One Thousand Degrees of Flame (5)
When the hellfire finally died down, the battery factory seemed far more peaceful.
“All right, let’s clean up fast.”
Team Leader Lee Gi-seok took charge of the scene.
The fire had been extinguished, but there was still plenty for the firefighters to do. They had to clear the remaining embers, move the wreckage, and recover the equipment they’d used. Fortunately, no additional casualties had occurred, so the rest of the work was relatively manageable.
I should probably head back now, too.
Just as I was climbing down from Haechi’s back—
<Assimilation Upgrade> has been deactivated.
The Ice Unicorn, Deep Blue Pegasus, Web Griffin, and Sky Chimera that had been floating in the sky all flew off into the distance. At the very end, even the absurdly huge Rain Manta turned away and vanished.
So that’s how it is.
They’d gathered here in the first place to save me from danger. Now that the job was done, they were returning to the homes where they belonged.
“Grrrr.”
As if saying goodbye, Haechi gave me a slow nod.
“Take care.”
As I exchanged farewells with the beast—
Hm?
Haechi opened its mouth and stuck out its tongue. Resting on top of it were a pile of something glittering.
This is…
“You’re giving these to me?”
They were translucent, luminous orbs.
Each one was about the size of a fingertip joint.
Haechi, a beast that lived deep underground, often swallowed pebbles and rocks it had kept in its mouth while moving. The sand that passed into its belly fused with the mantle’s extreme heat, creating a unique foreign substance.
The so-called Haechi Gem.
One of the world’s ten great treasures, and something whose price was essentially whatever the seller dared to ask.
In other words, insanely expensive.
A single Haechi Gem the size of an eyelash could easily fetch billions of won. At a fingertip’s length, it was about the size of a twenty-carat diamond.
And there wasn’t just one or two.
At a glance, there had to be more than a hundred.
Just how much is this worth?
The corners of my mouth lifted beneath the mask.
After my reincarnation, I’d long since escaped poverty. I wasn’t some nouveau riche fool trembling before money anymore.
I was a victorious capitalist.
A rich hero.
I pulled the Dvergr Cloth from my thigh pocket and carefully scraped every last Haechi Gem into it so I wouldn’t lose a single one. After I’d gathered them all, I shoved the cloth bag back into my pocket.
Comforting.
I hadn’t eaten anything, and yet a sense of fullness washed over me. Sure, spending money was great—but above all else, nothing beat the thrill of making it.
Man, this feels incredible.
I reached out and stroked Haechi’s jaw.
“Thank you.”
Not only had it saved my life, it had even handed over these priceless gems like some endlessly generous tree. Of every monster I knew, it was by far the kindest.
“Phew.”
Once the tension left me, I couldn’t help but let out a long breath.
If Haechi hadn’t shown up, I’d be riding a train to the afterlife right about now, straight out of that sea of flames.
I really was this close to dying.
I never wanted to experience what it felt like to have my skin burned away while I was still alive ever again.
My damaged body and even my mana had both recovered thanks to Haechi. The beast turned away.
“Grrr!”
In an instant, Haechi dug into the ground and disappeared. Unless it had some kind of teleportation ability, there was no way it should’ve vanished that cleanly after only a few meters.
It feels like I just dreamed the whole thing.
There were still monsters left behind as well.
Raven Bill Crow, Wild Mole, the aquatic horse Kelpie, and the eagle Hippogriff.
Monsters stolen from Ma Cheol-hui.
There was no benefit in letting monsters linger in the human world for too long.
“You all should go back, too.”
At my command, the monsters scattered in every direction.
That made one thing clear.
Monsters who were directly touched through the original Assimilation would remain lifelong companions.
On the other hand—
Additional <Assimilation Upgrade> granted.
Remaining uses: 1
Activation condition: below 5% HP.
While Assimilation could be used without limit, Assimilation Upgrade was restricted.
Good. So I can use it one more time.
If the activation condition was below 5% HP…
That means just before death.
“Heh.”
A dry laugh slipped out before I could stop it.
In exchange for the ability to receive help from all kinds of monsters, including legendary divine beasts—
I have to put my life on the line. Is that it?
High risk, high return.
