Chapter 1505. Extinction (15)

‘If I want, I can eat with him every day, go to the sauna with him, and do everything together with him, Ki-Young.’

“...”

‘I can do everything you absolutely can’t.’

What would be a good way to start it? In truth, there was not much need to think about it. Bringing that pig’s story out into the open was enough as a signal flare, announcing that this play was halfway finished.

Even if I blatantly threw out the fishing hook, he would have no choice but to bite it. Naturally, there was a high chance that he still hadn’t realized that Park Deok-Gu and Kasugano Yuno were already swimming through the first life.

No, I was almost certain of it. If he had known that fact, he wouldn’t be here grappling with me. He would have looked for Park Deok-Gu instead.

‘Yeah, you really are impressive.’

In a way, I felt a sense of awe toward him. The fact that someone who had yet to escape the limits of mortality could reach this far with only a few hints was simply amazing. It was surprising that he noticed the fact that time was turned back again and again, and even though it was a wild goose chase, it was also impressive that he realized that the catalyst for time travel was the Sage’s Stone.

He even tried to create it himself.

It was impressive that he quickly grasped my situation, acted as a defeated commander, and sent out a crow. He was even willing to take risks and personally test me in order to respond to all kinds of variables.

It sounded like nothing special when I explained it, but it was astonishing, especially if one thought about the fact that he had done all this on that isolated island with absolutely no information whatsoever.

A person from the first life eventually reached the second life.

‘Yeah, you’re really an amazing guy. You deserve praise. Lots of praise.’

'But so what? You don’t have the pig. Your weakness is far too clear. There’s no need for me to rack my brain or say anything else.'

“

Ah

, and this is another matter,” I said.

“...”

“It seems that a time paradox actually happened,” I said.

“...”

“It looks like the things that happened in the first life have started to affect the second life,” I told him.

It was a complete lie, and he knew that it was a lie. A time paradox was not going to occur. As he had said earlier, the fact that Jin Cheong and I were here was proof of that. Saying that a time paradox was happening right now was the most ridiculous nonsense imaginable, but it did not really matter.

The important thing was that it was the buildup for Park Deok-Gu.

“That pig bastard...” I mumbled.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

‘You can’t even control your emotions.’

The crow started clacking its beak. It even flapped its wings in place.

“...”

“...”

“Actually, rather than talking about the second life, it would be better to hear your story first,” I suggested.

For a conversation that could decide the direction of the upcoming first life, it was a childish, petty, and underhanded way of going about it, but games like this were about winning at all costs.

“So... where’s First Life Lee Ki-Young right now?” I asked.

“...”

“...”

‘It’s basically trading a rock for a chunk of gold.’

'

This

is alchemy. If this isn't alchemy, then I don’t know what is. That’s why I’m an alchemist.'

“You checked, didn’t you? First Life Lee Ki-Young's location. You’re not stupid enough to fail to figure out something like that, right, Commander?” I questioned.

“The. North,” the crow answered.

“

Ahhh

, so he’s in the north. But where exactly in the North is he? I'm curious. He’s probably still with the pigeons, is he? By now, you’ve already wrapped up Thronus, haven’t you?” I asked.

“Most. Likely. He. Is. With. The. Pigeons. The. Exact. Location. Cannot. Be. Identified. The. Pigeons’. Castle. Keeps. Moving,” the crow answered.

“So where is he right now?” I asked.

“Val. He. Im.”

‘He really is easy to handle.’

“

Ahhh

, so he’s there. You know it’s no fun if you lie, right, Commander?” I questioned.

As soon as I turned my gaze to the Telescope, I saw the pigeons’ nest, just like what he said. It looked as if they were hiding their appearance with Dominions’ magic, but there was no way they could deceive my eyes.

‘Does he even know that I have a telescope?’

I had no idea if it was because he had no intention of telling a lie that would be exposed anyway, or if he did not mind gambling on other things, but he refused to gamble when it came to that pig.

