Ch.BONUSSide Story – Back Then It Was Like That, Now It’s Like This

The human subconscious is truly remarkable, capable of quickly recycling old memories when they’re available.

Humans are said to be adaptable creatures, but I found myself afraid of how quickly I was settling back into daily life.

It had been a week since I ended my immortal life in the observation world and returned to my previous life—or more accurately, to modern times.

I gathered my fatigue and left home. When I was possessed by Netionpis, I had lived for centuries without the concept of tiredness due to my immortal nature.

Because of that, returning to a mortal body came with countless inconveniences.

For instance, I’d skip three meals a day out of habit from my immortal days, or act with a complete lack of caution.

The traces of immortality, ingrained over countless years, seemed like they would remain forever. Fortunately, those worries proved unfounded, and after a week, I could face modern life as an ordinary human.

Thud. Thud.

Stairs too narrow for human feet.

That’s the typical structure of a studio apartment—one misstep and you’re done for. Now constantly reminding myself of my mortality, I descended the stairs to find a small exit where sunlight streamed in.

I squinted as I opened the door, creating a shield with my hand to block the pouring light.

“It’s been a while.”

A voice I missed.

We’d talked on the phone countless times over the past week, but nothing compared to hearing it in person. Even in modern times, her voice had the same beautiful tone as before.

“Irefi.”

“I still can’t get used to that name.”

“I’m sorry. But for me, Irefi was Irefi for over two hundred years… I’d appreciate some time.”

“I know. I understand completely, so don’t worry.”

Irefi Justitia… or Lee Yu-ha in Korean.

Yu-ha’s memories returned at midnight when she responded to a call and met my eyes. For her, it must have been strange having her past life memories intrude on her current identity.

“Don’t just stand there, get in.”

“…You have a car?”

“Well, I was born with a silver spoon.”

“How lucky that you’re nobility in modern times too.”

The car parked in the small lot next to my studio apartment was hers. It wasn’t foreign, but it was an expensive domestic model.

“I never imagined we’d have a driving date someday.”

“Could I have ever imagined it either?”

“I suppose not.”

“So? What do you think?”

“About what?”

“Remember when I told you about the modern world and you didn’t believe me? About airplanes, equal society…”

“Ugh, that’s embarrassing…”

“Your speech has gotten a bit cheaper too.”

“Would you shut up?”

Her prim reaction was the same as ever, which was reassuring. I was glad to see that Irefi’s core personality remained intact in Yu-ha.

“Besides, it’s shocking. To think that the great Irefi is a police officer. You know what? Just imagining you struggling with drunk troublemakers makes me laugh so much, pfft…”

“It’s not funny, seriously!!! Sometimes I miss the Eld Empire, you know? Especially my ceremonial sword.”

“What ceremonial sword? You should be more concerned about carrying handcuffs you can’t even use on drunks, pffft…”

“It’s been a while since you’ve asked for a beating. You must be missing violence.”

“I’m not immortal anymore…?”

“Which means it’ll be even more effective!”

“…Sorry.”

One of Yu-ha’s unique hobbies was apparently metalworking. She had regretted not being able to do it in our previous world, and who would have thought she’d fulfill that desire in the modern world? Whether there or here, her superhuman nature remained consistent.

“By the way, you drive well?”

“Driving patrol cars is my daily routine.”

“You who never even rode horses, now driving… it’s always new to me.”

“I agree. Though I do miss that it’s not a carriage.”

“Why?”

“I really liked hugging and kissing inside carriages.”

“Gasp…!”

Yu-ha made such bold statements without changing her expression. With modern values mixed in, she was lethally skilled at flustering people. In the Empire, after living together for over a hundred years, making embarrassing remarks had always been my role…

“You’re so innocent. How old are we both anyway?”

“Be quiet…”

“Hehe.”

Yu-ha wore the smile of a confident victor. After a moment, she began asking questions that had been on her mind.

“Hey, husband.”

“Husband… hmm. Yes…”

What a pleasant sound to hear!

“I wanted to ask this in person. After I died, what happened to Miren and Arnel’s descendants?”

“They were adorable. One moment they were toddling around, the next they were adults, and before I knew it, they had wrinkles and called me ‘godfather.'”

“Was it sad?”

“A little… No, actually, very much so.”

“You’re so sentimental, just like a Korean. My husband.”

“They were Miren’s children. I left the Empire when they started looking at me with suspicion, which made it worse.”

“Was the imperial family pushing for it?”

“They were probably ambivalent. They were afraid to keep me around, but reluctant to drive away someone useful. In the end, I left on my own.”

The bonds with those who stayed by my side snapped one by one, yet I lingered out of attachment.

