Chapter 83: Yoo Hee-yeon in despair

“D-Didn’t do something like that…”

Yoo Hee-yeon blankly stared at the people around her. They all looked at her with eyes full of resentment, and her

father, Yoo Han-beom, looked at her with disappointment.

“Why would I do something like that? I faced the competition with dignity…”

At that moment, Park Tae-young, who had been standing behind, stepped forward and shouted.

“Stop lying, Yoo Hee-yeon. You had Shin Jun-ho do everything. I saw and heard everything, so what are you saying

now?”

“…?”

Yoo Hee-yeon looked at Park Tae-young. Until recently, he was a mere inspector who couldn’t even say a word to

her. She knew he was close with Shin Jun-ho, but no matter how much that was true, wasn’t it unreasonable for him

to suddenly pin the blame on someone else? What grudge did he have? What had she done wrong to get such an

accusation thrown at her?

“Are you out of your mind?”

Yoo Hee-yeon began to argue with Park Tae-young, forgetting that there were people around them.

“When did I tell Shin Jun-ho to do something like that? Logically, if I had made the request, why would I have been

attacked by the one I hired? That’s nonsense.”

Park Tae-young then began to shout back furiously.

“That’s because Shin Jun-ho was consumed by magic and lost his judgment. Are you denying that now? You’re being

ridiculously shameless. You thought you’d lose to Lee Hyun-seung, so you made plans in advance, right? And in the

F-Class extermination battle, you smuggled in external artifacts to interfere with Lee Hyun-seung. What? Are you

going to deny that too? There’s proof of that, you know?”

Shin Jun-ho had taken a dangerous gamble with his life. In order to save his friend, he had to lie and frame someone

else. If it was found out, both he and Yoo Hee-yeon might die.

“That’s…!”

Yoo Hee-yeon was about to speak but then realized the trap she had fallen into.

If she denied involvement in the F-Class extermination battle, the truth would eventually come out, and she would

face severe consequences. Naturally, the conclusion would be that she was involved in this incident as well.

But if she admitted it? It would be assumed that someone who had been involved in the F-Class extermination battle

was also involved in the A-Class extermination battle.

Most importantly…

“D-Don’t I remember hearing it too? Shin Jun-ho said he was acting under Yoo Hee-yeon’s permission.”

Members of the A-Class team jumped in at that moment.

“Right. Yoo Hee-yeon also promised to give money if she won the competition. If you really think about it, that

counts as misconduct, doesn’t it?”

People began to criticize Yoo Hee-yeon. They had already made up their minds. The reason they were so bold in their

actions was because of one person.

Yoo Han-beom.

He had told them to speak their minds if they had anything to say about the situation. He wanted to hear all the

information to make an objective judgment. He was willing to take responsibility for anything that came afterward.

Yoo Han-beom looked at Yoo Hee-yeon with trembling eyes.

‘Yoo Hee-yeon. How much do you need to disappoint me before you’re satisfied?’

He just kept looking at her.

“I-I didn’t… do that… I had no reason to…”

Yoo Hee-yeon, who had always been in a position of power, was unfamiliar with this kind of questioning and

pressure. The situation, where she was suddenly being blamed for something she hadn’t done, felt foreign and

surreal. Was this a dream? No, the sensations were far too realistic for it to be a dream.

As Yoo Hee-yeon stood there, stunned, Park Tae-young, sensing an opportunity, began to push her further.

“You say there’s no reason? There’s plenty of reasons. In fact, right before Shin Jun-ho used the ‘Ma-hwan,’ you were

losing to Lee Hyun-seung, weren’t you?”

Before Shin Jun-ho had used the Lance of Longinus, Yoo Hee-yeon was being trampled and beaten by Lee Hyun-

seung. She had assumed Lee Hyun-seung had been eliminated and was moving around with a small group, only to be

caught off guard.

But there was still a defense to be made.

“I admit I was losing to Lee Hyun-seung. But did you really think I thought I was going to lose from the start? No, it

was completely normal for me to think I was in a superior position. There was no reason to go so far as to use a

magical artifact just to defeat someone like him!”

Park Tae-young chuckled sarcastically.

“Heh.”

And internally, he thought, Gotcha.

He quickly pressed her even further.

“You didn’t think you were going to lose from the start? Then why, as soon as the match began, did you take over 40

people to try to catch Lee Hyun-seung? Didn’t you feel a sense of crisis, enough to mobilize dozens of people to hunt

him down? Logically, you should have prioritized securing the area first. Even from that alone, it’s clear how terrified

you were of Lee Hyun-seung, and you’re still lying like this? Before the extermination battle started, Lee Hyun-seung

had already defeated Han Seong-gil, someone with Berserker traits. Isn’t it because you were afraid of that ability?”

“Th-That’s…!”

Yoo Hee-yeon tried to explain, but Park Tae-young continued to press her with a self-assured smile.

