Nyx's Invitation
Nyx’s eyes shimmered with fury.
“Say that again.”
“Think about it. How old are you, Goddess?”
“Ever since the concept of night first existed in this world. How could one possibly count?”
“My ancestor’s name was Yu Geumpil. He passed away a little over a thousand years ago.”
Grandma had really gone easy on her. The woman had no idea what consideration even meant.
“Sis. Anything beyond that is off-limits.”
“This is……”
“Keep flapping that mouth and see what happens.”
“Big sis.”
“Now you’re finally listening.”
Nyx’s angry expression finally eased, as though she were satisfied at last.
What on earth had gotten into her to start talking about family?
I glanced at the tablet in her hand. A video from [DramaTown] was playing. It was a program that mainly aired short dramas, and the theme of this one was lonely deaths.
……
The drama had done its job.
“Then let us depart.”
“Where to?”
“Should we not commemorate the fact that we have become family?”
Nyx rose from her seat and held out her right hand.
“Come. Let us go out for some fresh air.”
“Do you already have somewhere in mind?”
“Huhu. This one has made all the arrangements.”
“Let’s hear what these grand arrangements are, then.”
“The first destination is the Tower.”
For a second, I doubted my own ears.
“The Tower of Babel?”
“Indeed. A place where countless divinities intertwine and the laws of many dimensions cross.”
“……You sure know how to make it sound impressive.”
To me, it was nothing more than the den of my sworn enemies—the ones I wanted to devour whole.
I had no idea what was going on anymore.
Forcing a bitter smile, I took Nyx’s hand.
* * *
An unexpected outing.
This was my first time visiting the Tower of Babel in person since the tutorial. There were plenty of ways to connect to the Tower—desktop, phone, tablet—so most people only entered it directly in societies that hadn’t benefited from modern civilization. Even I had accessed it that way during the age of destruction.
“What do you think, now that you’ve seen the Tower of Babel up close?”
“It feels different in person. The name Babel truly suits this structure.”
Babel. In ancient Mesopotamian, it meant “the gate of the gods.” In Hebrew, it carried the double meaning of “confusion” or “mixing together.”
“The gate that leads to the gods.”
“Or perhaps the tower built by mixing the authorities of many gods. Either interpretation works.”
“Both fit.”
Standing so close to the Tower of Babel made anger rise in my chest. I swallowed the curses boiling in my throat and turned to Nyx.
She was lightly running her hand over the brown bricks.
“Goddess.”
“Big sis.”
“……Right. Big sis. Why are you touching the wall?”
“You may not feel it, but this one does.”
Nyx gave the brick a gentle tap.
Hum—
The brick resonated with the light knock. It was a strange sight I had never witnessed even before my regression.
“One of the forces that make up these walls contains this one’s origin.”
“Do you hate the Old Gods?”
“This one pities them.”
A trace of sorrow crept into Nyx’s voice.
“Those children forgot the fundamental principle that any being who receives worship must never forget, and in doing so, they fell into ruin.”
“Fundamental principle?”
“Protecting the mortals who are the source of divinity.”
Right.
Even Zeus, the king of Olympus, had looked at mortals like insects. Remembering how furious he got when he lost a bet, I couldn’t connect him to any noble principle at all.
Pity, huh.
“Let’s make one thing clear. Goddess—no, big sis.”
“What is it?”
“Don’t get in the way of my revenge.”
Whatever stories the Old Gods had, I didn’t care. If Nyx started going easy on them out of pity……
“Do not worry. This one has no intention of obstructing your path.”
“Weren’t you just feeling sorry for them a moment ago?”
“Those children crossed the line. It is only natural that those who have lost the pride of a constellation be judged.”
Her tone was calm, but I could feel she meant every word. Even if she had never met me, she would have awakened hundreds of years later. With this mindset, once she regained her power, she would have found a way to punish the Old Gods anyway.
The Old Gods.
You’ve made yourselves a terrifying enemy without even realizing it.
“Now let us move to the next location.”
“You actually planned out a whole course?”
“This one is always sincere.”
“Hah. Fine. Let’s go wherever.”
Nyx took my hand and led me toward a building near the Tower of Babel.
People’s gazes poured over us.
“Wow, are they celebrities?”
“Was there an actress like that?”
“Now that I look closer, the guy next to her is Yu Jinho.”
“The hero of the Spice Archipelago!?”
“Holy crap!”
At first, all eyes were drawn to Nyx’s dazzling appearance. Then, once people recognized me, gasps erupted. Taking photos from a distance was the least of it.
“I’m a fan, Mr. Jinho! Can I get your autograph?”
“Is the person beside you your girlfriend?”
A few bold people even approached us directly.
Nyx swept her gaze over the passersby with a haughty expression, then answered curtly.
“We are family.”
Hold on.
The word “family” could mean a lot of different things, you know?
The people who had gathered around us looked dazed as they tried to process what she meant.
This was getting awkward.
“Let’s get moving.”
“Huhu. A man who rushes is not to this one’s taste.”
“I’ll try to improve from now on, so just match me for today.”
I forced down the sigh that threatened to escape.
This was exactly why YouTube was a problem.
Nyx pulled me along until we arrived at a dessert café. I stared at the building with a dubious expression.
“This is the destination?”
“It is.”
“I’m surprised. It’s surprisingly normal.”
“What exactly do you take this one for?”
I pretended not to notice Nyx’s narrowed eyes and stepped inside.
