The day after, I got to meet up with Hajin. Apparently, he has important business to do. On top of clearing a few dungeons, he also has now recruited Shin Jonghak to our fold.
“I don’t like that guy…” I hate that guy for ambushing me, and stuff, so Nayun is not wrong in thinking I will be biased on treating him. “And you want me to teach him stuff?”
“You volunteered to teach Rachel about our situation… and Jonghak comes with the territory.” Hajin is not wrong either. We are dividing the task of teaching our new members with each other. Since it is my responsibility to orient Rachel of what we really are going around with, it is only right to throw Jonghak on the lot too.
To be frank though, only I get to teach two students at once. Rachel mostly has one-on-one lessons with Suho or Nayun alternatingly in terms of combat. It is clear Jonghak will be needing none of that personal teaching as he is not even a swordsman.
According to Hajin, though, Jonghak will be receiving a special lesson about the future past from Hajin. “So you are baiting him with Shin Myungchul’s past as a reward. To be honest, Nayun’s plan to conscript him is just as smart. We just did not account that the Jonghak of this timeline has become different.”
“You are right. In The Returnee Hero, after Boss has beaten him severely, he immediately chooses to join the Chameleon Troupe which is more in line with the Jonghak I know. The change now must have been brought by Nayun’s regression itself, and none of other third intangible interference.” Hajin concludes Jonghak’s matter.
The two of us are actually chilling in front of a theater screen that [Under Cube] provides. That is how we refer to our [Base of Operations] now and not as True Cube anymore. The theater screen in front of us is playing a glorified documentary of the Hero Shin Myungchul.
The two of us, Hajin and me, know not the truth about Shin Myungcul’s actual fate as we did not see it firsthand, or have confirmed it with damning evidence. But from what we know, he has most likely died on confronting Baal to stop his descent into this world.
I munch on my popcorn, while I give the historical documentary my full interest, unlike Hajin who is already zoning off at this point. This world just interests me so much. It is a parallel world! And I never get tired of this fact!
“I got the Jar of Greed. How is it on your end?” Hajin asks.
I dully reply, trying to hide the sweat I feel trickling on my forehead. “I didn’t kill her.”
“Hmmm… Is that so? It is fine… It must be difficult to kill a child. But I don’t really need Aether now since I am plenty strong already. We have to stop Tomer on getting it though.”
At this point in time, Kim Hajin has grown quite a strong individual already, and fast! I detect two and a half streaks of stigma on his hand showing a cross with a quarter of a circle arching on the quadrant.
I fake a subtle cough, which I am getting good at hiding lately, trying to find in myself how I can breach the news of my own selfishness. “What are you thinking Hajin? Do you expect me to go there willy-nilly as if it is a vacation? Of course, I resolved to kill her, but she; 's a child. I know the story, duh… I know what I am doing when I went there…” I start off with light jesting, with slight seriousness in my tone.
“Come on Hyon… What do you think of me? A child killer? I told you we should do it differently…” He feels hurt by my remark recalling when I retold him how he kills Evandel the Witch from The Novel’s Extra.
“Well, I did do it differently…” I drone off.
“How?” “Diplomacy.”
I give him an immediate response to his expected question. I continue from there. “I fed her chocolate. And then I kidnapped her like a pedophile, that is a dangerous joke, my bad! I also met Tomer, while on my way outside. Also, I left Evandel with Yoenha. What else? Ah! We also now have Death Knight on our ranks.”
“…”
I dread looking at Hajin’s face, thus I concentrate on the documentary at the part where Shin Myungchul begins to gather the scattered forces of humanity, leading to the rebuilding of Seoul from the ash of civilization. It is alike a plot out of a manhwa.
“Damn it, Hyon!” Hajin reacts in a more verbal sense after a short second of silence.
From there, I received an earful from Hajin.
***
Shin Jonghak is dragged into an unfamiliar environment, with architecture too strikingly similar to Cube. But he immediately is able to deduce that he is not as reads over a neatly written letter by the desk on his bedside.
“Dear Jonghak,
This is Chae Nayun. This is what is going to happen. You are going to join an obscure organization with which I am part. Kim Hajin is its elected president, but its founding member is actually me. I know that there will be a lot of questions for you, but you have to wait patiently and learn them bit by bit from the orientation.
