Chapter 124
Chapter 124
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 124
Chapter Title: Where the Dragon Sleeps (7)
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“The mana… itself hasn’t changed much.”
Perhaps it was because the Dragon Vein’s mana was limited according to the blooming stage of Black Heaven.
Even after absorbing the entire Dragon Vein, I didn’t feel a significant change.
‘It’s not gone.’
I could feel it.
A torrent of mana, flowing as fiercely as a swollen river.
A massive lump of mana that even I, whose talent for handling it had once astonished Vega, could not dare to control.
The Dragon Vein’s mana, having flowed into Black Heaven, coiled within the dark clouds, proudly displaying its majesty.
“Well… I’ll think about how to handle this later.”
Right now, something else was more important.
‘First, I need to find my sister.’
As long as Vega was with her, she couldn’t have been seriously injured, but I couldn’t help but worry.
Oh-jin closed his eyes and focused his mind.
‘The Stigma of Canes Venatici.’
Countless scents flooded my nostrils.
“Ugh…”
Oh-jin winced at the pain, like a drill piercing his skull.
Using the Stigma of Canes Venatici often caused this throbbing headache, as too many smells rushed in at once.
‘Found her.’
A familiar scent.
A scent that was always by my side.
I followed Ha-eun’s scent and began to walk.
I descended, stepping on the collapsed dungeon floor as if it were a staircase.
‘Hm?’
As I got closer, a different scent, as gentle as a spring breeze, entered my nose, distinct from Ha-eun’s.
“M-Mr. Oh-jin?”
There, I saw Isabella supporting the unconscious Ha-eun.
“Y-You’re safe!”
*Fwoosh!*
She approached Oh-jin with a bright smile, then flinched and stopped in her tracks.
Her expression hardened as she stared at Oh-jin’s right arm.
His right arm, which had only been treated with a potion, hung limply like a wet rag. The area around his shoulder was caked in blood that had gushed out when the arm was severed.
“Mr. Oh-jin, your arm…”
“There was a bit of a fight inside.”
“H-How could this!”
Isabella rushed over to Oh-jin, flustered.
Tears welled in her eyes, and she looked as if she might collapse and start sobbing at any moment.
“It’s fine. I’ve given it first aid.”
“Just a moment.”
Isabella raised her staff, her face filled with worry.
*Woooong!*
A brilliant golden light emanated from the tip of the staff.
“Aries, Constellation of the Ram, I beseech you, grant your little lamb the light of healing.”
She recited the incantation with considerable gravity.
Knowing her true nature, it was a rather comical sight, but the effect was undeniable.
*Woooooong!*
As the golden light enveloped his limp right arm, its movement became much smoother.
“Thanks.”
Oh-jin slightly raised and waved his right arm.
“What a relief.”
Isabella sighed, stroking her chest in relief.
She carefully touched Oh-jin’s right arm with her hand.
No, to be precise, she began to knead the blood-soaked shoulder of his right arm.
“……”
*Poke, poke.*
“Isabella?”
*Poke, poke, poke, poke, poke, poke, poke, poke.*
“Hah, hah… Gulp.”
A heated breath escaped from between her lips as she stared intently at the blood-soaked shoulder.
Her pink tongue sensuously licked her red lips.
She squirmed, caressing the bloodied shoulder as if stroking a precious treasure.
“Uh… Ms. Isabella?”
What the fuck.
This is terrifying.
“Ah…! I-I’m sorry!”
Isabella, who had been absently licking her lips while staring at the bloody shoulder, looked up with a startled expression.
“I was just checking to see if the healing went well.”
“Uh, yeah.”
No matter how I looked at it, that didn’t seem like she was checking on the healing.
But let’s just let it slide for now.
“What about my sister?”
“Ms. Ha-eun is safe.”
Isabella said, glancing back at Ha-eun, whom she was supporting.
Just as she said, the unconscious Ha-eun didn’t have a single scratch on her.
[Did I not tell you to trust me?]
*Twinkle.*
With a sprinkle of silver dust, Vega peeked her head out from Ha-eun’s pocket.
Deep fatigue was etched on Vega’s face, likely from using a lot of her power to protect Ha-eun.
“Thanks, Vega.”
[Think nothing of it. I merely did what was necessary. By the way… where did you leave the ‘Dragon’s Heart’?]
Vega looked around, examining Oh-jin.
