Chapter 228: Academy Heroine's Right Diagonal Back Seat

Chapter 228

With the help of the children, I barely managed to escape the city, and from that point on, I kept moving with a single thought in mind: to run until I reached a safe place. 

Only when the sunlight, barely seeping through the dark, murky clouds—probably due to the demonic energy—hit the ground beneath my feet did I realize how far I had walked without resting. I tilted my head up to look at the sky.

I had been walking aimlessly, without sleep or rest, and now, it was hard to tell how much time had passed. A day? Maybe a few days had gone by during that time.

Looking back, I saw the distant barriers of the frontlines beyond the hazy air. Somehow, I had managed to come quite far, walking in a daze.

With that thought, I took a few more steps forward, only to suddenly stop and collapse to the ground in exhaustion.

I wondered if, having come this far, I was finally safe.

"Safe, huh..."

Right after thinking that, I realized how ridiculous it was, and a bitter laugh escaped my lips.

What safety could there be in a place filled with demonic energy?

If I thought about it like a game, this would be a danger zone where monsters spawn.

The safe zone was back there, in the city.

Not that the city was a safe zone for me anymore, sadly.

Suddenly, I remembered an old game fantasy novel I had read.

In the game described in that novel, if a player committed evil deeds in areas where it was not permitted—like killing other players—their username would turn red, signaling that they had become a villainous player.

Once that happened, they'd become the enemy of all the other players and would be attacked on sight, unable to set foot in any city.

Thinking about it, my current situation felt similar.

If this were a game world, wouldn't I seem like a player completely obsessed with their character concept?

Not only my hair and eyes, but even my "username" had turned bright red.

And yet, I had never even cursed at anyone when playing games.

...But if someone were to ask whether I felt wronged because of that, I couldn't honestly say yes.

It was an undeniable fact that I had done something wrong.

"...I wonder if Yoon Si-woo is alright."

I muttered, recalling what Jessie had told me.

She said he was in a coma, unsure whether he would wake up or not...

The image of Yoon Si-woo, battered and beaten after trying to save me, kept swirling in my head.

I couldn't stop thinking about it.

If something were to happen to Yoon Si-woo, I don't think I could ever forgive myself. And considering how many people relied on him emotionally, it was only natural that they hated me.

Accepting that it was natural for them to hate me was like denying myself.

Even though I never intended for things to turn out this way, the fact that Yoon Si-woo ended up in such a state because of me gnawed at my heart.

A little—no, quite a lot.

It hurt so much that I hung my head low, whispering as if to let the pain out.

"...This is hard."

It was hard.

Being hated by people—I could bear that somehow.

I wasn't a child anymore, and I knew the world well enough to understand that no matter how kind I was to everyone, the world wouldn't always return that kindness.

Sometimes, instead of returning the kindness, people might hate me.

So, being hated by others—that was something I could accept.

It was sad, but bearable.

Until now, even when others hated me, I could still affirm myself.

But now, I can't do that anymore.

Because I had hurt a dear friend.

Because I had, in effect, taken Yoon Si-woo—the last hope of the world—from this world.

I hated myself so much for it.

I kept thinking that maybe it would've been better if I didn't exist. This self-denial kept pulling me deeper into the pit of despair.

Honestly, I felt like I was about to crumble mentally.

"...Still, I have to endure."

Even so, I muttered to myself, trying desperately to pull myself together.

The reason I could do that was simple.

"Go, and we'll meet again."

Because the firework of hope my friends had lit for me still flickered inside, supporting me from breaking down completely.

I lifted my head and looked toward the city.

I knew that most of the people in that city hated me.

But still, I also knew that someone out there acknowledged my existence.

My friends, at least, said they believed in me.

For their sake, I couldn't let myself give up.

Who knows?

Maybe, as Dwight said, I might see them again someday.

So, let's stay positive. Only positive thoughts.

Clenching my fist as if to give myself strength, I pushed off the ground and stood up.

But the moment I sprang to my feet and glanced around, I realized something serious. In a stiff voice, I muttered,

"...But what am I supposed to do now?"

Up until just now, I had been so preoccupied with all sorts of random thoughts that I hadn't even considered the real problem. This was a huge issue.

I had fled the city in such a rush that I hadn't given any thought to how I would survive out here.

Suddenly, I found myself having to survive in the wild.

"Dammit, if I had known this would happen, I would've paid more attention to that survival show with the bear guy," I thought for a moment.

But then I quickly realized that normal survival knowledge wouldn't really apply to me, and I calmed down.

First, out of the three essentials for survival—food, clothing, and shelter—the most important for staying alive was food.

They say you can go three days without water and three weeks without food.

Humans need at least that much to survive, but I figured I didn't have to worry about that.

My body, while it could derive nutrients from food, didn't really need it as long as there was plenty of demonic energy around.

Now that I had fully become a witch, I could probably survive without eating at all.

And this area was brimming with demonic energy.

With the issue of food resolved, the next was clothing.

I glanced down at my body.

Yep, no clothes.

The ones I had been wearing were burned to a crisp when Evangeline took over my body.

Not that I was completely naked, though.

From my neck down, my body was covered in a layer of soot-black substance.

It felt like I was wearing matte black latex, as if something was clinging to my skin due to my powers. Unless I consciously tried to remove it, it didn't seem like it would come off.

It was a little embarrassing since my body's lines were clearly visible, but I was grateful that at least my skin wasn't exposed. With no way to get new clothes, I was glad I wasn't walking around naked like some pervert.

Anyway, that solved the clothing issue.

Next was the matter of shelter.

I looked around with a bitter smile.

In front of me—toward the city—a vast, barren plain stretched out.

Behind me was a forest filled with charred, dead trees.

Both directions were filled with demonic energy.

Even if I managed to build a house, there was no telling when a demon beast might pop out and tear it apart.

And with nothing to use as building materials other than burned wood, making anything decent seemed impossible anyway.

Rather than building something only for it to get smashed by a beast, I figured it would be easier in my mind to just light a fire on the ground and camp out.

Might as well live like a homeless person.

Besides, I probably wouldn’t need to sleep anyway, so who cares if I didn’t have a place to stay?

...Probably.

Anyway, with the issues of food, clothing, and shelter more or less solved, I was done with those worries.

Yay! Since I don't need to eat, wear clothes, or sleep, all my worries are gone!

Of course, by being unable to satisfy those basic needs, I’d also have to give up on living like a human being, but whatever.

After a bitter laugh, I thought deeply again.

Now that I had figured out how to survive, it was time to consider what I would do to pass the time.

The moment I asked myself that question, the answer came to me without hesitation.

Let’s hunt demon beasts.

Outside the city, that was the only way I could help people.

So from today onward, I decided I would become a monster hunter.

Though unlike a real hunter, I wouldn’t be able to craft any gear from the beasts’ remains since they would just dissolve into demonic energy.

But as soon as I resolved to hunt demon beasts, I realized something.

"...There are no demon beasts."

Looking around, there were none in sight.

The eerie silence was strange.

Now that I thought about it, I hadn't encountered a single demon beast on my way here either.

Until now, I hadn’t really wanted to fight any monsters, so I hoped not to run into them, but now that I hadn’t seen even one, it was odd—

"—Huh?!"

That was when I noticed it.

Something was approaching from a distance.

A familiar presence, rapidly closing the gap, accompanied by something massive.

I knew who it was.

This presence, this aura...

"Long time no see~."

The girl with dark purple hair appeared before me.

"Eva."

She smiled as she looked at me.

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