SDT 209

It was when I realized I was the “Salvation” said to have appeared in Tubain in the past, and was gazing blankly into the air, that something caught my eye.

A round, yellow chick the size of a fist. Yet, it was floating in mid-air.

Why is there a chick out of nowhere? And can chicks even fly?

“Lord Salvation!”

Whoa, you startled me!

Asila’s forehead touched the ground as she bowed again.

“We earnestly implore you to guide us to the great divine beast.”

Ah, right. They said humans could only harness the divine beast’s power once Salvation appeared. So, where would I find the divine beast…?

My train of thought halted as I looked at the chick. It didn’t just have one pair of flapping wings. I hadn’t noticed at first because it was moving so fast, but it actually had two pairs. I suddenly started feeling uncomfortable.

Asila asked me cautiously:

“Salvation, why are you staring into the air?”

Why? Because I was finally face-to-face with Kun divine beast. I’d had a hunch back when it was still an egg, but I never imagined it would actually take the form of a bird.

But what was that ridiculous appearance? But my dismissive attitude vanished the moment I met the chick’s golden eyes, tiny as grains of millet. Its gaze was unhinged.

A madness far surpassing that of the other three divine beasts radiated from those tiny eyes. Had it been any bigger, I might have fled in fear.

I really should have run away. That regret tore at my heart just ten seconds after my eyes met the chick’s.

[ㄴㅇ]

Suddenly, Korean consonants appeared before my eyes. Confused, I immediately asked Mo.

‘Mo, did the chick just speak to me? Why is it using only the initial consonants?’

Mo didn’t explain right away. Just as I was about to call out again, a reply appeared.

[It wasn’t me.]

…Fuck.

Goosebumps broke out all over my body.

‘If it wasn’t you, why did text suddenly appear right in front of my eyes?’

[I am checking the system, but I can’t detect any anomalies. It appears an unknown external force is mimicking my method to display text in your field of vision, in a way that’s invisible to others.]

My eyes naturally turned toward the chick. A glint of madness flashed in its beady eyes as it flapped its wings in a fit of irritation.

[ㄴㅈㅇ!]

The initial consonants appeared again. I was dumbfounded. Let’s grant for the sake of argument that, as a divine beast, it could mimic Mo and write text in front of me. But why use only the initial consonants?

Don’t tell me you’re following some trend among divine beasts?

[ㅃㄹㅃㄹ!]

‘Mo, what is that chick saying?’

[If ‘ㅃㄹㅃㄹ’ stands for ‘ppalli-ppalli’ (hurry, hurry), and we infer the preceding word, it can be interpreted as ‘You’re late’ or ‘You’re running late.’]

I was flabbergasted. I had just arrived in the past and was still disoriented, and it was already badgering me the moment we met?

I felt a sense of déjà vu. That impatient egg that had pestered visit our siteme in the Forest of the Crimson Waves.

Right, that egg was you too.

And given that foul temper, it certainly wasn’t using initial consonants to follow some trend. It was just trying to speak faster and more simply.

[ㅇㅇㅇㅁ ㅃㄹ!]

[It translates to: ‘If you get it, hurry up!’]

“…It is crazy.”

“Huh?”

Startled by the curse that had slipped out before I could stop it, Asila raised her head. When I saw the kind human’s eyes waver with fear and worry, I quickly waved my hands.

“No, I wasn’t swearing at you…”

[ㅇㄹ ㅇㅎㅌ ㅇ ㅇㅎ?]

What was this? I frowned, and Mo, who had taken a moment to decipher it, finally figured out the initial consonants.

[Why are you swearing at my kid?]

I looked at the chick. My kid?

[You made the sparkle in my kid’s pretty eyes fade.]

Well done. Experience really pays off. But before I could even appreciate Mo’s success, a headache set in. My kid? It felt like a step beyond the way the snake divine beast had doted on Borhumi. To think I’d run into such a nuisance the moment I arrived in the past.

“Just a moment.”

I asked Asila for a moment and decided to deal with this chick first.

