Chapter 1476.1

Goddess Freyja watched for a while as Davey held a family meeting, eventually returning to the Saint Sanctuary. There she spotted the heroes gathered together, seemingly planning something.

“Ah, Goddess! You have some power left, right?”

She gave no response.

“Could you put a blessing on this?” Daphne chuckled as she showed her the item. “It’s a baby rattle.”

The truth didn’t seem important to them.

Goddess Freyja let a dust of light fall onto the rattle Daphne offered and slowly turned away.

“By the way, I hope Davey doesn’t cause big trouble in the process...”

Hearing her muttering, Goddess Freyja raised her tablet.

[Absolutely do not interfere. Absolutely.]

“I know,” Daphne replied calmly, then excitedly began casting blessings on the other baby items one after another.

“But Goddess.” Another hero stopped her. “He's not going to try to get her pregnant again while she's already pregnant and mess things up, is he?”

The Goddess quietly put her finger against her lips. However, the faint smile on her usually expressionless face was a rare display of emotion from the goddess.

[Don’t you think it’s fun?]

“Is that fun for you?”

[It will be confirmed soon anyway. That child who is a little impatient is quite...]

Freyja slightly stuck out her tongue and licked her lips.

[Cute.]

* * *

When someone became overwhelmed with joy, they could go beyond excitement and simply become dazed.

Illyna gasped, her mouth slightly open, as Hyun-Ah and Yeon-Hee hugged her and offered their congratulations.

“Congratulations!”

“You must’ve been worried without anyone knowing, right?”

Illyna teared up. “I don’t know what to say. I feel so fluttery...”

Hyun-Ah comforted her with an envious look on her face. It wasn't that she particularly wanted a child herself, but because she could see just how happy Illyna was.

“Hyun-Ah, what should we do first?” Illyna asked in an excited voice.

“Shouldn’t we start by buying baby clothes and supplies?” Yeon-Hee answered instead of Hyun-Ah while sitting on the couch. Smiling softly, she added, “Of course, it's not like I know much about this either.”

“Baby gear? But we already have the things Darian and Abel used...”

“Well, if you want to be thrifty, you could use the ones they used... But I think a bit differently,” Hyun-Ah said, then persuaded her further. “It'll be the first gift they receive after they're born. Wouldn't it be better to give them something new instead of hand-me-downs?”

Illyna mumbled, “But that’s a waste...”

“It might be a waste, sure. But...”

‘It’s the child of the Saint of Tionis, of all people!’

“It’s not just anyone’s, it’s that squid’s... Davey’s child. Will any amount of spending even count as a waste or significant expense for someone like him?”

Though the public didn't know it, Davey possessed enormous wealth. His unofficial assets on Earth alone were enough to put him among the world's wealthiest people. To even suggest he would be worried about baby gear, in a way, was nothing short of an extreme boast.

“We should save money when we can,” Illyna argued. “You never know what might happen in the world...”

“At the very least, if you ever decide to sell them later, they'll probably be worth more.” Hyun-Ah stood up as if she made up her mind and turned to Yeon-Hee to declare, “Sis, I am going shopping with my sister-in-law.”

“Sure, go ahead.”

Seeing Yeon-Hee smile gently, Hyun-Ah, feeling excited, finished preparing to go out and grabbed Illyna’s hand. “Illyna, did you know?”

“Know what?”

“The baby items Eva used when she was little.”

“Yes?”

“One of them was put up for auction before.”

The backstory was simple. Davey had brought her old baby clothes to Earth, and Hyun-Ah had set one aside and put it up for auction just to see what would happen.

“The thing is, parents believe all sorts of superstitions.”

For that reason, many parents hoped their children would grow up to be pretty, strong, and kind like her by using the same baby gear she had used. Eva was loved by people all over the world, as she had the triple threat of looks, intelligence, and personality.

Hyun-Ah smirked and asked, “Do you know how much it sold for?”

“I have no clue.”

“Twenty billion won[1].”

“What?” Illyna went blank when she heard that baby items that originally cost less than a million won had sold for twenty billion instead.

“If it hadn't been for the major disaster a few years ago, it would've sold for way more. Now that I think about it, it could’ve been worth more given the current situation. Anyway, people went crazy because it was treated with magic too. Some were still interested regardless of whether they were parents or not... there were even some weirdos and perverts.”

Of course, Hyun-Ah had no intention of actually selling it, so she had taken the auction down, but the fact that the last confirmed bid was twenty billion won was a hot topic that had circulated on video sharing platforms for a while.

“To the super rich, twenty billion won is actually not a lot of money. Well, it’s not a small amount, but it’s an amount they can definitely spend without giving it much thought.”

“Hmm. I guess that's true. Even in the imperial family, we don't really have a tradition of handing things down unless they're special heirlooms...” Illyna muttered while looking away.

