The Eclipsed Order

Chapter 155: Chapter 155: A Second Chance at Life

Several hours later, Ares and Manager Park had left the city behind.

They were now standing on a quiet mountain road surrounded by dense trees, far enough from the city that the sounds of traffic had completely disappeared. The mountain was peaceful at this time of day, with only the sound of the wind moving through the branches and the occasional call of a distant bird breaking the silence.

Manager Park walked slowly beside Ares.

His condition had not improved since leaving the cemetery.

If anything, the weakness in his body had become more noticeable now that they were away from the distractions of the city.

Ares glanced at him.

There was something he had been meaning to ask.

"Manager."

"Hm?"

"What happened to your arm?"

Manager Park looked down at his empty sleeve.

For a moment, his expression became distant.

"It happened the day the organization was destroyed."

Ares remained silent.

Manager Park continued walking.

"We were attacked without warning. We knew something was wrong, but by the time we understood what was happening, the entire organization had already been compromised."

His voice became quieter.

"There were too many enemies, and they weren’t interested in taking prisoners."

He looked ahead.

"I tried to get the remaining members out."

A bitter smile appeared on his face.

"I wasn’t fast enough."

Ares glanced at him.

"Your arm?"

Manager Park nodded.

"I lost it during the attack."

He paused.

"There wasn’t much time to think about it. I was more concerned about getting the others out alive."

His fingers curled slightly.

"Afterward, there was nothing left to save."

Ares listened without interrupting.

Manager Park eventually sighed.

"I survived, but the organization didn’t."

Ares lowered his gaze for a moment.

"I see."

He looked at the empty sleeve again.

"You don’t have to worry about that anymore."

Manager Park glanced toward him.

"What do you mean?"

Ares smiled.

"After everything you did for me..."

He stopped walking.

"I suppose it’s finally time to repay you."

Manager Park frowned slightly.

"Repay me?"

Ares turned toward him.

"Tell me, what kind of appearance would you like?"

Manager Park blinked.

"What?"

"Your new body."

Ares spoke as casually as though he were discussing clothes.

"Would you like to return to your twenties, or would you prefer to be even younger?"

Manager Park stared at him.

"Ares..."

He slowly shook his head.

"Are you actually serious?"

"Of course."

"I understand that you’re concerned about me, but you don’t have to go that far."

His expression became serious.

"Whatever you’re planning, something like this must require an enormous amount of power. If using it puts your life at risk, then forget it."

Ares smiled.

"Don’t worry about me."

He took a few steps away from him.

"Just tell me what you want."

Manager Park looked at him for several seconds.

Eventually, he sighed.

"If you’re really serious..."

He looked down at himself.

"Then I’d like to return to the way I looked when I was twenty."

Ares nodded.

"Twenty it is."

Manager Park still looked uncertain.

"Ares, you really don’t have to—"

"Manager."

Ares raised one hand.

"Just trust me."

Manager Park fell silent.

Ares turned toward him.

The atmosphere around them gradually changed.

The gentle mountain wind stopped.

Even the leaves seemed to become completely still.

Ares closed his eyes.

The power sleeping within his body began to stir.

It was not ordinary mana.

Something ancient answered his call.

A faint golden light appeared beneath his feet.

Then another circle formed above him.

The two formations slowly rotated in opposite directions, covered in symbols that did not belong to modern magic.

They were older than human spellcraft.

Older than recorded history.

Ares opened his eyes.

His expression became calm.

He raised his hand toward Manager Park.

Then he began to speak.

"From the ashes of what has ended..."

His voice carried strangely through the mountain.

"...let the flame of life remember its beginning."

Golden light gathered around his fingers.

"From the life that has faded..."

The surrounding air began trembling.

"...let the sacred flame restore what time has taken."

The magical circles accelerated.

"By the authority of the eternal flame..."

A massive phoenix-shaped silhouette appeared behind Ares.

Its wings stretched across the sky, formed entirely from golden-white flames.

