Chapter 382. Future Worker (4)
After hearing what Hawa said, Chi-Woo went to see La Bella right away. As usual, La Bella was standing alone while holding a balance scale in one hand.
—You’ve accomplished quite the feat.
La Bella didn’t sound pleased, but a little like she was reprimanding him. After all, interfering with the past was nothing to take lightly, and with a single mishap, the present could’ve turned into a mess. Considering how dangerous what Chi-Woo did was, it was reasonable that she would want to chide Chi-Woo a bit.
—But…you did well.
In the end, however, she gave Chi-Woo a compliment. Using stocks or coin market as an analogy, the higher the risks he undertook, the greater the rewards would be, and this time, Chi-Woo struck gold. It was enough to pay back all the principals he had been pushing off and even accumulate savings. But to do this, Chi-Woo had to overcome another great hurdle.
—Those who’ve been warily surveilling your movements are on their utmost guard now.
—They had sensed that their plans were getting thwarted and pinpointed Shalyh as the source of this interference. Thus, their plan had been to collect the World’s residual resentment left on Liber before upending your plan and killing you.
This was aligned with what Boboris had told him. Usually, revealing what his enemies planned to do would’ve been a grave sin equivalent to revealing the secrets of the heavens. But La Bella could now reveal it calmly because this action was no longer possible to carry out. After all, the World wasn’t extinguished, and thus no resentment remained on Liber.
—That still doesn’t change the fact that the current World’s presence is so faint that it’s almost nonexistent.
—But it’s certain that the World isn’t dead yet. Her will lives on, and it’s perfectly aligned with ours.
The World was alive, and that fact alone provided room for them to change many things. Chi-Woo understood what La Bella was saying in general. Before he modified the past, his enemies had tried to kill him with an absolute weapon in their hands; and beyond that, they tried to destroy Shalyh and exterminate humanity. After he modified the past, their goal remained the same, but they were missing a vital tool. With this, everything was much more doable since the result wasn’t predetermined, but depended on what he did from here on out.
Of course, the situation was still as dangerous as ever. Even if humanity and the Cassiubia League joined forces, their enemies’ forces were much greater and stronger. Thus, they couldn’t let down their guard.
—We can expect some support from her, which will be better than nothing.
La Bella continued.
—That is, as long as you can make the World functional.
Chi-Woo tilted his head. How could he make the World a bit more functional? If he could, he would’ve done that already. Perhaps he wouldn’t have even needed to go to the past in the first place, and his older brother would have attempted the method before him. From the beginning, the situation reached this point because they didn’t know how to make the World functional. La Bella must also know that too.
—What are you so worried about?
Yet it appeared that La Bella thought differently. She sounded like he could accomplish this task now despite not being able to before; that there was a way for the World to recover.
—Don’t you already have the method by your side?
Hearing this, Chi-Woo’s eyes widened in realization.
***
As soon as he returned from his meeting with La Bella, Chi-Woo went on a search for Steam Bun. Steam Bun was rolling leisurely with the fenrir cub just like any other day when Chi-Woo suddenly grabbed it. The fenrir cub chased after Chi-Woo and barked, asking where he was taking their friend, but Chi-Woo paid no mind to them.
“I know you might be startled, but listen to me carefully since this is very important,” Chi-Woo said. Though it was surprised, Steam Bun flattened its body a couple times in a gesture similar to nodding. Chi-Woo went on to calmly explain everything that had happened without skipping any information. After all that, he asked, “Do you perhaps…have any intention of becoming part of the World?”
It was such a sudden question, asking not if it would assume the role of the World, but be part of it.
—The current World is suffering from a void inside her.
Though it was unexpected, Chi-Woo thought La Bella had a point. According to her, they would have to fulfill very difficult and nearly impossible conditions to solve their issue—whether it was to fix the World’s problematic parts or create a new World. Both would take a great length of time, and this was a premise that couldn’t be changed. While they still didn’t have many options, however, there was now the possibility of speeding up the process a bit.
—Do you know what kind of existence that child is?
And hearing this, Chi-Woo realized Steam Bun’s potential and possible connection with the World.
—That child was born at the beginning of time. Moreover, that child can become anything.
The beginning of time was when the sky and earth first formed and when time came into being with the formation of the universe. Since it started at the creation of the sky and earth, it could be considered the absolute point of origin that surpassed time.
When there was a hole in a person’s body, the quickest and safest way to fill the hole would be transplantation. Rather than attaching a foreign organ from someone else, there was a much higher possibility for successful transplantation if one used a part of their own body.
