### Chapter 359 – Room 205, The Cursed Room – ‘The Absolute Master’ (8)
—
– Han Kain
Woke up in the hotel.
This time, it feels like I’ve been sealed just like Sleeping Beauty—so I guess I’m the princess now?
I remembered how everyone suffered during our last adventure in Room 203, every time I popped out.
So, the moment I stepped out, I checked everyone’s conditions. Thankfully, it wasn’t as bad this time.
“Looks like it’s not mealtime yet, so let’s just chat over some drinks.”
Following Jinchul’s suggestion, we moved toward the snack table.
The first topic that popped up at the table was each person’s role.
“Seungyub was the emperor?”
“Kain, I told you—oh right, you’d probably forgotten by now.”
Judging by Miro’s reaction, I guessed he must have called me out once back in the day.
“Hyung, when I wave my hand, three thousand concubines will appear!”
“Three thousand concubines?”
“I thought I’d have three thousand concubines, but they all ran away!”
“W-what? They ran away?”
Noona Eunsol cracked up uncontrollably at that, explaining the basic scenario of Room 205 to the confused.
“So, the emperor messed up the country so badly that the Baehwa Sect started a rebellion?”
“Exactly.”
“The Baehwa Sect rebels under the pretext of saving the people, while the Heavenly Alliance that should be protecting the empire just sits back and does nothing.”
“Right!”
“The source of the curse is that the Baehwa Sect plans to conduct the ascension ceremony after toppling the empire, right?”
Everyone nodded.
I hoped the storyline of the cursed room could be summed up like this in just three lines from now on.
Just then, Seungyub began moving plates around beneath the table, hoarding a mountain of fries.
Ari watched this with wide eyes.
“Are they that good? It’s not like we were starved in this room.”
“Noona, I can guarantee you that fries dipped in ketchup taste way better than any food the old emperor had!”
Coming from a former emperor, that was quite convincing.
Grandpa chimed in,
“Kid, if you keep loving fried food this much, you’re gonna turn into a pig!”
“Ugh, stop giving me the side-eye. I’m not Lee Woncheol from the Ministry of Rites!”
“What? Who’s that… what was his name?”
“Ahem!”
Suddenly, Seungyub cleared his throat and began a dramatic speech from the table.
“Your Majesty, for the honor of the royal family leading the Radiant Empire, I, Lee Woncheol of the Ministry of Rites, would like to say a few words. Recently, famines and revolts have devastated the people’s livelihoods, and food is scarce. If Your Majesty were to lessen your own rations—”
“Stop! What in the world is this?”
“If you set an example by cutting down on food, the people will show their gratitude, and the will of heaven—”
At this point, Noona Eunsol burst into giggles and summarized,
“Nothing special, just a few annoying ministers nagging like it’s a sageuk drama, always shouting ‘Please, Your Majesty!’”
Seungyub complained,
“Seriously, even when I eat, they say it’s my fault the famine’s here, blink once and they say it’s my fault for the rebellion. It’s tough holding back the urge to lash out.”
“That’s why we have Yeonsangun!”
“…”
Finally, I understood the situation and could joke along.
“That’s how it always was in the past. Rain or snow, it’s always the king’s fault. But hey, at least we’re not in the Stone Age where people would say, ‘This is all the emperor’s doing!’ and leave it at that.”
Ari nodded.
“True. In ancient civilizations, they’d just tie the king to a stake and set him on fire to see which part would make it rain quicker.”
Seungyub’s face turned pale at that, and he started shoveling fries into his mouth.
Feeling slightly guilty for teasing him, Noona changed the topic.
“Now that the situation’s straightforward, let’s discuss the main characters. We should summarize what we need to do and wrap things up.”
At that moment, I instinctively remembered the title of Room 205—‘The Cursed Room – ‘□□□□’ from when I was sealed.
“It’s ‘The Absolute Master’…”
“What?”
“The title of Room 205 is ‘The Absolute Master.’”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
The three strongest superhumans in human history, owners of legendary skills far exceeding others.
The three absolute masters are the core characters of Room 205.
“Let’s start talking about that bastard Ija Seong.”
Jinchul frowned while our teacher chuckled.
“Let’s dial it down a bit. He’s technically your master, so let’s just call him a crazy dude.”
