Chapter 129

〈 Episode 129 〉 Part 1, Chapter 7 (9)

<At that moment, New Seoul, Yu-Sung's Mansion.>

“Wow, you really knew where my room was?”

“I didn’t just know.”

Yun Yuhwa took a bite of a sandwich with lettuce and Phoenix ate cake off the table with a fork.

After successfully completing a second-hand trade in Busan and escaping into the sky, they briefly stopped at one of Yu-Sung’s franchise cafes for breakfast and quickly flew back to Yun Yuhwa’s house before their faces became too recognizable.

Wiping his lips with a tissue, Yun Yuhwa asked,

“Still, Customer, weren’t you a man in your past life?”

“Do whatever you want to think. Gender doesn’t matter now.”

Phoenix wiped her lips with the fork she had been using and pointed it at Yuha.

“Just the tone or appearance, gender—none of those are important. I am who I am.”

“Yes, yes. So what do you plan to do now, Mr. Plenary Customer?”

“What?”

“You knew Sun Icheol would be president for life, right? Until 2025?”

Phoenix rolled the strawberry on top of the shortcake to the side and let it fall. After fiddling with it for a while, she jabbed it with the fork.

“Yeah. The future I knew changed from the moment you decided to take down Sun Icheol.”

“So you did know?”

“Of course. Because Sun Icheol’s financial power is controlled by Yu-Sung.”

It wasn’t possible to bring down Sun Icheol, who wielded absolute power, with only the Blue Wind Sect’s strength. Dispatching Qing Song and Soyeon to Seoul to distance Sun Icheol and Yu Yinghuo, ensuring heroes witnessing massacres could declare their consciences without political or financial burdens, spreading videos faster than censorship could remove them—all these efforts were impossible without Yu-Sung’s—or Yun Yuhwa’s—will.

Phoenix swallowed the strawberry as she mumbled,

“Why did you bring down Sun Icheol?”

“Why did you let me change the future you knew?”

“Don’t answer a question with another question.”

“Sorry, but I’m curious.”

Yuha sipped some coffee quietly.

“How come you’re not angry that I completely ruined the future you knew?”

“Not at all. By the time Cheon Gaeul came around, I had already given up.”

“…Hmph? What exactly was supposed to happen to Miss Gaeul?”

“Ask her yourself. You two seem to talk often.”

Yuha stiffened slightly. As he debated whether to try covering it up, Phoenix swirled her red tea and spoke first.

“It’s fine with me. If you two get along, that’s good enough. Keep being friends.”

“…There’s so much I want to say, but I’ll hold back. If I say it now, I won’t be able to control myself.”

“Even if you said it, it wouldn’t bother me.”

“No, it bothers me.”

If I ever reach SS Rank, maybe I could punch this annoying bird in front of me. Yuha gulped down espresso like water.

“Why did you ask about bringing down Sun Icheol?”

“Because… well, I know you’re bad at politics, so shut up.”

Phoenix obediently took another bite of the cake. She closed her eyes momentarily as she chewed the strawberry hidden under the cream in the castella.

Yuha shook his head and continued,

“I’m already struggling managing six people. If you throw politics into the mix, I’ll definitely die from overwork. Even with you around.”

“Rather, because of me, you’ll have even more stress.”

Gulp. Yuha drank the espresso in one go. The mechanical doll waiting beside him immediately refilled the empty cup.

“I’m stressed out already, so I’ll keep this secret. Hmph.”

“Then keep it that way.”

Phoenix finished the entire cake with an expression that clearly showed no interest. Then, she casually instructed the mechanical doll to fetch another dessert from the fridge.

“Bring out the one I put in the fridge earlier.”

[EX Level code recognized. Following orders.]

Watching the mechanical doll operate with such familiarity made Yuha raise an eyebrow and grumble.

“…Customer, only I know the command codes for the mechanical dolls. Even if you joke around saying you love me, there are limits. Respect boundaries. Especially that code just now-”

“It was meant only for a lifelong partner.”

“…What?”

“Don’t look so surprised. In our past life, we were lovers.”

