That was how Aslan became a slime. When he thought about that time, it still baffled him. But he didn’t mind what had happened.
“I was able to protect you thanks to it.”
With a loving expression, Aslan stroked the head of Baby Lee Gun.
Of course, those times had been very uncomfortable for Aslan because he couldn’t use his original abilities as a slime.
‘Still, that’s how I became Gun’s item.’
[Clump of Creation Clay]
Aslan became a tool and gained the ability of Transformation (Copy). He assumed it was a variation on his “Ability Creation.”
‘I’ve always been able to copy other’s abilities just by looking at them.’
Unlike his original ability, the slime Aslan could only materialize something he ate. He couldn’t materialize items through imagination.
However, he was able to change into his original form when Lee Gun became a Zodiac. Furthermore, he was able to regain his original power when Lee Gun matured in his power.
On the other hand, Lee Gun’s expression turned sour after he heard Aslan’s story.
“Byaa, byaaa...”
Although Lee Gun had been listening to Aslan, his expression said he thought all that was rubbish.
Aslan laughed. “I didn’t do enough to act as if I’m your father?”
Well, it didn’t matter in the end.
“So how long are you going to eavesdrop on us, Hyung-nim?”
“?!!”
The little Sagittarius, who had been pretending to be unconscious, became restless as he felt himself almost have a heart attack.
‘How did he know?’
Aslan acted as if it wasn’t a big deal as he coldly looked at Sagittarius. “I knew it from the start. Eavesdropping while pretending to be unconscious isn’t a good hobby.”
“I didn’t eavesdrop…!” Sagittarius shot up, sweating.
Aslan was up there with Hugo among the people who Sagittarius was ashamed to meet. He had played a part in engineering the death of Aslan’s parents. So, he naturally had a guilty conscience.
This was why he didn’t act like he had lost his memories in front of his younger brother. He wouldn’t do something so cowardly.
“I…I woke up, but you were having a good time conversing with Gun. I just didn’t want to get in the way.”
When Sagittarius couldn’t even look him in the eyes, Aslan let out a chuckle. “You don’t have to walk on eggshells around me. I already carried out my revenge on that day. I don’t hold on to grudges.”
“You….”
“Also, I don’t have to do anything. You’ll probably die at the hands of Eternal Change.”
He did hold a grudge!!!! It was peerless!!
Sagittarius despaired when he saw the bright smile on Aslan’s lips.
Aslan had the face of someone who wouldn’t be able to pass by a grandma carrying a heavy item without helping her. Yet he was the same as his son. No, he was worse. He was a sadist(?).
‘Is he like that toward only me and the other gods?’
When it came to humans and Constructs, Aslan was kinder and sweeter than anyone.
“Anyway, you shouldn’t talk about the past with a child who has no memories. If you want to talk about it, you should go talk to Eternal Change, Flame, or Shiva. They’ll be more receptive to what you have to say.”
Aslan had an odd smile on his lips as if Sagittarius was talking nonsense. “Do you still think Gun remembers nothing?”
“…?!”
Sagittarius’s face stiffened.
Aslan wasn’t guessing. He spoke as if he knew it was the truth. The reason was obvious.
‘He has the “Translation” ability…!’
The Translation ability was made using Ability Creation!
Aslan could translate every language in existence. His target could be animals, objects in nature, monsters, or babies. It didn’t discriminate. In other words, Aslan understood the indecipherable words spoken by Gun!
Others considered the baby’s coos and gurgle cute and dismissed them as nothing! However, Aslan could understand them all!
Starting from his legs, Sagittarius felt as if all the blood was draining out of him. “There is no way… How!”
Aslan let out a bright smile. “How? Hyung-nim, someone like you remembers your past life. Why wouldn’t someone smart like Gun not remember it? You can tell just by looking at how he acts, right?”
Sagittarius became angry, but it lasted only a moment. He tilted his head in puzzlement. “Wait a moment? How he acts? Did you not use your Translation ability?”