She seemed to believe that Oh-jin had naturally been the one to acquire the Dragon’s Heart and clear the dungeon.
Oh-jin shook his head with a bitter expression.
“I didn’t leave it. It was stolen.”
[W-What? You mean… you weren’t the one who cleared the dungeon?]
“Yeah.”
[In that case….]
Vega looked flustered, as if this was completely unexpected.
“What happened in there?”
“The Black Star Organization was there.”
Oh-jin briefly explained his fight with the Night Hunters and his encounter with Cheon Do-yoon.
“The B-Black Star Organization? You mean the group that caused the terror attack in Korea a while ago? The news said they were all captured…”
Isabella asked with a frightened expression, feigning ignorance, as Oh-jin shook his head slowly.
“Their leaders haven’t been caught yet.”
“I see…”
“Well, anyway, sorry you came all this way for nothing.”
“Not at all. I’m just glad you’re safe, Mr. Oh-jin.”
Isabella took out a communication sphere from her pocket.
“I’ll call for a helicopter right away, since we don’t know when the Black Star Organization might reappear.”
“Alright.”
*Thud-thud-thud-thud!*
The helicopter arrived quickly, as if it had been waiting nearby.
Oh-jin lifted the unconscious Ha-eun and boarded the helicopter.
“I’ll send the payment for the request to your account soon, Mr. Oh-jin.”
“Even though I didn’t clear the dungeon?”
“Hehe. You still came all this way. Of course I have to pay you.”
“Hmm… alright.”
Well, no reason to refuse if she’s offering.
“It’s a bit of a shame this time… but would it be alright if I requested your services again in the future, Mr. Oh-jin?”
“You’re always welcome.”
She was an unpredictable woman who could go off in any direction.
But if her bizarre obsession with me was genuine, there was a good chance I could make use of it.
‘She was helpful this time, too.’
No matter how skilled I was at lying naturally, I couldn’t just spew nonsense and expect to deceive someone.
Cheon Do-yoon must have been fooled this time because he had obtained information somewhere that Isabella was interested in me.
“I’ll be in touch then, Mr. Oh-jin.”
After arriving back in Seoul by helicopter, Isabella waved goodbye and left.
“Oof.”
Oh-jin carried Ha-eun on his back and returned home.
After laying her on the bed and coming back out, Vega flew over with a *twinkle*.
[How did this come to pass? The organization you spoke of, the Satellite Cult, was not even supposed to have appeared yet.]
“The timeline has changed.”
[If the timeline has changed…]
“Originally, it would have been at least a few months before they targeted the relic hidden in Mount Paektu… but it’s been moved up.”
[It is not just the timeline that has changed, is it?]
As she said, it wasn’t just the timeline.
The organization targeting the relic had changed from the Satellite Cult to the Black Star Organization.
“I’ve thought about that a bit. It seems the Black Star Organization renames itself to the Satellite Cult.”
[They change their name?]
“Remember when I said I didn’t know much about the Black Star Organization?”
[Mmm. I believe you only said you had a suspicion at the time.]
Vega nodded.
“The one I remember was the Satellite Cult, not the Black Star Organization.”
This would also explain why I didn’t know about the Black Star Organization.
[Ah, so that is how it was.]
Vega stroked her chin and nodded.
[In your past life, at this point in time, you would have just shed your novice status as an Awakened… so you simply did not know of them before they changed their name to the Satellite Cult.]
“That’s right.”
In truth, I didn’t know about them before or after the name change.
“I told you before there was an organization led by the Heavenly Demon, right? That was the Satellite Cult.”
[But they currently serve the Black Stars, not the Heavenly Demon, do they not?]
“I think it’s because the Heavenly Demon hasn’t appeared yet.”
[In that case….]
Vega’s eyes narrowed.
Based on the clues she had gathered from Oh-jin so far, there was only one possible conclusion.
[They change their name from the Black Star Organization to the Satellite Cult upon the Heavenly Demon’s appearance.]
“Probably.”
I didn’t know if the Heavenly Demon was actually the reason they changed their name.
But for Vega’s sake, it was better to let her think that, as it made the story consistent.
‘The Heavenly Demon will have to appear eventually, anyway.’
To avoid revealing that I possessed Black Heaven, I had to turn someone else into the Heavenly Demon.
Only then could I survive.
