CH 188

The quiet day passed quickly. As expected by Cheon Sa-yeon and Elohim, the Praus followers had been active all over the world, but no major accidents had occurred yet to cause concern.

It meant that Kali’s minions, who established the Praus Cult and managed them, weren’t moving.

“For now, it would be better to focus more on variables.”

“Variables?”

“Yes. Variables have always been there, but rarely has it been as difficult to guess as this time. Se-hyun-ah, your existence is, of course, a variable, but…”

After a moment’s silence, Elohim’s bright gold eyes lit up.

“More than that, I’m more concerned about that person named Kang Seung-geon.”

A long time had passed since the Korean guild management headquarters was attacked. Elohim and Elahah’s price ended a week ago, and their physical condition had returned to their original state.

“I still don’t know exactly why they took him. Still, I don’t think it would be very dangerous because only his body is S-rank and his ability is useless.”

“No. I’m worried about what kind of results the minor changes made when a person named Kang Seung-geon intervened.”

“Ah.”

“To be honest, there are many other than Kang Seung-geon. People whose lives have changed. Aren’t there a few people around you?”

At Elohim’s words, Ha Tae-heon and Kim Woo-jin came to mind. I had thought many times before about their changed lives.

“Butterfly effect. Are you talking about that?”

“Yes. Each time the time was repeated, there was a small margin of error, but this time, it’s so big that we’d better be prepared in advance.”

“……”

“There may be people we didn’t expect. And it would be… very dangerous.”

“Even so…”

While staying here, I confirmed the power of my abilities with my own eyes. Also, how difficult each of those around the world were going through.

“I will overcome it somehow.”

These were facts that would have gone unnoticed had I not made the decision to go see the Prophet. And if that were the case, I would have quietly disappeared at the same time as Cheon Sa-yeon failed.

“Now I understand why you gave me candy.”

The day Ha Tae-heon left, Elohim, who brought me to the temple, offered as a second price to eat candy and dream for 70 days.

At the time, I wondered if he was trying to use me to stop Kali.

“In the end, I needed this ability to survive.”

My eyes recovered, and Elohim, who could see everything I was thinking, smiled bitterly and stroked my hair gently.

Hesitating at the touch of affection, I opened my mouth.

“If you had explained it, I would have accepted even if it wasn’t for the price.”

“You can’t do that.”

His white hand came down to my face and tickled my cheek. There was a faint scent of flowers.

“It was us who wanted you to be aware of your ability, so of course, we should pay a fair price.”

“…do you want me not to die?”

“Of course, it is. Not only me, but Elahah as well.”

Elohim, who had touched my lips for the last time after sweeping around my eyes and cheek, took his hand.

“It’s nothing special, Se-hyun-ah. If you’ve come over here and seen how you’ve survived… like us, we want you to live and not die.”

“……”

Something hot spread in my chest, and I felt weakly nauseous. The emotions I felt for the first time came rushing in like a tsunami.

It was a strange feeling, both ashamed and sad. Blinking my eyes, barely capturing my emotions, I replied with a smile.

“Thank you.”

Elohim, who had been waiting as if he understood my feelings, opened his mouth immediately.

“I don’t think you need to eat more candy.”

“Is that okay?”

“It’s the 12th dream you had last time, so it’s enough now. Your colour energy has also become dark enough to be close to black.”

“Ah…”

“Of course, even if you don’t eat candy, dreams of the past can come to you at any time. It’s very rare, though, so you shouldn’t have to worry about it.”

“But the 70 days are not over yet.”

“Right. Even if you don’t eat candy, you have to spend the rest of your time here. When the 70 days are fulfilled, I will open the passage back to Korea.”

There were about 10 days left until the 70 days were filled. I couldn’t believe that 70 days, which seemed like a long time, were coming to an end.

‘I won’t be able to see the past for a while…’

Still, I was glad that my last dream was Yeon Seon-woo. Dreams of the past were always painful, but it was also an opportunity to see old faces, so it wasn’t too bad.

Like me, who was complicated in many ways, Elohim looked around the temple where petals flew with a rare smile on his face.

“It’s going to be quiet here again.”

It was a voice full of loneliness. He quietly told me.

“I think it would be better to get ready for departure in advance, Se-hyun-ah.”

I couldn’t help but stare at Elohim for a long time.

* * *

I could see transparent papers fluttering under the deep blue sky. I plucked the silver-grey flowers that were visible under my feet.

“……”

Even though he said to get ready to leave… I didn’t even have any luggage with me in the first place.

After leaving Korea, Ha Tae-heon prepared and managed all the necessary things. So from the moment Ha Tae-heon left, I had nothing but this body and a bracelet.

‘It’s been a long time since I wore the clothes El prepared for me…’

As a result, from a certain moment on, like Elohim and Elahah, they didn’t wear shoes and walked barefoot. Of course, when I went out like this, I had no choice but to wear them.

At first, it was quite awkward to walk around the temple barefoot, but over time it got better. The 70 days were both long and short.

I didn’t know how to use the free time I had suddenly gained. While I was thinking about whether to throw away the flower I had unintentionally plucked, I heard a cry from beneath my feet.

