Chapter 209

Episode 13: Epilogue / : Lee Jinhee and…
TL: emptycube / ED: Obelisk
 
A fighting addict.
Severe PTSD.
These were the words that described Lee Jinhee.
 
Was it because she was the most soft-hearted amongst the Berserkers? When the rest of them brushed off their pasts, she couldn’t.
Since she was knight captain of the coalition, it would have been nice if she took a step back on the battlefield, but she always stood at the very front, roaming through the battlefield. She hadn’t rested nor had she take personal time off. If she didn’t fight a bloody battle each day, she couldn’t sleep thanks to her nightmares.
 
While the coalition was calm when dealing with those who wanted to resolved things with words, they didn’t tolerate criminals and groups that suppressed other species. Whenever an incident broke out, the wrongdoers would encounter a blood-soaked Lee Jinhee.
 
{Euak! Wait! Wait! I was wrong! I surrender! I surrender!}

You should have said that before meeting me.

Pscht!
Her mission was to enact mercy.
 
Shaking off her bloody sword, Lee Jinhee sighed. Battle after battle.
Even though a lot of time had passed, it felt like a single long day. A battle that continued since that day.
The only time she took some time off was to visit that sleepyhead who wouldn’t listen to a word she said.
 

Lee Jinhee…


Oh, Baek hyung?

Lee Jinhee revealed a faint smile when she saw him.
Baek Seoin was in quite a hopeless state. Although he became a vice-captain to support her, but regardless of his intentions, she was a wreck. She couldn’t sleep if she didn’t fight and fought when she wasn’t asleep. Though she was alive, she didn’t have a life. Even though he wanted to help her, she wouldn’t give him a single opportunity.

Huh? Wait. You!

Baek Seoin hurriedly approached her and held her cheek.
Blood flowed from her nose. It wasn’t from an injury since there weren’t any enemies strong enough to even touch her. If she got a nosebleed from getting hit, then that in itself was a serious problem.
Tak.
Lee Jinhee pushed Baek Seoin away.

Ah, this? I’ve been getting them for a while now. It’s annoying.

Lee Jinhee wiped the blood dripping from her nose as though it was nothing. However, Baek Seoin’s expression didn’t relax. For a powerful transcendent warrior to get a nosebleed for no reason… That wasn’t possible.

You… Did you go there again?

The monsters’ universe Choi Hyuk was slumbering in.
Lee Jinhee was the only one who could enter that completely closed off universe. The power ‘Lee Jinhee’s World’ possessed was astonishing because it allowed her to enter worlds that hadn’t even been born yet, but this miraculous feat placed a burden of similar magnitude on her. Even if she only visited for a moment, she would be in pain for an entire day. Then she returned to the battlefield without sleeping. This had been going on for decades now. Her body had already reached its limit.

It’s nothing.

Lee Jinhee turned away as though she found it mildly annoying. However, her head faltered and her knees bent as she collapsed on the floor.

Lee Jinhee!


Uh… Why am I…?

She fainted after flailing around for a moment.

Lee Jinhee!!

Baek Seoin’s scream pierced through the chaotic battlefield.
 

It’s my first time seeing something like this.

Her karma has declined so much that it’s difficult to believe she’s a transcendent warrior. It’s about to crumble as though it has been eroded for many years.

She needs to be absolutely at rest. At this rate… She won’t last long even if she is a transcendent warrior.

 
When Lee Jinhee opened her eyes, Baek Seoin, who had been dozing off, jolted to his feet.

You’re awake?


Yeah… What’s this?

Lee Jinhee blinked her eyes as though she couldn’t understand the current situation before attempting to get up. Baek Seoin hastily laid her back down.

You fainted! All of a sudden! Stay lying down. They told me you need to rest.

Lee Jinhee frowned when she heard his words.

I fainted? Then what about Choi Hyuk? Did he wake up during this time? I need to go see him. If I don’t keep waking him up and starting conversations, he’ll completely melt away!

