Chapter 105: Wrapping Up (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 105: Wrapping Up (2)
Juksim had said she was hiding somewhere, but I never imagined she’d been going around saving civilians.
I’d been told that unless it was a special case like Eva’s, a soul usually lingers for about three days. To bring someone back, she had to use the “stars” she had accumulated within that time.
And yet, she had used them to save people, hoping to lessen the burden on Eva in any small way.
Was Juksim a saint all along?
I was incredibly grateful that she, a shut-in, had gone to such lengths.
[ She says it won’t be easy, as the quality of a returnee’s soul is particular. Furthermore, she says some souls were destroyed, so there may be people she cannot save. ]
When she looked dejected, worried even for the lives of the other returnees, I knelt down to meet the short girl’s gaze.
“Thank you, Juksim. You’re truly the most dependable person in our guild.”
Hearing my words, Juksim grew shy and averted her eyes.
[ She says looking at you directly is uncomfortable and would prefer you didn’t. ]
Ah, so it wasn’t shyness, just discomfort.
[ She says she made the effort because it concerned one of our guild members. ]
Her next words proved, once again, that she was a good person.
As I breathed a sigh of relief, Si-ho descended from the building.
And then, one last person appeared.
It was none other than Eva.
Dressed in clothes different from her usual attire, she was staggering. I’d heard she had fought Hyeok-seo, and it seemed he hadn’t gone easy on her either.
She looked at Hyeok-seo lying on the ground and let out a long sigh. Then, she walked up to him, grabbed a fistful of his hair, and shook him violently.
She was venting.
Is his head going to pop off at this rate?
It was terrifying.
“…You damn brother, are you done now? You must feel so relieved. Causing all the trouble you possibly could.”
“I’m sorry.”
Eva smacked Hyeok-seo on the head. Then she turned to us, bowed her head, and apologized.
“…I’m sorry. My brother has caused so much trouble. I have no excuse, even if I had ten mouths.”
“Domi.”
“Your sister just said she has no excuse even with ten mouths, so why the fuck are you opening yours?”
As a furious Eva shot him a glare laced with profanity, Hyeok-seo spoke with his face pressed to the ground.
“…Can I ask for just one favor?”
“I’ll hear you out.”
I thought it would be better for him to ask Seol-hyang, the one in charge of this whole affair, rather than me. But everyone was looking at me as if they would follow my decision, and I felt a sense of unease.
“You’re the center of all this. You’re the only one who can keep them together.”
At Baeksan’s advice, I scratched my head.
When I thought about it, he was probably right.
I was our guild master, after all.
“I know it’s shameless, but about sending people into the dimensional rift to retrieve Se-hee’s body…”
Hyeok-seo immediately spoke up.
“Let me be the one to do it.”
It truly was shameless.
*
20
After everything was over, I was sitting in a temporary infirmary at the World Returnee Association.
The captured members of Girasung had been dragged down to the association’s basement. I suspected they would be eternally imprisoned by a sealer once again.
In the meantime, Seol-hyang had already begun to act swiftly, sending a spokesperson for the World Returnee Association to the media.
Since Girasung was involved in this incident, the media had tried to crawl their way in, looking for a chance to chip away at the returnees’ reputation, but it was a futile attempt.
Seol-hyang had preemptively announced to the press that the World Returnee Association, in cooperation with Korea’s hunters, had protected the Jung District. She had elevated the status of Korea itself by praising its hunters, thereby seizing control of public opinion.
As expected of the World Returnee Association.
The government, having no intention of antagonizing the association, actively defended them and assisted in civilian relief efforts. The association, for its part, also helped with relief, offering substantial compensation for the incident in the Jung District, as it was a returnee-related matter.
Thanks to all this, the heat surrounding the incident began to die down.
In the end, money solves everything.
Above all, the miracle of zero fatalities helped resolve the situation quickly. The common testimony among the survivors was that a goddess with black hair who couldn’t meet their eyes had saved them. Thanks to this, a strange craze about a “black-haired goddess” was sweeping through the Jung District.
Of course, when Juksim herself heard this story, she seemed more horrified than anything.
While Seol-hyang was hard-carrying the cleanup like a madwoman, I was being treated by the saintess she had called for me.
A returnee from Afghanistan, she had the elegant features and skin tone typical of someone from the Middle East.
The mere touch of her hand healed my body at a rapid pace. I could clearly feel the power of a specialist in healing. In an instant, my body felt back to normal.
“I was told you came to help when I lost consciousness last time as well. Thank you so much, Saintess.”
“It’s nothing. You’re precious to our dear Seol-hyang, so of course I had to help.”
“You call Seol-hyang by her name, Saintess.”
Hearing my words, the saintess smiled gently.
“Yes. Others do not, do they?”
Aside from Eunhyeon, I hadn’t seen any other returnee associated with Seol-hyang call her by her first name. I had always wondered about it, and the saintess gave me the answer.
“Before the World Returnee Association was formed, quite a few returnees died in the process of fighting against anti-returnee nations and criminal organizations.”
I had heard bits and pieces of that story. As I listened intently, the saintess continued.
“So, an unspoken rule spread throughout the association. If you call each person by name and grow attached, it’s too hard to bear when they don’t come back.”
I finally understood why they didn’t call each other by their names.
“It was a guard, a way to protect their own minds.”
“Because you can keep your distance if you use titles instead of names?”
“Yes. We returnees are human, after all.”
“Yes, I’m well aware of that.”
