Auction Ti: 2:00 PM.
Auction Location: Haegneul Hotel.
Everything hinged on Chairman Desmond’s decision, but the circumstances leading to his choice undoubtedly involved .
Why was the auction starting at 2 PM?
Why not in the evening, but instead in broad daylight? There’s certainly sothing peculiar about it.
This contradicted what was discussed before.
Crackle.
Sothing touched the barrier.
I felt it, Baek Harang felt it, and Yumir felt it too.
“…This is…”
[I’ll handle it.]
“Isn’t it right for to go?”
[It’s not a signal looking for Baek Seol-hee. It’s looking for .]
Whoever sensed the anomaly intended to find .
If that current was sent to Baek Seol-hee’s room, it ant only one thing.
[You’re quicker to notice than expected.]
Perhaps it was natural to sense this, but I wouldn’t know for sure unless I t them in person.
So, I imdiately donned my mask, shifted to my spiritual form, and passed through the adjacent room—not directly through the front door—and then moved toward the hallway.
“Mr. Do Ji-hwan! Are you in there?! Hey, what are you—who are you people?!”
“We’re agents of the Association. Please do not cause a disturbance inside the hotel.”
“The public has the right to know—stop! Where are you touching?! Stop touching there!!”
Outside, agents of the Association were clashing with reporters.
I confidently walked through the middle of the commotion in my spiritual form, unnoticed by anyone.
Except for one person.
As soon as I entered the front door of the room across from Baek Seol-hee’s, a crackling sound erupted, and this woman, who had surrounded the room with magical energy and set up a barrier, noticed .
[Were you looking for ?]
“…….”
It was Kim Yun-ji, the Thunder Emperor, who had summoned from the opposite suite.
Using her electrical ability, she sent a signal into Baek Seol-hee’s room, essentially knocking, and as soon as I read the signal, I entered her room.
“Entering without knocking? How impolite for the Goblin.”
[Better than soone knocking on a barrier with their forehead.]
“…….”
The Thunder Emperor pressed her reddened forehead with her hand.
She had probably tried to enter Baek Seol-hee’s room using her electrical ability but was blocked by the barrier, ending up banging her head hard before returning to her room.
[You caught on pretty quickly, though. That I’m him.]
“That Do Ji-hwan is actually the Goblin.”
This woman.
She figured out the truth faster than anyone else.
[There’s no reason to suspect that just because I’m in Jeju, Do Ji-hwan is the Goblin.]
“…At this close range, not knowing would be foolish, wouldn’t it?”
Kim Yun-ji reached for the TV and displayed a photo of a man.
“Senior Baek Seol-hee wouldn’t date just any man. I simply thought there was sothing hidden about him. The most plausible theory was that the Goblin, who had been clashing with her for a while, was Do Ji-hwan.”
[You deduced that from just that? Isn’t that a bit of a stretch?]
“Wherever Baek Seol-hee is, the Goblin always appears. I just thought they had so sort of connection. Just like you approached , I figured you approached Senior Baek Seol-hee in the sa way. It’s just….”
[Just?]
“…Are you two really…in a romantic relationship?”
The Thunder Emperor looked at with a mix of embarrassnt and curiosity.
“Not just a simple relationship of light and darkness, but the kind where yin and yang rge into one?”
[What a patriotic perspective.]
“……This is wild.”
The Thunder Emperor, who had always been so rigid, suddenly sounded like a girl her age.
[Considering how things are set up now, isn’t it stranger not to think about it?]
“Even if it ans deceiving people, I thought Senior Baek Seol-hee would hide that you’re the Goblin….”
Clap, clap, clap.
“Why are you clapping all of a sudden?”
[It’s just fascinating that soone could have such a pure and innocent soul.]
To think that Baek Seol-hee kidnapping Do Ji-hwan while claiming she was pregnant was seen as a self-sacrificing move to hide the truth about him being the Goblin.
[Logical, sensible, yet so clean-minded.]
“Is that a complint?”
[Everyone around has their minds clouded by romantic fantasies. You’re the first to approach it like this. Although, to be blunt, many people act like they’re possessed by a lust demon.]
“…But in reality.”
[The lust demon wins.]
I lightly rubbed two fingers together, and the Thunder Emperor’s face instantly turned red as she took a step back.
“D-Don’t even think about doing that to !”
[Do you think I’m the type of villain who sses with just any woman?]
“But you’re surrounded by won—”
At that mont, the Thunder Emperor frowned sharply and glared at .
“…How far have you gone with Se-rin?”
[What if I said all the way?]
