Chapter 281 – Hong Yeon-hwa’s World (5)

“I have been to another world, my lord.”

“…What?”

The serious expression on the Black Sword Duke’s face crumbled in an instant, revealing his inner thoughts transparently.

‘The Heavenly Demon Lord has lost his mind…!’

Of course, Hong Yeon-hwa, who had read his thoughts, stomped her feet in a tantrum.

“I am in my right mind!”

“I’m sorry! Please forgive my rudeness.”

The Black Sword Duke hurriedly apologized, but his expression was still shattered, revealing his true feelings.

‘Well…if the Heavenly Demon Lord says so, it must be true.’

“I really mean it…I really mean another world….”

When her loyal servant did not believe her words, Hong Yeon-hwa pouted and gently stroked her hair, as if hurt.

Then, like a withered flower blooming again, Hong Yeon-hwa regained her vitality.

“Ahem. It’s hard to believe, but it’s true. My husband and siblings, and even the Myeongwoljin, are all from another world.”

With that, Hong Yeon-hwa began to explain everything she had experienced since regaining her consciousness in her own home, going through the Royal Concubine Selection, and returning with the Myeongwoljin’s brewing techniques.

Blah blah blah, the Heavenly Demon Lord listened intently!

“…That’s how it happened.”

“Incredible….”

The Black Sword Duke’s mouth fell open after hearing the whole story.

He looks rough on the outside, but he’s surprisingly expressive. His reaction is quite amusing.

“A Royal Concubine Selection…so the Heavenly Demon Lord was also a Heavenly Demon in another world. Ah, my apologies for your full ascension to the present state.”

“Ahem ahem. Ascension? What if I get caught by Yeon-hwa? What? It’s just like this. Hehe.”

Hong Yeon-hwa shrugged her shoulders with a proud face. At this point, it’s almost like a shoulder dance.

Well, it’s about time we stopped bragging to each other.

For a moment, I nodded my head inwardly. This time, the Black Sword Duke bowed his head to me.

“And thank you for risking your life to protect me, even though we only met recently.”

“I’m a little embarrassed. I was already in love with Yeon-hwa at the time, so it was only natural.”

“No, that’s not it. People become infinitely cowardly and weak in the face of threats to their lives…. And then they regret their own cowardice. I have seen many such people.”

His voice sounded full of regret. This world must have been a mess before the Royal Concubine Selection, and the Black Sword Duke must have had his own circumstances.

“Anyway, I understand what happened. Will you be living between this world and the other from now on?”

Chapter 281 – Hong Yeon-hwa’s World (5)

“That’s right. The wedding will be held on this side, so even if it’s not right away, I hope you’ll prepare slowly.”

“After the return of the Heavenly Demon Lord, a wedding…it’s a double happiness.”

The Black Sword Duke nodded with a pleased smile.

“In addition, the Heavenly Demon Religion, which has only maintained public order without a clear focus until now, can now move on to the next stage.”

“Uh-huh…that’s a good thing, but do you really need a mistress?”

“If not the Heavenly Demon Lord, then who will stand at the pinnacle of the Heavenly Demon Religion and lead us? You know, everyone has a rebellious nature.”

“I know that well…they followed me to the Royal Palace War because of that nature, but…is it necessary?”

“Is there something bothering you?”

“Well, I just don’t want to work…!”

Hong Yeon-hwa’s unexpected confession made the Black Sword Duke raise his eyebrows.

“Heavenly Demon Lord.”

“Yes?”

“Other than the important matters, have you ever handled the affairs of the religion?”

“……?”

Hong Yeon-hwa was tilting her head, but she seemed to realize something belatedly.

“Oh?!”

Hong Yeon-hwa’s pink eyes widened as if struck by lightning.

No way…is there none?

As if adding confidence to my guess, the Black Sword Duke spoke with a faint smile.

“You haven’t. At that time, I wanted to let the Heavenly Demon Lord focus on training, but if you still want to do it now, you can do it anytime.”

Of course, the owner of the Heavenly Demon Religion is Hong Yeon-hwa, so the Black Sword Duke added that if she wants to take charge of the affairs, she can do it anytime.

For a moment, Hong Yeon-hwa’s expression was like a drowned rat whose house had sunk in a flood.

“Is it…unnecessary for me…?”

“Of course not. The Heavenly Demon Lord is always needed by us.”

“…Then what should I do?”

“Please keep your position as the Heavenly Demon Lord. Be our symbol. And let the world know that if there are wicked people, there will be heavenly punishment. That’s enough.”