No matter how many trials they had endured, returnees were still human. Feeling sad and pained when someone beside you dies is the same for everyone. Knowing that fact well, I readily accepted the saintess’s explanation.
“Hoho, now I see why Seol-hyang cherishes you so much, Mr. Ha-chan. The treatment is finished. You might feel a little dizzy, so please rest for a bit before getting up.”
“Yes, thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
After the saintess left, I leaned my head back on the pillow.
“…Baeksan, you said my sister appeared.”
“Right. She showed up when you were kidnapped.”
Hearing that, I bit my lip.
That sister of mine was really going to drive me crazy, popping up here and there whenever she pleased.
“And she probably told the Iron-Blooded something. That’s what stopped her from using the Crown.”
The words that followed made my thoughts even more complicated.
Seol-hyang was already swamped with work because of this incident, suffering through all sorts of hardships. It was painful just to watch her from the side, and now I was worried that my sister had just added to her burden.
「If you’re that worried about me, just hold me tight for an hour later. I’m going to be super clingy.」
Considering everything she was doing, I couldn’t possibly refuse, so I naturally agreed. Perhaps because of that, Seol-hyang was working with a particular fire in her eyes, accelerating the pace.
I just hope she doesn’t overdo it.
“Baeksan, that person you mentioned before, the one who peeks at worldlines.”
“Yeah.”
“Could that person be related to my sister?”
I had thought my sister, Ma-ri, was acting that way because of Baeksan’s prophecy. But now, I felt that wasn’t the only reason.
Something else was compelling her to move.
And for some reason, it was all happening with me at the center.
“Hah, the problem isn’t whether she’s connected to Kang Ma-ri.”
“Then who the hell is this person who sees worldlines?”
At my question, Baeksan seemed to ponder for a moment. Then, as if by habit, he swept his bangs back and told me the truth.
“It’s her.”
“Her?”
“The Iron-Blooded Empress, Baek Seol-hyang. It’s her.”
That was something I had never, ever imagined.
I stared at Baeksan, my eyes wide with shock.
“Seol-hyang?”
“Yes. The power of that item she has, the Crown, is the ability to see worldlines. If she puts her mind to it, she can pull all worlds to a point of her choosing.”
“But…”
Seol-hyang had never once mentioned anything related to that. When I expressed my doubt, Baeksan also twisted his face in a look of utter confusion.
“That’s why I can’t figure it out either. Judging by the Iron-Blooded’s reaction, it didn’t seem like she had used the Crown. But looking at the situation revolving around you, it’s clear someone is pulling similar strings…”
“Are you saying there’s something moving that even you don’t know about, Baeksan?”
“Yeah. Dammit, I don’t know why this goddamn world has so many secrets. I saw it all the way to its destruction, and yet a new variable has popped up. It’s giving me a headache. For now, I don’t think it’s the Iron-Blooded. There’s something else.”
Baeksan irritably ruffled his hair.
Just as he said, things were definitely getting much more complicated.
“Alright. I’ll ask Seol-hyang about this myself.”
“How are you going to ask?”
“Nicely?”
Besides, I had that one-hour session with her definitely scheduled. I could just look for an opportunity then. It’s better to have these kinds of conversations face-to-face.
My gaze fell to the burner phone.
I had sent a message to Eunnamu, but for some reason, she still hadn’t replied. I was worried, but this was Eunnamu, who was immortal. I wanted to believe she was safe.
For now, first things first.
It was time to resolve another matter.
I got up from the bed.
“Time to finish things for our twin siblings, Eva and Hyeok-seo.”
The time had come to save Eva.
*
21
The basement of the World Returnee Association.
I was riding down the elevator with Ahyu.
She had grabbed me the moment I came out from my treatment with the saintess, and I had to force a bitter smile as I looked at her, clinging tightly to my arm.
“Ahyu, I think my arm’s going to fall off.”
“Then I’ll reattach it.”
She says the scariest things.
“I’m telling you, I’m perfectly fine now.”
“I know. I’ve been treated by the saintess before, too.”
“…You’re just clinging to me because you like it, aren’t you?”
Ahyu didn’t meet my eyes. Instead, she started squeezing my arm even harder.
Is she really trying to rip it off?
“Domi, you remember what I said last time, right? That if you keep getting hurt, I’ll lock you up.”
“Yes.”
“This is me holding back. Do you want to test my patience any further?”
“No, ma’am.”
“Good. I’m really reaching my limit here. So let’s do better, okay? I don’t want to see you get hurt anymore, Domi.”
Her words were filled with sincerity, so I could only offer an awkward smile. I knew I wouldn’t be able to stand it if Ahyu got hurt like I did.
I cherish Ahyu as much as she cherishes me. So it was probably best to take her words to heart.
“You idiot. Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”
Just then, Baeksan clicked his tongue from behind me and spoke up. I wanted to argue, but the reality was that I couldn’t just stand by and do nothing, so there was nothing I could say.
Still, I’ve managed to shed my glass cannon status, at least a little.
It was still clumsy, but I had learned how to use my aura in bursts. I could now avoid being completely drained after firing just two shots.
That was a huge achievement for me. Moreover, I was beginning to understand what Baeksan meant by aura proficiency.
“Ahyu, once this is over, can I ask you for a favor?”
“What is it? Want me to give you a kiss?”
“Sure, I’ll take that as my favor.”
“Oh? You’re underestimating me, aren’t you? Pucker up. I’m just gonna plant one on you.”
I barely managed to stop Ahyu with my hand as she puckered her lips and lunged at me, then got to the main point.
“I want you to teach me how to fight.”