Chapter 86: Where Are You (1)
TL/Editor: Raei
Schedule: 5/week, Mon-Fri
Illustrations: Here
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Song Soo-yeon continued with small heaves of nausea.
She felt extreme stress from the words she had just spat out.
She cursed the situation that left her no choice but to utter those words.
If Jung-gyeom were to die... Song Soo-yeon knew all too well that she would be the first to follow him.
Yet, as difficult as it had been, the effect was remarkable.
Solace, who had not been perturbed when it was said that civilians were being harmed, was now completely frozen.
"Power. Off."
Luna commanded.
Solace glared at Luna with burning eyes... but soon, the light in her pupils faded.
Her hair lost its glow and returned to its original color.
Stella's voice came through the radio.
"Two minutes left! Luna, Tryno! We need to get out!"
Tryno staggered to his feet.
Although he was bleeding profusely, his determination knew no end.
Tryno walked towards the stationary Solace.
He advanced, keeping up his guard.
His fist began to glow ominously as he prepared to strike.
"...Did the threat work?"
Tryno wondered, still finding it hard to believe.
But no matter how close he got, Solace did not activate her powers until the very end.
Luna's threat was effective.
She looked up at Luna with a loathing expression, unable to resist at all.
Tryno let out a smirk.
He couldn't laugh as he usually did.
After all, the fact that he had lost to Solace hadn't changed.
"Luna, I knew you'd be useful."
Then, with all his might, he swung his fist towards the still Solace.
-Bang!
The moment his fist connected with Solace, an explosion occurred.
Solace was thrown back against the wall.
She wiped the blood dripping from her mouth and steadied herself.
Tryno clicked his tongue and said,
"...Let's go, Luna."
Song Soo-yeon nodded.
And then they began to evacuate.
Min-Bom would be able to recover.
Not today, though.
---
---
It was unsettling, but a victory was a victory.
Just looking at internet articles, stories about the defeated Solace and the new villain, Luna, filled the pages.
The coverage on Luna was constantly updated.
The Hero Association, trying to cover up its own incompetence, played the media by claiming they had already been aware of Luna's existence, and then made the drastic decision to immediately rank her second on the villain danger ranking.
But Song Soo-yeon couldn't care less about all that.
She needed to return to Jung-gyeom.
[Mister, I'm on my way.]
No reply came back.
He was probably worried because Solace had been injured.
"...Luna. Come and talk before you go."
Tryno said.
It seemed he had mixed feelings, being upset about losing to Solace but having won the fight.
Liquid and Riem, too, were satisfied with having collectively defeated the top-ranked hero.
However, Song Soo-yeon rejected all their proposals.
Because she had received a reply.
[Come to the studio apartment.]
The response was somewhat cold, and equally late.
But it was the reply she had managed to secure.
A reply she had earned by pushing Solace aside.
Upon receiving it, Song Soo-yeon immediately left the hideout.
---
---
Before heading to Jung-gyeom's studio apartment, Song Soo-yeon first gathered the gifts she had prepared for him in her room.
A cream cake and an expensive watch.
Beneath the watch, she had custom engraved the phrase "From Soo-yeon."
It didn't matter to her if Jung-gyeom never noticed the engraving.
As long as it was his.
Song Soo-yeon left her room.
Then, she began to ponder.
She couldn't just walk into Jung-gyeom's room as if nothing had happened.
Especially after such a big incident.
It was easy to predict that Min-Bom would have been injured.
Accordingly, Jung-gyeom's mood would be been quite low.
She wondered what to say first.
Should she start with sympathies about Min-Bom but assure that everything would be okay?
Or should she start with congratulations?
Or perhaps suggest not to worry too much?
Easing his undoubtedly sour mood was the priority.
Giving him the gifts... and maybe a hug might do the trick.
Given how Jung-gyeom found joy in the little things...
Song Soo-yeon also tried to shake off her own unease.
It was a situation of her own making after all.
She cleared her mind.
She decided to focus on the fact that she had secured time with Jung-gyeom.
Happy time spent together would solve everything.
That would be enough.
---
---
".......?"
Song Soo-yeon was taken aback by the crowd gathered in front of Jung-gyeom's studio apartment.
Four people were irritably making a scene.
Among them, a young man taking the lead was banging on the door and shouting.
-Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
"Hey! Come out, will you? Should we call the police?"
