LIGHTNOVELONLINE
Chapter 179: Unreal (4)
Doo! Doo! Doo!
A single offensive helicopter crossed the airspace of Incheon City. The ground below was partially destroyed and set ablaze as a monstrous creature roared atop it.
- Kuoooo!!
Despite the terrifying shockwaves, the helicopter didn't falter, for they knew there was someone to protect them.
- Mage deployed at that point.
The entity confronting the demon wasn't a fighter jet, a tank, or a missile. It was just an ordinary schoolgirl.
As they jumped out of the slowly descending helicopter onto the ground, the high school girl, Edna, swung her staff.
Flash!
- Oh that's magic......
- It’s my first time seeing it in person, but as expected.
- Impressive.
The clash of light and the demon.
As beams of light poured from the magic circle engraved in the sky, they pierced the demon. It resisted and spewed flames in all directions.
- What!
The helicopter hastily evaded, but Edna didn't move. She stood on her ground with a barrier of light in front, and raised her staff high.
Flash!
Penetrating through the storm clouds, a giant pillar of light descended, severing the demon’s neck.
Kugung!!
- Oh!
- We did it!
- Edna killed the demon again!
Demons were protected by special barriers on their skin, making them incredibly difficult to deal with, but Edna appeared unfazed. Her arrows of light effortlessly pierced the demon’s skin, and there was no demon that could resist them.
"Whew..."
Successfully completing the hunt once again, Edna turned around and waved her hand towards the sky, where countless drones with cameras were capturing her actions.
It was a fan service gesture towards the many fans watching her.
Though unheard, she could feel their enthusiastic cheers. She was the only mage on Earth, their savior. Such treatment was only fitting.
Click! Click!
Shralalalak!
"Edna! You've successfully completed another demon hunt. Can we have a few words from you?"
"Isn't academics and hero life challenging?"
"Principal of Ilwol High School has publicly praised you. Can we have your response?"
On the way back in the helicopter, journalists had already gathered at the landing site, equipped with their cameras and microphones.
Edna answered their questions one by one.
She felt a bit tired, but it was not too difficult.
Besides, it was something appreciated by fans.
*'Academics...’*
She didn't want to give up on it completely, but in the end, she had to give up halfway.
With demons appearing all over the world, Edna had to travel the globe.
But did her grades suffer?
Not at all.
[National Rank 1, Mage Edna!]
"How did you rank first when you didn't have time?”
“I mainly studied from textbooks.”
[Summon letter from prestigious universities worldwide! What will she choose?]
Edna barely studied, but ended up at the top domestically and received offers from prestigious foreign universities.
Maybe entering a prestigious university wasn't that hard even without studying.
It was truly smooth sailing.
Every endeavor, whether it was studying, dancing, singing, or magic, she succeeded without fail.
If Edna bought a lottery ticket, she'd win first prize, and when she donated it lightly, she received high praise as if she were an angel.
The clothes and accessories she wore became trends, attracting explosive popularity worldwide.
The world noticed her.
It felt like she became the center of the world.
She walked down a path without any obstacles.
Would others understand this feeling of pure bliss?
Edna was happy.
She believed she could continue to unfurl a bright future just like before.
That's what she thought.
- Miss Edna! Are you available for deployment right now?
One day, during class, Edna hastily left school after receiving a call.
Her schedules were managed under government leadership, so skipping school became a routine, but at least she could maintain minimal academics.
Lately, demon appearances had become more frequent.
- Demons appeared simultaneously in Cheorwon, Gangwon Province, and Okinawa, Japan. Hurry to deal with the demon in Gangwon Province first, then we'll move to Japan. If we're late, we'll have no choice but to use missiles.
"Ah......"
Simultaneous demon appearances?
That was unprecedented.
*'Missiles are not an option.'*
——- Okinawa, Japan.
It was a popular tourist destination with a considerable population.
The decision to use missiles implied the possibility of the city collapsing, so it was a measure to be reserved until the very end.
Furthermore, since it was uncertain whether the demon could be reliably defeated with missiles, there was a need for urgency.
"Hurry up. Please."
Edna felt a sense of duty in what she did. If not her, no one else could save the people of Earth.
*‘People want me.’*
... But things didn't go as planned.
Boom!
"Gah...!"
- Miss Edna! Are you okay?
"I-I'm fine!"
15 meters tall.
Red skin.
Single iris.
These were the characteristics of the second demon encountered.
After defeating the one in Cheorwon, Gangwon Province, she headed towards Okinawa, Japan.
If there was anything unusual... It was that it could shoot lasers from its eyes.
"It's too strong!"
Half a year into her activities as a mage, Edna was beginning to notice something.
The fact that her magic wasn't progressing at all.
Well, it couldn't be helped.
"... I don't even know where or how I learned magic."
Magic knowledge just suddenly appeared in her mind, and she used it as if it were her own, but further growth seemed impossible.
She objectively assessed her level as 'Stage 4.'
The demons encountered so far were at best at Stage 2 to Stage 3 level.
They hadn't been difficult to deal with so far... but…
Ziing! Kugung!
"Ah!"
Avoiding the fiercely raging laser, debris from a nearby building poured down.
"It’s at least Stage 5...!"
Even she couldn't easily withstand this level of destruction.
