Chapter 157 : Chapter 157

Chapter 157: Complicated Ties (4)

"Hey, ‍​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‍why did you call me here so suddenly?"

We ‍​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍were at the communal garbage disposal area, the same place where I had my first conversation with Do Gang-ho. It was the spot where those three damn trees were rooted.

'This ‍​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍is not exactly the best place for a conversation, but...'

Since ‍​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍there were not many places in Glory where one could talk secretly, I had no choice but to come here. After all, the conversation we were about to have was not something that could be done openly.

'Anyway, ‍​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍I do not know how to start the conversation.'

I had brought her here with the thought that we needed to talk before discussing what comes next, no matter what the outcome was... but honestly, I did not know what words to start with. To begin with a light greeting would seem too obvious, considering I had brought her here as if I clearly had an objective.

'And if I jump straight to the main point, she will not be able to grasp the situation.'

That was why I was struggling. For a moment, I let Baek Ha-ryeong stand there blankly as if she did not understand why she was there.

I quickly reached a conclusion in my head.

'I will go straight to the point, but I will ease into it slowly.'

The day Baek Ha-seong mentioned was the Grand Festival. There was only about a month left. To use that month effectively, it was right to start building up from now. Thus, I decided to throw a question to Baek Ha-ryeong, omitting all unnecessary parts.

"I have something to ask you about the matter from before."

"Something to ask? What is it?"

"What do you think of Baek Ha-seong?"

"...Huh?"

She had an expression as if she did not know what I was suddenly talking about. Since it was an expected reaction, I was not frustrated.

"You asked me what kind of person Baek Ha-seong was, did you not?"

"Y-yes, I did."

"Then I am asking what you think of him."

"...Why are you asking that all of a sudden?"

Okay. The flow up to this point was exactly as I expected. Therefore, I already had in mind what I should say next.

"I told you last time that he just seemed like a stoic person."

"Yes. You did."

"I actually never told anyone this, but I had a chance to talk with Baek Ha-seong."

"What? Is that true...!?"

"Yeah. But that man is a villain. You know what I am trying to say, right?"

In truth, those words contained a duality. One meaning was asking why I should tell her anything when Baek Ha-seong was a villain who was an enemy of the Baek family. The other was that the conversation with him was useless because it was a conversation with a villain.

'If I go about it this way, my position becomes much easier.'

As long as I did not know Baek Ha-ryeong's heart, I could not just come out and say that I was in the same boat as Baek Ha-seong. So, I had no choice but to deliver words with such duality.

'I will have to decide my future actions based on how she answers.'

The question of whether she knew what I was trying to say. Baek Ha-ryeong, being a person of a prestigious family, likely understood the intention behind the question. She would catch the hidden meaning of 'whose side are you on?'

Therefore, I quietly waited for her to continue, and before long, she slowly opened her mouth.

"Do you know?"

"Huh?"

"After my brother disappeared like that, I was quite an outsider in the family."

"..."

"It could not be helped. What my brother did was not something that could ever be taken lightly."

First of all, that was true. I had not known it for long; I found out yesterday.

'Ju Ha-yeon told me.'

Of course, she did not say it to mean that we should not get close to Baek Ha-ryeong. She simply told us as a reference point, noting that we might suffer damages. Besides that, Hong I-na said something about her being a promising talent in the Hong family... well, that was not important right now, so I set it aside.

"And?"

"So, when I was young, I hated him. If he had not left like that—or even if he did leave, if he had not done such a thing—I would not have suffered like that."

"..."

"But you see. Now, I am thinking a little differently."

"About what?"

"Should I say I started wondering why my brother acted that way? I do not know if you know this, but there was actually no reason for him to suddenly do that."

Baek Ha-ryeong continued to speak with a melancholic atmosphere.

"I only knew it vaguely in the past, but now I can say for certain. My brother was a supreme genius."

"He was."

