Chapter 197 |
Unlocked chapter (2/2)
[What it Means to Become an Adult (3)]
A transitional period in which the regime of the Fairy Goddess Im Gaeul was about to be handed over to Ha Baek-ryeon.
It was also a time when the powerful organization, Guma, which had been spreading its influence across the country to create a world for the new humans, was collapsing.
‘So, the fact that you’ve all come this far means that Agares is no longer in this world.
That foolish woman… If she had just made up her mind, it wouldn’t have been so difficult to destroy this country…’
Guma Lilith released a deep sigh.
After causing several months of terror in Seoul and Incheon, she had descended to Dongdaegu, where she had created her dungeon and waited for the players.
As any guma would do, she was overwhelmed by omnipresence and transformed into a demon, enabling her to exert a power equivalent to natural disasters.
You should have waited for me to leave the nest instead of coming down to the Dongdaegu. Look, some of you are already entering heat.’
Guma Belzebuth had the ability to cause plagues and infect creatures into monsters.
Guma Agares possessed the power to obliterate entire areas with a single wave of her hand.
And Guma Lilith had the ability to stir all living beings into a frenzy of lust with her mere presence.
‘This is my nest. No matter how much you raise your mana resistance, the longer you stay here, the harder it will be to maintain your sanity due to the overwhelming sexual desire.’
Lilith’s terrorist attacks in Seoul and Incheon were also linked to her traits.
She had occupied cultural facilities, including department stores and YH department store, and cast a spell that aroused sexual desire in the people there.
When the players found the locations where terror had occurred, they witnessed scenes of people, stripped naked, forgetting their human dignity, engaging in relationships like animals.
Those affected by her magic had to satisfy their desires for a minimum of three days and up to a maximum of seven days. In severe cases, it could take about a month for their desires to subside.
‘Why are you so surprised? Don’t you think you’ll be the same? This will be your future. So, it’s best to find a comfortable place.
You’ll have to shake your hips for days; it’s better to choose a place where your knees won’t hurt, right?’
The words of the survivors were grim.
There were women with unwanted children, some of them with husbands.
The child they were forced to give birth to was Ain, a child they could not bring themselves to kill.
To be said to have fallen under Lilith’s spell was to have been affected by her omnipresence.
The Ain born this way were mostly abandoned, and most women chose to end their lives.
There was no hope for them in this world.
Women were forced to despise themselves for being in relationships like dogs in heat, driven by uncontrollable lust.
Moreover, spouses, family, and society looked at these women who had inappropriate relationships with disdain, as if looking at garbage.
In the end, the children born last were Ain, as society says that there is no sin in life that is being born.
‘Men should stay with the women they desire. You wouldn’t want them taken away by someone else, would you? Be thankful to me. Even if I cause chaos, you won’t be punished as criminals, right?’
It wasn’t just women.
Men were also waiting for their turn for unpleasant words.
They had to shake their hips for several dayss, often ended up knocked unconscious, crippled, or worse, dead.
Even those who managed to survive felt a sense of alienation and despair at being completely transformed into beings who had lost their human dignity due to the contamination of their minds by magic.
As such, the Mana Management Organization had to be prepared to select players to defeat Lilith.
The players selected were those who had the strength to defeat third-rank monsters, had high mana resistance, could resist temptation magic if possible, and in the case of women, players who were not in their fertile period.
‘…Interesting. It’s the first time I’ve seen someone completely immune to my magic.’
The party members chosen from the Mist Flower Party were Eunha and Yoo jung.
Eunha was able to counter Lilith’s magic with his Gift <Berserk>, and Yoo jung, who happened not to be in her fertile period, could block her magic as a supporter.
Thus, the players were able to minimize the damage and defeat Lilith in her nest in Dongdaegu.
The problem was Yoo Jung.
‘Ah, please… Don’t come. Please, if you come, I… I…!’
It wasn’t a violent battle, but it was mentally draining.
Yoo jung, who had to assist Eunha in confronting Lilith up close, was unavoidably exposed to her magic.
