The Yuria Conquest Begins
The rain hammered down in torrential sheets that evening. Disguised as Kim Taegon, I had traveled up to Seoul and now waited for Yuria in Gangbuk. My groin still ached faintly after Sehwa had essentially ridden me raw the night before. Her corrupted lust was overwhelming… yet the sheer novelty of it had been strangely satisfying.
I stood there idly tapping one foot, then the other, when Yuria spotted me from a distance. She marched over, visibly fuming.
“Uncle! Do you have any idea how worried I was?!”
From this moment on, I was Glen Elenar. Method acting: fully loaded.
My face had been carefully arranged into the gaunt, exhausted look of someone who hadn’t eaten properly for days. I gazed at the furious girl with the gentle, benevolent expression I had practiced until I thought I would lose my mind. I simply stood there beneath the black umbrella, silent.
“Are you ignoring me right n… huh?”
Yuria, who had drawn close enough to see my face clearly, flinched. Well? How does it feel to see your father’s signature look—so stern, yet so warm—after all this time? I nearly went insane practicing it, so give me a decent reaction.
“F… Father…?”
A little flat, but the expression itself is enough to make her faint on the spot, so I’ll let it slide.
“It has been a long time, my daughter.”
Even the altered tone matched Glen’s perfectly. Yuria dropped her umbrella to the side and clapped both hands over her mouth.
“Ah… Father…!”
Without a word, I shifted my umbrella over her head. The rain drummed loudly against the fabric, fat drops sliding down the ribs and splashing onto my shoulder. At the same moment, Yuria threw herself against me.
My body rocked backward from the force. The strength in the arms wrapped around my waist was surprisingly powerful.
“Father…! Hwaaaang!”
She buried her face in my chest and burst into childish sobs. It was an intensely emotional reaction—one that would be hard to reconcile with the proud, icy Yuria Elenar everyone else knew.
I patted her back in an uneven rhythm. At first the strokes were quick, almost flustered, then they slowed into the steady, comforting cadence of a father reunited with his long-lost child. The wet white shirt made wet, sticky sounds with every pat. It reminded me of the noise of pounding rice cakes.
“You’ll catch a cold standing in the rain like this. What will you do if you fall ill in the middle of summer? Let go now.”
Perhaps the scolding from a father she hadn’t seen in so long was too much. I felt her shake her head against my chest. She only cried harder, throwing a full tantrum.
“Hwaaaaaang! Daddy…! Don’t… hic… say things like that…!”
“Daddy? A princess should mind her dignity.”
“Hiiiing…!”
She let out a nasal whine like a spoiled child. Enough teasing for now.
I softened my voice and comforted her gently.
“You’ve endured so much.”
We booked a hotel in Gangbuk and took separate showers before settling in for a long conversation. What Yuria wanted to know most was about my reincarnation—whether I had fully returned as Glen or not.
I stroked her tear-swollen face once, then smiled warmly as I delivered the fabricated story: that I had dreamed of my past life every single night without fail, leaving me no chance to contact her, and that I had only just managed to locate my own existence.
“…That is how it happened. Right now, the soul of Glen Edward and the soul of Kim Taegon coexist within me.”
“Coexist…?”
“Yes. More precisely, Kim Taegon’s soul is in the process of being overwritten by mine. His memories remain inside me as well—the memories of a Daejeon native and a successful real estate businessman.”
“I don’t… understand. Is that how reincarnation works?”
“The living proof stands before you. Do not overcomplicate it. I am still your father, unchanged.”
“Ah…”
Another tear slipped from Yuria’s large eyes. She must have been incredibly happy about my return. I brushed the droplet from her soft cheek and asked,
“Daughter, how exactly did you survive? When I searched my memories, it did not seem you had reincarnated as I did… So how did you travel from the kingdom all the way here?”
“I…”
Yuria explained the circumstances of her arrival in a jumbled rush. The words and sentences leaped all over the place, but organizing them was easy for me. Why? Because I already knew her story.
After listening, I summarized it neatly.
“You succeeded in portal research and came through? You never showed any interest in such transcendent technology before.”
“It was purely coincidence. I followed the research logs left by the dead mages… I boarded it without thinking, solely for revenge, but fortunately I was able to trace Tyrat’s magical power.”
I deliberately hardened my expression. Yuria tensed immediately and swallowed.
“Daughter, a certain American pastor once said something famous. You cannot drive out darkness with darkness. Only light can banish it.”
How about that? Doesn’t it sound just like the sort of thing your father used to say?
Yuria shot back without missing a beat.
“The Bible also contains the saying that whoever sheds the blood of man will have his own blood shed by man. Tyrat must be prepared to bleed as well.”
“I have no intention of stopping you. I only meant that if you become consumed by hatred, you may ruin everything. Do not lose yourself; observe your surroundings with a cool head.”
“I understand your words, Father. I came not only for revenge, but also because I do not want any more victims to fall to Tyrat.”
Only then did my face soften again.
“If that is your reason, then it is acceptable. However… it seems Tyrat is quite active here. I hear many perish every time a gate opens.”
“…Until now…”
“Is it because you lack strength? This is a devastated planet where magic is difficult to use, after all…”
“That’s… not it. Well… I did lack strength until now, but I have it now.”
“You have it now?”
“Please look at this, Father.”
Yuria extended her left arm. On her slender wrist was a Device disguised as a watch.
I tilted my head.
“What am I supposed to be looking at?”
