Chapter 150

It seemed the administrator had sent me a warning via message rather than interstellar communication after making their own judgment.

However, there was a fact they were unaware of.

That I was already with the Butlers’ Master.

Furthermore, since I was sharing vision with Dominic, he had seen the administrator’s message as well.

I had tensed up, but my anxiety quickly drained away.

Dominic didn’t seem to care at all. I felt I knew what he was thinking.

‘He probably thinks there is no reason to care about the judgment of such an insignificant being.’

However, Dominic was attentive to me.

Noticing that I was looking around nervously, he withdrew the vision sharing.

I felt the strength that had been within me draining away.

"You worked hard, Roasted Chestnut."

Dominic’s voice, as he encouraged me, was serene.

I thought for a moment about the Pudding Slime on my shoulder.

I knew all too well that it was a formidable being.

It was something I couldn’t possibly not know.

Because the moment I saw even a part of Dominic, I realized it immediately.

But to think he is the oldest god…

It seemed I had become involved with a being far greater and more dangerous than I had vaguely imagined.

Suddenly, I felt a heavy weight on my shoulders.

Why on earth would such a being take an interest in me and stay by my side? It had gone beyond a mere question; it was a complete mystery.

It is only natural that I, having lived for only 24 years, cannot understand such an ancient god…

Nevertheless, there was one part I absolutely could not accept.

‘Why is Dominic indifferent to his subordinates?’

He showed no reaction even with the cat butler and rabbit butler right in front of him.

Since he had regained some of his strength, he surely must have recognized his subordinates.

Just as he had done with the administrator, he simply hid his appearance so that the butlers could not see him.

His attitude was so indifferent and cold that I wondered if they were even his subordinates at all.

“…Dominic-ssi.”

“Yes, Roasted Chestnut.”

After much deliberation, I asked Dominic a vague question.

“Dominic-ssi, what kind of people are your subordinates?”

Dominic chuckled as if he’d heard something amusing, then gave a very brief answer.

“I don’t know.”

It was as if the very thought of them hadn’t even crossed his mind.

I expected to hear at least that he wasn’t interested, but that wasn’t even the case.

I knew how anxiously the butlers had waited for their master.

The devotion with which they had lovingly maintained the mansion for a master who never returned was pure, unadulterated sincerity.

To think Dominic was so indifferent, even though he must have known about their affection, which was practically worship.

“A god is not a bestowing being, Roasted Chestnut.”

Dominic seemed to have already guessed what emotions I was feeling and what thoughts I was having.

He explained it to me step by step.

“It may be because you are still young, Roasted Chestnut, but eventually, you will come to realize it. That a subordinate is rightfully meant to serve and worship its master.”

I hated hearing him speak as if it were a predetermined fate.

Embracing my rebellious spirit, I asked.

“Are other gods similar to you, Dominic-ssi?”

“They would not treat you as softly as I do, Roasted Chestnut.”

“But….”

A soft sensation slapped against my cheek. The slime, tugging at my cheek playfully, whispered.

“There is something a god does first when they take in a subordinate.”

I found myself leaning in to listen.

Dominic spat out a terrible remark as if it were nothing.

“We gouge out their eyes. That way, they can only see their master. It creates a perfect state for instilling blind loyalty.”

It was the statement of someone who had lost their mind.

There was no need to listen any further, and it seemed best to change the subject.

But… For some reason, I couldn’t interrupt Dominic.

“After that, people usually modify them to suit their tastes. Roasted Chestnut, what was it like when you briefly became a follower of ■■■ the other day?”

Back then, I wanted to change the people around me.

It even felt unreasonable not to modify their bodies.

The emotions I felt at that moment remained vividly in my memory.

“I won’t scold you for having affection for your subordinates. But right now, um… I feel that you are neglecting your subordinates too much.”

You’re saying I’m neglecting them?

“How about you take care of your subordinates as their master?”

