“What in the…….”
Scarlett stuttered in dismay.
Even the sobbing figure of Oslo stopped sobbing and looked at the will in Scarlett’s hands with eyes full of shock.
“Oh my god.”
Oslo murmured, her jaw dropped, pointing her index finger at Lee Sungmin in disbelief.
[Hmm.]Heoju just groaned inside Lee Sungmin’s shared consciousness.
[…He’s crazy.]Lee Sungmin completely was shaken up about the atmosphere and sad emotion until that point, but was woken out of his reverie and felt that for once, Heoju was right,
Still, the will was not over yet. Lee Sungmin continued to read the will again, taking a deep breath.
Lee Sungmin knew what Sima Ryunju was getting at. If he consumed the heart of Sima Ryunju, it was likely he would be able to gain some of Sima Ryunju’s power.
He wouldn’t gain the power immediately, but his body would surely and slowly evolve to suit the power needed to wield and manipulate the power of his master.
[That’s true.]Heoju spoke up..
[It’s too dangerous. You already have a body mutated into a monster, and by eating a human heart, that monster inside of your consciousness may just gain the little effort it needs to take over again.]“I guess so.”
[However, this is also exactly what you need to gain the power necessary to fight with others. You stand right in the cusp of humanity and monstrosity. This could just tip the balance in one direction too heavily.]Lee Sungmin was also worried about it. In the will, Sima Ryunju already knew of these concerns.
Choice.
Lee Sungmin realized just how much implication the word ‘choice’ meant in his life. The Goddess Mush, and the Queen of Fairies, Oslo, had spoken to Lee Sungmin before with rather mysterious sayings when they spoke of choice to him.
They had both told him that he would have to make a very important choice one day. Was this that choice? To eat his master’s heart and risk losing his humanity in exchange for the power to stop the end? Lee Sungmin did not know and closed his eyes.
He didn’t know the answer. If he ate the heart, it was likely his body would further mutate into that of a monster’s. But he didn’t, what other options did he even have to grow his power? He had pretty much already hit his ceiling.
In fact, was he even sure that it would just stop at a mutation? The last time such a thing happened in the City of Endless Night, Lee Sungmin had completely turned into a monster without any coherent thought or reason.
‘I…’
What should he do? If he ate the heart here, he could gain the power he needed. But the chance of becoming a monster was high as well. Lee Sungmin had to remind himself of what he was like right ‘now’.
Right now…. He couldn’t do anything.
From the Murim Alliance, and all the way to the North. Lee Sungmin couldn’t do anything during the entire trip. It was him who wanted to go, and yet his master had been the one to solve all his problems that he couldn’t do anything about. And because of that…. His master was now dead.
His master was right. Lee Sungmin would never have even been alive up until now or even how strong he was currently, if not for Sima Ryunju.
Lee Sungmin was helpless to his master’s power and could not do a single thing.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t try, but there was no point. His power paled in comparison to his master’s, so why would his master let him butt in?
However, Lee Sungmin did not beat himself up over it too much. He was frustrated. Frustrated that he was still so weak despite becoming a Transcendent realm martial artist, and had once been nothing but a low-life C-class Mercenary.
In most cases until now, Lee Sungmin’s newfound power had been able to solve his problems. But now? He was trying to prevent the End which would result in everybody dying. He would just be among the many to die helplessly if he did not do anything.To be able to stop such a thing, he needed power.
And he knew it. His power right now, would never accomplish such a goal.
That’s why his master was cautious but understood his reasoning, and gave him the choice.
[Choose wisely]Heoju warned. Lee Sungmin laughed at the words. Surprisingly, Lee Sungmin’s rationality was cold and focused, despite the situation. Even he did not know why he was like this right now.
His emotional agitation right now, was not even at his master’s death. It was at himself for being helpless in trying to prevent it.
What could he do? He had started at the Mountain of Mush, survived through Denir’s Trial of Time, and even became the disciple of the strongest man in the entire world.
Yet, it was not enough.
‘You have to trust me on this.’
Lee Sungmin quietly concluded to Heoju.
‘If I don’t try to change or take risks, I’ll never be able to do anything. I don’t know what my role is in all of this yet, but I…… I don’t want to be stuck powerless in a situation ever again. I need power to do so.’
[……is that so.]‘I don’t know. I really don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t know what the role fate is forcing me to play. I don’t know if fate is even present anymore now that we are this far. But I need to make this decision no matter what.’
[Even if it’s a decision that could turn you completely into a monster?]‘You have to trust me.’
Lee Sungmin repeated in strong faith.
He didn’t want to be left helpless ever again. This was the only way. The only way he would be able to reverse a situation like this ever again, was to consume the heart. If he had to choose between becoming a monster and being weak, he would rather be a monster at this point. But Lee Sungmin’s determination was to be a monster in his own right. Not to be a mindless fool.
[What do you want to do?]Hoeju asked. Lee Sungmin thought briefly and answered with conviction.
‘My master told me not to avenge him. But I want to avenge myself for being weak in his death. That much I can choose by myself.’
[…What about the End?]‘I’ll stop it. I’ll kill Musin and I will kill the Heavenly Spirit or whatever. And….If Kim Jonghyun becomes the First Catastrophe in the South, I will kill Kim Jonghyun and prevent the catastrophes from even happening’
[Maybe… you’ll turn into a Catastrophe like Kim Jonghyun if you become a monster. There is plenty of room for that to happen and for things to go wrong. This old man’s power is already settled within your dantian and supplies you with plenty of my power as a Yokai. If you consume your master’s heart and we take into account your powers of the Dragon…. You may become a completely independent monster that can compare to even the power of myself in my prime.]‘I know.’
