Chapter 405: Expanding Kang So-hyun Universe (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 405: Expanding Kang So-hyun Universe (1)
…A god cannot be free from their own myth, they say.
Recalling the gods I had met so far, that statement made a certain amount of sense.
My mother, Sun Wukong, and even Mara—excluding Luna, every god I’d encountered had shown moments where they seemed shackled to their respective roles.
Sun Wukong, whom I met in Hell, had said it herself.
Being a god isn’t that great of a position, nor is it a particularly good one.
Mara claimed she was merely a god whose role was to obstruct those seeking enlightenment, and Luna, who originally didn’t even have a name, gained a role simply because of the wish of her only believer—me.
Perhaps it was the same this time.
Because so many people took the World Tree’s corruption for granted and envisioned the elves as arrogant beings, they had become closer to that image.
“Wh-What have you done…!”
Well, the situation wasn’t exactly ideal for continuing these deep reflections.
Whether she had chased after me or not, the Chairperson was staring this way with a deeply conflicted expression as she faced the withered World Tree.
And, well, I happened to be holding the power of the World Tree in my hand.
Oh, this is the perfect setup to be misunderstood, isn’t it…?
[I don’t know if you’ll believe me, but I did this because the World Tree herself desired it.]
Honestly, I didn’t think she’d believe me, but I figured I should at least say it…
“I-Is that so? Why would the World Tree make such a choice?”
…She believes that? That’s strange. I didn’t think the Chairperson was this reckless or trusting.
[It sounds a bit ridiculous even coming from me, but you believe it? Do you not consider that I might be deceiving you with a lie?]
The Chairperson looked flustered for a moment upon hearing my words, but she soon regained her composure, perhaps having thought of a plausible excuse, and spoke.
“In a situation with such an overwhelming difference in power, you don’t seem like the type of person who would bother deceiving an opponent with lies.”
‘…Actually, I just found myself believing him instinctively, but it’s not a lie! Usually, characters like this surprisingly don’t tell lies!’
Hmm. In the past, I wouldn’t have hesitated for a second to hand over a god’s power to the Chairperson.
But thanks to the Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils, I felt a flicker of hesitation.
Is giving the World Tree’s power to the Chairperson truly the right choice…?
[Leilan Claudia.]
“Wh-What is it?”
…No, why are you so tense?
I’m just going to ask a simple question.
[I will ask you a simple question. If I told you to choose between the power I received from the World Tree and the owner of this body, which would you choose?]
In an instant, the Chairperson’s expression hardened. Her strangely dazed face returned to that of a cold, level-headed hero.
“…What does that mean?”
[I am telling you to choose one: the World Tree’s power or Kang So-hyun. If you choose the World Tree’s power, I will return the divine power to you all. In exchange, I will not return Kang So-hyun’s body. The reverse is also true. I will return Kang So-hyun, but I don’t know what I will use the divine power for. Now, what choice will you make?]
I asked the question expecting her to agonize over it, but the Chairperson answered with a face that looked like she’d just heard a bad joke.
“That is a question not even worth answering. It’s obvious.”
[Ho? Then let’s hear your answer.]
“I choose neither. If you force such a choice, I will strike you down and reclaim both Cadet Kang So-hyun and the World Tree’s power.”
[…A foolish answer. I presented two paths, and you choose a third? With such meager skill?]
“Yes, because that is the answer a hero must choose.”
[No, it is the answer of a dreamer. At the point where you lack the strength to oppose me, you will simply lose both.]
“If it were just me, that would certainly be true.”
[Are you saying you trust your comrades? That if you all unite, you can defeat me?]
I spoke with the intention of shaking her through intimidation, but the Chairperson’s eyes remained unwavering.
“I trust my comrades, and at the same time, I trust in our ‘next’.”
[Next?]
“What quality of humans do you think I fell in love with that made me leave the forest?”
[…Possibility?]
“Yes. We might make a foolish choice and be crushed by you. Even so, we must make that choice. Only then will the next generation remember the choice we made.”
[What meaning is there in that? Is that not just deferring responsibility? There is no guarantee that the ‘next’ will always be better than the ‘now.’]
“Yes, that’s true. Perhaps it will be recorded as nothing more than a foolish act. Future generations might mock our choice. Nevertheless, we must not make any other choice.”
[May I ask why?]
“Because we are heroes.”
[Heroes, you say.]
“We must choose the path that is most righteous and involves the least sacrifice. To that end, there may certainly be unavoidable sacrifices.”
A hero must make the most realistic choices, or else they will cause countless casualties.
“But even so, we must strive to save everyone. Choosing what to cut away from the very beginning is not the way of a hero.”
Yet, one must always strive to choose the painful ‘best’ over the comfortable ‘second best.’
“If we continue to choose the second best, looking for things to cut away and sacrifice, our next generation will see and learn from us, walking the same path.”
So that those who grow up looking at our backs in the future can walk the right path.
“That is why we, those called heroes, must become symbols. We must resist the Absurdity of reality, resist insurmountable enemies, and strive to make the best choice until the very moment it truly becomes impossible.”
That was the path of a hero Leilan Claudia sought to walk, and her way of life.
Normally, she was a star destined to fade because she lacked strength or trusted the humans around her too much.
She was a woman whose will would go unrewarded and whose ideals would be trampled, a woman destined to live a life of surrender to Absurdity.
And yet, even in the original work and the 1st Timeline, the things she left behind were not meaningless.
Because there were those who inherited her will.
…Even if she has some slightly strange fetishes, if the essence I knew hasn’t changed, she will surely handle this power correctly.
[As expected, not bad. Leilan Claudia. You pass.]
“…Pass?”
[Daughter of the World Tree. The most noble woman among the remaining elves in the world. There may be many other titles, but none of them serve as proof of qualification to hold this power.]
