Memorize - Episode 39
039 Make an Offer
"The humans living in this Hollow Plane can be broadly divided into two categories. The residents who originally lived in the Hollow Plane. And the users who came through the angels. But if you think all users are the same, you're mistaken."
"Not the same users?"
Han-byeol asked, and Hyun-woo nodded.
"There are users who strive to return to Earth, and there are users who just settle down and live in the Hollow Plane. In other words, people who have converted to become residents of the Hollow Plane. Um... saying 'converted' sounds a bit strange. To put it simply, you can think of them as people who refuse to return to Earth."
He swallowed once, his throat seeming dry, and continued speaking. I was becoming increasingly expectant of what he would say next.
"The Golden Lion Clan members are the same, and you all probably have the same desire to return to Earth. We are still actively working hard to gather clues for returning. But the users who have settled in the Hollow Plane are different. They want to live forever within the Hollow Plane."
"Then couldn't the users who want to return just band together and leave those people alone?"
It was a logical argument, but unfortunately, reality is not so simple. Hyun-woo shook his head at Han-byeol's rebuttal.
"Reality cannot be divided so simply. The Hollow Plane is not a game. It is a reality, a world in its own right. Various interests are complexly intertwined, and there are just as many conflicts. They are doing their best to hinder our plans at every turn to prevent us from finding a way back to Earth."
Is he talking about the vagrants? To give an example, there's a clan called the Murder Brigade. Although it's not an established clan yet, it's one of the representative clans of users Hyun-woo mentioned. With about ten members, it may seem insignificant, but it's a gathering of psychos who feel pleasure in killing people. I remember their founding time to be sometime after the First Allied War, which will happen soon.
As an aside, their end was quite intense. Even when the Northern Continent crossed the Steel Mountains and entered Atlanta (though "entered" might not be the right word), they continued their activities, but they accidentally messed with a user from the Red Fang Clan, which owned a major city. And under the enraged Woo Jeong-min and Seon Yu-un, they were exterminated without a single survivor.
"They don't hesitate to kill other users if it serves their purpose. Of course, there are many users who are just quietly settling in the Hollow Plane, but there are also such dangerous types."
A heavy silence fell over the square. Most of them seemed to have thought of humans as allies, never considering the possibility that they could become enemies. Of course, there might be users like Park Dong-geol with indifferent faces. Those who have already experienced killing or who killed for some reason during the Trial of Passage...
"Right now, they are operating in the shadows to avoid being exposed. But even so, their power is by no means negligible. They are watching for any opportunity, ready to burst out into the open world if they catch even the slightest chance. The user who just asked about the true purpose of the academy, right? Our answer to that is this."
He stared intensely at Han-byeol for a moment before continuing.
"Newly arrived users are bound to become their targets. They can be made into comrades, or they can satisfy their own desires. The User Academy protects new users from their clutches and teaches them. It's a building that serves as the foundation for nurturing talent that can join forces with us to oppose them. That's why both the angels and we recommend entering there at the beginning. From the perspective of new users, there's nothing to lose."
The gist of Hyun-woo's words was ultimately about mutual assistance. Existing users protect new users from dangers at the beginning and help them adapt to the Hollow Plane. And new users grow based on these things to become users who can pull their own weight. Then, users who have grown that much become valuable forces for that city, that continent.
Han-byeol sat down with a face of understanding. Seeing everyone else nodding in agreement, it seemed they all empathized with Hyun-woo's words. Except for one person. Only me. Of course, everything he said was true, and he didn't explain anything incorrectly. And I had no complaints about entering the academy at the beginning, as it was what I wanted from the start. However, he didn't tell the whole truth.
If you look for the cause of why the First Allied War broke out in the first place, the important parts were conspicuously missing from what he said. It greatly irritated me to hear such words from a Golden Lion Clan member who provided the cause that became the starting point of the war.
He was busy criticizing the vagrants operating in the shadows while speaking in roundabout ways. The vagrants aren't vagrants for no reason. The worst of them have wanted posters in every city and are in a precarious position, unwelcome wherever they go. At least within this Northern Continent.
So I wanted to ask back. Aren't you guys ultimately the same? Of course, I wasn't taking the vagrants' side. But I think that the actions of existing users to protect their vested interests and try to take them away are not much different.
In fact, in my first run of the Hollow Plane, I had crossed the Steel Mountains after surviving near-death experiences and occupied Atlanta. However, taking advantage of that opportunity, I was backstabbed and lost the hard-won Atlanta to an alliance of other clans backed by support from other continents. (After that, I reclaimed it through the Battle for the Recapture of Atlanta, which, along with the Ragnarok Encirclement and Annihilation Battle, is considered one of the worst battles in history, after gritting my teeth in determination.)
There's a famous saying in the Hollow Plane. Users with common interests gather to form clans. And clans with common enemies gather to form alliances. In other words, whether clans or vagrants, they're all the same, ready to draw swords if necessary. Seeing him package his words so cleverly made my blood boil. Even though there's no need or reason to say such things to new users now, hearing it as someone who has directly experienced these things was infuriating.