“I didn’t need to. I can tell without using my ability. You can tell by how he acts that he remembers his past life.”
One just had to look at how Lee Gun treated Hugo.
Sagittarius became desperate. He grabbed Aslan. “Use it! Right now! Do it just in case!”
“Hmmph… I can tell by how he reacts to the photo of my daughter-in-law. It’s obvious, so why should I…”
Whenever Aslan showed Hailey’s picture to Baby Lee Gun, the baby’s eyes would become glued to the picture.
Lee Gun treated his father as if he were non-existent. He showed zero interest in Aslan. It was so bad that even Aslan had to use Hailey’s photo as a way to attract Gun’s attention. It was his secret tool of affection(?).
Sagittarius glared at him. “Use your Translation ability! See if he really has his memories!”
In the end, Aslan clicked his tongue as he activated his skill.
[Language Translation]
Lee Gun furrowed his brows when he saw the light. “Byaa?”
“[Bright]”
“Byaa, byaaaaaaaaa!!!!”
“He’s probably cussing me out… Huh?” An odd look appeared on Aslan’s face as he continued to translate.
“Byaa! Byaaaaa! Byaaaaaaaaaa!!”
“…????” Aslan’s expression continued to change for the worse. It was rare to see him this surprised.
“Aslan?”
“N-No. There is no way this is true.” Aslan was known for his poker face, yet he looked flustered.
Sagittarius became tense too. “What? What’s going on?”
“Uh… That’s odd. Why doesn’t he have his memories?”
“What?!”
Aslan checked several more times, but the baby wasn’t saying things Lee Gun would usually say.
“[That looks shiny and bushy.] [Want to eat Beau Beau!] [Amazing! World is shiny!]”
“???”
Aslan was shocked as he looked at Baby Lee Gun. The baby was talking about their heads when he mentioned shiny and bushy. It seemed he wanted to eat shaving cream…
“???” Aslan was stunned.
The Translation skill didn’t translate only the words. It was closer to reading someone’s heart.
This was why Aslan’s shock deepened. “D-Does he really not have his memories?”
By the look of Lee Gun’s actions, that couldn’t be true.
‘What’s going on?’
Aslan wondered if Lee Gun was tricking him, but he dismissed that idea.
‘He can’t dodge this ability.’
He had even used it against Great Spirits. This ability had never failed no matter which creature in the universe he had used it on. That wasn’t all.
Aslan had seen it for himself. He came up with it when he saw Lee Gun crawl away from Yooha, who had tried to change his diaper for the wrong reason!
Aslan planned on bringing Hailey here. The reason was simple. Didn’t Hailey like Gun? What if he brought together baby Gun and Hailey, who still had their memories?
Wouldn’t numerous embarrassing memories be created? Aslan would be able to capture many entertaining scenes. He had a wicked smile on his face when he had planned on acquiring a camera.
Despite all his plans, he realized he couldn’t read Lee Gun’s memories. Aslan had a mental breakdown.
Sagittarius snorted when he saw this. Aslan was someone who routinely hit the Great Spirits and the Divine world in the back of their heads. He was a master at it.
Someone who hit others in the back of their heads had instead gotten hit in the back of his head.
It was a refreshing sight for Sagittarius, but…
“See? I told you he didn’t have his memories. Unlike me, Gun doesn’t have his Divine status, and his body has changed. There is no avenue that would allow him to keep his memories.”
“Huh huh….”
Aslan was sweating.
In its own way, it was good that Gun didn’t have his memories. Aslan felt that for a similar reason as Hugo did.
‘It’s better for him if he didn’t have his painful memories.’
Suddenly, a peculiar smile appeared on Aslan’s lips.
‘I’ve always had a question I wanted to ask Gun…’
Aslan had always wanted to ask this question, but had been unable to. He was afraid of asking it.
However, it was something he wanted to confirm. No, it was a question that he must ask. It was a question that he had stopped himself from asking Hugo too.
