Ranker Who Lives Twice

Side Story Chapter 18 - One-horn (3)

For a moment, Yeon-woo could feel his heart deeply yearning for something. It was a completely different feeling from when he met Edora again after turning back the ‘wheel’. This was a sense of longing and sorrow.

“Henova…? Umm. How should I explain this…”

Before turning the ‘wheel’, Yeon-woo spoke with Phante, who was reluctant to talk about Henova. Rather than trying to hide something, Phante seemed more worried that Yeon-woo would feel hurt. It was weird that Phante, who was largely indifferent in most matters, showed such a reaction.

“To be honest…he missed you a lot. Umm, how should I explain this… He didn’t seem to recall you, yet he seemed to be missing you.”

“…What do you mean by that?”

“As much as Henova missed you, he seemed to have felt an emptiness. I often saw him reminiscing in front of the anvil he brought out from the Tower, throwing things in anger into his furnace for no apparent reason… You know, those kinds of things.”

Hearing Phante’s explanation, Yeon-woo remained quiet for a long time. Just like when Cha Jeong-woo disappeared, Henova seemed to have missed Yeon-woo’s presence. And though Henova seemed to know of Yeon-woo’s existence and identity, he did not show it outwardly. Did Henova sulk like when Cha Jeong-woo disappeared? It was a bit hard for Yeon-woo to imagine.

“However, I can tell you one thing for sure.”

“What?”

“When Henova closed his eyes for the last time, the name he called out was yours.”

“…!”

Yeon-woo had been thrown into a state of confusion after hearing those words. Kronos and Rhea later remembered his existence as well, but it took them a lot of time to fully remember his ‘name’. How was Henova able to recall his name so quickly? It seemed to mean that Henova had been very concerned about Yeon-woo.

That day, Yeon-woo cried for a long time. Phante, unable to read the temperature of the room, started snickering at Yeon-woo when Yeon-woo started crying, which left Phante with a snowball-sized bruise on his face.

However, after that day, Yeon-woo found himself immersed in thought while feeling various complicated emotions. And now…Henova stood in front of him, possessing the same looks that Yeon-woo recalled in his memories. He recognized the constantly irritable face, an always angry tone, an ungroomed bushy beard, a filthy mustache… Everything was the same.

However, this reminiscing feeling was short-lived. Yeon-woo did not want to reveal his inner emotions, so he responded nonchalantly. “I was wondering where you were. It’s hard to find you because of your short height.”

“What, bastard?” One of Henova’s eyebrows nervously wriggled as he quickly glanced up and down at Yeon-woo.

“Why are you giving me that look, Henova?”

“I’m wondering what broken thing you’re bringing me this time around.”

“Do I only come when something is broken?”

“Isn’t that right?”

“Perhaps I just came by to say hi? No?”

Henova snorted as his facial expression seemed to state that Yeon-woo’s response was absurd. “Sure… This coming from someone who I never hear from unless something is wrong…” It was a constant outpour of grumbling and mumbling. As if Henova wanted to shed all the anger he had accumulated with Yeon-woo, he continued to pour out a bunch of nasty words.

While listening to Henova’s explanation of him, Yeon-woo could not help but flinch. He wondered if there was such an evil person in the world. ‘…Was I aloof to that extent?’

Surely, now that Yeon-woo thought about it, he must have came across as an evil person to Henova. No, it was not just Henova. Phante, Edora, the Martial King, and Yeon-woo’s familiars… Maybe Khan and Doyle felt the same way as well. Yeon-woo always lived as if he was being chased by something, and because of that, he often did not take good care of the people around him. Yeon-woo felt that he could have momentarily stopped and looked around occasionally. After all, what was always so urgent at that time?

“I’m sorry.” So, Yeon-woo bowed his head to Henova, who was still passionately blabbering on.

For a moment, Henova stopped his grumbling and blinked his eyes. He wondered why Yeon-woo was acting unlike himself. “…What?”

“I’m really sorry for upsetting you all this time.”

“…”

Though such an apology did not fully convey his feelings, Yeon-woo still hoped that Henova’s anger would subside, even just a little…

“Hey, who are you?”

Apparently, the words were not able to convey Yeon-woo’s feelings.

“The Cain I know would never say such sappy things. Are you a doppelganger or something? Where did that shitty temper go? Are you trying to trick me?” Henova dropped whatever he held in his arms onto the floor, pulled out a halberd that was much bigger than his body, and aimed it at Yeon-woo. It seemed Henova was ready to launch a full-on assault at any moment. The killing intent he exuded was no joke.

“…” Yeon-woo blinked his eyes in surprise for a long time, not knowing how to explain the situation.

***

“Really, it’s you?”

“Yeah. It’s me.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really.”

“…that can’t be. You’re too weird.”

“…What can I do to gain your trust?”

The task of convincing Henova took a much longer time than Yeon-woo expected. No matter how many times Yeon-woo asserted that he was in fact himself, and provided supporting evidence, Henova’s eyes only filled with greater doubt.

‘That bastard can never be this polite,’ or ‘It’s as believable as a bald person growing hair overnight?’ or ‘One’s temper and personality can’t be improved overnight’... It was only after a lot of evaluation, using harsh and somewhat abusive words, that Henova’s suspicions seemed to somewhat subside. However, what followed was an entirely different suspicion.

“Are you sick?”

“…Do I look like a sick person to you?”

“I guess, if it really is you, you’re stubborn enough to be sent to the underworld and proclaim to the devil that you’re not supposed to be there.”

“…” Though Yeon-woo wanted to state that he possessed the divine position of death…he decided to remain quiet.

“Well, actually, if one thinks about it, there’s no one in this Tower who has been scorned and cursed as much as you… If one were to listen to all of it, one could possibly live an eternal life.”

