Ch.135Side Story: Finding Rest – End

Time passed quickly after returning from Earth.

The only change was that Arsia had been immersed in culinary research since coming back to Kadinant.

She was burning with enthusiasm to recreate a dish called malatang.

Namgung Ihyun was absolutely certain she would never succeed in making malatang.

The reason was the sauce that gives malatang its distinctive mala flavor.

She said it would be impossible to recreate that in Kadinant no matter what.

Indeed, after tasting various samples Arsia had created, one could only conclude:

It wouldn’t be easy for her to recreate malatang.

Of course, that didn’t mean her food tasted bad.

It tasted good, but it lacked that mysterious spicy flavor unique to malatang.

Arsia was surely focused on solving that very problem in her malatang research.

As time passed, Radios was summoned by Veichel and headed to Midret.

“It’s been a while. Have you been well?”

“I’ve been fine. As for you… I can hardly bring myself to ask if you’ve been well.”

“Do I look that bad? I seriously want to die…”

Veichel, whom he hadn’t seen in a long time, looked even worse than before, not better.

The dark circles under her eyes had grown so wide and dark that they might as well be considered tattoos rather than circles.

Surely enough time had passed for governing the country to become manageable, so why was she like this?

Since he didn’t know the details, he refrained from making careless remarks.

Who would seriously want to fight even if they could win?

Let’s stop discussing Veichel’s condition here. If I continue, it’ll just break my heart.

“Why did you call me today? I was only told to hear it directly from you.”

“Ah… about that? Honestly, I’ve been waiting and expecting all this time, but I’m still waiting, so I thought something might be wrong and called you.”

“What nonsense is this? I don’t understand what you mean by ‘expecting but still waiting.’ Don’t you know grammar?”

“What? I’m not in the mood to play word games with you right now.”

She’s not in the mood for word games, yet she speaks so indirectly?

Radios wanted to protest, but he held back for fear of starting a real fight.

Of course, seriously speaking, they wouldn’t fight over something like this.

He just wondered if Veichel was in her right mind.

Veichel’s face was… worse than those graduate students he’d seen on Earth.

Anyway, when Radios tilted his head in confusion, Veichel frowned.

He didn’t know a human face could frown that deeply.

Radios listened carefully to what she had to say.

“When on earth are you going to do it?”

“Do what?”

“The wedding, idiot. The wedding. Aren’t you having one?”

“We already did.”

“…?”

Veichel blinked, seemingly unable to process Radios’s words.

Already did it? Why, no. When did they do it?

“Hey! Common sense dictates you should at least send me an invitation!”

“We just had a quiet ceremony, just the two of us in the mountains. Is that not allowed?”

“Of course it’s not! You’re not just anyone—you’re the former leader of the Guardian Spirit and a hero who saved the world! You should have had a grand wedding that wouldn’t be outdone by anyone!”

“That’s exactly why we had it privately without telling anyone.”

Looking at Veichel’s furious face, Radios was grateful that he and Arsia had exchanged their vows quietly, just the two of them.

Just look at what she’s saying.

She would have gathered all the people of the Kadinant Empire for the wedding.

Next thing you know, she’d want to supervise their wedding night with her own eyes.

“Because I’m a hero, I wanted privacy. Do you think I’m holed up in the mountains for no reason?”

“Ugh…”

“Worry about your face now. Your pretty face is ruined. How will you ever get married looking like that?”

“W-who said anything about getting married! I plan to remain single for life, you jerk.”

“Is that so?”

When Veichel shouted with a reddened face, Radios swallowed his laughter.

Not long ago, this woman had confessed her feelings to him, and now she says she won’t get married.

She wants to remain single for life.

Well, it’s her choice, so shouldn’t we respect that?

“Anyway, is that all you wanted? I’m leaving.”

“W-wait, stooooop!”

As Radios was about to turn around, Veichel came down from her throne and stood before him.

It felt like it had been a very long time since they’d faced each other at this distance.

Looking closely, Veichel had lost an unrecognizable amount of weight.

Perhaps from working too much, she looked almost skeletal.

