Chapter: 91. The End of the Great Tragedy. Sharing a Drink. (1)
“Dad: Right now, I can bring back the Thunder God.”
She whispered in the pitch-black darkness.
In a twisted timeline, one night somewhere.
The ever-changing moon still informs us that we remain within the range of the Otherworld Invasion. Someone is trying to reach the highest position on the timeline.
Whose time is it?
The Thunder God has already collapsed, and I am the only one here.
Holding the Thunder God’s split head, I gaze at the sky.
Amidst countless corpses, I alone look up at the sky.
Then, who must I speak to?
From the black sand, black slime rises.
Slowly forming a round shape, it emits a pure, beautiful sound and—
With the sound of whoosh,
Yumil emerges from the muddy depths. An earth-toned figure wrapped entirely in black mud.
In her appearance, the only thing glowing is her wildly spinning, vibrant eyes.
“Yumil…”
I removed the emotions deeply embedded in my heart and greeted her with the most pleasant expression I could muster.
I did not want to feel that this outcome was a flavor I had tasted from her actions.
Silently, I put the Thunder God’s remains between my legs, turned my back, and made her invisible to Lin Sua.
Then, I opened my mouth to her.
“Go home and rest. It will be tough today. Once everything is over… let’s get together and go have some fun, okay?”
That’s right, Yumil must have done this for me.
She’s a child who should live brightly; I shouldn’t show her more darkness through my selfishness.
“Let’s go, Yumil. The cleanup crew will be here soon.”
Even with that, Yumil approached the beach with hesitant steps, staring at my face.
“Daddy, are you crying?”
“Even Dads cry when they’re sad.”
I crouched down, embracing the Thunder God and hiding the gruesome neck side where blood flowed out.
For the simple reason that children shouldn’t see something cruel, she still acts like this even in such a situation.
It made me realize how detached I had become, perhaps too much.
Separate from that, I could not hide the tears flowing from my eyes.
“So… I can stop Dad’s tears! Leave it to me!”
It seems I did not mishear her.
“Are you saying you can save the Thunder God, Yumil?”
In as calm a tone as I could muster.
To her, who holds a unique perspective on life. I would absolutely not show anger.
Slowly hiding the corpses behind me, I gently stroked Yumil’s slightly sticky hair.
“Even if memories connect, bodies are different. You are another person, Yumil.”
That’s right. Absolutely not the same person.
“Just as Yumil and I are different, the Thunder God who is created is also a different existence from the original Thunder God. Thank you for your kindness.”
Quietly calming my heart, it could be due to our conversation being interrupted; my tears flowed freely, my heart calmed down.
Like countless incidents, I carried them in my heart.
Never forget and to maintain my emotions, let’s bury them in that deep darkness.
With that mindset, I was about to push Yumil away and send her back.
“Huh? That’s not it. The essence is still there!”
She stretched out her hand to point at the dark air;
In the dark space, towards a place where I saw nothing.
“Since it remains like that, she must be the original Thunder God!”
From Yumil, I felt no deception.
Her face and atmosphere were joyfully speaking, as if it was a matter of course.
Thus, Yumil began to converse with something in the void.
“The metallic rod is a gift made by my friends with collected money? You made it from the bones of a 0-Rank Monster?”
It truly felt like a conversation full of vitality. Within that dialogue, Yumil poured out unknown information:
It was all too sudden. Events were flowing too fast. Yet, for some reason, I could understand:
This felt like a natural flow.
As I grasped that, my thoughts began to connect.
Thoughts and emotions swirling within me,
From that, one decision emerged.
My desire.
“Yumil.”
“Why?”
With a bright smile, she turned her head.
On the beach, the innocent Yumil was the only shining light in this terrifying night.
Looking at her, I thought, “To save the Thunder God, something must be done.”
I made my choice.
Despite that decision—
“Huh? Dad doesn’t need to worry about that. But I was asking because there are a couple of things I thought you might dislike!”
She bent down to dig into the sand, not even caring to look back as she gathered her answers.
“What is it?”
“Well, first of all, if she comes back to life, won’t the Thunder God turn into a monster like the other monsters?”
Is there anything more?
“Ah! I found it!”
Yumil interrupted, discovering something in the sand.
A pitch-black round pearl; it was something the Thunder God had vomited.
Yumil, holding that, ran over to me and raised it in front of my eyes.
“Isn’t this beautiful and sparkling, Dad? I can’t make something like this! It’s a precious item!”
Regardless of this serious atmosphere, she chattered away in her own world.
Yet, I felt no aversion because Yumil is, after all, my daughter.
“If we use this, we can create a new body and bring the Thunder God back to life! The essence is still there, and the materials are sufficient! Just—”
Repeating what she said earlier; at the end of her childlike chatter, Yumil’s expression dulled.
“Don’t worry, I won’t get angry, so go ahead and tell me.”
I pulled down her raised hand and gently stroked her head.
Was it calmed by that action?
“If she lives normally, she will be dragged back in. So we have to connect, Dad.”
Yumil spoke with a serious expression and voice.
“Can you explain a bit more?”
“Ugh… it’s like…”
Holding her head, Yumil’s body trembled as she appeared cute, but I couldn’t just overlook it: I needed to get a clear answer on something important.
“A familiar.”
“Yeah.”
“It has to be my direct subordinate like the familiars in the game! Sharing thoughts, exchanging words, and not being able to lie in front of me…”
She doesn’t want to be friends but wants to come back as a subordinate—this seems to weigh on her.
“Can I have a moment to think?”
“Yeah, but we have to decide quickly. The fixer will come soon. After that, even with my power, I can’t turn it back.”
