Chapter 13
Jin Su-jin finally managed to close her mouth.
Lee So-yeon looked at her quizzically.
“Why? Why? What was it like?”
“The mana's strange.”
“What's strange about it?”
“Wait, I've never felt mana like this before, either.”
She searched for the right words.
How should she describe it?
What words could fully convey this experience?
“Is the mana really, really strong?”
“Not in that way.”
Jin Su-jin was a Hunter, too.
She had interacted with many Awakened.
And encountered all kinds of monsters in the Tower.
Some of them had radiated tremendous mana.
Korea's No. 1 Hunter, Fire Sword.
Standing beside her had shown Jin Su-jin what it meant to be overwhelmed.
‘But this is different.’
The clump of mana just now hadn't been that powerful.
At most, it was on the level of a beginner Hunter around Floor 10.
“Then isn't it weak?”
“Not exactly. There's something different about it.”
She couldn't explain what was different, exactly.
But it was different.
“In a good way?”
“In a good way.”
It was simply hard to describe something so completely new.
But there was no doubt that the mana just now had been extraordinary.
That was when—
Splurt-
Another glob of water came flying.
This time, both So-yeon and Jin Su-jin watched it.
Thanks to that, she could finally choose the right words.
“It's pure.”
“…What does that mean?”
Pure means pure!
“There aren't any impurities in the mana!”
“There are usually impurities?”
“There are. I didn't even know until now, though.”
Was this the curse of knowledge, too?
She'd started to sense impurities she hadn't even known existed.
In her own mana, and in So-yeon's mana.
“And it's incredibly dense.”
Mana packed tightly into a sphere.
It was different from her own loose, sloppy mana.
“How could anyone use mana like this?”
Hikki had been taught complex mana-control techniques by a Great Wizard.
There was bound to be a difference between Hikki and Awakened who only borrowed the power of the Tower and the System.
Even knowing that, she would have been surprised.
For someone who didn't know, it was all the harder to understand.
“Anyway, you're saying it's amazing.”
“Yeah.”
“So that person is that special someone, then.”
“…Probably.”
If the mana was high-density and completely free of impurities, then Hikki's overwhelming scores made sense.
It would be stranger if Hikki weren't the one.
They'd finally found Hikki. All they had to do was meet them.
“But.”
“What?”
“Should we go see them?”
Now that they were about to meet Hikki face-to-face, they were scared.
“I-I mean, I didn't have anything to do at the guild, so I started all this.”
“You didn't actually think we'd find Hikki?”
“Yeah.”
They didn't know Hikki's face, gender, or real name.
They knew even less whether Hikki was good or evil.
The fact that Hikki had put off registering as an Awakened meant—
there was some sort of ulterior motive.
Maybe Hikki was planning to immigrate or seek asylum, like the media claimed.
“Or maybe a criminal?”
“Hikki could be dangerous.”
“Maybe Hikki will try to get rid of us so there aren't any witnesses.”
Should they just go back?
“But this….”
So-yeon looked down at the crumpled official document.
The reward money.
An amount that could let them live in luxury for the rest of their lives.
Just as Hikki had been tempted by the signing bonus.
Jin Su-jin and So-yeon, too, were wavering over the reward.
“Should we just report that we think Hikki lives here?”
Then someone from the Bureau could come and verify it.
“What if we're wrong?”
What if it was just an ordinary Hunter radiating mana so pure it seemed mystical?
“It's already a mess because of all the false reports.”
“They might hold it against us.”
Then all their support programs would be over.
Smack-
So-yeon smacked her own forehead loudly.
“We can't help it, Sujin. Let's go meet Hikki.”
“Are you sure?”
“What's the worst that could happen…! Hikki's only a Floor 7 Hunter, right?!”
Yeah, just a Floor 7 Hunter.
No matter how many times Hikki had climbed past the global No. 1 ranking, Hikki was only on Floor 7.
Hikki might be weaker than they were now.
Or maybe not!
“…Let's go!”
And so they decided to meet Hikki.
After figuring out the floor and unit number, they headed to the villa.
The closer they got, the stronger the mana felt.
Residual mana clung to the window frames like grime.
