200. The protagonist of this novel (2)
I blinked. Somehow I was standing in a familiar place. I saw a sunset sky and a huge river.
I thought somewhere, and it was the three swords that came every time I drank poison. And, naturally, I was surrounded by my ancestors.
I thought I would go to the underworld of Hades because it was called the underworld, but wasn’t it… .
“Heh heh, I see you again.”
“Eh tsk tsk, tsk tsk, jeomma, I have finally crossed the three provinces.”
Somehow I thought my body was light, but my body had become translucent. Every time I came here, I greeted my ancestors from the other side of Samdocheon… .
Now I was standing on the other side of the river with my ancestors.
“How did you come?”
One of my ancestors asked. I was hesitant to answer. I couldn’t answer that I came because I was killed while fighting the devil in front of my ancestors.
The moment I say that, I’ll ask if I’m crazy. You might ask if I was shot in the head… .
Eventually, after hesitating, I answered vaguely.
“We fought a war.”
“War? Why are they attacking again? There was certainly a war in the year Imjin.”
The ancestor who said that was wearing a topknot on his head. Overall, it was a costume from the Joseon Dynasty. Costumes similar to those seen in historical dramas.
“uh… . It’s similar.”
“What, or did the communist army invade again?”
Is that ancestor a veteran of the Korean War?
“Communists? What is it?”
“Ah, the Reds I talked about the other day are those guys.”
“Ah, that redhead! Your partisan story was interesting.”
I watched the ancestors talking like that for a while. Soon the ancestors turned their attention to me again.
“I knew he would be a short-lived guy from the time he stopped by Samdocheon, but he’s still too young to die… . Too bad. draw.”
“I-I mean, that’s… .”
I chuckled. Certainly not too young for me to die.
“By the way, did you get married?”
That question reminded me of Sylvia. Come to think of it, I haven’t given him a name yet… .
“I have a kid. I haven’t seen her face yet… .”
My ancestors’ complexions darkened at my answer.
“This bastard, did you leave your wife a widow?”
“… It happened. I haven’t even given him a name yet.”
“What were you going to name your child?”
“That was harder than I thought… .”
It was definitely difficult to name the kid.
I should give it a proper foreign name, but I’m not talented in English.
“How is Deoksu?”
“yes… ?”
“I think Deoksoo will be fine with the child’s name… .”
Deoksu?
I was shocked at the name that could be used in the Joseon Dynasty.
“Brother, that virtue is fine. It’s a perfect name for a kid! I feel blessed and will become a general.”
“Ah, that… . Because I live abroad… .”
My ancestors blinked at the word foreign country.
“foreign country? What, is your wife Japanese? Until dirt gets in my eyes… !”
He died and got dirt in his eyes.
No, anyway, why do you have such strong anti-Japanese sentiment? Are you from the Japanese colonial era?
“No, wait a minute! Is Japan the only foreign country?”
“Is there any other foreign country besides Japan and China? What or is your wife a saekmokin and a kojaeng?”
I was dizzy trying to talk to my ancestors.
If the earth is round, aren’t these ancestors going black?
“Everyone please be quiet. Isn’t the descendant speaking now!”
The ancestor who seemed to be the eldest shouted. Only then did the whispering noise subside.
“So, where is your wife from?”
Speaking of wives, for some reason I thought of Tia, Tesha, and Vivian, including Sepia and Sylvia.
“uh… . So that’s the Ignis person.”
“Ignis? Is that something nasty?”
If it’s me, is it Los Angeles?
Not confident to explain, I roughly nodded my head. The world view itself was so different that the conversation did not work. Is this a generation gap?
“It’s nearby.”
I was worried about what to answer, so I roughly replied.
“Wow me. So, is your wife American?”
“What is it like?”
“Then, does the child also become a Kojaeng?”
uh… . I’ve never thought about it, but it seems so.
Suddenly, I wondered if it was a son or a daughter, whether the hair was black or silver.
“I don’t think I can die yet either.”
I can’t die because I’m curious about the color of my baby’s hair.
“You’re already dead, so you can’t die any more.”
“Heh heh, you bastard! Don’t make jokes about that newcomer.”
As I listened to the grim story, I felt dizzy again. I’ve heard that whenever someone says they’re going to die here, ‘I’m already dead, how are you going to die again?’ It is said that it is said that
“But if you cross the Samdocheon, will you come back to life?”
“The dead cannot swim. So how will you cross the river?”
I set my eyes on the river that stretched far away and then withdrew it. For some reason, I didn’t think to try jumping into the river.
“Then, what are you doing here?”
“Do you usually play long term? Would you like to play too?”