‘I guess it can’t be helped.’
Aslan knew he had to give up on asking it, so he laughed. Now only one thing bothered him. If Gun didn’t have his memories, he shouldn’t have his memories of Hailey.
This would change various things, including what might happen with his daughter-in-law…
‘I can’t allow that to happen.’
Aslan smiled.
* * *
[What? Are you crazy?! Get bent!!!!]
Hugo covered his ear when he heard the angry shout coming across the phone. He glared at his phone. The call had already ended.
Hugo cussed at the rude person, who had been on the other side of the call. “Do you think having a loud voice is all you need, idiot?”
Chun Jiwoo and his subordinates carefully approached him.
“What’s wrong?”
“Did it not go well?”
Instead of giving an answer, he drank the cold water handed Jiwoo gave him. Then he ground his teeth. “I should have known it would be like this. There will be no meeting with him. If Shiva had any intention of meeting with us, he would have never run away in the first place.”
Hugo had made contact with Hailey’s family. For the past three years, Hailey’s family hadn’t wanted to get involved with them. It was understandable.
‘Those two were chased around by the Zodiacs.’
Hugo’s side had worshiped the Zodiacs. So it was understandable that Hailey’s family didn’t want to share space with them. Moreover, they had quickly moved away without a trace when Lee Gun had reappeared.
‘It’s as I’ve told him numerous times. There is no way they want to meet us.’
This was the fault of that idiot, Aslan!! Aslan had requested Hugo to arrange a meeting between Gun and Hailey!
‘There is no way that bastard Shiva will allow Gun to meet his daughter!’
Aslan knew this, so he was asking Hugo to make this happen!!!
In the end, Hugo pounded his fist on his chest in frustration. Naturally, he would have ignored Aslan’s request if not for what had happened the previous night.
Aslan had suddenly appeared and said,
- I have a favor I want to ask, Hyung.
- You call me by that title only when you want something weird from me. Also, you make me remember things that confuse my family tree!
- This is the contact info for the god of destruction. Do you mind contacting him for me?
- Stop ignoring me…. Wait a moment. The god of destruction is Shiva. He ran away because he doesn’t like us. Why would I contact him?
- Gun doesn’t have any memories.
- Memories?
- Yes. Gun hasn’t graduated from using his diaper, so I thought he would be embarrassed to meet his girlfriend. I thought he would seek her out on his own after he grows up, but…
- Seek her out on his own… Ah. Are you trying to make Gun and Hailey meet each other right now?
- Yes. That’s why I want you to make the two of them meet each other. Gun’s father isn’t me. It’s you, Hyung.
- What the hell are you talking about? Also, you should negotiate directly with Shiva if you know his contact info.
- Ah! I’m not on good terms with that muscle-bound idiot. In fact, I told him of a way where he and his wife would have been able to survive, yet he didn’t listen to me.
- What? What are you….
- Anyway, Shiva is living off Leo right now since they are both gods from Mahabharata. Since I told you the info, you can do it.
- Hey!!!
- That muscle-bound idiot likes alcohol. You should buy and send him some good alcohol. I’ll pay for the alcohol.
- I don’t want to do it! Why should I?
- Are you sure you want to do this, Hugo?
- What?
- I’m talking about Ms. Jiwoo.
- Hmmph. Jiwoo is doing well. Why would you… Huhk.
- You remembered? I’m glad the two of you reincarnated as humans, but… I never expected you to take a Construct I treasured for yourself. You did it without any notice… In fact, you took her while I was trapped in the museum, and you married her?
- N-No. That’s not…
Aslan was referring to the time when he had been stuck inside Yang Wei’s museum for twenty years as a toothpick!!
- It has been a while, but I should have a conversation with Ms. Jiwoo. She might recall many memories. For example, she might realize you’re the unruly and moody Eternal Change.
- I’ll do it!!!!
Hugo was sweating profusely. As expected of Lee Gun’s father, Aslan was threatening to use Hugo’s sordid past against him???
