Return of the Shattered Constellation

Chapter 311: Star, the Last Cryptical Book (3)

‘She’s… me?’ Cha Ye-Eun thought blankly, unable to understand what the woman in the mirror was saying.

Her looks, way of talking… Everything about the woman was different from her. She could just conclude that the woman was lying and ignore her, but…

‘… She’s probably telling the truth.’

Ye-Eun initially assumed that the woman was her from another Worldline, also known as a parallel universe, but that didn’t seem to be the case. If so, then the woman was probably a past reincarnation.

Ye-Eun unknowingly chuckled. ‘If she’s really a previous reincarnation… then did an illness kill me in my past life too?’

Ye-Eun noticed that the woman in the mirror was a transcendent being who possessed a Divine Class. Otherwise, the woman could have never met her. A Celestial was immortal, however, which meant that if they went through samsara, something bad happened to them. It bothered Ye-Eun more since she was ill.

‘Maybe she’s the reason I’m born with this divine punishment…?’

Although she was born as a direct descendant of a great Celestial, her divine punishment cursed her to be nothing more than a mere mortal. On top of that, the curse would soon kill her.

―You must be very confused, but you have to trust…

“I trust you.” Ye-Eun nodded.

―… me—pardon?

“I believe you.”

Rendered speechless, Ithaca opened and closed her mouth for a moment but made no sounds. She thought persuading Ye-Eun would take quite some time, but Ye-Eun’s reply completely exceeded her expectations.

Ye-Eun crossed her arms as her gaze became sharper. “You probably want to deliver a message or something since you showed up here. What is it? Please be quick about it. I’ll say yes to everything if it isn’t too much.”

Ithaca blankly looked at Ye-Eun.

“Or do you want to start talking after you calm down? I’m in a hurry right now.” Ye-Eun glanced at her wristwatch, looking a little anxious.

The more Ye-Eun was delayed, the closer Munseong would get to R’lyeh. Munseong had clearly accomplished <Transcendence> and could even possess several <Myths>, but there was no knowing what scheme he would start inside R’lyeh.

Looking at Ye-Eun, Ithaca smiled bitterly. Ye-Eun remained poised despite mysteriously meeting her past life, which hit very close to home for Ithaca. With a serious look, she sharply inhaled and began to speak.

―No, I won’t take up too much of your time. I’m only here to tell you one thing.

Ye-Eun nodded.

―How is Sun?

‘Sun?’ Ye-Eun tilted her head in confusion, having no idea who Itaca was talking about.

Just then, one person with the word ‘sun’ in his letter flashed across Ye-Eun’s mind, but she wasn’t sure why he was mentioned now.

“Are you talking about Mr. Lee Chang-Sun—!” Ye-Eun turned her head before she could confirm things. “Get down!”

Ithaca followed Ye-Eun’s gaze. Ye-Eun tapped the air with her index finger, forming layers of magic barriers that looked like honeycombs in front of her.

Booom!

Crack―!

The sudden impact shattered dozens of the mirrors, their sharp glass shards sent flying in every direction. It also pushed Ye-Eun back and destroyed seventy percent of her barrier.

Beyond her defenses, Munseong was looking at her with emotionless eyes.

Oooong, ooooong!

“There you are.” Munseong’s sword shook fiercely.

While brushing the glass shards off herself, Ye-Eun noticed something odd about Munseong’s remark. ‘There you are…? He knew that I was going to follow him and was waiting for me.’

Ye-Eun quickly pulled out her gun from her holster. At the same time, a giant magic circle appeared above her head. Dozens of big and small magic circles also meshed with each other like cogwheels.

Wooosh…!

A gust of her mana circled—no, a storm of her mana raged around her as she unleashed her divine power.

[All your sealed mana has been unlocked!]

[Your Divine Class has been unlocked!]

…

[A storm of your Divine Class rages!]

[‘Gaia’s Curse’ has been reactivated! Your current severity rate: 78%... 79%….]

Ye-Eun gritted her teeth as her divine punishment worsened. The longer her Divine Class was unlocked, the shorter her lifespan. She was practically betting her life, but she had no other choice since she was up against a Celestial.

‘His Divine Class is higher than Heoju’s! What could he have possibly done to get a higher Divine Class than his own Guardian?’ Ye-Eun wondered.

During his prime, Munseong put down his sword and went into seclusion. That could be the reason behind his abnormally high Divine Class. Either way, it was clear that Ye-Eun was Munseong’s target right now!

Booom―!

As she made sense of the situation, Munseong sprang at her like a tiger leaping down from a high hill to snatch his prey. His [Tiger Kill] even took the form of a tiger.

―He’s definitely using my <Starlight>. I’m sure that he’s here to get your <Starlight> too!

Ithaca hurriedly shouted through the mirror fragments. Although Ye-Eun wasn’t exactly sure what <Starlight> was, it seemed Munesong had to take her life for it.

‘It’s not going to be… easy!’ Ye-Eun fired several bullets as she retreated as far away from him as possible.

The magic circles above her head indiscriminately became bigger, and new magic circles also appeared.

Boom, boom, boom―!

Rumble…!

Countless mirrors exploded, unable to withstand the shock waves. The glass shards amid the clouds of dust reflected light like the stars in the night sky. They looked beautiful yet grotesque.

Rumble…!

