Chapter 183: When the Spring Comes and Blooms (3)

[Wow, you’re burning.]

“No…!”

[This is why life is all about timing, Arin. You had all the time in the world to charge in, and you didn’t, tsk tsk.]

“Ughhhh…!!”

Irene blushed at the sight of the instructor being pounced on by the Fairy. She knew it was a form of treatment but still, she couldn’t help but feel resentful that a woman stole his lips, no matter if she was a Fairy or not.

She felt like something that belonged to her was stolen by a complete stranger.

So, she stamped her feet to the ground, expressing her resentment.

“…It’s the Fairy’s Blessing.”

“Is it something precious?”

“Calling it precious is an understatement. There have only been five people in the history of the continent who’ve received it.”

Unlike Irene, though, Roen and Derrick were taken aback to learn that their instructor had just received a [Fairy’s Blessing].

The Fairy’s Blessing. A blessing only received by heroes in legends and myths in the history of the continent. No one knew what kind of effects the blessing had—all the heroes who received it never made any statement about it due to their reserved nature.

However, one thing was clear: those who received it had left a huge mark on the history of the continent.

Even a hero from a bygone era 10,000 years ago was still remembered. So, by a human’s standards, it was a blessing that was only received by heroes who left an eternal mark on the continent.

Hence why they couldn’t help but wonder if their instructor would also become a hero who left behind an incredible legend…

“According to an unofficial history…”

“Huh?”

“The Fairy’s Blessing isn’t really a special miracle, the fact that the heroes left their marks in history wasn’t because of the blessing, but because the heroes themselves were great.”

“Uh, but, didn’t all the heroes who received the blessing become legends?”

“According to scholars who investigated the unofficial history, there were 120 heroes who received Fairy’s Blessing in addition to the 5 that we know of.”

“…”

“In other words, the successful ones are successful, it’s not due to the Blessing. Above all, according to the records left by nameless heroes who received it, many of them said, ‘I would rather not receive it,’ or ‘It’s the worst kind of Blessing’.”

“…Isn’t that just a curse, then?”

“…Probably.”

[Hehehe, just hold on a little longer~ Your wound is severe, I have to do more~!]

“Ugh!?”

Hmm…

“Maybe it’s like this. Depending on the person’s ability, it could be a curse or a blessing…”

Watching the instructor being pushed around like that, they felt a little sorry for him. While he received a kiss from a beautiful Fairy, the spectacle made it seem like she was pushing herself onto him while he was trying hard to reject her, which was a little strange to see.

“Hmph.”

Roen tightly closed his eyes.

He wondered if the instructor received a blessing or a curse. At the same time, he felt nervous.

“One thing for sure. I don’t want that.”

“…Ahaha.”

Derrick let out an awkward laugh, silently agreeing with him.

Still…

The Fairy is pretty, so he should be happy about that at least, right?

Derrick thought carefully, thinking that this was probably a happy occasion in a way.

Crackle-!

“!!!”

Happy my ass!

Who said that kisses are gonna make you happy?!

Dammit! I’m gonna die before being happy even once—!!

What Lee Han was feeling right now wasn’t happiness, but a sensation as if he had fallen into water, unable to breathe. That sensation and the pain was real, he really was unable to breathe, but strangely, he wasn’t dying, only suffering—which drove him crazy.

…And there was another thing that drove him crazy.

Crackle-!

“Keuuuuk..”

The fact that he was experiencing the most excruciating pain he had ever felt in his life.

[This is going to hurt a little. According to a female hero who gave birth to more than ten children, it’s roughly as painful as giving birth ten times.]

“Heuuup…!!”

The Fairy showed off her amazing ability to talk even while kissing him, but he had no time to be amazed as he was struggling in pain. No, actually, it would be nice if he could struggle, as all he could do was stay still. The moment he was caught by the Fairy, his whole body stiffened and he became unable to move.

This is supposed to be a treatment?! Why does it hurt so much!?

He thought that since a Fairy was treating him, he wouldn’t feel any pain at all, but at the moment, he was going through the most painful time he ever felt. It was inevitable for him to wonder if this wasn’t treatment, but torture.

Towards Lee Han who thought so…

[It is a treatment! Although, this is more like a reassembly than a treatment. Your body is in a huge mess right now, so I’m breaking it down and putting it back together! It can’t be helped that you experience some pain due to the nature of the process.]

After reading his thoughts, the Fairy gave him such an explanation.

…Although that didn’t make him feel any more pleasant.

[Just hold on a little longer.]

How long is ‘a little longer’?!

[By human standards… Around 12 hours?]

!!?

Hearing that he had to endure the pain of giving ten childbirths for a whopping 12 hours, he almost fainted. No, actually, he couldn’t even faint if he wanted to because the pain would just jolt him back awake again.

Because of that, he wondered if he had wronged the Fairy somewhat.

