The World After the Bad Ending

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Chapter 119: The Kidnapping Incident

Barkov was immediately brought before the disciplinary committee.

There was nothing I needed to do.

The female students, who had long wanted to bring down Barkov for his atrocious actions, had carefully gathered information.

When the topic of the baseless rumors came up, and it was revealed that Barkov was the source, all the female students stormed into the professor’s office.

They exposed everything he had done.

Even among the other professors and assistants, words of condemnation against Barkov surfaced.

Under normal circumstances, Barkov would have tried to leverage his connections to escape punishment.

But this time, he had messed with the wrong person.

“Hahaha, he dared to slander a hero candidate that I acknowledge.”

Whitewood, who had somehow caught wind of the situation, personally reported it to the headmaster.

“Isn’t that the same as mocking me?”

With just one sentence from Whitewood, the once-arrogant Barkov, who had relied on his family’s influence, was immediately cast aside.

Even the Deblije Count family didn’t dare oppose Whitewood.

Doing so would mean permanent exile from politics.

And so, Barkov was formally brought before the disciplinary committee and was dismissed from his assistant professor position.

Until the very end, he insisted on his innocence, but no one listened.

With this, I was able to bury the rumors that had been tarnishing my name.

I pinned everything on Barkov.

Some students even began to sympathize with me.

Since Barkov was such a notorious figure, his downfall ended up slightly improving my reputation by comparison.

Using one villain to defeat another.

I suppressed my own notoriety with someone even worse.

Of course, given my history with numerous women, the improvement was minimal.

So I resolved to be more mindful of my behavior in the future.

“Good, Seron. Maintain that distance.”

To start, I tried putting some space between myself and Seron, who always stuck by my side.

“Are you treating me like a dog or something?!”

Of course, it was a meaningless effort.

Seron immediately pounced on me.

She then fiercely bit my head.

‘Come to think of it…’

While there were plenty of rumors about me and other female students, none seemed to involve Seron.

Seron remained outside the usual treatment.

“Seron, I guess it’s fine if you stay close.”

“Prince Sweet Potato, you’re really starting to piss me off. You wanna fight?”

“Can you win?”

As Seron lunged at me again, I effortlessly dodged.

Thanks to her, my evasive skills had been steadily improving.

“Hannon, you’re making a mess.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

But at Hania’s next remark, I obediently sat down in my chair.

Seron gave me a strange look, then lightly punched my shoulder.

“Prince Sweet Potato, I’ve always wondered—why do you listen to Hania so well? You two are over now, aren’t you?”

“Hannon was once captivated by me.”

It wasn’t me who responded, but Hania.

With a mischievous smile, she glanced at me.

Why does my ex-girlfriend look so sly?

Seron, for no reason, started smacking my shoulder harder.

My shoulder isn’t a punching bag.

Creak—

At that moment, Professor Vega entered the martial arts classroom.

“Alright, we have a transfer student today.”

Following her words, all eyes turned to the classroom entrance.

A moment later, stepping inside was none other than Eve.

Having completed the formal transfer process, she was now officially attending Zerion Academy as of today.

The second-year martial arts students began whispering.

Eve’s reputation was well known, even at Zerion.

Among them, some were already excited about the arrival of a new strong contender.

Eve walked to the center of the room under Vega’s guidance.

Then, with her hands clasped behind her back, she spoke.

“I was deeply disappointed when I heard about the state of Zerion Academy.”

Her words made the students flinch.

Something similar had happened about six months ago.

“A life of debauchery, disturbing the academy’s order—I find these things absolutely unacceptable in a prestigious institution like Zerion.”

The students began exchanging awkward glances.

“Pathetic.”

Eve’s blue eyes blazed.

Everyone was experiencing déjà vu.

“I have come—”

Eve’s gaze locked onto mine.

“To set things right.”

Her firm determination to correct me was evident.

“My name is Eve. I look forward to our time together.”

At her introduction, the students hesitantly raised their hands and clapped.

