I Became a National ‘Disaster’ Level Monster

Chapter 145 Season 2 – Just One More Chance

Karune and Lyra, having been knocked unconscious, were transported to the underground village.

It was the first time in human history that one of Han Shin-woo’s children had been captured.

“But do we even have a prison in our village?”

“Of course not. This is a temporary place, like a mayfly that might not survive the next few days. Who would have had time to build something like that?”

“Then what should we do with these two? Should we just kill them here as an example?”

Han Shin-woo’s two daughters lay on the ground, tightly bound with ropes like sushi rolls.

Looking down at them, Asuna, burning for revenge for her sister, was eager to kill these two daughters of Han Shin-woo on the spot.

However—

“That’s not our decision to make.”

“Mr. Lorensky?”

“In war, it’s always the ‘general’ who decides the fate of captured prisoners.”

Lorensky chuckled as he turned to Han Shin-woo, the silent hero of humanity who had made this capture.

“Tell me, Shin-woo. What do you want to do with these children?”

“Me? Well, I…”

Surely, he would say to kill them.

Even though they were his children, they were strangers from the future, individuals who did not exist in his past.

And if things went wrong, these children might not exist at all.

Asuna was waiting for Shin-woo to say, “It’s fine to kill them.”

But his answer was different.

“I want to take a new approach with them.”

“A new…”

“Approach?”

Asuna, along with Dorothy, the leader of the rebellion, tilted their heads in confusion at Shin-woo’s completely unexpected response.

“What do you mean by that, Shin-woo?”

Dorothy asked, curious about why he wouldn’t execute the two imperial princesses on the spot.

Looking down at the two unconscious girls, Shin-woo answered:

“They’re still young. I believe they can change.”

“They can change…”

“Are you seriously suggesting that these kids could join our side? Shin-woo?”

“I can’t guarantee they’ll join us.”

“Then why won’t you kill them? These two are Han Shin-woo’s children, who have slaughtered our people!”

“To be exact, they’re the children born after my future self slaughtered humanity.”

“…!!”

The children they had encountered in the past, and the ones they had captured now, except for Leon, had never even met a proper human being.

Of course, the future Han Shin-woo was someone who had to be killed.

I would kill him myself.

But should that hatred also be directed at these children, who didn’t even know what humanity was?

As a man from the past, Shin-woo wanted to give these two a ‘chance,’ not just because they were his children but because they were intelligent beings.

“They seemed like kids who came outside just to see what humans are like, not to kill them.”

“So! So you want to let these two go free?”

“No. I want to keep them in the underground village and teach them about humanity.”

“Teach Han Shin-woo’s children… about humans?”

“Hoho. That’s certainly an idea no one would have thought of.”

Looking around at the remaining forces of the underground village, from Dorothy to Mr. Lorensky, Yoo Shi-hyun, Joo Sang-ho, and Xiao Ling, Shin-woo voiced his opinion.

At first, everyone found the idea absurd. But as they had said before, since Shin-woo was the one who had captured the two, the final decision lay with him.

“Hmm… Are you confident you can manage them?”

“Of course.”

“While you’re at it, I’d also like you to find out how they knew the location of our underground village.”

“Oh, right! Now that I think about it, how did they know where we were?”

“Whatever the case, if they attack, we’ll just fight and die.”

“No, I mean, we need to know how they got here so we can decide whether to kill more of them!”

By a majority vote, it was decided that Shin-woo would manage Karune and Lyra, allowing them to survive…

“Don’t be ridiculous!!”

But just when the decision seemed settled—

“Do you really think those monsters can understand humans?”

“Princess Asuna…?”

“The only reason Shin-woo can say such things is because he’s still naïve, having come from the past. These things are pests! It’s better to kill them now than risk being stabbed in the back later.”

Despite everyone’s approval, Princess Asuna drew her sword and leapt toward the unconscious girls without warning.

“Princess Asuna!!”

“Stop her, someone!”

Before anyone could intervene, the situation seemed to be spiraling out of control…

Clang!

It looked like it was all over.

“Stop, Asuna.”

“Sis…!”

“Lady Kurumi!”

The one who blocked Asuna’s blade, which was aimed at the necks of the two princesses, was none other than her older sister from the past.

Kurumi summoned Inari from the shadows to stop Asuna.

Then, making eye contact with her revenge-driven younger sister, she spoke firmly.

“Asuna, calm down for now.”

“Sis! You don’t understand! How do you think they got here? They’ve come to slaughter the remaining humans!”

“.That’s…”

“You know the truth, too! Whether they can be rehabilitated or not, once humanity rises again, those ‘mutants’ will have to disappear!”

