I'm the Only Totem in Another World - Chapter 190

Chapter 190: IF ━ If the Cathedral Was Still Standing （1）

# This story is a hypothetical “what if” scenario and is not canon.

Crunch!

I put the Evil God’s head in my mouth and chewed. It was the final blow. The Evil God’s body, which had been gushing blood like a waterfall, collapsed.

━ …

It’s over. The long fight that lasted almost two years is finally… well, I feel good, but something keeps bothering me.

Is it because the Evil God, my last opponent, died so pathetically? Aside from being weaker than the Seven-Headed Dragon Demon, it seemed like it didn’t even have the will to fight properly?

It could also be because of Karon, who hadn’t been seen since he was severely defeated by the Dark Cloud Demon.

He was the one the Goddess Religion couldn’t kill and sealed in the Necromancer’s Tomb. I thought even the Dark Cloud Demon wouldn’t be able to kill him.

I always kept Karon in mind, thinking I would face him again someday. But he didn’t show up until the moment the Evil God died.

Did Karon really die that day? It’s unsettling.

“The dimensional gate is closed! We won!”

Close-Range Spy, wearing a black helmet, shouted loudly and came out of the Imperial Palace with other Paladins. Hanna was there too.

“The Evil God is dead! We’ve reclaimed the Cathedral!”

“Final objective achieved! We can go home now!”

“Let’s hear it!”

“Woo-hoo!”

“Long live Malak-nim!”

The possessed people rejoiced, tears streaming down their faces. The highlight was Siu and the Monkey Man hugging each other and screaming.

“The apocalypse… is over.”

“I never thought this day would come…”

“Victory for Malak-nim, victory for the Tribal Federation!”

“Malak! Malak! Malak!”

The natives were just as happy.

By the way, the final objective. I remember the Paladins’ final objective being, “Reclaim the Cathedral, drive out the demons that have invaded the earth, and protect the servants of the Goddess.”

I looked at my status window. More precisely, at the words hidden below “Enter Community.”

━ Final Objective: Operate in secret. Defeat the demons and the servants of the Goddess, and seize control of the earth. If your identity is revealed before that day, you will pay a great price.

My final objective was ambiguous as a success. Because I didn’t defeat the servants of the Goddess, that is, the civilized people who are followers of the Goddess Religion, and the possessed people （Paladins）.

…Was the source of the unease the fear that I might be the only one left here when everyone else returns to Earth?

[Not a Netkama: As you can see from the community, we won!]

[Congrats congrats]

[Not a Netkama: What congrats, like it’s someone else’s business lol It’s our victory]

Well, that’s true.

[Not a Netkama: It’s a bit of a shame I couldn’t fight with you until the end]

[Not a Netkama: Anyway, it’s good that we’re both safe]

[Not a Netkama: Like I said before, my name is Hanna. Johanna]

The messages stopped for a while, as if she was contemplating something.

[Not a Netkama: Sanz. Can you tell me your name too?]

Well, there’s no reason not to now. I told her my name.

[Not a Netkama: Your name is really lame]

[Not a Netkama: I’ll just call you Sanz. That’s more familiar]

No. What kind of reaction is this after I finally told you?

[Not a Netkama: Sanz. You have to remember what I’m saying now]

Hanna revealed the area she lived in and even her home address in detail. As if that wasn’t enough, she even wrote down her phone number.

[Not a Netkama: You can’t forget, okay?]

[Okay]

It’s not like I have to memorize it. I can just write it down in “Messages to Myself,” the memo pad for possessed people.

That’s when it happened.

Woo-woo-woo-woo━!

With a roaring sound, the sky opened up. What appeared, splitting the clouds, was a white radiance. I could feel a very powerful divine power.

I instinctively knew that it was the power of the Goddess Ishtania. Had her influence on earth increased because we reclaimed the Cathedral?

[Not a Netkama: It’s time to go home]

[Not a Netkama: What are you going to do when you get back?]

[Not a Netkama: Want to go see that movie you were looking for before, “Pervert Mask”?]

[No]

She remembers everything.

Woo-woo-woo-woo━!

The radiance in the sky shot light towards the ground. The light split into dozens of rays and scattered in all directions.

I was wondering what it was, and then I saw it tracking and shining on the possessed people. Soon, all the possessed people sparkled as if they were under a spotlight.

I accessed the community.

