Chapter 210. Returning Home - The END
He'd thought he'd never let his guard down while fighting the enemy, but apparently, that wasn't the case. He wondered when and how the enemy had distorted reality, but Seo-woon neither asked nor considered it. It didn't matter.
Just thinking about how he'd face ten gods was mind-numbing. Each one possessed a power more intense than Evara and Metis. Two gods, in particular, a woman in armor and a man with an axe and a bare chest, exuded an overwhelming presence.
As it was, there was no way he could defeat them. Seo-woon's instincts warned him not to confront them. He stared at them for a moment, then turned to the two women behind him, as if he'd made a decision.
"That's the situation. I suppose I don't need to explain," he said. The two women frowned and nodded in response to Seo-woon's question. "I promise. No matter what, I'll be back."
Before the two women could respond, Seowoon threw the Dimension Lock in his hand skyward. A crimson light shot out from the Dimensional Lock, rising as if to pierce the sky. The crimson light shot into the sky and immediately fell toward Metis.
The war goddess and war god tried to block the light, but their efforts were completely ignored. The light finally engulfed Metis.
"Kraaaah!" With a bloodcurdling scream, Metis shattered into six pieces.
The gods rushing toward Seo-woon were engulfed in white light as they transformed into red jewels and shattered. Juriell and Liling-wei froze as Metis shattered, and the nine gods and Seo-woon vanished in the white light.
The two women stared blankly at Seowoon's position. "This can't be..."
Liling-wei spoke, speechless as she saw Juriel, her eyes streaming with tears. Jeongsoo-hwa and the agents, who had arrived late at Namsan, realized something was wrong when they saw the two women embracing each other and crying.
A few days later, the world, still awash with Seo-woon's echoes, was once again turned upside down. It turned out that Seowoon had used the Dimension Lock against enemies he couldn't defeat. The birth and swift demise of an unprecedented world hero plunged the world into despair.
At first, no one could believe this incredible news, but eventually, everyone was forced to accept it. Remember forever.
- For a while, many people around the world gathered in squares holding this sign to commemorate Seo-woon. Naturally, citizens carrying banners reading "We will remember you forever" gathered at Gwanghwamun Square in South Korea.
This commemoration, which caused major traffic disruptions, was only able to continue for so long thanks to the government's active support. The commemoration broadcasts for Seo-woon continued for an entire season, and rumors even circulated that a film would be made about his life.
However, Juriell, Liling-wei, and Ki-chan never attended the commemoration. Except for the first day Seo-woon disappeared, they never cried again. "He promised to return."
"Yes. He never broke his promise." Liling-wei agreed. "Of course. Seowoon was invincible to the gods. He will destroy them and reappear."
Days and years followed one another. One day, two days, one year, two years, three years, four years, five years... In those five years, the world changed dramatically. Six months after Seo-woon disappeared, 89 gates connecting the three dimensions appeared. In accordance with the agreement, the gates were quickly arranged.
It was only natural that with the opening of the gates, exchanges between the three dimensions would gradually begin. The emperor of the martial arts world. Countless kings of the allied nations. Countless leaders of the Earthlings.
To prove that the agreement had been fulfilled and in accordance with Seo-woon's wishes, they once again reached a consensus for a return.
***
"If you're going to talk like that, come back!" Liling-wei still lived in the Wonju Mountains with Joo-riel and Ki-chan. Hearing Liling-wei's cold words, his grandfather, Jin Dok-gok, sighed. "Wei... This old man..."
"Your words insult my integrity."
"Lingwei, I didn't mean that..."
That look of hatred was the look that appeared when Jin Dokgok's unique mask was reversed. Saryunju couldn't continue speaking under Lingwei's cold gaze. The master was disappointed. The thought of his granddaughter, still in her prime, marrying into another world was already devastating.
Now, to add to it, her husband's death before their wedding could even take place... He refused to accept her death, but if she had been alive, there was no way she could have stayed away for over five years.
It was only natural that her grandfather's heart would be torn apart at the sight of his granddaughter, widowed at such a young age.
His attempts to persuade her to find a good wife met with such a violent reaction that he didn't even have a chance to begin. "She's alive. She's a Ling family member, but if you're going to say things like that, please don't come here again." When Juriell also spoke coldly, Gokju's face darkened.
The wrinkles on his face, which had increased significantly over the past five years, showed how worried he was about Liling-wei. "Ah... I'm sorry." Finally, Gokju was forced to leave his granddaughter with just those words.
Gokju's steps were heavy, weighed down by the weight of having squandered his privilege of staying in the other world for five days four times a year. Given how strictly interdimensional travel was regulated, even occasional visits weren't easy.
As soon as Gokju was gone, Lingwei sat down. "Big sister..." The tall Ki-chan looked at Liling-wei and couldn't continue.
After Seo-woon disappeared, the three of them had been busy fulfilling the agreement she had left behind. Even Cloyd had retired and spent all his time trying to prevent conflict between the three dimensions.
They believed it was the only way to carry on Seo-woon's legacy and remember him. Without this trio, who acted as a lubricant between the leaders of each dimension whenever friction arose, helping them naturally accept each other's differences, the agreement Seo-woon left behind might have fallen apart.
Fulfilling the agreement was no easy task, especially when the person who made it was no longer around. All three of them filled the void left by Jin Seo-woon, a man of immense power recognized even in other dimensions and who wielded immense influence over the world.
"Juriell... I... I'm so tired..."
"Lingwei..." Juriell hugged Lingwei tightly as she said this. Few in the world believed Seo-woon was still alive. Seo-woon's name, which seemed never to be forgotten, faded away in just five years.