Fortunately, the giant demon couldn't control its massive size properly, so its agility was lacking, but the destructive power of the laser from its eyes was formidable, making it difficult even for fighter jets to approach properly.
"Can I... win?"
Ziiing~! Thud!
Each time the giant's gaze swept by, traces of civilization crumbled one by one.
Amidst this, Edna could do nothing.
The behemoth was at least two levels stronger than her, and she had no way to withstand the attack with any shield she could muster.
*'How... can I...?’*
With the staff firmly in hand, just when Edna was hesitating...
Whoosh!
A breeze, lighter than a feather, scattered. She felt something brush past her ear.
Realizing, she found a young boy standing behind her.
A familiar figure.
“Baek... Yu-Seol...?”
He glanced at the giant, then turned to Edna.
“My mistake.”
"Wha...?"
"You drew happiness too quickly, upsetting the balance of the world."
"What... are you talking about...?"
"... Just wait a moment."
Baek Yu-Seol produced a small, short staff unlike her, and as mana emitted from it, a blade of white light surged forth.
"Wait. That won't...!"
But before Edna could finish, Baek Yu-Seol soared high into the sky.
He transitioned between buildings in an instant, and had already reached close to the giant.
Ziiing!
Upon spotting Baek Yu-Seol, the giant fired a laser, but it missed.
Evading the laser expertly while guiding it away from hitting the ground, he swiftly approached.
"What...?"
It happened in the blink of an eye.
He manoeuvred through the air effortlessly, and rushed towards the giant's neck and deeply pierced it at the blue spot located there.
Immediately after.
-Kuwaah....
The giant lost its strength and collapsed to the ground lifelessly.
Kugung!!!
"Ugh!"
Being such a massive figure, the aftermath of its fall was formidable.
As Edna hurriedly erected a barrier and shielded herself with both arms, she heard footsteps nearby.
Hastily raising her head, she found Baek Yu-Seol looking down at her with a troubled expression.
Just moments ago, he had faced the giant, but his attire remained undisturbed as if nothing had happened.
"H-How...?"
He defeated a demon that she couldn't even dream of withstanding a single blow
"You could have done it too."
He glanced briefly at where the giant had fallen.
"It'll be harder from now on. Stronger demons will come pouring in."
"Wait! What do you mean?"
"Just what I said."
Afterward, Baek Yu-Seol remained silent for a while.
He didn't vanish like before, swift as the wind.
He was waiting.
Waiting for Edna’s question.
"..."
Her mind was in turmoil.
Now that she finally met Baek Yu-Seol, she couldn't grasp what question to ask.
'Who are you?'
'Are you another mage?'
'Why do you wear our school uniform?'
Countless questions came and went.
Finally, the question she managed to bring up was this.
"... What's going to happen from now on?"
More powerful demons will appear, he said.
Modern scientific weapons wouldn’t be able to stop them.
Why?
He didn't know.
The barriers of the demons hadn’t been explained by science yet.
"This world is going to perish."
"W-What...? Are there... no other mages? Like you, and well me...?"
*‘Can I really be called a mage?’*
Edna hesitated slightly when referring to 'me,' but Baek Yu-Seol didn't seem to care much.
"No. It's just you and me."
"T-That can't be..."
Edna gazed at the ground with a bewildered expression, slowly parted her lips and asked, "Then... what should we do?"
Why did she ask him that question?
Why did she think Baek Yu-Seol would know the solution to this situation?
She didn't know.
But 'instinct' was telling her.
If she asked Baek Yu-Seol, he might be able to solve anything.
He hesitated for a while, then finally, he spoke as he took a step away.
"You have to choose death yourself."
Whoosh...!
She lifted her head again, about to ask what he meant, but Baek Yu-Seol had already left.
*'I... have to die...?'*
Ridiculous.
Who would stop that demon if she died?
How could she give up such a happy life...?
"Ah..."
Edna remained seated for a while, unable to move.
That night, Edna had a terrible nightmare.
Terrible and yet horribly realistic.
In the dream, Edna was a wanderer.
Dodging the pouring rain, Edna walked through the devastated streets.
Civilization was now nothing but a trace.
Once brilliant and noble human scientific achievements had crumbled under the demons, and now they lived a life hiding like mice to survive.
It was no different for Edna.
She traversed the ruined city.
Perhaps to find the meal of the day, she walked endlessly.
"...
In her dream, she hid behind a building.
A huge demon passed through the debris of the collapsed building.
She held her breath and waited for the demon to pass.
Edna, who was once the center of the world, was now gone.
In hee dream, she was just prey for the demons, nothing more or less.
-Kuoooo!
-Kyak!
Right nearby, demons engaged in a massacre.
The sky was occupied by demons with devil wings, and the underground was filled with dreadful toxic gas, making even breathing impossible.
If there is a living hell, it must be here.
Crawling between the buildings, she discovered something.
[Ilwol High School]
It was her collapsed school.
Everyone was dead.
On the day the demons occupied the world, the school collapsed first.
Above it.
Baek Yu-Seol was sitting there.
He opened an umbrella and said while looking at the sky pouring rain.
"Because you became happy too quickly... The balance of the world has been disrupted."
In her dream, she knew.
In her dream, he blamed her.
"Damn..."
In her dream, she was crying.
"It's because of me. It’s because of me..."
She wept and wept endlessly.",