The Main Characters That Only I Know

The fire did not burn the whole village. Thanks to Yu-hyun, who extinguished the flames before they reached the corners, the damage to the village was miraculously less than half.

The house of the oldest person in Thorbo village, who was called the village chief by others, was one of them.

“Here, here’s something to drink.”

The village chief offered water to Yu-hyun with trembling hands. He could not shake off his anxiety.

He had every reason to be afraid. He had seen this man wipe out hundreds of soldiers under the Black Thunder Lord in an instant. How could he not be nervous?

The village chief wanted to send Yu-hyun out of the village if he could, but he had no power to do so.

Besides, Yu-hyun was the benefactor of the village. Whether he looked or acted differently, or had a different power, it was undeniable that they owed him their lives.

Even if the wolves were gone and the tigers came in, they had to bow their heads.

“I have a lot of questions, actually.”

Yu-hyun smiled at the woman sitting across from him.

Jimmy’s older sister, Kate, felt a strange sense of incongruity at Yu-hyun’s smile.

When he wore a mask and swept away the soldiers of the legion, he looked like the most terrifying being in the world. But now that he was sitting face to face with her, he seemed like nothing more than a polite young man.

She wondered what his true nature was, but she did not let go of her tension.

“So, what are you curious about?”

Kate gestured to the village chief that she would take care of this, and told him not to worry and leave.

The village chief left the room with a grateful word, as if fleeing. In the end, only Yu-hyun, Kate, and Jimmy were left in the room.

“I’m curious about how the world has changed in the last five years.”

“The last five years? That’s after the Great Explosion. Why are you suddenly curious about that? You seem to have enough skills to know everything.”

“I woke up after a long sleep. Everyone I knew was gone, the surroundings were different, and even the common sense around me changed completely. I was quite flustered until I met Jimmy here. Is that enough for an answer?”

“…Yes. So what exactly do you want to know?”

“Everything.”

“Everything?”

“I heard a rough outline from Jimmy, but I still don’t know much about the details. What is the Black Thunder Lord, what happened to the Divine Spirits, where did the tellers go? Everything.”

“Okay.”

Kate told Yu-hyun everything she knew.

“Where should I start? After the Great Explosion, Earth became fully integrated into the mixed world. Because of that, the mental realm blended with its surroundings and became part of the world. And the tellers who had been roaming around Earth could no longer perform their stories on Earth.”

“Because it was no longer a business place.”

“That’s right. Earth is no longer a lower world. Of course, it’s not fully part of an upper world either, but compared to before, the contact with Divine Spirits became much more smooth. The number of direct contractors increased tremendously.”

Direct contract.

As Earth entered fully into the mixed world, Divine Spirits began to contact collectors they had been eyeing.

The indirect support that used to send only points through tellers disappeared after the Great Explosion.

Instead, direct contracts that gave power and stories and all kinds of tools became popular. Spirits increased their followers.

“Of course. People who didn’t catch the eye of Divine Spirits were no different than before. The fate of those who were not chosen was always miserable.”

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Even in a changing world, talent made a difference.

Those who became followers of Divine Spirits rose to high places in an instant, but those who did not remained stuck below.

The gap between people widened rather than narrowed after direct contracts became popular.

People who wanted to rise up somehow clung to those followers. The relationship between lords and legions was always like that.

“This village is like a refuge for weak people who didn’t receive such a choice and gathered in remote areas.”

“But you said you were under the lord’s rule.”

“We have no choice. Everywhere that is not ruled by Grand Army or Normal Army is no different from lord’s land. There is no ownerless land in this mixed world.”

“But I heard stories about rebels or something. What is that?”

Kate answered without hesitation despite being a difficult question.

“What do you think? It’s people who want to resist against lord’s plundering or oppression. The legions under Black Thunder Lord call them rebels, but they themselves introduce themselves as liberation army.”

“Hmm. I see. The world has changed so much in five years…”

“Do you have any more questions?”

“Not really. I want to ask more about the Black Thunder Lord. Please tell me everything you know about her.”

“…The Black Thunder Lord. In other words, Kang Hye-rim, the Demon Sky Empress, is one of the rulers who dominate this area. Her power is so overwhelming that even other ruler-level beings don’t dare to mess with her. She’s notorious for that. But why does she rule over this remote and marginal place, instead of a core area? I still don’t know the reason.”

Kate said.

“Kang Hye-rim was a famous collector in a country called South Korea, back when the earth was still intact five years ago. I didn’t know her then, because I was on the other side of the earth. But that’s what I heard.”

“I see.”

“Anyway, right after the Great Explosion, Kang Hye-rim wasn’t such a bad person. I never saw her myself, but that’s what the rumors said. But as time passed, she changed. At some point, she became obsessed with something and eventually…”

Kate shrugged her shoulders.

“…This is what happened. I don’t know why she became like this. Her companions also scattered at some point.”

“What happened to them?”

“Who? Oh, Kang Hye-rim’s old companions? Well, I don’t know much about that either. There were only rumors that they fought and parted ways because of their differences. They were a group that attracted attention even in the mixed world, so it was more noticeable. I have no way of knowing where they are now.”

Yu-hyun wanted to know about the whereabouts of Kwon Jia, Seo Sumin, Yoo Young-min, and Baek Seo-ryeon, besides Kang Hye-rim, but Kate didn’t know more than that. It was impressive enough that she knew this much.

According to Kate, Kang Hye-rim changed after the Great Explosion.

She eventually clashed with her other companions, and the White Flower Management fell apart.

‘Was it because of me…?’

That was likely.

It wasn’t an overstatement of his ego, but Yu-hyun was sure that he was the one who gathered the White Flower Management people and became their center of gravity.

