Even when I was called Instructor, I had never seen Lee Seunghyun’s hand tremble.

Live long enough, and you really do see strange things.

His hand kept shaking faintly for more than a minute without stopping.

Hadn’t we both been given enough time to think already?

Yekaterina must have asked him a question similar to the one I threw at him.

Judging by the fact that he wasn’t cutting my throat immediately, the discussion must have had some effect.

While thinking that, I considered Yekaterina’s bizarre behavior.

Why did she do this?

She wouldn’t have given such an order simply because the setup looked good for killing.

Even now the timing wasn’t bad, but I had assumed that even if she moved, it would be after I collided with Kyle.

So why now?

“If you had simply grown old and died, I wouldn’t have tried to erase everything with nuclear weapons.”

The Ice Empress’s words.

Yekaterina’s gaze, carrying on her conviction.

I’m definitely missing something...

“Seunghyun.”

Yekaterina called her subordinate in a dry voice.

“Prometheus had no hesitation in erasing Colton.”

Seunghyun did not answer.

It felt like he had gripped my hair a little tighter.

In any case, he was still hesitating.

Hesitation itself was a kind of answer, but...

“From the beginning, they never wanted proxy wars. They considered it a disgrace for their kin to die by human hands.”

That was true.

“And during the First War, they received help from the hardliners, including Falcon.”

Ah.

“Do you understand?”

At that moment I half understood the Elder’s judgment.

She was a perceptive woman.

It seemed she had read everything I had tried to hide.

I reflexively let out a sigh, and in the corner of my eye I caught a glimpse of Lee Seunghyun.

Understanding seemed to begin dawning in his black eyes as well.

Yes.

That’s right.

The situation had changed now.

The forces Kyle and I possessed were different from the time of the First War.

When the First War broke out, I had no choice but to reluctantly join hands even with the hardline Elders. I didn’t have the luxury of eliminating them and fighting the war only with the humans I liked.

A desperate war where I even had to cooperate with enemies.

Kyle and Rei launched their attack because they believed they had some chance of victory.

Adam’s death had been the trigger, but if they hadn’t seen even the slightest chance of winning, they wouldn’t have started the war.

“What are you afraid of?”

Back then it had been an era when predicting victory was nearly impossible unless we detonated the nuclear weapons that existed and destroyed everything together.

But now it was different.

Rei had died by my hand.

The organization called Black Badger had been established.

And the Cores stood firm.

Kyle was still an opponent who required staking the lives of me and the senior Badgers.

But it wasn’t as desperate as the First War, when humanity had to draft additional soldiers and throw the entire Elder faction into the battle.

Even /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ losing one large puzzle piece named Colton was acceptable.

That was why I had briefly entertained the ridiculous thought that Kyle might give up revenge.

The foolish hope that my head alone would satisfy him.

You certainly won’t be satisfied with that.

If I were in your position, I wouldn’t be either.

Because I know you well, I intend to face you as a Black Badger.

Because I know it’s impossible to overturn all of humanity.

...But I didn’t want this to be read.

Unfortunately, Yekaterina had read the situation I tried to hide through my decision.

This is bad.

We’re screwed.

The situation had tangled itself up.

Yoow seemed to have finished assessing the situation as well.

We had known each other a long time, so I understood the message he conveyed from his expression and mouth movements perfectly.

If she’s not a fool, then the situation is truly the worst possible.

You’re right.

When I pushed the nuclear bomb that had entered the countdown through Yekaterina’s portal device, I thought she had decided to join hands with me.

After all, she had provided me with the means and manpower to resolve the situation.

If she wanted to kill me, she could have simply fled.

My kin and I didn’t have portal machines. If she had attacked Eric, destroyed their portal device, and then escaped from Zone X using her own portal machine, she could have killed me easily.

Of course Eric’s side wouldn’t have gone down quietly.

Even so, that option had a far higher success rate than shouting “Seunghyun! Perfect timing! The enemy’s back is exposed—behead him!”

Since she stayed quiet until the nuclear bomb was dealt with, I thought she would move after letting me confront Kyle.

That had been a miscalculation.

She had been preparing something in her own way.

“I understand.”

While half-listening to Seunghyun’s subdued reply, I went over the situation that now fit together perfectly.

“You’re saying that now we can oppose Kyle even without Hilde.”

“That’s correct.”

Another human who possessed a nuclear weapon.

A being who had long been Colton’s rival.

An Elder who had accepted the violent love of the Ice Empress and would gladly throw away her own life for humanity.

“What exactly do you owe Hildebert?”

Yekaterina asked.

If Yoow’s and my paranoid deduction was correct...

She had a bomber loaded with nuclear warheads standing by.

If a fighter jet launched on her command, a nuclear weapon would fall here within minutes.

Why hadn’t Yekaterina allowed Colton’s bomb to detonate?

Because she couldn’t be certain how many there were.

If she used her own nuclear weapon, she could precisely control its yield and even deploy a Core around her mansion before detonating it.

Even if a nuclear explosion occurred in Zone X, the impact on her mansion could be minimized.

Center Core wouldn’t be completely destroyed.

