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Chapter 202

The appearance of the Earth Serpent Gorge remained unchanged today. The winding gorge and the river at its bottom looked just like a serpent. The owner of the gorge, the Earth Serpent, had its eyes closed in the middle, peacefully sleeping.

“This, this is nature…!”

“Awesome!!”

“Quite a sight.”

Nea admired the view sincerely, standing side by side with Tae-oh and Dawn, who shared her excitement. Yeon-woo and Shar looked on from behind, smiling at the three of them leaning over the gorge with eager faces.

It was hard to believe such statements could come out of a dragon, a miracle born from nature, but Yeon-woo, knowing the backstory, wiped away tears in his heart. Nea, I want you to see everything you wish!

“Are we done sightseeing? Then shall we head down slowly?”

“Well, let’s do that. I’m curious what the scenery will be like down there.”

“Haha.”

I just hope they don’t get their hopes up too high. The lake and waterfall were the attractions from above, but the bottom of the gorge was ordinary beyond comparison. It was just a gorge with a single river flowing through it.

Fortunately, the descent was smooth. Nea’s mid-level monster aura kept other monsters at bay.

Thanks to that, the five of them arrived joyfully at the place now known as Nea Lake and Yeon-woo Falls, renamed by Shar from the original names, Blindfold Lake and Tear Falls.

Up until that point, Yeon-woo thought it would be a peaceful and enjoyable outing. Surely nothing could happen in a place like this.

But if a giant serpent were to rise up from the lake’s bottom, pushing up the waterfall as if defying the natural order, that would certainly change things.

Ku, gukugukuguk…

The ground trembled. The rumbling was so intense it felt like the gorge, or perhaps the whole world, was shaking.

“What on earth…!!”

Startled, Yeon-woo quickly attempted to draw the Doppleganger weapon wrapped around his right arm, but for some reason, it didn’t respond. In this unprecedented situation, Yeon-woo could only feel flustered.

The Earth Serpent awakening was something that hadn’t happened even a few times in its past life. Sometimes it opened its eyes for no reason or displayed anger during certain events.

However, this was the first time it had awakened without any sign. Because the awakening of the Earth Serpent always accompanied heavy rain.

“Guys, hurry and run…!?”

He pulled at Nea to escape with the children, but she stood frozen like a rock stuck in the ground. It was only then that Yeon-woo sensed something was off.

Everything in his view, except for him and the Earth Serpent, was shaded in gray.

Not just the children or Nea, but everything. Even the flying monsters, usually soaring high, were suspended in midair, unable to take off due to other monsters.

“…This is, could it be…?”

Yeon-woo suddenly looked up. There, emerging from beneath the lake’s depths, was an impossibly large sand-colored serpent, its tongue flicking, as if it could swallow a battle ship whole.

– Have you come again?

The sound of its tongue slithering echoed hollowly in the still world.

*

It felt somewhat like déjà vu. Hadn’t it felt like this in the cave when Nea had met the Earth Serpent? Especially with the perspective. Looking up at the massive reptile felt familiar.

“Have you come again?”

– You’ve visited once before… twice in such a short time.

“Did you see it then?”

The last time he had come here to acquire the inner chamber of Dongja Sam and Heukdong Ogong, he witnessed the vision of the Earth Serpent awakening… He had thought it was just in his head, but judging by its reaction now, it seemed that wasn’t the case.

– I saw it. A very unique aura emanated, so I couldn’t help but notice.

“Unique…? Such an aura emanating from me?”

– Yes. You carry a distinct fragrance. An extraordinarily alien energy. That’s why I opened my eyes. I can’t quite explain it.

“I see… But why did you suddenly decide to speak with me? What is this world? What are you trying to do, Earth Serpent?”

– Why are you surprised? This gorge is no different from my own body. Just like opening and closing a throat, it is a matter of extreme simplicity to separate time and space for a moment.

Chills ran down Yeon-woo’s spine. A nature deity, an embodiment of nature. He had heard much about it, but it was hard to articulate how different it was from other deities until he witnessed it before his eyes.

Even Dawn, who was a lesser deity herself, couldn’t accomplish such feats; casually executing the absurd idea of creating a space for conversation by cutting time and space apart.

– You need not worry. I intend no harm. I was merely curious about what thoughts a turning point holds.

“A turning point…?”

It was clear that it referred to him. After all, there was no one else. As Yeon-woo questioned it, the Earth Serpent twisted its body upward.

– Yes, turning point. Because of your existence, fate twists; how else would I call it? For whom do you twist fate like this?

That casually thrown statement posed a significant question for Yeon-woo. So many mixed feelings lay behind his motivations to save people.

He wished to save them simply because he didn’t want anyone to die unjustly, and he wanted to show his family the beautiful world he envisioned.

As countless reasons flitted through his mind, he hesitated to voice them because he found himself in a position unlike before.

