Chapter 415: Holding Back the Tears (6)
Translator: miraclerifle
Editor: Borderline Masochist
Choi Han had lost consciousness while watching Eruhaben catching his falling body with a shocked expression.
Tons of memories had flown into his mind.
He had then become Choi Jung Soo.
“Hey, Jung Soo.”
Choi Han had become Choi Jung Soo, starting with Choi Jung Soo’s mom smiling and telling him something.
“Our family has stayed here for generations. We cannot leave.”
“Why not?”
His grandfather had faintly smiled and answered Choi Jung Soo’s question.
“I had a nephew...I guess he would be your uncle once removed. Anyway, it is because there is someone who needs to come back. There’s my younger brother as well... what would happen if they came back here thinking that they were back home only to not find anyone here?”
The young Choi Jung Soo had nodded at his grandfather’s explanation and smiled.
The largest tile-roofed house in the neighborhood. He liked this house and enjoyed watching his older cousins, his mom, and his dad moving around while punching or swinging wooden swords.
Choi Jung Soo slowly got older.
Choi Han had experienced everything as Choi Jung Soo.
Then one day as he finished his studies and prepared to take the exam to enter college in the physical education department...
The world turned into chaos.
Something that seemed straight out of a movie happened.
A terrible horror movie at that.
Once the first part of that movie ended...
“...I promise I will return.”
Choi Jung Soo had kowtowed twice while looking at the destroyed tile-roofed house.
Nobody lived in this house now. He worked hard while trying to repair it as much as possible, but the grandeur of this upright place was long gone.
“I will return... and turn this place back to how it used to be.”
Choi Jung Soo, the only survivor from this house, made a promise with everyone.
He then started to work for a company.
It was a company in an awkward position as it was neither a guild nor a government entity, but it was able to take on all sorts of jobs because of this ambiguous status.
“Oh! Are you the only other rookie? My name is Choi Jung Soo! Nice to meet you!”
“...Kim Rok Soo. Nice to meet you.”
Choi Jung Soo had warmly greeted his new colleague.Follow current novels on novelb((in).(com)
“Time to go on a business trip.”
“Team-leader-nim, you mean to go to work, right?”
“Same difference.”
Choi Jung Soo started to do all sorts of jobs with his fellow rookie Kim Rok Soo, team leader Lee Soo Hyuk, and the others on their team.
He was always getting hurt and doing the hard tasks because he was responsible for fighting in the vanguard.
It was still bearable.
It was because he had people who were like family, no, because he had a new family.
Choi Jung Soo's memories had continued.
‘I hope peace returns to Earth and we can all live happily ever after.’
He had looked at his teammates and started to think.
‘I'm going to take everyone to my hometown. The tile-roofed house is large, and it looks like I already convinced the team leader-nim and Kim Rok Soo!’
He could smile while thinking about the future every so often as they completed their missions.
It was a pure smile that was not forced.
However, he was always worried.
This world was one where he never knew when he would die.
‘Looks like that time is finally here.’
Choi Jung Soo had to face a time when his concerns had become reality.
“...Choi Jung Soo.”
“I'm okay, team leader-nim.”
He smiled and responded to Lee Soo Hyuk. However, his gaze could not move away from the large monster.
It was the appearance of the monster that Kim Rok Soo had predicted.
That monster was beyond their wildest imaginations.
‘I might die.’
He couldn't help but have that thought.
“Pfft.”
He could hear team leader Lee Soo Hyuk laughing. Jung Soo turned his head to see Lee Soo Hyuk stoically start to speak while pointing at his hand that was holding the sword.
“You can talk like that while your hand is shaking that much?”
Jung Soo could see his shaking hand. He then started to smile and asked as if nothing was wrong.
“Hyung, is it that obvious?”
“Yes. Very obvious.”
“Ay, that’s too bad.”
The team leader had shaken his head at Jung Soo’s response. He then sent the signal.
“Attack! Use the paths that Kim Rok Soo predicted!”
All of their teammates had started to charge toward the monster.
“Team leader, the three o’clock direction! Two of you head North while three go Northwest!”
Choi Jung Soo listened to Kim Rok Soo's support from the back as he pulled out his sword.
Baaaaaang!
His final battle started by slamming away at the monster’s leg.
“Haaa..., haaa....”
Choi Jung Soo felt his body slowly get heavier.
‘Damn it! This crazy monster bastard!’
Choi Jung Soo’s face was filled with venomous aura as he glared at the monster.
It was too strong.
He didn’t know how they would defeat it.
He looked around.
“...This crazy!”
Some of his teammates were already dead.
Many of the others were injured badly like himself.
He felt as if they would all die if they didn’t run away.
They needed to run in order to survive.
It was at that moment.
