Chapter 165
Chapter 165
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 165
Chapter Title: Empathize with Me
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"Chick chick."
Krashu kept his smile plastered on while listening to the noisy chatter of the outer disciples.
Bioiren was the suspicious type by nature.
Even if you approached her with good intentions, she'd only grow more wary and pull away further.
Of course, that made perfect sense.
Half of her blood came from a World Erosion being, so she'd lived her whole life on constant guard against everyone.
Even as the child of the Demon Emperor, he hadn't taken any real interest in raising her.
'To the Demon Emperor, Bioiren was nothing more than an object of curiosity.'
What would happen if a World Erosion being and a human had a child?
Out of sheer curiosity, he'd brought in a World Erosion barrier master and had her conceive.
The result was Bioiren.
Once she'd satisfied that curiosity, Bioiren held no further value to the Demon Emperor.
But since she wasn't a financial burden, he'd at least kept her alive.
And so, Bioiren had grown up alone.
'Mages, honestly.'
Mages were creatures who pushed curiosity and exploration to their extremes.
That drive often led them to trample over the dignity of living beings or cross lines they never should—just to satisfy their thirst for knowledge.
That's why, whenever the world's craziest bastards were named, mages always filled every finger on both hands.
This was exactly why Krashu had little fondness for the study of magic.
Even the pinnacle of magic, the Demon Emperor, was such a lunatic—who's to say the rest were any different?
That's also why the Red Witch Abella, who had regressed alongside him, had always rubbed him the wrong way.
To Krashu, she was a ticking time bomb, ready to blow at any moment.
Krashu decided to cut those thoughts short there.
He had too many pressing tasks to dwell on problems he couldn't solve right now.
For the moment, Bioiren was the priority.
"Simple. Just create a barrier that keeps other World Erosion beings from sensing me."
"...What?"
Bioiren's face went blank again.
It was the kind of expression that screamed, What the hell did you just say?
But Krashu pressed on without a care.
"I'm a target for World Erosion beings right now. Figured I'd block that."
The Black Witch, who had been spying through her Lightstone, now had eyes on Krashu.
She'd also know he was Valheim's youngest son.
But she wouldn't approach recklessly yet.
All the information swirling around him was far too suspicious.
In front of the Lightstone, as he fought, Krashu had wielded World Erosion power like it was nothing.
And that was just one of many red flags.
The more she dug into his actions, the stranger it would all seem.
'By now, she's probably noticed Ebelask and Crimson Garden hovering around me, starting from there.'
The Black Witch pursued the grand goal of creating a god of World Erosion.
One mistake could ruin everything.
Of course she'd proceed with caution.
'It's a far cry from when she could just snatch away Rai-hyung's son without a second thought.'
So the Black Witch had kept her distance so far, just observing his movements.
'But that won't last much longer.'
Being the Black Witch, she'd soon piece it together and make her move.
'Whether as a deal or an abduction...'
It all depended on how Krashu handled it.
That's why he needed Bioiren's barrier arts.
If those gathering intel couldn't get a clear read on him, it'd only make him seem more intriguing.
'I need to become a walking variable the Ixion bastards can't ignore.'
Krashu locked eyes with Bioiren.
Her face was a complicated mess for all sorts of reasons.
Valheim's youngest had casually revealed World Erosion power,
and now he was talking about dodging World Erosion senses. Her brain couldn't keep up.
"...You."
Bioiren fidgeted with her lips before slyly asking,
"Is your mom a World Erosion being, by any chance?"
Her eyes shook wildly.
It was a reasonable question—one she'd probably pondered herself.
Just like her, Krashu might have World Erosion blood,
and that could be why he was tangled up with them.
There was even a subtle, unspoken hope that maybe she'd met someone like her.
A lonely island in the vast ocean would naturally rejoice at spotting another.
Krashu mulled it over for a moment.
He could spin a white lie if he wanted.
But he decided against it.
The betrayal when it came out would hit harder.
"No, neither of them has any World Erosion ties."
"Ah... I see."
A flicker of disappointment crossed Bioiren's eyes the instant she heard it.
