NOVEL NEXT Chapter 97
Are you really going to keep your mouth shut from now on? I kind of like that.
I sigh internally and say,
“Don’t cry. Come on. It’s embarrassing.”
“Ughhhhh, you really act like this even in a situation like this…!”
Olivia squints her eyes and screams.
Does it even work?
‘Hey, Black Prince. This isn’t working, you know?’
[······.]
The Black Prince remains silent.
He chatted away like a magpie when it was to his advantage, but now he’s as quiet as a mouse.
Just stop talking.
“Well, since it seems like you’re not crying anymore, that’s good.”
At least she stopped crying, so I’m glad about that.
Just as I’m thinking that, I try to pull my hand away.
“…Don’t let go.”
Olivia grabs my wrist with both hands.
Her face is flushed and she pouts.
“D-don’t let go of my hand!”
“Why not?”
“Do I really have to ask? You idiot! Moron! The worst guy in the universe who doesn’t get a single clue or mood!!”
Olivia screams, her face turning all the way to her neck.
Well, it’s not like this is the first time.
It’s best to let her be.
“Alright, do as you please.”
“H-hold on! Just to clarify, I have absolutely no interest in someone like you! Someone as low as you… Ah, no one would like you anyway!”
Olivia rambles on, her face still red.
From experience, responding to Olivia when she’s in tsundere mode only exhausts me.
It’s better just to stay quiet.
*Smirk.*
Instead, I poke her cheek.
“W-wh-what are you doing? How dare you rudely poke the cheek of the noble French princess…! It’s unbelievably the lowest of the low! If I weren’t your personal maid, this would be treason against the royal family! Do you understand?”
Now her tsundere reaction feels quite cute.
Cute?
‘Am I going crazy?’
I shake my head.
“…Ugh. If you’re going to keep messing around, just let go! Idiot! Moron!”
Olivia finally releases my wrist as she says this.
I take my hand off her cheek at last.
“Hmph…”
Olivia snorts while rubbing the spot where my hand was.
*Clatter.*
She opens a small table next to the hospital bed.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m going to peel an apple! What? Do you have a problem with that?”
Olivia sulks while pulling out a knife and an apple.
“No…”
I was just asking.
Please don’t wave the knife around; it’s scary.
“Hmph.”
With her cheeks puffed out, Olivia starts peeling the apple.
Crisp, crisp.
The sound of her peeling the apple fills the quiet room.
While both the Black Prince and Olivia have grown quiet, I glance around the room.
The first thing that catches my eye is the hospital sign outside the window.
‘Kyoto University Hospital.’
So I’m still in Kyoto, not Tokyo.
Then what happened to everything?
“Hey, Olivia.”
“What is it?”
Olivia glances at the apple and replies.
“What’s the deal with the Meijin Academy? What about Senior Kasumi? How’s Satou Rena? Has Doctor Moromoro been dealt with?”
*Thud.*
She places a third of the peeled apple onto a tray.
“…Even in a situation like this, you’re worrying about others… Seriously… Ughhhhh…”
“Even in this situation, worrying about others… Seriously… ugh…”
Olivia bites her lip.
Her cheeks tremble slightly.
Worrying about others?
What kind of delusion is this?
“Just give me an answer.”
“Okay! If that’s what you want! Here it goes! Doctor Moromoro was apprehended by Ritsuko and the senior president after you collapsed. He’s currently in the association’s prison. Maruyama Ryosuke was subdued and captured by Kurosawa-kun. All the other villains who attacked the annex were captured with the help of the students and the Kamiya clan.”
Just as expected.
Thank goodness.
“What about Satou Rena and Kasumi-senpai?”
“Satou-san… After everything was settled, she returned to her original human form from her plant state thanks to Ishihara Saori who obtained Doctor Moromoro’s research materials. She’s currently under temporary hospitalization in this hospital. They’re planning to transfer her to the Tokyo Isekai Research Institute’s affiliated hospital soon. I heard she’ll be receiving intensive treatment there.”
In the original, Kasumi-senpai calmed her through mental suggestion, but here, she collapsed instead.
A natural outcome.
I’m glad I brought Saori along.
“Senpai Hoshino received treatment for Satou-san and was discharged yesterday after being cleared of any injuries. The training group is still in Kyoto dealing with the aftermath of this incident. Is that enough now? Hmph.”
Crunch crunch.
Having finished her report like a machine gun, Olivia goes back to peeling an apple.
I’m glad to hear that Senpai Kasumi has fully recovered.
I can’t shake off the image of her getting injured while protecting me from my mind.
Damn it.
What a truly light novel-worthy happy ending.
