Water tasted fresher when one was thirsty, and fruit sweeter the hungrier the eater was. Likewise, a declaration of victory was the most welcoming when it had been a difficult battle. That was the case for their recent feat: they succeeded in rescuing the eighth recruits, including heroes from several influential families, secured a new god, established a godly territory, and formed an alliance with the Cassiubia League.
This achievement brought new vigor to humans. They were amazed that they had managed to deal with two factions out of the four vying for control over Liber and succeeded in their first official mission since coming to the capital. They began to finally feel hope that they could do something even though the world was in ruins. Of course, their forces were still too embarrassingly small to be called formidable, but they were hopeful that their group would continue to grow and progress.
This change in thought was evident in the atmosphere surrounding the city. The heroes who had looked at the rescue team with pity at their departure now looked envious. The majority of the rescue team had gone up to bronze rank, and there were several who moved to silver. And above all, one of them became the first to reach gold rank: Ru Amuh. This news became so big that Ru Amuh gained as much attention as the heroes from the Celestial Realm’s twelve lights.
Ru Amuh was perfect in every way; he was handsome, had no noticeable faults in his personality, and his skills were evident. Thus, everyone wanted to get acquainted with him, but Ru Amuh’s attention was elsewhere.
“Um…” After finishing his training, Ru Amuh turned on his device and checked his inbox. He was disappointed to see that it was empty, and the message he had sent hadn’t been read yet. With his hand propping his jaw, Ru Amuh stared at his inbox for a while and felt a presence entering the room. He turned to find Ru Hiana looking expectantly at him.
“Is he there?” Ru Amuh asked, and Ru Hiana shook her head.
“Did you get anything in your inbox?”
Ru Amuh shook his head. “Nothing. My message hasn’t even been read.”
“Same for me.” Ru Hiana sat down on one of the chairs and sighed. She licked her lips for a while and said carefully, “It sure is strange.”
“I’m not sure. It’s too early to jump to conclusions.”
“Think about it, Ru Amuh. You know how diligent Senior is,” Ru Hiana said after fixing her posture. “I’ve never seen Senior skip a day of training before. He always ran in the same place at the same time every day, but now he didn’t show up two days in a row. He’s not in his house either. Does that make sense to you?” It seemed that saying her worries aloud made her even more nervous, and Ru Hiana chewed on her lip anxiously.
“Could it be—”
“No,” Ru Amuh cut her off. “I’m sure he has his reasons. Moreover, you know he isn’t someone who would easily be harmed.”
Hearing this, Ru Hiana’s complexion brightened. “Yeah, that’s right. He’ll probably come back soon, right?”
“Yeah. Don’t worry, and let’s wait a bit more.
* * *
Meanwhile, Chi-Woo was experiencing firsthand how much boredom could torment a person. He had given up on his plans to escape; as expected, his brother had used all kinds of tricks to keep him here. Obviously, the door didn’t open. It was meaningless to try to break the wall or dig through the ground. Everything he did bounce right off, and no matter how much he made a fuss, nothing worked. Chi-Woo had been determined to never give up in most situations, but this was too much.
—This place is completely blocked both on the inside and the outside. It appears to be barriers created from a mental image, and there are more than a couple. Even I ain’t sure if I would be able to break through this at my peak, much less you.
—You asked if you could go through it like the spatial barrier we encountered before. To tell you the truth, this one makes that barrier seem like child’s play in comparison.
—Fuck. The more I think about it, the more it shocks me. Who in the world is this guy? How did he create something like this in that short period of time?
It was through Philip’s words that Chi-Woo realized how serious his situation was. Even if wanted to request help, he couldn’t use his chat. In the end, the only thing he could do was to protest through voluntary fasting. Chi-Woo thought Chi-Hyun would at least check up on him before he died from starvation, and because of that, Chi-Woo had been blankly staring up at the ceiling.
‘Should I just die…?’
—No, don’t do that.
Philip intervened. It seemed he had regained his vigor after almost getting extinguished. Chi-Woo envied Philip’s fast recovery.
—What happened, happened. Why don’t you train now?
‘…Here?’
—It doesn’t matter where you are. There are countless pieces of training you can do even in a place like this.
Chi-Woo couldn’t refute this.
—Plus, don’t you want to pay your brother back?
‘Huh?’
