Chapter 226 : Late Bloomer Model Student (1)
Chapter 226: Late Bloomer Model Student (1)
[New World]
[You can now converse with an existence of the New World.]
‘Is this it?’
It was too simple to be called a buff.
It wasn’t a combat-supporting buff either, just a method to have a conversation with someone.
[To converse, there must be no one around except yourself, and a force field implemented through holy or divine power is required.]
‘Do I have to get help from a Constellation? Holy or divine power is beyond my control.’
Sanghyun opened his eyes slightly.
Among all the things he learned from this rift, not a single one was ordinary or common.
Everything from start to finish felt like peeking into another world, leaving his mind dazed.
Though no one directly told him, Sanghyun could feel that a turning point had arrived in his life as a player.
Up until now, he had only focused on growing and clearing dungeons.
But now, it felt like he was about to face a new future—or perhaps a hidden truth.
‘Let’s think about this after everything is settled. Nothing’s over yet.’
The rift was still intact, and there could be monsters or hidden threats waiting to appear.
Encouraging Jo Jinho and Shin Taeri, Sanghyun refocused on the strategy. They had to see it through to the end.
After that, no one else appeared who could speak.
Everything they caught was an ‘alien’, and although there were several battles of various sizes, they never fell into danger.
However, at some point, the system began to display the number of enemies that needed to be eliminated for stabilization.
Like a quest, they kept killing aliens, reducing the counter.
Eventually, when the number hit zero, the Break Spot was conquered, and the rift was stabilized.
The original goal—stabilizing the rift and preventing future disasters—was successfully achieved.
An achievement no one else would ever know!
Sanghyun, along with Shin Taeri and Jo Jinho, genuinely rejoiced over what the three of them had accomplished.
At the same time, they agreed to keep all of this a strict secret. Absolute silence.
And they promised to re-enter the rift later after coordinating their schedules.
Even though it had stabilized, there were far too many secrets discovered within.
There were things that piqued curiosity, but at the same time, things that couldn’t be casually revealed to the outside.
That’s why they unanimously agreed to secretly explore the interior themselves.
They even made sure to block the access path with enough obstacles to prevent others from discovering it.
Not to monopolize the rewards—
But because a player who entered without understanding the internal environment might meet an untimely death.
After burying that secret among themselves, the group disbanded for now. With hearts still racing from today’s memories.
Meanwhile, at that very moment—
The Goddess of Luck, using the form of ‘human Lee Siyeon’, made a crafty approach to contact the Constellation known as ‘Late Bloomer Model Student’.
It was considered crafty because even though it was a conversation between Constellations, it couldn't be detected by the Dimensional Order.
In terms of human civilization, conversations between Constellations were like wiretapping, recorded in the ‘Records of Order’ of the Dimensional Order.
So every word was archived somewhere, leaving behind an indelible trace.
The reason Constellations didn’t mind this was because their conversations usually weren’t problematic.
They mostly just exchanged thoughts while observing the activities of players they had contracted with or were interested in.
Even if those conversations were recorded, there wasn’t anything particularly concerning.
But everything the Goddess of Luck wanted to say to the Late Bloomer Model Student was problematic from top to bottom.
And what she might hear from him in return probably wouldn’t be pleasant either. It felt like a verbal minefield.
That’s why she used Lee Siyeon’s body to approach him—avoiding the Dimensional Order’s surveillance.
Conversations between humans and Constellations were too frequent to be included in the Records of Order. The data load was too massive.
[Can you hear me?]
[What the...? How can a human talk to me directly without prior consent?]
[I want to minimize unnecessary chatter. Is 'Late Bloomer Model Student' really your alias?]
[It is. How do you know that?]
[I’m an entity like you, momentarily possessing a human body. A Constellation. Known as the Goddess of Luck.]
[Ah……?]
The Late Bloomer Model Student—aka Model Student—seemed very surprised.
From the Goddess of Luck’s perspective, she was simply approaching him based on what she’d learned through Sanghyun.
But from Model Student’s perspective, the conversation came out of nowhere without any warning.
[Are you being pursued?]
[Yes. I’m being pursued.]
Model Student’s tone changed.
As she said, no human could make this kind of approach or conversation. It was only possible as a Constellation.
The fact that she used a roundabout and secretive method to contact him meant the conversation carried significant weight.
Although flustered, Model Student found himself impressed by her cautiousness and prudence.
[What’s going on?]
[The Dimensional Order is heading in a very wrong direction. I’ve seen it with my own eyes, and I have the evidence—but I’m being hunted. I can’t change the situation on my own.]
[A very wrong direction…….]
[My contractor has been looking for you for a long time. They asked me to find out where you are.]
[A contractor? I’ve never contacted a player before.]
At her words, Model Student tilted his head.