This was understandable, as so many new issues and figures were emerging in the new world. The rapidly changing and turbulent multidimensional world didn't have time to deal with Seo-woon, who had been absent for five years.
– Knock, knock.
Just when your morale was about to drop, there was a knock on the door. "Are you there? We're from Super Match. Please open the door. We have a really good offer this time..."
– Bang!
Ki-chan ran and kicked the door, causing the house to shake and the door to fly off its hinges. Naturally, the person standing in front of the door was thrown out along with it.
– Slap.
However, contrary to expectations, a man blocked the door Ki-chan threw, crumpled it up, and tossed it aside. The big man was wearing a black t-shirt that said "Super Match" in red. "Phew. You scared me, Ki-chan. It's been a while." A small man with glasses standing behind the big man smiled slyly and said.
"If you come again... I told you I wouldn't let you get away." Ki-chan's cold voice made the man laugh slyly. "Don't play tricks on me. You shouldn't use your privilege like that. I'm a civilian. I'm not here to cause trouble. I just thought it would be a great example for the next generation of players if three famous names participated in our Super Match and proved their strength..."
"I'll spare you. Without actually killing you." The moment Ki-chan finished speaking, a huge wave of mana engulfed his body. "I'll see you again." The man said this and hurriedly disappeared.
With Seo-woon around, no one would dare approach him like this or bother him. Seo-woon always thoroughly punished anyone who crossed the line, no matter who they were. "The world... is so cruel." Juriell stepped out and placed a hand on Ki-chan's shoulder. Ki-chan nodded silently.
A new generation. Cloyd, who thought that stopping the war would cause the gods to lose interest and disappear, continued even after this. Over time, the existing players practically disappeared, and new ones filled their places. Exactly two years ago.
An alchemist's experiment was a success, and the world's attention was quickly drawn to a bizarre competition called Super Match. The alchemist had successfully recreated Cloyd's virtual dimension and allowed players to participate. He used this technology to establish an organization called Super Match with Japanese capital, and the world went wild.
Watching players battle in real time was an incredible thrill. In just two years, Super Match had become a massive success, and continued to grow the tournament with astronomical capital.
"Hello everyone. I'm Gil Soo-hwan, the host of Super Match. I'd like to thank the many fans who showed interest in the upcoming Super Match Un Circle. Before this Un Circle match, we'll be taking a look at the players' backgrounds..."
Ki-chan threw the remote and smashed the TV. After that damned match, which broke unprecedented popularity records, the world was in disarray. People were comparing and arguing over the first generation of raters with the next generation, and people were enthusiastic about it.
He didn't care that he, the former crowned champion, was being compared and belittled by Juriell Liling-wei. He wasn't even worth his time. However, every time he did something, it made his blood boil when people compared him to the Super Match winner or the winning guild.
At some point, they started comparing Seo-woon to modern players, and now they were clearly portraying themselves as a player who had surpassed him.
-Cloyd's first generation of players had overwhelmingly less practical experience. They could only join the game and gain practical experience if they were invited.
However, Super Match completely changed this existing system. Thanks to Super Match, it became possible to train by experiencing practical battles every day. In the first generation, top-tier players of Earth origin could only be counted on the fingers of one hand. Now, more than half of the players are Earth-born, a testament to this.
The constant praise for Super Match. It was especially frustrating that someone with very few matches had reached the top of the rankings because of the lack of real-world experience among the current players. "Ignorant fools!" Hearing such words made Ki-chan seethe with rage.
But he couldn't refute them because he knew they would only tell him, "Go prove it yourself." Compared to five years ago, Ki-chan had grown even stronger and trained relentlessly to master the martial arts Seo-woon had left behind.
He had become a mage because Seo-woon had always protected him, but now he had to protect Juriell and help Liling-wei, so he made his choice. His magic was slow to develop, but he was confident he could easily defeat those trash who boasted about participating in the Super Match, earning huge battle fees, and becoming crowned kings.
Some criticized Seo-woon for sacrificing himself to stop the dimensional war and associating him with low-level fighting, but these were only the opinions of a minority. Three more difficult years passed. Eight years after Seo-woon's departure.
A man appeared next to the dimensional gate on Namsan Mountain. Dressed in shabby armor and carrying a chain sword, he had long, unkempt hair and a beard, at first glance resembling a vagrant.
-Piiiii ...
The Namsan Access Control Office was thrown into chaos by the ghostly disappearance of the man. People who saw the vagrant-looking man avoided him and stared at him with contemptuous glances. Ignoring these glances, he walked to the mansion and rang the doorbell.
At that moment, an unfamiliar voice came from inside. "Who is it?" The unfamiliar young man's voice made the man speak for the first time in a long time.
"Isn't this Mr. Jin Young-ho's house?"
"Ah, they moved out a long time ago... This isn't Jin Seo-woon's family's house, please leave."
The man looked up at the sky for a moment at the cold voice. Then, the man's figure disappeared from there once more.
The scenery of Wonju Mountain, which he hadn't seen in a long time, hadn't changed since he left. The mountain path seemed to have been regularly maintained, as it looked just as it had before.
As the man climbed the mountain with high expectations, he felt a powerful surge of mana and a sharp warrior aura not far away. He sensed three people training and moved towards the clearing. Belatedly noticing the man's presence, the three people stopped their training and looked at him.
As soon as they saw him, the three people froze as if struck by lightning, and without hesitation, they ran towards that makeshift man and hugged him. "Seo-woon!"
"Jin Seo-woon!"
"Brother!!!" The man who took the three of them into his arms opened his mouth. "I... I'm back."
The four people who were reunited after eight years hugged each other tightly, shed tears for a while.
**The End.**