Episode 244: Association President Victor Poison (1)
The class routine for the thousand classes is simple: die, die, and die again in subspace.
“Oh, really.”
Weapon caressed the wounded man’s heart and soothed his aching stomach.
“… But even though a month has passed, I feel less pain when I take classes.”
The term ‘Salza Class’ is an abbreviation and slang for ‘Getting Used to Death Class’.
Weapon smiled bitterly and recalled something from earlier.
…
As soon as the class bell rings, he runs towards Professor Meain.
The cadets swung their weapons desperately.
Sometimes he swings his sword honestly, sometimes he flanks cowardly, and sometimes he throws his weapon from a blind spot.
I will try everything, regardless of the means and methods.
The result is… … .
puck!
I close my eyes, letting the sound of bones breaking be my lullaby.
“Kkung.”
My vision is getting blurry. The warm sunlight streaming through the window gradually becomes hazy. A curtain of darkness falls over my eyes. Even a single ray of light disappears.
The next moment, I open my eyes. It’s dark. I don’t even know if my eyes are open or closed. The ink is eating away at my skin and mind.
Gulp.
The son-in-law is a pitch-black sea. Black foam pouring out of the nostrils and eye sockets. A pressure that squeezes the whole body from all sides. Struggling is useless.
The process leading to death is static, and the end is an abyss.
Now, let’s open our eyes from death.
I barely roll my eyes. My colleague who was a bloody corpse with me is writhing like a zombie. A strange feeling passes by his hazy eyes. I breathe roughly. I supply fresh oxygen to my brain to confirm life or death. And I feel relieved.
‘I, I survived… …!’
Tears of joy are fleeting. Before we can feel the preciousness of life, Man-Rik seizes power. His fist cuts through the air. Every rugged joint is reflected on the transparent retina.
puck!
The jawbone shifts out of place, the nose and cheekbones collapse. The narrower the hit area, the more the pressure increases. The pressure from inside pushes the optic nerve and eyeball, spitting out the eyeball like a snail.
“Save me… … !”
Correct it.
puck!
The process leading up to death is horrific.
“Kkung.”
The ending is miserable.
…
He was like a moth jumping into a light. He had to jump in blindly, looking only ahead, even though he knew he would die.
Twenty times a day, five days a week, excluding weekends.
Weapon crouched. His fingers trembled as he hugged his knees tightly.
“Ugh… … .”
Then someone sat down next to the weapon.
“Is this seat empty?”
Abel sat down and apologized. Why did you ask me if this was going to happen? Just as he was about to ask back, Abel covered his mouth.
“I feel like I’m going to throw up.”
“… … .”
Weapon sucked his lips and sealed his snout. Vomiting is contagious. If the person next to him shows off his breakfast, he wants to do the same.
‘Not today.’
Weapon swung his butt and opened the distance. Abel glared at him with a stinging gaze. She thought. It was annoying to see a guy who had been a pizza factory owner until a few days ago act like that.
But he didn’t show it. He had a purpose in approaching Weapon.
“There, that… there is.”
The conversation began with a cough.
“Do you know why Kang Geum-ma was absent today?”
“Reason for the manager’s absence?”
The weapon tilts its head.
“I know. I heard about it in the morning when I had to make a quick phone call. He said he had to go on an urgent business trip with the academy director. But I don’t know for sure. I didn’t ask.”
“On purpose? Why?”
“The manager and I are playing different games. It might be confidential, but it’s a bit much to ask.”
“Oh, right… … .”
Abel paused before continuing. Since we had already started the conversation with a small talk, now let’s get to the main point. She spoke secretly, like a spy making contact in a back alley.
“By any chance, what are you doing on December 18th?”
Weapon shrugged.
“Well, I didn’t hear anything specifically from the manager. The manager is the type of person who doesn’t care about such events. He even knew about the existence of his own fan site because I told him about it. He probably forgot that that day was ‘Chilgeol Festival’.”
Feast of the Seven Heroes. A day to honor the noble deeds of the Seven Heroes, disciples of Balor Joaquin.
The holiday was initially a solemn one, with people gathering in chapels, fasting, and praying in tears.
‘It was like that just a century ago.’
But there is no business that can stand the test of time.
The holiness of the holiday has become commercialized. Some adults complained about this, but the public was already swayed by the commercialism. This was better than starving and praying.
Thus, the Chilgeol Festival became an event that marked the end of the year. Unused candles were replaced with colorful decorations and lights, and fasting and prayer were replaced with gift exchanges.
The Joaquin Academy also holds a celebration event. Furthermore, the scale is grand because it is based on the Seven Heroes.
“I see. That could be possible… … .”
Abel wiggled his fingers. For a moment, Weapon felt frustrated. Abel, do you think I don’t know?
“I guess that’s what I’m asking you, who’s your partner at the ball on the holiday?”
Abel’s face changed strangely and he immediately turned bright red.
* * *
one side.
The Antarctic base, Angel Factoria, was in chaos. Only Victor Poison was leisurely crossing his legs.
‘oh my god.’
The attendant’s eyes widened in shock. He couldn’t close his gaping mouth.
While working as a trainee, I saw and experienced all sorts of situations. Thanks to that, I was able to maintain my composure even when I met the president of the association after decades.
One, the performer’s emotions were clearly shown on his face. It was difficult to hide his emotions. The images transmitted by thousands of monitors were a huge shock.
