### Chapter 442 – Room 206, The Room of Curses – ‘The Demon King who Revives after 100 Days’ Re (7)
—
– Yu Songee
—
“Pure will? May, I’m not quite sure what you mean….”
What the heck, what the heck, what the heck!
“Is it a gut feeling or something? Leon, I don’t think your mental state is all there.”
Barely holding onto my sanity while in a panic, I urgently called my teammates!
“Grandfather! Jinchul oppa! Gather immediately!”
Kim Mooksung: “What? Didn’t you just say not to come by recklessly—”
Yu Songee: “Come right now!”
Kim Mooksung: “Of all times, Jinchul just had to be gone!”
Trying to appear as calm as possible while already sweating buckets was quite the task!
“W-What do you mean?”
Sijo, with an intrigued expression, looked me over and said.
“You might not know, but I’ve known Leon since before you were born. The Leon now… well, it’s just not the same as the one I know. Is it the power of the bracelet?”
At this point, I accepted reality.
Sijo realized I had shaken Leon’s mind.
Yet, I sensed she didn’t know about the power of being the ‘Beloved,’ assuming instead I was controlling him from various angles.
Somewhat amusingly, it was the mayor who rebutted Sijo instead of me.
“I spend more than half my day in Paradise’s office, and the illusions of the bracelet disappear there. You do understand that, right? Seems like May has some misunderstanding.”
And he was absolutely right.
The sensory control of the bracelet doesn’t work within Paradise, and the mayor goes to work there daily.
However, Sijo maintained a firm stance.
“I know that, but it’s obvious Leon’s state is unusual. Your daughter may possess powers separate from the bracelet.”
Something feels off.
I can’t just brush it aside that the mayor is being friendly; that doesn’t explain the strength of her conviction.
Could she have deduced that the mayor’s mind was twisted by supernatural means?
Just as I was getting lost in thought, the situation took a sharp turn.
“Leon, stay still. Don’t close your eyes. I’m about to fix your mind.”
“Eh?”
While Leon, just as confused as I was, was mumbling, Sijo moved closer and locked eyes with him.
I could feel it.
My powerful blessing, the essence of affinity, the ‘Beloved’ was being released!
In an instant, the frozen mind in the mayor’s psyche woke up.
The moment Leon Kadiruf realized the anomaly, he looked at me with cold eyes.
— Click!
The cold barrel of a gun aimed at the mayor.
“Well, well… things seem to be taking a bizarre turn…”
My cry for help was interrupted when Mooksung barged in on Sijo’s secret meal!
Kim Mooksung: “What’s happening?”
Yu Songee: “Caught the Beloved!”
Kim Mooksung: “Oh dear!”
This situation wasn’t going to end with a simple “Oh dear!”
I was getting swept into a chaotic whirlwind I couldn’t even begin to explain.
What does it mean that the Beloved has been released?
Leon Kadiruf no longer loves me, and my previous actions must seem like ‘betrayal’ or ‘usurpation’ from the mayor’s perspective.
Automatically, the first attempt came to mind.
Back then, after waking from love’s grip due to a one-more-chance, the mayor shot me dead without hesitation.
Another similar event surfaced in my mind.
Didn’t the doctor’s old colleagues feel tremendous betrayal when they woke from Miro’s hypnosis?
Isn’t Leon the same?
Just then, Sijo opened her mouth.
“Your subordinate? You didn’t seem to be using a cellphone, how did you call?”
“Be quiet. Every time Sijo stirs, my finger twitches.”
“You! You little—”
Of course, Sijo, being the owner of teleporting abilities, wouldn’t be affected by a gun pointed at her, but Leon doesn’t have such powers.
Kim Mooksung: “Sijo cannot subdue me from a distance. Calm down.”
Hearing grandfather’s calm words, my wildly racing heart began to settle.
As he said, even Sijo, with her varied supernatural abilities, wouldn’t have the power to subdue grandfather instantly.
If she could, she would’ve already done something to wrap up the situation.
Finally, Sijo shouted in a sharp voice.
“Do you think you can survive after pulling this kind of stuff?”
“…”
This woman is really a problem.
With just Leon Kadiruf, I could simply close my eyes and shoot him, and that would be that.
But how to handle the wrath of Sijo following that?
Confronting Sijo at this point could be troublesome, as she knows quite a bit about the secrets of Room 206 that even the mayor doesn’t.
Didn’t older brother Kain tell me to understand the ‘scenario’ to gather information from Sijo?
With her varied superpowers, I’m unsure if I can even kill her.
If I leave the mayor alive, he might try to kill me, but if I kill him, Sijo might try to kill me in return.
Yu Songee: “What are we gonna do?”
Grandfather could only smile a bitter smile in response.
At that moment, amidst the tense atmosphere, Leon spoke up.
“Songee.”
“…”
“Songee.”
“Yes?”
“A few days ago, regarding the health check-up, I heard a couple of informants on the first floor made some weird mistakes, so I was curious about what that was about. Did you manipulate things from that point?”
“…”
“Did you tamper with the results? It’s odd. I confirmed multiple times afterward, and the results remained the same…”
Leon’s inquiry was simple.
Having regained his senses, the process of the health examination that led to my inheritance as mayor seemed suspicious, yet the results themselves were accurate.
Leon had received consistent results in his other private checks too.