This put Hugo in a pickle. Of course, he also thought it would be good to arrange a meeting between Hailey and Gun.
“The only problem is that idiot Shiva. He’s a fool for his daughter.”
He probably hid his daughter so that no one could find her.
‘She’s probably hidden somewhere inside Leo’s house.’
On the other hand, Shiva seemed to hate Lee Gun…. Could it be? Maybe….
‘Did they already come to blows in the World of Emptiness?’
Hugo didn’t need to see it to draw a picture of what had happened. He massaged his face.
Please, Gun. He better not have done that. Yes, there was no way he did that. It couldn’t be.
Anyway, Hailey’s mother seemed to really like Lee Gun, so she should be a problem. If things went sideways, Hugo could beat up Shiva and sneak out Hailey.
After making this resolve, Hugo immediately went looking for Baby Lee Gun. “Gun! Where are you, Gun? We have to go to the US to see Hailey! Let’s take a portrait photo for your passport! I wonder if you’ll get air sickness…”
As Lee Gun was too young, Hugo planned on taking a picture of him lying on the floor for the passport photo.
His children and subordinates became surprised by what he said, so they came rushing toward him.
“Passport photo? You plan on taking him overseas?”
“Yes. We’re going to meet Hailey. I think it’ll be too dangerous for Gun to use Teleport, so we’ll take the plane.”
“…uh… Are you sure they’ll give you permission to meet her?”
His subordinates started to sweat since they had heard Shiva had joined hands with the Leo temple.
“You won’t be able to enter the building of the Leo temple. In fact, they won't even let you off the plane…”
“It’s fine. I know their weakness. Also, I’m going to take him way later on.”
“What?”
There was a chance that Lee Gun would get into trouble. This was why Lee Gun had to be prepared before he could go to the US.
He needed to know that there were places where he could and could not go. He had to know where the dangerous places were. He needed education on manners. He needed to be able to converse about business in English. He needed to learn how to ride the plane, and he needed to learn what to do when a plane was in distress. He needed to learn how to deal with a terrorist attack on an airplane. He needed to know how to resuscitate the pilot if the pilot fainted. He needed to learn how to deal with pickpockets. He needed to learn where the best restaurants were. He needed to know the best places to take pictures. He needed to learn how to turn down peddlers. He needed to learn what to do if he suddenly met an Arab prince in the middle of the street.
Hugo would give Lee Gun a thorough education.
‘This is Gun’s first foreign trip.’
His subordinates started to sweat when they saw the sheer amount of books Hugo took with him.
“Lee Gun-nim… I wonder if he’ll be able to make it outside of this country before he reaches adulthood.”
“He’ll never be able to leave…”
He loved his children too much.
‘I hope he doesn’t insult Shiva.’
Hugo’s subordinates were aghast when they saw Hugo come up with an education plan that seemed endless.
“Husband! This is bad!”
“What’s wrong? Gun has a lot to do before he can go to the US….”
Chun Jiwoo was pale as she came running in. “I don’t see Lee Gun-nim anywhere! He was here until a moment ago!”
“W-What?!”
“D-Did he get kidnapped?!”
“What!!!!!”
* * *
Across the Pacific in the US…
The Leo Saint’s office was inside the Leo temple’s building, which was hiding Hailey.
Stevens had returned after being harassed by Shiva, and he froze when he saw the small living being in front of him.
“Byaa….”
This baby had no ties to this place. Stevens had made sure Lee Gun had no connection to this place. Not even Lee Gun’s shadow or the baby’s shadow had anything to do with this place. He had put in a lot of work, and he ran away and dodged even if he saw Lee Gun’s name.
Stevens knew that it would be calamitous to meet Lee Gun. Yet the lifeform sleeping on top of his desk was…
Stevens let out a cold sweat when he saw the fast-asleep baby. “Damn it. Why is he here?”
Why was Lee Gun inside Leo's home? Why did this disaster-class monster cross the ocean to come here?