Bear Man’s skill was absurdly powerful, but it also came with serious danger.
Let’s not use it unless we absolutely have to.
No, even better if the situation never arose where I’d have to use it at all.
This Gyeongso Daejeon had given me a lot. I’d once again experienced the weight of being a hero firsthand, and I’d come to understand the hardships firefighters faced.
And then, besides the Haechi Gem, there was something else I’d gained in practical terms.
A hidden skill has been discovered.
Additional reward granted.
<Silvion Albatron Daisy> attribute permanently retained.
Silvion Albatron Daisy was Pippi.
Pippi had immunity to fire.
In other words, I was now invincible against fire-based attacks.
For someone like me, who had to face countless strong opponents and all sorts of monsters, that was an incredible bonus.
Unlike Gyeongso Daejeon, saving people from the fire wasn’t something I’d planned.
I’d simply done the hero’s work in silence, and the reward had followed.
“Hey. Purple Devil.”
Someone called out to me.
It was Gu Ja-min, with a bandage wrapped around his forehead and a limp in his step.
“Are you heading out now?”
I nodded.
“Thank you so much. Because of you, not just me but everyone else got to keep their lives—”
“I’m the one who should be grateful.”
This was the first time I’d ever gone to a fire scene as Purple Devil.
I couldn’t show up every single time a fire broke out.
I had a mountain of other things to do.
Heroes weren’t only the ones far away, or the ones that existed in comic books.
They existed in reality, too.
Right around us, in fact.
For example—
“Firefighters. I’m really glad you’re here.”
Gu Ja-min bit his lip and held back his tears.
“Thank you. For saying that.”
Right.
I pulled something out and tucked it into the pocket on Gu Ja-min’s chest.
“This is a gift. Congratulations on the safe delivery.”
“Huh?”
Before Gu Ja-min could say anything else, I turned away.
“Pippi.”
I climbed onto the wyvern waiting in the sky.
Team Leader Lee Gi-seok raised his voice.
“Everyone, attention!”
The firefighters stopped what they were doing and stood at attention.
Firefighters weren’t soldiers.
And yet—
“Salute!”
They saw me off with a solemn posture, all for my sake.
I lightly raised my index and middle fingers and touched them to my brow in return, saluting the firefighters as I flew away.
Gu Ja-min rushed into the hospital in a panic.
Please let me not be late.
He hurriedly changed out of his turnout gear and had his leg treated. He still hadn’t even managed to wash properly. Because of his injured foot, he couldn’t walk fast. He needed a little more time to recover, but there was something far more urgent than that.
Gu Ja-min entered the obstetrics ward and grabbed a nurse.
“Excuse me, where is patient Lee Min-ju?”
“Ms. Lee Min-ju? She came out a while ago and went into the recovery room.”
“Is the mother okay?”
“Ah, well…”
Before he could even fully hear the nurse’s answer, Gu Ja-min swayed on his feet.
“Oh? Are you all right?”
The nurse hurried over to support him.
“Ah…”
He’d fought against a villain during Gyeongso Daejeon.
He’d been beaten badly and his forehead had split open.
Then he’d run straight to the fire scene and saved lives without a break.
And after getting trapped in the basement, he’d badly injured one of his legs escaping.
Gu Ja-min was already exhausted to the point of collapse.
“Can you stand?”
“T-the mother’s health…?”
Gu Ja-min slumped weakly to the floor and passed out.
Everything went dark.
How long had it been?
Gu Ja-min blinked slowly.
A white ceiling came into view.
“Ugh.”
He tried to sit up, but couldn’t manage it.
An IV had been inserted into his arm. Even so, the fatigue had lifted and his stomach was growling, which meant a full day must have passed.
Am I in the hospital?
Lying on the bed, Gu Ja-min forced out a weak voice.
“Hello? Is anyone there?”
The curtain on his right was suddenly pulled back.
An all-too-familiar face appeared.
“Honey?”
His wife, Min-ju, was sitting on the bed beside him.
“…Honey.”
Just seeing his wife’s face made it feel like tears might burst out of him.
Min-ju slowly sat up without a word.
“Honey. You worked hard. Come here.”
Overwhelmed with emotion, Gu Ja-min stretched out both arms.
