There were quite a few scoundrels who dared to escape from the Shipnaha incident.

These wretched beings, greedy like pigs and dogs, had caused the whole mess but then fled, unable to clean up the chaos they had created.

Some fled to other countries as soon as the incident broke out, and some went into hiding in remote areas, where few people would find them.

I personally went after them.

Partly because I wanted to beat them to death with my own hands, and partly because I didn’t want to risk letting any of them escape.

The mere thought of any one of them escaping and living arrogantly somewhere else made my teeth grind.

I couldn’t bear the thought of such a scenario.

So, I cooperated with the association and personally tracked them down.

I also wanted to return to Shio-ram as soon as possible.

Leaving Lee Hayul alone made me anxious.

He was the type of kid who seemed likely to get into trouble if left alone.

That was how I felt emotionally.

Logically, I was sure he would be safe inside Shio-ram.

There’s the Principal, who hasn’t shown his face in decades but is still there. There’s also the Vice-Principal, who rarely leaves Shio-ram, and other defensive heroes and facilities.

So I kept telling myself it would be fine and moved diligently.

In fact, I didn’t expect to handle everything by the weekend. Even if there were fewer escapees, there were still dozens, and they were scattered like insects.

Even with the use of gates to move around, it was difficult to catch them all in less than two days.

Still, I planned to finish as quickly as possible and get back to Shio-ram.

I moved as fast as I could.

“…All 23 targets, including Derez Blair, have been apprehended.”

And I caught them all over the weekend.

As the sun rose on Monday. Barely, but I caught all those cockroaches.

“……”

After finishing my thoughts, I looked around.

Inside the underground shelter, which looked like it had money poured into it, the association’s personnel were busily searching for criminal evidence and such.

The person on the association’s list had already been beaten and taken away. I’d made them a cripple and ensured they were treated just enough to survive before they would face their sentence.

That was a good thing.

I finished faster than expected. None of them escaped.

Now, I could start Lee Hayul’s major lecture as soon as it was a weekday.

‘…I don’t know.’

The result was good, but I couldn’t be entirely happy.

I had been running around without rest over the weekend. I did put in the effort.

But even so, I couldn’t have finished this quickly.

Even though I am strong, I am just one person with two hands, and even with the association’s personnel, it was impossible to search the entire world right away.

“This concludes the apprehension. Thanks to your assistance, Ms. Clyde, we could proceed smoothly.”

“Spare me the formalities.”

“If I skip the formalities, I might get criticized for my attitude later. That would affect my job performance review.”

An android approached the dazed Atra.

It was Maxwell, the eccentric who insisted on wearing a neat suit even at a crime scene like this.

After organizing the site details on a hologram projected from his smartwatch, he spoke.

“As mentioned, all criminals on the tracking list have been apprehended. I’ll send any additional details as they get processed.”

“Yeah, good job.”

I looked at Maxwell, who was reporting through the hologram, with a complicated gaze.

Maxwell.

He’s a superhuman belonging to the Disaster Management Department of the association, responsible for preventing and handling incidents caused by dungeons and managing the damage.

I don’t know his exact position within the department or what tasks he handles.

But I know he receives direct orders from the council members or the association’s head.

When I met Maxwell on the frontlines, he was acting on the council members’ orders.

During the time he requested my cooperation internally, Maxwell was also following the council members’ orders.

– When you say higher-ups, do you mean the council members?
– No. Higher than that.

Now, he’s acting on orders from even higher-ups.

Keeping this in mind, I observed the association’s personnel moving busily.

The Shipnaha incident… or the so-called disaster, was a massive accident. Naturally, a lot of manpower was mobilized to track down the main culprits.

…Even considering that, the effort put into tracking the main culprits was extraordinary.

Just looking at the observation magical tools in some people’s hands showed that.

The number of personnel mobilized was significant, and their quality was decent. Moreover, the observation magical tools used were numerous and of higher performance than standard.

Considering the information received beforehand and catching the main culprits directly, I realized that even with half the current manpower, it wouldn’t have been a problem.

It would have actually made things easier.

Given the recent global dungeon disturbances and the workload piling up, complaining about a lack of manpower seemed excessive.

“Ah, if it’s not too much trouble, could you pass a message to Lee Hayul?”

“Speak.”

“There are matters regarding compensation and communication about the recent accident. If he could contact the association at his convenience, we will visit him.”

“I heard the same when he was discharged.”

“Ah, that new recruit handled it well. Makes the bosses look good for no reason.”

Lee Hayul had made significant contributions during the Shipnaha incident.

He saved countless people by running tirelessly from the start of the incident, and he single-handedly took down the Alpha being, breaking the dungeon’s outer wall and allowing the rescue team to enter easily.

Though the incident was caused by the dirty and ugly connections of that region, the association, which maintains global order, also bears some responsibility. To keep up appearances, they had to reward Lee Hayul appropriately.

…I get that, but their attitude was odd.

Usually, they would have visited the recovery room to take his statement once he regained consciousness, but instead, they processed his discharge procedures themselves.

They just left, saying to contact them when available, and even now, they tell me to inform him to contact them so they can visit.

Their attitude was careful, treating him like a very precious person.

They put excessive effort into capturing the fugitives.

They didn’t leak any problematic information to the media, and any nonsense that emerged was swiftly and strongly dealt with by the law.

The reason was… because Maxwell and the association were acting on orders from the association’s heads.

The heads. Or the heads of the association.

