Chapter 35: Paradise (2)

“Arg.”

Cold air seeped through the windows.

Ha-eun shivered while lying on the bed, her body covered with a blanket.

‘Damn, it’s cold.’

It was fortunate she possessed a superhuman body because otherwise, the temperature would be cold enough to push her to the brink of death.

‘The heater… uh, let’s not.’

Ohjin had said that it was okay to turn it on if it was too cold, but when she recalled the appearance of Ohjin murmuring every time he received the maintenance bills, it got on her conscience.

“Ugh. Let’s hold on with the electric blanket for now.”

As she had been living this kind of lifestyle for several years, she was quite used to it.

Click—

She clumsily stretched out her hands and turned on the electric blanket.

“Haa,” she let out a brief sigh before taking out her phone.

Although she couldn’t see the screen, she was able to turn on the video that contained the latest news without much difficulty.

[A lot of attention is gathering around Association-affiliated Awakener Ohjin from the incident that happened at around 4 PM yesterday.]

[The netizens that have seen the relevant articles have titled Awakener Ohjin the ‘Lightning Wolf’ and have relentlessly praised the birth of a new hero.]

Every single news report was about Ohjin.

“Wow… so this is actually happening.”

She had predicted that things would develop like this to some extent when she had first heard that Ohjin became a North Star’s apostle, but hearing his name on the news still felt incredibly strange.

‘If he’s become this famous… he’ll amass money rapidly.’ Song Ha-eun smiled bitterly.

She intuitively felt that there wasn’t much time left until they went their separate ways.

“…Let’s see,” she searched up a different video and turned it on.

[All the star relics submitted to December’s Yongsan Auction that will take place in two days have been confirmed.]

[Noteable star relics amongst the 7-Star rank are the ‘Sword of Dawn’ and the ‘Twilight Knot’; the 6-Star ‘Dragon’s Cursed Eye’ has also shown its appearance once again after one year and three months. In addition…]

Beep—

She turned the video off.

“Dragon’s Cursed Eye…” she said with a slightly trembling voice.

Grip—

Veins popped out of her clenched fists.

Then—

[Did you wake up just now?]

“Kyaaaaaaak!!”

—A voice was heard right next to her.

Screaming, Ha-eun instantly got up.

“H-Huh?”

[Why are you so surprised?]

“D-Didn’t you go out with Ohjin?”

Ha-eun naturally thought Vega would have left with Ohjin, who had gone out around one hour previous for business he had with the Association…

[He left the pendant behind.]

It appeared that he had left Vega behind because the business didn’t require her presence.

“…I-Is that so?”

An awkward atmosphere lingered in the room.

It was her first time talking with Vega one-on-one.

“By the way, don’t celestials take in the commandment’s restriction or something if they materialize themself on Earth like you are right now?”

[A couple of hours a day is fine.]

“I see.”

[There is something this lady wishes to ask with this opportunity.]

“Something you want to ask?” Ha-eun tilted her head.

[It seems that my child has quite the obsession with money.]

“Ah… well, yeah.”

[Do you know the reason?]

“…”

Ha-eun’s lips shut tight.

A bitter smile formed on her lips.

The reason why Ohjin was desperately saving up money.

Of course she knew.

It was impossible to be ignorant about it.

Since she had heard it not from someone else but directly from his mouth.

“It’s in order… to go to Paradise,” said Ha-eun as if swallowing strong alcohol.

[Paradise?]

Vega blinked from the very abstract word.

“Ah, Paradise is just what the people call it. The official name is Ganghwa Island Special Autonomous Zone.”

[Hmm. This lady still does not understand.]

“Uh… so,” Ha-eun continued her explanation in a calm and orderly way.

Ganghwa Island Special Autonomous Zone.

Otherwise known as the so-called ‘Paradise’.

Inside that crazy world crawling with monsters, it was one of the few ‘Safe Zones’.

Neither the common gates nor monsters could be found in that place—not even heinous criminals or illegal organizations could set foot there.

