The Earth was far too small.
Whether in terms of wealth and resources, martial power, influence, or any other aspect, Suho now stood in an unrivaled position, and to him, Earth was simply too cramped.
Perhaps it had already been decided the moment he received the treasures of Cheonyangwon.
Even if he tried to take interest in trivial, petty things,
or conversely attempted impossible challenges through massive projects, it was a 'search for the meaning of life' that had never gone smoothly,
and every time, Suho recalled the words of the old administrator of the 27,174th universe: 'Cheonyangwon is more than a finite being can handle.'
Suho's heart, which had gradually lost interest and connection to the increasingly cramped Earth,
was pulled back down to reality in an instant by Danbi's single words, by her deep, moist gaze as she looked at him.
And like iron drawn to a powerful magnet, he snapped firmly back to reality.
"Y-yes? You mean... you, Miss Danbi?"
"Yes. What do you think of me?"
"O-of course... as befitting a Clan Leader who led an entire clan, you are an outstanding team leader, a charismatic leader, and a reliable colleague..., and someone I can open my heart to anytime..."
"Not like that."
"......"
"As a woman... what do you think of... I Danbi...?"
Even the bold Danbi seemed too embarrassed by these words; her ears turned bright red as her voice trailed off and she hung her head low.
"......"
Suho couldn't answer right away.
To begin with, Suho was a timid beta male, a model student and a dating noob with symptoms of a love retard. Despite possessing abilities that were virtually no different from owning the entire world, he had zero immunity in this regard to a ridiculous degree,
and to such a Suho, Danbi's direct fastball was like a surprise attack he couldn't prepare for in advance.
Danbi waited quite a long time for Suho, who stammered and faltered for a while, and after some time, Suho opened his mouth.
"For someone like me... I think you are someone out of my league..."
At those words, Danbi raised one eyebrow.
"'Someone like Suho-nim'...? Where in the world do you get that? Out of your league...? Are you teasing me, or is this a roundabout rejection?"
Suho waved his hands in denial.
"No. I'm not teasing or rejecting you. I really think so... To someone like me who wanders around without any attachment to life... Miss Danbi is... I mean, so, so dazzling..., that's why you are... out of my league."
Only then did her expression soften, a faint smile forming on her lips.
"What is that... Is that any reason to belittle yourself...? I think Suho-nim is the one who's out of my league. That's why... I was so cautious about even bringing this up..."
"Huh? No, what flaw does Miss Danbi have?"
"Pfft. Ahahaha."
Danbi burst into a bright laugh and asked with a mischievous expression.
"Sounds like Suho-nim is the one with the flaw?"
"Me? I definitely have a flaw. I'm broken here."
Seeing Suho point at his own head like that, Danbi's eyes went wide.
"Is something wrong there?"
"You might not know, but... I'm extremely pessimistic beyond imagination. You could call it nihilism—pessimistic about everything, doubtful and cynical about life, in a negative existentialist way, finding everything bothersome, uninteresting... I'm like that. I'm not the type of person who can make promises about the future with someone else... And..."
"...Hoo, what are you even really saying..."
"I'm serious."
Staring intently at Suho, trying to gauge whether he was rejecting her with absurd reasons or speaking from the heart, Danbi cautiously opened her mouth.
"Then, since we're both out of each other's league, why don't we get a little closer?"
"Huh?"
"Won't you take some responsibility for my loneliness? And I'll take some responsibility for Suho-nim's nihilism...?"
"Huk......"
"Please stay by my side. Then I'll try my best to help Suho-nim live in this world with more meaning."
Suho felt as if he'd been struck in the head.
Had Danbi known about his sense of emptiness?
No, they had never shared such worries even once.
Then was she a woman who coveted what he had?
That wasn't it either. In the several years they had spent together, he had never once glimpsed such a side from her unpretentious self.
Then why on earth...?
As Suho's head grew complicated with pointless thoughts, Danbi drove in the final words.
"I... I like you, Suho-nim. Since a long time ago."
Suho lost all words and stared blankly at her.
For a moment, it felt as if the world had subsided into a silence belonging only to the two of them.
'Holy crap, we're not even inside the Subspace Warehouse, so why does it feel like time has stopped?'
In a hazy state of mind, Suho had that thought.
Danbi's face, flushed red, even looked mystical.
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump...
His heart, beating as if it would burst after a long, truly incredibly long time, was speaking.
