Chapter 456
Chapter 456
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 456
Chapter Title: The Ruined World (3)
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A cracked, shattered gray sky hung ominously overhead.
That was the only 'sky' Ramyu had ever seen since the day she was born.
It was only natural, given the kind of world it was.
And it wasn't just her experience alone.
After the world had crumbled, so much time had passed that only the oldest adults still remembered the original clear blue sky.
Even in its wretched state, though...
> Ramyu loved gazing up at it.
Compared to herself—a burden dragging at her only family, her brother's ankles—that lofty sky seemed endlessly vast, expansive, and free.
'Not that I could even look at it freely. I'd get scolded by Brother for that.'
Staring too long at the pitch-black darkness rippling beyond the fractured gaps could lure one into the abyss, driving them mad.
Of course, she obeyed his words and stopped looking, just as he said.
Unlike others, she instinctively knew the abyss held no power over her, but she didn't want to worry her brother any longer.
'If only I weren't around, Brother could have lived comfortably anywhere, treated well.'
Her brother, Lian, was an extraordinary man.
Unlike her frail body, he possessed innate physical prowess beyond compare, with snap judgments and wits no one could match.
The proof was her very survival.
In a harsh world with no one to rely on after their parents' death, protecting a newborn while barely scraping by himself for over a decade was no small feat.
He had accomplished that impossible task, making him more than just a brother to Ramyu.
To her, who had never known her parents' faces, he was more than parents ever could be.
That was her one and only blood kin, Lian.
That's why.
That's precisely why.
She couldn't accept that she was alive and well, staring up at this blue sky.
—"Ramyu—!!"
Memories of her final moments flashed through her mind.
The sky collapsing with an ominous roar.
Her brother racing toward her in shock at the horrific sight, pulling her into a tight embrace.
—"Ramyu, remember this one thing."
She lay cradled in his warm arms, listening silently.
An inexplicable sense of loss left her too numb to speak.
—"No matter what anyone says, you're my little sister."
She couldn't ask.
What those words meant.
Right after, Lian unclasped the necklace from his neck and placed it around hers.
One of the heirlooms from their parents, split between them.
The other half of the heart-shaped pendant.
—"I love you, my little sister."
From within that sturdy embrace.
The sky she loved so much finally came crashing down—
Gurgle~
A loud rumble echoed through the room.
"Ah."
Ramyu, who had been blankly staring at the blue sky beyond the window, snapped to her senses and rubbed her eyes with her sleeve.
She clutched her stomach and let out a small sigh.
It hadn't even been hours since her last meal, yet the ravenous hunger was surging back fiercely.
'It never used to be this bad.'
It was all because this world's food was too delicious.
After years of surviving on rough roots and tree bark, her body now craved the soft, nutrient-rich meals at every opportunity.
'Those feasts were something else. Even the rat meat we saved for special days couldn't compare...'
She swallowed the drool trickling from her lips and shook her head vigorously.
No matter how tasty the food, she couldn't blindly trust people.
That was her ironclad rule for survival.
'He doesn't seem like a bad guy, though...'
She knew she was being unreasonable after freeloading so much already, but lifelong values weren't easy to shake.
So, she kept sneaking meals like a stray cat and holing up in her room.
Even now, days after arriving here.
Click—
Ramyu cracked the door open and peeked out.
Glancing around cautiously, she tiptoed down to the first-floor kitchen.
'Smells so good.'
The man who introduced himself as Hoon always prepared meals at mealtimes and stepped out, as if to spare her any awkwardness.
Yet, despite her gratitude and guilt, she couldn't muster the courage to approach him.
It was only natural, really.
Though she hid it well, she had just lost her only family.
Whether from her upbringing or innate nature, the grief didn't cripple her daily life, but the hollow emptiness in her heart was unavoidable.
'...Sigh. I can't keep doing this forever. Today, I'll talk to him properly.'
To move forward, she had to take that first step.
Her brother, who worried for her until the end, would want that too.
With firm resolve, she cautiously entered the kitchen.
"Huh?"
And there, she locked eyes with a being she never could have imagined.
[Kyuu?]
On the table laden with various foods sat an unknown creature.
Coiled up with its glossy body, it tilted its small head curiously.
Ramyu's wide eyes met Hwiryong's sparkling ones in midair.
*** Hoon, now handling external audits for Howard Industries and Lunatic Entertainment under his umbrella, felt satisfied.
'Success.'
Stepping out briefly for work, he opened the front door and nodded approvingly upon entering.
"So warm... So smooth..."
[Kyuurur—!]
"Heehee, that tickles!"
A child's bright laughter filled the house.
He had summoned Hwiryong just in case, and it seemed to have worked as planned.
'Hwiryong's cuteness is truly unrivaled. Even melting that wary cat-like girl's defenses in one go.'
Days after bringing her from the Kosiyas Dimension, Ramyu's extreme environment had made her trust hard-won.
They'd managed basic introductions, but that was it.
For someone seeking closer dialogue and cooperation, it was frustrating.
'I get how she feels.'
Her entire world had flipped overnight—suspicion was the sane response.
But understanding didn't mean he could waste time indefinitely.