Then would they only look at me?

Without showing the slightest interest in any other god?

“Of course. They would become immutable beings who care only for Roasted Chestnut, who think only of Roasted Chestnut forever. Ah, and it would be much better for protecting Roasted Chestnut’s planet, too.”

It didn’t seem bad.

I particularly liked the word “immutable.” After all, humans are fragile beings who are always changing.

A low voice gently shook me.

“I suppose Roasted Chestnut’s subordinates are eagerly awaiting their master’s touch.”

Then, shall I gouge out their eyes first?

And then, change their bodies so they won’t feel pain.

In a way that suits each of them.

When I was a fanatic of ■■■, I almost turned everyone into seafood, but now that I’m sane, I won’t do anything strange.

What kind of crazy talk is it to say I want to change my subordinates in the most beautiful way!

I hurriedly peeled the pudding slime off my cheek.

The slime, filling my hand softly, looked at me with a puzzled expression.

Drenched in cold sweat, I spoke to him.

“Thank you for the advice, Dominic-ssi. But I’m still afraid to take full responsibility for my subordinates. I’d like to take a little more time.”

Dominic did not force me. He told me to do as I pleased, and then simply praised me.

“There is no need to be anxious. The young roasted chestnut is growing up wonderfully.”

And Dominic’s praise made me even more anxious.

It was because I knew what kind of being the god he desired was.

Back when I ate ■■■’s eyes…

I vowed to protect myself.

But perhaps already…

I had a thought that I might have become a little strange.

The next morning.

Kwak Hanmuk came to my room to move into the official residence.

Dressed in casual clothes, his physique looked even more impressive than usual.

It was thanks to the light cotton T-shirt, rather than a stiff uniform, which revealed his muscles more clearly.

As I looked at him with envy, Kwak Hanmuk looked around the room and said.

“Have you packed everything?”

As for the moving boxes, there really wasn’t much to them.

To prevent the uniform from getting wrinkled, I hung it on a hanger and carried it in my hand; other than that, it was just a single duffel bag.

Kwak Hanmuk let out a groan as he checked the simple moving boxes.

“When did that thing come back?”

He had discovered the Pudding Slime on my head.

As the Pudding Slime put on a sparkle show to celebrate the reunion, Kwak Hanmuk’s expression soured.

I lied for Kwak Hanmuk’s sake.

“Actually, it’s a pet slime that I raise. It’s like a pet item that only a god can raise.”

If the butlers had heard it, they would have shot a beam of light at me this time, but since they were likely on another planet, I lied confidently.

Dominic just laughed at my pet item remark.

Kwak Hanmuk let out a hollow laugh and muttered.

“Right… There are gods on Earth, so a pet slime is nothing…”

He took me to the unit where we would be living together. Since the repairs at the Seoul headquarters were completed, the official residence I was moving into was located in Seoul.

I had also heard that I would be commuting back to the Seoul headquarters as well.

It seemed the repairs were completed quickly thanks to Samra.

As we traveled in the car driven by Kwak Hanmuk, he was the first to bring up the topic of the display cabinet.

“I had that moved to the official residence.”

After visiting the studio apartment, I had told Samra that I only wanted to take the display cabinet with me.

He must have sorted it out with Kwak Hanmuk right away and had it moved to the residence.

I was worried that the cabinet might be a nuisance given its considerable size, but Kwak Hanmuk said that wasn’t the case at all.

“The living room is completely empty. There’s nothing in the house.”

He just kept saying I would see for myself once I got there, so I wondered just how big it actually was.

The official residence in Seoul was a neat officetel building.

Since it was a 10-minute walk from the TRA, commuting seemed like it would be very convenient.

Kwak Hanmuk stood in front of the front door first and entered the password.

Then, humming a strange melody that went "Da-ra-da-ra-tan," he opened the door.

When I looked at him in bewilderment, Kwak Hanmuk looked embarrassed.

