Chapter 66

<Episode 67> I Just Wanted to Protect You, That’s All

“YOUNG-HEE!” “Yeah, CHUL-SOO?” Young-hee smiled and replied to Chul-soo’s call.

Chul-soo looked a bit flustered.

Well, he had every right to be.

Their friend, the Class President, was lying unconscious not too far away!

“Who did this to the Class President?” Chul-soo asked, but Young-hee just smirked.

It wasn’t exactly hard to figure out who the culprit was, was it?

I mean, didn’t her Magic Power practically radiate off her in waves?

This feeling…it was completely new.

Like she could do anything.

She felt absolutely amazing.

“Take a guess~ Who do you think?” She leaned forward with a playful grin.

The evidence was scattered everywhere – deep gouges in the ground, explosion marks.

It was clear there’d been some kind of mage battle.

Still, Chul-soo couldn’t seem to piece it together.

No, he didn’t want to face reality.

“It…can’t be…”

But even he had to realize the truth eventually.

Someone with his combat skills would’ve known instinctively.

Looking at Young-hee’s silent smile…

“Did YOU do this?”

She didn’t need to say anything. Her sly grin said it all.

“Why? You two were best friends!”

“He kept you away from me.”

“Huh?”

“That’s all.”

Chul-soo’s eyes widened in shock.

He clearly didn’t understand what she meant.

What an idiot.

“Listen, Chul-soo…I wanted to tell my parents about us.”

Young-hee took a slow step forward, her smile never fading.

She felt soooo good.

Hurting Chul-soo made her happy.

If only she could kill him – how much happier would that make her?!

“Hey, Chul-soo~”

He was such a good boy.

He’d always take a hit for his friends.

Ever since they were kids, he’d do anything she asked.

So~

“Wanna die for me?”

-PWAAH!

A beam of dark Magic Power shot out like a laser.

Chul-soo barely managed to dodge by reflex.

But his movements seemed…off.

That’s right, he wasn’t in great shape today.

Should make hitting him easy peasy.

Oh wow, this is making me so excited!

“Ehehe~ Can’t you just take it like a man?”

Young-hee grinned widely as dark power surged around her hand.

Chul-soo gritted his teeth against the ominous sensation.

“STOP IT, YOUNG-HEE! Whatever this is, it’s dangerous!”

“Don’t worry~ I feel GREAT! Sooo happy!”

Another wave of black energy blasted out.

This time it didn’t stop after one shot.

Countless beams of dark magic rained down as Chul-soo narrowly dodged each one.

CRACK!

A tree shattered where a blast hit.

Wow, I’m getting so strong!

“AHAHAHA! This should be enough to beat you, Chul-soo!”

“I’ll do anything! Name it! But please stop, Young-hee!”

“Nope.”

Young-hee cut him off sharply.

Her cold voice sliced through the night air.

With a chilling smile, she stared at Chul-soo.

“I’ve had enough of being hurt.”

Dark power swirled above Young-hee’s head again.

This time it formed into dozens of arrows raining down.

GRIND.

Chul-soo clenched his teeth and summoned his magic.

-Sky Piercing Sword: Azure Blade Style-

The technique that materializes magic into a sword.

Using it, he managed to block most of the dark arrows.

“Wow, impressive! You’re still as strong as ever, Chul-soo.”

“YOUNG-HEE!”

“Too bad you didn’t use that strength to protect me instead, huh?”

“YOUNG-HEE!”

Another wave of dark energy surged forward.

Chul-soo barely avoided it, gritting his teeth.

But his expression grew more desperate with each passing moment.

‘No way…this isn’t about skill anymore.’

This was just raw, uncontrolled magical power spewing forth.

And the side effects weren’t long in coming.

Blood started flowing from Young-hee’s nose and ears.

From overusing her magic.

Her body was already strained.

Yet she just kept smiling creepily.

“Isn’t this awesome? I’m bleeding but I don’t feel any pain~ Isn’t that cool?”

“Young-hee…please…”

“Why the sad face?”

Young-hee genuinely seemed confused.

She felt so good.

This happy.

Why was he reacting like this?

She didn’t have to hurt anymore.

Didn’t have to worry her head off.

All she had to do was kill Chul-soo.

Then everyone could be happy.

“Smile, Chul-soo~”

-KABOOM!!!

A fast-moving wave of dark energy struck Chul-soo directly.

He barely managed to block it with his sword.

But his injured body couldn’t handle the impact and he tumbled across the ground.

“Young-hee…snap out of it…we can fix this…”

“Chul-soo’s been saying weird stuff since we started fighting.”

