SWNOVELXO Chapter 100
As I stepped outside, Justitia practically sprang towards me from the car.
I meant to just wave casually, but she suddenly lunged at me and wrapped me in a tight embrace.
For a moment I was shocked by her unexpected action, but then I quickly realized her breaths were a bit shaky.
“It’s really okay, so don’t worry. In fact, I’ve even become stronger, right? But I won’t lie, there’s a bit of unease.”
“I should have stopped you…”
There was a reason Justitia was feeling guilty. She hadn’t intended for things to go this way, but she bore about 25% of the blame for it.
To sum it up, Heros Company suggested a new technology to the Academy about a week before finals, wanting us to try it out.
If Justitia had been the only one to refuse, things would have just followed the usual curriculum, she confessed to me.
But Justitia thought it sounded fine and, more importantly, she hoped we would have a better experience, so she accepted.
And well, things ended up going terribly wrong.
“But at least it ended up well, right? That’s what matters. Don’t be too hard on yourself, Justitia. If you keep blaming everything on yourself, you won’t have any heart left.”
As I patted her back to comfort her, Justitia finally seemed to relax a bit and murmured a small, “You’re right.”
The morning air was chilly, so I suggested we head inside and talk some more, and we both got into the car. Justitia said since it was late, we should just head home.
I had no objections and nodded in agreement.
The dawn in Heros City was quieter than during the day, but it wasn’t silent. The city never truly sleeps. Its system squeezes out the sweat and blood of its citizens, day and night.
Seeing the busy citizens at this hour, I felt a strange mix of superiority and a twinge of envy.
The superiority came from watching them struggle to fit into society like that.
The jealousy arose from seeing my own hazy reflection, unable to blend into society even in that way.
The thrill of temporary superiority faded, and chronic jealousy and inferiority loomed over me, so I whipped out my phone.
The phone was nice. It helped me forget the world.
When I opened my messenger, I found over a hundred messages from my friends. It made sense. Other than the ones who were with me, many wouldn’t understand why I had to go through the exam.
“At this hour… the others are probably sound asleep.”
I thought about sending a message saying I was fine, but texting at dawn felt a bit off.
“You’re getting along well with your friends. As a teacher, it’s something to cheer for, but…”
Justitia trailed off, as if she didn’t want to say anything beyond that.
“Oh come on, what are you worried about? Do you really think I would forget my duties? Maybe it’s you who’s the one getting a bit shaky~?”
I teased her a bit, tapping her with my tail, and Justitia twitched as if my fur tickled, retorting that she was just the same.
After that, looking at the messages from my friends felt oddly unfamiliar… awkward… and…
No, never mind. It’s nothing.
My duty is that of the Liberator. I won’t forget. I shook my head to clear my thoughts, but I still couldn’t quite clear my mind, so I turned to Justitia for help.
“Ah, it’s daytime where the Boss is, right? Justitia, do you have any spare beads? I think it’s better to meet in person rather than send a message.”
I asked her if she had any beads for traveling to where he was.
“Huh? Er, I have some, but… how will you get home?”
Justitia casually tossed me some beads while asking the obvious.
“Wei should have some. I told that little brat to keep a few spare ones.”
“Oh, got it. Then that’s no problem, but don’t forget you need to come to the Academy tomorrow.”
Justitia warned me as she dropped me off near my hideout.
Maybe seeing the Boss would settle my rattled heart a bit. I hadn’t visited in a long time, so I opened the slightly rusty iron door and stepped into my hideout, chewing on a bead.
As usual, I fought off the dizziness that came with the bead’s power, then opened my eyes. I was in the terrace of the Boss’s mansion.
Justitia is coming here. I had just casually chosen my room as a spawn point.
After feeling a moment’s joy at seeing the garden and fountain again, I quickly fled inside the mansion, unable to withstand the scorching sun.
The blistering sun of Portugal is too intense to endure. I waved my shirt around, trying to push in any cool air, and headed toward my destination.
Pressing my ear against the door to listen, I could definitely hear the Boss inside. There were sounds of muttering and tapping—seemed like he was working.
It felt like I was intruding, but he had said I was always welcome. I swung the door open without knocking and dashed inside.
“Oh, Blanca. What are you doing here, cough!”
The Boss stood up to greet me, but I bumped into him and nearly sent him sprawling backwards. Now it felt like I had tackled him.
I hurriedly jumped off him and asked if he was hurt, and he groaned that seeing I’ve gotten heavier meant I had been well.
“Don’t say I’ve gotten heavier—let’s say my density has increased, shall we?”
He used to handle me easily, but now he was definitely feeling the extra weight.
Yet, I didn’t want to admit it, so I weakly resisted. It wasn’t that I was gaining fat or that my body was getting bigger.
Right. Not exactly a wrong statement.
“If you say that, then… Ugh… But since you made it here, you seem to be safe. Thank goodness. Really, I nearly dropped dead when Justitia told me you’d been dragged off by Heros Company. So, what happened?”
The Boss asked for the full story.
“I’m not sure what all happened, but…”
I resolved to tell him everything I knew.
After listening to me, the Boss just left a short comment.
“A student attending the Academy they built almost died, yet they don’t even apologize. How can things be this unchanged?”
“So they deserve to be burned down, right? At least it benefits us since I’ve grown stronger.”
I conjured up a suit, manipulating it in the air, even filling it with water and spraying it around to demonstrate.
The Boss was genuinely impressed and gave a nod, but then he placed his hand firmly on my shoulder and spoke seriously.
“But… Blanca. Learn to take care of your body a bit more. We—no, I don’t want you to keep getting stronger at the brink of life and death.”
There were plenty of arguments springing to mind at that moment, but the earnest look on his face prevented me from saying anything further.
All I could do was calmly agree and reassure him.
“Right. Please do. We’re going to need to overcome many tough battles ahead.”
That new technology really was impressive.
The Boss, seemingly regaining his humor, asked if I’d like to have a cookie before I left.
“No, I just… yawn. Can I take a nap first? Just until around 10. They made me go through all sorts of tests and I’m exhausted.”
“If that’s what you want, then go ahead.”
— — —
“Mr. Park, congratulations. You’ve finally produced results that allow me to keep you alive.”
Mr. Park tried to make excuses while being crushed under the weight of a bulky man, but he couldn’t respond since the man was pressing down hard enough to keep him from speaking.
“Your intelligence hasn’t greatly diminished, and your temperament has been corrected. Your ability has successfully taken root and transformed you into quite a loyal subject. Oh, of course, I mean loyal only to you.”
The bulky man roughly grasped Wang Tai-lun’s head, his hands glowing a dark red.
“I’ll give you a good score for almost succeeding, Mr. Park. You really are a genius. I almost fell for it myself.”
The man chuckled while pressing down a bit harder with his foot.
“But… you always seem to let your guard down at the last moment, Mr. Park. What good is having a counter for domination if you willingly walked into its grasp?”
Blood was starting to flow from Mr. Park’s mouth. His limbs still thrashed about violently, but it wasn’t enough to shake off the man’s foot.
“Ah. And another thing. We’re bringing in a new researcher. Mr. Park, it seems I won’t have to grill you anymore. Farewell, Mr. Park. You won’t be going far.”
The man said this and stomped down, separating the elderly man’s upper and lower halves.
The upper half twitched a bit before stopping entirely.
“…This is pretty much how things work here. Are you really going to go through with it? The justice you seek isn’t here.”
The man looked at another elderly person and spoke as if it were the last opportunity.
“Yes, it is. Heros Company is a den of devils that should be burned to the ground…!”
“Good. Welcome to the Evil Society, Director. No, from now on, are you the second Mr. Park?”