Chapter 55. Family.

The fairy organized the household items one by one. But because they were cherished items from her time living here, she couldn’t easily throw away even the junk. …Every time she looked at an item, she felt a vague yet heart-touching feeling.

“Why are you taking that instead of just throwing it away?”

“Throw it away? Why would I throw away something that’s perfectly fine?”

“Yeobo… just come with your body. You don’t have to take anything. …You know that too, right?”

Of course, there was no way the smart fairy wouldn’t know that. Rather, if she took things from here, they would only get in the way unnecessarily.

“I know how you feel. So, just take a few things that you want to cherish, okay? It’ll be hard to carry everything. We have to take Siu too, how hard would that be, huh?”

“…Okay. Then I’ll just take a few things.”

The fairy began to sort through the items one by one. Siu, her son who knew nothing, was happy that they were going on a trip.

“Are we going on a trip?”

“Yes, we’re going on a trip.”

“Where to?”

“To a very far place…. Siu hasn’t been far yet, has he?”

“No.”

Usshya. Ji-hyuk sat Siu on his lap.

“Siu-ya…, the world is very big. Now we’re going to a very, very big city far away and live with Daddy. …Good, right?”

“Yeah, good. I want to live with Daddy.”

“Daddy likes living with Siu too.”

Ji-hyuk kissed Siu’s cheeks and forehead. Aigoo. The son complained that he was annoyed because he was being kissed so much. The father thought that was cute too.

After much deliberation, the fairy Aizel chose a few items from the sorted items and closed the luggage bag. After packing all the luggage, she swept the house with a wistful look. …Maybe she’ll come back later, but still, she felt a lump in her chest because she was leaving this place.

While living here, the fairy enjoyed an abundance of happiness beyond her share. She fell in love with her disciple Kang Ji-hyuk, gave birth to her son Siu…. The master of heroes who produced countless heroes, was now a wife to one man, and a mother to one child.

…Everyone would be shocked.

She was especially embarrassed to see her friend’s face. She still vividly remembered boasting as if it were a badge of honor that she would never marry or love while working as an instructor at the academy. …This is why they say you shouldn’t make rash promises about the future.

After packing all the luggage, the three of them went up to one bed. Siu lay between the hero and the fairy, listening to his mom and dad talking quietly and fell asleep. The fairy patted her son’s chest with her hand and welcomed the last night before leaving the cabin.

“I’m sorry.”

“What do you have to be sorry about? It’s an unavoidable situation.”

“Still, just, yeah…. I’m a fairy, after all.”

“Then there must be a mountain of bastards who should be sorry to me. These sons of bitches, I made them heroes, and they didn’t do their jobs properly.”

Ji-hyuk chuckled at the fairy’s sharp words.

“…Everyone would be shocked, right?”

When the hero said that, Aizel also looked a little worried.

“I’m… actually a little nervous.”

“Nervous? What are you nervous about?”

“I said I would never get married or have children until I die…. But how can I face the kids?”

“Tch…, you’re worrying about trivial things.”

“You don’t know because you’re not me. I have my pride. I promised so much….”

“Then why did you say such things?”

“I really didn’t plan to back then.”

“What about now?”

“Of course not now, obviously…. I don’t regret meeting you at all. I can give birth to our Siu a hundred times over.”

“Then what’s the problem? Just step forward confidently.”

“That’s that, and this is this. …My mouth is my worst enemy.”

“…I don’t know.”

“How would you know my complicated feelings?”

“Your feelings? I know them very well. I’ve fucked you with my dick so many times.”

Ji-hyuk said that with a beaming smile, and the fairy chuckled as if she was dumbfounded.

“How did the conversation get there? …Human imagination is really amazing.”

“Isn’t there a fairy here who’s been fucked by that human dick and moaning?”

“…I’m scared Siu will take after you.”

“Siu’s dick is huge, though. He’ll be chasing after girls.”

“Absolutely notㅡ! I won’t raise Siu like that.”

“He won’t be like that because he takes after me.”

“…Do you chase after girls?”

Ahㅡ. Ji-hyuk regretted it after speaking. The hero subtly avoided eye contact. The fairy Aizel glared at him with narrowed eyes.

“Tch, okay…, I won’t interfere because it’s your business. I just want Siu to grow up well.”

Ji-hyuk felt a little guilty and turned his gaze to Siu, who was sleeping. The son was sleeping soundly without waking up. The fairy gently stroked her disciple’s cheek and relaxed her expression.

“It’s okay. Don’t worry too much…. Get some sleep quickly, so you can wake up early tomorrow.”

“…Yeah, you sleep well too.”

“Yeah.”

The two kissed lightly and slowly closed their eyes.

…The quiet and peaceful night flowed quietly on the three’s even breaths.

The three family members left the cabin early in the morning. The fairy, carrying her son on her back, kept looking back. A wistful emotion crossed her eyes as she left the place she had grown fond of.

When will I ever come back hereㅡ.

Aizel took a long breath. Siu clung to his mother’s back and whined. She gently tossed him up and down.

The two walked along the path.

– Do not trespass. Trespassers may die.

The weathered sign soon disappeared into the fog. As the couple came out of the forest and walked along the lake, they saw the dawn breaking in the distance. A reddish energy slowly spread across the dark blue sky.

