Chapter 306
Chapter 306
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 306
Chapter Title: 69. Heir (5)
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While hearing his mother's raspy laughter echoing from the sky above, Yeong-woo recalled her words.
—You won't be able to handle that bastard. He's my little brother, but he's a real lunatic.
It was the warning that his great-uncle Song Tae-ho, who had returned as the Steel Dragon, had left regarding his still-unreturned second brother.
But the real warning Song Tae-ho had wanted to give came right after.
—But what's even scarier than him... is your mom.
Your mom.
Song Ji-seon, Jeong Yeong-woo's birth mother.
The fact that Song Ji-seon, the youngest daughter of the Jin-hyeon Group, had triumphed over her two older brothers in the battle for control was known to half the nation.
Yeong-woo didn't know much about it, but her two brothers—who had been rivals in that contest—were notorious problem children not just in business circles but to the public as well.
The eldest, Song Tae-ho, frequently put his foot in his mouth due to his arrogance and sense of entitlement, while the second son, Song Jeong-ho, was constantly embroiled in big and small incidents because of his eccentric personality and bizarre behavior.
And yet, there was someone even more terrifying than those two walking disasters: the youngest, Song Ji-seon. Just what kind of person was she?
'What kind of person? A dog-like person, that's what.'
Even though he'd never met his mother in his life, Yeong-woo knew it instinctively.
—Kuhahat! Is there really no one here?!
Song Ji-seon in her human days must not have been ordinary either.
She was even under the delusion that she was on some alien planet right now.
And yet, her spirit wasn't the least bit broken, making it impossible to gauge just how imposing she must have been in her youth.
'Well, you have to be that level to beat out your chaebol brothers and reach the top.'
As Yeong-woo swallowed hard for the first time in a while, Bang Dae-hyeop, who had been staring up at the sky alongside him, muttered to himself.
-Is that really... your mother?
"...Yeah. I don't know if it's unfortunate or fortunate, but she looks healthy, at least."
Just a glimpse of the majestic shadow peeking through the clouds was enough to tell how splendidly she had made her comeback.
'Maybe Seoul's original future was one where it burned to ashes under Song Ji-seon.'
Yeong-woo scratched his chin as he gazed at his mother's shadow, which never failed to inspire awe no matter how many times he saw it.
Just a couple of days ago, seeing that silhouette would have left him unable to vow victory.
But things were different now.
Even though his great-uncle had branded him the "Jin-hyeon family's mistake," Yeong-woo had never needed a business card like "Jin-hyeon family" in the first place.
'This is fucking Doggo Special City Metal Seoul. There's no room for ghosts of the old world!'
Chwaaa!
Finally, as Yeong-woo drew his Sabinsa, Neuggi's iron hooves timely stomped down onto the ground of Gwangjin-gu.
Kwaak!
He had arrived at the duel arena Yeong-woo had prepared in the heart of Seoul.
-Is, is this the place...?
Bang Dae-hyeop looked around at Gwangjin-gu, which was a total ruin, and Yeong-woo nodded.
"Yeah. When a strong guy shows up, I usually lure them here and take them out. I handled one great-uncle here too."
Yeong-woo touched the area near his heart as he said this, but Bang Dae-hyeop couldn't even guess the reason.
-So, you brought your mother here to meet her...?
Bang Dae-hyeop was finally confronting the ugliness of Seoul Mayor Jeong Yeong-woo.
Meanwhile, Yeong-woo had already thrust his Sabinsa skyward.
Shwaa!
"Motherrrr...!"
The Sabinsa's vigorous cry calling for its mother echoed through the air, and the massive shadow beyond the clouds twitched for a moment.
—...What?
Song Ji-seon had indeed reacted.
But she couldn't have imagined that the cry she'd just heard meant "mother." She was simply.
—Who is that? A human, maybe?
Shocked that familiar language had reached her ears in this steel city.
Yeong-woo spurred Neuggi toward the center of Gwangjin-gu and swung his Sabinsa again.
