I first saved Fake Hitomi from the brink of death and then heard the full story.
“So, thanks to Omega’s skill, I didn’t exactly travel to the past… but ended up here.”
“I see.”
Whenever the conversation touched on anything related to ‘Dark Knight,’ I gave Fake Hitomi a glance so Park Hayeon wouldn’t find out, and we slightly altered the story.
In short, it seemed like Omega’s skill was misused, intended for time travel but brought her to a parallel world’s past instead.
As far as I know, time travel to the past isn’t theoretically valid because it could cause a time paradox.
I thought skills might make it possible, but it seems they can’t.
‘I guess I should accept that there’s no second chance for me as well. Or… could it be differently for me?’
I momentarily indulged in a dark thought but quickly regained my senses and decided to do my best.
My bonds are with the children here.
It’s unthinkable to abandon them to their deaths and leave alone.
“Mr. Shin! Too cruel! How could you! You’re a slayer of the Japanese! Please don’t kill me.”
Hitomi clung to my arm, whining.
She was shocked to hear that the other version of me in her world killed thirty million Japanese.
Park Hayeon’s eyes were gradually turning into axes, and I would prefer her to keep some distance.
‘I understand why she acted that way.’
The leader of the Gospel of Salvation grows stronger as the number of followers increase. So, if one cannot defeat the leader directly, another method could be diminishing the followers physically.
It makes sense that Park Hayeon used this method since she couldn’t handle all the adversaries alone.
‘She really did it, though. Is she crazy?’
Even if it’s in a potential future, killing thirty million people is a chilling concept.
The means she supposedly used are also astonishing.
Using a Dragon to incinerate entire cities?
‘Did Laura’s body commission this?’
[Setting cities ablaze with breath? That would not be my manner either. Nonetheless, since there’s no other Dragon but me, it must be correct.]
Anyway, despite all these efforts, she couldn’t stop the Gospel of Salvation from spreading, and ultimately, she was killed by another devil—very unfortunate.
“So, are you saying that Hayeon was possessed by Shaks? And that it would be serious if we don’t eliminate it?”
“Yes, that’s right. But I’m not entirely sure. The future device brought with me indicates it’s not a demon, and besides, since this isn’t my world, the past records may not be entirely accurate.”
Park Hayeon truly hadn’t anticipated it.
Due to the original story’s image, I unnecessarily suspected Yongcheonhwa and hovered near her.
“Let’s try something. Laura.”
“If I have a definite way, wait for me.”
Laura placed her forehead on Park Hayeon’s chest.
“Huh?!?”
Park Hayeon gasped briefly and flailed.
It outwardly looked like a child clinging to their mother’s embrace.
“Hold still.”
Laura moved her face around, pressing her forehead into Park Hayeon’s chest.
Park Hayeon had to lean her head back to avoid the horns on Laura’s head.
“That… can this be right?”
When I couldn’t stand it anymore, I interrupted to stop that indecent act.
“Hmm. It seems it’s deeply hidden. I’ll need to use divine magic.”
“Eh─ Magic? Is this child a wizard?”
Hitomi gleefully watched Laura, as if observing a middle schooler imitating an anime character.
“Tch.”
Laura’s face reddened, likely insulted by being treated like a child.
“Shh. Hitomi, just let her be.”
I pulled Hitomi by her nape to distance her from Laura, but she kept smiling.
“Alrighty. When an awakening child acts this way, it’s common. It’s just how cute they are!”
“That’s not something to say…”
Laura cleared her throat and began chanting a strange spell in an alien language.
Her body gradually glowed.
‘What is she doing?’
Unable to contain my curiosity, I asked.
“Let me focus, don’t interrupt. This is divine magic. I’m praying to God for power.”
The light emanating from her body expanded enough to engulf all of us.
“What, what is this?”
“Is this real magic?!”
Soon, an alien smoke-like substance began emanating from Park Hayeon’s body.
I remembered seeing it before.
“Shaks! You really were inside Park Hayeon after all.”
I was slightly awestruck.
Hitomi was right.
“Kill it quick before it escapes!”
I swung my spear and cut through the smoky form. Normally, physical attacks wouldn’t affect something like this, but my spear was empowered with a sword-like aura thanks to Laura’s buff.
“Damn it! How is it fair to expose my identity like this?! What nonsense is this about time travel or whatever, this is cheating!”
Shaks screamed its last words in frustration.
“Kang You-jin was probably upset when he was tricked into a bad contract. It’s barely cheating.”
I rubbed it in as Shaks disappeared, wishing it an uncomfortable trip.
‘It’s annoying that I can’t use Succession. There are far too many eyes watching…’
Soon, a semi-transparent window appeared before me.
————————————–
[‘The Demon Shaks’ has been defeated.]
