Chapter 19
Cheonhwa was still looking at me with an utterly baffled expression.
I looked away from that awkward gaze.
Anyway, things had worked out, hadn't they? I'd taken care of all the scorpions.
And there hadn't been any civilian casualties nearby, either.
If there was only one problem...
‘Ah... I'm gonna die...’
Tremble, tremble, tremble—
My fingertips were shaking like crazy.
I couldn't control them at all, like someone with tremors.
Maybe the skill had used more mana than I'd expected.
Along with the dizziness, the side effects of mana depletion were starting to hit.
Just then, I felt Cheonhwa's gaze.
“That seems like a pretty powerful skill. Are you all right?”
“Yeah, well, this much—”
My stomach was churning.
Just as I was about to answer Cheonhwa,
I thought I was going to throw up the smoothie and butter mochi I'd had earlier.
But my expression didn't change.
I had to pretend I was fine.
That was part of looking cool—and what my inflated ego was built on.
“Of course I'm fine.”
“...Right. I suppose you're not that child.”
After making some vague excuse to Cheonhwa,
I immediately turned around.
If I stayed here any longer, I was really going to throw up.
Besides, the System Window had been going wild for a while now.
[※Warning※ You are low on mana.]
[Consume a Mana Recovery Potion.]
‘I know, damn it!’
It had started back when I casually flashed Cheonhwa a V sign as if nothing was wrong.
It kept shaking wildly in front of my eyes in red, annoying the hell out of me.
I swiped the System Window away with my hand,
and only then did my chaotic vision clear up a little.
“Anyway, our deal is finished, so I'll be going.”
There was still a lot to research,
and I had to deal with my low mana,
as well as figure out how to make up for my shortcomings.
In short, I had a hell of a lot of things to spend points on now.
Without waiting for Cheonhwa's response, I turned and headed straight home.
Or, I tried to.
Kieeek—!!!
“What?”
When had more reinforcements arrived?
There were easily more than ten scorpions right in front of me.
I immediately picked up my knife to deal with them and head back.
But just then.
“Bear with it, even if it's hard to breathe for a moment!”
Whoosh—!
“What?!”
Cheonhwa suddenly grabbed me and started wrapping something around me.
Looking closely, it was a black cloak.
Why was she suddenly wrapping this around me?
There were scorpions crawling all over the place in front of us.
“Guhk—! Why are you tying it so tight...?”
“Shh! This cloak conceals your presence, so be quiet.”
I wanted to ask her why she was doing this right now,
but Cheonhwa quickly put a finger to my lips, gesturing for me to be quiet,
so I couldn't say anything.
I was staring at Cheonhwa, unable to understand what she was doing, when...
Whoosh.
Kwoooooom—!
“They're here.”
Something dropped in front of the scorpions at tremendous speed.
Fwoosh—!
Amid the ash and dust kicked up by the impact, the sound of flames and a pale blue light emerged.
And then.
Slither...
Flash—
With a quiet spreading sound, the dust and ash that had blocked my view blew away,
and the scene inside gradually came into view.
The person standing there was none other than the famous guild leader of Yinghua.
The Ice-Flame Emperor (氷炎帝), Han Seorin.
‘Wow, she's terrifying. Guess that's what an S-rank is like.’
Around her spread blue flames the color of ice,
and the corpses of scorpions, impossible to tell whether they had frozen to death or burned to death, lay everywhere.
“Cheonhwa, I'm pretty sure I told you not to leave the area.”
Her cold, subdued voice was directed at Cheonhwa.
It didn't sound angry so much as completely emotionless.
While my mind was still struggling to catch up with what was happening,
Cheonhwa replied curtly, as if this were nothing new.
“Don't be so strict. I only came out to get a little fresh air.”
“Are you being vague again?”
It was the sort of reply that said, Go on, try and do something about it.
It was the kind of composure only an absolute powerhouse could afford.
“Haa...”
Han Seorin sighed too, as though she were used to Cheonhwa's attitude.
How many times had Cheonhwa gotten herself out of a situation like this for her to react that way?
This was getting so interesting I wanted some popcorn.
“So.”
In an instant, the Ice-Flame Emperor's gaze turned cold.
The air grew heavy.
“And this is the result?”
She spoke while looking at the street, burned black and charred.
“Yeah. Is there a problem?”
“……”
Cheonhwa paid no attention to the incredulous look she was getting.
Han Seorin must have realized there was no point, because she shook her head.
“...There is. This isn't how things were supposed to go between us.”
“Hmm... You mean Han (瀚)? That matter...”
