Chapter 4
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: Lost My Memories?
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[3]
"I'm home."
"Welcome back. You must be tired."
By the time I got home, it was already evening.
It felt like I'd finished quicker than expected, but not really.
Anyway, my mind felt refreshingly clear.
"Hm."
Ring.
My phone buzzed.
Congratulations, Examinee No. 1472, Seo Gi-hyeon.
Your certificate will be mailed tomorrow.
A long-cherished dream had come true. I hadn't really thought it would happen.
It was all thanks to Ellie, right there watching over me.
I looked at Ellie, who had a bit of dust on her, and asked,
"Ellie, want to eat dinner first or bathe?"
"Ah, my apologies, Master. I must prepare your bathwater. I'll hurry and get some warm water ready."
"It's fine."
She must have misunderstood it as an order to prepare my bath.
And seeing her puff out a little flame to heat the water, their world must be pretty old-fashioned.
I turned the boiler knob a bit to start heating the water.
For a while, I'd been skimping and taking cold showers to save money, but today I'd enjoy a nice hot one for a change.
"Ooh, how convenient."
"Right? These days, one button does everything."
"No wonder Master wanted to come back here."
"Try lifting that handle to let the water out."
"Understood, Master."
Ellie grabbed the handle and turned on the water. And then...
"I-it's cold!"
She yanked her hand back in surprise.
"Haha, sorry."
"You're such a tease, Master!"
"Look closely. Left side's cold water, right side's hot."
I adjusted it to a nice warm temperature.
Ellie's face lit up as she dipped her hand in.
"It's warm! So warm, Master!"
"Wash your face and come out. Use the soap there too."
"S-soap? No, Master! I'll just use water!"
"You need soap to get really clean. Go on."
"A-alright. If that's your wish, Master."
Ellie squeezed her eyes shut and lathered up.
She looked so cute, all bubbly and sputtering.
As I dried her off after she came out dripping wet, her nose started twitching.
"M-Master! There's a delicious smell coming from outside."
"Delicious smell?"
Ah.
"Must've arrived."
"Arrived?"
"People deliver food here."
"Oh! Come to think of it, there were a few like that back home too."
"Exactly."
I opened the front door and grabbed the chicken box.
It smelled amazing, but it didn't look like food at all.
Ellie pressed her nose to the box, her eyes going wide.
"What is it, Master?"
"Chicken."
"Chicken?"
"Fried chicken. You don't know it?"
"What's a chicken?"
Did it start from there?
I might need to get a picture dictionary or something.
"An incredibly tasty animal."
"I see. So it's meat."
I pulled out a small table and sat facing her.
I'd grabbed a few cans of beer too, but with no smell to catch her attention, Ellie's eyes were glued to the chicken.
What kind of face would someone make encountering chicken for the first time in their life?
"Shall I open it?"
"Y-yes! Master!"
"One... two... three!"
"Wow..."
The box opened to reveal a masterpiece.
Fried chicken.
Freshly fried batter and big and small grains embedded everywhere.
I could almost hear the crunch, and the savory oil scent tickled my nose.
Seasoned chicken.
Thick, red sauce coated the chicken, while scattered yellow sesame seeds and crushed peanut bits asserted their subtle presence.
Gulp.
Ellie swallowed hard enough to hear it, but she bowed her head.
"You first, Master—"
"No. You try it first."
"H-how could I!"
"I got this for you."
"For me...? Th-then, I'll gratefully partake."
Ellie picked up a piece, bit into it, and chewed.
Flash!
Her eyes flew wide open.
"It's delicious..."
"Right?"
"So delicious!"
First chicken of her life.
How could it not taste good?
Ellie stuffed her cheeks full like a chipmunk.
Feeling playful, I poked her cheek.
It felt just like touching a hamster's pouch, and my lips curved up.
"M-Master!"
"Sorry!"
"You're still such a prankster."
"More importantly, throat feel okay? Want beer or a soda?"
I shook two cans.
Ellie pondered briefly, then pointed at the one I'd called beer.
"You ever had beer?"
"Don't underestimate me. We had beer back home too!"
Popping the tab sent foam spilling out, and Ellie's face scrunched up happily.
There are people who sip their drinks quietly and those who chug. Ellie was the latter.
"Pwah!"
She downed it refreshingly, then finally noticed my hand, still without a single piece of chicken.
"S-sorry. You haven't eaten yet, Master."
"I'll eat slowly, so you eat plenty too."
"Yes. But Master."
"Yeah?"
"I'm a lightweight with alcohol. If I get drunk, will you take responsibility?"
She said that, but she was drinking like a champ.
How drunk could she get off one beer, anyway?
"Sure."
"Thank you, Master."
With full permission granted, Ellie discovered just how deadly chimaek could be.
Chicken, then beer.
Beer, then chicken.
The blissful cycle spun a few times, and Ellie's eyes started glazing over.
"Mm... eung."
"You okay? You seem a bit drunk."
"I-I'm f-fineheehee."
"You look drunk."
"Sorryyy... I just feel too good."
"Getting drunk makes you feel good. I know."
"No... not that. I never imagined something like this would happen to me."
Ellie stood and wobbled over.
Just like on the subway, she rubbed her head against my shoulder.
"I never dreamed I'd see you again, Master."
Come to think of it, I hadn't asked the most important thing.
