Transformation or Death

Chapter 23

The Meaning of Guardianship (1)

A harbinger of divinity.

The light was not bright enough to be called divine. Yet, it was majestic. It sparkled as coldly and bluely as an illuminated glacier.

It was like the festival of a northern village.

But Blue Sirius’ heart was not the same. I felt the sensation of her blood running cold, something I hadn’t experienced in a long time.

Anger was a good motivator to bring out more power than usual.

And if that anger had started as love, even more so.

The dusty clouds that had been dimming the surrounding scenery became a snowstorm, chilling the air. In that icy wind, Blue Sirius’ hair fluttered coolly.

“Jae-jung… I’ll rescue you quickly. Wait.”

As she took a step, huge ice crystals formed at the center of that spot. The ice crystals gradually diverged from their original shape, extending like blades. The ominous ice blades pierced Paradox’s feet.

Feeling that sensation, Paradox laughed interestedly.

“Hahaha! That’s almost a 6-star level! Libra, is it similar to yours?”

“Shut up. I’m not bound by the number of stars now.”

“You’re right. That was the case.” Paradox chuckled again and opened his palm. The spear that had been flung away flew back to his hand.

The long handle retracted into the shaft, becoming shorter, like a baton containing another baton. The blade of the spear folded in the opposite direction. Through this process, it became a shield, its original form.

“Well then, I’ll be on my way.”

“…What?” Libra asked, and Blue Sirius’ brow twitched.

“Why are you reacting like that? Didn’t you just tell me to get lost? I’m just doing as you said. What’s the problem?” Paradox said, brushing off the dust and frost on the shield. “Moreover, aren’t you two each a star? It’s a perfect balance, so I don’t have a reason to interfere.”

“You’re going to let me go?”

“If I don’t, I’ll kill this man right now, you see?”

He lifted the red steel boots. Then he immediately lowered them again. The boots grazed Han Jae-jung’s cheek, trampling the ground. It was a clear threat.

Blue Sirius quickly thrust out his ice spears. It was a volley of icy shards, meant to cool his boiling insides. Paradox bent his waist softly, dodging them. Icicles passed through the spot where his face had been.

“Do you want to die?”

“I’m sorry. Could you please give me some leeway? I don’t have any outstanding mobility. If you chase me, I’ll have to fight unwillingly. It’ll just be me running away quickly, that’s all. Hmm? No, I’ll withdraw that.”

Paradox smiled brightly, as if he had come up with a new hypothesis.

“Haha, I didn’t even need to ask for permission to run away.”

One of his blue eyes turned red. It had achieved perfect balance.

The Paradox Principle was activated.

He had copied the ability.

Before long, a golden scale appeared on his shoulder. He had copied Libra’s star.

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“I’ve done it this way. I’m really sorry about this.”

Paradox bowed his head, not towards Blue Sirius, but towards Han Jae-jung. Leaning over him, Paradox whispered softly. “Let’s clash again sometime. Then I’ll be able to see your full power.”

Han Jae-jung chuckled wryly. What a kind fellow, giving sermons and encouragement to someone on the brink of death.

Paradox straightened his bent back and this time greeted Blue Sirius.

“Let’s meet one-on-one next time.”

It was an indirect announcement of a coming battle. Blue Sirius would now be unable to avoid the confrontation. As Paradox bid farewell, a round sphere rose up onto his shoulder. It was easy to recognize it as one of the stars from the scale position.

“The deal is complete.”

Clang. With those words, the scale on Paradox’s shoulder became horizontal.

Red and blue smoke scattered. It was a teleportation using the deal, just like what Libra had done before. While it could be seen as an unfair trade, given that the cost was only one star, considering Paradox’s abilities, the loss was not that significant.

After all, the starlight would recover over time.

“Well, goodbye everyone.”

And so, Paradox calmly disappeared from sight.

“That bastard really left.”

Libra was the only one left. Blue Sirius scrunched up her face in displeasure. To leave so calmly without any punishment, how infuriating.

But she pushed aside her displeasure for now. There was still a task to be done.

The anger continued to blaze, freezing the world.

Blue Sirius moved the swords she was holding. Swoosh. A blue gale swept through the space between Libra and Han Jae-jung. Following that gale, a wall of ice was erected.

“It’s a pity I couldn’t tear that guy to pieces, but…”

Losing Paradox was regrettable, but now was not the time to think about that. The ground had become completely icy. Under her boots, she had created thin blades like ice skates.

After protecting Han Jae-jung, Blue Sirius immediately charged at Libra.

“But I’m still glad you stayed.”

The cold, blade-like tip was fixed on Libra. Blue Sirius simply reached out and stabbed the empty air. There was no need to actually strike Libra.

Xuěhuā yīlù (Snowflake Path).

A sparkling snowy path engulfed him. It was a path of light, and it was a sword. A missile-like mass of icy storms slashed through everything that passed along that path.

“Ugh…”

Libra jumped into the air with her pseudo-nova high-speed movement to evade it.

“You have to take what you gave to Jae-jung.”

Blue Sirius gave an ominous laugh. A faint shadow fell over the leaping Libra. It was a shadow as if thin glass was pierced by sunlight.

Illusionary Frost Sword.