She had fallen victim to Lilith’s magic just before she died.
‘Please… Don’t come. Please, please, please, don’t come.’
Even the players who had gone through harrowing experiences felt a sense of discord within themselves, overwhelmed by their own engulfing desires, and they were often in a state of despair.
Yoo jung was no exception.
She tried to restrain herself somehow, not wanting to show him her vulnerable state of being consumed by lust.
‘Stop… I said, stop…stop’
But those who were exposed to Lilith’s magic had no choice but to somehow release their explosive desires.
Otherwise, they would end up unable to contain the boiling lust within them and might eventually choose the path of self-destruction, which was all too common.
When they were forcibly restrained until the magic’s effect wore off, their minds were often left in shambles.
‘I can’t…I can’t…please….’
Tears streaming down her face, Yoo jung pleaded for him not to come, but the moment he pressed his lips against hers, she lost her sanity.
The kiss never ended, as he explored her mouth with such fervor that she barely had time to breathe.
He stayed by her side for three days and nights until her rationality returned.
‘Sorry, it’s because of me…’
‘What’s there to be sorry about?’
‘Because of me… you…’
‘I don’t regret it.’
They were more than friends, less than lovers.
Perhaps it couldn’t be defined by any label.
Nevertheless, neither of them confessed their feelings for the other.
Or, more accurately, they didn’t take the chance.
Because he was scared.
He was afraid to find hope in a hopeless world, to find a reason to live.
He was content with the unchanging relationship they had.
He didn’t wish for anything more than their relationship as friends, colleagues, partners, and equal companions.
He feared that expecting something from the other might resurrect emotions he had buried, leading him to make misguided choices.
He, who had sacrificed so many lives, couldn’t turn back now. So, the occasional surging desires were something that money could solve.
Just like other players did.
‘What… did you say just now?’
‘I said I don’t regret it.’
Eunha answered Yoo jung, who had awakened from the spell, with another kiss.
Now, he was frightened. Frightened of finding hope at this point, of their relationship changing.
Yet, he found her adorable, clutching the blanket tightly while blushing.
In the morning after waking up from the spell, the two rekindled their relationship.
‘Eunha.’
‘What?’
‘…Nothing. Thank you.’
Yet, they never confessed their feelings for each other.
Since that day, they implicitly shared their love without uttering a word.
It was a time when the public sentiment couldn’t be ignored as Ha baek-ryeon was about to ascend to the position of the 2nd Fairy, and her position was constantly under attack.
They remained in an ambiguous relationship, still more than friends but less than lovers.
‘From now on, you can’t meet other women, okay?’
‘……’
‘Don’t roll your eyes. Speak up, why are you silent?’
‘…Alright.’
Perhaps.
Just maybe.
She might have been waiting.
Waiting for the moment he overcame his trauma.
Waiting for the moment he confessed his love.
Waiting for the moment he found the meaning of life.
‘I like you. To the extent that I can give my life for you.’
‘That’s a bit…’
‘That’s why don’t die, you idiot.’
That story no longer exists in this lifetime.
However, he still found himself sinking into the bed, remembering her vividly as if she were right there in front of him.
☆
He had a dream.
A story that no longer exists.
The corners of his mouth twitched.
“…Huh?»
The dream was too vivid.
It left an impression.
It was etched into his memory.
And his senses too.
“…Could it be?»
He laughed as if it was absurd.
He had never experienced anything like this before.
Not even in his previous life.
He reached into his pajama pants.
“…»
He was in trouble.
He pulled out his hand from his pants and groped for the bedsheet.
Thankfully, it was safe.
He then turned on the lights and checked his pajama pants.
“…Safe.»
There were no signs.
The problem was his underwear.
“Ugh, damn it…»
It was an unexpected nocturnal…moment of enlightenment.
He stood in the middle of the room, staring blankly for quite some time.
This couldn’t continue.
He was lost in thought for a while and then changed into clean underwear.
Opening the door cautiously, he tiptoed down the dark corridor, ensuring no light seeped out.