However, it felt like he was giving up the key information quite readily.

“Is. There. Any. Reason. For. Me. To. Lie?”

“

Ah

, I guess there really isn’t,” I said.

“Is. There. Anything. Else. You. Are. Curious. About?"

“I'm curious about many things. I have so many questions that it would be hard to ask everything in one day. I'm also curious about how First Ki-Young is going to make the Sage’s Stone,” I answered.

“I. Thought. You. Said. He. Is. Human."

“I’m asking whether he has some special way to go about it or something,” I said, clarifying things.

“There. Is. No. Special. Process. He. Simply. Gathers. Lives. And. Compresses. Their. Essence,” the crow said.

‘That crow must be having a hard time.’

“You know that won’t work, right?” I asked.

“That. Is. Why. He. Seems. To. Be. Trying. To. Ccontact. You.

Caw!

” the crow answered.

“Damn it! You scared me. If he contacts me, do you really think I’ll obediently tell him how he can do it? Even if I tell him, carrying it out is a completely different matter altogether,” I said.

“Right. Now. I’m. Only. Doing. What. I. Can. In. The. End. He. Knows. This. Life. Will. Proceed. As. Well. He. Simply. Don't. Know. How. To. Do. It. Yet. He’s. Probably. Assuming. That. The. Sage’s. Stone. Might. Let. Him. Do. It,” the crow explained.

“Do you think he knows about the other possibilities too?” I asked.

“The. End. Of. The. Continent?”

‘So he knows that, too.’

It seemed he was also pushing forward the direction of completely rendering the continent beyond recovery.

‘So he’s not just doing things recklessly, unlike what I thought.’

Of course, he still had no idea that Altanus existed in this world.

‘In other words, he doesn’t know that something else is being prepared as the sacrifice.’

“...”

“So. What. Happened. To. The. Second. Life?"

'Is this the right level of exchange?'

When I turned my gaze to the crow, I could see that it looked uneasy. He wasn't anxious that I'd demand other information. He was afraid to know more about what happened to Park Deok-Gu in the second life. He looked frightened.

Naturally, I realized that he couldn’t properly separate the first life from the second life.

At the very least, whether it was Second Park Deok-Gu, Third Park Deok-Gu, Seventh Park Deok-Gu, or Eighth Park Deok-Gu, he couldn’t completely separate those pigs from the First Life Pig. Then again, the pig was the very reason he decided to regress.

It seemed like he didn't even care whether Park Deok-Gu remembered him or not.

‘This might be useful later.’

“Well, it looks like that pig is doing well,” I commented.

“...”

“If you saw how much he has grown, you would probably be shocked,” I added.

‘For now, I’ll only reveal this much.’

“Is. there. any. other. news,” the crow asked.

“I’ll tell you next time. Next time,” I answered.

‘You look very disappointed.’

Of course, he still seemed relieved to hear that he was doing well.

“Commander Jin, do you perhaps have any information that would interest me?” I asked.

‘If you want to hear more, make an offer first. Depending on the value of the information, I’ll release our pig’s personal details. Ah, do I even have photos? If you give me something good, I’ll show you photos of him, too.

"I even have letters written in that baby pig’s own handwriting. They are treasured items you can’t obtain even with money.’

“...”

‘Did you know? Our pig even got a girlfriend. They’ll probably get married soon.’

Naturally, the corner of my mouth curled upward. If it were up to him, he would probably want to tear my face to shreds, but there was no way he would easily provoke trouble with me here.

‘You don’t actually know anything about me, do you?’

Frankly speaking, what benefit would there be in provoking a lunatic who could travel through time? Of course, I was sure he believed there were some sort of penalties or conditions to travel through time, but since I could do it with the Sage’s Stone, it would be burdensome for him to make an enemy out of me.

After all, there was no guarantee that I wouldn’t flee to the past, the future, or the second life if I ended up finding myself in danger.

