Return of the Shattered Constellation

Chapter 208: Star, the Illuminati (4)

Although the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials’ subordinates were closing in on the train, Chang-Sun didn’t really worry because he had seen this coming.

Several hours ago, Chang-Sun’s Changgwi Cave curse had activated like usual on the plane from France to Frankfurt, Germany. That was when he had run into an unexpected guest.

“Long time no see, special-rank reaper.”

Special-rank reaper was just a temporary title Thanatos gave Chang-Sun so he could operate more easily. Aside from sealing Celestials, Chang-Sun had no other powers, so no one called him by that title even in the <Underworld>.

The only exception was Yool, the top-rank reaper who found Chang-Sun wandering around River Styx and led him to Thanatos. Yool himself descended to the Changgwi Cave, but, of course, he couldn’t use his avatar. Hence, he used one of Chang-Sun’s subordinates as a medium.

“I heard the air in Saha World is quite different from the <Underworld>... but I guess that’s not necessarily true,” Yool said.

Although Yool was using a different body, the look on his face and his way of talking was the same.

“Can you just show up like this? Many people are probably watching from above,” Chang-Sun asked.

“It’s fine. They can’t perceive me with their eyes, but I only have limited time here,” Yool answered.

Chang-Sun and Yool were far away from the battlefield where Chang-Sun’s subordinates were busy ‘cleaning.’ It seemed Yool had created a barrier around the area to prevent anyone from watching them.

[The server’s connection is getting disrupted due to an unknown cause.]

[Please wait for a moment.]

…

[The <Management Bureau> promises to the Celestials, who are complaining, that the connection will be restored quickly.]

‘They must have done something with the <Management Bureau> too. Well, yeah, disrupting the Channeling for several minutes will be enough to stop anyone from watching me,’ Chang-Sun thought.

The <Underworld> wouldn’t be able to do this often, but it was the best way for the <Underworld> to contact Chang-Sun without raising <Heaven>’s suspicion. Of course, the <Underworld> would have to offer a lot to the <Management Bureau> in return.

“So I’ll leave right away after I deliver a few things,” Yool said.

“What are they?”

“Here.” Yool pulled out a scroll from his inner pocket.

Chang-Sun quickly skimmed through the scroll, and his face darkened.

<Interrogation Report>

Criminal name: The Tranquil Star Xue Yong.

Faction: Purple Star Astrology.

Committed crime: Violation of the Oath.

Description: The following criminal violated the primordial oath made by the <Supreme Light> and <Dull Darkness> and tried to wake up ‘Nyx’…

The detailed report about Xue Yong, who had become a <Fallen Star>, contained his crimes that were revealed during the interrogation. With this report, Thanatos would probably give Xue Yong’s sentence in detail. However, the problem was what was written at the bottom part of the scroll.

Below is the series of questions between the interrogator and the criminal.

Q. Aside from your violation of the Oath, the investigators in the bureau are investigating what happened after the fall of the ‘Divine Twilight’.

A. Will my sentence be reduced if I cooperate? I’ll tell you everything If you want, so please…

Q. I can’t guarantee anything, but I’ll persuade the judge to reduce your sentence as much as possible.

A. After the ‘Divine Twilight’ went through the <Divine Trial>, <Heaven> was in chaos…

After the <Divine Trial>, the divine class of the ‘Divine Twilight’ was revoked, and he plummeted from the sky. To save Chang-Sun, Kali, Xerxes, and his old colleagues went to war against <Heaven>.

Chang-Sun didn’t know how exactly the war broke out. The only traces that he could find were Baek Gyeo-Ul and the Elfin Root, Xerxes’ son and Kali’s apostle respectively. Chang-Sun had asked the <Underworld> to find out what exactly happened, but the incidents regarding Kali and Xerxes took place in <Heaven>, which meant the <Underworld> couldn’t look into the matter.

However, Chang-Sun could now find out what happened. Although Xue Yong was one of the <Purple Star Astrology> star signs, he didn’t have the guts to withstand the pressure and fear from the <Underworld>. The most terrifying thing for a brilliantly shining star was plummeting from the very sky they resided in.

Not realizing his hands were faintly trembling, Chang-Sun put all his attention to the interrogation report.

A. Xerxes, Kali, and Richardus made a complaint over the hasty <Divine Trial>, so the <Horoscope> and <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials joined forces and drove them out…

“Ah, ah…! I’m sorry! If only I had been stronger…! If only I had kept my eyes on you, this wouldn’t have happened! Are you hurt? Do y-you want me to help you walk?”

Xerxes had always been serious and too good for his own sake. His colleagues often grumbled that even a con man would be able to take his soul. He also had shallow tears, which bewildered Chang-Sun quite a lot.