His destination was the bathroom.
With the lights off, he quietly closed the door and entered the bathroom.
Raising his mana internally to secure his vision, he turned on the tap at the sink.
“Good.»
Speed was of the essence.
He grabbed his underwear from the sink, exerting strength in his hand.
He had to finish the task as quickly as possible and then put it in the laundry basket as if nothing had happened.
“How old am I really… Why do I have to do this at my age…»
He muttered curses under his breath as he washed his underwear.
Now, it seemed he could pull it out from the sink.
Just then.
“…Huh?»
The bathroom light came on.
“…Eunha?»
“…»
Frozen with his hand inside the sink, Eunha faced his mother who had just opened the door.
“What were you doing without even turning on the bathroom light?»
His mother asked, rubbing her eyes as if she was still half asleep.
She clearly hadn’t fully woken up.
It was evident from her posture, leaning against the door pillar.
“What, Mom… What were you doing?»
Eunha stuttered in surprise at his mother’s sudden appearance.
Thankfully, his mother didn’t seem to care.
Yawning, she answered, “I came to drink water and heard strange noises from the bathroom.»
“Ahh, I see.»
“But what about these boxers?»
“Th-this…?»
Eunha felt embarrassed. His mother was pointing to the boxers inside the sink with the hands she had just wiped her eyes with.
Eunha awkwardly explained, “Uh, I, I had an accident… I wet myself earlier…»
“In that case, put it in the laundry basket and change into a new one. Also, go to bed quickly.»
“Uhhh, yes, okay!»
He thought he was in big trouble. Eunha, holding the dripping boxers as discreetly as possible, came out of the bathroom.
As soon as he came out, his mother turned off the bathroom light.
“I’ll do the laundry tomorrow.»
“Uh, okay.»
“You have to go to school later. What if you oversleep? Go in and sleep quickly.»
“You should rest too, Mom.»
“Alright, Eunha, you too.»
Eunha, putting the boxers in the laundry basket, walked back to his room with uncertain steps.
Lying down on the bed, he stared at the ceiling.
“Mom didn’t notice, right?»
She hadn’t noticed.
Eunha answered his own question in his mind.
“Ugh, why did I do something I hadn’t done before I regressed!»
Eunha pulled the blanket over himself.
Tonight, he was in big trouble.
“Ugh…»
He needed to take a shower in the morning.
He only thought about taking off his boxers.
Eunha writhed uncomfortably with a lingering feeling of unease.
☆
The next morning.
Yawning, Eunha sat down at the dining table.
“Did you sleep well?»
“A little.»
His father, who was watching the morning news, spoke.
Just then, his mother brought toast to the table.
Both of them reached for the toast simultaneously. Their gestures of spreading jam were perfectly synchronized.
“Oh, Eunha, what’s wrong? You ate all the peanut butter. You didn’t want to eat it because it was hard before.»
“Just. I felt like having it today.»
Eunha casually replied to his father’s question.
Seeming drowsy, Eunae was eating yogurt beside him.
“Yeah, you shouldn’t be picky. You’re not a little kid anymore, Eunha.»
“I’m not picky! I just don’t eat peanut butter that much…»
“Eunha, you’re an adult now.»
“An adult~»
What was he talking about?
Eunha frowned, and Eunae giggled.
He didn’t understand what his father was finding so amusing and ended up spewing out the toast that was in his mouth.
“Are you a kid? Come on, really.»
“N-no, it’s just that… our son becoming an adult makes me so happy… hehe… But why are you laughing!»
“I’m laughing? When?»
“….»
His father chuckled while covering his mouth with his hand.
His mother, too, tried to hold back her laughter.
Eunha, who had stopped eating the toast, stared blankly at his parents on the other side of the table.
“My oppa is an adult now! Fantastic! I want to become an adult too!»
Awoken from her nap, Eunae cheered.
Then their parents burst into laughter, unable to hold it in.
“…I want to die.»
For the first time in his life, other than when he was born, Eunha realized that he wanted to die.