Chapter 112: Heaven (3)
Chapter 112: Heaven (3)
After passing through immigration, I was ushered inside.
The place I arrived at was a hotel. From what I had heard, it was a 5-star hotel arranged for the students of the Korea Hero Academy to stay.
“…Wow, it’s really nice.”
“I’m happy anywhere as long as I’m with Seo-ha.”
Seo Ga-yeon, who had casually moved next to Lee Seo-ha, said this. Lee Seo-ha nodded in agreement and took a seat nearby.
The hotel lounge was truly impressive. As I glanced around, I noticed a breakfast area.
I was hungry; maybe I should eat there.
“Would you like to have breakfast there? How about joining me?”
Ershil Merchen smiled and sat opposite me, posing cutely with her chin in her hand. It was slightly unsettling to see such a pretty girl acting this way.
“Me, I’ll join too.”“That’s great. Shall the three of us have an intimate discussion about magic?”
Ershil smiled and suggested.
“…Just the two of us in the villa.”
“Hmm. Three isn’t bad compared to two.”
Ershil laughed in response. In reality, Ershil felt quite threatened. I simply chuckled.
As a result of ranking first at the academy, I became known as someone who focused solely on physical training at the Korea Hero Academy.
Rumors circulated that I had concealed my magical powers to gain admission to the school, thanks to my occasional use of magic. And Ershil believed those rumors.
Ershil thought of the student council president when looking at Lee Seo-ha.
Sung Han-byul.
Lee Seo-ha seemed quite devastated for the mere reason of being rejected.
‘She’s not that pretty, though.’
Kim Ara, Ershil, Hong Yu-hwa. These were the women around Lee Seo-ha. All three, despite their differences in taste, were similar in terms of beauty. The pinnacle of humanity. They couldn’t be more beautiful. This was Ershil’s personal opinion.
Sung Han-byul felt a bit different from that level.
‘No, maybe that’s not important.’
Ershil inwardly smirked.
Lee Seo-ha’s expression when looking at Sung Han-byul was like that of a fan meeting an idol.
“Should we go? Do you want to join, Ga-yeon?”
“Yes.”
Seo Ga-yeon nodded in response to Lee Seo-ha’s words, while Ershil wore a pleasant smile.
Seo Ga-yeon. She’s someone to be cautious of. She’s an important figure around Lee Seo-ha and made it into the top 100 in the mid-term evaluation of the second semester.
‘Her magical skills are no joke.’
Of course, she may not be as skilled as me, who learned magic from the transcendent Melanie, but she’s an incredibly capable talent. In terms of growth, she might rank among the top three in the history of the Korean Hero Academy.
It’s not bad to maintain a good image.
“Then, I’ll treat us to dessert. How about mint chocolate, voted the most beautiful dessert by us British?”
Ershil smiled and made the suggestion, prompting Seo Ga-yeon and Lee Seo-ha to ponder.
‘This is so British.’
After breakfast, I entered my private room.
Since I had an exchange meeting with Divine Academy starting tomorrow, I could enjoy today to the fullest.
So, I entered my room and began training.
-Is there anyone strong at Divine Academy?
‘No.’
The top ranks at Divine Academy were already beyond being mere students.
The goal in the latter half was Kim Seo-hyun, and in the early half, it’s Sung Han-byul, whom nobody, including myself, could predict a win against.
The existences in Divine Academy were like deer, strong in the early half, stronger in the middle, and only slightly weaker than Kim Seo-hyun in the latter half.
-But why are you training?
‘Starting to show signs now.’
-……
I saw Eternal Heaven’s astonishment. With a fox-like face, I wondered how it could express such surprise.
-Could it be?
‘Yes. I’m starting to see the beginning of ascending to the higher realm.’
Of course, it didn’t mean I could reach the higher realm immediately. The wall was high, and there’s a lack of the absolute amount of the Energy of Defying Heaven.
-From the higher realm, you can inscribe your own laws onto the world. To put it extremely, like a sword that can cut anything.
The higher realm allowed one to inscribe their own laws onto the world.
This led to the derivation of various abilities.
Sword Demon Napak Cheon, the first higher realm entity I met in this world, had maximized the sharpness of his sword. His sword could easily cut through anything, be it the walls of a cave or anything else.
Then there was Tak Yoon-il. He fought crudely but masterfully, with the power to extend his hands.
Harun of the Brigade of Eternal Heaven possessed a passive law of martial mindset, gaining higher enlightenment the more he felt the thrill of victory.
The most unique was the Martial Arts Girl. She had the power to summon and fight with Asuras.
‘The ability that suits me the best.’
But it lacked a bit of realism.
Even to me, who’s not the most conscientious, the thought of doing such a thing seemed absurd.
Vibrate!
My phone vibrated. There was a message. It was from Kim Seo-hyun.
-Kim Seo-hyun:
I’m going out with Ga-yeon. Want to come?
I was about to decline, but then I changed my mind. Seo Ga-yeon’s role was crucial in resolving the events in Heaven.
‘Debut battle.’
