Chapter 82: 81 – Bundles of Crimson Thread – II

I walked around Seora's desk and then conjured a simple folding chair. After that, I placed it down and took a seat.

Seora gave me a blank look and then shook her head. After that, she looked at the man nearby... The same man who drove us around a while back and who I usually saw around Seora.

Maybe he was her right-hand man or personal cleaner? Butler?

Either way, he was on Seora's side at least.

"Could you give us some privacy, Shin?" Seora sighed and said, "It'll probably be a while."

Shin looked at Seora and then shifted his gaze to me.

I waved and said, "Don't worry. I'll keep her safe."

Shin nodded. "Of course. I am more concerned about you, Mister Jihu."

"Me?"

"Yes. After all, Miss can have quite the temper when-"

"SHIN!" Seora blushed.

Shin chuckled and then waved. "Fine, fine. I will stand watch outside, Miss. Call me when your intimate conversation is over."

"Haha..." I let out a nervous laugh and said, "It's not like that."

"Of course." Shin nodded and then walked out of the room. The door shut with a click.

And then it was just me and Seora.

Seora sighed and said, "Could you secure the room, Oppa?"

"Sure." I waved my hand and stopped sound from traveling, as well as got rid of any potential surveillance. After that, I rubbed the back of my neck and said, "...Sorry again about startling you."

Seora shook her head and then grabbed her chair. Pulling it back, she sat down and said, "I don't mind. But honestly, Oppa... Do you have *any* common sense?"

"I do. But I was kind of in a rush... And I thought it might be better to pop in when you were with someone else instead of completely alone."

Seora glared at me and said, "And what if it wasn't someone trustworthy? What if I was in the middle of meeting with a director or something?"

"Well. Might as well start cleaning up the scum early then, right?"

Seora blinked and then let out a deep sigh. "No wonder Miss Hannah always complains about having a headache when we talk about you, Oppa. You're such a handful..."

"Ahaha..."

"Anyway." Seora shook her head and then fixed her expression, donning the mask of the second Sinyoung Heiress. "I presume this isn't just a social call, Jihu?"

Seeing that serious expression and hearing her change her way of addressing me, I turned serious as well. "That's right. It's a bit earlier than I planned, but it seems that people are getting impatient about what happened on that side. Because of that, I wanted to talk with you about what I mentioned last time."

"Mm." Seora leaned back and tapped her fingers on her desk. "That's true. I did receive a recent report about how some rather infamous bounty hunters from all over the world were found dumped in an alleyway downtown... and with certain organizations carved into their flesh."

I smiled.

Seora stared at me and then shook her head. After that, she leaned forward and laced her fingers together. "Jihu."

I nodded. "Yes, Seora?"

"...Are you prepared?"

It was a simple question. But it was a heavy question.

Was I prepared?

I knew why she was asking that. The moment we moved, we would be walking down a path without return. If I chose this path, then there wouldn't be a way to compromise. It was all or nothing... Either I took out Sinyoung, or Sinyoung would take me out.

Of course, the latter was impossible. But Sinyoung's death throe would make a mess if I wasn't careful about it... if WE weren't careful about it.

That was why she was asking me.

From the resolve in her eyes, it seemed like Seora was already determined. No, she had already begun to act. But if I said yes, then she would be moving with me.

Collusion- No, conspiracy. And if anyone found out, it wouldn't just be my neck on the chopping block. In fact, it *wouldn't* be my neck on the chopping block.

It would just be hers. Seora's.

"I should be asking you that, Miss Yun." I matched her pose and said, "Are *you* prepared? From this point on, we'll be facing the world. And the battlefield won't just be in that place."

Seora let out a faint smile. "What are you asking? My life was already yours the moment you reached out your hand that night, Jihu. Even if it's to charge down to the depths of hell or if it means throwing everything away... I don't mind."

And as if to affirm her words, the crimson thread connecting me and Seora turned into a thick chain. But unlike the others, it wasn't wrapped around me. Instead, it was wrapped around Seora's neck like a collar, with the other end floating by my hand.

Seeing that, I let out a deep sigh. "...Why are all the women around me crazy?"

Seora laughed. "So you're aware of it now, Oppa?"

I grabbed the chain and then said, "I've always been aware."

The chain shattered, dissolving into crimson threads. But it didn't vanish. Instead, the chain around Seora's neck shifted, connecting to a handcuff on her right hand. At the same time, the chain I grabbed connected to a matching handcuff on my left hand.

Seora flinched. Did she sense something change?

I didn't know. But either way, I held out my hand to her and said, "...And I suppose it's my fault. So I should take responsibility, right?"