“I didn’t tamper with anything. You are genuinely ill.”
Leon was terminally ill long before we got involved.
“You were going to adjust the results, but it turns out you were terminally ill without needing any adjustments?”
Kind of similar scenario indeed.
To be precise, I was trying to create a disease rather than just manipulate the results.
Leon, who had smiled wryly for a moment, then turned to Sijo and said.
“May, you should leave.”
“What? Wh-What are you saying! If I leave, this girl will kill you! Do you understand that?”
The mayor continued in an unshakable tone.
“To maintain Paradise, we need a mayor, in other words, someone to manage unwavering reason. It’s not something just anyone can handle. Only those with special powers can.”
Whether it’s the ability to reverse time or dominate human minds.
“Only two people qualify for that, and one of them is terminally ill.”
“You…!”
Sijo burst out in a sound of surprise.
“So it’s not acceptable for you to kill Songee. If you do, who will manage the city? Should I do it from now on?”
Once I heard that, a question popped into my mind.
Why did Sijo appoint the Kadiruf family as city managers in the first place?
Was there a reason she couldn’t manage it herself?
“Leon! You…”
“Goodbye.”
May had a blank expression on her face for a moment, unsure of what to say, before letting out a deep sigh and disappearing.
Once Sijo vanished, there was a brief silence.
— Clink!
The sound of a fork hitting a plate filled the room.
“…”
“…”
Leon Kadiruf slowly took a bite of his steak, seemingly oblivious to the surrounding situation. After eating a couple more pieces of meat, he opened his mouth.
“Songee.”
“… Yes?”
“I didn’t know your table manners would be this terrible. To give off such a powdery smell while eating.”
“…”
“Don’t worry.”
“… What are you worried about?”
“Were you thinking that May might end up hostile towards you?”
“…”
Did the mayor master some sort of mind-reading skill?
Just as Leon mentioned, I was worried that Sijo would now turn hostile towards me.
I needed quite a bit of information from her.
“May, being human, surely has emotional aspects. However, in the end, she will sacrifice for the greater good.”
“…”
“Her only alternative is you. If she kills you, there’s no way to support the city.”
“…”
“When did you assimilate the informants?”
“A long time ago.”
Grandfather had been on my side since before entering Room 206.
“Did you use powers similar to what you used on me for the informants?”
“…”
The ‘Beloved’ is a power meant for a single person.
Of course, I’ve no intention of casually spilling that weakness around.
“Don’t you think you should ask that cocky informant to lower his gun?”
“I’m a bit cowardly, so…”
“So you’d rather kill your father than be killed by him?”
“I’m thinking it over.”
“Well, I must say, I raised a fine daughter.”
“True.”
I honestly found it hard to understand Leon Kadiruf.
With the Beloved broken, the trust between me and this man shattered as well.
The only reason I hadn’t killed Leon was that the thought of dealing with Sijo’s ire was daunting.
Yet Leon himself convinced Sijo.
Moving forward, I shouldn’t worry about anything that happens.
The one who can support the city is Songyi Kadiruf alone, so I shouldn’t harm her moving forward.
With that remark, Sijo was persuaded.
And now, there’s no reason for me to keep the mayor alive.
“This steak is delicious. I suppose I could at least finish my meal, right?”
“…”
Let’s think about it from another angle.
Is it really necessary to kill this person?
Leon Kadiruf is an incredibly smart and competent individual.
Furthermore, considering he just resolved the conflict with Sijo in my favor, he doesn’t seem to harbor much animosity towards me.
So—
“Looks like the poison is draining from your eyes.”
“Excuse me?”
“Are you perhaps thinking, ‘Maybe I can spare my dad after all’?”
“…”
“I can see your mind’s turning well, and since May has convinced you, you’re feeling more inclined towards Songyi.”
“… Dad?”
“How about this?”
— Bang!
“Gah!”
With the shot of a gun, grandfather’s body began to crumble.
In that fleeting moment, countless thoughts raced through my mind.
How?
The mayor didn’t lift a finger, did he?
Did Leon have some unknown superpower?
Or did he somehow control the turrets installed around this mansion?
Now isn’t the time for this kind of pondering!
The mayor could harm me without lifting a finger!
Immediately, the bracelet emitted a chilling light.
Leon collapsed under the pain of distorted sensations, and I picked up grandfather’s fallen gun from the floor.
— Click!
With trembling hands, I aimed the gun at my father.
I thought, then—
“Maybe I should aim a bit higher.”
“Why… what are you doing, Dad?”
I couldn’t grasp it.
I utterly couldn’t understand this man, Leon Kadiruf!
If he could kill someone without touching them, he could’ve done the same to me!
During the first loop, he shot me dead without hesitation, yet—
Why didn’t he kill me?
Because he himself is terminally ill?
Or is it because there isn’t enough time to create another heir?
If that’s the case, why the heck is he putting on this charade—
“Curious about why I’m doing this?”
“…”
“I don’t trust myself.”
“What do you mean—”
“And I finally realized today.”
“What?”
“My daughter is quite the bitch.”
Saying such an out-of-place curse completely left me speechless.
“What?”
“Good thing too. This city can’t be ruled by someone virtuous.”
“…”
“Grow tougher.”
— Bang!
A single gunshot rang out.
Now, there was only one Kadiruf left in this place.
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