If this were a light novel, this would be the epilogue scene attached to the last chapter of a single volume.
I sigh as I watch Olivia peel the apple with utmost concentration.
What’s so special about an apple?
It feels like if I talk to her, she won’t even respond.
I quietly observe Olivia as she engages in a fierce battle with the apple.
“Ugh…”
Noticing my gaze, Olivia bites her lip.
Her cheeks turn pink.
Crunch crunch.
After perfectly peeling the apple into a rabbit shape, Olivia places a tray of apple pieces on the bedside table.
“Here! It’s a rabbit apple! I heard it’s a hospital visiting etiquette in Korea! This time, I also brought a fruit basket and bottled drinks! You should be grateful, you know?”
Turning my gaze at Olivia’s words, I finally notice the fruit basket and box of drinks placed near the dresser.
Where on earth did she learn this useless stuff?
Is this Bella’s influence?
“Eat up! This is the apple I personally and sincerely peeled for you! I tried my best to make the most amazing rabbit shape! You should consider it an honor!!”
Pretending to be all dignified, Olivia places one hand atop her chest and uses the other to spear the rabbit apple with a fork and hold it up to my mouth.
I stare at the rabbit apple being offered to me.
It reminds me of the rabbit apple Olivia made for me when I collapsed after sparring with Shinozaki Rin.
Back then, it was at such a pitiful level that I could barely recognize it as a rabbit.
But today, the rabbit apple looks exactly like the one from the animation, a perfect rabbit shape.
“Wow, you’ve really improved. Back in the day, I couldn’t even tell if it was a rabbit or a bear. Now it’s perfect.”
“D-do you have to say it in such a spiteful way? Ugh! You’re really such a dimwit! I even prepared Cheongsong apples for you…!!”
Olivia’s face turns bright red.
Cheongsong apples.
I’ve heard of them.
A town famous for apples, I think?
“Anyway, thanks. I’ll enjoy it.”
I take the apple and eat it.
“…Hmph. Hearing your gratitude doesn’t move me at all!”
A small smile appears on Olivia’s lips.
I chew the apple.
It’s quite delicious.
As expected, Cheongsong apples are the best.
Taking another apple with my fork, I access the internet on my phone.
The Meijin Hero Academy incident was linked to the League.
The incident at Meijin Hero Academy is tied to the League.
I need to find out how much of what I’ve handled has spread in the world.
The fastest way to do that is…
I don’t want to, but it’s accessing the Korean internet.
If it’s my news, everything, even the trivial details, will be turned into articles and YouTube videos on the Korean internet, so I can easily guess the repercussions of this incident.
‘Ugh…’
I squeeze my eyes shut and access YouTube.
It’s time to stare into the abyss.
At this point, it’s practically a sickness.
In the circular conference room, striking stained glass of various colors leaves an impression.
Unlike usual, tension hangs in the air as top officials and the Master of the New World League gather in this place.
For the first time, three seats are empty in a space that has never been vacant until now.
“…”
A heavy silence flows in the meeting room.
The ten apostles wearing black robes and hoods tremble slightly.
Squeak.
With an old creak, the door to the meeting room opens.
Black hair, black eyes.
In contrast, a warm, pleasant-looking handsome man in a white suit and white shoes appears.
It’s the appearance of the Master of the New World League, Messiah.
“Messiah!”
“Master!”
“Lead us!”
“For the New World!”
The apostles shout with fervor upon seeing Messiah.
Hearing their voices interlaced with fear and reverence, Messiah sits down.
His black eyes sweep over the empty seats.
A smile deepens on Messiah’s lips.
The apostles’ bodies stiffen in terror at his smile.
With a kind and sweet voice, Messiah speaks.
“Unfortunately, we lost three comrades in this operation.”
Messiah lowers his head.
Tears drip down from his eyes.
“Doctor Moromoro, Mister Digger, Architect… They were incredibly talented individuals who dedicated themselves fully to the New World plan… Now that I have lost lifelong comrades, my heart aches unbearably.”
Messiah genuinely seems to be mourning, pulling out a handkerchief from his coat pocket to wipe his tears.
The apostles refrain from mentioning that Doctor Moromoro is actually still alive, locked up in the association prison.
After all, he’ll die soon anyway when Golden Magic manifests.
“Today, I will never forget the sacrifice of my comrades and will cherish it in my heart until the day the New World arrives on this land.”
Click.
Messiah places his hand over his heart and closes his eyes.
Unlike lowly League members like Vulture and Mad Hatter, the thirteen apostles are his closest aides and powerful assets.
S-rank villains are not easily obtainable.
Losing not just one but three of his closest aides is a significant loss of power beyond expectations.
