Chapter 159: Baeksan's Return
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 159: Baeksan's Return
Chapter 17 - Baeksan Before the Regression
1
After Baeksan’s declaration that he had returned, I quickly straightened my Murim attire.
This world’s Baeksan had returned.
I had to go there right now.
“Baeksan, where do I need to go?”
“I’ll tell you on the way.”
Baeksan replied, his expression quite troubled.
“Ha-chan, I’m coming with you.”
The moment I stepped out of the room, I came face-to-face with Baek Seol-hyang.
Even if she wasn’t his biological sister, she was Baeksan’s stepsister.
Of course, as family, she had every right to meet this world’s Baeksan.
“Sorry, we were in the middle of a get-together. For this to happen so suddenly.”
“It’s alright. This is important to me, too.”
I smiled at Seol-hyang’s words and turned to look at Si-ho.
“Si-ho, could I ask you for a favor?”
“It’s a good thing Si-ho doesn’t drink.”
Si-ho smiled and answered as soon as she heard my request.
Just as she said, for once, I was glad she was a minor.
“Let’s go right away.”
As Si-ho approached, I glanced at the others.
Because I had to leave suddenly, they had all stopped the party and were watching us.
“Sorry, everyone. For ruining the mood.”
“What’s there to apologize for? We’ve had our fun,” Hyeok-seo said as if telling me not to worry, and I could finally relax my expression.
“Domi-oppa.”
Ahyu glanced between Si-ho and Seol-hyang, then let out a sigh.
“This isn’t my area of expertise, so I’ll let you go. But you know you have to keep your promise for this weekend, right?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
I had no intention of forgetting that Ahyu was coming to my place, so I told her not to worry.
Ahyu then hugged Juksim, who was standing near her, and waved at me.
“Si-ho.”
I relayed the coordinates Baeksan had given me, and Si-ho grabbed both my arm and Seol-hyang’s, immediately deploying her spatial teleportation.
In an instant, my vision shifted, and a forest landscape appeared before me.
Seeing the buildings in the distance through the dark night, it seemed we were in the woods of some park.
“They’re coming.”
At that moment, along with Baeksan’s words, sparks began to form a short distance away from us.
The sparks spread through the space, soon glowing with a crimson light.
My eyes focused on it.
Baeksan was returning.
I was expectant, but also worried.
If this world’s Baeksan appeared, I had no idea what would happen to the Baeksan currently beside me.
But that worry was fleeting. With a crackling sound, the space in front of us began to tear open.
Fwoosh!
In that instant, an unexpectedly sharp energy brushed past the three of us.
As we all held our breath at the unusually intense power…
Someone walked out from between the crimson sparks.
“……Huh?”
The moment I saw the person who walked out, a sound of utter surprise escaped my lips.
“……The fuck?”
As I stood frozen, staring at the scene, a sudden curse erupted from Baeksan’s direction.
“What, what the fuck is that! Why?!”
As Baeksan screamed in shock, the person who had stepped out of the dimensional gate noticed us.
“……Are you people from the hunter’s side?”
A gruff voice rang out.
The way of speaking was certainly similar to Baeksan’s, but there was one distinct difference.
While Baeksan had a husky male voice, this person’s voice was far too high-pitched to be considered a man’s.
As proof that this was Baeksan, they had long, spiky white hair, a portion of which was tied back.
Ruby-red eyes.
A high nose bridge and sharp eyes—features that definitely brought Baeksan to mind.
But the swell of her chest clearly set her apart from him.
The Baeksan over there was none other than…
A woman.
“Fuck, fuck, this is wrong! This is all wrong!”
My Baeksan began to scream like a madman, denying reality.
It was an understandable reaction, seeing as his other self had suddenly appeared in this world as a woman.
“Kang Ha-chan, get out of here right now!”
Baeksan suddenly shouted.
“No matter what, I can’t fucking stand to see myself hitting on you, you bastard!”
What the hell did he take me for?
I was momentarily dumbfounded, but someone else stepped forward in my place.
“Hello. I am Baek Seol-hyang, chairperson of the World Returnee Association.”
Seol-hyang, the foremost expert on returnees, greeted Baeksan on my behalf.
“……World Returnee Association? Was there such a thing?”
“It was established while you were caught in a dimensional shift. Today is December 11th, 2030.”
“December 2030… So that’s how much time has passed.”
The Baeksan from the other world…
It’s hard to call them both Baeksan, so I’ll just call her Heuksan for now.
Heuksan spoke as if in deep thought.
Then, as if remembering something, she lifted her head.
“……But you said Baek Seol-hyang?”
She looked at Seol-hyang as if she’d heard the name before, and Seol-hyang offered a faint smile.
“I’m glad you seem to remember my name. It’s nice to meet you, Baeksan. I’m your stepsister.”
Baeksan was none other than Seol-hyang’s step-sibling.
When Seol-hyang, who knew her, said this, Heuksan’s eyes widened.
“Father, and Mother.”
“They are doing well. Father helped me a great deal in establishing the World Returnee Association.”
Hearing that, Heuksan let out a long sigh of relief.
And watching Seol-hyang, I realized something.
