Chapter 39
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: Superior-Subordinate Relationship
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Yi Seo-ryeong's story was more shocking than I had anticipated.
Of course, I was already aware to some extent that the Central Plains held deeply rooted beliefs in male superiority.
I just hadn't realized it ran this deep.
All Otherworlders receive education upon arrival here about the differences between this world and the Central Plains.
It's to prevent issues arising from ideological and cultural differences.
That's why I'd never heard of any Otherworlders from the Central Plains causing problems.
Moreover, the first group from the Central Plains I encountered was the Demonic Cult.
Geumgang, who served as Heavenly Demon Jahwa-yeon's protector, and everyone else treated their lord with utmost respect, regardless of her being a woman.
Looking back now, it was probably because the Demonic Cult prioritized strength over gender distinctions...
I never imagined that the orthodox sects, known for their righteousness and nobility, would be rife with gender discrimination that even the ultimate demonic faction lacked.
That was my biggest misconception.
But through her long tale, one thing became crystal clear.
Yi Seo-ryeong truly loves Seol Yu-wol.
That's certain.
It's just that her love is twisted.
To her, Seol Yu-wol is a mirror reflecting her own past.
Under the pretext of sparing her daughter the pain she endured...
Yi Seo-ryeong controls her.
I slowly opened my mouth.
"Thank you for sharing so much that was weighing on your heart. Thanks to you, I now understand your situation much more deeply."
At my words, a faint smile of relief bloomed over her sorrowful face.
She seemed convinced that I had been moved by her story.
But I needed to correct her most fundamental misconception.
I leaned forward, locking eyes with her directly.
"However, there's one thing the Alliance Leader is overlooking."
My cold voice made her smile stiffen again.
"This is no longer the hellish Central Plains where you lived."
I gestured toward the glittering city nightscape outside the window.
This is South Korea.
Here, you can become anything you want.
"Women here aren't playthings. They can live independently without a man's protection. You already know that, don't you, Alliance Leader?"
"Even so...!"
The moment Yi Seo-ryeong instinctively tried to retort,
I smoothly switched her title.
"The walls Seo-ryeong-ssi built to protect your daughter might now be a prison blocking the free world she deserves."
Her expression darkened further.
"And second. Seol Yu-wol, your daughter, has the right to live her own life."
I paused, acknowledging her past.
"Taking in the young Yu-wol from those ashes... Anyone would praise that as commendable. Yu-wol probably thought the same her whole life."
Her eyes wavered faintly at those words.
"However..."
Looking into her trembling gaze, I drove in the final nail.
"That doesn't mean your good deed gets to dictate one person's life path."
My final words sank the air in the counseling room.
Yi Seo-ryeong's gentle brow furrowed ever so slightly.
It wasn't anger.
It was the face of someone realizing the beliefs that had sustained her all her life might crumble.
She whispered in an almost pleading, sadder voice.
And she clutched my hand.
"No... Physician..."
Her hot warmth seeped into the back of my hand.
"The men of the Central Plains haven't changed at all... They're just pretending to fit this world's laws. Their deep-rooted thoughts remain unchanged."
"I see."
She continued as if grasping her last lifeline.
"So for my daughter to be safe from those beasts..."
Right then,
I gently cut her off.
"In that case, Seo-ryeong-ssi."
I slowly, one by one, pried loose her slender fingers gripping the back of my hand.
Then, before it could slip away, I gripped it firmly again.
Her eyes widened in surprise at my unexpected action.
Gazing into her shaken eyes, I posed my final question.
"Wouldn't keeping your precious daughter away from those with such dangerous ideologies be the most effective protection?"
"......"
"So why put her at the head of those beasts?"
Yi Seo-ryeong had no answer.
She only weakly struggled to pull her hand free from mine.
But even that faint resistance soon melted away.
"She can now live happily and safely without the shelter of the Azure Heaven Alliance Leader title."
She must have sensed it subconsciously.
In this world... she might need to change how she protects Seol Yu-wol.
Coming to this world alone had stripped away her sole goal and life's direction: Seol Yu-wol.
Yet amid that vast emptiness and worry, she forged a new reason to live.
'What if my daughter comes here someday.'
