What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 311

Sub Male Lead’s Strike – Episode 311

#311

The Transcending Heart (10)

It was 11:55 PM on Sunday. A time when everyone was asleep, preparing for the next day.

Except for me and Dduk-sim.

“······.”

I tucked the wren into my pocket and moved silently.

Standing in the dark corner of the living room, I waited for my eyes to adjust to the darkness.

At first, I was going to jump down in my pajamas, but I thought better of it and put on my work clothes.

This way, even if I came back in the morning, I could pretend that I just woke up early to get ready for work.

I put on my socks and grabbed comfortable sneakers from the entrance.

I packed all sorts of things into my neatly hand-washed Gaga bag.

With Dduk-sim by my side, I felt confident and brazen. Of course, I took the luggage I had brought before.

And also a pen, cell phone, wet wipes, candy, chocolate, energy bar….

A sticker picture with Hyung and Eun-seo. A picture of Mom too.

“Let’s go.”

The familiar scenery was etched in my mind. I whispered and moved my feet.

When opening the veranda [balcony] door, I gritted my teeth and pushed it slowly.

The house wasn’t cold, but it wasn’t warm either, and I was sweating from tension.

I kept having scary and ominous thoughts. I felt like things wouldn’t work out.

A desire to stay with my family kept surging up.

All sorts of excuses floated in my head like night fog.

‘Let’s not go.’

‘You died there once. And horribly, too.’

But this place is safe. Because I have my family. My sibling and I need each other.

Because we are the ones who can protect each other more strongly than anyone else in the world.

“It’s okay. It’s okay, it’s okay······.”

I constantly encouraged myself.

Since good Dduk-sim was quiet, I was the only one who could encourage me.

As I stepped onto the veranda, the cool early spring air embraced my body. Only then did I come to my senses a little.

Then, the dark scenery outside came into view.

There were still some houses with lights on, but the opposite building was facing this way with a small kitchen window, not a veranda.

There was almost no chance of me being seen. Probably.

“If I finish quickly, it’ll be fine. I can do it.”

My voice trembled like an idiot.

I closed the door to the living room and stared intently at the staff in my hand.

Although my teacher’s warmth was not there, thinking of him strengthened my heart.

I felt like I could do anything.

An adult who believed in me, cherished me, and always supported me.

-Drrrrr······

I mustered up the courage and opened the outer window of the veranda.

Whoosh······! The chilly night wind whipped my hair and cheeks.

I realized that I was facing a cold and scary reality. But I couldn’t back down here.

As they say, strike while the iron is hot, so I opened the screen window completely.

Gripping the railing as if to break it, I looked down.

-Whoooo!

“Wow, crazy.”

It was too high. The ground, with sparse streetlights, was truly distant.

Even though I didn’t have a fear of heights, jumping without a rope made the back of my neck tingle and gave me goosebumps.

I calmly checked to see if the security guard was there.

Judging by the empty booth, he seemed to be out on patrol.

To minimize witnesses, I had to finish everything before he came back.

“Hoo······.”

Do it. If you don’t act now, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life. You know your personality, Jung Ye-seo.

You have to do it when you’ve made up your mind.

I closed my eyes tightly and opened them.

“······Let’s do it.”

‘Oop.’ In an instant, I jumped over the railing and hung on the outside.

Whoooo! Perhaps because I was scared, the wind felt as strong as a gale.

Dduk-sim in my pocket flew out and sat on my shoulder. I was less scared with him there.

I had done military training twice, so I could handle this much.

I laughed like a crazy person. I was amused by myself for worrying about mosquitoes getting into the house at night.

“You remember the plan well, right? You didn’t forget, did you?”

-Pirrr

“Yeah, I just need to do well. You’re a genius, after all.”

I swallowed hard and looked at Dduk-sim. He also stared at me quietly.

The little down feathers of the wren fluttered.

Looking at the little guy made me think of my friends even more clearly.

“······.”

Over the past year, I think I’ve been quite the chatterbox.

I recklessly blabbered words without fear of them becoming empty promises.

I said I would buy something delicious for Herrit, and that I shouldn’t forget Bakari-kun’s souvenir.

I said I would go to Aitz Village with Agnes.

I asked if it was okay to visit Eva’s salon every day. I even said it would be nice to hold Joan’s exhibition there.

The promise I made to Hanan and her friends.

I said this place is great, the precious ones will like it, so let’s come again next time.

I also wanted to hear Sant’s sermon someday.

‘I’ll come back healthy.’ ‘See you again.’······.

‘See you on the other side.’

What I said to the Crown Prince in the maze.

‘I’ll be waiting, Your Highness.’

