Part 1, Chapter 11, 12

14 days.

It took an immense amount of time for the Association and the Round Table to decide their course, and I wasn’t just idly playing around during that time.

Eliminating the monsters that had reappeared in the Pyongyang area.

Recovering the Cores gathered in the Mini Phoenix nests embedded in the Amnok River.

Securing land for the Utopia Project.

Modifying the tunnel dug beneath Dongjak.

I was always busy with so many tasks, but the important thing was that I could only operate ‘within the Korean Peninsula’.

If I were to move carelessly, the Association and the Round Table might view me with a distorted perspective, so I had to keep a low profile and only do what I could.

My main focus was locating the other executives.

Fenrir, who had revealed their identity, had gone into hiding, and it was unknown where Azhdahak and Hydra had appeared from in the first place.

Furthermore, it was unclear if Karna had even awakened. I assumed they had, but the time when they would officially begin their activities was 2022.

For 14 days, I couldn’t find any trace of any executive.

So, after the meeting, I mobilized the executives who were allied with me.

Seok Harang.

I asked Rusalka, the second-generation Snowy Night, who had enemies on both sides-the Round Table and the Association-to travel the world and search for the whereabouts of executives or Cubes.

…I shouldn’t have said I’d grant any wish if she found them.

* * *

“Hyaat, hwaa…. This feels so good….”

“Don’t move, tsk. Why do I have to be underneath you….”

“Aren’t you curious where I got it? Should I not tell you? Oppa-ya, are you playing with your fingers again?”

“……What kind of younger sister makes her older brother do something like this?”

I was lying on a beanbag, and Seok Harang lay on top of me. And by Seok Harang’s terms of exchange, I was massaging Seok Harang’s front.

“Hehe, there’s a saying that if someone you like massages it, it grows, isn’t there? Hmm, your skill isn’t like someone who’s only touched it once or twice. Hehe.”

“…….”

I gently twisted Seok Harang’s nipple. It was clearly different from a massage, but Seok Harang enjoyed it and was happy even then.

“Haaah….”

“Do you really think it’ll get bigger just by being touched?”

“I don’t know…. I’ll just keep trying until it gets bigger. You stopped again. Keep going.”

“…….”

Seok Harang was teasing me with a Cube held between her fingers. I really had no choice but to continue massaging her chest as Seok Harang wished.

“So, was it in the place I told you about?”

“Hmm, yeah. Thanks to you, I enjoyed some underwater diving. The Spirit was crazy, you know? Going down 10,000 meters underground.”

“An SS-rank is practically half a god. And you’re a Spirit, aren’t you?”

One Cube.

A place only Seok Harang, among all water-attribute SS-ranks, could go.

One Cube had rolled down to the Challenger Deep, 10,990 meters below the surface of the Mariana Trench. Seok Harang, using her authority as a water-attribute Spirit, succeeded in breaking through the deep-sea fish and descending to the seabed to retrieve the Cube.

“It’s no wonder the other executives couldn’t find it. Hmm.”

“What about the other places?”

“There were none. They were all cleared out. It seems certain that the executives have a few Cubes, just as you thought?”

“……Is that so.”

All I could do was hope that all 32 would eventually be gathered.

“Wanna see this? I made a new friend when I went underground.”

Seok Harang giggled, proudly showing me photos she took in the deep sea. A magic gear, identical to mine, was on Seok Harang’s wrist, and true to Hikari’s custom-made devices, it seemed to have worked perfectly without breaking down, even after descending the equivalent of Mount Everest’s height upside down.

“Look at this. Doesn’t it look like you?”

“Wanna die?”

“Hyaat! Ugh, hwaa….”

Did Seok Harang not realize her chest was being kneaded by my hands, or was she trying to provoke me into stimulating her more intensely?

If it weren’t for the Cube, there would have been no such service. Even Changyeom would understand this situation.

Because I needed to get that Cube to take Changyeom to a strawberry buffet.

“Thanks to me, marine biologists are going absolutely wild right now. They’ve seen new deep-sea fish.”

“They’re deep-sea monsters, you mean. From the looks of it, each one is S-rank.”

“Oh. That’s true…. But they just seemed like ordinary fish, you know? They didn’t attack first and were docile, so I just took pictures with them and came back.”

Seok Harang showed a photo she took with an S-rank deep-sea monster she discovered. Seok Harang’s boldness in taking a selfie with a monster that looked like an anglerfish, using its lantern-like bioluminescence as light, caused a huge stir worldwide.

