Chapter 445. Choi Chi-Woos (4)
Everyone looked stunned by Chi-Woo’s affirmation. Like they had a difficult time believing him.
“I can’t believe it. How could you have pushed them off in a battle of strengths…?”
“I share the same sentiments…but if what he just said is true, it probably means that this person has the highest chance of saving his world among us.”
“It doesn’t make sense. It wasn’t even a situation that could be described as ‘war’.”
“Seriously, man. Why are you bluffing so hard? Do you want us to call you Liar Chi-Woo or something?”
All the Chi-Woos and Yoo-Joos around him added their two cents.
“…We can confirm the truth then. Ha!” Grumpy Chi-Woo turned around and called out to someone. Soon, Future Yoo-Joo glanced at them while hovering alone in the air.
“Come over here and take a look at his past—just like how you looked at mine.”
“What? How dare you command me.”
Grumpy Chi-Woo asked more politely, “Could you show us the time when the Sernitas, the Abyss, and the Demon Empire created a coalition to invade Shalyh? I’m sure it also happened in your timeline.”
“…Yeah, that’s right. But why?”
“What did you do then? Did you manage to protect Shalyh?”
“Well…” Future Yoo-Joo blinked hard, and Grumpy Chi-Woo’s mouth distorted a bit.
“Apparently, there’s somebody among us who managed to rise victorious in a clash against that unbelievable coalition. What do you think about that?” If this was true, this meant that among these countless Chi-Woos, this ‘other version of themselves’ was in the best situation. This Chi-Woo had the highest chance of reaching the future that everyone wished for. Yet the one who created this space and gathered them here wasn’t Chi-Woo. The one who had gotten closest to the future they wished for wasn’t the male Choi Chi-Woo but the female Choi Yoo-Joo. This was the point Grumpy Chi-Woo was getting to.
“If what that guy is saying is true, shouldn’t it be Chi-Woo from the future who was talking to us right now instead of you?”
“We can’t be certain that this Chi-Woo will rise victorious. Nobody knows what will happen afterward.”
“In that case, it’s unlikely that he’ll fall that far after what he’s achieved. The fact that he managed to overcome a situation like that also shows his capabilities. Do you think a guy like that will suddenly mess up so severely?”
“I think you have some good points, but there’s no guarantee that this Future Chi-Woo would create a space and call all of us there.”
“Then there’s only one explanation—Future Chi-Woo was able to avoid any lingering feelings and regrets, unlike Future Yoo-Joo.”
While Grumpy Chi-Woo and Smart Chi-Woo talked, Future Yoo-Joo quietly listened. She looked like she was deep in thought, but not long afterward, her eyes gradually widened. It seemed that she recalled something she had forgotten for a long time, and her mouth gaped.
“…You are right.” With her confession, Grumpy Chi-Woo and Smart Chi-Woo stopped their conversation and turned to her. “Yes, that’s what definitely happened. That’s why…why did I forget that?” She murmured to herself, and then her face brightened. Her smile was so radiant it was like she couldn’t hold back her happiness. It was the first time she showed true emotions since she appeared.
Then Future Yoo-Joo flicked her head around and looked at Choi Chi-Woo. The next moment, she rushed to Chi-Woo and hugged him tightly. “You bastard! This was what you meant? You did it once, so I have the right to also do it…”
Future Yoo-Joo was saying things Chi-Woo couldn’t understand. He almost pushed her off, not knowing what was happening, but he couldn’t do that. Not only were Future Yoo-Joo’s hands too strong and powerful, but she was also trembling intensely all over. It was as if she was finally reuniting with a companion she hadn’t been able to forget and had been waiting for a long time.
“No…what…” Chi-Woo lightly pushed her off when Future Yoo-Joo didn’t let go after a while. Everyone was looking at them with a dazed expression. It was then that Future Yoo-Joo finally regained her senses, and her cheeks flushed.
“…What is the meaning of this?” Grumpy Chi-Woo asked, baffled.
“No…uh…just…” Future Yoo-Joo fake-coughed and continued. “Anyway, upon checking, what he said is true.”
“It’s true?”
“What are you surprised about? I told you. This man is from a worldline without symmetry.”
“Could you explain in simpler terms? I don’t get what you mean.”
“Well, it doesn’t matter if you can’t understand.”
“What?” Grumpy Chi-Woo raged as Future Yoo-Joo waved her hand. Smart Chi-Woo watched Future Yoo-Joo’s abrupt behavior while stroking his chin and suddenly raised his head upright like he just realized something.
“!...no way—” Smart Chi-Woo was about to say something while looking at Chi-Woo, but closed his mouth again. It was because Future Yoo-Joo had shot him a ferocious glare. Though she didn’t say anything, her intention was clear. She was telling him to not blabber his mouth about this matter even if he could about other issues. Though he didn’t know the reason, Smart Chi-Woo kept quiet.
Future Yoo-Joo breathed out from her nose and rose into the air. Then she said, “Anyway, don’t doubt him. All of you who remain in this space are still here because you can hold your ground. But even among you all, there are divisions and ranks.” Future Yoo-Joo gave one of them a pointed look while saying this, as if she was telling her addressee to carve these words onto her heart. Perfect Yoo-Joo clenched her teeth under Future Yoo-Joo’s strong gaze.
***
After talking to the other Chi-Woos and Yoo-Joos, Chi-Woo realized how different everyone could be even though they were different versions of himself. What they simply shared was origin and fate. The way they lived their lives, who they built relationships with, and what they experienced was different for each Chi-Woo and Yoo-Joo. The big framework that they came to Liber because of their fate was the same, but all the paths they had since taken were different. This was the important part, as it meant that they all went through different processes.
