Chapter 60
Chapter 60
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: Bosom Friend!
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“Kuh, kuheup!”
The sniffing sounds kept coming.
Ever since his body ended up like this, he'd developed rhinitis or maybe his throat was clogged tight.
Whatever the reason—and he had no clue—he had to clear his airway like that before he could speak.
“Kuheup!”
No words came out, just more sniffing. Truth be told, he was trying to say something.
But he was nervous, and he worried he'd blurt out something weird, so the words just sank back into his mouth.
“Deokgu-ssi.”
Whether she understood or just had something she wanted to say herself, Seoh Hajin called to him softly with a faint smile.
“Y-Yes! Kuheup!”
“I heard you're a former holy knight of great renown.”
Kim Deokgu pursed his lips.
He took a needless sip from the coffee in front of him.
He knew.
There was no way Seoh Hajin could have looked him up.
If the marriage agency's president had arranged this meeting without revealing he was Ducarion—and had the pull to set up a date between her and him—he wouldn't be running some small outfit.
“Actually, that's why I have something to ask.”
“Kuheup! Y-Yes, yes.”
But this was different from Maria's case.
Kim Deokgu accepted it.
As if she had every right to know.
“Why did you bestow holy power on me?”
“……”
“Actually, Ms. Maria misunderstood and came to find me. She thought I had the holy power suited for sealing the demon.”
“Ah.”
The strange puzzle pieces clicked into place.
Kim Deokgu finally understood how Maria had tracked him down.
“Why... did you give holy power to me of all people?”
“Ku, kuheup.”
Why had he given her holy power?
His hands fidgeted on his thick thighs.
“W-Whatever. Kuheup—I wanted to help you.”
“You wanted to help me?”
“Y-Yes. Kuheup! Y-You might not know, but... when I listened to your s-songs, kuheup! I drew so much strength from them.”
“……”
Stumbling upon Prism's songs had been pure chance.
Seoh Hajin popped up in his Nutube algorithm.
She was pretty, sang well, danced with all her heart, and worked harder than anyone.
“I-I saw ambition in you. Kuheup.”
“Ambition?”
“I-I had it too.”
“……”
It was the same look in her eyes.
A noble ambition.
Or, simply put, a dream.
But Kim Deokgu deliberately called it ambition.
Calling it a "dream" felt like making excuses to his two friends, who had died helping him chase it.
“Y-You... kuheup! I thought you shouldn't end up regretting like me.”
“……”
“Ku, kuheup! Seoh... Seoh Hajin-ssi.”
“Yes.”
His breathing was ragged, but the words he forced out were careful.
“Pr-Prism activities... kuheup! D-Did they make you happy?”
“Yes, absolutely. The best time of my life.”
“Any conflicts with the members—?”
“None. They all took great care of me, and I treasure them all.”
“If you could go back—?”
“There might be parts I wouldn't mind changing, but even so, I'd still do Prism.”
Deokgu listened intently, verifying each answer, and a faint smile tugged at his lips.
“Ku, kuheup! That's a relief. You won't end up with regrets like me.”
“……”
“Th-That's what I wanted to hear today. Ku, kuheup! That I didn't do something pointless.”
Of course, Kim Deokgu knew wanting more was greedy.
An idol alum like Seoh Hajin, paired with him?
Impossible, no matter how you sliced it.
Seoh Hajin stared at him blankly, then let out a small laugh.
“Deokgu-ssi, you're a good person.”
“……”
“Deokgu-ssi, you're my fan, right?”
“Ku, kuheup! Yes! Of course!”
Seoh Hajin slowly pulled out a ticket.
It was written in childish, crooked handwriting.
“Wh-What’s this? Kuheup?!”
“I'm actually doing my final performance. This is the ticket. Not as Prism, but solo. It was my dream.”
“I-I'll go! Definitely! Kuwhoop!”
Kim Deokgu clutched the ticket preciously, his butt wiggling in excitement.
“The handwriting's awful, right? I suck at writing.”
He shook his head vigorously at Seoh Hajin, who scratched her cheek bashfully.
“N-No! Kuheup! I'll treasure it!”
“Can you read the date and place? I put some effort into it.”
