Chapter 370 - A World Of If

"...Damn it. There's no answer."

In the burning city.

With her singed blonde hair fluttering, Stardust muttered quietly.

[Heeheeheeheeheehee! Where are you hiding?]

"North Sea Ice Lady. What's the situation now?"

As Stardust spoke with a quiet, hoarse voice,

Lee Seol-ah's heavy sigh and voice came through the earpiece.

["...There are no more survivors in that sector. Withdraw. We'll deal with Reaper later."]

"..."

With those words,

As Lee Seol-ah delivered the facts in a heavy voice,

Stardust gritted her teeth and finally muttered as if spitting out the words.

"Understood. I'll withdraw..."

["Yes. Come back safely."]

With that, the communication ended.

...As Stardust was about to leave the collapsed city where only the villain's psychic entity howled noisily.

Suddenly, with a crackling of lightning in front of her.

KWAAANG

"...Haa."

A woman with orange hair landed, embracing a brown-haired woman beside her.

That woman glaring at her.

"...Electra."

At Stardust's words upon seeing the woman.

"I came because I heard something happened... Are you running away now? What happened here?"

Electra, the woman with the orange ponytail, asked with a frown while looking around.

And to her question.

"...There are no more survivors here. We're withdrawing."

Stardust answered calmly, in a voice that seemed resigned.

"What? Don't talk nonsense!"

To Electra's rough response,

The brown-haired woman in a white gown standing beside her grabbed her with pleading eyes and said.

"...I think it's true, Se-hee. There's no survivor response here now."

"Damn it..."

At Choi Se-hee's muttering,

Stardust, who had been standing with a cold face, tried to walk past her, but.

"...You."

...As Electra opened her mouth with an angry voice directed at her, she paused for a moment and turned her head back.

"What have you been doing? All this time?"

"..."

"What have you been doing while all these people were dying? What have you been doing?!"

"...I didn't even have time to do anything."

"Se-hee, stop it!"

The brown-haired woman grabbed Electra's hand as she began to fume.

But despite her gesture, Electra didn't stop; instead, she became even angrier.

"The world has come to this state, and even a villain nobody like me is stepping up like this. What are all those great association and heroes doing? Huh?"

"Choi Se-hee!!"

"....."

The woman beside her suddenly shouted.

"...Well, I'm just frustrated."

Electra grumbled in a somewhat smaller voice after the loud outburst.

...Stardust glanced at the woman standing next to Electra.

She already knew that brown-haired woman.

The woman called the Saintess of Villains. Lee Ha-yul.

Since Choi Se-hee, also known as Electra, escaped during the last mass breakout, the two had been acting together.

...Now, none of it mattered anymore.

"Haah..."

After scratching her head, Choi Se-hee

Finally exhaled roughly, turned her back, and walked toward the collapsed city.

"Fine. I was stupid to expect anything. Let's go, Ha-yul."

"Okay. ...Ms. Stardust, I apologize on her behalf."

With lightning flashing, Electra and the Evil Saintess disappeared.

Left alone again, Stardust stared at the collapsed city with unfocused eyes for a moment before moving on.

...She was tired.

The Republic of Korea seemed to have no hope left.

After the Moonlight Church's Gate incident, South Korea, which had been their base, fell into complete chaos. The entire country was attacked by monsters, and Korea, which already had few heroes, suffered devastating damage.

Even after that, Lee Seol-ah managed to hold on by relocating the capital several times, but the situation was unlikely to improve.

Especially after Shadow Walker, one of the few A-class heroes, disappeared, she had been struggling to hold on alone.

Even that seemed hopeless.

To make matters worse, the breakout of villains in South Korea occurred.

Dozens of them gathered to take revenge on Stardust herself, destroying cities, and even the White Witch who planned it all. Particularly, there were too many sacrifices in killing her.

She thought things would be okay now.

That now, things would really be alright.

Until the Inflation incident suddenly occurred, causing all ability users' powers to go berserk.

"....."

After that incident, not just South Korea but the entire world fell into chaos.

The emergence of Kathedal, a global villain alliance.

Therefore, it was now difficult to hope for foreign aid like during the Demon King's Castle era. Everyone was struggling.

And.

The villains of Korea, who had gained overflowing power,

Began to appear in groups, destroying all inhabited places one by one.

Too many for even the strengthened Stardust to stop.

In just three months, the entire country had been ravaged.

