SSS-Class Revival Hunter

Chapter 103: The Way He Loves (1)

Chapter 103: The Way He Loves (1)

As the dawn sky was getting whiter, I got up and washed my face. I put on the black butler’s uniform that I was now quite used to, and stepped in front of the mirror. I could still see my reflection. The man, whom the Black Witch had one day pegged as a slightly sly-looking man, slowly opened his mouth.

“Raviel.”

Badump.

“Raviel Ivansia.”

[Your immersion in the character has deepened.]

[Your immersion level is 62%.]

All I did was whisper the name of the person I loved and my heart raced, my breathing quickened, and the man reflected in the mirror blushed slightly. Even I could understand why.

“... I really love her.”

It was amazing. My own emotions surprised me. However, I had things to do.

“Show me my status window.”

A window of letters slowly appeared before me.

Name: Death King

Rank: D

Skills (6/6)

1. I Want To Be Like You (S+)

2. Returner's Clockwork (EX)

3. Sword Constellation (A+)

4. High Society of Goblins (F)

5. Monster Legions Reincarnation (SSS)

6. Demonic Heaven Arts (A+)

?The God of Beauty’s blessing is active.

?The God of Serpent’s blessing is active.

This was the path of my life that I had passed and missed. My jealousy. My secret. My fate. My humor. My resolve. My happiness. The life of a human named Kim Gong-Ja could be expressed very simply.

I took another deep breath. “Show me my character window.”

Then, a window of letters I had never seen before was inscribed in the air.

Name: Kim Gong-Ja

Affection: 90

Liked genres: Murim, romance, mystery, adventure

Disliked genre: None

Liked characters: Teacher, noble heroes, altruists, hard workers, children, good people, self-reflective people, generous people, people who understand him

Disliked character: Psychopaths

Liked plot points: Karma, friendship, love

Disliked plot points: Self-loathing, abandonments, flee, oblivion, distrust, monopoly

State of Mind: I want to know how I look.

I swallowed. “Okay.”

I was still Kim Gong-Ja; I wasn’t lost in my role like the Inquisitor was. My plan would go smoothly. I was going to make it work.

“Mr. Sword Emperor.”

—Huh? the ghost answered. He wasn’t reflected in the mirror.

“I have to ask you for a favor in case I get lost in this butler. I really need you for this.”

—What is it?

“Once my immersion level reaches one hundred percent, there’s a high chance that I won’t even be able to hear your voice. I’ll still have my Skills, but I’m going to forget how to use them. I have to prevent my immersion level from reaching one hundred percent, no matter what.”

I reached down to my waist and stroked the grip of my hidden dagger.

“Ninety-nine percent. My immersion level should never go higher than ninety-nine percent. Got it? If you ever think I’m going to go over ninety-nine percent, stop me by any means necessary.”

—Ha. The Guardian laughed. You worry too much. Not many people have as much pride or personality as you do, so I really don’t think you’ll reach ninety-nine percent.

“I will.” I gave my clothes one last tweak. The perfect image of a butler was reflected in the mirror. “Because I’m going to increase it.”

—What? The Guardian was shocked. Why? You’ll fail the stage and get trapped in this world.

“I can’t tell you why now. No one else can know. I’m going to exploit the loopholes in the Tower’s system to clear this stage.”

The Tower was watching us as we spoke. If it found out the plan I’d come up with, it might quickly fix the loopholes. I had to hurry and clear the Story of Sormwin Academy while the Tower still had systemic errors they weren’t aware of. Now was the chance.

“Please help me if I fall into danger. I trust you. You’re the strongest man in your world and you volunteered to be my teacher.”

Then I realized that the Black Dragon Master was right. The man reflected in the mirror was smiling slyly like a mischievous child.

“I’m off to help my lover.”

***

Lady Silver Lily and I were dating now; unfortunately, we couldn’t enjoy our date outside because she ended up falling sick.

She was fragile and weak to sunlight by nature. Even in the butler’s memories, she had more absences in the academy than days she attended. However, she had been staying up all night and overworking herself for the past few days, so she was bound to get sick.