Beautiful dawnㅡ. The fairy took a long breath as she watched it.

The fairy, who had always watched the hero’s back as he left alone, finally climbed the hill with him. She looked down at Crescent Lake from the top. …Wasn’t this the feeling that Ji-hyuk had felt all along?

“Let’s go, yeobo.”

The hero urged the fairy, who couldn’t easily take her feet off the ground. She nodded lightly and slowly went down the hill.

Soon, the bright sun rose in the sky, brightly illuminating the dark world. Walking through the beautiful fields, the fairy put down the burdens of emotion one by one.

When they arrived at the village after walking along the long field path, the villagers whispered. They seemed surprised that there was even a child between a human and a fairy.

The two boarded a moving carriage that left for the city early in the morning. An old man smiled contentedly as he watched the child dozing off in his mother’s arms.

“The best time is when you’re sleeping in your mother’s arms. Once they start running, you won’t have a moment to rest. They’ll cause an accident if you take your eyes off them.”

The fairy Aizel gave a light smile to the old man who said that. Ji-hyuk glanced at his son for a moment and then turned his gaze back out of the carriage.

Watching the village getting farther away, Ji-hyuk blew a long breath.

…I probably won’t be coming here again.

Even if I do, it will be in the very distant future. Or maybe I’ll never come….

Ji-hyuk recalled beautiful old memories. From the memory of meeting his teacher Aizel for the first time here, to the first time he shared love with her, and to the first time he saw his son Siu….

“You must have saved the country in your past life. To have such a pretty fairy as your wife.”

The old man said that while looking at Ji-hyuk. The hero smiled.

“I fought very fiercely with the Demon King.”

“You didn’t just save the country, you saved the continent.”

Ji-hyuk didn’t answer anymore and just smiled.

…The carriage rolled along the dirt road with a rattle.

· · ·

The three family members who left the cabin of Crescent Lake finally arrived in the capital after a month and a half. Son Siu couldn’t help but be amazed at the sight of the huge capital.

“Mom, Dad, look at that. It’s so bigㅡ! It’s this bigㅡ!”

Siu made a fuss like that, spreading his arms wide. The people traveling with them smiled contentedly at the child’s antics.

“You must have a lot of fun raising him. The kid is handsome too.”

A large mercenary who didn’t know who they were pointed at the son with his chin and said that.

“I also have a kid I left behind in my hometown….”

“Why do dangerous work when you can just dig in the ground there?”

“Does that make money? It’s just enough to put food on the table.”

“Still, it’s best for children to have their parents by their side.”

“…We’re doing it all for their own good, I guess.”

Ji-hyuk and the mercenary chatted like that until they soon arrived at the entrance to the castle gate. Ji-hyuk showed his hero’s pass to the employee who came to check his identity.

ㅡㅡ!!

The employee recognized the hero Kang Ji-hyuk riding in the shabby carriage and prostrated himself. The mercenary who had been joking around with Ji-hyuk in the carriage was so surprised that he almost pissed his pants. He never imagined that he would be an S-class hero.

“I, I’m sorry, Your Excellency. Please forgive my rudeness.”

“It’s okay, my friend. …And don’t stay away from your family for too long. They’ll want you by their side.”

“…I will keep Your Excellency’s words deep in my heart.”

Ji-hyuk got off the carriage with a thick luggage bag, and the fairy got off with her son on her back. They started walking from the castle gate. The employee asked if he should assign a guard, but Ji-hyuk refused, telling him not to worry about it.

The two headed to the hero’s mansion. The son, carried on his mother’s back, was distracted by the sight of the capital.

“Mom, Mom, there are so many peopleㅡ! Mom, there’s a person with a pointy mouth over thereㅡ! That uncle has pointy ears like Momㅡ! Dad, that person’s teeth are sticking outㅡ!”

Son Siu was in an uproar. Aizel answered each one, saying, “Oh my, yesㅡ.”

The two soon arrived at the mansion. The gatekeepers quickly bowed and opened the main gate wide when they saw the hero.

The fairy calmed her pounding heart and followed the hero inside.

Soon, the manager Durka came out and greeted the hero grandly. And he bowed deeply to the fairy who followed beside him.

“Was there anything unusual?”

“No, everyone is at the mansion.”

“Is that so?”

Ji-hyuk glanced at the fairy once. Aizel swallowed hard and took a long breath.

The two soon entered the mansion. Hearing the news that the hero had returned, the team members came out to greet him. They were happy that their leader had returned safely, but their eyes widened when they saw the fairy who came with him and the child on her back.

The hero introduced his wife and son.

“This is my wife Aizel, who was my teacher, and my son, Siu.”

“Nice to meet you, everyone.”

Everyone was half out of their minds at the words “wife” and “son.” The lizardman Kayak and the orc Grendal were very happy that their leader finally had a partner.

Son Siu got off his mother’s back and stared intently at his colleagues, looking around. Ji-hyuk squatted next to Siu and gently patted his back.

“Siu-ya, you have to say hello to Daddy’s colleagues, right?”

Smart Siu bowed his head.

“Hello. I’m Kang Siu.”

The child, who said that with a still unclear pronunciation, was so cute and pretty that it made you smile just by looking at him.

…Of course, the women who were watching were on high alert.