Chang-Sun and his colleagues fought a monster called Leviathan once, which lived in the ocean of the deep <Abyss>. Although only occasionally, whenever it raised its head, it would devour a plane. It was so powerful that Chang-Sun was injured during the fight, yet it was Xerxes who cried his eyes out afterward.

Most of Chang-Sun’s colleagues agreed that they weren’t ready to take on the Leviathan and should take their time in hunting the monster… However, instead of listening to them, Chang-Sun pounced at the Leviathan out of curiosity about how strong it was.

If it hadn't been for Chang-Sun’s colleagues, he would have sustained severe injuries. His divine class could have been damaged or the Leviathan could have devoured him. Although it was Chang-Sun’s fault that he and his colleagues were put in danger out of sheer greed, Xerxes apologized instead of blaming him, saying that he failed to follow him as his shadow.

That was who Xerxes was.

“It’s this reckless simpleton who should apologize, so why are you weeping?”

On the other hand, Kali was cynical. Whenever Xerxes cried, she would look at him in disbelief and say, “What should I do with this pushover?”

She fought with Chang-Sun the most because of his belligerence. However, although she would bring it up later for months, she never hesitated to fight the most dangerous opponents whenever battles broke out. She was the one person Chang-Sun could always trust to have his back when they were surrounded by enemies.

“How should I know? He’s always crying. Still, isn’t it good to see how he cares for his friend?”

“… So why are you crying too?” Kali asked in disbelief.

“What do you mean I’m crying?! I’m sweating through my eyes, that’s all!”

“You looked really touched, hmm!” Kali said.

“No! I’m Richardus Khan the Warrior! The fourth generation descendant of Khan, the great lion. How can a descendant of a lion cry?!”

“Yeah, yeah… whatever you say.” Kali lost the will to continue this conversation.

Richardus always called himself a warrior or a lion. Although he looked bulky and formidable, he only ever looked like that during battles. Outside combat, Richardus was the most sentimental and romantic of all. And he loved arts. Friendship, loyalty, love… those kinds of words were his favorite, and he kept his life full of those.

“You guys are too noisy. Let me get some sleep… Why do you all have so much energy? Maybe it’s because you’re all young.”

‘The Thousand-Year Slumbering Dragon.’ Chang-Sun closed his eyes.

Crom Cruach[1] had lived for as long as ancient Celestials, so she always nodded off when they were not fighting. Although she claimed that she had to replenish her stamina through sleeping due to her old age, from the others’ perspective, she just seemed to love sleeping.

Still, she was the group’s oldest sister. Whenever battles would tire out Chang-Sun’s group, she would take care of them. Whenever Chang-Sun felt homesick, Crom quietly listened to his story and gave him advice. Even after Chang-Sun’s <Divine Trial>, Crom continued to be the group’s oldest sister.

The <Horoscope> and <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials joined forces and set up traps to kill Xerxes, Kali, and Richardus in an attempt to get rid of anything related to Chang-Sun. To make a complaint about how Chang-Sun’s <Divine Trial> was unfair, the three Celestials visited the courtroom, but that was when the Celestials from two <Societies> ambushed them.

It was Crom who saved the three Celestials. If she didn’t block the numerous Celestials’ <Starlight> and sacrificed herself, it would have been impossible for all three Celestials to escape.

Unable to keep reading the report, Chang-Sun shut his eyes. However, he had already skimmed through it, the paragraphs from the report quickly flashing across his mind.

After Crom plummeted, all three Celestials escaped. The <Horoscope> and <Purple Star Astrology>, which basically ruled <Heaven>, had decided to cooperate on eliminating the survivors, so fighting them would have been suicide.

Even Crom had told the three Celestials to run. Until the very end, Kali yelled that she would stay and fight together, but Crom insisted, telling Kali to escape and find a way to fight back. Become a resistance fighter, leave <Heaven>... Crom told Kali she could use any method necessary, but she had to give up and escape first.

And…

“Twilight.”

Crom said one more thing.

“You have to wake up Twilight again.”

Kali nodded and promised Crom that she would come back soon. However, they both knew that Kali wouldn’t be able to keep her promise. Kali fled and tried to find a way to revive Chang-Sun just like Crom had told her to.

However, Kali failed to carry out her plan to create a resistance movement. No one was sure how they found out, but the <Horoscope> and <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials raided Kali’s hideout. During the battle, Kali eventually passed away, and her subordinates scattered. After some time, the Elfin Root met Chang-Sun.

Xerxes died as well—no, he became literally so ragged and fell so hard that he was no better than a Celestial who plummeted. Xerxes had always been parasitic on Chang-Sun’s shadow, so he was especially vulnerable to <Starlight>. Eventually, he ended up on Earth.

