Chapter 242

〈Chapter 242〉 Part 1, Chapter 11, Section 12

Day 14.

It took an absurd amount of time to finalize the direction of both the Association and the Round Table, but I wasn’t idle during that period.

Eliminating monsters that had reappeared around Pyongyang.

Recovering cores gathered in the mini Phoenix nest I’d embedded in the Amnok River.

Securing land for the <Utopia Project>.

Modifying the cave dug beneath Dongjak.

No matter how ceaselessly I worked, the important thing was that I could only move within the Korean Peninsula.

If I moved recklessly, the Association and the Round Table might develop skewed views about me. Thus, I had to keep my movements minimal, doing as much as possible while staying low-key.

The most crucial task? Confirming the locations of other executives.

Penril, who’d revealed their identity, had vanished without a trace. Neither Azidahaka nor Hydra’s origins were known.

As for Karna, it was unclear if they’d even awakened. Though I suspected they had, their official activities wouldn’t begin until 2022.

For fourteen days, I couldn’t find the whereabouts of any executive.

After negotiations, I mobilized the executives allied with me.

Seok Harang.

I asked the second-generation Rusalka of Seoyea, who had ties with both the Round Table and the Association, to travel worldwide and search for the executives or Cubes.

…Though I didn’t promise to fulfill any request if they found something.

* * *

“Hyaahh, hmm… this feels amazing…”

“Don’t move! Why do I have to be on the bottom again…?”

“Are you not curious where I got this? Should I not tell you? Brother, are you going to play with your fingers again?”

“…Is there any normal sister out there who asks her brother to do such things?”

I was lying on a bean bag, with Seok Harang sprawled on top of me. In exchange for information, I was massaging Seok Harang’s chest.

“Hmph, it’s rumored that when someone you like massages you, it grows bigger. Hmm, your skills aren’t those of someone who’s just handled a baby or two. Hehe.”

“…”

I slightly twisted one of Seok Harang’s nipples. It was far from a massage, yet she seemed to enjoy even that.

“Haaah…”

“Do you really think it’ll grow just because I touch it?”

“I don’t know… Let’s try until it does. You stopped again! Keep going!”

“…”

Seok Harang teased me by holding a Cube between her fingers. Having no choice, I continued massaging her chest as she wished.

“So, did you find anything at the place I told you about?”

“Hmm, yeah. Thanks to that, I enjoyed some underwater diving. The spirits down there were insane! They went all the way down to 10,000 meters underground.”

“An SS-Rank level being is practically half-divine. And aren’t you a spirit too?”

One Cube.

A location only Seok Harang, among water-attribute SS-Ranks, could access.

At a depth of 19,900 meters in the Challenger Deep of the Mariana Trench lay a Cube. Using her water spirit abilities, Seok Harang successfully dived through deep-sea creatures and retrieved the Cube from the ocean floor.

“Of course others couldn’t find it. Hmm.”

“Did you check anywhere else?”

“Nope. Everything’s been cleaned out. Looks like your theory about executives hoarding a few Cubes is correct?”

“…Is that so?”

Ultimately, we can only hope all 32 will eventually gather.

“This, wanna see? I made a new friend while exploring the depths.”

Seok Harang proudly showed me photos taken in the deep sea. On her wrist hung a Magical Gear similar to mine, which, thanks to Hikari’s craftsmanship, functioned perfectly even after descending Everest’s height upside-down.

“Look at this. Doesn’t it remind you of yourself?”

“Do you want to die?”

“Hyaah! Ugh, hmm…”

Does Seok Harang not realize her chest is being fondled by my hands, or is she deliberately provoking me to stimulate her more?

Absolutely not because of the Cube—this kind of service would never happen otherwise. Even Chang-yeom would understand under these circumstances.

I need this Cube to take Chang-yeom strawberry-picking.

“Thanks to me, marine biologists are in an uproar. They’ve discovered new deep-sea creatures.”

“They’re probably S-Rank deep-sea monsters, judging by what I’ve seen.”

“Yeah, they’re S-Rank alright, but they’re surprisingly docile. They didn’t rush to attack; we just took pictures together.”

