NOVEL WEB Chapter 161
“As soon as I regained my senses, I heard the beeping of machines that could only belong in a hospital.”
It wasn’t until I barely opened my eyes that I realized I was really in a hospital.
At least I could tell that my condition wasn’t too serious since I wasn’t hooked up to a bunch of machines like an ICU patient.
But how on earth did I end up in the hospital? It couldn’t have been just for no reason. My memory was a bit foggy.
Right before I fell asleep… sleep. Yeah, Blanca barged in through the classroom door, and suddenly the classroom was filled with this thick smoke…
Yeah, that’s how it happened. Now I understand why she sent us that text telling us not to come. I had a feeling something was off.
I never thought it would be today. I was completely caught off guard at the academy’s ambush during the opening ceremony.
I had been naively hoping everything would work out before that. Deep down, I knew it wouldn’t be that easy.
I was about 90% sure that Blanca was affiliated with the Liberators. But I couldn’t bring myself to believe that last 10%.
And if I exposed her true identity, I was terrified of losing the only person I could truly talk to.
Everything that’s happened so far has been weirdly off. I couldn’t help but fear this would turn out the same way.
It shouldn’t have happened. If I had just known that the warning was a text sent to keep us safe, I would have done anything to stop the kids from going to the academy.
No, I would have pulled out all the stops to keep her from doing whatever she was planning to do. An hour was more than enough time to prevent the academy’s ambush.
If only I hadn’t hesitated or been scared. If I had either fully trusted or fully distrusted her, things wouldn’t have gone this wrong.
…If I had even won her over completely, I might have been able to stop her from doing such things.
Or maybe I could have led her away from the Liberators.
When she slammed the wall down, telling me not to expect special treatment, I should have pushed back, saying it wasn’t because she was the Heroine.
This was my fault. I knew about the Liberators, and I was the only one who could have stopped them.
I was the only one who knew something was off with Blanca, who knew she was hiding something. Because I hesitated, everything went wrong.
“Damn it…”
With no one else to blame, I clenched my teeth, chiding myself.
I messed everything up. If I had just done better or been braver, the situation would be way better than it is now.
But before I could drown in that self-pity, the door to my room swung open, and a bunch of strangers barged in.
I tried to see who they were, but with sunglasses and fedoras blocking their faces, I couldn’t tell who they were at all.
“You may not know us, but we know you. Nice to meet you, Minho.”
“Are you from the Intelligence Bureau?”
They didn’t answer. They just stared at me. Guess that’s it. Blanca betrayed me, so they must be here to investigate her friends.
“It’s truly regrettable that such an incident has occurred. We know you’re in a really tough spot right now, Minho. But we need you to answer a few questions.”
Instead of answering, they shot a barrage of questions at me—all about Blanca.
Her usual behavior, the state of her home, anything suspicious about her, whether she had said anything contradictory, and so on.
They asked so persistently that it was uncomfortable for me to listen.
“Wait a second. Are my friends… okay?”
“Depending on how you define ‘friend’, the answer will vary… But to answer reasonably, yes. They are all safe. You are the first one to wake up.”
With no real reason to hide anything and not much to tell, I described her usual behavior honestly.
She might be a little prickly, but she was definitely warm to us. She’d respond immediately if you teased her, but later she’d get her revenge multiplied.
When they asked if she had ever acted poor while not being destitute or if she had grievances against society, I replied it was more like something everyone held inside.
She was a bit quirky, but not particularly strange, so when I answered, the intelligence agents quietly continued to jot down notes without any remarkable reaction.
“Alright. Next question. Minho, you’ve experienced a few… unique ‘incidents’ with Blanca. Like getting trapped in another dimension or being kidnapped by monsters. During those times, did she ever relay anything to you?”
“Well…”
There were indeed many. However, I hesitated to respond impulsively. First, because she was my…
…friend, right? But now, are we even friends?
She had definitely said, ‘This was fun, playing friends’ at the end. I couldn’t see her expression, but her voice was icy.
As if everything up till now had been nothing. That detached voice sounded like she really wanted to cut ties.