[No, you hadn’t. I like you, you know?]

“…!”

You say that, but why are you giving me this kind of pain?

He gave her an irreverent look, in which she smiled at him.

[Hehehe, you should know this already, on? Pain makes people grow more mature and stronger! I’m not talking about just the body, but the mind and soul as well. There’s no lesson gained without pain, and strength gained without pain is like sand that can disappear at any time. However, the hardships and trials you gain through pain will help you grow. That’s why this is a blessing. ‘A blessing in the form of pain’.]

I want to decline this blessing…!

[Well, all the humans who received our blessings suffered in this way too, hehehe!]

“…”

Her words explained why the ancient heroes didn’t mention anything about Fairy’s Blessing. He could bet that there were only a handful of them that thought this crazy pain was an actual blessing.

And that the majority of them resented it.

In his case specifically…

C-Can you at least let me scream?

[No.]

I’m going crazy…

So, he had no choice but to endure the pain and hold it in. He stopped complaining and just closed his eyes.

Crack-! Crack-!

“!!?”

His bones, muscles, nerves, and tendons were all being reassembled. In the midst of the process, a refreshing hot air touched the parts that were lacking or tangled, and each time that happened, his assembled body was restored.

The process was as slow as a turtle, and the pain was also excruciatingly long that it was terrifying.

However…

L-Little by little… I-I’m getting used to it…

He gradually became accustomed to the pain.

The first reason why it was possible was probably because, ironically, he had felt similar pain when he was younger, back when he was still a test subject.

The second reason was that the way he usually trained himself was close to self-harm, so he was able to adapt to pain more easily than others.

At the end of the day, pain was something that could be endured as long as one preserved, adapted, and knew that it would eventually end.

Hold on…! Holddd onnn…!

While he endured the pain, he steadily observed the changes taking place in his body. He constantly observed how his muscles were broken down, and how his bones were reassembled and strengthened.

And the more he did that, the more he became certain.

The process he was undergoing was…

Body Reconstruction.

The ultimate physical training technique for Taoists to change their bones into [Immortal Bones], a step that was essential on their journey to become an Immortal.

Lee Han also did Body Reconstruction in the past, but only to the extent of making his bones and muscles stronger. He never even dreamed of taking things this far.

It isn’t just my muscles and bones, but my heart, blood vessels, stomach, and tendons are all being reconstructed.

Even the parts of his body that couldn’t be trained, his internal organs, were reconstructed to something that were beyond human.

…This was a procedure that only Fairies could perform.

A technique and blessing that was absolutely impossible for humans to achieve.

In other words, a chance encounter.

Indeed. Lee Han had just obtained the chance encounter of his life.

However…

[Hold out a little longer.]

“…!?”

[We still have 10 more hours remaining.]

“!!!!”

[You hold out really well, you know? You’re the second human to have held out so well when receiving our blessing! By the way, the first one was the Warrior King, the first and last king of the Barbarians. Do you know him by chance?]

“Eeeeeep?!!!”

…But, at the end of the day, the chance encounter was just that. A chance encounter.

Thud-!

In the end, Lee Han fainted.

After being blessed for over twelve hours, he immediately lost consciousness.

Honestly, it was nothing short of a miracle that he had lasted this long.

But, the Fairy…

[Tsk, I wanted to talk to him a little longer…]

Stared at him, who had fainted, with a regretful expression. She felt that way because she knew that the knight wouldn’t wake up for another two days.

The Fairy just wanted to talk to him a little longer.

She shook her head and complained.

About how humans were too ‘weak’ and all that.

At that moment…

[Oh, you guys are done too?]

[Wooooow!]

[Gyahahahaha.]

[Really? Good job.]

The other knight hadn’t received a passionate kiss like Lee Han, but he was still blessed by the other Fairies and had passed out afterwards.

[…Hmm, so his vessel was thoroughly damaged? It took all the blessing to fix it…?]

When she caught the inherent Killing Energy the knight had, the Spring Fairy snickered.

-Shiver.

The energy that Lee Han called Killer Star, which had done all it could to destroy its host’s body, now was trembling like a puppy when it felt the Spring Fairy’s gaze.

As if it was too afraid to confront her.

[From now on, stop tormenting that human. Get along with him.]

She nagged at it, but she knew that it wouldn’t listen in the end. After all, the energy was a kind of curse from the heavens. Although, since the other Fairies had fixed his vessel to its best condition, he should be able to control the energy to some extent and use it without any problems.

Of course, if he overused the energy, the vessel would crack again.

[It depends on the knight’s ability now.]

Oh, speaking of curses…

[This kid has a curse inside him too, isn’t he…? Hmm, should I remove it?]

She was aware that a curse had melted into Lee Han’s body. Removing it would be tricky, but if she put her mind into it, she could definitely do it.

