Your Name Is
Death is equal to all. But the pain endured in the process varies wildly from person to person. Generally speaking, burning to death is considered the most agonizing. It's the pinnacle of human suffering—scorching pain combined with suffocation from smoke, an inevitable torment.
But there's another death just as excruciating. The body might not suffer physically, but the mind is utterly destroyed. The cause of death that strips away human dignity, leaving you kicking off the covers in the dead of night until your spirit finally breaks.
"Ah, no!"
It's death by shame. Not officially recognized, but a modern affliction plaguing internet-savvy folks—a soul-crushing demise.
Kim Sung-tae panicked as he watched the red glow escape through the iron door.
It wasn't sealed for nothing.
The escaped lust advanced slowly, leisurely, toward the golden sea. With every step, a portion of the sea turned red, and Sung-tae felt a precious friend stirring to life bit by bit.
If I let this go on...
He imagined his dear partner suddenly swelling up like a fresh private jumping out of bed. It would shatter the armor. Given his strength, the room might collapse, the air would rumble, and someone would come running. Probably Garba or Gepelt. Then his friend would greet them with a casual, "Hey, pals?"
That might be okay. It could happen. But...
The armor from a long-overdue outing, now broken. But Black Oriharcon armor regenerates automatically—with his friend still out.
Ugh. Just imagining it...
Whether it reformed over his friend or skipped it entirely, either way it'd be grotesque. A humiliation etched so deep into his soul he'd never hold his head high again.
"Not that!"
Sung-tae rushed at the lust, arms outstretched to block it. But lust wasn't material—it was pure emotion. It ghosted right through him toward the sea.
"Gah! Gotta stop it!"
"What's wrong? Is that a monster?"
"No! Don't get close!"
The child had snuck up and touched the lust with a tiny hand. Not knowing what might happen if someone else contacted it, Sung-tae tried to stop her, but too late—she'd scooped some into her mouth.
"Yummy!"
"Uh, huh? You okay?"
"Yeah! You said it was a monster, but it looked tasty, so I tried a bit. Super good!"
"R-really?"
Sung-tae examined her closely from every angle, worried something might be wrong, but she seemed fine.
"Hey... think you could eat all of it?"
Was it right to ask a kid this? His conscience twinged, but it seemed harmless, and his dignity was on the line—no time for scruples.
She nodded eagerly at his plea.
"Yeah! Got it!"
The child charged at the lust. She took a deep breath, and it sucked right into her mouth like a genie into a lamp. With a gulp, she patted her belly contentedly.
At the same moment, Sung-tae felt his partner deflate and doze off again. He let out a huge sigh of relief.
"Phew. So tasty!"
"You really... eat well, huh."
A gaseous lust dozens of times her size, gone in one bite. Inner world weirdness? Or just her? Either way, impressive.
"Hehe. Want more."
"Sure. If it ever escapes again, eat it up."
"Really!? Yay! So exciting!"
Gotta seal that door tight from now on.
Sung-tae thought, then spotted her ears elongating—like an elf's.
"Huh? Your ears..."
"My ears?"
But by the time he looked again, they were normal. Hallucination from the stress?
"Nah, nothing. Anyway..."
As he approached the iron door to close it, a horrifying thought dropped like a stone in his chest.
What if she'd eaten all his lust? What if it never regenerated, and his friend slept forever?
"Just to be safe."
He conjured dirty thoughts. Peering into the dim door, he saw red glow immediately—and slammed it shut.
True to form, humanity's eternal friend and foe regenerated at the mere whiff of imagination.
"Whew. Thought I was done for."
"What's 'done for' mean?"
"It's a thing. You don't need to know yet."
Relieved, Sung-tae stroked her head in thanks. But another question arose.
"By the way, what's your name?"
"Um... I dunno. Don't know my name."
"Forgotten it? Or never had one?"
"Dunno. No name. Can't remember? Dunno!"
Her furrowed brow and pout were adorable. Something tickled at the edge of her mind, but she couldn't grasp it. Sung-tae smiled warmly, then clapped.
"If it's okay with you, wanna let me name you?"
"A name... Yeah! Love it!"
"Okay, what'll it be."
Gluttony? Too obvious. Something Korean and cute?
After much deliberation:
"How about Mukkebi?"
"Mukkebi... Love it!"
"Great. From now on, you're Mukkebi!"
"Yay! I got a name!"
Bouncing with joy, she lifted his spirits too.
"Time to head back. But how do I get out?"
