I Became the Academy's Kibitz Villain

Chapter 354: Everyone Gather (4)

There had been many cases of time reversal.

“If you think about it, all regression stories are about time reversal.”

The act of going back to the past.

If going against the flow of time itself was considered time reversal, then all regression stories were about time reversal.

But the Phoenix’s feather was a bit different.

If I had to make a comparison.

It was like something out of 22nd-century over-technology, like a dual-gun girl.

Or a technique used by the leader of the Ignite group roaming the gorge.

However, while similar, it was also different from those.

They returned to a past “point in time,” but the Phoenix’s feather only rewound the body.

If a dead body was moved and the Phoenix’s feather was used within 10 seconds, the body reversed time from the position it was moved to.

This 10-second time window was shorter than you might think.

Whether assassinated or killed in battle, if a person died and even a little chill set in, 10 seconds passed quickly.

‘And no one knows at which point those 10 seconds start.’

Only Phoenix, the hero who disappeared into the distant universe, knew the truth.

Only the owner of this ability knew at what moment the countdown began.

I didn’t know.

I couldn’t use this technique.

I knew the effects, the process, and the resulting consequences.

But if someone asked “how,” I wouldn’t be able to explain it in words or demonstrate it through ability.

If I had learned or possessed this ability, I would’ve used it long ago.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t reverse time.

I might have the ability to create material, but I couldn’t create a “time-reversal device.”

The problem might lie in the magic power, but it was likely that my subconscious deemed it “impossible.”

With the current technology, with the present magic engineering, with today’s abilities and my knowledge, it was impossible.

“Common sense” declared it impossible.

And it was the same for others.

‘If there had been someone who truly, desperately wanted to reverse time, this story would have started with a meteor falling as a prologue to a regression.’

Returning to the past to escape the end of the world, the protagonist killed the one who brought the meteor to the world.

It would be a very fitting beginning for a regression story, and such a person might exist, but there was no information about such an entity in the Secret Society’s network.

Therefore.

Time flowed fairly for everyone.

How it was utilized depended on each individual, and the Chief favored those who spent this time meaningfully.

So do I.

“Ah, everyone. There’s still a long way to go before we arrive at the hotel...”

“What? Are we the only ones stuck at the airport? Do you think this makes any sense?”

“So, the students made it to their accommodations? Fine, they got there first. But this isn’t right!”

“Now, now, calm down...”

“Calm down?! You expect us to calm down right now?!”

The staff who flew with me raised their voices at the association agent who had gathered us all in one place.

“How does it make any sense that we have to stay at the airport overnight?!”

“We apologize. As soon as all identifications are verified...”

“Why are you dragging this out, verifying one person at a time? Even the immigration checks to enter the US would be faster than this!”

It was understandable that complaints were surfacing.

Thinking about the typical fast-paced Korean mindset, we should have already boarded a limousine headed for Seogwipo by now.

But the reason we were stuck at the airport, being questioned one by one, was because of something that hit our plane earlier.

“Are you sure there was a suspicious person on board?! Couldn’t it have been a mistake?!”

“No. The pilot and co-pilot confirmed it. It was definitely a person.”

...Because something hit the plane, and they suspected it was a person trying to infiltrate Jeju Island secretly.

The staff member tapped on his Taeguk Watch and left.

Even though we hadn’t exchanged contact information, there was no need; the emergency contact network for staff was always available. Not that I planned to contact him in the first place.

‘If it weren’t for that weird thing that hit the plane, I wouldn’t have to listen to this dirty talk.’

If it hadn’t been for the cause of this delay, I wouldn’t have to waste my time with such unpleasant conversations.

‘At times like this, it feels a bit inconvenient being an ordinary person.’

An ordinary staff member must follow orders from above, which was quite bothersome.

‘I want to get to the accommodation, unpack, and sneak off to the pension.’

The distance between Do Ji-hwan’s accommodation and Goblin’s was just a 10-minute sprint.

After transforming in the room, I could jump out of the hotel window, ride my bike at full speed, and reach the pension yard within 10 minutes.

Not just any pension, but a private property converted into a pension, far from the bustling areas, ensuring no one else would come and go.

I wanted to quickly tuck Do Ji-hwan into the accommodation and be free to—

“......?”

Suddenly, I felt someone watching me from afar.

From within the crowd, through the gaps between people, someone was staring at me. It was clearly a woman’s gaze.

‘What is it?’

It wasn’t my imagination.

If it were, my senses wouldn’t have picked up on it.

It wasn’t any other sense, but my instincts as a man that detected it.

It was a woman I knew.

Not just any woman, but someone I was very familiar with, yet noticeably different in one aspect.

After glancing at me, she subtly left the area, exiting the airport.

“Ah, ah. Staff members, you will not be staying at the Seogwipo accommodations tonight. You will spend the night in Jeju City. Please refrain from personal activities once you check into your hotels....”

“.......”

I followed the association agent’s instructions and moved.

And while moving, I could still feel someone’s icy stare lingering.

Upon arriving at the temporary accommodation in Jeju City,

[Transform.]

I transformed in the room, then immediately slipped out through the window, heading toward the direction of that gaze.

[What are you doing here?]

There, overlooking the sea of Jeju, leaning slightly against a breakwater, was a silver-haired woman staring intently at me.

“...I came to meet you.”

[No, let me rephrase my question.]

I pointed at her silver-haired, noticeably frail-looking body.

[Are you Seol-hee’s doppelgänger?]

“Yes.”

The silver-haired woman smiled faintly.

“I made a doppelgänger and sent it flying out of the plane to meet you.”

[Then where is your main body?]

“Seogwipo.”

[.......]

I see.

So, it was a doppelgänger.

Even from such a distance between Seogwipo and Jeju City, she could control a doppelgänger this precisely.

Baek Seol-hee, truly impressive.

[Then what should I call you? Baek Seol-hee?]

“Hmm....”

For a moment, the silver-haired [doppelgänger] of Baek Seol-hee wore a sullen expression.

“Call me ‘Harang.’”

Thus, she introduced herself.