Chapter 721: I Believe (1)

‘Noona is really quite amazing.’

It was worth saying that her performance had turned out to be the most surprising. I couldn’t believe it no matter how I thought about it.

I was aware that she was somewhat competent, but in fact, Lee Jihye wasn’t all that important to me.

At least that was what I thought when I got out of the tutorial dungeon and headed for the Blue Guild.

Unlike me, who had the Mind’s Eyes, Lee Jihye started the second round with nothing.

‘I didn’t know at the time.’

Lee Jihye didn’t show every card she had at any given time.

People like us always hid a few things, but in the case of Noona, she was a little worse than me.

It was easy to infer from the fact that she didn’t gamble recklessly. The reason was obvious, too. Jihye didn’t reveal all her abilities because…

‘Because she thought she couldn’t handle it.’

She must’ve thought it was dangerous to reveal everything she had under her sleeves without foundation. There were currently countless ways to protect her, but that wasn’t always the case.

She was the opposite of me, who kept growing and developing into betterment.

Still, back then, she fully realized how she could contribute to saving mankind with the masked savior. No, from the beginning, the masked savior wasn’t just one person, but two.

That expression was very trashy, but…

‘Based on what she’s done so far, wouldn’t it be appropriate to call her the masked hero as well?’

Without Lee Jihye, it would’ve felt like my hands and feet were cut off.

“What? Why are you looking at me like that? Did you suddenly realize how important I am?”

“You already are an important person to me, so why would you say that? We’re soulmates, and I used to only have you. You know I love you, right?”

“I appreciate your flattery, but it doesn’t hit home. Your face looks like trash. Is there anything you need me to figure out? You’re thinking too hard. Well, it’s not bad, though. I feel like I’m being treated the way I deserve…”

“Right.”

“That’s why you have to be capable.”

“By the way, Noona. Is that alright? What about Dominions? Don’t you still have her?”

“There’s still some of her left, but she’s almost dead. Oh, I don’t mean I really killed her. She’s been getting a little quiet lately. I think she’s starting to accept that I’m in her body now, and she’s becoming obedient, but she snaps sometimes. She’s probably asking for some attention, but it won’t take long. She’s kind of unexpectedly cute too.”

“…”

“Do you want to know more?”

“No… you don’t have to…”

‘What the hell are you doing?’

I knew she was doing something in her dream using Ronove, but I couldn’t tell what exactly she was doing, which made me feel frustrated.

Of course, it wasn’t something I should be interested in. What was important was that Lee Jihye and Ronove joined hands to defeat Dominions together.

If the two of them were pressuring Dominions, wasn’t that good enough? She was even becoming obedient. There was no need for another comment.

‘She’s in good hands.’

As Noona said, I once thought it was over until she appeared.

I was confident that Kim Hyunsung would wake up, but it was hard to weigh in on his conviction.

Ronove knew that Kim Hyunsung was still alive and exchanged messages with Yuno Kasugano on my behalf since I was in a situation where it was difficult to communicate with them.

Most importantly, friendly forces had sprung up in the middle of the enemy’s camp.

Thronus was supporting me, but he was weak on his own.

No, honestly, it was like there was no such thing as the incompetent bastard. It might’ve been more helpful that way.

There was no need to mention that it had become easier to work in a situation that could be called the worst, thanks to Jihye.

For the time being, she hadn’t been suspected yet after possessing Dominions’ body, so her support was strong.

“So… We’re going on as planned, right?”

“Of course. Why?”

“Because I can’t wait to get back to my body. I asked Yeon-soo to come, but I don’t feel good if I don’t do it myself. There’s so much to manage… If I knew this would happen, I would’ve changed my nails. Do you know the really old-fashioned blue one? Damn right. The Teletubbies color. I’m sure she’s trying to screw me. It’s so annoying.”

“Your real body is sleeping anyway, Noona.”

“Do you think Lee Jihye was created overnight? I don’t know if you’re born with soft skin like me, but constant care and a little attention have made Lee Jihye what she is now. It’s so annoying. You know that you sound like a person who keeps talking about not gaining weight even if they eat, right? Even in busy situations, I managed my beauty every day… Being unable to take care of my skin really bothers me. Really.”

“…”

“When this is over, the months will be really…”

“…”

“…”

“We’ve got our troops back. Let’s go. I think they’re almost settled.”

“That’s right. Kim Hyunsung is…”

“Yes, I’ll leave it at that.”

As I changed my mind because the story seemed to be going to be longer, Lee Jihye nodded.

She didn’t seem to like it when I cut her off, but she also recognized that it was time to slowly retreat.

When I turned my eyes slightly, I saw soldiers who had no idea what to do with Kim Hyunsung.

The battle was over, and our regressor was looking up at the sky. While carefully staring at him, the gathered troops must’ve been watching the situation a little further away as there was no hostility.

Meanwhile, Cho Hyejin, who was stamping her feet, was also seen.