He'd scoured parenting forums and videos for ways to bond, but they fell flat.
'Ramyu's no ordinary kid.'
The sole survivor of a ruined dimension—an utterly unique variable.
Standard kid advice naturally wouldn't stick.
That's when he thought of the Imperial Dragon, Hwiryong.
The link between animals and children's emotions was well-known.
Whether to call Hwiryong an 'animal' was debatable, but irrelevant now.
Having experienced its charm firsthand, he acted without hesitation...
"So pretty... Ah! Where are you going?"
[Kyaaang!]
...and now reaped rewards beyond expectation.
Hwiryong coiled around Hoon's neck as he entered from the living room, poking its head over his shoulder.
Ramyu trailed behind, noticing his return late and shrinking back shyly.
'She would've bolted before. What an effect.'
Stroking the stubby horn on its head with one hand, Hoon smirked.
[Kyaang!]
The little body wriggled proudly, as if understanding the praise.
And it hadn't taken long for Hwiryong's aid to bear fruit.
*** Hoon's skill 「Mental Rapport」 was an incredibly versatile ability.
From telepathic thought transmission to psychometry reading residual thoughts on objects, mind reading, brainwashing—it had boundless potential.
It could even instill common knowledge in those ignorant of this world.
'Proficiency's still low, so info volume without side effects is limited... but it's something.'
Teaching shower and shampoo use was one such application.
She'd used cleansing magic tools till now, but couldn't rely on them forever.
'For language-heavy info, Andrew's translation artifact can help.'
Another boon: real-time sharing of mental imagery.
Information inevitably distorted in transmission.
He couldn't casually use Hans's black magic, with its severe backlash.
Beep— Beep—
"257,000 won."
"Here you go."
Finishing shopping at a nearby large mart, Hoon stepped into the street and stretched his neck.
He'd prepared ahead of moving in, but living with a kid revealed endless needs.
'Fine for now, but handling it solo forever might be tough.'
And as a girl, there'd be special considerations.
With no dating experience, let alone parenting, how could he manage delicately?
'I'll figure that out later.'
Recalling Ramyu's story from before leaving, Hoon pondered.
He'd gone shopping to give her and Hwiryong—her mental care specialist—time to recover from gloomy memories.
'The final moments of the Kosiyas Dimension.'
With consent, 「Mental Rapport」 yielded vivid details: her environment, events, world's end.
One topic especially piqued his interest...
'Parents' heirloom.'
The pendant she kept till the end, passed from her brother.
Two halves forming a perfect heart.
Engraved on the joined back: a phrase neither Ramyu nor Lian could read.
"It's the language from their homeland, but totally different from what Brother taught me... Definitely foreign, but which country..."
Remarkably, Ramyu was literate despite hellish conditions—bodily weakness left her few options, but literacy was impressive amid apocalypse.
With permission, Hoon examined it.
His 「Xenoglossy」 left no language unreadable.
And he deciphered it as expected.
'The issue is...'
He recognized it without 「Xenoglossy」.
-May our love last forever
'English.'
Meaning: 'May our love last forever.'
Perfect for a heart pendant.
'Earthlings, huh?'
Both awakeners from Earth who fully settled here.
Coincidence?
'...I'll ask more when I get back.'
As he walked lost in thought,
His superhuman senses caught a minor disturbance.
In a deserted alley nearby, a sexual assault on a woman.
'Fearless idiots. Doing that in Seoul.'
Hoon frowned slightly, glancing over.
No mere slap on the wrist for not being caught red-handed.
Korea's vigilante guardians against darkness pursued even tiny clues relentlessly.
'Pinnacle Realm. Fresh returnee, hasn't grasped the situation...'
But Pinnacle wasn't negligible.
His standards had risen in big leagues, but it equated to sword master, grand mage, or transcendent martial artist.
'Perfect timing to test something.'
Strength was relative.
Eyes gleaming, Hoon extended 「Mental Rapport」.
The foe's sturdy mental barrier resisted, but bolstered by 「Great Mind」 and such, he made contact.
[“How dare you!”]
Hostility and murderous intent surged upon detection.
Shallow contact limited options—mere surface thoughts.
As the wary foe rallied energy, the link faded.
Soon severed, or the Villain tracing back instantly.
'Plenty of time.'
Hoon just smirked.
Contact made, game over.
He flung open his mind, unleashing its contents.
[“Guhk! What is th...?!”]
Pinnacle barriers meant nothing once linked.
Like a steamroller crushing a toy castle, the foe's psyche shattered.
"...Not bad."
Whistling softly, Hoon's eyes sparkled.
He confirmed the charging Villain collapse, drooling slack-jawed, then severed.
'Didn't expect much combat from this avatar.'
Brand new, yet neutralizing Pinnacle already.
Unlike others burdened by higher realms, Hoon weaponized the overload.
Like dumping nuclear waste on enemies.
'Stronger than thought. Level up 「Mental Rapport」 for stable links on tougher foes...'
Nodding with a meaningful smile, Hoon walked on.
Abilities grew through use.
Thus, in Villain-plagued Seoul, the nightmare 'Mind Breaker' was born.