translation by mourningmoor
“Before that… we need to balance things out.”
Instead of opening the gate, I ignited mana in my hand and took a step forward. Bartholomeus’s shoulders flinched.
A blue light rippled across my palm.
But it wasn’t a powerful spell. It was more like a warm-up level of mana manifestation.
Yet, Bartholomeus was terrified because of the abnormally surging mana within me.
I twisted my lips into a cold smile and pulled a ring off my finger.
“Isn’t it only fair that things are balanced?”
I tossed the ring onto the floor.
The ring rolled across the floor and stopped at Bartholomeus’s feet.
“You’re using all sorts of powers, while I’m holding back even the power I have. That’s just too unfair.”
I threw off all the rings, leaving only the friendship piercing, and discarded all the accessories on my body.
“We should both give it our all so there’s no regret.”
Except for the piercing, everything else was a control device to keep my power from running wild. Once I removed all the restraints, my mana surged more than twice its usual level.
As if sensing it, Bartholomeus’s eyes widened in shock.
“Didn’t I tell you?”
I stepped closer to him and whispered quietly.
“I’m a bit different from you.”
Then, I gave him a faint smile.
Perhaps out of anger, Bartholomeus’s lips twisted grotesquely.
Yeah, he must be furious. He probably didn’t anticipate this.
He underestimated my power.
But stubbornly, he didn’t seem willing to back down.
“You, what can you do?”
Instead, he tightened his grip on Mihyang’s hair and thrashed around.
His old face twisted cruelly, as if to say, “What can you do with a hostage in front of you?”
But his bravado didn’t last long.
Like a marionette with its strings cut, the hand gripping Mihyang’s hair suddenly went limp. Bartholomeus looked at me with disbelief.
“I warned you. It would’ve been better not to do that.”
I scanned his face with a pitying look and clicked my tongue.
I hope he feels humiliated.
“You must’ve forgotten. The source of your power in this world is me. My hair. The mana of this world reacted to it.”
With one hand subdued by me, he let out a scream. It might’ve been due to an amplification spell, but it was loud enough to make my ears ring. But I didn’t back down. I didn’t go easy on him.
Right now, I need to instill fear in him.
“Do you know what that means? No matter how many times you die and come back, you can’t beat me.”
Then, I bound his arms tightly with mana, like tying them with rope.
It was a common binding spell.
And at that very moment, a thin blade pierced Bartholomeus’s chest.
It was Mihyang.
Despite being terrified and in pain, she didn’t even blink.
A horrific scream tore through Bartholomeus’s lips.
He struggled desperately to break free from the binding spell, but unable to shake off my power, his pain only intensified.
Mihyang was also struggling.
Having driven the blade into Bartholomeus’s chest, Mihyang had used so much force that her lips split open. Unaware of the blood dripping from her lips, she didn’t let go until the end.
“Get away from my son, you old bastard.”
At that moment, a red light seeped into the blade Mihyang had plunged.
* * *
It was the day before leaving for São Paulo.
I went to Samcheok with Yoo Noah to see Mihyang.
It wasn’t a normal visit by car.
We barged into Yoo Noah’s triple penthouse and woke him up. Then, we flew straight to Samcheok.
Of course, Mihyang was very flustered.
At 11 p.m., her son showed up unannounced, and with him was Yoo Noah, a national idol. It was impossible not to be surprised.
“You, you, you… what’s going on?”
But the real surprise was yet to come. She went out to the backyard to throw away some trash and suddenly ran into us, who had appeared out of nowhere.
“I, I was surprised.”
It was only natural to faint. But Mihyang handled the situation calmly, just being surprised.
She let us into the house without saying much.
She offered us seats in the living room, brought out tea, and even peeled an apple for us.
The silence slowly dragged on.
“Mom…”
There had been a lot of deliberation before coming to Samcheok.
I had gathered the courage to at least tell Mihyang the truth.
The truth is, I’m not your son. Your son died from a lightning strike, and I’m a mage from another world who took over his body. And I need to tell you what might happen in the future. Maybe even ask for your help.
Of course, it wasn’t as simple as it sounded.
Even as I set out, I wasn’t sure if this was the right thing to do. I was worried about causing Mihyang even more pain.
