260 - 264

Chapter 260: Chapter 260

Side Story 17

9. I'm going there to meet you right now (3)

The 'impulse'.

An overwhelming impulse, that's what Kim Cheol felt; this powerful impulse, strong enough to nearly blow his reasoning away, almost completely swallowed him up.

'But….. But how come I…..'

Why did he want to kneel down in front of a kid that he'd never seen before, a student from the same year, but from another school?

In that brief moment, if he didn't force his ankles and calves to be still with all his might, then he would've shown a pretty disgraceful sight to everyone.

Way too close for comfort, indeed.

Kim Cheol couldn't describe this situation in any other way. Still, he managed to overcome it somehow and wiped the cold sweat pooling on his forehead with the back of his hand.

It was at that moment that a really plausible theory popped up in his head.

'Could it be that…. I'm scared by a dude from the same year as me?'

If it was not that, then how else could he explain away this current situation where his breathing quickened up suddenly and he wanted to avert his gaze while all strength drained out of his legs, as soon he met his opponent's eyes?

Too bad, Kim Cheol simply couldn't accept reality as it was.

'Don't make me laugh!!'

By relying on his superior physique surpassing that of high schoolers, as well as physical strength that matched his size, Kim Cheol enjoyed incredible prominence during his middle school days. Yet here he was, getting scared by another kid in the same age bracket?

Such a thing was not possible. No, more than that, such a thing could not be allowed to happen.

"H-hey, Cheol-ah? What's wrong?"

"You feeling okay, my man?"

The seniors began showing concern for his well-being, and as his reply, veins bulged in Kim Cheol's throat as he roared out.

"Nothing's wrong, seniors!!"

'That's right, there's nothing wrong with me!'

Kim Cheol convinced himself of this fact and powerfully nodded his head.

'Right, I was suffering from a simple dizzy spell because I didn't have a fulfilling breakfast. That must be it.'

In order to prove right the theory that he just cooked up on the spot, Kim Cheol slowly raised his head and stared straight at the freshman of the opposing school.

Although possessing a pretty well-trained physique, the first-year high school kid standing there was like a stalk of straw compared to himself. Finally regaining some sort of leeway now, a grin floated up on Kim Cheol's lips.

Smirk.

'….I knew it.'

Getting scared by a kid that might get knocked out in one punch from him? What an absurd thing that was.

Kim Cheol straightened his slightly hunched figure as the unbridled confidence from earlier on returned to his face.

The members of the Hwaseong Tech High's track team were feeling worried from the sudden changes Kim Cheol was going through, but they regained their smiles after confirming that their ace had returned to how he was.

"Dayum, you surprised me there."

"I'm telling you, our ace freshman really knows how to command attention."

The seniors patted his shoulder to encourage him, and Kim Cheol replied with a confident smile before fixing his gaze back on Jin-Woo.

'What a disgrace, why did a dizzy spell have to happen at the same time as looking into that guy's eyes…?'

Kim Cheol began thinking that he needed to return this ill-timed disgrace he suffered back to his opponent tenfold somehow. The best method to overturn an embarrassing situation was to suppress the other's spirit.

'....'

Only now did he notice that, even though he was glaring at the kid, this fellow first-year was being insolent by standing upright and shooting a glare right back.

Not once did Kim Cheol let a moron like that walk away in one piece until now.

"Hey, you."

He lowered his voice and pointed to the rear of the athletic field with his chin.

"I've got something to say to you, so follow me to over there for a sec."

Oh, ohh-!

While the members of the Hwaseong Tech High's track team whistled in excitement at their junior's spirited display, Jin-Woo's seniors were hurriedly blocking him from disinterestedly following after Kim Cheol.

"Jin-Woo! Listen to me, you mustn't commit murder!"

"You ain't thinking of spilling someone's blood on the day of the competition, right?? You gotta hold it in."

"That's right, let's just think of it as saving a poor soul today and let that kid be."

Jin-Woo chuckled and gently shook off the hands of his seniors.

"Don't worry, seniors. I'm sure nothing will happen over there."

The seniors tried to confirm the safety of his 'opponent' once more.

"Really? There really won't be anything bad happening to that kid, right?"

"We're choosing to believe you."

"That friend over there, he's definitely walking back here on his own two feet, right?"

Jin-Woo smiled brightly in order to put the worries of his seniors to rest and quickly walked over in the direction Kim Cheol had disappeared to.

'…..'

The captain of Hwaseong's track team, Joh Gi-Seok, watched all of this unfold from the side and formed a disbelieving expression before walking up closer to his rivals.

"You guys…. You all being serious right now?"

Choi Tae-Woong sneaked a glimpse at Joh Gi-Seok's face before shifting his gaze back in the direction where Jin-Woo had gone off to and spoke up in a worried tone of voice.

"Don't talk to me, man. I'm feeling really conflicted right now."

Choi Tae-Woong had been watching Jin-Woo's monster-like motor reflexes from a close vantage point, so all he could do now was to fervently pray for that fella named Kim Cheol to not try anything funny for his sake.

***

While walking after Kim Cheol, Jin-Woo's anticipation grew just a tiny bit. Could it be that this kid also regained the memories of the past, too?

If that was the case, how would human 'Kim Cheol', and not the Shadow Soldier 'Iron', react to the memories of those days?

Unfortunately, it didn't look like Kim Cheol had called him over here to discuss their past, judging from the light in the kid's eyes as he turned around.

"Hey, you."

The high school kid's murderous eyes were now looking down on Jin-Woo.

"What, just because I'm wearing a school uniform while standing on the same field as you, you think I'm a pushover?"

Kim Cheol was getting riled up here, but well, the sight of him being agitated like this reminded Jin-Woo of him losing his crap back inside the Red Gate, which caused an unplanned smirk to break out in response.

Sure, he did get annoyed back then, but now, weren't they all his cherished memories? Too bad, though, Kim Cheol didn't remember a single thing from those days, and Jin-Woo's smile didn't go down all that well with him.

"You son of a b*tch!��

Kim Cheol's rough hands reached out and grabbed Jin-Woo's collars in an instant. When that happened, there was a chorus of 'Waaaah-!!' breaking out from his shadow, made by the Shadow Soldiers cheering out loudly.

[Yes, Iron is returning to us!]

[Welcome back, Iron!]

[My liege, entrust this lost sheep to me. I, Bellion, swear to re-educate him properly and ensure an event like this will never happen again….]

'...'

It seemed that there was a real need to teach his Shadow Soldiers about the ways of the modern world. Jin-Woo inwardly tutted and stared deeply into Kim Cheol's eyes.

Without a doubt, someone was challenging him right now, but maybe because the fond memories of the days when this kid was a loyal Shadow Soldier, Jin-Woo just couldn't bring himself to despise him.

No, rather than that, he grew real curious about whether Kim Cheol would regain all the lost memories if they came in physical contact here.

'…..'

The burly high school kid sensed something strange from Jin-Woo's eyes and inadvertently swallowed dry saliva.

'What's going on….?'

If this was in the past, he'd not give a d*mn about being disqualified from the track competition and have thrown a punch by now, since the other guy was seemingly making fun of him.

But, rather than emotions of anger or even the desire to settle the score, a different kind of feeling, thicker and purer than anything else, began to wiggle violently from the deepest part of his chest.

And as Kim Cheol stood there conflicted on what to do next, Jin-Woo slowly and cautiously grasped the boy's wrist right then.

The ends of his fingers touched Kim Cheol's skin.

When that happened….

"Uh….??"

Tears began flooding out from the boy's eyes.

He didn't know why he was crying all of a sudden, yet the tears didn't want to stop falling down. Soon, all strength abandoned his legs and he plopped down to the ground.

"B-but, why….?"

Kim Cheol looked up at Jin-Woo.

He was searching for an answer, but all he got in return was a rueful smile from the mysterious boy, instead.

'If the Sovereign's memories weren't shared in the past, then the memories won't come back even if we make physical contact, huh?'

Unless… he restored the memories forcibly, that was.

Jin-Woo recalled the faces of people he shared his memories with, in the now-erased past.

'Association President Woo Jin-Cheol, and….'

….And, Madam Norma Selner.

He thought about the distinct possibility that she might have also regained the memories from the erased timeline, and while wondering about that, he turned around to leave.

He no longer had any business with 'Iron', no, 'Kim Cheol'. Because… the kid was living as a 'human', and not as a Shadow Soldier, now.

But then, the boy on his knees called out to Jin-Woo and stopped him in his tracks.

"H-hang on….. Wait."

Kim Cheol wiped his eyes with his hands and hurriedly stood back up. His tears might have stopped, but his nose was still beet-red, but not caring about that, he squarely met Jin-Woo's gaze shifting back at him so he could speak, his voice choked up with thick emotion.

"This, is this…. what they call love?"

He was being swept up by the sudden torrent of powerful emotions that he had never experienced before. Although he was deeply mistaken about what his feelings were, he was dead serious right now as he had ever been in his life.

"…"

Jin-Woo stared at the boy for a long while in an utter daze, feeling like he's been struck hard in the back of his head. Eventually, a lengthy groan escaped from his mouth.

"….This won't do."

Indeed, he couldn't let some poor kid live the rest of his life confused about his sexual orientation like this, now could he? When Jin-Woo walked closer, Kim Cheol's cheeks blushed beet red like a maiden in love.

Unfortunately…

Snap!

All signs of cognition and emotion were wiped from the boy's face along with the sound of fingers snapping. Kim Cheol's eyes lost focus and became blurry. Jin-Woo stood in front of him and began inserting new memories to replace the old one.

"Okay, so…. You tried to provoke me, but then found out, coincidentally, that I was the son of your father's friend's friend's friend and that's how we got to resolve our differences."

