Chapter 72: Ragnarok, Beyond

“After I informed my colleagues of your death, Oppa, all hell broke loose.”

Even considering he was human, he still had a long life ahead of him.

A master who had reached the peak of the Transformation Realm could live up to 200 years, so he had at least 170 more years to live.

Moreover, in a world where the Demon King had disappeared, the only powerful individuals who could threaten him were his colleagues or his master, and all of them maintained a friendly relationship with him.

It was only natural that his sudden death would cause an uproar among his acquaintances.

It was embarrassing for him to say it himself, but his influence was great enough to reach the entire world.

“Ruina, who hadn’t visited us even once in nearly 10 years, even came back. She kept asking if you were really dead, denying reality, saying it couldn’t be.”

Even though he had belittled her, calling her a freeloader, and repeatedly hurled unspeakable insults at her, deeply wounding her heart, she had come to confirm his death.

“And then she told me. Elves can only love once in their lifetime. Their first love is their last love, and they can never forget it, even until the moment they die. That’s why loving a short-lived species is almost a taboo.”

“Why didn’t she tell me..?”

If he had known, he wouldn’t have done that. He had tried to let her go because he considered her a precious person. But his actions, done for her sake, now seemed terribly wrong.

He had spoken such harsh words and hurt a being who could only love him.

If she hadn’t stopped loving him even after their conversation, her wounds would have continued to fester.

‘Because of the heartless words I threw at her.’

“First of all, this is a secret strictly kept among elves. If this were known, there would be countless people trying to take advantage of an elf’s heart, to drain them of everything.”

Indeed, if that fact became widely known, he knew hundreds of villains who would exploit it.

“But that’s no reason not to tell me…”

He had saved elves several times. He had even saved the world, and Ruina was his precious colleague.

Ruina, more than anyone, would know that he wouldn’t reveal a colleague’s secret to others.

“You said you disliked Ruina, Oppa.”

“Huh..?”

What did that mean?

“High elves live three times longer than elves. An elf’s love is deep, but a high elf’s love is even more tenacious. Enough to think more of you than herself, Oppa.”

“That means…”

“Because she liked Yu-won, because Yu-won asked her to disappear from his sight, because she thought his happiness meant her absence. It didn’t matter what happened to her own heart. That must have been her thinking.”

Then there was only one reason she hadn’t told him.

“Because she was afraid that if I found out elves can only love once, I would take responsibility for her out of guilt, even though I disliked her?”

“Is there any other reason she wouldn’t have said anything?”

Estelle was right.

She was a considerate person in subtle ways, and she might very well have kept silent out of such feelings.

That was the Ruina he knew.

“I suppose so.”

His thoughts began to clear a little.

“But she came all the way to Earth with the item you gave her. So what do you think her reason for coming is?”

“To meet me.”

That was the only reason she would come all the way to Earth.

It was strange that she hadn’t come to see him yet after arriving on Earth, but it could be due to external factors rather than her own will, so he wouldn’t hesitate to look for her anymore.

“Are you okay now?”

Estelle, who should have been displeased by him meeting Ruina, was guiding him, who couldn’t make up his mind. He owed her a great debt.

“Thank you, Estelle. Thanks to you, I think I know what I need to do.”

“Just a verbal thank you?”

She pressed her lips against his.

“No.”

He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and kissed her back.

Due to the urgent situation, they couldn’t kiss for long, but it was deep and passionate, their tongues intertwining before they parted.

–Triring

“I’ll be back.”

“Yes. Take care, Oppa.”

A call from the owner of the Black Market. Leaving the room, he nodded to Ha-yeon and Liera, signaling he was leaving, and answered the phone as he headed out the door.

“Has it been confirmed?”

–This is truly amazing! Where on earth did you get this?

She had used formal language earlier, but now she was so excited she’d forgotten.

It seemed the assessment that she couldn’t resist rare things was accurate.

As someone who had repeated a 30-year life, he was more accustomed to informal speech than formal speech, so it wasn’t particularly uncomfortable.

–Ahem… I was so surprised I made a mistake. So, where did you obtain this material?

She seemed so worked up that she’d even forgotten the basics of trading. Showing the other party that you coveted an item more than necessary was a terrible move.

Or perhaps she was showing her determination to acquire this item even if it meant taking a loss.

“Is it okay to discuss such an important matter over the phone?”

–You’re right. Then, could you agree to come here? It’s an ability that can only be used then.

“I agree.”

Since the conversation wouldn’t proceed further without meeting her anyway, he coolly agreed.

–People usually don’t agree so easily. This is unexpected.

It seemed she had never encountered someone who agreed so readily either.

“If you were trying to scam me with something like this, you’d be the master of a band of thieves, not the owner of the Black Market.”

–Hoho… You’re even more interesting than I thought. Anyway, a stepping stone should have appeared in front of you. Please step onto it.

As she said, a stepping stone with the Black Market’s insignia appeared in front of him, and he placed both feet on it. At that moment, his vision went dark, and he felt himself being teleported to another space.

“Nice to meet you. This is our first time meeting in person, right?”

A woman with blonde hair, blue eyes, and Western features greeted him. Around 175cm tall, with a curvaceous figure, she was more than enough to attract men’s attention.

“Yes. It’s a new experience to meet someone so famous only by rumor.”

