Chapter 61: 61

Life at the institute could be said to be a constant fixture of difficulty.

 

Endless assignments, and even various regulations that restricted every single trivial action.

 

For this reason, the Hero Association had taken a lot of care to manage the trainees’ stress.

 

Located at the institute were facilities where they could enjoy various activities such as swimming, tennis, and basketball. In addition, there was the media listening room, which could accommodate up to 500 people and was comparable to that of a movie theater.

 

As such, the free time given to them during weekends to use these leisure facilities was their only pleasure in an otherwise intensive school life.

 

But…

 

While other trainees were enjoying their day off, there was one person who wasn’t.

 

Shiik–Shiik–

 

Next to them was Shirahui sweeping by herself.

 

Those who were passing by glanced at her, and soon murmured something as they burst into giggles.

 

And when she heard it, she trembled with the broom in hand.

 

How did this happen…

 

It had only been two weeks since the start of the semester.

 

But in that short time, even before she could become a hero, her image had fallen to rock bottom.

 

Originally, she thought she would have stood out in class and been the subject of envy and admiration among her peers.

 

However, rather than being worthy of her father’s reputation, she was on the verge of destroying her own reputation because of her actions.

 

“Haa…”

 

She sighed deeply as she leaned against the broomstick.

 

After her meeting with the director a few days ago, she was given 100 hours of cleaning duty as punishment.

 

Most of these chores, such as cleaning, were handled by robots patrolling the campus 24 hours a day, so in fact, there was nothing to be done by herself.

 

In other words, it could be seen that this was purely a punishment imposed by the director to humiliate her.

 

It’s all because of him…

 

She recalled Noah who had been absent.

 

Recently, he hasn’t shown up to any of the classes.

 

She had heard from other professors that he was chosen as a ‘Scholarship Student’ and was taking 1:1 lessons from Professor Samaria. However, even before entering the institute, she had collected a lot of information and there was never any mention of such a thing.

 

Scholarship Student…

 

Did that mean a special curriculum was created for him? And a 1:1 guidance from an A-Rank hero no less.

 

Why was he given special treatment to such an extent?

 

Her stomach felt as if it was distorting with jealousy. She wanted to immediately report these irrationalities to the public, but if she did, the director might catch her again and hold a disciplinary committee this time.

 

What kind of classes was he taking…

 

It could be said that not only her, but everyone at the institute was curious about the contents of Noah’s classes.

 

A 1:1 guidance by an A-Rank hero, they couldn’t even begin to imagine how much better the curriculum would be.

 

I…if I can get that kind of schooling…

 

Her current ability was all thanks to her father who had personally taught her whenever he was free, so she had no choice but to feel envious.

 

And now that the situation had come to this, she felt as if the gap between them would continue to widen.

 

She shook her demoralized heart to clear her mind.

 

No…I’ll have to work harder from now on and catch up with him.

 

Her father had said life was a marathon. It looked like he was ahead now, but if she kept trying without giving up, she might be able to beat him before the end of the semester.

 

And…

 

It hurt her pride a little, but now that he was gone, there would be no one to stop her in future evaluations.

 

Let’s aim to win the end-of-semester evaluation.

 

As she thought as such, among the other trainees gathering on a bench in twos and threes and chatting, she heard a loud voice.

 

“Wow! It was true?”

 

“Really…I didn’t know it would be this bad…”

 

Shirahui clicked her tongue briefly while looking at them.

 

Keep laughing and chatting like that. While you’re wasting your time, I’ll climb up.

 

With that in mind, she picked up her broom again.

 

However, she had no choice but to put it down again soon after.

 

“As expected of Choi Noah! I can’t believe he has achieved this already!”

 

“Is this a practical class for the Scholarship Student?”

 

Shirahui’s head quickly turned.

 

Choi Noah…?

 

She hurried up to the people sitting on the bench.

 

“Hmm? What’s the matter, Shirahui?”

 

“Wait, can I see that tablet?”

 

“…Well, okay.”

 

The man handed over the tablet with a reluctant look.

 

Shirahiu snatched away the tablet, then looking at the screen, it was full of articles about one person.

 

[Little hero Choi Noah! Fought Eighth Layer Hell again and won.]

 

[Let’s learn about the ‘Red’ wanted group, Eighth Layer Hell.]

 

[Choi Noah declared war on Eighth Layer Hell.]

 

“Wh-what the hell is this…?”

 

She quickly clicked on one of the articles. Then, a photo of a crime scene appeared.

 

It was a mosaic-processed photo, but it was evident that there were corpses everywhere.

 

The hell…How many people did he kill?

 

The mosaic was all red. And seeing that, she felt as if she was going to be sick again.

 

“Heup!”

 

Seeing her retch, the men around her became startled and reeled back.

 

However, she didn’t have time to pay attention to such reactions.

