Ranker Who Lives Twice

The Heavenly Demon widened his eyes before grinning. "Looks like I don't have to be concerned about you forgetting him. I guess you've really become an emperor."

Emperors were beings removed from dreams and wheels, so Jeong-woo would be able to remember Yeon-woo better than others.

"But you know it's not foolproof, right?"

Cha Jeong-woo nodded heavily. His level of strength was too low. Since he hadn't paved the path with his own power, he had received the help of the ancient gods. If the slightest thing went wrong with his linkage, there was a possibility he'd fall from the height he was at. That was what the Heavenly Demon meant by "foolproof."

"Then, what should I do now?"

"You can grow wisdom by staying as a librarian here."

"Wisdom…"

"Wisdom is like nourishment for your soul. If you continue to stack it up, your soul will grow to incredible lengths. Protect this place in my stead."

Cha Jeong-woo's eyes flashed. As the Heavenly Demon said, this place where all the records of the world were kept would be the perfect place to grow his soul. He would truly become closer to omniscience and omnipotence.

'I might be able to re-organize information about Hyung.' Jeong-woo thought of ways to leave as many new records of Yeon-woo as the memories of him were lost. All this was similar to something he'd already done before.

'I'm already thinking like I'm a librarian.' Cha Jeong-woo realized he had already decided to remain here. It felt like he had been played by the Heavenly Demon, but it wasn't a bad feeling. Rather, he felt grateful to have a new opportunity.

"Do you plan on leaving?"

The Heavenly Demon snorted like it was obvious. "Hey, how long do you think I've been pent up in here?"

"I…don't know?"

"Do you know how much my wife nags me saying I never do any housework duties because I'm stuck in this tiny room? Ugh!"

Cha Jeong-woo unwittingly smiled wryly at the Heavenly Demon, who was shivering in disgust. "…You know that well, but you're asking me, a married man, to stay here?"

"I don't care as long as it's not me."

It was a brazen response. Cha Jeong-woo understood why Yeon-woo said he wanted to punch the Heavenly Demon if they ever met. What Jeong-woo felt right now was completely separate from the gratitude he felt toward the Heavenly Demon.

"I want to stop working now and spend some time with my family. I'm sick of this now." The Heavenly Demon's gaze shifted to Nocturne, who stepped back without realizing it.

At that moment, a thought occurred to Jeong-woo. Nocturne was a shadow of Allforone/Vivasvat that remained on the twenty-first floor. No, that was what people thought. There was no actual evidence that Nocturne was really a shadow. He wondered about the possibility that Nocturne wasn't a shadow. 'What if the Allforone we know was actually the shadow…?'

A very long time ago, a player named Vivasvat had challenged the gate of the twenty-first floor. What if some "error" had occurred during the stage mission and there had been confusion between a player and a shadow? What if that was why the two beings walked different paths? Of course, the possibilities of such an event occurring were close to zero.

However, Cha Jeong-woo wouldn't be surprised if such a thing had happened. At the time, Vivasvat must've had a plentiful amount of holiness as the Heavenly Demon's son, so it wouldn't be strange if the data copied from him was mutated in some way.

Of course, this was just a hypothesis. There was no evidence of the kind to prove Jeong-woo was right. But if that wasn't the care, Jeong-woo didn't understand how the Heavenly Demon didn't interfere in Allforone/Vivasvat's sacrifice when he had grieved over it so much. Even if the Heavenly Demon held his ideals of separating the heavens and the earth in high regard, it didn't make sense.

The Heavenly Demon whom Jeong-woo was looking at now seemed to be someone who protected his ideals but became weak in front of those he cared for. However, Jeong-woo didn't necessarily ask the Heavenly Demon about it.

Nocturne seemed to be questioning his existence as well, but he didn't ask anything. He just looked at the hand the Heavenly Demon held out. The Heavenly Demon asked him, "Would you like to return with me?"

"…" Nocturne contemplated over the many meanings within that question and silently nodded that he would.

Swish! Like that, the Heavenly Demon and Nocturne disappeared from the library without any goodbye.

[The Heavenly Demon and Nocturne have left the Changgong Library!]

[The Heavenly Demon has signed from disposition.]

[He has appointed the sun of 'Day (Eros)' as his successor.]

[If you accept the position, you must preserve the many books in the library and organize the new books that come in daily.]

[Will you still accept?]

Cha Jeong-woo looked at the message that popped up in front of him, then turned back to Kronos and Rhea. Even at this moment, Yeon-woo's records were being taken apart and destroyed. Their parents' eyes were filled with sadness.

"Can you do it?"

"Of course. I'm always good at what I do."

"My son… Let me hold you in my arms." Rhea approached her son and tightly wrapped her arms around him. She was pitiful of her sons who had to walk such difficult paths from the beginning to the end. And she was apologetic that all she could do was encourage them. "Be careful. Make sure you eat all three meals, okay? Contact us often. Come back whenever you feel you want to. We'll prepare what you like."

"Geez, mom. Do I still look like a little kid?"

"You're always the little kid I'm scared to let go of."

Cha Jeong-woo embraced Rhea's warmth and met eyes with Kronos, who was looking at them with sorrow.

『While my sons are gone, I plan on enjoying my honeymoon period with my wife which I never had.』

"Be careful."

