## Chapter 562 – 562. Savior Of The Academy
“For me, it’s all in the past. I can’t be sure how the future will turn out because of me as a variable. Someone who should live might die, and conversely, someone who should die might live.”
“…The future me must have disappointed you and Yujin.”
Iste smiled sadly.
I was momentarily stunned. Why was she suddenly jumping to conclusions like that?
“What makes you think that?”
“Because you sent Yujin to me. The future me, who didn’t have Yujin’s help, must have been very lacking, so you’re having Yujin help me.”
“…Good to know. Work harder.”
“Yes. I’ll work harder!”
『Iste’s Favorability: 40』
Her favorability jumped to the friendly stage in an instant. It was definitely the right answer to open up to some extent.
‘Favorability doesn’t go up easily from 40. Originally, I should have taken my time to win her over… But now, I might be able to raise it to the favor stage.’
***
Iste and I put on the Emotion Connects, which had been enhanced with the Light Ascension Path, again.
Unlike before the enhancement, I could feel Iste’s emotions through the bracelet. Although it was only about 10% compared to my own emotions, I could definitely feel Iste’s emotions.
‘It’s the effect of the enhancement. Well, that’s good. I can immediately know what emotions Iste is feeling. Right now, I can feel surprise.’
I wasn’t sure if the duration of the Emotion Connect had increased, so I moved quickly with Iste.
We arrived at a grassland.
It was a place where a cool breeze blew gently. The grass floor was soft, and the temperature and humidity were just right, almost excessively so.
“This is a place that tests your desire for sleep, Yujin. You’re sleepy, aren’t you?”
“The weather is nice, but it’s not to the point where I’m sleepy.”
“You’re amazing. When I first came here, I couldn’t resist the drowsiness and fell asleep for a while. I originally intended to sleep for only about 30 minutes, but when I woke up, 4-5 hours had passed. I tried to leave right away, but I couldn’t resist the drowsiness again… But strangely, I don’t feel sleepy at all now that I’m walking with you.”
It seemed like Iste was feeling my emotions more strongly. Otherwise, she should be feeling sleepy right now.
『You have overcome the desire for sleep.』
We walked along the path.
Numerous people gathered around me and Iste, applauding us.
“Yujin! I respect you!”
“Iste! I want to be like you!”
“The world is enjoyable because you two are here!”
The people only said words of praise for us. I glanced at Iste.
“Iste, just like you feel my emotions, I can feel yours. I don’t feel anything from them.”
“Yes. All the people here are fake. They have no sincerity. You seem rather annoyed?”
“There’s nothing more pointless than meaningless honor.”
『You have overcome the desire for honor.』
We discovered a mountain of gold and jewels.
Iste thought the gold and jewels were pretty. That was all.
I picked up the gold and jewels just in case. I didn’t feel much greed. If I went all out, I could earn as much money as I wanted. However, if even 10% of this was real, it would reduce my effort.
But the gold and jewels turned into stones after we passed a certain distance.
‘I knew it.’
I threw the stones away. I had no intention of going back for the treasure.
『You have overcome the desire for wealth.』
Suddenly, a village appeared.
It looked like a small rural village in Europe, not Korea.
Children appeared from the alleyways and surrounded Iste.
“Iste, Iste. Let’s play together!”
“We’ve been waiting for you to come.”
I could feel joy from Iste. But Iste was hesitant to answer easily, as she was watching my reaction.
“If you’re going to play, you should play hard. Let’s play for exactly 30 minutes.”
I joined the children and started playing with them. After 30 minutes, Iste smiled, looking slightly tired.
“It’s tiring. But it was fun. You didn’t seem to enjoy it much, Yujin.”
“The level doesn’t match. How did you originally pass this place?”
“I refused the children’s offers. That was the easier path for me. You’ve been deliberately exaggerating your emotions since earlier to make me feel them, right? Thank you.”
『You have overcome the desire for pleasure.』
We quickly passed other emotional tests and arrived at a black rocky area.
As we got closer to the rocky area, I could feel anxiety from Iste.
“…Yujin, can we postpone this place for later?”
“You seem to know what’s being tested here.”
“It tests the emotion of hatred. Could you at least take off this bracelet? I’m afraid you’ll despise me.”
“That won’t happen.”
We entered the rocky area.
People appeared. They were a man and a woman with blonde hair, blue eyes, and white skin. They looked to be in their 30s. The man was sturdy, and the woman was beautiful, resembling Iste.
I immediately realized they were Iste’s parents.
“Don’t open your eyes, Iste. Do you know how eerie your eyes are?”
“Ha. How did such a child get born… You. Tell me honestly. Did you sleep with another man?”
“Are you suspecting me now?”
“Logically, how can I not suspect you! My child was born with such terrible eyes!”
“I’m more suspicious of you. Do you have a monster in your ancestry?”
The couple exchanged harsh words and insults.
I glanced at Iste, who was trembling slightly. She was pretending to be okay, but her emotions were flowing vividly into me. She was trembling with fear.
‘I thought it was about hating the other person, but it wasn’t. It was about being hated. No. It’s too early to jump to conclusions?’
In the case of Iste’s eyes, they looked mysterious and beautiful to me, but they were different for ordinary people. Aside from beauty, they were too alien. If it were possible to turn them on and off like my Spirit Eyes, it would be different… It seemed like Iste was born as an Awakened one from the start.
“Iste! Don’t open your eyes! Never open your eyes! Your eyes are more terrible than anything else! Understand?!”
Iste’s mother shouted desperately. That was abuse. Abuse that took away the light from a child. Given Iste’s personality, she would have followed it obediently.