Regardless, the fact that they had gotten here meant that they had the minimum qualifications to reach the ideal future that Future Yoo-Joo talked about. In other words, everyone had their own reasons or driving force that allowed them to stand in this space. Smart Chi-Woo suggested that they share information about what this driving force was by gathering routinely. Chi-Woo agreed full-heartedly to the proposal. Since the worlds they lived in were different, there was nothing to lose. This was a good opportunity for him to learn what he might have missed or failed to learn in his work on Liber. Participating in the information exchange would definitely be beneficial to him once he returned to his world.
“To quickly get stronger, it’s best to receive guidance from a master. Of course, Master Byeok is amazing, but at this point of time, Ms. Philina is also a great choice. Master Byeok specializes in sprouting a seed on a barren ground, while Ms. Philina is someone who will bloom that seed into a flower…ah, you don’t know who Ms. Philina is? She is a spirit who was once the queen of the Salem Kingdom and was widely renowned as a demon slayer. Do you really not know her?”
“So, you are concerned about how you would go about gathering three Celestial Lights under you? Who do you have right now? Yeriel and Emmanuel…what, you are basically done. You can make Apoline the remaining one. What are you even worrying about? I swear to you that she’ll come to you if you call upon her. At that point of time, she’s probably worrying herself about it even if she pretends not to. It’s because she has such a strong sense of pride. She will never come to you first unless you take the initiative to ask her…”
“Hm? You are also worried about the fenrir cub? Why? Ah…did you really bring the cub to your place and just let them be?...Ah, seriously? I should’ve known. Even though they have the blood of a wolf god, they’re still a kid. What would a child born not even that long ago know? Tch, listen to me carefully. The most important thing is to give the cub a name. Not just any name though. For example, the name Hurodubitniru means ‘renowned wolf’. Thus, you should also treat the cub sincerely and…”
After talking around with various people, Chi-Woo was able to find the solutions that would allow him to fulfill all conditions to rise to Master tier. Of course, he didn’t only take from them. After Future Yoo-Joo displayed great interest in Chi-Woo, the majority of the Chi-Woos and Yoo-Joos had also become interested in him.
“How fascinating. But it’s a bit regretful. It sounds like there could’ve been an easier way to accept the Demon Empire’s survivors,” one of the Chi-Woo interjected in the middle of the conversation. “If it were me, I would’ve ended the conversation in the first round. The method is simple. You know there’s an ability called Halo in the Fostering List? You can offer all your merits and raise Halo to at least S rank. With this method, I was even able to earn the half-demons’ reverence.” A bright light emitted from Saint Chi-Woo’s back, and he looked just like a holy saint; Chi-Woo could sense awe and admiration rise in his heart.
Chi-Woo thought he might consider this method, but Saint Chi-Woo quickly added, “I won’t stop you if you want to use the method, but think long and hard about it. It’s very useful, but how should I say this…? The stronger the Halo effect gets, the more it becomes a curse rather than a special skill. People try to purify their heart and mind when they see me and even make prayers to my name. Honestly, I also wanted to date Ms. Evelyn, but she said she could never develop such feelings for me when she sees me…sob.”
Chi-Woo smiled wryly when Saint Chi-Woo recounted how Evelyn had rejected him. Though there were some stories like this that amounted to no more than a laugh, there were other stories of other paths taken that were definitely worthwhile to listen to.
“There’s no need to go out of your way to train heroes. You know why? It’s because they already made all their achievements in other worlds. Thus, all you have to do is help them recover their powers.”
“I agree. The most important thing is to amass as many merits as possible, but there’s another way—using Blessed Luck. Although you mustn’t waste it by any means, you can’t be too stingy with it either. Since there are ways to recover it, you should use it when necessary even if the situation doesn’t seem so dire.”
“Though what you say isn’t wrong, there are some people that make you wonder. You should especially be wary of Hawa. You all must know what I’m talking about after seeing her user information. Though her skills are quite useful, you don’t know in which direction she will spring off. If you want to help her grow stronger despite that, you should properly put her on the right path.”
All their pieces of advice were priceless to Chi-Woo, who was just looking to go into Master tier. There were also some really neat tips mixed in too.
“By the way, I will tell you all the several secret dungeons I found. You can accumulate merits and retrieve a couple of useful items there. There’s one place where other heroes don’t even dare to touch, but we can breeze through it. You know what I mean, right?”
“If I had to pick the most important miracle among the ones I’ve experienced in Liber, I would pick my meeting with that person without any doubt. I can’t say anything other than that our meeting was coincidental. You all should try searching in case the person isn’t dead yet. You would know who I’m talking about at first sight.”
There was also very valuable information that he would’ve never known if it wasn’t for somebody else telling him. Chi-Woo tried hard to listen to and burn into his memory everything they had said so that he could act upon it once he returned to his world. And as they continued to do this, time passed. Though it was always terrible and painful to go through Future Yoo-Joo’s trials, nobody complained. Perhaps they would’ve gone mad if they had to go through these hardships by themselves, but they weren’t alone.
Though it eventually got to a point that there wasn’t any more information for them to share with one another, they didn’t stop talking. They let out the thoughts and feelings they had been hiding deep inside their hearts for a long time and comforted and encouraged one another. It was as if they were a community of people who gathered to clear one game. As they were all ‘I’ and ‘me’, they could grieve and empathize with each other better than anyone else. And as they continued to communicate, nicknames began to emerge such as smartie, stupid, pervert, saint, grumpy, playboy, perfect lady, and so on.
They differentiated between one another with these nicknames, yet there was an exception. Among them, there was one person who wasn't addressed as any nicknames but his full name. It was Chi-Woo. No one suggested doing that or anything, and it was what happened naturally; for no clear reason, they always called him Choi Chi-Woo. Perhaps it was their intuition telling them that it was what they should do and what would happen.
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