"And that was a fact the family also knew. That was why my brother received all the family's expectations and was confirmed as the successor for the first time in the family's history while he was still in his teens."

"..."

"But such a brother suddenly killed family members without reason and left the family? If he were a murderous maniac, it might be possible, but he is not."

The brother I lived with was silent, but he was always a warm person. Baek Ha-ryeong looked at me after finishing those words. She had an expression as if asking if that was enough of an answer.

'...I am a bit surprised.'

I had expected Baek Ha-ryeong to understand the intention of my words. However, I never expected her to reveal her emotions and heart to this extent, so I could not help but be surprised.

'Does she miss Baek Ha-seong that much?'

Of course, this could also be an act. However, I could say for certain. If this was acting, Baek Ha-ryeong should be an actor instead of a player, and she would be able to become a top-tier star.

'In that case, is it right to believe her?'

If I considered what was to come, this incident was a very important turning point. It would be the event that determined whether I could obtain the ultimate card known as Baek Ha-seong. Therefore, I had no choice but to think carefully, even at this moment.

But...

'There is no end if I just keep worrying like this.'

In the end, I had to make a decision. I could not take this worry with me as travel money to the afterlife. Thus, I decided to reach a conclusion on what to do about this problem.

And the conclusion came faster than expected, considering how long I had worried.

'I will trust her.'

the conclusion I reached was to trust Baek Ha-ryeong. In a way, it could be seen as a gamble. It was not a decision made based on clear evidence.

But.

'Everything I have done so far has been a gamble, so it would be strange not to do it now.'

Think about what has happened since I came to this world. Almost nothing went according to plan, and I mostly moved according to the situation at the time. How would now be any different? It was the same in that something unexpected happened, and it was the same in that I was moving accordingly.

With those thoughts, I asked one final question to Baek Ha-ryeong to find out one more thing.

"Then are you saying you think Baek Ha-seong acted that way because of unavoidable circumstances?"

"At least, that is what I think. The family members just say he went crazy... but that could not be the case."

"I see."

I roughly understood with this. First, Baek Ha-ryeong did not know even a tiny bit about why Baek Ha-seong turned against the Baek family. And she still missed him.

'This should be enough for now.'

Even though I had made a decision, I did not intend to tell her everything from the start. Even if I decided to trust her, it was a bit much to say everything at this point when I still knew little about her. I would have to talk as much as possible until the October Grand Festival that Baek Ha-seong mentioned and then decide how much to tell her.

'Then is that all for now?'

Just because I finished one thing that was giving me the biggest headache did not mean all my work was done. There was still a mountain of things to do, whereas I had only one body and mind. Therefore, I was about to end the conversation and head back, but...

"Wait a minute!"

I had no choice but to stop my footsteps at the voice of Baek Ha-ryeong calling me, as if she still had something to say.

"What is it?"

"You still have something to say."

"Something to say?"

"You still have not told me what you and my brother talked about."

"Ah."

Come to think of it, I had used that as a pretext for the conversation. I had forgotten because I was too focused on my own concerns. But...

'What should I say?'

The conversation I had then was mostly centered around the current situation.

...It could not be helped.

'I feel bad about it, but I have no choice but to make up a story.'

However, I was not going to make up a story out of thin air; I intended to refer to what I saw in the novel. The novel had covered Baek Ha-seong's story quite a bit. Well... the fact that it was not a conversation I had with him was true, but.

'It is fine as long as I do not get caught.'

And it would be a story that Baek Ha-ryeong would be interested enough to listen to. In short, it was a story that would satisfy both the one telling the lie and the one hearing it. If the listener is satisfied even if it is a lie, is that not enough? It did not seem like an appropriate expression for a time like this, but it meant it was a so-called white lie.

......Yeah. That was it.

***

It was a fact I felt repeatedly, but time passed by very quickly. It had already been a month since I had my first proper conversation with Baek Ha-ryeong. Before I knew it, time had already flowed this much...