The fixer? What a strange term. Following Yumil’s gaze, which was filled with such thoughts.
I felt it.
Something was trying to fill the sky with vibrant colors, twisting the world;
I couldn’t see it with my eyes, but a sharp sense whispered to me that it was there. Something that definitely did not exist in reality;
Only those who could perceive other realities could feel it.
I wouldn’t have known about it until Yumil told me.
It was slowly tearing away at the black mud clinging to the sky, making its way towards us.
“Yumil, are you blocking it?”
“Yeah, so hurry up. Once the essence is consumed, it can’t be turned back. It’s coming to reclaim the power of the villain.”
How does Yumil know this?
As a parent, I should properly inform her: Amidst a plethora of weird thoughts mixed with questions, I began to solidify my thoughts.
A moment of contemplation.
Steeling my heart, as I turned to Yumil,
I saw a small child trembling in fear.
With her hands gripping the pearl, she fidgeted, searching my face for understanding, so I opened my arms and pulled her in.
What a fool.
To be so worried over something trivial she couldn’t speak about.
Gently patting Yumil’s back, I calmed my own heart as well. Since Yumil displayed such a worried response, I couldn’t act wildly.
Holding Yumil close, I spoke:
“Dad is okay, so please tell the Thunder God.”
From now on, it’s merely my selfishness.
Nothing to do with justice or anything like that,
Pure desire.
Perhaps it may be an error that doesn’t fit into my sense of justice.
I have to apologize to the Thunder God in advance.
I will take action for my own desires, which are above all your wishes.
“Maybe you don’t want to come back as a monster…”
After experiencing corruption, she certainly wouldn’t want that.
“And you’d hate being bound by someone.”
Especially since she was someone who had been free above all.
If she hated excuses and justification, she certainly would dislike being adorned with them.
If our positions were reversed,
it would surely be so.
Letting her quietly pass away, even if it meant suffering from regret ten years later, I still would.
But, I cannot do that.
“I wish you wouldn’t leave my side. By any means necessary.”
As soon as those words ended—
BANG!
The sky tore apart, and something unseen reached out towards us.
“I’ll leave it to you!”
“I’ll do it perfectly!”
Ruffling Yumil’s joyful hair, I jumped towards the fixer.
As I leaped into the sky, aiming for the night sky, it wasn’t as if I could actually touch it, but I believed I would reach it.
And then I faced it.
With vibrant colors filling the night sky, clothing myself in the great power of the black Otherworld, I reached out to a gigantic unknown being.
The fixer; could that also be the existence at the end of the story?
If so.
As that thought arose, pride flared up uncontrollably, and I couldn’t help but laugh:
I never imagined I would be fighting this quickly.
The root of all events.
The onset of nightmares.
The villain that shattered the world.
Pure evil.
The inverse of justice.
Isn’t that standing before my eyes?
From the moment I confronted it, I felt it was incredibly strong, yet strangely, I didn’t feel that I would lose.
The PANG cannot be allowed.
“To block that, I have to use my inner voice to char the weapon.”
I know this is an action for justice.
The position to wield the hammer of justice draws near,
And I must twist the inner hammer into place.
Even so, now—
THUD!
I discarded the hammer and grasped the mallet: enveloped by my body, the darkness dissipated, and a bright white magical girl outfit covered me.
Feeling the heavy allure of the mallet at my fingertips.
“Sorry, but lend me your strength.”
A request to my partner, who has been with me for so long.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Did my request resonate with it?
The mallet madly devoured mana, transforming its shape.
The fabric liberated from the handle tightened around my hand, making it something I could never drop.
The rear of the mallet generated numerous afterburners, expanding its size.
Unlike the typical transformation, excess heat and steam were released, forming a shape that wasn’t supposed to exist in reality.
Even if I hadn’t envisioned this form,
what was necessary to defeat that was apparently this shape.
Thus, the completed appearance of the mallet was remarkably strange.
No matter how bizarre the transformation, the elegant design that was originally there had vanished without a trace, instead resembling a giant makeshift weapon haphazardly gathered from scrap.
Bulbs bulged out from the surface; it emitted a loud thunderous sound while sparks flared from multiple afterburners that pointed in every direction, creating a blazing display of fiery chaos.
This weapon’s terrible form was something that I couldn’t possibly believe would work, but still, I twisted my waist with it held firmly.
THWOOOM!
Numerous afterburners unleashed their flames.
The uncontrolled expanse of energy flowing out threatened to become unmanageable, but with my strength, I aimed to guide it towards the enemy.
As the mallet reached the enemy, I opened my mouth.
“Don’t underestimate me!”
Ever since earlier, I’ve been ignoring it and descending upon the fixer reaching for Yumil and the Thunder God.
WHAM!
“Gotcha!”
The essence that clung to it pierced through with my words.
Weak as it was, I could feel a retribution vibrating throughout.
And for the first time, it reacted to me.
With a confused movement, it spun around.
“Whatever!”
The sentence structure felt familiar.
Surely, I had perceived those words when I watched Yumil’s eyes.
Yumil, what is your connection to these things? As a father, I need to delve deeper into this conversation.
“Get lost, you trash!”
With a hole in the sky, the thing disintegrated into particles, scattering away.
“BANG!”
What is this nonsense?
I can’t comprehend its meaning.
Though I could see the impudent spectacle of it vanishing effortlessly, I found myself landing on the beach.
Two women could be seen:
One looking radiant with her yellow regained, ageless beauty and the other, the shorter black Yumil beside her.
“How does it feel to have returned to life?”
“Not great. Go away.”
Sorry.
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