Chapter 413 - [32nd Round] Traces of the Old Demon Lord
Adolescent children running away from home wasn’t all that surprising.
My younger brother did it a little earlier than most, but my mother had always praised him for being precocious. Hence, she shouldn’t really be that surprised.
The problem was…
“Why do they think it’s my fault?!”
The distance between Earth and Fantasy was so far apart that it was foolish to calculate it.
That begged the question of why I was the one being blamed for it.
Of course, I found out earlier that it was because of my cowardly wife’s cheeky mouth.
“Uh… I was going to tell your mother the good news about you. It’s not polite to suddenly visit, you know.”
“Don’t you know what surprises are?”
“I do. It’s a surefire way to get hit by your mother’s tennis racket.”
“…”
I wanted to deny her words by saying, ‘There’s no way my mother won’t recognize her beloved son!’ However, as much as I hated to admit this, I didn’t have enough confidence in that claim to say it out loud.
It had been twenty-five years for them since I left, while it had been two centuries for me.
Their filial son was in agony!
“Don’t worry too much. Universally speaking, bad children are punished by popcorn, but there is no such law on Earth, right?”
“I heard that term yesterday. What the hell is a popcorn punishment?”
“It is as its name suggests.”
“… What?”
“The sinner’s body is greased with butter and deep-fried in a large frying pan. According to those who had experienced it, a second in it feels like a year.”
“Right…”
If he hadn’t messed with his good-spined and kind-hearted junior, he would’ve lived a good life…
Fugitive Senior’s [Luck] now seemed like a fake.
‘May he rest in peace. Mollan.’
“So, handsome husband, how does it feel that you are now going back to your home planet after so long?”
“Hmm… Not as impactful as one would think. Our destination’s not even how we used to live while I was still on Earth.”
Back then, we weren’t wealthy, but our family lived in happiness.
I thought my parents would never move because of their beloved tennis club, but that seemed to have changed after twenty-five years.
They weren’t even on land anymore.
Rather, they now lived in a city built above the sea.
According to my cowardly wife’s description, it was a luxurious place where only high-class humans lived.
“You seem to know a lot about it.”
“Of course. I did spend some time on Earth after giving birth to Sidael.”
“Achoo!”
Sucking on a pacifier, my scion sneezed.
Cute!
Well, that was only natural. He had my looks, after all.
“Son. Once you get used to Earth’s fumes, you’ll feel better— Achoo!”
“Pfft!”
“Don’t laugh. This place isn’t the same as I remember. Did my mind exaggerate its beauty because I missed it too much…?”
When I stopped by this planet in the past, I noticed humanity built weapon factories on the sea since aliens only invaded lands, but they had now been expanded and became a residential city.
Alpha City, the safest place on Earth, was the first maritime metropolis built on the Pacific Ocean by Factoria, the world’s most gigantic company.
“Do you know what this is, husband?”
“… A black card.”
“Fufu! It’s my passport. I had to go through immigration before, but I can now bypass it since I’m a VVIP. VIP passports only exempt its owner, but VVIP ones exclude even those accompanying them!”
“…”
This was upsetting. My wife, a Fantasy savage, was more familiar with Earth than I was.
Weeeiing—
Weiiing—
This place had surveillance cameras all over it, and most of them even turned as we passed to keep us in their sights.
The security here was so tight I could feel how wary they were of Fantasy graduates entering this city without permission using their abilities.
In addition, Alpha City had straight roads and thematically unified buildings, resulting in an affluent atmosphere.
As for its people…
“Wow! Her beauty is unmatched…”
“Since she has a child, the black bear next to her must be her husband.”
“They can’t be a couple.”
“Tsk. What a waste of a woman.”
They groaned as they watched us pass by.
“Hmm…”
In the Fantasy dimension, I was a handsome man at the peak of my youth, and Ssosia was treated like an ordinary wife.
But our positions were reversed here on Earth!
This was absurd.
“I used to think I was only treated like a beauty because of the second curse, but after coming to Earth, I realized that wasn’t the case at all~”
Ssosia, holding our son, seemed flattered.
“Sniff. Good for you.”
Even a girl working in the fields of Fantasy’s Southern Continent would be seen as an actress on this planet.
It wasn’t because Fantasy savages had better genetics than Earthlings, but rather because their abilities received corrections from birth.
As a result, the Fantasy locals’ appearance improved.
“Your family’s house is over there.”
“Why did we have to come to this crowded street, then? We could’ve just landed directly to our actual destination.”
“Fufu~?”
My cowardly wife seemed to enjoy the attention Earthlings were giving her.
“Are you in a good mood?”
“Yes! I can feel my confidence, which died in Fantasy, coming to life again and reaching new heights!”
“Let’s keep moving.”
“Wait. Do you really plan to meet your parents in that getup?”
“…”
Unable to understand her intentions behind her question, I paused for a moment.
What was wrong with my outfit?
Although I had been reinstated as a Hero, I wasn’t wearing epaulets and capes like medieval mercenaries.
A clean black leather suit.
I knew I hadn’t been here in so long, but that wouldn’t be enough for me to lose my sense of reality.
Wasn’t she underestimating her MAX-Class husband?
“You’re in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, which boasts high temperatures and humidity.”
“So?”
“My handsome husband may be fine, but in the eyes of others, you look too flushed and stuffy. I know you keep its back open because of your wings, but here on Earth, you’d be considered a pervert.”
“…”
When she noticed I couldn’t say anything, she grabbed my arms and pulled me into a clothing store.
The staff greeted me warmly.
“Welcome— Heeik?!”
“My husband has no sense of fashion or season, which is why we’re here. I need to buy him some cool clothes.”