“Don’t worry. I’ve been like this since the first time I regressed,” Lady Silver Lily said, leaning against the bedhead. “To be accurate, it’s been like this since I was born. I couldn’t run around outside, so I stayed inside the mansion most of the time. It got worse after I stabbed my heart and lost it.

“That’s why His Majesty also gave a title to Lady Goldencup. Even if I were to become the empress, I’ll die soon. It’ll be hard to bear an heir to the throne. I’m not fit to be the empress...” Lady Silver Lily coughed. It was a little drier than yesterday.

“Here is hot tea. Please drink it.” I handed her the tea I had prepared for this.

“Thank you,” she said and then took a sip of the tea. Her eyebrows rose a little in surprise. “... You put a lot of honey in it. It’s just how I like it. How did you know?”

I smiled. “You told me before, didn’t you?”

She had told me during her lessons on love. On her sixth regression, a certain apostle had tried to win her over with a strategy guide, which said:

1. Lady Silver Lily is sensitive to sunlight. When planning a date with her, schedule it in the evening or deeper into the night, not during the day.

2. Lady Silver Lily has a dull sense of taste, so she likes strongly flavored food.

...

I didn’t forget about that; on the contrary, I put it into practice.

“Hmm. Then doesn’t that mean you also used the strategy guide?”

“Since you told me first, it’s hard to see it that way. I would appreciate it if you thought of it as using a reference.”

“Now that I look at you, you have quite an annoying side.” Lady Silver Lily tilted her cup. The sound of her quietly sipping tea filled the bedroom. “So what is your plan? This cozy time with you now is just a momentary amusement. One of us will unavoidably forget the time we spent with the other. I truly do not believe there is a solution.”

“You’ve never relied on anyone else in your life, have you?”

“Hmm?”

“Please trust me. Even if it isn’t real, the person you've chosen to date isn’t incompetent. Not at all.”

Lady Silver Lily stared at my face.

“There are times in life when you need help from others. I think now is one of those times for you.”

While saving the Aegim Empire, I had also received help from the Sword Star and the Black Witch. When I had been clearing the Heavenly Demon Chronicle, ??the Chemist, the Viper, and the Medicine King had helped me. Although I was never going to say it out loud, I also owed a lot to the Guardian and I would always be in his debt. I never thought I was alone, unlike my lover.

“Up until now, you’ve been taking on too many responsibilities. ‘The empire must remain strong even after my death;’ ‘I should guide the crown prince to the correct path;’ ‘I have to deal with the blood demon.’ Those are what you’ve been doing for the past one hundred forty days, am I right?”

“Do you think I’m tired?”

“Yes, I do. Please, rest a little.” I put the spring flowers I had picked at dawn in a vase and placed it next to the bed. “I think—no, I just don’t like it when the person I love tries to do everything on her own. If I’m tired, I want my partner’s help and I would help her when she’s tired.”

“We’re just pretending to be in a relationship for entertainment.”

“It doesn’t matter because my heart is true.”

“... Don't you feel insulted?" she cautiously asked.

“Haha—you don’t know me very well, do you?”

How could she be so lovely?

I laughed softly. “I'm an optimistic person. Do you think I'll get depressed or develop an inferiority complex because you’re not dating me for real? Not at all. I think my chance has come. You’ll love me anyway.”

“Wow, where in the world does your confidence come from?”

“It’s because I'll be the only one who can share your time. Until you tell me that you’re tired of me, I won't give up on you, no matter what. Let me be your pillar.”

Lady Silver Lily didn't answer and drank her tea instead.

As the days passed, my lover grew thinner. Every midnight, the demons appeared, and they grew stronger night after night. At first, the demons were only mouths, but after several days, they grew arms and legs.

—Hehehe.

Only then did I realize that the demons resembled Lady Silver Lily. If I simplified her appearance a little and made her smaller, she would look exactly like them.

—Are you going to kill us?

—Are you going to kill me?

I silently dealt with the demons every night. Lady Silver Lily offered to help, but I firmly refused. Right now, more than anything, she needed time alone to rest quietly.