“I think that will be fine.”
Even so, I participated as a company representative when a battalion competition was held in the army.
“Looks like the rookie is playing long term.”
At that, the ancestors gathered one by one and formed a circle. Before long, I sat down on a table and played chess with my ancestors.
And lost three games in a row.
No, do these people only eat rice and play chess?
“Hehe, but it was pretty good for a newcomer. But I think your body is getting a little blurry… .”
I smiled once and bowed my head.
“It was a pleasure meeting you, Grandfather.”
“What? Jeomma, will you return to the ground? It’s the first time I’ve seen a guy who lives, lives, dies and comes back to life.”
“I can do that difficult thing.”
I slowly lowered my head and got up. The body that gradually became transparent was enveloped in light.
* * *
When I woke up, I was in the middle of the wilderness.
And the first thing I saw was numerous messages floating in front of my eyes.
[The most beautiful goddess cheers for your resurrection.]
[The goddess of wisdom smiles.]
[The King of the Underworld welcomes you.]
[Many gods welcome your resurrection.]
·
·
Leaving that message behind, I slowly got up and looked around. I saw Sepia looking down at me with red eyes.
And beside them were those who fought the final battle with Ahyeon and Reus, Anya and Sony.
“Edaan… . it’s okay? You survived, right?”
“yes… .”
Looking into the air, the floating castle was slowly falling. And Sepia was still crying. Tears filled my eyes.
“thank god. edaan… . I’m glad I got the Philosopher’s Stone.”
Sorcerer’s Stone.
It is the best consumption artifact that Ahyeon set up with Caladbolg, and like Caladbolg, it was possible to ask for its location before the battle through the magic book.
The place where Calad Bolg was located was the western dungeon of the continent, and the place where the Philosopher’s Stone was located was the abyss cave at the northern end of the continent.
According to Ahyeon, the Excalibur that Arthur used in the original work was broken, and Arthur tried to pull the twin sword, Calad Bolg, out of the rock.
However, it was a buried setting because the location could not be solved within the novel.
Thanks to the setting that only Ahyeon knew, I was able to obtain weapons to counteract Helya, who became the demon king, and obtain an artifact to revive.
While searching for the location of the two artifacts, I used up all of Remegeton’s Rights of Truth… .
If the Philosopher’s Stone didn’t work, there was a way to become a vampire through Ashron, who inherited the Queen’s power.
The reason Ashron left the imperial palace and left for the floating castle was because it would be difficult if Ashron died during the battle.
By the way, the reason why the world almost perished is because of Yoon Ah-hyun and the reason why I helped save the world is because of Yoon Ah-hyun. It felt like I was getting a little feverish.
“Ethan… . I’m glad you survived.”
Lund said. I felt ashamed that I had died and then came back to life.
“I think so too.”
“If there is such an artifact, why not report it in advance… .”
“sorry. Because I’m not sure… .”
It was something that didn’t even appear in the novel.
That’s why it’s there in the setting, but it’s unclear whether it can actually be used.
Lund nodded his head in response to my answer. As expected, Lee Seung-gi is good no matter where he rolls, so it was fortunate that he came back alive.
Thanks to the Philosopher’s Stone, the wound on his stomach had healed. It was said that it was an artifact that could heal Dainsleip’s wounds and even resurrect from death, but it was true.
“Are there any injured?”
At my question, Lund pointed backwards. Reus was looking at me with a puzzled face, probably because his arm was broken.
“Reus was slightly injured during the battle with Agares.”
“It’s nothing compared to dying and coming back to life like someone else.”
Reus’ words made me laugh. If you drink some potions and recuperate, your broken arm will heal quickly.
Fortunately, there were only injured people, but no fatalities.
After hearing the story, the sun rose again after Helya died, and thanks to that, all the vampires outside turned to ashes and disappeared under the sunlight.
Those inside the room said that when the sun rose, they pierced the ceiling and dealt with all the vampires, and subdued Agares with the party members who joined afterwards.
“Ethan… . Can I hug you?”
“However much.”
Sepia cried and hugged her. And I got up slowly.
“Anyway, Ethan. Welcome back.”
I smiled at Lund’s words.
* * *
Balcony of the Imperial Palace.
I stood on the balcony and looked up at the night sky for a while. At the party, everyone was toasting for a while.
The demon king had been defeated and there were still demons in the demon realm, but he planned to deal with them sooner or later.
So, today’s banquet was a short break before dispatching warriors to the demon realm.
Reus, Sony, Thia, Arlia, and Sepia were all enjoying the banquet. And I was standing here just because I wanted to get some fresh air by myself for a while.