“I wasn’t swearing at your kid.”

As soon as I dragged it into the corner to plead my innocence, its beady eyes glowed. Suddenly, full words appeared instead of just initial consonants.

[So you were swearing at me?]

…Mo, was that you?

[No.]

Shit. Why did full, legible text give me the chills? Its dead-serious expression was more chilling than deadly venom. I hated ​stolen content​the idea of groveling, but I couldn’t afford to ruin everything by fighting a divine beast less than three minutes after arriving in the past. But I couldn’t help being sarcastic.

“An insult? Hardly. It was a compliment, praise for going beyond the bounds of normality. You are crazy, after all, right?”

Another string of consonants appeared, but I focused only on the characters Mo was displaying.

[Right.]

“Exactly, so…”

[You too.]

“…….”

[You’re completely out of your mind.]

“…….”

[It’s a compliment; why aren’t you happy?]

I tore my gaze away from the text and met those mad, beady eyes. They were the kind of eyes that would make even the bear drop to his knees and call it Big Brother.

“I’m so overjoyed I could just dance a jig.”

I even shook my shoulders. As I laid the sarcasm on thick, the chick’s eyes glowed.

[Fine From now on, I’ll call you Crazy Blockhead.]

…Of all the insane, psycho chicks. This was the final boss.

*

“So?”

The word reaching my ear was nothing special, yet a shiver ran down the back of my neck. It wasn’t a warning signal from my body in a moment of crisis; it was a sensual alert.

Honestly, it made no sense. I was just having a peaceful cup of tea with Tairok. We’d started a normal conversation; there was absolutely nothing in the air that should have led to a suggestive atmosphere.

Yet, my body was reacting like this to a trivial remark.

Isn’t that a bit strange?

“Lu.”

At the sound of his voice, I came to my senses and focused on him.

“What did you say?”

“That you’re beautiful.”

My expression must have twisted a bit, because Tairok laughed, a laugh so loud it was almost infuriating.

“If it were the real Lu, he’d be so happy he’d run a victory lap around the castle.”

I had never met Lu, yet I felt as though I had already seen him right before my eyes. He was likely the type to cause chaos inside the castle while performing a traditional dance, much like the local madman found in every neighborhood.

“It’s shame. You missed out on such a spectacular sight.”

“I see spectacular sights all the time, though.”

He smiled brightly and took my hand. He was making a move with every single breath he took. The real problem, however, was that I fell for it every time.

What was happening to me? I looked into his eyes to try and regain my composure, and it worked, just as it always did. Seeing those golden eyes instantly reminded me of that insufferable divine beast.

“Does looking into my eyes make you think of the divine beast again?”

He asked with a smile. His gaze was cold. Come to think of it, he had detested the divine beast quite a bit.

“I suppose so. After all, the divine beast dotes on the contractor so much.”

Tairok’s brows twitched in displeasure.

“It’s an unwanted affection.”

Ah, did he still believe that the divine beast had chosen him, thereby causing his master’s death? The divine beast might be a bit unhinged, but it certainly wouldn’t have abandoned a previous contractor just because a better one came along. But I couldn’t rashly take the divine beast’s side, since I didn’t know the whole truth.

“But what can you do? Non-human entities defy all human logic. Do you think it’s common to be loved by a being like that?”

“The divine beasts love you too.”

“Ha!”

I couldn’t help but laugh. It was, without a doubt, the funniest thing I’d heard all year. But I quickly straightened my expression when I saw the look on his face, which made it clear that he didn’t agree.

“No. I’m being tormented by the divine beasts.”

I immediately brought up a concrete example.

*

‘Urgh!’

Asila, who had been holding my hand, fell on the floor. Beads of sweat formed on her brow, revealing how grueling the process was. It was a familiar sight to me; after all, I was channeling the power of the divine beast directly into her through our joined hands.

After witnessing the agony Black Bear had endured, I knew there was no choice but to wait for Asila to overcome it on her own. But there was one impatient little chick.

[What are you doing to my kid?]