The sun had been brilliantly shining in the center of the sky when they first came to the official residence, but by the time they went outside, the sun had turned red and was on the verge of falling under the horizon. Chi-Woo chuckled at the exhilaration of giving his brother a good punch. Then soon, he stopped laughing and reflected on the meeting among gold tiers just now. If it was like any other expedition, his brother wouldn’t have gathered them like this. The fact that his brother had personally delivered the news meant that this expedition was extremely important and difficult. It might be far more difficult than the Narsha Haram expedition; Chi-Woo couldn’t even fathom just how demanding it might be…
“Teacher.” While he was deep in thought, Ru Amuh came up to him. It seemed he was worried about Chi-Woo and had been waiting for him outside. “Are you all right?”
“No, we just finished a match.”
“What?”
“As expected, the legend lives up to his name. It wasn’t easy, but I managed to win. What a shame. Mr. Ru Amuh, you should have seen the legend begging for his life after he lost…”
“I-Is that really true? You beat the legend? But isn’t he your older brother….” Ru Amuh gaped in genuine surprise.
Chi-Woo blinked. He had merely told a joke as he was in a good mood, but how could Ru Amuh so easily believe him? It was only after he explained he was just joking and they talked it out that Ru Amuh’s expression turned into one of clear relief.
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“I see. I’m really glad. But Teacher, I didn’t know that you could also make a joke. It’s my first time realizing it. Haha.”
Chi-Woo stared at Ru Amuh, who was smiling awkwardly at him. He wondered how Ru Amuh thought of him sometimes. He recalled how his assistant, Mimi, told him that it could be detrimental for trust levels to be too high.
“Anyway, Teacher. About today’s meeting…what are you planning to do?”
“I was actually thinking about it.”
‘Hmm—’ Chi-Woo was quiet for a while and then said with a shrug, “Let’s eat first and think about it.” It was soon dinnertime; by now, there were probably baby birds sitting around the table waiting for their mother to feed them food.
“They say even the most enjoyable activities are only fun with a full belly, so let’s talk after eating dinner. All together.”
“Ah, yes! I agree.”
“Is there anything you want to eat?”
“Anything’s fine. Teacher, everything you make is delicious.”
“Please don’t lie.”
“I’ve never lied in my life.”
“During Vepar…”
“Ah.”
While the two chatted, Chi-Woo had to stop again because someone was waiting for him at the entrance to the main gate—a princess with neatly combed, platinum blonde hair. Apoline, who had been listlessly dragging her feet on the ground with her hands behind her, flinched as soon as she saw Chi-Woo. When their eyes met, she coughed and averted her gaze. Then she looked down at the ground and hesitated for a while.
Unlike Chi-Hyun, Chi-Woo did not act rudely and pass by someone who was obviously waiting for him. Ru Amuh was smart enough to notice that Apoline had business with Chi-Woo, and he quickly excused himself after saying, “I’ll go ahead.”
When only the two of them were left, Apoline finally opened her mouth. She let out the deep breath she had been holding the whole time and tilted her chin back. “Why did you do that just now?”
“?”
“During the meeting.”
“Ah…” It was because he was fighting an invisible battle of nerves with his brother; however, he couldn’t say it out loud because it was embarrassing that they were still fighting like this after becoming adults. “I thought it was too much.” Chi-Woo smacked his lips and continued, “He showed such aggression when there’s no harm in asking a simple question.”
“Yes, that’s true. He really was too much. It was an ungentlemanly action unbefitting of his reputation.” Apoline, who mistakenly thought that Chi-Woo had stepped up for her, vehemently nodded and agreed with him. She was excited to think that Chi-Woo had taken her side. However, when Chi-Woo stared at her, she quickly erased the smile off her face and schooled her expression into one of nonchalance.
“Well, I just want to say…thank you.”
“You don't have to thank me. I just did it because that’s what I wanted to do.” Chi-Woo said it without any thought, so he didn’t realize that his every word was becoming great manure to nourish the flower bed Apoline was growing inside her head.
“?!” She coughed and crossed her arms. “B-But even then, I am thankful. Of course, you did something wrong to me…but just now…you helped me out. I’m telling you this because the Afriliths’ revenge is sharp like a blade, but their grace is deep like the ocean.”
“…Ah, yes.” Chi-Woo nodded since Apoline wanted to express her gratitude even after he said it was all right.