 

What the hell is he doing?

 

Was this the Scholarship Student’s curriculum?

 

No, even if it was a special curriculum, how could he have achieved such a result?

 

When it comes to Eighth Layer Hell, it was a group of villains who had never been captured properly.

 

He killed so many of such villains…?

 

Did that make sense? If they could be caught so easily, what were the other heroes doing all this time?

 

Even if she had been in Noah’s position, she never would have been able to achieve the same result.

 

It was a reality she didn’t want to admit.

 

Suddenly, the broom in her hand caught her eyes and a sense of insignificance overcame her.

 

“If you’re done, can I have it back? We have to go now.”

 

“…Yes.”

 

She handed back the tablet with a bitter look.

 

And left alone, she stood for a while without saying a word. 

 

* * * * * * * * * *

 

Gyeonggi-do’s Hero Association. A large woman was angrily walking down a corridor.

 

“Y-you shouldn’t do this. Chief Kim.”

 

“Get out of my way!”

 

“Eeuk!”

 

She pushed those who blocked her path and advanced like an angry bull. And at the end of the path was a door with a nameplate that read ‘Branch Manager.’

 

Bang–!

 

The door opened roughly and sitting there was the A-Rank hero, Jenon.

 

Kim Taehi shouted as soon as she saw him.

 

“Branch Manager! What the hell is the meaning of this?”

 

Her expression was distorted as she held a tablet in hand with news articles displayed on it.

 

However, despite her attitude, Jenon calmly replied.

 

“Meaning of what…?”

 

“Don’t try to play innocent!” 

 

Bang–!

 

Kim Taehi slammed the desk in the room with her fist. The iron desk for office use became horribly distorted.

 

Jenon stared at it and coldly spoke.

 

“Chief Kim, what are you doing? Why don’t you understand your position a little more and act polite when you come into other people’s homes?”

 

“I don’t have time to be polite or argue with you. Please answer my question. These articles! What the hell is this? Didn’t you say you would proceed with an informal investigation a few days ago?”

 

“…This was all necessary.”

 

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“No, I can’t understand why this is necessary! Wasn’t it you who first told me that Choi Noah would be in danger if we made this incident public?!”

 

Kim Taehi said with a flushed face.

 

Jenon, who had many years of experience, rubbed his forehead as if he was in pain. Soon, he sighed and answered.

 

“Hmm…Okay. I guess it would be fine if you know.”

 

Jenon said as he turned the head of an ornament on the desk.

 

In response to his action, mana quickly spread around the room, forming a closed room that cannot be observed from the outside.

 

After confirming that the barrier was working properly, he spoke in an exhausted tone.

 

“Yes…I fully understand how you feel. But I don’t think you understand what’s going on.”

 

“I do! Isn’t it obvious that Eighth Layer Hell will be after the boy now? But why?!”

 

“Yes, like you said. Eighth Layer Hell will be after him. That’s the reason.”

 

“What are you talking about? Are you kidding me right now? That’s more the reason it should have been hidden…”

 

Jenon interrupted Kim Taehi and continued.

 

“The order had come from headquarters. So even for me, there was nothing I could do.”

 

“?!”

 

Kim Taehi had no choice but to be speechless after hearing Jenon. It was impossible to stop the direct intervention of headquarters no matter how she felt.

 

“B-but why did headquarters make such a decision…?”

 

“They didn’t tell me. But headquarters…no, perhaps the current Chairman is going to take this opportunity to weave Eighth Layer Hell together.” 

 

“Don’t tell me…Are you saying that they want to use Choi Noah as bait even though they know he will be in danger?”

 

Kim Taehi looked at Jenon with a dumb struck look on her face.

 

How on earth does the representative of heroes think of using the life of a child?

 

“The election is just around the corner, so I guess he’s trying to achieve some result.”

 

“How could he do that?!”

 

Until now, the villain group called Eighth Layer Hell has been hidden in strict secrecy.

 

Even if a member of the organization dies, far from revenge, their activities would carry on as if nothing had happened.

 

She didn’t know why they were suddenly after Noah, but from the perspective of the Chairman seeking re-election, such an opportunity would look tempting.

 

“Branch Manager! Are you losing the conscience of a hero because of such a desire for power? Don’t you feel ashamed to live like that?”

 

Having understood the whole situation, Kim Taehi shouted fiercely. Jenon frowned when he heard it.

 

“You’d better be careful what you say. Chief Kim.”

 

Aura revolved around his body and a rough maelstrom was formed.

 

Wrapping herself in graphite armor as if she wasn’t going to lose, Kim Taehi shouted. 

 

“Try it if you dare! Even though I’ve retired from the hero industry and became an investigator, I’m confident I won’t lose to a fake hero like you!”

 

Thus, there was a confrontation between the two as they faced each other. And a moment later,

 

“Tsk…That’s the same temper as when you were an active hero.”

