Transformation or Death

Chapter 28

The Meaning of Protection (6)

“Persistent bastard…!” Libra revealed her boiling anger. “You’re still alive!”

“What? Didn’t you know? There’s no way I’d die from such a pathetic attack like that.” Han Jae-jung let out a hollow laugh and moved the Crimson Halberd. He swung it, brushing aside the acrid smoke in front of him. The armor broke apart, and its tiny fragments fell with a pattering sound. The armor looked like it could shatter at any moment, but fortunately the form change went as usual.

ALIOTH.

The fifth star of the Big Dipper that wields the power of flames.

He firmly declared, aiming the Crimson Halberd, his unique weapon, at Libra.

“I’ve come to take you down.”

Red Vega blankly stared at his back. Perplexity, regret, despair. These emotions were intertwined, weighing her down.

It wasn’t just Libra, but a new villain had appeared. What should she do? She clenched her fist.

‘No…’

No, he hasn’t come to become her enemy. Red Vega, overcome by confusion, arrived at relief. Why? She couldn’t understand the reason. It might have been a conjecture. But she thought he wouldn’t try to harm her.

A magical girl feeling reassurance from a villain, not fear or a sense of mission. Red Vega couldn’t understand why she was like this.

She looked at the Big Dipper, whose armor was falling apart, towards the North Star.

“You? Hmm… I’m sorry, but I’m here because I want to know about the legitimate sacrifice. I have no reason to grant your personal wish.” Libra rested her chin and responded to his challenge. “Citizens suffering from villains seek a hero. Not someone like you, a villain in the guise of an inscrutable monster. A hero is the garbage can of the citizens’ emotions, an object of vicarious satisfaction and idolization. And the very existence that embodies all of that. Even the heroes themselves want to live that way. It’s a structure where no one loses.”

One sphere that emitted a bright light rose up on one of the scales on his shoulder. It didn’t stop at one, but became two, three, and four.

“I see this as the most legitimate sacrifice. The lives of heroes are gambled on the uncertain battlefield every day, yet no one questions it and it’s accepted as a given. What a beautiful justice.”

A light that tore through the darkening sky, rendering other lights mere flickering fireflies. Something like that climbed onto the other scale.

“The minority sacrificing themselves for the happiness and well-being of the majority. Don’t you think it’s beautiful?”

The scales were now balanced. The amounts were different, but equal.

“Now, you should watch the beautiful sight of her sacrificing her life to kill the villain and protect the citizens.”

Libra’s armor gradually shed its solid appearance. The armor blazed like a mass of light. The undulating light endlessly carved afterimages in the air, displaying the magnificent golden radiance.

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Powerful light.

The kidnapped individuals trembling at the appearance of the additional villain, Red Vega struggling to protect those kidnapped, and the citizens watching the battle within the barrier, all were left speechless, staring at it in a daze.

Absolute majesty.

The brilliant golden warrior. His figure exuded an unwavering and inviolable power. The villain, already intense, had become even stronger. It was a dazzling, hopeless light.

But there was one person, Han Jae-jung, who didn’t think that way.

Han Jae-jung quietly looked at the light, then soon contained a faint smile.

“Compared to before, it’s weaker.”

Compared to the light he had seen before, it was feeble.

“Well, since you’re risking your life, you wouldn’t just die obediently, would you?”

As he had said earlier, Libra had declared that she would die from Red Vega’s life-risking attack. It seemed Libra had planned this to maximize the dramatic effect of the hero’s sacrifice.

But considering his goal, it was strange for her to die so readily.

His purpose was to find the legitimate sacrifice that creates the greatest happiness for the majority.

If someone had sacrificed themselves, there should be various reactions, ripples, and impacts as a result. He would deduce the answer to the legitimate sacrifice from the sum of these causal relationships.

But to die without seeing the result? That was too strange.

“A clone…? No, wait, did you create a remote-controlled body?”

Libra had six stars.

There was no need to only offer four stars when using a pseudo-nova power. It could be thought that she intentionally restrained her power, but that would be an overly extreme conclusion. Why would Libra show mercy to a disruptive element interfering with her plan?

“…”

“Judging from your silence, I guess I’m on the right track. Considering your ability to create villains, something like this would be easy for you. Or perhaps you sought help from the Gemini seat or another member of the Dilemma… Did you leave one star behind in your main body and concentrate the rest in a backup body? This is a clever method.”

Ultimately, Libra never intended to die from the start. She likely had a plan to create a fake body, make it retreat, and then let people think Red Vega’s noble sacrifice had defeated the villain.