While maintaining my expression as the realization flooded in, Seunghyun and Yekaterina continued their conversation.

“Think carefully. He’s also the one who pushed your son into danger.”

We’re screwed. She’ll try to escape after launching the bomber, but if she can’t, she’ll probably try to take us down with her.

Yoow mouthed the words.

Because she believes that’s the path for humanity! Now she thinks you’re more dangerous than Kyle, so she has to take responsibility and kill you herself—that’s the insane delusion she’s operating under!

Looks that way.

In fact, Yekaterina didn’t even need to give Seunghyun this order to kill me.

This was closer to a loyalty test for Lee Seunghyun.

Yekaterina also considered him valuable.

If possible, she wanted to take him with her when she fled.

She was probably also hoping that with enough luck, the bomber wouldn’t have to launch at all.

Yoow mouthed again.

Should we tell Erhart to move? If Yekaterina is killed, the bomber will definitely launch. The only way we survive now is escaping through someone’s portal.

But the moment Eric started activating the portal, Yekaterina would immediately launch the bomber and try to die with us.

What the hell do we do?

“Seunghyun. What exactly has this man done for Sasha?”

Checkmate.

A perfect checkmate.

“This being didn’t even know Sasha was dead.”

This is bad.

I felt a greater sense of crisis than when facing Colton Wiseman, yet I kept my face expressionless.

How do we get out of this alive?

“I know that you admired Hildebert, who possessed overwhelming strength.”

In other words, Yekaterina’s plan was simple.

Her best-case scenario was to kill me somehow and then escape from here with Seunghyun.

The portal device visible at the edge of my vision was likely her exit.

If Seunghyun chose Yekaterina and cut my carotid artery—though she probably wasn’t expecting much—she would order the bomber to launch and then walk to the portal device with him.

If I was clearly dead, she might not launch the bomber at all.

But she likely didn’t care if she failed to escape.

If Seunghyun chose me, the bomber would launch immediately.

Her primary objective now was to keep me trapped in Zone X until the nuclear warhead arrived.

I might be able to jump into the portal before Yekaterina.

But then what about my kin outside the mansion?

Immediately cutting Yekaterina’s throat also wasn’t a complete solution. Just like with Colton, the bomber would certainly launch the moment she died, and the people beside the portal device would probably destroy it.

Or all of this could be our paranoia.

Yoow mouthed the words while biting his lip.

She might actually be a fool who believes Lee Seunghyun can really cut your throat.

That would be nice.

But I doubt it.

She might hesitate to cause mutual destruction because she values her own life. She might not have prepared a nuclear bomber at all.

That was possible.

But assuming the worst was the correct approach.

Besides, that portal preparing to activate...

Doesn’t it look exactly like evidence supporting our paranoid deduction?

“But you said you liked Sasha.”

I slowly blinked and worked my mind furiously.

“Even now, the reason you continue living is because of her.”

There were two reasons I had been driven into checkmate.

First, I hadn’t expected Yekaterina to read my assessment of Kyle’s strength.

Second, I hadn’t realized that Yekaterina was someone who would pursue humanity’s freedom even at the cost of her own life.

Thinking about mistakes now wouldn’t change anything.

I needed to think of the best possible solution.

Before Seunghyun answered—

“Seunghyun. Do you need more time to think?”

“No.”

Yekaterina’s plan had probably never been explained to Lee Seunghyun.

“I’ve decided.”

At that moment, Seunghyun’s left hand gripping my hair suddenly seized my neck.

The cold blade pressed straight across my throat.

“Commander!”

“Commander!”

Igor and Rose shouted, unaware of what was happening.

Yoow turned pale for an entirely different reason.

I stiffened completely and didn’t move.

Erasing every expression from my face, I pushed my mind to work faster.

I have to decide.

A decision that saves at least one more person.

First, take Yekaterina hostage, even for a moment—

I.

Just as I prepared to break free from Lee Seunghyun’s grip and charge forward, something touched the back of my neck.

Lee Seunghyun was moving the index finger of the hand gripping my neck, writing letters.

Fixing it.

Huh?

“Boss.”

You must.

As he called Yekaterina in a heavy voice, his fingers hidden by my long hair continued writing.

“Step back.”

Trick.

The blade of the dagger in his right hand touched my skin.

“To be certain, we must prevent him from absorbing me to recover.”

Them.

Lee Seunghyun finished speaking in an utterly calm voice.

“Then it may be possible.”

“Huh.”

“I’ll return immediately after cutting.”

Ignoring the sound I made, Seunghyun spoke with unwavering loyalty.

“A human whose carotid artery is pierced loses consciousness in five seconds and dies in twelve. We only need to block his absorption for thirty seconds.”

Play dead.

Satisfaction appeared in Yekaterina’s pale green eyes.

I watched her nod.

I watched Yoow grab Igor’s arm holding the sword.

I watched Yekaterina’s subordinates raise their guns and guard against my followers.

I watched Lee Seunghyun roll his eyes and look down at me like livestock about to be slaughtered.

Do it.

Strange words traced onto my neck.

The instant I fully understood their meaning—

Seunghyun’s blade tore through my carotid artery.