Chapter 118
Chapter 118
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 118
Chapter Title: Pure White Garden
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“The sudden invasion of Outer Gods into Earth is all because of that fishy-smelling bitch.”
Clink.
Leah whispered as she caressed her teacup. Ian pondered for a long time over who this fishy-smelling bitch might be before tilting his head and giving a tentative answer.
“……Kim Yul?”
“……And who might that be?”
Leah's voice turned icy in an instant. It didn't seem like the right answer.
That left only one possibility.
“Master of the Outer Sea?”
“……That's one of the names she goes by. A foul-tempered bitch with a strong possessiveness who devours anything that displeases her on sight.”
“…….”
“And she's also a rival who dares to set her sights on something like me.”
Leah said this while staring straight at Ian.
Her eyes were somewhere between ash-gray and pure white. The irises and pupils, which made him feel hazy just looking at them, perfectly reflected Ian's image. Ian didn't avoid her gaze and let out a low hum.
He brushed off Leah's hostility toward the Master of the Outer Sea as par for the course.
There was no need for Outer Gods to get along. They were both authors of the grimoires Ian possessed, but as long as it didn't affect his magic, he didn't care if they fought among themselves. It would be a problem if one killed the other, but he didn't think they'd cross that line.
They were beings far older than Earth, at minimum. Unless they'd wasted all that time, even self-indulgent gods would keep some boundaries.
In any case.
The Master of the Outer Sea must be referring to the descent during the Pygmalion incident.
There had been no other instances of the Master of the Outer Sea interfering with Earth. The answer was obvious.
“If it had been a full descent, it wouldn't have mattered.”
The Recomposer of All Things said after taking a sip of her tea.
Transparent flowers faintly bloomed at her feet. Like a mirror shattering and curving, the fully opened petals scattered rainbows in all directions. The Recomposer of All Things stared at the flower motionlessly before crushing it under her bare foot.
Crack.
The beautifully shattered mirror flower scattered across the floor. Leah's face was reflected in every petal.
“I hate to admit it, but the Master of the Outer Sea is a being on par with me. For something like the Song of Melancholy—whose ascension is right around the corner—to stick its head out so brazenly is basically begging to be killed.”
“…….”
“Yet it showed itself anyway, which means there was sufficient reason. And it was an incomplete descent.”
“……Does an incomplete descent make it seem easy to handle?”
“Not at all. But it was enough to draw attention.”
Leah turned the shattered mirror petals into butterflies. With a flutter, the mirror butterflies flew toward the flowers. A few landed on her shoulder.
“Hmm…… To put it in terms, it's like a shrunken black hole. Terrifying to face, but something you could attack briefly and then flee from. Something like that.”
“……Do Outer Gods attack black holes too?”
“Many make the void their home. Some even form swarms. Anyway.”
Leah cut a piece of cake from the plate with her fork and ate it while gazing at the butterfly on her shoulder.
“In simple terms, the Master of the Outer Sea descended incompletely, allowing some Outer Gods to perceive Earth's existence and sense the grimoires there. The Song of Melancholy, with its ascension imminent, stuck its head in first. Absorbing a grimoire could elevate its rank.”
“Hmm……”
“So it's all that bitch's fault. A pathetic wretch who couldn't overcome a momentary desire. That's your Master of the Outer Sea.”
Ian gave a wry smile at the colorful insults. Their relationship seemed far worse than he'd imagined.
“You're not blood enemies with the Master of the Outer Sea, right?”
“We've never had a major falling out. Our territories don't overlap much, so we don't run into each other often. Aside from the occasional visits from her side, I've never sought her out first.”
“I see. That's a relief.”
Ian cut a fluffy piece of cake and brought it to his mouth. The sweet cream, sponge, sugar syrup, and fruit flavors blended perfectly on his tongue.
It was probably food Leah had created herself. She could perfectly replicate taste, texture, ingredients, and composition to make something identical to the original. It was a feat possible only for an Outer God who created existence from nothing.
Obviously, even if Ian could wield magic perfectly, he couldn't recreate air into cake. He needed materials to work with.
He didn't feel regret about it.
After all, how could a god and a human stand on equal footing? That would be unfair to the god.
Still, with my magic, I could probably put up a fight.
The moon's assault had been far too sudden. If he'd had enough time and prior warning, he wouldn't have been so helpless. He still had the apex predator of the outer sea he hadn't summoned yet, and alchemy items he could make from God's Flesh, among others.
He couldn't guarantee victory, but he might prevent certain defeat.
Of course, it would require perfect conditions and a stroke of luck. But if that could crash a cosmic god to the ground, it would be a bargain.
“…….”
Ian imagined the universe beyond the pure white sky as he downed his tea.
In any case, lesser Outer Gods won't come to Earth for a while—maybe never—since the Recomposer of All Things has intervened. But one on her level might ignore that and barge in anyway.
Why would they bother invading a tiny pale blue dot on the universe's fringe? Still, one never knew.
For that 'one never knew,' personal preparations were wise. The Laplace leader could snap and summon a grimoire's Outer God at any moment, after all.
“…….”
Suddenly, he understood why the whole world despised and shunned those who possessed Outer God grimoires.
A mage who goes mad and hits Earth's self-destruct button? Letting that slide would be the real insanity.
Ian marveled purely at how Cecilia and Lee Seo-ah could remain so calm despite knowing about the grimoires. He set down his teacup with a clear clink.
“Just to check, could you give me something like your flesh? Or blood, maybe.”
