Chapter 482

Ha Baek-Yeon’s will... is here?

Se-Hoon looked at the ground Jason was pointing to once more. Aside from the bloodstains, there was not a single thing on the floor. There were no traces of mana, spells, codes, or mechanical devices—literally nothing that might indicate a hidden will.

Then, was Jason simply raving nonsense? Or was there really something only he could see? In truth, Se-Hoon was inclined to suspect the former; however, he also knew that because Jason was a Perfect One, the latter was more likely.

“Are you certain the Visionary’s will is really there?”

“Yes, it’s right there.”

“When did you first discover it?”

“As soon as I entered this place.”

So, Jason had discovered Baek-Yeon’s will the moment he stepped into the Celestial Lake Pavilion? Concluding that it wasn’t the type of phenomenon that was only observable under special conditions, Se-Hoon’s expression became incredulous.

“...Then why are you only telling me now?”

If Jason had seen the will from the beginning, he should’ve mentioned it when they were examining the body, right?

Yet, to Se-Hoon’s common sense, Jason just calmly replied, “You never asked me.”

“...”

Se-Hoon was dumbfounded. Because he had only asked about the signs of resistance earlier and not about any other traces—like a will—Jason hadn’t brought it up? It was the kind of response only a madman could give, leaving Se-Hoon at a loss. And even now, Jason was looking back at him without a hint of guilt?

I’d rather deal with the Seeker.

The Seeker, clever madman she was, at least pretended to be sane. Jason, though, didn’t even try—no, in the first place, common sense didn’t apply to him at all.

Reaffirming once again just what kind of person Jason was, Se-Hoon took a deep breath to settle his emotions.

“Anyway, how did you see the will?”

If Baek-Yeon left behind anything regarding her death, they needed to figure it out quickly to respond to Heaven Eye and the Demon Force.

However, Jason just returned a puzzled gaze after glancing at the empty ground.

“Just look over there. You can’t see it?”

“...No. Apparently not.”

“Same here... I can’t see anything either,” Seon-Woo hesitantly added, finally speaking up from behind Se-Hoon.

Jason looked between the two of them, then nodded.

“I guess both of you have terrible eyesight.”

“...”

“...”

Ignoring Se-Hoon and Seon-Woo, whose eyes were twitching in annoyance, Jason looked down at the spot he was pointing to again.

“Supposedly it becomes visible when you activate the power of Perception. Try that instead.”

“...Sure.”

Following Jason’s suggestion, Se-Hoon stared at the spot and activated the power of Perception.

Swish-

Countless lines of possibilities swirled through the Celestial Lake Pavilion like a gentle breeze. Around the three of them, countless futures emerged and dissipated repeatedly, as if to say their paths were still undecided. Only the area around Baek-Yeon’s corpse lay still, devoid of all possibilities—because everything had already ended.

Filled with a quiet bitterness at the stark contrast between the living and the dead, Se-Hoon examined the spot more closely.

Hmm, still no sign of a will...

Se-Hoon narrowed his eyes. Contrary to Jason’s claim, nothing appeared on the spot. Just like when he first inspected the body, there was no reaction at all even through the power of Perception. There were only two possibilities left now.

Either Jason is delusional... or my understanding of the power of Perception is lacking.

Again, he found the former more likely, but the latter wasn’t out of the question either.

Se-Hoon glanced briefly down at the Hero’s Ring.

The easiest method would be just using this...

By channeling the Hero’s Ring, he could draw strength from the Golden Ring itself and elevate himself to Baek-Yeon’s level of understanding of the power of Perception. In the past, he wouldn’t have hesitated. Now, though, the idea of using the Golden Ring’s power made him uncomfortable in several ways.

I still don’t know what it does to my body.... Using it recklessly might unexpectedly backfire.

Although uncovering the truth behind Baek-Yeon’s death was important, pursuing it wasn’t worth some unsolvable problems in return. Certain of that, Se-Hoon pushed the thoughts of the Ring to the back of his mind and focused on how Jason could clearly see the will without issue.

If Jason can see it, then it means their powers have some points that overlap to some extent.

Since Jason couldn’t use it, then rather than deepening his understanding of the power of Perception, Se-Hoon thought he should just fuse it with the power of Premotion to find what couldn’t be seen. The only problem... was how to even go about merging the two powers that he didn’t have a full understanding of?

Before such a wall, most would have been stumped by the infuriating puzzle. But not Se-Hoon.

Metamorphosing Dreams

Swish-

Countless dreams bloomed before his eyes as the power of Perception and the power of Premotion merged, split, and clashed endlessly within them. Se-Hoon viewed the dreams for longer than usual, allowing the possibilities that soon became countless to bloom and fade over and over.

Woong-

A strange resonance abruptly burst from one of the dreams. Feeling the vibration so intense that even the dream itself trembled, Se-Hoon’s eyes went wide as he swiftly pulled the mixture of powers in that dream into reality.

This is...