—This is you we’re talking about. You may be struggling now, but your potential is unreal.
‘Still…wouldn't it be difficult?”
—I’m not telling you to beat your brother. I’m telling you to escape from this place. It’s impossible to do either right now in your current state, but things could change if you grow stronger. I think you have a chance. Didn’t you do a lot recently and earn merits?
‘Ah…that’s right.’ Chi-Woo’s dull eyes sparkled once again. He hadn’t thought about it as all his attention had been on his brother. With La Bella’s gift inside his heart, Chi-Woo didn’t even have to worry about not having a connection with the outside. He instantly got to his feet and leaned against the wall before turning on his device.
<Fostering Information>
[User Choi Chi-Woo’s Merit Count: 576, 837]
1. Inherent – [Core of Balance F] (53,295 Up↑!)
2. Inherent – [Divine Blood F] (11,789 Up↑!)
3. Inherent – [Golden Ratio AAA] (2,217,392 Up↑!)
4. Inherent – [Halo F] (1,051 Up↑!)
5. Inherent— [Divine Inspiration F] (2,036 Up↑!)
“…What?”
—Is something wrong? How much did you get?
“No, wait.” Chi-Woo closed his eyes and opened them again. Then he shifted his gaze away before looking back at his device. The number of merits he had accumulated remained unchanged.
‘Is this real…?’ A total of almost six hundred thousand merits. He had expected a large number, but not this much. What happened?
‘Ms. Mimi?’ Chi-Woo called out in his head.
[…]
No response came. Chi-Woo thought it was strange; she used to pop up all the time without him prompting.
‘Ms. Mimi? Mimi-chan?’
Again, Mimi didn’t answer. Chi-Woo checked to see if he had muted her, but no, she could speak.
[…Yeeees…]
It was then he finally heard Mimi’s voice.
[Did you call me?...]
She sounded like she was dying.
‘W-What is it? Why do you suddenly sound like that?’
—M-Mademoiselle? You don’t seem to be in a good condition.
Both Chi-Woo and Philip were taken aback.
[No…I’m fine…Haaaa…]
Mimi sighed deeply.
[Yes… You accumulated…so many merits because…you revived a god and moreover…established a godly territory… Thus, it was judged that…you made an important impact on the flow of this world…]
Mimi didn’t seem fine at all even after claiming to be. She sounded like she had gotten a stern rebuke recently.
—Uh…Mademoiselle?
Philip asked with surprise.
—You sound tired…but we need your help right now. This boy is locked here because of his brother.
[That’s why I—!]
—Sorry?
[….No, anyways, go on please…]
—…Well, since there’s no way he can escape his current situation, he needs to accumulate power somehow. And to increase his possibility of doing so, we need your help.
Although Philip could help Chi-Woo in training, he was ignorant about matters relating to the user information. As someone who knew the growth system well, Mimi could guide Chi-Woo to the right path. The problem was Mimi seemed to be in a questionable state.
For a moment, Mimi didn’t reply, seemingly deliberating something.
[Yes, I understand.]
Her voice suddenly became clear, and her tone was firm.
[Why don’t I give it a try? Ah, fuck it.]
‘…What?’
[It’s so unbelievably unfair that I can’t take it….Let’s screw that bastard over at least once.]
Chi-Woo and Philip glanced at each other. For some reason, Mimi had suddenly fired up.
—Yes, that’s exactly what we wanted.
It seemed all three of them had resentment to unravel.
[He better be prepared. We will show him a completely new version of you.]
Chi-Woo nodded with great determination, clenching his fists and getting up.
—Hear, hear!
Philip raised his arm high and shouted.
—One!
[Ohhhhhh!]
Mimi joined in.
“Good! What should I do first?”
—Eat!
“What?”
—We can only start things once you get some food in you.
While the three of them flared up with passion, united under a common goal, there was a sudden knock on the door. Chi-Woo turned around and was shocked to see a figure he didn’t expect.
“This is your meal… Ah, and let me warn you that even if you try to escape, you will be led right back.”
Chi-Woo, who was about to use this opportunity to make a run for it, stopped.
“Do you think he’ll be that sloppy?” Noel Freya spoke with a cold expression. “And…this is a message from him.” She continued talking while looking at the food Chi-Woo had left untouched on the floor. “Eat while I’m still asking nicely. Unless you want me to shove it down your throat.”