“What kind of person is the Black Thunder Lord?”

He didn’t want to call her Kang Hye-rim, because he didn’t want to equate her with the Black Thunder Lord he knew.

“The Black Thunder Lord now… is a madman. She locks herself up in her own castle and plunders people. She kills anyone who displeases her or even shows a slight resistance mercilessly.”

That was why the rebels appeared.

Kang Hye-rim, who used to be called the Sword Empress and admired by many, had fallen so low that she was now called the Demon Sky Empress and terrorized people.

Yu-hyun couldn’t believe it, but this reality proved it.

He felt bitter.

He gulped down the water in front of him.

Kate looked at him with half-open eyes and asked.

“…Did you know the Black Thunder Lord?”

“A long time ago.”

Yu-hyun quietly put down his empty glass on the table.

“We were acquainted. I didn’t expect her to become like this.”

“…You were acquainted in the past? Who are you?”

“Kang Yu-hyun.”

“I’ve never heard of that name.”

“That can’t be helped.”

Yu-hyun shrugged his shoulders. He thought he had gained some fame, but it had been five years since then, so he couldn’t blame people for forgetting him.

Even famous celebrities would be forgotten by the public if they didn’t work for a year, but Yu-hyun had been sleeping for five times as long.

If the world had remained unchanged and peaceful, there might have been some people who remembered him, but the world had changed too much in the past five years. The terms collector and teller that were popular in the past didn’t mean much to people now.

“Anyway, thank you for saving us. If it weren’t for you, we would have all died. But…”

Kate trailed off. She seemed hesitant to say something.

“Do you want to ask me if I can protect this village more?”

“How did you know?”

“It’s obvious. The soldiers sent by the legion to root out the rebels didn’t come back and their news was cut off. What would other people think? They would think they were defeated by the rebels. And then? A bigger group will come. You know that too, so you’re still anxious.”

“Then…”

“I can’t help you with that.”

“But…!”

Yu-hyun cut off Kate’s words with a cold voice.

“Do you think I did what I did out of pure kindness? It’s true that I helped you, but that was just an excuse for me to intervene in the previous situation. I killed those soldiers because they were bloodthirsty beasts who didn’t see humans as humans. They were only harmful even if they were alive, so I eliminated them.”

“…But there are still many of them left. The legion won’t leave you alone.”

“Yes, I know. That’s why I will fight them. I won’t deny that fact. But fighting them and protecting you are two different things.”

“That’s…”

“I understand your feelings too. Well, you must be tempted to ask for more help since you already got some. But clinging to me is not a good idea, I’m afraid.”

Yu-hyun said that and glanced outside.

“I have no intention of joining the liberation army that you speak of.”

“Wh…what?”

“Did you think I wouldn’t know?”

Yu-hyun smiled slyly and showed his empty cup.

“You did a rude thing. Putting some drug in the water.”

“Th…that’s…”

Kate’s face turned pale in an instant. Jimmy, who was listening quietly next to her, looked up at his sister.

“Sis? What are you talking about? A drug?”

“No, no. I don’t know anything about that…”

“It seems like you really don’t know. Then it must be the village chief’s doing.”

Yu-hyun got up slowly from his chair.

Kate’s mind raced. She didn’t put any drug in the water. She never had such a thought. But Yu-hyun said that, which meant someone else did it behind her back.

She panicked.

“Wa…wait a minute! There must be some misunderstanding on our side…”

“Misunderstanding or not, look at the people outside. Aren’t they from your liberation army? They surrounded me secretly.”

Yu-hyun felt the presence of people moving around outside. They seemed to be trying to be quiet, but they couldn’t fool his sharp senses.

They didn’t seem hostile, but that could change at any moment. How could he be sure they wouldn’t suddenly attack him and try to kill him?

In this situation, Yu-hyun didn’t trust people easily.

He wished it wasn’t so, but that was the world he had come to.

“I’ll go out and talk to them!”

“What do you trust in them?”

Yu-hyun stood up in front of the door and snapped at Kate.

Kate couldn’t say anything and froze in her seat.

“I think I’m being patient enough by not getting angry at you here. Am I wrong?”

“N…no. You’re right.”

“You seem to have no such intention by your reaction. But the others are different.”

“I…I…”

“You should have done well when I asked you politely and respectfully. You rely on my kindness and this is what happens. Just stay there and watch.”

You can’t do anything anyway.

At his words, Kate bit her lip and lowered her head. Jimmy still looked confused and glanced back and forth between his sister Kate and Yu-hyun.

“Savior…sir?”

“Tell your brother too. I can’t leave him alone without knowing anything.”

Yu-hyun left those words and went out of the village chief’s house.

As soon as he went out, he was met by many people. Faces he had never seen in the village. And they all looked formidable.

They wore various outfits. Some wore armor and some wore comfortable clothes for movement.

Among them, he saw the village chief.

He widened his eyes when he saw Yu-hyun walking out normally even though he had taken the drug.

“You have a bad attitude for a guest.”

“Surrender.”

The man in front said bluntly.

Yu-hyun laughed as if he heard something funny. He looked at the village chief.

“Village chief. Didn’t you tell them? What happened to the soldiers who invaded here?”

“He told me everything.”

“He told you and you still say that to me?”

“They were only 300 men at best.”

“Hmm. Strange. When did 300 men become so insignificant?”

He had been asleep for five years, so he couldn’t tell how the standards had changed.

“Surrender. If you surrender, we will respect you and treat you with dignity. If not, we will subdue you by force.”

At his words, Yu-hyun’s smiling face turned expressionless.

Then or now, people always had to show their strength properly or they would act like they were better than him.

Yu-hyun put on Aporia’s mask on his face.

Four red eyes glowed with rage.

“Try it.”