Hwak!
"Mother! Over here! Give me the mark!"
Song Ji-seon immediately replied.
—What nonsense? Who are you calling your mother?
Then, a heavy presence stirred beyond the clouds, and the shadow in question grew even larger than before.
Song Ji-seon had descended a bit closer to the ground.
-Amazing.
Her shadow was so enormous it instilled fear even in the valiant red-hoofed Bangtu Bangtongma.
But Yeong-woo.
"Who else? You're my mother!"
Provoked Song Ji-seon with a voice devoid of any tremor.
"Aren't you Song Ji-seon of the Jin-hyeon Group?"
—What...?
At the word "Jin-hyeon," Song Ji-seon seemed to sense something and fell silent for a moment before letting out a surprised voice.
—No way... fuck, is this...?
She had finally realized.
That what she was seeing now was Seoul, South Korea.
—What the hell have you done to this place?
As Song Ji-seon flew into a rage, Yeong-woo snapped back at his mother instead.
"Hey, fuck! We don't have time, so drop the mark already!"
The reason Yeong-woo was fixated on the Dragon Challenger Mark was purely for the city's protection.
Of course, Seoul was reinforced with steel now, but Song Ji-seon was no ordinary dragon either.
—What? Fuck? This little shit, getting cocky just because I've let you live this long.
As expected from the fiery Song Ji-seon, sharp curses flew from her mouth, and soon a blood-red mark came plummeting toward Yeong-woo's crown.
Shwaaaaa, ping!
What embedded itself above Yeong-woo's head after tracing a long arc was none other than the Challenger Mark.
「將」
General "Jiang (將)."
The mark given to the one who steps forward first to face the dragon on behalf of everyone in the city.
And when the appointed time arrives, the dragon descends upon the region where the mark is placed.
'All set!'
Confirming the mark embedded above his own head, Yeong-woo sent up a tone that was markedly more polite than before.
"Mother! Come down so we can talk!"
Then thunder rumbled from the sky, and Song Ji-seon's voice burst forth immediately.
—This retarded fuck keeps calling me his mom like what the...
Song Ji-seon, who had spat out her words in an irritated tone, suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
"......!"
Yeong-woo widened his eyes too, staring at the massive shadow gliding beyond the clouds.
"Right? You remember, don't you?"
Yeong-woo pressed, but no answer came from the other side. Certain of something, Yeong-woo shouted toward the sky.
"You're my mom, right? You might not recognize me, but you still remember giving birth to me!"
At Yeong-woo's cry, Song Ji-seon, who had been flying through the sky, suddenly concealed her presence.
Saaa!
"Huh?"
As the enormous shadow vanished from sight, the momentarily enraged Yeong-woo gripped his Sabinsa and leaped off Neuggi.
Taat!
"Song Ji-seon! Where'd you go? Are you abandoning me again...!"
But before Yeong-woo's words could finish, pillars of light shot down from the skies across all of Seoul.
Paaa!
"......!"
These were the marks for the mutants and monsters.
In the meantime, the time had reached 1 p.m.
And at the same time, the unique ritual of the dragonkin began.
「An [Anomalous Weather] of ice elemental energy has formed in Gwangjin-gu.」
'Ice elemental?'
No sooner had Yeong-woo questioned it in his mind than the sky turned a deep blue and froze over.
Jeojeok!
The ice elemental was a power that turned the entire area into a frozen state.
Moreover, Song Ji-seon's influence extended not just to Gwangjin-gu but to the outskirts of neighboring areas, freezing mid-air even the nearby monsters that were just about to descend along the light pillars.
'Freezing the whole space? Is that even possible?'
Tsutsut...
With signs that even the air in Gwangjin-gu was crystallizing, Yeong-woo quickly shouted.
"No, you trying to kill my husband too? You can't kill me with this anyway! But Jeong-gu would freeze to death—he's too weak!"
In truth, he said it to keep Bang Dae-hyeop, the Golden Goblin, and Popu Tenta—who were with him—alive.
