Side Story Chapter 160 - Primordial Knowledge (2)

“By gacha... are you talking about the Trait Gacha?”

“Yeah.”

Nothing but the Trait Gacha would allow Oh Kang-Woo, who had already reached his peak in growth, to reach past his limits. No, it was likely a stretch to hope for growth even with the Trait Gacha.

‘But I’ll still do it.’

He couldn’t think of anything else but the Trait Gacha at the moment.

“Mmm... how about you try searching for this Black Sky thing instead?” Lilith suggested.

“It’s impossible,” Kang-Woo firmly answered and shook his head.

“Is it because it’s in an outer world too far to reach?”

“If there was even a minuscule chance that I could reach it, he would never have told me about it. And most of all, I have no intention of getting it even if I could find it.”

“Pardon...?” Lilith’s eyes widened in confusion. “But you’ll have two powers like the Demonic Sea if you get... Ah.”

She realized the reason as she was talking. Kang-Woo smiled and shook his head.

“I can’t handle two.”

If the Black Sky was darkness born from the Primordial like the Demonic Sea, it should be on par or close in power to the Demonic Sea. It was obvious what would happen if Kang-Woo were to devour it with the Authority of Predation.

‘It’d kill me.’

Kang-Woo was not an idiot who couldn’t differentiate between courage and bravado. He had devoured the Abyss and become the Demonic Sea itself but he couldn’t accept another power on the same level as it. It was no different from pouring enough water that would completely fill a bowl into an already-full bowl.

“How unexpected. I thought you would say that you’d devour it all,” Lilith remarked.

“I’ve gotta be realistic.”

There were things Kang-Woo could and couldn’t do. Cramming power on the level of the Demonic Sea into himself was impossible for his current self— there was no point even trying.

“Is that also why you just left Nostrian’s corpse behind?” Lilith asked.

“Oh, I didn’t have the leeway to.”

Kang-Woo couldn’t afford to devour Nostrian with the Authority of Predation when Akart was right in front of him.

“And honestly... I have no idea what will happen if I devour a Titan whole.”

He expected it would also be difficult to handle. He had devoured Bauli but that did not mean he could devour other Titans.

‘And considering how powerful Akart is... it’s too big of a gamble.’

Kang-Woo could lose everything by being too greedy. He would be inflating a balloon that had already been thinned to its limit, even further.

“Regardless, the Trait Gacha is the best choice at the moment,” Kang-Woo continued.

“I suppose so.”

Kang-Woo earned roughly 1.7 million Nebula from the Tower of Creation— enough to pull the Trait Gacha seventeen times.

‘If only I managed to get the ten million from that God of Depravity bitch.’

The thought of the ten million Nebula he failed to rip from the Constellation because of Akart’s intervention swirled around his head.

“Urgh.”

Kang-Woo clicked his tongue and shook his head. Nothing would change from regretting what had already passed. The ten million wouldn’t just pop out of nowhere even if he moped around.

‘I’ll just have to bet everything on these seventeen pulls. Please let me at least get something good.’

“Will you start right away?” Lilith asked.

“Nope.”

“Then when?”

“I’ve gotta boost my chances as much as I can.”

“Oh? Was there a way to raise the Trait Gacha’s probability?”

Lilith tilted her head in wonder, never having heard of such a method. It was only natural this was her first time hearing of it since Kang-Woo had only just thought of it.

“First, let’s go home. We’ve gotta let Darling and Yeon-Joo know I’m back.”

Kang-Woo expected some forbidden things to happen at home since he had not seen Han Seol-Ah for a week.

“Fufu, okay.” Lilith smiled seductively and got into Kang-Woo’s arms. “I’ll be counting on you to take me home.”

“Hehehe. Hold on tight.”

Kang-Woo held Lilith in a princess carry position and flew into the air using the Authority of the Sky.

***

“DARLIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!!!” Kang-Woo called Seol-Ah as he swung open the front door.

“K-Kang-Woo?” Seol-Ah, who had been making something in the kitchen, ran to the front door wide-eyed. “You’re back already?”

“Yup.”

“I thought it’d take about a week...”

“Some things happened.”

“Hehe. Whatever the case, I’m glad you’re back early. Really... It was so hard to endure each day without you.”

Seol-Ah smiled and hugged Kang-Woo, two soft mounds pressing against his chest. Kang-Woo would have felt this soft sensation on his cheeks before but he was too tall for that now since his body reconstruction was nearing completion through past battles.

‘Should I be happy about this or not?’

Whichever it was, being able to feel the sensation brought a smile to his face.

“I’ve missed you, Darling.”

“Me too.”

Kang-Woo kissed Seol-Ah as she lightly raised her head.

‘I finally feel like I’m home.’

His fear of Akart slowly melted away thanks to his overflowing happiness.

“You’re doing this shit as soon as you get home?” remarked Cha Yeon-Joo watching TV on the couch.

“Hehe. You come here too, Yeon-Joo.”

“Fuck off,” she replied apathetically.

