âThat man is the one who sent the note. And the man heâs attacking is Hwang Jun-peong.â Zhu In shook his head at the idea popped up in his head. âNo. Hwang Jun-peong is not under attack. Heâs fighting. ThenâŚwhat was the reason for the note about the Dump Guild? Why are they fighting now?â
The situation was complicated. He was certain of only one thingâit was difficult to take sides.
âWhat are you doing now? We have to help!â
The guild master of the Meta Guild, who was a fan of Hwang Jun-peong, hurriedly stepped forward. Zhu In shook his head, blocking her.
âWait a minute.â
âWhat are you talking about? Hwang Jun-peong is being attacked by the Dump Guild ââ
âUse your head! Do you think it makes sense for the Dump Guild to ask for civilian evacuation?â
âWhat the hell do you meanâŚNo, wait. Are you saying Hwang Jun-peong is part of the Dumpââ
âThereâs nothing certain yet. But Hwang Jun-peong has been hiding his identity. So there is room for doubtâŚâ
âMan. Do you want us to just stand here and watch? If we have any doubts, we have to stop the fight first.â
âWe are not powerful enough to interrupt them.â
There was a great diversity of opinion. No one was strong enough to mediate the fight between Su-hyeun and Hwang Jun-peong. And there was room for doubt. Plus, Su-hyeun had requested for the evacuation of civilians in advance. So no one had falsely accused him as being part of the Dump Guild.
Swishâ
Slashâ!
Su-hyeunâs attack grew harsher. Hwang Jun-peong raised both arms over his head to block Su-hyeunâs sword. But Su-hyeunâs powerful magic was starting to wear out his arms.
Crunchâ
âThose idiotsââ
Hwang Jun-peong had expected the other awakeners to buy some time for him. But it looked like he might die before they could provide even a little help.
Swish, swishâ
Slashâ!
Su-hyeun struck low with his sword, aiming below Hwang Jun-peongâs arms. He deeply cut Hwang Jun-peongâs waist. Hwang Jun-peongâs body quaked with pain. He turned his eyes up and down in agony.
Whizâ
Hwang Jun-peong hastily turned his body and started running.
Slashâ!
Su-hyeun wouldnât let him flee. He drew his sword across Hwang Jun-peongâs back. Hwang Jun-peongâs body shook again, but he clenched his teeth and ran. He ran towards the crowd of hundreds of awakeners. There was only one way to escape now.
âI have to take hostages!â Hwang Jun-peong thought.
Su-hyeun had arranged for the awakeners to evacuate civilians. Hwang Jun-peong could guess what kind of personality a man like that possessed.
âIf I can grab hold of a hostage, I might be able to run away.â
Hwang Jun-peong reached his hand out to the closest peopleâZhu In and the guild master of the Meta Guild. A violent temper flowed out from Hwang Jun-peong. Zhu In realized something was wrong.
âRun away!â
Rumbleâ
Whooshâ!
A translucent curtain formed around Zhu In. It pushed the other awakeners away from him.
People screamed.
âS-sir!â
As the others were pushed back, Zhu In strode forward.
âPlease, I hope this works,â Zhu In thought.
He opened his hand towards Hwang Jun-peong. Wind gathered and spewed from Zhu Inâs hand. It was the same wind that had just pushed the others in the opposite direction.
Ripâ
Hwang Jun-peongâs nails were torn off by the air. Zhu In pushed his magic to the maximum level and shut his eyes.
âPlease. Please.â
Nothing happened, and it seemed as if his wish had come true. Zhu In opened his eyes once more. He could see Hwang Jun-peongâs back.
âI got you.â
Drip, dripâ
Hwang Jun-peongâs hand had pierced Su-hyeunâs shoulder. Su-hyeun grabbed Hwang Jun-peongâs other arm. With a crunch, Hwang Jun-peongâs arm was twisted.
âArghâŚâ Hwang Jun-peong moaned.