Because they all knew exactly who she was referring to.

A single, unspoken phrase was written all over their faces:

‘She got rejected and is mad about it.’

‘She’s here for revenge after being turned down.’

I could already hear the rumors forming.

As I observed the situation, I glanced to my side.

There, for some reason, Isabel was covering her mouth, barely holding back laughter.

It was because I had done almost the exact same thing not too long ago.

Was this what they call mirror therapy?

“…Right. That’s exactly what happened.”

Isabel barely managed to suppress her laughter and looked at me.

“You were like that too.”

Her gaze was warm.

Since the international tournament, I had stopped insulting Lucas in front of Isabel.

She had changed a lot.

It was as if she had realized something—she no longer acted like she was being chased.

Instead, she moved forward steadily, one step at a time.

I couldn’t fully understand the emotions that had changed within her.

But one thing was certain: the resentment she once held toward me had evolved into something else.

She no longer saw Lucas in me.

“What’s with that grin?”

“It’s just my feelings.”

Even when I responded curtly, Isabel simply smiled without saying much.

A stark contrast to how furious she had been over Eve just recently.

“So, what’s your relationship with Eve?”

Isabel was still smiling.

“Also, wasn’t there some weird rumor about that assistant professor, Vinesha, or whatever?”

She was smiling.

And yet—why did I feel a chill deep in my chest?

This was even more intense than when she confronted me about Vinesha.

“You really never stop attracting rumors, huh?”

“Hannon.”

At that moment, Hania abruptly interjected into our conversation.

Isabel briefly cast a sharp, unreadable glance at her.

But only for a moment—she soon took a step back.

“What’s the plan for the Fall Dungeon team?”

I immediately understood why Hania had brought this up.

‘Thanks, Hania.’

I sent her a silent look of gratitude.

She had just saved me from further trouble.

Hania merely responded with a casual glance.

My ex-girlfriend is way too competent.

“You two seem awfully close.”

Then, Iris, who had been between us, spoke up.

“Are you getting back together?”

I looked at Hania.

Hania looked disgusted.

I didn’t confess, but I was already rejected.

‘More importantly, the Fall Dungeon…’

The upcoming Act 4, Chapter 4: The Fall Dungeon.

There was one person I absolutely needed for this.

There was a particularly troublesome floor in this dungeon.

And this individual was crucial to the entire episode.

‘I need to find him today.’

It was time to prepare for the dungeon.

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* * *

And so, after Eve’s whirlwind of an introduction, lunchtime arrived.

I was eating with Seron and Card.

Normally, in the martial arts classroom, I would be suffering between Iris and Isabel’s antics.

But today, neither of them were around.

They were busy preparing for the upcoming Fall Dungeon.

I had gone with Iris’s team last time.

Until Act 4, she could handle things on her own.

And Isabel?

Well, there was no need to even mention her.

Having awakened the wings of a goddess, she was a force comparable to Iris.

Naturally, there was no difficulty in descending the dungeon.

That was why, if possible, a team capable of operating independently was necessary.

I politely declined the team proposals from both individuals.

“So, what exactly is your relationship with Assistant Professor Vinesha?”

At that moment, I looked up at the voice from the front.

There was Seron, chewing on a sandwich just like me, staring at me.

So, this girl was finally starting to pry as well.

“Why? Are you curious?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

Seron was confident.

“Guys, I’ve been feeling left out lately.”

At that, Card, who was also eating with us, expressed his disappointment.

Both Seron and I ignored Card.

“It’s a bit of a complicated relationship.”

“C-Complicated relationship?”

Seron’s eyes wavered.

One thing I had realized while spending time with Seron was that she had a very naive mind compared to others her age.

She probably still believed that kissing could make someone pregnant.

That’s how clueless she was about such matters.

“Seron, please just stay that way forever.”

“Are you treating me like a kid again?”

Seron growled, as if she was ready to pounce at any moment.

It seemed like she had been in a bad mood lately.