The images of Munseong and Ye-Eun continued to show up and disappear on tens of thousands of mirror fragments.

* * *

Chang-Sun gritted his teeth. ‘If only I had a little more power…!’

Chang-Sun found the situation really unfair. The fact that he couldn’t go to her right now despite knowing she was here clutched his heart. He wanted to send Thanatos, but the King of the Underworld was only here right now because Chang-Sun had activated [Execution Sword]. Thanatos couldn’t go past its range, and it would soon be deactivated.

In other words, only Chang-Sun could make a move right now. Unfortunately, he didn’t have any strength left. He was so physically incapacitated that holding on to his consciousness alone was using up much of his stamina, making him more anxious.

‘If there is a way, then it’s probably…!’ Chang-Sun glared at the message that popped up in front of him with bloodshot eyes.

[Will you use the ‘Store Window’?]

The store built by the <Muspelheim> refugees had an item that could help him.

[Elixr]

A miraculous cure-all. According to legend, melting it turns it into a Philospher’s Stone.

· Type: Potion.

· Grade: Relic. Unidentifiable.

· Effect: Panacea. Complete Recovery.

[Will you buy ‘Elixir’?]

[You have insufficient funds.]

…

[The Celestial ‘A Good Season to Hunt’ is surprised by the item’s price!]

[The Celestial ‘World-Encircling Serpent’ answers that the fact that the item exists in the store is already a surprise in itself. He wonders what is not in your <Store>.]

…

Even Chang-Sun had heard of the [Elixir] during his ‘Divine Twilight’ years. It was an omnipotent medicine that could cure all wounds and curses when drunk. Unfortunately, its production method had been lost, and only a few of them were left. Hence, it rarely appeared in the market.

One of them was in Chang-Sun’s <Store>, but he had nowhere near enough funds to buy it. Even his Merits were insufficient. Fortunately, he had a way.

“Thanatos, can I exchange the reward?” Chang-Sun asked.

“… Do you know what you’re talking about right now?” Thanatos’ eyes turned serious as he looked at Chang-Sun. “The reward is your freedom. Are you really going to give it up?”

Thanatos offered to reduce Chang-Sun’s sentence based on his performance, so his reward for sealing Sangwon, the ‘Tai Wei Yuan,’ should be substantial. Not only would his last shackle certainly be unlocked, but Thanatos was even ready to offer him the position of a Purgatory King. Most Celestials would be tempted to receive these awards.

Without hesitation, Chang-Sun was willing to give all of those up. The remaining shackle had loosened up, but it was still attached to him nonetheless. He could also say goodbye to his position as a Purgatory King. Since there was no telling when he would get another opportunity to capture someone like Sangwon, Chang-Sun would be giving up a lot.

An [Elixir] was a potion outstanding enough to heal even a soul that had plummeted. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that it was another set of life, but that was its only Effect. It had no additional Effect like increasing one’s stat points or reinforcing one’s body. Once an [Elixir] was drunk, that was it. Considering its preposterous price, there was room for doubt as to whether or not [Elixir] was worth it.

However, Chang-Sun wasn’t fazed. In fact, he even scoffed. “I don’t care about my freedom. Why should I when I just found out that my supposedly dead lover is still alive, but I’m about to lose her again?”

“… You’re quite devoted.”

“She means everything to me.”

With mixed emotions, Thanatos stroked his chin. “Your everything, huh?”

From when he was born to this moment, he lived his entire life as the ruler of the <Underworld>, so he knew nothing about love. However, when he looked at Chang-Sun, he gained a rough idea about what it was. It was someone whom one would be happy to give up their life for. That was who Ithaca was for Chang-Sun.

“In that case…” Thanatos took a step back.

Paah!

A pool of light enveloped Chang-Sun.

[In accordance with your request, your reward has been changed!]

[The increase in your Class has been suspended.]

[Your shackle remains.]

…

[You have accumulated Merits.]

[Your Merits have been exchanged to the currency used in your ‘Store Window.’]

…

[You have bought ‘Elixir’!]

Chang-Sun opened up the potion bottle and gulped all of it down, energizing his sluggish body.

[You have consumed ‘Elixir’!]

[Replenishing your HP.]

[Replenishing your Mana.]

…

[All your negative status effects have started to disappear.]

…

[Your unstable Spirituality Class has become sturdy again!]

[6 hours 11 minutes 57 seconds remaining until full recovery.]

Chang-Sun gritted his teeth, and his Inferno Sights blazed up again as if someone threw firewood into them.

Woosh!

He required quite some time to fully recover from his extremely bad state, but it didn’t matter. All he needed was enough strength to run to where Ithaca was.

[The Title ‘Jigwi Light Incarnation’ has been applied, spreading your wings open!]

His Class’ storm raged, and a big set of amber wings sprouted from his back.

Looking at Chang-Sun, Thanatos bid his farewell. “I wish you luck.”

Expressing his gratitude, Chang-Sun nodded and flew outside.

‘Hold on, Ithaca.’ Chang-Sun tightened his grip on the [Twilight Spear]. ‘I’m coming.’

Paaah―!

Chang-Sun disappeared.

Thud…!

And Sanjiva disappeared into the darkness.

[The Authority ‘Execution Sword’ has been deactivated!]

[Sanjiva has been withdrawn from the <Saha World>.]