Chapter 14: Astral Relic of the Black Stars (1)

“Wowww!” Vega excitedly exclaimed. Her golden eyes lit up, gleaming like molten gold. “Delicious! This truly tastes incredible!”

Chomp, chomp.

The silver-haired goddess, now thirty centimeters tall, was devouring a hamburger almost as large as her upper body, gasping between bites. She resembled a hamster gnawing on a chestnut.

“... Celestials can eat?” Song Ha-Eun asked in disbelief. She couldn't see what was going on, but she could tell from the sounds.

“We don’t need to eat, but it doesn’t mean we can’t.”

Vega tore off a piece of napkin and dabbed her lips with it. She made even such a simple action look elegant—or rather, cute in her current form.

“Is this your first time eating a hamburger?” Kwon Oh-Jin asked.

Vega floated through the air, trailing a sprinkle of silver dust before perching on Kwon Oh-Jin’s shoulder. She reached out with her tiny hand and tugged on his earlobe.

It tickles.

“It’s my first time trying human food in general. This is the first time I’ve had an apostle, after all.”

“... I still don’t get it,” Song Ha-Eun said, frowning. “Why did you choose Oh-Jin out of everyone else? What’s so special about him?”

No matter how much she contemplated it, the title of "Apostle of the North Star" didn’t seem to fit him.

“What’s special about him? There’s no one more special in this world than this child.”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“

Haha

, you wouldn’t understand.”

Vega crossed her arms, stood tall, and continued, “But one day, you and the whole world will know that this child will become a greater being than anyone else.”

Her voice was filled with certainty.

“... What?”

Song Ha-Eun's jaw dropped yet again. What could Kwon Oh-Jin possibly have done to receive such praise from the Celestial of the North Star?

“Vega,” Kwon Oh-Jin called.

Vega chuckled gracefully and slightly shrugged.

“

Hehe,

I suppose I rambled on too much. My apologies.” She then turned toward Song Ha-Eun. “Besides, you’re no less special yourself, aren’t you?”

“... What’s that supposed to mean?”

Song Ha-Eun cocked her head, clearly puzzled by the random remark. Kwon Oh-Jin also looked at Vega in confusion.

“

Hmmm

. Have you not realized it yet?”

“Realized what?”

“Never mind, forget what I just said. It’s nothing considerable for now. If only I could help with my power...”

Vega shook her head and sighed. She sorrowfully gazed at Song Ha-Eun’s sightless eyes.

“

Huh?

Help with what? I’m fine on my own, so mind your own business.”

“Haha, I do admire your bold attitude,” Vega remarked before she stretched and turned away. “Now, I must rest. Even in this form, materializing for too long will result in backlash.”

“So, you can only stay active for about three hours a day?” asked Kwon Oh-Jin.

“I could do more, but there’s no need for that right now, is there?”

“Well, I suppose not.”

There wasn’t much that Vega could currently help with even if she stayed longer.

“Then, my child, I shall see you again tomorrow.”

Vega floated upward, softly patting Kwon Oh-Jin before transforming into silver dust and returning into the pendant.

Woong!

A heavy silence settled over the room, the kind that lingered after a storm had passed.

Song Ha-Eun let out a deep sigh.

“How did things even end up like this?”

“Trust me, I didn’t see this coming either.”

Song Ha-Eun was naturally bewildered that Vega had manifested to stay by Kwon Oh-Jin's side. Celestials rarely, if ever, took form and followed their apostles around.

“Hey, Oh-Jin.”

“Yeah?”

“Sit here,” Song Ha-Eun commanded, patting the vacant spot beside her on the bed.

“Why all of a sudden?”

“Shut up and just sit down.”

Kwon Oh-Jin, albeit confused, sat on the bed. Song Ha-Eun then quickly placed her head on his lap.

“... What are you doing?”

“Stay still.”

“Wait, what—”

“Hey, just do what I say.”

Song Ha-Eun curled up like a shrimp and closed her eyes. She awkwardly stretched out her hand and placed it on his thigh, feeling his warmth through her skin; she had known this warmth her whole life.

A small smile spread across her face.

“

Hehe

! There's nothing better than lying on your lap. You like this too, don't you?”

“You’re heavy as fuck.”

“What did you just say?”

“I’m kidding. You’re so light. It's like you’ve got nothing in your head.”

“... Somehow, that's even worse.”

Song Ha-Eun frowned and pinched his thigh till it hurt.

“But yeah, that's more like my Oh-Jin.”

She continued to laugh to herself oddly.

“I'm going to sleep now.”

“Wait.”

How was he supposed to go to bed like this?

“Tough luck, kid. If you've got a problem with it, maybe you should've been born two years earlier.”

“This is so unfair,” Kwon Oh-Jin rebuked.

𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

“Hehe.”

Song Ha-Eun’s shoulders shook as she snickered again. She snuggled in closer, shifting further into his lap. Before long, her soft, even breaths signaled that she’d drifted off.

“Sigh.”

It seemed Kwon Oh-Jin wouldn’t be getting much rest that night.

***

Two days later, Kwon Oh-Jin was doing a final check on his gear before heading to Mokdong.

Two signal flares, two smoke bombs, emergency rations, rope, and finally, three mid-level potions.

He'd spent good money on the potions, but they were necessary. Skimping here could mean disaster for him.