He wasn’t willingly caught; the title of “Hero” pressured Yeon-woo to avoid delivering clumsy answers. He understood fully now what Noel had implied regarding the concept of heroes.

“I want to save people. I don’t want anyone to die unjustly.”

– Is that so?

Fortunately, Yeon-woo’s mouth could adequately provide that response. It was one he’d often reflected upon when asking a similar question of himself. Although he didn’t have the ability to save the world, surely he could save people from unjust deaths.

The Earth Serpent displayed no particular reaction to that answer. It simply continued moving its body. At some point, its movements halted. Standing upright towards the sky, the Earth Serpent slowly flicked its tongue.

– Such limited power is not enough.

“I understand. I’m working hard.”

– That alone won’t suffice. You should inquire of your kin. To the great dragon floating over the sea.

“…Kin? A dragon floating on the sea?”

He understood the term kin. It seemed that, in the Earth Serpent’s eyes, Yeon-woo was closer to a dragon than to a human. However, a dragon floating over the sea? He realized no dragons like that had ever been found until now.

– To borrow your knowledge, go to the ‘Changhae.’ There, a great dragon awaits you.

With that final remark, the Earth Serpent flung its body into the air. Its form unraveled from the tightly coiled sand, revealing itself. Yeon-woo realized.

‘I wasn’t inside the lake; the Earth Serpent’s body encircled the lake….’

Feeling a cosmic dread from the gigantic form, Yeon-woo found himself temporarily lightheaded…

“…Yeon-woo? Yeon-woo, why are you standing there in a daze? Are you alright?”

Nea’s worried face peered in as Yeon-woo blinked, startled back to reality. He quickly replied.

“Oh, it’s nothing! I was just thinking for a moment!”

“Is that so…? Something feels off…”

Yeon-woo, trying to reassure Nea, who looked at him suspiciously, began to unpack the outing supplies he had brought along.

He pondered for a moment whether it was alright to stay here, but in the Earth Serpent’s eyes, it must have been akin to a few ants crawling on it, so he decided not to overthink it.

“That’s Nea Lake! That’s Yeon-woo Falls!”

As Shar eagerly explained, Nea patted Shar on the head, regarding him affectionately while looking at Yeon-woo with a slightly troubled expression.

We renamed them when we came here last time. Even if others don’t know, for us, they are Nea Lake and Yeon-woo Falls, she conveyed through her gaze. Upon receiving that look, Nea nodded seriously.

What? Did that get across? Yeon-woo stared at the scene as Nea gave Shar a warm hug.

“I’m not entirely sure, but well done, Shar.”

It seemed it didn’t get across at all. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to have regular ‘quiz’ times where they communicated through looks from now on.

While Yeon-woo finished setting up all the outing tools he had brought and plopped down onto the blanket, Nea sat there with Shar on her lap, gazing dreamily at the lake and waterfall. Meanwhile, Dawn and Tae-oh wandered around the lake, holding hands tightly.

‘These kids are already getting flirty.’

But since he was my son, I’ll forgive him. Or rather, given that he’s my son, should I not forgive him? I couldn’t quite decide.

He still didn’t understand why the Earth Serpent had spoken to him. Truthfully, too many unknowns had arisen since his regression.

One could say that such new occurrences were somewhat understandable. Given that the environment had changed since before his regression, it was only natural that new things would surge in. They were significant events happening in a robust manner, so it wouldn’t be fair to say his regression was in vain.

Nevertheless, one thing was certain.

Yeon-woo wanted to protect and witness such scenes. And for that, he was more than ready to leap into the stories of a local monster, whether or not it could be trusted.

“…It’s nice. This outing.”

*

The man was waiting endlessly. Though he had handled several matters out of sight of humanity, his desire always remained singular.

To kill the Demon King. And then, to end the corrupted version of himself.

The man, Shadow Warrior ‘Kai’, detested the Demon King. He served him as his king, but it was merely false loyalty. His real king had died long ago, and since then, the man had only thought of ways to kill the Demon King.

Could he offer true loyalty to the one who had destroyed his world? How could he not harbor hatred for the Demon King, who transformed the surviving humanity into monsters?

Kai defined himself as a monster. He believed it was acceptable to become a monster to kill the Demon King. At the same time, he sought out beings capable of killing the Demon King.

In the end, he discovered a boy named Choi Yeon-woo. Initially, he had set off in search of the Demon King’s son, never expecting it would lead him like this, but recognizing the boy could have the potential to slay the prince at such a young age, he put him to the test.

Then the man thought. This boy would surely slay the Demon King one day. He saw in the boy’s eyes a reflection of his own, filled with hatred and anger, and he felt convinced.

“Come, Choi Yeon-woo.”

Inside the dusty gate, Kai murmured as he sat atop the rubble.

(To be continued in the next episode)

 

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