< Chapter 123: A Brief Peace (1) >
―So, it’s a temporary farewell then.
Lust left those final words and departed.
She was likely returning to the organization.
I had worried that my information would reach Unknown once she returned, but those worries turned out to be unnecessary.
―When I found Seo-yul, he was already being cornered by that monster.
Fortunately, it seemed Lust hadn’t seen me using the ancient relic.
It could be a lie, but it was probably the truth.
―If I had found you earlier, you wouldn’t have had to sustain such injuries…
I could vividly recall the look on her face as she ground her teeth while saying this.
…And well, I had also taken some extra precautions.
“Sigh.”
It was now 11:30 p.m.
Rena, Goldie, and White Tiger had long since gone to sleep in their bedrooms.
“Ah, my head hurts.”
I was alone, sitting at my desk, deeply pondering.
What kind of changes would Lucifer’s death bring? Thinking about it naturally made my head hurt.
“If I look at it one-dimensionally, it’s an extremely good change…”
The death of Lucifer, essentially the mid-boss of part two, was undoubtedly a good thing.
I no longer had to deal with him.
However, considering all the events that had unfolded around me, I couldn’t simply be relieved.
‘What if Lucifer’s death changes the moves of the demon side?’
‘What are the odds of a third person appearing to replace Lucifer?’
‘Could the demon become more cautious due to Lucifer’s death and make a mistake?’
These vague anxieties were eating away at my mind.
I had been smacked upside the head by the butterfly effect many times after all.
“Ah. I wish I could kill whoever coined the term ‘butterfly effect.'”
My irritation had reached its peak, and everything seemed negative.
“Ah, forget it.”
I closed my notebook and stood up from the chair.
I jumped straight into bed and closed my eyes.
“What’s the point of thinking about it now?”
All it would do is make my head hurt more.
After all, nobody knows what changes will actually occur.
Therefore, all the worrying I was doing was pointless.
It’s funny that I’m even worrying like this, to begin with.
I had always known from the start that changes in the future were inevitable.
I had only repeatedly taken actions to try to steer that future in a better direction.
…Even if the result was the premature appearance of Lucifer, I shouldn’t regret it.
Getting stuck in a cycle of anxiety about an uncertain future is the worst possible course of action.
“Sigh.”
Having settled my thoughts, I immediately felt my body relax.
Maybe because I had overworked my brain, sleep soon overwhelmed me.
“…Ah.”
It then occurred to me that in worrying about unimportant things, I had forgotten something crucial.
‘I still have to find out what the full activation effect of the Angel race is…’
My eyelids grew heavier.
‘I also need to experiment with the two new attributes I’ve gained…’
There was still much left to do, but I didn’t want to get up.
Flutter. Flutter.
Forget it.
I should sleep.
A moment later.
My consciousness went blank, like a light bulb suddenly switching off.
* * *
Sunday.
Today is the day I have plans with Jia and Si-yeon.
Well, we’re not going anywhere.
The two are coming over to my house to hang out.
Ding Dong-
The doorbell rang.
When I checked the intercom screen, I saw Jia and Si-yeon.
They’re here.
I immediately opened the door.
“Seo-yul-ah! Hello!”
“Ancestor. Hello.”
The two enter, smiling brightly.
“Welcome!”
Looking at the two, Rena responded in Korean.
Yes, in ‘Korean.’
Recently, she has been self-studying with a Korean textbook and realized that honorifics are not reserved only for the dignified royal family. So her tone became like this.
What a shame.
“Hello.”
“Hello.”
“Mm!”
Rena smiles brightly.
“Princess, your Korean has improved a lot, hasn’t it?”
Si-yeon exclaims.
“Should the person who taught me phrases like ‘Melona when you come’ be saying that?”
“Hehe.”
She sticks out her tongue and laughs playfully.
Rena goes over to Si-yeon and tugs on her sleeve.
