The Second Coming of Gluttony - Chapter 6

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 6. The Golden Seal

“Conditions?”
Seol echoed the question.
“Will you listen, or will you refuse?”
“Tell me.”
“First. You have to swear to me, right here and now, that you’ve never entered that world before.”
“Of course. I’ll swear to it.”
“Second. If you take the Invitation Right, I want you to reveal your secret—the truth behind your contradiction.”
“That’s not happening.”
Seol refused outright.
“Hope for what you want. I have nothing more to say.”
“What if I gave you a special Invitation Right?”
A special Invitation Right? The concept was nebulous enough to spark curiosity, but Seol shook her head.
“No. Unless I come to trust you later….”
She left just a crack of possibility open, just in case.
Kim Hanna tilted her head back and exhaled a long, heavy sigh toward the ceiling.
“…That’s the final condition. Once you enter, you have to negotiate with me first, no matter what.”
“What if I can’t enter?”
“Unless you’re some completely worthless screw-up, there’s absolutely no way that happens. I’ll make sure you get in, no matter what it takes.”
Seol’s mind raced like an abacus. Kim Hanna was equally resolute, as if she wouldn’t budge an inch on this point. Break this negotiation now, and the whole contract—the whole invitation—would fall apart.
‘She really treasures this, doesn’t she….’
From the way she’d said “negotiate,” Seol could infer that Kim Hanna had abandoned any notion of a slave contract. Having worked through the terms, Seol nodded.
“I accept.”
“…Good.”
Kim Hanna stuffed her phone away with a click. She let out what must have been the nth sigh, then rummaged through her jacket. The hand emerging from within trembled noticeably—whatever she was about to give up truly pained her.
Four Seals slipped free from her fingertips, each adorning a different finger: one red, one bronze, one silver, and one gold.
“Since you said no contract,”
Kim Hanna removed the red Seal.
“The bronze one I can use under my authority, but it’s still shared property anyway. The silver one—no need to mention.”
Her manner of speaking, flicking her middle finger as she explained, grated on Seol’s nerves, but she endured it.
That left the Seal gleaming in gold—the true identity of what Kim Hanna had called “my precious Invitation Right.”
Her eyes clouded with profound hesitation. She clutched the Seal like she might consume it, then lurched toward Seol.
“Wait—just a moment.”
“What? Wasn’t this settled? You wanted an Invitation Right?”
“What exactly is this golden Seal…?”
“It’s my whole life, you bastard!”
Kim Hanna shrieked and seized Seol’s left forearm as she stumbled backward. Then, with the force of bringing down a blade, she pressed the Seal to Seol’s palm.
A flash—light erupted. The gold luminescence drained from top to bottom like water receding, leaving only black in its wake.
Seol gazed at her left palm with a sense of wonder. At the center lay a small, round marking that pulsed with a faint, reddish-gold glow. It faded quickly, absorbed into the skin, but the sight had been beautiful and otherworldly.
A moment later, a paper envelope came spinning through the air and struck her chest. From its appearance, it seemed to be an Invitation Letter, packaged with considerable elegance.
“The Gate opens tonight at 10:30. That’s about two hours from now, so get your affairs in order by then. Do what you like with the Invitation Letter—read it or don’t.”
Kim Hanna hitched a money bag onto her shoulder and spun around. She was already walking away when she suddenly stopped, trembling, and looked back.
“You—you have to survive. Do whatever it takes, I don’t care. Just make sure you survive and enter. Understood?”
“?”
“After I’ve gone this far for you, if you’re stupid enough to die there, I will collect every last debt from you, here or anywhere else, by any means necessary.”
Evidently she was that furious. With a sharp-edged tone, Kim Hanna vanished swiftly.
Seol sank down hard. It felt as though a violent tempest had swept through and past. She’d been carried along by the momentum, dancing to the rhythm, but now that it was over, exhaustion washed through her.
For a while Seol clenched and unclenched her left hand, then her attention turned to the Invitation Letter. Inside the envelope lay a single sheet of paper, folded neatly.
For reasons she couldn’t explain, she felt both nostalgic and proud. She’d never received an invitation before—not in waking life, not in dreams—yet emotion stirred in her chest, fresh and strange.
Carefully, Seol unfolded the Invitation Letter.

Greetings.
We thank you most sincerely for accepting our invitation to Lost Paradise, a world newly connected to reality.
Lost Paradise is a realm reserved for a select few, the chosen.
Thrilling adventures and glittering gold and jewels! Legendary ruins where myths still breathe, and fierce battles!
This Invitation Letter shall guide you to an Eden that liberates you from your tedious daily existence.
*This notice is an Invitation Letter sent exclusively to those who have received the Golden Seal.
*The Gate will open on March 16th, 2017, at 10:30 PM. We recommend that you be in a place away from public view.
*This Invitation Letter is required for verification of your Mark and provision of initial benefits. Please ensure you do not lose it and bring it with you upon entry.
*This Invitation Letter permits one additional assistant to accompany the invited individual.

“Oh, no.”
Setting down the invitation letter she’d been reading carefully, she suddenly checked her phone. The clock had already passed eight in the evening, creeping toward nine.
‘There’s barely any time left.’
She had grumbled for only a moment before a wry smile crossed her lips. She’d been told to handle it herself, but there was precious little to prepare. She was a cast-off from her family, and she didn’t have friends she spoke to regularly.
Truth be told, even if she disappeared for a month or two, no one would care. They’d probably be relieved that things had quieted down.
Still, the remaining time felt awkwardly suspended. There was nothing specific to prepare for, either.
That was when Yu Seonhwa came to mind.
“…….”
She stuffed the Invitation Letter into her pocket and rose from her seat.
Time suddenly felt short.

