# Chapter 141
“But we’re in the same situation.”
In the end, the one who spoke first was the one at a disadvantage. Seeun, staggering as she struggled to maintain her balance, spoke mockingly through her panting breath.
“You’re really not going easy on me.”
Seeun didn’t actually think that these few words would make Sano go easy on her. At the very least, it was a stalling tactic to buy time to catch her breath.
But in response to her words, Sano twisted up the corner of his mouth.
“The same?”
What was contained in his low voice was cold contempt.
“You and me?”
The concentration of disgust was extremely thick. Enough that Seeun was momentarily flustered and at a loss for words.
“…But I became a butterfly. You’re Number 3, so technically you’re my senior…”
Semi had manifested superpowers, but Seeun hadn’t. Semi willingly stayed with Seeun and helped her, but that wasn’t enough. Then, by chance, she met Taejin. Seeun became Number 10.
The experiments were as meaningful as they were painful. She succeeded in shedding her old self, and Taejin kept the resulting product by his side. As they spent more time together, she had overheard stories about Sano several times.
What Taejin had injected into Seeun was part of Iyeon’s gi-ryeok and some of the gi-ryeok that had been collected during experiments on Sano. The ability to manipulate minerals derived from materialization abilities, and the ability to control rocks derived from mineral manipulation abilities. Taejin’s experiments continued in that fashion.
“A dog who, at 18, was already running from juvenile charges, then crawled on your own to Lee Taejin, and have been licking his feet ever since.”
“…!”
“The only person dumb enough to fall for your pathetic lies would be Jung Iyeon.”
Sano sneered. Seeun had changed her name when she joined Taejin, but she hadn’t been able to erase all traces. Sano had competent secretaries who could dig up and analyze such things.
“You’re more… thorough than I expected.”
Seeun smiled as if complimenting him, even while panting. The only image of Sano she had seen was of someone who didn’t even bother to properly look at her, as if completely uninterested—she hadn’t expected him to bring up a past she thought had been forgotten.
“Well, there’s no point in denying it. The fact that you’re my senior doesn’t change.”
The voice that put particular emphasis on the word “senior” was clearly intentional. When Sano continued listening without giving any particular response, Seeun’s words grew increasingly sharp.
Taejin only talked about Sano when comparing him to Seeun. Mere Tier 4. That’s what Taejin called Seeun’s ability. Taejin’s greed was endless, and Seeun always felt intimidated in front of the numbers displayed on the monitor.
Only after seeing the two men break into the house did Seeun realize that the man she had seen at the party was the “Je Sano” Taejin had spoken of so much. She had been curious anyway. Seeun happily accepted the luring operation directed by Taejin.
“No matter how much you’re ranked first or whatever, you’re just an artificial ability user who pretends to be different from others… It’s impressive how you don’t feel guilty. Shouldn’t you be buying a gift for your father and coming to thank him?”
The slightly smiling, sneering tone was completely different from the fragile voice she had used when caught in a lie. The gentle, delicate emotions that had been so evident on her face were nowhere to be seen. Seeun herself seemed more comfortable this way.
With a faint smile, Seeun mumbled in a voice too loud to be just talking to herself.
“Ah, right… You were almost disqualified. For being so incompetent that there was no point in experimenting further.”
Despite her malice-filled words, Sano didn’t react much. His calm gaze met Seeun’s cold glare.
“Have you caught your breath enough?”
His indifferent voice thundered. Seeun stared blankly at Sano as he approached.
Only then did Seeun realize. Just because Iyeon and Sano went around together didn’t mean they had the same personality. Sano was more like Taejin. He neither stopped nor hesitated. He was a man who did as he pleased. The type who didn’t care about his surroundings at all.
“If you’re dead, you won’t need to catch your breath.”
Seeun was reflected in those black pupils. Inside them, green flames burned as if to incinerate her.
*
“Hah…”
Sweat ran down his cheeks. Iyeon roughly wiped away the droplet about to fall from his chin. It was good that he had pressured Taejin to reveal his secret weapon, but this was an absurd situation.
To compete with the same ability.
