Chapter 422
“Thank you for the meal.”
The feast that had once filled the table had completely disappeared.
Looking up with a serious expression from across the table, Eun-Ha paused her hand, which had been diligently jotting down notes in her notebook.
“Are there any other areas for improvement?”
Seeing her brimming with enthusiasm to turn what she learned about his tastes into her next dish, Se-Hoon thought seriously for a moment.
“The taste and composition were both excellent, just as I said before. As for the rest... if I were to nitpick, there’s just one thing that bothered me.”
“Please, go ahead.”
“It’s that I was eating alone from the middle onwards.”
“...Are you saying you’d like to share the meal with others?” Not sure what he meant, Eun-Ha tilted her head slightly.
It was a typical response for her, making Se-Hoon let out a small chuckle.
“No. What I mean is that I’d like to eat with you, Dean.”
“...”
Caught off guard, Eun-Ha’s expression wavered.
“...Wouldn’t someone grinding down weapons with their teeth at the table ruin your appetite?”
Ever since she awakened her unique skill, Eun-Ha rarely ate with others. She was well aware her way of eating would likely appear unnatural or even uncomfortable to those around her.
Maybe she also hates being different.
Recalling how Eun-Ha had always eaten alone even before the regression, Se-Hoon shook his head.
“That kind of thing wouldn’t affect my appetite. I don’t mind at all.”
“But... if fragments or something were to fly around—”
“Dean.”
Stopping her there, Se-Hoon looked at her firmly.
“I would always rather eat together with you. There’s no doubt about that.”
Hearing the conviction in his voice, Eun-Ha silently observed him before slowly lowering her gaze to her notebook.
“I will... take that into consideration.”
Her vague response made Se-Hoon smile wryly.
Well, I guess I can’t expect her to change all of a sudden.
Eating alone was a deeply ingrained habit for her, after all. He already knew he would have to wait until she was ready.
Satisfied with that, Se-Hoon changed the topic. “If you’re going to cook for me again next time, let me know a day in advance. I’ll prepare a ton of weapons you like in return.”
“Hmm. Understood,” Eun-Ha said with a nod, seemingly satisfied with the arrangement.
With that said, Se-Hoon got up from his seat. “Shall we clean up now?”
“Ah, I can—”
“It’ll be faster if we do it together.”
As Se-Hoon gathered the empty containers, not taking no for an answer, his phone vibrated in his pocket. Feeling it, he paused what he was doing and pulled it out to check the message without thinking much of it.
Luize: Hey
His eyes instantly flickered with unease at the name of the sender. The message was just a single word, yet he could already picture Luize with her frosty expression and a raised fist, ready to hurl insults at him.
He mentally braced himself for the incoming storm... of curses...?
“...?”
Nothing else followed; the screen remained silent.
Is she going to call me instead?
He waited, yet there was no incoming call, either. Torn, he hesitated before sending a reply: What’s up?
The read receipt followed a second after he hit send, and a response came back not even a beat later.
Luize: What are you doing right now?
Her message lacked the fury he expected. For some reason, it was oddly... composed?
Wondering over the reason, Se-Hoon quickly pieced things together.
Is she not aware of what I did yet?
Thinking back, that made sense. Luize wasn’t well-informed about the members of Dawn, so it wasn’t strange she hadn’t realized yet—he had been overthinking.
Relieved, he continued the conversation.
Se-Hoon: Why ask?
Luize: Wait, that was a typo. I meant to say, did you have dinner yet?
Se-Hoon: Dean Ryu brought me a lunchbox, so I ate that.
Luize: Wh
Luize: Okay, I think I need to change to a new phone. This thing is acting up.
Her texts, though seemingly calm, conveyed an undercurrent of irritation.
Did Amir tell her already?
Was she already aware of everything and was just waiting for an apology? Overthinking again, unnecessary thoughts flooded his mind. And at that moment, another message popped up.
Luize: If you don’t have any more plans today, let’s meet later. I have something to talk about.
Se-Hoon: What is it?
Luize: If you’re curious, find out for yourself. I’ll be at your dorm park by 2. Be there.