She struggled to get back up, but Baek Seoin forcefully kept her down.
Her resistance was so weak that it brought a tear to his eye. He shouted,

Stop! You can’t go there anymore! I’ll talk to Flame-Rain. She’ll understand since she has lamented repeatedly about how groundless it is to try to awaken Choi Hyuk though the birth of the universe.


What are you saying? No way. Then Choi Hyuk will die!


Who’s worrying about who! Your body’s a wreck! If you keep pushing yourself too hard to enter the monsters’ universe… You’ll die!


Die…?


Yeah! Die!

Baek Seoin’s words made her think intently.

Hmm… If I die, there won’t be anyone to wake him up…


Even now you’re-!

Baek Seoin was at a loss for words.
Unconcerned, Lee Jinhee was simply lost in her thoughts.
 


What…? Hibernation?


Yeah, hibernation.

Baek Seoin massaged his temples when he saw Lee Jinhee reply like it was nothing.

For how long?


Hmm… A thousand years? Ten thousand years? Maybe even hundreds of thousands of years? I don’t know since it’s a matter of the monsters’ universe being reborn. Well, I’ll go visit you often whenever I wake up. I have to ridicule how much you’ve aged.

Lee Jinhee innocently continued as though she didn’t notice Baek Seoin’s complicated thoughts,

Thinking about it, it’s not a bad idea. Always fighting or getting nightmares if I don’t… Rather than living like this, hibernating is better. I’ll be able to sleep well, won’t I? When I receive a signal that Choi Hyuk’s consciousness is active while I’m in hibernation, I’ll wake up and go visit him. My body will recover while I’m asleep. Yup, it seems like a good idea.


What about it is good…

As if giving up, Baek Seoin asked,

Why are you going so far to do this? You did as much as you could for Choi Hyuk. Isn’t that right? You’ve been through a lot… You should live your own life now!

His seemingly calm voice surged at the end. He couldn’t help it because this single-minded woman was so frustrating.
Lee Jinhee looked depressed as she looked out the window.

You know, Baek hyung… I can’t help it. I don’t know about other people, but it seems like the fight that day hasn’t ended for me. It’s still clear in my mind. The corpses that filled Alliance City. The monsters’ universe. How you and Choi Hyuk brushed past me. You fought to aide Choi Hyuk and Choi Hyuk fought to end everything… But that wasn’t the case for me. I fought to protect my friends. That’s why my fight hasn’t ended yet. My life stopped there. Until Choi Hyuk returns… I can’t take a single step forward.

Baek Seoin could tell how sincere she was by how lonely she sounded.
 
‘I shouldn’t stop you anymore if that’s what you truly want.’
Baek Seoin made his decision.
After letting out a sigh, he lightly said,

Okay then. I’ll do that too.


What? Why would you?

Seeing this damn woman widen her eyes as though she didn’t know why, Baek Seoin still continued to speak lightly,

There won’t be anyone you know left when you wake up from your hibernation. You won’t be able to make friends as an old woman either. It’s so sad that I should at least be there to play with you.


What the heck are you saying?

While she thought his words were strange, she didn’t try to stop him. No, in fact, she might have felt grateful and welcomed his idea.
 
Baek Seoin slept continuously while Lee Jinhee woke up and then hibernated repeatedly.
She would immediately go into hibernation once she visited Choi Hyuk and had reported it to Flame-Rain. That was the only way she could heal her collapsing body. The only time Lee Jinhee and Baek Seoin met each other again was when Chu Youngjin and Shiro passed away.
Never recovering to his peak level, Chu Youngjin grew old and died. He looked happy and peaceful. When he passed, Shiro, who was always by his side, lied down next to him and stopped functioning on her own.
 