The interior was packed—so crowded it was hard to find an empty seat.
“This place must be famous.”
“I heard it’s known for its rice cakes.”
“You actually did research?”
“In truth, Jiyoung recommended it to me beforehand.”
She had come here with clear intentions.
We ordered two slices of cake and barely managed to secure a table.
The other customers had already noticed us and were whispering with lowered voices.
Nyx truly looked like a goddess. Combined with my own growing fame, the attention was palpable.
“Be honest. Family was just an excuse. You just wanted to get some fresh air, right?”
“Huhu. Half correct.”
Her smile was dazzling, yet somehow carried a hint of melancholy when viewed from another angle. How could two such different impressions coexist?
“My contractor.”
“Yeah?”
“This one knows that what is reflected in your eyes is different from what others see.”
Nyx’s crimson eyes stared straight into mine. Meeting that gaze made me feel as though I might be pulled in.
I swallowed hard.
“What do you mean by that?”
“You always see through to the answer. You even know things you have never experienced.”
Did she figure out that I was a regressor?
Instead of answering rashly, I simply met her gaze.
“Do not be so wary. This one does not know the secret of your insight either.”
“……And?”
“However, there is one thing this one is certain of.”
Nyx’s smile faded.
“The weight of the burden resting on your shoulders.”
“I don’t have anything like that.”
I shrugged lightly and tried to play it off, but—
“Do not try to deceive this one with light words.”
Nyx wasn’t buying it.
She was unusually serious today. Just like at the Tower of Babel, it seemed she had something important to say. I should listen. After all, she and I were partners.
“Do you remember the twenty-sixth floor, Shura?”
“If you mean the place where we fought until we were sick of it, yeah.”
“Even though it was a replica created by the Tower, the hostility and malice of those sinners were real.”
Nyx let out a short sigh. Even the goddess found that place unpleasant.
“Yet you were not crushed by the malice of those sinners.”
“That’s not a problem, is it?”
“No. Part of your soul has been worn away.”
A bitter smile tugged at my lips.
Worn away.
After witnessing the tragedy that befell humanity after losing the Tower’s competition, it wouldn’t have been strange if more than one screw had come loose.
“It’s not a problem.”
“No. It is a problem.”
Nyx’s expression filled with sorrow, as though it might crumble.
Her face alone could paint the world with melancholy.
Ah. I finally understood.
Ever since we entered the café, I had thought Nyx’s expression carried no emotion. In truth, she had been suppressing her feelings just to hold back that sorrow.
More than a hundred words, her eyes alone made everything clear.
“So that’s why you used the family excuse?”
“If not for that, this one believed you would never show your true feelings.”
I was at a loss for words.
I never imagined Nyx would care about me this much.
She had guessed I was hiding some kind of secret—even if not necessarily regression—and had been worrying about the emotional void I showed in Shura. I hadn’t even considered that possibility.
“That’s way too unfair.”
Weren’t we supposed to be business partners?
The fact that she thought of me this deeply……
I hid the lump in my throat behind a dry laugh.
“That answer is enough.”
Nyx gave me a gentle smile.
“Enough for what?”
“The weight you carry and the fact that you showed your honest heart is enough to satisfy this one.”
“……You really got me good today.”
“This one will happily wait for the day you can be honest with me as well.”
Just as I was about to say more—
“Here is the cake you ordered.”
The rice cake was placed on the table.
“Hey, Goddess……”
“Big sis.”
“Ah, right. Big sis.”
“Taste the cake Jiyoung recommended.”
Nyx scooped up a piece of cake and cream with her fork and popped it straight into my mouth.
Chew chew.
Nom nom.
“It’s good.”
“As expected. This one should try it too.”
Nyx used the same fork she had just fed me with to cut into the cake.
Hey, wait a second?
She put the piece into her mouth.
“Mmmmmm—!”
Her reaction was a little over the top.
Everyone’s attention snapped toward us, and I couldn’t bring myself to say anything else.
“It truly is delicious. Jiyoung did not exaggerate.”
“Then why didn’t you just ask me to buy it for you earlier?”
“This one wanted to taste the cake here together with you for the first time, so I held back.”
“You really like giving meaning to everything.”
I grumbled, but quickly grabbed my fork. At this rate, the entire cake was going straight into Nyx’s stomach.
Clang!
Our forks tangled in midair.
“Ease up a little, will you?”
“Your country has a saying about respecting elders, does it not?”
“It might be poisoned, so I’ll test it first and let you know if it’s safe.”
“I already tasted it and there was no problem. Eat without worry.”
“You never know. There could be poison inside.”
While bickering with Nyx, I quickly shoveled the rest of the cake into my mouth.
“How vexing. To think that wicked man would steal all of this one’s dessert.”
“Then who told you to be so greedy?”
I set my fork down.
“There’s something I need to say.”
“What is it?”
“I can’t suddenly become family with you, Goddess.”
Nyx pouted. She clearly didn’t like what I said.
“How about we start as friends?”
“Friends, you say.”
“It’s a lot more human than being business partners.”
Nyx blinked a few times, then spoke.
“Even that much is a tremendous leap forward, my friend.”
“Looking forward to working with you from now on, friend.”
We clasped hands, just like we had when we first made our contract.
On the way back to the guild house, my steps felt light.
Even without telling her everything, the fact that someone understood me gave me more strength than I expected.
Just as I turned the corner and was about to enter the guild house—
“Guildmaster. It’s been a while.”
Ping Lei appeared in front of me.