He blinked, and she had set up an appointment. Se-Hoon couldn’t help but feel a strange tension creeping in.
Wait, it’s just a conversation. Why am I getting nervous?
Although he couldn’t figure out what was causing him to worry so much, one thing was clear: it was because his synesthetic mindscape had definitely changed. Regardless, he had to mull over how to approach the conversation—
“Se-Hoon?”
Snapping him out of it, Eun-Ha, who had been organizing the containers, looked at him curiously.
“Ah, sorry. A friend just texted me.”
“Hmm... Is someone troubling you?”
Had it shown on his face? She clearly asked with mild concern. He opened his mouth, intending to brush it off, but then he hesitated.
Actually... is there any reason to keep it to myself?
Since he seemed to be emotionally charged anyway, hearing another’s perspective could actually help.
“Well...”
He gave her a quick summary.
After hearing it, Eun-Ha inadvertently let out a mutter, seemingly to herself, “Idiot.”
“...Sorry?”
“Ahem. My apologies. I didn’t know that would slip out of my mouth.”
Glossing over her slipup, she calmly advised, “I think you should just be honest and explain the situation to her properly.”
“Hmm...”
“Your overthinking might annoy her even more in this state. So, it’s best not to bring that up.”
Blunt yet practical advice. He was caught slightly off guard by it, but soon nodded in agreement.
“Got it. I’ll do that.”
While he wasn’t entirely sure if things were going to be resolved that easily, if Eun-Ha being that confident, then she probably had her reasons.
“I should get going now. Will you be alright on your own, Dean?”
“Of course. Don’t worry about me.”
“Alright. Then, I’ll be off. Thanks again for the meal.”
“Yes. Take care.”
About to teleport away, a thought struck him. With a grin, he called out to her.
“Let’s eat together next time!”
And before she could respond, he vanished.
Now alone in his workshop, Eun-Ha paused, in deep thought. When she moved again, the first thing she did was pull out her notebook and underline a new entry, even adding a star next to it.
Make sure to eat together next time. *
***
Seated on a bench at the park, Luize shot Se-Hoon an annoyed glare.
“You’re late.”
Se-Hoon smiled awkwardly.
“Sorry. I’ll make sure not to be late next time.”
Having expected him to retort, Luize was caught off guard by his immediate apology. Flustered, she quickly cleared her throat.
“Ahem. Glad you know what you’ve done wrong. ”
With the conversation going nowhere after that, Se-Hoon saw that she clearly did not intend to move elsewhere, so he sat down next to her. But when Luize glanced his way, he instinctively scooted slightly to maintain some distance.
“...You seem to be busy lately. What’ve you been up to?”
“The usual. Cleaning up after the Demon Force, tracking the next targets, preparing for the future—you know how it is.”
It was the routine he had grown accustomed to over the past year. In fact, not thinking about those things felt stranger.
“Wow... I’m surprised by how you’re still going after them. Most people would take a break after something like that.”
Even Luize herself, known for her relentless work ethic, sometimes felt lacking when she compared herself to him.
“It’s really not that extreme, though. It’s not like I don’t sleep or something.”
“By normal standards, it’s not too far off... never mind.”
Luize shook her head, deciding not to argue. And after a brief pause, she spoke again. “I actually have something I want to show you.”
“Oh? What is it?”
“So... uh... well...”
Luize hesitated, fidgeting with her hands in the pocket of her hoodie. Then, out of the blue, she uttered an incantation.
“...”
Her voice—too obscure to comprehend—echoed through the air, and shortly after, a gray sphere materialized in front of Se-Hoon’s eyes.
“Wait, isn’t this...?”
He knew at a glance that it wasn’t composed of ordinary mana but divine mana—or more precisely, Divine Power, which stemmed from his earth mana.
Speechless, Se-Hoon just started at the completely unexpected scene.
“Ahem.
So, what do you think?” Luize asked, stealing a glance at his reaction.“How did you do that? And what was that incantation just now?”
It felt similar to conventional Incantation Magic, yet it also felt like a completely different technique.
Seeing his interest piqued, Luize proudly explained. “I developed a new type of incantation while training my divine mana. I’m calling it Divine Speech for now.”