“This is a bit unfair, you know? Everyone goes to aquariums and takes pictures with fish in the background, don’t they? How is what I did any different from that?”

“It’s a difference in scale. Who in the world would think of taking pictures and playing with S-rank deep-sea monsters?”

“Tsk. Still, they weren’t the type to try and kill people. If they had attacked me the moment they saw me, I would’ve skewered their heads and finished them off right away.”

“…Yes, yes. You did well. And you also did a good job cleaning up monsters while traveling around rivers worldwide.”

“Hehe.”

As I patted her lower chest in praise, Seok Harang beamed happily. Just like the future Seok Harang, Seok Harang was truly a woman who loved physical contact.

“So, you got one from the Mariana Trench, and where did you get the other one?”

“Oh, this one?”

Seok Harang’s expression became a little subtle.

“When I was passing through India, I did some cultural exploration and was at the Ganges River, and some little kid gave it to me. Saying it was a gift to commemorate my visit, unnie-ya.”

“……A little kid?”

“Yeah. She looked really weirdly alluring, but it seemed like a fun toy or something. I thought it was just a tourist souvenir, but once I received it, it turned out to be a Cube. Ugh, the world is truly a scary place.”

“Do you remember what that little kid looked like?”

“It was more than ten days ago…. Ah.”

Seok Harang began to create an ice sculpture in the air. She recalled her memory and sculpted the appearance of the mysterious girl who had given her the Cube, and I, with the hand that had been touching Seok Harang’s chest, lifted her armpit and threw her to the floor.

“Ouch! What the hell?! Don’t you want the Cube?!”

“You couldn’t even recognize her when she was right in front of you. Geez. Seriously.”

“What, what are you talking about?!”

I pointed at the small girl, who wasn’t even 120cm tall, and snapped.

“That’s Karna.”

“What?”

“That’s Karna! Gaetcheongwang Karna!”

“…….”

Seok Harang’s face contorted as she pointed at the ice sculpture she had made.

“No matter how I look at it, she’s a kindergartner.”

“…Let me say it again, Spirits can freely adjust their bodies. And can’t you tell just by looking?”

I gestured up and down Karna’s entire body.

“Is that an child’s body? It’s an adult female physique shrunk down.”

“H-how would I know that?!”

“You should know just by looking. Geez. And you call yourself Rusalka’s daughter, not knowing something like that.”

“What does that have to do with my mom?! Look at you, insulting someone else’s mom when she’s not even your own!”

Seok Harang got angry in reverse when Rusalka was insulted.

“My mom’s a Russian princess right now, so it doesn’t matter, does it?!”

“Watch your mouth. She’s only a few years older than you, princess-nim. Who in the world would believe she has a 21-year-old daughter?”

“But she’s still my mom!”

“You can’t even properly greet her when you meet. Tsk.”

At my jab, Seok Harang’s face flushed, then she slumped back beside me, looking depressed.

“That’s true…. She is my mom, but how can I call her mom when I’ve never even met her?”

“……Are you depressed? Want me to touch your chest?”

“No. Touch my chest for me.”

I pulled Seok Harang to my right side as if on cue, then pulled my hand from behind her back and grasped her chest.

“Haaah….”

“You’re quite an odd one, too.”

“Your hand is warm, I like it…. Anyway, I don’t know how to talk to my mom, and if I were to, it would be more comfortable if someone introduced us, wouldn’t it?”

Seok Harang turned her head and glared at me.

“You have no intention of getting involved in family matters, and Mom’s husband is still getting drunk right now, isn’t he?”

“Isn’t your mom’s husband your father?”

“What kind of dad is he if he doesn’t act like one? Damn it.”

Seok Harang rolled over and hugged me.

“Can’t you just be my dad?”

“What nonsense are you spouting? You wanna die?”

“Why? Aren’t you a Spirit killer? A Casanova who seduces other Spirits even though you’re one yourself. Maybe you did something to my mom in the future too? Right?”

“Did you forget? Your mom is deceased in the future. I only found out Anastasia was your mom after coming here.”

“Is that so. Ugh.”

Seok Harang clicked her tongue regretfully. I carefully took the Cube from Seok Harang and held it in my hand.

“Hey! Why are you taking mine?!”

“Because I think you’re about to lose your mind because of this.”

Whoosh.

I purified the malevolent aura flowing from the Cube, and Seok Harang’s hazy eyes slowly returned to normal.

“……Huh, why am I stuck to you again?”

“For your information, you were clinging to me just now, asking me to touch your chest.”

