Chapter 1255. Blue Guild’s Youth Center (24)

This kid was clearly becoming too emotional.

“Answer me! Jin Young!!!” Felis shouted.

‘Seriously? This is just way too much.’

Clearly, Felis believed that he was the protagonist or something, but this wasn’t his story. I understood his sadness, but he was too loud. His cries drowned out everyone else’s cries.

At this point, even the camera had no choice but to focus on him. Large tears streamed down his face, which reflected anguish and remorse.

Anyone watching would think that he just lost his father or something. His emotions had clearly spiraled out of control. For someone shedding tears over a friend he hadn’t known for long, his reaction was so intense that it left people stunned.

“

Aaaaah!

Move! Move out of the way!” Felis yelled.

‘Casting him was a bad idea. I should’ve eliminated him before it got to this point.’

He looked like the type to get yelled at on set for trying to outshine the lead.

Kim Myung-Won was crying, and he looked like he could not believe what was happening, but Felis Hanest was the one drawing the camera's attention the most, and he even looked like he was about to faint.

Of course, it wasn’t that Kim Myung-Won lacked anything. In fact, his reaction felt more appropriate. His tears were genuine, more suitable for a serious drama. He was sympathizing with my past and was feeling frustrated by his powerlessness. He was also in disbelief at how things had turned out.

“Shit... shit!” Kim Myung-Won shouted.

“...”

“I-I couldn’t do anything...

heuk...

” Kim Myung-Won cried.

I wanted to capture the moment when Aryl hugged him tightly to comfort him, but...

“

Aaaaahh!

Get away! Jin Young! Jin Yooooung!”

A drunken man barged in out of nowhere and overwhelmed everyone else in the room.

“It’s dangerous, Mr. Hanest! Th-The area is still contaminated. If we leave it in that state...” Miss Kim Mi-Young paused.

‘Good eye.’

“Not only that, Master Jin Young is—”

“Don’t make me laugh! I told you to move! There’s no way he’d die that easily! Right? Jin Young? You’re not dead yet, are you?! We have to save him. Move out of my way!” Felis yelled.

The trio from the Republic had fallen into despair, unable to do anything, so it was the perfect setting for him to act out. Eventually, Victor Galia snapped back to reality with a piercing scream and collapsed to the ground. He was unusually large for a mage, so watching him sob and writhe like a helpless piglet made my heart ache.

“

Heuuung... heuuung...

” Victor sobbed.

Even the way he cried sounded similar. Slava was sad as well. He could only stare at the scene in a daze, unable to take a single step toward me. For whatever reason, the shot zoomed in on his stunned face.

“

Heuk... heuuuk...

” Xiaolan was also mumbling strange words. “I-It can’t be... I-It’s all a dream. N-None of this... makes sense.

Ha... hahaha...

M-Mr. Jin Young... There’s no way he would die like this. It’s all a lie.”

Unlike Kim Myung-Won and Felis Hanest, the trio had been under constant supervision and care. Right when things were starting to get a little emotional... Felis Hanest stole the spotlight again, yelling, “Jin Young! Jin Yoooung! Say something!”

If that villain, Professor Traore, hadn’t shown up again out of nowhere, things would have turned into a one-man show for him.

Traore, who had briefly slipped out of everyone’s minds thanks to the demon, came rushing back toward the magic circle while muttering a strange incantation.

“

Hiccup... hiccup...

Th-This... doesn’t make any sense...

hiccup

... This doesn't make any sense!” Professor Traore yelled.

“Professor Traore...”

“B-Because of those kids, my plan... This... is impossible! I-I’m a man... who’s destined to become the God of Magic! I-I’m someone who’s destined to become the king of the brand-new world... B-But... those kids...” Traore mumbled.

“Traore, you bastard!”

“

Hiccup... hiccup...

shit... shit!!!” Traore shouted.

Left alone, his choice was obvious.

“F-Fine. I’ll just kill you all... I-I’ll kill you all!” Traore threatened them.

Delivering such a cliche line was the most obvious next step.

“Prepare for battle! Stand up! Let’s not let Jin Young’s sacrifice be in vain!”

“Y-You stupid... stupid kids... Y-You dare... think you can go up against me... You think you’re worthy of being my opponent? The one destined to become the God of Magic? D-Die while cursing your incompetence... y-you useless and disgusting little brats!”

“Sync your mana! What are you doing?! Everyone!”

“You bastard! I’ll kill you!” Felis Hanest yelled.

“Felis Hanest! Don’t break formation! You can’t take him on alone!”

The kids, consumed by rage, channeled their spells, but there was little hope that they could actually put up a fight. Still, they weren’t entirely hopeless. Professor Traore himself was heavily injured, and his mana wasn’t flowing properly.

If the kids had been in a better mental state, this would have turned into a decent fight, but sadly, that wasn’t the case.

Most of them were either consumed by rage or had sunk into sorrow so deep that they could no longer move. Not only could they no longer channel their spells properly, but the majority had already lost the will to fight.

Professor Traore drew upon the last bits of his power to manifest dozens of plague-tipped arrows and orbs.

𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

The kids’ faces became stained with despair at the sight.

“Is this how it ends...”