Then a silence fell between them. Apoline was silent because she couldn't find anything else to say. ‘What should I do? I want to talk to him a bit more.’ It seemed as if he was going to quickly go on his way after saying, ‘Then I’ll be on my way. Goodbye.’ That anxiety made her speak up again, “D-Do you not have anything to say to me?”
Chi-Woo tilted his head; he was still trying to figure out what she meant by something he did wrong to her. What did he do? After searching through his memories, he recalled one or two incidents. He had shouted angrily at her at the entrance of the official residence because he was angry at his brother; now that he reflected on his past reaction, he felt a little sorry. He had taken his anger out on an innocent person, so from Apoline’s perspective, she must have been dumbfounded. She must have gotten very upset because he reacted like that when she was just trying to take care of him out of concern.
“…Is there nothing?”
When Apoline asked once more in a sullen tone, Chi-Woo quietly said, “There is. Have you eaten?”
Apoline blinked at the unexpected question. She was so taken aback that she almost said ‘No’, but she shook her head.
Chi-Woo asked, “Then, are you hungry?”
Apoline’s eyes widened. “What?”
“Let’s eat together.”
“Well…” Apoline gaped in surprise. “All of a sudden? Without any warning?”
Chi-Woo tilted his head at her flustered reaction. While she looked disgruntled, she didn’t seem to hate the suggestion. He wasn’t sure if she wanted to eat with him or not.
“You said you haven’t eaten yet.”
“But even then—”
“Do you not want to?”
Apoline struggled to maintain her good sense when Chi-Woo ambushed her with another startling question in quick succession. “Uh…it’s…I mean…” Her eyes spun in circles, and it might be because of the sunset, but her face was red like ripe persimmon.
“…That’s not it…” Apoline barely managed to answer and lowered her eyes and head again. Then she muttered once more in a quiet voice, “Yes, I would like to.”
* * *
Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Apoline tightly clutched her chest so that she could suppress her quickly beating heart and shyly followed Chi-Woo. However, her excitement soon turned into doubt because Chi-Woo was guiding her to his house. She had expected a nice restaurant and was shocked to be led to his place. She followed him inside with half-doubt and was soon faced with reality. She was left devastated when she saw many people huddled around a table, all waiting for Chi-Woo.
She didn’t move her gaze away from Chi-Woo, who told her to wait at the table and said he would soon come back with delicious food. It felt like a situation when a boyfriend said ‘Do you want to come over and sleep at my house tonight?’ in a romantic atmosphere, but once they arrived at his house, he lay down next to where his whole family was sleeping and told her to also quickly go to sleep.
“Oh my. You’re that pretty girl I saw before? Chi-Woo must have brought you here. Come on in.”
Evelyn ushered Apoline in and sat her along with everyone else at the table. She still had a dazed look on her face.
Sizzzle-! However, she found herself sniffing the air because a wonderful sound and savory smell that stimulated her appetite wafted from the kitchen.
Soon after, Apoline completely forgot about what had happened before and exclaimed joyfully with her mouth rimmed with grease, “Mmm! Mm! Ten more, here!”
“Ten more of what?”
“This, this right here. The red, wide circle!”
“Ah, you mean kimchi pancake. I got it.” While Chi-Woo made additional kimchi pancakes, Apoline gracefully finished the remaining ones. Everything about it was delicious, but the edges were the best by far. The crunchiness as she bit into it was heavenly! Everyone stared curiously at Apoline, who was eating the kimchi pancakes with such appreciation.
“You eat so well,” Byeok said. Although Byeok was also a big-eater and didn’t usually lose to other people, it was the first time she ever saw someone eat as well as Apoline. Without exaggeration, Apoline was already eating her 23rd kimchi pancake.
“How is all that food going into that small stomach of yours?”
Apoline’s lower abdomen popped out; it was to the extent that it stood out even through her clothes. However, her waist was still narrow, so she looked like she was pregnant. “Oh, this?” Apoline gulped down a pancake and grinned, “It’s not a problem.” Then she put her hand on her stomach and closed her eyes, and her rounded belly slowly shrunk and returned to its original state.
Ru Hiana exclaimed, “Wow! How did you do that?”
“It’s my constitution. I don’t think you’ll be able to copy it even if I teach you. It’s a trait that our family has.”
“I’m so jealous!”
“Haha. Yeah, you can be as jealous as you want. A certain amount of jealousy is completely fine with me.” While Apoline covered her mouth with the back of her hand and laughed, Byeok, who had been tilting her head, exclaimed softly, “Aha.”