“This watch. Can’t you feel some kind of… mysterious power from it?”
“Hmm… May I examine it closely?”
“Of course.”
Without the slightest hesitation, Yuria removed the Device and handed it to me. She must have been warned by Dr. Cash and the pre-corrupted Sehwa never to give it to anyone… The fact that she handed it over without suspicion showed just how much she trusted blood relatives.
I took the Device carefully and brought it close to my eyes. I wanted to corrupt it immediately, but Yuria was the most sensitive of the five—no, four—Beast Slayers now. I could not afford to plant even the smallest seed of doubt with a careless move. Patience. There would be plenty of opportunities.
“I feel nothing from it.”
“You don’t…?”
“No. When I was younger my magical sensitivity was excellent, but… I am sorry I cannot be of help.”
When Yuria saw my deeply disappointed face, she waved her hands frantically.
“No, no! Just having you by my side puts my heart at ease. That alone is more than enough help.”
“I feel the same. Still, what kind of power does this watch hold that you are making such a fuss over it?”
“To explain it simply, it is a form of polymorph.”
“Polymorph? Like the magic dragons use in legends?”
“Yes. But it is different from the polymorph we know. In fact, it is far more remarkable.”
Yuria explained everything about the Device and Aether to me—everything except the charging method. It seemed she was too embarrassed to describe Aether’s lewd nature to her own father.
After listening, I opened my mouth in astonishment, exactly like someone hearing about such tremendous power for the first time.
“…Does that make sense? You can wield such superhuman strength without any conditions?”
“That is how we killed Astaroth. Well… my comrades and I, together.”
“Astaroth…! The one who slaughtered every mage in the tower… That bastard… is truly dead?”
I ground my teeth, radiating fury. Excellent voice acting. Excellent facial expression. Yuria, completely taken in by my performance, puffed out her chest with confidence and let out a strong snort.
“Yes. I confirmed his complete annihilation.”
Ah… how sad. Astaroth, that loose-lipped yet fiercely loyal fellow. I offer another prayer for your soul.
“Well done. I am proud of you.”
“Without Dr. Jennifer Cash, Lee Sehwa, and Mr. Song Jihyeok, the casualties would have been catastrophic.”
“Song Jihyeok…? You don’t mean the Song Jihyeok I know…?”
Yuria gave me a look of mild reproach as I feigned confusion.
“Yes. That loose-lipped uncle Kim Taegon told him everything about me.”
“…Ahem…”
“But since you didn’t say it yourself, Father… I’ll let it slide. Still… once your soul fully settles in, what will happen to Mr. Kim Taegon’s soul?”
Her tone was filled with concern. How kind of you, my daughter, worrying even about Kim Taegon.
“Kim Taegon’s soul and Glen Elenar’s soul are one and the same. He was merely a vessel that appeared in this world for the sake of my reincarnation—nothing more, nothing less. The wording may sound harsh, but do not worry.”
“…Even so, it hurts my heart. He was clumsy, but he was a good man…”
“That clumsiness belonged to me when I was Kim Taegon. I told you not to concern yourself.”
“Yes… Father.”
“So… I would like to see this transformation of yours. Does it resemble the Beast Slayer Leona in my memories?”
Yuria shook her head with a complicated expression.
“It is similar, but… there are conditions required for transformation.”
“What sort of conditions?”
“Well…”
She slipped her hand into her hair and fidgeted with the back of her neck. I laughed at her inwardly while keeping a mask of curiosity on my face.
“What is it?”
“It’s… that the energy is so powerful that the conditions are rather… strict…”
“That makes sense.”
“It… it says the energy is charged through… sexual acts with someone you love…”
“……”
When I narrowed my eyes, Yuria nervously straightened the front of her gown. After a long silence, I spoke in a stern voice.
“We have only just reunited, and yet you play such pranks on your father…”
“It’s true! Ever since you caught me stealing bread from the palace chef when I was little, I have never told a lie!”
“That is true, but…”
I pressed my forehead and pretended to massage several spots on my head as if suffering from a migraine. Then I let out a deep sigh and looked up.
“So it is the truth.”
“Yes… I told you so.”
“It is like something out of a fairy tale—a dragon that came down to enjoy worldly pleasures. What a mischievous power.”
“Right…?”
“I can only laugh. So, do you have someone you like right now?”
Yuria shook her head. Why? I’m right here. The person you love and trust most in the world.
“It seems you don’t. Then… how much is the Device charged?”
“Three percent… It runs out the moment I transform. Dr. Cash and Mr. Song Jihyeok said they would increase the capacity, but… charging comes first. We never know when another monster might appear… But since there’s no one like that, I feel completely lost.”
“I may be able to help a little…”
“Huh…? You, Father?”
“Do you remember Aaron?”
At those words, Yuria’s entire body shuddered. Her face flooded with longing, growing dreamy as though she were lost in a beautiful illusion. You remember your fiancé quite clearly.
After a long moment, Yuria shook her head as if trying to dispel the thought. Then she asked,
“Why are you suddenly bringing up Aaron?”
“……”
“Tell me quickly, Father.”
She was getting impatient. Just wait. Let me wet my lips first…
“For the past several days I have been having dreams that restore my memories every night. Today was the same. I dreamed—or rather, sensed—that Aaron, the former knight commander of the kingdom and your fiancé, is here on Earth.”
Yuria’s blue eyes blazed with light like a lightning strike. I could almost hear the flash. Now, let us begin the real conquest.