‘It’s no longer a matter of just not getting caught by Vega.’
Now that my relationship with Vega had deepened this much, even if she found out I possessed Black Heaven, she wouldn’t just flip a switch and slit my throat.
The problem, however, was the other Constellations.
As long as the prophecy that Black Heaven would devour all Constellations exists, and as long as they firmly believe it, the existence of Black Heaven must never be revealed.
‘To do that, I need to act the part of a Regressor even more thoroughly.’
The Star of Heavenly Countercurrent, who will save the world from the darkness of Black Heaven.
How many would suspect that the Star of Heavenly Countercurrent was the master of Black Heaven?
The more I solidified my position as the Star of Heavenly Countercurrent, the more the Constellations would have no choice but to trust and rely on me.
[Then is this not a major problem? A precious relic has fallen into the hands of a faction that will serve the Heavenly Demon in the future….]
“I have to get it back.”
I had no choice but to retreat this time, but I had no intention of meekly handing the Dragon’s Heart over to Cheon Do-yoon.
[Do you have a way?]
“Not yet.”
There was no way to snatch the Dragon’s Heart from an opponent who had defeated Lee Woo-hyeok so effortlessly.
But if there was no way, I just had to make one.
Whether by using Isabella or by becoming strong enough to defeat Cheon Do-yoon myself, I would get my hands on the Dragon’s Heart by any means necessary.
[Hah. To think the future has already begun to change… I do not know whether to be pleased or not.]
“From now on, it will diverge even more from the future I knew.”
That was even better.
I never knew the future to begin with.
Now, I just had another useful excuse to bluff my way through when unexpected variables appeared.
[Then the chances of you falling into unforeseen danger will also….]
“Don’t worry. I came back to change the future in the first place, didn’t I?”
I smiled brightly at Vega, who was looking at me with a worried expression.
“This time—I’ll create a future where you can smile without a care.”
[My child….]
Vega blushed slightly and perched on Oh-jin’s shoulder.
[Still, be careful for the time being. We do not know what those wicked ones will do with the Dragon’s Heart.]
“I will.”
I was planning on laying low for a while anyway.
[Then I shall take my leave. I used much of my power this time, and the restrictions are growing severe.]
“Okay. See you later.”
Vega returned to the pendant.
“Hoo.”
After Vega left, Oh-jin let out a low breath and turned around.
He went into the room and looked down at Ha-eun, who was lying on the bed.
He removed the broken prosthetic from her leg.
‘I’ll have to order a new one.’
As if to hide her empty right leg, he pulled the blanket up and covered Ha-eun.
***
-Hmph. The Leech Queen has a man, you say?
“Yes. He is a man called the Lightning Wolf.”
-Ah, I’ve heard of him. Still, a man for that blood-starved witch… I find it hard to believe.
A plaque engraved with a serpent’s crest flickered with black light, and a woman’s laughter-filled voice flowed out.
-Well, in any case. Congratulations. I was a little worried when I heard the Leech Queen was headed your way, but you’ve successfully obtained the Dragon’s Heart.
A voice tinged with a fervent madness.
“Hoholhol. This is all thanks to the Queen of Ophiuchus lighting the way.”
Cheon Do-yoon bowed his head deeply towards the serpent-crested plaque.
-Not at all. I was merely relaying the Heavenly Demon’s words.
“How is He doing…?”
-Hoho. Mr. Do-yoon.
The voice, which had held a strange heat, instantly turned ice-cold.
-Shh.
“……!”
*Flinch!*
Cheon Do-yoon’s shoulders trembled.
“M-My apologies, Queen of Ophiuchus.”
-Fufu. Everyone makes mistakes. Then, I trust you will find the other one as well.
“I have already located it.”
-Is that so? Then that’s a relief.
The voice, which had grown cold, regained its heat.
-Then I’ll be waiting for your call, trusting in you, Mr. Do-yoon.
*Crack!*
The serpent-crested plaque that had been emitting a black light shattered into pieces.
“Hoo.”
Cheon Do-yoon wiped the cold sweat from his brow and stood up.
He looked down at the blue sphere in his hand and raised the corner of his mouth.
“Now that I have the heart…”
He picked up a photograph from the table.
The square photo showed a beautiful woman with reddish-brown hair.
“—It’s time to get the eyes.”
*Hoholhol.*
A ghastly laugh echoed eerily.