What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 638

#638

Interstellar Molecule (5)

-Clang! Crash!

From then on, I was truly out of my mind!

“Uwaaa―!”

“Hold on tight, Princess. Brother, you hold His Highness firmly as well.”

[Argh, you fiend! My uncle’s hair is falling out!]

I don’t even remember if the transparent floor was torn or broken, and I couldn’t figure out how my friends, who were clearly like paper, transformed into the figures I knew as soon as they came outside.

One thing was certain: our brothers no longer had to rely solely on each other.

Blinking my watery eyes several times, I realized that the phoenix’s blue mane was caught in the Crown Prince’s grasp.

My mouth dropped open at his fierce, jade-like eyes.

I can’t tell if that’s a caring gesture or a tormenting one!

“Cedric! What if our brother gets alopecia [hair loss] like that!”

[Jeong Ye-seo, take that back! Take it back right now!]

“There’s no time for that, Brother! Run quickly!”

‘Or fly!’ Ms. Gain shouted, her voice ringing.

At that signal, we all started running forward as if possessed.

Even though the front was just the same white space, and our destination wasn’t visible, we ran like crazy anyway.

Romero His Majesty, who had been dealing with the two sisters, quickly disappeared into the distance.

His Durendal [a legendary sword] and cloak made a splendid pair, dancing a waltz.

GooGoo, who had crawled up from somewhere, slipped into Sir Johan’s pocket.

With the Growth [likely a magical item or ability] in one hand, I wrapped my arm around the man’s neck and looked back.

He used so much power to open the rainbow bridge, it seemed like none of the three of us could use Ether [a magical energy source] right now―

-Thud······!

“Huh?”

In the distance, an old woman struck the floor with her scythe, and black smoke billowed out.

I reflexively frowned. Naturally, I had a bad feeling. What is that······?

-Swish······!

「Subversiveelementsubversiveelementsubversiveelementsubversiveelementsubversiveelementsubversiveelementsubversiveelementsubversiveelementsubversiveelementsubversiveelementsubversiveelement」

Ugh! They’re people!

-Rustle rustle!

「SubversiveelementSubversiveelementSubversiveelementSubversiveelement!」

“Crazy, oh my god! Sir Johan!”

‘Ghosts are swarming!’ I shouted, practically sitting on the man’s arm.

It wasn’t certain, but the fact that the group rising from the floor was all black and white made it a plausible guess.

The Cardinal quickly turned his head to look behind him.

For a moment, it was hard to keep my balance, so I grabbed onto his hair. Oh, I’m sorry!

“It seems they’re coming to get me.”

“Yes?”

“I don’t think I’m a model citizen, after all. They must want to scold me.”

“No, what are you saying, no!”

‘Father Herrit!’ I was so confused that I just kept shouting.

Meeting my friends was a godsend, but now I was literally seeing stars.

Ms. Gain and the Crown Prince were sweating profusely but didn’t stop running.

Meanwhile, Jeong Hyeon-seo slipped out of the man’s hand and started flapping his wings somehow.

Until a moment ago, we were just running forward without knowing why, but now everyone had a clearer reason.

I had a feeling that if we were caught by that group of ghosts, we wouldn’t be safe!

「Let’s cut open their bellies and open their hearts to see!」

「If we bite that, we will gain life too」

「Let’s cut open their lungs and open their windpipes to drink!」

「If we drink that, we will receive attention too」

「La la la」

「Na na na」

「Give it to me」

「Where did you come from? Which button were you born from?」

「Where did you come from? Did you split open God’s eyeball and come out?」

「A child with a name!」

「A delicious name!」

“Uwaaa······!”

Scary! Everything they say is terrible and scary!

I turned pale as if I were watching a scene from [a popular zombie TV series].

They were really stepping on each other’s bodies and pouring out like a tide.

It’s not a metaphor, it’s really The Walking Dead!

“Ms. Gain! Are you alright?”

“No! I wish I were, but I have no strength left!”

‘I used too much Ether and I’m getting motion sickness!’ Ms. Gain shouted, almost tripping and falling.

Terrified, I couldn’t even scream and just stared at her.

I sincerely wanted to help, but running on my own two feet would only be a nuisance, and if I used more Ether here, I might faint first.

The Crown Prince’s cheeks and neck were also pale.

Sir Johan was miraculously holding on, but I now knew what his face looked like when he was exhausted.

It was exactly the same complexion as now. His lips were parched with anxiety.

My brother seemed to be the same, flapping his wings strangely like a broken doll.

「One bite, two bites, three bites!」

“This is bad. We need to come up with a plan somehow······.”

「Swallowing you will do!」

I suddenly thought of the Saint Stone hair tie and Saint Stone necklace, but quickly dismissed the idea.

I gave them to Christel and the Crown Prince in the garden, so I don’t have them anymore.

But at this rate, everyone won’t last long.

I was worried and frustrated because the little ones weren’t around.

How can I help? I want to be of use, but what should I do when I have nothing? Will I be able to meet the little ones like this?

Think, Jeong Ye-seo. Think, think······.

「Kuh, this is the end for me!」

“Heok, Your Majesty!”

I woke up from my thoughts with a start, as if someone had struck me out of the blue.

Golden hair, resembling the sun, rippled right in front of my eyes.

It was none other than Romero Liester who had caught up to our tail at lightning speed.

The man was running at full speed, his long cloak fluttering like a tail!

“What happened?!”

You told me to leave it to you, didn’t you!