They followed a delivery rider who had just arrived into the building.
“This is it, right?”
“Yeah.”
They swallowed nervously, then—
Ding-dong-
They rang the doorbell.
And at that moment, a large amount of mana that had been swirling inside the room vanished.
“…?”
They waited, thinking Hikki might come out and open the door.
But there was no response.
If anything, even the faintest sign of life disappeared.
Knock knock knock-
“Is anyone there?”
“…….”
“I'm sure someone's home….”
Was Hikki pretending not to be home?
No, surely not.
Hikki of all people.
Just as they were about to ring the doorbell a few more times, they heard footsteps on the stairs.
“Who is it?”
“Pardon?”
“I'm the landlord here, and strangers keep ringing the bell, so—”
She looked at them warily.
It was the kind of look you'd give a cultist who'd come to proselytize.
“W-we're not weirdos!”
“We came to see someone who lives here.”
“What for?”
“It's… for work.”
“Work?”
“……Government business?”
Her eyes swept over them again.
Neat outfits, put together with cardigans, blouses, and slacks.
Now that she looked again, they seemed more like public officials than cultists.
“Hmm. This person didn't get into trouble, did they?”
“Hehe…. Of course not!”
“Well, they're a young person living alone. A little clumsy and simple, but not the sort to do anything strange.”
“Oh, really? You seem very interested in your tenants, ma'am.”
“That young person has lived in this house for years. I know them.”
I see.
For now, Hikki was a young man.
Confirmed to be young, male, and rather mild-mannered.
‘We'll head back for today, but….’
They'd achieved their immediate goal with even that much.
“Hikki's inside, right? We'll leave a note.”
So-yeon and Jin Su-jin left a note on the front door and went away.
***
“Did they leave…?”
I nearly fainted.
I'd been sitting crouched down in front of the door for ages.
Thump-thump-
It had been ages since they left.
My heart was still pounding violently.
‘Take that back.’
I take back what I said about needing someone to handle things for me.
“I'll just live alone….”
Yeah, facing people really is too hard.
Anyway, who were those people?
Even cultists wouldn't hang around for this long.
I caught my breath and stood up.
‘They said they left a note.’
I cautiously opened the front door.
The hallway was empty.
There was just a yellow memo stuck to the door.
I snatched it and hurried back inside!
“Phew.”
I was worried they'd be waiting in ambush and attack me.
I checked the note.
[I know this is rude, but could we talk for a moment?]
[Hunter Guild, the Capybara Guild]
Hunter guild?
Why would Hunters want to see me?
Did they figure out I was Hikki?
How did they know where I lived?
Did they get hit by one of the water bombs I threw while training?
Amid the flood of random thoughts—
I searched for the Capybara Guild.
All that came up was a modest website.
The guild had just two members.
Women who looked younger than me.
I mean, younger than I used to be.
“The guild leader is a magic-type….”
The vice-guild leader was support-type.
‘Mana Detection trait?’
So that's how they noticed me….
‘Well…. Can't do anything about being found out.’
If I leave them alone, they'll go home.
.
.
.
That's what I thought, anyway.
Ding-dong- Ding-dong, ding-dong-
“We've come to share some good news.”
Knock knock knock knock knock knock-
You didn't come to share good news.
How many days has this been going on….
I couldn't even climb the Tower because it was bothering me.
It was hard enough enduring it with my earphones on, shut away in my own world.
“Ah.”
I'd also learned a few things in the meantime.
Apparently, the Awakened Management Bureau offered a reward to any guild that recruited me?
It was in those articles I'd skimmed over.
They said the amount was enormous, too.
‘They're harassing me like this because of money….’
I hate this.
Anyway.
I'd given up on the idea that they'd give up.
The amount was enough to make my eyes spin. I wouldn't have given up either.
‘Let's meet.’
I'll squeeze my eyes shut and meet them!
Then I'll lay down the law.
Tell them never to come back, and to forget everything they saw and heard here.
If I scare them off with magic, they won't come near me again.
“Hwaah!”
I took a deep breath and stood in front of the door.
Knock knock-
“Is anyone there?”