“Y-Yes! Kuheup! Two days from now! The place is—”
Silos Grand Cathedral.
“……”
Kim Deokgu stared at Seoh Hajin in a daze, and she flashed a mischievous smile.
“Why?”
“Ku, kuheup. This place... it's dangerous.”
“I know. But I'm performing there no matter what.”
Seoh Hajin rose slowly from her seat, her smile unchanged.
“It's revenge.”
“Kuheup?!”
“You gave me holy power on your own, making me dream pointless dreams.”
She'd hoped retiring would let her become a demon-slaying holy knight. Something more meaningful than being an idol.
But those hopes had burst like soap bubbles.
Bittersweet, but unavoidable.
“So I'll push your back on my own.”
“……”
“I struggled too, had moments I wanted to collapse—but sometimes, out of nowhere on stage, strength would surge. That had to be you pushing me.”
“……”
“Thanks for helping me, Deokgu-ssi. This time, I'll lift you up on my own.”
She patted Deokgu's shoulder lightly and headed out of the cafe.
Kim Deokgu stared blankly at the ticket, then snapped his head up at the footsteps approaching from the front.
“Aigoo, she left her coffee behind.”
The suited man smirked, pulled out the straw, and chugged Seoh Hajin's leftover coffee.
The man who'd orchestrated this whole setup.
Meracle's president, Kim Juseon.
“Why are you here?”
Deokgu asked blankly, and Kim Juseon shrugged.
“Well, I've got business on the 4th Floor, but going alone feels kinda lonely?”
“……”
“Wanna come along?”
It took longer than expected to reach Silos Grand Cathedral.
After arriving in the city, they rode a carriage deep into the inland.
A massive white cathedral standing alone in a vast plain, as if dropped from the sky.
With its spires, sculptures, and stone walls, it could pass for a tourist spot.
But for its size, there were shockingly few people.
Even from outside the carriage, you could tell the numbers were sparse.
“P-President.”
“Yeah?”
Kim Yang, who'd insisted on tagging along despite being told she didn't have to.
Reneah didn't want to come to Rajesta Continent at all, so she'd been left behind.
Probably working a convenience store shift right now?
“M-Memorial photo.”
“What're we commemorating?”
Thwack.
She poked his shoulder and glared.
With no choice, he stood in front of her raised phone. She slyly hooked her arm through his, using the carriage window as backdrop, and snapped photos.
Click! Click! Click! Click!
‘How many is she taking?’
She changed poses and expressions midway, while he stayed stiff and still.
For the record, they weren't alone in the carriage.
A man occupying two seats by himself sat opposite.
“Ku, kuheup. D-Die, you two. Couple. Ku, kuheup.”
“Aren't you a bit too steeped in 3rd Floor culture?”
Was a former holy knight allowed to say stuff like that?
Perfect timing, though.
They were nearing the cathedral, so he seized the chance to ask.
“Deokgu-ssi, tell me straight. Can you reseal it?”
“……”
“I heard the story. You originally did it with your two bosom friends.”
His face darkened sharply.
But this wasn't something to brush off as personal trauma.
“Tell me. It's important. You know that, which is why you came all this way, right?”
Kim Deokgu hadn't really come just to see Seoh Hajin's concert.
He had something lingering in his heart too.
“Is it possible?”
Deokgu nodded faintly at the question.
“Ku, kuheup. Resealing... I can do it. More than possible, kuheup.”
“Good. Keep it simple. You're not going as a holy knight. You're going as Kim Deokgu, to protect your favorite idol's stage.”
“Kuheup.”
“We'll fix it quick, watch the show, get a handshake and autograph. Okay?”
“Ku, kuheup! Okay!”
“Good. Let's enjoy that pretty idol shaking her hips hard.”
“……”
“……”
It was supposed to be a killer joke.
But both sides stared with looks of disgust, so he turned to the window.
Upon arriving at the cathedral, Maria greeted them. She'd come to the 4th Floor yesterday with Seoh Hajin-ssi ahead of time.
“This way. The concert is ready.”
Following Maria's lead into the cathedral. It grew dimmer as they descended, like entering a real dome concert hall.
“Here we are.”
A massive hall inside.
At its center, a giant golden sphere.
