Chapter 115
Chapter 115
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 115
Chapter Title: The Trust of the Shrine God (2)
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“Whew.”
After much deliberation, the Heavenly Demon finally relaxed his stance.
It was simply impossible to smash only the front door with the Divine Demon Annihilation Heaven Palm.
“Hmm.”
For the first time since arriving in this world, the Heavenly Demon wore a troubled expression.
All ordinary attacks were absorbed outright. The only thing that worked—the power of the Divine Demon Annihilation Heaven Palm—would collapse the entire house.
In the end, every option the Heavenly Demon had was blocked.
“This is troubling.”
The Heavenly Demon muttered lowly, like a groan.
“Is there no way?”
“Really?”
Just then, a bright voice came from somewhere.
Turning his head, he saw Jang Chaewon smiling radiantly like sunshine.
“I see. What now?”
Her expression and words didn’t match.
She spoke as if worried, but her face celebrated the Heavenly Demon’s failure.
“What a shame. It ended in failure after all.”
Her lips twitched like waves, on the verge of breaking into a joyful dance.
As the Heavenly Demon fell silent, Jang Chaewon leaned in close and said,
“You said you’d take responsibility. That’s why I gave permission.”
“…….”
“If you fail an accepted divine request, it’ll disadvantage you for future ones.”
Her lips pursed, her voice dripping with coquettish charm. Her face alone looked like a woman flirting with her boyfriend.
But the words spilling from her mouth were sharper than a blade, colder than ice.
“You boasted so grandly and got all the blessings upfront. What now? What should we do going forward?”
The Heavenly Demon’s eye twitched faintly.
He’d nearly punched her in the face without realizing it.
“Whew.”
Feeling his self-control terrifyingly strong, the Heavenly Demon took a deep breath and said,
“Don’t worry. I’ll take responsibility.”
“How?”
“Somehow.”
“Oh? I see.”
Jang Chaewon grinned widely, flicking her tongue like a viper.
“But there’s a bigger problem.”
“What?”
“Thinking about it, the lighting fixtures with the divine pearl boxes require at least two territory staff members to install.”
The Heavenly Demon replied nonchalantly.
“We have Kim.”
“Knight Kim said he won’t take any more requests.”
For a moment, the Heavenly Demon recalled what Kim Chanwon, who worked at the Divine Bureau office, had said.
-I’m only doing this as a special favor for you, Heavenly Demon. Never again.
“I see.”
“Sorry, but starting tomorrow, the Eunsil Apartment construction begins. Quotes are piling up. No time to help you.”
Jang Chaewon teased.
“Well, if you want, I could call Eunjin.”
‘Maybe she’ll get close to Eunjin and fix that arrogant personality of yours?’
Smirking inwardly, Jang Chaewon cheered silently.
The mood wasn’t as tense as before, thanks to the recent pork belly gathering.
She was prepared for this divine request to fail and for the territory’s reputation to suffer.
If this chance could humble the Heavenly Demon’s arrogance a bit?
And create an atmosphere where the two could work together?
It was well worth it in her book.
“No need. That’s enough.”
Hiding her true thoughts, Jang Chaewon patted the Heavenly Demon’s shoulder comfortingly.
“If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t. Failure happens to everyone.”
She made the gentlest face possible, as if to say failure wasn’t so bad.
“Just do better next time. I’ll put in a good word with the Shrine God.”
“You think this lord failed?”
“Yeah.”
Jang Chaewon turned to look the Heavenly Demon straight in the eye.
“A real man knows when to give up cleanly.”
“Give up?”
“Yeah. Give up.”
The unfocused light in the Heavenly Demon’s eyes ignited with Blood Flame Radiance.
Give up. That word must never be uttered—or even exist—before the Heavenly Demon.
“Storekeeper.”
The Heavenly Demon stared at Jang Chaewon with blazing eyes.
“I am the Heavenly Demon.”
“So?”
“‘Give up’ is not in this lord’s dictionary.”
“It will be soon.”
Crackle.
Lightning-like sparks flashed in the Heavenly Demon’s eyes. Not his Heavenly Demon ability, but the glow of Reverse Extreme True Energy fueled by internal energy.
Crack, pop.
At the same time, explosive sounds erupted from the Heavenly Demon’s body. His muscles rippled like waves, his skin bubbled like boiling water.
“What… are you doing right now?”
To Jang Chaewon’s question, the Heavenly Demon shook his head while deep-breathing.
“It’s possible.”
“What is?”
“This request. This lord will handle it.”
“How?”
Gritting his teeth, the Heavenly Demon glared at Jang Chaewon and said,
“Tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow!”
The Heavenly Demon’s eyes burned like torches.
