As soon as I stepped back from the threshold, the door of the ward closed.
I simply stood there staring at the tightly shut closed door.
The image of the woman lying on the bed was so clearly imprinted in my mind that I couldnât move a muscle.
[âSung Hyun-sookâ is sad and says âPoor young man.â]
I was out of my wits and leaned against the wall next to the door.
ââŚâŚ..â
Where should I begin?
The woman lying on the bed I sawâŚ
I mean âYoo Sung-sooâs motherâ, where should I begin speaking about how she looked like?
Her swollen skin from the top of her head till her toes?
Her eyes, which were bloodshot and wide open as if they were about to bleed any minute?
Oh her pale white hair faded like that of an albino patientâs?
I didnât know.
The fact that Yoo Sung-soo was dealing with such a circumstanceâŚ
I know the name of that disease Yoo Sung-sooâs mother is suffering from.
I am not the only one who knows about it.
There is likely no one who doesnât know about those symptoms in a time of cataclysmic change.
âMana poisoning.â
In the gate, which acts as the boundary between reality and dungeons, flows a slight but certain wavelength of mana.
And those wavelengths can very rarely cause a disease to nearby citizens whose bodies are not in harmony with the mana.
And that disease is called mana poisoning.
In addition, it is a terminal illness.
Mom. Iâm a bit late today, arenât I? But there was a good enough reason for it.
Just then, I could clearly hear Yoo Sung-sooâs voice through the closed door.
Soundproofed walls donât work due to heightened hearing thanks to increased stats.
Today I entered a gate for the first time you know? A player whoâs recently very popular offered to take me.
Patients suffering from mana poisoning cannot move their bodies just like a person in a coma but their consciousness is definitely awake.
By that I mean, she can clearly hear what Yoo Sung-soo is saying currently.
âŚProbably.
Iâm really grateful to himâŚand plus he was so cool. I always saw players fighting from afar but actually seeing someone fight up closeâŚ.it was like a movie scene. To the point where I felt like, Ah, so this is why people call players superheroes.
That punk.
I thought he was flattering me simply because I was in front of him but he was being serious?
But he doesnât really have to boast about me to his sick motherâŚ
Wait but do I really need to keep eavesdropping on this?
I think my face is blushing up.
âŚHow great would it be if I can be like that too?
At that moment, Yoo Sung-sooâs voice, which was filled with joy, became a little choked up.
If I become a strong player and earn a lot of money then I would be able to off your hospital bills more easily than nowâŚ
ââŚâŚ..â
And when you wake up later, I would be able to show you a brave and amazing side of myselfâŚ
The end of his words was blurred almost as if a cry was mixed with it.
But still, you knowâŚIâm trying hard nonetheless. Even if I donât become an amazing player, I would like to be an amazing son to you, mom. Iâm working hard at my job and doing my best at studies without neglecting themâŚand, andâŚ
Yoo Sung-sooâs voice filled with sobs gradually started to sound distant.
Even though Iâm sure heâs been sitting beside her bed for a while now.
Such a voice is heard when usually one speaks while burying their head in the sheets.
Later, you have to tell me no matter what, okay? Things like my son has grown up so well, he has grown up so wonderfully. So, momâŚ
A year later.
Yoo Sung-soo didnât smile much even when he became an S-class player, a position dreamed of by everyone.
No wonder he got the nickname âstone statueâ.
Back then I didnât understand why he had such a dark atmosphere around him but now I know why.
Please wake upâŚ
Humans suffering from mana poisoning usually die within three months and six months at the longest.
âThe time I met Yoo Sung-soo is about 1 year from nowâŚâ
In that case, by then Yoo Sungâs sooâs mother willâŚ
Mom⌠MomâŚ
I should stop listening.
It would be rude to keep listening any further.
It would be the same as me committing a crime against Yoo Sung-soo.
âI remember he said his father passed away due to an accident while working in a factory. On the other hand, he kept his motherâs story a secretâŚâ
Without discontinuing <Stealth>, I quietly left the hospital.
The evening wind coolly blew over my heart which felt stuffy like a lump of lead had fallen in it.
âDuring that time, it probably must have been something he didnât want to recall to tell anyone about it. â
What must it have felt like?
When he became an S-class player that he had so dearly dreamt of after his mother died.
When he realized he canât show her his âamazing sideâ that he so dearly wanted to show her anymore.
I canât even fathom the emptiness he must have felt at that time.
But,
âItâs not something I donât know of.â
Thatâs right.
I can be sure about one thing.
âWhen I lost my parent, I felt like the world was falling apart.â
The despair and loneliness of being left alone in the world, I am well aware of it.
Itâs not just some mere sympathyâŚthatâs right.
Itâs a sense of kinship.
When I realize that the other person is someone who has experienced the same situation as me, a sort of inexpressible difficult feeling starts growing in my heart.
And I feel choked up.
