Chapter 98
“Whew…”
I guess this is what you’d expect from the strongest beings in the world.
I glanced down at the practically shredded… no, nearly pulverized corpse.
‘Kind of feeling bad for the Hungry Ghost.’
Around it, bloodshot eyeballs were rolling on the ground.
Dark, blackish-red fluid oozed out of the mangled body of the monster.
And beside it, something shiny and red sparkled faintly.
Even without checking, I knew what it was.
‘That must be the Heart of the Hell Glutton.’
Normally, monsters leave behind something symbolic of their death—fangs, claws…
Or something like this, like the Hell Glutton’s heart.
Just like the Fenrir’s Molar I picked up back at the Wind’s Stronghold.
So yes, it was definitely dead.
The problem was… the heart was sitting next to a grotesque, rotting corpse that stank to high heaven.
Naturally, no one wanted to approach it.
The Hell Glutton gave off a stench you couldn’t imagine from such a beast.
And given its massive size, its corpse was as horrific as its life.
So I understood.
Why everyone had a grim expression.
Why everyone turned their heads, pretending not to see it.
I sighed and reluctantly stepped forward.
I didn’t really do much in this battle—I pretty much just hitched a ride—so it felt right that I retrieve it.
Sure, I gave direction and guided the fight.
But strictly speaking, I hadn’t directly participated.
Besides, I was the leader of this team.
I didn’t know why someone like me—clearly the weakest—ended up as the team leader…
But Lyria, Xenon, Yeriel, the twins, Eden, Nia, and Darwin—
All of them were companions I brought together.
So it should be me who wraps up the battle.
Just as I was dragging my reluctant feet forward—
‘Uuu-uu!’
Myeolmangi suddenly jumped out of my pocket and scampered ahead.
“…Huh?”
Using its roots like springs, it bounced quickly and rushed over to the Hell Glutton’s corpse.
‘Uuu?’
Poking at the Heart of the Hell Glutton with its thin leaves, Myeolmangi turned to look at me.
Well… I say ‘looked,’ but I’m not sure a plant really looks the same way we do…
Anyway, it tilted its head, as if asking me if it could eat it.
Well, it was meant for Myeolmangi anyway, so I guess it’s fine.
Caught off guard by its boldness, I just nodded.
And then—
Myeolmangi opened its flower bud wide.
“Fwooooom!”
With a huge suction sound, it gobbled up the heart in one go.
“Buuurp.”
…Was that a satisfying meal?
Patting its belly, Myeolmangi bounced its way back into my pocket.
‘Woo!’
“…Huh.”
Xenon let out a quiet sound of awe.
He wasn’t the only one surprised.
“Did… did it eat that…?”
Yeriel rubbed his eyes like he couldn’t believe what he’d just seen.
“Even burped afterward… impressive creature.”
Even Darwin, who’s usually unshakable, shook his head in disbelief.
Honestly, I was just as stunned.
In the original story, you had to bury the materials with the seed in sunlit ground.
And after some time passed, the materials would be absorbed, and the flower would evolve into its mature form.
Was this different because it was a spiritual body?
Or maybe this one was a unique outlier, different from the other Calamitous Despairflowers.
It walks around and eats the material by itself?
‘Maybe Lyria really did bring back a monster.’
Well, whatever the case…
If it eats the material on its own, we save the trouble of burying it.
And the absorption process should be faster too, so it’s a win for me.
It’s definitely a good thing.
A good thing, and yet…
‘So, if Myeolmangi eats the material… is that really the end?’
Then why did my chest feel so tight?
It’s just a flower.
Just a flower…
Even though it’s neither a person nor an animal, just a small, insignificant plant.
That’s all it is.
But the moment the thought of parting crossed my mind, a strange sting tugged faintly at my chest.
‘Pull yourself together, Wendy Porcelain.’
To grow soft now of all times…
This was something I knowingly set into motion, wasn’t it?