“The reason you brought so many people was… it was simply to humiliate him. You wanted to crush him

overwhelmingly, so he couldn’t get up again, right?”

Yoo Hee-yeon’s words were all true. But in this situation, the one whose words seemed more credible was clear.

Naturally, it was more advantageous for Park Tae-young, the one doing the questioning, than for Yoo Hee-yeon, who

was being grilled. This was because Yoo Hee-yeon had a history of similar actions, and she was infamous for using

money to manipulate people and control relationships.

People began to think.

[Wouldn’t Yoo Hee-yeon be able to do that?]

Not just anyone, but Yoo Hee-yeon. If it were Yoo Hee-yeon, it would be completely possible for her to manipulate

people with money and make them do such things, right?

Her image, the one she had created herself, was what shaped their judgment.

“Looks like Yoo Hee-yeon really did do that… Even if that’s the case, getting others involved in something so

dangerous…”

People were now making their judgments based on her image.

“Why… Why is no one listening to me? Why are you all looking at me like that? Are you all crazy? Are you all insane?!”

From the start, it was a losing battle. It was far easier to accuse someone of a crime than to prove their innocence.

For example, accusing someone of theft is simple. A single sentence, “I saw that person steal something,” is enough

to label them a thief. But for the accused, proving their innocence requires going through a long and tedious process,

showing everything in their pockets, opening their bag and showing the contents, and even displaying the CCTV

footage from where they were at the time.

Provocation is easy, but refuting it is hard. This has always been an established truth.

“Stupid. How could you all believe such nonsense and turn someone into a criminal? Are you all out of your minds?!”

As she shouted, Yoo Hee-yeon suddenly felt a sense of familiarity.

“Wait…?

This situation. I’ve seen this before. This isn’t the first time. It’s all too familiar.

Conjectures made from flimsy evidence, pinning everything on one person. Everyone pointing fingers, criticizing,

and dragging someone down, while any counterarguments are completely ignored.”

“I didn’t do it!”

Lee Hyun-seung glared at her, his voice laced with disbelief.

“Then who else would be stalking me, if not you?” he retorted sharply.

“You’ll regret this, Yoo Hee-yeon. You’ll definitely regret treating me this way.”

“Try if you can. But it’s impossible for someone like you,” she shot back, her words cutting through the tension.

Yoo Hee-yeon was struck with a sudden realization. It was Lee Hyun-seung. The situation she was now in mirrored

exactly what she had done to him—she was receiving the same fate she had once inflicted. It was karma, or perhaps

fate catching up with her. She had been wrongfully accused of something she hadn’t done, just as she had done to

Lee Hyun-seung.

“Ah…”

Her vision blurred. She didn’t know where to start, or what to say. It felt like she was caught in an intricately woven

net. No matter how she tried to explain herself, no one would believe her. The net tightened around her no matter

which way she tried to break free.

Fear began to creep in. What if she were stuck with this false accusation, and her father, disappointed, stripped her

of her place as the heir? What if, in the worst-case scenario, she were abandoned entirely?

“Ha… ha…”

Her breath became ragged. Dizziness swept over her. A wave of nausea hit her.

“Yoo Hee-yeon, admit it. You did it,” Park Tae-young insisted, his voice only adding to the weight of the situation.

“Ha… ha…”

She couldn’t even respond. Her heart was pounding wildly, as if it were about to burst out of her chest.

People looked at Yoo Hee-yeon with disgust, as though she were trash. They blamed her for the danger she had put

others in, for how close they had come to death because of her actions.

“I… I didn’t… I didn’t do it…”

She defended herself reflexively. She was innocent, and the unfairness of it all consumed her with a deep sense of

injustice.

And then, anger bubbled up inside her.

She wanted to tear Park Tae-young apart, to demand why he was doing this to her, what kind of grudge he held

against her. She wanted to shout at him, to make him see reason. But she knew that would only make things worse.

-Swish

She glanced around the room. Even Kim Hee-ra was being held back by Yoo Han-beom’s hand, unable to do

anything. Among the crowd, there was one person who stared at her with a blank expression.

-Tatatat

Desperate, Yoo Hee-yeon ran towards that person. Standing there, with his arms crossed and saying nothing, was

Lee Hyun-seung.

-Swish

She grabbed his arm and spoke urgently.

“Lee Hyun-seung… Please, say something. You saw everything that happened in the stage, so you know, right? I

couldn’t possibly be working with that guy. It’s impossible, isn’t it? It wasn’t like that at all…”

He might be able to help her. Since he had witnessed most of the events, he could potentially vouch for her

innocence. But instead, he shoved her hand away.

Smack!

Finally, Lee Hyun-seung spoke.

“I don’t really know what to say. But one thing’s for sure. Shin Jun-ho’s first target was me. And because of that, the

situation where I had the upper hand was turned upside down.”

-Thud

Yoo Hee-yeon collapsed to the ground. Her vision darkened. Her world was beginning to be consumed by despair.