It was saying that a greater event than obtaining the treasures of Cheonyangwon was unfolding right now.
* * *
Suho, who had decided to officially date Danbi, entered the Subspace Warehouse immediately after parting with her.
There was no better place to calm his extremely excited heart.
"Yeeeeaaaah!! Woooohoooo!!"
Rabi caught up to Suho, who was running through the interior of the Subspace Warehouse while shrieking like a madman.
"What in the world is the matter? Your heart rate seems to have increased by 27% compared to normal? Same with blood pressure, and your dopamine, oxytocin, and serotonin levels are rapidly rising. You're in a state of complete hormonal storm; what has happened?"
"Rabi!!"
"I can hear you perfectly well even if you don't shout like that."
"I got a girlfriend!!"
Rabi frowned, looking at Suho shouting with both hands raised high.
"Hmm... Based on the detected physiological changes and frequent psychological immersion, it seems you have met a suitable female."
"Hey! A female?!"
"Ah, fema... I mean woman, a woman. Hmm."
"Ugh! Well, what would you Blue Dragon race know, you don't even distinguish between men and women!"
Rabi shrugged its shoulders.
"I wouldn't know. We are simply born from the Dragon Lord, after all."
"Exactly! Even if you died and came back to life, you could never understand this feeling! Hahaha!"
"...I have no particular desire to understand. In any case, you are being psychologically drawn rapidly to a specific human. Humans truly are fascinating."
"Hahaha! That's right, watch closely! This is what it means to be human! I've escaped solo life too!!"
Suho ran and flew around here and there like a madman again, bursting with uncontrollable excitement, and Rabi, who had followed and observed him for a while, clicked its tongue and returned to its original spot.
* * *
Having calmed his excitement inside the Subspace Warehouse for several days, Suho decided to do what he truly needed to do now.
That was, namely, making his relationship with Danbi public.
He himself had spent several days sorting out his heart and thoughts, but Suho had completely overlooked the fact that outside the Subspace Warehouse, not even 0.001 seconds had passed.
It was all because he had gotten ahead of himself in his excitement.
"Miss Danbi! Come somewhere with me today!"
"Huh? Ah, where to..."
"I want to introduce Miss Danbi to my family and tell them we've decided to date."
"Whaaat?! A-already...?"
"Of course! I've agonized over it for a long time too!"
"A long... time...?"
Misunderstanding those words and blushing, Danbi meekly followed Suho.
Even though it wasn't the regular family gathering day, Suho had hounded his family members with notice of an urgent announcement and somehow managed to create a dinner banquet setting, then headed to the meeting place with Danbi.
The central lounge on the 15th floor of Elysium Heights was the exclusive meeting place for Suho's family, a place even Danbi, who had lived in Elysium for a long time, was visiting for the first time.
Just like the day when Seonu and Suji were first introduced to the family, all the remaining family members welcomed Suho and Danbi in the lounge, where a special banquet had been set up with a first-class chef specially called in.
"What the heck, hyung, today I have a super important— Huh, Team Leader I Danbi?"
The family members, each with dissatisfaction etched on their faces due to their busy schedules, had their eyes widen to the point of tearing when they saw Danbi appear with Suho.
Until today, Suho had never once brought a woman, let alone anyone, to a family gathering.
Jiho and Suji, who grasped the situation in an instant, looked shocked, while Suho's mother and father sent gazes brimming with emotion.
At those expressions, Suho scratched his head awkwardly and spoke.
"This is I Danbi, Team Leader. You all know her, right?"
"Oh my, of course we do... aren't you the prettiest, most gentle girl in our Ultimate Line!"
At her mother's fuss, Danbi, dressed up beautifully, turned beet red and bowed her head deeply.
"Thank you for your kind words."
"S-so, bro, is it really... what I'm thinking... are you two really..."
"Yeah, that's right. We decided to officially date, so I wanted to tell the family first. That's why I called everyone here today."
"!! Wow...! Jackpot... A huge event..."
Suji couldn't close her mouth, gaping and repeating the word "jackpot."
Suho's mother, as if she had liked Danbi from the beginning, clasped both hands firmly around hers.
"Such a capable and pretty young lady... Oh my, thank you for saving our son who would have grown old and died a bachelor ghost. Thank you so much."
"Ah, Mom! What do you mean bachelor ghost..."