Lee Jinhee and Baek Seoin fully awoke after an immense period of time. It was after Choi Hyuk and Flame-Rain successfully created their world.
It was only then that the madness that had previously engulfed her began to wane and her time start flowing again.
As expected, the new world she woke up in was unfamiliar, and she didn’t know anyone besides Baek Seoin and didn’t have anything to do either.
 

Yeah… That’s why I waste my time here so much. Not because of you.

Lee Jinhee grumbled as she chewed on a pickled radish.

Huh? What did you say?

Choi Hyuk, the fried chicken restaurant owner who had been passionately venting his feelings, tilted his head.

It’s nothing. Continue.

Although she told him to continue, his words come in one ear and out the other like she had been doing until now. He talked about how Flame-Rain would also ignore him on occasion, asked if he did something wrong, wondered if he did, and asked her for her thoughts and hints as a woman… Listening to his clichéd speech was boring.
‘Still, he now fries chicken quite nicely.’
Chewing on the chicken, which was crispy on the outside and moist on the inside, she recalled the day Choi Hyuk declared he would open a fried chicken restaurant.
For that Choi Hyuk to open a fried chicken restaurant… Lee Jinhee felt like she had met an alien disguised as Choi Hyuk, but Choi Hyuk was full of enthusiasm. ‘Earthlings open fried chicken shops when they retire. Since it’s like I’ve retired, a fried chicken restaurant is perfect!’ She rebuked by saying that he was reborn rather than retiring, but no words would get through to Choi Hyuk, who had become as emotional as a middle schooler after being reborn. Though she didn’t know where he read what to fantasize about opening a restaurant so much…
Either way, the first fried chicken Choi Hyuk made was pitiful to no end.
Yet it became sensational.
Lee Jinhee couldn’t contain her laughter when she saw the inhabitants of this universe buying such awful fried chicken as they made their way up and down the mystical stairway that surrounded the galaxy.
‘Well, if it’s this guy, even pupae{1}
 would have been a success.’
Although they weren’t as powerful as they were in the past, Choi Hyuk and Flame-Rain were special. They were existences that received the attention and love of this world.

Jinhee nuna! Nuna! Lee Jinhee! Are you listening to me?!


Yeah, I am.


No, so what I’m saying is she shouldn’t say stuff like that no matter what! To suggest breaking up! How could she decide that by herself!

Choi Hyuk vented.
Lee Jinhee was about to say something but shut her mouth when she saw his ferocious expression.
‘Ah, right, he was the craziest guy in the universe. His temper hasn’t changed.’
Deciding not to agitate him further, she poured him a beer to cool him off and change the topic.
 

Ah, did you know? I had a dream yesterday? It was a dream where I lived a normal life. No alliance or monsters. It was a dream where I eventually gave up parkour, got a job, and worked like a dog before I died. It was my first time dreaming about something so boring… Still, I felt like it was a shame when I woke up. My parents and my lame friends were there… Choi Hyuk, do you have anyone you think about? Before all that happened?

 
When she asked this, Choi Hyuk, who had been flaring up like a child, suddenly calmed. This was Choi Hyuk. Not the Choi Hyuk of the present, but Choi Hyuk of his past life. Although he didn’t act his age because he had turned into a child, inside this childlike Choi Hyuk remained the Choi Hyuk from the past. That might be why she kept coming here. He was her dear friend whom she could talk about that time with.

For me…

Choi Hyuk’s eyes grew dim as he remembered the past.

Jung Minji. The Crazy Knight King. You knew her too, right? If I think about it… I’m curious about her. If our normal lives continued, how would she have lived? Even if I don’t know, it must be amazing…? Maybe her cursed sympathetic ability might have improved…? Would she have found someone she truly loved…?

Seeing Choi Hyuk immersed in his own emotions, Lee Jinhee’s jaw dropped.
 

What? You miss your first love already? Are you crazy? Does Flame-Rain know about this?

 
Choi Hyuk looked like he had just woken up. His serious attitude from just moments ago was nowhere to be seen.

No! Who says she was my first love?! Also, Flame-Rain and I are done! That’s what she said! That we should break up!

