All living beings, regardless of awareness, pursue the goals of survival, growth, development, and reproduction, striving to adapt to their environment.
About a thousand years ago from the era I lived in.
The demon race crossed a strait about 100 km wide and settled on the eastern land of the continent.
It was an issue directly connected to survival.
The Eastern Continent across the sea was contaminated by demons and swarmed with demon beasts.
Thus, the one who planned this large-scale migration of the demon race was the first Demon King, Salbamoniem Delacrua.
A legendary figure that the demon race claimed had ruled the Eastern Continent for hundreds of years.
And the desire of the Salbamoniem Alliance leading the army was to resurrect the Demon King and reclaim the Eastern Continent.
However, it was the first time I heard that this first Demon King had cat ears.
“Scary, Ebi!”
“Save me, Oppa!”
Adella raised her hands, showing her long nails and intimidating the siblings.
Niobe, startled to the core, shook and hid behind her brother like a shield.
“Haha.”
“What are you doing? Why are you scaring the kids?”
“Sorry, their reactions were just too funny. Ouch!”
After all, it was just a fantasy, so I hit the back of her head harder than ever.
She didn’t seem to feel any pain, though.
Hiasen lowered his previously tense posture, casting a suspicious glance.
Seeing Adella’s silly antics, he too, made a slightly doubtful expression.
But we can’t just jump to conclusions.
I had seen something as well.
“In fact, I saw someone who looked exactly like Adella in Al Zahab’s pendant.”
“So, this kid is the real deal?”
“No, that can’t be. So I’m confused too. You mean the person in the photo was the first Demon King? I still have my doubts.”
I bit into an apple while sitting on the mat and added.
“Besides, it was definitely a photograph, not a painting.”
Photographic magic using light existed even in my era.
But that kind of magic invented a thousand years ago?
It just didn’t add up.
To explain this situation the most plausibly, I would have to say that the character in Al Zahab’s pendant isn’t the first Demon King but someone descended from him.
How about the possibility that someone who knew the first Demon King’s face designed Adella?
According to Nyangster Call, most character appearances in Wagal were generated by AI, but there might be an exception.
Then I’m stuck with the hassle of flying all the way to England to find Adella’s character designer, meet them, and verify the truth.
I had opened all possibilities and tried to reason through them, but nothing fell into place.
In the meantime, Adella was playing centrifuge with Niobe, holding her hands.
‘Even teaming up with ghosts, her sociability is remarkable…’
I came for some healing, but instead ended up taking on a heavy burden.
I decided to call Hiasen, who was fidgeting beside me, to say my goodbyes.
“So, who is she? She has a strangely familiar smell.”
“Smell? Are you a pervert? Ugh, that’s creepy…”
I frowned, glaring at this step-brother who seemed repulsive.
I didn’t know Hiasen was the kind of guy who would sniff around girls since he was young.
“No, not that smell, I mean aura! The aura!”
Only after hearing Hiasen’s lengthy explanation did I begrudgingly accept it.
I laid the dazed Niobe down on the floor and took Adella’s hand.
“She’s my physical doppelgänger.”
“You said you’d never make a doppelgänger again.”
“This isn’t a doppelgänger for that purpose, so you don’t need to worry. Then shall we go now? We had fun.”
“Wait, we’re leaving? Really?”
“Huh, why? Were you going to nag me again not to use this magic?”
Hiasen had repeated the advice like a cuckoo.
“Don’t ever come to see us again. Don’t live trapped in the past.”
“Yeah.”
“Are you throwing a fit because you’ll miss us now that we’re really going?”
He just shook his head in silence.
The splendid platinum hair flowed in the breeze like a dance.
The blue hills and Niobe’s white silk dress were being colored by the orange sunset.
I hugged the two boys and girls in my arms tightly one last time.
“Thank you for always being there when it was tough.”
“We are…”
“I’m talking to you fakes too.”
I bid my last farewell, thinking I would probably never see them again.
The defective Alchemist shattered with a clang sound.
I threw the past off with a feeling of relief.
—
I secretly hoped that the happiest moment for Adella was the time spent with me.
If I had to pick a number one moment, it would probably be when we came out of the game world.
But virtual reality doesn’t get reflected in the Alchemist, so let’s pass on that.
Then number two might indeed be the day her body was created.
No, maybe she didn’t get to feel true happiness then because there wasn’t any leeway.
When we traveled to Japan? Or during Adella’s birthday party?
Finally, the familiar setting reformed.
It was our house’s bathroom.
“Huh?”
“Ahh!”
Ghost-Adella was leaning against the wall completely naked, from head to toe.
I turned my head away and yelled.
“You’re not, in our house bathroom?! Plus, this is a public space!”
“No! I swear it wasn’t me! I’ve never done anything in the bathroom!”
