Chapter 299: Final Preparations
“No way.”
Carqueas, the nation’s only prison for superhumans.
My plan to be captured and brought in to deal with the Sun God’s beast was met with great opposition from the start.
“I’ve always gone along with whatever you’ve done, but I don’t think this is right, Da-in. How dangerous is that place?”
Soobin said this in a rare tone, looking me in the eye.
I knew she was worried about me, but I didn’t feel comfortable saying anything.
While I was silent for a while, I heard sympathetic voices next to me.
“That’s right, Da-in. I’ve heard rumors about that place too, and they say that once you go in, you can’t come out…”
“…Me too, I think it’s too dangerous.”
“That’s right. What if you go in there and can’t escape?”
With everyone trying to talk me out of it, I stayed quiet and listened. I mean, what the hell does everyone think of Carqueas? It’s also a place where people live even though those people are the greatest villains of all time…
“…If I was just a little better at hacking…”
For the record, the biggest problem was Seo-Eun.
When she heard that I planned to enter Carqueas in such a dangerous way, she started to beat herself up for not being able to break through.
No matter how much I tried to stop her, she did it again….It’s so frustrating, especially when she’s a grown child.
Ariel, in particular, came in with a huge photo out of nowhere and threw it at me, sobbing.
“You’re going into this? I can’t believe it!”
…It was a picture of Carqueas, a grim, giant mountain.
It was of Carqueas, a huge gray castle that must have been hundreds of years old, standing eerily alone on a dark, foggy sea of ruins.
…Just looking at the picture, I felt like I was in trouble if I went in there.
Of course, it was armed with state-of-the-art equipment to control psychics, but they didn’t know that.
“Anyway, Da-in, you can’t do this.”
Of course, it’s still dangerous, so everyone is against it.
…But the one constant was that one day I would have to go in there and take him down, and the sooner the better.
Therefore, I began my persuasion in earnest.
“Seriously, this is the last time I’m going to do something dangerous, and I’ll be fine.”
Of course, my words were met with a cold response so I decided to say something to change the subject.
“And if I can pull this off, I’ll be able to retire a lot sooner.”
I cautiously introduced the topic and when I did the reaction was immediate.
“Retirement…?”
Seo-Eun, who had been leaning against the wall mumbling self-deprecating words, turned her head and responded for the first time.
I didn’t miss this opportunity and spoke up.
“Yes. Retirement. I’ve been a villain for a long time, so I need to rest.”
And I wasn’t lying.
…Actually, retirement had been on my mind since the day I stopped the Moonlight Gate.
It’s just that when I first fell into this world, and until this time, I was thinking of retiring at the end of Phase 3, before the start of Phase 4.
I was going to retire, but I was going to get the final boss of Phase 3 before that, however things have changed.
My awareness has risen much faster than I thought it would, and the formation of Egostream and the growth of Stardus have also gone much better than I had planned. That means that after killing this Wish Granter I’ll have a lot less to do.
And the biggest reason…
“So, Da-in, I don’t have to watch Stardus anymore?”
“…Yeah, right.”
It was Stardus.
…Lately, I’ve been getting a strange feeling whenever I see her, and I wonder if her reaction to me means something…I concluded. I’ve finally gone mad, and I’m interpreting Stardus behavior in my own way.
I realized that I should probably stop getting involved with Stardus before something worse happens. I don’t see why I need to keep doing the terrorizing myself now that I have the Egostream, and Stardus has grown quite a bit. I was tired.
Anyway, as I was thinking about it, I heard a voice up ahead.
“But…”
Seo-Eun’s voice was still reluctant so I’ll have to try harder.
“Seo-eun, Soobin listen…”
After that, my persuasion continued. I told her that it was only for this time, that I wouldn’t do anything dangerous anymore, and that it was okay because I had already made a plan.
After talking for a long time like that.
“…Okay. Are you sure this is the last time you’re going to do anything dangerous?”
Eventually, with a worried sigh from Soobin, I was able to get permission.