What Christel said to me last.

She always waited for me, who was lacking and slow. Without rushing or pushing me.

Like a protagonist and like an adult.

“I wonder if I’ll get scolded if I call her ‘sister’ later.”

Saying such a joke made me feel a little lighter.

I now knew quite a bit about Toegyeong [the world she is going to].

So I would be of more help to my friends than before.

The situation there was definitely serious, but I had studied and memorized diligently for several days.

Even if the story had changed significantly from the original, it wouldn’t be useless.

It’ll be okay. Really, truly. Everything.

I succeeded in coming back once, so the second time will be much easier.

“······I’ll be back soon. Without getting hurt at all.”

‘Have good dreams.’ I muttered to the empty living room.

I was sad that I couldn’t remember what I had said to Eun-seo and Hyung at the end.

My eyes welled up, so I quickly looked up.

White stars were sparsely scattered in the deep navy sky.

It felt like raindrops were falling.

I hope they remember me with good words.

-Thud!

Without warning, I kicked off and let go of the railing.

Wheeeee―! A dizzying sense of falling enveloped and pulled me down.

Swish······! Rapid fall, loud wind, heart pounding as if it would burst.

I immediately threw the marble I was holding in my left hand into the air.

And without checking anything else, I swung the staff with both hands.

Gripping it tightly enough to turn my fingertips white, I struck down with all my might.

Clear droplets shot into the air from my cheeks.

Please give me strength. Like you did in the ruins, please, please, please―

Let me help again.

-Kwaaaaa······!

The sharp crescent tip of the staff shattered the marble of flames accurately.

Dduk-sim, shot like a hummingbird, destroyed the wind flower marble at the same time.

‘Clang!’ And a silence like a lie enveloped us. The fall stopped.

It was a moment of instantaneous vacuum and weightlessness. Then, a shockwave resembling the rings of Saturn―

-Ooooong, Paaaaa!

Burst out!

“Keuheok!”

Whirr! Wheeeee―! Intense storms and fiery ether began to pool together.

It was a festival of thrills and awe. An anomaly that lit up the entire apartment complex.

I immediately poured all the divine power into the staff. There was no time to hesitate!

-Swaaaaa―!

“Eut, Keuk! Ugh!”

Until I felt nauseous, dizzy, and like my whole body was withering. Until my mouth was filled with blood.

I released ether like someone who had decided to just die.

Swish······! The purplish sphere formed at the tip of Dduk-sim’s beak grew fiercely.

The wren had secured the center of the crack. I gritted my teeth.

Red liquid dripped from the corner of my mouth.

The sacred power of the five divine objects remaining on the veranda. Added to that, the cardinal’s wind and the archbishop’s flame.

The energy of the air attribute that I poured in repeatedly.

And the purest ether of the continent that I had trained for three days.

All that energy gathered together, growing bigger and brighter.

A vortex of pure white was being born.

-Ooooong!

But this alone was not enough.

[Wake up. Answer me. Quickly!]

I shouted the oracle at the staff until my throat was torn.

If this doesn’t help us, if the staff doesn’t cooperate, it’s all for nothing.

Dduk-sim, discharged without a master, will eventually fall to the asphalt floor.

Me too. No one wanted such an ending. The plan had to succeed.

It couldn’t end like this.

I wanted to meet everyone again with a smiling face.

[Immediately! That’s an order!]

-Jjeojjeojeok!

The staff’s black surface cracked. No, this was not nearly enough.

If shouting would work, I would shout even louder.

I felt extremely dizzy and tried to somehow give strength to my trembling arms.

Ooooooo······! The white vortex was not growing further and was stagnating.

I could see the tips of Dduk-sim’s wings fluttering.

The blood droplets I spat out soared in the opposite direction. This wouldn’t work. I couldn’t give in.

I had to pour out all my strength for the last time.

-Pudeudeuk!

The skin on my palms peeled off red.

Sharp pain like thorns dyed my mind purple. At that moment―

[Behold! The moon you serve moves the heavens. Obtestátĭo! [An incantation or solemn appeal]]

A sentence I heard for the first time in my life rode my lips and played my soul.

-Jjaenggeurang, Jjaenggeurang Jjaenggeurang!

The outer surface of the staff was completely shattered.

Hwaaaaa! A dazzlingly beautiful blue-white crescent moon revealed its form.

There was no need to think further. Without hesitation, I scraped together even the last bit of strength I had―

-Kwaaaaaang!

I slammed it down into the center of the vortex. The reaction was immediate.

Kwakwakwakwa! A pure white radiance swelled like a tidal wave.