“…….What did Se-rin say? About, uh, Goblin and other won….”
[Actually, she prefers it when it’s with multiple people.]
Her stern expression instantly crumbled.
“This can’t be….”
Learning the secret of the senior she admired left her in despair.
For a mont, I worried if she might turn into a demon, but honestly, if this made her beco one, that’s on her ntal strength, not .
“Se, Se-rin unnie would… that kind of thing… overseas, perhaps?”
[It happened for the first ti after she died, so let make it clear—what you’re thinking never happened, for Hyeon Se-rin’s honor.]
“But the dia says…”
[Don’t trust the dia. Trust the Secret Society.]
“…….”
The Thunder Emperor clenched her fist tightly.
“Haah. I reached out to you to ask about the auction, but this has turned into an entirely different conversation….”
[How can soone just talk business without a bit of socializing? It’s important to converse, spend ti together, and build camaraderie.]
“Even if I’m building camaraderie with the Goblin, and even if Se-rin unnie acknowledges you, I have no intention of forming any patriotic bond with you!”
[Well, I have no intention of forcing myself on a woman who doesn’t want to be with .]
While I might reject won who co to , I would never forcibly drag soone who doesn’t want to be here and make them sit beside .
[If I were that kind of villain, do you think I could have made it this far?]
“……Fine. Let’s stick to the main point and finish this.”
The Thunder Emperor straightened her posture.
“Using electricity during the day—it’s pointless, isn’t it?”
[That’s right.]
I had asked her to montarily shut off the electricity and light at the auction venue.
But with the auction happening in the afternoon, at a hotel under Haegneul’s ownership rather than a prearranged location, my earlier request had beco aningless.
“Unless blackout curtains are drawn in the auction hall, that would be impossible to confirm.”
[Then reverse it instead.]
I pointed to the ceiling.
[The key is to disrupt and obscure vision for a mont. Even the strongest opponent will falter briefly when faced with this magical technique.]
“……!”
As expected.
It seed this approach resonated with the Thunder Emperor.
“This… this ability…?”
[Yes. While I can’t use it, you can. It’s just theoretical for , but for you, it should be entirely possible.]
“Are you sure it’s okay to teach this?”
[Of course. That is, if you’re willing to build a cooperative relationship with the Secret Society.]
The Thunder Emperor’s growth would directly bolster the Secret Society’s influence in South Korea.
Even if I shared this technique with her, it wouldn’t harm significantly.
This technique was well-known before the Great Upheaval—a technique already recorded in the annals of this world.
[Here’s how it works, and in practice, you should do it like this. The target is…]
I proceeded to explain in detail.
[…Do you understand?]
“…You’re truly a terrible person.”
The Thunder Emperor glared at with a hint of disgust, grinding her teeth.
“How can you justify doing such things to innocent people?”
[What if the target isn’t innocent?]
“What are you saying?”
[On the surface, he seems like a good person, but he’s hiding so enormous secrets. That man, Doul… he played a role in forcing Hyeon Se-rin to leave the country.]
“!!”
The Thunder Emperor’s expression shifted dramatically.
“Is that true?”
[Of course. He’s a dia company CEO. He orchestrated a narrative painting female ability users who left Korea as traitors, prostitutes, or won obsessed with Western n. Who else could have done that? Am I wrong?]
“…….”
[If you don’t want to, you don’t have to help. While your assistance would be a big help to the Secret Society, we can create the situation ourselves if needed.]
“I’ll do it.”
The Thunder Emperor made her decision quickly.
“If it’s for the greater good, and the target is a villain deserving of public scorn, then it’s no problem.”
She steadied her breathing and ran her fingers through her hair.
“…As long as the result is the sa, the process doesn’t matter. I’ve learned sothing today. But this technique—why does it sound familiar…?”
[It’s originally one of the materials preserved in the library, sothing Librarian Do Ji-hwan would have taught his students.]
“The library archives?”
[Yes. It’s part of the old records.]
At first, I questioned whether this would warrant censorship and preservation in the library archives, but considering the context, it made sense.
The story included multiple resurrections, even of long-dead individuals, yet the protagonist’s close comrade from the beginning of the story was pierced through the chest by an EX-grade alien’s strike, dying instantly.
[You can’t replicate the technique’s na, but its effect can be recreated.]
The activation process didn’t involve the Thunder Emperor herself but was executed through soone else.
[Listen carefully. The CEO of Haegneul Daily will also attend the auction. And when any changes occur to him…]
I pointed toward the ceiling.
[Flash bang.]
A dazzling light will hit the CEO of Haegneul Daily and scatter in all directions.
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