“Did you hear that?! He plans to use that female as a shield!”
“To think such an evil person existed in this world!”
“Goodness! He’s worse than us! How can such trash even exist in this world?!”
The surprised Fire Trolls murmured noisily, but Kang Yoon-Soo did not bat an eyelid as he grabbed Shaneth by the waist and pulled her close to him.
“Eh?” Shaneth was flustered, and her face turned red. However, Kang Yoon-Soo did not seem to be bothered by that at all.
“Will you really use that female as a shield?” the Fire Troll High Priest asked.
Kang Yoon-Soo nodded and replied, “Yes.”
Henrick and Iris, on the other hand, were not surprised at all; it was as if they had already expected the current situation.
“I respect that guy sometimes. It wouldn’t be easy for someone to do something like that even if they went mad,” Henrick said.
“As expected of Kang Yoon-Soo,” Iris added.
Shaneth looked at Kang Yoon-Soo and let out a sigh as she said, “You’re probably the only person who would ever brazenly use me as a shield.”
“I’m sure you’re fine with it anyway,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.
“But still, you should at least give me some time to prepare myself for it. You cook in my place for a day in return,” Shaneth said.
Kang Yoon-Soo flinched slightly and replied, “I don’t want to.”
“Then how about just for breakfast tomorrow?” Shaneth asked as she clung to Kang Yoon-Soo.
Kang Yoon-Soo replied quietly, “Sure…”
The Fire Troll High Priest grabbed the sizzling heart, and the flames surrounding it started to grow stronger. He shouted, “Let the trial by fire commence!”
An intense flame spewed out of the hand that held the Fire Giant’s heart, and hot red light shone on the surroundings.
Fwooosh!
Kang Yoon-Soo quickly used(?) Shaneth to block the flames. The flames reached Shaneth’s shoulder and abdomen as if it were trying to grab and engulf her, but it was not able to burn her, nor was it even able to burn her clothes; it simply died out.
“Oh my! The flames disappeared as soon as they reached the female!”
“I think that female is thicker-skinned than us!”
Next, the Fire Giant’s heart spewed out bluish flames; the heat from them crashed into the duo like a tidal wave.
Fwoooosh!
The blue flames spread out as they rushed forward, but Kang Yoon-Soo immediately grabbed Shaneth by her waist and pulled her around to block the flames. His movements were so smooth and gentle that it made it seem as if they were dancing.
“I’m getting dizzy…” Shaneth complained.
“Deal with it,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied as he moved around with Shaneth in tow.
The flames started to speed up as they moved toward the two, but it seemed almost as if they were still too slow for Kang Yoon-Soo, as he skillfully read their trajectory.
Shaneth held on tightly to Kang Yoon-Soo’s shoulders. It felt as if time had slowed down and it was just the two of them in this world.
Badump… Badump…
The sound of Shaneth’s heartbeat traveled all the way to her fingertips, and Kang Yoon-Soo felt a strange, hard-to-describe feeling from her touch. The sensation made him reminisce about the past.
‘Don’t. Don’t think about it,’ he warned himself.
Kang Yoon-Soo’s eyes trembled and his vision of the surroundings disappeared, however. What greeted him next was the memory of the life when he had married Shaneth. He had cried on the day he had tied the knot and exchanged marriage vows with Shaneth, but he could not remember why.
‘We had a child,’ he thought.
He could not exactly remember if they had lived happily, but he thought they had.
‘…What was the name of our kid?’ Kang Yoon-Soo thought as he tried to remember.
His child, who had disappeared and no longer existed. His and Shaneth’s child, who had died when the Demon Lord destroyed the world. His child, whom he was no longer able to hold in his arms.
His family.
‘How could I forget the name of my own child?’
‘I don’t know,’ was the only answer he could come up with. Forget about how the child looked; he could not even remember whether they had been a boy or a girl.
‘I didn’t have any more children after that.’
He had made a decision about the life that would have been born in an instant; that same child was no longer going to be born.
However…
‘One thing I’m sure of…’
That was right. He was aware of it. He was aware of the fact that the world had been destroyed by the Demon Lord, and that the Demon Lord was the reason why his family had been broken up.
‘I tried to ignore it. I started a family even though I knew the child would end up dying.’
He had wanted to live a normal life like other people. A normal, happy life where he could start a family and grow old. He had wanted to continue living ignorant of the fact that the world would be destroyed.
‘I tried to forget that life. I tried to forget about my child.’
He had regressed after the world was destroyed, and he had been left alone all over again. The things he had tried so hard to protect were all gone. Would this final life of his be any different?
“Kang Yoon-Soo?”
The hallucinations disappeared, and the world was back again. Perhaps the trial was already over, as the flames had stopped coming after them.