Lee Jinhee smirked.

How laughable. Do you think that’s something you can just end because you want to? Do you know how many times Flame-Rain talked about stopping the entire plan while you were asleep? Since she said it like her world was ending, I thought she was serious and wondered if that would be my final hibernation. But when I woke up again, she would keenly ask about how you were. She’s that type of person. Although she may seem like an exalted queen on the outside, if it’s a matter that concerns you… Haaa…

Lee Jinhee talked about how sick she was of it, but Choi Hyuk’s eyes shined.

Re…ally?

Reenergized, he stood up from his seat, left Lee Jinhee there, and abruptly opened the fried chicken restaurant door.
Although he no longer possessed the same level of strength as he did in the past, they had a lot of convenient skills as they were loved by the universe.
For example, when he opened the door…
 
Thud!
 

Oh, you came?

The place beyond the door would be his destination.
Flame-Rain faced Choi Hyuk, who had rushed in, like nothing was wrong.

Ah? Uh… Umm… That’s… S-so-

When Choi Hyuk awkwardly tried to apologize, Flame-Rain quickly went up to him and said,

Wait. You’re trying to apologize right now, aren’t you?!

Then her soft lips covered his.
Through her lips, her warmth spread throughout his body. His sad heart completely melted away.
After a long kiss, Flame-Rain said,

Apologies like make me cringe… Anyways, since you came looking for me first, I win, okay?

Her expression read, ‘Ah, good thing I endured it. I won as expected.’
Various emotions filled Choi Hyuk’s heart.
‘What’s this? This beautiful yet shameless lifeform…’
 
He chuckled before revealing a smile that seemed to reflect all the time that had passed as he replied,

It feels like we’re normal lovers like this. Fighting over nothing. Then making up.


We are normal lovers, stupid.

He kissed her lips as she babbled about how he didn’t know that yet.
As expected, it was electrifying.
As though their lips had never separated after they had their first kiss.
 
{Epilogue – Lee Jinhee and… End}
 
 

After seeing those two like that in front of the door, Lee Jinhee had a bitter taste in her mouth as she left.

Damn it… Singles like me should all roll over and die.

When she saw the stairway and the unfamiliar inhabitants making their way up and down it, she felt a little lonely.

Lyosha…

Apparently, those who died in this galaxy could meet again and share their feelings. Though it was cruel, this dreamlike story didn’t apply to those who died outside this universe.
She repeated the name of the boy who had died for her a few times as she stood still, cherishing his memory. Her small head looked frail in front of the vast universe.
Yet, when she raised her head after a brief moment, her sorrow was nowhere to be seen, instead replaced by the desire of an old woman.

As expected… I should have eaten him up when he grew up…! He was quite the decent man later on, wasn’t he?

She tried to change her mood, but she only felt more miserable.

Ha… What am I saying? Am I crazy?

Shaking her head, she crossed over to the coalition’s universe.
 
Dirik! Dirik!
 
She received an urgent call as soon as she returned. It was Baek Seoin.
As soon as she answered him, she saw his face full of urgency.
-It’s an emergency! Come quick!
His urgency made her question if she was still the knight captain or not.

Wh-what is it? What happened?

-I’m bored! Let’s go watch a movie. How about <Knight of the Gale, Lee Jinhee> which was released after you went into hibernation? An ancient movie! Though it was a failure, the mysterious movie became an unprecedented hit thanks to your dedicated fans!
Sparks ignited in Lee Jinhee’s eyes.

What? You good-for-nothing!

 
You slept straight through it, but I woke up from time to time! Don’t you know that I’d be your senior if we were to count the number of meals we’ve had?

Ah, yes, yes, Jinhee nuna. So what should we eat today?

I don’t know! Since Baek hyung is my junior, you lead the way!

Ah, yes yes.

 
{1}
 Korean street food – boiled or steamed silkworm pupae.