Chapter 356. A Hero In Paradise, But on Earth… (1) (2/2)
“Oh right, you advanced to Level 6, right?”
“…Yes.”
“Congratulations. What’s your class name? I know it used to be Royal Guard…”
“It’s Duke.”
“Iya~ That’s a cool name. Ah, the noodles are gonna get mushy. Go ahead.”
With a silly smile, Seol Jihu pushed the bowl of ramen toward her.
Phi Sora looked noticeably uncomfortable, but her body was honest.
Gulp. With the sound of swallowing saliva, she gave in to the temptation and picked up the chopsticks.
“Dammit, do you add drugs to the ramen or something? Why is it so damn good?”
She grumbled as she picked up a waterfall of ramen with her chopsticks.
Slurp, slurrrp.
Seol Jihu smiled beamingly as he saw Phi Sora eat with a tasty sound.
Finding this gaze uncomfortable, Phi Sora glanced up and looked at Seol Jihu.
“I’m gonna say this in advance.”
She spoke indifferently with her cheeks stuffed with ramen.
“Don’t think this is all it takes to calm my anger.”
“Does that mean you don’t want to eat my ramen from now?”
“Agh, fuck, that’s not what I mean. I’m saying you should show some sincerity after angering someone so much.”
Phi Sora corrected Seol Jihu as if the prospect of never eating his ramen again terrified her.
Seol Jihu tilted his head.
“Sincerity?”
“Yes, sincerity. For example…”
Phi Sora gave a sidelong glance.
“You and I met on Earth once before, right?”
“Yes, at the pork belly place.”
“Great. Then go on a little picnic with me.”
“…Come again?”
“Aren’t you going to Earth anyway? You should tag along with me on a trip while you’re at it. Let’s see, where do I wanna go…”
Phi Sora recalled the conversation she had with Jang Maldong last night while pretending to think.
[There’s a place you need to take Jihu to.]
[It’s…]
“I’ve always wanted to go to Hawaii.”
Phi Sora shrugged.
“It should be summer on Earth right now. Why don't we go to the beach together? There’s a place called Waikiki that’s famous for its beach resorts.”
The smile on Seol Jihu’s face disappeared as soon as Phi Sora said this.
His expression stiffened frighteningly like he just heard a load of nonsense.
‘I guess it’s true that he hates going back to Earth.’
Phi Sora was inwardly astonished.
“…Hawaii? Out of the blue…?”
Soon, just as Seol Jihu said with a smile—
“What, what? You guys are talking about a beach trip? I wanna go!”
“Me too! Where are you guys going?”
Hugo and Chohong appeared out of nowhere and joined the conversation.
“We already decided on a place. Hawaii. Grandpa decided, actually.”
“Huh? That old man did? Really? Then this is going to be the first time I’m seeing him on Earth.”
Before anyone noticed, more and more people began to gather around Seol Jihu.
Seol Jihu stared in a daze as they chatted in excitement.
“Seol, Seol, you’re going too, right? We’re meeting on Earth for the first time?”
Hugo asked with a beaming smile.
Seol Jihu didn’t answer.
“Seol?”
“….”
“Seol? Seol! What’s wrong? Are you sick?”
Hugo nudged him with his elbow.
“Ah.”
Seol Jihu finally snapped out of his daze and replied.
“I don’t know….”
“Eii, don’t skip. This is a group bonding activity! You should be there as Valhalla’s representative!”
“Group bonding activity, huh. I just don’t know if we need to meet on Earth. We can’t even speak the same language there.”
“Who cares? It works out once you meet. I’ve met Dylan and Chohong before, and that’s what happened.”
“That’s a good idea, going on a vacation together. Everyone’s going back to Earth anyway. Chances like this don’t come up often.”
Kim Hannah chimed in as well.
“Aha! Miss Kim really knows what she’s talking about!”
“Hawaii has a hospital specialized for Earthlings, so I can make preparations right away. I know an acquaintance there. Of course, that’s only if the representative gives me permission…”
Everyone turned to Seol Jihu at Kim Hannah’s words.
Seol Jihu simpered.
“I just don’t get it.”
“Don’t get what?”
“I mean, you guys always go on a vacation after something big happens. Do you really need to?”
“Well, it’s not like we need to…”
Chohong shrugged.
“But what’s there to not get? Isn’t it just part of having fun?”
“Having fun?”
“Yeah. What’s better than having fun to forget bad memories?”
‘Bad memories?’