While I was calming her down by handing her a cookie, I spotted a familiar face in the distance.

She looked troubled, probably because she didn’t know anyone around her.

For her sake, I raised my hand high.

“Eve.”

As soon as I called her name, Eve’s eyes turned in my direction.

The moment she saw me, she scowled deeply.

Such an intense reaction.

But she had no other place to go.

It was better to be around people than to eat alone.

In the end, Eve walked over and sat down.

“Oh, the transfer student, nice to meet you.”

Card gave a sly grin.

Seron, on the other hand, simply stared at Eve in silence.

She looked like a puppy cautiously observing a stranger.

I felt a little bad for her poor communication skills.

“Eve, how’s life at Zerion Academy so far?”

I casually threw out a question.

Eve was twirling her pasta around her fork when she paused to answer.

“It’s just okay.”

“Not lonely without any friends?”

Eve’s eyebrows twitched slightly.

It was as if she was asking whether I was mocking her.

“Don’t worry. You’ll make some soon.”

Eve was a bit stiff, but she was fundamentally a good person.

It wouldn’t take long for people to recognize her worth.

“You’ve already got one friend here.”

“I don’t see one at all.”

“Oh dear, maybe you need to get your eyes checked?”

Eve shot me a sharp glare, as if telling me to stop talking.

My jokes weren’t landing.

‘Is this because I insulted Lucas in front of Isabel or because I’ve been hanging out with Seron?’

This was bad.

I had no idea how to get along with people.

Back with Isabel, things had naturally worked out.

That’s why I had no clue how to fix this situation.

“Eve, how can I become your friend?”

I decided to ask honestly.

Eve’s gaze turned ice-cold.

That glare alone could be why people weren’t approaching her.

At that moment, Seron tapped my arm.

“Prince of Awkwardness, what did you do to her?”

Now that I thought about it, Seron didn’t know how I got involved with Eve.

She hadn’t been present at the international individual tournament’s preliminary meeting.

“Nothing much.”

Eve abruptly stopped twirling her pasta.

Her gaze became even sharper.

It felt like she was about to pierce a hole right through me.

“She’s staring daggers at you, though?”

Even Seron was taken aback.

In the end, we finished our meal without finding a way to get closer to Eve.

* * *

That afternoon, after finishing my classes,

there was a place I needed to visit immediately.

Vinesha, who had recently been appointed as an Assistant professor in the Department of Magic Arts.

There was one person who would undoubtedly react strongly upon hearing her name.

A small sanctuary.

Grantoni, a second-year in the Special Department.

He was deeply intertwined with Vinesha through a grim history.

There was no doubt he had already heard about her.

That was why I was now heading to the Special Department to meet him.

‘Grantoni is unpredictable.’

Back in the game, whenever Vinesha appeared, Grantoni’s actions were always erratic.

The developers had given him too many quirks, and his behavior patterns were way too varied.

I had no way of predicting what he would do this time.

‘Hopefully, it won’t be anything troublesome.’

Knowing his eccentric tendencies, I felt a little uneasy.

‘Still, how bad could it be?’

Grantoni didn’t become a major figure in the storyline until Act 4, Chapter 4.

Until then, he should be keeping a low profile.

I decided to think optimistically.

“Grantoni.”

At least, until I opened the door to his classroom.

A world devoid of color, filled only with gray, unfolded before my eyes.

An otherworldly space where the dead wandered.

And beyond that space, a pitch-black entity loomed.

In front of it,

Grantoni stood with an ecstatic expression, his arms outstretched toward the being.

“…What the hell?!”

A curse slipped out of my mouth as I instinctively lunged forward.

But before I could reach him, the black entity seized Grantoni and dragged him into the otherworldly realm.

Thud!

The alternate world vanished in an instant, and the classroom returned to normal.

The fluttering curtain and the sunlight pouring in only emphasized the emptiness of the room.

Standing there in shock, I muttered blankly.

“…We’re screwed.”

Grantoni had just been kidnapped into the otherworldly realm.

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