TINL Ch 17

“When I’m experiencing the side effects, my thought process goes like, ‘Whoever upset me is a bad person, and bad people need to be punished, so let’s get them back.’ Fascinating, right?”

“You’re telling me about this unheard-of symptom now and saying ‘Fascinating, right?’ You should have warned me about such a risk beforehand!”

“I don’t think this warrants such a scolding. The pain and resentment at the time of my death were so great that side effects occur when I release my power after facing a certain level of shock, so it’s practically a risk you created, senior.”

Wol clenched her teeth at the calm, yet cutting reply. She’d forgotten Sunwoo was always like this, even in his previous life.

Rather than explicitly stating his dislikes, he’d subtly distance himself and deal with them. He wouldn’t try to one-up others, but he never yielded on matters he believed were right.

‘He’s remarkably consistent even after all this time….’

In the Celestial Realm, people like Sunwoo usually took one of two paths. They were either trampled and discarded immediately, or they were trampled, then clawed their way back up, becoming tarnished in the process.

‘I have no choice but to support him until he adapts to the Celestial Realm on his own.’

She sighed and swallowed the last piece of chicken.

“I understand it’s my fault, so keep it hidden. Physical and mental defects are grounds for disqualification from employment. Mago might find fault with it if it becomes known.”

“Oh, come on. None of the people in the Celestial Realm seem to have their heads screwed on straight. My side effects wouldn’t even compare.”

“…….”

“And speaking of grounds for disqualification, isn’t murder much more serious? Criminals are working openly, so what’s the problem with occasional mental issues?”

Wol tossed her wooden chopsticks into the empty box and gave Sunwoo a disapproving look. He seemed innocent and easygoing, but it was hard to grasp his true intentions when he occasionally brought up her past sins.

“I admit I’ve wronged Mr. Sunwoo greatly, but I didn’t tell you this so you could use it against me like this.”

“Huh? ‘Other people’s weaknesses are very useful negotiation tools.’ You wrote that in your notepad.”

“I didn’t write that down for you to use it like this either.”

As if he’d been waiting for those words, Sunwoo neatly cleared the remnants of their meal from the table and smiled.

“I don’t know for sure, but my master said that after the side effects, I tend to become a bit more stably annoying than my usual personality. Please keep that in mind as well.”

“…….”

Wol frowned slightly, then nodded in reluctant acknowledgment.

“Well… It can’t be helped since the side effects are irreversible. I understand, so go change into comfortable clothes and rest.”

“Yes. You’ve worked hard.”

“I’d appreciate it if you understood that I was annoyed with Mr. Sunwoo for not reporting to me first, not for attacking Mago.”

“I see. I’ll remember that.”

Sunwoo, who had provoked her with the resolve not to be swayed by Wol any further, celebrated his relatively successful conclusion by unbuttoning his cufflinks. He rolled up his shirt sleeves, loosened his tie, and quietly observed Wol moving around the room.

Even though she must have felt his gaze, Wol didn’t glance his way as she rummaged through her suitcase for clothes to wear tomorrow, brushed her teeth, and fiddled with her pouch. Sunwoo frowned slightly.

‘She’s subtly taking out her medicine and cigarettes. She doesn’t need those anymore since I practically rebuilt her body.’

Whether he was watching or not, Wol finished her preparations for bed, pulled a pillow next to her, patted it, and called Sunwoo.

“Come and rest now. If you’re not going to sleep in those clothes, quickly put on a robe and come over. And turn off the lights.”

Despite his disapproval of Wol’s habit of mixing instructions, commands, and criticisms as smoothly as flowing water, Sunwoo obediently changed his clothes, turned off the lights, and sat on the bed. Breaking the awkward silence that seemed to stretch on forever, Sunwoo brought up work again.

“So, where is our first destination tomorrow?”

“There’s no destination as such. Tomorrow we’ll check out, find a popular cafe, eat and drink popular things, flesh out the Sun God myth, and review the draft of the revelation to be given to the prophets. Having dinner at the place I’ve already booked and going to the hotel is about the only set destination.”

“Having a meal, going to a cafe to talk about fairy tales, having dinner at a fine dining restaurant, and then going to a hotel…sounds more like a date course than work, senior.”

“It’s strictly fieldwork. We need to figure out what people prefer these days so we can take it away and destroy it.”

He was about to tease her, asking if she wasn’t just enjoying a trip on company money, but looking at Wol’s serious face, he recalled their task.

“Oh, right. The mission was to destroy humanity. I was so focused on protecting you that I almost forgot.”

“Speaking of destruction, I think it might be a good idea to choose prophets different from the usual ones we contact to foretell this destruction.”

“By prophets… should I assume we’ll be meeting with shamans?”

“Shamans certainly fall under the category of prophets, but I’m planning to focus on scholars.”

“Scholars?”