‘He knows… I’m from Earth. He was looking for me,’ Chang-Sun realized.

However, their timelines didn’t intersect. The timeflows of Arcadia, where Chang-Sun’s colleagues were, and Earth were the polar opposite of one another. On top of that, Thanatos had rewound the ‘small wheel,’ messing up the entire time order. As a result, Xerxes fell deep into an abyss before he could meet Chang-Sun, leaving only his personality named Bardiya behind. On the other hand, Richardus was…

‘Even Xue Yong doesn’t know Richardus’ location.’

The <Horoscope> and <Purple Star Astrology> had tenaciously searched for Richardus, but he had successfully vanished. According to Xue Yong, the manhunt for Richardus was still ongoing, so he could be preparing something else from somewhere. Chang-Sun could only hope so.

After reading through the report, Chang-Sun crumpled up the scroll and quietly closed his eyes. ‘…So Tian Shi Yuan is still looking for Richardus.’

The last part of Xue Yong’s confession was about the manhunt for Richardus. Tian Shi Yuan, the leader of <Purple Star Astrology> and one of Three Enclosures and Twenty-Eight Mansions, was leading the search and recently found a trace.

Amid Chang-Sun’s silence, Yool slowly said, “The King of the Underworld asked me to deliver this message to you, special-rank reaper.”

“… What did he say?” Chang-Sun asked.

“‘I know we haven’t even properly begun, but I hope this gift can relieve your pent-up anger at least a little bit.’ He also added, ‘I don’t know about you, but I consider you my friend, not just a business partner, so I wish your heart won’t get wounded anymore. ’”

Chang-Sun couldn’t say anything, so he just chuckled. It was kind of funny to imagine Thanatos saying those cringy words with sincerity, but he was still grateful for Thanatos’ consolation.

“Talking like this any further won’t do us any good. I’ll contact you later.”

Thanatos told him those words after sealing Xue Yong. It seemed this was what he meant.

“So you also know how to do that,” Yool said.

Chang-Sun wasn’t sure what Yool meant until he realized he had become slightly teary. Chang-Sun turned his head slightly to the side and wiped his eyes. Once he had calmed down, he turned back to look at Yool.

“He also asked me to tell you this as well.” Yool looked serious again.

Chang-Sun’s eyes also turned sharp, thinking this could be the reason why Yool had come here despite the risks.

“After you finished the sealing process, he noticed that the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials are acting suspicious,” Yool continued.

“How so?”

“They’re observing your every movement ever since they concluded that you’re involved in Xue Yong’s disappearance. They have also asked the <Management Bureau> and <Underworld> for your information.”

Chang-Sun grinned. “They want to know if someone is backing me up or if I’m connected to a Celestial.”

“That’s right. Naturally, we have already taken care of everything related to you, so there is no danger of getting caught.”

“But?”

“When you postponed taking the test proposed by Satan, it seems they concluded that you’re hiding something after all. They want to provoke you now to get some reactions,” Yool said.

“They would face consequences due to the law of causality, but they still wish to mess with me?”

“They even sent a document about it to the <Management Bureau>, so you better be careful. And about [Execution Sword]—”

“I know. I’m not stupid. I won’t just pull it out without thinking it through,” Chang-Sun interrupted.

The [Execution Sword] was the King of the Underworld’s authority and relic. Although Chang-Sun had earned the right to seal Celestials on Thanatos’ behalf, a catastrophe could occur if someone snatched the [Execution Sword] away from him.

<Heaven> and <Underworld>. Sky and ground. ‘Eros’ and ‘Nyx.’ The border between these areas could crumble down. That was why Chang-Sun had to be really careful in using it.

“I know it wouldn’t be an issue for you, but I thought I should remind you anyway.”

“I’ll be careful.”

Yool nodded. “Keep in mind that you’re the special-rank reaper and the emissary of the <Underworld>, so your safety equals the safety of the <Underworld>.”

As his eyes gleamed, Yool paused for a moment. He was slowly exiting from the subordinate he had descended in. “... And also the safety of the King of the Underworld, your friend, and my master.”

Looking at Yool, who was disappearing, Chang-Sun threw his final question, “I’ll do that, but I have one question.”

“What?”

“You said the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials are going to form a siege to capture me. Who will be leading them?”

* * *

Focusing on the present, Chang-Sun looked at the message that popped up before him.

[The Celestial ‘Tian Shi Yuan’ looks at you with suspicion!]

Tian Shi Yuan, the Celestial who had killed his old colleagues and even put Richardus in danger, was currently watching Chang-Sun.

1. This deity is actually a ‘he’ in the actual mythology, but it’s a ‘she’ in this novel. The deity is an ancient fertility deity from Irish mythology. ☜