“Call the gray eyes.”
* * *
The next day, in front of the Shrine God’s stone-walled house.
Screech.
A white compact van pulled up to the stone house.
Click. A hulking man stepped out from the driver’s seat. It was the Heavenly Demon.
From the passenger seat, a slender woman in jeans and a white shirt opened the door and got out. Go Eunjin, who only came in for jobs.
“Ugh.”
Out of the car, she looked at the Heavenly Demon with a sullen face.
“I thought I was working with the boss.”
Last night, Go Eunjin got a sudden call from Jang Chaewon.
A divine request—for installing lights at the Earth God’s house out in the countryside.
She’d always wanted to try one, so she agreed readily.
But no Earth God on site, just grunt work alone with the Heavenly Demon.
“Ah, I don’t wanna do this.”
Go Eunjin rolled her neck tiredly, eliciting a crack.
The drive from the shop to the Shrine God’s house took a full two hours.
For two hours, she endured the van’s atmosphere—heavier than iron, thicker than exhaust fumes.
“If you’re picky about jobs, quit now. The head store isn’t easygoing.”
At the Heavenly Demon’s words, Go Eunjin bristled.
“It ain’t the work bein’ hard. It’s workin’ with a muscle monster that sucks.”
“Work is work.”
The Heavenly Demon looked down at her sternly.
“Don’t mix personal feelings with work. Gray Eyes.”
Professional to the core. Had he somehow grasped this world’s work ethic?
Far from it.
He just couldn’t tolerate giving up, even in death. For him, cooperating with Go Eunjin beat quitting.
“This lord will explain the mission once more.”
Walking toward the Shrine God’s standalone house, the Heavenly Demon said,
“Expensive lights from the divine realm are installed inside. The method is simple, but as divine lights, two people are required.”
“Everything sounds good, but.”
Go Eunjin pointed at the adorably tiny front door.
“How the hell we fittin’ in there?”
“Celestial Shrinkage Technique.”
The Heavenly Demon’s face looked extremely gloomy as he answered.
Celestial Shrinkage Technique.
An esoteric martial art from beyond the seas, freely contracting and expanding the body’s bones and muscles.
But to use it, like the Divine Demon Annihilation Heaven Palm requiring yin-yang harmony, another severed meridian needed restoration.
Thus, forcing it while his body wasn’t fully recovered meant a drop in his energy.
“What’s that?”
To Go Eunjin’s question, the Heavenly Demon summoned the Celestial Shrinkage Technique, tears in his eyes.
Cracklerack. Snapcracklesnap.
With grotesque bone sounds, the Heavenly Demon’s height and muscles began to shrink.
His skin rippled like waves, veins glowing translucent.
Crunchcrack. Pop.
As the bone noises faded, the Heavenly Demon’s body had shrunk to child-size.
“What the heck? Magic?”
Go Eunjin’s voice trembled as the Heavenly Demon replied flatly,
“This is the Celestial Shrinkage Technique. At pinnacle mastery, shrinking bones and dissolving muscles is possible.”
The Heavenly Demon’s face was stiff.
Energy leaking was depressing enough, but an inexplicable unease blanketed him.
‘Strange.’
Something unintended had happened. But what?
“What about me?”
Snapping to, the Heavenly Demon grabbed Go Eunjin’s wrist.
“What?”
“This technique can be infused into others. Through the pulse point, your body will shrink too while I inject.”
Yellow light flowed from the Heavenly Demon’s eyes as he raised energy.
Crackcrunch.
But only bone sounds—no shrinking for Go Eunjin.
“Relax your body. Don’t resist. Accept this lord’s true energy.”
At his words, Go Eunjin reluctantly loosened up.
‘Not a weakling after all.’
The Heavenly Demon’s brow twitched mid-infusion.
Go Eunjin brimmed with surprising power—unlike her monster-hating attitude.
‘The storekeeper would’ve… failed.’
Jang Chaewon’s body surged with dozens, hundreds of times more energy.
Infusing her would’ve bounced right back.
“Ugh.”
As her height shrank, Go Eunjin felt her joints melting.
“Damn. This hurts like hell.”
Crackpop.
Gripping her wrist, the Heavenly Demon poured full power into pinnacle Celestial Shrinkage.
Grindcrunch. Crackackack.
Bone-shattering sounds rang out, and soon Go Eunjin was child-sized too.
“Whew.”
Having infused it, the Heavenly Demon wiped sweat from his brow with one hand.
“Next, after building two cycles’ worth of energy, I’ll restore this Celestial Shrinkage first.”
No guarantee such requests wouldn’t come again. He resolved to pick it as his next martial art.