I’ve been hiding Seo Ga-yeon so far. Her starlight magic was able to annihilate Mines.
If her power wasn’t sufficient, then the Mines would try to kill her by any means necessary.
-Lee Seo-ha:
Okay.
After a moment of thought, I sent a message.
-Lee Seo-ha:
Let’s go together.
We stepped outside.
Kim Seo-hyun and Seo Ga-yeon had changed into casual clothes.
Kim Seo-hyun wore a black tank top, slender white pants, and a white suspender hat.
Seo Ga-yeon wore an oversized T-shirt with black shorts.
“Seo-ha wears hoodies even outside.”
“…It’s comfortable.”
Maybe I should have dressed with more care.
-You look great even in your outside clothes.
‘Can’t help it.’
The coat Ershil gave me had a nice vibe.
“America has a certain American feel to it.”
“Because it’s America.”
Kim Seo-hyun responded to Seo Ga-yeon’s observation.
“Well, I thought it would feel more, how should I say, sacred.”
“Oh, there is that. People often have that misconception because of the Vaccine Temple.”
With the boundaries of the world breaking down and overlapping, America has benefited the most.
Vaccine Temple (百神殿).
This was because gods governing different concepts descended into this world.
“If you’re reasonably good, there’s no better place to live than in America.”
“…America?”
“Yes. America is the country of gods. They’ve been blessed by gods and have taken the bold step of incorporating that into their administration.”
“…Gods are involved in the administration?”
Seo Ga-yeon’s expression turned strange.
“For example, in the case of taxes, America has a really simple system. It’s not complicated like in our country. However, the intensity of their taxes is really high. 40-80% of income goes to taxes.”
“Ugh.”
Seo Ga-yeon’s complexion turned pale.
“…Let’s set that aside for now. If someone gets greedy and tampers with taxes, the gods intervene and inflict divine punishment. And those who receive divine punishment can’t receive divine grace, even for their descendants.”
“…”
“That’s why America is ‘fair.’ It’s the most ideal communist state. It’s funny that the once free country has become the most ideal communist state, but…”
Kim Seo-hyun’s expression sharpened as she spoke.
“Thief! There’s a thief!”
“A thief?”
A man looking like a thief snatched a bag from an old man. However, I calmly observed the scene.
“Now that I think about it, Ga-yeon hasn’t seen it yet, right? Why America is called Heaven.”
“Yes, but.”
“Take a good look at this chance. Opportunities like this are rare.”
The eyes of the people nearby changed.
America was called Heaven. The country of the sky. This was because of the gods in the Vaccine Temple.
And America was an unbelievable country where every citizen could ‘fight.’
“O God of Light!”
“God of Flames!”
“Goddess of Winter!”
The residents began calling out to their gods here and there. They offered their faith to the gods. And the gods responded by bestowing divine power.
From the highest to the lowest.
“…What is that?”
“It’s a common sight in America. Ever since faith was established, doing good deeds can also increase divine power.”
This rate of increase was very slight. But it was better than nothing.
The thief, battered by various priests, was arrested by the police who responded to the report.
“…They don’t kill.”
“I don’t know what fantasy you have about America, but they don’t usually kill here.”
Even the most villainous in America were inclined to repent. But there’s one thing that even America would not not tolerate.
“As long as it’s not a Mine.”
“I see.”
Seo Ga-yeon quietly nodded.
Her expression was emotionless.
“Where shall we go now?”
“Where does Seo-ha want to go?”
Seo Ga-yeon responded to my question. Kim Seo-hyun laughed bitterly.
“If it’s Seo-ha, probably to a gym, right?”
“…Me?”
“Yes. You’re addicted to training. There’s a gym nearby that the Purple Tower Master built as a hobby. Want to check it out?”
The Purple Tower Master was known for gravity magic.
Meaning, that gym was filled with gravity-based fitness equipment that increased body strain.
“Should we go there for a bit?”
“…Even though we’re in America?”
Seo Ga-yeon’s comment made me hesitate. I came here to get closer to Seo Ga-yeon, so I should focus on her.
“Do you want to go somewhere, Ga-yeon?”
“…Let’s go to the gym?”
Seo Ga-yeon seemed to contemplate for a moment before responding.
I glanced at the time. It was almost lunchtime. Maybe we should head to a nearby restaurant.
That’s when it happened.
“Hmm, look at you. Are you the top student of the Korea Hero Academy?”
A snobbish, drama-like guy addressed me. His way of speaking was peculiar, as if he had learned Korean from historical dramas.
“Um, excuse me. That kind of language is rude.”
A slender, gender-ambiguous boy spoke. He appeared delicate, much like a girl, yet he was a boy.
I was familiar with these two.
At Divine Academy, there existed a rival to Kim Seo-hyun. These two characters appeared before that rival did.
“Hello.”
A confident voice sounded from behind. I chose to ignore it, finding that character particularly bothersome.
Avoiding them seemed the best course of action.
“Hey, hey! Where do you think you’re going?!”
Ignoring the persistent voice, I hurried away with Kim Seo-hyun and Seo Ga-yeon.