You never know what kind of monsters are gonna pop out of a new gate.

“But damn, these things are hella expensive,” he muttered, trembling as he held one of the potions that cost several million won each. Even though it was an investment in his future, just thinking about the price made him feel like barfing.

These crazy potion sellers crush up Starstones, mix them with some mana, and then charge a fortune. I've got to get my hands on the Stigma of Aquarius someday.

Kwon Oh-Jin knew he could make a fortune selling potions with that Stigma.

“Are you done getting ready?” asked Vega.

“Yeah.”

Kwon Oh-Jin slung the heavy backpack over his shoulder and opened the door. The cool dawn breeze tickled his nostrils.

An Astral Relic, huh?

Astral Relics had a wide range of abilities and grades, but they all shared one common trait.

It’s that they cost an arm and a leg.

Even a one-star Astral Relic cost at least ten million won. Three-star relics went for over a hundred million won, and five-star relics for over a billion won.

Six-star relics range from tens of billions to as much as hundreds of billions.

It was no wonder guilds were so desperate to find them. Kwon Oh-Jin licked his lips in excitement.

“Hehe, hahaha!”

He felt lighter with each step as he headed to the station. An hour later, he arrived in Mokdong and made a beeline for the skyscrapers.

“Hello, my name is Kwon Oh-Jin. I'm an Awakener from the association. Sorry to trouble you this early, but could you open the door to the rooftop for me?”

The security guard, initially wary, relaxed a bit at the mention of the association.

“

Ah

, sure, but what’s this about?”

“There's something I have to check up there.”

“

Hmm

... Alright.”

Without further suspicion, the guard unlocked the rooftop door.

Whoosh!

As Kwon Oh-Jin stepped onto the rooftop, a cool breeze brushed against his cheeks, and the view of Mokdong spread out before him.

Being in the association sure does come in handy.

Leaning against the railing, he took out a protein bar and bit into it.

“Are you waiting for the rift to open?” asked Vega.

“Yeah. I know it opens today, but I wasn’t told the exact time or location.”

Just because he was a Regressor didn’t mean he knew everything about the future; missing a few details wasn’t a big deal.

“I see. Then I suppose I don’t need to be here right now,” Vega surmised.

“I’ll let you know when the gate opens,” Kwon Oh-Jin responded.

“Very well.”

Vega turned into silver dust and vanished into the pendant around Kwon Oh-Jin’s neck.

“Haa.”

He let out a deep breath and shook his head.

It’s exhausting having her around all the time.

He had to think about every word he spat out.

No wonder I'm tired. Though...

There weren’t only downsides to having her around.

I can borrow her power in emergencies.

This was one of the reasons he wasn't worried about challenging a new gate without knowing what kind of powerful monsters might emerge.

If things get out of control, I’ll just receive her blessing and make a run for it.

Having experienced the incredible power of Vega’s blessing firsthand, he knew that if anything unexpected happened, he’d at least be able to escape.

“Come on, hurry up and show up,” he muttered, leaning against the railing and looking down at Mokdong.

***

Wooong!

After about three hours of waiting, a blue light shot into the sky.

There it is.

That was the sign of a new gate emerging. Kwon Oh-Jin quickly pinpointed the light and descended the building. As he approached the location, he saw people running in terror, screaming as they fled.

“Ahhhh!”

“A g-gate! It’s... It's a gate!”

“Q-Quick, call the association!”

“What good is the association these days? Report it to the guilds!”

What a mess.

It felt like Kwon Oh-Jin was rewatching what had happened eight years ago when the first gate opened on Earth. Though, he was also one of those terrified people back then, running for his life.

Things are different now.

Kwon Oh-Jin chuckled as he continued walking and threw himself into the newly formed gate.

Wooong!

His vision blurred, and a wave of nausea surged through him.

“Oof!”

Once his vision returned to normal, a massive cave stretched out before him. Stalagmites jutted up like the teeth of a beast, while gray streams of water trickled down between them. Though it was dim inside, an eerie orange glow cast just enough light to see.

“Vega, we’ve arrived.”

He tapped the silver pendant, and the silver-haired goddess appeared with a flash of light.

“

Oh

, so this is the rift you spoke of.”

Vega floated around, inspecting the area with interest. Her eyes gleamed as she took in her surroundings, but she didn’t seem particularly surprised that a gate had actually opened.

Does that mean she had complete trust in my claim?

Since he was a Regressor in her eyes, she seemed to have naturally assumed the gate would open today.

... Should I be happy about this or not?

It was good to know that Vega trusted him completely. At the same time, a sense of emptiness crept in. He had planned to get rid of any suspicions toward him with this gate's appearance, but it now felt like his efforts had been pointless.

Whatever. It’s still good news for me.

It didn’t make sense to complain that plan B wasn't used when plan A had worked just fine.

Still, I can’t relax just yet.

Trust was hard to build but easy to lose. Even though she currently believed he was a Regressor, that trust could still be eroded over time by any suspicions that arose.

“Let’s head further in,” said Kwon Oh-Jin.

“Alright.”

Before other Awakeners could follow him in, he walked further into the cave, guided by the faint orange light. Suddenly, a sticky, slimy sound echoed from somewhere.

Schlurp.

His face stiffened as his eyes moved to where it was coming from.

“Is that...?”