She approached Raphael and spoke to him, and I thought I didn’t have to listen to know what they were talking about.

She asked Raphael how Hyunsung was, whether he was really healthy and whether he could come back.

Although she seemed a little nervous, I could feel that her joy was greater than her anxiety.

Once revived, she must’ve determined that there might be a way to return to his original form. At that moment, mankind gained a new assignment.

Since we had succeeded in saving him, the next quest was obvious.

Return the sunset hero to the right path.

Perhaps it was considered a top priority. I thought I could get a rough idea of how to get him back, but…

“There could be another way.”

As things on the way to the end of the ship weren’t clearly visible at that point, we had to keep as many possibilities open as possible.

“Do you feel a little bitter?”

“I’m feeling a little worried. I wonder how everyone’s doing? I’m sure Hyejin can handle herself, though. Even though I forgot to leave a manual, I think she’s doing a good job.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to put too much pressure on her, but I think she really likes the situation because Hyunsung seems to be waking up. I don’t know if there’s a chance, though.”

“Why won’t she have a chance?”

“How many times have I told you? Their relationship doesn’t stand a chance. Don’t forget our deal about Lee Kiyeon and Lee Jihoo. There’s no way they’ll fall in love.”

“Don’t forget either, Noona. Let’s see who wins.”

“I’m looking forward to it.”

“So am I.”

I had to take a step forward for the time being since I didn’t want to get far enough to keep picking up useless jokes.

As soon as I spread my wings, I felt my body rising up into the air awkwardly.

The same went for Lee Jihye and Dominions. Watching her expression change little by little, I thought it was time to focus.

The four angels hadn’t noticed that Dominions was Lee Jihye, so it was worth catching such emotions.

At least Lee Jihye’s face, which was left behind, had disappeared completely. She probably felt like she was walking on thin ice in an instant, but Lee Jihye wasn’t nervous at all. Rather, it was hard to hold back laughter at her appearance of having fun.

“We’ll be there in a little while, Lee Kiyoung.”

“Yes, Dominions.”

As I continued to move to the north, a huge temple came to view. It wasn’t known when it was made, but it was a new style of architecture.

I should’ve gotten used to it, but I seemingly couldn’t. Objectively, it looked great, but it didn’t create much emotion.

It was a temple that was going to break, anyway.

That building would disappear without a trace soon enough. As I moved forward a little more, I saw a familiar figure in the distance.

It was Thronus, an incompetent pigeon looking nervously at us. Of course, I didn’t like the way he nodded as if he was lucky to have returned home safely.

‘He’s a real asshole.’

He was one of those who voted against me going outside. Unsurprisingly, it was noticeable that he approached us in a hurry.

Of course, he didn’t speak leisurely immediately. Something much more important than that had happened, after all.

Slowly landing on the temple, Dominions interrupted and opened her mouth before Thronus could approach me.

“Everything’s fine…”

“The fallen swordsman has been resurrected.”

“What?”

“I already told you. The fallen swordsman has been resurrected. I think we’d better call a meeting, Thronus.”

“Dominions, that’s…”

“I’ve already said this twice, but Thronus, the fallen swordsman, has been resurrected.”

‘Jihye and her method acting. Sh*t.’

“Where is Seraphim?”

‘Right, here’s the pressure. It’s his fault, isn’t it?’

“I’ll look into it.”

‘Meanwhile, this incompetent bastard doesn’t even know where Seraphim is. What do you know, you piece of sh*t?’

“Are you sure you used the judgment of sin against the fallen swordsman?”

“I… checked it with my own eyes.”

“Did you check his death yourself?”

“That…”

“Thronus.”

“…”

“It’s something you should have checked.”

“…”

“You know Seraphim well, so how could you be so careless? He’s overconfident of his ability. No matter how dire the situation might be, you didn’t even properly confirm that the spirit of the fallen swordsman has left the body. If I hadn’t gone on a patrol today, I wouldn’t even know he had awakened.”

“…”

“My mistake, Dominions.”

“I’m not blaming you. The one who caused such a problem to occur is Seraphim in the first place. I knew Seraphim’s arrogance would promote trouble.”

‘Once again, right? It’s his fault.’

“Dominions, I’m…”

“I don’t want to hear your excuses or opinions. It already happened, and now we have to find a way to fix it.”

‘Jihye is good. Sh*t. I’m proud of you. Lee Jihye, crush the pigeons.’

“I’ve told you many times that the war against humanity will not be easy, that it will not work out as well as I thought…”

“…”

“Things have changed. We need to decide whether to continue the war or find a new way. It’s urgent.”

I watched Thronus slowly nod in agreement. I didn’t know if he was an idea or not, but as Dominions moved slightly, she talked to me next.

“So… Nothing happened…”

“Let’s go, then, Dominions.”

“Yes, Lee Kiyoung.”

I needed to move without making any eye contact.

“Wasn’t it…”

As Light Kiyoung had said, ‘Don’t ever look at the incompetent.’