Chapter 523: Star, Determination (3)

Chang-Sun and Cadmus sat on a hill overlooking the River Styx. Just like Thanatos had said, people were running around due to the chaos, but... the river was as quiet as always.

“From what I heard, you’ve gone through a lot,” Cadmus said. “I told you over and over again to control your temper and let your hair down once in a while.

Tsk, tsk.

See? Living according to your temper only brings trouble.”

Dumbfounded, Chang-Sun turned to Cadmus. “I don’t think you can say that to me, considering you’re the one who left me with a bunch of work.”

“

Hmm

? You sound like you didn’t like the work I left you.”

“Well, it did mean I had to work....”

“Lady Ithaca will be sad if she hears that.”

“...”

Feigning innocence, Cadmus tilted his head. “I do remember asking you to protect her, but did I ask you to date her?”

Chang-Sun closed his mouth. He knew very well that no matter what he said, it would just give Cadmus more opportunities to make fun of him. Of course, Cadmus didn’t stop just because Chang-Sun did.

“Before you and I said our goodbyes, you were a loser who had never dated anyone. You even freaked out whenever a woman so much as brushed her hand against yours.”

“...”

“Yet you managed to seduce your Guardian. My, my. I didn’t know you had other talents than fighting.” With Chang-Sun choosing to remain silent, Cadmus continued, “Well, Lady Ithaca did like seeing your pretty face. As you know, she cares a lot about men’s looks.”

“... You sound like you’re indirectly badmouthing her.”

“She’s not my Guardian anymore. In other words, she’s my former boss.”

Chang-Sun narrowed his eyes.

“

Ha

! I’m joking. Joking. The only god I serve with sincerity is Lady Ithaca, and my faith remained the same even after my death.” Cadmus giggled. “Considering you still answer when it comes to your lover, it seems you’d hit me too if I keep this up, huh?”

“...”

“Oh, you clenched your fists.”

“...”

Cadmus smiled mischievously. “Are you really going to hit me?”

“...”

“Oh, no. I should run away.” Cadmus dramatically moved up and down as if to stand up.

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Chang-Sun let out a long sigh. “Can you stop it? I’m sorry.”

Cadmus faintly smiled. “Well, you look like you turned out to be a decent person, at least. You used to be very cocky.”

Remembering the past, which he could barely recall, Chang-Sun felt as if Cadmus was... right. Back then, he had called Cadmus very casually and snapped at him at every chance he got.

Cadmus had often nagged Chang-Sun to show other people some respect, but he never listened. Having been alone in a different world, he had immaturely thought that he would be underestimated if he showed other people respect.

‘I was really immature,’

Chang-Sun thought. He only started becoming more mature after he and Ithaca had been left alone in Arcadia.

After looking at Chang-Sun, who was silently reminiscing, Cadmus quietly smiled and changed the topic. “I heard you’ve also gotten revenge.”

“... That’s right,” Chang-Sun replied with a nod.

“That’s incredible. and must not have been easy opponents, yet you managed to take them down all on your own. Well done.”

Feeling consoled, Chang-Sun choked up a little.

“You brought back Lady Ithaca too.”

“Yes... one thing led to another.”

“You also found a way to undo her curse, didn’t you?”

Thanatos seemed to have told Cadmus many stories while Chang-Sun was away.

When Chang-Sun nodded again, Cadmus asked, “So what’s the problem?”

“...”

“Why are you so tense? You’ve done all your work, yet you still look...” Cadmus looked Chang-Sun up and down with sad eyes. “... like a person being hunted by something.”

“Well... there are some things that I still haven’t finished. I’m not sure if you’ve heard about it, but I still have businesses to take care of with Tiamat, Odin, and Sun Wukong—”

“Although that’s what you believe, it doesn’t really have to be you. Trusting you with the job is the best way to guarantee that the job will be done, but that doesn’t mean that you have to carry the burden alone.”

“...”

Cadmus took Chang-Sun’s hand. “Chang-Sun.”

Thump.

Chang-Sun felt a heavy boulder drop on his heart. It had been so long since he last heard that name. After all, almost no one called him Lee Chang-Sun since it was difficult to pronounce. Ithaca—Cha Ye-Eun—usually called him by his nickname ”Sun,” and his comrades and enemies preferred calling him “Twilight.”

There was a point in the past when Chang-Sun forgot about his real name and only ever responded to his Divine Name ‘Divine Twilight.’ He only remembered his true name again after Yool had used it to call him during the first time he had ended up in the .

Before that, Cadmus had been the only one who had tried to call Chang-Sun by his real name as much as possible. Although he still ended up mostly calling him “Hey” or “Rascal,” he still hadn’t forgotten about his true name even after hundreds of years.

“Living like you’re being hunted has already hurt you so much. Is it really necessary to keep living the same lifestyle even though you’ve already fulfilled your duties? You should stop doing all this and start living for yourself. Live with the people around you and be happy with them. This is... the final request that I didn’t get to say in the , so I thought I should say it now.”

That last sentence made Chang-Sun’s heart ache.

***

[Order has been restored in the .]

[The border between the and has been reestablished, allowing the ’s laws to manifest again.]

[The Door of Reincarnation, which had been temporarily closed, has reopened!]

Thuuuud....