The orders came directly from the Lords of The Tower of Space and The Tower of Harmony.

‘……’

I didn’t know much about Lee Hayul.

I knew his basic personal information, but I didn’t look further, not wanting to get emotionally involved.

So, I couldn’t fully grasp the current situation.

It was clear that as a special admission student, he was protected by the Lord of The Tower of Growth.

Now, I realized that he was also receiving peculiar treatment from the Lords of The Tower of Space and The Tower of Harmony.

I didn’t know why.

Moreover, I knew far too little about Lee Hayul.

I didn’t know why he was protected by the tower lords.

I hadn’t heard why he didn’t run but instead saved people during the incident.

I didn’t know why he suffered from nightmares every time he slept.

Mostly because I didn’t want to know and didn’t ask about Lee Hayul.

“…Tsk.”

I bit my lip.

Unwarranted thoughts crossed my mind, which I tried to shake off as I turned around.

It was time to return to Shio-ram.

* * *

I arrived at Shio-ram just as dawn broke on Monday.

I barely made it in time.

I sighed in relief and headed toward my residence.

Since it was early morning, long past sunset, most people would be asleep.

Lee Hayul would be no exception. He must be lying in bed, sleeping by now.

“……”

Imagining that scene made me feel oddly displeased.

I found it annoying to think he was sleeping comfortably in bed, not in my arms.

Realizing my thoughts, I shook my head vigorously.

‘I must be more tired than I thought…’

How tired must I be to entertain such ridiculous thoughts?

I decided to get some sleep, even if it was just a short nap.

I quickened my pace.

.

.

.

The next day arrived.

It was time for the major lecture after lunch.

As always, the lecture began with sparring.

Today was no different.

I first checked Lee Hayul’s physical condition and asked how he was doing.

To my surprise, Lee Hayul was wearing some artifact around his neck.

I heard it was an artifact with emotional expression and imprinting functions.

I was looking for a similar artifact, so it saved me the trouble of finding one.

[Yes, I got it as a gift from Elia.]

“…A gift?”

…I felt weird about it but decided to let it go.

Other topics could wait, and we began sparring as a warm-up.

We sparred even when Lee Hayul’s physique was weaker than an average person’s, and we continued to do so now that he had grown significantly.

The sparring was unarmed, just bare-handed.

In it, I could feel Lee Hayul’s astonishing growth.

His physical abilities and mana growth were remarkable, but even more surprising was his skill.

Every move I made was countered. Even when I introduced variables to create confusion, he handled them all.

Battles he struggled with in the past were now handled effortlessly.

Attacks that would have landed before were now deflected without fail.

It was as if his ability to analyze fights had reached a new level. His movements evolved accordingly.

And this was just close combat. I knew Lee Hayul’s abilities extended beyond mere hand-to-hand combat.

He wasn’t using his magic or the artifact attached to his back.

And there was his unique ability, rumored to be some kind of copying ability, unknown to the outside world.

He had many hidden cards. Even his current movements weren’t his full power.

As always, I increased the difficulty level.

‘……’

In the process, I felt uneasy.

That was an understatement.

I felt deeply troubled.

…Blocking and deflecting attacks.

In the process, I could see Lee Hayul’s subtly twisting expressions in great detail, thanks to my trained eyes.

My body felt like it was going to seize up. It was suffocating, as if something was pressing down hard on my chest.

Eventually, a moment came when Lee Hayul’s defense opened up.

I attacked through that gap. My fist, wrapped in Qi, pierced through the opening.

A fist cutting through the air, rushing in.

It would hit.

My experience and intuition told me.

It would hit.

My attack.

On Lee Hayul.

My fist would slam into his face. He would grimace in pain. Blood would flow.

Shipnaha, the path to the underground shelter, the pool of blood…

The corpses.

“……!!”

Bang! A gust of wind roared. Dust scattered from the ground, and my hair fluttered wildly.

The arm I had punched with stopped awkwardly in mid-air.

My trembling fist remained suspended.

Lee Hayul’s face showed bewilderment, not understanding why I had stopped.

My arm was shaking. I couldn’t believe it.

The trembling dispersed my strength. Even if I threw my fist now, it wouldn’t hold half its original power.

Shaking during an attack. It was a habit I’d consciously corrected before graduating from the academy.

Now?

I couldn’t stop trembling.

“…Sorry. Let’s continue.”

I spoke, trying to control my shaking voice.

Lee Hayul hesitated for a moment, then composed himself and took his stance.

We resumed sparring.

I gritted my teeth.

It was ridiculous. I had done well so far. I was confident this was the fastest and surest way for him to grow.

“Mo…”

There was nothing wrong with Lee Hayul being strong. The sweat and a bit of blood now were nothing.

If he didn’t shed them now, he would have to shed his life and future in the face of real danger later.

“Can’t…”

During the incident, Lee Hayul faced threats. If he had been a little weaker or less fortunate, he would have died.

“Can’t do this…”

There were many opportunities to land a clear hit during sparring.

I never landed a single one.

Unable to control my trembling voice, I hugged Lee Hayul tightly.

[?]

[Safe]

[Warm]

[Soft]

[Comfortable]

[Like it]

Lee Hayul, suddenly hugged, opened his mouth in surprise.

It was a familiar embrace. The soft and warm embrace he had been accustomed to recently.

Like a habit, he nestled into Atra’s arms.

The feathers of the sky fluttered behind him.

End of Chapter