Manager Park stared upward.

His eyes widened.

"By the power that denies the finality of death..."

The phoenix opened its enormous wings.

"...I grant thee the rebirth of the Phoenix."

Ares lowered his hand.

"Phoenix Rebirth."

The world seemed to fall silent.

Then the light exploded.

Not outward.

Inward.

Golden-white radiance completely surrounded Manager Park.

His eyes widened as his feet slowly left the ground.

"A-Ares..."

His voice trembled.

"W-what is the meaning of this?"

Ares did not answer immediately.

The transformation had already begun.

Manager Park’s body was suspended several meters above the ground, completely enveloped by the radiant light.

The wrinkles covering his face gradually disappeared.

The gray strands in his hair darkened.

His skin regained its youthful appearance.

The weakness that had plagued his body vanished as his damaged organs were restored one after another, while the disease that had been eating away at his life was completely erased before it could leave even the slightest trace behind.

Then came his missing arm.

Golden light gathered around the empty sleeve.

At first, there was only a faint outline.

Then bone began forming.

Muscle developed around it.

Nerves connected.

Blood vessels appeared.

Skin gradually covered the newly formed limb.

The entire process happened slowly enough for Manager Park to feel every change taking place within his body, yet quickly enough that only a few moments passed before his missing arm had been completely restored.

But the transformation did not end there.

His body continued changing.

His shoulders became broader.

His posture straightened.

His face became sharper.

The lines of age disappeared completely.

His hair continued darkening until it became a deep black, growing slightly longer and falling naturally around his face in a stylish, somewhat layered shape.

The tiredness that had always existed behind his eyes disappeared.

In its place was the sharp gaze of the man he had once been.

The man standing in the golden light was no longer someone in his fifties.

He was twenty again.

When the final traces of light disappeared, Manager Park slowly descended.

His feet touched the ground.

Silence returned to the mountain.

He stood completely still.

His eyes moved down toward his hands.

He opened and closed his fingers.

Both of them.

He touched his face.

His jaw.

His hair.

Then he looked down at his body.

His breathing became unsteady.

"...Is this really me?"

His voice sounded completely different.

Younger.

The voice Ares remembered from years ago.

Ares smiled.

"Welcome back, Manager."

Manager Park looked at him.

"Ares..."

He turned toward a nearby stream and saw his reflection in the water.

The face staring back at him belonged to the man he had been thirteen years ago.

Black hair.

Sharp features.

A healthy complexion.

A body untouched by age or disease.

He slowly touched his reflection.

"How..."

His voice trembled.

"How is this even possible?"

He looked back at Ares.

"I’ve never heard of anything like this."

He shook his head.

"Not even from an S-Rank healer."

Ares shrugged lightly.

"I simply made it so you could return to the version of yourself you wanted."

Manager Park stared at him.

"What about the disease?"

"There’s nothing left of it."

Ares smiled.

"Your new body isn’t carrying the damage your old one accumulated."

Manager Park looked at his hands again.

"I actually became younger."

Ares nodded.

"Yes."

For several seconds, Manager Park remained completely speechless.

Then he suddenly walked toward Ares.

Ares barely had time to react before Manager Park pulled him into a tight embrace.

"Thank you."

His voice shook.

"Thank you, Ares."

He held him even tighter.

"I don’t even know what to say."

Ares’s arms slowly came around him.

"You don’t have to say anything."

Manager Park shook his head.

"No."

He pulled back slightly.

"I have to."

His eyes were already wet.

"You gave me something I had already accepted I would never have again."

He looked at Ares.

"You gave me another life."

Ares smiled faintly.

"I’m glad you like it."

Manager Park laughed through his tears.

He wiped his eyes.

"How could I not?"

He looked at his restored arm again.

"I thought I was going to die in a few days."

His voice became quieter.

"And now..."

He looked toward the mountain.

"I feel like I could run all the way down this mountain."

Ares chuckled.

