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HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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Chapter 30: Shooting, Star (5)
The Reapers stared blankly at Nana.
She danced, soaked in blood, radiating an unknown black light.
A madwoman of beauty—and at the same time, a luminous maiden.
The more they watched and listened, the more they felt an inexplicable sense of exhilaration.
“Haa…”
Nana let out a breath with a crooked smirk on her lips.
She skipped toward Seonhwa, snatched her Agoni Drink, popped the lid, and chugged it.
“Pfft! What the fuck!”
She spat it out in shock.
“What kind of dogshit flavor is this?!”
After a quick gag, she composed herself, picked up a dagger from the floor, and brought it to her lips.
She seemed to mimic Seonhwa, as if about to cut the corner of her mouth—but didn’t follow through. It was just for show.
“The one and only star shining in the dark~♬”
She hummed again and leaned toward Baek Ho, bowing at the waist.
Pouting her lips, she moved in close—face to face.
“Ah, wait—!”
Seonhwa tried to stop her but couldn’t.
Just before their lips met, Baek Ho’s eyes snapped open.
His black pupils darted rapidly, locking onto Nana’s face.
“…What are you doing?”
“Aw, come on.”
As Nana lunged in recklessly, Baek Ho placed a hand on her forehead and pushed her away.
The Reapers jumped to their feet at the sight.
“Young Master!”
—Young Master!
Seongyu and the others dropped to one knee before Baek Ho.
Though a routine greeting, their emotions were far from ordinary.
A necromancer who had risked his life for a Reaper—
To them, it confirmed it—this man was the lord they would soon serve.
Their hearts swelled with conviction. They resolved to die a hundred, a thousand times over if it was for him.
“Don’t be so dramatic.”
Baek Ho frowned and stepped away from Seonhwa’s arms.
He looked down at Nana, now slumped on the ground beside him.
Her clear eyes glimmered with madness, and her once-flowing hair was matted with blood.
She licked her lips and muttered.
“She got hers, so why didn’t I?”
“You’ve completely lost it. Something’s seriously wrong with your brain.”
“Are you… all right, Young Master…?”
“Yeah. Feeling great, actually. You did good.”
“…I am honored.”
With Seonhwa’s support, Baek Ho rose to his feet.
The Reapers followed suit, their eyes burning with admiration.
“What’s with all the looks?”
Baek Ho rolled his sore shoulders in circles and continued.
“Oh, right. The operation was a perfect success. I set off a Monster Call right near Azrion’s nest.”
“Truly remarkable.”
Seongyu stepped closer and draped his black robe over Baek Ho’s shoulders.
“To turn the enemy’s intel against them… Grave must be in complete chaos.”
“Yeah, I’d bet on that.”
Baek Ho nodded and headed toward the door.
As he instinctively reached into his pocket, Seonhwa—walking beside him—pulled out a black cigarette and handed it over.
He put it between his lips, and it lit by itself.
“And one more thing.”
Exhaling a thick plume of smoke, Baek Ho turned and looked down at Nana.
He raised a thumb toward her—just a little.
"Thanks for healing me. I’ll make it up to you."
As Baek Ho turned to leave again, Nana brought both hands to her cheeks.
"God, that was so sexy. Totally my type."
–......
Everyone, including Baek Ho, clearly heard what she said.
But no one responded.
It wasn’t that they didn’t want to—it just felt like saying anything would be a really bad idea.
As Baek Ho stepped out through the iron door, two members of the Liberation Army rushed over, panting.
“D! I-I mean, Baek Ho-nim…!”
“Are you all right…?”
They had been watching everything through the screen connected to the outer camera of the Gwisin.
The mission was a resounding success.
A mass-scale Monster Call had gone off.
There was no doubt that hordes of beasts would be converging on the area, and if Nilberis had ended up dying, this would have gone down in history as a major achievement.
Baek Ho gave them a curt nod, then looked to the side.
Frank was hunched over, his head hanging low.
Baek Ho didn’t need to see his face to know.
With a crooked smirk, he walked over.
“What are you doing?”
“…Baek Ho?”
Frank sprang to his feet.
His eyes were red and swollen from crying.
“Why are you bawling like a little kid?”
“…I’m just… I’m so glad… really glad you’re okay….”
Suddenly, Baek Ho remembered what Frank looked like in the Trauma Room—that guy who’d faced death head-on with pride and strength.
That guy was nowhere to be found now.
