CH 30

{ Chapter 30 – Autosave }

Thanks to being detained by Miracle Shine, I ended up having a meal together with her.

"What do you mean they're plotting something?"

“It's so obvious, Ms. Miracle”

“Wait, Ah… Oh Ji-seok.”

Even though the front seat was empty, she took a seat next to me, and after hearing my words, she opened her eyes wide and pushed forward.

“Don’t call me that.”

“…Ah, yes, Ms. Lilia.”

When she was a magical girl, she seemed very kind, but when she was in her adult form, her way of speaking and behavior were completely different.

“The Hero Association is plotting something.”

But her eyes always seemed to be burning. 

As I was smiling quietly at the sight of her, she rushed to answer.

"Should I tell you a chilling fact?"

"What is it? All of a sudden."

"All Top Ranking Heroes, except for those ranked 2nd, 3rd, and... 11th, are actually monsters."

Hearing that, she opened her mouth and looked at me in surprise.

“A-are you serious?”

“It’s true. Why would I lie to you now?”

She seemed to be in great shock.

Well, I was also very shocked when I first found out the truth. So it was natural.

If I hadn't seen those damn tentacles with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it easily.

“The world of heroes as you know is an illusion. Except for the few organizations, such as the Academy, that have not fallen into the hands of monsters.”

“Then…”

"Believe it or not, it's up to you. But you saw it that day too. Those horrible tentacles..."

The complexion of Miracle Shine, who was listening to my words, didn't look good.

'I guess I should give her some time.'

I wondered if Dice feel the same when she told me the truth.

As I quietly looked at Miracle Shine, I still felt like I was being watched from somewhere.

-Squelch... squelch...

"Lumia? Did you eat sand? Spit it out quickly!"

"It's not sand, why would there be sand in tteokbokki, you idiot."

Lumia was smiling and staring at me.

“……?”

I knew early on that she was crazy, so I didn’t think much of it. 

But for some reason, the feeling of being watched didn't go away.

‘Strange.’

I turned my head to the place where I felt the gaze, but I could only see Ariel looking at her smartphone with her head down.

'It must be just my imagination.'

"I can't completely trust you."

As I was feeling a bit uneasy and scratching my head, Miracle Shine spoke to me in a calm tone.

“It could be that you are deceiving me. There could be other people involved in infiltrating the Academy or maybe the Academy might have other ulterior motives as well.”

“That could be the case.”

“So I’ll keep watching you for some time.”

"Do as your heart desires."

Seeing the light in her eyes, it seemed like she had reached her own conclusion.

"Don't make that smug face."

"Yes."

"Anyway, if what you are saying is true... why did the Hero Association invite you?"

As I smiled smugly and got scolded by Miracle Shine, I answered her question with a lowered voice.

“Honestly, there is no way that Oh Ji-seok, who has no identity, could have been invited by the Hero Association.”

“That’s true.”

"Perhaps they’re trying to exclude me, or they’re trying to persuade me. It's one of the two."

"If they were trying to exclude you, then why they invited you?"

Having said that, Miracle Shine made a questionable expression.

"From their perspective, I am an entity that is not affiliated with anyone."

“……..”

"First they'll try to poke around, and if it doesn't work out, they'll try to kill me."

Perhaps Justia died like that too.

Because that was their way of doing things.

“So, are you going?”

"...I have to. No, I don't have a choice but to go."

"Why?"

"If you want to catch a tiger, you have to enter the tiger's den. That's a proverb in Korea."

But I had no intention of running away. If I handled it properly, it could be an opportunity to gather information from them.

"It'll be dangerous though."

"Huh, are you worried about a villain?"

"...No, it's not like that."

Miracle Shine, who was muffled at my words, continued with a slightly dark expression.

"It's because my ability is reacting like crazy."

“Ability?”

“You need my help…”

"... ..."

"...it’s nothing."

And with that, she abruptly stopped talking and fell into thought again.

‘Is it really dangerous...’

No matter how much I had Justia's ability and Dominating Hands as a backup, this mission was undoubtedly quite dangerous.

It was like breaking into the enemy’s stronghold no matter what.

And, all the monsters disguise as top-ranking heroes would attend the seminar.

Although the 2nd place Miracle Shine, 3rd place, and 11th place Noona were not monsters, their power had been greatly reduced, with three people losing their lives in the recent Academy catastrophe.

They still had a potential that couldn't be ignored.

For example, in the case of Miracle Shine, she subdued her opponent using a trick rather than brute force, taking advantage of their carelessness.

If a full-scale battle were to break out, there was no guarantee that they could win even if they fought alongside all the executives of Dominating Hands.

'So what should they do?'

'Should I get some insurance as a safety measure?'

“Hey, I have a question for you.”

While I was quietly thinking, Miracle Shine asked me a question.

“Of course you won’t take your assistant, right?”

“An assistant?”

“It’s customary for seminar attendees to be accompanied by one or more assistants. But in your situation, you’d better not bring them.”

As she said, there was no need to bring a companion to go into the fire pit.