Watching the Door of Reincarnation opening again, Chang-Sun dwelled on what Cadmus had told him.

“We’ll get to meet again if our destinies bring us together.”

At the time, Chang-Sun couldn’t let go of Cadmus’ hand. After all, he knew that he would never get to meet him again once he let his hand go. Having already told him goodbye once, saying it twice proved too painful. However, Cadmus himself had gently taken Chang-Sun’s hand off his before bidding him farewell.

What would Cadmus look like after he woke up in the again? Would he still be a mischievous but old-fashioned person? What about his gender? Male? Female? It would be interesting if he ended up reincarnating as a woman since it didn’t really suit him.

Would Cadmus retain his gift for martial arts? Since he was extremely skilled with a spear, Chang-Sun felt as if it would be awkward if Cadmus decided to pursue an academic career instead of practicing it.

No matter how Cadmus looked, it would be fun to meet him again. Hence, Chang-Sun thought about visiting him if he ever got the chance.

‘I won’t be able to find any trace of Gramps in that person, though...’

Chang-Sun bitterly thought. He would likely be the only one who would get to enjoy the encounter.

Upon passing through the Door of Reincarnation, souls would forget all about their past lives. Likewise, all the memories and nostalgia made by the human named Cadmus would disappear with his personality.

However, Cadmus had said that it was still okay. Not remembering anything wouldn’t be a problem because it was him and Chang-Sun. They would feel a connection that would allow them to start building a new relationship.

‘Nasty Gramps. Did he really have to act cool and tough until the end?’

Regaining his composure, Chang-Sun stopped himself from shedding tears.

Remembering Cadmus would be enough. After all, goodbyes paved the way for new hellos. As he repeated Cadmus’ words in his mind, Chang-Sun slowly walked down the hill to bid farewell before returning to the .

“Twilight! Where in the world have you been? We’ve been looking all over for you!”

At the foot of the hill, Chang-Sun ran into the children of the Emperor's Seat. They all looked tired and were sweating as if they had been running all around the place. Some of them even looked annoyed.

Chang-Sun’s eyes widened, not expecting them to search him. “Me...?”

They couldn’t believe their ears.

“Father is going to look for you as soon as he wakes up, so you can’t just leave the room without saying anything! You should at least tell us before you go!” one of the siblings yelled as he squinted at him. “Don’t tell me you were going to go back without saying anything.”

“...”

“You were actually going to do that. You’ve got to be kidding me!”

“Ummm...” Chang-Sun trailed off.

“Quit it and follow us! I won’t stop you from going, but you should say goodbye to Father and the others!”

Chang-Sun smiled. He could detect sincerity in the sibling’s annoyed voice.

***

Everyone was in the room of the Emperor's Seat, but he was still asleep.

“You’re leaving?” Qi Gong asked. When Chang-Sun nodded, he added, “Yeah, I guess you have to go since you have a lot of work to do. Although I want to tell you to go after Father regains consciousness, it’s not like we won’t see each other forever. Don’t worry. We’ll protect Father.”

“I trust you with him,” Chang-Sun said.

After glancing at Qi Gong and the others, who nodded, Chang-Sun turned back and walked forward.

“Be careful,” Qi Gong mumbled.

With a faint smile on his face, Chang-Sun began to teleport.

Woooosh!

[Teleporting to .]

[The destination is the Celestial ‘Kali’ at the Society .]

A pool of light enveloped Chang-Sun. When he opened his eyes again...

Roaaaaar―!

... a thunderous roar echoed.

[Dragon Fear of the Celestial ‘Primordial Evil Dragon’ dominates the world!]

“Oh, no...” Chang-Sun clenched his teeth.

It seemed that the situation had worsened a lot more than he had expected while he was away.

[The Celestial ‘Lie-Whispering Giant’ has sensed your presence!]

[The Celestial ‘Lie-Whispering Giant’ tells you to come quickly, adding that it is an emergency!]

...

[The Celestial ‘Wrath Incarnation’ clenches her teeth as she contains the rampage of the Celestial ‘Primordial Evil Dragon’!]

[The Celestial ‘Wrath Incarnation’ asks everyone to come to a decision because it seems too late!]

...

[The Celestial ‘A Good Season to Hunt’ pleads you to save her mother through the restored Channeling!]

[The Celestial ‘A Good Season to Hunt’ sheds tears as she tells you that her mother will be in real danger at this rate!]

...

[The Celestial ‘World-Encircling Serpent’ explains that the severity of the rampage is so high that even two of the Nine Heavens are having difficulty stopping it.]

...

After a series of messages, Kali quickly sent a telepathic message. 『Come quickly! The situation has become a lot more serious than we originally expected!』

At that moment, through his [Foretelling Eye], Chang-Sun saw an enormous, bizarre tree howling in the sky of ‘Nastrond.’ Numerous ghosts clung to the blood-colored tree, and black, impure energy quickly circled around it. The mere sight of the tree made him frown. He was very familiar with the stench that it emitted, too.

[‘Gaia's Curse’ is spreading!]

[Someone’s strong resolve has found you!]

Find. You. Interrupt. My. Sleep.

Having understood the information coming from the energy, Chang-Sun’s expression darkened.

‘No way...’

His jaw dropped.

‘The Mother Terra Celestial?’