“The same goes for you, Yu-won. You’ve been the center of all sorts of issues for the past month, yet you’ve built up an image of mystique by refusing all interviews. If it weren’t for that YouTuber, the public might never have known.”

She seemed to have researched him quite a bit, knowing even such trivial details.

“First, was the item sufficient enough to warrant giving me the seller’s information?”

“Straight to business… That’s good too. I’ve never revealed it to anyone before, but with material of that caliber, I can tell you the information of one seller. Instead, I’ll need to see the quantity of the material, right?”

Even if he kept quiet, if the seller revealed that the Black Market had mishandled their personal information, it would be a huge blow to the Black Market itself.

People frequented the place because of its anonymity, and if customers found out their personal information was no longer safe, truly important transactions might no longer take place on the Black Market.

“Can I use some paper here?”

“Yes.”

He wrote down what he considered an appropriate amount of his body on it.

“How about this much?”

Her brow furrowed.

“This much is nowhere near enough…”

“Every month! For a total of 24 months. Wouldn’t it be easier for research to receive fresh material each time?”

It would be an extremely tempting offer for her as well.

“Then isn’t that a loss for you, Yu-won? And for you to say that, it means there’s a place where you can continuously procure that material. What if I have you followed and try to steal it?”

‘Who says things like that out loud?’

Perhaps she meant that since she’d be found out anyway if she did it secretly, she might as well say it upfront.

“First, being followed isn’t a problem. Did you think I wouldn’t know that there are a total of four other people in this room besides us right now?”

To think she had four S-rank shadow-type ability users.

He was truly feeling the power of the Black Market.

An astronomical amount of money must be spent to employ four S-rank individuals as guards.

“You knew…”

“My senses are exceptionally sharp compared to others.”

Though lower than his Strength and Stamina, it wasn’t absolutely low in terms of numerical value, and as long as his senses from his Transcendent Realm days were somewhat intact, the only one who could hide their presence from him would be The One, the sole SS-rank.

“Indeed, in that case, tailing you would be useless. It would have been a big problem if I hadn’t tested the waters first.”

She openly admitted to testing him, but perhaps because she was so confident, he didn’t feel like getting angry.

“And in exchange for providing it for 24 months, I want something additional.”

“What is it..?”

“I want the research results from studying that material to be shared, and one drop of every type of poison available on the Black Market.”

Having obtained Nidhogg’s Blood Toxin, he needed to ingest various poisons to utilize it, and he planned to get all kinds from the Black Market while he was at it.

“That’s… reasonable. Shall we draw up a contract then?”

“Sounds good.”

They made a contract stating that he would periodically provide the material for one year, and the Black Market would provide information on Gungnir’s seller, all available types of poison, and share the research results.

Of course, betrayal by either party was also forbidden.

If this contract was broken, at least two of the four limbs would be permanently crippled.

It was a contract made with divine power, so evasion was impossible.

“Then, I’ll send you the research results and the blood toxin later. For now, I’ll give you the seller’s information first.”

It was finally here.

---

He reunited with Ruina and successfully cleared up the misunderstanding.

And as time passed, he succeeded in obtaining martial power exceeding that of his past life, even obtaining the power of Thor engraved in his soul, and successfully prevented Ragnarok.

Surtr’s flame was extinguished, and Ragnarok finally came to an end.

The world was reborn. A world protected by Yu-won and those who stood with him.

Blue fields, clear skies, a warm breeze.

Underneath it, Yu-won quietly closed his eyes and slightly raised the corners of his lips.

“It’s amazing to be able to see this sky again, without dying.”

“The sky was always above. It’s just that there was too much blood in front of your eyes.”

A familiar voice.

A strong presence felt from behind.

Turning his head, a woman consistently dressed in black with flowing black hair. Cheon Ha-yeon.

“You haven’t lost your mind, have you? For my husband to be blankly staring at the sky, lost in sentimentality.”

“Ha-yeon…”

She quietly stood beside Yu-won.

Slightly raising the corners of her lips, she silently took his hand.

“Welcome back, Yu-won.”

Everything was contained in those short words.

The courtyard of a small mansion where everyone had gathered.

Children were laughing, and the table was filled with simple but warm food.

Estelle sang with the spirits Ruina had summoned, and Liera flipped meat on the grill.

Seung-ah taught the children, wiping her sweat, and Ruina folded an embroidered scarf under a shady tree.

And—Cheon Ha-yeon quietly, intently watched Yu-won.

“I, too, prefer this kind of scenery now, rather than fighting.”

Her voice was soft. Not sharp or heavy like when they first met.

“But I can draw my sword anytime if need be. My sword hasn’t rusted yet.”

Yu-won smiled.

“I believe you. You can live longer than me. So from now on… I’ll work harder so there’s no need to fight.”

She nodded slightly.

“Yes. That is the natural stance for my husband.”

Under the night sky, Yu-won quietly regulated his breathing in bed.

Ha-yeon and Estelle were on either side of him.

In the room below, Liera, Seung-ah, and Ruina each kept to their own places.

They were still different people, with different kinds of love, but at this moment, they were together.

Five destinies intersected at one point, and now there was no need for them to part.

Yu-won whispered.

“…Let’s be truly happy now.”

And those words, carried by the wind, enveloped the entire room, gently seeping into the sleeping hearts of the five women.

Not a past life, but now, their own peace, forged by choice, not fate.

Despair had ended, and now it was time for love to begin.