Chapter 466
Chapter 466
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 466
Chapter Title: Ramyu (1)
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I knew it right away.
The fact that I was dreaming right now.
"Seonghyeon! It's about time to get ready! Do you know what time it is? Still not up?"
"Tsk tsk. We told you to wake up early today."
"We're going to miss the train at this rate! Get up, wash up, and get ready!"
The voice of my mother calling me, and my father's clicking tongue echoed faintly from afar.
Those two dear people I could no longer see.
I wanted to rush to them right away and hug them tightly, but my body wouldn't move as I wished.
As if I was only allowed to watch, I just sluggishly got out of bed and headed to the bathroom out of habit.
"Son, if a person wants to succeed, they need to experience the wide world. And there's nothing better for that than travel."
"Good grief, you old man. Don't say that after sending them on an overseas trip for once."
"What? You know I can't help it. It's not that I don't want to, but security abroad isn't as good as in Korea, so if anything happens..."
"Aigoo~ I get it, I get it. Can't even talk to you."
And soon enough, I realized what moment this dream was showing.
The family trips we took every year on our wedding anniversary, led by my father who loved traveling.
"Still, without those two this year, doesn't it feel kind of empty?"
"Can't be helped. Grandma's getting on in years now. And Taesan insisted on staying by her side."
"She's been feeling so guilty about being a burden all this time that we planned this just among ourselves... but I still feel a bit bad. Should we have skipped it this year?"
Ever since we learned about Taesan's family situation, we'd always gone on trips with those two, but somehow, this time it ended up just the three of us for the first time in ages.
And I knew exactly what happened after this.
'No! Don't go!'
But there was nothing I could do.
I screamed as I watched myself heading to Seoul Station with my parents, but the voice only echoed inside me, never reaching them.
'No!!'
And...
"Wow~ What a view. Son, told you coming here was the right choice?"
"Oh my, this is delicious! We should buy a ton to take back. Got to give some to Taesan's family!"
The accident so vividly etched in my memory didn't happen.
Not until we finished that utterly ordinary, somewhat boring trip and returned home.
'...I see. So it really was just a dream.'
At that moment, I clearly understood what kind of dream this was.
Dreams are nothing more than the brain cobbling together scraps of lingering thoughts into something plausible.
It wasn't strange for it to show a situation I desperately wished for and imagined, rather than harsh reality.
From then on, I could watch the unfolding events with a much calmer mind.
As dreams usually are, the flow of time was unclear and erratic, but it wasn't hard to gauge roughly how much time had passed.
"This kid's sleeping in again. Get up already!"
"Didn't he say he has a lecture this morning?"
"That's what I mean. He'll probably skip breakfast and bolt again. Hey, Seonghyeon!"
"Tsk tsk tsk."
I graduated high school normally and got into a university in Seoul that matched my grades.
My studies were decent enough that, even if by the skin of my teeth, I made it into a fairly reputable school.
Of course, there was no helping the comparison to my friend who got a full scholarship while working part-time.
"Hey, Seonghyeon."
"Yeah..."
"What's up? Why do you look half-dead this morning? Pulled an all-nighter again?"
"Yawn... Had a promotion match."
"Man, you're gonna burn out young."
I yawned lazily and chatted with Taesan.
The world was abuzz with Awakeners and ability crimes, but it didn't greatly affect my daily life.
Korea had excellent public safety compared to other countries, and as always, those facing tragedy were a minority compared to the rest.
Just like the original me.
In this dream, I simply belonged to the majority.
-Next up, global news. The villain '■■■', who infiltrated Zhongnanhai in the heart of China, has finally been captured after a long manhunt. He caused massive damage during...
The gruesome incidents blaring from the TV were distant stories from my current self.
How much time passed like that?
Segments of repetitive daily life flashed by quickly.
Exams, birthdays, dating, trips, games, breakups, and so on.
I grew bit by bit, crying and laughing through the ordinary yet somewhat special events most people experience.
'Living like this wouldn't have been so bad.'
No power or authority to sway the world, but a life filled with modest happiness alongside precious people.
It was peaceful enough that I could accept it as the future I desired.
Yes.
Until the atmosphere suddenly flipped.
'What? What's this?'
One day, the light vanished from the sky.
At first, I didn't realize what was happening.
I was too insignificant a being to notice right away.
Rumble—
But the moment my gaze met the massive eye that blanketed the sky.
I instinctively knew what was going on.
That something enormous enough to hold the sky—no, the entire Earth—in one hand was peering down from above.
'Is that really an eye?'
Maybe not.
My brain, unable to comprehend what my eyes saw, might have just roughly associated it with something similar.
But none of that mattered now.
[■■■■■—!]
An incomprehensible proclamation of unknown origin shook my mind.
But powerless as I was, there was nothing I could do.
The same went for the top Transcendents who had wielded near-absolute power until then.
This was a 'god' itself—something mortals could never contend with.
And right after that.
I—Han Seonghyeon—
"......"
—stared blankly at the familiar ceiling, lost in thought.
'What kind of ridiculous dream was that?'
Like dreams always are, the memories faded the moment I opened my eyes, so I hurriedly recalled the key points.
For example... the vivid images of my parents, whom I could now only see in photos.
"Ugh, well, it was pretty decent until the very end..."
A world where I didn't lose my parents and never awakened any abilities.
While immersed in the dream, I hadn't noticed anything odd, but looking back now, there were more differences from reality than similarities—enough to feel uncanny.
No, actually, there were far more differences than similarities.
'Well, dreams are like that.'
I shrugged and got out of bed.
The dream had suddenly turned into cosmic horror, leaving me sweaty even in sleep, so I wanted to wash up quickly.
'Not just horror, but cosmic horror at that. Though, it's funny to think I'd be scared of ghosts or monsters now.'
