Chapter 30
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: The Journey Home
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Manager Kim took a step back without realizing it. The demonic energy radiating from Cheon Doun was suffocating.
*'Is... is he even human?'*
Manager Kim wasn't a combat-class Awakened. He rarely had reason to cross through a Gate, but occasionally, he had to step inside to procure materials.
Once, he'd hired a Hunter escort to cross a Gate with him. There, he'd seen a disaster-class Monster.
He had only seen it take flight from hundreds of meters away, but he could never forget the pressure he felt then.
*'Why am I getting that same feeling now?'*
No, this was even more intense. Was the being before him truly human?
His confusion was cut short when the Mandragora in Cheon Doun's hand moved.
*'W-what? I think that thing just moved. Did I see wrong?'*
The fine roots clinging to its body seemed to have twitched.
It must have been his imagination. The moment he thought so, the completely withered leaf trembled visibly.
*'Huh? Wha... What? What is that? Why are its eyes... It was definitely dead...!'*
Manager Kim's eyes widened. The Mandragora's eyes also slowly opened, growing wider.
*Squeak.* The dried-out eyes opened halfway before freezing in place.
-*Hooo... hooo...*
A small, faint sound. It was completely different from the spirited cries of the garden specimens.
But even that feeble sound was enough to make Manager Kim's eyes fly open.
*'The... the Mandragora made a sound!'*
The only sound Manager Kim knew a Mandragora to make was its scream when pulled from the ground. He had never heard one make a sound that seemed to express intent like this.
-*Hooo... hooo...*
Faint breaths escaped it.
A sticky liquid welled up in its dried eyes. As it formed like tears, Manager Kim felt deeply unsettled.
"Don't start juicing. You're already dried out as it is."
Cheon Doun used his finger to close the Mandragora's eyes.
"Keep them closed."
-*Hooo...*
The shriveled leaf swayed slowly.
"Si-Sir, what in the world are you..."
Seeing a Mandragora that had been dead for over ten years come back to life left Manager Kim speechless.
*Are you a resurrection-type ability user?* Manager Kim stopped himself before asking.
The ability to bring the dead back to life didn't exist. He knew that, yet the scene before him had almost made him blurt out the question.
*'I shouldn't ask. It's best to keep my mouth shut for now.'*
Reading the room, Manager Kim zipped his lips.
Come to think of it, the young man before him hadn't revealed a single piece of information about himself.
Prying into things someone wasn't willing to share was the height of rudeness. Now was the time for simple gratitude. Suppressing his curiosity, Manager Kim bowed.
"Thank you so much for your generous offer today. Thanks to you, I think I can pay off my debt and start fresh."
"You have debt? A high-ranking alchemist?"
"Well... my family is rather poor."
Manager Kim smiled sheepishly.
"I'm actually from the slums. When I was young, my family didn't have money for rice, and we starved for over ten days. My parents took out a loan from a private lender to feed me. It's snowballed since then and hasn't let go."
He scratched his head and chuckled. His eyes crinkled as he smiled, giving him a simple, honest look.
"It's a good thing I became an Awakened and could at least start paying off the principal. Otherwise, my whole family might have had their organs harvested."
Half joke, half serious.
Alchemy-type ability users make good money.
And yet, the reason Manager Kim couldn't save was because no matter how much he paid on the principal, the private loan's interest grew even faster.
Getting on Executive Director No's bad side and having his achievements stolen also played a big part in him never getting a chance to earn big.
"When people hear that someone from the slums became an Awakened, they call it a rags-to-riches story. But behind my back, they laugh about it. They say someone with my background can never escape the bottom, that I just earn money to line the pockets of loan sharks. That you can't change where you come from, I guess."
Manager Kim didn't know that Executive Director No was the one who started those rumors.
But that was all in the past now. If he sold the shells and red moss Cheon Doun gave him to the association, he would have a massive amount left over even after paying off all his debt.
His hardships were finally over. All that was left was for his family to gather and eat a warm meal of rice together.
Cheon Doun looked at him, then crushed a return stone.
"I'm from the slums too."
"You... are?"
"Born and raised in this neighborhood. Go show everyone just how well someone from the slums can do."
