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Eungwang High, when the frost was spreading.
At the freshmen building, inside the teachers’ office.
Kim Shinrok watched the frost spread through the room’s open window.
The frost seemed to creep slowly since time inside Eungwang High flows ten times slower than outside.
Looking at the freezing sky, Kim Shinrok felt worried about the students.
Not only do the children have to handle the cold, but they have to fight enemies too.
He wanted to fight alongside them, but he had no choice but to act separately because it would have been dangerous if Kim Shinrok left now.
Kim Shinrok used a reversal skill to hide his actual appearance again, but if he encounters a bear, he will be recognized and attacked immediately.
With a pensive look on his face, Kim Shinrok was lost in thought.
‘I wonder if Dain arrived at the central district safely. And that damned dragon…’
Amid countless worries, the one that plagued Kim Shinrok’s mind the most was his close friend right next to him.
As if he hadn’t vomited blood earlier, Yong Jegun looked as alive as ever.
Although his energy waves were still lacking in the aftermath of the miracle he made, his condition didn’t look bad, perhaps because he was in a very good mood or his divinity had risen.
It’s evident in his eyes even if they’re covered, and his senses improve which makes him feel the world clearer.
Yong Jegun seems to be enjoying it to his heart’s content.
Whenever Kim Shinrok looked at the blindfold that covered Yong Jegun’s eyes, he felt like his blood-soaked shoulders were freezing.
‘…Since when did he carry around that blindfold?’
The blindfold worn by Yong Jegun wasn’t ordinary.
It was decorated with gold thread, and dragon-themed elements were placed elaborately with the jade finish.
Considering the design, it’s a blindfold created for Yong Jegun.
And considering the performance and quality of the blindfold, it doesn’t seem to be an item that can be created in a day or two.
Thinking that Yong JEgun may have been preparing for ascension for a long time, Kim Shinrok’s mood fell to the ground.
‘It looks like he’s been carrying it around for a while, but I didn’t notice at all.’
Perhaps he carried that blindfold with him to get ready to ascend without any regrets.
As his level of deity rose visibly, Kim Shinrok felt complicated.
He didn’t know if he was angry, sad, or annoyed by the brazenness of Yong Jegun who quickly took out the blindfold from his arms.
While Kim Shinrok was frustrated, Yong Jegun looked up at the sky.
“There must be something going on out there. I can’t believe this happened even though Cheongryong and Yeom Bangyeol are moving outside. We must be against a lot of people.”
“…”
“There seems to be a royal lineage who works in the position designated by Dongha. Baekho-ssi is probably fighting well, right?”
Baekho and the other Tiger Clan members are dispatched to the place where Cheon Dongha pointed based on what he saw from his light skill.
Kim Shinrok is currently on standby in fear of the possibility of Bear Clan people roaming around.
To accompany Kim Shinrok and recover his energy waves he spent on fulfilling a wish as the Cintamani, Yong Jegun was also on standby next to him.
Seeing how Yong Jegun was doing, there wouldn’t seem to be a problem if he went out and fought.
When Kim Shinrok didn’t respond, Yong Jegun took his eyes off the sky and turned to Kim Shinrok.
Yong Jegun stared at Kim Shinrok’s expression and spoke in a distinctive way that could scratch the recipient’s insides.
“Are you worried about the students? The Class 1 kids must’ve arrived in the central area, and Sanghee and Dain will be safe because Jeokho-ssi said he’d take them there. Euishin is with Jiikhoe too. It’s gonna be alright.”
Yong Jegun said with a hateful smile.
Even if he smiled, his expression couldn’t be taken because only the corners of his mouth were raised, but Kim Shinrok was sure that Yong Jegun’s eyes were crescent below the blindfold.
He wanted to slap him.
If it wasn’t for the emergency situation — if he hadn’t vomited blood earlier — Kim Shinrok would’ve definitely thrown him a tack.
However, Kim Shinrok only grumbled.
“I know the kids will be alright. I don’t really have any thoughts.”
“If not that, then what are you so worried about?”
Even though he said he had no thoughts, Yong Jegun kept biting at what was in Kim Shinrok’s mind.
Yong Jegun was lost in thought for a moment then suddenly spoke as if he reached a conclusion.
“Ah, is it because you’re afraid that I’ll ascend right away?”
Kim Shinrok didn’t answer, but his body stiffened.
Yong Jegun saw it and laughed with great ecstasy.
Kim Shinrok felt choked up because he couldn’t see any of his friend’s jaded eyes whenever he smiled.
“Don’t worry. I won’t go right away. My work with Eungwang High hasn’t been settled yet, and there are a lot of things to be solved at the Dragon Palace.”
Kim Shinrok was relieved to hear that Yong Jegun wouldn’t ascend straight away, but he felt frozen inside.
Does it mean he’ll descend when it’s all over?
Without realizing it, Kim Shinrok counted the days before the big day at the Dragon Palace.
He heard that something big would happen in the Dragon Palace around the first day of the first lunar month next year.