Seora's eyes widened. "Jihu-"

"Ah. For the record, I just recently got married. Figured I'd go with full transparency here."

Seora blinked. "...What?"

"What?"

"Wait! Wait, wait, wait!" Seora jumped up and pointed at me. "Oppa!"

"Yeah?"

"You got married?!"

"...Yes?"

"To who!?"

I coughed. "Well..."

Seora leaned over the table and then pulled me up by my collar. "OPPA!"

"C-Calm-"

"I AM CALM!"

...Okay. Note to self. Full-transparency isn't a good idea.

[Gee. You think?]

Wait. Who's-?

[Should probably deal with the yandere before me, Bro.]

"OPPA! I NEED ANSWERS!"

I stared at Seora and then said, "...Promise me that you won't do anything crazy?"

Seora took a deep breath and then let me go. After that, she slowly sat back down and nodded. "...I promise. But you can't lie." She narrowed her eyes and said, "I can tell, you know? I'm really good at reading faces."

"...It's Hannah-"

A loud crack echoed. Seora, snapping her desk in half after slamming her hand against it.

I blinked and then tilted my head.

...Didn't powers from Paradise get removed when people went back to Earth? Since when could someone as frail-looking as Seora split a sturdy office desk in half...?

"I *knew* she was scheming something! Argh! I should have asked Oppa out on a date sooner! Dammit!"

"Um-"

Seora stared at me and then said, "Even if I can't be your legal wife in Korea, I'm not letting you get out that easy, Oppa! I won't give up until I've repayed you everything you gave me!"

I blinked and said, "Wait. Seora, you don't need to-"

She narrowed her eyes.

"...Alright. Let's set this aside for now. We can talk about relationship stuff after we get things squared away, alright?"

And after I could get some backup from Flone and Hannah... And hopefully Claire-

Wait. Would that be a good thing or a bad thing...?

[I told you that you should have fixed this earlier.]

Shut up Blackie-! Wait, how the heck are you-

[Again, deal with yandere first.]

...You're going to need to do a lot of explaining after this.

[And so are you.]

Seora took a deep breath and then nodded. "Fine." She smoothed her expression, turning back to her professional mask. But there was no way I could miss the burning determination in her gaze.

But since she decided to set it aside for now, I decided to do the same.

"Anyway..." I stared at Seora and said, "I'm guessing that you're prepared to go through with it then."

Seora nodded. "I was already thinking about it... but after the war I started digging into my father's past. And what I've found..." She grimaced. "Even if you didn't help me, I was already planning to clean it up. All of this... Sinyoung is rotten and built on countless corpses. I can't... WON'T allow it to continue."

"Good. Then let's talk business strategies." I sat back down in my chair and then waved my hand, fixing Seora's desk.

She blinked and then let out a sheepish smile. "...Thanks for that, Oppa."

"Don't worry about it. Can't leave you with too many unexplained mysteries to solve, can I?"

"You mean like how in the world Miss Hannah snagged you before I did?"

"...So, you got a report about those guys trying to off me and what I did to them, right? Got anything else on what the situation is like overall?"

Seora stared at me.

I stared back, carefully ignoring the sweat running down the back of my neck.

And then Seora nodded. "I have. And to sum it up... It's a mess." Her nose wrinkled in disgust and she said, "It's like you flipped over a mossy rock and now all the bugs are squirming about beneath the sunlight. Both here and over there. And it's just a hunch right now... but some of those 'bugs' aren't just metaphorical."

I nodded. "Right. I'm guessing there's more than a few people playing both sides. And that 'Queen' doesn't mind since she just sees it as insurance."

"Mm." Seora nodded. "I think so. And I think most of them are hovering around the Queen in Sinyoung's home base over there." She frowned. "But that's Unni's territory, so I don't know if she's just ignoring them, or-"

"It's not on purpose, if that's what you're thinking."

Seora blinked and then stared at me.

"What?"

Seora frowned and said, "And how do you know that? Nobody knows what Unni's thinking."

"...But I do? I mean, your big sister isn't as complicated as people think she is, you know?"

Sure, Yun Seohui pulled a lot of strings and was manipulative when she wanted to be, but she was also pretty straightforward in how she acted when it came to trying to get something.

Seora blinked.

I blinked back.

Seora stared at me and then tilted her head, turning thoughtful. "...I suppose if a ladykiller like Oppa got to Unni... Yes. That would also explain all the activity over there. And why so many of those slimeballs were starting to cozy up to me... But then if that's the case... And with the current situation in that place... And since it's been confirmed that guy showed his face again along with the similarities, Father would-"

Seora suddenly cut off her words. Her eyes widened and she quickly stood up.