“Why are you so thin? Take it easy with work. Your body is more important—is the country’s business really that important?”

“…”

“Veichel?”

Radios closed his mouth when Veichel didn’t respond.

Looking closely, her body was trembling slightly.

Her hands were fidgeting behind her back as if hiding something.

Radios decided to wait until she spoke first.

“I’ve sorted out my feelings.”

“…Who asked?”

“But I still wanted to give you this.”

With those words, Veichel pulled out a necktie.

A necktie that seemed out of place in Kadinant, something that would go well with Earth attire.

Radios could tell what this meant.

This necktie was a gift Veichel had made for him to wear at his wedding.

But since the wedding had already taken place, it no longer had a purpose.

“Belated congratulations on your marriage. Live happily together… and visit me when you think of me.”

“Veichel.”

“You should go now. You shouldn’t keep your bride waiting when you’re newlyweds.”

Veichel turned around abruptly and headed toward her throne.

But her steps were slow, as if she didn’t want to show her face.

So Radios left first.

Clutching tightly the necktie she had given him.

“Oh, come to think of it.”

As he was about to leave the palace, Radios stopped and remembered something.

It was that Arsia had become interested in magical engineering.

He was going to tell Veichel that they would soon move to Midret to properly research it.

But caught up in the atmosphere, he hadn’t managed to say it.

“Well… it’s not like we’ll never see each other again.”

Maybe surprising her later would be fun?

Radios headed back to his newlywed home with Arsia, promising himself he would see Veichel again someday.

**********

“I-I did it!!”

At dawn, as birds sang their beautiful melodies.

Arsia, tasting the red broth in the kitchen, couldn’t contain her joy and shouted.

Malatang.

She had finally succeeded in recreating that dish.

“Indeed, there’s nothing magic can’t do!”

As Namgung Ihyun had said, making malatang was impossible.

So what about trying to make something that at least resembled malatang?

The answer was magic.

Doesn’t Earth have some kind of magical powder that makes things delicious when added?

In a similar fashion, Arsia poured her magical talent into cooking.

After hundreds of failures, she finally succeeded in recreating the exact taste of malatang.

[Wow. This really tastes like malatang! Amazing.]

And Namgung Ihyun, who tasted it, acknowledged its synchronicity with malatang.

Arsia felt an irrepressible joy at having finally recreated (?) malatang.

“Radios~ Wake up! Guess what!!”

“Yawn. You want me to taste something again?”

“No, you don’t need to taste it! I’ve finally made real malatang!”

“Oh, really?”

Eating malatang at the crack of dawn isn’t advisable.

But Radios, who had been consuming something similar to malatang for breakfast for over a year,

Had reached a state of enlightenment regarding malatang.

Though he sometimes wondered if she needed to be so obsessed with perfecting it, he obliged his dear wife’s request.

Oh, right.

He and Arsia had agreed to speak informally to each other.

After all, they were married, and theirs wasn’t a relationship that required strict hierarchy.

At first, Arsia found it uncomfortable, but now it felt natural.

Anyway, as Radios rubbed his sleepy eyes, facing the same breakfast for the 365th day,

This time he tasted a broth so similar to the original that it reminded him of Earth, and his drowsiness vanished instantly.

“How is it? How is it?”

Arsia’s eyes sparkled as if seeking praise.

In response, Radios picked up the bowl of malatang and downed it in one go.

“Perfect. There’s no other way to describe it.”

“Yay!! Finally, success!”

Satisfied with her husband’s reaction, Arsia jumped up from her chair, pumping her fist in the air.

Radios smiled at the sight of her.

Truthfully, he couldn’t tell the difference from yesterday’s malatang.

But seeing her so happy, what did the truth matter?

‘She’s happy…’

It had been about a year and six months since they found peace of mind and began living happily.

Radios couldn’t stop smiling as he looked at his life partner.

Even if, looking back on this time in the future, it might seem like just a fleeting moment.

Enjoy the present.

Forget the pain and live with your precious person.

The fragile human who fought against gods for the world’s sake,

Living a peaceful daily life,

Finally found rest.

The End of “The God Who Abandoned Me Is Obsessed” Side Story