Chapter 705: Not That Young
I slowly lifted my eyelids.
Then I retraced my memories.
What was I doing just before this?
I’d boarded the train to Hyeseong with Seo Ye-in and mirror-image Seo Ye-in.
After finding an empty compartment and sitting across from each other, the three of us had spent a while messing around with cards and board games.
But I was the undisputed king of minigames.
It started as a three-way free-for-all, but once I kept winning, it turned into a two-against-one.
Of course, I kept winning after that too.
In the end, Seo Ye-in got sick of it and flopped facedown onto the table, and I figured I might as well rest too, so I closed my eyes for a bit.
That was my last memory, but—
How did I end up here?
Spread out before me was a place that felt rather sudden, but not all that unfamiliar.
A vast great hall, the kind you might find in a temple or a royal palace.
And filling that great hall from end to end were countless heroes, all bowing their heads toward me.
★Kim Ho Land★.
Or, as it was also called, the inner world.
I had come here around the start of winter break, then stopped visiting for quite a while. So how had I ended up back here now?
Because [Sovereign] ranked up?
If it was trying to show me what had changed—
That would make a fair amount of sense.
Before long, I sat down on the throne and slowly surveyed the hall.
It definitely got upgraded.
The great hall had already been magnificent, and now it was even more magnificent.
Even the S-rank heroes—before, I had to guess who they were from their silhouettes, but now they were much clearer, enough to recognize each one at a glance.
And obviously, it can’t just be the visuals that changed.
There was a high chance some kind of function had been added or strengthened.
Maybe it was more convenient for people who entered with [Invitation], or maybe they could stay longer.
I also suspected the heroes’ ability to exert influence inside the inner world had grown.
I’d know for sure if I invited someone in.
Thinking that, I looked over them one by one.
Then I decided I might as well give them a little warning while I was at it.
“When my people come in, take it easy on them. Don’t go full power just because you get the chance. Teach them a little while you fight. Especially you. And you. You too.”
.......At my pointing finger, the “gothic young lady” Dang Gyu-young had met lowered her head even further.
Next was Hong Hyeona, the master of the Ruby Mage Tower, and then the Heavenly Demon....
After giving them what was basically a scolding disguised as a request, I added one more thing.
“For the record, anyone besides my people is fair game. Make them feel the wall.”
Like Grandpa Mo Yong.
Or Father-in-law and Mother-in-law No. 3.
Naturally, no answer came back, but somehow it felt like they were burning with fighting spirit.
After that, I kept rambling on to the S-rank heroes about this and that, then suddenly fell silent.
Because of an intuition that came over me out of nowhere.
I didn’t understand why myself, but—
...I think this might work. Right now.
At last, I slowly rose from the throne.
Then I stretched out a hand below me.
“Let me borrow that for a second.”
In response, a priest in white robes stepped forward.
She had been one of my main core members—the Saintess, Lee Seo.
In her hands was a thick book.
The Holy Scripture.
Naturally, it was a priest-class main weapon.
And that one, in particular, had been a top-tier endgame item, fully upgraded.
Soon the Holy Scripture floated up into the air, then flew across the empty space toward me.
The moment I caught it, the intuition I’d been feeling since earlier grew even stronger.
This can really be done.
So I focused my mind and called up Lee Seo’s main skills.
WOOOOONG—!The Holy Scripture filled with dazzling light, and a thick protective barrier formed around me.
...It really works.
Then maybe other things too?
After returning the Holy Scripture, I reached out elsewhere.
“Lend me another one.”
This time, the one who stepped forward was a monk with a shaved head.
But contrary to his appearance, he was giving off a sinister blood-red aura.
Blood Buddha.
He was one I’d touched while building along the Blood Cult line.
His equipment was a string of prayer beads made from large skulls.
After taking it from him, I focused my mind again and called up Blood Buddha’s skills.
A blood-red aura gathered in one of my hands, then spread across my entire arm in an instant.
When I thrust it forward as it was, the condensed blood-red force aura shot out in the shape of a palm the size of a house.
KWA-AAAAANG—!This is way too fun.
It felt like I’d spent a whole year playing only on alt accounts, then suddenly got back on my main.
I got secretly excited and kept borrowing item after item.
I split the air open with the S-rank axe [Infernal Yama Axe],
and summoned dozens of blood golems with the S-rank cursed dagger [Bloodquencher].
Then, just as I was about to start firing arrows wildly into empty space, I suddenly felt something off.
Why does it suddenly feel stuffy?
A sensation like something was crushing me down.
Even I couldn’t easily identify what it was.
Even when I tried connecting it to the inner world, nothing came to mind.
Because I stayed too long?
That was the inconclusive guess I had just reached when—
An invisible pressure mercilessly squashed my cheek.
“.......”
So I snapped my eyes open.
I was back inside the train.
But something gray was blocking nearly half my vision, and I soon realized it was Seo Ye-in’s head.
She was sleeping on top of my knees, casting Kim Ho pillow—no, Kim Ho bed.
On top of that, she was rubbing her cheek all over mine, and apparently that had been the source of the pressure.
Still, that couldn’t have all been some random dream.
I’d been interrupted at the end, sure, but everything before that had been far too vivid, and the implication had been too clear.
It means I’m going to gain something new soon.
Most likely a skill.
It wasn’t something that existed in my memory, so there was a high chance it would occupy a position similar to [Invitation].
