Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Part 8

“But... are those really all the materials you need?”

“Less than you expected, right?”

“Yes... There are far fewer materials than I expected.”

Mincheol stared blankly at the black plastic bag.

It was not even a large twenty-liter bag, but a small one that could hold five liters at most.

And inside it were the treatment materials Yugeon had brought.

“You probably still have doubts, but don’t worry. Your mother’s treatment will be over quickly.”

“No. I trust you now, Brother.”

Mincheol smiled.

He had not been staring at the bag because he distrusted Yugeon. He was simply surprised that there were fewer materials than expected.

Yugeon had already given him more than enough reason to trust him.

“Is your mother asleep?”

“She was awake until a little while ago, but she took a painkiller and fell asleep.”

Mana poisoning was divided into early, middle, and terminal stages.

In the early stage, there was chronic fatigue, headaches, numbness in the hands and feet, mild fever, and loss of appetite.

In the middle stage, there were hand tremors, muscle spasms, difficulty breathing, and severe pain of unknown cause.

In the terminal stage, all the organs became damaged, and eventually the patient died from mana shock.

Mincheol’s mother was in the middle stage of mana poisoning.

In truth, even that was only because they had delayed the progression as much as possible.

Because of that, unless she took narcotic painkillers, Mincheol’s mother could not easily fall asleep.

“That actually works out well. She can sleep deeply, and when she wakes up, her body will be healthy.”

“I’m counting on you, Brother...”

Tap.

Yugeon smiled gently and patted Mincheol on the shoulder.

Creak.

Then he entered the master bedroom together with Mincheol.

Rustle.

Tap.

“Huh?”

When Yugeon took the items out of the bag, Mincheol tilted his head.

They were things he had seen many times before.

No, not just him. They were items every Awakened saw frequently.

“White Spirit Incense, Flowing Star Stone, and Red Blood Root?”

【Item: White Spirit Incense】

Rank: Advanced

Type: Herb

A rare incense that produces faint white smoke when burned.

When an Awakened inhales the incense while meditating, the rampaging mana inside their body calms down and impure flows are put in order.

However, its effectiveness decreases as the user’s level rises.

【Item: Flowing Star Stone】

Rank: Advanced

Type: Mineral

A mineral that reacts to nearby mana and produces subtle resonance.

When crafting magical devices, it is used as a material to guide the flow of mana in a specific direction.

If mana with a consistent nature exists nearby, it has the property of drawing that mana toward itself.

【Item: Red Blood Root】

Rank: Advanced

Type: Herb

A thick medicinal root with a reddish hue.

It is cultivated in forested regions rich in mana,

and has the effect of helping damaged organs recover while slowly restoring weakened stamina.

Mincheol stared at the items.

He had used each of them before, and they could also be easily purchased in stores.

“Are these the medicine?”

“They’re treatment materials. I’m not going to make your mother take medicine.”

Click.

Yugeon took out a bowl and lit the White Spirit Incense.

The windows had already been shut, and the master bedroom door was also tightly closed.

Even the draft strips had been perfectly sealed in place.

Sssssss.

As the White Spirit Incense began to burn, a pleasant fragrance spread throughout the room.

“Do you know why mana poisoning can’t be cured?”

Mincheol shook his head.

“Because everyone only tries to neutralize the mana that entered the body.”

Mana was not poison.

After all, did Awakened not require mana themselves?

The bodies of Awakened absorbed mana, circulated it, and used it.

But ordinary people could not properly circulate mana that entered their bodies.

The mana that entered the body spread along the nerves and blood vessels, and as time passed, seeped deep into the organs.

Like dye soaking into wet cloth.

If one tried to forcibly eliminate it, the surrounding tissue would be damaged as well.

‘Of course, there are items that can cure mana poisoning instantly...’

But he could not obtain one of those right now.

And even if he could, it was not something worth using on Mincheol’s mother.

Her condition was still treatable.

‘Don’t neutralize it. Separate it.’

Then draw the mana out of the body.

Crackle.

“Huh?!”

About one minute after the White Spirit Incense began burning.

Vein-like strands glowing blue began to shimmer across the sleeping body of Mincheol’s mother.

Then another five minutes passed.

Ssssst.

The blue glow that had stretched out in multiple strands like blood vessels gradually began gathering in one place.

Swoosh.

As the mana flowed toward one point, Yugeon placed the Flowing Star Stone near her solar plexus.

Then.

Bzzzzzzzzzz.

The mana gathered at that point began to be absorbed into the Flowing Star Stone.

“Gasp!”

Grab.

Seeing the scene, Mincheol unconsciously let out a cry of surprise.

Startled by his own voice, he hurriedly covered his mouth.

‘M-Mana...!!’

Bzzzzzzzzzz.

Whoosh!

Tap.

After watching the process for several minutes, once even the last remaining trace of mana had been completely absorbed.