Kim Cheol dazedly nodded his head.

"Oh, and also…."

For a brief moment there, Jin-Woo recalled back to when the kid was still 'Iron' and was crying his eyes out as they were about to say goodbye, right before the Chalice of Rebirth was to be used. A thin smile floated up on his lips and he continued on.

"From here onwards, you gotta stop behaving like a bad person, alright? You were one of the guys who fought to protect this world, so be proud of yourself, man."

"…..Yes, sir."

After hearing a hushed, soft reply leaking out of Kim Cheol's lips, Jin-Woo finally undid the hypnosis and let the boy be.

Snap.

"Uh…. Eh?"

Kim Cheol regained his consciousness and stayed rooted in his spot for a little while, utterly confused, only to belatedly discover Jin-Woo's distancing back over yonder.

As if he was separating again from a friend he met after a long time, Jin-Woo waved his hand in a genial manner.

"Hey, see you again next time!"

"Uh…. O-okay."

Feeling bewildered by this situation, Kim Cheol waved his hand and smiled along awkwardly as well.

'Nice.'

Jin-Woo turned away from the kid's direction, a happy grin forming on his face now. The unexpected encounter with an old comrade had come to a successful conclusion, but it was now time to search for that girl in earnest.

With excellent timing, he heard the announcement reverberating throughout the athletics field.

– The preliminaries for the middle school participants will begin shortly. All athletes, please report to the competitor's area.

***

Somewhere at the far back of the athletics field, which was quiet and sparsely populated.

A young girl managed to get to the shade of a tree with some difficulty and plopped down on her butt there. Her shaking hands reached down to take off one of her shoes and her sock. Her swollen ankle testified as to what her current situation was.

She lightly bit her lower lips and glared at her ankle, before squeezing her eyes shut and leaning against the tree's sturdy trunk.

What a blunder it was.

Her shoulder was shoved away by another runner right next to her and that caused her to stumble ungainly during the race. She somehow managed to pass the first round of preliminaries even with this fairly heavy injury, but now….

Now, it was clearly asking for too much to compete again with her leg being like this.

'I'm furious….'

Indeed, she was.

This might be the last time she competed as a middle schooler, and so, she didn't want to end the day with an injury.

That was why….

'That's why… I should just carry on.'

This was a line of thought that could only be cooked up by the head of an immature middle schooler, who still hadn't shed the mindset of a child yet.

And it was the role of the adults to stop such a child from going down the wrong path since the dawn of time itself.

"You want to hide your injury?"

The girl flinched grandly after hearing the voice of a male student, walking out from behind the tree, that she failed to detect earlier. This mysterious male student didn't look at her, but instead, stared into the distance.

"Even though a certain someone competed in that condition, hurt her ankle even more and had to spend over a year to recuperate, but still ended up as a third-rate athlete and could only regret the decision she made today?"

The male student shifted his gaze back to the girl with her wide-open eyes and formed a refreshing grin.

"I was talking about a person that I know, actually."

Here was a strange guy telling her a strange tale. But the girl, Cha Hae-In, didn't immediately run away from here and instead, chose to observe the boy for a bit longer.

'Isn't he an athlete….? A high schooler, right?'

She could detect a hint of this nice scent coming from the male student for some reason.

As for the identity of that scent, the 'smell' of the purest Mana leaking out of Jin-Woo, as well as her possessing a unique constitution that allowed her to sniff out Mana, she'd get to learn about them much, much later on.

As Hae-In grew more flustered by the second, Jin-Woo crouched near her and carefully placed his hand on her swollen ankle.

"Ah…."

She flinched again for a moment there but didn't resist him all that much, either. And when his hand left her skin, her ankle was completely healed.

She raised up her shocked eyes and stared at Jin-Woo.

"Run without any regrets. You only have one shot, right?"

She shone so brightly as a rank S Hunter fighting against monster threats, but today, her sweating figure under the bright sunlight would shine just as wonderfully.

Jin-Woo smiled and tried to stand back up, only for his wrist to be grasped in a hurry by Hae-In.

"W-wait a minute."

"…..?"

Could it be that a change occurred with the contact they made just now? Now facing off against Jin-Woo's curiosity-laden gaze, Hae-In's face flushed just a little.

"Excuse me, we…. Have we met somewhere before?"

She had to work up so much of her courage just to ask that simple-enough question that even her neck had turned beet-red by the time she was done asking it.

"Let's run."

"Eh?"

Hae-In visibly grew confused, but Jin-Woo maintained his grin.

"If you run against me and ever win, then I'll tell you everything."

"…..I saw you compete, oppa. I saw you coming in at first place in every preliminary race you entered."

Jin-Woo smirked and stood back up.

"I'll take that answer as you giving up."

But then…

"I-if that's the case!"

Cha Hae-In worked up her courage once more and made a suggestion.

"The record for the preliminaries about to take place in a bit…. How about you telling me the truth when I break that? Even if it's not right now?"

Jin-Woo's head lowered and did his best to suppress his chuckles.

'Whether she's younger or older, she's still so pure.'

While briefly entertaining the idea of breaking the world record for the under-18 track event today, he nodded his head, a warm smile filling up his face.

"Alright, deal."

Having successfully changed the condition of the bet, Hae-In formed a sunny smile as well.

'Well, you ain't going to be smiling later, though.'

Jin-Woo turned around and left her side for the athletics field while continuing to suppress his chuckles from breaking out.

On that day.

Under the bright spring sunlight, the world record for high school male athletes was shattered in what was supposed to be yet another ordinary preliminary race meet.

And the track team Jin-Woo was a part of defeated their rival Hwaseong Tech High on their way to achieving their goal of an overall first place finish.

Chapter 261: Chapter 261

Side Story 18

Since he didn't share his memories with them, Jin-Woo had not thought of the possibility of it happening, but the truth was, there were a few other people who were still connected to the higher beings on Earth.

And, out of them all, one person was quite lucky enough to have physical contact with Jin-Woo, who was a higher being himself.

A certain early morning.

"Son? What's the matter?"

His son emerging from the room having just woken up looked like he was about to break down and cry, so Seong Il-Hwan reached out and gently grasped the boy's shoulders, only to be greeted by the spectacle of a different past playing right before his eyes.

It happened in the briefest of the brief moments that didn't even last a blink, but that was more than enough to tell the tale spanning several years that felt as long as eternity itself.

– I wanted to see you. Always.

– I wouldn't have minded talking to you for a little bit longer, but….

– I'm sorry for not being a good father to you.

Tumble.

His final moments that caused his heart to tumble to the pit of his stomach flashed past his eyes. Then, the time wound back and the memories of how the present came to be played out in a panorama being played backwards.

The one and only tool of God that could cause a phenomenon like this, the 'Chalice of Rebirth'. Seong Il-Hwan knew of the artefact's existence through the memories of the Rulers, and after looking at the boy's current facial expression, he instantly realised that his son must've had reached some kind of a deal with the higher beings.

Indeed, Jin-Woo had decided to carry the weight, the cost, of the deal all by himself, regardless of how heavy it was. Seong Il-Hwan had to bite down on his lower lip in order to suppress his emotions and prevent them from bursting forth right then.

His efforts must've not been in vain, because Jin-Woo wiped away the tears threatening to break out and formed a smile.

"….I must've had a nightmare."

At that moment, Seong Il-Hwan saw the powerful determination flicker for a blink of an eye on his son's face.

But even then, no, even when Jin-Woo left behind a single note and disappeared from this world, he couldn't even guess just what kind of 'promise' his son had made with the Rulers.

***

"….I'd never imagined that promise was to defeat the entirety of the Army of the Chaos World all by himself."

Seol Il-Hwan recalled that very day and let out a helpless chuckle.

What if he got to find out about his son's deal before the boy jumped into the gap between dimensions and disappeared? Would he have stopped Jin-Woo, or for the sake of the world, let the kid leave?

"Still, hasn't he beautifully taken care of it?"

The envoy of the Rulers sitting on the opposite side of him smiled refreshingly.

Seong Il-Hwan had his lips firmly shut now, but he nodded his head regardless. Thanks to Jin-Woo's sacrifice, this world was spared from the horrifying war that was supposed to tear through this planet.

But, when he thought about the terrible suffering his son must've gone through during those years, Seong Il-Hwan just couldn't bring himself to smile anymore.

It had been almost one year since Jin-Woo returned from the gap between dimensions.

"My son…."

His hesitating voice was drowned out by the gently-flowing background music of the cafe they were in. The Ruler's envoy sipped the half-remaining coffee with his straw as he unhurriedly waited for Seong Il-Hwan to continue on.

"What was my son's decision?"

"The Shadow Sovereign has…."

The envoy discovered the traces of nervousness flit past Seong Il-Hwan's face and formed a thin smile.

"….Chosen to stay in this world. He said that every minute and every second spent in this world is precious to him."

Seong Il-Hwan inwardly spat out a lengthy sigh of relief.

The envoy emptied out his cup and silently placed it back on the table. He had to remain in this world until Jin-Woo made up his mind, but that role came to an end yesterday.

Which meant that it was time to leave. Seong Il-Hwan would be the very last guest he'd entertain before leaving this world for good.

Maybe that was the reason? Although he wasn't really the talkative type, he wanted to converse for just a bit longer today.

"Are you planning to continue deceiving Shadow Sovereign-nim…. no, your son?"

"That's what he wants, no one remembering the past. So, yes."

If what Jin-Woo wanted was the normal, regular family life, then as his father, Seong Il-Hwan was fully committed to continuing the charade until the end of time itself.

"I see. Like father, like son."

The envoy smirked and nodded his head before raising his gaze a little higher.