Unless a Constellation first showed interest in a player, the player couldn’t identify the Constellation by name.
With a common name like Goddess of Luck, it might be guessed mentally.
But his alias, ‘Late Bloomer Model Student’, which he had deliberately twisted in wording, was not a combination of words anyone could easily guess.
Model Student asked again.
[How did they know?]
[I don’t know that either.]
[There’s no such thing as a result without a cause. I should speak with your contractor directly.]
[I think so too. I just made contact first to check if the channel would hold.]
[Fortunately, it’s holding up well, but I can’t guarantee how long. I’m drifting farther from the center of the Dimensional Order.]
[The Black Guards?]
[Ha. Those crow bastards.]
Model Student tried to laugh it off, but the Goddess of Luck could sense the tremble hidden in his voice.
[For now, please focus on keeping the channel stable.]
[Got it. I’ll wait.]
The conversation paused for a moment.
Maintaining the channel alone consumed holy power, and actual conversation required even more.
The important discussion would likely happen when Sanghyun was present—so conserving as much power as possible was ideal.
* * *
Afterward.
After returning home, Sanghyun met Lee Siyeon and listened as she explained the entire sequence of events.
He felt that the time had finally come.
From the moment he regressed, he had believed there must be a reason why the Late Bloomer Model Student had sent him back.
That’s why Sanghyun had always been curious about his whereabouts.
The Model Student had said nothing about his own circumstances for thirty years.
Why was someone like that now facing the worst possible situation? Why hadn’t he said anything about it in Sanghyun’s past life?
There were too many things he wanted to know.
“Thank you, noona. Because you possessed a human body, this kind of irregular method was made possible.”
“Don’t mention it.”
“Should I go back to how I used to speak? Calling you noona while using a Constellation communication channel feels a bit…”
“It’s fine. When I’m in human form, it’s more comfortable for both of us to talk like humans. Fewer mistakes, too.”
“Got it.”
Sanghyun sincerely thanked the Goddess of Luck for creating this opportunity.
If she hadn’t been beside him using Lee Siyeon’s body—and if she didn’t know how to employ irregular methods—
There would’ve been no way to reach the Model Student. Even if it did happen someday, it would’ve been much later.
According to what he had heard from the Goddess of Luck before the conversation with the Model Student, it seemed he had come across a secret that was never meant to be touched.
What exactly that was, or what it entailed, Sanghyun didn’t know. But one thing was certain: it was a matter of life and death.
‘Maybe in my past life, even after forming a contract with me, the Model Student was still on the run. He just didn’t show it—but things must have been bad.’
Overlaying the past and present timelines led to that conclusion.
The Model Student had completely hidden his situation from his contractor—Sanghyun.
It wasn’t out of malice. Rather, he likely didn’t want to make Sanghyun worry needlessly.
Even though he now understood the reason for the silence, there was still some disappointment. Why couldn’t he have been honest with him?
“Are you ready to talk?”
“Of course. I have a lot to say. And noona, you’ll naturally hear it too.”
“Alright. I’ll connect the channel right away. This is a double-encrypted conversation.”
“Explain it to me once more.”
“You speak to me, and I speak to the Model Student. That way, none of the conversation is detected by the Dimensional Order.”
“I understand.”
“Raise your hand when you're ready. Just a moment.”
“Okay.”
As Sanghyun waited for the conversation with the Model Student to resume through her—
He took one last moment to organize his thoughts.
Now, he intended to tell him everything, from start to finish. Including the truth about his regression.
At first, he had worried that revealing the regression process might be considered a heavenly secret—a taboo to speak of.
But his thinking had changed.
If it was truly the Model Student who had sent him back in time, then he must have expected Sanghyun to one day share this information.
Would someone who gave him back his memories have done so without intending for that truth to be known?
That didn’t make sense.
If that were the case, he would’ve erased Sanghyun’s memories before sending him back. Sanghyun believed the Model Student had everything planned.
He believed the future version of himself had laid the groundwork that his past self could eventually understand.
Even without knowledge of the future, he would be able to infer everything through Sanghyun.
Just then, Lee Siyeon raised her hand.
Sanghyun spoke.
“Constellation Late Bloomer Model Student. The future you regressed me. You never told me you would, but I clearly came back to the past. With all my memories.”
At that moment—
Lee Siyeon’s expression changed as she conveyed Sanghyun’s words directly.
And the Model Student on the other end of the channel looked visibly shocked.
Not because he thought Sanghyun’s words were nonsense.
But because what Sanghyun said was incredibly bold—and extremely heavy in meaning.
Sanghyun added more.
“I don’t know the reason either. But surely, the person who sent me does. And there must be a cause-and-effect relationship that even the past you is aware of.”
Following that, Sanghyun began recounting the events from the Amsa Station Rift—events that felt too unbelievable to be true.