The Outer God Needs Warmth-Chapter 93: Soo’s Gangho (13)

The Heavenly Demon spoke.

"What are you planning to do with So-oh?"

Is she worried about him? Did they become so close that she doesn’t want to separate from him?

"I will force freedom on So-oh. A person shouldn’t be bound to anyone. They should live freely, doing what they want."

At that, the Heavenly Demon frowned.

"Are you abandoning him?"

"No. Please speak clearly. This is independence."

Everyone faces a moment when they must stand as an individual. If they miss this moment, the light diminishes, and warmth fades.

Therefore, I want people to enjoy all the freedom they can.

Just like Omyoungseong, who is currently cutting down those shouting that he’s an enemy of Murim and killing them without hesitation.

His light has turned a violet hue, but it is large, and his warmth is immense.

And the warmth he generates is far greater than his own.

"Even if reality doesn’t allow it, I believe that one day, everyone will be able to live freely, so So-oh must be free as well."

I spoke to the Heavenly Demon about my wish.

"People must be able to freely express their emotions, love others, create what they want, and do whatever their desires lead them to."

That’s why I rise above the heavens. It’s when people no longer stand above others but when people stand above numbers.

Even if people die for reasons other than their lifespan, it becomes nothing more than the fluctuation of numbers.

At that moment, I can gain even more warmth.

I don’t believe such a world is coming. I know it’s coming. This can only happen when everyone seeks freedom but infringes on each other’s freedom, taking away the power to be free.

There is no right or wrong here. It’s a pure competition for survival. We can just do as we have always done in nature.

"What does that have to do with you leaving?"

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She’s not fooled by words.

"There is a connection. If I share myself, people will become freer. Hey, Heavenly Demon, are you happy with your current body?"

At my words, the Heavenly Demon looked down at herself.

A woman in her early to mid-twenties.

The appearance of a man in his mid-thirties was completely gone. I didn’t know that becoming a Harvester would even free one from gender, but it’s likely similar to other abilities.

"I don’t like the skin color. It doesn’t look human."

"Someone who’s suffered fatal wounds ends up like this. You should be thankful you survived."

The Heavenly Demon nodded at my words. At that time, she had been as close to death as possible. If you look at the memories, all her limbs had been torn off, and her insides had ruptured—she was truly on the verge of dying.

"You don’t understand your own power."

"I don’t. Didn’t I say I was human? I’m still fumbling through the darkness, trying to find myself."

But then, the Heavenly Demon raised her arm, resting her chin on her hand, and looked at me.

"Were you really human? Sometimes, when you speak, it’s creepy. It feels like something that’s not human pretending to be human."

In the year we’ve spent talking, most of the conversations revolved around So-oh, but it wasn’t like we never had casual talks.

"Right now, you’re just a monster."

"A monster, huh."

The Heavenly Demon circled around, avoiding a decision.

If she really didn’t want to take So-oh, she could just let me take him.

Or maybe, she was wondering how to deal with me?

She used a sense I couldn’t feel to look at me. Then she spoke, understanding in her own way what I was.

Perhaps, since So-oh was with me, she hadn’t killed me, but maybe she couldn’t just watch a dangerous monster roaming around.

The Heavenly Demon was managing the Heavenly Demon Church well now.

Usually, people wield their swords to protect what they have, even if it’s wrong.

Would the Heavenly Demon do that?

The Heavenly Demon was silent for a long time.

Then, she spoke quietly.

"Don’t go."

It was a very small voice. But I was stunned.

What?

Wait, did the Heavenly Demon just say that?

Don’t go? Why does it sound like she’s begging? If she just said something like "You can’t go" or "Go if you want," that would be different.

But, she’s asking me not to go?

I looked at her face, and her skin color had faintly changed. It looked like she was embarrassed.

Wait a minute. Does this mean the Heavenly Demon is embarrassed by what she said? She doesn’t want me to disappear? Has she really gotten attached to me?

No. Wasn’t I just a part of So-oh’s attachment?

The faded memories shine. In a world that’s nothing but gray, a man is laughing, amused by the ridiculous scene. What’s important isn’t what makes him laugh. The laughter itself shines.

And slowly, that memory faded, sinking back to the deep place where it came from.

"That’s a foolish thing to say, Heavenly Demon. You never called my name, we’re not close, and I’m just So-oh’s attachment."

Why would she say something like that?

The Heavenly Demon’s eyes widened. Then, the corners of her eyes narrowed.

She’s laughing.

"It was worth saying it just to see you flustered."

The Heavenly Demon said that and then faced forward. I looked through her eyes, but they weren’t focused. She wasn’t looking at anything in particular—she was looking at the past.