But since he couldn't make her understand the value of an orc lord, he threw in the only link: his father.
Of course, the strategy was quite effective.
Kwajajaja!
Soon, the ice ceiling over Gwangjin-gu shattered, and Jeong Yeong-woo07's birth mother, Song Ji-seon, appeared.
—Husband? What a ridiculous word. I don't have any such thing.
Kwaaaa...!
Song Ji-seon emerged, exuding a chillingly massive presence. She was an ice dragon covered head to tail in translucent scales.
Kuuung!
As she landed on the ground and pressed down with her forepaw, the earth at her feet rapidly froze over, turning blue.
[Chaebol Chairwoman-Song Ji-seon]
'...Fucking insane.'
In front of the nameplate "Chaebol Chairwoman"—the first he'd seen since the Reset—Yeong-woo could barely keep his eyes open.
Her entire body was shining dazzlingly bright, in fact.
"Fuck, not only is she huge as hell, but she has an eye-candy effect too? That's cheating, right?"
As Yeong-woo let slip a half-joking remark even in this moment, Song Ji-seon twitched her icy blue brow, sensing something off.
—What the hell are you?
As Yeong-woo had guessed earlier, Song Ji-seon was a colossal dragonkin over 250 meters in total length.
Her neck was as long as her tail, so in her posture with her upper body and neck held rigidly upright, she was essentially looking down at Yeong-woo from 100 meters up.
"Uh... can you even see me from there? Come down a bit so we can talk. Can't you polymorph or something?"
As Yeong-woo spoke, recalling his great-uncle who had charged at him after turning into a knight, Song Ji-seon flared up again.
—Cut the dogshit and answer my question. You wouldn't even be able to breathe without my permission. Don't test my patience—I've already spared you a thousand times.
Her lines were pretty vicious.
Blue blood churned visibly beneath her translucent scales, suggesting she was genuinely enraged.
But Yeong-woo was holding back in his own way too.
"Fuck, you're exaggerating. You think I'm not holding back? Want me to put you in a coffin right now?"
It wasn't entirely empty talk, with the 'Aratubangk' in his left arm going berserk.
—Hmph. Just die.
Finally, as Song Ji-seon coldly shifted her gaze and prepared to freeze the area again.
"W-Wait a second...!"
A desperate shout came from afar.
"...Huh?"
Yeong-woo turned toward the source of the voice, spotting Kim Jeong-gu—the universe-certified father of Yeong-woo—rushing over in a panic.
"S-Stop, both of you! Stop it!"
Racing toward them unarmed, waving both arms, he looked just like a tragic father.
His eyes were filled with worry and fear.
Tatat!
Despite the ice elemental raging, Jeong-gu bravely plunged into the battlefield, quickly checked Yeong-woo's condition, then looked up at the sky.
At Song Ji-seon, the ice dragon he had once spent a passionate night with.
"J-Ji-seon! No, Lady Ji-seon!"
As Jeong-gu flailed and raised both arms toward the sky, Song Ji-seon slowly lowered her rigidly held head for the first time.
Deudeudeuk...
To get a closer look at the tiny ant-like man.
—You know me?
Jeong-gu exhaled roughly and frantically rubbed his clasped hands, which he'd been gripping for some time.
"D-Do you perhaps remember? That time we..."
Jeong-gu carefully chose his words.
Then, at last, he unearthed a proper noun of historical value—at least between the two of them.
"Le......"
—......!
Song Ji-seon's pupils seemed to dilate already, for some reason.
And almost simultaneously, Jeong-gu finished his line.
"Bulkwang-dong Renaissance... You know it...?"
—......
What happened next was something neither Yeong-woo, Jeong-gu, nor perhaps even Song Ji-seon herself could have predicted.
Having heard Jeong-gu out, Song Ji-seon gaped her massive maw and unleashed her breath.
—Dieeee!
At that, Yeong-woo raised his guard with Aratubangk as if he'd been waiting.
"Yeah, fuck...!"