And…

“Once you enter that place, I heard that you’ll also receive three meals a day.”

A place you wouldn’t have to worry about food, clothing, or shelter.

Before the gates opened, it was the one and only place that preserved the appearance of a peaceful and comfortable Korea.

“—Ohjin is saving up money to buy the right to move in.”

$10,000,000 was the price of moving into ‘Paradise’.

If you could pay $10,000,000 and move into that place, there was nothing to worry about from then on. All that was left was to laugh while enjoying a peaceful lifestyle.

[…Was there such a place?]

Vega narrowed her eyes as if she couldn’t understand.

[This lady does not understand well. The ‘Safe Zone’, for what reason do you—]

“It’s because the Star of Celestial Pivot, Cheon Sanggil, and his guild members live there.”

Star of Celestial Pivot, Cheon Sanggil.

The only Korean member of the Seven Stars.

The Ganghwa Island Special Autonomous Zone was directly supervised by Cheon Sanggil and his guild, ‘Heaven’s Grace’. If that place couldn’t be called a safe zone, no other place could.

“Paradise: the place rich entrepreneurs, celebrities, and Awakeners are all scrambling to go.”

[Then are you saying that my child is saving up money in order to enter that place?]

“Yeah.”

[Hmm.]

It seemed like Vega still hadn’t understood, as she remained in deep thought.

Song Ha-eun continued speaking with a slight smile.

“…Do you know what he dreamed of since he was a kid?” said Ha-eun with a sunken voice.

Inside of her empty gaze, she wandered around a foggy forest of memories.

The figure of a child could be seen.

Black hair with slightly droopy eyes.

A boy curled up, touching his cheek filled with bruises.

[What was it?]

“To live in a place where he wouldn’t be sick, wouldn’t be cold, and wouldn’t be hungry.”

[…?]

“Kyahaha! Isn’t it very simple?” She laughed as she shook her shoulders.

“But…”

She continued with a grainy voice.

“Even that simple happiness felt so far away to us.”

[…]

Vega was silent.

Emotions…

She felt a torrent of heavy emotions that were difficult to comprehend.

[Was there a being that persecuted my child?]

“Mhm. Our orphanage director.”

Recalling the childhood memories, Song Ha-eun tightly bit on her lips.

“He got beat up every day. Other kids were beaten every now and then, but… it was especially severe for Ohjin.”

[Was there a reason?]

“…Yeah.”

“It was originally… me. The director’s main target was not Ohjin but me.”

[…]

“Hehe! I’ve had a sharp temper ever since I was young.”

A laugh mixed with self-deprecation.

“But… as I got beat up every day, it started to get really rough for me. That’s why I even thought of hanging myself to fuck with the Director.”

[Could you not request help from the other little ones?]

“How could mere 10-year-old babies help? And whenever we requested help from anyone else, they would all ignore us since that Director bastard had personal connections.”

[…It must have been difficult.]

“Yeah. It was really… really difficult.”

Ha-eun slowly bit her lips as she recalled the nightmare.

“Then, one day, I bit on the Director’s arm really hard, yeah? When I was getting beat up the entire day… pfft! Do you know what that lunatic Ohjin did?”

Vega shook her head.

Although there was no way for Ha-eun to confirm the response, she continued.

“All of a sudden, he said that there was a fire in the kitchen and that we all had to run away. So the Director ran outside while screaming.”

[So what happened?]

“What happened? It ended with the Director being humiliated.”

[…?]

“Hehehe! There was no fire; it was all a lie.” Ha-eun cackled out, still finding it hilarious.

“Ohjin, that guy, he fooled the Director like eating breakfast. No matter how often he was beaten up, he continued to trick the Director with extraordinary methods the very next day.”

[So… was the target changed from you to Ohjin?]

“…Yeah.”

Song Ha-eun put up her knees and tilted her head.