“The New World plan has encountered a bit of a snag…”
Messiah stops crying and folds the handkerchief, putting it back in his pocket.
“Report on the mission failure details.”
He speaks softly with a smile.
“There was again information concealment from the association and Shuo Hero Academy sides.”
“Since it was such a large incident, I suppose complete concealment was impossible, some information has leaked out.”
“When pieced together, we suspect that collaborator Maruyama Ryosuke and the lower-ranked League members, Kurosawa Yuji, the underground Architect, Doctor Moromoro, and Mister Digger, died in battle with Saionji Aris and Kamiya Ritsuko.”
“What about Kim Deok-Sung’s role?”
Messiah gently inquires back.
“He… has been reported to have played no significant role on the surface. However, given various circumstances, we suspect Kim Deok-Sung was involved in Hoshino Kasumi’s betrayal. They were both in the same club activities, and there’s information suggesting that Kim Deok-Sung and Hoshino Kasumi had quite a close relationship.”
“Black Beast… Kim Deok-Sung…”
Listening to the report, Messiah taps the armrest of his chair with his fingers, eyes closed.
“Whenever things go wrong… Black Beast is always present. On the surface, he seems to have played no role, but… is this really just a coincidence?”
“The Black Beast is on site, huh? On the surface, it seems to be playing no role… Is this really just a coincidence?”
There was no answer from the Acolyte in response to Messiah’s words.
He knew it was not a question he expected a reply to.
“I thought I should remove it quickly since I had a bad feeling. But it keeps slipping away like an eel… It’s becoming quite irritating.”
Messiah was a man of pure reason, yet he did not ignore the instincts that warned him.
His strange obsession with eliminating Kim Deok-Sung stemmed from a gut feeling that something was off about him.
The ominous feeling he had received from the Son of the Sword Master, Kurosawa Yuji, lingered still.
“A couple of times could be coincidental. But if those coincidences keep piling up, then they can’t be called coincidences anymore.”
Messiah’s eyes gleamed.
“Black Beast, Kim Deok-Sung. I will be keeping an eye on you. Increase the alert level.”
Black Beast, Kim Deok-Sung.
His alias and full name were firmly etched in Messiah’s mind.
“Understood, Master!”
The Acolytes bowed their heads as soon as Messiah’s command fell.
“And it looks like I need to advance the timetable for the New World plan a bit. I’ve suffered a bit of a loss due to this incident. I should also send a message to the Grand Elder of the Cult.”
Messiah smiled as he looked at them.
It wasn’t just the three Acolytes.
Countless drugs and useful technologies developed by Doctor Moromoro had all been handed over to the Association.
On top of that, Rena and Kasumi, the successful products of the Chimera Project, had also fallen into enemy hands.
It was quite a bleeding situation.
To make up for the losses, not only would he use the Cult, but it was also necessary to hasten the progress of the plan.
That was Messiah’s line of thought.
“I will follow the Master’s will!”
“Everything is for the New World!”
“You alone are the only savior of the world, Master!”
Hearing the Acolytes’ chants, Messiah closed his eyes.
“Only I… can save this wretched world tormented by the otherworldly cults and heroes.”
No one else but me.
A crazed smile crept onto Messiah’s lips.
*
The Cult of Truth.
The Saint’s personal room.
A space filled with dozens of large interlocking gears.
Sitting across a sleek metal table was a beautiful girl with deep blonde hair wearing an eye mask, her red eye shimmering.
The Saint, Beatrice, in her black dress, opened her lips.
“So this is the report on the outcome of the incident?”
“Yes, Your Holiness.”
A knight from the white-clad escort unit spoke politely, kneeling on one knee.
The Saint, Beatrice, handed over the report.
“Once again, it’s Kim Deok-Sung… What was that, Black Beast? It’s embarrassing even to utter the vulgar name of something so beneath me.”
Beatrice’s uncovered red eye glinted with intensity.
“Once or twice might be regarded as a fluke, but the League. For him to interfere in the affairs of lowly, filthy vermin three times is a claim that can’t simply be attributed to coincidence.”
Thud.
Beatrice set the report down.
Though she often spoke about how inferior and lowly humans were, she was not foolish.
She suspected that the Grand Elder, Diego Morales, was harboring ulterior motives and was conspiring with the League to clip her wings.
“It’s merely that he’s been granted mercy due to his lack of strength compared to that of a black, old ginger.”
Beatrice understood very well that she was now like a bird trapped in a cage.
A mere symbol of the Cult, neither more nor less.
While internally she was exalted, in reality, she was nothing more than a useful tool for unlocking ruins, and she despised the current situation.
The motives of the elusive Messiah and the collective known as the New World League were no different.