After we finished the fight and confirmed that there wasn’t even a single monster remaining in the Philippines, we returned home on the plane we put in Hwaya’s inventory. Although everyone was exhausted, we were full of smiles knowing that we had achieved more than what we came to do. That said, a few were still unhappy.

“My own son is ignoring his father…”

I flinched as I heard Father’s mumbling when he leaned against his seat. However, to my surprise, Walker stood up for me.

He lazily looked at my father from the comfortable confines of his seat. “If you don’t want to be ignored, get yourself a god’s true name, Kang Yungoong.”

My father snapped, “If that’s easy, why don’t you do it, Walker?”

Walker retorted to Father’s rebuttal with a grin, “I’m good. People should know where they belong.”

Sophie interjected, “Edward says that, but he was vexed too. He doesn’t like getting left out of things, you see.”

I pursed my lips. “Now that you mention it, he did come to our raids when we didn’t call him.”

“Don’t spread false rumors, Sophie,” Walker groused.

On the other hand, Yua’s expression continued to be heavy because of the Lava King’s Egg I gave her.

She shook her head sadly. “I don’t have the right to take this, Oppa. Everyone got hurt because of me, and many succubi even died…”

I consoled her, “Who knew the Philippines would have such a monster? It’s not your fault, Yua.”

She continued to sound upset, “There was nothing I could do. I thought I could be of help to you now…”

I smiled gently. “That’s all the more reason you should take it. You are the most suitable one for raising whatever monster that comes out of the egg.”

“Oppa…” Her lips quivered.

Seeing Yua’s dejected look, I patted her head. Who would like hurting others because of something they said or did? Yua couldn’t be blamed for what happened, but she couldn’t help but feel pain about the losses. However, nothing would change by staying dejected. To say it a bit more bluntly, it was foolish to dwell in what-ifs.

I gently explained, “Because of your request, we discovered the Lava King sooner and defeated him. The sacrifice we had to make in the process is regrettable, but it’s fine as long as you don’t forget about it. You can get stronger for the remaining succubi.”

She looked at me and finally nodded. “…Yes, Oppa. I will.”

“Good.”

Yua’s expression became slightly brighter. Good, once she had a clear goal, she would undoubtedly march forward without losing sight of herself.

Ye-Eun had been sitting behind us, but at that moment she stood up and asked, “How come you get strangely smarter and kinder whenever you talk to Yua?”

I complained as I smacked her head, “Are you implying I’m mean and stupid when I’m talking to you and the others?”

“Owwww!” she whined.

Even while I punished Ye-Eun appropriately, the plane was soaring to its destination. For the record, Leon was piloting the plane for the way back instead of Walker. Why were all the men in our guild so skilled and reliable!?

After we returned to Korea, we were showered with countless camera flashes. Of course, I simply ignored them. The most important thing right now was to get some rest. We had reclaimed an entire country. It wasn’t something that people would forget because we stayed quiet for a day or two. Furthermore, there were more important things we had to tend to.

We decided to hold the funeral for the six dead succubi at the resort area since it was the most beautiful place we knew. The dead succubi didn’t leave behind any corpses, so we buried an empty coffin along with gifts we had for the parted.

Licorice commented, “Dear Husband should already know this, but funerals aren’t part of succubi’s tradition.”

I nodded. “Makes sense.”

“Mhm, because our existences are like morning dew, disappearing the moment we die… That’s why this feels so unfamiliar.” Licorice continued, “I’m happy. That even though we won’t leave anything behind, everyone here will remember us.”

“Licorice…” I looked at her somewhat sadly.

I had not known her for a long time, but because she had always shown her playful side, her current demeanor felt extremely unfamiliar. However, Licorice was the Succubus Queen, and she had naturally lived for a much longer time than me. She had undoubtedly experienced much more and had grown much more. Perhaps because these thoughts were written on my face, Licorice smiled slightly and said, “Not long after I was born in Enesis, I became the Succubus Queen. It was really only luck that I was born with this bloodline.”

“Really?” I asked curiously.

She nodded. “Mhm. But immediately after that, my world lost its power. At a young age, I had to lead my clan to cross over to Elesia. For the sole purpose of obtaining a world’s power, I claimed countless lives without knowing good or evil.”

“…” I didn’t know what to say to that.