The memories of the pain when nostalgia collided with reality are still vivid.

Eventually, wanting to forget everything, I left the Empire for another continent—the one that imported the slave collars Irefi used to wear.

“I gave a fencing manual you wrote to a young child from a duke’s family in the continent where I settled… and when that child grew up, he killed me. The child himself seemed to have gone through considerable hardship, which was sad.”

“His name was definitely Lutz, right? The one I thanked when I briefly came back to life…”

“He was a good kid.”

“That’s why you chose him.”

“Yes. That’s right.”

We were lost in reminiscence for a while. We needed to carefully sort through the vast density of time spent in the observation world.

Then Yu-ha’s eyes suddenly lit up like a lamp.

“Come to think of it, aren’t we missing something?”

“Missing what?”

“What about Zikharun? He was possessed too. And as a spirit, his lifespan was incredibly long…”

“Well, all I know is that he disappeared suddenly after Charle died. Given his nature as a spirit, he should still have hundreds of years left to live.”

“It’s quite ironic that he lives longer than Nepy the immortal.”

“I’m just glad I don’t have to hear him call me ‘dad’ anymore. Ugh, it was so annoying.”

“Pfft.”

We had so many memories to reminisce about. Just recalling one person would branch out into countless related incidents.

“They say late-life romance is intense, and Bartlant’s love life was truly bizarre. He was so attentive to his wife…”

“Sir Liver… or was it Livia? Their office romance was quite entertaining when she revealed she was a female knight in disguise.”

“The endless etiquette he prepared for the wedding was madness even by today’s standards.”

“And how obsessively he doted on his daughter. It was fortunate the child took after Livia.”

“I agree.”

We were giggling at the pleasant memories when we only realized the traffic light had changed from red to green after someone honked. It made Yu-ha seem more human to see her make such mistakes.

“Yu-ha.”

“What?”

“Um…”

“Could you say it within three seconds? I’m Korean now, so I can’t stand that kind of suspense.”

“Ugh… Yes, ah, okay.”

Yu-ha was making good use of her modern background.

I surrendered hastily to Officer Lee Yu-ha’s K-pressure.

“Back there, we were both infertile because of our Malice. Didn’t that bother you?”

“Living happily together was enough. Besides… if we had a child, there might have been confusion about whether it was Nepy’s child or Netionpis’s child.”

“I, I never even thought about that…?”

Come to think of it, she’s right.

Netionpis’s body was ultimately the old man’s flesh.

After spending several times the human lifespan, the boundary between my host body and myself had blurred.

“Well, it doesn’t matter now.”

“I’m glad if you have no regrets.”

“I wouldn’t say I have no regrets.”

“No?”

She didn’t look at me as I innocently asked back.

She only twisted her lips seductively with a sly smile, licking her lips.

“Honey.”

“H-honey? Yes! Yu-ha.”

“We’re probably not infertile here.”

“I haven’t been tested, but generally speaking, that’s true.”

“That’s good enough.”

“Iref… I mean, Ms. Yu-ha…?”

“Yes, dear.”

“Our driving date, where exactly are we headed?”

Just then, as if the navigation system had somehow understood, it announced our destination in a clear voice.

[In 350 meters, you will arrive at Shin X Hotel.]

…

……

…….??????

Why is one of Korea’s top hotels being mentioned here?

“Did you thoroughly chew the eel I sent you?”

“…It was delicious.”

“It was expensive.”

“That’s… quite an honor…”

“I hope it was worth the price.”

“This isn’t right. I need to get out here.”

“If you’d like to be arrested on the spot for traffic violations by an active police officer.”

“Abusing your authority here…?!”

“Oh right!”

“What now…”

“My husband told me to make sure I carry handcuffs when working. Thanks to that advice, I carry handcuffs even on my days off.”

At that moment, decades of trauma stirred in my mind. Especially the memory of the first time Irefi and I shared body heat, which flashed before me like a panorama.

“Isn’t the timing of carrying them a bit suspicious…?”

“I thought this would be a good time to mark my territory. Perfect timing, actually. Before you stray down another path… I’ll decide your path for you.”

“Yu-ha, you…!”

“I don’t know what I might do if you refuse.”

“…”

“The only path for my husband is the virgin road walking with me, right?”

“…Is this Malice?”

“Unfortunately, it’s perfectly normal.”

This exchange gave me a strong sense of déjà vu.

“I love you, my one and only husband forever.”

There was only one path available to me.

“…Yes.”

Praying that my body wouldn’t twist like text even without a slave collar.

I had no choice but to quietly endure Yu-ha’s hotel flex.