[The most beautiful goddess winks at you.]
[The household goddess wonders what you will do.]
[The goddess of the sea is watching you.]
[Many gods show favor to you.]
·
·
Thetis is the goddess of the sea and the mother of Reus. Why are you snooping on my channel?
In the original work, Thetis was the one who took care of her son to the extreme.
A chuckle broke out at that thought.
I watched the message and slowly manipulated the system in the air.
“Wait a minute, I’ll turn off the channel.”
[The most beautiful goddess asks you not to turn off the channel.]
I was going to send more explanation, but… .
The channel had already been turned off.
After closing the channel, I opened a chat window and invited one person. Who I invited… .
[The alchemist of the century accepts your invitation.]
[The dialogue window with the alchemist has been activated.]
I leaned against the balcony wall as I watched the message in the air. The cool evening breeze tickled the tip of his nose.
[The alchemist of the century is watching you.]
“Are you watching? Alchemist of the century. No, Aleist Crowley.”
[The alchemist of the century affirms.]
Aleist Crowley.
A person called the best alchemist of the 20th century, and an alchemist who showed various eccentricities. When the occult story came out with the nickname Alei, I got a little bit of a sense, but I couldn’t believe it.
“You are the one who possessed Yoon Ah-hyun and me.”
[The alchemist of the century affirms.]
“You were possessed as well. Maybe it doesn’t have a body?”
[The alchemist of the century affirms.]
lost the body
He probably paid for his own body in exchange for possessing the two of them. Right now, only the mind is systematized and watching.
“The reason why I possessed Ahyeon a year later… . Did they give you a penalty because you are a writer?”
[The alchemist of the century affirms.]
Perhaps the reason why he possessed Ahyeon as Mine was because he predicted that Ahyeon and I would fight fiercely according to the new story he had envisioned.
Of course, Aleist’s thoughts may have turned upside down because I grew up too fast.
“I agree, is there anything else you can say?”
[The alchemist of the century denies it.]
“What else?”
[The alchemist of the century is watching you.]
[The alchemist of the century affirms.]
[The alchemist of the century denies it.]
·
·
Seeing that he used only those three phrases, it seemed impossible to have a more precise conversation than that.
“If it was enough to possess two people, the price would have been high… ?”
[The alchemist of the century affirms.]
In return, did Aleist Crowley lose his body and write only three phrases like that?
“How are you doing now?”
[The alchemist of the century is watching you.]
I forgot that the other person can only answer yes or no. I thought about it and asked the question again.
“Can we live forever without a body?”
[The alchemist of the century denies it.]
“Then, now that you have reached the ending, will you disappear?”
[The alchemist of the century affirms.]
“Is existence itself disappearing?”
[The alchemist of the century affirms.]
I let out a deep sigh. Possessing two people at will and then their very existence disappears. I wondered what the hell he was thinking.
“I guess this is the last alchemy you wanted to do.”
However, there was no response to the answer. Even after turning on the channel and searching for the Alchemist of the Century, he could not find his existence any further.
I sighed and looked up at the distant night sky.
There were still a lot of things I wanted to ask, but the conversation probably didn’t work out in the first place. And the current alchemist reached the ending and there was no answer as to whether the existence itself had disappeared.
I was left on the balcony. Without even getting a clear answer.
In the end, my adventure story ended with this.
It means that the adventure story is over. I remember suddenly falling into a different world, making a lot of mistakes, and struggling to get out of the center of the story somehow.
Climbing the mountain to survive, fighting while burying holy water with expensive swords in order to catch the first Mine, memories of slowly moving away from Sepia, and the feeling of meeting Rien on Arvia Island for the first time… .
The past days were reminded of each other, and emotions were mixed.
It would be a lie if I said I had no regrets.
Maybe if I had made a different choice then, I could have done better. If I had made a different choice then, this story could have reached a completely different ending.
A little more people might have been happy. I was lost in sentimentality, but I heard Sepia’s voice looking for me in the banquet hall.
“Edaan-! Where are you?”
It was only then that I could hear the conversations of the people laughing and chatting in my ears.
“Here! here!”
I waved my hand and turned around. Sepia came up to me and crossed her arms to lead me.
“Hee hee, Eda An, what are you doing here alone? people find Come with me.”
“yes. just what… . Because it’s bland.”
“If the main character of this party is missing, will you use it?”
I laughed out loud when he said he was the main character.
Hero… . be the main character
Maybe I could be the main character of this novel. The thought made me laugh again. Before long, I headed to the banquet hall with Sepia. Somehow, for today, I wanted to celebrate as the main character at a long banquet.
