Ranker Who Lives Twice

Yeon-woo looked at Jeong-woo's outstretched hand with a trembling gaze.

[The changing of darkness is in progress. 56%]

[Transcendence is taking place!]

The transcendence was still incomplete, which meant Yeon-woo hadn't completely escaped the limits of the Black King. He needed to complete his transcendence if he wanted to change the world how he wanted.

Jeong-woo looked at Yeon-woo with a grin of disbelief. "What's with you? You never cared about this kind of stuff."

Yeon-woo smiled bitterly. "…You're right." Even if he couldn't reach the ending he wanted, he could spend time in a world that had a similar ending. If it was a world where he was born, raised, and lived with his family…

"Geez! What are you doing! You're not coming? Do you know how much I suffered getting here? I picked up a disciple and fought with some weird monsters. I'm just going to leave you here if you keep—"

"I'm going, gosh. You're so hot-tempered."

"I don't want to hear that from you."

The two brothers bickered as they grasped each other's hands. Yeon-woo stood up with assistance from Jeong-woo. The Black King would remain here, but the form of the Black King that was named "Cha Yeon-woo" would be returning to where he was supposed to be.

［Cha Jeong-woo guides Cha Yeon-woo.］

［Cha Yeon-woo follows Cha Jeong-woo.］

［Deus Ex Machina and the Black King are still interlocked!］

［The world continues to fragment.］

［The universe continues to expand.］

［The Heavenly Demon looks down at the world with a warm smile.]

* * *

"Ugh, those damned punks." Kronos glared in the direction of the noisy front yard, which was still rowdy this late at night, then plopped down on a sofa popping open a can of beer. Drinking a can of beer after wrestling with his daughter the entire day was his only source of relief these days.

"You're starting again? I said it's not good to drink on an empty stomach. Have this, at least." Just then, Sesha placed a plate in front of Kronos. The scent of buttered calamari wafted over toward him.

"I was feeling a little hungry. Thanks. You want a drink too?"

"Who would drink with you if not for your granddaughter?"

"Haha. You're right. You're the best."

Kronos and Sesha looked to be similar in age now. Sesha had grown up quite a bit. Kronos felt proud every time he looked at his granddaughter. At the same time, he felt a bit despondent. The fact the small child had grown up to be a lady now meant a lot of time had flowed, but Yeon-woo hadn't been able to witness any of it.

Bringing up Yeon-woo's name was a sore spot for their family, since they all felt apologetic toward him. When the Heavenly Demon warned they could lose their memory, they hadn't really taken it to heart, after all.

It was absolutely horrible for a father to forget about their own child…so Kronos was sure it was something that would never happen. Even if he had lost a part of his memory, he would get a grip on himself to not lose anything else.

But Kronos realized too late how irresponsible his attitude had been. He thought the reason why Jeong-woo was frequently absent was because of his duties as someone in an important position, not because he was going to search for Yeon-woo. He never thought too deeply into it. Then, when his memory returned to him a while ago, and he realized he'd completely forgotten what was special to him, he'd taken Rhea in his arms and sobbed all day.

Kronos repeatedly said Yeon-woo shouldn't forgive him, and that even if Yeon-woo was disappointed in him, he should come and visit once so they could see his face. It was probably around then that they realized Yeon-woo was always by their side.

When they were feeding their youngest, they felt a familiar gaze from somewhere. Kronos sharpened his senses, thinking it might be an enemy watching them, but he came to the conclusion that there was no one around them every time. He just glossed over it, chalking it up to his exhaustion. But in retrospect, that wasn't the case at all. The gaze always observed Kronos and Rhea with complicated feelings, but it became adoring and loving when it turned to their youngest.

Like she felt the gaze, their daughter smiled when Kronos sensed someone was watching them. Giggle, giggle! That laughter was dedicated just to the gaze, and not anyone else.

Kronos guessed the gaze was Yeon-woo. No, he was now certain. If it wasn't, the gaze wouldn't have continued to roam around their house and linger on their family. But the gaze suddenly stopped observing recently…

"I hope he's okay." Wondering if something had happened, Kronos quietly muttered to himself. The gaze came to visit their daughter about ten times a day, so he couldn't help but feel anxious that he didn't sense anything these days. Or was the gaze still around, and it was just that Kronos could no longer feel it? He began to feel worried that he forgot something again.

