Chapter 208 – Philosopher’s Stone (1)

And how much time had passed?

After Yeon-woo left Edora’s arm, he couldn’t meet her eyes properly. He was drunk from the atmosphere, but as soon as he came back to his senses, it was extremely awkward.

Edora lightly laughed, thinking Yeon-woo adorable. She had only seen his stiff side, so seeing this new side was refreshing. It was interesting that she could also see facial expressions and not just his eyes.

“So you get embarrassed too.”

“…..What did you think of me all that time?”

“I’ll leave that to your imagination.”

Edora tossed a light joke and held out the mask in her hand.

Yeon-woo’s hand was slightly frozen when he accepted it. He still seemed to have a lot of thoughts. They weren’t extreme thoughts like before, but he didn’t know what to say or how to respond.

But as if telling him not to worry, Edora silently grabbed Yeon-woo’s hand. She regarded Yeon-woo with her jewel-like eyes.

“Phante didn’t see your face.”

Yeon-woo looked at her with questioning eyes.

“When he saw you on the ground, he said he didn’t think it was time for him to see yet. You didn’t reveal your face out of your own will, so he said that he would wait until then.”

“…..”

“And I had the same thought but…..the end was a bit different. I wanted to see what kind of burden you were carrying. Would it be wrong if I wanted to share in that?”

Edora shut her mouth after saying that, like she was leaving the rest to Yeon-woo.

Yeon-woo realized that the time had come. The time to make the decision of whether he was going to say his secret or not.

He had known that this time was going to come someday. He couldn’t hide it forever. And also that if he couldn’t say it, he would have to split from them.

But he didn’t know that it would be this soon, so he couldn’t say anything.

Then, he made a decision. If it were these children. If it were these guys. Wouldn’t it be alright? If he was worried about what would happen after, he could leave then. He would only get in their way if he stayed with them.

He organized his thoughts, and slowly put his mask on.

“Someday. I’ll tell you everything.”

“Alright.”

Edora nodded her head and smiled faintly. It was a brighter smile than ever.

***

Yeon-woo moved with Edora to the room opposite of them. She said that Phante, Sesha, Galliard, and Brahm were staying there. And she didn’t know why, but there was a guest that was still staying with them too.

Creak.

When she carefully opened the door, Galliard tilted his head seeing Yeon-woo. He seemed to be surprised that Yeon-woo was wearing his mask again, but he guessed the reason why.

“You’re here?”

“Yes.”

“Brahm’s waiting for you.”

Yeon-woo nodded, and headed towards the bedroom. Phante looked at Yeon-woo with a complicated face and moved to the side. Sesha, who had been sitting on the bed, ran at Yeon-woo.

“Wang! Uncle!”

Had Galliard already explained everything? Sesha was calling Yeon-woo “Uncle.” and not “Dad.” But before he could express his happiness of meeting his relative after everything was revealed, Sesha began to sob.

Brahm was lying on the bed, slowly dying. His dried skin, and weak breathing. A god was dying. And a great god at that, one who had once been among the higher leveled gods.

His breath looked like it would extinguish any minute now, but thanks to Yvlke’s help, his life was extended.

For the first time since Yeon-woo met Yvlke, he had a bitter smile. Looking at Yeon-woo, he fixed his monocle and slowly came out from the bedroom.

“You probably have a lot to talk about, so as an outsider, I’ll leave for a moment. Player ###, there’s a message from Sir Hermes, so please leave some time for me later.”

As Yeon-woo nodded his head, Yvlke rode the portal and hid himself.

Yeon-woo slowly approached the bedroom. Brahm’s eyelids wavered, and he barely opened them. His unfocused pupils slowly moved to fix on Yeon-woo.

“You’re here?”

“Yes.”

“Can I see your face?”

Yeon-woo nodded, and moved his hand to his mask. As he did, Phante, Edora, and Galliard all left.

Click.

Brahm stared at Yeon-woo’s face for a while. Dark eyebrows. Monolid eyes. A sharp chin. It was a handsome face.

“It’s the same. Really. But the impression is different.”

“I heard that a lot.”

“Usually twins are similar.”

“But strangely, we grew up completely different.”

“I see. Since the impression you give off is completely different. I’m assuming you fought a lot too?”

“Don’t brothers usually grow up fighting?”

“Haha. I suppose so.”

Was it because he was at death’s door? He seemed a lot milder. He looked softer than before, and it fit him well.

Brahm usually had a cold face, but it might’ve been a front, like Yeon-woo’s mask.

Then, Brahm smiled bitterly.

“Do you know? I didn’t like that face.”

Yeon-woo widened his eyes at the unexpected words.

“Since it was a face that made my daughter suffer.”

Yeon-woo spoke with a sour smile.

“He was a bad bastard.”

“Right. He was a bad bastard. Definitely. A really bad bastard.”

Ananta had liked his brother since she first met him. Sometimes, she revealed her emotions, but her brother had firmly rejected her. The reason was simple. Because he had a lover at that time.

Looking back at it now, Jeong-woo was his brother, but he really was a fool.

Ananta had been able to find out that Jeong-woo had a child because she had continually been watching him, and she put everything on the line to save that child. And Sesha was saved.

So Brahm probably didn’t like his brother since he had made his daughter go through all that. Even after his brother died, Brahm’s daughter was fighting somewhere to protect Sesha.

“I didn’t live a life where I can proudly say I have a daughter. I wasn’t a kind father. But I didn’t like how he made her hurt like that for such a long time.”

Brahm’s gaze wasn’t on Yeon-woo anymore, but towards someone who had the same face as him.