————————————–
Shaks left behind dozens of ‘Orbs of Growth’ and two skill books before vanishing.
I picked up the skill books from the ground.
<< Item Acquisition >>
————<Item>————
◈ Name
Skill Book: Lake of Desire
◈ Grade
— A
◈ Description
The ability used by the demon Shaks
Lake of Desire
◈ Effect
Acquire the skill ‘Lake of Desire’.
————————————
————<Item>————
◈ Name
Skill Book: Scorching Ray
◈ Grade
— B
◈ Description
The ability used by the demon Shaks
Scorching Ray
◈ Effect
Acquire the skill ‘Scorching Ray’.
———————————–
‘Scorching Ray’ is a straightforward skill, seemingly just firing a laser, so its purpose is self-explanatory.
On the other hand, ‘Lake of Desire,’ which appears to be a blood-sucking field, required more careful observation.
Since Shaks (Yongcheonhwa) was taken down by an international extermination team in the original storyline, there was little information on dropped items or specific strategies.
I clicked on ‘Lake of Desire’ in the skill book description to further examine it, revealing the skill’s details.
『Deploy a Lake of Desire in a certain area.
Enemies within the area with current health below 70% of their maximum will suffer damage equivalent to 3% of the caster’s maximum health every three seconds, and the caster will recover an equal amount of health.』
‘This is an advanced area-of-effect skill.’
This skill would be very effective when dealing with multiple weaker opponents—essentially a ‘group combat skill’.
“Alright, Hayeon. Since you played the bait role so well, go ahead and absorb all the orbs.”
“Eh? But I was just caught, right?”
“Don’t argue. Just consume them. Is there anyone complaining?”
There was no one else particularly contributing, and since Fake Hitomi lacked the motivation, no one objected.
Wolfishly.
Hesitant at first, Park Hayeon quickly swallowed the orbs. Though she was kind-hearted, she’s still an Awakened One, so it wasn’t surprising she didn’t pass up this opportunity.
“And this skill book merely enhances telekinesis; I’ll be taking it.”
I took the ‘Lake of Desire’ skill book for myself. Since I had plans for it as a ‘Dark Knight,’ I deliberately lied about its function. Someone else would have more use for it than Shinoda.
“And the other one here is ‘Scorching Ray.’ Let Park Hayeon handle this one.”
I handed the skill book to Park Hayeon.
Thanks to the ‘Guardian of Species’ skill effect, her damage output skyrockets, so pairing it with a high-damage skill like ‘Scorching Ray’ would improve efficiency considerably.
“So, the reason you kidnapped Park Hyun was to eliminate the demon, right? Why on earth did you have to go so far as to kidnap her? Why not just talk?”
Not attempting to communicate could lead to unnecessary misunderstandings, potentially causing harm instead.
Upon hearing me, Fake Hitomi made a sorrowful face.
“Well, it seemed suspicious, and I thought you might not believe me, and you’re scary…”
“You’re scared of me?”
“Because if you didn’t believe me, what if you just attacked right away?”
What exactly does Fake Hitomi see me as? But yes, from her point of view, if Shinoda killed 30 million Japanese, that does sound plausible.
“Hitomi, are you scared of me too?”
I asked my counterpart.
“Er? Shinoda-san is incredibly strong, so if he’s the enemy, maybe a little frightening…”
She leaned slightly away while answering.
She still seemed fearful.
Now I remember, Hitomi must’ve witnessed me disciplining those who were bullying Yongcheonwha.
I need to be more composed in the future.
‘Besides, if someone claiming to be a time traveler suddenly asked to borrow Park Hyun just to talk about time travel and demons…’
Even someone friendly towards me might be skeptical at first, let alone if they were agents of the Demon King, in which case they might harm Park Hyun instead.
“What are you planning to do now? Fake, I mean… Hosokawa Hitomi, right?”
“Maybe I’ll wander off somewhere and die alone. I no longer have a reason to live.”
I reflected as I looked at Fake Hitomi.
‘An A-rank ability. Perhaps events happening overseas could be handled by her. Even with two bodies, it would be impossible for me to manage them all.’
Fake Hitomi, looking like an abandoned puppy, deflated.
But she can still be useful.
“So, live for me from now on.”
“Eh?”
“Didn’t you say you wanted to save ‘Shinoda’? Help me then. He may not be the Shinoda you know, but it will provide some solace.”
She’s teetering on the edge, guilt-ridden over ‘Shinoda.’ If I reel her in with ‘me,’ perhaps she’ll agree.
“…?”
Fake Hitomi gazed at me silently, tears welling up in her eyes.
“…Then, can you acknowledge… my efforts?”
“Yes. You’ve worked very hard.”
I gently hugged Fake Hitomi.
Tears streamed down her face, soaking through.
“Whhhhhaaaa…”
Fake Hitomi cried her heart out for quite some time.