She was clinging to the idea of a kindred spirit without even realizing it.
No one in this world could understand her plight.
So she couldn't hide her letdown.
"But."
Krashu wrapped his hand in the same black flame as before, slowly rolling it in his palm.
"I do know what it's like to be eaten away by World Erosion."
Krashu had suppressed his World Erosion frenzy using eye dolls and various devices.
World Erosion was pure poison to humans.
So he understood just how vicious that poison was.
"And from here on, I'll help you stand against it."
"..."
A lack of empathy.
Bioiren, forever the isolated island.
To her—who could only stand alone, never accepting help—
the offer of aid from someone hit harder than expected.
Someone who had endured the same trials and survived.
That alone could steel a person's resolve in unexpected ways.
Krashu knew that better than anyone.
That's why he'd approached her deliberately.
"Whether World Erosion or human, fuck it—neither matters to someone like me who doesn't belong anywhere."
Recalling her heated outburst, Krashu gazed at Bioiren.
"..."
Bioiren stared back in heavy silence.
A whirlwind of thoughts flashed in her eyes.
She'd met someone who could empathize with her situation for the first time.
"...You proposed this deal because you figured my shitty personality wouldn't just take help at face value, right?"
And that follow-up was pure Bioiren.
"Think what you want."
Bioiren clenched her fists tight.
After a long silence, she yanked the hair tie from her ponytail with a snap.
Silver locks cascaded down freely.
She'd always tied it up to avoid staring at her natural color—a constant reminder of her barrier master heritage.
But now, for some reason, she didn't care anymore.
She tilted her chin up with a sniff.
Despite the prickly scowl, her face looked far more at ease.
Realizing she wasn't alone on that vast ocean had burrowed deeper into her heart than she'd imagined.
"...So how the hell am I supposed to make something like that? I can't even handle my own World Erosion."
"Haha."
Krashu laughed at that.
As Bioiren shot him a glare, he grinned with wicked glee.
"Too bad—looks like you'll be flipping back to your shell next month."
In other words, figure it out if you want to live like a person.
Bioiren's face twisted in disbelief.
One second he's offering help, the next he's like this.
Unbelievable.
But that rebellious spark of hers latched right onto it.
"Fuck it, fine—challenge accepted. I'll whip up something that'll have you eating your words! I've already bitten the poisoned apple—what's one more?"
With a furious yell, Bioiren spun on her heel and stomped off.
Her shorter legs nearly tripped her, but she powered through stubbornly.
Her face burned with determination.
An endless road had finally revealed a signpost ahead.
Krashu watched her go, then rubbed his own face.
It ached from holding that enigmatic expression.
Krashu pretended not to hear about Crimson Garden.
Even Crimson Garden couldn't make heads or tails of how he'd stabilized Bioiren's World Erosion.
Krashu's explanation sounded plausible, but he'd only handled World Erosion through eye dolls and the secret art Extreme Blood Poison Infusion.
Implanting an eye doll in Bioiren wasn't an option, so there'd been no obvious fix.
Krashu gave Crimson Garden a straightforward answer.
It wasn't anything special, after all.
"Bioiren was already near mastery in barrier arts from the start."
Desperate to survive, she'd poured everything into researching barriers.
Combining that with magic had brought her art close to perfection, as Krashu said.
But even she had a weakness.
She'd reached a new hybrid barrier magic, but her knowledge of reagents was lacking.
"Just swapping the materials in her usual reagents flipped the results entirely."
That's why he'd asked Darling to make those drugs.
Bioiren had mistaken Darling's interrogation potion for a reagent and used it—leading to this outcome.
In truth, Krashu hadn't even offered a proper trade.
Darling deserved all the credit for solving it.
"Just using everything at my disposal."
If it helps sis and bro-in-law, everyone's happy, right?
After striking the deal with Bioiren,
she came looking for Krashu every single day.
"Hey, fuck—success this time!"
As Krashu finished his martial arts training and stepped outside, Bioiren stood there holding a necklace.
Ever since he'd crushed Arsold Preah and the imperial faction,
no one dared mess with him.
Everyone knew crossing him meant inviting disaster.