"Once I leave, the Rulers will no longer interfere with this world."

"I know."

"Which means, this really is the end. With this world…."

The envoy scanned the interior of the cafe and spoke with an emotional voice.

"It has been fun. Truly. To be honest, right up until the Shadow Sovereign-nim made his triumphant return, I had been waiting with bated breath on what destiny had in store for us."

The envoy held back slightly and didn't mention that even the Rulers didn't expect to see Jin-Woo succeed in his quest. Well, there was no reason to pour a bucket of cold water on this emotional farewell, was there?

Just before he bade his farewell and stood up to leave, the envoy addressed his guest once more.

"The Rulers express their unreserved gratitude towards not just Shadow Sovereign, but to you as well, Seong Il-Hwan-nim."

It was unknown whether a result like this would've been achieved without his help. He fought for the sake of the Rulers, and he even suggested that the higher beings cooperate with the Shadow Sovereign, too. Indeed, his role had been great.

The Rulers had decided as thus, and they prepared a small gift for him in return.

"By any chance, is there something we can help you with?"

When considering that the Rulers possessed incredible powers as well as various 'tools of God', this was akin to them saying, "We will grant any wish you have."

However, Seong Il-Hwan shook his head almost immediately.

"I have none….."

But, that made sense. The envoy could understand where he was coming from. There was an existence on the level of a god living as family right next to him, so what was the point of voicing his wishes here?

"Well, then."

The envoy bowed his head slightly and got ready to stand up, but then, Seong Il-Hwan belatedly said something else.

"Hang on."

The envoy stopped and settled back down on the chair again.

"Is there something else….?"

Seong Il-Hwan pondered for a bit and spoke up with some difficulty.

"My memories…. Is it possible for you to erase my memories of the previous timeline?"

"Yes, it's possible, but why would you choose to do so….?"

"Well, it's unimaginably hard to keep pretending in front of a son with an amazing perception, you see."

Seong Il-Hwan smirked once he was done. Again, like father, like son – his grinning face was almost a dead-ringer for Jin-Woo's.

"And, also…."

Seong Il-Hwan lowered his gaze and fell into thought for a bit again, before continuing on with his words slowly.

"I also wish to become a regular dad who worries about his son's welfare."

He wanted to return to being just a simple father who felt anxious about his son possibly coming back home injured in some way, and a father who sighed in disappointment at his son's exam results – a man who worried about his 'regular' son, in other words.

"To me, Jin-Woo isn't the Shadow Sovereign, but a precious son, you see."

That was Seong Il-Hwan's small wish.

"I understand."

If that was his reasoning, then it'd be no problem. The envoy smiled gently and granted Seong Il-Hwan's wish.

"Once you exit from this cafe, all memories of the previous timeline will completely be erased from your mind."

As the envoy began performing the magic spell on Seong Il-Hwan, he whispered a goodbye so small that no one could hear it properly.

"You won't remember this, but still… I pray that you get to live a fulfilling life."

*

Time continued to tick by.

On a certain cold winter morning.

The alarm set for six in the morning went off without a hitch and Seong Il-Hwan shot up from his 'sleep'. His wife woke up at the same time, too, and stared straight at him.

"What about Jin-Woo?"

"Yes, what happened to him?"

The couple quickly checked the time and breathed a collective sigh of relief after realising that it was still only six in the morning.

"Dear, what should we do? Should we go and wake Jin-Woo up?"

"No, there's still some time left until the beginning of the CSAT, so I think it should be fine to let him rest for a little while longer."

"You're right. I can always drive him to the exam location with my car, anyway."

"At seven…. Let's wake him up around seven, Dear."

Seong Il-Hwan nodded his head at his wife's suggestion.

The couple anxiously waited for the needles of the clock to hit seven and when the fated time came, they rushed out of their bedroom to slam the door to Jin-Woo's room wide open.

"S-son, you know that today is the CSAT day, right?"

"Son, as your father, I can take you there, you know?"

Their son seemed to have woken up not too long ago. He replied with a chuckle.

"I'll get ready to leave now."

After confirming that Jin-Woo left his room, Seong Il-Hwan hurriedly threw on his clothes and reached out to grab the car keys, only for his gaze to be stolen by the key ring – a gift from his son.

When he looked at this seemingly-handmade keyring shaped like a white-coloured castle with a black flag on top, a wide grin formed on his lips.

The weather was beautifully clear and crisp; it was a refreshing morning as the early rays of the sun gently seeped into the world.

***

The evening of the 24th of December.

Jin-Woo was walking on a street filled with the festive atmosphere of Christmas. He could easily spot the smiling faces of movie stars or top athletes proudly on display on the electronic advertising boards hung here and there.

'The streets have changed a lot.'

Whenever Jin-Woo recalled the time when the streets used to be dominated by the faces of top-ranked Hunters, he still felt a bit awkward and disjointed.

But then, he spotted an advertising poster for a certain sports drink and broke out into a gentle chuckle. A rather familiar face was on it, that was why.

Just how many people lost their hair to stress while trying to take that one photo of her making a natural-looking expression?

'The idol of the athletic world, is it….?'

Indeed, Cha Hae-In's smile on the poster was good enough to be called on the level of an idol.

She drew attention with her stunning achievements on the track, and eventually, the mass media caught onto her shining star as well. In a bid to boost the popularity of the track sports, the athletics organisation pleaded with her and this was the end result.

'She never stepped in front of a camera even when she was a rank S Hunter, but now, she must perform the role of one of the most popular sportswomen in the country….'

This future wouldn't have come about if he hadn't healed her ankle back then; a satisfied grin formed on Jin-Woo's face. She might be having a bit of a hard time trying to get used to the cameras, but it'd only get better with time.

Still smiling, Jin-Woo resumed his walk towards the meeting area.

He took a look around himself without thinking too much about it and discovered many young couples and their colourful clothing filling up the streets.

'Yup, I definitely am an examinee who recently finished his CSAT. Look how plainly dressed I am.'

Jin-Woo lightly tutted at his rather plain-looking clothes and sought out the nearest clothing store. With the time being what it was, the shops were all closed, but from the get-go, he wasn't planning to buy something, anyway.

Jin-Woo stopped walking in front of a mannequin kitted out in the coolest outfit inside the shop window.

Sha-ah-ahk….

The pitch-black smoke enveloped Jin-Woo's figure for a brief moment and his outfit had changed to the exact same thing as that mannequin's. He examined his new look through the reflection on the shop's window before asking his Shadow Soldiers.

"What do you think?"

Fangs, having developed an intense interest in all things fashion-related from some time ago, hurriedly replied first, maybe fearing that someone else might steal his limelight.

[You look amazing, my liege.]

"Alright."

Jin-Woo's steps became a touch cheerier than before and they helped him arrive at the place of his appointment in the proverbial blink of an eye.

Surrounding a massive Christmas tree installed in the middle of a plaza were many people searching and waiting for their companions to arrive.

Even though many of them were nervously glancing at their watches, the looks of happiness still could be gleaned from their expressions regardless, perhaps because today was Christmas Eve.

Unlike them, though, Jin-Woo was staring into the heavens above since he had more than enough leeway compared to them.

There were all sorts of ambient noises made by people walking on the streets, but Jin-Woo still could accurately distinguish the footsteps that mattered to him.

'…..3, 2, 1.'

Just as that 'kid' arrived near his back, he turned around to greet her.

"Hey. You came."

Hae-In was planning to take Jin-Woo by surprise, but could only sneakily lower her arms, looking a bit disappointed.

"Oppa, it's like you've got eyes behind your back, you know?"

She seemed just a bit despondent, which was rather adorable as well, so he broke out into a soft grin. Hae-In pulled up the hood on her top to avoid the attention of the passersby, like how Jin-Woo used to do.

"Should we take a walk for a while?"

Jin-Woo's suggestion was met by Hae-In's brightly smiling face. She even nodded her head to emphasize her agreement, too.

As the two of them walked, they chose the less populated path whenever they came across a crossroad. Meanwhile, Hae-In's eyes were growing really large after listening to Jin-Woo's CSAT result.

"You got such a great score, yet you wanna go to that university? But, why?"

"Well, the fees are completely paid for by the scholarship, plus they are adding on the opportunity for me to study abroad, as well. Besides, there is this person I just have to meet in that place, you see."

It was at that point that her ears perked up.

"Wait, that person isn't a woman, is it?"

Her eyes narrowed to a slit, but Jin-Woo found her expression really adorable so he decided to string her along for a bit.

"Mmm, who knows."

Her cheeks immediately puffed up.

To Jin-Woo, seeing her express her emotions so freely like this – something she didn't do back when both of them were adults – proved to be a different but still wonderfully joyous occasion to behold.

Around then….

Tap.

Something fell gently from the sky and landed on the tip of his nose, followed soon after by wet coldness melting on his skin.

It was a snowflake.

He raised his head up to look and white specks began falling gently from the blackened sky. A White Christmas was coming, it seemed.

He silently stared at the falling snow only to recall the sight of settling grey ash after he defeated the Dragon Emperor. Ash as white as snow – no, snowflakes as light as ash silently descended on the land.

"Oppa? What are you thinking about?"

Jin-Woo smiled softly and tried to gloss over it.

"Nothing much."

Well, it wasn't as if he could tell her that, while he was looking at the snow falling from the evening sky a day before Christmas, he was busy recalling probably the most dangerous enemy he had to fight in his entire life, now could he?

Hae-In formed a broad grin after listening to Jin-Woo's reply, then she brought up something out of the blue.

"Oppa, do you remember our promise?"

"What promise?"

"The one about you promising to answer everything when I win in a race."

"Yeah, I do."