“No blood to give. Flesh…… Hmm, want to take a look?”
With that, Leah snapped off one of her fingers. It broke like a rice cracker and landed plumply on the table. Ian stared at it intently, furrowing his brow.
“……It looks kind of weird.”
It had looked like a normal finger attached to her hand, but once severed, it warped into a grotesque shape. To Ian's eyes, it resembled an elongated fish—or something hideous with multiple eyes and arms. Hard to tell which.
“It's beyond human cognition.”
Leah said as she reattached her finger.
“It'd just attract bugs if you took it. Sorry, but I can't give you body parts. I'll give you something else instead.”
“Something else?”
Ian tilted his head. She grabbed a mirror butterfly from her shoulder and crushed it.
Crash!
With a clear ring, the butterfly turned into a small vial.
A plain-looking vial. Leah uncorked it without hesitation and brought the opening to her lips. She brushed aside her cascading hair and parted her lips.
“……Bleh.”
Saliva trickled from between her parted lips. The dripping fluid pooled softly in the vial. Ian grimaced as he watched, but Leah paid no mind.
“……There, that should be enough.”
Moments later, she corked the saliva-filled vial and handed it to Ian. He hesitated long and hard before sighing deeply and accepting it—with his index finger and thumb for minimal contact.
“…….”
The vial was incredibly warm. Honestly, it could double as a hot pack.
Not that he'd try it for human dignity's sake.
“……This should work for alchemy, right?”
“It can substitute for 'Great One' ingredients. But it's only one dose, so use it wisely.”
“……The presentation's a bit odd, but thanks anyway. I'll put it to good use.”
Ian tucked the vial into his coat's inner pocket.
It was warm.
“Well then, it's time to say goodbye. Seems the idiot from the sea is getting impatient.”
As Ian cleared his throat from the warmth spreading in his chest, Leah stood and whispered.
In the far distance of her vision, a girl with black hair was attempting to enter the nebula.
Her face was far from human. She'd rushed too hastily to mimic one properly.
It didn't matter. Leah asked Ian to stand as well, then positioned herself right in front of him, looking up.
The gap between them was less than a centimeter. At this close range, where breaths mingled, her red lips parted.
“If I'm giving, you should receive in return.”
“……What?”
“Let's exchange. I need to receive too.”
Without waiting for a reply, Leah tilted her head toward Ian.
“Mm.”
His vision flooded pure white in an instant, his breath catching short. A thick hyacinth scent wafted through his nostrils. The soft, moist, hot touch of saliva transmitted from their lips.
More a lip-lock than a kiss. They simply pressed their lips together, doing nothing more, while gazing into each other's eyes.
“…….”
“…….”
One second.
Two seconds.
And three.
“Puha.”
Finally, Leah pulled her lips away and stepped back a few paces. Ian stared at her with a blank face.
“……You.”
“Is this what a kiss feels like? Seeing the Master of the Outer Sea do it with you made me think I had to try it too. Worth it.”
“…….”
“Of course, it's quite different…… But I prefer this. Mm, it felt good.”
Leah smiled shyly and took a step closer to Ian.
“You don't hate it, do you? You did it with the Master of the Outer Sea too.”
“……No, that was an accident—”
“I liked it. What about you?”
“…….”
“Mind if we do it once more?”
Ian didn't answer. That was the clearest reply, so Leah leaned in from a slight distance for a brief lip-lock. Her nonexistent heart beat slowly.
Their lips parted after a full five seconds. Leah wiped Ian's saliva from her lips with the back of her hand, her cheeks and ears flushing red.
“Hnn.”
“…….”
“It really feels good. Now I get why humans obsess over this pointless act.”
Leah placed her hand on Ian's cheek.
“See you again. It won't take long. Grimoires will be hard to use for a bit, but don't worry. Three times a day should be fine without issue.”
“……Good to know.”
“Yes. And…… Um…… It's embarrassing, but I feel like I have to say this.”
Leah smiled brightly and gave Ian a light push.
“I love you.”
Thud.
Ian's body was pushed back without resistance. He fell following an impossible gravity in this space, murmuring softly.
“……See you.”
“Yes, next time.”
Leah wore a soft smile.
Ian thought it was the most natural and beautiful expression he'd seen from her.
And thud.
His consciousness blacked out.
*
The moment his consciousness returned, Ian realized he was standing alone in the single-family home's living room, holding the box.
The wall-mounted TV, instead of singing about a little star, displayed only a black screen in silence. The view beyond the window was utterly ordinary. The bloody stench had vanished. The air carried only the thick scent of winter.
“Back…… home?”
Ian mumbled blankly for a moment. Cecilia, who had left her computer in the master bedroom, wiped the sweat from her neck and poked his side.
“What's up, suddenly? Standing there all dazed…… You okay……?”
“……Ah, Cecilia.”
Ian's gaze turned to her. He checked her intact ears and legs, made an ambiguous expression, then smiled wryly and spoke.
“Your ears working fine?”
“……? Yeah, why?”
Her immediate, matter-of-fact reply. Ian peered into Cecilia's clear purple eyes and gave a faint smile.
“Nothing. Anyway, let's clean up and grab some food. What do you want? My treat.”
“Ooh, then jjajangmyeon. And ganpungji chicken, dongpo pork, tangsuyuk too……”
Cecilia listed off menu items with an excited face. Ian set down the box and let out a small chuckle.
His mood…… wasn't bad at all.