“…” That was something his brother would do. Noel Freya handed him a reddish soup that seemed to have various ingredients mixed in, and to Chi-Woo’s surprise, there was something that looked like rice in it.
“There’s rice on Liber?”
“You talk like a hero who just came from the Celestial Realm.” Noel Freya sounded strangely sarcastic. “There are many who react as you did. Foolish and ignorant people who think that the culture of the planet they were born and raised on is the best. It’s ridiculous they would think like that when the universe is so vast.”
Chi-Woo wasn’t mistaken about Noel Freya’s hostility. She was being very aggressive. She hadn’t been like this not long ago.
“As I’ve told you before, Sir Chi-Hyun considers food, clothing, and shelter extremely important, and he values food the most.”
Chi-Woo realized he shouldn’t have asked a question, since Noel had a knack for connecting all topics to his brother.
Noel continued, “Of course, the food culture here has temporarily declined because of the current situation, but it hasn’t always been like this.”
Now that he thought about it, he had heard similar words from another person.
[Do you think we’re savages?]
When he showed how surprised he was to find sauces on Liber, Eshnunna had rebuked him for his ignorance; Chi-Woo had nothing to say this time, either.
“Everywhere, people live similarly. Liber is no exception. Thanks to Sir Chi-Hyun’s efforts, Liber is steadily recovering, and this meal is proof of that.” Noel Freya held out the bowl she brought.
Chi-Woo agreed that compared to eating military ration he couldn’t even begin to describe, the food available to them had significantly improved from before.
“…I talked for too long for no reason.”
Anyway, regardless of Chi-Woo’s social faux pas, Noel Freya’s attitude had definitely changed. It was clear that she didn’t think too well of him. She must have thought he was some kind of criminal since his brother had locked him up.
Noel continued, “You should do as he says while he’s being nice.”
Chi-Woo had planned to stop his hunger strike anyway, so he decided to eat the food that Noel handed him. ‘I’m gonna eat and train hard and kick Hyung’s ass,’ he murmured to himself and took the bowl from Noel before carefully scooping up a spoonful. It seemed to be something like a rice soup.
“Let me try…what the, sppff!”
“What are you doing!” Noel Freya yelled at him. Chi-Woo had started to obediently eat as per Chi-Hyun’s order, but spat everything out as soon as he stuck the spoon into his mouth.
“It tastes downright awful.”
“What—what did you say?”
“Geez, my appetite is completely gone. Why is there so much of it?” It seemed that whoever cooked this had tried to make the soup spicy, but it just tasted sour and bland.
“Can’t you hurry up and finish it?”
“I won’t be eating it. Is this even a meal? It’s trash!”
“Y-You bastard…! How dare you insult his cooking…!”
“My bro… He made it?” Chi-Woo put on a nonchalant expression as Noel furiously scolded him. ‘I’m surprised.’ It seemed that Chi-Hyun had put all kinds of different ingredients into the soup, but ended up completely ruining the harmony of the different tastes and even creating a fishy smell. This was the perfect example of a newbie cook getting overly ambitious. Anyway, the end result was an utter failure, but Chi-Woo was still surprised that his brother had cooked for him.
“Eat it!”
“No, I can’t stomach this even if you beat me to death. Would you be able to give me the ingredients that were used to make this instead? I think I might be able to salvage it.”
“How ridiculous! A criminal shouldn’t be complaining about food!”
“I’m not a criminal, and if you don’t want to, why don’t you just take it back? I definitely ate at least a spoonful anyway.” Chi-Woo lay down on his back and thought even military ration tasted better. It would be too sad to train after eating such bad food.
“Agh!” Noel wanted to kick and stomp on him as much as she wanted, but she was here for a special mission—to make this person here eat somehow. Even though she was angry, fulfilling Chi-Hyun’s order was more important. In the end, she gritted her teeth and came back with a handful of ingredients.
* * *
It had been a while since Chi-Woo showed off his culinary skills. Afterward, Chi-Woo ate as much as he could, and Noel Freya reported to Chi-Hyun with half of the meal left. Chi-Hyun ordered her to tell him every single thing that happened in the secret room.
“He did eat.”
“…But he didn’t finish eating everything.”
“Yes, he said there’s too much, and you should prepare a moderate amount next time. The audacity, sigh!”
