Ranker Who Lives Twice

Side Story Chapter 56 - Wedding Ceremony of Blood (1)

『…What? You’re coming back from where?』The long-haired man, J?rmungandr, wondered if he was hearing things right. He was already feeling quite uncomfortable having polymorphed into a human form, which he wasn't familiar with, but the words of his little sister, Hel, made him dumbfounded for a moment.

『Brother.』Unaffected, Hel was sitting on a sofa with her feet on the table as she applied nail polish to her fingernails.

『What…?』

『Are your eardrums blocked?』

『…』

『So annoying. Why do you keep making me repeat myself?』

J?rmungandr had a strong urge to smack the back of the head of this troublemaker. Hel was unaware of his feelings, busy examining her nails. Her index fingernail was sparkling more brilliantly than usual, most likely because she had used a polish that was made of finely grated rubies.

『I went to that princess palace or whatever it’s called.』

『Exactly, why did you…!』

『Duh. I went to give her a letter.』

J?rmungandr barely contained the curses that were about to pour out.

『You don’t know me? I’m Hel. The third president of the Temper Cult. I should do at least this for my oraboni, who’s going on a long trip.』

J?rmungandr rubbed his throbbing temples. He should’ve known from the moment Hel insisted on coming along. His foolish little sister had finally done it.

This place was none other than the One-horned tribe’s village. Monsters who considered the godly and demonic societies to be beneath them in terms of strength lived here. It wasn’t an understatement to say this was the inside of a lion’s den, no, a dragon’s den.

But his fool of a sister climbed over the walls and visited the princess’ palace, the place where the very bride of this wedding was staying! It was true she had only pretended to be the princess’ guest and given a letter to one of the guards, but roaming around without any permission was an act of looking down on the One-horned tribe.

What would happen if the One-horned tribe decided to make an issue out of this? They were as famous for their stubbornness as they were for their strength. J?rmungandr felt dizzy from trying to figure out what he was going to do if the One-horned tribe called them out for this. But the troublemaker behind all this was composed as ever. What should he do about this?

‘I’m already feeling like I’m going to lose my mind after my brother's disappearance. Argh…!’ J?rmungandr didn’t know why his brother and little sister ended up in this state whenever Yeon-woo was involved. He didn’t want to think of this any longer.

???~? While he was deep in a pit of despair, Hel was busy humming to herself as she applied a new layer of nail polish.

* * *

Our oraboni, he’s has a very beautiful temper.

That was how the letter began.

He stabs anyone he doesn’t like in the back without any hesitation, and when he likes someone, he hits them in the front. You won’t find anyone as unchanging as him.

Edora had a hard time understanding if this letter was praising or criticizing Yeon-woo. The letter’s tone seemed very respectful, but the content suggested otherwise.

‘No. I think she is a fan.’ Based on how well the writer knew Yeon-woo, it seemed to be a positive letter. However, Edora wasn’t jealous or anything. Rather, she was grateful that there was someone who cared for Yeon-woo this much.

Edora somewhat felt her frustrations from not being able to see Yeon-woo alleviate. At the same time, one part of her was concerned. She’d heard about how celebrities received pictures with their eyes scratched out or cursing letters written in blood when it was rumored they were going out with someone… She wondered if this letter was going to be something like this. The first sentence didn’t seem indicative of anything horrendous, but there could always be a twist.

Still, Edora carefully treaded on. Fortunately, the sentence after that didn’t have anything that she was worried about either.

Since you’re someone such an unchanging person has chosen, I’m sure you must be an incredible person too.

Actually, it was completely the opposite.

He’s someone who has always fought alone… I hope he no longer has to walk such a path. I hope you always stay by ###’s side.

The entire letter was filled with blessings for Yeon-woo and Edora’s future. Hel was genuinely happy and relieved that Yeon-woo wasn’t going to be lonely anymore. Edora could easily picture how Hel looked as she wrote this letter―she had probably been smiling.

I was very encouraged seeing him steadily walk forward on his own path. Through cheering him on, I was able to escape from the limits I placed on myself, and…

After that, Hel wrote about why she liked Yeon-woo, and how she came to cheer him on. She laughed with him, cried for him, and chatted with him… It seemed she had been living vicariously through Yeon-woo’s travels.

So I hope very much that you two are happy. Although I’m sure it won’t happen, on the veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeery off hand that it might happen, if he makes you cry unnie, come to Niflheim right away! I’ll welcome you with both arms and fight against him on your side!

Edora found herself smiling as she read the letter. She had never met Hel, but it felt like she’d gained another ally.

‘…Wait. But why is she calling me unnie?’ Remembering that Hel was a demon who was at least thousands of years old, Edora straightened her back and stiffened.