Licorice stared at the tombstone we placed and continued, “At the time, there was only one thing on my mind – my clan. We had to survive. We had to survive. That was the only thing I could think of. That’s why when even a single member dies, I lose my head and go wild… You saw it, right?”

“I did.”

She smiled slightly. “When the war ended, I realized that we’d lost… I negotiated with the Lord and found shelter in a place isolated from the dungeon. In truth, I just wanted to rest a little.”

“I see…”

She glanced at me. “Of course, I knew I couldn’t stay like that forever. If I did, the entire clan would simply wither away. I knew a day would come when we would have to fight again.”

“…”

“Whether I was on the side of the humans or the monsters, whether I was on the defending side or the attacking side, none of that mattered. What mattered was that my clan survived, just that. Ah, no. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t looking forward to meeting the man who would become my husband. You see, the one regret I had was never having even touched a man’s hands after being born as a succubus. Huhu, I was scared on one hand, but my heart also fluttered on the other… That’s how I waited for you, Dear Husband.” For the last part, Licorice looked at me coquettishly. Unable to find the words to respond, I scratched my face awkwardly.

The attacking side and the defending side, monsters and humans. Which side was at fault? That, I didn’t know. I had always struggled to protect the place I belonged, and the only thing that had changed was that there were more people I had to protect. Of course, Licorice and her clan were included. That was why the fact that those I had to protect died made me…

She said gently, “So you don’t need to blame yourself, Dear Husband. We had long since prepared ourselves for this fight and this sacrifice. We never even dreamed of surviving until the end without any casualties.”

Did she also have the same Evil Eyes as Daisy? I stared at Licorice doubtfully, but she only gave me an enchanting smile in return. In the end, I sighed and asked, “…Will you continue to fight with us?”

She replied simply, “If Dear Husband dies, I’ll die too. Plus, I have to avenge the dead clan members! Don’t ask such obvious questions, Stupid Husband.”

I retorted, “The one who calls people stupid is the stupid one! …In any case, thank you.”

“Huhu, I’m happy to have met Dear Husband. I’m glad that my husband is you.”

She looked too happy for me to nitpick about when I had become her husband. I told myself to address that problem later and stayed silent. However… I also had a feeling that I might have to admit my defeat regarding that point.

Once the funeral ended, I visited Fairy Garden. It had been a while since I last went there. Of course, I only had one goal: give Pure Black Desire to Lin for repair. However, when I visited Lin’s workshop, a shocking scene entered my eyes.

“Lin… Lin is working on his own accord!?” I shouted.

“I’m! A! Blacksmith! You! Damned! Bastard!” Lin retorted to the beat of his hammer with a stronger force behind each strike.

Curious as to what he was making, I asked, “What are you working on?”

He snapped, “Hasn’t! Anyone! Taught! You! Not! To! Talk! To! Someone! Who’s! In! The! Middle! Of! Working!?”

I replied slyly, “But Lin’s different from those novice blacksmiths. Plus, why should a customer wait for four to five hours, watching a blacksmith work? It’s not as if they’ll learn anything substantial from it.”

“So you know.”

Lin suddenly stopped shouting. I thought he would put on an aloof act next, but that didn’t seem to be the case. He put down his hammer and dipped a red-hot piece of metal in water to cool it down.

“So, what is it?” I asked again.

He replied, “A ring.”

I deliberately put on an act and asked in a sickly sweet voice, “For me!?”

Lin rolled his eyes. “Kang Shin, have you been hit by a hammer before? Are you trying to have a taste?”

Even though I had gotten much stronger than the first time I had met Lin, I still had no confidence to win against him. He seemed weaker than Loretta, but he was still a Transcendent who had far surpassed my level. As such, I declined his offer politely and asked again, “So who is it for?”

“Loka.”

“Lokanyan!?” I shrieked and stared at him in shock.

Lin responded awkwardly, “Yeah, we got together. It’s a bit late, but I thought I should make her a ring.”

For a moment, I tried to process what he just said. Then, I said with a blank expression, “Congratulations, Lin.”

He grumbled, “You understood what happened with just that one clue? Damn it.”

“To think that Lin would become a father… Pfft.”I snickered at the end.

He eyed me evilly. “I see, you don’t think a hammer is enough and want to try the anvil?”

“Forgive me,” I hastily apologized.

