Chapter 134: This Much is Fine.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 134: This Much is Fine.
The explanation I received from the Lord of Myriad Worlds was simple.
From my perspective, it felt like I had dived into the world of a novel to save a friend. But from my friend’s perspective, it looked like an accident had occurred where our positions were suddenly swapped.
The friend had tried their best not to let our deal be discovered, but their suspicious behavior eventually caused a commotion, which led to them being caught by another deity—the Witch of the Time Flower.
Afterward, the Witch of the Time Flower offered my friend a similar deal and sent them into this world.
“You’re not about to pull some bullshit like ‘suddenly, neither of you can go back,’ are you?”
-Don’t worry about that. I can promise you on my title as the Lord of Myriad Worlds. Unless you suddenly cause a massive disaster or do something that defies the rules of the world, that won’t happen.
“…Can I really trust you?”
In web novels, guys like this always stab you in the back at the very end.
-Yeah, I know the reputation of deities has hit rock bottom lately, so it’s hard to believe. But I’m on bad terms with those kinds of guys, so just trust me. Doubting me only hurts you, you know?
Well, regardless of everything else, it was thanks to this entity that my friend hadn’t died.
“Then is it also true that he… I mean, the Author, won’t be in immediate danger?”
-Of course. Simple interference might be possible, but he hasn’t even properly entered this world yet.
That was a relief, at least.
Unlike me, my friend didn’t have a suitable character to inhabit, so she had to design herself. Because of that, she couldn’t interfere with the world immediately.
To be honest, I had entered this crazy world specifically to save her life, so seeing her try to follow me into this death trap wasn’t exactly pleasant.
She had finally quieted down now, but until a moment ago, she had been yelling at me so much my head was spinning.
-Who asked you to save me? Did you think I’d be okay with you just leaving like that? You better be ready for what’s coming.
-Of all the people to possess, why Kang So-hyun? He’s so frail.
-…If I knew this would happen, I would’ve set his appearance to be ugly.
And so on.
My head felt like it was going to explode.
“…By the way, about the Authority of the Creator.”
The deities said it was a kind of cheat that, depending on how it was used, could even defy the laws of the world.
They said something strange about the “world’s desire” or whatever, but the pronunciation got garbled halfway through, so I couldn’t hear it.
Currently, I had a necklace in my pocket that she had made using that Authority.
[Creator’s Favor]
A special-grade artifact that automatically absorbs surrounding mana to be used as reserve life force.
The user was restricted to Kang So-hyun alone. As the name suggested, it was an item he had imbued with favoritism and special privileges.
Since he was someone who absolutely hated twisting his own writing, I asked him if it was really okay to make something like this. He had responded with irritation.
-It’s because you’re way more important than the novel, you idiot. Kang So-hyun doesn’t look like a strong character at first glance, so you need to stay alive.
That was true.
In the end, it was just a novel.
Actually, it was an obvious sentiment.
No matter how hard she worked on it or how precious she considered the story, it was ultimately just a text she had written. And if I had to destroy this world to save her, I would have done so gladly.
Yes, it was obvious.
It was a natural thought.
And yet, a question was already blooming in a corner of my heart.
However, confirming that doubt was far too bothersome.
I felt like I didn’t need to worry about such things for now.
So, I forced myself to ignore the rising suspicion.
* * *
Even after awakening my talent, my daily life didn’t change much.
The only major event was attending Cheon Yu-hak’s birthday party because his father and Kang Hyun-woo were acquaintances.
I was a bit surprised at first, but I decided to think positively.
Considering what he was like in the original work, I felt he needed to become a bit stronger and more mellow for the sake of the future. It was the perfect opportunity to plant a seed of change in him.
Anyway, other than that, nothing big happened. I spent my time occasionally training to handle my talent or researching mana.
As time passed, I eventually reached the age to enter elementary school.
It was still embarrassing to act like a child, but it wasn’t as difficult as I expected.