“Ha!”
Min-ju punched him in the stomach.
“Ghk!”
Back when she’d been a Taekwondo athlete, Min-ju’s hand had been plenty fierce.
Her attacks came one after another.
“You idiot! Who lies in bed on the same day his wife gives birth?”
“Nnngh! Honey! Wai—wait a second!”
Gu Ja-min took the full brunt of Min-ju’s fists while trying to shield himself.
“I’m the patient! It hurts! It really hurts, honey.”
“It hurts? You jerk! Today, I’m going to finish this!”
Min-ju’s blows gradually lost their force.
Then she lowered her head and began to sob.
With her fist now soft and loose, Min-ju weakly thumped Gu Ja-min’s chest.
“…I thought something had happened to you.”
All through the moment her water broke, the labor, and the delivery, Min-ju had worried only about Gu Ja-min.
And why wouldn’t she have?
Her husband had taken part in the dangerous Gyeongso Daejeon. Not content with that, he’d also gone to the fire scene and thrown himself into the flames.
“…Were you trying to make our little Tun-tun grow up without a father? I hate you. I hate you so much!”
Min-ju burst into tears and cried without restraint.
“Honey. I’m sorry.”
Gu Ja-min wiped the tears from his wife’s cheeks.
“I’m sorry I was late. Honey.”
“Honestly… you are just…”
Min-ju pulled him into an embrace.
Feeling each other’s warmth, the two of them finally managed to breathe out in relief.
“Patient.”
The nurse came over and stood before Gu Ja-min. In her arms, she was holding something.
Min-ju spoke first.
“That’s right. He should see his father’s face, too.”
Something wrapped in a blanket suddenly popped up into Gu Ja-min’s view.
“…Oh.”
It was a life form with pink skin and soft downy fuzz.
It hadn’t even properly opened its eyes yet, and a faint breath drifted from its tiny nose.
Min-ju smiled brightly.
“Our baby.”
Gu Ja-min was seized by a strange sensation.
My child?
Looking at the only blood relative who carried his own genes, he straightened up instinctively. It was a more awe-inspiring sight than anything he had ever seen.
Gu Ja-min couldn’t bring himself to hold the baby. He worried the soot from the fire scene might cling to the infant’s skin.
So he simply lifted one finger and cautiously reached out toward little Tun-tun.
“Ngaaah.”
The baby made a strange little sound and reflexively wrapped a tiny hand around Gu Ja-min’s finger.
That surprisingly strong grip made him start in shock.
“They say he looks like you. Handsome, isn’t he?”
Only then did Min-ju smile brightly.
“Honestly. He looks like you, so maybe when Tun-tun grows up, he’ll say he wants to be a firefighter too. I can already feel my headache starting.”
“……”
“What? Why are you making that face?”
In the end, Gu Ja-min couldn’t hold it in anymore and broke into tears.
He wailed louder than the baby, loud enough to shake the hospital.
Min-ju gently rubbed his back.
“You worked hard. Thank you for coming back.”
And just like that, the new family was safely reunited.
After crying for what felt like forever, Gu Ja-min finally lifted his head.
“I’m going to wash up a little.”
“Yeah. Go rinse your face at least.”
The moment Gu Ja-min stepped down from the bed—
Something fell.
A round object rolled across the floor.
“Huh?”
Gu Ja-min picked it up without much thought.
“What’s that, honey?”
“No idea. Must’ve fallen out of my pocket. A button, maybe?”
Only then did fragments of memory flicker through his mind.
“There’ll be a wonderful baby boy waiting for you, just like you.”
“This is a gift. Congratulations on the safe delivery.”
The life-saving benefactor who had rescued his own life.
Purple Devil.
If not for him, Gu Ja-min would never have met his wife and son.
Gu Ja-min handed the luminous jade-colored gem to his wife.
“Someone gave me this as a gift.”
“Oh… it’s gorgeous. What is it? A jewel?”
Watching Min-ju turn the Haechi Gem over in her hands, Gu Ja-min looked away.
Outside the window.
Something flashed past between the bright blue clouds.
Gu Ja-min smiled as he thought of someone.
The purple hero flying gallantly and magnificently atop a wyvern.