127 – Prince of Ash #4
The seat of the “Red King” was supposed to be passed down.
From son to daughter, from daughter to son.
Many kings and their ancestors in the fairy kingdom had continued this tradition of succession.
However, my mother, who was a princess of the fairies, did not inherit the throne of the king.
Whether it was intentional or due to some circumstance, I do not know.
But my mother failed to pass the baton, and ultimately, the “Red King” fell into decline, becoming one of the three calamities – that is the future I know.
In the end, it came down to whether I would ‘choose’ to accept this heritage here.
Could I shoulder the ‘concept’ that even the great fairy king could not endure?
Maybe it would be better to just swallow a powerful poison.
My sacrifice…
Or the equal destruction of all.
The reason why the future Seugal chose me must lie in this very moment. She truly gave me this chance.
“I’ve been waiting for this moment.”
It felt as if I had reached the end of the penitential stairs I’ve been walking.
Fwoosh-!
I drew the dagger “Singsing” given to me by the Great Witch. With my new Noble Phantasm “Singsing,” I could certainly pierce through that red armor.
“Name: Fang
Possessed: 《Fang Lv.4》 – As sharp as the fangs of a wolf said to have bitten the moon and the sun.”
The concept of the 4th Rank “Fang.”
It would be powerful. That must be why the Great Witch gave this dagger to me.
That’s when it happened.
Chh-!
Seugal grabbed my shoulder.
“Hanamjin, if you become the “Red King,” you will surely d*e. You’ll suffer endlessly and come to a miserable end! How long can your human body endure a concept that even fairies struggle to bear?”
Seugal had seemingly learned to understand “fairy language” to some extent. With just one day’s lesson from the Great Witch, she was interpreting the story of the Red King. She’s truly smart.
“What will you do when you reach your limit as the Red King?”
As Seugal said, I might struggle with torment and eventually crumble into ash. But…it could be otherwise.
Perhaps I have an incredible talent, allowing me to smoothly inherit the concept of the Red King while maintaining a stable mind. One cannot say ‘no’ before even trying.
Definitely, I can do it. I feel this confidence!
“What nonsense! Hanamjin will d*e? You never said that! Hanamjin! What are you talking about!”
At that moment Bangdaengi was astonished and asked. I then clarified the situation to her.
“Seugal is lying. She has always been a nasty girl. Therefore─.”
Gaaahk-.
Holding the tightly gripped dagger, I lunged at the Red King.
“Take a good look, the path of a man!”
The king seemed to have no intention of defending or attacking.
It was as if he, too, had been waiting for this moment, appearing indifferent.
With that, my dagger pierced through the king’s chest.
Chaaah-!
His chest spewed out a darkness like bl**d, enveloping everything around.
#
When I opened my eyes, I was surrounded by a space as bright as pure white light.
I must resemble a solitary dot inked on a blank white A4 sheet.
In front of me stood a man who was disturbingly dark, like black ink.
He was an old man with elongated ears.
“Are you the son of my daughter?”
“Where am I?”
“This is my inner world. The concept of ’emotion’ you possess must have allowed your interference here. How do you find my world?”
Even if you ask me, there is nothing here.
“To us fairies, being king means this. I once had cherished memories of tranquil lakes and evening sunsets. But now, nothing remains. I’ve even lost myself.”
Is this akin to dementia?
Sitting on the throne for too long must inevitably lead to forgetfulness.
“We paid for our greed with eternal suffering and loneliness. We endlessly burdened our sons and daughters with that weight.”
“Is this because of the old fairy king’s deal with the witch?”
“Yes. The four devastations are the cost of revival. We were able to delay this reckoning for a while, but in my father’s era, the kingdom fell. Still, the contract remains.”
Swish swish-.
The man’s body rippled with dark ink-like shadows.
“Therefore, even if the kingdom falls, the price must continue to be paid. And now, son of my daughter, it’s your turn.”
Okay, I’m ready.
A man’s path means fulfilling one’s duties and role.
“But before that─.”
Gleam-.
At that moment, the deep red eyes of the Red King shone with a dark light.
“Did you diligently fulfill the duties of the royal family?”
“That’s why I’m here now, isn’t it?”
“Besides taking over the throne.”
What else could there be besides this?
Recalling how Grand Knight Hameln had once barked at me for not fulfilling my royal duties.
Is there more to it? Maybe taxes? Or mandatory military service? I’ve heard that some royalties aren’t recognized unless they’ve served in the army.
As I contemplated, the fairy king frowned.
“Bringing in an immature brat who hasn’t fully handled the royal duties, what were my Grand Knights thinking? Son of my daughter, you’re still too early for this stage. Too early!”
“What exactly is insufficient?”
At this point, I was also getting angry.
I’m not someone to be disrespected easily.
However, the old fairy king was unyielding.
“You are not yet prepared.”
As he waved his hand, my body was crushed by a powerful force, falling heavily to the floor.
It would feel similar to riding a particularly thrilling roller coaster rumored to have caused a few deaths.
“Whaat!”
As I was flailing helplessly─
Someone slapped my cheeks.
“Hanamjin! Snap out of it! Focus! You mustn’t d*e! We need your help! White Bone Finger, Black Venom Strike!”
Slap! Slap slap! Slap slap slap!
It was Bangdaengi. She was almost shouting in tears as she slapped me, but I couldn’t comprehend the situation.
“Hey! Bangdaengi! Stop hitting me! I’m dying from your palm strikes!”