Song Soo-yeon approached them to ask what was happening.
"....What's going on?"
"Come out... huh?"
Upon seeing Song Soo-yeon's face, the man's expression softened.
"....Do you live here?"
The man quickly asked about her residence.
Feeling repulsed, Song Soo-yeon responded.
What's going on?
Seeing Song Soo-yeon's annoyed expression, the man quickly offered an excuse.
"Well, there's been shouting and chaos inside, that's why."
"............What?"
Song Soo-yeon became confused.
She couldn't imagine Jung-gyeom shouting.
So, she could only think that there must have been some misunderstanding.
"Are you sure you're not mistaken?"
"No, I'm not. Can't you see everyone gathered here?"
Song Soo-yeon pondered.
...It's possible.
He might have shouted when Tryno landed a hit.
Regardless, she needed to go in.
"...Everyone, please go back. I'll go in and check."
"Ah, okay. But could I get your number..."
Song Soo-yeon ignored him.
-Beep beep beep beep.
Then, entering the password, Song Soo-yeon entered Jung-gyeom's studio apartment.
She quickly forgot about the people who had been standing at the door.
-Creak. Thud.
"...Mister...?"
In Jung-gyeom's dark room, she wondered if he might not be there.
However, Song Soo-yeon spotted a figure hiding in the shadows.
Just as he had told her to come to the studio apartment, Jung-gyeom was indeed inside.
Why had he ignored the people outside?
Feeling puzzled, Song Soo-yeon observed Jung-gyeom.
He was repeatedly playing something on his phone.
'...Before I kill that person Jung-gyeom...'
'...Before I kill that person Jung-gyeom...'
'...Before I kill that person Jung-gyeom...'
Song Soo-yeon's breath momentarily seized.
She hadn't expected Jung-gyeom himself to be watching that video.
...It must have been a shock to him.
A villain knowing his name and threatening to kill him would naturally be unsettling.
With difficulty, Song Soo-yeon began to speak, trying to suppress her guilt for causing him this anxiety.
"....It's going to be okay, Mister."
"......"
"The villain's threats are just empty words... So... So..."
"Soo-yeon."
Calm but cold.
A voice different from usual... carrying an imposing presence.
From the darkness, he asked.
"...................Are you hiding anything from me?"
Song Soo-yeon averted her gaze at his question.
Fortunately, the darkness of the room helped hide her agitation.
She tried to calm her rapid breathing and suppress her emotions.
She didn't know why he was asking, but...of course, she had to hide it.
Song Soo-yeon reassured herself. Even heroes didn't know her true identity.
Jung-gyeom couldn't possibly know.
She began to lie again.
"....What do you mean? Mister, I even brought cake. It's unfortunate about Min-Bom, but... at least for your birthday..."
With that, Song Soo-yeon turned on the light in the room.
"..........Huh?"
Song Soo-yeon froze.
She couldn't move, shocked by the state of the room.
A smashed desk.
A broken chair.
A torn wardrobe.
Drawers turned to dust.
A bed with springs popping out.
A shattered window.
Even the portrait of Song Soo-yeon that had been on the wall was ripped apart.
Nothing was normal.
Everything was ruined.
Song Soo-yeon couldn't understand.
Jung-gyeom, who was always kind, sat on the bed, but everything around him was pure chaos.
The atmosphere Jung-gyeom always carried did not match the state of the room.
As she looked around, Jung-gyeom asked again.
"Soo-yeon. Are you hiding anything from me?"
Struggling to take her eyes off her surroundings, Song Soo-yeon swallowed hard.
Then she responded again.
"....What are you talking about? But why is the room like thi-"
-Bang!!!!!!!
Song Soo-yeon was startled, her eyes widening in shock.
Jung-gyeom had thrown his phone to the ground.
The thrown phone shattered completely, scattering fragments all around.
...........
And Jung-gyeom, having done so, covered his face with his hands.
.....Haah.....
Jung-gyeom let out a trembling sigh.
Song Soo-yeon couldn't move.
Fear was becoming reality.
........Then I'll ask again.
Jung-gyeom spoke.
Even his shoulders began to tremble slightly.
It wasn't hard to tell that he was crying, his breathing becoming rapid.
Finally, he asked.
..............Villain Luna.
Jung-gyeom said.
...........How long have you been deceiving me?
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