Chapter 174: Yeah... if I died... that b*** would hog him all to herself!
While the people who were responsible for the destruction in the middle of the street were sleeping quietly after a long night of suffering, searching, and fighting, the city itself still seemed to be on high alert.
Meanwhile, others focused on repairing the streets and buildings, trying to keep order as reporters barged in with relentless questions, their voices sharp and accusing, echoing through the ruined blocks.
"This level of destruction... is that really something a human could cause?" one reporter shouted.
"We heard there was a survivor! Where is he right now?" another demanded, pushing forward as flashes from cameras painted the dust-filled air.
"Have you found the culprits who kidnapped people and cut them into pieces?" a woman screamed, her tone laced with horror and disbelief.
"Officer, tell us!! Do not stay silent!"
"Is this going to be similar to the previous incidents?"
"Are we all going to die just like in the previous province?"
"Do you really think you can keep hiding the truth from the people?"
The police officers pressed their arms outward, their faces set in stone. They forced the crowd back, refusing to answer.
The news of this mass destruction spread like wildfire, dragging whispers into every home. People worried for their safety, murmuring of curses, secret weapons, or... monsters disguised as men.
The confusion only deepened, twisting into a single gnawing question:
What could possibly bring such devastation here, in the middle of the city?
Some were already making plans to leave, unwilling to gamble with fate. The fear in their eyes said it all—this city was no longer safe.
They would not take chances, not after seeing the half-clean-cut buildings!
While everyone was caught in the chaos, other parts of the city moved on as though untouched.
Markets bustled, Cars moved, Students and Employees walked hurriedly.
In the Merlin School,
The classes had already begun.
The children sat restlessly, their small hands trembling over books, their eyes heavy with dread. Some were absent altogether, their families too afraid to send them out into the city.
And... outside of classroom 11-B, a purple-haired figure stood silently.
She leaned closer, her shadow sliding against the wooden frame as she peeked inside. Her purple eyes scanned the rows of students, searching, hoping, praying to find the one person she longed to see.
But when her gaze landed at the back seats...
It was empty.
The back seats were almost all vacant... And the place where Leo usually sat—his seat—stood out most... like a cold seat in her eyes.
Sakura’s face drained of colour. She pulled back from the doorway, her breath shallow, her heart pounding so hard it hurt.
She didn’t speak. Her steps trembled as she turned away, as though her body itself resisted walking, afraid of what truth might follow.
The memory of yesterday clung to her!!
It was still fresh as new... was it that he didn’t want to see her in the school anymore?
Is that why he didn’t come?
Did she hurt him so deeply that he decided to leave her once and for all?
Her lips quivered violently, and her eyes brimmed with tears that she fought to hold back. Each breath came out ragged, as though something unseen pressed against her chest, strangling her.
Her heart whispered the cruellest of truths, painting in her mind the suffocating loneliness Leo must have endured that day...
And now, she felt it too.
The pain... The words... The humiliation!
Still, they echoed in her mind like cruel bells that refused to stop ringing.
And it all happened because of her!
"O-Of course he would be furious..." Sakura muttered in a dry, broken tone. Her legs buckled beneath her, almost giving out, when Luna caught her by the arm.
The girl’s steady grip pulled Sakura upright before she could collapse completely, and their eyes met.
Luna didn’t say anything... She knew better. Any words now would only backfire on her.
Advice, comfort, support—it would only pour fuel into the fire already burning inside Sakura. So instead she simply held her, silently offering support.
Sakura’s eyes narrowed into a glare at Luna. Her lips parted, ready to blame her, ready to spit venom and turn all her hurt into accusations. But the words stuck. Deep down, she knew the truth—it wasn’t Luna’s fault.
It was hers.
She should have known!
She should have realised!
She should have understood!
Leo and she were different... so different... and they could not be together!
Yet her love, her jealousy, her desperate heart had blinded her. She hid from the truth, clinging to her desire.
"Everyone is watching... let’s go to the roof," Luna whispered.
Staff and students were already glancing their way, curious and uneasy at the sight of Sakura trembling on the verge of breaking down.
Luna guided her away quickly. Step by step, they climbed to the roof, the heavy door creaking as it opened to let in a rush of cool air.
At least here, Sakura could breathe.
But the moment the door shut behind them, she gasped loudly, clutching her chest before her fist shot out. She slammed it against the rooftop wall, her knuckles stinging from the impact, her face twisted with fury and despair.
"H-he is definitely angry... he... he would leave me... he would definitely leave me... arrrgh!!"
Her body curled in on itself, hands rising to her head as she clawed at her hair, a picture of a girl losing herself, drowning in panic.
"Maybe... maybe I should contact him? Maybe if I explained the situation... maybe if I asked for forgiveness... he... he will... sniff, sniff... he will forgive me, right?" Her voice cracked, and tears poured down her face in uncontrollable streams.