For a moment, I thought about taking one of the Domining Hands executives, but it seemed difficult.

Most of the executives had their faces revealed already, and the only unknown face, Pandora was not a combat type.

Moreover, if Ira’s transformation ability were granted to multiple people, the efficiency and time limit would be reduced.

"Well, there's no other way..."

Because of that, I got up from my seat thinking that it would be best to go alone.

“…Aha.”

Suddenly a good idea came to my mind, so I quietly raised the corners of my mouth and muttered.

"There's someone who is perfect to bring along."

“Student Lumia.”

At this point, she seemed like a perfect person to use.

"I have a proposal."

.

.

.

.

“Yes?”

Lumia, who had been staring at Oh Ji-seok with anxious eyes while barely touching her food, suddenly looked at him with a surprised expression as he approached her.

“A proposal?”

“Before that, let me ask you some questions.”

In the same way, Oh Ji-seok continued to ask questions to Lumia, ignoring the eyes of the other classmates who were staring at them blankly.

"Have you been invited to the International Hero Seminar that will be held in a few days?"

"Oh, the seminar?"

Then, she rolled her eyes for a moment and smiled as she took something out of her pocket.

"Of course I have!"

As the invitation from the Hero Association with golden crests appeared, the attention of the students sitting next to her was focused.

"I'm jealous..."

"They say if you go once, you can accumulate a lot of experience points..."

An international hero seminar where the world’s strongest heroes came together.

It was also the place where many mysteries and technologies of the companies were first shown before they were commercialized, where one could get the latest information briefed, and it was also a place where one could build a lot of connections just by attending.

Naturally, it was a dream place for new heroes and aspiring heroes.

The reason why many new heroes voluntarily became the sidekicks of top-ranked heroes or tried to impress professors, was also the reason that they could attend seminars as their assistants.

However, Lumia was not an assistant, but a regular attendee.

The children looked at the invitation with envy.

"That's too bad."

“Yes?”

"I also received an invitation to the seminar."

But when Oh Ji-seok, who was staring down at Lumia, scratched his head and muttered, her eyes began to shake.

"I was planning to have student Lumia be my assistant at the seminar."

“Ah…”

“I’m sorry.”

Saying that, Oh Ji-seok quietly turned his back on Lumia.

– Rip…!

At that moment, the sound of something tearing resonated through the cafeteria.

"I just declined the invitation I received."

Lumia, who even ripped the invitation to shreds, spook in an excited voice, ignoring the students looking at her with a shocked expressions.

"So please let me be Professor's assistant."

"...If that's what student Lumia wants, there's no reason why I can't make it happen."

Watching Lumia silently, Oh Ji-seok smirked and replied.

‘A date with Trauma alone? Will I walk side by side and ride in the car alone with him? Will I be able to monopolize him for two days?’

“Oh, and…”

‘Oh, and come to think of it... I'm disguised as a man right now, so we'll be sharing a room too, right?’

“……..”

‘I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you…’

"Enough already."

Oh Ji-seok, who was about to say something, read Lumia’s crazed eyes, shook his head,     and left the cafeteria.

‘… No, let's first focus...’

“……?”

Only then did Lumia regain her composure, and she raised the corners of her mouth and looked at the bewildered Miracle Shine in the distance, before starting to hum a tune while concentrating on her meal.

“………”

But as Oh Ji-seok was walking toward his seat, there was someone else who looked at him with an expressionless face.

"Ariel, why are you like this?"

“…it’s nothing.”

After answering Hiroko’s question like that, Ariel quietly got up from her seat and left.

.

.

.

.

.

A few days later. On the day of the seminar:

– Professor, when will you arrive?

“I just arrived, student Lumia.”

Oh Ji-seok, who arrived late due to overtime at the academy, was about to enter the special administrative zone of Navier Island to join Lumia, who had already arrived.

"By the way, there's something I want to talk to you about..."

"Pro- Professor."

Suddenly, a voice that was quite familiar to him came from behind.

“Ariel?”

Oh Ji-seok, who completely forgot that he was on the phone with Lumia, opened his mouth with a surprised expression.

“Why are you here?”

“Ooh, what a coincidence.”

Then, she answered with an awkward expression.

"I also received an invitation... to the seminar..."

"Are you saying that you're invited?"

“Yes, yes.”

Then, she slightly hesitates at Oh Ji-seok’s sharp reaction and mutters in a crawling voice.

“Well, can’t I be invited…”

“……..”

And then, a brief silence began.

“…uh?”

Ariel, who was rolling her foot with a sullen expression, suddenly widened her eyes and took a step back.

With a bright red warning sign, a message that she had never seen before appeared in front of her eyes.

– Professor? Are you with Ariel? What's going on?

“What is this…?”

Ariel's bewildered voice and Lumia's urgent voice that flowed from the smartphone began to mix and echo together due to the sudden change of events.

[TN Note: It's saddening, but due to low ratings and lack of support, I'll have to discontinue this novel. 

Both patrons - the only ones who were supporting me - would be refunded.

Thank you. ]