I will give you a brief summary. We are a recently created force with the goal of fighting off the Devils who desire to invade our planet. Think of them as supreme existences, not of this plane that desires to inflict our world with wanton destruction. I know it is too much, but we need your help.
But as you are now, you are of no help. Please become stronger.
Also, please be cooperative…
Sincerely, Chae Nayun.”
The letter is certainly from Nayun as it has her signature and name on it. Of course, there is also the possibility of forgery, but considering the flow of events, this letter is most likely trustworthy.
“How long was I unconscious?” He ponders on that thought as he recalls the explosion of magic power that absolutely demolishes him. “Kim Hajin… Why is his cadet rank so low?”
He recalls the hateful obscure man, the gunner who for all his worth is not even worth remembering his name. The pride Jonghak is taking for granted feels crumbling at the insane truth.
Why is he being dragged into this?
Yes, he is in no power to resist, but he has a choice not to cooperate. They might sound the same, but they are two exactly different things as being uncooperative can take on many forms. In extreme cases, Jonghak can actually choose to commit suicide right now, just to show them how much of a prick he is.
Alas, he still has some pride left despite the closet inferiority complex swimming under his gut.
[Please attend the orientation. It will shortly begin five minutes from now. Follow me.] The electronic voice doesn’t sound pleasant to the ears, but it is understandable enough.
Jonghak rises from his bed as a flying drone alights from his door. He obediently follows the drone he usually sees making patrols from the Cube’s perimeters. He is not someone to overthink and imagine things, thus no misunderstanding arises from seeing the drone or the overly familiar architecture.
He is curious though.
What kind of organization is this?
It is full of novelty, and mystery.
Arriving at the area where the orientation should take place, Jonghak sees a familiar yet unacquainted face. “Rachel of England?” That is how he remembers the blonde beauty maintaining the Rank 1 in theory. The reason his voice is in rising intonation is that he is doubtful as to why Rachel is here.
“H-Hello Jonghak-ssi… I heard I will have a classmate, but I never took it to be you…” Rachel shyly replies, feeling tense at Jonghak’s scowling face.
“The nerd?” Jonghak hurtfully adds.
This time, all of the tension that Rachel feels leaves her. She remains quiet at Jonghak’s remark, but it has actually miffed her. Rachel leaves it at that as she is not a confrontational person.
Jonghak sees two armchairs to which Rachel occupies one already. Jonghak seats in the remaining seat. Because Jonghak is not the creative kind and doesn’t think much, it doesn’t mean he lacks imagination.
In this orientation, he starts to speculate who will be teaching them. The possibility of one of the Nine Stars showing is also within his speculations. There is also a possibility of a staff member from Cube appearing.
“You!?” Jonghak utters aghast at the unexpected appearance of Hyon Hyung.
***
I enter the room expecting Jonghak to immediately attack me. Thankfully, he does not choose to wield violence at that instant. Kim Hajin has asked me to take care of Jonghak’s induction to the team.
On the outside, we will similarly have the world learn of him being kidnapped like Yoenha. Rachel at least has some degree of freedom, because she now has our trust.
Unless Jonghak earns my trust, he will remain under house arrest. This is what Hajin means to me taking care of Jonghak’s induction which is an enormous hassle to my to-do list.
“There is no longer any seat, so you have to stand until the person who will orient us arrives.” Jonghak weirdly enough, kindly tells me. This is not Jonghak at all. He sounds so kind, but he is still pissing me off.
Perhaps, he has finally connected the dots that I am a part of this organization, but he has reached the wrong conclusion. “Shut up, maggot, you are below me!” I tell Jonghak.
Rachel shows a look of terror. I don’t know if it is for me though.
Of course, Jonghak is angered by my words. “What did you say to me?”
Since creating , I have become much more capable of detecting and analyzing emotions. Add my Cube AI on top of that, I am practically Sherlock Holmes with eloquent deduction abilities, just less of an ass (I think).
From Shin Jonghak, I sense fake arrogance which is very unlike him. Hajin is right. This is not the Jonghak we know. This problem is more of a psychological problem that not any amount of orientation can do.
It appears that I have one more thing to do on my expanding list of work.