Luna’s face turned pale, fear knotting in her chest as she reached out. "Sakura... please... it’s for the good of both of you—"
"I DIDN’T ASK YOU WHAT’S GOOD FOR ME, BITCH!!" Sakura’s scream tore out of her throat violently, her voice so loud it made the air tremble.
Luna flinched back instantly, her heart hammering. She knew she’d gone too far. She should have stayed silent. She should have kept her mouth shut.
Sakura’s fingers shook violently as she clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms. "I... I didn’t do anything wrong... I... I... am sorry... I am... sniff... sniff..." She dragged her sleeve across her face, her nose running as sobs cracked her words apart.
Her trembling hand slipped into her pocket and pulled out her phone. The screen lit up, and there... his image appeared as her wallpaper.
His number was the first contact saved.
Of course it was.
Nothing surprising... Nothing else mattered.
Her thumb hovered for a second. Then she pressed down.
Immediately, she called him.
She wanted to explain everything... she wanted to make things right... she wanted to say the words she had buried inside her chest: that she was on his side.
Always and no matter what!
Whether he was a big shot like his father or just an ordinary boy... it didn’t matter.
She didn’t care about anything else in this world.
All she cared about was being with him.
"M-Maybe I should just talk to him directly?" she muttered in a confused tone as she bit her nails, trembling while her ears echoed with a ringing sound.
Meanwhile, Leo, who was sleeping like a log, had his phone silently buzzing on the table. The small light blinked in the room as the call tried, then stopped.
After a few seconds, the connection ended.
Sakura’s face turned pale. "H-He... didn’t answer my phone," she muttered with a horrified expression; this was the first time he had not answered her call.
That means...
That means...
"H-He is definitely angry at me... awweeee!" She cried with a broken expression. "H-He is going to break up with me... N-No... NO!!" as she clenched her fist around the phone, almost bending it, then sank to her knees on the rooftop tiles.
Luna’s lips twitched. She thought Sakura was overreacting, yet she watched quietly. Just then, Sakura pushed herself up and stood, staring toward the far edge of the roof.
"G-Guess, I have to prove my love," Sakura said in a small, brittle voice, and she took a step closer to the low parapet.
"NO FREAKING WAY! STOP SAKURA!!" Luna shouted, lunging forward and grabbing Sakura by the hips. She hauled her back hard, heart pounding, fingers digging into fabric, desperate to keep her friend from making a choice she would never come back from.
"Let me go! I need to show him, I am not some bitch who is playing with him!!" Sakura snapped.
"What the heck is wrong with you? Are you going to give up your life for a man who barely sees you? What about your parents? You do not care for your parents, who have been with you for almost your entire life?" Luna demanded back, holding Sakura tightly as if she could anchor her to reason.
Sakura flinched at Luna’s words as if struck. Her shoulders folded inward, her head dipping in confusion and loss.
Seeing this, Luna exhaled and pushed further,
"Sure, your father didn’t approve of him? So what? Are you going to throw away your life for a man who barely sees you? You only think of yourself—what about your parents? If you die now... who will mourn? Your boyfriend? No way—"
She stopped mid-sentence, flinching as Sakura suddenly lifted her head, her violet eyes darkening into a glare that burned straight into her.
Luna swallowed hard, her words stumbling out as she changed her tone quickly.
"I-I mean... sure, he would be sad, maybe even cry for a few days... but then what? He’d move on, start his new life again. It’s only your parents who would mourn forever! For the rest of their lives, they’d carry that wound! Do you even understand that?"
Those words sank deeper than Luna expected. Sakura’s fists unclenched slowly, and she lowered her head as if trying to hold herself together from the inside out.
"See... even you could understand that bastard just moves on—"
Before Luna could finish her twisted attempt at reason, Sakura’s eyes shifted again. They went cold.
Dark!!
Her expression hardened with something far more dangerous than despair.
"Yeah... if I died... that bitch would hog him all to herself!" she hissed, her voice dripping with killing intent, "I cannot allow that bitch!!"
"..." Luna stood frozen, utterly flabbergasted. Her jaw fell open, and she could only scream inwardly: ’That’s what you’re worried about?!’ She smacked her palm against her face in disbelief, dragging it down as she groaned.
"Anyway," she said quickly, forcing calm into her voice, "please... please think this through? Maybe he was just busy with something... just wait until tomorrow—"
"No! I am going to his house today!" Sakura’s face turned serious.
However, Luna’s expression darkened. "I am sorry to say this... but Master ordered me exactly not to let you out of the school."
Sakura frowned, her lips twitching into a smirk. "You’re going to stop me?" she asked with an amused tone, her eyes glinting. She could easily slip away from Luna’s sight if she wanted to—
"No. I don’t have to stop you," Luna cut her off coldly. "I’ll just inform your father." She raised her phone, thumb hovering over the call button.
"...." Sakura’s face went pale, then her head turned toward the sky, and she screamed,
"FUCCCCCKKKKKKK!!!"