Word was, smoke swirled inside, obscuring the view—but now, the demon's hazy form was faintly visible.
And opposite it.
On the platform stood Seoh Hajin and the nuns.
The nuns wouldn't perform, but they'd fill out the backup roles, apparently.
‘There's choir teams and such.’
It made sense, as long as they didn't get in the way.
Our Deokgu-ssi was the real deal, after all.
“……!”
The bishop, already seated, spotted Deokgu-ssi and his eyes widened like they might tear.
He must've been shocked.
Ducarion was alive, after all.
But he said nothing.
Maria had begged him repeatedly not to burden him.
Here, he wasn't Ducarion.
Just Kim Deokgu.
He walked beside Deokgu-ssi like a guide.
“Alright, Deokgu-ssi. Let's go. Reseal it, and enjoy our concert.”
“Ku, kuheup—!”
“Look at this.”
He pulled a light stick from his pocket.
Sparkling green glow.
“Bought this to cheer with you. Not bad, right?”
“Ku, kuheup. Pr-Prism is pink.”
“……Hurry up.”
Kim Deokgu approached the seal slowly.
Steadying his breath, he extended his hand, and holy power began to manifest.
And then.
Kwaaaaaang!
A leg protruded from the golden sphere.
Black and utterly inhuman, it resembled a bird's—or a beast's.
The moment they saw the shattered seal fragments rolling across the floor.
Everyone froze.
What they'd overlooked—
One.
Demons never forget those who've humiliated them—
Two.
They were far more cunning than expected.
Even deliberately leaving the seal intact.
“I knew you were alive.”
A voice scraped at their minds from within the sphere.
“I believed you'd come.”
The only being who knew Ducarion lived in this world—and had kept it hidden.
“Come with me to the Abyss. Become my clown, fear and fear again.”
Its black leg swelled. Balloon-like bulges formed one by one—
“Ducarion.”
Pop! Two demons burst forth.
Demons said to form an army alone.
Arhelak, the self-splitting demon.
Slimy mucus clung to their bodies as they straightened up to over 2 meters tall.
Black skin, six horns, crimson eyes.
Born just moments ago from the sphere's demon, they were unmistakably Arhelak.
Proof: their bodies swelled again, birthing more selves.
“Ah, aaah—.”
Deokgu-ssi slumped in despair, but he yanked out his spear and charged forward.
“Kim Yang—! Take Deokgu-ssi and run!”
“President!”
She called urgently, but the demons had already spotted him. And he'd already jammed his spear into one’s head.
Kuduk!
Blood spurted as one collapsed. But two had spawned.
The other was finishing its split.
“Ha—.”
He exhaled shortly and ground his teeth.
“Gonna get hauled to the Management Bureau.”
In an instant, the spear in his grip flashed like lightning, piercing the demon.
Arhelak had been waiting for him.
That fact drained the strength from Kim Deokgu's legs.
The valiant holy knight who'd once swung his sword at demons was gone.
Buried under layers of flab, all that remained was the useless shell called Kim Deokgu.
Trembling, unable to move.
Kwang!
One splitting demon slammed into the wall.
The immense force impaled it, the spear shaft vibrating tautly up and down.
The thrower was the marriage agency president, Kim Juseon—who'd seemed utterly ordinary until moments ago.
White smoke-like vapor poured from his body.
At first, he'd thought it was friction.
Like racing tires smoking from speed.
But no.
If anything, dry ice.
Something like intense cold flowed from his body.
And that was.
Not Earth's awakening.
Not Rajesta's mana.
Not Old Martial World's inner energy.
Not Cyber City's oversync.
Even different from the bizarre, bottomless power of the Abyss demons he'd fought personally.
The Tower had rules.
Powers granted only to those native to each world.
‘What... is that?’
But to Kim Deokgu, seasoned by vast experience, it was a force unlike anything from any floor he knew.
“Kim Deokgu-ssi!”
Then, a thunderous call.
Kim Juseon yanked the spear from the wall-pinned demon corpse and charged the still-splitting Arhelak, shouting.
“Run!”
His cry as he advanced spear-first—
‘Duk!’
His old childhood friend, the spear's original owner.
‘Fall back!’
Overlapped with Valkar, his bosom friend.