Lee Sungmin opened his closed eyes.
‘And I believe that I will not be a mindless fool in the end.’
[You’re going to be a monster with a sound mind and reason?]‘You are pretty reasonable for a monster too though. Don’t you think?’
[That is only because this old man is great.]‘You are in my dantian and consciousness. There is also the chance I could turn out to be sane just like you are.’
[Hahaha. You’ve gone crazy you fool. Tell me, is it just a gamble, or do you truly believe it? Is it because you want both my power and the power of your master?]‘You already know.’
Heoju was speechless at Lee Sungmin’s answer.
‘There was a reason he left the choice to me in his will, and even mentioned the idea of consuming his heart, It was for a reason. I trust myself…rather I have to. I trust in myself now, not the me who is the regressor from my past life, but in myself right now. And you have trusted me up until this point as well. You said you might have even died in order to meet me. If this means anything, then I might as well trust in myself and ask you to do the same.’
[That’s irresponsible.]Hoeju spoke the words with a giggle as if he found it somewhat amusing.
[I promise you this one thing and only this one thing. If you become a monster that cannot reason or control your desires or thoughts, this old man…… I will stop you from losing everything. Even if it means my existence must disappear in the process, I will promise you this.]Lee Sungmin smiled faintly at the words.
Lee Sungmin started to read the final bits or words left in the will of his master.
‘I was going to.’
It was the final sentence left behind.
[He was the strongest human to ever walk this planet. Even in all my years, I don’t know if I would have ever beaten him with the power he showed.]Heoju murmured as if to respond.
Lee Sungmin read below, as he found the very last sentence in the will.
Sima Ryunju did not know when he was writing the will, but his words became true. Lee Sungmin and the others were witnesses. He truly lived up to his name as the strongest man to ever walk this planet.
Ye-Hwa did not cry anymore, Scarlett sighed, and Lee Sungmin quietly put down Sima Ryunju’s will.
“I’ll eat it.”
With a moment of silence, Lee Sungmin said so. Ye-Hwa looked surprised and Scarlett jumped suddenly.
“…are you serious?”
“It was left in the will that it would be my choice, and I decided to do it myself.”
“But… it’s a little…… that’s terrible.”
Scarlett murmured, shivering.
“You don’t plan to eat it raw do you……?”
“It’s okay… …”
In Scarlett’s hesitant question, Ye-Hwa answered in a quivering voice.
“This was my lord’s will. Do as the Lord wished.”
Even though Ye-hwa said so, she closed her eyes as if she could not bear to see any more happen. Lee Sungmin looked down at the body of Sima Ryunju with a firm expression.
“……choice. Yes, choice.”
It was Oslo who spoke in the uncomfortable silence.
“Ryunju-ssi irritates me with this. Even if he died, he knew I’d do this. I remembered what he had said, and he knew I’d bring his dead body into this forest. And… he probably knew what he was going to do afterwards with it.”
Oslo chuckled and laughed.
“This is something only he could do. He knew that when he left the Forest of the Fairies a while back that this might happen and prepared to have it truly become a reality. He wanted to do this, and knew that he would be the one to create this… as if he knew what my words meant.”
“……What?”
“It’s a choice.”
When asked by Lee Sungmin, Oslo answered.
“It’s your choice, it’s mine. You chose that path, so I will respect that choice too with my own power.”
The wings of Oslo spread out slowly.
“As I said before, I feel favorable towards you. Ryunju-ssi died and the will of his last choice was given to you. So I have no choice but to be even more friendly to you. No, apart from that. If you’ve made that choice, I will still help you in every way that I can as your backer now.”
“How do you intend to help?”
“I’ll relieve you of some of your worries.”
Oslo raised both hands, saying so. The butterfly’s wings shone brightly.
“So that you don’t run amok after consuming the heart. I’ll seal the area’s surroundings. If I don’t create a seal using my powers, you may run amok as a brainless idiot immediately. This way it will protect you and allow you to consume it slowly and with a barrier so that you do not pose a risk to those living in this world.”
“It’s better than going berserk right now.”
“You’re gonna need to be ready.”
Oslo murmured.
“If there’s nothing that seals the power you are about to consume, something terrible might happen. The seal I will give you right now is not complete, so you have to be prepared to control yourself immediately afterwards.”
Lee Sungmin recalled what Mush had said to him. He would have to prepare one day for the repercussions of whatever choice he would make.
“That’s what I’m going to do.”
Lee Sungmin lowered the body of Sima Ryunju again. When she saw it, Oslo shook her head.
“……I think the meal you’re going to eat will be pretty terrible.”
“I suppose so.”
He would have to cut open his master’s chest and eat his human heart. No matter how resolved one may be to witness such a sight, it’s still a terrible thing to see.
“Let me help you.”
Oslo sighed and spoke.
As she reached out, the body of Sima Ryunju trembled slightly. A red sphere came up from the chest of Sima Ryunju’s body. It resembled the same kind of power that the Spirit Queen had used when she processed the Dragon Heart for Lee Sungmin.
“Methods are important.”
Oslo murmured.
“Cutting out the heart and eating it raw would be the easiest way for you to abandon your humanity in one go. This can help with that.”
But that doesn’t mean the danger was completely gone. Oslo added those words as she sent the floating, red sphere over to Lee Sungmin.
“Eat it.”
After Oslo said so, she stretched out her hands wide along with her wings and started to glow faintly.
“I’m going to start the sealing.”