Holy Body.
The greatest gift and reward that a god can bestow upon an earthly being.
Having a Holy Body was the highest honor for a divine being. That honor wasn’t easily won.
Even in the depths of history, those who had a god’s power dwelling within them were exceptionally rare. This was because deep faith alone did not grant such a privilege.
There was only one condition to receive the sacred prize: the love of the Goddess.
‘I was deserving of it.’
Having a portion of divine power within one’s physical form meant being greatly loved by the god. For devout believers, it was an honor deserving of any praise.
Thus, the Holy Body held significant symbolic weight.
Moreover, it also held practical value. The ultimate technique I used to subdue Liam and Quick Eagle stemmed from the powers derived from the Holy Body.
“Do you understand now?”
As I asked with a smile, the black man in the mirror nodded eagerly. Then, with keen interest in his eyes, he asked,
“If you don’t mind me asking, exactly what kind of ability did you have?”
“Of course.”
It was fine to reveal everything. It wasn’t a technique to counter.
“A person with the Holy Body can use a specific power, and its effects vary depending on the body part.”
“I see.”
“In my case, the power lying in my chest allows me to temporarily dominate the hearts of others.”
More specifically, it was making others feel as devoted as I was.
As a child, it was humorously referred to as ‘Eluke Infection,’ but as I grew older, I became embarrassed and changed its name.
“What was it like to experience my power, ‘Faith Infection’?”
“It’s an interesting ability! I was a bit surprised.”
Quick Eagle giggled as he took a swig of vodka. Anyone would think he had regained his senses right after being subdued.
But in reality, he had been dazed for thirty minutes before finally coming back to his original state. Quite a difference from Liam, who snapped back in a minute.
Yet, recovering in thirty minutes was still quick. Usually, even after several days, people couldn’t shake off the influence of such powers.
This meant he possessed the skills and capabilities worthy of calling himself a hero.
I was truly relieved. It would have been troublesome if he wandered around for days under my power, but he turned out to be stronger than expected.
“How about it? What do you think of my wife’s ability?”
Liam, who had long regained his senses only to be scolded earlier, chimed in cheekily. I found him quite unappealing.
What right did he have to jest about? When I shot him a cold glare, he quickly withered and avoided my gaze.
Yet, his eagerness to sip his drink was so typical of Liam.
“Hey, was it Eluke you said? I have something I want to ask you.”
Soon after, Quick Eagle put down the bottle. His expression had turned serious.
His deep voice, matching his appearance, continued after a slight pause.
“Objectively speaking, if I fought with your husband, I would lose, right?”
“Yes. You wouldn’t stand a chance.”
As I responded without hesitation, Quick Eagle sighed and narrowed his brows.
“Honestly, I know he’s strong, but I thought I could at least hold my own. But to think I wouldn’t even be a match?”
Seeing him mumble while staring at Liam, he seemed to be nursing his wounded pride.
Well, I could understand why he would react that way. If he were a returnee, he must’ve been among the strongest in his world.
Moreover, if he lived as a hero, he would likely be proud of his abilities.
‘But what can you do?’
Liam’s strength was cheat-level. A demigod that transcended human limitations. No matter how competent a returnee might be, it was hard to rival such a fierce champion.
In my mind, it seemed like Quick Eagle would need about ten of his kind to come close to balancing things out. The gap in levels was that significant.
“If it were a place rich in mana, you would have put up quite a fight.”
Still, I tossed him a compliment to keep the mood light. It was basic etiquette to consider the feelings of the one listening.
Of course, Liam—who didn’t even uphold such simple courtesies—merely shook his head in confusion at my words.
How could someone be so oblivious? Even if I brought Erina into the situation, she would’ve remained silent.
Fortunately, Quick Eagle didn’t notice Liam’s cluelessness. He had fallen into thought before speaking to me.
“By the way, pink-haired friend, would it be alright if we had a conversation face to face?”
“…….”
I stared at the suddenly eager young black man and blurted out.
“If you don’t mind me asking, how old are you?”
“Me? I’m… 24 this year.”
As expected, he was younger than he appeared. So, I felt free to say what I wanted.
“Then don’t be rude and call me ‘friend.’ Show some respect.”
I couldn’t stand that he kept speaking casually since earlier.
“Aw, c’mon, don’t be like that. Let’s just be friendly, why so stuffy?”
But Quick Eagle continued to ignore my request for respect, acting quite chummy. He was just as oblivious as Liam.
If left unchecked, he would carry on like this indefinitely. I had to forcibly instill some decorum.
Just when I decided to sternly correct him, Quick Eagle chuckled.
“Honestly, just looking at your face, you seem much younger than me! At first, I thought you were a high school student.”
“…….”
I paused and then smiled brightly.
“Well, then what can I say? Please, call me ‘friend.’”
If he was treating me casually just because I looked young, I had to accept that.
“Friend! As beautiful as you are, I can see your heart is kind too!”
Suddenly, I started to like him. Quick Eagle turned out to be a kinder younger brother than I had imagined.
Perhaps it was the magic from Liam, translating his words in a way that sounded rude. The awkwardness in the translations could be due to that reason too.
“So, um, can I visit Korea sometime? I genuinely want to have a meaningful conversation.”