"Then what?! Did you think Mom and Dad don't know you're an unparalleled dating dummy even though you act like you own the world? Danbi, dear, please scold our son well and help him become a proper man."
"Ah, Mom! Come on..."
"Yes, Mother."
Danbi bowed her head, embarrassed but unable to wipe the smile from her lips.
"Suho, be responsible and do it right, you punk. If you make a woman cry, blood will drip from your eyes."
"What? No, you do it right first! This old man really lacks self-awareness. If that's the case, so much blood has already poured from your eyes that they should have popped out entirely by now?!"
Suho's father, who had put on a solemn face to offer a piece of advice, failed to even save face and fled as his back was slapped by the mother, and Suji, embarrassed by the sight, chased after them to intervene.
Danbi simply smiled brightly at this lively family sitcom.
* * *
"So... yes, we have decided to officially date. I thought I should tell all of you first, so, uh... also..."
When the relationship was announced in Ultimate Line, a subtle current flowed through the air.
Most of the male clan members showed interest, grinning and saying an interesting thing had happened, while shadows instantly fell among the female clan members.
Thomas was the first to speak up.
"Yo, congratulations, Chief! Honestly, Team Leader I Danbi is a woman only someone like the Chief could handle."
"Right, right. A perfectly matched couple is born. You two really look good together."
Gang Hojin nodded and gave a thumbs-up.
"No way... Kind-hearted Suho... to that fierce lady... hup."
Han Taeung was about to ramble on about how it was a waste, but sensing the killing intent flowing in Danbi's gaze, he shut his mouth.
Diego Hernandez, Takeda, and Lucian also congratulated the two on their relationship.
"Hmm, Connie will be a high school student in two years... It's a shame. Well, having a young daughter is a handicap if there ever was one..."
Among the men, Joshua was nearly the last to say something crazy.
None of the female Admittees opened their mouths, but after a while, Bak Seoyeon spoke with a bitter smile.
"It seems like no one wants to talk, so... I'll speak on everyone's behalf. First off, I don't like it. The Clan Leader is someone no one should monopolize... Anyway, I don't like it... but that's just my greed. Still, I think there are many here who feel the same regret as me. Even so, what's certain is that whether in skill, beauty, or the time spent with the Clan Leader, Sister Danbi has the best qualifications to match him no matter how you look at it, so..."
"That's not what's important... If that's how the two feel, that's the most important thing. We have to acknowledge that."
At Emilia Rossi's words, the other women nodded as well.
"Anyway, congratulations. I hope you two date happily for a long time."
At her words, the other female Admittees finally offered their congratulations to the two.
Suho couldn’t grasp what sort of atmosphere this was and just stood there looking dazed, while Danbi awkwardly accepted the congratulations as if she were sitting on a bed of thorns.
* * *
“A press conference? Ah, no, Suho, wait a moment...”
“Why?”
“It’s only been two days since we decided to date... But after telling our families, and then announcing it to our clan members... now a press conference...”
“Mm... So is it burdensome for you? Or do you not want it to be known like that?”
“Ah, no, it’s not that I don’t want it... It’s just too fast...”
Was it fast? Hadn’t he thought it over long enough? Suho, who had been thinking vaguely along those lines, only then remembered that he had only spent a long time agonizing over it inside his subspace storage.
But even so, he didn’t feel that was a reason to delay making the announcement.
“As you know, Danbi, I’m incredibly busy. I go to a lot of places, too. But I don’t want to go to those places alone anymore. From now on, I want you to always come with me.”
“Ah......”
“To do that, I thought it would be more convenient to make our relationship official. Better than having unnecessary rumors spread for no reason. We’re in a special relationship, so of course we go around together! If we make that clear, who’s going to say anything?”
“If, if that’s the reason...... All right.”
Danbi’s face reddened again as she nodded.
* * *
A press conference was to be held in the conference room used as Elysium Heights’ main meeting hall.
Since Elysium Heights was famous for its tremendous security, it was the first time the reporters had ever been allowed inside.
All the invited reporters followed the android guiding them from the welcome lobby, constantly turning their heads this way and that, so dazzled by the splendid interior that they could hardly think straight.
Everywhere they looked, the interior facilities were so impressive that they wanted to photograph them and turn them into articles, but they had been sternly informed at the entrance of the clause prohibiting indoor photography, so they had no choice but to suppress their regret and quietly follow along.
