CHAPTER 288: THE AFTERMATH

[The Previous World...]

"LEE SEODAM, that crazy bastard, hasn’t been found yet— it was as if he just vanished from thin air."

Wonhee clenched her hands tight. "If even the remaining Big 4 can’t find him, then it only means Lee Seodam might have been hiding in a different dimension."

There was no place on earth that the Big 4’s influence couldn’t reach.

Even in countries that were in the middle of a war, the Big 4 still had some sort of influence over there.

"Now I know why the two of us are treasured by the System, Chu Wonhee," Bitna said while nodding as if she was proud of herself. "That’s what I also think. The System hides itself in a different dimension in order to protect itself. It could be the same for the Virus— the force that has been opposing the System all this time."

Haaah.

This was all too much to take, but she didn’t have the luxury to even complain.

"What are the Big 4 doing now?" Wonhee asked, and then she paused and asked hesitantly. "And how are my older siblings?"

"Song Moonho is still looking for Lee Seodam while Graham is busy with managing his territories. For some reason, Cracks keep appearing on his turf," Bitna explained. "Yeon Soobin is busy overtaking APA."

"Excuse me?"

"Your brother went batshit crazy after he found out that Lee Seodam betrayed us and stabbed you," Bitna explained while shaking her head. "But your older brother is a true politician— he used that as an opportunity to overthrow the current APA President."

Wonhee let out a long sigh. "Oppa..."

"Jang Semi hasn’t come out of her laboratory yet," Bitna added. "Your older sister is still trying to make a potion that will completely heal your heart."

"What’s wrong with my heart? I know that I was stabbed. But I assumed I was fine now since I didn’t feel any pain. I can even move without a problem."

"Well, that’s only because you’re high on painkillers."

"Oh."

"Listen carefully, Chu Wonhee," Bitna said in a serious voice. "Both your heart and your Core were heavily damaged. The sword that Lee Seodam used to stab you was laced with virus— it’s like a poison to Awakened People like us. Worse, the higher your level is, the more dangerous the virus becomes once it enters your system. Since you’re an S-Class, the virus became lethal as soon as it made contact with your heart and Core. There are still toxins left in your heart so you’re not completely cured yet. And that’s exactly why Jang Semi is working hard for your sake."

Wonhee could already tell how doomed they were, but she still had to ask. "Bitna-ssi, if we get rid of the toxins in my heart, can we still use it as planned? How about my Core?"

"It’s too late for that, Chu Wonhee."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Your Mana was already corrupted by the Virus," Bitna explained in a sad voice. "If you share your Mana with Civilians in that condition, you’ll just end up poisoning them."

"Then what should we do? How about your Core, Bitna-ssi?"

"I gave a portion of my Core to you so you wouldn’t die."

Oh.

"We’re doomed," Wonhee said, covering her face with her hands. "We failed to save the world."

***

[Present...]

TSK.

Yejun couldn’t help but click his tongue internally after hearing the story of how Wonhee failed to save the world because of Lee Seodam’s betrayal.

How insecure do you have to be to betray humanity just to remain relevant as a Hunter?

If only we recovered Wonhee’s memories earlier, then I would have killed that traitor the first time I saw him.

"I had noticed that Lee Seodam’s mental state back then was bad," Wonhee said in a solemn voice. It even sounded like she had regrets. "When Lee Seodam asked me if I was truly fine with the world returning to normal, I should have known that there was something wrong with him. Had I paid more attention to him back then, perhaps I would have succeeded in stopping him from betraying us."

"None of it was your fault, Wonhee-ya," Yejun said firmly. "It wasn’t your fault that Lee Seodam had an inferiority complex. He put all his self-worth into his job as a Hunter, so his mental state became a mess when he realized that the world would return to normal because of you. I doubt it if he would have listened to you even if you had said something to him back then."

Wonhee only sighed.

Yejun’s heart broke for her.

I wish I could say something to console Wonhee-ya...

His thoughts were distracted when his Status Window suddenly popped up.

It wasn’t the System.

He just received a message from the broccoli.

[Cabbage Kid: Hwang Yejun, wherever you and Chu Wonhee are, don’t come out.]

Oh.

Something must have happened yet.

So, I need to keep Wonhee here until the broccoli says otherwise.

"Wonhee-ya, can I ask a question?"

"Sure," Wonhee said, looking at him with a melancholic look on her face. "What is it?"

"The Virus," Yejun said. He wasn’t just distracting Wonhee— he was really curious about it. "Is the Virus the "mother" of the dungeon monsters?"

***

[YOU DID WELL, Hunter Lee Seodam.]

It was amusing.

Lee Seodam was amused by the fact that the Virus— the only thing in this world that could fight the System— had the form of an old television.

It was like a huge box, and the monitor could only display black-and-white images.

[Now that Guide Chu Wonhee’s heart and Core are too corrupted to be shared with the Civilians, the System has no other method left to save the world.]

Lee Seodam was relieved to hear that.

As long as there were still Cracks left in the world, he would remain a Hunter— a Hunter that many people needed.

But he wasn’t satisfied yet.

"We have already cleared almost all the dungeons that you sent to our world. Only a few Cracks are left, and my fellow Big 4 members could clear them without a problem," Lee Seodam said in a frustrated voice. "I need more Cracks to attack our world to ensure that my career as a Hunter won’t end just yet."

[That’s why you must open a door that leads to another world— and then steal the ’Womb’ from them and bring it here.]

***

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