Chapter 11: Furry Land (3)
I never thought I would hear my older brother’s name here.
Urms seemed to have mistaken Diesel’s body—made from my older brother’s remains—for something else.
“Hmm……. There’s no way you wouldn’t have heard about me from the commander.”
When Diesel neither confirmed nor denied it, White Bear narrowed his eyes and spoke.
“So it is true that you’re of Commander Lee Hamin’s bloodline?”
After a brief moment of hesitation, Diesel nodded and answered honestly.
“Yes.”
“Well, then that’s enough. There’s no need to lay out every detail of your story. Ghostcatchers are people who live carrying a secret or two. In any case, isn’t this also fate?”
Demi-god let out a hearty laugh.
“Lee Hamin was truly an incredible man. I can still vividly remember fighting back-to-back with him on the battlefield.”
At his recollection, something flickered through Diesel’s mind.
Among the fragmented shards of memory, there was the memory of the ‘final day’—the day we fought the Ghost of Destruction.
“Hah, this old man’s rambling has gone on too long.”
The place we arrived at was an elevator decorated with luxurious carpets and furniture.
It was so spacious and comfortable that it could have been used as a reception room, so I didn’t even realize it was an elevator until it started moving upward.
[Welcome, Lord Urms.]
With the elevator’s guiding voice, the panorama of Furry Land spread out beyond the window.
Giant terrariums and aquariums replicating every environment on Earth lay spread beneath our feet.
As I gazed down at the spectacle, a ding sounded, and the elevator doors opened.
“Only a handful of humans in this world have ever set foot in here.”
With the distant sound of a waterfall, Demi-god’s dwelling came into view.
The first thing that caught my eye was a massive chunk of ice occupying the center of the room.
From it, a frigid chill poured out and settled on the floor like mist.
“Iceberg brought directly from the Sacred Mountain of the North Pole.”
“A mountain? Wasn’t the North Pole an ocean?”
“Hmm……? What are you talking about?”
White Bear replied as if hearing this for the first time.
“The Sacred Mountain is where I was born.”
He approached the iceberg, offered a respectful greeting, then casually scratched at it with his hand.
Despite those enormous claws scraping against it, not a single scratch appeared on the ice.
“Commander Lee Hamin helped me transport this as well.”
Though the memories rising within Diesel were nothing more than fragmented scenes, even those suggested that White Bear and my older brother had been quite close.
Close enough for a being like Demi-god to call him a ‘friend.’
“It was a truly dreadful time, but every now and then, I find myself missing those days.”
White Bear gave a bitter smile and took a deep breath.
Then, slowly, he exhaled toward the iceberg.
White breath poured from his long snout.
This was no ordinary exhalation.
It was similar in nature to the breath that had instantly erased Diesel’s magic.
Though its exact nature was unclear, it seemed to be one of the abilities possessed by White Bear the Demi-god.
When the white breath touched the ice’s surface, cracks began to spread across the once-solid iceberg.
As he continued to exhale with a long *hoo*, the ice split apart with a loud cracking sound.
White Bear slipped his hand into the opening and retrieved something from deep within.
“Do you know what this is?”
What White Bear showed us was a shard of glacier no larger than a thumbnail.
Pitch-black ice that let not a single ray of light pass through.
It was as if a tiny heart were beating inside, pulsing cold energy outward with a *thump, thump*.
“This ice is called Seolha Thousand-Year Ice.”
Seolha Thousand-Year Ice (舌下萬年氷).
The glacier in his hand was not merely ice that had been frozen for ages.
“It is an extremely precious ice that the Sacred Mountain kept beneath its tongue.”
Diesel remembered having briefly come across that name while skimming through magical information in the Electrosphere.
It was a powerful ‘relic’ that only a few people in the world had ever obtained.
A relic—an item that granted a specific power to its bearer.
Among them, Seolha Thousand-Year Ice was a magic-system relic that completely altered cold-type mana, triggering a phenomenon known as ‘Attribute Bloom.’
“I have a debt I was never able to repay to Commander Lee Hamin. But if you had been an ordinary human, I wouldn’t have summoned you here like this. This is both the debt I owe to Commander Lee Hamin, and a gift for the potential you’ve shown.”
It was a legendary item that the current Diesel could never have dreamed of obtaining.
No—perhaps even after growing stronger with time, it might still have been beyond reach.
To acquire this, one would have had to enter the lair of Demi-god White Bear and split apart a fragment of the Sacred Mountain itself.
‘There’s no insane human in the world who would try that.’
But simply possessing the relic did not grant the power known as Attribute Bloom.
To truly claim Seolha Thousand-Year Ice, one had to contain all of its energy without a single shred of excess.
And that responsibility lay entirely with Diesel.
“Can you endure it?”
Knowing that better than anyone, White Bear asked with a meaningful expression.
“I have to endure it.”
No matter what happened, I had to.
No training could grant a power that altered mana itself like Seolha Thousand-Year Ice did.
Diesel carefully accepted the relic White Bear handed him and placed it on his palm.