At last, in the center of the conference room they arrived at, a phrase was displayed on a large screen, and soon they began setting up the broadcast cameras they had each brought in the vast hall.
They had received no hint whatsoever about what the press conference was for, or its purpose or reason, but the names “Jeong Suho” and “Ultimate Line” alone belonged to an issue maker who shook the entire world, so the reporters had rushed over the moment they received the invitation.
Besides, a press conference at the mysterious building Elysium Heights? Even if they had to get on a waiting list, they had to come.
“Reporter Park, have you heard anything?”
One reporter gestured with his chin toward a reporter from a neighboring broadcasting company and asked in a low voice.
“No. The moment I heard it was related to Jeong Suho, I dropped everything else and came running.”
“Heh, same here. By the way, this place really is... no joke. I never thought I’d set foot inside Elysium Heights in my lifetime...”
“It’s definitely amazing, but... still, you know... that artificial island?”
“Bigyeongdo?”
“Yeah, it would’ve been even better if they’d held it there. If I could get inside that place even once... I did think that.”
“Wake up from your dream. It’s this hard to get into Elysium, which is in the middle of Seoul. You think outsiders are allowed in there?”
Bigyeongdo, the Smart City Island in the East Sea, was already famous throughout the world, but it was still not a place just anyone could enter.
Money could not buy the right to set foot on Bigyeongdo.
Still holding its secrets and mysteries, Bigyeongdo was known to people all over the world as an island of dreams.
Of course, in terms of mystique, it had to yield a step to the sky island Laputa, but that place had not even been revealed to the outside world at all.
“Ah, there! They’re coming in.”
“They’re here!”
Papapapapapapapat—
When Suho and Danbi appeared together in the room filled with brilliant lighting and luxurious decorations, hundreds of flashes went off at once.
The two of them were tall, with perfect physiques and outstanding looks, and as they stood there neatly dressed, they looked like top-class actors standing in a film festival photo zone.
As no other members of Ultimate Line could be seen and only the two of them had appeared, the reporters gathered there had already begun to murmur.
Standing on the platform, Suho took the microphone.
“Thank you for attending despite your busy schedules. What I have to tell you today is extremely personal news. However, it is a very important matter, and it will have a major impact on my schedule going forward, so I arranged this official occasion to prevent unnecessary misunderstandings.”
Suho paused for a moment, glanced at Danbi once, then spoke with a bright smile.
“Ms. I Danbi and I have decided to see each other seriously.”
Exclamations burst out here and there, and hundreds of hands shot up at once.
* * *
A press conference announcing not a marriage but simply the fact that they were dating was quite unusual, so it actually sparked suspicions that this might be connected to some larger incident. But there was nothing of the sort, and since there had never been any controversy that needed explaining in the first place, the article was something that should have passed by as common gossip.
However, because of the influence wielded by the legendary figure that was Jeong Suho, the enormous fandom surrounding him—and even those who worshiped him—could not easily accept the fact that Jeong Suho now belonged to a single woman.
The more extreme fans expressed that they respected Jeong Suho’s choice, but at the same time poured excessive attention and suspicion onto I Danbi. On the internet and in various communities, all sorts of speculation and conspiracy theories ran rampant about why I Danbi had ended up with Jeong Suho.
Those who had worshiped Jeong Suho even expressed a sense of emptiness, saying, “He is no longer everyone’s hero, but merely one person’s lover.” As a result, Jeong Suho’s dating announcement began to spread into a social controversy beyond the simple fact of a romantic relationship.
Within the fandom, the conflict between those who supported his choice and those who opposed it intensified, and the entire situation was enough to create subtle cracks in Jeong Suho’s standing.
While drinking tea with Danbi, Suho looked through the countless articles being posted in real time on his tablet and snorted.
“People really are ridiculous.”
“What is?”
“They made me into a hero however they wanted, then made me into a god, and now that they don’t like something, they’re tearing me down and making a fuss.”
Danbi, who was well aware of what news he was talking about, gave a bitter smile.
“Let’s not pay attention to it, all right?”
Suho himself was truly confident he wouldn’t care about it at all, but he was worried about how Danbi would take the words of the world, so he took her hand.
Danbi smiled brightly and nodded.
“Of course. I won’t pay attention to it. How could anyone live if they cared about all that? I really don’t care. Ever since I became an S-rank Admiti, I’ve already gotten used to being on people’s lips.”
Seeing Danbi’s face, it seemed all his worries had been needless.