...To the point where moderate villains like Electra were no longer pursued or charged with crimes.

"...."

Stardust looked up at the reddened sky with haggard eyes.

Sometimes.

She has delusions that the world revolves just to torment her.

When one problem is covered up, another arises.

When she mourns one death, ten more die.

When she thinks there's nowhere left to fall, the world shows her an even deeper bottom.

As if the world desires her despair.

'.....'

Where did it all go wrong?

How did this world end up like this?

With such thoughts.

She quietly closed her eyes and rose into the sky.

Someday.

Desperately praying that a peaceful life would come to her too.

***

Click

"....Heu. Heuup.."

Early morning.

Shin Ha-ru, who woke up with her body soaked in sweat, grabbed her throbbing head and got out of bed to open the window.

As she pulled back the curtains, she saw the blue sky bathed in warm sunlight, tall buildings rising high, and the noise of bustling people.

After looking at the window for a moment, she grabbed the remote with drowsy eyes and turned on the TV.

On TV, an anchor was delivering the news with an energetic voice.

["Yes! With Egostic's return, people's reactions are very enthusiastic~ Looking at Seoul's streets filled with vibrant energy after a long time, we'll now look at today's breaking news. Reporter Ryu..."]

The TV screen showing the morning city still bustling with people.

Despite the numerous incidents that had occurred.

A world still full of people living peaceful, bustling daily lives.

"...."

Looking at it with blank eyes.

Shin Ha-ru quietly thought.

...It felt like she had a nightmare.

A nightmare so terrible that she never wanted to return to it.

With that thought.

She quietly hugged the cushion beside her and closed her eyes.

Somehow.

...With the thought that she should cherish this moment.

***

"Hahaha! This is it!"

After the Inflation incident that threw the whole world into chaos.

...Our Ego-stream house was somehow having an even more bustling daily life.

"This is the power of lightning, I tell you~!"

KWAGWAGWAGWAGWAGWANG

Choi Se-hee raised her hand and unleashed a tremendous amount of lightning on the forest.

"Sister Se-hee seems excited."

Ha-yul, who was watching with a bitter smile.

"Uuuu! Why don't I have an ability that gets stronger?"

...And Seo-eun, who was lamenting that her ability hadn't increased.

The Inflation that strengthened all ability users.

...Among them, Choi Se-hee, who had been particularly obsessed with abilities, was feeling great joy at this power increase.

"Hehe. Now with this level, I might be able to beat Stardust, right?"

"No. That's impossible."

"What did you say?"

And Seo Ja-young, who was contradicting the excited Choi Se-hee, and Choi Se-hee bickering with her.

Watching the same daily life as always, I asked Death Knight, who was doing garden work with large scissors beside me.

"Mr. Death Knight. Have you felt like you've gotten stronger lately?"

["Hmm? Not particularly! It's truly a shame. ...Rather, I feel bad. Strangely so. Hahaha!"]

"...I see."

I swallowed my disappointment as I said that.

Among our Ego-stream members, those affected by the Inflation were those related to the Sun God's power.

That is, Choi Se-hee, Seo Ja-young, Ha-yul, Ariel, and Halo. Only these were directly affected, while others like Eun-wol and Seo-eun hadn't changed much. Of course, Eun-wol was originally strong using magic, and Seo-eun didn't care as she was an engineer.

Ah, of course, there was another person who had gotten stronger.

"...What are you looking at?"

It was the Dragon God, lying on a sun bed under a parasol in front of the garden, sipping a drink through a straw.

Now, having discarded her usual white traditional clothes, she was wearing comfortable t-shirts like today's youth and sunglasses, looking like a 20-year-old short-lived species to anyone who saw her.

At least the hairpin stuck in the back of her hair seemed to be maintaining her roots.

Anyway, Dragon God was also one of those who had gotten stronger. ...Person? Dragon? Anyway.

Considering that most of the dragon race died fighting the Moonlight monsters and I hadn't seen them in Phase 4, this result was something even I was seeing for the first time.

So dragons were also created by God.

"Anyway..."

As I sat in the garden watching the bustling house, I quietly sighed.

This peaceful daily life. In a normal manga, this would be the timing for "THE END" to appear, but this cursed world obviously didn't do that. There were still things to do.

Things still left to do to prevent destruction.

With that thought, I stood up.

It was time to move on to the next plan.