Thus, to fill up the void in the World, there was no better candidate than an existence that also existed at the beginning of time. As they both existed during the birth of the World, one could say that Steam Bun was closer to Liber than anyone else. But of course, just because something existed at the beginning of time didn’t necessarily mean that it could be part of the World. Thus, they had to consider how Steam Bun came into being.
Since the Age of the Gods and until relatively recently, Steam Bun had been a gatekeeper to La Bella’s sanctuary. As a being who sought perfect balance, La Bella was chased away by both gods of evil and good alignment. And not satisfied by just doing that, they tried to permanently cut La Bella off from the World completely. Thus, they gathered their strength and rebirthed Steam Bun into something else—an existence that could become anything.
The gods wanted La Bella to never come out to the world ever again, and they achieved their goal temporarily. It was only ten thousand years later that Steam Bun discarded its monstrous appearance and followed Chi-Woo out of its own will after its mission ended. But back to the original point, this meant that steam could turn into anything it wished, even the World.
Of course, that wasn’t all to it, and one couldn’t become the World simply because they wished for it. An existence born with the fate of a mortal couldn’t become the World. Since their life had to surpass everyone else’s, such beings had to be born with the fate of an immortal. Though Steam Bun had lived incomparably longer than a human’s average lifespan, it wasn’t that long by the standard of the universe. Steam Bun’s age was nothing compared to a planet that could live at least ten billion years. And considering that Steam Bun had been gradually weakening while guarding La Bella’s sanctuary, one could see that it was touched by gods but born with the fate of a mortal. At least that was the case until not long ago, when Kabbalah came into the picture.
Kabbalah was the combined form of the twin goddesses who had struggled to escape extinguishment and failed. And when Steam Bun embraced the goddesses, it achieved a divine status of sorts. Furthermore, the two goddesses also got what they hoped for. Everything fitted together too perfectly to be considered a miracle or a mere coincidence, and as if all that had been put in place for this exact moment, all pieces fit perfectly into the figurative box.
Chi-Woo wondered then if his brother would’ve attempted this method if he had been aware of it. The answer was no. His brother wouldn’t have opted for it even if he’d known of the possibility. After all, it didn’t guarantee that the World would recover as surely as replacing it, and it did nothing more than increase the World’s influence a little bit. Given his brother’s personality, Chi-Hyun would choose a clearer and more sure-fire solution over something with uncertain results and many unpredictable variables.
But that didn’t matter now. Chi-Woo no longer thought his brother was always right in whatever he did. He planned to follow the path he believed in. Still, something was giving him pause.
“What do you think?”
There was one reason Chi-Woo couldn’t insist on this method even when he thought it was the right one; he had told Steam Bun when he first brought it out of the cave that it should live the life it wished, not tied down by a mission or anything else. It didn’t seem right for Chi-Woo to now talk about responsibilities and duty. Furthermore, this wasn’t a matter he could get done just by forcing the other party. Steam Bun also needed to want to be part of the World, and things would fall apart if it resisted.
Steam Bun didn’t respond. It remained quiet while Chi-Woo waited. In the moment of silence, Chi-Woo thought to himself, ‘As I thought, it doesn’t want to. Can’t be helped then. Even though we are in a desperate situation, I can’t force it.’ He was about to give up when Steam Bun began to change shape. It wiggled and grew until it took the form of a human—a girl with bob hair.
—Haa~
It was Kabal. She yawned widely like a hippo and opened her eyes with her usual fare of irreverence. She could’ve been Balal, but Chi-Woo was sure that it was her.
—I was annoyed that my sweet sleep was getting disturbed, but…who would have imagined that something like this would happen to me?
—And so soon?
Kabal grinned at Chi-Woo.
—I was shocked when I heard the general situation. I thought it’d be fine to be some sort of useful god, but my goodness! Become a part of the broken world? That’s wonderful!
Kabal smiled widely. Her response was expected since becoming part of the World meant that she would remain until the end of Liber. She would be around even if she wanted to disappear, which was all she had ever wished for.
—I’m on Liber’s side.
Kabal continued.
—They ask her for help when necessary but as soon as a problem arrives, they want to throw her away? It’s preposterous!
Now that she mentioned it, there was a similarity between Kabal’s and the World’s situation. There was Kabal, who was forgotten because she was no longer necessary. Then there was Liber, who was thrown away when problems arose. Because of that, it seemed Kabal could easily empathize with Liber.
“Does Ms. Balal also…”
—Of course she agrees! Don’t you know her?
Kabal said confidently.