Seok Harang showed me photos taken with S-Rank deep-sea monsters. With fish-like appearances and glowing orbs lighting up the darkness, she fearlessly snapped selfies with them, causing a global stir.

“This is kinda unfair. Everyone takes aquarium photos with fish as background, right? So what’s different about what I did?”

“It’s a matter of scale. Who would expect someone to hang out and take photos with S-Rank deep-sea monsters?”

“Tch. Still, they weren’t trying to kill people or anything. If they’d attacked me first, I’d have skewered their heads instantly.”

“…Alright, alright. Good job. And you also cleaned up monsters while traveling around the world’s rivers.”

“Hehe.”

When I tapped her lower chest in praise, Seok Harang giggled happily. She truly loved physical contact.

“So, you got one from the Mariana Trench. Where did you get the other one?”

“Oh, this one?”

Seok Harang’s expression turned slightly awkward.

“While passing through India on a cultural tour, I stopped by the Ganges River, where a little girl gave it to me. She said it was a gift to commemorate my visit.”

“…A little girl?”

“Yeah. She looked super cute, but something about her felt off. I thought it was just a fun toy or a tourist souvenir, but when I took it, it turned out to be a Cube. Ugh, the world is scary.”

“Do you remember what the little girl looked like?”

“It’s been over ten days now… Ah.”

Seok Harang began conjuring an ice sculpture in mid-air, recreating the mysterious girl who had given her the Cube. As soon as I saw it, I flung the sculpture aside with the hand that had been massaging her chest.

“Ow! What’s your problem? Don’t you want the Cube?”

“You couldn’t recognize her even when she was right in front of you. For heaven’s sake. Really.”

“What, what are you talking about?”

I pointed furiously at the small girl, barely over 120cm tall.

“This is Karna.”

“What?”

“That’s Karna! Gancheon Karna!”

“…”

Seok Harang stared at the ice sculpture with a distorted face.

“But she looks so young?”

“…Let me repeat: Spirits can freely adjust their bodies. Can’t you tell just by looking?”

I gestured up and down at Karna’s figure.

“How is that a kid’s body? It’s a scaled-down adult woman’s figure.”

“Well, I know that…”

“Just look closer. Tsk. How do you not know this as the daughter of a Rusalka?”

“What does that have to do with my mom? Look at you badmouthing someone else’s mom!”

Seok Harang glared at me, upset that her Rusalka mother was insulted.

“My mom is the Princess of Russia, so it doesn’t matter anyway!”

“Careful. Your mom isn’t that much older than you. If she has a 21-year-old daughter, do you think the world will believe it?”

“But she’s still my mom!”

“Someone who hasn’t even properly greeted you. Tsk.”

My diss caused Seok Harang’s face to flush before slumping beside me, looking dejected.

“Whatever… She may be my mom, but I’d have to meet her to call her ‘mom,’ right?”

“…Are you feeling down? Want a chest massage?”

“No. Give me a chest massage.”

I pulled Seok Harang close to my right side, extracting my arm from behind her back to grab her chest.

“Haa…”

“You’re quite the peculiar one.”

“Your hands are warm. It feels nice… Anyway, I don’t know how to talk to my mom. If anything, it’d be easier if someone introduced us.”

She glared at me as she turned her head.

“You’re not planning to butt into my family drama, are you? Is Mom’s husband still drunk somewhere?”

“Isn’t Mom’s husband your dad?”

“Dad? He needs to act like one to deserve the title. Geez, gee.”

Seok Harang rolled onto her side and hugged me.

“Can’t I just call you dad?”

“Where did that ridiculous idea come from? Are you trying to die?”

“Why? Aren’t you a Spirit Killer? Being a spirit yourself, why do you chase after other spirits like a Casanova? Did you do something weird to my mom in the future? Hmm?”

“Forget it. Your mom passed away in the future. I only learned she was Anastasha after coming here.”

“Ugh, tsk.”

Seok Harang clicked her tongue in disappointment. I carefully snatched the Cube from her and held it in my hand.

“Hey! Why are you taking my stuff?”

“It’s because this thing is making you lose your mind.”

Hwaalrk.

I purified the ominous energy flowing from the Cube, and Seok Harang’s hazy eyes gradually returned to normal.