"Hm? Hold on." I frowned and said, "I'm missing-"

"Unni!"

"What?" I blinked and said, "What about your-"

Seora grabbed my hand and started running. "I'll explain on the way, but we have to hurry! If I'm right, then-!"

*click*

A soft sound, barely audible to my ears. And one that was completely inaudible to Seora.

The sound of someone pressing a button. And along with that-

"SON OF A-!"

I pulled Seora close and swept my arm out. At the same time, I remembered to protect the guy standing guard outside the room.

And then flames and shrapnel filled Seora's office as the building started to collapse.

xxx

Yun Seohui quietly sipped on a cup of coffee in her office at Scheherazade. As she did, she idly flipped through her notes, frowning. "...What a mess."

Things had strayed far too much from causality. Sung Shihyun showing up out of the blue and trying to kidnap Princess Teresa. Said Princess not only foiling the attempt, but forcing the Parasite Queen to intervene. And now there was all of this nonsense about 'Seol Jihu' running rampant with his powers and taking advantage of women all over Paradise while wreaking havoc wherever he could with his powers.

Seohui sipped on her coffee again and muttered, "I suppose it's somewhat effective. Especially if those cowards in the church team up..."

It was a smear campaign. Similar to the one that Seohui used to force Sung Shihyun into a corner, there were people trying to do the same with Jihu.

A reasonable decision. After all, what better way to kill a hero then to have those he protected turn against him?

Seohui set her coffee cup down and muttered, "But you made a mistake, Parasite Unni."

The sheep would be affected. They would start turning against Jihu out of fear and envy. And those who would protect him would be cowed by the sheep.

At least, that was how it should go. But...

Seohui smirked and said, "My hero isn't someone who will fall that easily."

Jihu. The man who called himself 'Vain' when they first met. A name that fit Sung Shihyun far more than it did Jihu.

He was someone who didn't care what people thought of him. That much was clear from the name he chose to give out. Not only that, but he was someone who treated everyone fairly. Like a mirror, he returned what was given. Even a supposed wicked witch like herself was treated with respect instead of preconceived notions.

A real hero, unlike the one that Sung Shihyun proclaimed himself to be. A hero who performed miracles. A hero who defied causality... And a hero who was more than willing to become a villain to save those he sided with.

"...But I suppose I shouldn't let that happen."

Jihu was a bright sun that should stay pure and white. Her hero was a person who should be admired for his resolve and celebrated for his light. Not scorned and disdained.

While Seohui didn't doubt that Jihu could thrive even in that case, she felt... troubled at the thought of it happening.

So she would cut it off. Nip it in the bud before the vile flower bloomed and ruined everything. Though...

"How ironic." Seohui let out a wry smile at the thought.

Two men with similar paths. Because she wanted Sung Shihyun at all costs, she drove that man into a corner and ultimately turned a 'hero' into a villain. And now, because she wanted Jihu... She was planning to do everything in her power to prevent him from turning into a villain.

"I suppose this too is causality..."

In exchange for dragging a hero down to become a villain, she would now prop a man up to be a hero.

Seohui shook her head and then finished her coffee.

As if waiting for that, the door opened. When it did, a man walked in. The usual messenger who delivered her reports and sent her word down to the others.

The man walked in and bowed his head.

Seohui crinkled her nose and said, "Did something come up?"

The man raised his head. "No. But we were wondering if First Lady had committed to a course of action on handling the second Irregular."

"If you mean Seol Jihu... Then yes." Seohui nodded and said, "I have."

The man was quiet and then said, "And that course of action would be...?"

"We help him."

"...Pardon?" The man tilted his head. "You wish to help him?"

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Seohui nodded. "That's right." She pushed her coffee cup to the side and said, "Jihu is a valuable hero to Paradise. And we saw what he could do in the previous war. Taking out two Army Commanders and three of those commanders' armies... It would be best to befriend such an individual rather than turn against him, would it not?"

The man was quiet.

Seohui paused.

That was odd. Something wasn't right.

And then she recalled something. A casual remark Jihu had made.

'Well, what do you expect an admirer to say when face to face with their goddess, right?'

...Goddess.

Yes. Her men saw her as a goddess. A cruel one, perhaps, but a goddess all the same. Someone to be obeyed without question.

But the man in front of her right now...

Seohui flipped her table and then jumped backwards, breaking out the window. At the same time, she flung the knives she kept hidden in her sleeves.