Young-hee smiled faintly.

So coldly.

Her eyes lost their life, her skin turned pale.

She just moved her lips mechanically to smile.

She was broken.

Anyone could see that much.

“I’m happy, see?”

“It’s okay. We’ll figure out where things went wrong. I’ll save you no matter what.”

Seriously.

They hadn’t been able to communicate since the fight started.

She kept saying she was fine.

Happy.

How many times did she have to say it before he’d understand?

Maybe she needed to express herself more sincerely?

“Ehehe~ I’m happy, Chul-soo!”

“…Guess I have no choice.”

Chul-soo got into position.

Even though his body was already trashed, he couldn’t afford to hesitate now.

“This might hurt a bit, Young-hee.”

-BOOM!

Chul-soo disappeared in an instant.

In the blink of an eye, he closed the distance between them.

“Huh…?”

Dark power surged around Young-hee.

Forcing his battered body, Chul-soo swung his sword.

-Sky Piercing Sword: Evil Severing Slash-

Breaking through the dark magic by sheer force, he approached Young-hee.

They were so close now they could smell each other’s scent.

“Guhk!”

From pushing himself too hard, Chul-soo spat blood.

Looks like his old wounds reopened.

But now wasn’t the time to worry about that.

Grabbing Young-hee’s arms to stop her movement.

“Young-hee, I’m sorry.”

“…Huh?”

Young-hee froze.

A memory flashed back.

A day she deeply regretted.

A day she wanted to change.

“I’m here for you now.”

“It’s…my duty…”

“My mind…hurts…it hurts…”

“Let’s talk. That’s all we need to do. Everything will be okay.”

Talk?

Oh right.

She wanted to talk to Chul-soo.

There was something important she needed to tell him.

Something crucial.

“So…everything’s going to be okay now.”

Really?

Would everything really be okay?

Could she stop hurting others?

Could she stop losing herself?

After hurting so many people, after hurting Chul-soo…

Could this really be forgiven?

“Aren’t you mad at me?”

“Not at all.”

“Will you…stay with me?”

“Always.”

The strength drained from Young-hee’s arms.

The dark magic began to fade.

An overwhelming sense of happiness filled her chest.

Ah, that’s right.

She was happy when she was with Chul-soo.

So why did she forget that fact?

He was someone precious to her.

Why did she believe she’d be happier without Chul-soo?

She couldn’t comprehend it herself.

“Chul-soo…I can’t control this magic…”

“It’s okay! Let me call a teacher or someone! There has to be a way!”

Young-hee tried to suppress the writhing dark magic.

Somehow, things seemed like they’d be okay.

“Will you…stay with me?”

“Yeah!”

Young-hee smiled brightly.

Tears streamed down one cheek.

But her eyes focused firmly on Chul-soo.

Her mouth curved into a bittersweet smile that could’ve been either crying or laughing.

“I’m glad.”

At that very moment.

-THUD

A sudden sound of flesh being pierced rang out.

It took a moment to realize the red gash came from a wound in Young-hee’s side.

“Ugh…eh…?”

“Good job hanging on, kid! Leave the rest to us!”

An unfamiliar voice reached her ears.

Looking to the side, she saw heroes arriving.

They had tense expressions, fully armed and ready for battle.

Come to think of it, it was only natural.

After all the commotion with the Class President, someone was bound to report it.

If anything, they were surprisingly late.

“Cough…”

Black blood trickled from her mouth.

Only now did she realize how dangerous her own dark magic was.

It gave off an oppressive, malevolent aura.

No wonder they thought she was a monster.

“Young-hee…?”

“Chul…soo…” *thud*

Young-hee’s body collapsed.

Her white clothes stained red with fresh blood.

It hurt.

She hated the pain.

It was too much to bear.

‘Chul-soo…’

Even in this state, her thoughts turned to him.

No, thanks to the pain, her mind was unusually clear.

She remembered the hypnosis she’d been under.

Ah, that’s right.

There was no way she could hate Chul-soo.

Look, she was still thinking about him even now.

Thank goodness.

This feeling wasn’t fake.

There was no way this warm feeling in her heart could be false.

So…don’t cry, Chul-soo.

“Young-hee, stay with me! Don’t give up! I’ll heal you soon, I promise!”

Chul-soo poured out his amateur healing magic desperately.

But this wasn’t the time for that.

She needed to let go.

Through her pain, Young-hee forced herself to speak.

“Chul…soo…run…”

Ah, she wanted to apologize one last time.

But she didn’t get the chance.

The dark magic inside her body erupted uncontrollably.

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