—Anyways, this is great. It’s just the perfect timing too. I’m sure Liber is lonely by herself. We can play with her and divide the work among us four. Oh, it seems so fun just thinking about it.
Kabal said joyfully and sounded very excited about the news. She then read the worry on Chi-Woo’s face and continued.
—Also…this little guy agrees to it too.
“Sorry?”
—You know, our friend here.
Kabal pointed at her own body.
—To be honest, this little guy hesitated a bit in the beginning and wondered if they could bear such a heavy responsibility. That’s why Balal and I told them not to worry. After all, we and the World will be with them.
—And no matter how hard and difficult things get, we can strive to move forward together. That’s how I convinced them. In the end, they said they’d be fine if both of us were fine with it.
Chi-Woo inhaled slightly. What moved Steam Bun’s heart wasn't a call to its sense of duty or a plea for it to do something more worthwhile than protecting La Bella’s sanctuary. It was a promise that they would all be together forever. As a being who had lived in solitude for thousands and thousands of years, the promise had moved Steam Bun to accept the request.
—But they have one condition.
“What condition?”
—Hm. Should I call it a request instead? Anyways…
Kabal shrugged and continued.
—They want a name.
“But they already have one.”
—No, not names like ‘bag’ or ‘Steam Bun’. A proper name.
Now that she mentioned it, Chi-Woo remembered thinking he should give Steam Bun a proper name after retrieving Kobalos’ magic fire pot. Steam Bun had looked at him expectantly then, but Chi-Woo was so busy with other matters that he forgot about it.
—You are the one who pulled this little guy into a new world. They said they wanted a name from you even if only one person called them by it.
Yes, certainly. After Steam Bun made such a big decision like this, Chi-Woo should grant a request of this level. Furthermore, it was quite a cute condition to add to a grave matter like this. After pondering a bit, a soft smile formed on Chi-Woo’s lips, and he said, “…Roundy.”
“Yes, since Steam Bun is round, ‘Roundy’ sounds good.”
—Roundy…? They say…
Kabbal tilted her head and responded with a soft smile as well.
—Fuck you.
“What?”
—I’m not the one who said it.
Kabal quickly waved her hands in denial.
—They also ask what’s the difference between bag, Steam Bun, and Roundy.
She cleared her throat and voiced her opinion.
—They’re going to become part of the World. Shouldn’t you at least give them a proper and meaningful name like Liber?
“Well…it’s hard for me to suddenly think of one…” Chi-Woo tilted his head sideways for a while and licked his lips. Then, he suddenly recalled a scene he had witnessed in the past.
“Then—” Though it wasn’t a name he thought of himself, he found it fitting. “How about Asha?” It was the name that Liber’s main god, Elephthalia, thought of for the about-to-be-born World that would replace the previous one.
“If all four of you are together, Liber would establish a new order with Liber’s freedom as the foundation. In this sense, how does Asha sound?
—Asha, Asha…
Kabal looked down at her body. Then, she raised her head back up and nodded.
—Hm! They like the name!
Chi-Woo let out a sigh of relief. With this, everything was settled. The being that had existed since the beginning of time and could become anything and the twin goddess who wished to exist forever—they would fill the void within the World with proper guidance. Of course, all this would only properly settle into place after hundreds and thousands of years later, but it was a great feat that they were able to take the first steps that would lead to that future now. Furthermore, there would be immediate benefits to their union too.
—I also want to thank you.
Kabal said.
—Honestly, I didn’t hope for this much. It really surprised me. As expected of you, you work on another scale. So different.
Her visible happiness lifted some of the weight off Chi-Woo’s shoulders.
—If everything works out later, don’t forget about our world and visit us! We’ll treat you like a true VIP!
Chi-Woo thought she sounded like one of his countrymen then, but before he could tell her this, Kabal disappeared, and Steam Bun returned to its original form. Chi-Woo felt the bun’s intent gaze and guessed what it wanted.
“Hm…Asha?” It sounded a bit awkward after calling it bag or Steam Bun the whole time. Hearing this, Steam Bun—no, Asha, trembled. Asha seemed to feel a bit shy.
“Thank you for making the decision,” Chi-Woo smiled and patted Asha on the head. “Then…I’ll leave the task to you.”
There was no need to say more. Chi-Woo put his hands in his pocket. Before Chi-Woo returned to his original time point, he had met the World again, and the World had wrapped her hand around his while he was holding the die to pass over a shining light. Chi-Woo hadn’t known what that light was at that time, but he knew now. He placed the die carefully down next to Asha. After some time, the World’s Milestone turned whiter and let out a brilliant light.
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