P.S. Don’t think too deeply about the minor details! Ohohohoho!

“…”

As if Hel had read Edora’s mind, she had left a plausible postscript. Psh. Edora grinned. She carefully folded the letter and placed it back in the envelope. She probably would remember this letter for a long time.

‘I’m going to cherish it and keep it safe.’ Edora stood up, her heart feeling warmed. But suddenly, a question occurred to her. Hel called herself the third president of the Temper Cult. Then… ‘Who’s the first and second…?’

* * *

Lastly, chinyeong.

Finally, the day of the ceremony’s last step arrived. On this day, the groom would head to the bride’s house and greet her, and the wedding could commence. That meant…today was the wedding day!

Bustle, bustle. Clamor, clamor! It was beyond noisy outside. Not only had the guests who were staying in the village come in front of the annex, but even those who were here to watch the wedding were gathered in front of the annex. There was an endless buzz thrumming from the people who were here to watch Yeon-woo bring his bride.

However, Yeon-woo didn’t hear any of it. From early in the morning, he had to get dressed in ceremonial clothing, brush his hair, apply light makeup, and brush his eyebrows. He was so out of it that he didn’t even remember everything. “Whew…!”

After a busy morning, it was now almost time to leave, and Yeon-woo’s heart was beating faster than ever. Thump, thump. What if his heart actually jumped out of his chest at this rate? He already had cheongsimhwan and sleeping pills to calm down, but he didn’t get a single wink of sleep last night. It was evident how nervous he was from his face.

Just then, Rhea carefully approached with a smile. “Are you that nervous?”

“M…other.” Yeon-woo awkwardly turned his head toward Rhea. He opened his mouth to say something, but his voice wasn’t leaving his throat.

“You don’t need to be so nervous. Everyone goes through it at least once.”

“But…”

“Ohoho. You’ll be fine. You know, on the morning of our wedding, your dad—”

“Stooop! Wife! What are you saying?!” Kronos frantically ran in and cut Rhea off.

“That’s a shame. I’ll tell you next time.”

Kronos waved his hand. “Nothing happened!”

“I’d like to hear this embarrassing bit of history sometime.”

“Of course, I’ll tell you.”

“Arrrghhh!”

Yeon-woo cracked a faint smile seeing Kronos pull out his hair. Thankfully, he could feel his nervousness easing. His father and mother had probably come here for that very purpose. He was always grateful toward them.

Whew…! After letting out another deep breath, Yeon-woo slowly stood up. “Let’s go.”

* * *

Buuuuu. With the toot of a horn that was reminiscent of a boat’s whistle, the process began. Click, clack. Thum, thum, thum. Yeon-woo left the annex for the palace with daechwita music, the sound of traditional winds and percussions, following him.

The onlookers all moved forward.

“O-Ooooh!”

“Finally!”

“The groom’s walking!”

The guests had only seen Laplace’s procession before, so the appearance of the real groom was quite the spectacle. On top of that, Yeon-woo wearing the imposing traditional clothing of the One-horned tribe was a sacred sight to see. Nobody would think he was nervous based on his appearance.

“Dang! He’s definitely a looker.”

“Well, Heaven Wing was always famous for his looks!”

“He did make a lot of female players cry…”

A few players who lost their first loves to Heaven Wing recalled their painful past and cried tears of blood. Just then, someone brought up a question. “Huh? Speaking of Heaven Wing, where is he?”

“You’re right! I haven’t seen him.”

“Huh? Huuuh? Me neither! I haven’t even seen anyone who resembles him.”

“Aren’t they twins? His parents, niece, and friends are all here, but does it make sense for his little brother not to be?”

“Did…something happen?”

“You idiot! He’s the leader of Arthia and there are the gods of Olympus to help him. What could possibly happen?”

“R-Right! Haha, hahaha!”

A conversation filled with anxiety was brought up, but it was soon buried under the cheering. And as the two strangers said, the twin brother who didn’t attend his sibling’s wedding was watching the ceremony from a book, high above the clouds.

『…Something’s a bit weird.』After a moment of silence, the first person to speak was Shanon.『A wedding? Neither me nor Hanryeong have heard anything about this! Neither did Boo…!』

Shanon also went on and on about that song about Yeon-woo’s temper, but Yeon-woo wasn’t someone to forget those closest to him. He would never have become the main ego of the Black King if he was.

The issue was that Sesha, Kronos, and Rhea could see Yeon-woo’s wedding, but the emperors, Cha Jeong-woo and Heavenly Demon, could not see it. It didn’t make sense… Shanon and the others turned toward Jeong-woo and the Heavenly Demon.

“…”

“…”

Cha Jeong-woo and the Heavenly Demon pressed their lips tight without saying anything.