Naming that flower Myeolmangi just to feel better.
Letting myself grow attached to the flower that eagerly followed me.
All of it was just selfishness on my part, to ease my own heart.
And now to say it’s sad, that it hurts—it’s laughably pathetic.
It’s not like we were going to live together forever. Such sentimental thoughts are of no help at all.
I reined in my brief burst of emotion and immediately summoned my inventory.
There was no time to be lost in thought.
Feeding the materials didn’t mean instant maturation.
Depending on the flower, it could take a few minutes—or even a few hours to bloom.
So the sooner I fed it the materials, the more advantageous it would be for our team.
Even now, the other team members were probably blooming their flowers.
I took out Asura’s Finger and the Crystals of the Bloody Sea from my inventory and called out to Myeolmangi.
“Can you eat this too?”
At my words, Myeolmangi tilted its head slightly and studied the materials intently.
‘Wu-wu.’
Seemingly done inspecting, it opened its bud wide, as if saying “feed me already.”
For a moment I worried—what if it had teeth or a tongue like a person?
But my fears were unfounded. Inside Myeolmangi’s mouth was empty and smooth, like a typical carnivorous plant.
‘Good, then…’
I first gave it Asura’s Finger.
There wasn’t a set order, but starting with the smaller one felt natural.
As expected, it gulped down the ingredient, wriggling its bud like it was chewing.
Gulp.
Then, it opened its mouth wide again, urging me for the next item.
“Hold on just a second.”
Had it been starving or something?
I hadn’t expected it to eat so quickly.
Flustered, I hurriedly fed it the Crystals of the Bloody Sea as well.
And without hesitation, it devoured that too.
Maybe it was full after eating so quickly?
‘Wu… wuuu…’
As it digested the third material, Myeolmangi let out a sleepy yawn.
And then, something strange happened.
“…What is that?”
Noticing the anomaly, Lyria pointed at Myeolmangi.
Or more precisely, at Myeolmangi’s flower bud.
“A golden cocoon…?”
As Celestine noted, golden threads were now wrapping tightly around Myeolmangi’s bud.
A type of metamorphosis.
In the Western Flower Field, all flowers undergo a period of dormancy inside a large cocoon before blooming.
Inside, they imagine the future they wish to become. And once that long trial ends, they unfurl twelve petals and bloom at last.
The Calamitous Despairflower becomes the same in its mature form.
The Laughter Flower blooms into itself.
The Tearflower too.
Each flower relives its past life inside its cocoon.
For every petal that blooms, a life is relived.
When all twelve petals bloom, a single, brilliant flower finally emerges.
Radiant, and beautiful.
It’s a final ordeal of sorts.
Normally, as I mentioned, they enter the soil and absorb nutrients to reach this state…
But Myeolmangi is special.
I gazed at the golden cocoon that Myeolmangi had become.
But… something seemed off.
In the novel, I don’t recall it having such a divine appearance.
Was the Sura’s Calamitous Despairflower supposed to bloom in such a radiant cocoon?
The suspicion lingered faintly.
Still—who cares?
As long as it blooms properly, we’ll have completed the quest without a hitch.
Cradling the cocoon like a newborn baby, I walked forward.
Now all I had to do was return to the Happy Guardian Post where I first received this quest and present the blooming Myeolmangi.
The bloom time could be as short as a few minutes—or at most, 24 hours.
As long as I safely delivered it and waited for it to bloom, everything would be fine.
There was no problem.
The only thing left now was a battle against time.
Just as I was about to move forward with a lighter heart—
“To think we’d meet in such a secluded place.”
A chilling, melodious voice pierced my ears.
I turned around at the familiar and unpleasant tone.
“As expected… we must be destined to meet.”
A man with radiant platinum hair smiled softly at me.
“Wendy Porcelain.”
He spoke my name like a whisper, eyes of lifeless gold staring straight into me.
—
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