‘The faint traces of the Monarch of Lust and Eternal Sleep lingering in a corner of his mind will also make him uneasy.’

I was sure he couldn't really remember it completely, but he had definitely seen what I could do. I could say with certainty that somewhere in the depths of his consciousness, he was wary of me.

In reality, I couldn't freely travel through time, and I also couldn't easily summon the Monarch of Lust and Eternal Sleep.

‘But you have to exaggerate things while you can. When else will I get a chance like this?’

This situation had to be maintained as long as possible. This was common sense.

“Let. Me. See... Information. That. Would. Interest. You?”

“T-that’s right,” I said.

“...”

“...”

“Of. course. It’s. Probably. About."

“...”

“Kim. Hyun. Sung's. Whereabouts.”

“...”

𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

“

Caw! Caaaw!

”

“...”

“

Caaaw! Caaaaaw!

”

‘He’s just bluffing.’

“

Caaaaaw! Caw! Caaaaaw!

”

‘There’s no way he knows.’

“

Caaaaaaaaw! Caaaaaaaaaaaw!

”

‘So you do know that Second Hyun Sung is here.’

“

Caaaaaw! Caaaaaw!

”

‘That bastard has been wandering all over the place. Looks like he must’ve caught your eye at least once. And Mikael was with him too, was he?’

“

Caaaaaw! Caaaaaaaaaw!

”

This was a gamble. It was no different from him throwing the dice. I didn’t think he was stupid enough to throw the dice in a fight he couldn’t win, so the fact that he brought up Kim Hyun-Sung meant he was pretty confident in his deduction.

For whatever reason, Second Ki-Young was looking for Second Hyun-Sung. He had to have reached the conclusion that Second Kim Hyun-Sung was the reason Second Ki-Young was swimming through the first life.

“

Caaaaaaaaaw! Caaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaw!

”

‘I need to hide my expression.’

“

Caw! Caaaaaw!

”

‘I've got to act as if nothing’s wrong.’

I had to do that, but...

“

CAAAAAAAAW!!!

”

“Shut up, you crazy crow,” I said.

“Your. Face. Looks. Amusing. Right. Now,” the crow said.

Without realizing it, I grabbed the crow by its neck. The crow flapped frantically to escape my grip, but as my hand tightened around its throat, it gradually went limp.

“Are. You. Looking. For. Kim. Hyun. Sung?"

“That’s none of your business, you idiot. I don’t even know why I was thinking of leaving you alone. I still have a debt with you,” I said.

“I. Have. Faint. Memories. Of. It. I. Do. Not. Remember. It. Clearly. But. It. Seems. I. Did. something. To. You. Was. It. In. Lindel? A. Few. Years. Ago. Was. It. Because. Of. Jung. Ha. Yan?"

“Whether you remember it or not doesn’t really matter. But you shouldn’t be here, Ki-Young,” I said.

“You. Took. The. Words. Out. Of. My. Mouth. Ki. Young. No. All. Of. You. Should. Not. Be. Here,” the crow replied.

“You’re not the one who decides that. I do. You’re a ghost that exists only for the present. Disgusting bastard,” I said.

“The. Reason. You. Are. In. The. First. Life. It. Must. Be. Because. You. failed,” the crow said.

“The reason you lost that pig? Because you failed. If I were you, I'd never make that mistake,” I said to the crow.

“Pathetic. Bastard.”

“Pathetic bastard.”

“Kim. Hyun. Sung. Must. Be. Quite. Precious. To. You. But He. Is. Not. Precious. To. Me."

“What more do I have to talk about with you? But remember this one thing—you picked the wrong person to mess with,” I warned.

“You. Are. The. One. Who. Picked. The. Wrong—”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The crow couldn’t finish its words, as I smashed its head immediately with the candlestick beside me. When I turned my gaze, I saw through the Telescope that Lee Ki-Young was throwing away every item on his desk.