All that was left was a crybaby idiot.
Not that it mattered.
Back then or now, he was still the one and only friend.
“So, what now? You planning to date her or what?”
“Baek Ho still doesn’t get it… Frank’s pretty popular, you know…”
“Yeah, right.”
Baek Ho let out a short laugh and offered Frank a fist bump.
Frank gave it a lazy tap in return.
Seongyu watched them with a fond smile, while Seonhwa frowned, clearly unimpressed.
“Oh, right. Did you say hi yet?”
“To who?”
“Who do you think? The one you keep saying you can’t live without.”
Baek Ho shrugged and thumbed over his shoulder.
As Frank tilted his head, the reapers walking behind them parted.
At the end of the line stood Nana.
She pressed her hand to her temple, trying to steady herself against the dizziness, and met Frank’s gaze.
Her lips parted slowly.
“What the hell are you staring at? Wanna die?”
She flipped him the middle finger.
Baek Ho let out a tired sigh.
Too much exposure to dark mana—probably a brain shock.
Temporary personality shift, he figured.
“You recognize her, don’t you?”
“Hm.”
Frank’s eyes drooped lazily.
Then, with a twitch of his hand, he raised a middle finger in return.
“No idea who she is. But she’s hot. Baek Ho likes hot girls.”
“…You seriously don’t recognize her? That’s I_Vu Nana.”
Baek Ho smacked Frank on the arm, expecting a big reaction.
This was the same guy who’d lost his mind earlier saying he’d protect Nana at all costs.
Baek Ho had felt guilty about missing Nana’s concert, but now it seemed like he could make up for it—twofold.
But Frank just looked indifferent.
“Oh, right. She’s a famous idol.”
“......”
Baek Ho’s smile faded.
That wasn’t the kind of reaction someone wearing an I_Vu t-shirt should have.
Was he joking? No—Frank wouldn’t joke about I_Vu to her face.
No one knew that better than Baek Ho.
Still… he wanted to believe it was just a joke.
“…Don’t mess with me, you idiot.”
“Messed with you about what?”
“She’s I_Vu! Get a grip!”
Baek Ho smacked his arm again, this time with more force.
Sure, it hurt his own hand more, but he needed something physical to hide how shaken his voice was.
Frank frowned, rubbing his forehead with a grimace.
“What’s the big deal about I_Vu…? Wait, hang on. My head… It hurts. Like something’s pecking inside my skull.”
He started thumping his head.
Same reaction he had when he thought Baek Ho was going to die.
“You…”
Just as Baek Ho was at a loss for words, Seonhwa stepped forward.
She pulled out a talisman-bound pistol from her coat and pointed it squarely at Frank’s forehead.
“Franklin Bernstein. State your personal ID code.”
“......”
“Now!”
Frank stopped hitting himself.
He blinked a few times, then opened his mouth slowly.
“Cosmos… snowflake… beetle…”
His voice trembled more with each word, while Seonhwa’s gun remained completely still.
Her finger slid onto the trigger.
“Tango… Tango… the next… I—I can’t remember the next part…”
“Enough!”
Baek Ho shouted, snapping toward Seonhwa.
“Put the gun down! That’s an order!”
＊ ＊ ＊
In the heart of the dense forest, people arrived around an abandoned hotel that hadn’t seen human touch for years.
One necromancer from the Reaper squad. He was breathing heavily, clearly in a rush.
“Phew…”
Commander Baek, whose body was mostly that of an ordinary human and who, as a necromancer, had a notoriously weak constitution, the exhaustion was evident. His face was drenched in sweat, and his uniform collar was crooked.
“Did everyone hear the communication?”
“Is this even possible?”
“Wow…”
Reapers with various appearances turned their attention to Commander Baek. In their ears echoed the voice of a Reaper waiting on the ship.
–Nilberis is dead! That butcher was tricked by your son’s operation!
Commander Baek didn’t feel joy. He didn’t even feel astonished. His mind was only filled with worry for Baek Ho.
Unable to stand it, the man next to him stepped forward.
He closed his eyes and muttered something.
A translucent, butterfly-like spirit appeared near his ear, fluttered for a moment, then disappeared.
“Baek Ho is safe. He just woke up and is in a meeting with the Reapers.”
“...I see... That’s a relief.”
Commander Baek took a deep breath and looked at the half-destroyed hotel.
The rectangular structure, swallowed by the thicket, still contained Baek Ho within the concrete ruins that once gleamed with splendor.