Steel clattered. Glass shards drifted around Seohui, some cutting her pure skin and leaving crimson lines.

But she didn't pay them any attention. Instead, she surveyed her surroundings.

Screams filled the air. Earthlings and Paradisians panicking at the sight of someone falling through the air. But then...

"Is that... Yun Seohui?"

"Some crazy bastard is attacking Sinyoung's First Lady? Do they have a death wish?"

It was her reputation. Because of her name and history, not a single person there was sympathetic. Not one was worried about her. Instead, they were curious. Who was the person daring to attack Yun Seohui?

But...

"...I see." Seohui straightened, brushing off the glass on her clothes.

At the same time, her attacker landed on the street in front of her.

But he wasn't alone.

They were subtle, but Seohui sensed some other killing intent aimed at her from in the crowd. Assassins... but not from another organization. Considering the vice grip Sinyoung held on Scheherazade, that was impossible.

Which meant this was internal.

It was unexpected, but Seohui was calm. This wouldn't be the first time assassins tried to steal her life away.

But she had to admit that it would be the first that those assassins came from Sinyoung.

The problem was the motive. Without knowing that, her odds of survival were near zero.

If it was her younger sister in a coup, then she would be safe as long as she reached her other men. There could be a few who turned coats, but not all of them. Not only that, but their father had the ultimate say, and he wouldn't let a sibling squabble swallow up all of Sinyoung.

But that was impossible.

Unless Seohui was completely wrong in her reading of Jihu's personality, he wasn't the type who would let something like that happen. Not only that, but he had been genuinely concerned about her life.

Possible, but unlikely.

In that case... Parasite infiltrators?

With Sung Shihyun's return and attacking Princess Teresa, it was obvious that he had thrown his lot in with the Parasite Queen. In that case, it was possible they were moving to eliminate the major threats.

If so, then her objective was the same: stall and wait for reinforcements.

But it wasn't that. First of all, Sung Shihyun would no doubt want to take personal revenge. And knowing his personality, he wouldn't be satisfied until he violated her and broke her beneath his feet.

Not that she would allow that, but that man would definitely try.

These attackers weren't trying to kidnap her. They simply wanted her life.

In that case...

"I see. So I've been discarded."

It was simple.

Her father had decided to cast her aside. No, he was probably already planning it. Since the time Seora started making a name for herself and since the time Seohui made the irrational decision to oppose sending reinforcements to Haramark, Yun Seojin, the founder and CEO of Sinyoung, would have decided to restructure the organization.

And to do that, the convenient doll he made would have to go.

It was simple. A simple realization.

Even so...

"...Odd." Seohui rubbed her chest, feeling an empty pit. A chilling sensation that she wasn't familiar with.

...Ah. No. She knew what it was.

Despair.

The man... The loyal messenger that always executed her words until that point. He straightened and then drew a sword, aiming it at Seohui. "First Lady- No. Yun Seohui. Chairman Seojin thanks you for your long service. But as of today, your services are no longer necessary."

Confirmation.

And with those words, the crowd started acting up.

"Wait, what?"

"The First Lady is being ousted from Sinyoung?!"

"Wait... That means...!"

A change in perception and attitude.

Any moment now, the tide would turn. Scheherazade was a safe haven for Seohui because of her reputation. But when that was gone-

She didn't wait to find out.

Yun Seohui.

That was her name. Who she was. The First Lady of Sinyoung. The woman feared by everyone in Paradise.

But it was gone now. And the only thing she had left was the skills she had obtained on her own. The techniques drilled into her, the abilities she learned in accordance with her role.

While that role was gone now... what she learned wasn't. So...

'I can live.'

She judged the situation and made an escape route.

While the crowd was stunned, Seohui grabbed a sword off a nearby warrior and ran.

"Hey!"

The warrior called after her, furious.

But Seohui didn't care.

Knives flew towards her. Arrows as well.

...They planned well. Seohui didn't know for sure if it was her father who arranged this or the board, but they were serious.

Even if she managed to escape to the temple and return to Earth, it was likely that she would succumb to those wounds the moment she arrived.

...No. That was probably what they planned.

If she died here, they would kill her on Earth the moment she returned. And if she didn't die here, they would ensure that her wounds were bad enough that she would when she arrived at her return spot.

Even so...

'Yeah. I'm just worried about what would happen if Seora's big sister dropped dead in front of me...'

Seohui tightened her grip on her sword.

...It wasn't zero. Even if the odds were low, they weren't zero.

So she had to try.

If they were attacking Seohui, then she had no doubt that they were targeting Seora as well. And since she would be out of the picture to deny anything, that attack would be pinned on her.