After much deliberation, I concluded that this was the best course of action.
But I didn’t expect to be exposed like this before I could even start talking.
Just as I was mustering the courage to begin, Mihyang spoke first.
“My son never called me ‘Mom.’”
Mihyang set down her teacup and spoke.
“He never smiled brightly either.”
Then, she stabbed an apple with a fork and handed it to me.
“He never shone as beautifully as you do.”
I didn’t know what to say, so I just accepted the apple.
“He resented me a lot. We exchanged harsh words, hurt each other, and that was how my son and I lived. There was no warmth at all.”
Mihyang, who had been speaking calmly, suddenly shed tears.
“I knew. That you’re not Ichan.”
If I hadn’t known, I wouldn’t be a mother either.
No matter how bad our relationship was, how could a mother not recognize her own son?
“I could feel it. You were too different.”
Mihyang wiped her tears with her fingertips and smiled sadly.
“But you did things my son couldn’t, and that made me happy.”
“Mom…”
I feel guilty even calling her ‘Mom.’ I’m not her real son.
I might not even be able to protect this body properly.
That’s why I felt even more sorry.
“Mom, so I…”
“Yes. I’m your mom.”
Mihyang cut me off, as if refusing to listen, and shook her head.
“So, just be Ichan.”
Mihyang, having completely hidden her tears, spoke with determination.
“Let’s just keep it as it is now, okay?”
At Mihyang’s words, Yoo Noah, who had been quietly munching on an apple, chimed in.
“You won’t be able to do that even if you want to.”
Mihyang looked at Yoo Noah with a cold expression.
Her sharp gaze seemed to say, “What kind of nonsense are you spouting?”
Then, Yoo Noah, setting down the apple, continued quietly.
“Hmm. Jes— no, Ichan is being targeted by a crazy old man who wants to take him back to where he originally came from. The situation isn’t good. Plus, for Ichan to cleanly deal with that old man, it’s better to return to his original…”
“Original place?”
Eyes the same color as Kang Ichan’s trembled anxiously as they looked at me.
It was a look of confirmation. No, it was a plea for me to say it wasn’t true.
Even after learning I wasn’t her real son, she still tried to hold onto her position as a mother.
“To stop that old man, there’s no other choice. His identity will inevitably be revealed. That’s why we’re here. At least you should know the truth beforehand.”
It seemed she didn’t hear the part about having a separate identity.
Mihyang, with a confused expression, summarized Yoo Noah’s words.
“So, some crazy old man is trying to take him to another…world?”
Yoo Noah nodded at Mihyang’s question.
It was ridiculous. Mihyang easily dismissed the part about me having a separate identity and only reacted sensitively to the words “crazy old man” and “trying to take him.”
“Who dares to take my son away? Are they insane?”
Mihyang’s face was filled with determination, as if she wouldn’t let anyone take her son away.
No wonder I couldn’t help but think of Mihyang as my mother.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll handle it.”
Finally finding the courage to speak, I blurted out what I needed to say.
“Because I entered Ichan’s body, you became my mom, and something dangerous might happen. That’s why I’m here. To tell you that.”
Then, Mihyang, regaining her composure, listened to me much more calmly than before.
“Tell me. What should I do?”
As I always feel, Mihyang is an incredibly strong person.
That felt more reassuring than having an army at my back.
“If you trust me, will you do as I say?”
* * *
“Ichan-ah? Hurry up.”
Mihyang, driving the blade deeper, shouted with a trembling voice.
Then, Bartholomeus, confused, began to withdraw the mana he had been pouring into the magic circle.
“No way.”
His power was quickly subdued by me.
Pressing down with a much stronger force, Bartholomeus was immobilized.
But the danger wasn’t over.
Even weakened, he was still a Grand Mage. If he decided to fight back, he could hold his own for a few rounds, and that would put Mihyang and the kids in danger.
“Daimon!”
As I shouted, the red energy embedded in the blade rippled and surged.
“Hurry.”
Bartholomeus’s resisting power also surged wildly.
Inside his body, a fierce battle was unfolding to overcome my power.
Then, it happened.
The red energy seeping through the blade, along with a faint blue light, seeped back into the blade.
It seemed to have absorbed everything.
“Mom. Step back now. I’ll handle the rest.”