Chapter 147
Chapter 147
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 147
Chapter Title: Wedding Bells
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It took the dwarves a month to build their fortress in the mithril mine.
Their method was quite unique: they blocked the entrance monsters could use to invade and carved out a new path.
Fortunately, there was a valley not far away, so they opened a passage leading to it, planning to build an underground city in between.
They were able to do this because when they reopened the collapsed entrance, they found a vast chamber where the mithril golem had been sleeping.
—We're going to build a dwarven temple!
With this declaration, they began to carve a new entrance. They had detected moisture in the dungeon and located a waterway.
As they widened the waterway and advanced, a massive waterfall appeared.
Seeing this, the dwarves altered their path again and bored through the space behind the waterfall.
The sheer force of the waterfall created a safe entrance that even monsters wouldn't approach.
Moreover, since the area behind the waterfall was invisible from the outside, there was no risk of being discovered.
As if accustomed to this kind of work, they finished selecting their settlement, even planning to install traps for safety.
While they were carving out the caves, Oh Min-jae also finished constructing the gate, connecting all four races with the Armored Spider's Nest as the central hub.
“Alright, that’s the end of the preparations.”
“Why are we always just preparing? When will things ever be completely finished?”
“It’s because I have a lot of plans.”
“That's for sure. When will our friend ever get to rest easy?”
“It’s fine. I have a friend who understands me.”
Min Ha-na lightly bumped the fist Wang-sik held out.
“So, is Chairwoman Han finally coming through the gate?”
The next plan prepared for them was a joint venture between Han Young-im and the dwarves.
Han Young-im had said she would meet the dwarves in person once everything was ready to coordinate their work methods.
There were more than a few things to align, such as equipment, production methods, volume, and mutual compensation plans.
“She’ll do fine. She even got a tattoo for it.”
“Well, everyone’s doing that.”
Min Ha-na also had a tattoo on her collarbone. It was the same kind as the one on the back of Wang-sik's neck. However, Ha-na preferred a more stylish design, so she added a flourish to the existing magic tattoo with a regular one.
This created an attractive focal point when she wore a low-cut dress, but Wang-sik had rejected her request for the tattoo several times.
—It’s a slave tattoo.
In reality, it was language communication magic, but Wang-sik had refused because he felt it was a slave tattoo.
However, he relented after repeated requests, and not only Min Ha-na but also Han Young-im and Kang Il-seop got the tattoos.
—What a waste of all that time I spent studying foreign languages.
The Chief Secretary said this as he joined the line for tattoos, and soon, most of the Mad Castle agents could understand the Azelan language.
“Still, since Chairwoman Han will take care of this, we should have some free time, right?”
“No. There’s something we have to do first. Something we need to pour our very souls into.”
“Huh? What’s that?”
Min Ha-na, who hadn't heard about it beforehand, asked again. Wang-sik replied with a pleasant smile.
“A wedding.”
“A wedding?”
After a moment of thought, Min Ha-na's eyes widened.
“Min-jae and Aisi?”
As Wang-sik nodded, Min Ha-na looked surprised.
“Wow! What’s the rush with them?”
“They’re dying to get married. When they’re together, it feels like I’m watching a drama.”
“Well, whatever! I’m going to enjoy it to the fullest!”
“It’s not your wedding.”
“That’s why I have to enjoy it properly. If it were my wedding, I’d be too busy trying to look pretty.”
Perhaps because they were taking a brief break from their intense planning for the first time in a while, the two could laugh wholeheartedly.
* * *
A brief respite arrived in their intense lives.
But that respite was far from idle.
“Aisi! You’re so beautiful!”
“Min-jae! You look amazing!”
“The bride and groom! They look so good together!”
It was a busy kind of leisure.
Everyone cheered without rest and clapped loudly.
Blessings.
An emotion unfitting for a land of monsters spread through the air.
The elves, along with the spirits, gave the gift of showering them with white light, while the Zaimons stood in neat rows like statues, blessing the path of the bride and groom.