There, hidden among the trees, was his son—whom he hadn’t seen in a long time.
Commander Baek and the Special Operations Unit had been headed towards Grave.
They had thought it would be faster to teleport from Grave rather than heading directly to the front lines.
Although only a small number of people could travel, it wasn’t a problem. The Special Operations Unit was elite and small in number.
During their journey, Commander Baek received contact from Seonhwa. After hearing the situation, he felt a brief sense of relief. But that was short-lived.
The following details sent him into a state of deeper anxiety.
She mentioned using a curse on Baek Ho to draw out the source of dark mana. It meant that they were going to risk pushing the dark mana to its limits.
Without having time to protest, he activated the EM shield and cut off communication.
Immediately, they altered their course and rushed here, putting everything into reaching this location. They even abandoned their ship mid-way, fearing they might be followed. He was nervous the entire way, worried for his son. Afraid that something might go wrong.
“Wow, to think he killed Nilberis. That’s impressive.”
"Yeah... I'm so jealous."
"Commander! You have to introduce me!"
The team members expressed their awe.
Baek Ho had done what even the Special Operations Unit couldn’t.
Even though it was only possible because the entire Grave had been deceived, it was still incredible that he had enough dark mana to maintain such an intense spell for so long.
Setting aside Seonhwa’s help, it meant that the depths and expanse of Baek Ho’s dark mana were enormous.
Moreover, wasn’t he still a cadet? The fact that such a young kid, without any battlefield experience, managed to come up with such a plan was impressive.
“I’m really curious about what kind of person he is.”
“Based on his power, he’s probably some kind of monster.”
“If he looks anything like our Commander, he must be handsome~.”
The team, filled with excitement, turned their attention to Commander Baek.
“We’re going back to Grave.”
His stern tone caused the elderly man next to him to cover his mouth.
“Oh, looks like our Commander’s angry. Are we finally taking down Grave today?”
Just then, a small boy fell from a tree nearby, carrying a sniper rifle almost as big as his body. He spoke up.
“We’re in trouble. We need to get Sophia here right now. Who else can stop our Commander at this point?”
The Reapers of the Special Operations Unit all nodded in agreement.
It was clear they needed to call Sophia. Or perhaps they should use this opportunity to attack Grave and seize the position of Supreme Commander.
“Stop talking nonsense.”
Even Commander Baek, hailed as humanity's hero, was just a familiar comrade within the Special Operations Unit.
He was simply a companion who had fought alongside them on countless battlefronts.
This was the atmosphere that Commander Baek wanted, and it boasted the kind of close-knit camaraderie you'd find in a family.
“That’s enough for today.”
Without any lingering hesitation, he turned and walked away.
The team members followed him with wistful gazes.
“Are you really just going to leave without saying goodbye?”
“Yeah….”
“It’s such a shame~ I heard he’s extremely handsome.”
They thought they'd get to see him this time.
But it seemed like their Commander wasn’t ready to face his son just yet.
“I told you, he really did leave after arguing with his dad.”
“Isn’t that just a rumor?”
“You guys haven’t heard?”
The boy, who was carrying a sniper rifle on his back, continued.
“It’s been officially confirmed that he ran away after getting beaten by his dad.”
“Who said that?”
“Who else could it be? That white-haired guy.”
“Hey, come on, Senior, when did I say that? The Commander might misunderstand~.”
Commander Baek stopped walking and turned around, narrowing his eyes.
Only then did the few Reapers who had been chatting stop talking.
“......”
Commander Baek glanced back at the hotel, now growing distant.
As thoughts of Baek Ho crossed his mind, an unconscious smile appeared on his face.
A mix of guilt and pride swirled inside him.
He slipped his hands into his coat pockets and fiddled with the item he treasured.
‘You’ve been growing in your own way… I’m sorry… and thank you.’
His sincere emotions, which he couldn’t quite put into words, blended with his complicated feelings as he swallowed them down.
At that moment, the boy behind Commander Baek raised his hand.
“I heard everything you just said. Was that intentional?”
“......”
“You guys heard it too, right?”
The Reapers all nodded in agreement.
A faint blush crept onto Commander Baek’s face.
His overly sincere feelings had spilled out awkwardly.
“Ahem... let’s get moving.”
Commander Baek disappeared into the darkening forest.
What he didn’t realize was that not meeting Baek Ho would send ripples through both UnderHeaven and Grave.
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HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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