Various companions expressed their animosity toward Ija Seong, but ironically, the one least charged with emotion was Noona Eunsol, who didn’t even know what had happened.
“I have nothing to say. I’ve never seen Ija Seong’s face.”
Piecing everyone’s opinions together, it seems he was intimidatingly strong.
From what I gathered, it looked like no one could win against him one-on-one, and it seemed even Elena thought using ‘Justice’ on him wouldn’t be easy.
Just then, Ari turned to our teacher and asked,
“Seunghyun, the Final Flash missed, right?”
For once, our doctor teacher wore a slightly disgraced expression.
“Yeah…”
“How did it miss? I know the Final Flash travels at 16% the speed of light, about 50,000 kilometers per second?”
“Clearly, Ija Seong didn’t dodge it at 50,000 kilometers per second. He moved at a speed I couldn’t even react to. It was like… instant teleportation?”
“Teleportation?”
“No, it was definitely something different. A movement without any warning? It’s hard to describe. He has so many strange techniques…”
At that moment, Grandpa muttered with a knowing expression,
“Replacement Technique…”
You don’t need to be faster than the bullet to dodge a gun.
If you move at a speed the person shooting can’t track, the aim will fail.
Ija Seong must have evaded the Final Flash using this principle, then managed to take down the teacher.
Moreover, there were countless other tricks the world’s top swordsman employed.
“Didn’t Ija Seong’s sword just slice right through your spear?”
“Exactly!”
“How? Did he split your spear apart? Or was your hand passing through like it does mine?”
“No, no, Kain. It’s not that simple…”
Jinchul took a while to find the right words, finally saying something that made no sense at all.
“He drew the flow of my spear into his own flow?”
“Excuse me?”
“Like a bird flying or a ship sailing against the wind.”
“What does that even feel like?”
“Um…”
“Kain! Kain! I have something to share too!”
Miro’s words were even harder to grasp.
“You split your mind to resist possession? Did you swing a sword to cut through the power of the grimoire?”
Surprisingly, that was what ‘I’ had said when I summoned Miro from the time loop.
At this point, I’d half-believe if you said Ija Seong split the sea just like Moses did.
Listening to the baffling explanations from the doctor, Jinchul, and Miro, it was clear to me that neither of my companions understood what techniques Ija Seong had used.
It was only natural; my companions were no absolute masters.
Eunsol, sharing the same realization, shifted the conversation.
“Let’s stop here. If merely listening could make anyone an absolute master, we’d all be superheroes by now. What really intrigues me is what Seunghyun heard.”
“You want to know about my conversation with Ija Seong?”
“Didn’t he say he no longer cares about grudges with the royal family?”
“Right. Ija Seong realized that to grow stronger, he must not be shackled by worldly feelings and even became indifferent to the deaths of his daughter or disciple.”
“That’s rather strange.”
Noona tilted her head for a moment, then pointed out Ija Seong’s contradictions.
“When he appeared before us, he talked about how terrible of an existence the demon was. He believed that the resurrection of such an being should never happen, standing before us like a lone samurai.”
“Hmm…”
“While he said he was detached from worldly feelings and dismissed family death lightly, upon realizing that the demon’s followers were entering the capital, he jumped up with a sword just like a knight!”
Hearing that made sense.
What our teacher said made him seem like a paradoxical figure who inherited chaotic enlightenment while still acting like an ordinary knight.
A moment later, two interpretations arose.
“I trust actions over words. Ija Seong’s still a warrior like a knight. Perhaps he was just probing Seunghyun with his words?”
“Probing me?”
“At that moment, Ija Seong knew somehow that the demon’s follower slipped into the capital. He must have thought the royal family colluded with the wicked demon, and then…”
“I was a suspect too. So he declared that he became a being akin to the demon to test my reaction?”
Noona figured Ija Seong’s actions were genuine, while his words were just a test for our teacher.
Grandpa didn’t quite agree.
“No, no, if you summarize it like that, you can’t explain the discomfort Seunghyun felt while talking with Ija Seong. He felt he was acting!”
“Definitely.”
“I see this as a martial arts novel cliché.”
A martial arts novel cliché?
“Ija Seong has succumbed to the temptation of the realm.”
Then, Grandpa explained the concept of ‘succumbing to the realm’ to us.
When great masters get stuck in a rut and spend too long just staring at the wall, they often turn wobbly from the temptations—a fall from grace.