“Hmph. It’s not a difficult task. Since the day I swallowed the holy flame, I wanted to become the Heavenly Demon Lord, and I became one. Even if there is no religion, this will not change.”

Chapter 281 – Hong Yeon-hwa’s World (5)

“That’s right. Since you can say that, the Heavenly Demon Lord is our master.”

The Black Sword Duke smiled and bowed deeply.

***

After some short small talk, they decided to head to the headquarters of the Heavenly Demon Religion with the Black Sword Duke.

Originally, the Heavenly Demon Religion was located on the hundred-thousand mountains of the Shingang beyond the Cheonghae to the west, but after the destruction of the Muryeong League, they took over that spot.

Did they demolish the Muryeong League building and build on top of it?

The location shows a strong determination to trample even the traces of the Muryeong League.

However, the Muryeong League in this world was located in the infinite city of Hobukseong, not on Samseoseong.

Although it is generally similar to the other side, there may be some differences in detail.

Well, Samseo and Hobuk are neighboring towns.

The villages they passed through for several days on their way to the Heavenly Demon Religion all had a similar atmosphere.

There weren’t many people, and they all looked tired, but they had the look of wanting to do something, full of enthusiasm.

It’s still just a spark, but it’s no secret that Hong Yeon-hwa was moved to tears by seeing people who have hope.

Anyway, they arrived at the Infinite City.

The Black Sword Duke proudly smiled, pointing to the huge building in the distance, which was the headquarters of the Heavenly Demon Religion.

As with the branch where the Black Sword Duke was, the headquarters was not flashy. There were no special decorations, just painted black.

Instead, it was huge.

Really huge. The fact that it was built on top of the Muryeong League meant that it was about the same size as the Muryeong League building.

And as this side’s Muryeong League grew by exploiting the common people, it enjoyed tremendous power.

Slightly annoyed, Sama Yeryeong grabbed my finger and shook it.

“Jinrang! Jinrang!”

“Huh, what?”

“It’s so big!”

“Yeah. It’s really big.”

“Can Sama Se-ga grow this big too?”

“…Don’t you have to do something like Jungwon-il-tong for that?”

And if one family achieves Jungwon-il-tong, it’s no longer a family. It’s a new country.

“That’s rebellion, you know.”

“I know that! I was just so surprised!”

“Oh my? If Yeryeong is so surprised, how big is it really? According to my intuition, I can only feel it up to the gate with my mother’s senses. Of course, the gate is also huge.”

“Um…if I compare that gate to our house…”

Sama Yeryeong explains with various metaphors how big the building is.

Although the One-Month Cycle of the Sun and Moon has gained a new function, it seems that more Yas…no, achievements are needed for Sama-mang to open his eyes.

The Black Sword Duke, who had been listening to our story, chimed in.

“To be honest, the building is only wide in terms of the fence. It’s not as big as it looks.”

“What? Really?”

Pang So-so, who was quietly admiring the building, looked puzzled, and the Black Sword Duke gave a very realistic reason.

“Well, at that time, there was no time or resources to build a building. Like the Muryeong League, they couldn’t force the common people to do hard labor.”

At first, they thought that the warriors with physical abilities that far exceeded the limits of ordinary people would be able to do something… but it didn’t work out.

Certainly, the warriors were good workers, but they were too lacking in intelligence.

Well, if there was the civil engineering genius Hong Yeon-hwa, the story might have been different… but there was no Hong Yeon-hwa in the Heavenly Demon Religion at that time.

“In the end, it became a strange structure that only looks good on the outside but is empty on the inside, but instead, there are various types of training grounds like the Yeonmu Arena. And also…”

While listening to the Black Sword Duke’s various backstories, scratching his back of his head awkwardly, we stopped walking for a moment.

We arrived at the gate without realizing it.

The gatekeepers, who looked very tense, blocked our way.

“Please wait a moment, Black Sword Duke. We need to verify the identity of your party.”

Judging by their scrutinizing gaze, they might mistake us for Muryeong League’s thugs again.

But there was one thing different from the first time.

“…Huh? Huh?”

If he’s a gatekeeper here, he must be quite familiar with the people of the Heavenly Demon Religion.

Maybe he can recognize the Heavenly Demon who disappeared five years ago.

“Is it… really?”

A trembling voice. The pupils that were quickly scanning around were fixed only on Hong Yeon-hwa.

“It’s been a long time.”

“Cheon…ma-nim?”

“That’s right.”

Hong Yeon-hwa put her hands on her hips and looked proud.

“The lady has arrived!”