The moment it touched his skin, the glacier’s chill seeped into his very bones.
Though it was merely a piece of lifeless nature, it felt as though I were gazing upon a living being.
“Put it in your mouth.”
“…….”
“And you know what comes next, don’t you?”
Diesel steadied his breathing once.
Then he slid the Seolha Thousand-Year Ice beneath his tongue.
‘Urgh…….’
An unbearable chill burrowed up beneath my jaw.
That horrific cold slowly spread throughout my entire body.
A kind of pain I had never experienced before surged in.
Frozen breath spilled from my mouth, and a pounding headache struck as if my skull were being hammered.
〈Master, are you all right?〉
The pain he was enduring was so severe that Ar could sense it and worry.
The cold was so intense that the floor beneath Diesel’s feet froze over, frost spreading in every direction.
Watching this, White Bear carefully stomped his foot, dispersing the chill.
“Endure it.”
Make this relic’s power completely my own.
Clinging to that single thought, Diesel clenched his chattering teeth and tightly grasped his numb fists.
When the chill of Seolha Thousand-Year Ice reached the area around Diesel’s heart, the relic’s energy began to slowly consume his body.
‘This is more than I expected…….’
The new power merged with Diesel’s original mana, but the two failed to harmonize properly.
That was only natural.
A completely different kind of power was intruding upon the force that had long coiled within him.
In response, Diesel deliberately caused his mana to violently fluctuate, forcing the old and the new to clash.
A pain that felt like his internal organs were being flipped inside out crashed over him.
‘Ghh…….’
Pain severe enough to make an ordinary person lose consciousness.
No—setting aside the pain, one wrong move could have left him unable to wield mana ever again.
But the talent granted to Diesel transcended all of that.
The ability to read the surreal.
Born from that special awakening, he possessed an absurd level of mana perception.
As Diesel meticulously examined every fragment of his mana, he reached a realization.
He awakened to the true nature of mana—the essence of power called magic power, digested into unique forms according to each individual’s intake of mana as a source.
At the same time, his control over mana soared to its absolute limit.
Using that control, Diesel dismantled the power of Seolha Thousand-Year Ice into ever finer pieces, until it could no longer be divided.
The magic power born from the relic scattered in all directions, reaching a stage that should have been impossible to control.
But Diesel, now capable of manipulating mana at its very root, seized every last particle and densely wove them into his original mana.
It was an act thousands of times more difficult than mixing oil with water—accomplished without any external assistance.
“Oh…… this is, perfect…….”
Watching the flow of Diesel’s mana, White Bear let out a quiet exclamation.
The word perfect spoken by an Demi-god was not something uttered lightly.
In all his long years of existence, he had never seen anyone absorb Seolha Thousand-Year Ice so flawlessly.
“Perhaps you possess even greater talent than the commander himself.”
The insight of one who had reached a realm bordering on divinity pierced straight through Diesel’s abilities.
“Whew…….”
Now Seolha Thousand-Year Ice’s power was flowing naturally through Diesel’s mana.
After finishing everything, I slowly exhaled.
My head still felt like it was about to split, and my hands and feet were trembling, but sensation was gradually returning.
“Well done. Now, try checking it.”
White Bear gestured as if telling Diesel to use magic.
At that, I looked down at my own hands.
‘The feeling is completely different.’
Within my once-smooth mana, the chill of Seolha Thousand-Year Ice now lingered.
I drew up the newly acquired cold-type mana and formed a small shard of ice.
Normally, ice created from mana should have been transparent or faintly bluish.
But the shard of ice manifested on my palm was perfectly black.
‘So this is the change called Attribute Bloom…….’
Every mana system possessed a phenomenon known as Attribute Bloom, where its nature changed completely.
Among them, the Attribute Bloom obtained through Seolha Thousand-Year Ice was called this.
‘Black Ice.’
Black ice, one of the cold-type Attribute Blooms.
The dark shard I had created looked like a substance containing extreme cold.
“So? Do you like it?”
At White Bear’s question, I expressed my gratitude sincerely.
“Thank you.”
“It finally feels like I’ve repaid my debt to my friend.”
I didn’t know exactly what kind of debt he owed my older brother, but I could tell it was no small matter.
‘Just what kind of things did that guy get up to…….’
White Bear lightly patted my shoulder as cold breath still escaped from my mouth.
“Today is truly a good day.”
Loud, hearty laughter echoed through the Demi-god’s nest.
---
An alley behind a nameless dumpling shop.
Kali handed Diesel a wallet card filled with a large amount of Qubit.
“Here, your share. Just like we agreed, half after the commission.”
When I checked, the exact amount was loaded onto the card.
A single job had earned me quite a lot of money.
As I pondered where best to spend it, Kali spoke up.
“And the client told me to pass along their thanks.”
“The client, you mean White Bear’s granddaughter?”
“Yeah. It was a job pushed through in a hurry using some force, but thanks to you, it succeeded.”