Shaneth stared at Kang Yoon-Soo, her eyes wide in shock. She asked, “Why are you crying?”
The surroundings were quiet, and Kang Yoon-Soo touched the tears flowing down his cheek.
They were wet.
“I don’t know,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied as he wiped his tears away.
The Fire Troll High Priest shouted, “He has cleared the trial by fire! This man is the groom of the goddess!”
“OOOOOHHH!”
The Fire Trolls had been staring stupidly with their mouths hanging wide open, and they cheered loudly only after they realized what was going on due to the Fire Troll High Priest’s announcement.
Iris tilted her head and asked, “Why did Kang Yoon-Soo suddenly cry?”
“I guess a wave of emotions welled up from somewhere deep within his heart…?” Henrick replied with a shrug.
“Ooo, the groom of the goddess! Congratulations! You have earned the right to draw the Sword of Revelation!” the Fire Troll High Priest exclaimed.
Kang Yoon-Soo put down Shaneth and walked toward the sword even before the Fire Troll High Priest was done speaking. He immediately pulled out the white sword.
[Sword of Revelation]
Rating: Rare
Attack Power: 127
A sword that is instilled with the benevolence of the goddess. It is one of the seven holy artifacts spread across the continent. It is said that a one-of-a-kind blessing will be bestowed upon the person who collects all seven holy artifacts.
*It will give immense power to someone who has been resurrected.
*It will guide the user to the Temple of the Angels.
*Only a person acknowledged by the high priest may use this weapon.
Kang Yoon-Soo sheathed the Sword of Revelation on his waist.
The Fire Trolls all cheered in awe as they shouted.
“To think he would ignore the high priest and pull out the sword! I like this guy!”
“He’s the manifestation of evil itself! I want to live free like that too!”
“I think the goddess likes him because he’s handsome and bad!”
The Fire Troll High Priest furrowed his brow and shouted, “Silence!”
The Fire Trolls shut their mouths.
Yanak confidently walked forward and shouted, “High priest! Since the candidate I brought has become the groom, am I the tribal leader now?!”
The Fire Troll High Priest grimaced as if to show his disapproval and answered, “I don’t like it, but I have no choice! The promise has to be kept! Yanak, you’re now the tribal leader of the Fire Trolls!”
“OOOOHHH!”
Yanak sniffled as a wave of emotions swept over him.
“Congratulations, Yanak!”
“I knew you would pull it off!”
The other Fire Trolls congratulated and encouraged him.
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Yanak shouted proudly, “I, Yanak, will give my first command as your leader!”
“What is it?!”
“Everyone! Live a happy life!” Yanak cried.
“OOOOOHH!”
The Fire Trolls’ eyes were wet with tears due to the emotional first command of their new leader.
Henrick watched the scene unfold in front of him and said sarcastically, “What a tear-jerker.”
The Fire Troll High Priest stood in front of Kang Yoon-Soo and said, “Groom of the goddess! Your wielding that sword means the goddess has acknowledged you! You’ve received an incomparable title and the gentle warmth of the goddess! I’m not sure of the reason, but Goddess Sylphia wants to keep you by her side and prepare for the future…”
“Stop. Just give me the quest already.” Kang Yoon-Soo cut off the Fire Troll High Priest.
The Fire Troll High Priest grimaced and said, “The scouts we’ve sent to the western frontier haven't returned! A man-eating Anthell was located west of here! Our scouts have been eaten by that Anthell according to eyewitnesses! We have to kill that bastard and rescue our comrades! Are you with us?!”
“Yes,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied with a nod.
[Legendary Quest—Giant Anthell Hunt]
The Giant Anthell is a predator that roams the Desert of Death. The monster gobbles up everything in its path and can even swallow a troll whole. There is still some time left before the digestive enzymes of the Giant Anthell fully digests the trolls. Hurry and rescue the Fire Trolls!
*The predator will only appear in the afternoon.
Time Remaining: 17, hours 48 minutes, 52 seconds
Rewards: Gratitude of 16 Trolls
“It’s a Giant Anthell hunt!”
“OOOOOH!”
Yanak and the Fire Trolls raised their clubs as they roared out a battle cry.
Henrick watched the sight unfolding in front of him, dumbfounded. He said, “Hey… If your scouts were eaten by this Anthell, shouldn’t you have prioritized that instead of all this goddess’ groom nonsense…?”
Yanak explained, “It happens more than four times a week! I was also eaten by a large snake in the past, and I was rescued just before I was digested! It’s not a serious issue!”
“I’m just curious, but… Why did your previous leader resign from his position…?” Henrick asked.
“Our previous leader died while sandbathing in the desert!” Yanak replied.
“What a mess…” Henrick said, sincerely surprised by the trolls.