The day after, I got to meet up with Hajin. Apparently, he has important business to do. On top of clearing a few dungeons, he also has now recruited Shin Jonghak to our fold.
“I don’t like that guy…” I hate that guy for ambushing me, and stuff, so Nayun is not wrong in thinking I will be biased on treating him. “And you want me to teach him stuff?”
“You volunteered to teach Rachel about our situation… and Jonghak comes with the territory.” Hajin is not wrong either. We are dividing the task of teaching our new members with each other. Since it is my responsibility to orient Rachel of what we really are going around with, it is only right to throw Jonghak on the lot too.
To be frank though, only I get to teach two students at once. Rachel mostly has one-on-one lessons with Suho or Nayun alternatingly in terms of combat. It is clear Jonghak will be needing none of that personal teaching as he is not even a swordsman.
According to Hajin, though, Jonghak will be receiving a special lesson about the future past from Hajin. “So you are baiting him with Shin Myungchul’s past as a reward. To be honest, Nayun’s plan to conscript him is just as smart. We just did not account that the Jonghak of this timeline has become different.”
“You are right. In The Returnee Hero, after Boss has beaten him severely, he immediately chooses to join the Chameleon Troupe which is more in line with the Jonghak I know. The change now must have been brought by Nayun’s regression itself, and none of other third intangible interference.” Hajin concludes Jonghak’s matter.
The two of us are actually chilling in front of a theater screen that [Under Cube] provides. That is how we refer to our [Base of Operations] now and not as True Cube anymore. The theater screen in front of us is playing a glorified documentary of the Hero Shin Myungchul.
The two of us, Hajin and me, know not the truth about Shin Myungcul’s actual fate as we did not see it firsthand, or have confirmed it with damning evidence. But from what we know, he has most likely died on confronting Baal to stop his descent into this world.
I munch on my popcorn, while I give the historical documentary my full interest, unlike Hajin who is already zoning off at this point. This world just interests me so much. It is a parallel world! And I never get tired of this fact!
“I got the Jar of Greed. How is it on your end?” Hajin asks.
I dully reply, trying to hide the sweat I feel trickling on my forehead. “I didn’t kill her.”
“Hmmm… Is that so? It is fine… It must be difficult to kill a child. But I don’t really need Aether now since I am plenty strong already. We have to stop Tomer on getting it though.”
At this point in time, Kim Hajin has grown quite a strong individual already, and fast! I detect two and a half streaks of stigma on his hand showing a cross with a quarter of a circle arching on the quadrant.
I fake a subtle cough, which I am getting good at hiding lately, trying to find in myself how I can breach the news of my own selfishness. “What are you thinking Hajin? Do you expect me to go there willy-nilly as if it is a vacation? Of course, I resolved to kill her, but she; 's a child. I know the story, duh… I know what I am doing when I went there…” I start off with light jesting, with slight seriousness in my tone.
“Come on Hyon… What do you think of me? A child killer? I told you we should do it differently…” He feels hurt by my remark recalling when I retold him how he kills Evandel the Witch from The Novel’s Extra.
“Well, I did do it differently…” I drone off.
“How?” “Diplomacy.”
I give him an immediate response to his expected question. I continue from there. “I fed her chocolate. And then I kidnapped her like a pedophile, that is a dangerous joke, my bad! I also met Tomer, while on my way outside. Also, I left Evandel with Yoenha. What else? Ah! We also now have Death Knight on our ranks.”
“…”
I dread looking at Hajin’s face, thus I concentrate on the documentary at the part where Shin Myungchul begins to gather the scattered forces of humanity, leading to the rebuilding of Seoul from the ash of civilization. It is alike a plot out of a manhwa.
“Damn it, Hyon!” Hajin reacts in a more verbal sense after a short second of silence.
From there, I received an earful from Hajin.
***
Shin Jonghak is dragged into an unfamiliar environment, with architecture too strikingly similar to Cube. But he immediately is able to deduce that he is not as reads over a neatly written letter by the desk on his bedside.
“Dear Jonghak,
This is Chae Nayun. This is what is going to happen. You are going to join an obscure organization with which I am part. Kim Hajin is its elected president, but its founding member is actually me. I know that there will be a lot of questions for you, but you have to wait patiently and learn them bit by bit from the orientation.
