Chapter 340
Extra 3. Epilogue (Part 1)
Although their marriage had been quite political in the beginning, it did not mean that the relations.h.i.+p between Kim Seon-Hyeok and Ophelia was formal. Just as Ophelia loved him, Kim Seon-Hyeok truly loved his beautiful and wise wife.
There was a trust between them that was stronger than in any other couple, and they didn’t hesitate to devote themselves to each other.
Caring and loving each other, they lived for a thousand years like that, so it was only natural that Kim Seon-Hyeok felt like his entire world was collapsing when Ophelia left the world. He couldn’t do anything nor did he feel like doing anything. He simply stared vacantly at Ophelia’s empty seat.
“As she had fully accepted the Eternal Flower, her body was just a sh.e.l.l, so she must have found her true form after her death.”
If Najima hadn’t come and told him of Ophelia’s reincarnation, he might have lived with his loss and grief for a long time, perhaps even forever.
Najima told him that since Ophelia was influenced by the Eternal Flower, she most likely would have been reincarnated as a Spirit.
“Then can I see her again?”
Even with the pa.s.sing of the seasons, his voice had never brightened up. But now, his voice was full of vitality again. His face was full of antic.i.p.ation at the possibility of seeing his beloved wife again, however, Najima shook her head.
“She will have lost most of her memories in the process of finding her true self.”
Kim Seon-Hyeok fell into despair. It was as if his feeling of exhilaration had instantly fallen into the gutter.
“I believe that’s something I can solve for you.”
At that moment, a shadow in the forest spoke up.
“It’s been a while.”
The shadow seemed to move, and then it became a black-haired woman. It was Han Jin-Hee, the G.o.d of Death, Thanatos" proxy.
“What do you mean?”
Kim Seon-Hyeok didn’t seem surprised by her sudden appearance. Although he had left her alone while he was grieving, he still knew that she had been hanging around his vicinity.
“Exactly as I said. With the G.o.d of Death’s power, I can bring back any memory the dead left behind in the Land of Oblivion.”
“Truly?!”
Han Jin-Hee nodded as she watched him quickly turning hopeful again. Whether in her facial expression or her gestures, it didn’t look like she was lying.
“That is, if you’ll listen to a request of mine later on.”
He didn’t care what kind of favor she would ask. Right now, the only thing important to him was seeing Ophelia again.
“I’ll pay any price.”
He wondered why he thought of so many things he had never said to her while she had still been alive. He accepted the deal with the G.o.d of Death without any hesitation.
If there was a problem, it would be that until she regained her memory, Ophelia would be just one of the many Spirits he hadn’t signed a contract with - he had no means of contacting her specifically.
But thankfully, he knew someone who could solve that particular problem for him.
“If it’s the Mother Tree, then…”
At one point in time, the Mother Tree had only been a seedling, but under the Dragon’s protection, it had been able to escape the tainted land and settled in the far east to become a giant tree. If it was the Mother Tree, then it would be able to find a way.
It was just as he expected. The Mother Tree was aware of a Spirit born with the energy of the Eternal Flower among the newly born Spirits and she gladly granted his request.
Flewp.
The Spirit that emerged from the ground was particularly small and had a child-like face. The Spirit looked like how Ophelia had looked in her childhood to a remarkable degree.
The loveable little princess - it was as if he had gone back a thousand years when he had first met her in the Ceremony of Triumphant Return.
‘Have you summoned me for a contract?’
The Spirit looked exactly like his beloved wife, but the only expression on her face was the interest and curiosity of a Spirit as they looked at a contractor for the first time. There wasn’t a single bit of sentimentality that he was feeling on her face.
“Han Jin-Hee.”
Kim Seon-Hyeok took a deep breath and called Han Jin-Hee.
“From the Land of Oblivion, bones and flesh are formed again with a handful of soil. And though blood may not flow, let it be as you were while still alive.”
Almost as if she had been waiting for him, she scooped up blackened soil and scattered it into the air as she chanted. The black soil dispersed like smoke and was sucked into the Spirit.
‘Mm…’
The Spirit trembled and then frowned.
Kim Seon-Hyeok’s heart dropped when he saw how uncannily similar her expression was. The subtle frown on the Spirit’s face was so like the expression his wife had made while still alive.
But he didn’t express his happiness hastily, instead, he patiently watched the Spirit change.
‘My love?’
The result was more than worth his patience. The peculiar expression that was characteristic of a Spirit who hadn’t contracted with him disappeared, and his wife Ophelia’s expression took its place.
“Ophelia!”
Although she looked like how she had in her childhood, he was extremely happy.
‘Ah, so I have become an Earth Spirit.’
Even after becoming a Spirit, Ophelia’s wisdom hadn’t faded and she quickly understood the situation. However, as wise as she was, it did not seem like she understood how or why he had summoned her.
In a lively voice, he explained everything that had happened and even told her what it was that he wanted.
“Let’s never part again. Let’s always be together. Will you sign a contract with me?”
She gave an unfathomable smile when she realized that not even death could separate their extreme love. However, the moment he saw that beautiful smile, Kim Seon-Hyeok’s heart sank.
“Ophelia?”
She slowly shook her head as she looked at him.
‘I will not sign a contract with you.’
