Chapter 1211: Scorched World

Goblin.

Hearing that word, various things come to mind.

Right now, including past lives and this life.

There’s something I’ve heard every time I came into the underground.

‘Little goblin.’

What does ‘little goblin’ mean? I’ve never really tried to find out.

‘Don’t pay attention to the names they call you.’ That’s because Father told me something.

But still.

“A goblin…”

The ancestor called himself a goblin. As I heard that, I examined the body in front of me.

A body that had become almost one with the tree. Amidst that, horns and ears unusually pointed for a human.

At least I could tell it wasn’t human.

“…It’s not quite a monster.”

I had seen this kind of form even in the Myriad Worlds.

The non-humans that were on the volcano created by God Noyah. Having seen such beings, I wouldn’t be surprised by the ancestor’s form alone, but…

‘…It’s not surprising that the first of my bloodline was that thing.’

Fundamentally, it wasn’t of human origin. I became convinced of what I had vaguely known.

However.

“So.”

Whatever it may be.

“Ultimately, this is the shit you produced, isn’t it?”

-…….

The fact that the thing in front of me is the root cause of all this hasn’t changed.

Whether it was a goblin or whatever, none of that mattered.

-Calling a person’s body shit…

“Who said the body is shit? What you did is shit.”

-…….

The ancestor was speechless. It was only natural, since my words couldn’t possibly be wrong. What he did became the curse of the entire Gu family, and perhaps the cause for the appearance of the Demonic Mirror Gate… no, not perhaps, it was the cause.

Since we’ve been paying for it until now, what else could the ancestor be but shit?

‘…The more direct the lineage to the Family Head, the stronger the probability of inheriting the burden. And…’

If there was something else bothering me.

“Is the Family Head position only possible for men?”

-……!

I could feel the ancestor flinch at my question. It seemed like the answer.

-How…

“How or whatever, you should know just by looking at me.”

There’s no need to think too hard. It was something that always puzzled me. While the perception that the Family Head position was the exclusive property of men existed since ancient times, it was difficult to attribute the Gu family’s situation solely to that.

Because.

“My crazy sisters were far more outstanding than a loser like me.”

Each and every one was fierce beyond measure, but they were all women of great talent.

For instance, even if I don’t mention Gu Ryeong-hwa, Gu Yeonseo and Gu Huibi were quite outstanding even among all the later disciples.

They were people you’d genuinely consider amazing, not incompetent fools like me.

‘Despite having people like them, I became the Young Family Head.’

It was an absurd situation, enough for Gu Yeonseo to harbor resentment and hate me.

Therefore, the Gu family’s Young Family Head could only be a man. You couldn’t possibly not know this part.

At the time, I had thought it was just a stifling custom of the Gu family.

Looking at it now.

‘It’s not just some shitty custom.’

It’s not merely a custom.

“It seems this too had something to it.”

-…Yes.

The ancestor readily admitted it.

-The Young Family Head and the Family Head must be exclusively male.

“The reason?”

-Because I am that way.

“……Hm?”

It’s because the ancestor is male?

“What does that mean?”

-Taking on the role of the master’s proxy means embodying the guilt and conviction I must possess. To make that easier, the quality of the body and soul must be similar. The effect can only be amplified if the gender is the same. It’s for that purpose.

“…Ah.”

If it’s something that must be contained in a vessel, then the vessel must resemble it as much as possible.

For that, [the vessel] must be male, like the ancestor?

“What a shitty reason. Life’s already tough enough, and things just got tangled up even more shittily because the gender is male.”

-…….

“Damn it.”

I let out a deep sigh.

“A goblin…”

I looked at the ancestor. With his eyes closed, I couldn’t tell if he was dead or asleep.

Looking at him, I asked.

“…If this remains as it is, does the Gu family’s curse continue?”

The cause of the Gu family’s curse. If that is the body the ancestor left behind.

“Does it end if I burn this?”

Wouldn’t it be over if I just got rid of it? I blurted out the simple thought, but…

-If that were possible, you would have tried it long ago.

“It doesn’t burn?”

-Members of the Gu family bloodline absolutely cannot inflict damage upon that… no, upon that body.

Since I kept calling it ‘that thing’, the ancestor now refers to his own body as ‘that thing’ too.

“Hm… really?”

-Once you enter this space, you cannot generate flames. It must be because it goes against the master’s will.

I wanted to confirm, but I couldn’t muster any energy, so it was impossible.