“Hmm…” Chi-Hyun carefully observed the bowl that Noel Freya brought back. “It looks a bit different from what I made?”
“Ah, about that…”
After hearing what had happened, Chi-Hyun showed keen interest.
“Give it to me.”
“What?”
“Pass the bowl to me.” Instead of waiting for her to do it, Chi-Hyun reached out and made the bowl float to him.
“My lord?” Noel was appalled to see Chi-Hyun getting a spoonful of the leftovers.
“Why are you eating that? I’ll finish it!” Noel shouted, but Chi-Hyun lifted his hand to say that it was okay.
“Hm, Hmm.” He continued eating rather than stopping after a spoonful. In the end, he finished the whole bowl and finally put down his spoon.
“Pweh. It’s been a long time since I’ve eaten so well.” He was so focused on eating that sweat began dripping down his forehead. “It’s delicious.”
Noel Freya frowned. When Chi-Woo ate earlier, he had said this was the best he could do with an extremely disappointed look on his face.
“Come to think of it, he did want to be a chef at one point… He didn’t lose his skills.” Chi-Hyun muttered to himself with a wry smile.
“But why would you eat that dirty food…”
“No, it’s not dirty. When we were young, we even fought to eat the gum chewed up by Mom.”
“?” Noel Freya couldn’t believe her ears.
“Anyway, I can’t believe he made something so delicious with ingredients he was seeing for the first time…” Chi-Hyun tapped on his desk and slowly smiled. “When I think about it, it’s always been like this.”
Noel Freya blinked.
“There was this game we played together when we were young.” Chi-Hyun suddenly started a random story, but Noel paid keen attention. It was the first time she was hearing about his childhood. Chi-Hyun continued, “At first, I won. He got so frustrated after he lost.” Chi-Hyun broke into a soft smile as he recalled the memory. “I teased him a bit because I thought it was funny, but…” Chi-Hyun had actually teased him more than he should because he thought Chi-Woo looked cute. Chi-Woo gritted his teeth and vowed revenge, and Chi-Hyun jokingly told him to give it his all and try harder.
Chi-Hyun continued, “One day, he asked me to play another round with him. I wasn’t serious at first, but…” Chi-Hyun lost. He lost so badly that he couldn’t make any excuses or blame it on anything. “Even when I played seriously, I lost.”
In retrospect, something similar had happened more than once. Another example was when Chi-Woo learned how to perform the tea ceremony. Their mother was an enthusiast, and Chi-Hyun, who had grown up seeing it since he was young, was also interested in the art. It was only natural that Chi-Woo would get into it as well, and after practicing alone for a few days, he presented an astounding tea ceremony not only for himself, but also for their mother. According to her, Chi-Woo had displayed the ideal etiquette when serving tea, and since then, their mother had desperately wanted to see Chi-Woo perform the tea ceremony again, but by that time, Chi-Woo had lost his interest. Yes…it had always been like that.
Chi-Hyun said, “When he starts to get interested in something…he always shows a remarkable achievement. If it weren’t for his damned fate, he would have already made quite a name for himself.” And this was the reason why he was so conflicted and concerned. “That’s why…I’m genuinely worried.” Chi-Hyun wondered if he was doing the right thing. Liber’s condition was at its worst. If they wanted to survive, they needed to grow their power, and to effectively grow their power, he needed to teach his brother.
But what if Chi-Woo became interested and found enjoyment in this work? Chi-Hyun wasn’t confident he would be able to stop his brother then. No—he knew he wouldn’t be able to, as had always been the case. Rather than teaching Chi-Woo how to fish, Chi-Hyun wanted to catch fish for him instead. ‘But I know I shouldn’t do that.’ If things went wrong and Chi-Woo ended up dead, everything would be over. Everything his parents and he had ever done would become meaningless.
Chi-Hyun let out a long sigh. He finally took his eyes off the bowl and looked up. “Noel Freya.”
“Yes, sir!” Noel Freya, who had been quietly listening with a puzzled expression, immediately snapped to attention.
“Can I…trust you?”
At that moment, Noel Freya had a hunch that Chi-Woo was going to say something extremely important. She stood upright and put on the most determined and serious expression she could muster.
Chi-Hyun stared at her and finally said, “There’s one person I’d like to introduce to you—just you, for now.”