Chapter 145

Chapter 145

The world was thrown into chaos by the shocking news of the three Perfect Ones’ cooperation. Previously, those three had interacted so little that they appeared hostile. This cooperation was the first time they showed a willingness to do such a thing.

And although it was supposed to be about the reorganization of Babel’s system, few people took it at face value.

“Are they really going to hunt down the Ten Evils?”

“If those three are working together, it’s definitely possible. After all, the Emperor of Ascension could handle three of them by himself.”

Thanks to the announcement, the populace’s growing anxiety over the existence of the Ten Evils began to cease, their fear naturally transforming into anticipation for their eradication. Thus with hopes of joining the effort, Babel, now jointly managed by three Perfect Ones, saw unprecedented popularity.

“I heard Babel’s headquarters is completely paralyzed because of top-ranking students from other academies clamoring to transfer to Babel.”

“Really, to that extent?”

Jake nodded while skillfully peeling an apple.

“Most of them didn’t join Babel because of the Chairman. So now, tons of applications are pouring in for all grades—to the extent that some call it the second entrance ceremony of the year.”

“It’s probably a complete mess there...”

Though Babel was the world's most prestigious educational institution, many avoided enrolling due to vested interests. However, with two of Perfect Ones—especially Wurgen from the UD Group, who constantly clashed with Ludwig—joining in, those avoiding Babel immediately submitted their applications.

I still can’t figure out why Wurgen changed his mind so suddenly...

Se-Hoon couldn’t help but be curious about what kind of reward Wurgen, who had been so eager to destroy Babel through the media just a few days ago, was promised to receive for cooperating so willingly.

“Here,” Jake said, offering him a fork.

“Ah, thanks...”

Seeing Se-Hoon turn his head to look at the intricately carved apple slice in the shape of a rabbit, Jake avoided his gaze.

“Well... my sister likes it like this.”

“...I see.”

Feeling a brother’s sorrow from him, Se-Hoon bit into the apple slice and asked, “Where is your sister, by the way?”

“She had to take care of another job and left right away. She asked me to give you her regards.”

“Hm...”

Had Aria not appeared at that moment to save him from the assassins and bring him to the hospital, his condition would have been much worse. He did feel grateful to her, but he also felt a mix of complex emotions.

A bond has been formed with her...

What had she seen and thought while he was unconscious? Unable to even guess, he decided to put it out of his mind for now.

I’ll just have to ask her the next time we meet.

He decided that thinking about it now would only give him a headache.

As he organized his thoughts, Jake cautiously asked, “Hey, Se-Hoon... when are you going to call Erika?”

“Hmm?”

Caught off guard by the unexpected question, Se-Hoon confusedly looked at Jake.

“Did something happen to her?”

“No, it’s not that, but she has been feeling a bit down lately... and since I came here before her, it might make things worse.”

Seeing Jake’s awkward expression, Se-Hoon quickly figured out why.

Oh, perhaps it’s because of her family.

Now that the tense atmosphere had somewhat eased, the Myers family started spreading news about their line of mass-produced sword aura equipment. As a result, rumors about how the Inoue family lost the recruitment competition were also spread, and if it was known that Jake had visited Se-Hoon first as well, it was a guarantee it would stir up more talk.

These speculations and exaggerations are always such a nuisance.

Annoyed, Se-Hoon shoved more apple slices into his mouth. Then, when he finished chewing, he replied, “I’ll call her next.”

“Okay, then I’ll... oh, wait.”

Suddenly remembering something, Jake paused while getting up to leave.

“By the way, have you seen Yeom Sung-Ha sunbae?”

“Yeom Sung-Ha? He hadn’t even applied to visit me yet.” And from the look of things, Sung-Ha didn’t seem to have any plan to do so.

Though initially confused by Se-Hoon’s response, Jake soon came to a realization.

“Oh, you didn’t know he was hospitalized?”

At those words, Se-Hoon, who had been chewing an apple slice, froze and slowly turned his head.

“...Hospitalized?

"Yeah. He got injured badly after fighting the spies...”

“Let’s go.”

“Huh, what?”

Wasting no time, Se-Hoon got up from his bed and, leading Jake, headed straight to the area where Sung-Ha was likely admitted.

Yeom Sung-Ha—finding his name on the plate next to a door, Se-Hoon involuntarily swallowed hard before entering the room. Walking in, the first thing he saw was a muscular body covered in scars and stitches, evidence of the fierce battle its owner had recently fought.

“Whoa...!”

Within the room, Sung-Ha was doing handstand push-ups with sweat pouring off his body and pooling on the floor. Se-Hoon stared blankly at the vigorous sight before letting out a sigh of relief.

“Phew...”

Given how much Sung-Ha despised hospitals, Se-Hoon feared Sung-Ha had suffered permanent damage like Luize after hearing that someone like him was hospitalized. Thankfully, however, his injuries didn’t seem to be that severe.

I nearly had a heart attack back there.

Meanwhile, Sung-Ha’s relentless push-ups came to a halt.

“Hm?”

Having finally noticed Se-Hoon and Jake by the door, Sung-Ha pushed off the floor and stood upright. When he then turned toward them, the deep scars across his ribs and abdomen became visible.