She headed to the Jjimjilbang. After scrubbing herself clean from head to toe, she stopped at the barbershop inside and got a quick trim. An hour slipped away without warning.
Without even a moment to savor the refreshed feeling, she ran back to her tiny room, changed into clean clothes, stopped at a bank to withdraw two million won, and then took a taxi to Nonhyeon-dong.
During the ride, she wrestled endlessly with doubt.
Did she really have to go? Yu Seonhwa probably didn’t want to see her face again. She’d even said not to come back. Wouldn’t it be easier for both of them if she just transferred the money and disappeared?
But that was nothing more than self-deception. She had hurt Yu Seonhwa deeply with harsh words. Even if she got slapped, she wanted to apologize in person before she left.
As Yu Seonhwa’s apartment drew closer, her heart hammered against her ribs. Steadying herself, she pressed the buzzer. But no matter how long she waited, there was no answer. She knocked on the door—tap, tap—but silence greeted her, thick as death.
Less than ten minutes remained.
‘She might be working.’
She fidgeted with her phone before collapsing onto the stairwell in the hallway.
‘Is this the right thing to do?’
Now that she’d come this far, she couldn’t dismiss it as some passing dream. What she had seen and endured in that dream had become reality. She’d spoken boldly enough, but worry weighed on her far more heavily.
The water was already spilled; the die was cast. All that remained was to plunge forward, come what may.
Having come this far, she forced herself to think positively. What was wrong with trying something, armed with the courage to throw yourself into the river?
The moment resolve settled in her heart, the clock struck 10:30. She glanced around. No one was there.
Ding!
At the same moment, the elevator chimed. A triangular light illuminated on the first floor. Someone was coming up.
Before it could reach her, she hurried to pull out the paper envelope containing the two million won. She dropped to her knees and shoved it through the mail slot beneath the apartment door.
Above her lowered head, an oval of light bloomed—brilliant, engulfing, swallowing her prone form—then vanished. It happened in an instant.
Moments later, the elevator doors opened. Yu Seonhwa stepped out, her weary face etched with melancholy. She unlocked her front door.
Something caught her foot as she stepped inside.
“Huh?”
Her eyes widened at the sight of the thick envelope. Yu Seonhwa’s shock deepened as she checked its contents, and she spun around sharply.
But all her eyes found was the lonely darkness settling over the quiet hallway.

***

Cold air drifted across her skin, and her body shivered. She reached for a blanket, but her groping fingers found only a stiff pillow.
She curled around the pillow she’d grabbed, but the chill persisted. To make matters worse, once her mind had woken, it refused to slip back into sleep, and a dull headache began its protest.
Eventually, her eyes opened.
In her daze, she looked around. No matter how many times she looked, it was still her dingy room.
Startled, she quickly opened her left hand. Her palm was clean. Even scrutinizing it closely, she could find no trace of any Mark.
“Ha.”
A hollow laugh escaped her lips.
“So it was a dream again?”
She laughed weakly before sprawling out flat on her back.
“Of course it was. What was I thinking… Damn it. It’s not like someone’s playing a prank on me.”
She stared at the ceiling like a madwoman for a while, then switched on the television.

– …temperatures dropped well below freezing earlier, but the current temperature in Seoul is 2.4 degrees Celsius, higher than this time yesterday….

The faded screen slowly brightened, and a clear female voice emerged. But instead of watching, she pulled out a pack of cigarettes and shook it lightly. At the rattle, she drew one from the remaining two, placed it between her lips, and flipped channels without hesitation.

– Shin Young Pharmaceutical has announced another success in the development of a new drug.

As wisps of pale smoke drifted from her lips, her eyes flicked toward the television.
For days now, the news had been leading with stories about new drug development. The dream had been so vivid that she found herself listening intently.

– Shin Young Pharmaceutical, based in Seoul, is a medical research institute founded four years ago with the aim of developing new pharmaceuticals. This time too, they’ve already achieved concrete results, drawing considerable attention.

The screen shifted, revealing a man in a wrinkled white coat.

– …we’ve confirmed antioxidant effects that suppress the major causes of disease onset, and we’ve demonstrated efficacy in increasing blood testosterone levels.

Whether from cigarette smoke or something else, the dizziness was getting worse. Seol crawled forward inch by inch and reached out to open the window. The cold air helped a little.
She leaned against the wall and sat there for a long time, mind elsewhere, eyes on the television screen she could no longer quite follow. That was when her hand slipped into her pocket, a habit so ingrained it barely registered.
“!”
A jolt. Her body went rigid. Every nerve and cell in her left hand awakened at once.
Slowly.
Very slowly, she drew out what her fingers had caught. A familiar paper envelope began to emerge, inch by inch.
An Invitation Letter.
Seol’s head snapped up.
Buzz-buzz!
Her phone vibrated.

[A message from the Guide has arrived. Invited parties and those under contract are urged to check their messages immediately.]

The mechanical chime struck her ear like a blow. Seol sprang to her feet on pure instinct, and the moment she turned to look out the window, her jaw fell open.
“What….”

(To be continued in the next episode)

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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