Chapter 123: Chapter 123

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Translator: Vine

Chapter Title: Into the Otherworld

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Vinesha glared at Sharin without even calling her name. A thick malice, telling her to get away from me, was evident.

Regardless, Sharin stared at Vinesha for a moment, then let out a scoff.

"Hanun asked *me* for help first."

"What?"

Vinesha's eyes widened, and she snapped her head towards me. Her gaze was filled with the question of whether that statement was true.

Vinesha always had to be first when it came to anything involving me.

She didn't know what it was about, but the fact that I had asked Sharin for help? It was utterly unacceptable to Vinesha.

"M-Master, is that true?"

The hallway window slowly began to tremble. Before long, the sunset that had been pouring in from outside vanished, and a curtain of darkness descended.

Beyond the window, an unknown entity from the Otherworld drifted past.

"Vinesha, that's it!"

And I immediately exclaimed with elation.

"Y-Yes?"

Vinesha reacted with confusion to my elation. She hadn't expected me to be pleased by the power she had inadvertently revealed.

"Right now, we have to go to the Otherworld. We're going to bring Grantony back from there."

"T-To the Otherworld? Master, do you know what you're saying?"

The Otherworld is the realm of the dead. Crossing over to it is no different from dying.

However, I wasn't just acting on a whim.

"It'll be fine if we have Divine Weapons."

Divine Weapons. Tools imbued directly with the power of the gods.

Those who possess Divine Weapons have the blessings of the gods dwelling within their bodies.

I have the Lightning Caller.

Of course, even with Divine Weapons, we can't stay in the Otherworld for long. So we have to accomplish it within that time.

"Similarly, Sharin has the Mirinae."

The biggest problem in the Otherworld is the dead who wander there. However, the Mirinae, which pierces through everything, prevents the dead from daring to approach.

"Vinesha, you're a contractor of the Otherworld."

In the Otherworld, there are various things, along with transcendent beings. Vinesha has made contracts with such dangerous entities.

Naturally, all the dead would flee in her presence.

With these three, we can go to the Otherworld. I wasn't just asking for help recklessly.

"Vinesha, right now, you're the only one who can open the Otherworld."

If Vinesha doesn't help, the Otherworld and the real world will become intertwined. Although she was originally meant to play the role of a mid-boss, for now, she had to be an ally.

"I don't really know what's going on, but."

Vinesha approached the window and extended her hand. Her hand then passed through the window as if entering a viscous liquid.

"If Master desires this maiden's help, how can she stand idly by?"

Vinesha chose to help me first rather than ask for explanations. Sharin and I approached Vinesha.

"More importantly, Master, this 'Grantony' child, isn't she another girl, is she?"

Vinesha opened the Otherworld, smiling chillingly.

"Vinesha, take this."

Before answering, I handed her a pendant. Vinesha received the old pendant, her eyes widening.

"Master, are you giving me a present?"

Just as expected, Vinesha's memories were completely shattered. She no longer remembered Grantony, nor even the pendant itself.

And the day would come when, with the passage of time, her memories would completely break, and she would remember nothing at all.

"Yes, it's a present."

A gift, not from me, but given to you long ago by your master, in the hope that you wouldn't forget your memories.

Unaware of that truth, Vinesha carefully put on the pendant.

"A present from Master! I'm so happy! I'll cherish it as a treasure forever!"

It was originally a treasure to you. And it was also the treasure that even Grantony had left behind in the end.

But I couldn't tell her this truth. No matter how much I explained to her shattered memories, Vinesha would only be puzzled.

Just then, Sharin poked me in the side.

"What about m-me?"

I blinked. Was she demanding a present now?

"I've bought you a lot of bread until now."

"It's gone now."

Well, it would have been digested and turned into nutrients.

Sharin had an unusually strong competitive streak when it came to Vinesha.

"I'll buy you something when this is over."

"Buy me a house."

"That's impossible."

I don't have that kind of money.

Sharin looked at me discontentedly, then glanced at the pendant around Vinesha's neck. Soon after, she poked me in the side again with her long finger.

"Then I want other accessories."

I alternated my gaze between her finger pointed at me and Sharin's languid face. This girl, did she even know what she was saying right now?

I had spent some time with Sharin too. As such, I had a fair grasp of her personality by now.

Everything Sharin was doing now was unconscious. Not a single action was performed with self-awareness.

'Once she realizes this later.'

I had no idea what would happen.

"Master?"

Vinesha completed the window's transformation into a passage to the Otherworld. But her face was distorted like a demon, more so than the ghosts beyond the Otherworld.

"Why do you keep whispering with *that woman*? It makes it seem like you have a deep relationship."