[…No. This is something that he has to overcome on his own!]

But in the end, she considered the process of him overcoming that curse as a ‘trial’. After all, to become a great hero, one had to go through such hardships.

If Lee Han had heard it, he’d have begged for her to remove it, but unfortunately, he had lost his consciousness. Besides, the Fairy was quite adamant about this.

[Too bad. I want to talk with you a little more, but we need to get to work soon.]

Rustle-!

The Spring Fairy stroked the knight’s cheek and let out a warm smile. It had been a while since she saw such an amazing knight. He was born with a strange fate, and yet he was able to keep his beliefs after all that he had been through.

[Being a hero probably isn’t something you want, but by keeping your beliefs, you end up becoming one. Hehe, what a sincere knight. You are living your ‘second life’, you should’ve decided to live a little more comfortably, and yet you…]

But his choice was what made him even more admirable.

The Fairy caressed him several times. ‘Love’ bloomed from within her. To a Fairy, it was a feeling that was like [poison], but it was in a Fairy’s nature to fall in love so easily. Even if they knew that it was poison, they couldn’t help but yearn for others’ affection.

And that was what she was feeling right now as she was looking at the knight. [Love].

He was an honest knight who never resented her even though she made him go through all that pain. Instead, he expressed his ‘gratitude’ at the end.

…To her, he was a really, really attractive man.

[Wow?]

[Wow?]

[…No. I can’t deny that I feel butterflies in my stomach because of him, but I have to hold myself back. This child already has ‘owners’.]

However, the Fairy changed her mind. It just wasn’t right to touch a man who already had owners, after all.

[There are women who can be his companion. Hmm, who will he choose, I wonder?]

She could feel the presence of his destined companions from the knight’s fate.

Not just one, but ‘many’.

In fact, one of them was also present here.

“I-Is it over now?”

“I think so?”

“…This is terrible.”

…A girl with a Fairy’s bloodline.

She could sense ‘destiny’ from that child too.

And there was also the one behind her…

[…]

[Hehehe, don’t glare at me like that. I won’t take him away from you.]

The Fairy waved her hand at ‘her’ who was glaring at her. While she was doing that, she wondered who the knight would choose as his companion.

[That will be something to look forward to in the future.]

Whoosh-!

The Spring Fairy smiled brightly and raised both hands.

[Now go back to your land.]

Whaaak-!

A gentle spring breeze blew, and in an instant, that breeze swept away the two knights, two boys, one girl, and a little child that had joined them at some point.

They were flustered by her actions, but the Fairy simply waved her hands and bid them goodbye.

She was grateful towards them too, but she knew that they had taken the ‘rewards’ on their own already.

So…

[Goodbye.]

She simply said her final goodbye to them.

Whooooooosh-!

Then, the spring breeze completely disappeared.

The place was empty, as if no one had ever been there in the first place.

[…]

The Spring Fairy looked at the direction where they disappeared to, the Land of the Dragon, for a moment with a bitterness, but soon, she lifted her body into the air.

[Let’s go, it’s time to get to work.]

[Gyahahaha!]

[Waaaang!]

Since they were free now, it was time for them to tell the winter.

That spring had returned.

This morning, a certain child had planned to climb the hill again to make a wish.

So that the Fairy wouldn’t get angry anymore, and so that the snow would stop falling.

But…

“Mom, what is that?”

“…”

“Mom? Dad?”

“Heuk…”

“Haaaaa… T-Thank you, thank you, Great Fairy, thank you…”

“…?”

The child tilted his head at his parents’ reaction.

For some reason, his parents, who had always acted stern, were shedding tears. In fact, it wasn’t only them that were acting this way, the other villagers too.

However, the strangest thing of them all was…

“Wow, it’s pretty…!”

The warm, round ray of light that slowly revealed itself from behind the dark clouds. It was the most amazing thing the child had ever seen, and his eyes sparkled at the sight of it.

And to the child who was captivated by that sight…

“…Eren, our baby. The Fairy has finally let go of their anger.”

“??”

His mother taught him, who had never seen the light of life in the sky.

“That’s the ‘sun’…”

“T-The sun…? …That’s the SUN?”

He opened his eyes wide, speechless to see the ‘sun’ that he had only ever heard in stories.

“Ah!”

“Eren!?”

The child climbed the hill behind the house in a hurry. It was the same hill that he climbed every day and left his precious pebble.

And there…

“…You listened to my prayer.”

No pebbles could be found, he could only see flowers blooming.

“Hehe, thank you, Great Fairy!”

For granting my wish.

He expressed his sincere gratitude. Not long after, the child’s mother followed him all the way here. She was surprised for a moment, but soon hugged him tightly while shedding tears.

The snow had melted, and in the place where the pebbles containing the child’s wishes were resting…

A beautiful dandelion field spread out.