“Oh! I thought he was a robber… I’m sorry. Please follow me. Let me show you our new summer products.”
How could she say such insults to customers?
Quite the unfriendly employee.
However, my attitude completely changed when I saw my rigorous forearms and thighs peeking out of my short sleeves and shorts.
“Wow… I think I’ll be keeping you happy every night, cowardly wife.”
“I’m dying~?”
“Oh my!”
Still, our family reunion had been long overdue, and my brother was also missing. Regardless of the season here, wasn’t I dressed too lightly?
I wanted to question this change, but I decided to observe silently for now.
“Let’s go, Ssosia.”
“My dear husband, I know you’re not interested in the people around you, but don’t you miss Earth? Why not take a look around first?”
“… This place is unfamiliar to me.”
Too much had changed.
Moreover, this city was built in neither the land nor the sky where I lived, so I didn’t feel particularly sentimental or find anything that made me want to go down memory lane.
“Achoo.”
… Except for the smoke.
Ssosia led me to a downtown area, which looked like the most expensive section of this metropolis.
If I opened a cafe here, it would probably be successful even if I used my feet to manage it.
“It’s that building.”
“They got a good place.”
My family lived in a detached property, not an apartment, on this expensive land.
How much did that cost them?
“It was provided by Victoria, an English woman who pretended to be the daughter-in-law of my handsome husband’s parents. Now she is aiming for the family’s young master.”
“My little brother?”
“Yes, but now that he’s disappeared, they seemed to have been thrown into a state of emergency.”
“Right.”
The number of surveillance cameras installed in this city was unusually high. Only the richest people in the world lived here, after all. Paying extra attention to public safety and security was inevitable.
Still, even this surveillance network couldn’t catch a glimpse of my younger sibling, much less locate him.
Was that realistically possible?
… Yes, if one wasn’t an ordinary human.
“Hey, look.”
I was suspicious of him from the moment he took my mother’s love from me.
“Husband. Look.”
“How would I know where to look if all you say is…”
The end of my words blurred as I lost my train of thought.
“Son? Is that really you? You’ve changed a lot since we last met.”
“Mother…”
On the second-floor terrace of my family’s building, my mother was looking down at me.
*****
I would be lying if I didn’t expect a more touching reunion.
If it hadn’t been for my runaway brother, that certainly would’ve been the case.
“I want to hit you a little, but I’ll be patient and hold it in because my second child is missing.”
“I see…”
What was the point of being strong?
In front of my mother, I was nothing more than an infinitely small son.
“You’re back.”
“Father… You haven’t changed.”
Instead of my mother, my apron-clad father, who was a good cook, greeted me briefly in the kitchen.
I heard they had been living well because of their fake daughter-in-law, but it seemed they still refused to hire a housekeeper.
“Wait. I’ll cook you a dish you’ve never tasted in that Fantasy world.”
“Thank you.”
‘Unfortunately, there is no such food, father.’
From the day the mollanphone gained the ability to receive information from Earth, my table had become colorful with many different delicacies.
There were various recipes for cooking on the internet, after all.
… Oh. That’s right.
“Let me also show you dishes that aren’t from Earth.”
Click!
Fantasy-style dishes spread all over the table with a snap of my fingers.
They were just clones of the original, but there were no differences in their nutritional content or taste.
“After becoming a Hero, did you also become a magic cook, son?”
Even though she wanted to find her second child, there was nothing she could do. As a result, my dissatisfied mother’s tone was very cold.
I felt like I was sitting on a throne of thorns…
It was all my brother’s fault.
“A Hero must be able to do anything. More importantly, it seems neither of you have grown old at all. Rather, you seem to be getting younger, mother.”
“The medicines available these days are amazing.”
“I never even imagined they would develop a potion of immortality while I was away.”
“Well, so much time has passed. As much as your brother was born and went to college.”
“Ah, that’s right.”
This was insanely awkward!
I wanted to somehow offset this atmosphere, but I couldn’t make any progress. No matter what we talked about, she seemed to always find a way to insert my brother into the middle of our conversation.
What should I say next…
“Can I see some of those medicines? I’m curious about their ingredients.”
“What are you going to do after that? Will that help you find your sibling?”
“…”
Of course not.
I realized a lot had changed during this conversation.
Age.
My parents were younger than me because of Fantasy and Earth’s different time axes.
I felt bitter.
I didn’t go to the Fantasy dimension because I wanted to, but I risked my life to return to Earth somehow.
Yet, I was met with indifference.
They didn’t even congratulate me or tell me I did well because my brother ran away from home.
I understood my parents’ sentiment, though.
They were probably impatient and anxious because the child they gave birth to had gone missing. They probably were like this 25 years ago when I disappeared.
If I were to act foolishly here, we’d just end up arguing amongst ourselves.
“Husband…”
Ssosia looked at me with worry.
It was alright.
My first round’ colleagues used to test me harder than this.
“I’ll go look for him after we eat.”
“It’s not him. It’s Hanjin.”
“Yes. I will mobilize all my abilities to find Hanjin.”
Did she like my answer?
Mother held out something from her pocket and gave it to me.
“Here.”
“… What?”
“You wanted me to show you the rejuvenation pill.”
“… Wait.”
I crushed the medicine’s capsule and checked its content.
Very dark powder.
A very familiar color.
Giving it a little taste, I was convinced.
It was extremely diluted, but I couldn’t be fooled.
“… Husband. Could it be?”
“Yes. This isn’t just an oddly convenient rejuvenation pill.”
There was no way I wouldn’t be able to identify it.
It had become my strength now, after all.
The very essence of it was part of me.
“This is Demon Lord Pedonar’s Dark Energy. Taking too much of it turns one into a devil.”
Our current situation just took a strange turn.
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