“You’re conscious! Hanamjin has returned to his senses! My White Bone Finger was effective!”
Roasted turkey? What exactly is happening?
Looking around, I saw a white hospital room.
I removed the medical devices attached to my body and stood by the dark window.
Is it night now?
How many days have passed?
Chaaaaaa-!
Listening to the unusually loud sound of rain, I opened the window, and black raindrops sprayed inside.
Bangdaengi was startled.
“Don’t get wet! It causes baldness! It even messes with the mind! This is completely polluted acid rain!”
Creeak-!
Bangdaengi quickly closed the window.
The news about this black rain implies that the slaying of the “Red King” did not go well.
“What happened?”
“The thing is… We clearly thought the “Red King” was mortally wounded by Hanamjin’s dagger. But suddenly, he surged with force like a last flame, driving us away.”
It’s like the final desperation pattern of boss monsters. The “Red King”, nearing d*ath, released dense darkness and chased everyone out of the Great Labyrinth. Baek Yeo-ul’s group barely returned alive.
“We survived by a miracle. Had it not been for the “Special Agents” and Mibang, it wouldn’t have been possible to rescue you, Hanamjin. By the way, currently, Mibang is─.”
I mentioned that I had been unconscious for three days.
During those three days, “black rain” had fallen.
“Where are you going, Hanamjin?”
“Home!”
Poof-!
Worried, I headed home immediately, curious about the condition of my yard.
Sure enough, my yard was thoroughly devastated by three days of continuous black rain. All the shoots of flowers I had carefully nurtured in the garden were withered and twisted.
“My hard-worked flowers!”
So sad!
I might just cry buckets!
The sky is crying on my behalf, it seems!
“Muhuhuh, the son of Kore has no worries! The shoots here have all been carefully transferred into pots by this Baonoi and placed indoors…!”
At that moment, Baonoi emerged from my house, idly holding a soda can with a straw.
“You will surely lose your hair and become viciously aggressive if you get caught in that “Black Rain”…! Come in immediately…!”
Following Baonoi, I entered the house.
Sure enough, there were small pots in the corner, with young shoots carefully moved into them.
Ino-noi, who was misting water onto the pots, proudly straightened her shoulders.
“Still, the rain will surely stop within a few days…! If the “Red King” truly lost his mind and turned into a beast, this wouldn’t have ended with just some black rain…!”
Ino-noi’s eyes were filled with hope.
“It’s not too late…! Even this Ino-noi has heard about you being the son of Kore…! I will assist you in fulfilling your royal duties…!”
“The royal duties?”
“Exactly…! Continuing the royal line is the royal obligation…! It is about passing the cost of devastation onto future generations…! Hence, to become king, one must first welcome a partner…!”
This reminded me of the Joseon Dynasty.
Men had to marry and tie their topknot to be recognized as adults. There seemed to be a custom among the fairies that one couldn’t become king unless they were married.
“Now this Ino-noi understands…! Our Kore also fulfilled his royal duties by finding a partner and left the Great Labyrinth…! However, he met with an unfortunate accident and never returned…!”
In other words, those who wish to become the “Red King” must always have a bl**d heir ready.
Otherwise, if someone without offspring takes over and hits their limit, they would have no one to hand the baton to, and thus it would end with them.
But I was still a virgin and obviously had no heir.
“Just now, the nymphs mentioned it, right? Hanamjin, to defeat the “Red King,” you must start a family.”
That’s when Yu Yeo-reum, who had been lying on the sofa, stood up.
I didn’t even know when she got there.
However, this isn’t just Yu Yeo-reum, this is Dark Yu Yeo-reum!
A blatant seduction without any attempt to conceal her ulterior motives!
But I’ll not fall for it.
Because if I marry her, I’ll have to earn the money, do the dishes, and handle all the housework.
Therefore, as I was about to grab the doorknob to escape the house—
“Hanamjin, the choices available to you now are limited. You can either marry voluntarily or be forced into it. Everyone’s talking about it.”
Everyone is talking about my marriage?
What exactly happened during the three days I was unconscious?
I turned on my old computer and searched for my name, “Hanamjin.”
“Title: Turns out Hanamjin is the prince of the Fairy Kingdom
Content: It definitely didn’t seem normal”
└Namhwang is super cool
└ legit. He should quickly have lots of kids to stabilize the Great Labyrinth and Korea
└Please do it, quick!
“Title: Hanamjin must be caught and forced to have kids
Content: I am waiting for the new Pokémon movie to be released in the year 26, so it would be unfair for the world to end now.”
└There are many South-soon fans online, we could just ask for volunteers. lol
└I envy Hanamjin so much, lol
“Title: Foreign agents infiltrating now is no longer an issue to overlook
Content: They claim it’s for social stability, but they’re trying to gain access to the Great Labyrinth.
According to the laws of the Fairy Kingdom, the Great Labyrinth belongs to the royal family. Therefore, the nationality of Hanamjin’s children would be crucial.
Foreign Awakened Ones are here to steal his seed to gain access.
The Great Labyrinth has helped Korea recover and the birthrate has rebounded. If we lose it to foreign countries, Korea will truly perish.
Hence, the following is my curated list of brides for Hanamjin to protect Korea. All listed are confirmed Korean nationals.
1. Seugal – She’s at least pretty…”
└You went from a serious discussion to a bride list? Really?
└Why is Seugal number one? Are you from the Seonam Group comment brigade?