Hae-In promptly pointed towards one of the trees lining up along the street.

"Well, why don't we make a bet, then? Let's see who will arrive there first."

Jin-Woo couldn't help but chuckle after hearing her sudden challenge and asked her a question.

"What is it that you'd like to ask me?"

"Everything."

"Everything??"

"What you're thinking about sometimes, whether it's a girl or a guy you want to meet in that university, and also…."

"Also?"

"….Also, about the time we met before that athletic preliminaries took place."

"….Alright."

Jin-Woo readily agreed to it and took his hands out from his pockets. The end result wouldn't be affected just because he kept his hands there, but still, he wanted to show her that he was taking this challenge quite seriously.

But then….

Hae-In had been staying a step away from his position until then, but suddenly walked in very close to wrap her scarf around his neck before asking him for a small favour in a whisper.

"Oppa, if you like me, don't move from this spot."

"Wha?"

While he was getting flustered by this development, Hae-In began walking slowly towards the tree in question while looking straight at him. As for Jin-Woo himself, he couldn't hold back his laughter after realising that his defeat had been set in stone from the get-go.

"Hah…."

In the end, Hae-In succeeded in touching the tree first, and she lightly jumped in the air to announce her victory.

Meanwhile, his Shadow Soldiers watching the two lovers' competition with a great deal of anticipation and excitement began jumping up and down themselves in happiness as well.

[Heee-ya~, our liege has lost!]

[Wow, there are times when our liege will lose a challenge with so much at stake, too!]

[My liege, you did it wrong!]

[Kkiiieehhk-!! Oh, my kinggg! It's not too late, so please get going now!!]

Jin-Woo was left stupefied and chuckled again while scratching the side of his head. He took a glance around the street and approached the tree as well.

Thankfully, he couldn't spot a single soul on this particular stretch of road, all due to the fact that they sought out only those paths with little foot traffic.

"Well, I won, right?"

Hae-In was waiting for his reply with an excited expression clearly etched on her face. Jin-Woo stopped before her smile and issued a dignified order to his Shadow Soldiers.

'Shadows? Every one of you, close your eyes.'

[...]

[...]

While the soldiers were rightly feeling frustrated….

….Jin-Woo slowly brought his lips closer and gently locked them with Hae-In's.

The white snowflakes continued to fall silently from the sky.

Chapter 262: Chapter 262

Side Story 19

The last side story: Twelve years later (1)

Within the ranks of the Central Region Precinct's Violent Crimes Unit, there was this one detective nicknamed the 'Phantom'.

The newbie detective joining the squad this year after passing the promotion exam, Lee Seh-Hwan, often heard this rumour while he was walking the beat as a patrolman.

The arrest rate of 200 percent!

The rumour went that, in front of this 'Phantom' capable of solving not just the cases in his own docket, but even the cold cases of the past, every single violent criminal or bloodthirsty thug would become a very well-behaved sheep in an instant.

To the officers patrolling these streets, this detective remained an object of pure respect, a real bonafide legendary figure.

Seriously now, the rumour even went on to say that, although he was eligible for a promotion, he wished to devote himself fully to fieldwork and refused to move up the career ladder. How hardcore was that?

'Anyone with some sense in them would definitely never refuse a promotion, obviously.'

In any case – even if only half of the rumours making the rounds turned out to be true, then the mystery cop was sure to be one hell of an investigator.

His fellow patrol officers were deeply envious of Lee Seh-Hwan joining the Violent Crimes Unit. Little did they know, he was currently swallowing back his nervous saliva while scanning the squad's office, wondering who this legendary detective from the rumours could be.

As befitting a group of detectives that clashed against seasoned criminals every day, they all carried manly, no-nonsense countenances. They began shooting sharp, probing glares in the direction of an unknown visitor to their ranks.

It'd not be all that awkward to call any one of these fine officers 'Phantom', indeed.

'The light in their eyes are so….'

Lee Seh-Hwan gradually shrunk back from the powerful glares of the veterans and began inwardly worrying about whether he'd survive for long in this place or not.

"Ehh…. Are you that newbie joining us from today onwards?"

A voice came from behind without any prior warning whatsoever and Lee Seh-Hwan jumped up in fright. He hurriedly turned around and performed an excellent salute.

"Loyalty!"

"Ah, ah… no need to be that tense. We're all one family now, right?"

The voice belonged to a middle-aged man carrying two paper cups filled with coffee standing right behind Lee Seh-Hwan. He kindly offered one of the cups to the still-nervous rookie.

"Here, it's on me."

"T-thank you very much!!"

Lee Seh-Hwan bowed deeply and received the coffee.

Instantly, he was greeted by the reassuring warmth that was kind of like a phone call from his family he dearly wished to see again after living alone for a long time.

Maybe that small first mouthful of the hot coffee helped him to relax?

Lee Seh-Hwan continued to sip on the hot beverage while cautiously studying the overall atmosphere of the surroundings, before asking the Senior who gifted him the drink.

"Excuse me… I went to speak to the Squad Captain, and he informed me that I'd be working together with Seong Detective-nim from here on, I was wondering…"

"Ahh, that 'Phantom' is your partner?"

"FUU-HEUP!!!"

It took almost everything Lee Seh-Hwan had to stop the coffee from spraying out of his mouth and nostrils.

"Well, we came up with that nickname for the guy because he's supernaturally quick, you see? Dunno when it happened, but that name got stuck somehow and even the folks in other units began calling him that. I'm sure you've heard of him too, right?"

"Y-yes, I have…."

Lee Seh-Hwan hurriedly nodded his head several times. A meaningful smirk suddenly crept up on the senior's face.

"The thing is, that coffee I gave you? It's meant for him."

The senior detective turned around to escape to the corridor, but then he stopped and pointed to the far end with his chin, a grin now firmly etched on his face.

"Speak of the devil. There he comes."

Unable to suppress his curiosity, Lee Seh-Hwan also quickly came out to the corridor himself and shifted his gaze in the direction where the senior was staring at.

That was when he discovered a certain man unhurriedly strolling towards his direction from the end of the corridor.

'That man is the legendary….'

Without a doubt, that man didn't seem to be in a hurry, yet he was already standing before Lee Seh-Hwan even before the rookie could fully regain his wits.

What an overwhelmingly intense pressure he emitted.

Lee Seh-Hwan was about average in height for a Korean male, but he had to physically look up at his new partner, the senior detective nicknamed 'Phantom', who was at least a head taller than himself. Almost instantly, the poor newbie felt stifled and it became hard to breathe from this inexplicable pressure emitted by the man in front of him.

'The Phantom of the Central Region….'

The reason why this detective was saddled with such a nickname wasn't simply because of his preternatural swiftness, oh no. Lee Seh-Hwan was sure of this fact after finally encountering the person in question.

"Senior."

"Ohh, hey man. Going out on a call?"

"Nah, it's nothing much, really. By the way, is he our new recruit?"

"That's right, he is. His name is Lee Seh-Hwan."

Jin-Woo bowed his head slightly to greet the senior detective standing next to Lee Seh-Hwan. He then spun the newbie around to face the other direction and placed his hand on the completely-frozen junior's shoulder.

"Then, I shall go ahead and train the rookie."

The senior detective with the face of a good-natured uncle continued to grin as if he found something quite amusing. He nodded his head to say yes.

"Sure, sure. Go ahead. Have a good day."

Almost as soon as the greeting with the senior was over, Jin-Woo dragged the rookie cop he was now entrusted with to outside of the building.

'H-he can't be p*ssed off about me having drunk his coffee, right?'

When that line of thought popped up in his head, Lee Seh-Hwan ended up hurriedly asking a question.

"S-senior-nim?! W-where are we going?"

Rather than an answer, though, he got a question as a reply, instead.

"Why did you become a police officer?"

"Oh, that…. I…."

Lee Seh-Hwan hesitated for a bit before remembering his original dream, the goal, that he had forgotten about while working as a beat cop wrestling with drunkards and other idiots for the past few years.

"I wanted to catch the bad guys…."

"That's right."

Even though they were exchanging questions and answers, Jin-Woo didn't slow down his steps that continued to lead the rookie to their unknown destination. And he finally let go of the flustered newbie once they reached the end goal.

"We are going to a place where we can do exactly that."

Lee Seh-Hwan raised his head, and Jin-Woo formed his now-trademark smile.

Grin.

It was a smile that eased the minds of all those who saw it. Jin-Woo looked at the shorter rookie with such a smile on his face before continuing on.

"That's why I became a cop too, you see."

Just those words alone, and Lee Seh-Hwan's heart began pounding quite violently.

Ba-dump.

How could one's heart not throb in moments like this as long as one was a police officer worth his or her salt?

"You coming?"

Lee Seh-Hwan heard the question with only one possible answer and replied with an excited face.

"Of course, Senior-nim!!"

***

Completely pooped out from chasing after criminals the whole day, Lee Seh-Hwan collapsed on top of his new desk and fell asleep. Jin-Woo was planning to dump the write-up of the testimonies of all the suspects they apprehended today to the rookie, but now….

Tap, tap…

He stopped jotting down on the report paper and quietly studied Lee Seh-Hwan, utterly lost to the distant lands of sweet slumber.

'He said he had the experience of catching an armed robber bare-handed, didn't he? Yup, it is fun training a rookie like this guy.'

A smile naturally crept up on his face now that a rather excellent seedling had joined his Unit.

"Hehehe."

After seeing a smile blooming on Jin-Woo's face, the suspect sitting on the opposite side of the desk mistakenly believed that the atmosphere had become rather friendly and formed a sly smile of his own.

That only elicited a hardened scowl from Jin-Woo, though.

