NOVEL WEB Chapter 167
“Today’s meeting felt a bit different than usual.”
Instead of the usual gloomy atmosphere, there was an effort to lighten the mood, even if just a little.
Everybody except Changwon, who couldn’t join due to scheduling issues, was busy decorating the drab meeting room.
This was the first day Lapiz had come out after being cooped up at home for a month, and her first attendance at the Blanca capture meeting. So, it made sense that Yeonhwa’s idea to spruce things up was put into action.
The meeting room was formerly Justitia’s office.
Since Justitia had left with Blanca, the sidekicks naturally followed, leaving behind the office after Heros Company’s investigation was completed, and we were left as the only ones using it.
Since nobody was moving back in, the landlord happily agreed to rent it to us at a rock-bottom price.
We had no other option, as meeting in a café or public space wouldn’t work and none of us liked being in the spotlight, so we had no reason to refuse.
However, it wasn’t without its problems.
Holding a meeting in the office of our former homeroom teacher who had betrayed us proved to be far more mentally taxing than anticipated.
The kids didn’t crack a single joke or even smile in this place.
But today couldn’t be like that, so the kids were desperately trying to muster some faux cheerfulness, awkwardly forcing smiles.
With no legitimate reason to smile, it felt a bit sad to stretch for laughter like this. But we couldn’t stay down forever.
“Did Lapiz like cream bread?”
“I don’t know. I just bought it because it was 33% off. If she doesn’t eat it, we might as well.”
“Jinhyeon…”
Yeonhwa let out a sigh at Jinhyeon’s nonchalance while Ageha was busy decorating with Alice.
It felt more awkward to decorate than to leave things as they were, but who cares? It’s all magic anyway; we can erase it in a heartbeat.
Meanwhile, Seolhwa was sneaking chocolates, slacking off amid all of this.
It did feel a little emptier, but it still somewhat resembled the usual vibe. Yet, emptiness lingered.
If Blanca were here, she would’ve poked Seolhwa in the back of the head or playfully whacked her with her tail, asking what she was munching on.
…Or maybe she would’ve joined in on the snack-fest. Oh, right. Blanca can’t handle caffeine.
Something about being a person and all… I think that was the reason. Was that a lie too?
Feeling down, I hurriedly chased away those thoughts and forced myself to focus on decorating. But I had never done this before, so I had no clue how to go about it.
“Should we have just hired a professional company…?”
Yeonhwa let out a nervous chuckle at the sight of the imbalanced office.
“Well… that could’ve worked, but doesn’t doing it ourselves make it more meaningful?”
Ageha replied weakly, realizing it didn’t quite feel right after all their efforts.
“I think it’s okay.”
“Seolhwa, that’s just your weird sense of aesthetics at play.”
Seolhwa, refusing to concede, just said it looked fine to her and continued to munch on her chocolate.
“Ah, Seolhwa! What are you doing eating now? Save it for later!”
“It’s okay. I bought enough. Plus, sneaking a bit makes it taste better.”
“It’s not sneaking if you’re doing it in plain sight.”
“Doesn’t matter.”
Jinhyeon just stared at Seolhwa in disbelief at her audacity, then admitted it was alright since she was right about having enough food.
Though it was a bit questionable, preparations were finally complete. And just in time, Lapiz arrived at our meeting room a moment later.
“Long time no see, Lapiz…”
The kids all tried to give a welcoming cheer, but the aura emanating from Lapiz left them speechless.
It wasn’t a joke; it truly felt like only her aura cast a shadow around her. She seemed completely average otherwise, but this eerie presence clung to her.
Like she was exuding some dark fog.
Lapiz waved off the need for a welcome, suggesting we get straight to business. However, Yeonhwa persuaded her to take a moment to enjoy ourselves, even just a little.
“We need to smile a bit, right? We can’t keep frowning forever!”
“Exactly. So to make that happen, we need to catch Blanca quickly. That’s the only way I can smile.”
Rather than remain silent or snarl, Lapiz dispassionately replied with a chillingly logical statement about not wanting to play.
“…You don’t stutter anymore, Lapiz.”