“

Heuk... heuk...

Mr. Jin Young... this doesn’t make sense. I’m sure this is a dream...” Xiaolan mumbled.

“

Heuuuung...

”

“Traore, you bastard! I’ll kill you!” Felis shouted.

“Die... d-die! You arrogant pests!” Traore screamed.

Had

that person

not shown up at just the right moment, the kids would have been in real danger.

‘He’s here.’

The mood had shifted.

I couldn’t hear his voice, but I could clearly hear his footsteps getting closer to us.

“...”

“...”

‘He’s here. H-He’s... here! I knew he was going to come here!’

“...”

“...”

“...”

The plague-tipped arrows and orbs disappeared into nothingness.

‘Are you cancelling the spell?!’

He forcibly synced with Professor Traore’s mana to cancel the spells.

‘It’s an extraordinary skill, damn it!’

He hadn’t revealed himself on the stage just yet, but the kids knew backup was here.

It was also proven by how Professor Traore was shouting, “Wh-Who are you...? Who the hell are you?!”

Moments later, he finally stepped onto the stage. He wasn't here as the Hero of Shadows, but as my father, Jin Cheong. His heavy footsteps echoed loudly as he marched forward.

The kids stared wide-eyed at the newcomer.

Jin Cheong's face, burning with fury and hate, was a side of Jin Cheong they had likely never witnessed before. I was sure that was the case even for those from the Republic.

He didn’t look like his usual composed self. After ripping through the barrier, his clothes were scorched, charred in places, and his usually neat hair was a mess.

But above all, his eyes were different. They were the eyes of a beast unleashed from its cage. I disliked it, but even I had to admit that he looked powerful in a brand-new way.

“H-H-How... are you here...” Traore stuttered.

JIn Cheong didn’t answer.

“Commander?”

“Commander...?”

The kids from the Republic called out to Jin Cheong in confused voices. However, there was no way he would answer them—that was obvious from his twisted face.

He said nothing and simply marched forward with heavy steps. There was no questioning it. His eyes were transfixed on me, and he saw that all color had been drained out of me.

However, Professor Traore was unaware of that and recklessly cast spells in an attempt to stop Jin Cheong.

“

Eek!

D-Don’t come any closer! Don’t come near me!” Traore shouted.

“...”

“Don’t come any closer! S-Shit! Don’t come near me!” he repeated.

“...”

“Don’t come! Don’t come near meee!!” Traore yelled out.

Spells manifested in mid-air, but they were dispelled almost immediately. Even those that were fired successfully were blocked by an invisible wall before they could reach Commander Jin.

Despite the fact that Jin Cheong was just walking forward with steady steps, Professor Traore was falling apart. The self-proclaimed God of Magic was being thoroughly humiliated by someone who wasn’t even a proper mage.

“Die! Die! Please... please... die!” Traore shouted.

“...”

“Die!!! Dieeeeeeee!” Traore yelled.

And then...

Smack!

Jin Cheong’s fist landed on his face.

Craaaaaaack!

‘Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch!’

Craaaaaaack!

‘Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch!’

Craaaaaaack!

‘Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch!’

Craaaaaaack!

‘Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch! Popularity boost punch!’

Whenever that guy used his fancy Chinese martial arts, he would always look so clean that even a single drop of blood would never land on him. However, the way he was fighting at the moment was in stark contrast to his usual ways.

Despite knowing how to throw a proper punch, he was swinging his fists as if he were some kind of street thug. His punch, of course, landed squarely on Professor Traore's face.

Blood and saliva got all over his fist, but today, it was clear that he couldn't care less about keeping clean. Grotesque noises of bones and teeth being crushed echoed incessantly, and Traore was eventually blasted away.

Jin Cheong had punched Traore so hard that the latter's teeth got stuck in his fist.

‘He looks like he’s taking out his anger right now.’

It was almost surprising that he hadn’t died from that single punch. Professor Traore, already sprawled out and thrown against the wall, could be seen crawling away in retreat.

“S-Save me... please... please save...

ugh... kgh...

” Traore begged.

“...”

“Save... save...

uh...

” he mumbled.

“...”

‘But the kids are watching. Commander Jin... what’s wrong? And you can’t kill him. We have to get every last bit of information from him.’

“I-I’m sorry...” Traore muttered.

Devastated by the loss of his son, Jin Cheong couldn't hear anything. Perhaps he knew not to kill. Traore was still breathing, but he stomped on the defeated professor with a loud

bang!

Traore slammed hard into the ground and fell unconscious.

The kids, unsure whether to feel relieved or scared, looked somewhat reassured. After all, Commander Jin was here. Although there were resentful glances, seemingly asking why he hadn’t come sooner, no one dared to say that out loud.

“Get up...” Jin Cheong mumbled.

“...”

“Get up, you bastard!” Jin Cheong shouted.

The Republic’s genius commander and the Hero of Shadows. He was renowned for his brilliant mind and cold, calculating nature, but he couldn't... come to terms with the death of his son.

“Stop joking around and get up!!!” Jin Cheong yelled.

‘Damn it...’

“I told you to cut the crap and get up already. You bastard!” Jin Cheong added.

This tale would definitely reduce just about anyone to tears.