"….And why the hell are you smiling?"

"I, I'm sorry."

"Okay, then. Next up is…."

Just as Jin-Woo's fingers touched the keyboard once more….

[My liege, may I suggest that such miscellaneous tasks be left to us, your loyal soldiers….]

….He heard the voice of Igrit coming from his shadow.

Indeed, it'd be convenient to utilise his soldiers.

Forget about training the rookies to arrest the suspects, he could just unleash his near-ten million soldiers and have them catch the bad guys. That would clean up the entirety of the Republic of Korea in no time at all.

However, what was he supposed to do about the extreme unrest and the fear from the public at large that would no doubt follow soon afterwards?

A suitable balance needed to be kept, regardless of what the job was.

That was why Jin-Woo did his best to control his powers, so as to minimise the impact against the society at large. And so, as the administrative work on these petty criminals was coming to an end….

….Although, the rookie still hadn't been able to extricate himself from the land of dreams yet.

Jin-Woo heard the voices coming from the corner of the office and ended up paying attention to the contents of the conversation.

"Detective-nim, please listen to me. Jin-Yi isn't a girl who'd willingly take her own life."

"Look, miss. I understand how you feel. But, I already explained to you in detail, didn't I? All the evidence points to…."

"Please, please take a look at these texts messages! Do they look like something sent by a person planning to commit suicide three hours later??"

"Hah-ah….."

Maybe it was because of the fact that the deceased's name sounded similar to his own sister's?

For a while now, Jin-Woo's mind kept wandering towards the conversation between those two people that didn't seem to be going anywhere fast.

The detective, now fed up by this 'heckling' ended up responding in an ill-tempered manner.

"Look here, miss! From the get-go, most suicides aren't planned out in advance but are done in the spur of the momen…."

"Do you mind if I take a look at the case?"

The detective flinched nastily when Jin-Woo approached him without any presence whatsoever.

Detectives were supposed to be able to suss out whether a person was guilty of a crime or not just by locking gazes with a suspect in the blink of an eye.

Such detectives couldn't detect his approach, so it was a small wonder that Jin-Woo was saddled with the nickname of 'Phantom'.

"Uhm, Detective Seong….?"

The detective formed a troubled expression while looking at Jin-Woo, before shifting his gaze forward, only to spot the expression on the deceased's friend now gaining a ray of hope.

'Ah….'

The detective instantly realised that things might get a bit complicated for himself, so he quietly asked Jin-Woo to step outside the office for a moment.

He handed over the related case files and pulled out a cigarette after they got there.

"Detective Seong…. I hope you aren't going to put me under the spot here."

"…"

Jin-Woo didn't pay any attention to the plea of his Senior and scanned through the files, only for his expression to harden to a scary degree.

The detective was about to light his cigarette up, but after sensing the aura oozing out from Jin-Woo, ended up taking a step back in surprise.

'He's like a different person when he's concentrating like this.'

The senior detective deeply sucked in the smoke puffed out from the lit cigarette as if to calm his trembling nerves.

The female victim was found inside her bathtub, having died of massive blood loss from a large cut wound on her wrist. The knife used to cut her wrist was recovered inside the bathroom, and perhaps unsurprisingly, only her fingerprints were found on the weapon, no one else's.

The file also said that, even though the deceased displayed a bright personality outwardly, she actually suffered from depression.

Not many other investigators would come up with a different hypothesis after looking at all the facts available in this case.

Jin-Woo returned the case file back to the detective assigned to the case.

"I don't see anything amiss."

"R-right. You think so, too?"

The detective received the files back with a somewhat happy-looking expression.

"However."

"H-however….??"

With a hardened face, the senior asked back while thinking, 'Could he be…?'

"I shall confirm it myself, just in case."

"Ah….."

The Phantom had sniffed a trail, it seemed.

While looking at Jin-Woo's back as he walked over to the friend of the deceased waiting anxiously over there, the Senior detective roughly scratched the back of his head and complained in his head.

'Doesn��t that guy ever get tired or something?'

The friend of the deceased, her gaze currently fixed to the ground, quickly raised her head after hearing Jin-Woo's voice.

"I'm Detective Seong Jin-Woo. Can we talk for a moment?"

The friend nodded her head, her current grim expression seemingly a blend of new-found hope and sorrow.

"Yes!"

***

Inside a quiet, empty and owner-less home, a black shadow suddenly rose up. It was Jin-Woo.

He found himself in an apartment which was slightly too large for a woman to live alone. Her warmth from the time she was still alive could be felt from several corners of this apartment unit.

The current time was late at night.

The surroundings were pitch-black, but there was no need to turn on the lights because this was the same as broad daylight to Jin-Woo's eyes.

He entered the bathroom, the place where she met her final moments. The thick smell of blood yet to be cleaned stung his nose. Jin-Woo stood before the bathtub and silently studied the very spot where the deceased prepared herself to die.

Seeing all the spilt blood, it was as if he could sense the pain of the woman.

However, he could only imagine what that pain was like, not actually feel the pain itself. What the deceased was feeling when she chose death, how painful it was as she lay here dying….

Those left behind would never know them.

Generally speaking, that was.

Jin-Woo crouched slightly and studied the blood splatters before recalling the last text message she sent to her friend. It was filled with her anticipation about the upcoming meeting with her friend.

Just like what the friend had said, that message didn't seem to be sent by someone getting ready to take her own life.

Most likely, the friend wanted to believe that she'd not choose to die without saying a single goodbye to her closest friend.

For sure, the ones left behind would never know what the dead wanted to say to them. Ordinarily, that would be true. Ordinarily.

However, Jin-Woo possessed a way to hear the voice of the dead.

'I needed the actual remains in the past, but now….'

Jin-Woo issued his command, and the blackened, coagulated blood reverted back to a crimson liquid and began trickling again. The blood splatter that remained as nothing more than grisly reminders gathered together to form a deep pit of boiling blood.

As if it was alive, the mass of blood continued to seethe and tumble as it grew larger and larger.

The Shadow Sovereign, the King of the Dead, then issued the absolute order that couldn't be refused at the remains of the deceased.

"Rise up."

Chapter 263: Chapter 263

Side Story 20

The last side story: Twelve years later (2)

A shadow of a woman, yet to shed the hints of her teen years, vigorously rose up from the thickly-coagulated clump of blood on the floor.

Chwa-ahck!!

Droplets of blood dripped from the ends of her hair as she took a look around her, her expression one of sheer confusion regarding her current situation. Eventually, though, she spat out pained moans.

[Ah…. Ah….!]

Indeed, it'd be quite painful for her since she retained the memories of her dying moments. Jin-Woo used the authority of the Shadow Sovereign and calmed the shadow for the time being.

"Don't be frightened.

The you of now has become an existence untethered from the boundaries of life and pain."

The king's calming, warm voice helped the woman to compose herself gradually. Jin-Woo then created a new set to clothing for her sake and wrapped them around her figure since she appeared how she died – nude.

[Ah….]

She cautiously pulled the clothing on her shoulders tighter.

Her name used to be Seo Jin-Yi. He named the newly-revived shadow woman the same as back when she was still alive, and began asking his questions.

"Did you… willingly take your own life?"

The shadow woman, no, Seo Jin-Yi, nodded her head.

Jin-Woo placed one of his knees lower to the ground so he could match her eye level. He studied her expression and quietly asked her.

"Your reason?"

And when he did, her lips, frozen shut like a block of ice, cautiously parted ways.

[I….]

***

Ding-dong.

The doorbell resounded out rather late at night; a middle-aged man put a photo frame containing a picture of his daughter down on its original spot and looked away.

'Who could it be at this late hour?'

He tilted his head this way and that while standing up from his seat, and walked over to the intercom.

The monitor on the device showing the scene outside the front door now displayed a man kitted out in a smart business suit standing there. The middle-aged man didn't think too much about it and pressed the 'Speak' button.

Beep.

The man outside the door pulled out his ID badge and showed it to the camera.

– "I'm Detective Seong Jin-Woo from Central Region's Violent Crimes Unit. I have questions to ask you regarding your daughter's death, so can we speak for a little while, please?"

The photo in the ID badge matched the face on the monitor.

The middle-aged man forgot that it was far too late in the day for a guest to show up like this when he heard the word 'Detective' and hurriedly flung the door open.

"Did the investigation's result come out? How did my little girl die?!"

Jin-Woo quietly studied the face of Seo Jin-Yi's father, Seo Gyu-Nam, before shaking his head.

"Nothing is certain yet, sir. However, I do have several follow-up questions I'd like to ask you regarding your daughter."

The father of the deceased formed a somewhat disappointed expression when he heard there was nothing to report yet. Jin-Woo made a quiet demand towards the man.

"Can you come with me?"

Seo Gyu-Nam seemed to be in a dilemma, but soon enough, formed a grimly determined expression.

"Of course. If I can help in any shape or form in uncovering the truth of my daughter's death, then I shall cooperate fully."

He came outside and locked the door before turning around to face Jin-Woo.

"Let's get going, Detective."

Jin-Woo nodded his head once and turned towards a certain direction.

"This way."

***

Seo Guy-Nam initially thought that they would go to the police station, but instead, they ended up in a cafe near his place. He asked the detective why they had to come here and only got a vague answer in the form of "We need a place to chat quietly" instead.

And so, Jin-Woo and Seo Gyu-Nam sat on the opposite side of the table. The former then began his questioning as the latter formed a heavy expression.

"What kind of a student was Miss Seo Jin-Yi usually?"

"Excuse me?"

"By any chance, was there anyone who might have been resentful towards…."

Seo Gyu-Nam belatedly realised the implication behind the question and hurriedly shook his hand around.