“Well, I just did the work I was given. Good thing White Bear was happy about his granddaughter’s childbirth.”
At my words, Kali shrugged.
“Exactly. I mean, White Bear’s granddaughter getting pregnant out of wedlock. I have no idea how gutsy the kid’s father must be. If that old cola bear had gotten angry, we could’ve been in trouble too. Anyway, they told me to be sure to thank you.”
“Alright.”
“And also, I was pretty impressed too. That Lightning-type magic you deployed—did you draw power from the tertiary auxiliary generator?”
Her unexpectedly sharp analysis made me slightly startled as I answered.
“That’s right.”
“When did you even hire a hacker that good? Well, I’ll admit it cleanly. You definitely earned your half.”
Kali stared at me intently, then continued.
“But……. Can I ask you something?”
“No.”
“…….”
She was obviously going to ask what I’d received from White Bear.
Seeing Kali instantly deflate at my refusal, I changed my tone.
“I’m kidding. Go ahead and ask.”
“What did you get?”
The expected question came flying.
“It couldn’t have been something ordinary.”
I shrugged.
“Who knows.”
“Hey, come on. You said I could ask.”
“I didn’t say I’d answer.”
“Seriously…… then you shouldn’t have let me ask in the first place.”
Kali looked like she was about to burst from curiosity.
Which was only natural.
A being on par with a god had personally summoned me to give a reward—being curious about what it was would be normal.
“Ah……. This is really bugging me.”
Kali’s expression turned a bit serious as she spoke like she was bargaining.
“Fifty thousand.”
“……?”
“What. Too little? Then a hundred thousand Qubit. I’ll pay right now if you tell me what it was.”
“That’s the price of one can of mana drink.”
“Ugh, then two hundred thousand. That’s my limit.”
The person who was supposed to give rice didn’t even care, but she was already gulping down kimchi soup.
From the start, I had no intention of telling her what I’d received.
“Fine. Two hundred thousand and a drink. How about it?”
“I’m not really into alcohol.”
“Then I’ll get you a box of mana candy. New flavor.”
“I’m not into candy either.”
“What kind of mage turns down mana candy! Hah……. Then…….”
Only now did I realize it.
Teasing this woman had a surprisingly decent payoff.
---
I returned to the Underground Great Hall.
After handling quite a lot of Qubit from the last job, it was time to turn it into power.
First, I installed an implant that directly injected mana.
Since it was administered straight into the mana circulation system, it was far faster and more efficient than ingesting it orally.
Of course, directly pumping mana like that wasn’t good for long-term mana health, so it had to be used only when absolutely necessary.
On top of that, I reinforced my legs with prosthetics, something I’d been considering for a while.
The work involved replacing the skeleton with an aluminum alloy and overlaying the muscles with magic-compatible materials.
Unmodified flesh-and-blood legs had clear limits no matter how much enhancement magic was applied, and the aftereffects were severe.
After finishing a fairly satisfying round of shopping.
As I passed through a dim corridor beside a tavern on my way home, a familiar voice called out from behind.
“Elder.”
A glimpse of white hanbok brushed across my vision.
When I turned around, there stood River—my older brother’s great-great-granddaughter and a fixer active in Seoul.
“Don’t call me that.”
I spoke bluntly, but River didn’t seem to mind.
“Then how about Diesel? May I call you that?”
“Sure. That’s my name now.”
As it happened, I had been looking into information about River as well.
After all, the reason I was living this second life was entirely thanks to—or because of—her.
The fixer named River, whom I had encountered through information, turned out to be a far bigger figure than I’d expected.
So much so that her words from our first meeting—that if she personally helped me, I’d draw public attention—were no exaggeration.
The Ghostcatchers who worked with River were all skilled enough to at least have access to the Underground Great Hall’s VIP level.
“Have you been well?”
“I’m not sure. I almost died a few times.”
“Then you’ve been well.”
She gave a small smile and gestured toward a table beyond the corridor, as if inviting me to sit.
“Do you have a moment?”
“I’m not that free.”
“Even if I have some interesting news?”
“How interesting are we talking?”
“Interesting enough to make flowers bloom on your face right now.”
A brief battle of nerves followed.
Had she come all this way specifically to meet me, or had we met by chance because she happened to be here?
With someone of River’s personality, it was obviously the former.
In that case, it was worth hearing what she had to say.
Already feeling tired, I took a deep breath and headed in the direction she indicated.
“This way.”
But River went much deeper inside.
Following her through a narrow corridor, we arrived at a private room with strict security.
“This makes me uncomfortable.”
As River sat down first, I said while still standing.
“Why?”
“I don’t know. It just feels unpleasant.”
“You’ll feel better once you hear my story.”
Ever since I lived under the name Lee Hajin, I’d had a certain intuition.
It wasn’t always accurate, but when it came to negative feelings—especially discomfort like this—it had rarely been wrong.
“Let’s not drag this out.”
“Well, if that’s what you want.”
I sat down.
And then, the source of that discomfort immediately revealed itself.
“Your younger sister is still alive.”