"Ah..."
Manager Kim's eyes widened. He wanted to say something, but a rush of complex emotions choked him up. In that moment, Cheon Doun stepped into the Gate.
"I-I'll live my life to the fullest! Goodbye!"
He'd offered a strange farewell in his fluster, but he believed his sentiment had gotten across.
"Thank you so much for today! Really!"
Manager Kim bowed low. When he looked up, Cheon Doun was already gone, having entered the Gate.
Even that seemed amazing to Manager Kim. To go in without a single piece of armor or a weapon. How strong did you have to be to cross a Gate like it was your own living room?
*'He must be on a level I can't even begin to fathom.'*
Just having the chance to connect with someone like that was a once-in-a-lifetime blessing.
He looked back at the three-story building.
A worn-out building with cracks in the walls and a missing letter on the sign.
His contract with Cheon Doun meant he couldn't leave the slums branch, but he had no regrets.
He now had enough money to live comfortably even after paying off his debt. Freed from the pressure of performance metrics and the like, he actually felt relieved.
"Right. I might as well renovate this place to look as grand as the main headquarters."
This was where he'd be working anyway. Considering the real estate prices in the slums, it would be cheap. He decided he would buy the building and give it a proper makeover.
"If I do that, does it mean the Alchemy Association will be paying me rent?"
*I'm a landlord now.* Joking to himself, Manager Kim went inside.
***
After crossing the Gate, Cheon Doun arrived in front of his garden patch.
When he took out the Mandragora he'd brought, the root squinted its eyes open.
A Mandragora cultivated in the human world. It had never been beyond the Gate, but it instinctively recognized this place as its home.
-*Hooo... hooo...*
The Mandragora made a sound like deflating air as its fine roots went limp.
A call to its kin. As if in response, the garden patch stirred, and three roots shot up.
-*Hooong?*
-*Hoong, hoong?*
*Whose energy is this? Who is this, and why are they so weak?* With that air about them, the Mandragoras gathered around Cheon Doun.
When he set down the dried Mandragora, the three roots backed away. Their leaves stiffened in surprise.
Being wild, they had never seen one of their kind so withered.
It had only a single, yellowed leaf left.
-*Hooong!*
-*Hoong, hoong!*
The Mandragoras, with their strong sense of kinship, moved in perfect sync without anyone telling them to.
Two small roots ran to the garden patch and started digging.
The largest one hoisted the newcomer onto its back.
*Ah, how can it be so small and light!* The ten-centimeter Mandragora trembled at the feather-light weight of the five-centimeter one.
It had to be buried in good soil right away. The Mandragora dashed toward the garden patch at full speed.
-*Hoong, hoong...!*
Heavy breathing, rapidly moving roots, and a valiant gaze determined to save its kin.
The Mandragoras carefully placed the small root into the hole in the ground. They gathered soil with their fine roots and patted it down gently.
Buried in the ground, the Mandragora's leaf quivered. It was overwhelmed by the demonic-energy-rich soil, a sensation it had never experienced before.
-*Hooo... hooo...oong.*
It let out a faint roar, befitting a Mandragora. Cheon Doun watched for a moment before sitting down in front of the patch.
This was all he could do. Whether it survived or not now depended on the Mandragora's own vitality. He would have to wait and see.
*'Alright, that's done. Now I just need to get the roots, right?'*
Cheon Doun picked up the largest Mandragora.
"I need you to give me two of your fine roots."
He tried speaking to it, but there was no response.
Mandragoras had a gentle nature, but that didn't mean they were intelligent enough to communicate with humans.
The Mandragora just lay in Cheon Doun's palm, letting out little *hoongs*.
*'I thought it would just give them to me if I asked.'*
*Even with Mandragora cells mixed in, communication is impossible, huh?* No other choice. Cheon Doun turned the Mandragora over, examining the state of its roots.
*'Let's see. A fine root that's about to fall off... This one? This one would probably fall off naturally in three days.'*
Cheon Doun pulled at a three-centimeter fine root on the Mandragora's backside.
*Snap.* As the fine root broke off, the Mandragora's eyes went wide.