The ancestor of the Gu family. Since it was said that I inherited and use the flames from him.

Does that mean killing him with flames is also impossible?

‘Furthermore, becoming the master’s proxy means inheriting the ancestor’s burden and responsibility.’

Assuming that even the power is inherited.

“…Then, is the fact that the current generation Family Head can arbitrarily suppress the flames also because they received your power?”

-Correct.

In a state of having received all of the ancestor’s conviction and power.

The power the descendants use originates from him, meaning they can control even that at will.

‘Son of a bitch.’

This isn’t easy.

If it’s like this, it means I can’t stop the current generation Family Head somehow if they appear, even using flames.

“…It means I can never win while possessing the Gu family blood, right?”

Tsk.

I clicked my tongue inwardly. Also, if there’s something I’m curious about.

‘If it doesn’t work with flames, does it work with the physical body?’

Even if I can’t use flames, wouldn’t using my own body directly work? With that thought, I approached the ancestor’s body.

I reached out my hand just like that.

Although it had become one with the tree, it wasn’t like it lacked a neck. I intended to try and snap its neck.

-…….

The ancestor didn’t stop my actions. Did it mean he didn’t care if I killed him?

As I grabbed its neck and tried to apply force.

Thump-.

“……!”

I felt a vibration. My hand moved away from his neck on its own.

“It doesn’t work.”

Something is blocking it. I can definitely feel something blocking it.

Looking at me like that, the ancestor said.

-Ha, what a remarkable fellow. Even so, to think you’d grab the neck first without hesitation.

“It’s a test. I knew it wouldn’t work.”

-How amusing. Anyone could see it was a genuine move.

“Eh. Hahaha.”

-…….

“……”

I didn’t deny it. Because it was true, it was genuine. The ancestor wasn’t really family, and even if there was resentment, there was no sense of connection or bond.

Furthermore.

“But well, didn’t you wish for me to kill you?”

I know the ancestor wished for that too. That’s why I tried.

-Yes, if possible. If it were truly possible, I am hoping you would do so.

He wished for death.

He hoped no more burden would be passed down to his own bloodline, and I know he hoped that I would be the last. How could I not know? Everything, whether through actions or words, was directed towards that.

“But unfortunately, it didn’t happen.”

I savored the thought.

“I know it couldn’t be realized because the amount of information from the underground was insufficient. Nevertheless, what does it mean that this body remained?”

-My power went into the creation of this. Because solely with your mother’s power, there was something lacking.

“What exactly does it mean that your power went into it?”

-Even though it’s a created world, the Gu family’s power is separate. To imitate that, my power was ultimately necessary. Thus, even if it’s an illusion, the source had to exist.

“……Hm.”

Does it mean it was a necessary means for imitation?

‘For this world to be constructed, the ancestor’s body absolutely had to be created.’

It means that, to that extent, this thing existing in the Gu family’s underground was inevitably important.

‘It’s because it’s a created world.’

Would it have felt different if I had actually entered the underground? I was curious about that, but.

‘Whatever the case, it turned out unfortunately.’

I couldn’t obtain what I needed to gain from the underground. While it was good that I learned the secret upon entering this room, even that didn’t help much.

If there’s one more question here.

“Why did you block it?”

It’s about why the ancestor blocked this.

If it was just about coming in and seeing, there would have been no need to block me. Yet, he stood in my way.

Why did he do that? As the question arose.

-…Because it was a sore spot.

He told me in a trembling voice.

-It’s also something that doesn’t need to be shown yet. Because you will have to see it someday.

“I have to see this?”

-If you intend to inherit the position, you will see it. Of course, I am hoping for a meeting with a different purpose than that.

“A different purpose…”

Hearing his words, I grasped his intention.

“I see.”

The ancestor likely wished for only one thing from the start.

“You wish for me to kill you, right?”

-…….

One’s own death.

The final act of the burden that would conclude with his death.

You must be hoping for that.

I took a step back. Since there’s no immediate way, I guess I can’t help it.

“Don’t worry.”

I said, turning my back.

“Even if you told me not to, I will do it anyway.”

I will end this burden.

Only then can I survive too.

So even if you told me not to, I intended to do it. To do that.

“…First of all, I need to get out of here quickly.”

Escape from this created world.

As of now, that was the only thing I had to do.

“For that…”

The task needed to escape this place.

Now that I’ve reached this point.

“I need to see Mother first.”

I started to get a sense of direction to some extent.