“…Wait, why am I clinging to you again?”

“By the way, you were just begging for a chest massage moments ago.”

“WHAT?!”

Seok Harang shrieked and recoiled in shock. I patted her back to calm her down.

“Cubes are problematic for this reason. They’re extremely malicious objects capable of affecting even an SS-Rank mind. Though… your influence seems relatively minor.”

“My… I carried this Cube around everywhere…”

“It’s because you relaxed after meeting me.”

“…That makes sense.”

Seok Harang calmed down significantly, her breathing stabilizing. I had been continuously stabilizing her magic power to prevent her from losing control due to the Cube’s influence.

“If I hadn’t massaged your chest, you probably would’ve jumped me and asked for worse things.”

“…That sounds wrong, but it also sounds like something I’d do, which is terrifying. Tsk. Embarrassing.”

“Don’t worry. There’s no one here but you. Though… the comment about having dinner with your mom was pretty shocking even for me.”

“Dinner…? Kick, were you thinking of dumping her and then dumping me too?”

Seok Harang jabbed my ribs with her index finger and smirked mischievously.

“To clarify… damn it, why did you bring back two Cubes when one would’ve been enough?”

“Why? What difference does two make?”

“…Yeah. …Honestly, I don’t understand what the higher powers are thinking.”

I pointed at the softly glowing Cubes.

“When two Cubes come together, they emit a lot of… shall we say, erotic vibes.”

“Weren’t you saying something strange just now?”

“Yeah. That’s right. Do you see the color of the Cubes?”

“…Feels like some kind of lighting effect?”

I lifted the Cube toward the ceiling. It spun gracefully, emitting soft, radiant light.

“What is this…?”

“You’ve never been to a motel, have you?”

“WHOA!”

Seok Harang’s face turned bright red.

“It’s like a mood lamp.”

“Y-you… how could you… I’m not ready mentally…!”

“Focus on the magical energy flowing from the Cube. Tell me what you sense.”

“…Hmm.”

Seok Harang closed her eyes and concentrated on the Cube’s light touching her body. When two Cubes came together, the murderous and evil energies they emitted transformed into something strangely sensual.

“‘Boo-bee’…? ‘Stop teasing and just do it already…?'”

“The higher powers must be perverts.”

Seok Harang’s face immediately turned beet red. I enclosed the floating Cube in a blue barrier and placed it far away to avoid further influence.

“Feeling better now?”

“…This Cube has some seriously embarrassing magical power.”

“Still, it’s good that it reacts mildly. At least for now, there won’t be any unexpected outbursts. For now.”

I patted Seok Harang’s back to comfort her. She stuck out her lips, cleared her throat, and nudged my stomach.

“S-so… earlier you said spirits can adjust their bodies, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Then can I… adjust mine?”

“…”

Seok Harang started rambling nervously, her face turning red.

“I-if I can’t do it myself, maybe I could get your help? Right? At least we’re both women, so there shouldn’t be any issues. And since you touched me earlier, I don’t know—”

Seok Harang measured herself and gasped in surprise.

“Brother!”

Seok Harang pounced on me.

“I grew by 0.2 cm!”

“…It’s just bloating from eating or getting a massage. And I don’t want to know anything further, so please move aside.”

“Hehe, you’re screwed tonight. Seriously.”

Seok Harang hovered above me, licking her lips.

“I won’t let you leave this room until you make me grow by 5 cm.”

“But I neutralized the Cube’s influence, didn’t I…?”

“Cube or no Cube.”

Seok Harang brought her face close enough for our breaths to mingle.

“Will you enlarge my chest right now?”

“…Not planning to enhance that ability. Tsk.”

“If you run, I’ll really lose it.”

Seok Harang grinned mischievously as she threatened.

“Do you want to see what happens when Seoyea’s Rusalka goes berserk? Huh?”

“…Tsk.”

In the end, I had to control Seok Harang’s rampage throughout the night.

With two Cubes obtained, Chang-yeom will surely understand this extent.

“Wow! I grew by 1 cm! KYAAAAAA!!”

“…”

Looks like Seoyea’s outburst will last longer than expected.

Anyway.

With Seok Harang’s help, I managed to acquire two Cubes.