SRW | Chapter 72

“Ghk—! Cough, cough—!”

Hwang Sooyeon spat blood and collapsed. Whether it was from pushing her abilities to the limit or the sheer guilt of betraying Kim Jaeyoung, I couldn’t tell. Oh Hanbit, whose leg injury had been healed by Sooyeon’s skill, rushed over and caught her before she hit the ground. I handed her off to him and frantically pulled up the system window.

Just as despair began to drown me at the stagnant number—

“WAAAH! SUN EUNSOO!”

“SUN EUNSOO! SUN EUNSOO!”

“SUN EUNSOO—OO!”

A deafening roar, like a World Cup stadium’s chant, shook the earth. The number on the system window spun wildly, like a pachinko machine gone berserk.

Power surged through my body like wildfire. But wait…522 cheers, yet 523 stat points? Before I could question it, another notification popped up.

Purifying evil beings vs. purifying their power…what’s the difference? No time to dwell. I’d finally unlocked it.

I snatched a soldier’s binoculars and climbed back onto the railing. Colonel Song had regained the Loudspeaker skill, and the soldiers had fallen back into orderly ranks under his command.

‘Kim Jaeyoung…’

Scanning the area where Sun Eunho had been, I spotted Cha Yuhyeok darting through the air. Hwang Sooyeon’s healing must’ve fixed him up, otherwise, he wouldn’t have lasted this long beating Kim Jaeyoung to a pulp. Damn it, his face! Stop hitting his face! My body flinched with every punch that landed.

Purification… Purification…

But what would happen to Kim Jaeyoung if I used this? “Purify evil beings,” did that mean killing him? Given that this skill came from a divine mandate, it was likely.

“…I don’t want that.”

For some reason, the thought hollowed me out. I was afraid to confront this inexplicable emotion, as if one wrong step would send me tumbling into an abyss. I tore my gaze from the binoculars.

As if mocking my turmoil, a high-tier Aqua launched itself toward me, effortlessly deflecting attacks midair. Soldiers behind me scrambled into defensive positions as it closed in.

“Hey, cult boy! Get down! It’s dangerous!” the brigadier barked.

I ignored her. This Aqua wasn’t here to attack me. When it reached out, I whispered:

“Purify.”

[GGAHH—!]

The skill was far more violent than I’d imagined. White threads erupted from my hand, splitting into dozens of strands that coiled around the Aqua like razor wire. Though they looked soft as cotton candy, the moment they touched its body, the Aqua shrieked. It was a sound worse than nails on a chalkboard. Its flesh bulged between the threads before pop! Chunks of meat and blood misted the air.

‘Blood…?’

An Aqua, a liquid-based monster, shouldn’t bleed. The surreal sight made my skin crawl. And then, a darker thought: If I’d used this on Kim Jaeyoung, would he have died like this too?

“Hhk—!”

Breathing turned impossible. My stupid anxiety, which I thought had improved, chose now to cripple me.

“…S-Sunbaenim!” Oh Hanbit’s desperate voice barely registered. The soldiers and brigadier were running toward me, but my vision tunneled. Only the building’s edge and the red moon remained.

‘Ah… I’m falling.’

From the moment I first foresaw my death, survival had been my only goal. I’d laughed in fate’s face, clawing my way through every near-death scenario. And now? If I hit the ground, my skull would split open. It’s unfair. After everything I’ve done to survive! I didn’t want to die. Not here. But my body, still wheezing mid-fall, refused to move. The closer death loomed, the worse it got.

A face flickered in my mind. The last one I wanted to see.

Then—

“Ghk—!”

Someone hooked an arm around my stomach and yanked. The whiplash of momentum rattled my bones as we tumbled across the rooftop.

“Hk—! Cough! Cough!”

As we rolled, he wrapped his arms around my head protectively. That clear, shielding gesture made my throat clench. Though he was breathing just as heavily, he gently patted my back and shoulders until I calmed down. Like a lie, my breathing stabilized and my body relaxed. 

When I finally looked up, I met the battered face of Kim Jaeyoung. One eye was swollen shut, his pale skin now ghostly. I choked out a whisper against his ear:

“You… bastard… What the hell… did you do to me…?”

If not for my premonitions, Kim Jaeyoung would’ve just been that quiet honor student. Or, post-apocalypse, a useful pawn. Even now, that hadn’t changed. I’d used him to cheat death. No matter how much I’d grown attached, letting him live after he threatened my family defied logic. I should kill him. With him this close, it’d be easy.

“Fuck… I can’t do it…  sob. Hic.”

I wanted to know what he’d done to me to make killing him impossible. But deep down, I knew. I just refused to admit it. This feeling of losing control over myself was… goddamn unbearable.

“Don’t cry.”

His thumb brushed my tears away, and like a dam breaking, I sobbed harder. If I couldn’t kill him, only one path remained: uniting humans and Kim Jaeyoung against the red moon, just as Aroganchia had said. To do that, I had to convince him. Somehow.

“Eunsoo… It’s dangerous here. Let’s go.”

Three high-tier Aqua intercepted Cha Yuhyeok, while two lower-tier ones advanced toward us. I shoved Kim Jaeyoung away and unleashed Purification on all five. White threads ensnared them—their bodies burst like overripe fruit, raining gore. Using the skill on so many targets at once made my head spin. I grabbed Kim Jaeyoung by the collar as he watched his minions die without showing any clear emotion.

“Hey. If you don’t wanna end up like them—”

“……”

“Shut up and listen.”

He nodded silently.

“Call off the explosions. Withdraw the Aqua. And… just let Cha Yuhyeok capture you.”

“……”

“Don’t worry. No matter what, I’ll keep you alive.”

Even if my tear-streaked face weakened the impact of my words, I kept my voice low and firm. Kim Jaeyoung was silent for a long time. Then, his expressionless face just a palm away turned bright red, like a fireplace flaring to life. From his face to his neck, even the limp fingers touching my hand, all of him flushed with color. The contrast with his pale face made the change feel even more dramatic.

“…Eunsoo, what do I do?”

“Huh?”

“I…”

He ducked his head, suddenly shy. Confused, I followed his gaze downward—

“Y-You fucking psycho! Why now?!”

“I don’t know…”

“Fuck!”

Before anyone else could see, I hurriedly took off my outer coat and draped it over the obvious bulge in his lower half. Thankfully, Cha Yuhyeok approached before noticing anything, and I awkwardly forced a smile in his direction. Meanwhile, Kim Jaeyoung, still lying down, grabbed my ankle.