After exchanging a few offensive and defensive moves, Iyeon found that the materialization ability Taejin wielded was similar in strength to his own. Taejin might be deliberately outputting stronger gi-ryeok to fight Iyeon, but it was equally nonsensical that a non-superhuman could use Mugunghwa Tier 5 level superpower and display this much gi-ryeok control.
It was also hard to believe that Taejin had this much of Iyeon’s gi-ryeok left. He probably scraped together all of Iyeon’s remaining gi-ryeok. If he defeated Iyeon here, the gi-ryeok would be replenished anyway.
“Your stamina doesn’t seem to be very good.”
“Whose fault is that, after draining my gi-ryeok until I passed out.”
To think he’d be criticized about stamina by Taejin of all people. Iyeon responded grumpily while waving his hand. Snow-white sand gathered like clouds and quickly swirled. A small tornado, following Iyeon’s hand gestures, rushed toward Taejin. It was strong enough to create a sharp cutting sound and leave scratches on the floor.
But the attack was soon blocked. The violently swirling tornado dissipated in the blink of an eye. Taejin, who had created the same attack with identical movements as Iyeon, calmly resumed his stance. Iyeon frowned slightly.
It had been like this all along. No matter how Iyeon attacked, Taejin countered with the same operation to nullify the attack. It was like having a battle of wills.
Now Iyeon didn’t even know what to attack with. It was like everything was being reflected back as if by a mirror, and he was running out of techniques.
“You must have used it a lot?”
Like physical abilities, superpowers become more skilled with use. The stronger the power, the more so. There was absolutely no way to have this level of operational ability just by handling it during experiments.
“Well, I got quite a capable disciple.”
Now Iyeon understood why Taejin had shown so much interest in Semi’s superpower bracelet. How thrilling must it have been to realize he could use it himself after pouring all that gi-ryeok into experiments?
Iyeon glanced at the accessories barely visible inside Taejin’s lab coat. The colors of the jewels dangling from the bracelet seemed to have become a bit dull, though it was hard to tell.
The most straightforward method would of course be to make him use up all the gi-ryeok stored in the jewels. Iyeon’s gi-ryeok that Taejin possessed wouldn’t recover on its own. Once he reached the point where he couldn’t use his ability because his gi-ryeok was depleted, it would be over.
‘The problem is not knowing when it will run out.’
Iyeon clicked his tongue. The jewels on Taejin’s bracelet were much larger than those embedded in the superpower bracelets Semi had made, and there were even several of them. Iyeon didn’t know how much gi-ryeok was needed to refine jewels that size, but seeing how Taejin showed little sign of depletion despite using similar levels of power throughout their battle, it seemed like it would take quite a while.
‘This is troublesome…’
Iyeon clicked his tongue. Time was already dragging on too much. The small anxiety that had settled in his heart had been growing steadily since earlier.
It was suspicious no matter how he thought about it that Taejin wasn’t showing him Mirae.
Throughout the fight, Iyeon had been glancing at the numerous screens behind Taejin, but none of them showed Mirae. Showing Mirae trapped and trembling with anxiety would have been the most effective way to pressure Iyeon. Yet deliberately not playing that card led to only one conclusion.
Mirae is currently in a state that cannot be shown.
“What did Jinwon-ssi ask you to do?”
Taejin smiled slyly at the question with obvious intent.
“My nephew has become quite curious.”
“I always was. That’s why I met Sano.”
“Ah, right… That’s why you reduced my research facility to that state.”
Iyeon frowned slightly. Of course, it was true that he had saved Sano, but he wasn’t the direct cause of the research facility’s destruction. Hadn’t Iyeon obediently stayed inside until the conclusion was reached that the facility should be shut down? Yet Taejin spoke as if it was entirely Iyeon’s fault.
“What are you saying? I actually cooperated with the research. Even though I was being deceived.”
Despite such a protest, Taejin merely shrugged.
“Sure. If that’s what you want to believe.”
What’s this? Iyeon’s eyebrows twitched at the strange dissonance he felt from the answer. The research facility incident happened when he was too young to fully grasp the circumstances, and he didn’t even remember it completely. But Iyeon was certain he had no opportunity to be involved in such major decisions as the facility’s closure. At that time, all he cared about was Sano.
Even while thinking this, anxiety began to seep from a corner of Iyeon’s heart. …My memory isn’t wrong, is it?