Lin looked at the completed ring. Then, he began the detailed refining process as he breathed out fire from his mouth. In this entire world, the only person… no, draconian who would make a ring like this would be Lin. I asked Lin again, “So Lin, um… how?”

He glanced at me before responding, “I always planned on taking responsibility for Loka… It’s just that we haven’t created a baby until now.”

“That’s the most surprising thing I’ve heard you say…” I mumbled.

He swiftly interrupted, “Not that I won’t do it with other women.”

I immediately revised my opinion. “That’s the worst thing I’ve heard you say…”

Light flashed. Lin was imbuing the ring with magic as he was refining it. It made me realize once again how skilled he was as a blacksmith and as a magician.

Even as he was performing such a difficult task, he yapped endlessly in response, “Men with both ability and charm are few in number, and all women want such men. If they want me, I’ll give myself to the women I like. I’ll be able to enjoy myself, and the women will be happy too. It’s killing two birds with one stone. You shouldn’t think too hard either. I heard from Noonim that your situation is quite crazy. No one’s doubting that you’re a Hero, but you don’t have to bring so many women around…”

“I’ll never be able to do that,” I interrupted.

He gave me a look. “Then just do what you want. But know this. It is up to you what happens to the women who are only looking at you. It’ll be nice if they’ll leave for other men, but there are surprisingly many women who can’t do that. Not everyone can be like Loretta Noonim.”

I hesitated before saying, “I heard she has a… first love.”

“Are you hoping that the girls you throw away will remember you for hundreds and thousands of years? Then you’re the worst,” Lin replied bluntly.

“…” He had a point.

“Like I said, it’s been many years since Loretta Noonim has fallen in love, and you’re it. You’re Loretta Noonim’s new love, and was found with great difficulty. You managed to make Noonim fall for you when she had given up on love, but if you make her sad again… I’ll kill you.”

His killing intent shot out momentarily and made me flinch. I realized once again how much I had grown. If it was in the past, I wouldn’t have noticed anything even if I fell under a status effect. Lin seemed to have noticed that too as the corner of his mouth twisted up to a smile.

He shrugged. “I’m just saying it. Well, if you have the ability, it’s best to just accept everyone. It’s not like Noonim will give up at this point just because there are one or two more women.”

I shook my head. “Your values and mine are too different.”

He smirked. “Of course, we lived in different worlds after all. In the world I came from, strength was all that mattered. Those with power would be forgiven no matter what they did, and those without power chose a master to protect their bodies and minds. The lucky ones were the ones who could make the choice for themselves. Most didn’t have such luck… There were many men who took up women, and also many women who took up men. I was especially strong, so many wanted to come under me. Amongst them, women paid with their bodies.”

This was the first time Lin had said anything about his world. I became a bit curious, and asked, “So did you accept them all?”

He rolled his eyes. “Are you crazy? I have eyes too. Plus, what am I going to do if I accept every girl that comes to me? If I was lax about that kind of stuff, I would have never seen the end of it. If you don’t have feelings for them, you have to cut them off.”

“Ah.”

He continued, “It was kind of like your current guild. I only accepted those with abilities. Of course, it wasn’t just women; there were men too. There were also many that I simply protected, and I didn’t always make them my women or servants. I had my fair share of troubles you see. Also, it’s not like I could take them with me wherever I went.”

“Was Lokanyan also…?” I asked.

He responded, “You could say that she was my first ally.”

I grinned. “I knew it.”

“Are you done asking now?” he grumbled.

I shrugged. “I’m still curious about a lot of things.”

He huffed. “Then bring a good bottle of wine later. The rest won’t be free.”

“Got it.”

Lin cooled down his ring and scrutinized it to check that everything was perfect. Then, as if satisfied, he sighed and put away the ring somewhere. Next, he took out a cigarette from somewhere else. Finally, he tilted his head and asked, “By the way, what are you here for?”

I smiled winsomely at him. “Repair my Pure Black Desire, Lin.”

“Uaaaaaaak! More work!? Come on, just how did you poke holes in a Legend grade armor!?” he shrieked.

I scratched my head. “You see, I fought a weak world’s enemy…”

He screamed, “What weak world’s enemy? There is no such thing! Gahhhhh, I should have chased you out the moment I saw you!”

I suddenly felt much better. I really had to see his troubled face to make myself feel good!