[Love Death Cat: Meow meow meow~! （Explanation that the light is Ishtania’s power! Confirmation that we’ll be returning to Earth! Request to rejoice!）]

[Morning Tent Erection Knight: I’m going to binge-read all the webtoons I’ve missed as soon as I get back. Seriously]

[One Piece: Ah, so that light was divine power? I was surprised because it came into my house and shone on me]

[I Trusted the Monkey Man but: A brilliant light envelops me~]

I didn’t know Ishtania would actually send us back home. Anyway, I’m glad.

[Not a Netkama: Sanz]

[Not a Netkama: Let’s definitely meet on Earth]

I thought about it and sent a message.

[If you’re ugly when we meet, I’m running away immediately]

It’s better not to say something like “Actually, I’m Malak, so I don’t think I can go to Earth…” Let’s send her off cheerfully.

[Not a Netkama: You want to die?]

Whoosh!

As soon as Hanna sent the message, she and the other possessed people were sucked into the light. It was instantaneous.

━ …

Am I the only possessed person left now?

“Malak-nim.”

Rake, who was riding on my back, spoke to me. If it weren’t for Rake, creating the Tribal Federation and obtaining Manifestation would have been much more difficult.

She was truly the greatest contributor to this victory.

━ Rake.

Pushing aside the unsettling feeling, I calmly called her name. The name of the follower I cherish most in this world.

“Once Manifestation ends, you’ll need time to recover in the Spirit World, right?”

━ That’s right.

“I’ll wait until then. Time for us to talk… alone, without any worries…”

━ Hmm.

You said you had something you wanted to ask me after all this was over.

Thinking about it again, staying in this world might not be so bad. It would be good to rebuild the earth with the followers I love.

And didn’t we promise during the Atomic Rex incident? That we would save everyone, regardless of whether they were possessed or civilized.

I have no regrets about the choice I made. That’s when it happened.

[Don’t worry]

Jin Malak spoke to me through “Messages to Myself.”

[My conversation with Ishtania is over]

[When you open your eyes, you will be back home as well]

[You’ve worked hard until now]

[And, thank you]

What? You’re sending me back home too? Surprise overwhelmed joy.

Ah, not now.

I haven’t said goodbye to my followers yet… and Rake said she had something to tell me!

Unable to resist the sudden drowsiness, I fell into a deep sleep.

▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄

When I opened my eyes, I was on Earth. It would be more accurate to say I popped back into existence on the same street where I disappeared, wearing my convenience store vest.

Just like two years had passed in the other world, two years had passed on Earth as well. I first went back to my parents’ house to see them.

“M-Mom…!”

Seeing my haggard mother brought tears to my eyes. Where had the majestic Malak gone?

I cried out loud, “Wah wah wah,” in a deep voice.

“H-Honey! It’s xx! xx is back!”

“What, what’s going on! You punk! Where have you been all this time! Huh?!”

After spending a tearful reunion with my family, I went to the police station to report that I was alive.

After that, I went through various complicated procedures, and a week flew by.

After many discussions, I decided to move out of my studio apartment and live with my family. Should I say I evolved from an independent convenience store worker to a work-from-home employee?

“Huff, huff.”

Now, I’m living my life, jogging in the neighborhood park as rehabilitation training.

I was worried that 21st century Korea would feel strange after living as a totem in another world for two years, but that wasn’t the case.

Maybe it’s because I grew up here for 20 years? I got used to it quickly.

Rather, the two years I spent reigning （?） as a god in the other world felt like a distant dream. A very long and interesting, but not vivid dream.

It wasn’t a problem with my memory or psychology; it seemed like the Goddess or Jin Malak had taken some measures.

A kind of consideration to protect the fragile human mind.

“Oh, I’m dying.”

I finished jogging and sat down on a bench. I was sweating buckets. Trying to move my body, which I hadn’t used for over two years, at will was killing me.

Sometimes I wonder if this is really my body. I heard that the human body works through a bioelectrical system made up of cations and anions.

Could it be that the electrical signals aren’t working properly because I was stored in Ishtania’s secret space for two years?

I turned on my smartphone, thinking these useless thoughts.

“…”

I see Hanna’s phone number saved in my contacts. I’ve been debating whether to call her for days now.

It wasn’t easy to press the call button. I was afraid that my call might bring back her memories of life in the other world, which she tried so hard to forget because it was too painful.

That’s when it happened.

“Mr. xxx?”

A middle-aged woman in a tracksuit smiled and approached me. Then she handed me a business card.

“Can we talk for a moment?”

In the center of the business card of the woman, who looked like an ordinary neighborhood ajumma, it was written in large letters: “Seasoned Seaweed Transportation Administration.”

“…Talk?”

Administration.

I gulped. I have a bad feeling about this.