“Let go of my hand now.”
Go Eunjin said with a displeased look.
“No need to hold on anymore, right?”
“Must keep holding.”
“What’s that mean?”
“You haven’t mastered the Celestial Shrinkage Technique.”
Solemn-faced, the Heavenly Demon explained,
“This drains this lord’s energy massively each time. Stopping means restarting, so I must keep infusing the shrinking energy.”
Thick sweat beaded on Go Eunjin’s forehead.
“How long?”
“Until the job’s done.”
Her face twisted like she’d eaten a hot pepper. Meaning hand-holding with the Heavenly Demon the whole job?
“No other way?”
“None.”
Pain flickered in the Heavenly Demon’s eyes too.
He’d faced every brutal scenario in martial clashes, but never imagined holding hands with a yokai for work.
“Then, let’s start.”
Gripping Go Eunjin’s arm, the Heavenly Demon led the way.
In his Demon Light Blood Battle Clothes, he looked like a cute kid in training robes.
“Pfft.”
“What.”
“Shrunk down, you’re way easier on the eyes.”
Giggling, Go Eunjin suddenly tilted her head.
She’d realized something shocking.
“But… how’d you do it?”
“Do what?”
“Shrinking muscles and bones is wild enough, but how’d your clothes shrink perfectly too?”
The Heavenly Demon’s body jolted. He finally pinpointed the earlier unease.
‘The clothes shrank too.’
Celestial Shrinkage usually tore clothes off or ripped them. Special garb was needed.
He’d forgotten and used it anyway… yet the clothes shrank perfectly.
‘Because it’s another world?’
No clue, no matter how he thought.
Unable to show it, he snorted dismissively.
“No need for you to know.”
Creak. Clunk.
Opening the heavy front door, the Heavenly Demon and Go Eunjin finally entered.
Unlike the rustic exterior, the interior was modern and sleek. They widened their eyes in unison.
“Whoa.”
The Heavenly Demon admired the open living room.
Natural wood-patterned herringbone hardwood floors, a Nordic-style rug as a centerpiece.
Bright-toned finishes mixed with simple, minimalist furniture and fixtures.
“This could grace the books this lord enjoys.”
As he scanned the interior in awe,
“Wow.”
Go Eunjin gaped at the kitchen. Marble counters lined with pro-chef tools and appliances.
In one corner stood a massive machine like an organ.
“Isn’t that an S-brand espresso machine? High-end stuff only fancy cafes use, right at home.”
“What’s that?”
“Coffee brewer.”
“Good?”
To the Heavenly Demon’s question, Go Eunjin beamed.
“Obviously. Coffee taste hinges on great beans and a great machine.”
She pulled him to the machine.
“This model’s designed for less steam, with needle valves for precise extraction flow.”
Clearly, Go Eunjin loved cooking and coffee.
“I see.”
Ignoring her, the Heavenly Demon spotted a wooden box piled in the living room corner. It gleamed mysteriously.
Leading Go Eunjin by the wrist, he slowly opened the antique box.
Click.
Inside were orbs radiating mystical light.
“These the divine lights?”
Each orb emitted different colors and glows.
Some held noon’s warm sunlight, others the soft orange dusk.
-Explanation’s tricky. Like, pursuing natural lights?
“Now I get it.”
The Heavenly Demon finally understood Jang Chaewon.
“Hmm.”
Admiring the beauties, he scanned the house. Circular metals twinkling rainbow on the ceilings.
-Recall the Shrine God: No worries. The divine pearl boxes are pre-installed.
Those metals were the pearl holders.
“Should’ve come alone.”
“What?”
“Just pop the orbs in those holes.”
The Heavenly Demon smacked his lips in dismay.
No need to drag Go Eunjin and burn double energy?
“Hmm.”
He reached for an orb with his left hand.
But no matter how hard, it wouldn’t budge—just eerie cold at his fingertips.
“Hup.”
Channeling energy into his fingers, still nothing.
The harder he tried, the colder energy invaded his fingertips.
“Useless.”
Go Eunjin shook her head, watching.
“Unless you’re an Earth God, can’t handle these alone.”
“These?”
“Natural lights, we yokai call ’em divine pearls.”
The Heavenly Demon turned; Go Eunjin shrugged.
“Divine pearls hold nature’s light—sacred orbs. Ordinary humans can’t touch ’em. Even territory staff need two or more, handling with utmost respect.”
Surprisingly knowledgeable.
“How do you know?”
Go Eunjin scratched her head back.
“Seen ’em around.”
“So that’s why the storekeeper said two.”
Understanding dawned; the Heavenly Demon told Go Eunjin,
“Then let’s install them quickly.”