"I won’t tell you yet. Wait four years. Four years."

Suddenly, the Heavenly Demon drew a line.

Four years.

It’s long.

But, it’s also short. In the first world, I waited for more than 80 years.

"Then, I will share myself with others."

At my words, the Heavenly Demon chuckled.

"Do that. Heavenly Demon Church. A place where everyone can use the Heavenly Demon Technique. That could be fun."

Everyone using the Heavenly Demon Technique?

Ah, right. The Heavenly Demon knows that I know the Heavenly Demon Technique. She probably mistook it for Eunjae’s technique, but I have the memories of what the Harvesters possess.

"I’m fine with it. But wouldn’t that shake the Heavenly Demon’s position?"

"It already has with Gabja, Byeongil, and a man named Jung Jae-woo. The Heavenly Demon Technique has such a unique energy that it’s impossible not to recognize it."

Jung Jae-woo is the name of the head of the Heavenly Palace’s law enforcement. He must have seen the energy before. I thought it was just overlooked, but he remembered.

This is why looking at someone’s energy is uncomfortable. Once it touches you, it’s hard to tell if they clearly recognized it or just ignored it.

And as for the energy, that’s a sensation I don’t know.

"Does that energy... can I feel it too?"

If that energy is leaking, I’ll have to be even more careful in the future. I asked the Heavenly Demon to prepare for the danger.

"No."

The Heavenly Demon replied briefly. Then she lowered her hand from her chin and looked at me.

"You don’t feel anything. You’re not a power derived from a law; you are the law itself."

Earlier, the Heavenly Demon had said I was something like a force of annihilation.

A monster from the opposite side of Qi that couldn’t be used.

"Back then, you touched me and understood, right?"

"Have you ever tried to pull a thread out to remove a lint, only to find that the thread unraveled and the fabric tore apart?"

I nodded in response to the memory.

"Yes."

"You were the hand. When I put the Qi, the lint, into you, you held it and pulled. If I hadn’t pulled away, I would have emptied out and died."

I remembered the technique of Absorption Great Art used by Omyoungseong and Guseongyong. But a body that absorbs Qi using Absorption Great Art withers and twists. Isn’t it a bit different?

"Did the Heavenly Demon shiver from the cold?"

"It was cold. I never want to feel it again."

The Heavenly Demon then looked at me with a hint of fear in her eyes.

"The cold I felt from your fingertips... you were trying to cover that with warmth, right? The day you first asked me about your purpose, you said you’d do anything for warmth. So, when you say you’ll share yourself, it must be to gain warmth."

Then, with a sharp realization, the Heavenly Demon hit the truth.

This is why I hate people who are too clever.

It would be better if everyone were stupid.

No, but then it would be strange.

"Still, you tell me not to go?"

Shouldn’t a person stay away from fear?

At my question, the Heavenly Demon smiled bitterly.

She then raised her finger and pointed at the yard, at the house, and began recounting what So-oh, the Heavenly Demon, and I had done together.

Last winter, we built a snowman in the yard.

This spring, we played by the water beneath a cliff.

Recently, we built a sandcastle on the sand near here.

A few other small events.

So-oh, who clenched his teeth, became a wedge of memory, and the Heavenly Demon and So-oh were able to feel affection for each other.

Of course, I was there too, but I wasn’t really in the middle of it all.

I let them know and have fun.

"Why?"

When I asked, the Heavenly Demon chuckled. It wasn’t the kind of laugh you’d expect from a woman or man. It sounded more like the laugh of a child.

"Whatever you do, whatever plans you make, whatever you accomplish, I don’t care anymore."

Then, the Heavenly Demon looked directly at me from the porch.

"Having received a treasure that should not exist, I will keep it until the light of that treasure fades. My sword, Im Mo, will always be yours."

She spoke with the courtesy one would show when offering something from one person to another.

"Really foolish words. Do you know that?"

"I know. So what? Among those who would criticize me for being foolish, did any of them ever offer me a treasure? I’m already satisfied. No, I’ve come to terms with it."

The faded memories flicker. It’s a deep lament. Was competition really such a foolish thing?

It’s what I’d been wishing for, but I don’t know why it feels like this.

I opened my mouth but had to raise a heart torn by the cold, with no remnants left, only to find emptiness.

There’s nothing, yet it whispers as if something is there.

The memories stretching from the faded ones, from the first world through the second, point to one word.

"A friend?"

"Yeah. I like that."

The Heavenly Demon laughed like a carefree child.

And at the same time, in the corner of the memory, an old woman bowed her head.

I couldn’t speak.