『What?』

"I don't want to lose my position as the youngest."

『…Ahem, goodness!』Kronos made a flabbergasted face, but he soon smirked and pat Jeong-woo's shoulders.『I'll let Sesha and your wife know.』

"I'll get scolded again."

『So you should've done well in the meantime. Like me… Ahem! Anyway, don't push yourself too hard.』Kronos was about to crack a joke when he saw Rhea glaring at him. He coughed and quickly changed the subject. He gripped Rhea's hand.

Rhea still looked at Jeong-woo with lingering attachment. Without becoming a librarian, there were limits to how long one could stay in the Changgong Library. Additionally, Cha Jeong-woo probably had things of his own he wanted to take care of, so his parents let him be.

['Kronos' and 'Rhea' have exited the Changgong Library.]

…

Cha Jeong-woo waved his parents off, then took in a big breath and tapped the message in front of him.

[You have accepted the position.]

[The sun of 'Day (Eros)' has been appointed as the new librarian of the Changgong Library!]

[The title 'Librarian of the Changgong Library' has been created.]

…

Then, the world started to spin rapidly.

[A tutorial is provided for your assistance.]

…

[A menu is provided for your assistance.]

…

Why were there so many tasks to do? Jeong-woo had thought all he had to do was organize books, but that wasn't the case at all. He needed to familiarize himself with the vast structure and memorize what categories of records were located where. Newly added records tended to be stuck in randomly, so he also needed to check them all and put them in their respective positions.

Old records needed to be rebound with new covers, and if the words were becoming faint, Jeong-woo needed to find the information to fill them in… He was overwhelmed.

After he learned some of the tasks, Cha Jeong-woo became certain. The Heavenly Demon had spoken up a great show, but the ultimate reason the Heavenly Demon quit was that he was tired of the menial work. "Damn it! I was tricked again!"

* * *

Like that, time flowed on and on. Jeong-woo's physical body couldn't leave the Changgong Library, so he had to search the records if he was curious about his family. When he was bored, he sent them messages to chat. There were still many tasks to do to take care of the library, but he had some leftover time after becoming used to it.

"That won't last for too long." Then, Cha Jeong-woo realized the shelves that symbolized his twin brother were quite empty, and he fell into deep thought. He knew his own memories of Yeon-woo were fading away. That meant Yeon-woo was closer to becoming a complete Black King, but Jeong-woo felt more anxious.

"Geez, he never does things slow." Jeong-woo hadn't gained enough wisdom yet, but if Yeon-woo continued to rush like that, Jeong-woo wouldn't be able to match his pace. However, he knew Yeon-woo had no respect for others, so he had to bear with it.

"Oh well. I'll have to speed up now." Jeong-woo decided that he needed to start what he'd been planning as soon as possible. He would be writing daily. No, to be exact, he would be writing a diary. He had to write daily due to his tasks as a librarian, but what he'd be writing this time were his personal thoughts and memories of Yeon-woo.

Jeong-woo wrote about what Sesha did, or he peeked into his parents' honeymoon period and wrote about that. I think I'm gonna get a little sibling soon… Like that, his diary began to fill.

Sesha told her mom she's going to college. She used to fight all the time with Ananta, saying studying didn't fit her, and she was going to continue living as a celebrity. But she wants to major in philosophy now. A humanities major… You can't, Sesha. Become a doctor or a lawyer, or you won't get a job.

Zeus, who failed his rebellion and escaped from Olympus, was caught by Father. The other gods seemed to be affected as well. My siblings whose faces I don't even know… I have no idea how to act when I meet them.

I don't see any information about the Heavenly Demon no matter how much I search. Did he hide it somewhere on purpose? I wanted to find something embarrassing and tease him about it.

Instead, I found some blackmail material on my brother. Wow… He didn't focus on his studies when he was a junior in high school because he was dating a girl, and she broke up with him in two weeks? I did think his temper back then was especially worse, but was this the reason why? Ha, I'm excited for him to come back.

Cha Jeong-woo had no idea how much time had passed. The clock in his body told him quite a long time had passed on Earth.

The books are disappearing. Now, there's only a single shelf left. How long does he plan on staying there? Gosh, he's great at making people concerned. What a nuisance. Has it been about one hundred Earth years now? 200? 300? No humans remember my brother anymore.

The lighthearted tone of the diary soon turned heavy. Most of the gods and demons don't remember him anymore. Agares and Athena are among the few. But soon, they'll forget about him too. There's only one book now, and that book doesn't have too many pages left in it either. Just two pages. How long will they last?

Cha Jeong-woo's pen strokes became heavy as well. One page left now. Father and Mother…have completely forgotten about him. They can't remember him at all. Even Ananta forgot about him. Sesha, who cried over when her uncle is returning, can't remember him either.

Now, I'm the only person who remembers him. Oh, maybe not. Edora. My poor sister-in-law. When he returns, you should kick him to the curb. I'll cheer you on.

Then, Cha Jeong-woo saw the last page of the book fall to the ground. There was a single sentence written on it.

「I've reached it.」

Jeong-woo didn't know what it was. He also had no time to look closer, because the page disappeared immediately after. The last leaves have fallen. Soon, I'll forget about my brother too.