…It was a mystery to me why I was allowed to enter Carqueas, but it wasn’t the first time.
It’s not like I’ve ever given up just because they objected, anyway.
When it comes to the best outcome for everyone, it doesn’t matter what the process is.
I thought to myself, quietly.
The fact that I brought up retirement and said that I wouldn’t do anything risky like this in the future seemed to help calm everyone down.
‘…I’m not saying I’m retiring right away.’
I had a lot of work to do after this, and a lot of work to do after retirement… but I decided not to say that.
***
With the invasion of Carqueas thus finalized, I began planning in earnest.
I had a very simple plan to summarize my objectives.
Get caught by Stardus after a terrorist attack. Two. Enter Carqueas, the prison for superhumans, and make a wish within. Make contact with the Wish Granter and destroy it. Escape.
It sounds like a simple plan, but the problem is how to get in, how to get out, and how to get rid of them.
As the plan was made on the fly, it took quite a long time to put it into practice, but with Seo-eun’s help, the plan became somewhat clearer as we went through it step by step.
Especially the words of Soobin, who had a serious expression on her face.
“Da-in, you said that Stardus will capture you, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then did you tell your colleagues who are currently abroad?”
“Uh… No?”
“Do it quickly.”
Hearing Soobin speak so firmly, I couldn’t help but pick up my phone.
No… What does it matter, I’m going to escape in a few days anyway. That was my thought, but…Soobin insisted, so I couldn’t help it.
I called everyone I knew and everyone I was allied with.
[Hahahaha! I see, I’ll keep that in mind! I could have invaded Korea if you made a mistake!]
[…Thank you for the heads up, Da-in. If I hadn’t known, I would have invaded Carqueas right away, huhuh.]
[Hmph, okay, make sure to let me know if you’re going to do something like that in the future, so I can plan accordingly.]
…That was a pretty murderous response.
No, I was planning on telling Atlas, but…I didn’t expect the other two to act like this. It’s only a few days anyway.
Anyway, the plan was well underway.
“Hey, don’t worry about the escape part, I think I can handle this.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. The problem with getting into the prison is that it’s hard to break in without being recognized, but getting out is easier because you’re already recognized and you just need to escape…It’s easier.”
I felt sorry for Seo-eun, whose eyes were filled with dark circles, but I expressed my gratitude.
Anyway, afterward, we talked more with Lee Seola and discussed what to do, and finally set a date to carry out the attack.
And finally, after some planning I quietly called Seo-Eun into my room and handed her a notebook.
“Seo-Eun, keep this.”
“What is this?”
Seo-eun tried to open it as soon as she received it, but when she saw that the diary wouldn’t open no matter how hard she tried, she looked puzzled.
I calmly said to her.
“Hand it to me when I get back. Okay?”
“…What? Well, okay, but what is this?”
I swallowed my words as Seo Eun looked up at me curiously.
What I handed her was a diary that was sealed so that only I could open it.
It’s a diary of everything that’s happened since I fell into this world, up to this point…
It’s the only key I’ve prepared for this time, the only way I’ll be able to face him and return in one piece.
“…I’ll show you later. Just keep it for now. Okay?”
“…Okay.”
To Seo Eun, who was still looking down at the diary in disbelief, I added an afterword.
“Oh, and don’t be too surprised if I come back with no memory.”
“…What? What does that mean?”
Looking away from Seo-Eun, who now seemed to be in a state of near panic, I silently pondered.
Okay, we’re all set.
Now, it’s time for the real thing.
I fiddled with the device in my pocket, the one I had prepared for this event.
Here we go.
Phase 3 Early Graduation Event.
***
And at that time.
“Well… Maybe we should be more aggressive and approachable?”
“Actively?”
At the top of the Yuseong Group, Lee Seola was alone with her friend Shin Haru.
She was giving Stardus relationship counseling, and she was quietly questioning herself with a broken heart.
…What am I doing…?
It was a few days ago before Egostic started his terrorist attack.