And she would calmly observe people’s reactions from behind… It was a cunning plan.

“Split body… is it?”

“Yes. That guy never intended to defeat you from the start. That thing you were just about to use. She had the intention of mutual destruction by risking your life. But that guy has a separate main body. It’s a kind of deception.”

Red Vega muttered hopelessly. It was pitiful, but she couldn’t focus on her right now.

“Anyway, step aside. That guy is my enemy.”

Han Jae-jung stretched out one arm and blocked Red Vega’s path. It was a sign for her to back down. It was almost humiliating. Red Vega gritted her teeth. She wanted to rebel against the insult, but soon closed her mouth again.

As he said, her current self was incredibly weak. She understood the pity. That’s probably how he said it, seeing the stupidity of a weak person stepping forward.

But she couldn’t shake off the uncomfortable feeling. Can I really leave everything to the villain? Do I have to retreat like this?

“…Yes, you’re right. I’m not at full power right now. But what does that matter?” Libra nodded in agreement. At the same time, he clenched his fists tightly.

“Isn’t this the same as when your guy was defeated before? What’s changed? Nothing has changed. No, there is one thing.”

Intense light compressed in those two fists.

“I will cancel the plan. Both of you will die here.”

Han Jae-jung immediately realized what he was trying to do. That technique that brought him to the brink of death. The golden light that everyone craves. The brilliant and majestic starlight was contained in those two fists.

“Red Vega, listen carefully.”

He lowered his voice so that only one person could hear him, and he also gathered light on the sharp blade of flame.

“Are you here to defeat the villain or to save someone? Choose.”

Flames that seemed to melt iron, that scorching light gathered on the sword.

“What will you do? Throw your life away here with bravado? Or save the poor souls over there? Choose.”

The two starlights, the different natures of the two villains, made light in the darkened sky and shook the earth.

“Now, right away!!!”

Red Vega moved. Libra did too, and so did Han Jae-jung.

Heavenly power falls.

An overwhelming destructive power, like dropping the stars from the sky, melted the ground and rushed towards them.

Han Jae-jung raised the sword of flame towards that beam.

[SET. Seongyeomnak-ro (Starlight Road).]

The stars fall with flames. He also fired a flame with the same caloric value as the falling star.

The two lights collided.

At that moment, Red Vega moved at a speed she had never shown before and rescued the kidnapped victims.

“It’s useless! Your power now can’t beat this strength!!”

Libra was right.

Han Jae-jung was still weak. Even though it’s not the main body, it’s a body that resembles him endlessly. The power of the pseudo-nova state was not much different from what he had seen before.

Shaking the sky and overturning the earth with destruction. That overwhelming power made the starfire as fragile as a candle in the wind.

But what does that matter?

The armor that wrapped his body trembled. So did his two legs, and the hand that gripped the sword of flame. He tried to endure it by wrapping his right arm with his left hand, but he was powerless. His feet gradually went backwards.

Red Vega is still rescuing the people. If this is breached, everything will be in vain. The resolution I made, the meaning of the action I took now.

Therefore.

“Okay, I admit. I can’t beat you now.”

[Successful activation of Starlight Road.]

“So, I’ll surpass my current self.”

The armor gradually broke apart. The falling pieces turned into mere ashes and scattered with the wind. But he didn’t feel himself weakening.

Rather, he felt himself gradually becoming stronger.

Power was rising.

[Reproduction rate 99%. Reached the required value.]

The power of the stars that I gained by capturing the villains, all of them enveloped my body.

The ideal and aspiration are clear. The path to go is also clear.

[THE ORIGIN.]

“Let me ask you.”

Just before the flames went out, all the armor that had wrapped his body shattered and scattered.

And the starlight hidden inside enveloped my body anew. My true form that I couldn’t find because I didn’t know the way. Seven stars emerged and illuminated the path of Starlight Road, the flames.

The weakening flames gradually intensified.

“No…?!”

It pushed away the brilliant golden beam and continued to increase the power of that flame. The beam and the flame continued to devour each other, and eventually they vanished in the center. Now only weak particles of light remain.

In the midst of that light, the appearance of a new armor became clear.

The thick armor became much lighter, and there was a rotating circle engraved with the orbit of the stars around the central heart area. The seven stars that were in the flames flew back to him and covered his face. A green helmet with seven horns covering his eyes appeared.

The power of the stars did not stop and flowed down to his neck, emanating in the form of a celestial cloak. The flowing scarf in the shape of the Big Dipper was filled with starlight.

The giant, adorned in green and red, raised his finger and pointed at Libra.

“Have you ever seen the stars?”