“Wait!”
Han Seorin cut Cheonhwa off and hurriedly looked around.
What? Why?! What's ‘Han’?! Tell me too!
I leaned in to listen to the increasingly interesting conversation, only for them to stop right at the crucial part.
Was this that famous cliffhanger technique?
I waited for her to continue,
but Seorin simply looked at Cheonhwa in silence, as if gathering her thoughts, after checking the surroundings.
Cheonhwa, who was watching her, wore her usual smile.
It was a very sly smile.
The subtle tension between them returned just then.
Crackle—
A signal sounded from the small radio clipped to Han Seorin's waist.
[Sis, where'd you go?! You were right next to me just a second ago!]
It was a familiar voice I'd heard somewhere before,
cheerful, but with a bit of airheadedness, coming through the radio.
“...I came out to look for Cheonhwa, who disappeared for a bit.”
[Really? Okay. Then I'll head ba—. Y-you damn bug, where do you think you're crawling?!]
“……”
Uh, um... Were they in the middle of a fight or something?
The sounds of fighting came through the radio all the way to where I was.
Han Seorin flinched for a moment at the vicious profanity coming from the radio,
but soon returned to her usual composure as if nothing had happened.
[Finish up and come back quickly. We're almost done cleaning up, and we still have to report to the Association.]
“...All right.”
Beep. Beep. Beep.
It felt like a storm had passed in an instant.
Yoonha.
When I'd first met her, she'd just seemed kind of airheaded.
But she could talk like that even to her own guild leader.
I guess you really can't judge a person based on just one side of them.
“Then make sure you return to your assigned area by this evening at the latest.”
“...Hmm. Well, all right.”
Han Seorin nodded at Cheonhwa's response.
She looked thoroughly tired of even having to say it anymore,
and sighed as if she'd finally accepted there was nothing she could do about it.
Then Han Seorin turned and headed back the way she'd come.
Just then.
A chill ran down my spine.
‘...Did she see me?’
It had only been for a moment, truly the blink of an eye,
but our eyes had met.
Han Seorin's gaze had swept over me from head to toe.
My heart seemed to stop, then beat a moment late.
When and how had she noticed me?
Was it when she first appeared in front of Cheonhwa?
Or afterward?
Cheonhwa had even wrapped me in a cloak that concealed my presence,
and I'd held my breath and done my best to stay quiet despite my dizziness...
And why had she left without saying anything, even though she'd found me?
I couldn't understand it.
‘Ah, whatever. My head hurts, too.’
I held my dizzy head as I took off the cloak.
She didn't seem like a bad person, anyway.
And all she knew about me was what my face looked like.
There was no point worrying about it.
“Here, I'll give your cloak back.”
I put the thought aside, took off the cloak, and handed it to Cheonhwa.
“No, just think of it as a gift and keep it.”
“No, but it's yours, Cheonhwa. How could I shamelessly keep it?”
Cheonhwa told me to keep it as a gift,
but no matter how much I loved money, I wasn't shameless.
I gave her a friendly smile and handed the cloak back to her.
“There's no need. It's not an especially expensive cloak.”
“Is that so? Then I guess I have no choice.”
Well, what could I do when she insisted that much?
It wouldn't be polite to refuse a gift she'd kindly offered me.
I hugged the cloak tightly to my chest and immediately started running home.
“See you next time! I'll contact you about the elixir!”
“Good grief—”
Cheonhwa looked at me with an incredulous expression.
Surely even an S-rank Hunter like her wouldn't offer me a gift and then take it back.
I ran off with the cloak, without looking back,
and made it home without incident.
***
Meanwhile, on the roof of a building in Incheon.
“Yoonha, are you listening?”
[Yes? Did you call me, sis?]
Han Seorin was speaking to Yoonha through a small radio.
“I think we should keep a close eye on Cheonhwa for a while.”
[Why...?]
Yoonha asked why Seorin had suddenly told her to keep an eye on Cheonhwa.
Seorin continued, as if she understood Yoonha's confusion.
“An unknown variable just appeared.”
[A vari...able?]
Yoonha replied as if she still didn't understand.
But Seorin didn't explain any further.
“So for now, just keep watching.”
“And don't approach her for no reason.”
[…Yes.]
Beep—
Yoonha didn't ask any more questions.
It was a sign of her trust and faith in the guild leader she followed.
After the radio conversation with Yoonha ended,
Seorin closed her eyes for a moment, as if thinking about something.
“I hope she doesn't get caught up in something dangerous for no reason.”
A brief murmur.
She said nothing more,
and vanished from the spot.