“To be honest, I… was relieved… From the hope that I would no longer have to get beat up… I was really, really happy.”

Drip—

The tears pent-up in her eyes flowed down her cheeks. Her arms that were embracing her knees started to shake.

“Even though I was fully aware that he was doing it all for me… I still… I was still…!”

[It is not your fault.]

“…”

A brief silence.

“That’s right. That guy Ohjin said the same thing.”

[…]

“Well, anyway. There was only one thing he wished for since his childhood…”

Not being sick, not being cold, not being hungry, and…

“A life where he could live on… without lying.”

That was the wish he longed for and desired.

“Ohjin will go to Paradise.”

And then…

He would part with Ha-eun.

[Were you not going to go with him?]

“I… can’t go.” Ha-eun shook her head.

[Is it because of money?]

“There’s also that… but even with the money, I can’t pass the test.”

[Test?]

“Yeah. In order to enter Paradise, you need to take all sorts of examinations and pass a test.”

Her lonely gray eyes that reflected nothing stared into the void.

“How could a dumbass that can’t even see enter Paradise?” She laughed bitterly at herself.

[Then what will happen to you?]

“Well, I’ll need to live on my own.”

[However…]

“Kyahaha! Oh my, are you perhaps worried about me, Miss Goddess?”

[…]

“I was still a 7-Star Awakener just five years ago. I can manage to live alone somehow.”

Although she had lost everything, she was an Awakener that was deemed ‘strong’ in the past.

[…How did that happen to you?]

“This?” Song Ha-eun pointed towards her missing right leg and empty eyes.

She chuckled.

“Was it five or six years ago? I became like this from fighting a disgustingly strong monster.”

Thousand-Curse Dragon (千呪龍), Barbatos.

A 9-Star dragon-type monster.

Ha-eun, who had been defeated by it, received a ‘curse’.

The dreadful curse of a dragon that took away sight and sealed mana.

“Anyways…”

Flop—

Song Ha-eun lay down on the bed.

The heated electric blanket drove out the cold.

“I made a promise with Ohjin five years ago.”

[What kind of promise?]

“To be exact, rather than a promise… I pressured him,” Ha-eun laughed bitterly.

Naturally, the memories from back then resurfaced.

The short exchange they shared in the cold dark room filled with mold.

-You’re going to buy the right to enter Paradise?

-That’s right.

-…Then stay with me until then.

-Stay with you?

-Don’t you owe me something for these past three years? Didn’t I save you and take care of you during that time?

-…

-It’s alright if you go where you want to once you finish saving up $10,000,000.

-…Okay.

She recalled the sunken voice of Ohjin.

That’s right; she had cursed him that day.

A curse like the one that had completely ruined her life.

A curse named ‘Song Ha-eun’.

“Hahaha! Wow, even thinking about it now, I really am an incredible bitch!” Ha-eun laughed and clapped her hands.

“How could I make such a request when he had no method to make $10,000,000, especially as someone who wasn’t even an Awakener.”

That promise was nothing but an excuse to avoid being left alone.

In order to lock him up together with her inside the pitch-black darkness where one couldn’t see.

“…I was punished.”

She couldn’t possibly imagine that Ohjin would become an Awakener.

Ohjin becoming a North Star’s apostle was something she had never imagined, even in her wildest dreams.

She thought she would be able to stay together with him for a few more years at least. However, he became an Awakener of Lyra and became famous enough to be plastered all around the news.

It wouldn’t be long until he saved up $10,000,000.

—Divine Punishment.

That’s right.

She received divine punishment for trying to use him with her stubbornness.

“Hehe. So—”

Ha-eun picked up the clutches and clumsily stood up.

She continued as she bowed down courteously.

“—Please… take good care of our Ohjin.”

She said it with a heavily sunken voice in a pleading, almost begging manner.

[…]

With her arms crossed, Vega looked down at Song Ha-eun bowing before her.

‘My child’s wish is to part ways with this little one and go to the place called Paradise?’