So the kids were stunned at first to see Bioiren trash-talking him freely.
But Krashu didn't rein her in.
Seeing him treat her like an old acquaintance, the kids soon got used to her too.
Plus, her identity as Bioiren Sedni had come out.
Even if she tried hiding it, the professor called her name during roll call.
Her true identity spread through the academy inevitably.
The idea that the hulking Bioiren hid this adorable little kid inside had everyone buzzing for a while.
It had quieted down by now, though.
"So cute. Want some, Bioiren?"
"Sis brought cookies!"
Her natural look made her the apple of every girl's eye.
Especially the martial arts girls—they doted on her hard.
Compared to the muscle-bound brutes in martial studies, her pristine innocence stood out starkly.
"Fuck off, what the hell!"
Bioiren freaked out and yelled, of course.
Krashu pushed through the girls for her sake.
They scattered quick when he approached.
They knew better than to tangle with him.
"Let me see."
Krashu took the necklace and slipped it on.
Then he glanced at his brooch.
If it could fool World Erosion senses, it had to fool Crimson Garden's too.
It didn't.
"Nope."
Failure.
Krashu took it off and handed it back.
Bioiren gnashed her teeth with a "Damn it."
But as if she'd half-expected it, she turned and bolted off.
Typical of her competitive streak.
She'd keep bringing them until it worked.
Good attitude.
'Her expressions are softening up more and more.'
At first, awkward in her true form, she'd been all shy and hesitant.
Worried sick about people knowing she was Bioiren.
But as she grew comfortable in her skin and with others' views, she started adapting to this life.
And that adaptation hit her harder than she'd ever imagined.
Always hiding in her shell, she'd never learned to connect honestly with people.
World Erosion gnawing at her forced her to scrape through death's door daily, honing only her barriers.
Needless to say, she'd built zero real relationships—and had no time for them.
But with her World Erosion stabilized and her true self sustainable, everything changed.
For one, she could finally hear honest feedback from those around her.
No more shell to skew reactions negatively; she could respond genuinely.
It helped mend those shattered emotions deep inside more than she'd thought.
Plus, she wasn't chained to daily barrier grinding anymore.
She could finally look around at the world.
The effects were profound, sparking changes everywhere.
She even had spare time while crafting the anti-World Erosion sense barrier Krashu requested.
That's when it hit her.
This task filled the void that had loomed after her survival goal vanished.
It quietly fueled her drive to keep going.
"Krashu!"
That's why these daily visits felt so rewarding.
"Again."
His curt "Again" ground her gears, but she looked forward to refining it next time.
And the day she'd shove it in his smug face? Thrilling.
The world was starting to feel bigger somehow.
Never dreamed life could feel this fulfilling.
"Again."
She snatched the pendant from him as he barked it again, then paused mid-turn.
Glancing back, a crowd was already gathering around him.
He had a knack for drawing people in.
Rough around the edges like her,
but those close knew his heart was different.
Krashu shared so many similarities with her.
Maybe... I could live like that too.
"...Haha."
A ridiculous laugh slipped out.
Thinking that, even briefly, was hilarious.
But it showed how much she'd stabilized.
Still, a twinge of regret stirred too.
One day, she'd finish this barrier for him.
What then? An uncontrollable emptiness?
Her life's goal had always been mere survival.
Abandoned by her mother, discarded by her father—what goal was left?
"Bioiren."
During those pensive days,
Krashu called her back after his usual "Again," just as she turned to leave.
"If you want to find your mother."
Bioiren's pupils slowly widened.
"Finish the barrier, then come see me again. I'll give you a lead."
Finding her mother.
A thought she'd never entertained.
Her lips quivered.
How the hell do you know that?
But Krashu said nothing more and walked away.
Bioiren stared blankly at his back, clutching the test pendant tight.
"What, you read minds or something...?"
Yet something filled the void in her heart.
Whether deliberate or to spur her on, she couldn't tell.
But it definitely patched that hollow ache.
"Pathetic."
Bioiren huffed a breath and dashed off.
Her fading eyes reignited with resolve.
Bioiren Jeblam.
The moment her inner self began to grow.