Auung.

It was a pure white cat with a raised tail. The cat that guided Ha Tae-heon to the Prophet. Unlike the fox that always lingered around me, the cat and rabbit hadn’t come this far, so it had been a long time since I met them.

He said he was a sibling to the fox, so did he come to see that child? Come to think of it, I hadn’t seen the fox all day today. Where else did he go to play?

The cat, who had been spinning around looking up at me, who was standing idly, not knowing what to do, cried once more.

Auk. Aek.

“……?”

It looked like there was something he wanted from me. With its black eyes that resembled the fox, the cat gently wagged the tip of its tail.

Au. Auuung. Auu.

“What is it?”

The cat was talking loudly, but I couldn’t understand it at all. Still, it felt like he was able to communicate like the fox, but it was really hard with him.

Aeaek. Aeng.

The cat, who blinked its big eyes a few times, exhaled, then bit the hem of my trousers once with its teeth, then took the lead and walked away. He seemed to want me to follow him, so I quietly followed after him.

After passing the small house where Ha Tae-heon stayed before, the cat arrived at the cosmos flower field and continued to move without stopping. Compared to the fox, its thin and long tail waved in various ways.

Auuk.

The cat, which had been walking for so long, finally stopped. I looked at the dark forest in front of me.

“Here is…”

It was the first place I saw when I opened the passage for Ha Tae-heon to return to Korea. An overly dark and gloomy forest that appeared when you reached the end of the cosmos flower field.

As I stared at the entrance to the forest, where old trees were tangled, I turned my gaze to the cat.

Uung…

The cat stood like a meerkat and cried sadly. He narrowed his eyes to ask for help as he gathered his front paws.

“No way…”

Realizing the situation, I hurriedly used the wind to float my body. As soon as I entered the forest, clearing the bushes and vines that had come down, I felt an eerie sensation.

It was also not an ordinary forest. Unlike the bright outside, the inside of the forest was dense with trees, so not a single light came in. Swallowing dry saliva in the heavy air, I slowly moved forward.

“Haa…”

I let out a shaky breath and rubbed my forehead, which was hurting little by little. Less than five minutes had passed since I entered, and my condition deteriorated in an instant. My shoulders were heavy and my movements were slower than usual.

As Elohim said, this forest must have been included in the created space. Why were they leaving this place without getting rid of it? Was it because the trees and grass filling this place were also life?

When I saw mushrooms or plants growing in bizarre shapes, I frowned. As expected, I didn’t understand.

‘Where the hell are you?’

The inside of the forest was wider than expected, and the missing one was so small that it was difficult to find. In the meantime, the headache got worse, making it more difficult to get around.

Piiik.

It wasn’t until I went further into the depths along the endless trees that I heard a familiar cry faintly. It was in front of a cave full of purple flowers.

Piiiii. Piiik.

The fox found me and began to cry hard with his body pressed against the ground. Clicking my tongue, I quickly flew to him and checked his condition.

“What is this?”

The fox, who writhed and wobbled, had his waist tied to something unknown. It was as hard as a vine, covered in a dark purple viscous fluid.

No matter how much I pulled it with my hand, it couldn’t come loose, so I had to cut it off with the wind. A black liquid poured out of the neatly cut section.

Piiik.

When the restraints on his body disappeared, the fox hurriedly ran to me. Standing on my shoulder on his arm, he wiggled his bountiful tail and rubbed his head against my cheek. It was almost like saying thank you.

“I’m letting it slide because you’re the youngest. When you go out later, say thank you to your brother too.”

If it weren’t for that cat, I wouldn’t even know he was here. Whether he understood what I was saying, the fox blinked his eyes and cried.

“Let’s go…”

I couldn’t stand it any longer. I needed to get out of here quickly. It was the time when I was about to stand up with strength in my heavy legs.

“Ugh…!”

Pollen bursts out of the purple flowers all around us. Thousands of pollen glistened and obscured the view. My eyes suddenly distorted and my body relaxed.

“Hu…”

A cold sweat ran down my chin. I sat down and faced the other side of the cave, which was full of darkness. Gasp, gasp. The harsh breath I exhaled echoed in my ears.

Is pollen poisonous? So my body was paralyzed… no. The headache was so severe that I kept losing my thoughts…

The blood was cold and my shoulders stiffened. Kugung, the ground rumbled, and for a brief moment, something huge moved beyond the darkness of the cave. I was so scared that my heart ached.

‘…dangerous.’

Belatedly, I realized that the vine that had grabbed the fox was also grabbing my ankles. A strong force pulled me towards the cave little by little.

“Run away!”

I hurriedly shoved the fox onto my shoulder and shouted. If you drop the fox first and cut the vines again with the wind…

“……!”

Suddenly, both legs were sucked into the soil. The vines wrapped around my ankles were no longer visible, immersed in the black soil up to my calves. In this case, I couldn’t attack.

It was the time when I was struggling, not knowing what to do with the force that was constantly pulling my body.

“Stop.”

A fresh scent spread with the pure white light. Elohim, who lowered his body, grabbed my shoulder and stared into the cave with a cold face.