Hearing this, Yeon-woo had all kinds of thoughts. Should he fight back? He had been quiet because of the regret he felt towards Henova, but as Henova continued to scratch his sore spots, Yeon-woo’s original personality kept trying to rear its head.

However, just when Yeon-woo was just having these thoughts, Henova stopped pouring out curses towards Yeon-woo. Henova crossed his arms and had a sullen expression on his face. “Then why did you really come here?”

“Didn’t I tell you? I just came to see you.”

“So? Do you really have no other business?”

“Well… There is something small.”

“Hmpf! I knew it!” Henova could read Yeon-woo inside and out. “What is it?”

“Can I borrow your anvil and hammer?”

“My anvil and hammer? Are you going to make something?” Henova tilted his head, wondering what kind of grand artifact Yeon-woo wanted to forge. The Yeon-woo he knew has already received the title of ‘master crafter’. In terms of crafting skills, Yeon-woo was not far behind Henova. In other words, Yeon-woo could easily create something no matter where he was and whatever tools he used. There was no specific need to come to Henova’s place.

And yet, Yeon-woo had come to Henova’s workshop. Was Yeon-woo planning on making something tremendous? Henova’s back shot up as he thought that Yeon-woo was planning to make something as grand as the Philosopher’s Stone. He recalled how grueling and difficult it was at that time, so he was concerned that Yeon-woo would drag him into another grueling project.

‘…Hmm?’

Yeon-woo’s nose turned slightly red. Yeon-woo was also respectfully bowing his head… This was something Henova saw for the first time in his life. Henova’s expression seemed to state, ‘He must have eaten something wrong’. However, the surprises did not end there.

“I want to make a ring.”

“A ring? You… Perhaps?”

“Yes.”

“No!”

“An engagement ring… Huh? What?” Yeon-woo blinked his eyes in surprise and stopped speaking about his engagement ring when he processed Henova’s outburst.

However, Henova had a serious expression on his face. “Edora, such a kind and pretty child… How can I approve of such a person being married to a bastard like you? Never! Even when the dirt hits my eyes when I’m dead and being buried…!”

“…” For the first time in his life, Yeon-woo felt a sense of hate towards Henova.

***

Whoosh! Bang! Bang! Yeon-woo pounded the hammer in front of a blazing furnace. A small ring was taking shape. Compared to the other rings Yeon-woo possessed, this ring did not seem to possess any special features at all.

Yeon-woo continued to pound down with the hammer. Whoosh! Bang! Henova looked at Yeon-woo’s back from a distance. As the fire was stoked, smoke spread thickly throughout the workshop.

‘What kind of nonsense got into him?’ Thinking about marriage, Henova muttered to himself. It was a word that did not seem to fit his image. Unsurprisingly, it was because to Henova, marriage felt like another world.

The people who flowed into the Tower were usually those who possessed bitterness in their hearts or had strong ideals. As a result, it was very rare for a player to meet a partner and start a family. Starting a family would usually be looked upon as putting a chain around one’s personal goals. This was what Henova thought.

Henova himself had never even thought of getting married. The main reason was that the number of female dwarves that he could be matched with in the Tower was extremely few, and like other players, he was concerned that a partner would only get in his way. Or, perhaps, Henova thought of marriage the way he did because of his experience of being married once before.

He never confided in others, but before Henova entered the Tower, he had a family. Although he had no children, he had a loving wife, someone he loved immensely. But what was married life? Married life was a completely different concept from the love he had for his wife. If one was not able to be responsible for oneself, how was one supposed to responsibly care for two? Henova, during his youth, was unaware of this fact, so he had married his wife without thinking much of this sense of responsibility and ended up breaking up with his wife.

And now, to see and hear such an immature guy suddenly stating that he was planning to get married, Henova felt the wind was blowing from the wrong direction. Maybe it was because Yeon-woo had a strong desire to have children after going through a death crisis, stirring up his paternal feelings…or it could be that Yeon-woo was so exhausted that he suddenly wanted to settle down somewhere. Or maybe he had some strong emotional connection with Edora…

Whatever the reason, it was clear to Henova that some motive had greatly changed Yeon-woo’s mind.

‘Perhaps something in the future…has something to do with it?’

Even though Henova did not express it, he had already guessed that the Yeon-woo in front of him was very different from the Yeon-woo he knew. Others would say that Yeon-woo was deceitful and deceiving, but even though Yeon-woo could deceive the eyes of others, he could not trick Henova’s eyes.

Power, the strength in his eyes, posture, skill, way of speaking… Everything was now different from the previous Yeon-woo. The Yeon-woo in front of Henova now exuded a depth that seemed to have been accumulated over decades or even a few hundred years.

‘I don’t know how you came back, but the fact that you came means that you’ve probably achieved everything you wanted.’ Henova had no idea what Yeon-woo obtained at the end of his journey. He was unable to look that far, unlike Edora with her discerning eyes, but that did not matter. Henova was truly proud of Yeon-woo’s pursuit and effort to find happiness.

‘Let’s see… If those two get married, what should I get them?’ Since he was largely known as one of the four master craftsmen, and since he was largely considered as the best among them, Henova had to put a lot of thought on what gift he should give the couple. He wanted to get something that would surprise even Yeon-woo, Edora, and the Martial King.

In a moment…

‘Oh! I know exactly what to gift them.’ Henova immediately thought of a good idea and smiled happily. Then, the smile slowly turned into a mischievous one. It was because he would finally be able to see an embarrassed expression on that shameless Yeon-woo’s face. “Uh-huh!”

“…?”

When Henova let out a gloomy laugh, Yeon-woo stopped hammering momentarily and looked back.

Looking at Henova’s gaze, Yeon-woo sensed something ominous.