And the whole apartment, the whole neighborhood, the whole world―

Swallowed us.

*

Hat. Christel opened her eyes with a start.

It was a mysterious dream. The fact that she couldn’t remember any of the content made it even more strange.

But for the first time in a long time, she had slept deeply.

There seemed to have been no battles or emergencies last night.

Strangely, her body felt light. Had she gotten used to the cabin bed already?

If it had been a nightmare, she would have remembered it vividly, so it seemed she had a good time in her dream.

That was also a rare luxury. A weak smile escaped her lips.

“······Look, look over there! In the sky!”

“Mamma mia! [My mother!] What kind of creation is that!”

Loud shouts echoed from the deck.

‘Thump thump!’ Suddenly, the outside became noisy, and the sound of military boots pounded everywhere.

Gain frowned slightly.

More than half of the Riester Navy was from Corleone.

They were always dramatic, whether happy or sad, and knew how to exaggerate even small words.

They approached everything with passion and enjoyed romance and love even on the battlefield.

She quite liked the people of that principality.

They helped her forget her sadness, and most of them were bright and positive, which helped her maintain her faith.

But this, now,

-Thump thump!

“Bring the Admiral to the bow! Immediately!”

“Yes!”

“It’s a miracle, this is a miracle!”

“Bring the Admiral here!”

······Wasn’t normal. It wasn’t the usual attitude of exaggerating just any old thing.

Christel quickly put on her coat, grabbed her whip, and went outside.

Swish! A strong sea breeze embraced her.

The soldiers guarding the deck were all gathered at the bow.

Those in the back also ran noisily and clung to the railing.

It was impossible. The Admiral was not a person who tolerated such disorder.

The Navy originally had a strong discipline.

Christel turned her gaze to where everyone’s eyes were directed.

“What······.”

And was shocked.

-Rumble······!

In the distance, the sky of the Divine Kingdom was groaning.

The thunder was deep and loud enough to be heard even here in the ‘Sea of ​​Tranquility.’

It was a sound as if a huge earthquake had struck the sky. But the important thing was something else.

The vast darkness that covered a third of the continent.

The fragmented sky that had been shooting out sharp, black meteorites,

That cursed scenery that was now like their daily life―

-Kwaaaaaang······!

Slowly, it was regaining its original blue form. Gain opened her mouth blankly.

It was just like someone was putting together a puzzle from outside the world.

Each time a piece was completed, thunderous roars fell on the entire sea and continent.

Kuuuuung······! Kwaaaaaaaa······! The distance was too far, so the speed of what was seen and what was heard did not match.

So it felt even more unrealistic. At first glance, it looked like the process of new flesh growing in the sky.

Christel clutched her fluttering chest.

What does that mean? What is happening here again?

“The sky is being sealed! It’s recovering!”

“Amazing! I’m seeing this sight in my lifetime!”

“Heoeong! Eoheong, Heongheong!”

“Hey, are you crying? Why? Are you scared?”

The sky that had begun to collapse from the day the Prince left······. What does it mean that it is regaining its appearance?

It was hard to breathe.

The hope she had been holding onto all along struggled to get her attention.

Christel helplessly listened again.

Yes. Maybe, perhaps―

-Step

“It’s an ominous sign.”

A rough voice echoed.

Cheok, Cheokcheok! In an instant, all the navy turned pale and stood at attention.

Gain turned around abruptly.

As always, her half-closed gray-green eyes and the scar on her right cheek were visible.

Thick dreadlocks, a faint smell of tobacco.

It was Admiral Emma Corleone, who defended her and the Empire’s territorial waters.

“What does that mean?”

The Admiral shrugged her uniform and answered.

She had a very kind side, but only to her mermaid.

Her pronunciation wasn’t accurate because she had a cigar in her mouth, though.

“If the sky recovers like that, it’s perfect for raising the morale of the Divine Kingdom’s army. Whatever the reason, they’ll package it as God’s grace.”

“······.”

“Don’t underestimate a country with a state religion. Reorganize the ranks. Prepare the signal cannon.”

“Yes, yes! Admiral!”

“Understood!”

“I will follow your orders!”

Rumble! Rough footsteps swept across the deck in perfect order.

Tak, Chiik······! The sound of a cigar being lit swirled around Christel’s ears.

With that as a signal, the sound of high waves and shouts crashed in like a tide. Suddenly, it was reality.

Until a few minutes ago, she had been caught up in a very sweet ‘what if’.

She repeatedly turned her head and looked at the distant heavenly palace.

“······.”

-Kurururung······!

In the sky that was being restored on its own, there was no gold or purple light.

Of course.