I couldn’t just invite anyone over to my house. This was Seo-yoon’s place, after all.
Still, I had received permission to treat it like my own home. Of course, with a price to pay: blessings and money.
Moreover, Quick Eagle seemed like someone Seo-yoon would adore. With a famous returnee visiting, getting an autograph would be a tremendous bonus.
Having quickly made my decision, I nodded lightly.
“You’re welcome.”
And just like that, the appointment was set up. This would be my first time directly meeting another returnee.
It was a bit sudden, but I was looking forward to the meeting.
*
Quick Eagle agreed to come home around noon with Liam.
Liam, who possessed immense power. And me, who had easily subdued him. It seemed there was a deep interest in us.
What kind of conversation would they want to have?
Before wondering about that, there was an issue I needed to resolve.
‘Is it really okay to just bring Quick Eagle over to Korea?’
I was uncertain if inviting him to my place without any preparations was alright. I worried about potential problems, but thankfully, it turned out to be unfounded.
“There’s no problem at all.”
The stoic Hainha, who had just entered after staying up all night, said bluntly. His eyes appeared darker than usual.
I infused him with sacred power to relieve his fatigue. The weary NIS agent nodded gratefully and continued.
“Some American returnees granted special permission can freely enter and exit Korea for contingencies.”
A law established while I was away stated that certain returnees needed only to report briefly when entering Korea.
This law arose because there had never been a returnee in Korea before. If a returnee could come quickly to assist during natural disasters like earthquakes, wildfires, or floods, it would be a significant help.
“Especially someone like Quick Eagle, who visits Korea frequently.”
“Why is that?”
“Because he loves Korean food. He’s particularly crazy about Bibimbap.”
Now that I think about it, Quick Eagle was a K-culture fan. So that might be why he had been so friendly towards me and Liam. I felt more camaraderie than before.
That is, until Hainha opened his mouth again.
“By the way, he’s an extreme vegetarian, so definitely don’t mention anything about liking meat.”
“What happens if I do?”
“He’ll sit us down and preach until he decides to become a vegetarian.”
“…….”
I suspected that when Liam was having his drinking spree earlier, there hadn’t been any meat, only greens.
What a curious taste for an eagle. Truly a unique guy.
“Understood. I’ll be careful.”
I briefly checked the time on my smartphone. It was eleven-thirty in the morning. There wasn’t much time left before they arrived.
In the meantime, I decided to rest for a little while.
“Rohan, drink up.”
At my command, Rohan began sucking greedily. It must have tasted good mixed with sacred power.
While nursing him, Erina and Ibailla were sitting in front of the TV, watching a children’s animation.
-Here we go! Lucky Heart!
As I watched, the idol-like protagonist and her friends performed an unrealistically flashy show.
It was evident they used a lot of CGI. Nowadays, cartoons were a whole different ball game compared to those from my childhood.
While I was distracted, absorbed in the animation, I suddenly heard the doorbell ring.
I entrusted Rohan to Hainha and headed to the front door.
As soon as I opened it, the smell of alcohol wafted in. There stood Liam and Quick Eagle, shoulder to shoulder, their faces flushed from drinking.
“I’m here!”
Then, Liam lunged towards me, aiming for a hug, and I blocked him with my hand.
“Don’t. You smell.”
Frowning, I pushed him away, but he ignored my protest, spreading his arms wide. Frustrated, I lightly gave his stomach a punch.
Liam stared at me with dazed eyes and opened his mouth.
“No kiss?”
“What are you talking about?”
“You said if I came back quickly, you’d reward me with a kiss.”
“That never happened.”
“Uh…?”
Why did he think I would kiss him? He must have picked up some weird rumors somewhere.
And even if that were true, there was no reason for me to follow through with it.
“Given that you came home late, what kind of reward would that be?”
It was as if he casually had a Pacific stroll, but he only turned up at home just before noon. That could not possibly be described as “coming back quickly.”
Since he felt unjust about this, Liam quickly retorted.
“No, I was flying at top speed to get here. This was the fastest I could make it.”
“Is that so?”
Noticing there was no outright flaw in his statement, I decided to concede. However, he still wouldn’t be receiving a kiss.
“Please come in. You too, Quick Eagle.”
“Excuse me.”
Quick Eagle entered with a bright smile. He had folded his huge wings back tightly. They must have had some size-adjusting mechanism.
“Hey, my friend! Nice to see you! Take this.”
Quick Eagle handed me a shopping bag he had been holding without warning. Whatever was inside felt rather heavy.
“Take a look. It’s a gift.”
The smiling black youth bore signs of a model citizen.
Initially, I thought he was just a rude young man, but that wasn’t the case. He knew the basics of visiting etiquette.
“Thank you.”
I smiled back at him and opened the bag to see the contents.
“…What is this?”
Upon inspecting the appearance of the gift, my face instinctively stiffened. It was something that left me utterly speechless.
“Isn’t it warm? I laid that egg on the street today.”
After hearing the explanation, I couldn’t help but snicker.
“But you’re not a female, are you?”
“Oh, in the world I ‘possessed,’ it was normal for men to give birth.”
“…….”
This was only getting stranger and stranger.
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