"Don’t kids these days know this? You’re supposed to sing it when moving into a new house."

It felt like I had heard it somewhere before.

Thinking I would look it up later, I went inside.

I realized that Kwak Hanmuk’s remark was the absolute truth, without a shred of exaggeration.

There wasn’t even basic furniture like a TV or a sofa.

There was a six-person dining table sitting all alone in the kitchen, but it was obvious it had been bought specifically for my arrival.

When I opened my room, it was the same: a bed, a desk, and a small chest of drawers.

"Is this Roasted Chestnut’s new residence? It’s better than before."

Listening to Pudding Slime’s one-line comment, I first set down my bag and uniform on the desk.

“One of the rooms is small, so I’m using it as a walk-in closet. You can keep your clothes there too. Do you want to see my room?”

“May I look around?”

“Feel free to come and go whenever you’re bored.”

Kwak Hanmuk’s room was even worse than mine. There was literally nothing but a bed.

Aside from that, a couple of dumbbells placed in the corner were all there was.

I had heard that this was the house Kwak Hanmuk used to live in, but it was to the point where it would have been natural for him to say he had just moved in today.

Actually, since he would only be sleeping in the official residence, it didn’t seem like such a strange sight after all.

After looking around here and there, I came back out to the living room.

A large glass display cabinet sat in one corner of the empty living room.

Kwak Hanmuk gestured toward the cabinet, which was covered with a cloth just like in a studio apartment.

“Chestnut-ie, what is that? Can I take a look?”

Since we were going to be living together from now on, it felt a bit awkward to keep hiding it.

I lifted the cloth with Kwak Hanmuk. He looked at the display cabinet with surprised eyes.

“…Wow.”

Kwak Hanmuk, who had reflexively let out an exclamation of admiration, immediately looked at me.

He must have known that I had retired due to an injury.

Seeing that he seemed hesitant to react, I smiled and spoke first.

“These are gifts I received from fans a long time ago.”

“Goyo-hyung-nim, you were amazing.”

Claiming he didn’t know much about it because he wasn’t very interested in games, Kwak Hanmuk looked at the items in the cabinet one by one.

“What is this? Did Chestnut-ie play a cute character like this?”

“Yes. It was a character I liked.”

“Wow, look at you. Just a rookie chestnut back then. Check out that uniform.”

“I was 19 back then.”

I felt a little embarrassed.

Still, thanks to him cracking this and that joke, I was able to look at the display cabinet with a much more relaxed mind.

‘Ah, nutritional supplements.’

Thinking that I should order the supplements I promised Kang Byeokrin I would take…

Suddenly, Kwak Hanmuk roughly threw open the display cabinet.

Before I could even be surprised by his sudden action, he handed me something.

“Is this… you?”

It was a photo of my childhood face superimposed with a player’s uniform.

“Yes. This is from when I entered elementary school.”

Kwak Hanmuk wore a dazed expression.

It was a gift made from a photo that fans liked for being cute, and there was indeed a significant difference from how I look now.

I was small and skinny, with only my cheeks chubby.

Still, I don’t think I looked that weird… Just as I was flustered by Kwak Hanmuk’s reaction, a crackling sound was heard.

Blue sparks were flying from the prayer beads.

Kwak Hanmuk flinched in surprise and clutched his wrist. However, his hardened expression remained unchanged.

He soon opened his mouth slowly.

“…Ah, sorry.”

Kwak Hanmuk grinned as he put the photo back in its place.

“You were such a tiny little chestnut back then; it took me by surprise.”

However, his hand was trembling slightly.

I wanted to ask the reason, but I couldn’t bring myself to do so. It was because his complexion looked grim.

Kwak Hanmuk ran his hand over his face and took out his cell phone.

Then, as if nothing had happened, he asked me.

“You didn’t save my number, did you?”

Since I had only been invited to the chat room on the day we went to Paseong, I didn’t know any of the Special Mission Team’s phone numbers.