"No, no. Never. She was definitely not a child who'd go around doing things to make others hate her. She was really kind and pure and…"

Seo Gyu-Nam replied up to there before his head faltered and sounds of sobbing escaped from him.

How long did it go by like this?

The sobbing man's shoulder's stopped trembling eventually and he raised his head slowly.

"I, I'm sorry, Detective. I still can't believe that my little girl left me in that manner….."

"You must've cherished your daughter a lot."

"Of course. I'm sure you know this already, but Jin-Yi wasn't my biological child. That was why I cherished and loved her as much as I would've with my real child, no, maybe even more than that."

His gaze lowered as he struggled to swallow back his sadness. He continued on.

"If only she told me when she was hurting, when it was getting too much for her…."

Although Seo Gyu-Nam was displaying an intense emotional state, Jin-Woo was quite different in his attitude and kept an icy-cold gleam in his eyes from the beginning right until the end. He then pulled out his own smartphone from his inner pocket.

"While we were sifting through your daughter's personal effects, we uncovered a certain sound file."

"….Pardon?"

"Well, let's listen to it first."

Jin-Woo tapped on the play icon and let the voice of the shadow play out.

– [I….]

It was the testimony straight from her mouth about the tale of the horrifying abuse she suffered at the hands of her adoptive father, ever since she was a young child.

And as the testimony continued on…

Seo Gyu-Nam finally stopped acting like a sorrowful father who lost his daughter, his eyes constantly shaking from shock.

The girl deliberately chose to go to a university far away from home, believing that she was finally freed from the torment of her adoptive father, but then, when the b*stard got in contact with her again some time ago, starting with the text message saying 'I want to see you again', she chose to end her life, instead.

She might have taken her own life, but the culprit that drove her to that decision was someone else.

Tap.

Once the sound file ended its playback, Seo Gyu-Nam raised his head, his expression frozen-stiff now.

"Why… why did you play that in front of me?"

This middle-aged man could legitimately claim that he possessed quicker wits than most other people.

If the real goal of this meeting was to arrest him, then this detective would've shown up with a couple of other officers, slap the cuffs on him and be done with the whole thing just like that.

However, this cop didn't take him to the police station, but to a local cafe, saying that they needed to have a quiet chat.

That was why Seo Gyu-Nam had a hunch that the detective in front of his eyes had a somewhat different purpose in coming to see him. As if to reply positively to that hunch, the expressionless detective finally revealed a toothy grin.

"You now have two options available to you."

Options were available!

Seo Gyu-Nam clenched his fists tightly after hearing those words that sounded like the heavens extending a lifeline, just as a precariously dangerous situation was about to befall on him.

'Yes!!'

Meanwhile, the detective carried on.

"First…. You admit to your wrongdoing, go to the station with me, and confess everything."

"And… the other option is?"

"Rather than admit to your crime, you pay an appropriate price, instead."

Seo Gyu-Nam had to grit his teeth in order to suppress this powerful wave of jovial laughter gushing out from somewhere deep inside his chest.

'Oh my goodness me.'

And the wise old 'they' said that, even if the heavens collapsed, there would always be a way out, didn't they? Who would've thought that the detective who uncovered his ugly sins just so happened to be such an individual?

Seo Gyu-Nam had lived a pretty great life as a medical doctor. So, regardless of how much this pathetic policeman wanted, he knew he had the financial wherewithal to satisfy that demand.

Seo Gyu-Nam did his utmost best to stop the ends of his lips from curling up and asked back.

"How much are you asking for?"

"That is already enough."

Jin-Woo formed a hollow chuckle and securely pocketed the phone.

He knew better than anyone just how many people regretted with their whole being the choice they've made just now. This middle-aged man trying his best to hide his laughter came across as utterly disgusting and ridiculous.

In an instance, Jin-Woo's expression changed.

"Now, listen well."

With the smile gone from his face, an aura so ominous and bleak oozed out from him, instead.

"In reality, this place you're in isn't the world you were living in. No, it's a different world I simply mocked up to resemble the outside scenery."

The land of the dead that no living soul could enter without the express permission of its master – the territory of the eternal rest. Jin-Woo calmly added that that was the name of the prison about to seal Seo Gyu-Nam away.

Of course, the middle-aged man became flustered at the suddenly-changed Jin-Woo's attitude as well as at this strange, hard-to-understand explanation.

"E-excuse me, Detective-nim. I, I don't underst…."

"Think about it carefully."

Seo Gyu-Nam felt his breathing choke up from Jin-Woo's murderous glare.

"Can you remember how you got here?"

Now that he thought about it….

As the chill ran down on his spine, Seo Gyu-Nam finally realised the oddness of his situation.

'B-but, how….?'

Within this brightly-lit cafe, how was it possible that there was not a single soul around other than himself and this mysterious detective?

Even if you forget about other patrons, no, maybe even the actual owner of the place, shouldn't there at least be one waiter or a clerk somewhere??

However, whether it was inside the building or outside of the glass wall, there was not a single trace of other people at all.

"Ah…."

Just as he finally recognised that something unexplainable had happened to him, everything vanished, just like that, leaving only the darkness.

The only items left within this inky-black darkness were the table, plus the two chairs. And of course, himself and the detective sitting on those chairs.

"U-uwaaaaahhk?!"

Seo Gyu-Nam shot up from the chair and hurriedly stepped back as his complexion paled instantly.

"W-who the hell are you?! Is this a dream? It's a nightmare, isn't it??"

The middle-aged man pointed at Jin-Woo in a confused mixture of anger and desperation. Unfortunately for him, his retreating steps couldn't go too far.

Thud.

Because he ran into something as hard as a wall, that was why. An inexplicable chill swept him up and his head slowly shifted towards his back.

That's when the 'wall' began moving.

No, it wasn't an actual wall, just a giant 'ant' standing stiffly like one, and it was moving now.

This ant creature shoved its head closer to Seo Gyu-Nam's face and quietly placed its unfurled index finger against its 'lips'.

[Shh….]

In that moment…

"Euph! Eu-euph…!!!"

Dozens upon dozens of ant arms reached out from the darkness and grabbed onto him, before dragging him deeper into the unknown.

He would now be subjected to horrifying torture from here onwards where he'd eventually beg for death, but too bad, he'd not be able to die that easily.

See, the thing was, the Shadow now tasked with his punishment was one of the greatest soldiers in the ranks, and at the same time, the greatest 'Healer' there ever was, too.

[Kkiiehk!]

Beru bowed his waist to perform a smart greeting towards his liege, before melting back into the darkness.

'...'

Jin-Woo wordlessly stared in the direction where Seo Gyu-Nam had disappeared to, and slowly stood up from his chair. This time, not from his front but from behind, another figure watching the proceedings unfold while hiding stepped out of the darkness.

It was Jin-Yi.

Jin-Woo was well aware that, no matter how badly the guilty suffered, the victim's pain would never fully disappear. However, if such a thing could console the heart of the deceased just a tiny bit….

He walked over to her and placed his fingertip on her forehead to erase all memories of her adoptive father.

[Thank you. Thank you so much, Sovereign-nim.]

The Shadow bowed her head many times to Jin-Woo afterwards.

Now that she was reborn as a Shadow, she instinctively understood what kind of a special existence he was, but well, Jin-Woo never planned to convert her into his Shadow Soldier, to begin with.

So, it was now time to return her to the void.

Just before their goodbyes, Jin-Woo asked her in a gentle voice.

"Is there anything else you'd like to say?"

The Shadow lightly shook her head, before going, "Ah!"

[By any chance…. If it's not too much trouble, can I ask you for a small favour?]

***

Next day.

Jin-Yi's friend came to the station in the early morning to find out about any new development in the case. Jin-Woo found her first and took her to the corridor outside the office.

"By all appearances, the chances of the case being treated as murder is extremely low at this point. The investigation itself will close soon, as well."

The friend looked at Jin-Woo with a disbelieving expression, before speaking up with the voice of a person clutching at a straw.

"T-truly…. There isn't even one percent of any other possibilities??"

Rather than a verbal reply, Jin-Woo quietly nodded his head up and down. The friend's head dropped towards the ground next.

She seemed to have a million things to say in her mind, but couldn't say any one of them out aloud – her expression sorrowful but unwilling, she hesitantly spoke.

"That means, Jin-Yi, she…."

Jin-Woo studied her for a moment or two, before presenting her with a small gift box covered in a cute wrapper.

"This is?"

"The name written on the gift card is yours, isn't it?"

"…..It is."

It was none other than a gift the deceased carefully handpicked and prepared for the friend's birthday. The gift that would've never entered its intended owner's hands finally found its way to its rightful home.

"Jin-Yi prepared this….?"

"That's correct. I thought that Miss Jin-Yi would've wanted this gift to find its intended owner."

"Ah…. Thank you…."

The friend thanked Jin-Woo wholeheartedly, her eyes tearing up uncontrollably.

If only the adoptive father's insidious text message didn't arrive at the victim's phone one hour before she cut her own wrist, wouldn't these two friends get to enjoy the birthday party as planned?

Jin-Woo felt complicated in his heart as several thoughts intersected within his mind and his gaze drifted away to the distance, only for him to feel the familiar vibration coming from within his pocket.

"Excuse me for a moment."

He asked for an understanding from the sobbing friend of the victim, turned around, and answered his phone.

– "Hyung-niiim!!"

A voice he felt relieved to hear came out of the phone's speaker.

– "It's me, Yu Jin-Ho!"

Chapter 264: Chapter 264

Side Story 21

The last side story: Twelve years later (Fin)

Later that evening.

Jin-Woo headed to the local diner that he frequented with Yu Jin-Ho when they were much younger. Still did, as a matter of fact.