"Don’t get too excited. Your body may be young again, but you haven’t trained it yet."

Manager Park laughed.

He suddenly became serious.

"But how did you actually do this?"

Ares knew that question would come.

He raised one hand.

"Think of it as a gift."

"A gift?"

"A Phoenix Rebirth Feather."

Manager Park stared at him.

"Phoenix Rebirth Feather?"

Ares nodded.

"It’s a rare item connected to the Phoenix’s authority. It can restore a person’s body to the state it possessed at its physical prime, while removing illnesses, injuries, and other forms of bodily deterioration."

He paused.

"It can only be used once."

Manager Park looked at him in disbelief.

"Something like that exists?"

"It does."

Ares smiled.

"And now it’s gone."

Manager Park’s expression became complicated.

"Then why would you use something that valuable on me?"

Ares looked at him.

"Consider it repayment."

He smiled.

"For everything you did for me before."

Manager Park lowered his gaze.

"Ares..."

"Don’t worry about it."

Ares patted his shoulder.

"You’ve spent enough time worrying about other people."

He glanced toward the mountain road.

"For now, just enjoy having a new body."

Manager Park smiled.

He looked toward the city in the distance.

"Then I’ll have to decide what to do with the rest of my life."

Ares turned toward him.

"What are you planning?"

Manager Park thought for a moment.

"I was considering starting a business."

"What kind?"

He smiled.

"Perhaps a café."

Ares raised an eyebrow.

"A café?"

"Not just coffee."

Manager Park’s expression became more animated.

"I want to sell bread, cakes, pastries, sandwiches, and things like that. Somewhere people can sit down, eat something good, and forget about their problems for a while."

Ares nodded.

"That sounds good."

He paused.

"But won’t running a place like that take a lot of time?"

Manager Park laughed.

"Normally, yes."

He patted his chest.

"But I have plenty of money sitting in my bank account. After spending my entire life working, I think I’ve earned the right to spend some of it on something I actually enjoy."

Ares smiled.

"I see."

Manager Park looked toward him.

"Actually, let’s go somewhere first."

"Where?"

"Somewhere with good food."

He laughed.

"Since I have a new life, I think celebrating properly is appropriate."

Ares smiled.

"Alright."

Manager Park started walking down the mountain road, his steps noticeably lighter than before.

"Oh, and one more thing."

Ares looked at him.

"You don’t have to call me Manager anymore."

He glanced over his shoulder with a small smile.

"How about Jun-ho? Or you can just call me hyung. I’m older than you, after all."

Ares smiled.

"Then I’ll call you hyung."

Jun-ho laughed.

"Good."

They continued walking for a few moments before Ares suddenly remembered something.

"Then, hyung, you should call me by my Korean name as well."

Jun-ho looked at him.

"Your Korean name?"

"Hm."

He thought for a moment.

"What was it again?"

Then his expression brightened.

"Oh, right. Yoon Tae-ho."

Ares looked at him with a faint smile.

"Yes. Tae-ho."

He shook his head slightly.

"Still, I didn’t think you’d remember it after a long time."

Jun-ho immediately looked offended.

"Of course I remember."

He laughed.

"Who do you think I am? Do you really think I’d forget the name of the kid I raised?"

Ares was quiet for a moment.

Then a small smile appeared on his face.

"You’re right."

Jun-ho looked ahead again.

"Besides, whether you’re Ares or Tae-ho, you’re still you."

Ares glanced at him.

"Then I suppose I’ll leave the old name to you."

Jun-ho smiled.

"Deal."

They continued down the mountain road together.

For the first time in thirteen years, neither of them was walking toward a mission.

There was no target to eliminate, no organization waiting for them, and no danger waiting at the end of the road.

They were simply going somewhere to eat.

It was something ordinary.

Something Ares had never expected to experience with Jun-ho again.

And for Jun-ho, who had spent years believing that the boy he had once raised was already gone forever, simply being able to walk beside him again was more precious than anything he could have imagined.

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