But she didn't want that.

It was fine if it was someone else. She didn't care about the people she betrayed in the past. The lives she trampled to this point.

But at least him. To the one she decided was her hero. To the one who looked at her with clear eyes and saw her as a normal woman instead of some witch or goddess...

"She's only a High Ranker! Kill her already!"

"Sinyoung's given up on her! We don't need to worry about consequences!"

A hostile mob. Enemies on all sides. Unwanted... Despised.

Seohui saw all of those emotions directed at her. She understood them all.

But she didn't care.

She lost everything. She was thrown away.

But there was one person. One person who would accept her. One person who would believe her even if everyone else said otherwise. One person who she wouldn't die until she met. Until she could tell him that it wasn't her fault. That she never wanted to hurt him.

Blades cutting through her clothes and biting into her flesh. Arrows tipped with poison, magic spells aiming to take her life.

But even then. Even while her body was bleeding and torn apart.

'Just fight.'

It was simple. Unlike before, where she had to think about all the consequences and ripple effects from causality, there was a simple task before her.

Live.

Fight, live, and make it back to Earth.

It didn't matter how that happened as long as it did.

So...

Seohui stopped thinking. Instead, she focused her mind on that one objective.

She felt pain she never felt before. She took grievous wounds to buy just another second to run. She forced her mana through her body to move limbs that wouldn't work on just blood and sinew.

And then, by some miracle, she made it.

Crashing into the Temple of Luxuria, a vaguely familiar Priestess opened a portal for her after muttering something about 'that guy even got to her'.

Like that, she arrived back on Earth. But not in her apartment as expected. Instead, she stumbled into an empty alleyway.

And then promptly had a gun pressed against the back of her head.

"Any last words, First Lady?"

A cold voice. Another Sinyoung assassin.

Seohui closed her eyes and laughed. "...Fine. I... suppose this is the result of the law of causality."

What goes around comes around. A cause always resulted in an effect.

And for her, the one who played the role of the cruel and whimsical First Lady of Sinyoung to the very end...

"Do it."

She accepted her fate.

A gunshot fired. Blood splattered against the alleyway and Seohui slumped to the ground. With that, Seohui's consciousness started to fade.

It was inevitable. A natural result.

Even so, she couldn't help but feel frustrated.

Why?

Why couldn't she have been saved?

Why was it Seora and not her?

Why couldn't she have a hero of her own? Why couldn't her fate have been changed as well?

Why...?

[Why does our mighty Spear Demon hate me so much?]

A glimmer of understanding.

Was it a result of her lingering regrets? Compensation for her untimely death?

The moment before her consciousness cut out entirely, Seohui saw it. No, she didn't just 'see' it. She received it.

Emotions and memories of another lifetime.

Herself and the one she called her hero. A similar situation, one where she had been discarded and sought his forgiveness.

But he wouldn't give it. And the reason for that...

A contract.

Forced servitude.

Countless missions that even High Rankers would have trouble returning from, but where he lived by the skin of his teeth.

A man who became a demon. The man who was the same as her 'Hero', but who she wronged in every way possible.

One who a lifetime of repayment couldn't reconcile.

Right.

The reason she ended up like this was simple.

A vile woman such as Yun Seohui didn't deserve a happy ending.

That was karma.

That was the 'effect' from the 'cause' she enacted with her actions.

That was her end.

Like that... Yun Seohui died.

At least, that should have been the case.

But just before her consciousness cut out...

[I told you, didn't I? How am I going to explain it to Seora if her big sister drops dead in front of me?]

A warm voice called out to the depths of her soul. Faint threads wrapped around her fraying consciousness, tying it back together. And then she felt her body being raised, carried in firm arms.

"T-That's impossible! I shot her point blank! You too! H-How the hell...?! Who, no, w-what ARE you?!"

Laughter. Cold and cruel. Instead of a hero's, it sounded more like that of a Demon Lord's.

"Well, to Miss Seohui here, I'm a hero. But to you fucking bastards who tried to off my wife and to that asshole who tried to kill his daughters just to make a fucking PR play... I'm your worst nightmare. Now... Your Emperor commands you tell me everything you know and then kill yourself."

An incomprehensible result. Something that Seohui couldn't understand. Something that didn't make sense off of what she had done up until that point.

But she knew one thing.

"Take it easy for now, Miss Seohui. And... sorry for being a bit late."

...It seemed like Jihu proved her wrong again.

Seohui smiled and then let the darkness take her.

...Even if she didn't wake up again. Even if this was just a dying delusion... That was fine.

This was enough.

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