– "Hyung-nim! I have something important I must discuss with you."

He felt the hints of determination, different from the kid's usual self, emanating from Yu Jin-Ho's voice on the phone. When Jin-Woo stepped into the diner, Yu Jin-Ho sitting anxiously by the table, easily visible from the entrance, quickly raised his hand up high.

"Hyung-nim!!"

After graduating from the university, Yu Jin-Ho continued to train in the art of running a business empire under Chairman Yu Myung-Hwan, which transformed his body and spirit into a proper man now.

However, he still came across as a little kid brother to Jin-Woo, even now.

"Hey, man."

He greeted back with a chuckle and settled on the other side of Yu Jin-Ho. His gaze then scanned the soju shot glass in Yu Jin-Ho's hand, as well as the half-empty soju bottle for a brief moment.

'This guy, he knows he can't handle alcohol, so why….'

It was unknown just what he was psyching himself up for like this, but without a doubt, Yu Jin-Ho needed a massive boost to his courage to do it, it seemed.

So, Jin-Woo asked.

"What's going on with you? You didn't even tell me anything yet."

Yu Jin-Ho greatly hesitated with his reply, before pulling out a small box from his inner pocket and opened it up. A rather expensive-looking ring was stored in there.

"Hyung-niiim!!"

"What now?"

"This time, I'm gonna propose to Miss Jin-Ah for sure!"

Aaah.

'That's what this was all about.'

Jin-Woo was guessing that the kid got scolded by his little sister or some such and wanted to complain to someone trustworthy, but now that he knew the score, a smile automatically floated up on his face.

Yu Jin-Ho completely misinterpreted that smile, though, and a fierce glare of determination lit up within his eyes.

"Hyung-nim! I'm really serious this time! I'll confess to her tonight! B-but, the thing is…. You think she's going to like this ring?"

When Jin-Woo thought about how Jin-Ah always complained at home, wondering aloud just when the blockhead that was her boyfriend would come around to confess his feelings for her, he could picture her jumping up and down in happiness already, but well….

Jin-Woo deliberately left his words vague so the after-confession swelling of emotions could be even tastier for the couple.

"I wonder… I'm not very good with this sort of things, so…."

"Keuh-heuk."

As if he felt tormented, Yu Jin-Ho dropped his head lower in agony before raising it back up again.

"I-it's still fine, hyung-nim. Actually, I don't know what she'd like to have anyway, so I prepared lots of presents in advance."

And then, he began pulling out a large paper envelope out of the blue. What that contained was a blueprint of a building.

"Actually, there's this new building about to be constructed in our company's premises, so as soon as Miss Jin-Ah is done with her medical degree, we could build a hospit…."

"Hold up."

Jin-Woo felt as if he had seen this blueprint lots of times from somewhere and quickly cut Yu Jin-Ho's word off.

"By any chance, this building…. The estimated pricing is around 30 billion Won, isn't it?" (TL: Around $25 million USD)

Yu Jin-Ho was taken by surprise and his eyes opened up wider.

"What the…. Hyung-nim, how can you know that….?"

Well, it was obvious how – because it was the exact same thing.

…The same as the blueprint of the building offered as the compensation for making Yu Jin-Ho the new Guild Master back in the erased timeline, that was.

Jin-Woo worked hard to keep his laughter in check. Yu Jin-Ho saw that expression and his complexion reddened considerably as he tried to come up with a suitable excuse.

"Hyung-nim, this is the best I can do for Miss Jin-Ah at the moment because I'm still learning about this trade from my father, but I…."

"No, that's not it."

To stop Yu Jin-Ho's misunderstanding from getting any deeper, Jin-Woo wiped the grin off his face and spoke in a far more earnest tone of voice.

"Listen to me, Jin-Ho."

"Yes, hyung-nim."

"There's no need for you to give her lots of presents to prove yourself so hard like this. Because… you are a good man. All you have to do is be you. Just you."

"….."

Jin-Woo's opinion rendered Yu Jin-Ho completely speechless, but he began tearing up greatly.

"Hyung-nim…."

It was at this point that Jin-Woo belatedly remembered how this kid behaved when drunk and felt this ominous foreboding creep up on him.

And like clockwork, Yu Jin-Ho spoke in a tearful voice.

"Can I hug you just this one time, hyung-nim?"

"Nope."

"Hyung-niiim!!"

Yu Jin-Ho failed to rein his emotions in the end, and pounced on Jin-Woo to embrace him, but the latter extended his hand and rather deftly stopped the former from getting too close.

Yu Jin-Ho struggled for a long time before finally regaining control over his emotions and settled back down on his spot.

"Sob, sob, sobbbb…"

He continued to sob away, though, and Jin-Woo could only smirk at this sight. Sure, this kid did have a bit of a moronic streak in him, but Jin-Woo knew the truth very well from what the kid had shown him during the moments of great life-or-death peril.

Back when they entered the rank C dungeon along with a bunch of con-men and were forced into making a decision, or when he was being tortured for information by a rank S Hunter blinded by thoughts of revenge, Yu Jin-Ho always chose loyalty over his safety.

He was a good kid, indeed. That was Jin-Woo's honest impression of Yu Jin-Ho after observing him from a close vantage point after all this time.

Jin-Woo poured soju into his own empty shot glass.

"Why don't we pray for your success with this toast?"

"Eh?"

Yu Jin-Ho raised his head to find Jin-Woo pushing forward his shot glass.

"If your proposal is successful, then we will really become family, you know. So, how about we share a toast while praying for your success?"

"A real family with hyung-nim….."

Yu Jin-Ho's expression was soon overcome with a great swell of emotions once more and he lifted his own cup up, only for his gaze to stop by at Jin-Woo's left hand.

He knew very well what was hidden behind that black glove, of course.

"Excuse me…. Hyung-nim?"

"Yeah?"

"If I'm not overstepping here, can I ask you about something?"

"Sure, go ahead."

Yu Jin-Ho sneaked a couple of glances at Jin-Woo's left hand before working up his courage once more.

"The scars on that hand…. What actually did happen to you, to get such serious scars?"

Those scars were so horrendous that just a casual glance would make people recall heart-wrenching pain in an instant. It must've been a rather serious accident for such a clear burn scar to be left behind like that.

Although Yu Jin-Ho found it pretty hard to ask this question up until now, he borrowed the powers of the booze to ask this rather difficult question.

"Oh, you mean this?"

Jin-Woo glanced at his left hand for a little while, before a smirk floated up on his lips.

"I got it while saving the world."

Jin-Woo's gaze had reverted back to Yu Jin-Ho by then. His reply was spoken as if it was nothing much to worry about, so the latter chuckled back lightly, too.

"Hyung-nim, you and your sense of humour…."

Jin-Woo also chuckled along as well.

Yu Jin-Ho belatedly realised that the shot glass had been stuck waiting for a while inside his hyung-nim's hand and quickly raised his own higher.

"For the successful proposal!"

Jin-Woo brought his cup closer and prayed for the kid's fortune as well.

"Yeah, for your successful proposal."

Clink.

They clinked their shot glasses and emptied them in one go.

Yu Jin-Ho's face went into a scowl at the bitter taste of soju, but unlike him, Jin-Woo could only form a wry grin as he put the empty glass down.

'I'd love to get just a little bit drunk on a day like today, though…'

It was then.

"Ah, I almost forgot."

Yu Jin-Ho must've recalled Jin-Woo's family life after hearing the word 'family' since he suddenly began discussing precisely that.

"Is sister-in-law doing well?"

"Yeah, she's well."

"What about Soo-Hoh, though? I should really stop by soon to see how the boy's doing nowadays. Has he started walking yet?"

Jin-Woo chuckled and shook his head.

"No, not yet. He's only six months old, so crawling is all he can do for now."

"That's weird. I thought that a kid sharing your and your wife's genes would start running around the moment he was born, you know?"

"What the hell. Is that how you think of me and her?"

"Ahaha."

Yu Jin-Ho scratched the back of his head in a playful manner and Jin-Woo also chuckled as well.

But then, Yu Jin-Ho went "Oops!" and hurriedly spoke in a worried voice as he heard that the post-natal care was rather arduous for the newborn's parents.

"Well, in that case, shouldn't you go home as soon as possible?"

"Mm… Maybe I should?"

With good timing, Jin-Woo was also beginning to miss Hae-In and his son Soo-Hoh waiting for him back home after the word 'family' had been mentioned earlier.

***

A certain residence located in the outskirts of the city.

Arriving back home safe and sound, Jin-Woo parked his car in the vicinity.

Screech.

Although the house was unimaginably huge for a detective to afford with his government salary, no one suspected a thing since the person sharing the residence alongside him just so happened to be the idol of the sporting world that pretty much every South Korean had heard of before in the past.

However, only he and Hae-In knew the secret of this house not being built by the hands of humans.

When Jin-Woo stepped into the house, the first thing that greeted him was the sight of his two Marshals in the middle of a war of nerves.

Bellion and Igrit were glaring at each other without backing down an inch, apparently not ready to give up on their ground. Soon, Hae-In came out to the living room while carrying their son, Soo-Hoh.

"Dear…."

With a smile, Jin-Woo took over Soo-Hoh from Hae-In, and gently held him up. When he did…

"Ppa-!!"

Soo-Hoh broke out into boisterous laughter and extended his small hands towards him. The boy wanted to be hugged by his father, so Jin-Woo helped with that by embracing the baby against his chest, and then, pointed to his two Marshals with his chin.

"What's up with those two?"

"Well, the thing is…."

Hae-In was fighting back to keep her own laughter from breaking out while hesitating with her answer, but Jin-Woo didn't need long to figure out what was up with this situation.