Byeok continued, “I thought you seemed quite familiar. A special bloodline like that—you must be a child of the Afrilith.”
Apoline flinched.
“Let me see. I got it. Are you Arsillon and Evangeline’s child?”
Apoline’s mouth widened at Byeok’s remark, and she said, “You must know a bit about my family.”
“I sure do. I have a connection with them.”
“Really? Who are you, if I may ask?”
“Me? I’m Miss Byeok.”
Apoline’s reaction was immediate; she even dropped the kimchi pancake she cherished so dearly and said, “No way…Byeok Ran-Eum?”
Byeok’s silence was confirmation enough.
“Unbelievable.” Apoline shook her head from side to side. “Miss Byeok, when did you arrive?”
“As part of the ninth recruits.”
“But I haven’t heard anything about it?”
“It’s only natural since I don’t like to stand out unless I have to.”
Even with Byeok’s answer, Apoline looked like she had a hard time believing this. “But even then…there must have been at least one or two people who’ve seen you…”
Byeok snorted at her murmuring. “My name is well-known, but there’s not a single person among the ninth recruits who’ve seen my face before.” Byeok was such a famous examiner that anyone who caught her eye and received her teaching at the academy became champions. Since only an extremely small number of selected heroes ever had the chance to meet her in person, there were very few people who actually knew what she looked like. Apoline had also planned to enter the academy after gaining more experience, so she had heard Byeok’s name often. However, it was her first time seeing her.
“Uh…I’m sorry. I didn’t know,” Apoline said.
“No need to apologize. It’s fine, so continue eating,” Byeok replied with a generous tone. Byeok was strict only to her disciples and accommodated and acted normally to other people. “It’s nice to see you eat so well. Even the way you eat is similar to your mom.”
“Yes, thank you…” Apoline slightly smiled, thinking a famous examiner had a good impression of her.
Then Chi-Woo arrived with a plate stacked with freshly made Korean pancakes. “I’ve made ten extra for now, but do you want more of any other dishes?”
Apoline said, “It’s fine. Do you think I’m a pig? I had enough, so you should also eat some.”
Chi-Woo looked at the dozens of plates piled up in front of Apoline for a while, but he sat down without saying a word.
Before eating a few bites, Apoline asked as if she had been waiting to ask all along, “By the way, what are you planning to do?” She continued, “Anyway I see it, it seems like your brother…hm, the legend is trying to induce a competition between the Celestial Lights.” Everyone’s attention focused on Apoline as she introduced a new topic. “Of course, I don't hate competition, but it’s a bit too much this time. He’s making it too obvious.” Apoline continued with a smile as if she enjoyed the attention, “I have no intention to play his game as he wants. Mariaju and Eustitia also think the same. As for Ho Lactea…I’m sure she’ll do well. As always.” Of course, she ate more Korean pancakes as she spoke.
“Anyway, if you’re also planning to go and share the same thoughts as us, and you are in need of a magician, you can contact me. I’d consider an offer from you in a favorable light.” Apoline licked her greasy fingers and held them out toward Chi-Woo.
Chi-Woo wondered what she was doing all of a sudden, but he soon realized what she meant and presented his left wrist. After they finished registering each other as contact, Apoline slightly clenched her hand and cheered inside her head, ‘Yayyy!’
After they finished eating, Apoline said she would wait for his message and thanked him for the delicious meal before standing up. Her words seemed sincere, since her expression seemed extremely benevolent and soft as she left. After her departure, everyone else surrounded Chi-Woo and asked for a more detailed explanation about what they had discussed in the meeting, and Chi-Woo had to relay the information to them.
After hearing everything, Byeok said with a serious expression, “It’s not insignificant.” A double negative, meaning it was a significant issue. “Ismile Nahla… No way. Although he really loves to play, he’s extremely skilled…” Byeok rubbed her chin with a tone of disbelief.
Chi-Woo suddenly became curious about Ismile Nahla. He had heard his name many times, but didn’t know how strong he was. To be honest, by appearance alone, Ismile seemed like a jobless bum who just liked to play around.
So when he asked his master about him, Byeok looked at him with a dumbfounded expression. “…You must think the Nahlas, and Ismile of all people, as nothing special. Seriously, even if you grew up watching your brother…ah.” Byeok laughed but soon caught herself. She often forgot that Chi-Woo grew up knowing nothing. “Ismile is like that because he hasn’t raised his tier right now. But if he even recovers half of his original power, it would be difficult to find someone who rivals him among humankind.” Of course, Chi-Woo knew that Chi-Hyun was an exception among those opponents, since his master said his brother was always an exception. However, he couldn’t help but be surprised, since it was rare for his master to talk so favorably about someone given her personality. It was a surprisingly high rating.