 

In the end, it was Jenon who had gained the upper hand first. Sighing, he continued.

 

“Huu…I know very well that this is wrong.”

 

“Then you should have refused!”

 

“But…if I hadn’t done it myself, they might have used a more dangerous method. Don’t you know how those at headquarters think to some extent?”

 

“Th-that’s… “

 

Kim Taehi recalled the behavior of those at headquarters she had seen.

 

Rather than always searching for the best path, even if it was uncertain, they would always follow the path of certainty.

 

In particular, since his active days as a hero, Chairman Hyun had always been a radical who insisted on the law of sacrifice, so what Jenon had said wasn’t entirely improbable.

 

“And you don’t have to worry too much. I didn’t carry out this plan without thinking about it.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“I’ve mobilized all the veterans in our branch to monitor the child. As a result, we’ve even received a lot of complaints of not having enough manpower.”

 

“Ah…”

 

“What do you think? Are you reassured now?”

 

Jenon rolled up one side of his mouth as he looked at Kim Taehi. And when she saw that expression, she sighed with relief. After all, when she was an active hero in the past, things have always gone smoothly whenever he had that smile.

 

Soon, she belatedly remembered what she had done earlier. She immediately bowed and apologized.

 

“I’m sorry. Branch Manager. I was rude. I’ll take disciplinary action for this matter.”

 

“No, you might have thought as such because you didn’t know what was going on. Thanks to you…it made me look back on myself and reminded me of how I used to be. So don’t worry too much about it.”

 

“Thank you for your understanding!” 

 

“But…Do you have any intention of returning to active duty? Looking at your aura earlier, it seems you’re still practicing your ability these days.”

 

“Haha…I’ll think about that a little more.”

 

They exchanged conversations to forget what had happened earlier.

 

The awkward atmosphere was relieved, and before they knew it, the usual smiles were on their faces.

 

At that moment,

 

Knock Knock—!

 

Suddenly, someone knocked roughly on the door and there came an urgent voice.

 

***

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[ Translator – Yasi ]

[ Proofreader – Karane ]

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***

 

“Branch Manager! Trouble!”

 

Feeling something amiss, Jenon immediately lifted the barrier and opened the door.

 

Then, standing there was a man with a deathly pale look. He was one of the team members who had been stationed to monitor Noah.

 

No way…?

 

The man continued.

 

“Choi Noah is gone! I think…I think he has been kidnapped.”

 

And so, Gyeonggi-do’s Hero Association entered a state of emergency to search for Noah.

 

* * * * * * * * * *

 

In the past, there was a group called ‘Kowloon’ that existed in Hong Kong.

 

Originally leading the martial art faction called ‘Dragon Gate’ in the Underworld Alliance, they had moved to Earth and established a company. And through illegal dealings and practices, they were able to accumulate great wealth.

 

The Chairman of Kowloon, seeing that the company had grown large, then tried to build a castle where he could reign like a king, similar to the supreme martial artists of the past.

 

After purchasing a great deal of land around Hong Kong, construction of an enormous city surrounded by high walls began.

 

However…

 

With the fall of Kowloon, the plan had come to nothing, and in the area where the new city was being built, huge slums had formed.

 

A kingdom of outcasts fleeing society. A place where it was impossible to return to normalcy once you crossed the high walls of Kowloon.

 

At some point, people began to call the high walls surrounding it the ‘wailing wall.’

 

And now, in front of the wailing wall stood an eye-catching woman.

 

“Hmm…Is it here?”

 

If anyone who was familiar with this place had seen her, they would have advised her to leave immediately.

 

Eventually, she was met by men who had gathered here after hearing the news.

 

“Hehe…Is she a lost tourist?”

 

“There are some stupid women like that. Crawling into such a dangerous place.”

 

“Hey! I let you have it last time, so this one is mine.”

 

The men took swords and guns out as their eyes glistened with lust.

 

And…

 

Elizabeth, who was looking at it, spoke to the shadow on the ground.

 

“Noah! I think we’ve arrived! As you said, I’ve come to the place where men with weapons appear!”

 

The men who saw her behavior laughed.

 

“Hehe, who is she talking to?”

 

“Tsk, we could have sold her for a higher price if she was sane.”

 

As their words fell, they heard an out-of-place child’s voice.

 

“Oh, we’ve already arrived?”

 

The men turned their heads in the direction of the voice. And then…

 

Swiik–!

 

“Ah…”

 

With a feeling of something passing by, their bodies began to split in half.

 

Shwak–!

 

The bodies of the fifteen people surrounding Elizabeth had instantly split in half, scattering blood on the ground.

 

In the bloodstained landscape, the child smiled brightly and spoke.

 

“It’s been a long time since I’ve been here.”

 

As such, Noah and Elizabeth had arrived in Kowloon safely.

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