“Hick?!”

Seok Harang let out a shrill scream and recoiled. I patted her back to comfort her, allowing her to calm down.

“That’s the problem with Cubes. They’re truly malicious objects that even eat away at the minds of SS-ranks. Well…. It seems the effect isn’t too great on you, though.”

“I, I’ve been carrying the Cube around all this time…?”

“Your tension just broke after meeting me like this.”

“……That’s true, too.”

Seok Harang seemed quite calm now, her breathing stable. The reason I kept stabilizing Seok Harang’s mana was because I was worried she would go berserk due to the Cube’s influence.

“If I hadn’t touched your chest, you probably would’ve pounced on me and asked for something even worse.”

“……It sounds like something I wouldn’t do, but also something I might, so it’s a scary thing to say. Tsk. How embarrassing.”

“Don’t worry. There’s no one else here but you. Well… the suggestion of a mother-daughter combo with Rusalka was a bit shocking even for me, though.”

“Combo…? Heh, if you were going to hit on my mom, were you planning on hitting on me too?”

Seok Harang poked my side with her index finger, flashing a sly smile.

“That’s just a figure of speech. …Damn it, why did you pick up two instead of just one?”

“Why? Does it make a difference if there are two?”

“Yes. ……Honestly, I don’t know what the Otherworld God is thinking, but.”

I pointed at the Cube, which glowed like a soft light.

“When two Cubes gather, a lot of erotic circumstances arise around them.”

“I think you just said something strange.”

“Oh. Right. Can you see the Cube’s color now?”

“……Doesn’t it feel like some kind of lighting?”

I raised the Cube to the ceiling. The Cube spun around on the ceiling, casting a soft and vibrant light.

“What is that….”

“You’ve never been to a motel, have you?”

“Hick!”

Seok Harang’s face turned completely red.

“It’s like a mood light.”

“Y-you, even if that’s true, so suddenly like this, ah, no, I’m not mentally prepared yet…!”

“Try to read the mana flowing from the Cube carefully. What does it feel like?”

“……Hmm.”

Seok Harang closed her eyes and focused on the Cube’s light touching her body. The killing intent and malice flowing from the Cube, when two were gathered, began to steer their surroundings in a very strange direction.

“‘Rubbing cunts’…? ‘Stop being lovey-dovey and have sex…?'”

“The Otherworld God is quite a perverted bastard, you see.”

Seok Harang’s face immediately turned crimson. I wrapped the Cube, which was floating in the air, in a blue barrier and placed it far away so it wouldn’t affect either of us.

“Are you feeling more clear-headed now?”

“……This mana really makes a person feel embarrassed.”

“Well. At least it’s being burned off like this. For now, there won’t be any berserking in any way. For now.”

I patted Seok Harang’s back, comforting her. Seok Harang pouted, then cleared her throat and tapped my stomach.

“Th-there’s something, you know. You said earlier that Spirits can adjust their bodies, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Then can I adjust my ch-…? My chest?”

“…….”

Seok Harang’s face flushed as she began to ramble.

“If, if I can’t do it myself, I’ll have to get your help, won’t I? Huh? At least in terms of appearance, since we’re both women, there’s no problem. Right? You just touched me, so I don’t know what might happen-“

Seok Harang measured her own circumference, and her eyes widened.

“Oppa-ya!”

Seok Harang pounced on me.

“I grew 0.2cm!”

“……That’s just weight gain from eating. Or swelling from the massage. And it’s useless knowledge I don’t want to know, so could you please move?”

“Hehe, you’re dead tonight. Seriously.”

Seok Harang looked down at me and licked her lips with her tongue.

“You’re not leaving this room tonight until you make me grow 5cm.”

“I clearly suppressed the Cube…?”

“Cube or no Cube.”

Seok Harang lowered her face until our breaths touched.

“Can’t you make my chest bigger right now?”

“……You’re not even thinking about developing your abilities. Haa.”

“If you try to run away from here, I’m really not going to let you off.”

Seok Harang smiled slyly, making a cunning threat.

“Do you want to see Rusalka of Snowy Night go berserk? Huh?”

“……Tsk.”

In the end, I had to control Seok Harang’s berserk state all night.

Since I had obtained two Cubes, Changyeom would probably understand this much.

“Oh! It grew 1cm! Kyaaaah!!”

“…….”

It seemed Rusalka of Snowy Night’s berserk state would last longer than expected.

Anyway.

With Seok Harang’s help, I obtained two Cubes.