Iste had her eyes tightly closed.
“Open your eyes.”
I said. Iste was startled.
“B-but.”
“It’s nothing. This test is about hatred. It’s not about you being hated, but about you hating people. Besides, those aren’t your real parents. Where are your real parents now? Are they dead? The Nine Wood Cult might have killed them.”
“…They’re alive. I asked the Cult Leader to save my mother and father…”
“That was a generous decision. You should have killed them instead. What you feel for them isn’t love. It’s just fear. Open your eyes and look at them and hate them. As you know, they’re fake.”
“……”
Iste hesitated. I held her hand tightly so she couldn’t run away.
“If you can’t hate them, I’ll hate them for you.”
I glared at the parents who were spewing insults at Iste, inciting hatred. I wanted to tear their necks and violate them. Even killing intent flowed from my body. But they didn’t realize my presence at all.
“…Yujin. Thank you. You were angry and hated them for me. Yes. This is the feeling of hating someone. It’s not a good feeling.”
Iste opened her eyes. She stared intently with her aurora-like eyes.
“Mother. Father. There will be no more encounters between you and me. Just this once, as Yujin said, I will hate you.”
Clang.
The couple’s bodies cracked and shattered into pieces.
『You have overcome the test of hatred.』
‘There are four left, huh? Well, I can do this quickly too.’
Iste closed her eyes again. And she smiled brightly at me.
『Iste’s Favorability: 47』
***
『You have overcome all the tests of the special dungeon, Desire.』
『As a reward, you are given the opportunity to discard your emotions.』
‘I knew it.’
Iste didn’t discard her emotions during the test. As you can see from Iste now, she is by no means a doll. In the first place, emotions are not something that can be easily discarded. Not without special power.
“I don’t need that opportunity.”
I said firmly. Emotions are what make things interesting. In the first place, it was doubtful whether it was even possible to erase my emotions, which had absolute mental strength.
“I have no intention of getting rid of my emotions either. Thanks to you, Yujin, I realized how precious emotions are.”
Iste said with a smile.
『Iste’s Favorability: 50』
Her favorability was exactly 50. It meant she was starting to feel favorable towards me.
‘Favorability of 50 is not enough. It’s important to meet Iste often in the future.’
The speed at which favorability increases and decreases varies depending on the person. But in general, if you don’t meet for too long, the favorability is very likely to decrease.
“Ah, it’s the Cult Leader’s magic.”
“I see.”
A magic circle appeared under our feet after we finished conquering the dungeon. We stood proudly without avoiding the magic circle.
The magic circle flashed, and the scenery changed. It was the Nine Wood Cult Leader’s room.
“You have worked hard. Second Apostle and Ninth Apostle.”
“Cult Leader!”
Iste smiled like a blooming flower and ran towards Cassandra. It was like watching a grandmother and granddaughter.
“Iste, you did well. But you seem very tired. Go back to your room and rest.”
“Yes, Cult Leader. I was actually a little tired. I’ll excuse myself first. Let’s meet again later, Yujin.”
Iste staggered out of the room. She looked very tired. It was no wonder, considering she had entered the special dungeon three months ago.
I looked straight at Cassandra and asked.
“First Apostle. Are you satisfied now?”
“Thank you, Ninth Apostle. Iste will become a good saint of the Nine Wood Cult.”
“I suppose so. I think I overdid it a little this time, so I want to rest.”
“Now that you have officially become the Ninth Apostle, you are welcome to use this place as much as you like. Ninth Apostle, is there anything you desire from me?”
I habitually scanned Cassandra’s body. An old body. I didn’t feel any lust at all.
“No.”
“I see. But do you know? The Korean branch of the Nine Wood Cult has been annihilated.”
Already?
It was faster than expected, but I had expected it, so it wasn’t that surprising. I never thought they would stop Seong Hari.
I clenched my fist and became wary of Cassandra.
“It’s alright, Ninth Apostle. We can rebuild the Korean branch at any time. And our Nine Wood Cult has been rude to the Ninth Apostle first. If you wish, I will send you to Korea right now.”
“Aren’t you angry that one branch of the Nine Wood Cult has been annihilated?”
“We can always refill the members of the Nine Wood Cult. What’s important are the Apostles who can face the god with nine eyes. Among them, Ninth Apostle, you are special.”
In short. She doesn’t even see the cult members below the Apostles as the same humans. Just because she is kind to me and Iste doesn’t mean she is kind to others. Cassandra is a woman who can massacre hundreds or thousands of people without hesitation.
“First Apostle. There is something I would like help with.”
“Yes. Just say the word. I will help with all my sincerity.”
There was no reason to refuse since she said she would help me.
***
It was the spirits of the Jinryeong Family who found the hidden Korean branch of the Nine Wood Cult in the basement of Gwanak-gu. The Jinryeong Family immediately gathered people and attacked the Korean branch.
The Korean branch of the Nine Wood Cult could not handle the Jinryeong Family. The Jinryeong Family was a prestigious family with a long history. On the other hand, the Korean branch of the Nine Wood Cult had not yet properly established itself. There was no way they could withstand it.
Above all, Seong Hari and the Jinryeong Family were working together this time.
Seong Han-gu coldly ordered the spirit users of the Jinryeong Family.
“Even if they are fanatics, just subdue the civilians. We must avoid trouble with the Hero Association as much as possible. Hari! Did you understand?!”
“…I have no intention of killing them. I have to find Yujin.”
“I will be watching. Don’t even think about torturing them.”