Just as I was barely calming myself down and composing my thoughts, I could see Han-byeol sitting down again. She seemed to have somewhat agreed with his words. It was unavoidable. Without experiencing how the future Hollow Plane would unfold, Hyun-woo's words had validity. Turning my head back to the central stage, I could see him breathing a sigh of relief, as if he hadn't expected to receive such a question.
"I didn't expect three or four questions to take this long. It seems some of you are looking tired... I think it's best to end here for today. I recommend getting a good night's sleep for now. Training starts tomorrow. So now, please follow the guides' instructions to move to your accommodations."
He said, "Yubin. Cancel the sound amplification magic," and then gave instructions to the users waiting nearby. As the users who received his instructions walked towards us, Hyun-woo descended from the stage.
And just before he went down the stairs, his gaze turned towards the users gathered on the stairs. Though it was just for a moment, I could see Hyun-woo looking at Han-byeol. His eyes seemed to hold a deep interest in her. Quickly looking towards Han-byeol, I saw that she too was exchanging glances with him. I suddenly felt uncomfortable.
While there are many users hoping to join large, well-developed clans, there are cases where smaller clans merge or where they preemptively recruit promising new users. It was one of the privileges of clans representing major cities, and a difficult area to interfere with.
I thought that Hyun-woo's gaze at Han-byeol might stem from such interest. And I. For some reason I couldn't quite understand, I had a strong feeling that Han-byeol would receive an offer from the Golden Lion Clan.
By the time we arrived at the dormitory inside the academy, it was already dark enough to be called night. The dormitory was divided according to the initial classification, with eight people per room. The quick-witted Ahn Hyun slightly deviated from the line to squeeze in next to me, allowing Hyun and I to share the same room.
Even for sleeping arrangements, there wasn't much special beyond one mattress and two blankets. In some ways, it could be considered quite poor, even shabby. First-timers grumbled, but users who seemed to be reserve soldiers entered without complaint and tried to sleep. That's how similar the User Academy's facilities were to the military.
The training instructor said with a sly smile that today would allow some degree of freedom. (As soon as I heard that, I requested some tobacco. He wordlessly took out a few from his own stash and handed them over.) Despite hearing this, everyone seemed tired, and all the users except me immediately fell into a deep sleep.
Ahn Hyun fell asleep right next to me, which honestly felt a bit burdensome. As I stared blankly at his face, I could see him smacking his lips as if dreaming something. Is he dreaming about eating? Thinking how carefree he was, I couldn't help but smile.
The User Academy in the Northern Continent is famous for its notoriously harsh training, even compared to the entire continent. There are a considerable number of trainings that are beyond imagination. Trainees undergo a total of 13 weeks of training, and as time goes on, they receive training that goes beyond common sense, making me worry if the kids could endure it well.
"..."
My chest feels tight. I've been sighing deeply repeatedly for a while now. Pondering why, I soon discovered a thought that filled my mind. My head kept recalling the scene of Hyun-woo and Han-byeol looking at each other.
The more I tried to forcibly shake it off and sleep, the more complicated my thoughts seemed to become. After tossing and turning for a while, I finally got up. Roughly putting on one of the slippers strewn on the floor, I opened the tightly closed dormitory door. Stepping into the pitch-dark corridor, I felt the cold air cooling my body. After savoring the cold air for a moment, I rummaged through my pocket and took out one of the cigarettes I had gotten from the instructor, putting it in my mouth.
After sensing my surroundings and confirming no one was around, I raised a slight magical power and slowly sent it to my fingertips. With a fluttering sound, the ignited flame burned the end of the cigarette and disappeared. I immediately took a deep drag.
"Hoo~..."
The dormitories for male and female users are in separate buildings. She was unexpectedly classified in the magic talent category, but it was understandable since her magic score was the highest. The clan lord I served before was in the combat category. I found myself feeling a bit regretful without realizing it.
At first, I just treated Ahn Hyun's group as a means to an end and for my purpose. And even now, my ultimate goal hasn't changed. Only my thoughts have changed. I acknowledge that Han-byeol has something special that's different from ordinary users, but honestly, I couldn't have predicted that I would be shaken to this extent.
Could it be that I've grown attached to her over time? Or romantic feelings? I immediately shook my head at such absurd thoughts. As a result, the ashes glowing with clear light scattered in the air.
The person who knows myself best is me. I know myself well. Given my dry personality, the idea of forming an emotional connection with someone I've only known for a week is nonsense not worth even a moment's consideration. At that moment, I realized one thing. Why did I feel regretful when she was classified in the magic talent category?
From our first meeting, and every time I saw her during the Trial of Passage, I was reminded of one woman. That woman was one of the users I sincerely followed in my first run. Perhaps I had been seeing Han So-young's image in Kim Han-byeol all this time. Thinking that way, I felt a bitter feeling filling my heart. It was because I found myself ridiculous for worrying about such a trivial matter.
I dropped the cigarette, stubbed it out, and turned around. There was still much to do and a mountain of things to think about. I wanted to refrain from dwelling on unproductive worries any longer.
Sleep still wouldn't come. But I intended to force myself to sleep. I was even willing to knock myself out if necessary. I quietly opened the door and entered the room.