Chapter 222: End of Summer (3)

Chapter 222: End of Summer (3)

How often does an ordinary person encounter mythical beings like the ‘Twelve New Moons’ in their lifetime?

Even if they did encounter such beings, would anyone believe it?

Jeliel had lived a life assigning monetary value to everything and encouraged capitalism. She wouldn't have flinched even if a legendary being from folklore appeared before her.

In her world, money was almighty. She couldn’t trust anything unless she saw it with her own eyes and could assign a price tag to it.

This pragmatic and rational mindset had never led her astray, so she lived without doubting it.

It’s often said that money can’t buy happiness. Jeliel never believed that. The more money she had, the happier she felt.

However...

As the undisputed wealthiest person in the world, she controlled everything with her money. However, Jeliel realized today that there were things that money couldn’t buy.

"Follow that path."

The voice of an old man echoed in her mind. It was undoubtedly the voice of one of the Twelve New Moons.

Despite meeting the existence that every mage in the world yearned for, it did not stir her emotions. She simply followed because she sensed a hint of hope from him.

"Hey Henry. How's life these days?"

"Don’t even ask. Business tanked this summer. Give me some rice wine."

"Tsk. Tsk. That’s why I told you to quit early and start a business."

Southern Hawol Plain, Myoho Lake.

The lake was located at the center of the southern plains trade route. Over the years, it had become quite a sizable village, notable for the beast people with tiger-striped cat ears.

Swaa!

Jeliel sat quietly in a street tavern with her face hidden under a hat, and sipped water. She wasn't hungry but needed minimal nourishment to keep walking.

She quietly listened to the merchants' conversations around her while eating.

"Sigh... Right. Maybe I should have gone into business with you."

"Did the rain ruin your business?"

"Well. The rain pours down like this every year, so that's no excuse."

A young merchant drank a strong liquor, notable for its bamboo-made cup.

"Honestly, my business skills aren't the problem."

"That’s what every failure says."

"No, seriously. The Baram Merchant Guild's coated umbrellas were a huge hit, and business was booming."

"And then?"

The young merchant whispered while looking around cautiously.

"... The StarCloud Guild completely overturned the market."

"What? Them again?"

"Yeah. Their new product clashed with ours, so they turned the market upside down to stop us from selling."

"Selfish bastards."

"They always do that. If they think they might lose, they flip the whole board. But they're too powerful for us to do anything. We can’t help it."

Clatter!

"...!"

"Wh-What was that?"

The merchants were quietly criticizing the StarCloud Guild. They were startled by the sound of a water cup toppling over nearby.

"... Sorry."

Jeliel quietly apologized, set the cup upright, and wiped the table with a tissue. Her fingers trembled. She knew well what they were talking about.

Of course.

It happened under Jeliel’s orders. Her father had always led the business with integrity and never resorted to such dirty tactics.

However, when she became capable of thinking like a merchant, the StarCloud Guild was shaken by her father’s stubbornness. Unable to bear it, Jeliel began to engage in underhanded tactics secretly.

‘Do whatever it takes if it brings money.’

She had killed people and brought down entire companies. Devoid of a sense of guilt, Jeliel acted without hesitation.

"Sigh. Anyway, it’s a big problem. My wife and kids are waiting at home, and our food will run out by winter. We’ll have to worry about food before summer ends."

"Tsk. Tsk. Don’t worry. I’ll help. How about working with me until your business recovers?"

"... Thank you, really."

"No need to thank me. You saved my life back then, so I’m just returning the favor. In a way, you saved yourself. Haha. Didn’t that sound cool? I should put that in my autobiography later."

"It would have been perfect without the last part."

"Hahaha!"

So, she would cast aside her mask and devote herself to the world in the only way she knew how.

"This pain... is the punishment I deserve."

Jeliel removed her shoes, and without a moment's hesitation, she stepped onto the stairs.

In that instant, it felt as though her entire body was being shredded by a saw; a terrible pain assaulted her soul.

"...!"

Her eyes widened and turned bloodshot.

She took another step.

No scream escaped her lips.

One step.

Another step.

With her eyes tightly shut, she ascended the stairs, enduring and accepting all the pain.

She had no thoughts of running away now.

If she were to run, she would rather fall and die.

But she couldn’t die here.

If she did, Baek Yu-Seol might never return to this world.

Each step brought a new wave of hell, and with each step, she wanted to scream and faint, but she endured.

'I have no right to collapse. Many have felt this pain because of me.'

The blade of ‘emotion’ that invaded her dry heart brought a tearing pain to her soul, but ironically, it was also her emotions that allowed her to endure.

A desperate feeling for someone.

How far had she climbed?

She didn’t look at her destination.

It would be more accurate to say she didn’t have time to look. Her soul was barely hanging on. It was no less than a miracle she was still alive.

Even her breath was labored, her feet numb, and new waves of sorrows and despairs seeped through the cracks of her heart, whispering her to give up.

But she couldn’t stop now.

Could this still be called willpower?

No.

Now she was moving purely on instinct.

At the last moment, she tripped, unable to lift her foot anymore, and barely stood after glueing her ankle on the stairs.

'Ah...'

She realized.

If she fell now, she would never rise again.

'This can’t happen...'

"If I collapse here, no one will be saved."

But she had no strength left to right her falling body, so she entrusted herself to the laws of nature.

Thud!

... Yet. Strangely enough.

Even though she thought she had fallen, it didn’t hurt at all.

Could it be that after all the suffering she had endured, this was nothing?

“... I heard someone was coming to meet me, and it was you?”

At the sound of the voice, Jeliel slowly opened her eyes.

There, at a distance close enough to feel his breath, was the boy’s face.

‘Ah.’

She had succeeded.

She had climbed those endless stairs and finally reached him.

Weakly lying in Baek Yu-Seol’s embrace, Jeliel gave a faint smile.

It was the most surprising and wondrous sight in the world, so much so that Baek Yu-Seol was genuinely shocked.

“What’s wrong? You look like someone who just ate a vegetable bun without any vegetables.”

Despite her longing to see him, the first thing he did upon reuniting was make such a dull and humorless joke.

Despite that, he was unmistakably Baek Yu-Seol, undeniably and truly Baek Yu-Seol.

Jeliel laughed through her tears.