Yuha froze. Phoenix raised an eyebrow and encased the strawberry tart on her plate with magic.

“When you play twenty questions, it’s fun to annoy the other person, isn’t it? So I just told you. Why? Because you kept asking.”

“No, wait, seriously, you mean what we talked about before wasn’t a joke but the truth? That I… really? No kidding?”

Yuha was genuinely flustered. Phoenix stared at him dispassionately before smirking.

“Back then, anyone who could benefit financially would feign affection and profess love despite not feeling it—that was Enyu. The woman I knew was blinded by love. By the way, three twins, then two twins, followed by two more twins. Exactly seven.”

Yuha forgot to send mana to his mechanical dolls and dropped his coffee cup. Phoenix burned the cup and spilled coffee on the carpet with flames as she lifted the tart.

“You wanted to know, so I told you. Now I’m leaving.”

“Wait! Just a sec!”

Yuha jumped up hastily. As Phoenix opened the balcony door to leave, she turned around.

“Also, does this apply to Cheon Gaeul and Seok Harang? Seriously?”

“Yeah.”

Yuha froze again. Phoenix stepped onto the railing and turned her head.

“Oh, by the way, your PMC leader needs someone to replace Guangjian. This time, I’ll bring someone back from China. A spirit.”

“WHAT?!”

“That’s all.”

Phoenix waved and ascended into the sky. Yuha watched helplessly as she flew away and chuckled bitterly.

“Falling in love instead of money? With her of all people?”

Walking robotically, Yuha collapsed onto the bed. His cheeks flushed, his heart pounded.

“What did I do in my past life…!? This reckless girl!”

He was furious. He had sworn to live for money alone, shared love endlessly through his dolls, yet here he was, having truly loved in this body? And to the extent of sharing his most confidential code with someone else?

“Madness, madness! Ahhh?!?!”

His mind buzzed with caffeine-induced fantasies, making him dizzy.

* * *

“Playing around with such amusement. Aren’t you?”

I conjured a mini Phoenix in mid-air and fed her the strawberry tart I’d secretly brought along. Mini Phoenix happily took a big bite but couldn’t chew it as it passed through her body and fell to the ground.

The tart plummeted and splashed into the river below. Looking up, Mini Phoenix glared at me.

– You should eat it yourself

“That’s enough for today.”

Now called Chang-yeom, Mini Phoenix perched on my wrist and flapped her wings. Since her emergence, she has made no effort to hide her identity, calling out whenever she pleases.

“Was it because of the conversation earlier?”

– Don’t mess with other people’s families

“It’s not selling; it’s gifting. Since Guangjian was handed over to Rusalka, it’s only fair to compensate Enyuha, isn’t it? Besides, she’s the one who helped Rusalka reunite with her beloved husband.”

Chang-yeom lowered her head, seemingly unable to refute my argument.

Had it not been for Enyuha, Guangjian would have vanished without a trace, consumed by flames set by me, and Rusalka would have been devoured by Penril while guarding her lifelong secret as Anastasha.

“It’s fine. The Chaos Dragon needs to be disciplined by Enyuha anyway. You know she’s the best for correcting him.”

– That’s why it’s even sadder

Chang-yeom spread her beak wide and wailed. Whether it was sorrow for the spirits being sold or mourning for the hardships of the Chaos Dragon in the original story, I couldn’t tell.

“Looks like I’ve ended up courting in reverse order.”

The fifth spirit to be pursued in the original story, the Chaos Dragon. Fortunately, he was a notorious sleepyhead and lazybones, so even at the original timeline’s point, he stayed cooped up where he slept, issuing commands without much movement.

I summoned a screen and opened the map.

The location: Xi’an, formerly known as Chang’an, the ancient capital of China, and now a relic site housing the SS-ranked dungeon constructed by the Chaos Dragon.

“The tomb of Emperor Shi.”

To awaken the fifth spirit sleeping in the tomb of the ancient emperor who once sought immortality, I moved my wings towards Seoul with Chang-yeom.

* * *

<In Xi’an City, China.>

“My stomach’s growling.”