“Y-yes? Yes! I'm coming out!”
***
“…….”
What should they say?
They couldn't bring themselves to say anything.
“Uuuh…….”
Looking at the sight before them, they couldn't help it.
A little girl trembling all over.
She'd opened the door wide, muttered something, and then—
lowered her head, just like that.
So-yeon cautiously opened her mouth.
“Where are your parents?”
“…I don't have any.”
“Oh.”
Goodness.
What were they saying, right off the bat….
Jin Su-jin and So-yeon's eyes darted wildly.
“They abandoned… me.”
“They abandoned you?”
“When I was little….”
“Oh….”
The mood had gone completely sour.
‘You crazy woman, why'd you say something so stupid!’
Jin Su-jin gave So-yeon a discreet pinch in the side.
Maybe she knew she'd messed up, because all she gave was a faint “Ow-” of pain.
But there was no taking back what she'd said.
“…….”
Suffocating awkwardness.
Extreme discomfort descended over all three of them.
They needed to meet Hikki soon, but where on earth was Hikki?
Was Hikki climbing the Tower or something?
This time, Jin Su-jin tried to break the ice.
“Th-where did your big brother go?”
“B-big brother?”
The girl's face twisted.
Had they said something wrong again?
“Yeah, your brother. I heard a young man lived here.”
The girl fell silent.
Then suddenly opened her mouth.
“He's. Gone now.”
“Huh?”
What did she mean, gone now?
You wouldn't describe someone climbing the Tower as gone.
A terrible sense of unease swept over them.
“Then what about Hikki?”
“I… I'm Hikki.”
Her voice was barely audible.
The little girl lowered her head again.
“This child is… Hikki?”
“So-yeon, wait a second.”
“Huh?”
Jin Su-jin gestured to the muttering So-yeon.
“…?!”
Around Hikki, little balls of fire the size of candle flames—
shards of ice—
and vines were appearing.
How long had they been there?
There had been no incantation or hand gesture.
Magic unfolded as though it had been there all along.
And not just one element, but several at once.
They trembled uneasily, just like the girl's state of mind, then—
Creak-creak-
One of the vines grabbed So-yeon by the ankle.
“Eek?!”
“I'm sorry….”
Slither-
The vine released her ankle.
The fire, ice, and wood vanished as if nothing had happened.
After Jin Su-jin, who had sensed the mana earlier, So-yeon understood, too.
The child before them was Hikki.
If so, then what about the man who supposedly lived here?
A scenario clicked together in their minds.
The man really was Hikki's older brother.
He'd lost his life for some reason, and Hikki alone had been turning that pain into awakening.
“So you've been living alone this whole time? You never asked other people for help?”
“People… make me uncomfortable.”
“How do they make you uncomfortable?”
“I can't breathe…. I feel like I'm going to throw up…. Hngh!”
Then Hikki's breathing grew ragged.
Her mana surged like a storm.
This time, its flow was violent.
“Please, go… go away.”
“Oh? Oh! Okay, sorry!”
“Here's our contact info. Call if you need anything!”
The Capybara Guild hurriedly left, leaving only a business card behind.
***
After the suffocating encounter ended,
the Capybara Guild members sighed inside their compact car.
“What are we going to do? Hikki's definitely the one.”
They should try to recruit Hikki right away.
That was the rational decision.
Hikki was an unstable child. A little coaxing and Hikki would come around quickly.
If they really felt bad about it, they could just hand Hikki over to the Bureau.
Now that they'd confirmed Hikki was the one, surely the reward would be paid as promised.
But.
“I can't do it.”
“Me neither.”
They just couldn't.
What did it matter if Hikki was good at magic and climbed the Tower well?
The girl was already covered in wounds.
Abandoned by her parents, and she'd lost her only family.
The media and internet were spewing all kinds of rumors and speculation about Hikki.
How must she have felt reading those cruel words?
They couldn't drag the girl out of her home.
They shouldn't.
Jin Su-jin clenched her fist and spoke.
“Let's protect her.”
“How?”
“We'll hide her. And just take care of things for her.”
Two days later, all kinds of food, clothes, and daily necessities arrived at Hikki's home.