Seol Jihu frowned. His gaze seemed to be asking for an explanation.
“Think about it. We just had a huge war. How many times did we almost die? Can you forget all about it?”
“….”
The answer was no.
War wasn’t an everyday thing, and with how impactful it was, Seol Jihu would never be able to forget it.
Perhaps until he breathed his last breath.
“But we won.”
“Winning aside… Never mind. What’s important is that Paradise left us with unforgettable memories, whether good or bad.”
Chohong continued.
“So we need to make them fuzzy before they really take root in our heads. With Earth’s memories, of course. Replacing them with other memories of Paradise would be no good.”
“….”
“And actually, you might need this more than anyone else. Of course, you don’t need to go on a trip. People have different ways of preparing for death in Paradise… So, is there anything you do in particular?”
Seol Jihu closed his mouth. He suddenly remembered how Phi Sora worked part-time to look back on her life on Earth.
But what about him?
“If you don’t, just come with us on this beach trip. It’ll be fun to see each other on Earth for once. We can curse each other out all we want since we won’t be able to understand each other anyway.”
“Right, right! It’s more fun than you think! So? You’re going, right, Seol?”
Hugo interfered tactlessly.
Seol Jihu licked his lips until letting loose a deep sigh of frustration.
He understood what they were saying, but he couldn’t empathize with it at all.
In fact, doubts emerged within him.
“…You guys must not like life in Paradise that much, huh.”
A quiet murmur flowed out.
Chohong furrowed her brows, and the smile on the excited Hugo’s face faded away.
“Hey, that’s not what we mean.”
“Yeah, yeah, I get what you mean. Yes, a beach trip sounds nice. People who want to go should. Preparing for the worst-case scenario is good too. I acknowledge that.”
Seol Jihu took a roundabout way to say they should not force someone into going if they didn’t want to go.
“Sounds good? Then let’s go with that. Oh right, I haven’t told you guys about the fruit and the divinity, right?”
Seol Jihu nodded his head and changed the subject in a bright voice.
“Listen up. It’s hard to say anything about the divinity, but the fruit is amazing. This thing’s effect is…”
However, he had to stop as everyone was staring at him fixedly. A few had dazed looks, and a few were casting suspicious glances.
This was no surprise given Seol Jihu’s very obvious strange attitude.
Even the dull Hugo noticed that Seol Jihu was trying to change the subject.
“Uh… Seol.”
Hugo carefully spoke up after a brief moment of silence.
“Do you hate going back to Earth?”
“…No, it’s not that I hate it.”
“Then do you not want to see us?”
“Hugo.”
“I just… we spent a long time together in Paradise… so I wanted to meet you on Earth too…”
Hugo murmured dejectedly.
Seol Jihu shut his eyes tight.
*
In the end, it was decided that Seol Jihu would go back to Earth.
Although he didn’t give a definite answer on whether he would go on the trip, it seemed like almost everyone else agreed.
Kim Hannah went back to Earth, saying she would make preparations.
By the time the sun went below the horizon, Valhalla’s building became rowdy.
Seol Jihu and others left the building after wrapping up a few matters in Paradise.
On the way to the temple.
Everyone was busy chatting about the upcoming trip, but only Seol Jihu remained silent.
In truth, everyone knew.
Seol Jihu, who had been running around after the war pulling pranks left and right, was now all serious and quiet. He even looked a little angry.
Though the furtive glances annoyed him a bit, Seol Jihu didn’t show it.
He acknowledged the need to go back to Earth.
But being thrust into it was…
‘No.’
Seol Jihu smiled bitterly as what Jang Maldong said kept surfacing in his mind.
He couldn’t deny it.
Because the mysterious rage and anxiety he was feeling now were the same emotions he felt when he didn’t have any money and couldn’t gamble.
Unless he was being forced like he was now, he probably would not even think about going back to Earth.
He acknowledged this…
Seol Jihu walked while suppressing his displeasure, and before he noticed, he had arrived at the temple.
“If you’re going straight to Hawaii in Area 4, set your coordinates accordingly. As for the rest, send us a mail, alright?”
Phi Sora waved her hand in front of the warp gate.
“Ou! See you guys in Hawaii!”
Hugo shouted excitedly.
Seol Jihu didn’t say much. He sighed for the umpteenth time and walked up the stairs.
Though he heard someone calling his name, he didn’t look back and dived into the wavering, sea-colored portal.
It was his fourth return trip to Earth.