Our doctor seemed intrigued, comparing it to a sort of mental illness.
At that moment, Ari felt it was getting a bit absurd and interrupted.
“Let’s stop the talk about enlightenment or whatever. Instead, I realized something really important while listening. We probably didn’t even need to fight Ija Seong!”
“What?”
“Ija Seong doesn’t seem to have any intention of being hostile toward the royal family. He’s just an observer; he doesn’t plan to swing his sword at the young emperor. His only move was to prevent the demon’s resurrection!”
“Y-yeah, you’re right!”
Ari made a clear and simple conclusion.
“From now on, Miro and I won’t head to the capital. If we go to the capital, Ija Seong will undoubtedly sense us and go on a wild rampage.”
“Oh! So Ija Seong was going wild because of us?”
In response to Miro’s startled shout, Ari shook her head.
“It’s not us; it’s Kain.”
“I’m the culprit?”
I had nothing to say.
Next, the conversation shifted to Jo Wonhong.
Unlike Ija Seong, who had a lot to say, Jo Wonhong had only faced Elena, so she explained alone.
“He’s definitely not a raging demon.”
Noona nodded in agreement.
“If he were, he wouldn’t be able to lead a massive religious organization like that.”
“More like a revolutionary fighting for the oppressed people rather than a lunatic leading a twisted cult? At least that’s how Jo Wonhong sees himself.”
That did seem to be the case.
When we looked at the ascension ceremony from our perspective of understanding the ‘Cursed Room,’ it appeared like a curse but was their means of saving the world.
“Unlike Ija Seong, I have no idea how he fights, but he’s certainly very strong. And…. His faith seems to be wavering.”
Jo Wonhong’s faith was indeed shaky.
Everyone nodded immediately.
This is the greatest benefit we gained from the hotel assuring us of the ‘weakening of prisoner interventions.’
To Jo Wonhong, who knows nothing about the hotel or the prisoners, waking up one day after 800 years to find that the divine flame given by God had gone out must feel like being abandoned by their deity.
He might even suspect he and his group committed some major sin.
“This will be his weakness for a long time to come. Also, he possesses a treasure with the power of Judgment.”
Jo Wonhong wields a divine artifact called the Crimson Flame Fan, which is said to be a tool for judging sinners with the divine’s power.
It somehow felt vaguely similar to Elena’s blessing. At this, Miro gasped in disbelief.
“That’s what got me killed!”
Hearing Miro’s explanation took Elena aback.
“Wait, was it Jo Wonhong’s judgment that found you nearby? Miro, neither of us knew that.”
“Why the hell did he kill me?”
Ari smirked and answered,
“Well, considering he’s an aspiring demon whose aim is to resurrect the world’s No. 1 Evil, a divine judge probably has a million reasons to take you down.”
At that statement, Miro fell silent, while Ari chuckled and poked at me.
“Seriously, Kain. You were supposed to live a good life.”
Besides the laughter, I got a glimpse of the Crimson Flame Fan’s features through our brief conversation.
Firstly, its reach is wider than expected.
Both Elena and the Baehwa Sect leader didn’t realize Miro was on the scene, but the Crimson Flame Fan did target Miro.
Meaning it can judge from quite a distance.
Secondly, the user doesn’t even know if they’ve judged anyone or whom they judged.
Jo Wonhong had no idea Miro was judged, much less the fact that it even happened.
Instead, he thought he was stumbling in mid-air while assuming there were no sinners in sight.
Thirdly, resisting the judgment is nearly impossible.
It seems that the ‘inescapable death’ mentioned in the prophecy refers to the judgment of the Crimson Flame Fan.
Being sturdy alone won’t cut it.
But…
“The demon survived the judgment yet lived on…”
Noona chimed in, and Grandpa responded.
“After hearing all this, it’s clearer than ever. The demon possesses a treasure that ensures ‘immortality.’ This must be the second legacy of Room 205.”
That suggests the ‘immortal’ treasure supposedly owned by the demon can protect its owner from the judgment of the Crimson Flame Fan.
An unstoppable death versus a guaranteed immortality.
In the struggle of spear versus shield, the shield took the cake.
“Alright, let’s talk about the number one demon now.”
All eyes turned toward me.
“… Why is everyone suddenly looking at me?”
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