NOVPUBWhile Do-cheol's brazier was burning, the master personally engraved the formation onto the remaining three evil spirits.
The formation was identical to the one etched onto the brazier.
With each additional stroke of the formation, the fire in the brazier flared up, and a sound could be heard from within, as though something was connecting.
Nabiliyeong watched the scene with a faint smile on her lips.
‘Do-cheol and the brazier are connecting now. And every time the formation is engraved, the brazier’s fire grows fiercer. There will be some pain involved, so he must be resisting uselessly.’
Nabiliyeong didn't care about Do-cheol's pain at all.
Her focus was on the remaining three evil spirits.
‘Even if they are apart, they’ll have the same effect as if they were working together, since they’re now connected through the master’s formation.’
The master had likely used Do-cheol, the weakest of the three, as the central figure in this operation for this very moment.
With this operation, the master had tested the nobles' numbers and ensured that the remaining three evil spirits had the power of symbolism wherever they went.
If it succeeded, that was good; if it failed, it was simply a way to use them later.
"Step back."
After bestowing the formation, the master ordered the three evil spirits and Nabiliyeong to step back.
It seemed the brazier, which Do-cheol had entered, would be left to someone else to manage.
Nabiliyeong felt a tinge of regret that she couldn’t oversee Do-cheol, but she was pleased to be able to leave without further suspicion from the master.
‘First, I need to understand the full picture of this incident. Then, I’ll watch to see who will manage Do-cheol and what orders the remaining three evil spirits will receive.’
Nabiliyeong quickly calculated how to deploy the butterflies.
Of course, she didn’t show any of this outwardly.
Nabiliyeong acted sorrowful, as though it was sad to part from the master, though her face remained composed.
To show respect for the three evil spirits, she lowered her gaze and walked a few steps away, looking pitiful as she did.
"I have a question. Could you raise your head?"
After stepping out of the shadows where the master stayed, Gung-gi addressed Nabiliyeong.
Though Gung-gi didn’t treat her as he did the master, he spoke kindly to Nabiliyeong.
It wasn’t because he had special feelings for her but because he admired her dark deeds and the evil deeds she had accomplished.
When Nabiliyeong slowly lifted her head, bowing politely, Gung-gi spoke.
"I want to ask about Seong Guk-eon."
Nabiliyeong wondered why Gung-gi was asking about Seong Guk-eon.
Come to think of it, Gung-gi had seen Seong Guk-eon in the garden.
Apart from Do-cheol, Gung-gi was the only one who had seen the real Seong Guk-eon in person.
Nabiliyeong kept that in mind and listened attentively to Gung-gi’s words.
The goals of this operation had all been achieved.
The assassination of Seong Guk-eon and Jeon Mu-yeong had been prevented.
The corpse of the former Korea branch leader, Seong Hyeong-woo, had been recovered.
The unsa, bound to the brazier, had been saved.
They had escaped with all the people transferred to the garden.
But they couldn’t rest just yet.
‘There’s still more to finish.’
The area outside the garden was near Tanrae Middle School.
Though it was on the outskirts of Gyeonggi Province, it was still part of the capital region, and since it was near a school, the local economy had developed, with many people passing through.
That place had been completely destroyed.
‘The location of the garden was indeed near Tanrae Middle School. This is as expected, but the mastermind has caused more destruction than anticipated.’
It seemed they had used drastic methods to hide information while dealing with Maeng Hyo-don’s teacher.
There were many variables near Tanrae Middle School, but it seemed that the nobles alone couldn’t handle the situation.
Though there had been no casualties, the damage to the streets was inevitable.
‘It was a good decision to have Cheon Dong-ha stationed here. He must have witnessed everything.’
The scale of the destruction indicated that significant information was being concealed.
Even after the destruction, there was likely further manipulation at play, but Nabiliyeong had prepared for that.
One of the strategies she had put in motion was now coming to fruition as someone found her and spoke.
"...Seong Guk-eon, are you okay?"
Hong Gyu-bin spotted Nabiliyeong and rushed over.
Although Hong Gyu-bin had disliked being called on during Teacher’s Day, it seemed he was now doing well with the situation.
Nabiliyeong had requested Hong Gyu-bin’s intervention if there were any issues near Tanrae Middle School.
This was to ensure the safety of the citizens, prevent any problems during the investigation, and prevent the mastermind from causing further trouble.
‘I asked him to come immediately if he found Seong Guk-eon.’
Despite the presence of Hwang Ji-ho and Jeon Mu-yeong and others, Hong Gyu-bin spoke to Seong Guk-eon first, as promised.
It was a way of making it seem that Seong Guk-eon wasn’t just involved with the true tribes but also had ties to the association.
Though there were members of the association and the nobles present, this was an open place, and the mastermind, who had been controlling everything, would soon learn of this meeting.
Nabiliyeong took a deep breath, trying to sound as much like Seong Guk-eon as possible.
"It’s quite something to meet you on Teacher’s Day like this. How is Team Leader Hong Gyu-bin’s teacher?"
She emphasized the word ‘teacher,’ knowing it had a special meaning for Hong Gyu-bin, and Hong Gyu-bin also understood that Nabiliyeong knew this.
Hong Gyu-bin also knew that Nabiliyeong had assumed the appearance of Jeong Je-gal during the incident at the Central Library basement.