Oh Min-jae and Aisi, wearing the mithril rings forged by the dwarves, received the salutes of the Beastkin and stood atop the highest rock in the valley.
The wedding was in the Beastkin style, but their attire followed Earth’s customs.
“Aisi, you’re so beautiful.”
Just as Oh Min-jae admired, Aisi, in her pure white dress, was the most radiant woman there.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
As the Elder began to strike the ground with his staff, the other Beastkin followed suit with the staffs they held.
A flag was attached to each of their staffs, bearing the symbol of the Beastkin—a drawing of sharp teeth. This was a Beastkin wedding tradition, and Aisi whispered to Oh Min-jae.
“Now, please lift me onto your shoulders.”
“Alright. I hope it goes like we practiced.”
Originally, it wouldn't have mattered if Aisi had lifted Oh Min-jae onto her shoulders. The tradition was simply about one person displaying their strength while the other ascended to a higher place, so gender was irrelevant.
But Oh Min-jae had insisted.
—I’m a man too!
In the end, defying everyone's expectations, Oh Min-jae lifted Aisi onto his shoulders.
“Whoa!”
A surprised cheer naturally erupted. But soon, laughter could be heard from all around.
“The groom’s face looks like it’s about to explode!”
“Elder! What are you waiting for!”
Hearing the shout, the Elder smiled, stepped before them, and powerfully raised his staff.
“I recognize the union of the Chieftain and his Consort!”
The Beastkin all transformed into their beast forms and roared in unison, their cries echoing throughout the mountains.
“Consort! You may come down now!”
“Shouldn’t someone help him?”
Oh Min-jae held his breath to the very end, enduring as he carefully set Aisi down.
“Phew, I did it.”
“You’re so dependable. You truly are my Consort.”
The two shared a kiss in front of everyone, and the light of the spirits enveloped them.
And then, Seo I-ryeon’s song began.
To her voice, more beautiful than any instrument, the people blessed the moment with silence instead of cheers.
It was like a scene from a fairy tale.
Perhaps for that reason, everyone, transcending race, wore expressions as if they were dreaming.
Even though the wedding ceremony was over, the party continued all night long.
Actually, that was by Earth's standards; a Beastkin wedding party was meant to last until the sun rose the next day.
Songs from each race followed one after another, and the beer brought by the dwarves filled their cups.
Songs and dances.
Conversations and applause.
The party, filled with boisterous laughter, offered a moment of comfort from their arduous fates.
* * *
“For a honeymoon, it’s gotta be Jeju Island!”
After the long, two-day wedding ceremony, Oh Min-jae and Aisi came to the Mad Castle headquarters.
Although Oh Min-jae could travel between dimensions using gates, he had never been to Jeju Island.
‘Well, it’s not just Jeju Island I haven’t been to.’
Oh Min-jae had never been to any country other than Korea.
He had been kidnapped as a child and taken to the Azelan Continent, and had remained only in Korea ever since.
Naturally, he had a fantasy about Jeju Island.
“Alright. Don’t cause any trouble on your honeymoon.”
“When have I ever caused trouble?”
“Not you. I’m talking about your wife.”
Wang-sik called Aisi that naturally.
A change in title might have been awkward, but Wang-sik showed no hesitation.
“You happy?”
Min Ha-na asked, slinging an arm around a pleasedly smiling Wang-sik.
“About what?”
“You practiced calling her ‘sister-in-law’ so much.”
At her words, everyone looked puzzled.
“She’s becoming family, so of course. You have to prepare and practice for everything. Wasn’t I natural?”
“You were natural.”
As Min Ha-na gave a thumbs-up, Wang-sik looked at Aisi confidently and said.
“Sister-in-law, please take good care of our Min-jae.”
“Huh? Yes…”
Hearing the formal speech for the first time, Aisi couldn't hide her discomfort.
“Hyung, just be casual. You said we’re family.”
“Still, there are certain things you have to observe.”
“Be satisfied with just calling her sister-in-law. It feels distant.”
“No way. I practiced for days.”