He couldn’t say anything in response to that very unexpected answer. He started at her foolishly as he opened and closed his mouth multiple times.
“Why?!”
Almost screaming, he finally spoke.
‘Because I do not want you to be chained to me once again.’
“Ophelia!”
Taken aback, he shouted at her, but she merely watched him without wavering.
‘You should roam the world freely now. That is what I want from you.’
“A world without you means nothing…”
Ophelia shook her head once again.”
‘That is why I cannot. Your relations.h.i.+p with me has already ended, so you must find a new relations.h.i.+p and meaning in life.’
“How?! How can I?! How am I supposed to?!”
He looked as if he would collapse at any moment. She coaxed him softly as she looked at him.
‘I was happy. Thanks to you, I lived an excellent life as a monarch, and I lived a life where I wasn’t envious of any woman. Wasn’t it the same for you?’
“Me too. Thanks to you…”
Unable to even squeeze out any words, he sank down to the floor.
‘That is more than enough. Now, it’s time for you to move on.’
She embraced him. He was too big and her arms weren’t long enough to fully embrace him, but it was still enough to touch his heart.
‘You have lost a lot of weight. Didn’t I tell you not to skip meals?’
“I’m sorry you had such a hard time because you married a terrible husband. Because I was so immature…”
‘Don’t say that. I didn’t deserve you as a husband.’
They had exchanged these words hundreds of thousands of times in their lifetime, but now, they were as careful and ardent as if they were confessing their feelings for the first time.
‘I loved you, and I will continue to love you in the future.’
Little by little, Ophelia’s body seemed to be getting blurry. The firmly packed soil slowly crumbled. And soon, the small, midget Spirit was no longer visible.
“Ah…”
No matter how much he grabbed at it, the soil fell apart in the end. A single tear fell onto the soil.
“Me too, me too…”
The man’s trembling voice echoed through the quiet forest.
“What do I have to do for you?”
Kim Seon-Hyeok sat there blankly for a full day before he came back to his senses.
“It would be better to talk later after you’ve calmed down a bit more. It’s nothing urgent anyway.”
Han Jin-Hee shook her head and refused to answer him when he spoke with a voice full of grief as if he hadn’t been able to shake off his emotions yet.
“Do as you please.”
He didn’t ask anymore. Right now, he just wanted to rest.
That night, almost as if he had fallen into a coma, he fell deep asleep. He dreamt that night.
That dream was perfection itself. No one had left and everyone was there. All those who had left before him, his brothers and close friends, as well as his wife and child, were all there.
It was such a sweet dream. But that was why when he woke up, he felt a profound sense of loss.
He felt suffocated just by remembering the dream, but instead of pus.h.i.+ng away that pain, he buried it deep in his heart.
That was the best he could do right now.
“Atiya.”
‘Master…’
Perhaps she realized how subdued and terrible he felt because the Wind Spirit gently caressed her master’s cheek.
“I’m fine.”
He smiled weakly when he saw how upset Atiya was.
“She told me to move on, and I’m going to do as she said.”
‘Then, that will be enough because you are strong. Someday…’
The Wind Spirit grabbed both of her master’s hands and spoke sincerely and earnestly as if she was praying. When he saw her face that was filled with trust and love, he realized that he was truly loved by so many people and that realization made his empty heart fill up a bit.
“I’ve caused you to worry.”
Atiya sighed in relief when he spoke in a voice that was slightly more energetic than before.
“Let’s make your wish come true now.”
‘It doesn’t have to be now, master.’
He shook his head at her consideration.
“It’s not good to leave the position of the Wind King vacant for much longer. The Water King was established so long ago already.”
The legacy left behind by the Spirit Kings had been pa.s.sed down through the previous Mother Tree, and one of the Water Spirits he had contracted with had ascended to the position of Water King. Atiya had received the legacy, but because she had rejected the position of Wind King, the Wind Spirits had to spend another thousand years without a King.
If time continued to pa.s.s like this, then it was possible that the Wind Spirits would disappear completely. Even now, Atiya was the only Spirit on the continent that could appear and move about.
He did not wish for these sons and daughters of the Wind, who had always moved about so freely, to be completely forgotten.
“Go on, quickly now.”
Atiya hesitated for a long time, but her answer might as well have already been decided from the beginning.
Although she was a faithful Spirit who had devoted herself solely to her master, it was still painful to watch the Wind Spirit clan declining. And as the Spirit who had once been the closest to the King’s legacy, she also had a sense of responsibility and indebtedness.
‘Promise me that you’ll definitely come see me.’
“Don’t worry. You don’t believe me?”
She laughed at those words.
‘No, I trust you. If it’s you, you’ll definitely find me.’
Atiya hovered for a moment before grabbing both of his cheeks.
‘Then, until we meet again, goodbye.’
He felt a soft touch on his forehead before it quickly disappeared. Atiya also disappeared with it.
Not long after she disappeared, Kim Seon-Hyeok realized the contract with her had been terminated.
Her contract had become void when Atiya ascended to the throne of a Spirit King.
But he didn’t mind in the slightest. Although his relations.h.i.+p with the ancient Spirit, Atiya, had ended, it wasn’t the end. His imminent contract with the Spirit King Atiya still remained.