‘So that’s how it happened…’

Damien and Tyler sat together in the hospital room in silence. Many minutes had passed since Damien’s arrival, and he’d been completely informed of the situation in that time.

“So that Baek Woojin guy is the main one investigating me and Zara and the rest are just following his command, the lot of you have been isolated and shunned because of your connection with me and because they think you’re all freeloaders with no power, and the overall situation on Calypto has been in a stalemate for the past week. Did I miss anything?”

Tyler shook his head. “That’s the summary. There have been rumors about the Saint Emperor terrorizing the main force in the starry sky, but they’re unconfirmed. Nobody in our cadet division is allowed to get near the main battlefield.”

“Mm, and what about Calypto itself? What’re the Nox forces here like?”

“After Vice Captain’s outburst, most of the Higher Nox on Calypto have either left in search of her or holed themselves up in hiding. For the most part, Calypto itself is secure.”

“I see…”

The situation was, for the most part, as Damien expected.

Originally, the plan was to send Zara into the Sanctuary and return to the Real Plane to handle the aftermath, but because of his sudden body metamorphosis, he was unable to follow through on this.

He already predicted that Zara’s status would be outed, and he already predicted that everything he was trying to prevent would go wrong.

This was why his first move after returning to the Real Plane was to find Tyler and the rest. He wanted to at least make sure his squad was saved by the reinforcements that he’d requested.

Luckily, things didn’t spiral into mayhem, and the squad members were relatively safe.

‘This Baek Woojin is a lone wolf type. He has underlings helping him investigate, but according to Tyler, they aren’t aware of the Seed or even Zara’s existence.’

The underlings Baek Woojin used were only aware that Damien did something wrong, and because of their envy, they immediately assumed that he cheated the system and faked his feats.

Rumors spread thereafter, incriminating Tyler and the rest and leading to their current poor treatment.

‘But that works out better for me.’

Since it was like this…

‘Only one has to die.’

Damien’s gaze sharpened.

Anyone who targeted him or his comrades would die.

Their affiliation didn’t matter, their intent didn’t matter, their pleas didn’t matter.

Only their deaths would assuage Damien’s wariness.

Damien stood up from his spot.

“Those two should be fine now that I’ve healed them. If they don’t wake up by the end of the day, contact me and I’ll give them a second round of treatment.”

“Where are you going?” Tyler asked.

He already knew the answer, but he wanted to hear it anyway.

And who was Damien to reject him? Tyler held down the fort while he was away and fully proved his loyalty. Even under the threat of death, he comfortably protected Damien without batting an eye.

With a wide grin on his face, Damien turned around.

“Some trash dared to mess with my squad members. Isn’t it my duty as the Captain to take it out?”

***

Baek Woojin.

A high-level 4th class being and a stalwart member of the army, he was someone who would do anything for the safety of the universe.

But this mentality got him in trouble often.

He viewed the weak as ants, useless against the Nox. He only respected superiors he deemed worthy of respect, disregarding orders from those he didn’t.

The reason he found himself in Hidden Death Valley was because Heaven’s Army didn’t want him anymore.

Since the Director was someone he respected, the army put Baek Woojin in the academy to tame him.

pαndα`noνɐ1–сoМ

The Director was an equally unconventional person, and instead of taming Baek Woojin, he gave the man a position in the Hell Hole and allowed him to train future cadets.

Was it by design that he ended up in this situation?

Was it his fate?

Darkness surrounded Baek Woojin’s body. It was a murky darkness like Nox Mana, but at the same time, it was far less corrupt.

‘I’m being ambushed.’

It wasn’t hard to realize the situation. One moment, he was walking down the halls of a starship, and the next, he was here.

‘I must escape this darkness first and identify the enemy.’

“Are you thinking about finding out who I am?”

A voice came from the darkness, taunting and hostile.

“You’ve been trying to find me for a while now. I’m surprised you didn’t recognize me from the start.”

The aggressor didn’t seem to care about hiding their identity at all.

And as if to taunt Baek Woojin further, they stepped into the light and revealed themselves.

“I heard you were looking for me so I came to find you. Nice to meet you, Instructor Baek Woojin.”

Damien’s malicious smile was harrowing in the current atmosphere, but Baek Woojin didn’t allow himself to be affected.

“So you are that genius. Hand over the Nox Seed and I will turn a blind eye to your dishonesty. Otherwise, I will kill you where you stand.”

“Oho? Do you think you have the ability?”

“I’m more than capable of dealing with a sprout who relies on outside help by myself.”

“Hahahaha!”

Damien couldn’t help but laugh.

“Even at this stage, you’re keeping up that delusion? Allow me to fill you in on something…”

His body disappeared.

Baek Woojin suddenly felt a force envelop his face.

A hand had grabbed him at an unknown time.

“Just because you can’t comprehend something doesn’t mean it’s fabricated.”

BAM!

The world turned horizontal.

The ground slammed against Baek Woojin’s back.

“Ack…!”

The Instructor let out a sound of pain. He began revolving his mana in preparation for attack when…

“Ah, ah, ah. We can’t have that now, can we?”

Those light-hearted words dispersed his mana in heartbeat.

“You’re in my domain right now. What gives you the confidence to move?”

“I will…never succumb to evil!”

Baek Woojin burst out with strength and used sheer physical force and dexterity to escape Damien’s clutches. He flipped onto his feet and took a fighting stance, planning to do anything he could to survive.

“My cause is the safety of this universe. Anything that gets in the way of that cause…should be destroyed! Damien Void, do not let your mind be corrupted by Nox Spawn! Hand over the Seed!”

“Haa…”

Watching Baek Woojin yell like a madman in a situation where he could die any second, Damien sighed.

‘It’s a shame killing someone who’s so dedicated to the cause, but it must be done.’

Damien moved his finger through the air in a beautiful line.

There wasn’t any fanciful technique behind the finger, nor was there an abundance of overflowing mana.

The mysteries behind his intent were hidden deeply.

A strange sensation overcame Baek Woojin.

The joys of life, the sorrows of death, and the desolation that lay in between. All of these combined into a single feeling that impacted Baek Woojin’s mind and forced him into a state of confusion and collapse.

Damien only needed to walk up to him and kill him.

The instructor wouldn’t be able to resist.

However, for what felt like the first time in his life…

Damien hesitated.