The Returner

2. But is that good? (1)

“So what do you want? ”

The old man, who handed his white hair neatly, said quietly looking at the woman in front of him.

The golden hair.

And below it, the deathly eyes and the sucking golden eyes.

Red lips that seem oddly harmonious with a fluffy nose.

An invisible blemish on white skin.

A woman of overwhelming beauty, never thought of as a human being.

‘Because it's not human. ’

The old man knew exactly who the woman was.

She is in human form, but she is not human.

Her identity is the Dragon.

It is a legendary creature that has been thought to be an illusion.

Of course, they had never identified the entity, but given what she had shown and what she had done, it was at least not human.

“Recognition and preparation. ”

“What are you talking about……. ”

The appendage gazes arrogantly at the old man.

“It's hard to talk to an intelligent creature. ”

“I'm sorry about that. ”

It's very rude, but the old man doesn't seem particularly grumpy.

If what she claims is true, she feels like she's trying to talk to a puppy.

It was a compliment to the attempt, not to offend the puppy.

‘I know with my head...... ’

Nevertheless, I couldn't help feeling something boiling in my stomach.

“Literally, mortal. The world is now under invasion from another dimension. There are many dimensions to invade and many directions to cope with. But the most important thing right now... is that the gate is getting bigger. ”

“As you said, my poor head has its limitations, so can you explain it a little easier? ”

“Intellectual life passes. ”

“ ……. ”

The old man's face became more serious.

We're fighting monsters right now.

Charge in and you'll be defeated.

It was a fight all you had to do was keep that very simple proposition.

And then intelligent life comes over?

“Is there a level of conversation? ”

“Equal to or greater than the humans here. ”

“Mmmm... ”

The old man swallowed the murmur.

If that's true, the impact will be immense.

It's gonna be crazy.

It's as if the existence of aliens that humanity has been trying to ascertain is suddenly confirmed.

“What do they want? ”

“I cannot control all dimensions. So we don't know what humans want elsewhere. There's only one thing intelligent creatures want where I am. ”

“Can you tell me that? ”

“Survive.”

“ ……. ”

“Survive. ”

I threw it like it was nothing, but the old man trembled at the unknown weight of the horse.

And then I remembered the meaning of the words, and I shuddered again.

If you come here to conquer or to rob, the situation will retreat and you will not be harmed.

But if the goal is survival, the story changes.

If we are that desperate, and we have nowhere to go, it means we can fight until the last one remains.

“Hmm……. ”

The old man realized the weight of what the dragon had said to him.

“So what should we do? ”

“Ready.”

“What things? ”

“That is your decision, mortal. Roll your head to find the answer. Either admit them and accept them, or fight them to the end. If not, we'll find a third way. ”

“Hard work. ”

“I'm a messenger, not an advisor. That's all I can tell you, and what happens next is up to you. ”

“I should say thank you. ”

The appendage shakes its head.

“Your gratitude means nothing to me. ”

“ ……. ”

Then the old man could see that she was being quite polite to him.

I thought it was arrogant to ignore and look down on people from the first meeting, but that's not it.

In the eyes of this existence, a human is like an ant passing by.

What can I do to honor that ant?

Arrogance is natural.

No, it's the ignorance of our own themes that makes us arrogant.

For the first time in history, an elderly man who faced a higher rank than man had no choice but to consider how to hold his position.

“Can I ask you a question? ”

“Speak.”

“Why would someone as great as you be interested in someone like Yi Hyuk? In your eyes, isn't he pathetic? ”

“Pathetic?”

“Yes. I……. ”

At that moment, something started to appear in the old man's eyes.

The illusion that a giant reptile's mouth swallowed his entire body instantly engraved into his brain and disappeared.

“Huff!”

The man was startled and put his hands on the ground.

“Huff, huff…. ”

Cold sweat pours down like rain, darkening before my eyes.

My hands and feet shudder and my body screams.

He was realistic.

He just experienced death.

A death that can never be experienced alive.

“Humans……. ”

A cold voice pierces the old man's ear.

The shock of digging his own brain with something sharp caused him to tremble in agony.

“You arrogant man, you have crossed the line. ”

“Forgiveness……. ”

“You humans always try to cross the line. I know that Humans are not your fault, as such. But, mortal, arrogant mortal, you have crossed a line you must not cross. ”

“Please! ”

“He doesn't dare to be flattered by a man like you. Those who walk on their feet from the lowest to the highest, worship all the beings of one dimension. Even the great gods salute him. How dare a lowlife like you put him in your mouth? ”

The old man did not know what the words of the appendage meant.