"Hey, Ellie."
"Yeees?"
"Won't you tell me about the old days now?"
"Mmm... ah!"
Ellie opened her mouth wide like an 'ahh'.
"Feed me and I willll."
"Not without being fed?"
"Nope, not telliiing~"
Couldn't be helped.
I tore off a big chunk of leg meat and fed it to her.
"Okay, since you fed me, I'll tell you!"
After swallowing the whole leg, Ellie spread her arms wide like she was about to reveal something huge.
"Truth is, Master and I were lovers!"
Of course.
But I had a counter for that.
"Oh yeah, Ellie."
"Yes?"
"Didn't you say there was a letter you had to give me?"
"Oh! That's right!"
The letter she was supposed to deliver to me—from me.
Strange story, but the clue had to be there.
"I bestow upon you this chicken leg."
"Chiiicken leg?"
"Yeah. The tastiest, chewiest part of the chicken."
"Hmm... You must like legs, Master."
Right. So you give me the letter too.
"Here."
"Thanks."
...Not your thigh!
"No, not that—the letter!"
"Okaaaay."
"Such a scaredy-cat."
"Hehe... chicken leg... bestowed by Master..."
Clutching the chicken leg, Ellie pulled a letter from her pocket.
Old-fashioned paper sealed with wax.
The name written on it: Seo Gi-hyeon.
Definitely my handwriting.
"Let's see."
+++++
TO. The me reading this.
People only know the value of something after they've lost it.
These are the things I felt while living in this world.
Looking back, it doesn't feel like that long. Can you believe it?
Nothing's changed about me. But in between, I was dragged to a world on the brink of destruction and came back.
That day was just another day heading to my part-time job. An early morning unload shift.
My mood wasn't great, I think.
Worked all night, money still short, so off again at dawn.
Looking back, I wasn't in my right mind either.
Anyway.
That day, you got caught in a gate and sent to another world.
Different from Earth. Earth was bad off too, but this place was straight-up doomed.
It was a fight I was pushed into... but yeah, here my talents bloomed.
Ready to die?
No, do it or die.
Pushing that hard made me grow, alright.
So, me reading this letter.
I want you to know this: You're not some hopeless idiot trash.
You're a hero who's saved the world once, commander of greats.
Tomorrow, I'm entering the Earth transfer ritual.
It's summon-only, so who knows what happens to a human like me.
Probably lose my memories.
The world-saver me vanishes, back to the dumb, young days.
But I'm going anyway.
We all have to go home someday, after all.
...Said all pompous-like.
Truth is, there's nothing here.
Too harsh for someone used to modern life.
Don't think it's ridiculous.
Happiness is the little things right beside us.
Winter's ending here, me.
Brought spring to the world, now bring it to your life too.
Memories gone, but combat instincts remain.
If thinking doesn't work, go with instinct.
After all, we've saved the world once.
P.S.
A few summoneds are heading your way.
Close comrades from here. Treat them well.
Each one's strong, crossed dimensions just to see you.
Especially good to the wife from another country—no, another dimension.
Not wife yet, but soon, maybe.
Show them Earth, modern life.
Buy tasty food, fun stuff.
Let them live happily, enjoying the world.
So they never regret loving us.
+++++
"So that's how it was."
Not exactly realistic.
If I'd gotten this a few days ago, I'd have called it bullshit and tossed it.
But Ellie's existence right there made it impossible to dismiss as nonsense.
All sorts of thoughts swirled.
But one thing was crystal clear.
'Treat them well.'
This girl Ellie crossed time and dimensions just to see me. Mountains and rivers? No, worlds.
"Ellie."
"Yes?"
"Where'd you sleep last night?"
"Found soft sand and dug a hole."
Couldn't just treat a girl like that carelessly.
"From now on, live here with me."
"Wow! Honeymoon!"
"Not quite. More like cohabitation for now."
"Cohabitation?"
"Living together as a trial before marriage."
"Yes! I wanna live with Master!"
She started humming happily.
"Fun~ So fun~"
I guided the thoroughly drunk Ellie to bed.
"So squishy!"
"Sleep here."
"And you?"
"I'll lay blankets on the floor."
"Nooo!"
Lots of no-gos.
"If we have to stick together, we can both sleep here!"
"Even so, that's a bit much."
"I worked so hard today..."
"..."
"Did my best for Master..."
Driving me crazy.
Why was this mountain of a dragon acting so spoiled?
Screw it.
"Scoot over a bit, I'm lying down."
"Yes! Master!"
As soon as I lay down, Ellie snuggled right up.
Whatever now.
Dragon or dog?
"Master!"
"What?"
"I'm so happy to see you again like this!"
Yeah, definitely a dog.
"Got it, got it. You probably didn't sleep well last night, so crash."
"Yes, Master. Good night."
The bed must've felt great—Ellie fell asleep fast.
She must've been exhausted. Even a dragon would feel the difference between bed and dirt.
And she looked so happy.
"Let's do this."
I hadn't lived happily myself.
But that didn't mean I couldn't make others happy.
"Tomorrow'll be busy. Stuff to buy, stuff to change."
Maybe my tiny one-room would start filling up with something.
"Let's go out together tomorrow."
I quietly closed my eyes.
'Gotta get her out of that maid outfit ASAP. Might lose my license right after getting it if someone thinks I'm a perv.'
With that thought.