“Hyung. We’ll get closer faster if we’re comfortable with each other.”
In the end, at Oh Min-jae's point, Wang-sik had to give up on the formal speech.
“Aisi! Take this!”
They had already given a dress and tuxedo in the name of Mad Castle, but they had also prepared personal gifts.
The first to offer a gift was Gong Yeong-ji.
“Thank you.”
When Aisi opened the box, she found two T-shirts of the same design.
They were couple's T-shirts.
“Wow! I’ve always wanted to try this!”
Like Oh Min-jae, Aisi looked at the shirts with interest. It was a culture that didn't exist on the Azelan Continent.
“My gift is this.”
Min Ha-na also held out a small box.
“Open it when you’re on your trip.”
But she couldn't resist the curious reactions of those around her and had to open it on the spot.
Revealing some risqué, see-through lingerie.
“What is this?”
At first, Aisi couldn't recognize its purpose.
“It’s underwear. You could call it an artifact for the first wedding night.”
As Min Ha-na explained confidently, Aisi thanked her and carefully placed it back in the box.
“You guys. It seems like you’re giving them things you want for yourselves.”
“Why? Can’t I live vicariously? I can’t even date because I’m busy protecting the Earth, so I should at least be able to do this.”
“That’s right! I think we’re entitled to at least that much!”
The two women were so assertive that Wang-sik had no choice but to concede.
After that, Kang Il-seop gifted them a high-end camera, and the Chief Secretary gave them the phone number of a Jeju Island guide.
The Chief Secretary had already arranged for a hotel and car in Jeju. Han Young-im's help had been significant in this.
Oh Min-jae didn't know it, but an unimaginably luxurious itinerary awaited him in Jeju.
“Be sure to visit this place tomorrow night. You’ll be busy tonight.”
Seo I-ryeon hadn't forgotten a gift either. Although she had already sung ten congratulatory songs at the wedding and party, she had a separate personal gift.
What she handed him was a map to a beach a short distance from the hotel where Oh Min-jae would be staying.
“Well, it’s time to go.”
Wang-sik said, pressing something into Oh Min-jae's hand.
Compared to the others' gifts, it was a shabby item.
No, it didn't even look like a gift.
It was just a crumpled piece of paper.
“Huh?”
But as Oh Min-jae looked at the paper, his eyes wavered.
A piece of paper so old and faded it looked like it could tear at any moment.
On it were words barely scrawled with a trembling hand.
But most of the letters were smudged and erased.
—Min-jae, write down what you want to do here. Then it won’t hurt anymore.
To Oh Min-jae, who had been suffering sleepless nights of pain in the mage's laboratory, Wang-sik had given an old piece of paper.
Even this would have led to harsh torture if the mage found it, but he had hidden it for Min-jae's sake.
—We’ll never be able to leave this place.
—Just trust me. We’ll return to Korea, and you’ll be able to do everything you write down here.
Persuaded by Wang-sik, Oh Min-jae had dipped his finger in the dust on the floor and began to write.
It was the first time.
That he had forgotten the pain with hopeful thoughts.
“How did you keep this all this time?”
“Because I never threw it away.”
The paper on which Oh Min-jae had written his hopes that day had always been carefully stored in Wang-sik's inventory.
“Thank you, hyung.”
“Now you can do everything written on it.”
“I will.”
Oh Min-jae couldn't help but cry.
‘When are you going to do yours, hyung?’
He couldn't bring himself to say those words. The answer was too obvious.
“Alright! Time to go! It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing, so go have the time of your lives!”
Since the Beastkin did not have divorce, it was certainly a once-in-a-lifetime event.
“Thank you, everyone!”
“We’ll live happily!”
Aisi and Oh Min-jae said their goodbyes and passed through the gate.
Those who saw them off kept smiling until the very end.
After the two had completely disappeared, a slight sense of emptiness set in.
“Now, it’s time to get back to work.”
The vacation was over.
“Alright! Time to protect the Earth again!”
Wang-sik's single remark drove away the emptiness that had been tickling their hearts.