“Then…are you saying that he’s almost as strong as Chi-Hyun?”
“Well, if I consider when Ismile was at his peak… Honestly, even Ismile can’t be compared to the legend. I’ve told you this many times; you shouldn’t use the punk Chi-Hyun as a measure.” Nevertheless, Byeok continued, “But if someone straps a bomb to my neck and tells me to pick one hero who can kill Chi-Hyun, I will pick Ismile without hesitation.”
At this point, Chi-Woo had no choice but to change his assumption. He was a frog who just got out of a well; as expected, there were many strong people in the world.
“Anyway, I don’t have a good feeling about this. Even though he doesn’t have a tier, he should have received a lot of backups from his family and retain his original skills…” Byeok’s face remained disgruntled. Then she glanced sideways at him and asked, “Are you planning to go?”
Chi-Woo hadn’t decided yet, but he was leaning strongly towards it. “Well…”
After getting stronger, he wanted to test his skills properly. Byeok sighed, saying she expected as much. Reluctantly, she continued, “My disciple, whom I’m fond of when he cooks.”
“Master, if you didn’t add the last part, I would have been moved by you for the first time.”
“Anyway, I want you to come back safely and cook for me again.” Then she quickly added, “You haven’t forgotten your promise to me, right?”
“Of course. Without your permission, I will never lift my seal—”
“Not that,” Byeok cut him off, and Chi-Woo scratched his head.
Beside that…ah, there was another promise. There was one more scenario where he could release the seals on his abilities without Byeok’s permission—if his life was at stake, and he couldn’t help it.
“Don’t forget that,” Byeok sharply said. “Whether it’s an honorable death or noble sacrifice, dying is dying in the end. If you die, that’s it.” Her words seemed to reach his very bones and left a deep impression.
The image of several heroes sacrificing their lives in the forest passed through his mind, and Chi-Woo naturally became solemn.
“You won’t die easily given your current condition, but don’t forget that this world is under a crisis at the galaxy level. The level of Liber’s middle-ranking bosses goes far beyond the final boss and mastermind of most worlds.”
“…”
“Since you never know, be extremely careful.” Byeok seemed to be very worried about him as she emphasized her words.
“Yes, I’ll etch your warning into my heart.” Chi-Woo would not forget what she said.
“Since they’re recruiting the tenth reinforcements now, there must be at least some grace period. If you’re going, be sure to prepare as best as you can. You should think carefully and choose who you want to go with.” With these words, Byeok finished everything she wanted to say.
However, there was still one more person who had business with Chi-Woo. Evelyn followed Chi-Woo back to the room and gave him a light slap on the back. “It seems like another difficult situation fell into your hands?”
“Ms. Evelyn, will you be joining me this time?”
“Before I answer that, there’s something I need to hear about first.” Evelyn said her business came first and asked bluntly, “Is Apoline, the girl just now, your third?”
Although it was a question that was completely out of the blue and asked without any explanation, Chi-Woo decided to calmly respond without getting flustered or feigning ignorance, “…First, I’ll tell you no and ask, who’s the second?”
“You’re not going to ask who’s first?”
“I think I know who it is even without asking.”
“You’re sharp. Fine, I’ll tell you. The second is Eshnunna.”
Chi-Woo calmly asked, “Why is that the case?”
“Because you saw her,” Evelyn answered with the same composure. “You have to take responsibility.”
Chi-Woo became speechless.
“For your information, I like both of them. Apoline is really pretty.” Evelyn laughed and said that she liked everything that was pretty before shaking her head.
Not just two, but three? His parents would faint if that really happened. Chi-Woo replied, “I don’t think it’s possible.”
“Oh my, that’s hurtful. Why?”
“I don’t know about my parents, but my brother would risk his life to stop that from happening.”
“Ha! That’s funny. Family opposition? With just…that…” Evelyn was about to say, ‘Do you think that can stop me?’ but was momentarily rendered mute when she recalled who Chi-Woo’s brother was. At the same time, she also thought back to how easily she had been overpowered by Chi-Hyun when she was an Abyss witch at the former Salem capital.
“…” It was now Evelyn’s turn to be speechless.