“But at the same time, I feel thankful. The person who connected me with my daughter, while I just watched from afar, was him in the end.”

Yeon-woo thought of a section in the diary. The first time his brother met Ananta was actually for Brahm.

‘Since Brahm didn’t try to help him, he found what Brahm needed and went to convince Ananta. Didn’t he get slapped that time?’

His brother convinced Ananta with tenacity.

At first, it was so he could learn alchemy from Brahm, but later, it was because he hoped their relationship could improve. Since he had family he left behind too, he was able to empathize with them.

“And the person who gave me this child was him. Even if I don’t like him, I’m thankful.”

Brahm stroked Sesha’s head. Tears welled up in her eyes.

“How can I leave this child behind.”

There was regret in Brahm’s voice. In the end, he hadn’t been able to catch the demon. Sesha’s illness would become worse, and groups like the Elohim and the Blood Land were targeting Sesha. And his daughter was off fighting somewhere he didn’t know.

He would have too many things to worry about if he just left like this. From when Ananta was born, to today. He was a fool that didn’t get anything right.

The god of creation, Brahma? A higher god? What did all that matter? He was just a halfling not able to protect the precious things next to him.

Regret was filled in Brahm’s hand as he stroked Sesha’s head.

“Brahm, don’t go.”

Sesha grabbed Brahm’s hand and shook her head. Her depressed tail showed her sadness.

Then.

Yeon-woo turned to Brahm to ask him a question.

“Don’t you want to live?”

There was a way. For him.

Brahm lifted his head to look at Yeon-woo again. The light in his eyes had settled.

“You’re talking about the ability you have.”

As expected.

He knew about Shanon and Hanryeong in his shadow.

“That’s correct.”

“Me, live…..”

Brahm silently closed his eyes, and slowly opened them again.

“But…..can I live again?”

His voice shook.

“I committed a sin. I was only a nuisance to the world. But can I…..live?’

“Yes, you can.”

Yeon-woo’s voice was firm.

“Live for Sesha. Live for Ananta. And I’ll also ask this of you. Live. Only then—”

Yeon-woo paused, and continued.

“Will you have someone you can laugh with at that guy, right?”

“…..!”

Brahm’s eyes widened. And he shut his mouth at what Yeon-woo said.

“Also, don’t you have to fix Sesha’s illness, and go meet your daughter?”

“…..Is there a way?”

Yeon-woo nodded his head.

“There’s a way that I can think of. A way to save both Sesha and Ananta. However, I need your absolute help for that.”

Brahm faintly sighed.

“You’re the same. Annoying people. He was also like that.”

“That’s what brothers do.”

“But once…..I was called a god. Haha. Now I’ll be bound to someone.”

If people who knew about Brahm’s strong pride heard about this, they would’ve been shocked.

“But this probably…..wouldn’t be bad.”

And with that, Brahm quietly closed his eyes. His rising and deflating chested stilled. He had finished his life. Yeon-woo could see Brahm’s soul leaving his body with his Draconic Eyes.

“Uncle!”

Sesha pulled at Yeon-woo’s sleeve. Yeon-woo rubbed her head, as if telling her not to worry, and spread his left hand on Brahm’s body.

[Bathory’s Vampiric Sword]

Click, clack.

Its teeth sunk in Brahm’s body as it began to absorb the energy.

It wouldn’t be much, because Brahm didn’t have that much power left, but it was still the process of collecting a soul that was once a god, so an enormous amount of energy flowed into his body.

And at the same time,

[You have gained the God’s Blessing.]

[You have gained the God’s Blessing.]

…..

It was information about the God’s Blessing.

To Yeon-woo, they were interesting messages. It could be used as a material to awaken his Demonic Dragon Body even further.

But Yeon-woo gathered the God’s Blessing and combined it with energy.

Since he couldn’t even use his Demonic Dragon Body properly, it would only be a burden. Also, right now, he wanted to save ‘Sesha’s grandfather’ using whatever method he could.

Jiiiing!

Just then, the Despair of the Black King rang.

He spread his right hand. There was a large white soul. It wasn’t a dead soul. It was probably a godly soul.

Soul Familiars and Monster Portents couldn’t dare to match its power.

Yeon-woo thought about whether this large soul would be able to become a Lich or a Death Knight.

It was bigger than he had expected to become just an undead. A god was still a god.

So he was about to try,

“Wait, Uncle! Here, here!”

Sesha pounded the bracelet on her arm and opened the subspace. She stuck her hand inside of it for a moment, and she pulled something out.

It was a small glass bottle.

Yeon-woo widened his eyes when he saw what it was.

[Homunculus’s Spirit Liquid]

Category: Elixir

Rank: ??? (Unable to be determined, incomplete)

Summary: The material for an artificial living being that Brahm made with his knowledge of alchemy and magic. However, he wasn’t able to find out how to create a ‘soul,’ so it was left as incomplete.

There were two treasures that Brahm was proud of.

If the Book of Mercury was all his knowledge about alchemy, the Homunculus’s Spirit Liquid was the result of his knowledge.

“He said that he would use this if my illness wasn’t healed. Brahm could be fixed with this too!”

Sesha gripped the bottle even tighter. Her two eyes were sparkling. She was filled with trust that her uncle would do it for her.

Yeon-woo unintentionally grinned.

‘It’ll be bad if this doesn’t work.’

He was filled with the desire to do anything for his niece.

So he accepted the bottle and put Brahm’s soul inside of it.

Hwaaak!

The bottle glowed.

As he looked at it, a thought occurred to him.

He might already be a fool for his niece.