I will give you a brief summary. We are a recently created force with the goal of fighting off the Devils who desire to invade our planet. Think of them as supreme existences, not of this plane that desires to inflict our world with wanton destruction. I know it is too much, but we need your help.
But as you are now, you are of no help. Please become stronger.
Also, please be cooperative…
Sincerely, Chae Nayun.”
The letter is certainly from Nayun as it has her signature and name on it. Of course, there is also the possibility of forgery, but considering the flow of events, this letter is most likely trustworthy.
“How long was I unconscious?” He ponders on that thought as he recalls the explosion of magic power that absolutely demolishes him. “Kim Hajin… Why is his cadet rank so low?”
He recalls the hateful obscure man, the gunner who for all his worth is not even worth remembering his name. The pride Jonghak is taking for granted feels crumbling at the insane truth.
Why is he being dragged into this?
Yes, he is in no power to resist, but he has a choice not to cooperate. They might sound the same, but they are two exactly different things as being uncooperative can take on many forms. In extreme cases, Jonghak can actually choose to commit suicide right now, just to show them how much of a prick he is.
Alas, he still has some pride left despite the closet inferiority complex swimming under his gut.
[Please attend the orientation. It will shortly begin five minutes from now. Follow me.] The electronic voice doesn’t sound pleasant to the ears, but it is understandable enough.
Jonghak rises from his bed as a flying drone alights from his door. He obediently follows the drone he usually sees making patrols from the Cube’s perimeters. He is not someone to overthink and imagine things, thus no misunderstanding arises from seeing the drone or the overly familiar architecture.
He is curious though.
What kind of organization is this?
It is full of novelty, and mystery.
Arriving at the area where the orientation should take place, Jonghak sees a familiar yet unacquainted face. “Rachel of England?” That is how he remembers the blonde beauty maintaining the Rank 1 in theory. The reason his voice is in rising intonation is that he is doubtful as to why Rachel is here.
“H-Hello Jonghak-ssi… I heard I will have a classmate, but I never took it to be you…” Rachel shyly replies, feeling tense at Jonghak’s scowling face.
“The nerd?” Jonghak hurtfully adds.
This time, all of the tension that Rachel feels leaves her. She remains quiet at Jonghak’s remark, but it has actually miffed her. Rachel leaves it at that as she is not a confrontational person.
Jonghak sees two armchairs to which Rachel occupies one already. Jonghak seats in the remaining seat. Because Jonghak is not the creative kind and doesn’t think much, it doesn’t mean he lacks imagination.
In this orientation, he starts to speculate who will be teaching them. The possibility of one of the Nine Stars showing is also within his speculations. There is also a possibility of a staff member from Cube appearing.
“You!?” Jonghak utters aghast at the unexpected appearance of Hyon Hyung.
***
I enter the room expecting Jonghak to immediately attack me. Thankfully, he does not choose to wield violence at that instant. Kim Hajin has asked me to take care of Jonghak’s induction to the team.
On the outside, we will similarly have the world learn of him being kidnapped like Yoenha. Rachel at least has some degree of freedom, because she now has our trust.
Unless Jonghak earns my trust, he will remain under house arrest. This is what Hajin means to me taking care of Jonghak’s induction which is an enormous hassle to my to-do list.
“There is no longer any seat, so you have to stand until the person who will orient us arrives.” Jonghak weirdly enough, kindly tells me. This is not Jonghak at all. He sounds so kind, but he is still pissing me off.
Perhaps, he has finally connected the dots that I am a part of this organization, but he has reached the wrong conclusion. “Shut up, maggot, you are below me!” I tell Jonghak.
Rachel shows a look of terror. I don’t know if it is for me though.
Of course, Jonghak is angered by my words. “What did you say to me?”
Since creating , I have become much more capable of detecting and analyzing emotions. Add my Cube AI on top of that, I am practically Sherlock Holmes with eloquent deduction abilities, just less of an ass (I think).
From Shin Jonghak, I sense fake arrogance which is very unlike him. Hajin is right. This is not the Jonghak we know. This problem is more of a psychological problem that not any amount of orientation can do.
It appears that I have one more thing to do on my expanding list of work.