Asuna’s conviction froze the underground village for a moment.

Humans mixed with monsters.

Hybrid beings, different from human-like monsters.

These were referred to as mutants.

It was a term that also applied to Han Shin-woo himself.

“Ah, that’s not what I was trying to say…”

“No, Princess Asuna. I also know the truth. I know I’m not an ordinary human.”

“…!”

“But still, please show mercy this one time.”

Ever since he had come from another Earth where monsters didn’t exist, Shin-woo had always felt like a misfit—a monsterized Hunter in a world where he didn’t belong.

Monsterized Hunter.

A hidden class that could only be unlocked by entering a specific code in the game Hunter’s Blood.

In other words, he was an existence that couldn’t appear in the main storyline—a being from another world.

Because of that, Shin-woo didn’t deny being a mutant.

However, he didn’t want his children to be discriminated against for that reason alone.

That’s why Shin-woo knelt on one knee before Princess Asuna, who was much weaker than him.

The sight of this made everyone in the underground village, both from the future and the past, swallow nervously, and the most surprised of all was…

“Dad…!”

Shin-ah, watching with disbelief as her father lowered his pride for the sake of his two daughters.

‘This isn’t the dad I knew… But at the same time, he is! What in the world happened to my dad?’

The idea of an emperor kneeling to persuade someone.

The Han Shin-woo she knew would never do something like that.

If he wanted something, he would take it by force, mercilessly killing anything that stood in his way.

That was the Han Shin-woo she knew from the future—a tyrant.

But this version of Han Shin-woo was completely different, leaving Shin-ah confused and wondering.

For the first time, she became the first of his children to be curious about her father’s past and how he had changed.

***

Late at night.

Inside the time machine.

Among Han Shin-woo’s three children, only Leon had ever stepped outside the empire’s walls.

So now, Leon was quietly standing guard around the time machine, surveying the familiar ruins of the human world.

“From morning until dawn, you’re really something else.”

“…Are you okay, though?”

“Huh, what do you mean?”

“I mean, you’ve been looking after Yujin ever since you arrived in the future through the time machine without resting.”

“Oh, that? Don’t worry. I’ve been switching shifts with myself. So, when I get tired, another version of me takes over. No need to worry.”

“…Switch shifts? With yourself?”

Inside the time machine, Katarina was tenderly nursing Yujin, who was wrapped in bandages, while Yulian watched over them.

Yulian was continuously amazed by Katarina, who took care of her older brother, Yujin, as if he were her own child, even into the early hours of the morning.

After all, Katarina was known as one of the key figures of the human rebellion that Yulian had learned about in the Imperial Academy.

The leader of the Monster Group, Katarina, was written as one of the few great evils who had been personally killed by His Majesty, Han Shin-woo.

‘At first, I kept watching her, thinking she might do something to harm Yujin, but she’s genuinely caring for him.’

Was the history book wrong?

Or had the historical records themselves been mistaken?

Or perhaps, being a figure from 20 years ago, had she changed before her death?

Yulian’s mind raced with various thoughts and speculations. But nothing could be confirmed for sure.

Just then—

“Yulian, don’t go outside if you can help it.”

“Leon… Brother?”

Leon, the Crown Prince, who had been patrolling, suddenly appeared at the entrance of the time machine, checking on the people inside as he spoke.

“The Empire’s soldiers are approaching.”

“Empire soldiers…? Shouldn’t we go greet them, then? Why are you telling me not to go outside?”

“Have you ever seen soldiers who come to greet a prince or princess while being fully armed?”

“!!”

The expression on Yulian’s face darkened quickly at the news of the Empire’s soldiers approaching, fully armed, as if they were preparing for a confrontation.

“It seems they’ve figured out that we’ve betrayed them. You’ve only been abandoned so far, so it’s best not to show your face. If you avoid being seen, you might still have a place to return to.”

“B-brother…!”

Leon had already severed ties with the future Han Shin-woo.

But it was different for the rest of his siblings.

Yujin was unconscious and didn’t even know he’d been abandoned, and Yulian, if she hadn’t been outright abandoned, would likely have returned to the Empire without hesitation.

In other words, no matter how it happened, the soldiers approaching the time machine were coming for one reason…

“Wait a minute.”

“Katarina?”

Leon had assumed he was the only one who had to deal with this situation.

“So, Leon, you should come into the time machine as well.”

“…What did you just say?”

Leon, who had maintained a calm and expressionless face, suddenly widened his eyes in surprise at Katarina’s unexpected suggestion.