“Then what is this?!”
Adella couldn’t maintain her falsehood for long.
The bathroom door swung open, and my past self yawned, walking in.
She began charging black mana into the Light Transmutation Circle Inscriber and drew a giant transmutation circle on Adella’s back.
“Phew. Look, sister. This was the day I first got my body. How much did you doubt me?”
“Even now, you’re still pretty suspicious. Your happiest memory is when I washed you? Are you a pervert too?”
“You need to see the situation right behind this! I took a bath right after this. I must have found this moment so happy reflecting on everything that had happened.”
“Oh, so I’m defeated not by my dad or friends, but by some bathwater.”
That’s quite disappointing.
“No one else gets as worked up as you do, ahhh, ahhh!”
“…?”
Splash!
As soon as Adella contacted the divine light waves, her transformation occurred in an instant.
Ghost-Adella changed into the current Adella.
Clothed, she plopped nicely into a tub of water.
“Ahhh… What is this? My clothes are all wet, huh.”
“Haha.”
“Oh, Na-me Unni smiled? That was a laugh, right?”
“Yeah.”
“If I told you this was all part of a calculated slapstick from the start, would you believe me?”
I gently tapped the version of me wandering around the room.
And returning to the bathroom, I squeezed myself onto the opposite side of the cramped tub.
“You once said you wanted to take a bath with me. I thought doing it with clothes on might be fine.”
I splashed water onto Adella’s face with my hands.
“Ugh. That’s not what I wanted! Na-me Unni is too shy.”
“Let’s just treat it that way.”
I submerged my mouth under the water and exhaled.
Bubbles appeared, bloop bloop.
I poked those bubbles with my fingers, pop pop.
It felt like playing Whack-a-Mole, and it was fun.
Maybe I should try creating this type of water magic.
“Hey, was it because of the people saying I’m the Demon King that you’re troubled?”
Adella wiggled her toes in my face.
I answered flatly to not let my thoughts be revealed.
“Yeah? Uh, yeah. I was seriously thinking about it.”
“Is it a big deal? I don’t really know what that Demon King thing is.”
“Hehe, no. It’s just something curious. I was the vessel for the Demon King’s resurrection.”
“Huh, this tiny body?”
“No, my past life!”
“Oh, I see.”
“Anyways, they spread erosion and started wars just to resurrect that Demon King or some demon. I lived like that and died, then got reborn, and suddenly there’s an AI pretending to be a person. So I made a body for you, and now you’re called the first Demon King. It’s like the oracle of Delphoi, isn’t it?”
“Isn’t it a big deal then?”
“Of course not. What big deal?”
I ran my fingers through Adella’s seaweed-like hair for a long while.
I had terrible hair in my past life, but touching these soft strands made me feel good.
“And besides, it’s always the ones who hurt people that are bad. The first Demon King seems like a decent fellow.”
“Why’s that?”
“After all, he crossed the sea, risking danger, to save people. Digging up barren lands where no one lived is impressive. Though the descendants invaded humans posthumously and it eventually led to war.”
“Oh, thinking about it like that, he does sound like a good guy.”
“Anyway, it’s all in the past now. You don’t need to worry about a thing.”
This kind of conversation also creates a platform.
I told her I would be in the United States during winter vacation.
I barely convinced her to stay in Korea after she insisted on following.
It was an excellent opportunity to tidy up the unstable erosions and train my weakened body.
“I feel like I forgot something. Ah! How will you explain to people calling you an AI?”
“Right, that too… But Saetbyeol, I realized something.”
“Yeah?”
“Why do I need to explain?”
“Because it’s frustrating?”
“Then I get angrier over those who deny what I say.”
I hated seeing others meddling in what I knew best.
The best persuasion comes not from words but from demonstration.
Even Liu Bei went to visit Zhuge Liang three times to win his loyalty, and Zhuge Liang let Meng Huo go seven times to subdue him.
The wisdom of our ancestors is truly remarkable.
So let’s set up a plan to get them to visit seven times.
Whether it’s me convincing these people or them trying to convince me, it’s all the same.
[Release: Alchemist]
Before this dreamlike space disappears, I cupped my hands and splashed water onto Saetbyeol’s face.
—
“Secretary of State Yulisis Murphy. This is NoName.”
[Huh? Oh, yeah. What’s up?]
I usually don’t take politicians’ phone numbers, but thanks to my cursed memory, I had to memorize it.
“Do you know when you’ll return to the United States?”
[Probably late tomorrow night? Could be a day or two longer.]
“When you’re a Secretary of State, you take a private jet, right?”
[That’s right.]
“I’ll make you a hero, Mr. Murphy. Just please let me ride on that plane. I have a massive fear of large airplanes…”
At the same time, I posted my passport photo on Instagram.
It was my first post in two months.