“The atmosphere has changed quite a bit.”
Seolhwa, Jinhyeon, and Alice all echoed their observations, yet Lapiz responded rather dryly.
“Right. People really change quickly, don’t they?”
She spoke as if even the time spent talking was a waste, then placed a bag on the table, producing a heavy sound.
“Thanks for the snacks. But we don’t have time, so let’s eat while we talk.”
“You say we don’t have time…?”
Yeonhwa raised an eyebrow, clearly puzzled. Soon enough, we all discovered what “not enough time” truly meant.
Because an endless stream of documents started pouring out of Lapiz’s bag.
“What is all this? Where did you…?”
“These are documents related to the Liberators and Blanca that I collected. Grandma helped out a bit.”
Lapiz began sorting through the stacks, explaining each item one by one.
“This is propaganda material for the Liberators and the inferred locations of their bases based on geological information. Here’s personal information of individuals related to the Liberators. Information on Blanca. Classified documents about the Liberators that Heros Company obtained…”
“Wait, classified documents? Those… I mean, how did you figure out locations based on geological info?!”
“You might not get it, but we’re capable of piecing it together with just that much information.”
Lapiz simply replied that it’s feasible because they were skilled.
“With this, we could go capture them right away, Lapiz. Just how much…”
I was equally astonished by her determination. But Lapiz, her eyes locking onto something beyond us, started to share her resolve before explaining anything.
“I’ve thought long and hard about what to do after catching Blanca… How to deal with these feelings.”
Nobody had the courage to interrupt Lapiz and ask her what she had resolved to do. None of us had the strength to interrupt her flow of words.
“Should I hit her? Or… should I make her suffer painfully? Or should I turn her into a pet cat? I truly thought a lot about this. In the end, I decided. Let’s at least ask.”
“Ask what?”
“Is the time we spent together worth so little? Is the time we spent together worth less than the time spent with those crazy psychopaths?”
“And if they answer that it isn’t worth it… what then?”
Lapiz paused, glancing at the ceiling, before replying.
“I’ll get angry, but I’ll let it slide. Even if I can’t go back to how things were… I’ll try to get back.”
“And if they say the time we shared was worthless?”
“Then… I don’t even know what I’d do.”
Lapiz replied in a voice that sent chills down our spines.
She sounded like someone who might actually kill someone.
The place was minimally decorated with some decor that looked kind of cute, but the room felt as cold as standing on a snowy mountain.
I should’ve said it felt mismatched.
“For now, let’s take a look at the documents. We need to determine if they’re valid or not…”
All I could do was suggest we take a step back and see what we were dealing with.
– – – –
When the extraordinary becomes ordinary, the thrill of derailment dulls.
“Gather the corpses and dump them in a pit. Send prisoners to my room. Move it, quickly.”
I urged my subordinates while processing what had become an all-too-familiar task. I received reports of damages and estimated losses on the enemy side.
We suffered significant losses, but the enemy sustained far worse, leading to a resounding victory for the Liberators and a failure for Evil Society…
“Blanca?”
“…I’m listening.”
“Yes, then I’ll continue my report.”
Victory news continued to roll in. But I felt exhausted.
Not physically tired. Mentally drained.
How long do I have to keep doing this?
I wasn’t tired of killing people… no, maybe I was. It just didn’t feel as enjoyable as it once did.
Even as I walked through rivers formed from the blood of countless corpses, the joy I used to find in such things was nowhere to be found.
I missed my friends.
I wanted to ask what they’d been up to and chat about nothing in particular, as if nothing had ever happened.
Though regretting doesn’t change anything, it’s a cliché, but…
If only I could turn back time, I’d go back and spill everything.
Did I throw it all away just for this?
“Ugh, what’s this. That’s all backwards.”
“What?”
“Just talking to myself. Ignore it.”
Here, there wasn’t anyone on equal standing with me. Either they were beneath me or above me.
I couldn’t truly welcome anyone in the same way I did when I was with my friends.
Sure, there was one person from Heros Academy. Ah, right. I remember now.
But that person had no connection to me, and they weren’t a friend.
…Maybe I should pay a quick visit to Heros City.