There, within the gap he had to peer into with the power of Premotion, the power of Perception had discovered something faint and barely there. Was it just another common possibility... or something else entirely?

Taking the chance, Se-Hoon instinctively reached for it without confirming.

Woong!

Next to Baek-Yeon’s corpse, a faint afterimage began appearing: a tall old woman, dressed in a spotless white trench coat and fedora, untouched by even a drop of blood.

And upon seeing it—thanks to Se-Hoon—Seon-Woo’s eyes widened in shock.

“G-grandaunt...”

“...Yes.”

As if answering Seon-Woo’s call, the afterimage of Baek-Yeon slowly turned her head to face the three of them.

“This is the thing that you can commonly find in mystery novels. A dying message.”

The corners of her lips raised proudly as she introduced herself.

“...”

“...”

Both Se-Hoon and Seon-Woo looked at her with sour expressions. They had expected a solemn and heavy atmosphere, befitting a final message left before death—only to get the complete opposite.

“Actually, wait. Since I left this

before

dying, is it even a will?

Hm.

Now that I think about it, it’s kind of ambiguous.”

“...”

“Well, whether it’s a will or a dying message doesn’t really matter. What matters is that I’m dead, and you two have found this.”

The reaction was far too lifelike for a mere message left before death. It felt as though they were speaking in real time.

“Could it be...?” Seon-Woo muttered to himself, hoping.

“You’re probably thinking that this may be something like a clone I left behind, right?” Baek-Yeon’s will leaned casually against the railing of the Celestial Lake Pavilion. “But as you both know, I possess no such ability. I merely shaped the future so that the one who discovered this message would interact with me in this way.”

“...”

Once the explanation sank in, Seon-Woo didn’t know what to say. Everything he had just thought or done—he believed it was spontaneous. But in reality, it had all already been predetermined and manifested through the power of Perception?

I... never truly was able to comprehend the extent of Great-Aunt’s power...

Experiencing just how transcendent a Perfect One’s power was, Seon-Woo felt a chill run down his spine.

“...If something like that is possible, then why couldn’t you avoid your own death?” Se-Hoon asked, speaking up at that moment.

“That’s a good question.” Baek-Yeon’s image slowly turned to look at where Se-Hoon stood, her tone composed. “That very question strikes at the core of what I’m about to explain: my wish and my power.”

“...”

“Of course, for you to even see me at this point, it means your power of Perception must be on par with mine or...

Hmm

?”

Baek-Yeon’s image paused with a slight frown, her visage slowly filling with disbelief as she turned toward Jason.

“That lunatic came here too? This is... no, well, I suppose birds of a feather flock together...”

“...”

Clearly pretending not to notice Se-Hoon narrowing his eyes at her, Baek-Yeon’s image continued. “I suppose getting help from that guy is one option, but I wouldn’t recommend it. Even though our powers are similar, they’re ultimately different forces. Stick around him long enough and you might lose your temper.”

“Yes, I agree with that—”

“Anyway, we’re running out of time. Let’s return to the main point.”

Cutting the topic short, Baek-Yeon’s image looked down at the ground next to her—the location where she would soon be slumped over.

“Honestly, I’d love to tell you everything right here... but it’s nearly impossible that the two of you are the only ones listening.”

She lifted her gaze once more to look between Se-Hoon and Seon-Woo, staring right between them. Seeing that, they all simultaneously realized that her gaze was directed at the true culprit that had killed her and taken her eyes: Heaven Eye.

“So I’ve hidden the rest of the message elsewhere.”

Pushing off from the railing, Baek-Yeon’s image extended one hand and conjured a pure white longbow, the White Night Bow. Then, pulling back the bowstring and aiming it high, she let it loose toward the ceiling of Celestial Lake Pavilion and the sky beyond.

Twang-!

A white arrow shot skyward, splitting into dozens of shards. Scattered across the globe, each fragment was a piece of Baek-Yeon’s message—and Se-Hoon had tracked every last piece with hawk-like vision.

“Each shard holds a different message, but only one of them reveals the truth behind my death.”

Dissipating the longbow, Baek-Yeon’s image looked at the three of them.

“Well, then... until we meet again.”

Fwoosh!

Just like that, she was gone.

“...”

Quietly staring at the now empty space, Seon-Woo turned to Se-Hoon.

“What do you think... of what she said?”

“I’m not sure...” Still thinking about Baek-Yeon’s “will,” Se-Hoon calmly said, “But one thing

is

clear—we’re at a disadvantage.”

Baek-Yeon had left the message assuming Se-Hoon’s power of Perception would be on par with hers. But instead, Se-Hoon had actually cheated by fusing that power with the power of Premotion, slightly deviating from her expectations.

I could track all the trajectories, but... anything beyond that is too much.

Likely because his power of Perception was incomplete and his power of Premotion lacked refinement, following the trails now would almost certainly put them one step behind Heaven Eye.

“That’s...”