Fenghyo strolled through the night market, rubbing his hungry belly. Having spent several sleepless nights dealing with the aftermath, his biological clock was utterly disrupted. He discreetly released some mana to check if anyone was watching him.

“…Nobody seems to be around.”

Fenghyo sighed in relief. There were plenty of people who would criticize the dignity of a naval admiral indulging in street food like in his youth, so it was difficult to openly buy snacks on the street like he used to as a child.

“Thank you.”

Fenghyo held a bag specially prepared with tanghulu in his left hand and clutched a skewer of syrupy fruit in his right. The intense sweetness hit his bloodstream like a scream, mixing with the spicy aroma of green grapes on his tongue.

“I used to eat this a lot with Xiao Lin when I was young.”

Despite their extreme poverty back then, they had been happy. Recalling past memories, Fenghyo hummed a tune as he walked until he suddenly stopped.

“……”

At the end of a dead-end alley, far from the lights of the night market, a faint mana presence emanated from between the trash cans. Fenghyo infused his wooden skewer with mana and cautiously entered the alley.

Sniff, sniff.

Something was sniffing. Fenghyo tensed, fearing it might be a monster that survived the dimensional gate incident.

Kaaang! A metal trash can rolled to the side. Just as Fenghyo was about to swing his skewer like a sword, the figure rising from the trash can collapsed again.

“Troublesome…”

It was a girl. The ash-gray-haired girl suppressed her mana and slumped between the trash cans. Her clothes looked stolen from somewhere, ill-fitting and mismatched. Fenghyo relaxed.

“What, a beggar?”

“Spirit. Get lost before I gain the will to stand. Too troublesome to move.”

“…What’s troublesome about looking like that?”

Fenghyo grew curious at the peculiar behavior of the girl. Most importantly, it was strange to see someone with mana comparable to his, or perhaps even stronger, reduced to such a ragged state.

Gurgle. The girl’s stomach growled loudly. Her gaze flickered toward the tanghulu Fenghyo held.

“……”

“Are you hungry?”

She nodded hesitantly before replying promptly.

“Feed me.”

“What?”

“Too troublesome to stand and eat. Feed me, and I’ll save you.”

Fenghyo instinctively realized she was starving to the point where nothing seemed edible. He placed the bitten tanghulu back in the bag and pulled out a fresh one, offering it to the girl.

“Here.”

“Hmm.”

With her eyes closed, the girl simply opened her mouth. Fenghyo shoved the fruit on the skewer into her mouth and pulled it out.

“Got it? Man, I’ve seen everything—”

“Phew.”

The girl removed the fruit from the skewer, licked the syrup off, and spat it onto the ground.

“I hate strawberries.”

“…Do you have any place to pick and choose right now?”

“I hate strawberries. I don’t want to eat them or even look at them. Give me something else.”

Annoyed, Fenghyo sighed audibly and pulled out another skewer. Thankfully, there were various kinds, but unfortunately, strawberries were sneakily mixed in.

“…Ugh, really.”

Fenghyo picked the grape at the end of the skewer with his sticky hands and shoved it into the girl’s mouth.

“I’m doing this because I miss my little sister.”

“……”

Her lips brushed against Fenghyo’s fingers. Slowly opening her eyes, the girl looked up at him. Her pupils were slit-like, resembling a snake’s.

“Human, you’ve got quite some talent.”

“Maybe you’re some kind of seal user or something, but what trouble have you gotten into somewhere? You’ll get caught up in witch hunts and end up hospitalized. These days, kids like you aren’t rare, you know?”

The girl smirked.

“Since we’ve met by fate, you’ll have to take care of me for a while.”

“Hmph, fine. Do as you please.”

A gray mana erupted around the girl. Before Fenghyo could react to the sudden attack, he lost consciousness.

Thud. Fenghyo collapsed in front of the girl. She yawned widely and began playing with a core in her pocket.

“…Skipping the explanation is too troublesome.”

The next day, the night market was overrun with Dongchang organization members.

The disappearance of Admiral Fenghyo of Dongchang.

The fallen tanghulu in the alley went unnoticed by anyone.