Saved a Heroine From the Brink of Death

171. Termination of contract

#171. Termination of contract

Heron was taken aback when he saw Cynthia appearing in front of him with a wooden bow. Her eyes were shaking without mercy, and cold sweat was running down her face. She tried to step back, but her back was blocked by a wall.

Yes, this was a cave.

His hideout, covered in the magic of dawn and brilliance so as not to be discovered by Cynthia. It was a hideout that he thought would never be discovered.

“Uh, how…?”

The question of ‘how’ came before the question of ‘why’. That’s how confused Heron was. What was important now was not how she came, but why she came.

Depending on the reason for your visit, it will be decided whether Heron leaves this world today or not.

If the reason was that he came knowing that Han Seong-jin would be sacrificed, he would leave this world, and if not, he could be put on death row. Perhaps, after leaving this world today, he could go to the underworld to be judged by King Yeomra. Through reincarnation, he would be able to blow away all the karma he had accumulated.

‘… That can’t be.’

As expected of a transcendent being who had achieved a higher rank, Heron regained his senses in an instant and controlled his divine powers to force himself to take deep breaths, controlling his biological reactions. It was a law that he had to look good from the outside.

‘I’ve heard that there’s a saying that if you keep your wits about you, even if you’re in a tiger’s den, you can survive. That’s exactly what’s happening right now.’

Heron learned many things while researching Korea, the birthplace of Cynthia and Han Seong-jin. The story he just recalled is the same. If he just stays focused, he will be able to survive no matter how strong Cynthia is.

“No, what’s going on here? This is my hideout.”

“That’s right. By the way, a cave hideout? If you came to the shrine, they would have given you a nice room.”

“I can’t cause you such trouble. You are a transcendent being who has reached a higher level.”

“Really? I didn’t know Heron was the kind of person who cared about things like that.”

Cynthia said with a smile, but her lips hadn’t lifted since she’d been here. Her eyes hadn’t lifted either. She’d only burst into laughter occasionally, but she’d never really laughed once.

‘I guess I got caught.’

Seeing Cynthia’s expression, Heron fell to the floor.

“Berget told me to. I don’t know anything.”

If you want to live, you have to bow your head.

Heron put down his pride and everything. He didn’t know why he had to go through this when he was trying to protect the universe. It was so unfair… That was when he thought.

“If you tell me to do it, I’ll do it? I think Heron-nim is neither retarded nor an idiot, and is capable of thinking and judging on his own. What do you think, Heron-nim?”

“… That’s not much. But he still threatened to kill me.”

“Aha, so you were forced to plan to kidnap your brother again because Berget threatened you?”

“yes?”

“Then I guess I’ll have to threaten too.”

“Uh, yeah?”

“It’s not like this because I speak nicely to you.”

Cynthia immediately spoke and activated her power.

The power that was activated was an illusion. It was an absolute power that Irina had passed on to Cynthia, one of the powers of the outside world. Cynthia had met countless deaths within the boundaries of the sanctuary through this power.

And I intended to make Heron feel that way too.

“I’ll make some threats too.”

Cynthia dragged Heron into the realm of fantasy.

***

“Hey, save me——!”

Heron’s voice, which did not feel like it was coming from a higher being, echoed throughout the white space.

She was constantly experiencing death from a great force that she could not resist.

A fist and an arm that were thousands of times her height were projected out of the air and struck her down. The fists and arms continued to strike until she was completely crushed, and she died with countless parts of her body disappearing and her identity being destroyed.

And then he came back to life.

With each death experience, Heron grew haggard. Thud—— How many deaths has this been?

I don’t think it’s been twenty times yet.

“Ugh….”

Heron’s eyes became empty before he met his 20th death. He lost his mind and lay face down on the floor, drooling, waiting for his imminent death.

Cynthia looked at the sight, then stopped attacking and appeared in front of her.

“Heron. What if you lose your will to this extent? The threats are just beginning.”

Cynthia, whose anger had subsided somewhat, spoke to her again using polite language and poked her cheek with her finger.

Barrr——Heron, who had been trembling like a wild animal, suddenly got up and reached out his hand towards Cynthia. He was holding a sharp dagger in his bosom and was planning to take it out and kill Cynthia with one blow.

“Huh?”

Cynthia stared blankly at it, then fell backwards, bleeding from the stab wound to her chest.

Heron observed the scene quietly, then burst into loud laughter.

“Hehehehehehehehehehehehe! I, I killed him!”

As Heron was about to burst out laughing and return to her usual self, someone tapped her shoulder from behind and called Heron’s name.

“Heron. What’s so funny? Tell me something to make me laugh.”

“You, you, you… … .”

“Huh? What’s wrong? As if you’ve seen a ghost. Is there a problem?”

“how……?”

Heron looked at Cynthia with an expression of disbelief.

“Ah… I died? Of course, since I am the master of this space, I turned death back into nothingness. In fact, there is no reason for me to be hit by such a sloppy attack. I hit you once while playing with Heron. By the way, everyone who appears here is fake, but I can change them into real ones depending on my will. It would be good to know that.”

“… … You, you, who are you? How did you gain such powers!”

Heron shouted at Cynthia in anger.

Cynthia tilted her head and asked back at her.

“Isn’t it because of Heron that I gained these powers?”

“what?”

“Because you gave me the ‘karma of chaos’. You controlled Grace and isolated me in the ‘gate’. Because of that, I ended up on an extra-dimensional planet called Langrt. That’s how it all came to be. And Heron was the one who provided the cause. Why are you asking me that? It’s a little unpleasant.”

“… But that doesn’t make sense! It’s not just about becoming a transcendent being, but also having this kind of power!”

“I became an apostle of foreign news. To be exact… not an apostle, but an acting apostle.”

“…Was that true?”

“You didn’t believe me until now?”

Cynthia smirked at Heron.

“The Guardian’s Apostle. Cynthia. You are… just a contractor, right? A contractor who receives the bean curds that fall from the Guardian. Well, it’s commendable that you made a contract for the sake of the universe, but that’s about it.”

Heron froze once again at Cynthia’s words that she was the Guardian’s apostle. If what she said was true, then he didn’t need to bother performing the ritual of offering.

“under…….”

Heron began to reflect on the meaning of his efforts and actions to prevent the end. Was it really meaningful? He had abandoned humanity in pursuit of efficiency, but he had never abandoned the cause. And yet, this is how it ended up.

“Do you even want to die? Just tell me. I’ll let you go to eternal sleep whenever you want. But I’ll just let you die a thousand more times.”

“… … .”

“I know your every move. Your every thought. Unless you end your contract with the Guardian.”

“What do you want from me? I think you have something to wish for since you’re keeping me alive.”

Heron finally gave up everything and asked Cynthia. He completely put aside his pride and even abandoned his plan to sacrifice Han Seong-jin. Berget? Compared to Cynthia, she looks like a fairy. At least she hasn’t tortured me like this.

Heron succumbed to Cynthia’s force.

“Choose, Heron. I’m giving you this opportunity because you’ve done and still will do things to prevent the end of the universe.”

“… What do you want me to choose?”

“Will you help me defeat Berget? Or will you rest in peace here?”

“… Subdue Berget?”

Heron tilted his head.

“… Do you not know? Or are you pretending not to know?”

“What are you talking about?”

“He absorbed the dark energy and became a disaster. If we don’t defeat him, the Earth will be finished.”

“……to?”