Perhaps because my body was young, people around me simply perceived me as a mature child—the boy who was always bright and talkative beside his sick mother.
“So-hyun, what did you learn at school today?!”
“My homework is a book report, so I brought a book!”
“Oh my, everyone says So-hyun looks like his father, but seeing that smile, he’s definitely the spitting image of me!”
Come to think of it, I wasn’t so sure, but even my elder sister said my smile had recently started to resemble our mother’s.
…Do I really smile like such a rascal? I don’t think so.
“Anyway, So-hyun wants to read! What book is it? Even if Mom is very sick, I can at least read a book for you—!”
“No. I’ll read it to you, so just stay lying down.”
“…You’re seven years old, So-hyun. Don’t you think it’d be better if Mom read it?”
“It’s the race between the tortoise and the hare. Sounds fun, right?”
“So-hyun, why are you shutting Mom out…?”
The Tortoise and the Hare. As I began reading the story she likely already knew, a laugh escaped me.
Now that I thought about it, the first story that guy ever wrote was a fairy tale based on this.
A twisted story of a child who claimed that effort was meaningless and that one’s birth and innate role were everything.
Most of the things she wrote, regardless of the genre, contained such themes.
Even The Academy’s Holy Sword Hero, the original version of this world, was the same.
Cheon Yu-hak, a genius but inferior to Lilac, encountered a wall he couldn’t overcome with effort and turned to dark arts. Even Lilac despaired several times before a greater talent until his own true talent manifested.
In reality, it’s not quite like that.
As I live on, I’ve come to think that effort is actually quite important.
Of course.
That’s only when there’s at least a minimum amount of talent to serve as the foundation for that effort.
“Hm? Why did you suddenly laugh while reading, So-hyun?”
“Just because. It’s funny that a tortoise and a hare are racing. In reality, there’s no way they’d ever race.”
…Ah, did I say that wrong?
It wasn’t something a child couldn’t say, but it probably didn’t sound very kid-like.
“That’s true.”
She’s agreeing with this in front of a kid?
“Even if people say the race itself has meaning and try to give meaning to effort, it’s an undeniable fact that everyone’s starting line is different and their innate fields are different.”
She reached out and stroked my cheek.
“Our So-hyun is certainly impressive, no matter whose son he is. To already be thinking about things like that.”
She then began to knead my face playfully as if I were adorable.
“But So-hyun. Even so, that’s not everything.”
Didn’t she just agree with me?
She continued slowly, in a tone truly meant to advise a child.
“Humans are originally creatures that live for useless things!”
…It was a kind of nonsense I had never heard before in my life.
“To simply live as a biological organism and prosper as a species, we don’t actually need that much. Entertainment, hobbies, and perhaps even the process of naturally liking and loving someone—those aren’t strictly necessary. For the mere advancement of the human species, those are things that should actually be abandoned.”
Well, I couldn’t say she was right, but she wasn’t entirely wrong either.
“But humans ultimately love and seek entertainment. They smoke cigarettes knowing it’s bad for their bodies, and they drink alcohol until they’re drunk.”
I thought it was a somewhat difficult topic to discuss with a child, but she maintained a serious attitude, as if she were looking at an equal adult rather than a kid.
“It’s just that the fields people want and focus on are different. Value is something you decide for yourself, So-hyun. What is precious and what should be prioritized differs from person to person.”
It differs from person to person.
For some reason, those words wouldn’t leave my ears.
“Because it will eventually break. Because it will eventually disappear. I understand keeping things at a distance because you’re afraid of getting hurt, but isn’t that a waste?”
For a moment, I felt my heart drop.
It felt so real that I almost forgot she was a character and saw her as a real person.
‘Because it’s going to disappear anyway.’
‘Because it wasn’t mine to begin with.’
Those were the words I had said so often in my life before transmigration as I let go of things.
And ultimately, those were the words that created the things I regretted most bitterly in my life.