The new models were lined up tightly in a gray-white cavity. They were covered in iron bars, but you could tell they were there by their ivory wings.
An agent of God. An angel.
“Are they really angels?”
The association president raised the corners of his mouth at the attendant’s question.
“Of course. I have my pride. I wouldn’t insist that a fake is real. There’s no certificate of authenticity, but it’s still an angel. And.”
The association president, sitting on his chair, stomped his feet.
“It’s underground in Antarctica.”
The attendant didn’t open his mouth anymore.
I just silently looked back and forth between the monitor and the doorway beneath my feet.
Victor burst out laughing.
“It seems like a lot of people are surprised. Well, if it wasn’t a dinosaur fossil but a complete remains, I think I would have reacted the same way.”
The secretary, who had been silent, joined the conversation.
“Ha, but Chairman, if that’s a real angel… … .”
“Why. Do you want to say something like blasphemy? But what can I do? It is blasphemy. And you, the second secretary and attendant, don’t you know that?”
Victor’s gaze sank. His secretary and attendant held their breath.
“The secret of our Poison family.”
It was an angel who cursed and killed the ancients. According to oral tradition, it was because the ancients committed blasphemous sins.
It was a misunderstanding, but the modern secretary and attendant learned it that way. Even the ancient Medea did not tell her about that part. She did not know the truth either. That is how little information there was about the inside story of the ancients. This was because it happened before humans used the unit called ‘century’.
Modern people do not even know the origin of the Chilgeol Festival 700 years ago. They had no way of knowing what happened thousands of years ago.
It was not just because humans were ignorant and foolish. It was because false gods interfered with human history. They preached distorted information.
“I’m telling you this because there seems to be a misunderstanding. My discovery of the angels was purely coincidental. The reason I came to live in Antarctica is also unrelated to the ancient tragedy of our Poison family.”
The secretary frowned as she listened to the president’s words.
“… But the world won’t believe it. If people find out about this, the chairman, no, the Poison family itself, will not be able to avoid criticism. If the person who turned the angel into a cyborg was an ancient person… … .”
“I know what you mean. You might say that he is the victim who became the perpetrator. Or you might say that the ancients and the demons are in cahoots.”
Victor stood up and walked closer to the screen. Then he reached out to the monitor.
Knock knock.
Static electricity ran through the gap between my fingers and the screen. It seemed as if man and machine were communicating.
“When I was born, there were no such things as electronic devices. There were mechanical devices, but they were very primitive compared to today’s smartphones that are rife with things that burn coal and emit steam.”
Victor looked at the monitor. His gaze was deep as he looked at the old analog TV.
“But do you know what’s really funny? The times changed so quickly right after I was born. The sound of horse hooves in the streets died down, and one day, things with wheels started rolling. And soon, iron blocks were flying through the sky.”
He took his hands off the monitor and swung them around widely, not at one, but at hundreds of monitors.
“In the rapids of those times, I was always the same. I never changed.”
Victor once had a close friend, a friend from his childhood.
His friend knew that Victor was ancient. Still, the two got along well.
One day, my friend said,
-Victor, I don’t care if you’re an ancient. Any hero who fights for humanity deserves respect!
And time passed.
A long time for his friends, but a very short time for Victor.
Ten years. The friend had grown up, and Victor remained the same boy.
Only then did my friend realize.
The gap between ancient people and humans, the unfairness of even the time we take for granted, and this green-haired man is not at all pleased with it.
hook.
His friend threw a stone at Victor.
-Cursed Ancient! The only reason you live so long is because you’ve dragged out the lifespans of ordinary people like us!
Ten seconds. That’s how long it took for yesterday’s friend to become today’s enemy.
“Around the time humans launched artificial satellites into the sky, the Hero Association was also founded. Around that time, I looked up what that guy was doing. I was curious. Just curious about what was going on. And then I found him. He was in New Zealand.”
“… … .”
“So I went there right away. Then, guess what? That guy, looking young, was there to greet me! I was so surprised that I called his name! Do you know what he said?!”
The president of the association turned around and shouted at us.
“I got this question back: ‘How do you know my late grandfather’s name?’ I felt like I’d been hit in the head with a hammer.”
“…dad.”
Media unconsciously withdrew her outstretched hand. Victor continued speaking.
“It was from that time. I decided to live in seclusion. I looked for a place. A place untouched by human hands, and yet isolated from the flow of time. And the place I finally found was the Antarctic land you are standing on.”
Victor’s dream was simple. He wanted to clink glasses of beer with a friend and reminisce about the old days.
I just wanted to live with people.
“But by pure coincidence, the enemy of our ancient people was sleeping under this ice field. How surprising!”
The world wouldn’t allow that. So he chose to become a madman. It was a world where it was hard to survive without going crazy.
“At that moment, I decided. I would turn those damned wingmen into a legion for humanity! I considered that my remaining task and devoted decades to it. And today, I will finally put an end to it.”
Victor strode over to me and stopped right in front of my nose.
“That Angel Legion will be helpful when dealing with the 4th Legion Commander Permish. Even though their durability may be a problem after thousands of years, using them will reduce the bloodshed of humanity. If you have any additional settings you want, I will prepare them. I will not spare technical support either. In return… … .”
I flinched and took a step back. Victor’s gaze was not ordinary.
Hot.
Suddenly, Victor’s two hands wrapped around one of mine.
“When this is all over, can you cut me with these hands?”
I could feel the madman’s regret in the hands I held.