Yugeon removed the Flowing Star Stone from her solar plexus.

“Brother...”

“The treatment is finished.”

“...”

Thump.

The moment he heard that the treatment was over, Mincheol collapsed to the floor without realizing it.

He had been so tense that all the strength left his legs.

“Your mother isn’t an Awakened, so you need to decoct the Red Blood Root for her to drink. Don’t use high heat. Simmer it on low heat for about two hours, then remove the Red Blood Root and have her drink only the infused water.”

“...”

“Mincheol.”

“Yes, Brother... I’m listening.”

“Got it?”

“Yes. I’ll... I’ll make sure I remember.”

Mincheol lowered his head and tears fell one after another.

Every day, he had felt as though a heavy boulder sat inside his chest from the fear that his mother might die.

But now that his mother had finally been cured.

The knot in his heart began melting away like snow.

_____________

Creak.

Thud.

After finishing what he had come to do, Yugeon left Mincheol’s home.

‘With this, the future has changed.’

Standing in front of the building, Yugeon thought of Cha Mincheol.

His mother would no longer lose her life.

And Mincheol had become his companion instead of joining Genocide.

‘I’ll change everything like this, one by one.’

Swoosh.

Crack!

Yugeon crushed the Flowing Star Stone in his hand.

He had changed the past using knowledge from the future.

Ding-!

[You have changed the fate of a key figure from the future.]

[The Sanctuary is startled upon seeing Cha Mincheol.]

[The Outer Realm becomes enraged upon seeing Cha Mincheol’s dormant trait.]

[The Sanctuary searches for ■■■, the original owner of Heavenly Slaughter Star.]

[The Outer Realm curses ■■■, the original owner of Heavenly Slaughter Star.]

[The Sanctuary and Outer Realm express concern upon seeing Cha Mincheol’s dormant trait.]

Feat　　　+1

‘Oh, my Feat increased.’

While he had been leveling up and increasing his stats until now.

His Feat alone had remained at 2.

He had been wondering how he was supposed to increase it, but seeing the message made him begin to understand.

‘It seems Feat increases whenever I greatly disturb or alter some kind of flow.’

Of course, he could not be certain yet.

He needed to observe it further.

‘Actually, the first person to discover this treatment method was Cha Mincheol.’

Several decades from now.

Even after his mother died, Cha Mincheol was unable to let go of his obsession with finding a cure.

Eventually, he succeeded in discovering a treatment for mana poisoning.

He devised a method of using White Spirit Incense to stabilize the mana, then absorbing it with a Flowing Star Stone.

A Flowing Star Stone could not absorb mana if it was simply left there.

But there was exactly one exception.

When a special condition occurred, the Flowing Star Stone would absorb mana.

That condition was the stabilization of mana.

In other words, aligning the texture of mana that flowed chaotically.

When the mana was ordered into a single consistent flow, the Flowing Star Stone would absorb it.

If that condition were not met, even a hundred Flowing Star Stones piled together could not absorb mana that had seeped into the body.

‘More importantly, the reaction from the Sanctuary and Outer Realm.’

Something was strange.

They were surprised after seeing Mincheol’s trait?

‘Heavenly Slaughter Star...’

A being born with a fate of slaughter.

Or a murderer bestowed by heaven.

But unlike what was commonly known, the true meaning of Heavenly Slaughter Star was.

‘Not a calamity of slaughter sent down by heaven, but a calamity that kills heaven.’

Judging by the reactions of the Sanctuary and Outer Realm.

It seemed they had not known that Cha Mincheol possessed that trait.

‘Could it be...’

Seeing the message that they expressed concern made him suspicious.

Before the regression, Cha Mincheol had been betrayed by Genocide and killed.

‘Did the Sanctuary and Outer Realm interfere?’

If those two groups where gods gathered reacted this strongly.

It did not seem like an entirely baseless suspicion.

‘I’ll have to keep watching for now.’

Now it was time to go find the Legendary item he would give to Hwang Mungi.

His plans in preparation for the future.

Were steadily progressing.

______________

In front of the entrance leading to the tower.

Yugeon and Mincheol stood there.

“How’s your mother?”

“Haha, she got up early this morning and started running around in front of the apartment. She said her body felt so light she could fly.”

“You gave her the Red Blood Root infusion, right?”

“Of course. Maybe thanks to that, Mother’s condition has been improving even faster.”

Swoosh.

Mincheol looked at Yugeon and bowed deeply.

“Brother, you are my benefactor.”

“It wasn’t anything difficult. And you were the one who taught me that treatment method.”

“Pardon? I did?”

Mincheol tilted his head.

He had not even known such a treatment existed in the world.

“From now on, I’ll even give my life for you, Brother!”

Thump.

Mincheol struck his own chest.

The benefactor who had granted him salvation.

No matter what happened, he would remain by Han Yugeon’s side, helping and serving him.