Hwang Jun-peong retracted his hand from Su-hyeunâs shoulder. Blood flowed from Su-hyeunâs shoulder, but he still moved as if he was fine.
âItâs the same as last time.â
Thumpâ
Su-hyeun kicked Hwang Jun-peongâs leg while holding his arm. Hwang Jun-peongâs knees started to shake and he fell to his knees. Due to the Dragonize skill, his body remained huge. So when he kneeled, his eyes were now level with Su-hyeunâs.
âI know youâre a coward, so I knew you would try to escape among the bystanders and take hostages.â
âGod damnâ!â
As if it was a humiliation to kneel, Hwang Jun-peong tried to rise again. He stiffened his legs. Even if he was injured, he was still confident in his strength, because he had the power of a dragon. ButâŚ
âDonât get up.â
Thumpâ
Gaspâ!
Su-hyeun pulled Hwang Jun-peongâs arm down. Hwang Jun-peong tried to get up, but his upper body was pushed down. His body staggered.
Bamâ
Hwang Jun-peong knelt again. His upper body drooped, but he looked up Su-hyeun. Now, Su-hyeun was looking down on Hwang Jun-peong.
âI told youââ Su-hyeun raised his sword, ââI will drag you down.â
âW-wait a minute!â
At that time, an urgent voice came from behind. It was from the guild master of the Meta Guild. There were other guild masters, too. The guild master of the Meta Guild strode towards Su-hyeun.
âI donât know what is going on, but you know who he is, right? If you have a personal grudge, solve it through conversationââ
Slashâ
Su-hyeun did not listen to her and swung his sword. Everybody became quiet once they witnessed the moment a thin red line was drawn across Hwang Jun-peongâs body.
âH-helpâŚmeâŚâ
Hwang Jun-peong reached out to the many awakeners behind Su-hyeun. No. He tried to reach out.
Crackâ
Hwang Jun-peongâs body was cut in half and the two sides split apart. Su-hyeun turned around and looked at the awakeners who had tried to stop him.
âSorry, I interrupted you before,â he said, âWhat were you saying?â
There was nothing she could say anymore. Hwang Jun-peong was already dead. People could not believe that they had just witnessed the death of Chinaâs finest actor.
âI have a lot of questions,â Zhu In said to his rescuer.
He looked down at the dead body of Hwang Jun-peong. The Dragonize skill faded with his life, and his body began to revert to his original form.
âDonât you think you have a lot to explain?â
âWellâŚâ
Su-hyeun scratched his head. Zhu In and the rest of the awakeners watched him with curiosity and wariness.
âI guess so,â Su-hyeun answered.
âI did it. Now how am I going to explain it?â he asked himself.
***
Purr, purrâ
Miru made a pleasant sound above Su-hyeunâs head. Su-hyeun sat on a rock next to the remnants of the building. Zhu In had brought him a bandage, which Su-hyeun now applied to his shoulder. Su-hyeun had many minor injuries, but the biggest one was the penetrating wound in his shoulder.
âSo, that dragon was your divine beast,â Zhu In said as Su-hyeun fixed the bandage.
Thumpâ
Zhu In had wanted to talk with Su-hyeun alone, so he had convinced other guild masters to give them some time to themselves. Though some of the guild masters thought Su-hyeun was a terrorist responsible for the death of one of the worldâs finest actors.
âAh, yes. His name is Miru.â
Su-hyeun glanced at Zhu Inâs face, then focused on checking the bandage.
âMiru? What does it mean?â
âIt means dragon in my countryâs language.â
âDragon? The dragonâs name is Dragon? Ha-ha!â Zhu In laughed quite loudly as if Su-hyeunâs answer was funny. Although it wasnât that funny. âItâs so weird.â
âWhat is?â Su-hyeun asked.
âYou were very scary just a few minutes ago. But now you look very gentle. You seem like a completely different person.â
âIs that so?â
Su-hyeun had heard that he looked different when he fought. So it was not an unusual comment anymore.