I saved Kwak Hanmuk’s phone number for the first time and looked at him again.

Kwak Hanmuk, tapping his phone screen, raised one eyebrow.

“Let’s have the move-in party tomorrow. Captain Mo says she’s free tomorrow. Want to eat Jajangmyeon?”

“…Anything is fine with me.”

“You’re having Tangsuyuk, right? Chestnut-ie, do you prefer pouring the sauce over or dipping?”

“That doesn’t matter to me either…”

“Then let’s order Kkanpunggi too.”

“Captain Kwak, I’ll order.”

“No, no. Just keep unpacking.”

Kwak Hanmuk patted my shoulder a couple of times.

I replied that I understood and went into the room assigned to me.

Then I closed the door.

“…….”

Leaning against the door, I thought.

Why was he startled?

On top of that, blue sparks flew from the prayer beads. There was no way something like that could happen just from being startled.

I squeezed my eyes shut in agony. Whenever I felt this way, I wanted to open the status window.

I want to know everything.

I hoped they wouldn’t hide anything from me.

I felt like my eye color was about to change.

After reminding myself time and time again that I shouldn’t act strangely in front of the Captains, I finally managed to calm down.

Fortunately, I also managed to finish the Jajangmyeon safely.

Kwak Hanmuk ordered enough food to fill the six-person table, so I ate until I was so full that I wouldn’t crave Chinese food for a while.

I was able to act as if nothing had happened even after that.

Until I finished the day and lay down in bed.

With the blanket pulled up to my neck, I stared at the ceiling with my eyes wide open.

This wasn’t the studio apartment I used to live in, nor was it the quarantine room at the TRA.

It was a shared unit, yet I still felt like I was living alone.

Even though I knew Kwak Hanmuk was in the room right next door…

The slime on my chest called out to me.

“Roasted Chestnut.”

My answer was delayed because my thoughts were all jumbled up.

“…Yes, Dominic-ssi.”

Why did a blue spark fly?

I pondered what I might have done wrong, but no matter how hard I thought about it, I couldn’t figure it out.

I had even gone so far as to ask Kwak Hanmuk directly why he was shocked by the photo.

However, Kwak Hanmuk didn’t answer and just brushed it off as if it were a joke.

Of course, there was no reason for him to tell me everything.

After all, he even was hiding the god sealed inside himself.

But this… seems to be a problem related to me…

And he is my subordinate.

“Roasted Chestnut has done nothing wrong.”

The Pudding Slime, who only ever says pleasant things, climbed onto my face.

“It is simply the sin of a subordinate trying to hide things from their master.”

He soothed me.

Words of comfort followed, but since they didn’t exactly bring me solace, I just listened silently.

Still, the voice was pleasant to hear.

I soon felt a sense of languor.

“Roasted Chestnut. Do you want to know what your subordinate is hiding?”

“…….”

I didn’t answer. It was because I felt that if I opened my mouth, I would blurt out the truth.

A soft sensation moved freely across my face.

“There is no reason for Roasted Chestnut to suffer because of a subordinate. You just need to do whatever you desire.”

A charming temptation was heard.

“No matter what the master does, the subordinates will worship their god.”

I…

I wanted to know everything.

I wanted to lay everything bare so that my subordinates couldn’t hide a single thing from me.

But merely looking isn’t enough.

Because they might keep secrets from me again.

A golden light appeared from the darkness.

Bathed in a radiance as bright as a fallen star, I slowly rose from the bed.

I placed my feet on the floor. The sensation against my bare feet was chilly.

I walked calmly and composedly, settling in front of Kwak Hanmuk’s room.

Knock, knock. I called out to him, knocking on the door.

“Captain Kwak. May I come in for a moment?”

No matter how much I thought about it, there was only one conclusion.

First, I must gouge out his eyes.

let’s chill out a bit buddy