Shaneth looked worriedly at Kang Yoon-Soo and asked, “Are you alright? Is there something wrong?”
“I’m fine,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied coldly.
They packed up and prepared to head toward the west of the desert.
***
Anthells usually lived buried under the sand; it was not easy finding the monster.
“Here,” Kang Yoon-Soo said, pointing to a corner.
Yanak tilted his head and asked skeptically, “What do you mean?”
It was at that moment that Yanak took a step toward the place Kang Yoon-Soo had pointed out that…
Rumble… Rumble…
The sand suddenly collapsed, and a large pincer shot out of it.
“It’s the Giant Anthell!”
“This place is that bastard’s hunting ground!”
The circular sandpit sucked in anything near it; it was not going to be easy to escape if anything fell into it. The Giant Anthell just stayed in place as it watched its prey, not moving an inch.
There were only ten minutes left on the legendary quest’s time limit, and the trolls who had been eaten by the Giant Anthell could end up being digested if they failed to rescue them within that time.
Kang Yoon-Soo pulled out his sword and shouted, “Be careful and avoid the traps. The Anthell’s weakness is the space beneath its chin.” He then summoned White.
“Urnokra!”
Kang Yoon-Soo jumped up on the beast, and the werewolf dashed through the sand toward the predator.
Slash!
Kang Yoon-Soo’s sword struck the Anthell’s chin. The Giant Anthell squirmed for a moment before it shot up out of the sand.
“Kyerrerek!”
“The bastard came out of his hole!”
“We have to kill it now!”
Forty Fire Trolls simultaneously attacked the Giant Anthell. The burning skin that was their racial trait could inflict fire damage on anything nearby when so many of them gathered together. The clubs they wielded were simple weapons, but the Fire Trolls were immensely strong.
Kwachik!
“Kyrerkrerkk!” The Anthell screamed. It had sustained damage quickly; it dove back in and hid underneath the sand.
“Henrick,” Kang Yoon-Soo called out.
Henrick nodded and spread out his mana threads, muttering, “Thread Tying.” The Anthell’s body was wrapped in Henrick’s mana threads.
Iris grabbed Henrick by his waist to hold him in place. Henrick grimaced and asked with a frown, “Can you not do that?”
“Henrick is weaker than me,” Iris replied.
“Damn it…” Henrick muttered.
Iris smiled before pulling Henrick back with all her might. Henrick grimaced, feeling as if his arm would be torn off. The Giant Anthell wrapped up in Henrick’s mana threads started to be pulled out of the sand bit by bit.
“Pyrokinesis!” Shaneth shouted as she swung her scythe, and balls of flame shot out of it.
The fireballs struck the Giant Anthell’s eyes and combusted. The Fire Trolls did not miss the chance to pounce on the predator.
“Kyerrkrk!” The Anthell screamed and squirmed as it felt its life force quickly ebbing.
Then White, who was carrying Kang Yoon-Soo on its back, quickly shot toward the predator. Kang Yoon-Soo jumped high up and stabbed his sword into the Anthell’s head as he landed.
Pukeok!
Thud!
The Giant Anthell fell to the ground, with only one minute remaining on the quest timer.
“We won!”
“Let’s cut its belly up!”
The Fire Trolls quickly cut the Anthell’s belly open. Numerous Fire Trolls drenched in the predator’s sticky stomach fluid rolled out of it.
“Rark! You’re alive!”
“I fell asleep! The fluids were a bit sticky, but it was quite cozy inside this guy!”
“Rikwi! I knew you were going to make it out alive!”
“It’s nice to see you again! I was the first to get eaten so my skin is a bit eroded, but this will heal in no time!”
There were sixteen trolls inside the stomach of the Giant Anthell, and all of them greeted their new tribe leader once they got out of the predator’s stomach.
“Thank you for saving us, Chief Yanak!”
“It’s something I had to do! Don’t mention it!” Yanak replied proudly.
The day ended, and they decided to camp out in the desert.
Shaneth asked worriedly, “Aren’t you going to eat dinner?”
“No,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied as he just stared into the horizon of the dark desert.
Henrick suddenly walked up and patted his shoulder, saying, “Hey, you, come with me for a minute.”
The two men walked up a sand dune, and the view of the cold, lifeless desert greeted them.
Henrick asked quietly, “Is it hard?”
“Yeah,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.
Henrick did not inquire any further. He quietly took out two cups from his backpack and poured a drink. He offered, “Have a drink.”
Kang Yoon-Soo took the cup, and the smell of the strong alcohol tickled his nose. His head hurt whenever he drank, which helped him forget most of his memories.
‘This is my final life. I have to let go of all attachments.’
He brought the cup to his lips to forget the pain of his failures, and to forget his child who had disappeared…
Kang Yoon-Soo drank to forget everything.