“Divine... Speech?”
A new form of Incantation Magic specifically tailored for handling divine mana. Processing her explanation, Se-Hoon quickly understood why her Divine Speech was so similar to his Divine Power.
Luize has also started perceiving the Golden Ring like a machine, just like I did.
Given how he had taught her to think that way from the beginning—and how her Incantation Magic was already specialized in that direction—it was only natural that she evolved along similar lines.
Which means... Divine Speech is a technique that allows direct communication with the Ring?
If it were, then it was strikingly similar to the power of Grace. The only difference would be that the power of Grace could connect all of humanity to the Golden Ring, whereas Divine Speech was limited to connecting Luize alone.
Yet, even with that limitation, it was an astonishing feat.
“You haven’t shown this to anyone else, have you?”
“Of course not. I’m not that dumb, you know.”
“Good. Unless it's absolutely necessary, avoid using it in front of others. And if anyone asks, just say you don’t know how to use it.”
Even though Apostate was gone, any technique related to the Golden Ring needed to be handled with caution.
“Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.”
“Alright. So... was this what you wanted to talk about earlier?”
“Huh? Oh... yeah.”
Despite her words, her fingers continued to fidget inside her pocket. Noticing that, Se-Hoon narrowed his eyes slightly. Normally, he would tease her until she blurted it out, but today, he didn’t feel like doing that.
It’s probably also because of how my synesthetic mindscape changed.
Even after getting advice from Eun-Ha, he still found it hard to bring up his own thoughts.
Taking a deep breath to prepare himself, he finally spoke. “Actually... I have something I need to tell you, too.”
Luize flinched. However, she rapidly shook off any unnecessary thoughts.
“What is it?”
“Well...”
How should he explain? Going through scenarios in his mind for a while, he decided to just be honest.
“A while ago, I wiped out the entirety of Dawn.”
“...What?”
“The Demon Force targeted the Seeker’s body... and I ended up fending them off alone, forgetting to tell you.”
One of the scenarios he considered was saying he didn’t call her because it was too dangerous, but he abandoned that. It would’ve sounded like a weak excuse and after all the effort Luize had put into growing stronger, it would’ve been downright insulting on top.
“I’m really sorry.”
He even bowed his head, feeling like words wouldn’t be enough. And as he guessed, he could sense the icy glare burning into the back of his skull.
One hour... no, I’ll just let her hit me until she calms down.
Preparing himself for a few broken bones, Se-Hoon braced for impact.
Tap-
However, he felt warmth spreading across his cheeks instead. Before he could even register what was happening, his head was gently lifted upward, and Luize’s face appeared right in front of him, wearing an unusually serious expression.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
“Huh? Oh... no, I’m fine.”
“You got hurt again, didn’t you? Don’t tell me you shattered your heart again.”
“...”
Se-Hoon averted his gaze. At that, Luize, still cupping his cheeks, applied a little more pressure to her hands and sharpened her stern gaze.
“Answer me.”
“...Maybe a little?”
“Agh...”
She let out a deep sigh, then, in the next instant...
“You call that ‘a little’?! Your sternum is gonna collapse at this rate, you idiot!”
“Mmmppphhh-!”
His cheeks were yanked from side to side as Luize glared daggers at him.
“How long has it been since I told you to be careful? What, are you just itching to die? Huh?! Should I just kill you myself?!”
“Mmmff. I’m s-sorry...!”
Despite the rough treatment, Se-Hoon didn’t resist. Her words might have been harsh, but he could hear the concern laced within them.
This is what Eun-Ha meant...
He had thought Luize would be solely upset about Dawn. But in actuality, she was more worried about him than Dawn—and Eun-Ha had known that from the start.
I guess... calling me an idiot was fair. Yeah...
While Luize was just lightly scolding him now, if she ever found out that he had hesitated to tell her out of fear of resentment, she would likely become genuinely furious. After all, it would be as if he thought of her as some petty, narrow-minded person.
“Hey. What’s with that smirk?”
Catching the faint smile on his lips, Luize squinted at him.
“Ah... it’s nothing.”