Bellion shot back at Igrit with a harsh glare.

[What do you mean by we mustn't teach our Lord Soo-Hoh the ways of the sword? Do you really think your suggestion makes any sense whatsoever, Igrit?!]

However, Igrit's own fighting spirit didn't lose out an inch, other.

[High academic success is the barometer of one's capability in this world, Bellion.]

No one knew when or who ordered them online, but well, Igrit was holding home-schooling material for toddlers as he argued his case.

Jin-Woo watched the tightly-contested war of nerves between these two proud Soldiers and became utterly speechless. He stared at them with a dumbfounded face for a while, before he took a step closer to address them.

"You guys…."

The Marshals finally realised that their liege was right in front of their noses, hurriedly turned around to face him, and knelt down on the floor.

[My liege!]

[My liege!]

Jin-Woo tutted audibly at the two Marshals far too obsessed in the matters of the post-natal care and spoke to them.

"It's fine whether you want to teach my son swords or maths, but let's worry about that only after the boy learns to walk first, shall we?"

Bellion and Igrit stared at each other for a little while before bowing their heads down to Jin-Woo.

[That is a reasonable approach, my liege.]

[You are correct, my liege.]

"Alright."

Jin-Woo grinned brightly while holding his son in his arms, and just like that, Soo-Hoh also grinned brightly in return, as well.

"Kkyah."

Nobody would doubt that they were a father and son; Hae-In watched the two's smiles that seemed like a carbon copy of one another and chuckled softly herself.

***

Around the time Lee Seh-Hwan, joining the Unit as someone's potential successor, had gotten more or less used to the life as a detective, Jin-Woo was summoned by the Station Commander for a private chat.

The senior detective leaving the commander's office before him carried a rather suspicious glint in his eyes, so it was unlikely that this chat would be about a pleasant topic, thought Jin-Woo. He entered the commander's office after the senior detective left and walked over to his superior's desk.

"Did you call for me, sir?"

The commander was looking out of his office window at the time; he didn't turn around and addressed Jin-Woo in a quiet voice.

"I heard that you're still interfering in other detectives' investigations…."

As expected – the senior of earlier carried that look of 'I told you so' as he was leaving, didn't he? Jin-Woo inwardly swallowed his fake cough.

The commander turned around towards Jin-Woo and formed a refreshing grin.

"Please, I beg you to not go overboard and make other detectives resent you, Seong Hunter-nim."

The commander's face was someone quite familiar to him. It belonged to none other than Woo Jin-Cheol, the youngest Station Commander in Korean history.

Of course, that feat was built upon the hidden fact that Jin-Woo played a key role in solving many of Woo Jin-Cheol's cases.

Jin-Woo smiled and corrected his current boss's words.

"I'm not a Hunter anymore, Commander."

"Even still, it's a lot more convenient for me to refer to you as a Hunter-nim."

While saying those things, Woo Jin-Cheol scanned the documents on top of his desk.

"Did you know that the legal guardian of the suicide victim, her father, suddenly went missing a few days ago?"

"Really?"

"Rather coincidentally, every CCTV camera around the missing man's residence stopped working at the same time."

"Oh my goodness. How can such a thing even happen?"

Jin-Woo's feigned innocence brought about a helpless chuckle from Woo Jin-Cheol. He then threw the documents into the nearby trash can.

"Whatever you decide to do, I shall continue to believe in you, Seong Hunter-nim."

Jin-Woo heard Woo Jin-Cheol's declaration of unreserved faith in him and as a gesture of thanks, bowed his head just a little.

Afterwards….

"Actually, I didn't ask you to come and stop by because of that…."

Woo Jin-Cheol pushed forward a piece of memo paper that had been hidden in the corner of the desk until then. A name of a hospital, as well as a patient's room number, was written on it.

"….I thought that you'd like to know."

"What's this?"

Jin-Woo asked back and Woo Jin-Cheol replied as if he was waiting for that.

"The Association President, no, Chairman Goh Gun-Hui is apparently in critical condition."

***

This would be Jin-Woo's second time coming to visit Goh Gun-Hui's hospital room.

About ten years ago, he saved the older man's life by using the 'Divine Water of Life' that he also used to save his mother's life in the erased timeline.

And now, he was facing the gaunt Goh Gun-Hui once more as the latter found himself at the death's doorstep. Since this was his second visit, the dying man didn't get surprised by Jin-Woo's unexpected appearance.

No, he simply nodded his head in the direction of the unfamiliar young man with a hood pulled up. He then tapped on the oxygen mask blocking his mouth.

Jin-Woo reached out and cautiously removed the apparatus, allowing Goh Gun-Hui to speak even though he wheezed heavily and laboriously in between each word.

"Young… man, you came back again…. Actually, I…. I've been searching for you… all this time."

Jin-Woo looked on at this sight with sorrowful eyes before raising his voice.

"If Chairman wants this illness to be cured, then…."

Even before he could finish saying that he could cure the illness one more time, Goh Gun-Hui shook his head first.

"I've… lived for a long time now. I did what I had to do during the ten years you gave me. That is enough for me."

Back in the erased timeline, Goh Gun-Hui sold off his company and became the first President of the Korean Hunter's Association. But in this timeline, he had been acting as the role model to all the other corporate leaders by taking the lead in various charity work. And he no longer wished for his life to be extended anymore.

What he really wanted, though, was not what everyone would've expected.

"Actually…. I have a favour to ask you."

Jin-Woo nodded his head. And that's when he was met with Goh Gun-Hui's pleading eyes.

"You told me that there was a world where we fought side by side, didn't you?"

Jin-Woo nodded his head again without saying anything.

"Can you tell me more about that world? I'd like to know more. What I looked like, what you looked like back then…."

"Those might not be the memories you'd like to recall, sir."

"It'll be alright. I only wish to regain the memories now lost, that is all."

Jin-Woo confirmed the earnest desperation on Chairman Goh Gun-Hui's expression and gently grasped the dying man's hand.

When he did….

….The memories of the time now erased rushed into Goh Gun-Hui's mind like a tidal wave.

"Ah, ah…."

Tears began flooding out from the older man's eyes.

Meanwhile, Jin-Woo slowly pulled the hood back and revealed his face to the Association President Goh Gun-Hui. He tightly grasped the younger man's hands and confirmed the face now looking back as even thicker tears fell from his eyes.

"Hunter-nim, you have…. Again…."

Jin-Woo gently held the Association President's hand as the latter's breathing became harsher and noticeably more laborious.

Goh Gun-Hui's gaze shifted back towards the ceiling.

"I… I really… Along with young heroes like you…."

His voice now contained traces of his satisfaction.

Goh Gun-Hui was overcome with the genuine happiness gushing out from the deepest part of his heart, and as his tears continued to flow, he quietly breathed his last.

Jin-Woo also stood there with tears in his eyes, before reaching down to gently close the older man's eyes. Soon after, the life-support machines informed everyone involved of the passing of their patient.

Beeeep-!!

By the time shocked doctors rushed into the room, the suspicious, uninvited guest had already left without a trace.

*

As Jin-Woo wordlessly walked the streets, electronic advertising boards installed here and there continued to display the breaking news of Chairman Goh Gun-Hui's passing.

Emotions of sadness could be spied on the expressions of many watching the breaking news.

Back then, or even now….

Chairman Goh Gun-Hui was loved by many, and even more paid their respects after his death.

'Be well…. You were also a hero who sacrificed so much of yourself for the sake of the others.'

Jin-Woo stepped away from the populated streets and made his way towards those avenues with little to no foot traffic.

Every time the wind blew, leaves that lost their colours from the influence of the encroaching autumn fell in droves from the trees lining up the streets.

Soon, winter would arrive.

'And then, spring will come again, too.'

Jin-Woo fell into a deep train of thoughts while looking at the scattering leaves, before belatedly realising that his phone was ringing off the hook inside his pocket.

The call was from Hae-In.

"Dear?"

As soon as he answered the phone, he was greeted by her incredibly urgent voice.

– "D-dear!! Soo-Hoh, he… Our son is….!!"

Could something have happened in their home, even though two Marshals were guarding it?? Jin-Woo's own voice rose up higher at what seemed to be an unbelievable situation currently unfolding there.

"What's the matter with Soo-Hoh?!"

When he did, Hae-In cried out as if she too couldn't believe that it was happening, either.

– "He's flying!!!"

"Eh?"

– "Our son is flying around the house, right now!!"

It was right at that moment that Jin-Woo recalled what Yu Jin-Ho said a few days ago.

– That's weird. I thought that a kid sharing your and your wife's genes would start running around the moment he was born, you know?

He became completely speechless after recalling those words and stood dead still on the spot.

– "W-what should I do?"

For some reason, laughter tried to break out of his mouth after hearing his wife's panicky voice over the phone. For the time being, he decided that calming his wife down would be his first priority.

"It'll be fine. Don't worry too much about it."

– "What do you mean?!"

"I'll teach Soo-Hoh how to fly step by step, soon."

– "Babe, you…. know how to fly?!"

'….Oops.'

Didn't I tell her that before?

When he was dating Hae-In back in the now-erased timeline, he wasn't all that adept at flying around so they used his Sky Dragon 'Kaisel' to travel, instead.

Jin-Woo finally couldn't hold back and guffawed out.

The autumn leaves shook around in the wind and fell to Earth once more.

After autumn, winter would come, and afterwards, spring would greet the world. Everything had a beginning and an end, and a new beginning would follow after the end.

However…

– "Oh, no! Soo-Hoh, you mustn't!!"

Clank, smash!!

….It seemed that the winter of his household was still a long way away.

[Only I Level Up, Side Stories Fin.]