"What should I do?"
He asked himself.
It would be amazing if he could see the current state of the Netherworld.
Not that he wanted to return there, but his curiosity about certain things gnawed at him, and there were a few loose ends he felt compelled to address.
If he could return to the Netherworld, his first priority would be revenge—against Crowley and the other Seven Demon Wings or the true mastermind behind his death, whose identity he still had no clue about.
Beyond vengeance, he wanted to ensure Lilu's survival.
'It would be a shame if my prized puppet were to die there.'
A small part of him refused to accept Lilu's death, not out of pity, love, or anything sentimental, but simply because he didn't want to lose the puppet he had painstakingly cultivated.
He had invested so much into that puppet, sacrificing rare items and granting her exclusive skills.
'Yes, because I've invested a lot in you, you must survive.'
Realizing it was pointless to dwell on the matter further, he turned his focus to what he should do on Earth.
'Return to my foster family after two years of vanishing without a trace?'
That wasn't a wise choice—at least not in his current state.
In his previous life, unable to pay off his debts, he fled in a hurry, even abandoning a hospital stay, only to be tracked down by the underground organization he owed money to.
Since he couldn't repay the debt, he was forced into slavery by that organization. Naturally, he never made it to China to visit his foster family.
Even after another catastrophe struck Earth, he still couldn't reunite with them.
Because of that, if possible, he wanted to return to where his foster family was. But he knew he didn't even have the money for transportation.
In other words, he was broke.
It would be grand if he could return wealthy and successful, but in his current miserable state, Ernest was certain he would be ridiculed endlessly. Even if not, he lacked the face to return in such a pathetic condition.
Instead of returning while still in a poor state, he fantasized about reuniting with his foster family after amassing wealth and powerful connections. Disappearing for two years, then returning as a success—wouldn't that make for an interesting story?
'Let's forget this foolish delusion.'
Another option was, 'Awakened and becoming a hunter?'
Indeed, becoming a hunter would make him rich quickly. Earning money would be as easy as plucking leaves from a tree if he became a hunter. But let's not forget that he couldn't do that due to the curse on his body.
As long as the pain curse persisted, awakening and becoming a hunter was impossible.
'Can I do something with my current condition?'
The curse on his body wouldn't vanish if he did nothing about it. Proof of this lay in his previous life, where he remained an ordinary person even after being enslaved by the underground organization for ten years.
Only after another catastrophe struck Earth did the pain curse on his body ease slightly.
The reason? He had accidentally obtained an Elixir. While the curse wasn't completely removed, it allowed him to become strong enough to survive for a time.
Eventually, however, he died in battle, and his soul was transferred to the Netherworld.
He had been delighted to find himself free of the pain curse in the Netherworld, only to face an even harsher hell…
'Can I consider my return to the past a stroke of luck?'
This time, he didn't want to endure a life full of suffering again.
The problem was, the only way he knew to lift the curse was the same as in his previous life—by drinking the Elixir.
But obtaining an Elixir now was impossible.
'Perhaps there's another way to cure the curse on my body? Especially with some of the knowledge I gained from the Netherworld.'
One idea came to him.
First, he attempted demon-style Mana refinement techniques. As expected, there was no feedback from the Mana in the air or from his own body.
Finally, Ernest turned to something he believed would work.
Without hesitation, he tried it.
During his time in the Netherworld, he had acquired a magic scroll containing a cultivation technique specifically for humans.
He had found the scroll in a treasure chest belonging to a demon lord in Duskrend, the first territory he and Lilu had conquered.
'Come to think of it, why was there a magic scroll meant for humans in a land inhabited only by demons?'
The question suddenly surfaced in his mind.
What was even stranger was that the language on the scroll was readable only by him—a former human. Specifically, it was written in ancient Chinese.
When Ernest first found the scroll, he had been excited and unfurled it wide in the air. Lilu, who had accidentally seen its contents, showed no interest in it, even when Ernest explained that the scroll contained an extraordinary cultivation technique.
Relaxing at the edge of an open window, Lilu had dismissed the scroll, saying demons were born with unique skills. They didn't need to train to become strong; fighting alone was enough to enhance their abilities.
Her indifferent response had irritated Ernest, and he had struggled to suppress his frustration.
His thoughts inevitably compared humans to demons.
Unlike in the Netherworld, humans on Earth had to train with all their might to awaken and gain power beyond that of ordinary people. Even hard work wasn't enough—one also needed high Mana sensitivity and immense luck to awaken.
As an outlet for his frustration, Ernest had memorized the contents of the cultivation scroll in defiance of Lilu's dismissive attitude. He had read and etched every word into his mind, so much so that he still remembered it to this day.
Back then, the scroll had been useless to him since he was a demon and couldn't practice its contents. But who would have thought that his futile actions would prove useful now?
The circumstances were different now. As a human, he believed he could master the cultivation technique.
Perhaps, unconsciously, Ernest had held on to the hope of one day becoming human again, practicing the technique, and freeing himself from the curse that had bound him for so long.
The technique was called Divine Harmony.
Closing his eyes, he sat in a lotus position and began practicing the breathing techniques described in Divine Harmony.