âBut what do you mean by âmy countryâ? Are you from Korea? Japan? You look KoreanâŚâ
âYes, I am Korean.â
âWait. Are youâŚKim Su-hyeun?â
Su-hyeun asked back in surprise, âHow did you know?â
âWho else could be that strong yet that young? Though you were far stronger than I expected.â
He was right. In Korea, there were no young S-Rank awakeners like Su-hyeun. In fact, he was the youngest S-Rank awakener of all.
âI heard you were at war with the Dump Guild.â
That was a well-known fact.
âWas Hwang Jun-peong connected to the Dump Guild?â
âYes.â Su-hyeun glanced at Hwang Jun-peongâs body, which hadnât been moved yet. âHe was the Dump Guild itself.â
âWhat do you mean?â
âHe was the guild master. He created the Dump Guild.â
ââŚWhat?â Zhu In looked at Hwang Jun-peongâs corpse with a startled face.
âHe was an actor loved by people for his perfect performances. But he was also the guild master of Dump Guild?â thought Zhu In.
âHwang Jun-peong had been working in Hollywood a lot lately. Heâd turned many American guilds to his side, starting with Chloe of the Star Guild. And he created the Dump.â
âThen, the reason why the Dump Guild did not work in Chinaââ
âBecause there were a lot of eyes on him. For Hwang Jun-peong, it was easier to operate in Hollywood.â
âOh, wow.â
Zhu In didnât know whether to believe this or not. But Su-hyeunâs story was quite convincing. Hwang Jun-peong had been hiding the fact that he was an awakener.
As one of the worldâs top actors, also being an awakener would have been seen as a premium. Yet the rage and madness that Hwang Jun-peong had shown were clearly different from what people knew of him.
âBy the way, I forgot to tell you something,â Su-hyeun said.
âYes? Is there anything else left?â
âNo, not really butââ Su-hyeun tightened the bandage, then bowed his head toward Zhu In, ââThank you very much. Thanks to you guys, civilians were kept safe. Also, Iâm sorry I had lied to you.â
âY-you have no reason to apologize. And we are the ones who should be thanking you.â Zhu In jumped out from his seat and shook Su-hyeunâs hand. Then he sighed and sat down again. âWell. I guess everything was solved even before I actually had the opportunity to talk with you.â
âWhat do you mean?â
âItâs obvious that he was a villain, right?â Zhu In gestured at Hwang Jun-peong with his chin.
Su-hyeun smiled. âHe does look like that.â
âSo what will you do now?â Zhu In asked. All the suspicions he had about Su-hyeun before now had been completely erased.
âI have to settle an affair first.â
The tallest building in Guangzhou had collapsed, and Hwang Jun-peong was dead. Yet the war with the Dump Guild was not over yet. Even though Hwang Jun-peong was gone, the Dump still remained.
âDo you have a personal grudge against the Dump Guild?â Zhu In asked, looking up Su-hyeun as he rose.
âNo, I donât.â
âThen why did you do this much? I know your intentions are good, but I honestly donât understand.â
âIsnât it something that someone should do anyway?â
âThat doesnât explain why it has to be you.â
âWhy should I wait for someone else to do it?â
Zhu In had no answer to Su-hyeunâs retort.
âIf I do nothing, the world wonât change. Itâd be selfish to just wait for someone else to change the world for the better.â
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Zhu In could not say anything in response to Su-hyeunâs words. He was absolutely right, but there were not many people who would actually live up to that sentiment. Not even those who knew what was right.
âThank you again. ThenâŚâ Su-hyeun bowed his head toward Zhu In and left.
âHe is a hero. A real heroâŚâ Zhu In murmured as he watched Su-hyeun depart.
Unlike others who could not live up to their ideals, Su-hyeun actually did the necessary work. Also, he had the power and cause to do it. At first glance, it might seem like an easy decision, but it was actually more difficult than anything else. There were many people with strong power, but few used it correctly. Zhu In bowed his head in shame. He thought that one day, Su-hyeun would be known to everyone as a hero.