Chapter 345: Ascension to Immortality (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 345: Ascension to Immortality (1)
“He’s not like kids these days. He seems much better than you were when you first met my parents, don’t you think?”
“…I hate to admit it, but you’re right.”
Kang Ho-in recalled the answer he had given to that same question on the day he went to ask for permission to marry years ago. Realizing how young and naive he had been back then made him wince.
— Yes, of course! I’ll make her happy for the rest of her life!
Now that he was in the same position as his father-in-law, he finally understood why the man had looked at him with such disapproval.
“…I can’t tell if that brat is mature or just a child.”
“Why? I think he’s fine.”
“…Fine, I’ll admit his answer this time was much better than mine.”
How many guys would have the guts to give an answer like that right in front of their girlfriend’s parents?
— We’re still young. We’ll try our best to make sure nothing happens, and even if we’re considerate of each other, we can’t avoid every little argument. And even if we don’t fight, trials unrelated to us might come along and ruin our happiness.
When Ho-in had heard up to that point, he was ready to snap. Why so negative?! How dare a guy who can’t even promise to make one girl happy try to take my daughter! He had been seconds away from shouting at the boy to snap him out of it.
— That’s why I won’t make an irresponsible promise to ‘unconditionally’ make her happy. Anyone can do the obvious thing and stay by someone’s side when things are good. Striving to be happy is something that should be done as a matter of course.
Happiness was a given.
— But when Ha-ni is at her lowest—when she absolutely needs someone by her side—I will never turn away from her. I’ll be the one closest to her, taking the brunt of her anger, and I’ll do everything in my power so she can smile again.
He was looking beyond the obvious.
— No matter how many trials and hardships lie ahead, I want to make sure that at the very, very end, she is smiling. That’s what I believe.
“…He’s certainly got a silver tongue.”
“Oh, stop playing hard to get when you clearly liked what he said. Hoho.”
“…Liked it? My foot! After saying all that about making her happy, he basically said he’d drag our daughter all the way to the Underworld!”
“But he’ll protect her with everything he’s got.”
“Tsk. He better not let her get hurt.”
“Which one?”
“Argh! Both of them! Our daughter and that brat! If they get hurt, I’m not letting him off easy!”
* * *
“Am I insane…? I should’ve just said, ‘Yes, I’ll make her happy!’ Why did I have to go and overcomplicate it…?”
I had overshot it a bit, driven by the thought that I had to convey my sincerity as much as possible within the short span of a lunch break.
Originally, I intended to give a standard answer and just hand over the gifts. But once I was actually facing them, I felt like I had to speak from the heart, or it wouldn’t count.
“I feel like I’m going to get indigestion…”
“Really? Want some digestive medicine?”
“Ah, you’re here?”
My second appointment had mentioned she might be a little late, but she showed up sooner than expected.
The Doctor.
Since she was my aunt, it was only natural, but her striking resemblance to my mother made it difficult to look her straight in the eye.
“Here, take this.”
Without even a greeting, the Doctor immediately held out three pill-like objects toward me.
“Is this the digestive medicine? I actually prefer the liquid kind.”
“No. It’s a poison refined from a base of Sangong Poison mixed with the venom of various poisonous insects. I prepared it for you to use in an emergency.”
Sangong Poison… that was definitely the kind that caused internal energy to scatter instead of gathering, right?
“You’re not subtly suggesting I commit suicide, are you…?”
“Why would I do that to my only remaining blood relative?”
Then why on earth are you giving me this?
“I realized something while watching you roll around in the infirmary with those three.”
“Um, honestly, I figured you might be watching, but you’re being very bold about it.”
“It was necessary. In fact, thanks to that, I was able to finish the medicine in time.”
…I don’t think she’s joking.
“Well, you’ll understand once you hear the explanation. If you ingest this pill, it will prevent your Innate True Qi from recovering for about five minutes, even if you use your full power. To be precise, it scatters the energy faster than it can recover.”
“…Aha. So you’re saying I can fight at full strength for a short while?”