There were many things Kronos wanted to say to his son when he returned. Kronos was constantly feeling restless that he had lost the opportunity forever. He tried to keep his emotions to himself, not wanting his family to know of his urgency, but…the hand holding the can of beer trembled.

Now that Kronos thought about it, Jeong-woo hadn't been visiting as much either. Just when he was wondering if the two were related, Sesha's eyes widened from next to him, and she still had a piece of calamari still in her mouth.

"Huh?" Kronos turned to the front door inquisitively when the door opened and Jeong-woo entered.

"Dad!" Sesha tossed her calamari aside and jumped into Jeong-woo's arms.

Jeong-woo stroked his daughter's head. "Your boyfriend won't like it if you like me so much. Is it okay for you to act like this?"

"Humph. Are you going to keep trying to find out if I have a boyfriend like that?"

"You caught me."

"You're more of a simpleton than you think."

"So do you?"

"I won't tell you, haha."

Cha Jeong-woo chuckled at his daughter's cuteness and tousled her hair. Sesha tried to push him away, saying her hair was done at an expensive place, but he messed her hair up even more.

Kronos quietly approached the father and daughter. "You're late this time."

"I was checking something."

"…What?" Kronos' expression stiffened, curious what Jeong-woo was talking about.

Jeong-woo took no notice of it and laughed at the Arthia members who were busy with their barbecue party in the front yard. "I hurried home because of the commotion, but I see it was just the guests. Good. I have something to show you all anyway."

"…?" Kronos was about to ask what that was when he suddenly paused. He finally spotted a person who was awkwardly shifting from foot to foot in front of the door Jeong-woo left open.

The man had the same face as Jeong-woo but had a cold exterior compared to Jeong-woo's mischievous one. His eyes scanned his surroundings, not knowing where to look. Then, as if having decided something, he pressed his lips together and took a step inside the front door. Tap. When he slowly raised his head, he met eyes with Kronos.

Kronos mouthed words without making any sound. His mind went blank. All the words he'd planned on saying to his son when he returned flew out of his head. The man hesitated to speak as if he was experiencing the same thing.

"…Uncle?" Sesha's shout broke the awkward atmosphere.

"Uncle!" Sesha stepped away from her father and jumped into her uncle's arms.

Sob. Sob. I missed you.

Listening to his niece's words as he stroked her head, Yeon-woo really felt where he was. He had finally returned to his house. 'No… Our house.'

Now, Yeon-woo was able to say the following words to Kronos. '"I've returned." He had finally returned from his long trip.

A faint smile appeared on Kronos' face. "Welcome home. You must be tired from traveling so far. You want to have some beer?" Kronos raised and shook the canned beer in his hand.

Yeon-woo nodded. "Yes. I'd like something cool." A faint smile was also on Yeon-woo's face as he responded.

First Ending.

"Hermes."

"What is it, sister? You have such a serious expression. Everything's ended well and it's all over now."

"There's still something that's unanswered."

"Unanswered?"

"Yes. Do you remember what I said in the past?"

"Remember what?"

"My dream of the future."

"Oh… That picture?"

"Yes, that."

Hermes recalled the vision Athena had spoken about in the past. Brahm had said something similar someday too. Apparently, in what seemed like a family picture, Galliard, Sesha, Ananta, and Brahm had been captured in it too. And a man who could be either Yeon-woo or Jeong-woo was smiling happily in it.

But the problem was that Brahm, who was in the picture, still hadn't returned. No, he couldn't return. And it was still unknown whether the man was Yeon-woo or Jeong-woo. It didn't seem right to just brush the vision aside either, since two great divine beings had seen the same thing.

"Well…" Hermes responded as if the answer was obvious. "Isn't that because there's still an ending we haven't seen yet?"

* * *

"Hey, there's a sign that says 'Do Not Fish' right in front of you. You've got a lot of nerve fishing there."