If I handed over the World Tree’s power all at once, she probably wouldn’t be able to withstand it. I should transfer a portion first and give her the rest once she adapts to the power.
Though it had weakened significantly due to the World Tree’s own plan and had been fragmented, it was still the power of a god.
The Chairperson’s face filled with doubt as she faced the power.
[Right now, you are weak. You lack the strength to realize the ideals you speak of.]
“Then why…”
[But you are better than the original World Tree. I believe you are better—you, who strives to hold on upright even without strength, rather than that being who had the power to achieve ideals but lacked the will, choosing instead to flee and give up.]
Roughly one-third.
The World Tree’s power recognized the Chairperson as its new master and began to flow into her.
“Ugh…! Kua…! Mmph…!”
It must be painful.
In my case, Sun Wukong had refined my body several times and optimized it in advance, so it didn’t hurt that much, but the Chairperson was overcoming this on her own without anyone’s help.
[This is power. It is the power to manifest the ideals you envision, the power to protect your people, and the power to strike down your enemies if you so desire.]
Her expression is getting worse and worse; is she really going to be okay…?
[Since it is the power the World Tree entrusted to you, you choose how to use i… t?]
“Cough…!”
…Shit.
She’s vomiting blood? Was one-third too much? Did I give her too much? Should I have handed over less?
I thought she’d be able to handle at least this much…!?
It would be nice if everything in the world worked like a comic book, but unfortunately, that’s not how it goes. It seemed I had made a mistake by judging things based on my own standards.
I thought I was being careful, but even this was too excessive.
As I hurried toward her, it was clear she was experiencing extreme pain as her body’s structure transformed to accommodate the divine power.
[…It was too much.]
I grabbed the Chairperson’s arm, reclaimed the overflowing energy, and flowed my mana into her instead.
I cleared her clogged mana circuits and guided the energy so it could flow properly again.
With the Taoist knowledge I received from Sun Wukong and the Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils, it wasn’t difficult to get past the crisis. However, once the danger passed, a different problem arose.
The Chairperson’s original mana wasn’t pushing mine away; it was trying to accept it.
Normally, when someone else’s energy suddenly invades the body, it should try to reject it, but seeing it greedily gulping it down as if it liked it was a bit absurd.
“Wh-What are you doing to my body…?”
…Nothing. I was just trying to treat you. In fact, you’re the one begging for more of my mana, Chairperson.
“St-Stop. No more will fit if you keep putting it in like that…”
‘Wh-What is he trying to do? Is he trying to leave a trace of himself by continuously pouring mana into me like this!?’
What are you talking about? I’m not the one putting it in. I told you, I was just trying to clear the clogged circuits and guide the energy.
[I am performing delicate work, so I would appreciate it if you stayed quiet.]
If I slip up because I’m distracted, it’ll be a total disaster.
By the time I had evenly distributed the stagnant World Tree energy throughout her body, she seemed to understand that I wasn’t doing anything malicious. Surprisingly, however, the Chairperson was feeling a bit disappointed.
‘…So he did it to help me. That’s a bit of a shame. No, I shouldn’t feel disappointed. But still, just a little…’
Maybe I should give the remaining power to someone else? Is this really going to be okay?
The World Tree said that from now on, the elves would resemble the new World Tree. I felt the need to reconsider whether elves who resembled the Chairperson would be a sane race.
“Ah… hng…!”
Because moans kept escaping the Chairperson’s mouth every time I cleared a circuit and spread the energy, I felt like I was doing something terrible to her.
How much time had passed while we were connected? After confirming that the World Tree’s energy had settled completely, I pulled away, only for the Chairperson’s mana to cling to me as if telling me not to go.
You’re really something else.
[It seems this is the limit of the power you can receive right now. I will give you the rest once you become more accustomed to divine power and the moment comes when you truly need it. I will hold onto it until then.]
“…Ah.”
No, you have to answer so I can end this performance, but the Chairperson was just staring this way with a strange look on her face.
[Leilan Claudia.]
“…Heh…?”
[Leilan Claudia…!]
“Ah!?”
[…Have you not let your guard down too much in front of an enemy?]
“No, that was just now. Truly…?”
[I don’t know what nonsense you’re talking about, but since my work is done, I shall take my leave. Don’t worry, I will return the body to its owner.]
…I really want to end this now, but the Chairperson still just stared this way as if she couldn’t believe something, without giving any answer.
Fortunately, the others caught up at the right time, so I could finally end it.
The mask, which could now be removed without using my hands, vanished with an effect like black flames the moment I commanded it to disappear.
Just as everyone called my name and rushed toward me in a panic—
— The remnant of the World Tree comforts you, saying you did a good job!
…I felt like I heard a voice in my head that I definitely shouldn’t have heard.
* * *
And at the moment Kang So-hyun was startled by the remnant of the World Tree, there was another person who was equally struck by an immense shock.
‘It can’t be…’
It was Leilan Claudia, the Chairperson of the Academy and the new World Tree.
While she was connected to the Masked Man through mana, she had seen the mask’s past through the World Tree’s divine power.
Although it was a blurry vision seen in a dazed state and she hadn’t seen everything, she had seen something so shocking she could never forget it.
No matter how much she dwelled on it, it didn’t seem like she had misseen it.
Could it be?
Could the identity of the Masked Man be…
‘Kang So-hyun from the future.’
And it appeared he had returned from a future far bleaker than the present.
Leilan felt the sense of dissonance she had been feeling, along with her questions about the incomprehensible relationship between Kang So-hyun and the Masked Man, being resolved all at once.
Well, whether that was the truth or not didn’t matter.
At least within her, a plausible answer was being completed.
It was the moment the Kang So-hyun Universe expanded once again.