[ TWATF ]

Chapter 179: Rupture (14)

“Let’s return to Rupture.”

And with the voice, Yoonhwan’s dream shattered.

“I heard from the Captains that you have dangerous ideas.”

“…”

“I’m sure they have spoken to you already, but they know and I know it too. What is wrong and right. We all know.”

“…Enough.”

Seoyul ignored him and continued to persuade him, “Listen to me, Yoonhwan. Did you forget what happened back in the tower? There’s nothing you can do from where you are trying to go. It’s just like how we could never clear the tower no matter how hard we tried.”

That word was painful. She also thought the same way. Yoonhwan remembered her death in the tower. She died on the 76th floor.

“There’s something that can’t be done.”

There was the memory of climbing up the tower with only the two of them, him and Jaehwan. It was the dream that he never achieved. Yoonhwan felt a severe headache. Seoyul spoke again.

“Justice without power is pointless. A dream without possibility is just an illusion. You know this. How do you not see this?”

No. Yoonhwan did not know this. But there was one thing he knew.

“Seoyul.”

“…?”

“Do you know up to what floor I climbed up to?”

“…No.”

“I got up to the 98th floor.”

Seoyul seemed to surprised, but she turned cold in the next moment.

“Doesn’t matter. You still…”

“And Jaehwan went up to the 99th floor.”

And with that, Seoyul was shocked for the first time. It was the first time she changed her expression ever since they had arrived at <Depth>. Yoonhwan continued, “You must remember how hard we tried and how many trials we fought against. And, how much time we put into it.”

“…”

“Are you going to say that it was all pointless? Are you really trying to say that? All of that was just nothing?”

Seoyul bit her lips.

“I know what you are talking about! But…!”

“No, you don’t know,” Yoonhwan declared. “You don’t know. And that’s why you are still standing there.”

Seoyoul became silent. Her shaking lips were proof that she was shaken by the word, ‘Jaehwan’. Yoonhwan thought maybe there was still hope in there.

“Kill me. If you want to take me back to Rupture, just kill me instead.”

It was a gamble, hoping that she still had some humanity within her. Seoyul became quiet. And then…

“You think I can’t do it?”

Yoonhwan’s gamble was moving toward failure. Seoyul raised her sword and wielded world power. Seoyul icily said, “How many times do you think I’ve killed you?”

Yoonhwan felt a chill running down his spine. This woman was no longer the Han Seoyul he knew. He knew this, but it never came to his mind until now. She was the woman who succeeded in clearing everything 518 times out of 520 simulations. She threw away everything and killed all of her memories to become strong. She then stood on top of all the new recruits in Rupture.