A chuckle escaped me unwittingly.
The Immortal King commanding ghost bodies and walking corpses; the Vampire King reigning at the pinnacle of vampires; the Demon King dominating the demon world atop all demons; the bizarre lifeform devouring all sorts of grotesque monsters like snacks.
Imagining those avatars, accustomed only to instilling fear in others, trembling in terror was just too amusing.
After washing up refreshed, the lingering unease from the dream was completely gone.
I settled into an armchair with a warm cup of coffee and murmured softly.
"Alright—so what made me have such a dream all of a sudden?"
I had no intention of dismissing it as just a dream.
If I were an ordinary person, maybe, but with my soul swollen enough to hold a seed of divinity, there was no way I'd have a meaningless dream.
At this level, even random thoughts often brushed against truth.
'Probably because Heinrich obtained the Fruit of Myth and glimpsed the future... But it's too different to call it a precognitive dream.'
Still, I couldn't put blind faith in it.
I wasn't a precog myself, and with no way to discern truth from illusion, its uncertainty remained.
'Even precogs can't guarantee 100% accuracy. That's why they spout vague nonsense.'
I sipped my coffee for a while, organizing my thoughts.
Various hypotheses swirled, but one thing stood out as crucial.
'No matter what happens in the future, I need to prepare thoroughly to respond effectively.'
Even if it meant facing an alien deity invading Earth.
A sigh escaped me naturally, already burdened with dealing with the Reverse Heaven Society leader, now with extra worries.
I wished someone—anyone—could share this load...
With that thought, as I took another sip of coffee.
"Pfft!"
I spat it out, unable to swallow.
Blinking in bewilderment, I hurriedly shifted to my avatars.
'What? How did this happen?'
Hun, the entity living with Ramyu, roughly flung open her door.
Rude and inconsiderate for a girl's room, but there was no choice now.
'Gone.'
As I'd half-expected.
The room was empty.
She'd definitely been there just moments ago!
'Maybe she went out the window...? No, no.'
Ramyu had holed up in her room voluntarily; I'd never confined her.
No traces on the security barriers either.
This residence wasn't as fortified as the main base, but it had solid defenses.
"Hoo. So it really happened."
Hun took a deep breath to steady himself.
Truth be told, there was no need for such urgency.
I'd just reconfirmed for accuracy; I already knew where she was.
More precisely.
I'd learned it from that side first.
He focused his mind on the avatar where Ramyu's location had registered.
The Gold Dragon, Horus.
'How the hell did she get there?'
Ramyu, who had been on Earth just moments ago.
Was now in the Kanghwan Realm.
*** The Dragon God Temple was in chaos.
An outsider had infiltrated the most heavily guarded place on Golden Turtle Island, practically the yokai homeland.
Right into the abode of Baby Yellow Dragon Hwiryong, smack in the middle of excessive security.
The first to spot the intruder was the Black Dragon.
Coming to meet Hwiryong with snacks as usual, sneaking past the other Four Dragons, she saw it.
A human girl in her early teens giggling with their precious treasure.
No need to mention what happened next.
The commotion around said it all at a glance.
"How dare a human invade the Dragon God Temple...!"
The mid-teen girl with long braided black hair—the Black Dragon—ground her teeth, black energy flaring wildly.
She already despised humans intensely.
To encounter one in this worst possible way...
[Kyung! Kyaang—!]
If Hwiryong hadn't wrapped her long body around the human child and barked fiercely, something terrible would have surely gone down already.
"Your friend? What nonsense is that, Hwiryong! How could a mere human be your friend? No, more than that, you've been stuck in here—how could you even have other friends..."
[Kyurrr! Kyak!]
"...Wh-who said I have no friends! You can't talk to your big sis like that! That's it. Come here. Looks like I've been too soft on you all this time..."
[Hing hing~!]
"Urk! This...!"
Horus, who rushed over after the emergency alert about the intruder, surveyed the scene and sighed in relief.
Thanks to Hwiryong stepping up, it hadn't escalated into the disaster he'd feared.
He held back the arriving Four Dragons and slowly approached the noisy spot.
More precisely—to Ramyu, protected by the golden energy emanating from Hwiryong's body.
[Kyuing!]
Hwiryong perked up at the sight of him, shaking her head excitedly.
She seemed eager to coil around him but held back to shield Ramyu.
"Horus! Perfect timing! Talk some sense into her!"
The Black Dragon welcomed him too.
Unable to act for fear of hurting Hwiryong if she overdid it, but Horus, whom Hwiryong especially adored, could surely persuade her.
"Ah..."
And his childlike appearance, looking only four or five, eased Ramyu's tension amid the sudden chaos.
Emboldened by everyone's reactions, Horus stepped forward and quickly sorted things out.
Calming the furious Black Dragon and making her back off, gently soothing the on-edge Hwiryong, and coaxing the wary Ramyu to explain the details.
"...So, you just thought you wanted to meet her, and when you came to, you were here?"
"Yeah... Um, yes."
Horus wore a subtle expression at her answer.
Not specifying any world or coordinates—just a desire to see someone—and crossing dimensional walls?
Without a trace, landing precisely at the target's location?
"Then, can you return to where you came from? The same way you got here."
"Ah? Um... Let me try... I guess."
Ramyu squeezed her eyes shut and groaned.
About a minute passed.
Just as he wondered if it was impossible right away.
[Neong?]
She vanished cleanly.
Hwiryong curiously prowled the spot where Ramyu had been, but no traces remained.
And then.
"...Ah? There..."
Hun exchanged glances with Ramyu, who suddenly appeared in the empty room, and gave a hollow smile.
'Even without mastery, barely any cooldown or delay? What kind of cheat ability is this.'
Looks like he'd picked up a far more extraordinary child than expected.