“Like hell it’s nothing. Ugh... whatever. Just close your eyes.”
“Huh?”
“I said, close them. Now.”
Her glare was sharp enough to feel like she’d stab him if he refused. Not wanting to test her patience, Se-Hoon obediently shut his eyes.
Is she going to slap me? Or a punch?
Either way, it was going to hurt more than before. He mentally braced himself.
Yet, despite doing so, Luize’s warm breath suddenly brushing close made his mind completely blank. That was not what he expected.
“Alright. You can open them now.”
Recovering thanks to Luize’s satisfied voice, he opened his eyes and only then realized there was something around his neck.
Clink.
Looking down, he saw a pendant. On it was a small charm decorated with engravings of flames and hammers. Its craftsmanship was somewhat rough around the edges, but the effort and care put into it was unmistakable.
“This is...?”
“That thing you gave me as a ‘gift’ a while back. I got bored and made something out of it. Looks awful, doesn’t it?”
She kept clearing her throat, trying to act nonchalant. Alas, her ears were faintly red.
“I made it quite embarrassing to look at, so you better wear it all the time. That’s your punishment.”
She acted indifferent, yet was clearly watching for his reaction.
“...”
Se-Hoon lightly traced the pendant with his fingers.
“Yeah... it does look terrible.”
“...Tsk.”
“But thank you.”
His lips curled into a genuine smile.
“I’ll treasure it truly.”
At the sight of him, Luize froze momentarily before scowling.
“Treasure it, my ass. I bet you’ll just break it in a fight.”
“Should I just keep it in my room as decoration, then?”
The pendant looked nice, but judging by its durability, it was fragile enough to break from just a small mistake.
“...Forget it.” Luize shot him a sharp glare and turned away. “I’ll just make you another one if it breaks, so just wear it.”
“...Pfft.”
Her words were blunt, yet filled with unmistakable consideration. It was such a contrast that Se-Hoon couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle.
And upon hearing him, Luize, trembling slightly, snapped her head back to yell at him.
“You know what? Just give it back!”
“Nope. It’s mine now.”
“You little...!”
Luize reached out to snatch the pendant, but Se-Hoon enveloped his entire body with the Veil of Whitespace in a split-second, causing her hands to pass right through him.
Flabbergasted that he was using the powers of Perfect Ones just to keep the pendant away from her, Luize glared at him with an expression that was somewhere between frustration and amusement.
And in the end, she gave in, plopping back down onto the bench with a click of her tongue.
“You bastard.”
“You mean gentle and affectionate friend, right? Thanks.”
“...”
His shamelessness left Luize speechless. Realizing once again that there truly was no winning against him in banter, Luize changed the subject.
“Anyway, what are you gonna do about it?”
“Huh? About what?”
“The Seeker’s body.”
“Ah...”
Se-Hoon’s expression turned contemplative. With so many choices available, he still had no idea which direction to take.
“I’m still thinking about it.”
“Hmm...”
Mulling over it herself, Luize fell into thought. Then, when a certain thought crossed her mind, she cautiously suggested, “Can’t you just... bring the Seeker back to life?”
“Bring her back to life...?”
Se-Hoon looked at her with mild surprise. Of all people, he hadn’t expected Luize to suggest something like that.
“With your level of skill, I’m sure you could probably find a way to make use of her, right?”
“That’s true, but...”
It wasn’t just a question of whether he could revive the Seeker—it was also about whether doing so would be safe for humanity.
“Bringing her back as she was might be a bad idea, but what if you placed restrictions on her? You’re already capable of using her powers anyway,” Luize suggested, seeing him hesitant.
“Restrictions...?”
Something about that word made his mind tingle.
Noticing that he was starting to be swayed, Luize added more, having just thought of something, “Oh. Just think of using her like a familiar. That makes it simple, right?”
A familiar. The moment she said it, a series of interconnected ideas sparked in Se-Hoon’s mind: the Seeker, her clones, Terra, the Towers of Heroes, planetary enhancement...
All the puzzle pieces seemed to click into place simultaneously. He shot up from his seat.
Startled, Luize looked up at him.
“Let’s go give it a try.”
He was gleaming with excitement.