The twin’s phantom is most suited to stab the enemy in the back. The ice phantom like shards of glass swung the sword once more. Snowstorm Resonating Strike.

Kwaaang!

The second Snowstorm Resonating Strike hit Libra directly. Libra felt the impact as if being ground in a blender. Enduring the pain, she gathered starlight into her fist.

As the preparation was complete, she unhesitatingly swung that fist.

Sublime Light Flashing.

A massive golden spear, bright enough to make anyone’s desires flare, pushed away the ice.

An overwhelmingly powerful laser beam shot up to the sky, momentarily blotting out the sunlight. Due to its presence, Blue Sirius was distracted, if only for a brief moment.

Libra, landed on the ground, gathered golden light into both her fists this time. Her gaze was not directed at Blue Sirius.

Divine. The light of that violent explosion condensed, densely packed, as if ready to burst out at any moment. Two tiny golden discs floated above her fists.

Libra struck those two discs.

The direction, towards Han Jae-jung.

Celestial Judgment Falls.

As the Celestial Scale falls, all things fall into chaos.

It seemed like stars were falling from the sky. The difference was that what was falling were not stars, but beams of destructive starlight, and the direction of the fall was from left to right, not from top to bottom. 

The light moved rapidly, as if receiving gravity from a direction where gravity should not be executed. A violence that allowed no one within its orbit to survive was carried out.

“Sacrifice for the greater good!”

At this moment, Han Jae-jung’s body was still in critical condition. He was pathetically weak to move. The ice wall seemed too thin to block the beam. A moment of complete immobility, unable to move or defend.

He must not die. That thought was all-consuming. There was fear. A terror beyond instinct.

From the corner of his vision, blue starlight scattered. For a fleeting moment, he turned to look there.

He saw the star.

The beautiful blue star.

[ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATION.]

Even as the overwhelming golden light erased other lights, that was the only thing he could see vividly.

He must not die.

If I died here and now, I would inflict an indelible wound on her.

Just a single moment would be enough. When the light blinded everyone without exception, if I could only defend my body for that little time.

“No!”

Blue Sirius swung three swords. Phantom swords from both directions simultaneously. An ice wall, likely three meters thick, blocked the path of the light. It was a desperate resistance. But it was futile.

The star, infinitely close to the divine, was fired as a condensed beam. The ice wall melted and shattered like candy. The light approached Han Jae-jung’s eyes. Its power had diminished somewhat, but it was still enough to melt a person. His vision turned completely white. Terror approached.

But resolve accompanied it.

Suddenly, a contradictory thought occurred.

To be dominated by the stars, or to be chosen by them.

Which of the two, desire or duty, will you bear?

He was neither of those.

[THE BIG DIPPER.]

Just before the light touched me, a green armor enveloped my body. Somehow, there seemed to be a crack in it.

[ORIGIN.]

Kwaaaaaang!!!!

Simultaneously, the light engulfed me.

That was the last of Han Jae-jung’s consciousness.

Where the light had swept, not a single life seemed to remain. The asphalt road had melted, emitting a pungent smell. The path was shrouded in flames. Debris from the collapsed buildings, not even grazed, simply lying around, decorated the road.

There was light, and darkness descended. The smoke rising from the melting and collapsing created a different kind of obstruction to the vision.

“Jae-jung!”

Blue Sirius, in a state of panic, ran towards that place.

Freezing and clearing the obstacles around, she ran towards the end where the light had reached.

Libra had already disappeared from sight.

“Please… God… Don’t do this to me… Please….”

The moisture in her voice betrayed the agony she was feeling now.

[Guardian, calm down.]

“Can’t you see the situation right now?!”

She raised her voice angrily even at the mascot, who never got angry.

The smoke gradually cleared.

[I’m saying this because there is evidence.]

The loyal-dog-like mascot continued speaking without a hint of discomposure.

From within the smoke, a human form emerged, not ashes, but a person. While all the paths where the light had fallen had melted, one person’s form remained intact.

[Life signs are detected.]

Covered in wounds all over, but not a corpse.

[He is still alive.]

He was alive.

***   

Ippotranslation

***

In the dark unconsciousness, Han Jae-jung felt a warm touch. It was the same sensation he felt when having a nightmare. When the scenes of losing his entire family would torment him in his dreams, someone would hold his hand like this. It was his lover.

Why?

Now, he could not remember the faces of his family or his lover. Had they all drifted apart so long ago that their memories had evaporated? He felt saddened by this and tried to recall a name.

“Seol-hwa…”

His eyes snapped open. Has he finally gone mad? Why was that name coming out? Startled, Han Jae-jung sat up.

“I’m sorry, but I’m not Seol-hwa.”

A sarcastic voice. He turned his head towards the source.

“Pink… Deneb?”

The pink hair cascading down her neck, the small stature even while sitting, the tiny yet soft hands connected to his right hand. What captivated his eyes was not just her appearance, but her attire as well.

A dress with a mix of white and pink colors, along with a celestial robe flowing down her shoulders, like a goddess’s wings.

This was not her usual look, but a transformed appearance.

“Are you very disappointed that it’s me?”

Unlike her soft-looking outfit, her attitude was not particularly gentle.