âSheâs still alive.â
3 years back where Iâve regressed, Yoo Sung-sooâs mother is still alive.
Of course, there isnât much time left.
I met my mother again as a representative and a guardian deity but Yoo Sung-soo wonât.
If his mother passes away again, it becomes an eternal farewell for Yoo Sung-soo.
I canât let it happen.
âI need to save her no matter what.â
Is it to gain more likeability from Yoo Sung-soo?
Yes, in case.
In case, things go wellâŚthe way Yoo Sung-soo looks at me will take a 180-degree turn.
If he expresses the likeability, then my life which is supposed to be a bed of flowers will bloom even brightly.
But to be honest, the likeability is not my priority right now.
Besides that, there is another emotion Iâm feeling first.
Itâs the emotion of just âinnocentlyâ helping Yoo Sung-soo and his mother.
âCurrently, mana poisoning is an incurable condition, but two years later a cure is discovered.â
After long research, the worldâs leading pharmaceutical company develops a drug that can cure mana poisoning.
The problem is that the drug will be commercially distributed only two years later.
By then, Yoo Sung-sooâs mother would have already passed away so whatâs the point?
âAnd itâs not like thereâs any way I can speed up the development of the drugâŚâ
Iâm going nuts.
There are not only pros to regressing huh.
My mind is way ahead but the reality doesnât follow it.
While I was being frustrated as if I swallowed a whole sweet potato.
[Guardian deity, âSung Hyun-sookâ takes urgent measures!] [âSung Hyun-sookâ leaves for a while after saying âI have a good idea!â]
âAll of a sudden?â
I asked pitifully like a child looking devasted at their parentâs back growing further and further away.
âW-where are you going, mom?â
And the cold silence came back as it was only obvious.
Well, I mean, itâs fine if you leave for a while but will it cost you something to tell me beforehand?
ââŚMaybe they sell the drug that can cure mana poisoning at the Hall of Fame?â
Since itâs a place that transcends the realm of human beings and where Gods live, there may be at least one item such as a âpanacea*â.
*T/n: a solution or remedy for all difficulties or diseases.
Though I doubt it can be bought with the amount of âGod coinsâ mom has.
After a while.
Along with momâs return, an unexpected message came before my eyes.
[Guardian deity, âSung Hyun-sookâ has invited a Guest.]
âŚWhat? A guest? Out of nowhere?
Who is it?
[Guardian deity, âSung Hyun-sookâ opens a chatroom of the âunderworldâ!] [The invited Guardian deities start chatting anonymously while hiding their real names.]
While I went âhuhâ, a phrase appeared above the empty space.
But unlike complete sentences that pop up at once as system messages, this time the phrase kept appearing one letter at a time as if someone was pressing the keys on a typewriter.
Certified saintess: Hi? So youâre Hyun-sookâs son Jae-min huh.
Oh my God.
Another guardian deity actually sent me a message in the chat.
The âunderworldâ has this type of technology too?
No, besides that, what should I reply?
Confused, I bowed my head in front of the empty space like a crazy person and spoke.
âYes, I-I am her sonâŚâ
Mom.
Itâs a request so next time, please give me a heads-up.
Even while I was sweating buckets deep inside, the message slowly build each syllable at a time.
Certified saintess: Fufu, you look quite mature. Ah, the chat is really slow, right? Sorry. Iâm an oldie so Iâm not very familiar with things like thisâŚhope you understand.
Itâs alright.
Iâm about to go crazy because Iâm not familiar with the current situation either.
Certified saintess: Iâve heard about your situation from Hyun-sook. So you need a treatment to cure mana poisoning?
The moment the word âtreatmentâ was mentioned on the chatting window that was slowly getting filled above me.
I swallowed by breath unwittingly.
I erased the awkward smile from my face, and nodded with a firm look.
Certified saintess: I like that attitude. Because itâs hard to find people who are so agonized over treating someone elseâs illness and not theirs. Especially in this day and age where you live.
Everytime the message continued, my throat was parched and my heart was pounding.
Isnât that a given?
Saintess.
If itâs not simply a username chosen without much thought then the image which comes to my mind is that of âA sacred guardian deity that encompasses miraclesâ.
Iâm not sure about her real name, but if the image that popped up in my mind is correct thenâŚ
âShe will definitely be able to cure the mana poisoning.â
And judging from the flow of conversation so far, the saintess likes me.
Maybe she will happily agree toâŚ
Certified saintess: However, itâs very unfortunate. Even if itâs me, I canât male a cure for a disease that didnât exist in the time I lived.
âŚWait. What did she say?
Certified saintess: Ah, donât make such a disappointed face. That surprised me. Iâm not hitting keys on a typewriter just to tell you that itâs not possible.
Oh crap.
My face turned into a serious expression unknowingly.
Anyway, what she said in the end, means there must be some way, right?
Certified saintess: Iâll let you especially use my workshop.