"I can send you. Close your eyes."
"Okay."
He obeyed, and soon felt reality return. He checked—no hole, no protrusion.
"Phew. Safe."
His booming sigh shook the room. Garba and Gepelt appeared instantly.
"My lord, what happened!?"
"An attack!?"
"Nah, just overdid my power like always. No biggie—head back."
"Mm. Understood."
His loyal retainers vanished. If he'd failed, they'd have met his friend.
Still way too strong. One sigh and the whole place shakes.
His companions were tough or undead skeletons—no casualties from his lack of restraint so far. Though he'd accidentally wounded Garba during gestures in conversation. She'd cough blood, saying, "M-my lord... a sneak attack? As expected, you teach me to stay vigilant even in peace," but her sturdy body saved her.
"This won't do. I wanna adventure, but I'm still too OP. Should've cursed me harder, damn Ignis."
Garba could handle it, maybe him too—but others? Constantly powering down 24/7? One slip with civilians...
"Need a fix now."
He had to get weaker. Somehow. For adventure!
"Maybe train to weaken... training to get weak..."
"My lord, pardon the intrusion."
Just then, Garba arrived with a small letter.
Sung-tae instinctively knew it was the letter he'd awaited, erasing his recent thoughts.
Adventure for girls? Sure. But female demon kings!? Stronger than Garba—perfect for safe fun. No need to weaken yet.
I shall honor our agreement. Await me at our previous meeting place.
—Demitrian
"From Demitrian. Says he'll keep his promise. Wait at the old spot."
"Got it. Heh."
The letter matched her words exactly. Grinning, Sung-tae lay back and closed his eyes.
"Tomorrow... tomorrow!"
Needless to say, excitement kept him up all night.
"The Demon King seems thrilled. What did you ask for...?"
"Probably strong ones. He's a born warrior."
"Makes sense. Guess I won't sleep tonight."
"Aren't you a tree monster? Don't you not need sleep?"
"......"
"How are they? The female demon kings you requested."
Sung-tae, buzzing with anticipation, stared silently at the "demon kings" Demitrian presented.
A pink-tentacled vine monster wriggling.
A massive beetle-like insect chirping.
A giant blue jelly slime quivering.
"Satisfied?"
"Where's the 'female' in these...?"
"They are female. If you meant appearance, be more specific next time. What look do you want?"
Demitrian adjusted his monocle. Sung-tae ignored him—demons knew better.
"Sigh..."
He muttered and left the mansion.
Guess I really gotta adventure.
"Hmm."
Gepelt's gaze burned into the math problem on the blackboard.
Magic, science, math—inseparable since ancient times. Solving problems to sharpen his mind was his little hobby. But this one stumped him like never before.
"Oh. If I solve it like..."
"Gepelt!"
Boom!
The tangled puzzle unraveled—then Sung-tae burst through the door, solution vanishing like mist.
"Sorry. Meant to knock, but..."
"No issue."
The answer's trace lingered. He'd solve it later.
"Whatcha doing? Did I interrupt?"
"Just a puzzle. Not work."
"Puzzle?"
"Yes. Human mathematics."
Sung-tae paused, then grinned at "mathematics." The White Void voice had mocked his useless knowledge. But math? Formulas were universal.
Hopeful, he eyed the board: two dots, dozens of curves connecting them.
"Math, right? Where's the problem?"
"This visualizes coordinates from a specific equation. Infinite curves connect them."
"Mm-hmm."
"But the shortest path? A straight line. I seek an equation for that directly."
"Straight... just connect 'em? Obvious."
"On a small board, yes. But the real world? Mountains, oceans? Intuition fails. I want the equation."
"Uh... equation... yeah. Sounds good."
He swore he heard the voice scoff: Your math solves problems, not creates new ones.
Shaking it off, he got to the point.
"You know magic, right? Got a favor."
"For you? Anything. What spell?"
"Can you cast something to weaken me?"
"Weakening magic."
Gepelt blinked—first such request. Buffs were the norm. Who wants weaker?
"Wanna visit human lands. But y'know, too strong."
"Ah."
He glanced at door shards behind Sung-tae. Agreed—their king was too strong.
Why weaken for humans? Invasion? Too strong, conquers instantly. Warriors crave real fights.
"Very well. I'll try."
"Thanks!"
His cheer shook the lab. Flasks tumbled, magic and potions evaporating.
Gepelt eyed his apologetic lord gravely.
"I'll weaken you for sure!"