Paperwork that required Lady Silver Lily’s approval? I stopped all of them from coming into her office. Only a few days were left until this world was going to be destroyed anyway. If the empire was going to fall just because she didn’t handle them for a few days, then it was better off fallen.

A vacation just for herself was the first gift I gave Lady Silver Lily.

“... I’ve never spent time like this before,” Lady Silver Lily muttered. She seemed a little troubled. “Is it really okay to do nothing like this?”

Right now, we were sitting under a cherry blossom tree, leisurely looking out at the lake. I had carried Lady Silver Lily here in my arms. There were no complicated documents, no blood demons, and no students gossiping about Lady Silver Lily for their entertainment.

“It’s okay,” I reassured her.

“But...”

“It’s really okay, my lady.”

Lady Silver Lily pursed her lips; she found her peace a little uncomfortable.

“I’ll make it okay.”

“I don’t want to rely on you,” she mumbled.

“I don’t remember saying that I’ll always be the one doing the helping. When there is a time I need your help, please help me, my lady. We can help each other, right? Let’s help each other even when we’re old. We can do that, right?”

It was a quiet day—the tenth day that Lady Silver Lily had mentioned.

“Aren’t you thirsty? I added a little honey to the milk tea today. I think you’ll like it. When the sunlight gets a little weaker, let’s go out on a boat. I’ll row. It’ll be fun.”

Lady Silver Lily did nothing today. In the morning, I woke her up and washed her face. After she finished the simple meal I brought, I read her a book of poetry that she liked. In the afternoon, I packed a picnic basket of snacks and we went for a walk to the lake at the academy.

The spring breeze whisked away magnolia and cherry blossom petals. Lady Silver Lily quietly looked up at the white petals scattering across the sky. The cherry blossom petals fell on the lake and rippled on the waves.

She didn’t say a word for an hour. Even when I carried her onto the boat, she was quiet. She sat still even when she watched the petals ripple,

As I rowed, the lake quietly gave way to our boat.

“Spring is white today,” Lady Silver Lily quietly said. “In the empire, this time of year is called White Spring. It’s when cherry blossoms bloom right before the magnolias fall. My favorite poet once said, ‘White blossoms in the white. Spring fully blooms during spring. This is the last white breath which the winter hadn’t yet exhaled.’”

She spoke at the leisurely pace of cherry blossoms fluttering across the sky.

“It’s a beautiful season.”

“Yeah, it is.”

Sunset arrived.

“I don’t know how long it’s been since I’ve seen White Spring.”

It was a gentle spring. The soft spring air filled our lungs. The two of us were intoxicated by the pleasant daze that the season gave us.

[The Silver-Plated Heart’s presence has become stronger.]

So when the time for this world to end arrived, we were not at all flustered. Actually, we didn’t even really say anything.

[The Silver-Plated Heart has appeared.]

The sunset became even redder. On the other side of the academy, the students’ faint screams arose. The blood that had overflowed from the mirror had probably struck the academy. Then it flowed to the edge of the lake and dyed it red.

“Butler.”

“I’m listening.”

“It’s comfortable when I’m with you.”

Our boat was right in the middle of the lake. The red blood encroaching on the edge was yet to devour our sanctuary.

“Can I really trust you?”

I let the oar go. “You said that we’re like parallel lines. The one who dies first will regress first, so the two of us can never be together.”

When Lady Silver Lily nodded, I grabbed her hand. “I’m going to use my aura and envelop your entire body, including the inside of your head. I’ll do the same for myself. And then, I’ll burst your head and mine at exactly the same time.”

She stopped breathing for a moment, her eyes widening. “That’s...”

“It’s true that the one who dies first will regress first. That means the one who didn’t get to regress won’t be able to remember the other person. Then, that leaves us only one way to be together. We have to die at exactly the same time.”

I grabbed Lady Silver Lily’s hand a little more firmly. “Raviel Ivansia.”

The one I loved.

“Please die with me.”

After a moment, she nodded. So that was what we did.