...Those look pretty deep.

If they appeared that bad on the surface, they must have affected his internal organs when he first got injured. However, upon examining Sung-Ha’s overall condition, it appeared that the wounds, albeit severe, had healed well over the past week.

Feeling somewhat reassured, Se-Hoon asked, “Are you okay?”

“As you can see,” answered Sung-Ha plainly after looking at him for a moment.

Swoosh-

The scene of his familiar hospital room peeled away like the skin of a fruit, revealing a pure white space.

This should be...

He was mid-spatial movement, a process he hadn’t witnessed before. Feeling something lurking in the white space, Se-Hoon tried to turn his head, but his surroundings shifted before he could.

Whoosh!

He was now in the old and stately chairman’s office.

“Ugh...”

Previously, he had only felt a sense of déjà vu due to the unfamiliar process, but now, after witnessing it from start to finish, he felt nauseous.

I guess it’s not a good thing to have a half-baked spatial ability...

Seeing Se-Hoon frowning due to the queasiness, Ludwig looked at him from his seat behind the desk, his eyebrows raised in surprise.

“Did you... perhaps, see something on the way here?” he asked, genuinely surprised.

Se-Hoon nodded, still bewildered by what he saw.

“I saw something like a white space.”

“...Wow. So you can already perceive the Whitespace,” muttered Ludwig in amazement.

At those words, Se-Hoon suppressed his nausea and looked toward Ludwig with curiosity.

What is this “Whitespace” that’s so surprising to him?

Was it not something anyone with the ring could see? Pondering what to say, Ludwig spoke after a moment, “We’ll discuss this another time. It’s still a bit early for you to grasp this concept.”

“Yes...”

“So, how’s your condition? Professor An informed me you’re doing well.”

Stopping himself from saying he was fine, Se-Hoon hesitated and decided to be truthful.

“I’m fine, but... it feels a bit lacking...”

“Lacking?”

“At times like this, I would like to take in a lot of nutrients and mana to improve my body and heal my injuries faster, but the professor seems to be overly worried...”

Among the many gifts Se-Hoon received from Eun-Ha, there were no elixirs, and Jake’s gifts had also been thoroughly checked even after he was informed that anything related to elixirs was banned.

Now, his only hope to acquire some elixirs was the highest authority in Babel who was standing before him.

Ludwig gazed at him for a moment before smiling.

“That’s unfortunate. While Professor An is very skilled, he tends to be a bit overprotective.”

“Then...”

Se-Hoon’s eyes lit up with hope, feeling the favorable atmosphere.

“However, if the attending physician had made such a judgment, there must be a reason. We should respect the expert’s decision.”

But Ludwig calmly extinguished that hope, thoroughly at that.

And while he wasn’t wrong, it wasn’t the answer Se-Hoon wanted. He narrowed his eyes, looking at the highest authority of Babel who was acting powerless.

What kind of Chairman acts like this...

Grumbling internally, Se-Hoon only looked at Ludwig again when he spoke after a moment of silence.

“Hm, do you know why Professor An banned elixirs?”

“...He said there’s a chance my mana could go out of control while taking them.”

Though Se-Hoon knew it was unlikely for such a thing to happen to him, others wouldn’t see it that way.

Ludwig chuckled and said, “In that case, if there’s a safe method that won’t cause that, it should be fine.”

Before Se-Hoon could even ask if such a method existed, Ludwig lightly waved his hand in the air.

Whoosh-

Space split in half, and flames flowed out to form a small familiar shape with wide wings and ornate tail feathers. Se-Hoon blinked repeatedly at the appearance of the small familiar.

“The Vermillion Bird...?”

He had heard Ludwig had dealt with it, which naturally made him wonder if Ludwig had used its materials somewhere.

“To put me in this form...”

“Quiet.”

With just one word, the Vermillion Bird fell silent.

Then, Ludwig started his explanation. “This is a clone of the Vermillion Bird you captured. The main body is confined elsewhere, but within Babel, I can draw on its power through this clone.”

“I see.” Se-Hoon looked on with interest.

“While researching it over the past week, we’ve discovered something interesting by chance: the Vermillion Bird can absorb the power of the things it burns.”

“Their power...?”

Ludwig nodded at Se-Hoon’s question.

“Regardless of its attributes or whether it's mana. Simply put, it converts their form into flames.”

“Just the forms...”

Even from just that brief description, the ability sounded immensely useful. After a moment, Se-Hoon connected the dots and his eyes lit up.

“Are you saying I should feed the elixir to the Vermillion Bird... and then absorb the transformed power from its flames?”

Absorbing its flames wouldn’t be an easy task, but if he made a contract with the Vermillion Bird, it likely wouldn’t be too difficult.

“That way, you’re not consuming the elixir directly and are just receiving the power through your contract with the Vermillion Bird, so Professor An’s prescription isn’t an issue. Isn’t that right?”

Despite Ludwig’s nonchalance and clueless act, he had already thought up the perfect solution.

In this way, Ludwig was both providing Se-Hoon with his reward and explaining its possible usage that would help him the most right now.

Gazing at the Ludwig with a big smile, Se-Hoon nodded.

“You truly are the Chairman.”

He once again witnessed the dignity of the highest authority.