「Those are the souls who once resided on the continent. I cannot kill them again, and how could I wield a sword against my own people? Having recognized this body, I cannot bring myself to do so.」

“Ah, aigoo!”

“Does someone who thinks so much of their people continue a war for decades?”

I covered my forehead and Cedric snapped back almost simultaneously.

Romero shone his red eyes and looked back at his great-grandson.

A faint smile appeared on his lips as he sprinted.

「Therefore, do not become a ruler like me.」

“······.”

「Be sure to return alive and make your mother and grandfather proud.」

At those words, his crimson eyes widened.

Ms. Gain, Sir Johan, and I had initially fallen into Romero’s trap and crossed over to the garden, so we knew his intentions well.

However, Cedric, for whom this was his first conversation with his great-grandfather, couldn’t help but be surprised.

The moment he momentarily slowed down his running speed―

-Swish swish······!

“Ugh, what is it this time!”

This time, something black rose from the front like a stage set.

Ms. Gain looked up at the ceiling and sighed loudly, and we all stopped abruptly in our tracks.

I hurriedly got off Sir Johan’s arm and stood on my own two feet.

I barely supported my wobbly legs with the Growth······.

「Tsk. The third old woman. This has become troublesome.」

[Damn it!]

What appeared right under our noses was the last of the three sisters.

Hands with long, slender fingernails moved in the air as if conducting music.

Then, black clouds similar to what we had seen before began to fill the area around her.

Melting and dissolving like clay dolls······.

「Subversiveelementgivemeyourstorytoo」

「Subversiveelementfeedmeyourtearstoo」

「Theonlyblemishinthepureworld」

「BurstseamGod’sbarb」

“Oh my god······.”

They were all staring at Sir Johan, obsessing over him as if he were their only god.

Hugging the phoenix, I instinctively took a step back.

Jeong Hyeon-seo chattered his beak and shook his mane as if he were disgusted.

With the front and back blocked in an instant, we were quickly being surrounded.

We quickly formed a circle and stood shoulder to shoulder with our friends.

「Those are nameless souls, but they are constantly mentioned in history. That is why they are so attached to proving their existence.」

The late Emperor explained. Ms. Gain looked up at him with a grimace.

“What does that mean? They are mentioned even though they have no name?”

「If you have read the historical records, you will know what it means. The history of the continent has been marked by frequent major wars and battles, and countless people have died each time. In short―」

「Giveusyourproof!」

「Letustasteyourexistence!」

「······They ended their lives as nameless soldiers and harbored resentment. However, they have accumulated too great achievements to return to the embrace of God, so they cannot leave this place recklessly. But for some reason, they seem to be jealous of you.」

Romero said, looking at Sir Johan.

The Cardinal simply tilted his head and showed no particular reaction.

I thought of Johan Haines as a ‘character who did not exist in the original story.’

My brother seemed to be thinking the same thing.

So those ghosts were the ones who had festered here for hundreds of years, unable to rest properly and unremembered.

It was completely different from His Majesty Hanan, who had a lavish funeral and made his name known for generations, but was bound to his tomb by his own resentment.

Knowing the situation, pity spread over my shallow fear.

Meanwhile, the late Emperor silently looked around at his son-in-law.

The three sisters were slowly walking towards us.

One held a gleaming scythe, one rolled a cartwheel, and the other held flowing fabric.

Looking at their emotionless, empty eyes made me feel chills down my spine.

“They say they don’t need us, so what’s their business······.”

[I’m saying······.]

My brother and I whispered, and Romero looked back at the group.

He still moved his lips without a voice.

「If one world line could disappear so easily, Eta would not have been punished by being scattered to the winds like that.」

“······Yes?”

“······Yes?”

“······Um?”

Suddenly? We blinked in unison. But the late Emperor was a patient adult.

I saw him silently draw Durendal.

「Time and affection cannot be reversed, so do not worry. It will never disappear.」

“Ah······.”

「And you can trust my words.」

He whispered, looking at Cedric. The eyes of the two royals met.

「Didn’t I tell you to leave this place to me?」

-Sreung! Kwaaaang!

Before we could react, the Emperor’s Durendal flashed like a shooting star and shattered the floor.

I thought I heard Sir Johan mutter ‘meteorite iron’.

But because the tremendous gravity dragged everyone into darkness―

-Ssaeeeaeek!

[Ugh, Jeong Ye-seo! Hold on tight!]

“Your Majesty! Romero Your Majesty!”

The ground under our feet collapsed, and we began to fall at full speed.

The last scene I saw was being pierced by darkness in dozens or hundreds of places and shattered into pieces······.

-Tear······!

「Go, Cedric.」

“Oh my god! No! Your Majesty!”

It was the end of Romero Liester.

Once again, night fell.

*

“Ugh!”

[Jeong Ye-seo! Jeong Ye, open your eyes!]

“How can I open my eyes when I keep falling!”

The lukewarm air kept hitting my cheeks, but I somehow managed to lift my eyelids while talking back.

It was good that I finally entered a world with color and warmth, but the problem was that we were still ‘falling’. Uwaaa!

-Swoosh!

“Serenite, Kuh!”

“Auk!”

“Uwaa! What is this!”

The place where we plunged straight down was a dark room. But it didn’t hurt at all.

The place where the group fell sank down like a trampoline and then bounced back up······.

“Who are you?”

“Heok.”

Right then, a young voice came from inside.

It was the voice of a royal child that I knew so well.