“Yes. Climatologists, ecologists, geologists, astronomers, people like that.”

Wol’s fair face, gleaming even in the darkness due to the power he had unleashed, moved closer to him. Sunwoo’s Adam’s apple bobbed as the woman, who had seemed devoid of life and warmth, leaned in with sparkling eyes. She spoke rapidly, her voice tinged with excitement, ignoring Sunwoo’s stiffening face.

“Even though kids these days don’t listen to others, wouldn’t they take the revelations from a scientist more seriously than a fortune teller? It makes sense to focus on what’s more efficient.”

“That’s true, but….”

Sunwoo, who had moved back slightly as she approached, cleared his throat and asked cautiously,

“Since we’re going to destroy the gate anyway, isn’t it unnecessary to be so careful about selecting prophets?”

“You’re saying something very dangerous.”

Wol clicked her tongue as she shared the edge of the blanket with him. Two pillows, but one blanket. Their eyes met, literally under the same blanket. As Wol’s robe gaped open, revealing her breasts due to her sideways position, Sunwoo flapped like a startled rooster and retreated further.

“Uh, you use the blanket, senior!”

“Why are you avoiding me so much? Is it such a big deal that I offered you the blanket? Am I that disgusting?”

“Disgusting? After I purified you to the point of having side effects? What nonsense! Would I, who controls fire, be cold, or would you, whose fingertips are like ice, be cold? You’re especially susceptible to the cold, wearing only a robe, and you’ll get a stomachache if the wind gets under the blanket!”

Sunwoo, believing he was maintaining his composure and a safe distance, retreated as if he would sleep on the floor if necessary, raising his voice. Surprised by Sunwoo’s unusually strong reaction, Wol glanced down at where his gaze had flickered and quickly retreated. Her breasts, which she always complained were unnecessarily large, were shamelessly exposed beyond the collar of her robe.

“What the… He could have just said to cover up.”

Feeling a mix of annoyance and hurt, she raised her voice as well, then grumbled under her breath as she tightly closed her robe.

“Mr. Sunwoo touched, kissed, and sucked on them, so why are you acting so surprised now? Anyone who didn’t know us would think we’ve never touched anyone else before.”

“…Just wrap yourself in the blanket.”

Wol pouted and wrapped herself in the blanket like a silkworm cocoon.

“Happy now? If you hate touching me and seeing my skin so much, I’ll just get separate rooms from tomorrow.”

“No. If someone else attacks and hurts you while we’re in separate rooms, I’ll have to deal with the aftermath again. Let’s agree that you’ll stay safely tucked in the blanket so we don’t have any further disagreements.”

Wol’s eyes, fixed on him as he drew a sharp line and returned with his pillow, couldn’t hide her hurt. She’d thought all emotions other than guilt and remorse had worn away, but apparently, some useless residue remained. Feeling the sudden urge to put something in her mouth – medicine, alcohol, cigarettes, anything – she glanced at the items on the side table and returned to the original topic.

“What were we talking about… Oh, prophets.”

Sunwoo, who had completely forgotten what he was talking about before the commotion, nodded hastily.

“Yes, yes. I asked why we need to give a warning since we’re going to destroy the place anyway.”

“Let’s say Mr. Sunwoo lives in a 40-year-old apartment building that’s about to collapse. The safety inspection reveals it’s likely to collapse in a couple of days. Should the city issue an evacuation notice due to the risk of collapse, or not?”

“…They should.”

“It’s the same thing. Whether the residents listen or resist, the building will collapse. Since it’s going to collapse, notification is essential from an ethical standpoint. It’s their choice whether they get crushed or heed the warning and prepare themselves. If we just destroy it without any warning and the residents complain about our tyranny and outrage, it’ll be a hassle.”

“Ah.”

Sunwoo, fanning himself with his hand as he quickly regained his composure, nodded, trying not to look at her chest. Wol, inwardly amused by his pretense of calmness, continued,

“That’s why we use prophets. There have been cases where humans lived so recklessly that they perished before the transition committee could even get organized. Then they’re criticized for being unqualified to take over the new gate. We need to give humans a sufficient warning so they can prepare, even if it’s just to avoid being ridiculed for tens of thousands of years.”

“Ah….”

“So later, whether in the afterlife or elsewhere, when humans complain, we can counter with, ‘It’s your fault for not heeding our ample warnings.’”

“It’s an effort to create the narrative that ‘We did our best for salvation, but there was nothing we could do since you didn’t accept it.’ I understand.”

Wol looked him up and down appraisingly. Noticing that her admiration stemmed from her absurdly low expectations of him, Sunwoo frowned.

“There’s no need to be so surprised. How much of an idiot do you think I am?”

“It’s not that I thought that…. It’s because I knew Mr. Sunwoo in his previous life.”

Looking at the disgruntled man with slightly aggrieved eyes, Wol recalled him from the distant past.