That means there’s a little more than a month left.
While Kim Shinrok converted the number of days into hours, minutes, and seconds, Yong Jegun continued.
“And you have to grant your benefactor and mine’s wish.”
Would Yong Jegun remain on this land as long as Jo Euishin doesn’t make a wish?
But Kim Shinrok soon gave up the idea.
Jo Euishin wasn’t the kind of person to do such a thing knowing that Yong Jegun wanted to ascend.
It’s unlikely that Jo Euishin would say an unreasonable wish, but it was equally unlikely that he wouldn’t say any wish on purpose.
At that moment, beyond the office’s window…
Fwaaat!
A blindingly strong light held a warmth.
No, it would be fit to describe it as an enormous power descending inside the school to the extent that the atmosphere feels warm.
Kim Shinrok rushed to the window and looked at the source of light.
Through the cracks in the frost that covered the boundary, he saw the open sky and three beams of light coming down.
The power surrounding the light seemed to melt away the frost in the boundary.
‘I can’t believe it erased the frost in an instant!’
That level of power could be called a miracle.
In fact, it was the result of a superior being intervening in the present world in the form of a miracle.
Yong Jegun mentioned the same thing as he stared east.
“Superior beings intervened in the form of a miracle. Their penalty would be considerable with this amount of force. Three of them at that…”
The light disappeared in less than ten seconds and the skies closed.
The three superior beings would’ve had to be determined to intervene in just a few seconds.
With that, Kim Shinrok realized again that he wouldn’t be able to see Yong Jegun if the latter became a superior being.
***
Mt. Cheonik, west of the school’s boundary.
The mountain path area that is so rough that even animals are reluctant to visit.
Aside from the Class 3-0 sunbae-jerks, I was the only one here.
‘It’ll be here soon.’
Those royal lineages who retreated when they got caught in the traps would surely be looking for them.
Judging from the sudden attack, they must’ve been ordered to eliminate all witnesses, but now they will try to get rid of those students not just because of an order but for retaliation.
And I’m the only one who didn’t come out of the hiding place or hide with skills and items.
They may be sloppy enough to fall for traps, but they won’t be incompetent enough to find a student who isn’t even hiding.
As expected, I soon felt the presence of something flying.
I counted the number of presences in my mind.
Perhaps they were wary of this being a trap, but they kept themselves hidden and just stared at me from a distance.
‘I knew they’d do that.’
Having no intention of dragging the confrontation any longer, I decided to speak up.
“I know who you are.”
I’m sure they heard me, but I didn’t get a response.
There was no sign of attack either.
Rather, they seem to be more wary.
If a lone student jumps out defenselessly and says something strange like that, they’d surely think that it’s a trap.
After a few seconds, I finally heard an answer.
“You know who we are?”
It was a voice changed through a machine.
Perhaps wary that other royal lineages are present aside from Eungwang HIgh students, they covered up their voices so their identities wouldn’t easily be revealed.
I don’t know about bears and demons who were openly aiming for Eungwang HIgh, but the Long Tail has been hiding itself really thoroughly.
A preparation like this is expected.
Anyway, from the royal lineage’s answer, they seem to be gauging if I was bluffing.
‘It took a lot of time finding them, of course.’
That traitor barely left behind any trace and evidence.
The only clue left is that it has a long tail.
However, as long as we knew for sure that they were among the heads of the 12 clans, there was a way to find them with minimal evidence.
By proving the innocence of the others.
In other words, by process of elimination.
‘The traitor of the 12-point alliance is a long tail and a clan head. That’s how I eliminated candidates.’
According to Choi Pyeondeuk’s testimony, it was a royal lineage with a long tail that controlled the boundary of Eungwang High.
Only a clan head can interfere with the school’s boundary.
Among the twelve clans, those with long tails are mice, cows, tigers, dragons, snakes, horses, monkeys, and dogs.
The victim, Hwang Jiho’s clan, isn’t the traitor.
Since Cheongryong fell into a deep sleep after fighting for Yeom Junyeol in PMH, it’s also not the Dragon Clan.
I knew from the beginning that those two weren’t the traitors.
‘And so mouse, cow, snake, horse, monkey, and dog are left.’
Seodol, the head of the Rat Clan, helped the Lake of Eternity and cooperated in torturing the captured bears.
Heukma, the head of the Horse Clan, entered a pact with Hwang Jiho and decided to fight against the Demon Race together.
Jecheondaesung, the head of the Monkey Clan, cooperated with the Tiger Clan to find Wu Zhiqi and offered the seal of the Gingoju as evidence of loyalty.
And the head of the Dog Clan had a deep relationship with the Tiger Clan from the beginning, the evidence being the dog-like appearance of the angel Olmu.
‘The only ones left are the Cow Clan and Snake Clan.’
However, the head of the Snake Clan came up with a means to save Bang Yoonseob.
That’s how I singled out the traitor.
“You are the traitor of the 12-point alliance — the Cow Clan.”
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