Chapter 224: The Only Solution (1)
My consciousness fades.
At some point, the ground beneath my feet gives way.
I feel as if I’m endlessly falling down, down, down.
My senses grow dull.
My mind becomes hazy.
It’s a different feeling from the time I was fading away into nothingness.
This is… dying.
I call out to Mijeong with all my might, but she’s nowhere to be found.
I can’t see her or touch her.
Of course, that’s to be expected.
Humans are always alone at the moment of death.
‘I can’t die like this.’
If I die, Mijeong will die too.
Mijeong cast that curse on my body.
Not only that, but I haven’t taken Yerin out yet, and Gil and Julia are waiting outside…
In any case, I can’t die yet.
I have to survive.
I have to, I have to…!
-Gasp?!-
At that moment.
I felt my vocal cords vibrate and a voice burst out.
The feeling in my limbs returns, and my vision clears.
I thought I’d be covered in cuts and bruises from freezing and then thawing, but I was surprised to find that I was in better shape than I thought.
-I never thought I’d see you this often…-
-…?!-
At that moment, a ‘voice’ pierced my brain, sending chills down my spine.
It’s the voice of the Underworld God.
But for some reason, even though I heard the voice directly, I only felt a little bit of fear.
There was no adverse reaction, like coughing up blood or feeling like my head was splitting open.
-I didn’t expect to meet you for the third time. Who would have thought that someone would come to the Underworld three times without dying?-
The Underworld God murmurs in disbelief.
To tell you the truth, I’m so speechless that I feel like crying.
Who wants to see your face so often?
I feel like I’m going crazy from the awkwardness.
-Isn’t this fate? While you’re here, why don’t you take a look around the Underworld? It’ll be easier to do your job if you get a preview.-
-No… I’m fine…-
The moment I desperately rejected the Underworld God’s offer.
I felt something strange about my body.
I have senses, but they’re different from usual.
Only then did I realize that the sensations I was feeling now were not derived from the five senses of my physical body.
-What…?!-
-You’re only realizing it now? It seems like this is your first time leaving your body in spirit form.-
No physical body!
I thought I had transcended to the Underworld, soaring through the void.
But it turned out that my soul had separated from my body and was carried to the Underworld by the natural flow of spiritual energy.
‘This is crazy!’
Am I really dead?
Irrevocably and definitively?
I tried to stay as calm as possible and looked back.
It’s dark.
Just endless, pitch-black darkness…
No, only the physical body of the Underworld God, made of ghosts, stretches out endlessly.
Without a physical body, I can’t even use magic or mana.
I can still feel spiritual energy to some extent, though.The pull of the underworld that is drawing me in now is stronger than anything else, a situation where I cannot escape the flow of other forces.
I cannot go back.
Really, there is no way at all.
It was a situation where my limbs had been completely severed.
-Why are you trembling so? Raise your head.-
-I know it is a shameless request······. Please, just once, just once, can you not help me? Save me. If you give me a chance just this once, I swear to serve you in the underworld for eternity after death. So please······.-
-hahahaha! If you know it is shameless, then raise your head first!-
-······.-
What is so funny that the underworld god is laughing out loud?
I slowly raised my head and looked directly at the underworld god’s body.
In the pitch-black darkness, a faint glimmer of an idea could be seen inside.
It was a vivid idea, even though it was clearly not a person but an imitation of a person’s personality and emotions.
‘As expected. I must have already died to be able to look directly at the underworld god and be fine.’
When I was alive, just hearing the voice of the underworld god would cause damage to me.
I wonder if it is because I am in a soul state, but now I can look straight at it without any impact.
The underworld god, who had wrapped a black ghost in his body, looked at me with a piercing gaze, scattering his joyful thoughts.
-I think you already know, but it doesn’t matter if you have shame or not. I will only make sure that everything goes as it should. I have no intention of favoring anyone, including you. No matter what tempting conditions you offer, I will not agree to the contract. In the first place, the law cannot be twisted by a weak force like a contract.-
-Then, as expected–
-Yes. I have no intention of sending you back. No, intention······? Hmm. It’s a subtle choice of words. Willingness? This doesn’t suit something without a heart either. I’m borrowing human language, so I’m getting this far. Anyway, isn’t it enough to just understand the context?-
-Your words are just······. There’s no point in arguing······.-
-Exactly. So let’s talk during the break.-
-Okay. Do as you wish.-
I kicked my feet a little, feeling a little resigned.
Then, my spirit body, free from the constraints of gravity and the body, floated up.
I delved into the darkness as it was, and soon the scenery of the underworld unfolded before my eyes.