Seol-hyang had known from the very beginning that Heuksan was her younger sister.
That meant Heuksan had been a woman from the moment she was born.
“Fuck, what… Don’t tell me, from back then?”
Baeksan must have realized it too, because he spoke with an incredibly serious expression.
“Did you remember something?”
I asked, glancing at Baeksan, who stared at Heuksan with a hardened face.
“……Kang Ha-chan, I was born an albino, so my body was always weak.”
I already knew that story, as Baeksan’s white hair and red eyes were symbols of his albinism.
When I nodded, Baeksan continued.
“So when I was caught in the dimensional shift, I faced many dangerous moments. This time, I wanted to make things a little easier.”
As he spoke, Baeksan ground his teeth.
“So, when my biological mother was pregnant with me, I planted a prophecy so that I could awaken my aura.”
Don’t tell me that prophecy worked.
“If a parent has mastered aura, it’s easier for their child to learn it too. So I set things up so I could be born with a natural affinity for aura, but…”
Baeksan grabbed his bangs as if to tear them out.
“……It seems that also changed my gender.”
As Baeksan spoke as if he wanted to deny reality, I looked at him with pity.
From his perspective, he had simply tried to make his past, which he had struggled through so arduously, a little easier.
But what happened? His other self appeared in this world as a woman.
Even Baeksan couldn’t help but be flabbergasted.
“……And you are?”
Just then, Heuksan, having finished her conversation with Seol-hyang, looked my way.
Her face had the same feel as Baeksan’s, but because she was a woman, it felt like I was facing a completely different person. As I gave an awkward smile, her expression suddenly twisted into a scowl.
“What are you?”
Heuksan strode right up to me.
She looked me up and down before furrowing her pretty eyebrows.
“Why do I feel the same aura from you as I do from myself?”
“Ah.”
I hadn’t thought of that.
Baeksan had personally opened my aura pathways, allowing me to use his techniques.
From Heuksan’s perspective, some guy who possessed a similar energy to her own had just appeared out of nowhere.
“Well, you see.”
How was I supposed to explain this?
As I hesitated, stammering, her eyes narrowed further in anger.
“What is your identity?”
Suspicion filled Heuksan’s eyes.
Not knowing how to explain, I glanced at Baeksan, but he was so shocked by the fact that he had appeared as a woman that he was speechless.
He looked like he’d lost everything.
It seemed I couldn’t count on Baeksan for help.
“There are… some circumstances.”
With other people around, it would be strange to suddenly say that a regressed male version of her was attached to me, so I decided to be vague for now.
It would be better to explain things later, with more time.
She slowly began to sweep her bangs back.
It was the same habit Baeksan had.
And I knew all too well that it was something he did when he was getting pissed off.
“‘Circumstances,’ ‘circumstances.’ You know what I hate the most?”
Heuksan suddenly glared at me, her eyes gleaming with a menacing killing intent.
“It’s that bastards with something to hide are always the ones talking about their ‘circumstances’.”
It seemed she had misunderstood something, as her reaction was incredibly sharp.
Returnees often go through harsh worlds, and before they can reintegrate into Earth’s society, they are often in a highly sensitive state like this.
It had been the same with Orjia.
Naturally, Heuksan, having just returned, still had her old habits.
And my existence, a person with abilities similar to her own, had become an irritation to her.
Crackle—
Red sparks flared up around her body.
“Wait a moment, Baeksan!”
Seol-hyang, who had been observing the situation, quickly stepped between me and Heuksan.
“You feel the same aura… Wait. The reason Ha-chan is like this is because of a spirit attached to him…”
“You said you were my stepsister.”
Heuksan glared at Seol-hyang, who was trying to stop her.
“For now, given the situation, I’ve listened to you, but I don’t fully trust any of you yet.”
As Heuksan glared even at Seol-hyang, who had called herself her stepsister, I realized why Baeksan had said I had helped him in the past.
What filled Baeksan’s eyes right now was nothing but a deep-seated distrust of everyone.
I didn’t know what kind of world she had been through, but one thing was certain.
Baeksan was suffering from a severe case of misanthropy.
That was why, although she had listened to Seol-hyang’s story because she introduced herself as her stepsister, she didn’t actually believe her.
Until she could confirm things with her own two eyes, Baeksan would never believe our words.
“And in a situation like this, a guy who emits the exact same aura as me shows up. And you want me to wait? How do I know you’re not trying to pull something on me?”
Crimson lightning raged wildly around her.
The storm of lightning was so intense that even Seol-hyang couldn’t get close. I shielded both her and Si-ho and quickly backed away.
Zzzzzzzzt!
A crimson lightning bolt struck the spot where we had been standing.
Heuksan was glaring at me as if she wanted to kill me. I looked past her and finally turned back to Baeksan.
It was a touch-and-go situation.
It was obvious Heuksan wouldn’t be swayed by words, and it seemed only Baeksan knew how to resolve this.
Baeksan looked at her as if he were seeing his past self, then let out a long sigh.
“Kang Ha-chan.”
Baeksan called my name and stood beside me.
“Let me possess you for just one second. I’ll subdue her.”