But something that powerful wasn’t just going to fall out of the sky.
Main quest reward.
Some kind of incident would happen, and I’d have to resolve it in the best possible way.
Of course, contrary to my expectations, it might really have just been a meaningless dream, and nothing at all might happen in Hyeseong.
That part, I’d just have to confirm once I got there.
With that thought, I looked out the window, and in the distance I could see the outline of a city.
We were almost at our destination, Hyeseong.
So I gave Seo Ye-in a light shake to wake her.
“We’re almost there. Time to get up.”
“Later....”
“You were the one singing my house~ my house~. What am I supposed to do if you won’t get up?”
“Wake me when we arrive....”
Yeah, that wasn’t enough to budge her.
I decided to move on to the next step.
When I tugged her cheek long, Seo Ye-in frowned faintly.
“No cheek....”
“I think I’m in a bit of a bad mood too, maybe because I only just woke up.”
“Why...?”
I took hold of Seo Ye-in’s face and made her look at the next seat over, then the one across from us.
“There are lots of seats, right?”
“There are.”
“It’d be nice to sit properly, right?”
Shake shake....Seo Ye-in weakly shook her head from side to side.
And even while doing that, she still muttered what she had to say.
“Exclusive pillow chance....”
“You can just lean on me from the side. Use my shoulder as a pillow. Everyone else does.”
“Not enough....”
“You absolutely have to climb all the way on top?”
Nod....“Premium seat....”
“I’m telling you, I think your sleeping habits have gotten even worse lately. Just now too, you kept rubbing your cheek on me.”
“Comfortable....”
“You can’t bully a pillow just because it’s convenient for you, right?”
“.......”
“You can’t, right?”
“I can....”
“You’re completely out of control.”
At times like this, actions spoke louder than words.
I slipped out from under her and left the compartment.
Then, after confirming the next compartment over was empty, I sat down there.
As a result, Seo Ye-in showed up in under thirty seconds.
She wobbled over like some kind of mollusk, trying to climb onto my lap.
But I firmly pushed her away.
“No. Sit next to me.”
“Kim Ho pillow...?”
“Service is suspended for the time being.”
Only then did Seo Ye-in seem to wake up a little. She raised her eyelids and tugged lightly at my sleeve.
“...Go easy on me.”
“What exactly do you mean?”
“Service suspended.”
“I think sometimes there needs to be a reminder of how precious things are.”
She’d been treating me way too casually for a pillow.
At that, Seo Ye-in quietly grabbed my arm.
“Precious butler.”
“I never said I’d be your butler.”
“Precious Kim Ho.”
“Doesn’t really move me.”
I kept pretending to sulk while bickering with Seo Ye-in.
After a while, Hyeseong New City, which had only been a blurry shape outside the train window, gradually became clearer and clearer.
The train also entered the city proper and slowly began losing speed.
Eventually, it came to a stop.
When I got off onto the platform with Seo Ye-in—who had been repeating “precious Kim Ho” the whole way—what immediately caught my eye was a group of people in suits.
One look told me they were Hyeseong Group employees.
As expected, Ahn Jeongmi stepped out from among them and bowed politely.
“Young miss, Mr. Kim Ho.”
“Hello.”
“Was the trip here comfortable?”
Maybe because it hit a nerve, Seo Ye-in quietly looked away, while I answered with a faint smile.
“Yes, we rested comfortably on the way here.”
“I’m glad to hear that. If you are not too tired, would you like to see the Chairman first?”
“I think that should be fine.”
“I will take you there right away.”
Before long, under escort from the Hyeseong Group staff, we got into a luxurious sedan and began driving across the city.
The cityscape outside the window was familiar enough, but the buildings somehow felt unfamiliar.
Wasn’t this whole area destroyed?
Back when the Witch of Death had fought here, the spinal towers had come crashing down and the undead had swept through, leaving the place in ruins.
And yet, after such a short time, the buildings had already been rebuilt.
Not only that—they were taller and sturdier than before.
It was a clear glimpse of Hyeseong’s strength.
As I compared the city in my memory to the city before me, the sedan came to a stop in front of a familiar skyscraper.
It was so tall that no matter how far I tilted my head back, I couldn’t see the top.
Hyeseong Group headquarters.
I idly wondered which was taller, this or the Ruby Mage Tower, but I kept walking after Ahn Jeongmi.
And the moment we entered the building, we headed straight toward one side, where there was, unbelievably, a private elevator that went directly to the Chairman’s office.
Soon, leaving the other employees behind, we stepped into the elevator alone.
The moment the button was pressed, it shot upward at absurd speed, and before long the doors opened.
The Chairman’s office looked exactly the same as it had during summer break.
The first thing I saw was an elderly man with graying hair.
The head of Hyeseong Group, its Chairman, and Seo Ye-in’s grandfather.
And sitting beside him was a handsome blond young man, with something halo-like floating above his head.
It was golden, the same color as his hair, decorated with wings, and looked very similar to the bracelet Seo Ye-in had received as a “safety device.”
Judging by the circumstances, there was a high chance he was the one who had made the bracelet.
And if that was the case, then his identity was—
Sky-Healing Dragon Jupiter.
One of Meteor Dragon’s three guardians, and an S-rank dragon.
Soon enough, Sky-Healing Dragon Jupiter looked straight at me as well, and a strange light entered his eyes.
Then he spoke in a puzzled tone.
“......Myeongwang said you were a Little Sovereign.”