She bet everything on that slim possibility, erecting the massive fortress called the Azure Heaven Alliance.
And from its highest tower, she became Alliance Leader once more, solely for her daughter.
Then Seol Yu-wol finally appeared.
Her one true goal, her reason for living, stood whole and unharmed before her.
She simply did her absolute best.
It's just that the perfect prison she built for her daughter was somewhat outdated.
"Hic..."
A tiny sound escaped between her red lips.
Yi Seo-ryeong finally began to sob.
Her hand, which had been held by mine as if seeking support, now desperately clutched mine in return.
She couldn't cry out loud.
She only let unending tears fall ceaselessly onto the obsidian table.
I said nothing.
I merely granted her hand what it sought.
While waiting for her sobs to subside, I clarified my goals for the next conversation.
This peculiar mother-daughter bond wasn't mere one-sided dependence.
As much as Seol Yu-wol relied on her mother, paradoxically, Yi Seo-ryeong clung just as fiercely to the daughter she had to protect.
Thus, severing Yi Seo-ryeong's twisted dependence first would be the most desirable treatment.
Now, how to do it...
I couldn't push further right now.
Yi Seo-ryeong needed time to sort her thoughts.
Demanding too much change at once only brings strong backlash.
That was when it happened.
A familiar window appeared before my eyes.
[An irregular approach from the client has been detected!]
[The system presents the user with two approach methods! (ﾉ´∩｡• ᵕ •｡∩)ﾉ]
Huh?
I furrowed my brow for a moment.
It had been ages since my ability last approached me like this, offering choices.
Back when I first fell into this world, awakened my power, and was fumbling around cluelessly.
The system used to help me this way.
'Alright, let's hear it.'
Nostalgia washing over me, I listened to the system.
Its suggestions and solutions had always been excellent back then.
Expecting a wise fix this time too, I awaited the proposals.
[First option!]
[Instill a perfect superior-subordinate relationship with the client Yi Seo-ryeong, a Central Plains native steeped to the bone in male superiority ideology!]
What?
[Teach her body and soul that a woman's true peace and joy lie not in ruling from a jade throne, but under a man's protection.]
[That the true tranquility she craved her whole life is in the ecstasy of willingly submitting...]
Hey.
[(〃⌒▽⌒〃)]
Why are you so chipper? Have you lost it?
[(◞‸◟ς)]
I watched till the end, and it went all the way. How is this even a treatment method?
This thing's been acting off lately. Looks like it needs a serious talk...
Anyway, let's hear the second one.
I decided to trust its potential a bit longer.
[Second option!]
It eagerly launched into the explanation.
[You directly create the peace she so desperately wanted.]
[Become the affectionate father she's always longed for to client Seol Yu-wol. And to client Yi Seo-ryeong... become the kind, reliable husband she's never had.]
[Brush your daughter's hair by day, and by late night in warm blankets, receive your weary husband's devoted full-body service from his wife, granting sweet family solace named 'family' to these two lost women...]
Don't talk to me for a while.
I commanded firmly.
[(☍д⁰)]
[However, remember that this system always presents only the ultimate, absolutely optimal choices for the user!]
[These are options based solely on information from the client's inner self...]
[ ꜀( ꜆´⌓`)꜆ ]
I let out a deep sigh into the empty air.
What does it mean to be on my side?
How would implanting a perfect superior-subordinate dynamic with Yi Seo-ryeong benefit me...?
It's not treatment anyway, and it makes no sense.
I stopped my dizzying thoughts and focused on the reality before me.
I quietly pulled a tissue and handed it to the sobbing Yi Seo-ryeong.
"Seo-ryeong-ssi."
She took it with trembling hands and bowed her head slightly.
I met her tear-wet eyes gently.
"Let's end here for today. You seem to need time to think it over."
"Yes..."
Yi Seo-ryeong clutched the damp tissue, rose silently, and staggered out of the counseling office.
I stared at the spot she left for a long while.
The mother's sandcastle of convictions had crumbled.
And the daughter had lived her whole life inside that sandcastle.
Now, how to help these two fallen on that sand heap stand again?
I turned to gaze at the city outside the window.
The start of a new challenge.