Chapter 42 ….
Recalling the words Seon-oh had muttered as if passing by, Yunhan answered decisively, as if he’d correctly solved a riddle.
“…….”
However, it was precisely those words that made Gong-woon’s expression harden completely.
In an instant, a frigid air seemed to emanate around him, prompting Yunhan and their fellow student, who had been watching the exchange, to exchange uneasy glances.
‘What’s his deal?’
‘No idea.’
At that moment, the sound of countless footsteps surged into the academy from beyond the doorway.
It seemed the superhumans who had heard of the blood theater had finally arrived!
The two students’ faces brightened at the news, only to immediately recall Gong-woon in front of them and become cautious again.
“……Um, may we leave now?”
Summoning their courage, they asked, and Gong-woon, who had lost all traces of his previously kind demeanor, stared silently at Yunhan instead of answering. Misinterpreting this as permission, Yunhan helped the fallen student to their feet.
Yunhan bowed politely.
“Thank you for saving us, Lord Gong! Come on, let’s go.”
“Th-thank you!”
As the two students quickly left the scene, the atmosphere around the lone Gong-woon grew even colder.
“……Hah.”
Dislike a perverted man? Surely they didn’t phrase it that way about me…
Gong-woon’s annoyance deepened, and he bit his lip.
Of course, it didn’t matter to me whether Seon-oh disliked someone. Besides, I was clearly not a perverted person, so it was irrelevant either way.
Still, hearing that a blood theater had broken out at the academy Seon-oh’s sister attended, and rushing here faster than anyone else, it felt as if a sharp venom had been poured over Gong-woon’s heart.
Since the day I returned to Myeonggyeong, Gong-woon’s mood had been unbearable. Despite tailing Seon-oh, he had failed to acquire any meaningful evidence and, in fact, had been discovered, preventing him from following Seon-oh to the end.
Because of my interference, Seon-oh would inevitably fail the second gate. Yet even that left Gong-woon with a strange sense of discomfort, and he had spent days trying to figure out the cause of these absurd feelings.
After much thought, the conclusion was clear:
Seon-oh had dared to make the ridiculous accusation that Gong-woon liked him and had been following him.
And that wasn’t all…
“But what should we do? Lord Gong isn’t really my type.”
In his entire life, Gong-woon had never endured such an insult.
Not his type? Me? Lord Gong-woon? The sincerity in Seon-oh’s eyes when he said that made Gong-woon feel a humiliation he had never known before.
Hence, he had to uncover just how peculiar and abnormal Seon-oh’s tastes were. That was why he had rushed here.
‘He doesn’t even know his own sister’s taste? Pathetic!’
Moreover, Seon-oh was not his type at all. Gong-woon did not desire a lewd and secretive woman.
He should have spoken first, but he had been blindsided before he could. It infuriated him. He wanted to devise another plan, but Seon-oh had not yet returned to Myeonggyeong, making it impossible.
He could use his dark arts to locate Seon-oh again…
‘Then it would really look like I’m following him.’
Gong-woon bit his lip.
Still, Seon-oh would fail regardless. And he would come looking to hold me accountable.
Once freed from that ridiculous slander and repaid for the humiliation, that would be enough.
If he calmly neutralized Seon-oh’s poison and proved he had no personal interest beyond the contest, how would Seon-oh’s expression change from his vain speculation?
The thought made Gong-woon chuckle to himself. He killed the monster rushing at me in one blow and turned away.
As he moved, he saw superhumans who had flooded into the academy taking out monsters emerging from the blood theater one by one. These were the guards protecting Myeonggyeong.
Gong-woon had no intention of joining them and turned toward the main gate as if it were none of his concern.
Then—
“Is it the Imperial Palace yet?!”
At the urgent shout of a superhuman, Gong-woon, who had been about to leave the academy, stopped in his tracks.
“It will arrive soon!”
Only then did Gong-woon glance back at the blood theater that had engulfed an entire building. It was like a gate to hell had opened; a black, circular portal radiating a heavy, malevolent energy hovered in the air.
Any skilled superhuman could handle the monsters, but this blood theater was different. Its extreme negative energy could only be dispelled by a royal’s yang energy.
Of course, the emperor never personally intervened. Instead, royals who pleased him were dispatched to handle it and earn fame.
Gong-woon had stopped to see which royal would take this honor.
From outside the academy gate came a welcome shout:
“Support from the Imperial Palace!”
Superhumans cheered at the announcement. Gong-woon folded his arms, leaning against the shadowed wall, watching which royal would enter the academy.
Finally, a figure appeared.
The moment he stepped beyond the doorway, the surroundings fell silent as if time itself had stopped, emanating overwhelming pressure.
Gong-woon, lowering his breath, narrowed his eyes to watch him.
Could it be the First Prince, who had recently distinguished himself? Or perhaps one of the emperor’s nephews?
Gong-woon’s gaze froze briefly, halting his speculative guesses.
‘Wait. The imperial yellow robe…?’
Seeing the yellow garment, Gong-woon’s face twisted with subtle shock. The imperial yellow robe belonged to the emperor.
‘The emperor has never appeared for such trivial matters before…’
Gong-woon quickly noticed that the dragon embroidered on the robe lacked claws.
‘No way…’
His eyes darted to the man’s face.
The man wore a grotesque black mask depicting the Imae-mangryang, a primordial monster. Though his face was hidden, Gong-woon immediately recognized him.
Aside from the emperor, only one person on the continent could wear the imperial yellow robe.
‘The Crown Prince…!’
The superhumans around him gasped and quickly bowed. Tall and unburdened by the long robe, the Crown Prince approached the blood theater calmly.
A monster that leapt from the blood theater was instantly split in two by a perfectly timed sword strike.
Crimson blood splattered on the Crown Prince’s robe, but he did not flinch and moved closer to the black void.
Finally, standing before the blood theater, the Crown Prince extended his hand toward the black portal.
The moment his noble hand touched it, the massive blood theater was violently sucked into his grasp.
“Wah!”
After a brief purification, the blood theater vanished. Superhumans cheered and bowed. The Crown Prince ignored them, turning away with no change in expression visible through his mask.
He passed through the superhumans as if nothing had happened and exited the academy, quickly boarding his carriage as he had arrived.
Once the carriage door closed around its occupant, it began to move smoothly.
Gong-woon narrowed his eyes, watching the carriage fade into the distance.
Only after the carriage had left did the bloody hand slowly remove the stifling mask.
The face hidden beneath the grotesque mask was revealed, showing calm, icy eyes.
As Gong-woon had suspected, it was Baek Sa-baek, the Crown Prince of Geumhwiguk, heir to the emperor.
Rumor had it he had never appeared in public due to an unexplained rash all over his body.
And furthermore—
“…….”
He was the man who had introduced himself as ‘Baekryu’ to Seon-oh at Maehwagak.