She had mentioned Seong Guk-eon beforehand, and now that she spoke in that manner, Hong Gyu-bin would immediately realize it.
"Ah..."
Hong Gyu-bin immediately recognized her identity.
He had initially been surprised by the injury to Seong Guk-eon, but now, his face showed genuine concern.
Though Hong Gyu-bin had often contacted her to ask for late-night work, it seemed he was genuinely worried, as they had known each other for quite some time.
Hong Gyu-bin sighed as he looked at her left eye.
After understanding her intent, Hong Gyu-bin treated her as Seong Guk-eon.
"Seong Guk-eon is well. But right now, you should focus on your own safety."
"You seem to be very close to Seong Guk-eon? You used to act like you didn’t know when I asked for an autograph through connections."
Jeong, the fan of Eungwang High, who was a huge fan of Seong Guk-eon, spoke a lot, but Hong Gyu-bin didn’t engage with him.
When Deputy Yoon appeared and pulled Jeong away, Hong Gyu-bin briefly explained the situation to Nabiliyeong.
He described the abnormal flow of energy originating from the natural release of energy and the adolescent preparatory players' support center, along with the chaos caused by the hidden garden going rampant.
‘The situation near Tanrae Middle School was more serious than I expected. I should have prepared more thoroughly...’
While talking to Hong Gyu-bin, Nabiliyeong noticed her surroundings.
Maeng Hyo-don hesitated for a moment before approaching her.
Though he seemed worried, it appeared he was unsure whether to speak to her, not wanting to cause any discomfort.
It was clear that Maeng Hyo-don, just like Ju Su-hyeok, had recognized her.
‘When I saved Maeng Hyo-don from the fight club, he saw me in a different form. If he remembered that, he must have noticed immediately.’
Maeng Hyo-don’s hesitation didn’t last long.
He had been standing near the coffin of Seong Hyeong-woo when his middle school teacher, who had been pacing around, spotted him and rushed over immediately.
The middle school teacher, who had appeared calm until then, showed a face full of sorrow upon seeing Maeng Hyo-don.
Perhaps the teacher had been holding back to avoid discouraging the spirits when they were in the garden.
Maeng Hyo-don didn’t know how to react, but fortunately, Ju Su-hyeok stepped in to reassure the teacher.
"Seong Guk-eon, you..."
"Teacher Tak Geo-san, Seong Guk-eon is working now. It’s best to speak later."
Tak Geo-san looked at her in shock, but Jeon Mu-yeong blocked him.
He must have realized she was the fake Seong Guk-eon from the way she had made the request.
"This person... I believe they were the former Korea branch leader."
Meanwhile, Hong Gyu-bin, who had finished the briefing, asked a question.
His gaze turned toward Seong Hyeong-woo’s body lying in the coffin.
"Yes, he’s here in the garden."
It wasn’t the simulation version of Seong Hyeong-woo, but the real Seong Hyeong-woo. This was the first time Nabiliyeong had seen him in person.
From a distance, Seong Hyeong-woo looked as though he was merely asleep, in perfect condition.
Nabiliyeong thought back to when she had conversed with Seong Hyeong-woo’s AI through the old simulator.
The AI version seemed more lifelike, but it felt strange to know the real one was here.
While she was lost in those thoughts, Hwang Ji-ho, who had finished organizing his clone and had received reports from the nobles, spoke to her.
"Have you finished speaking with Hong Gyu-bin? Let’s go. Someone will be waiting. You, as well as Seong Guk-eon, must come along."
"Of course. I will accompany you."
Before Nabiliyeong could respond, Jeon Mu-yeong, who had been supporting her, spoke up.
"Where are we going? Who’s waiting for us?"
If they were to be picked up, it was likely someone from the Red Tiger family.
If the mastermind intended to make Nabiliyeong a target for dimensional transfer, it seemed that Jeok-ho would handle the information manipulation.
By modifying nearby recording devices to only leave parts to be shown to the mastermind.
Nabiliyeong had asked Hong Gyu-bin to show off her connections with the Fomor Demon Tribe.
She couldn’t refuse the suggestion from Yeongje-geon, as this would further solidify Seong Guk-eon’s ties.
After getting into the limousine, Jeon Mu-yeong asked.
"Where are we headed, Yeongje-geon?"
"The space owned by Uishin."
Yeongje-geon spoke something strange.
He shouldn’t have spoken so bluntly in the limousine.
Did he mean to take them to the dormitory? But technically, the dormitory belonged to the Hwangmyeong Foundation, so it wasn’t her space.
Yeongje-geon smiled brightly.
"Uishin has a share in the Dragon Palace."
Was he talking about the Dragon Palace?!
Could it be that he really left the White Dragon Palace, Red Dragon Palace, and Black Dragon Palace to Uishin?
What on earth were the Dragon Clan thinking by making such an unreasonable decision?
"Isn’t the Dragon Palace... rather far away?"
"No, it’s close. Hwang Ho said the Dragon Palace’s location wasn’t ideal, so I considered various options for the sake of the benefactor of the Dragon Tribe."
"I told you many times not to burden the benefactor of the Dragon Tribe with useless things, but you never listen."
Hwang Ji-ho seemed extremely displeased, but didn’t outright refuse to go to the Dragon Palace.
Instead of responding to Hwang Ji-ho, Yeongje-geon spoke his mind.
"We’ve moved the Dragon Palace."