“Yes. However, it’s not without side effects. First, it will cause excruciating pain.”
Well, that’s not a huge problem.
“And since it’s a lethal poison in its own right, taking even one pill carries a high probability of causing permanent damage to your Vessel.”
“That’s a bit scary.”
“It is. That’s why I recommend not using it until the very last resort.”
“Is that all?”
“No, the next part is more important. This is a deadly poison, but considering your condition, there’s a high chance you’ll build a tolerance quickly, and its effectiveness will wane. So, while it might last five minutes the first time, it might only be three minutes the next, or even shorter.”
“I see…”
“And I don’t need to tell you what happens if you take multiple pills at once, do I?”
“It won’t end with just my body being ruined, will it?”
“Correct.”
I thought she would just hand over the poison calmly, but when I reached for the pills, the Doctor pulled her hand back.
“…Weren’t you going to give them to me?”
“…Did you actually understand what I said? This is poison. It’s something that could severely destroy your body, and I only prepared it because I thought you might need it.”
“…Yes? Yes, I understood.”
When I answered nonchalantly, the Doctor’s expression shifted into one of subtle anger.
“Don’t you feel any resistance? Aren’t you angry? Don’t you want to ask how I could give something like this to a person to swallow?”
“You gave it to me because you were thinking of me.”
“No. An ordinary person wouldn’t just calmly take poison in this situation. You are in an incredibly dangerous state right now. To the point where, in my heart, I don’t even want to give you this medicine.”
Ah, well. Honestly, I didn’t expect her to be this worried.
“…The reason I’m giving you this medicine despite that is twofold. First, because I believe you should at least have a choice when an Absurdity strikes. Whether to resist and break, or to be unable to even resist.”
That’s a pretty grim set of choices.
“And the other reason is that I want to believe you won’t use this medicine unless you absolutely have to.”
I understood what she was saying with my head.
But honestly, I couldn’t promise her that I wouldn’t use it.
If a situation arose where I had to use it, I would do so without hesitation.
No matter how much I wanted to be a normal person, or how much I wished to be a hero, I didn’t want those things at the cost of putting my precious people in danger.
“I’ll try my best not to use it. I’ll actively seek help, and unless it’s a situation where I absolutely have to step forward, I’ll stay back as much as possible.”
“…Fine. Honestly, I don’t find you very convincing, but please remember a few things.”
The hand placing the medicine in mine trembled slightly. It wasn’t just out of worry for me; it felt like she was seeing an overlap with someone else.
“You are human. You have things to protect, and things to hold onto. You must never forget that. Even if you feel like giving up on everything, you must always be able to recall the reasons why you cannot.”
I didn’t know who she was looking at, but I felt I understood one thing for sure.
“Only then can you resist.”
She probably thought that I, like someone else she knew, would go far away.
“Yes, I’ll never forget. I’ll come back safely, so don’t worry too much.”
“…I see.”
The Doctor turned away as if she had nothing more to say, but somehow, it looked as though she simply didn’t want to watch me leave.
* * *
After finishing my daily routine and finally convincing Luna—who had been pestering me to let her come along—it was time to depart.
“…Daddy, can’t I come too?”
Actually, I guess I haven’t fully convinced her yet.
“Daddy will be totally fine, okay? I’ll be back in a flash. Just a flash.”
“But I’m really scared. Mommy, it’s okay if I go too, right? Please?”
“Mmm… Mommy thinks it’s better if Luna stays here, too.”
The other members were all waiting, but we couldn’t leave because Luna kept begging.
“Luna.”
“No. I can really help. It’s really dangerous this time.”
“Luna.”
“Daddy…”
“Are you not going to answer your Daddy?”
“…Yes.”
“I know you’re not an ordinary child. And you’re right, you would be a help.”
Even if she hadn’t fully recovered, her essence was that of a deity destined to grow into this world’s final boss. Even now, she could likely wield power that made ordinary heroes look like nothing.