Realizing she was mostly convinced, Hyun-Ah pushed her gently from behind until they were outside and called out, “Driver Kim! Let us go to Roaming Department Store!”

An older chauffeur opened the door of a luxury sedan with a gentle smile. “At your service, my lady.”

“Illyna, you haven’t told anyone on Earth about the news yet, right?”

“Oh. On Earth? No.”

“Then am I the first to hear?! Oops, there’s something I need to do first. Just in case, put these on. I'll play classical music for you.”

Hyun-Ah, with a smile on her face, watched Illyna follow her advice without hesitation. Only then did she finally settle comfortably into her seat.

“Hehe. Hehehe.”

‘Is she really that happy? I guess it makes sense to be happy when you're having a child. I wonder if I'd feel the same way if I had one? Though, I am still pretty young to have a child.’

On Earth, she was at the age when she should've been in college, still drinking and hanging out with friends.

‘In that sense, age really is just a number. It's your surroundings that make you grow up.’

Hyun-Ah looked out the window, lost in thought. She and her siblings had lost their parents long ago and lived a very difficult life.

Unlike the young Hyun-Ah, Yeon-Hee had worked tirelessly at part-time jobs to put food on the table for her siblings. During that time, her older brother Hyun-Soo, the current Davey, had contracted an incurable disease and was no longer able to leave the hospital, let alone attend school.

Thanks to the timely help of their uncle, who had come looking for them from overseas, they managed to cover the hospital bills and immediate living expenses. Still, back then, Hyun-Ah resented everything.

Despite that, she’d tried to get into medical school because she wanted to cure her brother with whom she had fought every day.

Yet, ironically, she couldn't even be there when her brother passed away because she was taking the very exam she had worked so hard for to save him. The fact that they had fought right before he passed away haunted her for the rest of her life.

Later, as her uncle's business grew, money was no longer an issue, and she became part of one of the wealthiest families in Korea. However, the hardships she had endured had already turned her into someone who rarely smiled.

People often said the pain of losing a family member faded after three days, but she found that to be an outright falsehood.

“Keeheehee. Hehehe.” Illyna seemed so happy, even while listening to classical music.

Seeing her smile brightly as she gently stroked her still-flat stomach made Hyun-Ah smile without even realizing it. In her second period of life, she absolutely didn’t want to lose the special happiness she had found again.

She figured it must be the same for Illyna, who sat next to her listening to classical music through her earphones while browsing the baby section of the department store’s website.

“Oh, right. I should bring Eva along too.”

* * *

“We will now begin the eight-hundred-and-twenty-third meeting of the Gourmet Research Society,” Yuria solemnly declared.

Confused, Marky remarked, “Wasn't it the twelve-hundredth meeting not too long ago?”

“Who cares? We have more than twenty different meeting counts going because we keep making up one excuse after another to hold them.” Yuria lightly clapped her hands as if there was nothing wrong with that. “Rinne. Marky. I'm only saying this just in case, but don't even think about betraying me this time. That is, if you want to live.”

Yuria was sure to draw a firm line, knowing there was no telling what would happen if anyone betrayed the group and pulled something strange this time.

“Now, let's get down to it. Benefactor says he isn't certain yet, but as far as I'm concerned, whether Illyna is actually pregnant doesn't matter.”

“Isn't that the most important part?”

“Remember what benefactor said? If it's true, that's great. If it isn't, make it true. So, whether she is with child right now doesn't matter.”

Less than nine months from then, Illyna would give birth. That was practically a prerequisite that absolutely had to happen.

“So, we need to settle on an approach. Since we aren't omnipotent, we'll have to focus on one primary method.”

“Hmm. That does make sense.”

Yuria smiled brightly, but there was something incredibly sinister about that smile. “From now on, we'll use every bit of data we have to find a way to make sure a woman of childbearing age gets pregnant on the first try. Her window of fertility happens to be coming up soon, so I think it's finally time to bring out the treasure we'll need. Rinne,” she called.

Rinne rose from her seat. She combined the key she'd kept inside her body with the one Yuria had been holding, then pulled a golden key from a small safe and raised it high like a legendary sword.

“It's time to open the treasure vault. Aaah. This cold, heavy feeling. All those days of persecution and humiliation we've endured from constantly clinging to Benefactor...”

“You call that persecution? You idiots...”

“This is the treasure we gathered through all that suffering. Remember this. We can't afford to lose to the Development Society.” Her eyes gleamed brightly. “Let's make good use of the fermented ingredients we've hidden away and ensure her fertility within a month. Of course, benefactor will have to handle the actual deed.”

Meanwhile, at that very moment, the Development Society was holding its own serious meeting. Aeonitia, Tiara, Technical Advisor Edison, and numerous dwarven and elven craftsmen had gathered with an enormous amount of presentation material prepared.

1. Converts to a little under $15 million USD ☜