Seon-Woo clenched his fists. To think that they—her own disciples—were already lagging behind the man who had murdered her and stolen her eyes...

Is there really nothing I can do?

Seon-Woo despaired. If there were a way to take revenge on Heaven Eye, he’d give everything to achieve it.

Woong-

Seon-Woo’s blue-dyed pupils began darkening into a black—

“But hey, no need to worry.”

Interrupting Seon-Woo’s wallowing, Se-Hoon’s relaxed voice full of certainty filled the air.

“I still have a way.”

“...”

Unlike himself—filled with helplessness and despair—Se-Hoon stood with unwavering confidence. Because of him, Seon-Woo was able to pull out of his spiral of self-doubt.

“What kind of way?” he quickly asked, feeling a surge of hope.

Whatever method Se-Hoon had thought of, it was surely more effective than anything he could have imagined. Deeply believing that, Seon-Woo shook off the encroaching madness and watched with a tense expression.

“If we strike ‌a fair fight off our list, what’s left?”

A smirk crawled onto Se-Hoon’s face as he went over the plan in his head.

“We fight dirty. Cheat, deceive, and play dirty.”

***

A vast plain stretched to the horizon. Standing among the overgrown grass—which towered over two meters high—was the long-haired Heaven Eye.

He was staring blankly into the empty air.

“...”

Aside from the rustles of the grass swayed by the wind, the plains were deathly quiet. Yet Heaven Eye was focused on something—as if he were watching something no one else could see.

His stolen grey eyes, once Baek-Yeon’s, faintly shimmered.

The heavy silence dragged on and on until...

“Whew...”

Heaven Eye exhaled and slowly closed his eyes.

“Ah. Seems like we finally got through. All done over there?”

The moment his eyes shut, a third eye opened on his right cheek. At the same time, the voice of Tuner echoed in his mind.

“I told you not to connect right after I used the Cursed Eye of Perception,” Heaven Eye snapped, furrowing his brow.

“Huh? You did? Hold on, let me check.”

Rip- Crunch-

The sound of something being dug out echoed faintly through the link before Tuner’s refreshed voice sounded once more.

“Ah, right. You did say that after the transplant, didn’t you? My bad. You know how my condition is nowadays...”

“Forget it. What do you want this time?”

“I came to check the status of the Cursed Eye. Considering that it is from a Perfect One, I need to be careful.”

If it were just a regular hero’s Cursed Eye, Tuner was certain Heaven Eye could handle it easily by himself. But a Perfect One’s eye? And from the Visionary at that? That was a different story.

Heaven Eye ran a hand lightly over his transplanted eye.

“It functions fine under normal circumstances.”

“Which means after using it, your brain still gets grilled like a steak.”

“...”

“Well, can’t be helped. It’s a Perfect One’s power, after all—even if it’s indirect.”

Recalling how Tuner mentioned avoiding it would require either adapting to the searing pain or reconfiguring the Cursed Eye into something else entirely, Heaven Eye flatly remarked, “I’ll let you examine it quickly.”

“Tsk tsk tsk. Not long ago you were begging me to tell you how to use it, and now look at you.... This is why you demon bastards—”

“I’m cutting the connection.”

“Okay, okay! Geez. I’ll start.”

Grumbling, Tuner checked the Cursed Eye by partially possessing Heaven Eye for a while. And once he was done, he let out a low whistle.

“Whew... I felt it during the transplant too, but... this really is something unreal.”

Not only could it nearly read all the uncertain probabilities of the future perfectly... it could even forcibly

realize

them. Just from the power alone, it was clear how deeply Baek-Yeon had obsessed over the future.

“Hmm... with just this single Cursed Eye, the balance is off. Maybe if I swapped one with mine—”

“I have no need of the Seeker’s eye.” Heaven Eye’s cold rejection rang out.

Yet despite the firmness in his voice, Tuner pleaded with him still.

“You’re only saying that because you haven’t used it yet! It’s got some decent featur—”

“Quiet.”

Sensing something, Heaven Eye cut him off and looked up at the sky. Even without engaging the Cursed Eye of Perception, he could see a torrent of ominous possibilities surging toward him from all directions.

What the hell is this...?

The misfortune and danger were overwhelming. Realizing how dire his situation was, Heaven Eye prepared to activate his eye.

Gloop-!

“!?”

But before he could act, darkness surged up from the ground to swallow the earth itself.

Swoosh-

Having instinctively kicked off the ground in time, Heaven Eye retreated. Up in the air, he watched as lines—vertical and horizontal—formed in the darkness before turning into

countless

expressionless eyes.

Swish-

The Eyes of the Nether, once the symbols of the fallen Eternal Nocturne Wurgen Kruger, blanketed the entire plains. Now inherited by Wurgen’s disciple, the eyes of the dead that were capable of discerning life and death all turned their gaze upon Heaven Eye.

“Found you.”

“You monster...!”

Thus began the deadly game of hide-and-seek for Baek-Yeon’s legacy.