But… if she was genuinely just pretending to be friends with us, she wouldn’t have sent that text today telling us not to come to the academy.
She wouldn’t risk her life for us, wouldn’t hang out with us like that, and wouldn’t share all those truths with me.
If she truly intended to “play friends,” then she wouldn’t have gotten so involved with us.
So, at the very least, it was clear she considered us true friends—until the very last moment.
If you asked if she still thought that way, well… only she would know.
“No. Nothing special.”
The intelligence agents regarded me with a little suspicion, but since I, the only witness, said that, they noted it down as if they had no choice.
“Thank you for your sincere input in this tough situation. Heros Company won’t forget your contribution.”
The agents left as casually as they had entered, and almost immediately, the medical staff barged in to check on my condition.
They asked if there would be any aftereffects, but since I was feeling perfectly fine, I replied with a resounding no.
“Wow, to be perfectly fine after inhaling sleeping gas… is this possibly a meticulous form of consideration?”
“…If I’m totally fine, can I go outside for a bit? I want to check on my friends.”
There was no point crying over spilled milk now. I needed to focus on handling the aftermath of this shock.
Honestly, I hadn’t fully recovered yet, but I could imagine how the others were doing.
The medical staff insisted that since they didn’t know whether I was actually fine or not, I should wait a little longer.
But I pushed back so hard that they finally agreed to release me after telling me to inform the medical staff if I felt anything strange, detaching all the equipment stuck to me.
“Um, please don’t wake up my friends if they’re still asleep!”
That was only reasonable, and I exited the room to wander the halls.
But without a clue where to go, I was just aimlessly shuffling along. I didn’t know what to do anyway, so I figured I’d just start walking.
Maybe if I walked for a while, I’d think of something. Then, belatedly, my notification pinged, and I checked my phone.
Right, I had a phone. Now…yeah. I should look for some information.
I wanted to know what had happened while I was knocked out.
Unfortunately, I didn’t even need to search. The internet was already in an uproar due to the appearance of the Liberators.
They had attacked the academy, stealing information from Heros Company and causing casualties, and one of the Liberators was reportedly a notorious first-year student from the academy. Here’s the profile!
Wherever I looked, wherever I went, it was all anyone was talking about.
Actually, I can’t say it was **all** they were talking about. There was also chatter about the videos the Liberators had posted.
Though it was all fragmented and most of it had been censored within minutes, the speed at which clips started popping up everywhere was remarkable.
So it didn’t take long to view the full footage.
The contents of the video revealed the secrets that Heros Company was hiding, the inhumane experiments Blanca had undergone, and the ideology of the Liberators.
Everything in it was something I already knew. I was aware of the secrets of the Liberators and Heros Company because I was possessed, and I had witnessed Blanca’s situation firsthand.
But for those who didn’t know all this and for others, it was an outrageously shocking revelation.
With videos like that circulating through society…
It was obvious society was about to go haywire.
Story progression… Hah, what does it even matter with everything in this state? It had been wrecked long ago.
Even after everything that’s happened, I mocked my own foolishness for seeking the original story, strolling through the pitch-black hallways that felt like my future.
Then, I stumbled upon a commotion somewhere.
“Madam, this is unacceptable.”
“Me? Ha, you guys are the ones in trouble. I have no issues whatsoever! Now, while you’re still speaking nicely, you’d better go away. You’re disturbing my baby’s sleep.”
“At this rate, we will have no choice but to reconsider the benefits we provide you, madam.”
“Seven.”
“You’ve already breached our contract multiple times, haven’t you?”
“Eight.”
“And what on earth is that number? It’s neither in reverse nor sequential…”
“That’s the magnitude of the earthquake I’ll cause if you don’t get the hell out of here. Nine.”
“Are you trying to kill everyone?”
“I don’t care as long as he and my family are safe. Ten.”
“…You will regret this.”
“You guys will regret it first.”
I found myself witnessing a standoff between Rapis’s grandmother and the agents of Heros Company’s Intelligence Bureau.
“Looks like you’re still alive, huh? Even trying to lap my feet while asking for help at this stage… tsk. And you, standing there quietly watching, come here.”