A man wearing a straw hat that covered most of his face looked up from where he sat. He was perched on his chair with a fishing pole hanging inside the Han River. Brahm was standing in front of him. A smile appeared on the man, Yeon-woo's, face.

"You're here?"

"Yes, I am, but what kind of magic trick did you use?"

When Brahm opened his eyes, he was quite surprised. He had most certainly been destroyed…but he returned with all his memories and a perfectly intact body. "I didn't know about this until later either, but do you remember I had a power called 'Universal Recovery?'"

"The power created after you collected your father's remains… Could it be…?"

"Yes. It wasn't just my data recorded in Idea."

Brahm laughed in disbelief upon realizing what happened. There was an option called 'Status Regression' in Universal Recovery. It was a feature that backed up data of the user's body and soul in Idea and restored information if too much damage was taken. It wasn't just Yeon-woo's information that was backed up but his subordinates' as well.

Technically, since Yeon-woo's subordinates were a part of him, it was an obvious outcome. Yeon-woo discovered Brahm's data and was able to restore him.

"It shouldn't have been easy to restore this much though. My soul should've been unstable."

"I am the Black King, after all."

"You abused your authority."

"Authority is there to be used."

Brahm laughed. It was very much like Yeon-woo to say that. He didn't know how much time had passed, but an immeasurable amount of time had probably gone by. Brahm felt more at ease seeing Yeon-woo was the same as ever. He also wanted to see his daughter and granddaughter. He was curious what the two would be like now.

"But why are you fishing here?"

"I'm waiting for someone."

"Hm? Who?"

Thud! Brahm quickly looked in the direction of the sound that made the ground quake. There was a muscly man with a beard like a bandit. The horn on his head looked bigger than ever. Phante exuded a much stronger aura when Brahm saw him last. His childish expression was now firm like a mature king's. Brahm let out a small "whoa" of astonishment.

Phante silently greeted Brahm and turned to Yeon-woo with big and bright eyes. "It's been a while, Hyungnim. Have you been well?"

"Do I look it?"

"You seem to have gone through a bit. Your face has rotten a lot too."

"Should I make it so you're like me?"

"…Why do you always speak so menacingly?" Phante had trained against powerful beings all this time and made achievements, but he couldn't muster the courage to pick a fight with Yeon-woo. But there was something else he was looking forward to. "Anyhow, is that true?"

"What?"

"You said you'd let me fight against my father who's passed away." Phante looked extremely excited. His mission in life had been to surpass his father, so Yeon-woo wanted to help him accomplish that goal if he could.

Of course, in Yeon-woo's eyes, it seemed ridiculous. "You're going to lose."

"How do you know without seeing it?"

"It's obvious."

"Humph! I'll prove you wrong." Phante snorted and smiled confidently. Nobody had to eat sh*t to know it was sh*t, but it seemed that was the case for Phante.

Yeon-woo didn't comment on it. It was Phante who was going to be beaten up ultimately, not him. All he wanted…was to go see his lover. He could use Summon of the Dead, but he opted not to. What he wanted was his lover with an intact memory and warmth, not a completely different person. He wanted to love her, make a family, and live a normal but happy life. He wanted to see his teacher too.

[The changing of darkness is in progress 57%.]

'It won't be perfect like the Heavenly Demon, but…' Yeon-woo moved his hand toward the wheel of time that made the world. He didn't know if it would rewind the 'big wheel' like the Heavenly Demon had done for him in the past, nor did he know how it would affect his transcendence.

Since darkness wasn't limited by time and space, it shouldn't have any influence, but there could always be an irregularity. It could have an impact on the fragmented world lines and world points. Spinning the wheel could lead to a new turning point that led to new world lines, or the rewound world could cause him more trouble. However, he was certain that entirely different incidents from his world would occur in the rewound world.

But whatever was going to happen, Phante said he was fine with leaving their homeland like this, and Brahm waved the two of them goodbye.

Yeon-woo stretched his hand forward without delay. Clunk! As the system activated, he felt something in his hand.

[The power 'Pneuma's Sky' has activated.]

[You have gripped the 'Big Wheel.']

[Will you rewind it?]

Second Ending.

Fin.