But I knew one thing for sure.

Parent presence.

A creature long enough to erase him with a single gesture is now showing him pure anger.

Tears welled up in the old man's eyes.

The soul trembles with fear.

“Forgiveness!”

Aphedrice glances at the old man and nods.

Ignorance is not a sin, but there was a possibility of extenuating circumstances.

Most of all, he didn't want to live here in the past.

The throne of destruction wants to be human.

After all those years of not being human, he now wanted to be human.

You have to respect his will.

I don't like him, even if his stomach twists... It's his will that counts.

‘But……. ’

Aphedrice sighs as he recalls the characters filling his surroundings.

The quality of existence varies by how it is recognized.

Even the existence of the microorganism is no longer a microorganism.

Likewise, no matter how inferior humans may be, if Lee Ji-hyuk has a relationship and cares for them, then Apeldice cannot treat them as mere mortals.

That's what relationships are.

“But is that good? ”

“What are you talking about? ”

“Soliloquy.”

“… Yes. ”

The old man does his best not to defy her planting.

As a non-human being, his interpretation may not all be correct, but his eyes now feel that she is very uncomfortable.

As the old man expected, the appendage was not easy to plant.

Even though it was his heart that put himself in a low place, it was a problem that the person who put himself in that low place was too high.

In Beraf, even the dragon lord, who could claim control of all living creatures, dared not to worship Lee Hyuk.

It wasn't just about being strong.

It was the source of his greatness that he, who was the weakest of Beraph, constantly climbed up and finally stood at its peak.

Didn't that relentless determination and tenacity make the gods acknowledge him?

Such a person......

In the eyes of Aphedrice, I can clearly see Lee Hyuk, who was beaten by Jung Yi Jung-min, who was rebuked by Park Seon Duk.

Is that a good thing? ’

Even after all that time together, I still don't know him.

But the important thing is that he wants it, and the Appledrice just needs to help him out.

“I should get going.”

“Yes.”

“I have given notice. The next step is up to you. ”

“I'll keep that in mind.”

The appendage glances at the old man and disappears.

“Phew……. ”

The old man sighed deeply, looking at the empty space, where the appendage had been a while ago.

“Fewer people. ”

No, it's already reduced.

The image of the old man who had been trembling a little while ago disappeared, and there was a politician with relaxation and toughness.

“Page the Secretary of Defense first. ”

“Yes.”

Hearing his assistant's voice coming over the intercom, the old man leans down deep into the chair.

“Intellectual life……. ”

How to solve this.

The old man looks out the window as he presses down on his flimsy head.

The ancestor hanging in front of the white outer wall filled his gaze.

“So... ”

Lee Hyuk literally looked at the pizza on the table with his poop chewed face.

“You're eating this? ”

Lee Hyuk was tired of watching the pizza baked in the shape of the mouse's face, which symbolizes the theme park.

“Why? Isn't he cute? ”

Lee Hyuk shook his head when he said to Jung-min.

Cute?

“Humans who don't take it oddly that a chicken character poses to eat a chicken, but they can eat it with a smile on their face. ”

“… Huh? ”

“Cow characters tail each other to eat well at the beef house, and chicken characters hold chicken legs at the chicken house. ”

“Yes.”

“If you think about it calmly, isn't that terrifying? I'm not saying," Eat it, because it's good for me or my people. "That?”

“ ……. ”

Jung Hae Min suddenly felt his appetite drop.

“Ugh, you... You have a strange idea. ”

“You guys are even weirder! ”

It's the same thing, and it's not the same thing.

“So you're eating this, after all. ”

Lee Hyuk sighed as he looked at the bread, pizza and pyro shaped by various characters.

“I don't know, I don't know. ”

Is my head weird?

It was Lee Hyuk who couldn't comprehend the idea of "I have to make this character so pretty that I can eat it."

“Hey, you're wasting your time! Don't!”

Lee Hyuk closed his mouth against Jeong-min.

Well, it's true that it turned into a mouth-watering shape in front of Bob.

“But isn't that strange! ”

“Shut up!”

“Knng... ”

Other people who heard Lee Hyuk's words became shaky face.

Before he opened his mouth, it was a very pleasant meal, but the atmosphere became subtle as soon as he opened his mouth.

“But don't you think the atmosphere is a little strange? ”

“Huh?"

Lee Hyuk turned his head to Jung-min's words.