t move .

Like a puppet with its strings cut, I just stayed on the ground .

“…Kim Hajin . ”

However, the situation advanced faster and faster .

From the rooftop entrance, another voice rang out .

A familiar face was looking down at me and Chae Nayun .

“… . ”

It was Yoo Yeonha .

She slowly walked up to me .

I wasn’t sure how to deal with this situation . My hands were trembling, my head was throbbing, and it felt like I was in a dream . If possible, I just wanted to faint and escape this reality .

“You don’t have to panic . ”

However, Yoo Yeonha calmly detached Chae Nayun from me .

“I already knew about it . ”

“… . ”

Hearing her, my heart ached .

Where? Just where did I go wrong?

“…Sorry . ”

Yoo Yeonha slowly picked Chae Nayun up .

“I should have been here first . ”

Hearing her speak, I looked up at her in a daze .

Yoo Yeonha made a bitter smile .

“After tonight, you’ll be long gone, right?”

“… . ”

“I’ll make sure Nayun rests well . ”

Her voice was warm .

“To be completely honest, I hoped she wouldn’t find out . ”

Her relaxed voice and eyes of sympathy pained me more .

“I didn’t believe it either . No, I couldn’t believe it . That you killed him . How you killed him, whether you had accomplices or did it alone, I just didn’t have any information . And to my knowledge, killing Chae Jinyoon was impossible for just one person to accomplish . ”

Yoo Yeonha lightly bit her lip .

“But looking at you now… it must be true . ”

Coldness enveloped my body, and I got goosebumps on my skin .

Looking down at me, Yoo Yeonha asked .

“Why did you do it?”

I didn’t answer her .

I couldn’t .

“Why did you kill him?”

“… . ”

“…Was it for revenge?”

Yoo Yeonha seemed to be frustrated at me, who was sitting on the ground in a daze .

“You’re looking really pathetic right now… but unfortunately, I have no right to insult you . ”

Yoo Yeonha turned around . Her footsteps were slow .

Almost as if she wanted me to stop her, she walked ever so slowly .

Looking at her, I pondered .

She was someone who treated her allies truthfully and sincerely . So why can’t I tell her the truth?

It was a weak thought .

…However .

Yoo Yeonha opened her mouth first .

“Sunshine Hotel . ”

Hearing her, I flinched .

“It’s the hotel my guild runs . I’ll be waiting on the penthouse floor . ”

Yoo Yeonha continued with her back still pointing toward me .

“I still think of you ask my ally . Just like how you thought of me as yours . ”

Her voice was soft and gentle .

“Setting aside what happened, I want to believe you . I want to help you . ”

“… . ”

“Because that’s all I can… . ”

However, she didn’t finish her sentence .

“…Haa . Anyways, I’ll be waiting . ”

Tak, tak .

Like a fool, I watched her walk down the stairs .

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