-*Hoo, hooong?*
As it turned to look at him in surprise, he drew up his mana.
A high-density demonic energy, reminiscent of a high-altitude mountain range. He enveloped the Mandragora with it.
Having consumed the high-density demonic energy, the Mandragora's body relaxed into a drowsy state. This was his chance. Cheon Doun pulled off another fine root.
*Sting.*
-*Hooong?*
The Mandragora looked back at Cheon Doun again. Its eyes trembled slightly.
*You can't trust anyone in this world.* The little Mandragora looked at the large man with eyes full of betrayal.
"This should be enough."
Cheon Doun placed the Mandragora back in the garden patch. Having had two of its fine roots plucked, the Mandragora shivered. It rubbed the stinging area on its bottom with its remaining roots.
*My two fine roots that were right here. Where have they gone, those magnificent, charming things?*
-*Hoo, hooong...*
*My lost fine roots.* The Mandragora burrowed into the ground, looking utterly dejected. Its drooping leaf conveyed the shock of its stinging bottom.
Seeing this, Cheon Doun placed a hand on the ground.
A special treat to restore the fragile Mandragora's mental state. He instantly drew up his demonic energy and infused it into the garden patch.
A series of *hoongs* echoed from beneath the soil. The drooping leaf straightened up stiffly. Confirming this, Cheon Doun dusted off his hands and stood up.
*'Now I just need to deliver the medicine, right?'*
Cheon Doun looked north. The sun had set, and night was falling.
Switching his vision to night mode, he loosened his body and took a stance.
Distributing mana throughout his body, he sprinted north. An afterimage vanished in an instant. Only a gentle breeze remained where he had stood.
***
The night sea of the Demon World is calm.
A massive wave erupted on the tranquil surface. Shooting up from below were two winged figures.
"Hey, Yu Jia! Snap out of it!"
Yu Beom called out to his sister with all his might.
In response, he got sharply curved, hook-like claws.
"Yu Jia!"
He called out once more, but it was no use.
When she lost her reason like this, she couldn't recognize him. He gritted his teeth and looked at his sister.
At a glance, it looked like she was on a destructive rampage. But in reality, she was merely writhing in pain from her rampaging mana hole.
Knowing this, Yu Beom felt devastated.
*'Damn it... Is there no other way?'*
Words alone wouldn't bring her back to her senses. It had to come down to force. This wouldn't end until one of them was incapacitated.
Yu Beom drew up his mana. Sensing his hostility, his sister flew straight at him.
The moment they lunged at each other, something fell from the sky and collided with his sister.
"Cheon Doun...?"
Cheon Doun, who had appeared out of nowhere, kicked Yu Jia in the head.
Yu Jia plummeted into the sea. She skipped across the surface like a stone before crashing into a rock formation and getting embedded in it.
Yu Beom's jaw dropped at the sight.
"Hey... Hey, hey, hey! That's my sister!"
"So?"
"What do you mean, 'so?'! That's my sister!"
"I know. Is there a better way to subdue her?"
There wasn't. He was right. He was right, but still, something... something felt a bit off.
Yu Beom looked at his unconscious sister, stuck in the cliff face. She was deeply embedded in the center of the rock wall. Only her calves were visible.
The merciless bastard. He'd stuck her in there like a dart. He already knew it, but this guy really didn't know the meaning of moderation.
Yu Beom went to the cliff and pulled his sister out of the wall.
In truth, he knew Cheon Doun was right—this was the better way.
To subdue someone with the power of a disaster-class being, this much was necessary.
If he'd gone soft and held back, his sister's rampage would have only gotten worse.
*'He kicked her just hard enough to knock her out. Talented bastard.'*
Yu Beom checked his sister's condition and smiled. She'd been stuck in a cliff like a dart and had only lost consciousness.
*My sister is tough. I raised her well.* Feeling a sense of pride, he hoisted his sister onto his shoulder.
"What about the medicine? Did you get it?"
Yu Beom asked as he flew up to the rock where Cheon Doun was standing.
Expectation, mixed with the anxiety of what would happen if he couldn't get it. When their eyes met, Cheon Doun grinned.
"Got it."
In his hand were two small vials.