“Did you bring the galbijjim (Korean braised short ribs)… or not?”
Rena’s words were a bit strange.
The two tilt their heads.
“Huh? Are you asking if we brought galbijjim?”
“Yes…or not.”
“?”
The two tilt their heads even further.
“Uh, Seo-yul-ah. Why is the Princess speaking like that?”
“She was impressed by something when she was watching a historical drama on TV yesterday. Now she adds ‘…or not?’ and ‘…it is.’ at the end of her sentences.”
Yesterday, the princess happened to watch a historical drama and heard the king speaking.
And she realized that honorifics were not the language of the dignified royal family that she had thought they were.
What we’re hearing now can be considered the result of her awkward interpretation of their language.
“Why aren’t you answering… or not?”
This is the result.
The honorific tone she had been learning now has strange sentence endings tacked on.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
The two look at me with odd gazes.
“Isn’t it because you’re messing around that she ended up like that, Seo-yul?”
“No, it’s not.”
It’s unfair.
I can’t say anything if I’m actually at fault, but this time I’m really not.
“Really? There was also the incident where you told her ‘I like you, oppa.’ Plus, didn’t you teach the princess strange phrases just to tease her?”
“Eek!”
The princess reacts to the words ‘I like you, oppa.’ Her face turns as red as a beet. She trembles as she looks at me.
Shaking all over.
The “I like you, oppa! (I hate bad guys!)” incident has become a major embarrassing memory for the princess.
You have no idea how much trouble I went through to console the princess when she found out the true meaning of those words.
―I will never trust your words when it comes to learning Korean!
On top of that, my credibility has hit rock bottom because I also incorrectly taught her about honorifics.
The result is her current way of speaking.
No matter what I say, she won’t listen. She just sticks to that manner of speaking.
“This time it’s really not me. I’m actually worried because even if I say it’s not me this time, she won’t believe me.”
“…How much did you tease her to make her that way?”
Si-yeon looks at Rena with pitying eyes.
“…Exactly.”
I should have practiced more restraint.
“So, please talk to her properly today. She still somewhat trusts what you guys say, at least.”
I sincerely hope they can do something about that strange way of speaking. Please.
“Mm. Okay.”
“Yes. Leave it to us.”
The two smiled as if to say they’ve got it covered.
“Nyaang.”
Woken up by our voices, Goldie walked out with half-closed eyes.
“Did we wake you up, Goldie?”
Then he walked right up to me and jumped into my chest.
Caught him perfectly.
“Haaah.”
He comfortably settles in my arms and uses my forearm as a pillow, looking at Jia and Si-yeon.
His eyes are still sleepy, which makes him even cuter.
“Aww. How cute.”
The two seem to have the same thought. They’re practically beaming.
“What about White Tiger?”
Jia asked while petting Goldie.
“She’s still sleeping. Why? Do you want to see her? Should I wake her up?”
“No, no! Let her sleep.”
All four of us, including Yu Hwa, along with the two pets, have grown significantly closer since the Gate operation.
“Really? But she’ll probably wake up in about two hours anyway. It’s about time for her to act spoiled for food.”
“Ah. Can I feed her?”
“Of course. You’re more than welcome to.”
“Thank you.”
Interestingly, Jia seems to like White Tiger more than Goldie.
She denies it, but from my perspective, it’s pretty obvious. I wonder what she finds so appealing about her haughty attitude.
“Is Yu Hwa unable to come as usual?”
“She said she’s busy.”
“That’s too bad.”
Si-yeon and Yu Hwa have also gotten pretty close. They’ve even reached a point where they refer to each other as sisters.
Ah, of course, the relationship between Jia and Yu Hwa is still not great. Even when they’re in the same space, they seem to deliberately avoid conversing with each other.
Gguk Gguk-
Rena tugs on Si-yeon’s sleeve once more.
“Do you have… galbijjim… or not?”
Her expression was glum.