“So-hyun, the things in this world that actually have inherent meaning are very limited. Paradoxically, that’s why it’s okay for humans to give meaning to everything! So what if people laugh at you? As long as you don’t hurt others, you can do whatever you want!”
Just what did she know?
Could all these words really be a mere coincidence?
“That’s why Mom thinks it’s fine for you to laugh at the tortoise and the hare! I think you can grow just by laughing your head off and wondering why the tortoise was so obsessed with running, or what useless thing it was clinging to.”
I thought it was a mischievous smile, but looking at it now, it didn’t seem just playful.
I thought she was treating me like an adult, but perhaps I was wrong.
Maybe she was giving me such a serious talk precisely because she was treating me as a child.
“Was it too difficult?”
I shook my head.
I had one too.
Something close to a habit that others might laugh at.
A meaningless task I kept doing even though I thought it was already over.
Wasn’t there a bank account where I kept saving money for that guy?
“…Do you have one too, Mom?”
“Hm?”
“An obsession with something useless.”
“I don’t?”
…This lady? You just said humans live for useless things.
“Your mom is a very rational person, so I’m obsessed with something that definitely has meaning!”
“What is it?”
“What could it be~?”
She playfully pulled my arm and hugged me to her chest.
…She was warm.
“Mmph!?”
“It’s So-hyun, Na-hyun, and Dad! With my family here, what more could Mom want!”
With a body that was dying day by day, forcing herself to be bright and smiling… did she really love us that much?
How could she love me so much, when my birth had essentially stolen her future?
-Ha-neul, what do you want to eat?
-I like anything Mom makes.
What had she said back then after hearing my answer?
-You don’t have to be so reserved. I’m sorry, Ha-neul.
Ah, she had said she was sorry.
Right, I had forgotten, but I’m sure she had smiled bitterly and said she was sorry.
While drifting from one part-time job to another, I had heard by pure chance that my original family had died.
A family suicide, they called it.
…Why did they do that?
If they were going to abandon me, they should have lived well so I could at least resent them.
They should have lived well so I could think they didn’t regret throwing me away.
Why did they have to die and leave my heart in such a mess?
Tears felt like they were about to well up.
“…So-hyun, are you crying? Was what Mom said too hard? It’s okay. You’ll understand someday.”
No, I understood.
That’s why the tears were coming.
Because it felt like she was telling me it was okay to hold onto the things I had missed, even if that wasn’t her intention.
Because she was treating me, a thief who had stolen her son’s place, like her real son.
Perhaps because I was in a child’s body, the dam of my emotions, which had become exceptionally weak, broke, and a few tears finally fell.
“…Don’t die.”
I accidentally let those words slip out like a tantrum.
“Eh~? Mom’s not going to die! I’m going to get all better and go for walks soon, and I’ll stick by you until you get annoyed and tell me to stop following you!”
I knew it was a lie.
I knew they were words meant to comfort a child.
Even so, though it was selfish, I truly wished she wouldn’t die.
Someday, she might realize I’m a thief and come to despise and hate me, but I wanted her to live, at least for now.
“Is it okay if I sleep with you today?”
“Of course~ Let’s sleep together, So-hyun! Should we call Dad and Na-hyun too?!”
So, I would reach out my hand to save her.
Watching her as she fell asleep, I extracted Innate True Qi from my immature body.
The nausea and pain I felt as my very life force diminished made me want to cry, but strangely, I didn’t regret it.
Is it okay for me to hold on too?
Maybe saving her is a useless task that won’t help anything, but is it okay to try and grab hold of it?
“Please don’t die.”
…Right, this is nothing.
It’s just an extension of the acting I always do.
It’s not unnatural for a son to worry about his mother.
“Please, don’t die. Mom.”
[Reinforcement]
The light of the talent that upgrades everything at the cost of life enveloped her body and settled in her heart.
Her pulse beat a little more strongly.
It was the result of reinforcing her natural healing and regenerative powers.
I’m not really calling her Mom, so this much is fine.
I’m just returning the favor I received, so it’s fine.
It’ll be fine.