Vinesha's jealousy seemed to be reaching its limit, and her teeth ground together. Before her jealousy could explode, I turned to Sharin.

"I'll do it for you when we come back."

"It's a promise!"

Sharin's mood suddenly improved so much that she started humming a tune. Vinesha reacted as if she strongly disliked it, but she forced herself to endure it since I was beside her.

"Hanun Ailei!"

At that moment, Eve arrived just in time, coming up the stairs.

The last piece had arrived. I had waited a long time.

Eve glared at me with a face that had much to say. But soon, given the situation, she didn't say more and simply exhaled.

"We'll talk about it later."

With that, Eve joined us. This was currently the best possible team I could assemble for the Otherworld.

"Let's go."

I would definitely bring Grantony back from the Otherworld.

***

The Otherworld. That place, called the realm of the dead, was a colorless, ash-gray world.

The world itself wasn't much different from its original appearance. The only difference was that only a white moon always hung in the gray sky.

Within such an Otherworld, for some reason, I was walking with both my arms and back held captive.

Beside me were two women, each of outstanding beauty.

On one side was Vinesha, dressed and made up in a way that brought to mind a "landmine girl." On the other side was Sharin Sazalys, whose languid face and antiquated aura were striking.

Both of them were currently holding tightly onto my arms.

Stop it. My arms feel like they're about to burst.

However, they weren't the only ones holding onto me. Behind my back, one more woman was clinging to me.

Her name was Eve.

Things had turned out this way right after we entered the Otherworld.

As soon as Vinesha entered, she quickly hugged my left arm. I was momentarily flustered by the feeling of Vinesha's not-so-small, soft chest, but nothing particularly happened.

I often slept with Iris. She clung to me in her sleep so much that it had become a habit for her to embrace me. Now, a woman's embrace felt familiar.

'I wonder, is this a good thing?'

A bitter taste lingered in my mouth.

Anyone seeing this would surely weep tears of blood out of envy. But I, with my love excised, only felt stifled.

'The Veil Bandage, a fearsome thing.'

Just as I was firmly held by Vinesha, this time, to my surprise, someone hugged my right arm tightly.

I had known since the summer swimsuit incident, but I could feel a considerable volume of softness.

Sharin wasn't looking at my face. Instead, she was glaring fiercely at Vinesha.

It seemed she felt competitive with Vinesha and acted on instinct. What a ridiculous situation this was.

Somehow, I ended up with a flower in each hand.

In Eve's case, it was right after she entered the Otherworld and saw a ghost.

"Kyaaaa!"

She let out a piercing scream and clung to my back like a burr. The ghost, startled by Eve's scream, actually fled.

But Eve showed no intention of letting go after that.

Only today did I become certain of Eve's weakness. She was afraid of ghosts. And she was excessively afraid.

'Even when she saw the evil spirit, I had vaguely wondered if that was the case.'

Coming to the Otherworld confirmed it. More than that, I couldn't understand how she could think of following us into the Otherworld while being so terrified of ghosts.

'At this point, it's almost a trauma.'

It seemed something ghost-related had happened to Eve in the past that I didn't know about.

"It's hard for all three of us to move like this."

"Indeed, it is. You vixen, Master says he's uncomfortable. Let go quickly."

"Who are you talking to?"

…

Their battle of wills was no ordinary sight. It seemed it would soon escalate into a major fight. Eve said nothing.

"Vinesha, how's the pendant?"

So, to mediate, I changed the subject. At my words, Vinesha raised her upper body to make the pendant clearly visible.

My eyes instinctively drifted elsewhere, but no emotional agitation occurred. Even I found it remarkable.

"It's from Master, so I love it so much!"

Vinesha openly boasted, telling Sharin to look. Sharin merely looked at me, her eyes narrowed.

"Other than that?"

"It's truly beautiful!"

Although it was an antique far from beautiful. It seemed to evoke no other particular feelings.

'Was my hypothesis wrong?'

'It might just be too soon.'

No need to be too discouraged.

More than that, the grip of the two on my arms began to tighten even more.

Was it time to say something? It was just as I was thinking that.

[ This one, he's nothing short of a playboy. ]

A familiar voice echoed in my ears.

When I lifted my head, a man with rugged muscles stood there.

He was a ghost of the Otherworld. As soon as they saw him, Vinesha and Sharin's demeanor changed.

Eve began to squeeze my back frantically. Don't do this. I'll really die.

I raised the arms that were wrapped around me, stopping them before Vinesha and Sharin could reveal their killing intent.

"Barkavaran."

[ I felt a familiar sensation, and I thought you'd been struck by lightning and died. ]

The original owner of the Divine Weapon I wield, the Lightning Caller. Barkavaran.

He had appeared there.