“Ah, we do. We brought it.”
Si-yeon broadly smiles and lifts up a shopping bag. At that moment, Rena’s face lights up.
Is Galbijjim that great?
…Well, it is delicious.
“Today, we’ve also prepared marinated ribs.”
“Marinated… ribs?”
Whether it was the word “ribs” that triggered it, Rena’s face brightened up like the sun.
Seeing her like that, I couldn’t help but smile.
…In a few days, she’ll probably be pronouncing ‘yangnyeom galbi’ correctly.
* * *
Sanctuary of Truth
“Welcome back.”
Maestro greeted Lust, who had returned earlier than expected.
“You said you wouldn’t come back until the deadline, but here you are. What changed?”
“That’s my business. Where’s the boss?”
“He’s busy merging the form of the Dragon’s Eye.”
“Is that so?”
Lust’s expression was sharp, like that of a predatory lioness.
The innocent smile she showed to Kang Seo-yul just yesterday seemed like a lie. A mask is fittingly worn in the name of lust.
“Did you gather a lot of Qi in Korea?”
Maestro spoke, thinking that the only thing Lust would have done while resting in Korea was collect Qi.
“Do I need to report that to you?”
“Hmm.”
Lust’s eyes emitted a cold light.
‘Was the phone call back then the issue?’
The day Maestro had asked her to return, perhaps touching upon her disgust was the problem.
Although he couldn’t yet understand why she reacted that way, it was probably certain.
“Then I can’t meet with the boss?”
“He said he’d like to focus on his work for at least the next three days.”
“I see.”
Without hesitation, Lust turned her body.
“I’ll come back in three days. Tell the boss when he’s available.”
As she was leaving, Maestro tried to stop her.
“Wait. I have a mission I’d like to entrust you with.”
Lust didn’t stop her steps.
“Send it by email. Emotionless notification is your forte, isn’t it?”
She then left the room without another word.
She didn’t want to engage in conversation with Maestro.
A sense of loathing bubbled up within her.
If the conversation continued any further, the ‘lustful’ mask she was currently wearing might be peeled off.
‘Why did I ever follow someone like that?’
She was irritated.
She couldn’t bear how foolish she had been, following Maestro simply because he was good-looking and posed no problems upon contact.
‘To think I considered that love.’
Her stupidity made her teeth chatter.
‘…I want to see Seo-yul.’
It’s been only a day, but I miss Kang Seo-yul.
My heart is pounding fast, and heat rises to my face.
“Ah…”
This must be the feeling they call true love.
‘Just hold on a bit longer. Once this matter is settled, I can be with Seo-yul.’
Once I fulfill all the terms of the contract with Unknown, I’ll be free.
‘Just hold out until then.’
Lust’s eyes shone with yearning.
Ssssh…
Darkness surged towards Lust. It wasn’t an attack.
“It’s been a while.”
“What brings you here? You approaching me first?”
Shadows began to coalesce, taking form.
“Lust, I have something to tell you.”
Soon, it took the shape of a person, revealing Hermit.
“You do? To me?”
“Yes.”
“What is it?”
Hermit leaned close to Lust’s ear.
“It’s about Kang Seo-yul.”
“!”
Lust’s eyes widened but quickly returned to her usual composed expression.
Pretending to be unfazed is one of Lust’s specialties.
“There are too many ears here. If you want to hear the details, come to the place I designate in two hours.”
Hermit looked at Lust, who seemed lost in thought and his mind racing.
“Think of it as a talk about Kang Seo-yul’s past, his purpose.”
Hermit had received a call from Kang Seo-yul a short while ago, using a one-time-use communication ring that Hermit had provided.
Kang Seo-yul had said this to Hermit:
‘Tell Lust about my past. Don’t leave anything out.’
He added:
‘Then she will become the sharp blade that will strike a fatal blow to Unknown’s heart.’
< Chapter 123: Brief Peace (1) > End