âYourâŚworkshop?â
Certified saintess: Itâs not good for a guardian deityâs reputation to be worried about earthly matters. I donât know about the particular disease called âmana poisoningâ but if itâs about curing any earthly disease, then that can be done through an essence and the method of preparation for that can be found in my workshop. Well, itâs a recipe to some extent.
An essence that can cure all diseases that exist on earth.
In other words, itâs a panacea?
If thereâs such a thing then I wonât need to look for the mana poisoning treatment drug.
Certified saintess: Of course, since youâre not a guardian deity, there will be many difficulties while using the workshop. Maybe you will have to endure great amounts of pain and patience. Would you still like to do it?
Who would be scared enough to back down even after they know where the solution lies?
At least not me.
âYes.â
Certified saintess: I knew you would say that. No wonder youâre Hyun-sookâs son. You donât care what the future has in store but recklessly live in the moment for now.
I donât know if youâre insulting me or praising me, Miss certifies saintess.
Certified saintess: Then letâs seeâŚH-hm? Hyun-sook, what do I need to press to sponsor thisâŚAh, found it. Alright.
[An anonymous guest has sponsored a âTicket to the sacred landâ!â]
Boom!
A group of lights that gathered above the empty space shone at once.
Soon something soft came down like a feather and settled in my hand.
It was a square âticketâ with a beautiful golden pattern and unknown letters that looked like they were embroidered.
Certified saintess: If you tear the ticket in half, the path that leads to my workshop shall open.
After reading those words, I ripped the ticket without hesitation.
And thenâŚ
Whoosh!
At a rate similar to that of me ripping the ticket, the air in front of me ripped just like a gate appearing.
What actually appeared was a spiral-shaped âdoorâ connected to a space on the other side just like a gate.
[Would you like to enter the âsacred landâ? Y/N]
Iâve already made up my mind, but the options that keep popping up are making me anxious.
I chose âYâ without any delay.
ââŚâŚ..!â
There was the same sense of dizziness and floaty feeling as when I go in and out of a gate.
When I opened my eyes that were shut out of reflex, what I saw wasâŚ
Certified saintess: Does it look a little bizarre to an earthly human?
Flutter-!
Books.
From size to colourâŚIt was a white field with countless old books of various shapes and sizes flying around like bugs.
âWhat evenâŚâ
Certified saintess: think of them as âmonstersâ and not âbooksâ. Of them, only five books have pages that contain the method of preparation of the essence.
Only five books?
No, but, just by looking at it roughly I can tell there are over a hundred books.
Oh Holy saintess, this is too difficult.
Certified saintess: Thereâs no need to snatch them one by one and turn the pages. You can rip them apart or burn them. As long as youâre able to find it.
Does that mean itâs similar to when you defeat a monster in an RPG game and the item automatically drops in your inventory?
Though itâs easier said than doneâŚ
Certified saintess: Also, Iâm sorry but you need to speed up. If you stay here for longer than 15 minutes then your body which is bound to the regulations of the earth will not be able to survive.
To make matters worse, thereâs even a time limit.
Iâm about to go crazy.
I donât even have time to complain because as she said I will die if I stay here for more than 15 minutes.
âAs long as I find it, it doesnât matter if I rip them or burn them apart huh?â
In short, it means that instead of elegantly checking through each book itâs best to go wild.
And instead of going wild with my bare hands, itâs probably wiser to have some sort of weapon with me.
[âPandoraâs boxâ will be opened!] [A weapon that can be used most effectively against the âenemyâ recognized by the user will be summoned!]
Swoosh-!
The sipper opened, and a ray of light sprang from the inside of the bag and wrapped around my hand.
If the âPandoraâs boxâ is wise then it will summon a wide-range weapon.
Please. I beg of you.
âIf possible, itâs easy to jump around with and weighs less.â
Tilt!
As soon as I wished for something light, my body tilted due to the heavy weight in my hand.
Certified saintess: Huh�
Subsequently, I was speechless when I realized the identity of the weapon in my hand.
Because my earnest wish for the âPandoraâs boxâ to be wise this time seemed like it didnât come true.
Certified saintess: This is a bitâŚ
It looked like a heavy machine gun.
However, what was attached at the end was not a gun muzzle, but a hose with a connected nozzle.
Thatâs right, no matter how much I look at it, itâsâŚ
âA flamethrower?â
I hope the âPandoraâs boxâ is wise this time?
That must have been upsetting for it.
Being wise is an understatement.
This time itâs fair to say that itâs overflowing with wisdom.
I pulled the trigger in high spirits.
AndâŚFire!
Blaaaaze-!!
Flame streaks filled with tremendous heat spurt out with fierce force.
A fan-shaped fire burned the old books in range randomly.
I think they say the most thrilling thing to play is with fire?
In that case, I think I might end up wetting my bed tonight because of how thrilling it is.
Haha!
I sprayed the flames evenly as if I was watering a flower bed.