However, since she hadn’t learned the proper way to use that power, there could be other side effects.
Furthermore, Sun Wukong had said she didn’t know how the deities of the Underworld would react to seeing a young Child of the Stars born from the heavens.
And finally, though it was a personal reason, I simply didn’t want to take Luna.
I wanted to treat Luna like a normal child before treating her like a god.
What parent would want to show their child a dangerous place?
“Daddy is a bit of a liar, but you know I don’t lie to you, right?”
Luna pouted but nodded her head.
“Daddy will come back safely. I really promise. When I get back, my body will be all better, too.”
“…Is it because I’m not helpful?”
“It’s not like that. This time, Daddy is just being selfish.”
“…Hmph.”
“When Luna grows up a little more and the day comes when I need your help, I’ll definitely ask you then.”
When I smiled and held out my pinky, Luna turned her head away but hooked her pinky with mine as if she couldn’t help it.
“It’s a promise.”
“Yeah, a promise.”
“Awoo…!”
Then the Wolf, who had been watching quietly from Luna’s side, poked her head toward me.
She probably wanted me to make a promise to her, too.
“Right, a promise to you too. I told you I’m coming back safely, didn’t I? While I’m gone, please take good care of Luna for me.”
I lightly stroked her head. The way she rubbed her face against my hand like a puppy was cute, but I really couldn’t delay any longer.
“This isn’t a final goodbye, so let’s leave it at that. I’ll be back soon.”
Honestly, making such a big deal out of leaving made it feel like things were going to get incredibly dangerous.
I wanted to just slip away quietly, but perhaps because our destination was the Underworld, they wouldn’t let me go so easily.
“…Come back safely. While you’re gone, I’ll make sure no trash enters the Academy.”
“Yeah, Yu-hak, I’m counting on you.”
After a long round of farewells.
“By the way, Kang So-hyun, how exactly do we get to the Underworld? It’s different from the Demon Realm, right? Is there a secret entrance somewhere?”
Just as we were about to leave, Professor Park A-ram asked a very fundamental question.
Come to think of it, Sun Wukong only told us to gather at this time; she never said where we had to go.
‘So, how do we get there? Where’s the entrance?’
— It varies slightly by myth, but where would an entrance to the Underworld be? Even if there were one, it wouldn’t be a place the living could easily find.
…Wait, you can’t just say that now.
— I didn’t say we couldn’t go. I’m saying your concept of it is wrong.
The moment Sun Wukong took on a serious air and muttered something, my eyes began to burn as if they were on fire.
— Since this is a sight you are not yet meant to behold, I shall make it so you can see it through me.
With those words, the burning sensation gradually subsided, and a strange sight began to appear through my Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils.
It was a bizarre sensation, as if worlds were overlapping.
— Though one may not know it until the very end, just as life and death are intertwined, the world of the living and the Underworld are also touching; they simply do not perceive one another.
That eerie sensation grew stronger and more vast, until even the others could feel it.
— Therefore, if there is one who can see what is normally imperceptible, the boundary collapses in an instant.
Before we knew it, a door stood before us.
It resembled a portal, yet there was a distinct, palpable difference.
— Since no one knows where or how life will end, whether it be Paradise, Hell, or what is called the Underworld, where could an entrance possibly be? Paradoxically, where could it NOT be?
— It is everywhere and nowhere; thus, one cannot see it by trying, nor avoid it by looking away.
With a creaking sound, the Gate of the Underworld swung open like a gaping maw. It beckoned us with a contradictory aura—at once strangely peaceful and deeply unpleasant.
— Now, since the living have dared to look upon the entrance to the Underworld, keep your wits about you if you do not wish to become the dead.
It was finally starting to feel real.
…I guess I’m really going all the way to the Underworld now.
It would be a lie to say I had no hesitations.
“Let’s go.”
“Don’t be scared.”
…But since everyone else was so willing to go to the Underworld for my sake, I couldn’t afford to hesitate.
“Yes, let’s go.”
It was the moment we stepped into the Underworld.