He heard an unfamiliar voice.
- Death is not fated for you. Why are you trying to die? He had ended up intervening earlier because of that.
Flinch.
Choi Jung Soo’s body started to shake.
‘What is this voice?
Who is it?’
There were fear and curiosity in his voice. However, the unfamiliar voice did not respond to him. It only said what it needed to say.
- I will make you a proposal.
Choi Jung Soo had lost all sense of reality because of this unfamiliar voice.
He couldn’t see much anymore either.
He could hear Kim Rok Soo’s voice.
It didn't sound like crying, Kim Rok Soo was not someone who would cry until the end.
He seemed to be calling for him. But why did it sound a shriek?
- Is this your decision?
‘My decision?
Nah, things like this can happen as you live.
...Of course, I do want to live longer.
I want to live, but I can't leave alone.’
Choi Jung Soo could not respond anymore.
That weird voice was getting quieter.
- Kim Rok Soo was the one who was supposed to die. But that has changed.
‘...Ah, I am a bit worried about Kim Rok Soo, that punk. I hope he lives a good life.’
Choi Jung Soo felt as if he was slowly being sucked into the darkness.
He couldn't hear anything anymore; nothing could reach him.
The unfamiliar voice continued to mumble.
- There are only a few things left I can do. Humans really are interesting creatures.
Choi Jung Soo no longer has the strength to do anything.
- Choi Han.
Choi Jung Soo flinched at that moment.
No, Choi Han had returned to his senses.
- I am the God of Death. Maybe we will meet again in the future.
He heard a voice in his head.
“...Gasp!”
He then opened his eyes.
“Choi Han! You're finally awake.”
Click!
Choi Han slapped the hand heading toward him away. He could see that the person was shocked at his response, but he didn’t have time to think about that right now.
‘The memories, the memories-!’
Choi Jung Soo’s life, his memories, and his emotions were all flooding into Choi Han’s mind like a tsunami. It was hard to breathe.
A pain different than physical pain was shaking his mind.
“Huff..., huff. Huff......!”
He took a deep breath.
His sense of reality slowly started to return.
Drip. Drip.
Water drops started to fall onto the back of his hand.
“...You-”
He heard Eruhaben’s concerned voice.
However, these were not Choi Han’s own tears.
Choi Jung Soo.
These were that person’s tears.
No, these were the tears of the person who could have been his nephew.
The tiled-roof house that Choi Jung Soo had lived in.
That was his father’s house in his hometown.
Drip. Drip, drip.
The tears kept falling.
Choi Han did not understand why he was crying like this.
“Hey! What’s wrong? What is it?”
He could clearly see Eruhaben grabbing his shoulders with a shocked expression on his face.
Choi Han started to speak.
“...Kim Rok Soo.”
“What?”
Choi Han got up from the bed.
He then grabbed his scabbard resting next to him. It was the sword that Cale had given him. He looked down at the sword before asking Eruhaben a question.
“Where is Cale-nim right now?”
“Huh?”
“I must go there.”
“You don’t seem to be normal right now. Where do you think-”
“I’m going.”
That was how Choi Han had used a teleportation magic scroll to leave as soon as he opened his eyes.
And now...
The moment he took in the sight he teleported to...
“...What’s wrong with your face?”
Ron greeted Choi Han with a stiff expression rather than his usual benign smile. Clopeh Sekka was sitting on the ground next to him while looking at Choi Han, whose face was full of tear marks, as if he was looking at a crazy bastard.
Paaaat!
Eruhaben soon arrived as well.
“Eruhaben-nim.”
Choi Han ignored the statements and gazes of the others and pointed above him.
“Please use flight magic on me.”
“Haaaa. Alright, fine. In return-”
“I will apologize later. Thank you for taking care of me.”
“...Haaaa, really.”
Eruhaben cast flight magic on Choi Han.
Choi Han immediately flew up and started to move quickly.
- Choi Han! Did you really cry? Were you having a nightmare? I will console you!
He ignored Raon's voice right now as well.
Choi Han started to fly quickly.
Baaaaang! Baaaaang!
He flew toward the location where an endless number of fiery thunderbolts were causing small explosions.
The fiery thunderbolts opened a path for him.
Craaaackle.
He could feel the heat, but the fire did not burn Choi Han.
Choi Han moved past the fire and the thunderbolts and arrived at the center.
He could see a masked man standing there.
Choi Han looked toward Cale and started to speak.
“What am I supposed to call the friend of my nephew once removed?”
Cale started to laugh awkwardly as he responded.
“...Haha, I don't know. W, what would you call me? ...Sir?”
He was stuttering.
Cale started to frown.
‘Choi Jung Soo was Choi Han’s nephew?
Ah, this is bad.’