"The announcement for today is nothing special, but there will be no classes next week. You all know the reason, right?"

"Yes!!"

The day of the October Grand Festival was only a week away. While quietly listening to Im Seong-cheol's words, I wondered internally if there was anything I was underprepared for.

'First, I finished talking with Yu-hyeon, and after that, I met with Baek Ha-seong a few times to discuss the schedule...'

The most important part was the help of Baek Ha-ryeong. I did not know if I could say it was perfect, but I succeeded in obtaining it.

'I really did talk to her a lot for a month.'

I think we met a lot. From stories about Baek Ha-seong to useless chatter, I put in an indescribable amount of effort.

'Still, was the most decisive reason I could get help thanks to Yu-hyeon?'

It was a fact I did not know, but Yu-hyeon was more proficient in information than I thought. He said something about needing to be good with information to classify trash properly.

'Well, during the Sect Leader incident, I was basically saying things close to a prophecy. It is not that Yu-hyeon, who did not know, was incompetent.'

Who would have thought that someone they had been with for years, especially the head of the organization, would betray the organization's will? This was a part that was unavoidable even for Yu-hyeon. Well, anyway, moving on.

'It was a great help that Yu-hyeon created fake information that the Baek family was trading with villains.'

Saying it like this made me feel like trash, but there was a reason I had no choice but to make this choice. To definitely pull Baek Ha-ryeong to this side, I had to prove that the Baek family was the 'enemy,' but there was no proper evidence.

'And if you think about it, a lie is a lie, but it is a lie mixed with truth.'

The reason I thought this way was because the Baek family appeared as one of the shadowy organizations in the novel. They did not engage in actions that openly screwed over players, but should I say they were like a source of funding? Therefore, I said it was a lie, but at the same time, the truth. Although there was no physical evidence, it was true that at least a portion of the Baek family, if not all of them, collaborated with the villains who caused problems in the novel. And it was fake evidence created based on the problems they caused in that novel.

'Of course, it is not a clean method, but I must succeed by any means.'

Even setting aside Baek Ha-seong, I could never forgive the high-ranking members of the Baek family. If I said this, someone might ask: "Aren't you being too hypocritical since you are currently collaborating with villains?" Of course, if you look at the surface, you might feel that way. However, I could say clearly that I had a firm line.

'As long as they are not irredeemable trash.'

Think of cases like the Puppeteer, Yu-hyeon, and Baek Ha-seong. First, Yu-hyeon is someone who provides personal help and now also provides help through the Reverse Heaven Sect. And his goal is not global chaos but eliminating the threat of the Gates. And next is the Puppeteer.

'That girl only pursues fun, not evil deeds.'

It was because the villain side was more convenient for pursuing pleasure; she was not someone who particularly enjoyed evil deeds. This was a fact that could be seen just by looking at the things she called toys. Most of them consisted of villains, and those who were not villains were simply those who had attacked her. It was not for nothing that I called her a crazy woman while still going along with her beyond our contract.

'Finally, Baek Ha-seong...'

He is a villain, but honestly, he is in an unfair position, so there is no need to mention it. Like this, I had a firm line. If not exactly 'good,' they were at least ambiguous enough not to be called 'evil.' That was the boundary I set.

'The reason I only focus my attention on the Puppeteer and Baek Ha-seong among the people in the organization is also for that reason.'

The rest were the 'irredeemable' trash I mentioned earlier. Anyway, what I wanted to say was this.

'The Baek family, who provided the resources for those guys to run wild, cannot be forgiven personally, regardless of Baek Ha-seong.'

This thought remained the same even if their actions benefited the heroes I admired. If the parts from the novel were true, they were people who made a habit of selling people—both children and adults—to villains. If they were such people, it was much better for the wicked ones to disappear, even if they could be helpful.

'So, one week.'

During the remaining week, I would have to do my best to prepare until the end. 

I finished that thought and began to quietly visualize the events of one week later in my head.