She seemed unhappy that Kang-Woo called Seol-Ah before her.

‘That’s a given.’

Looking for his Darling as soon as he came home had practically become second nature to him.

“Come on, stop sulking.”

“I’m not sulking!”

“Hehehe. It’s so nice to see my little Yeon-Joo again too.”

Kang-Woo approached the couch and hugged Yeon-Joo from behind. Yeon-Joo’s lips quivered as she looked away from Kang-Woo. He could see her touching the engagement ring on her left ring finger.

“One week... isn’t even that long.”

“It is.”

Even a day without his wives was like Hell for Kang-Woo.

“B-Bullshit.”

Yeon-Joo coughed as she stood up from the couch.

“Hm! Kang-Woo! How was the tower?”

Echidna approached Kang-Woo with sparkling eyes. Kang-Woo patted her head and turned to Lilith.

“Before that, could you call Si-Hun and Balrog? Oh, Layla too.”

It was easier to explain when everyone was here.

“Oh, Si-Hun and Balrog are in Aernor right now,” Lilith mentioned.

“Huh? Why?”

“It seems otherworldly beings appeared there as well.”

“Oh.”

It was only natural; as long as Aernor was also part of the Triad, it was no exception to otherworldly invasions.

‘But there are no Gates there so they rarely happen.’

As Akart had warned, it seemed the situation was getting gradually worse.

“They’re just about wrapping up, though. Shall I call them?”

“Yeah, right away.”

Telling them about Akart took priority over everything else.

“Just a moment, please. I will call Layla as well,” Lilith replied as she bowed and went outside.

“What the hell happened in the tower?” asked Yeon-Joo as she tilted her head.

“I met Akart.”

“Wh-What?!”

“Y-You met Akart?!”

Yeon-Joo and Seol-Ah shouted in shock.

“Yeah.”

Kang-Woo told them everything that happened in the tower.

“H-Hm! Are you hurt anywhere, Kang-Woo?” Echidna pulled on his clothes worryingly after hearing the full story.

Kang-Woo smiled and shook his head. “You know how tough I am.”

“Even so... That bad guy’s attacks are fatal to you.”

‘Bad guy, huh?’

It was hard to judge who was right or wrong after hearing Akart’s reasoning.

‘That’s not the issue.’

This was a matter of survival; Akart couldn’t acknowledge Kang-Woo’s existence and vice versa. Good and evil had nothing to do with it.

“I can’t believe Earth has been affecting other worlds...” Seol-Ah slurred with a serious expression.

Since she was kind at heart, it was difficult for her to accept that otherworldly beings needed to die so the people on Earth could live.

“Is there... no other way?” she asked.

“There might be if we look for one. But at this very moment, there is no other way but to cull the outer worlds that invade our world.”

“...”

“You don’t want to?”

“No...” Seol-Ah shook her head. “Honestly, I don’t know what’s right or wrong. But... If that’s the only way I can be together with you...” She clenched her teeth and exuded bloodlust. “I will kill them all to stay with you.”

“You don’t need to kill anyone.”

Kang-Woo grabbed her slender and smooth hands— too beautiful for them to be stained with blood.

“I’ll be the one killing them all.”

Kang-Woo’s hands were more than enough to be stained with blood.

“God, that’s so cringe,” criticized Yeon-Joo sitting on the couch armrest. “Are you the Dark Knight or something?”

“The hell?”

‘Why are you ruining my cool moment?’

“We have no choice but to kill them to live, don't we? Then that’s that. We don’t owe those other worlds anything so why should we let ourselves die to save them?”

Kang-Woo sometimes noticed Yeon-Joo thought like a demon.

‘Is it because she’s my incarnation?’

It could also be because humans were no different from demons.

“Well... I’m grateful you think that way.”

It was good enough as long as she agreed with his plan.

“Will you be waiting until Si-Hun and Balrog arrive?” Lilith asked.

“No. We don’t have a lot of time, so let’s get started.”

Only after pulling for Traits could they think of a countermeasure based on them.

“Oh, and Darling.”

“Yes, Kang-Woo?”

“I have a favor to ask.” Kang-Woo gripped Seol-Ah’s hands tighter and continued, “Help me prepare a

gosa

[1].”

“Pardon...?”

***

The way to boost probability for gacha— no, technically speaking, it probably wouldn’t.

‘But it’s the feeling that counts.’

People tended to pray to gods they didn’t even believe in before pulling for gacha or any other form of gambling, and this was no different.

Various goods were prepared on top of a large table like when they had held a

jesa

.

“Huuu,” Kang-Woo exhaled nervously as he placed Satan’s severed head in the middle of the

gosa

table.

‘Alright.’

It was now time to pull for Traits.

Riiing!

[Shall we begin, Sir Guardian Deity?]

“Yeah.”

Kang-Woo softly nodded.

Swirl—!!!

The roulette that would determine his fate spun rapidly.

1. Refer to Chapter 661’s reference for

gosa

. ☜