-It seems that you are doing well in the task I gave you.-
-Task? Ah······. You mean this.-
I took the flowers out of my pocket and looked at them.
Yellow jasmine, black equipment, blue cyclamen, and red camellia.
As a spirit body, I guess I brought them with me because they were modeled after the way I looked just before I died.
Of course, only the appearance is implemented, and the flowers themselves have not actually come here.
All the flowers have regained their vitality, starting with the cyclamen, which has regained its light after being filled with Yerina’s mystery.
No. The camellia seems to have been fresh from the beginning until now.
But what is the use of all this······.
I’m already dead.
-The placenta that forms you is the fate that passed you by. So it was an excellent judgment to create a new inner world based on this. If you had taken one of your essences and tried to base it on that, it would have failed miserably. If you did that, it would not be a new creation, but a regeneration. It seems that you have not forgotten what I said about regeneration being impossible.–······.-
Regeneration is impossible.
However, it is possible to create from the beginning.
After hearing those words, I immediately ordered Mijeong to pluck the flowers inside me.
Although they are not my essence, my purpose and joy in life were all there.
In fact, my essence doesn’t matter.
No matter what happens, I just wanted to be there with the women I love and have memories with them.
-If it’s those flowers, they’ll be enough to create and maintain the inner world. I, the King of Hell, will guarantee it.-
-Thank you······.-
-And that black one, did you make it yourself?-
-Yes, that’s right. I thought it would be easier to deal with the Five Mysteries······.-
My will gathers in my hand and forms the shape of a transparent sword.
The sword, which has absorbed even the secrets of Yerina’s Five Mysteries, is harder and sharper than ever.
It is not the sword that seemed to scatter and fly away with a single gust of wind like before.
Now, it has surpassed the real sword, and it can be compared to a magic sword.
It seems that if I sharpen it further here, it will become even stronger.
In the meantime, I can summon it even in the state of a spirit body because it is made of my will.
-That was also a great choice. I don’t know much about the Five Mysteries or swordsmanship······, but I know that the sword can touch the essence of things. If you use that sword well, it will be of great help in cutting, opening, and unfolding the inner world. It’s an excessive tool for humans, no matter how you look at it.-
-Thank you······.-
All my expectations were met.
I recharged before the flowers wilted.
I gathered the three Five Mysteries and sharpened the sword with my will.
I acted intuitively, but it was all the right judgment.
With this, I have finished all the preparations to build a new world inside me.
However, at the very end, I failed.
In vain, I died.
It’s frustrating and heartbreaking.
Tears are about to boil over.
However, since there is no such thing as a physiological phenomenon of the flesh, I was able to suppress it sufficiently with my will.
The god of the underworld, who had been staring at me, spoke quietly.
-Do you regret it?-
-I’ve already given up on regrets. It was a valuable life.-
-Have you given up?-
-No, I have never given up hope, and I never will. I will probably continue to dream of resurrection. I will not resort to evil methods such as necromancy······. I will probably be looking for a way to return to the present world forever.-
-hehehehe······ Is that so······. It’s annoying to keep teasing you. Wake up now. You are not dead yet.-
-Yes?-
What is this guy saying now?
My mind is probably confused.
-Have I ever treated you as a dead person? I’ve always treated you as a guest. I was wondering how long you would think you were dead, but it seems like it will never end.-
-Then what is this······?-
-I guess you’re in a coma right now. Your body is dead, but your spirit body has not yet been marked with the mark of death. However, the aura of death in your soul is so strong that it seems to have accidentally flowed into the underworld. Perhaps if you learn the art of astral projection, you will be able to freely enter and leave the underworld at any time.-My face flushed.
He said I wasn’t dead yet, but in a coma?
I was speechless and relieved at the same time.
Anyway, I can go back and forth between the underworld and my house through astral projection…
It sounds terrible.
I will never learn astral projection, even if I die.
-They say that a person’s true nature comes out at the last moment of their life. Thanks to you, I saw your true nature. I’m really looking forward to your afterlife. A human assistant! Ah! It’s been a while!-
-I’ll go back now. It was fun.-
I turned my back on the underworld god who was shouting in ecstasy and covered my ears.
This is really my last trip to the underworld.
I have to do a lot of good deeds so that I don’t have to come to the underworld when I die…
I swore to myself over and over again.
And when I opened my eyes.
The blue cyclamen in my hand flashed brightly, and I began to feel a strong force pulling my spirit somewhere.
I knew instinctively.
Yerina was calling me.
And my body was coming back to life.