Chapter 21

[21] “Oppa, I’m so glad.”

After subduing the villains and clearing the gate, I handed their bodies over to the hunter police who handled villain cases and headed back.

Catching the villains and turning them in had gone well enough. The problem was what came next.

I wasn’t sure exactly how strong the villain trio was, but they were clearly far stronger than an average D-rank hunter.

So it would look suspicious that a D-rank hunter had completely subdued them, despite being outmatched in both strength and numbers.

The police would probably grill us about it during our witness interviews.

Well, that was their job.

There was nothing we could do about it.

Once we’d finished all the formalities, Junhwi and I left the police station.

“Hyung-nim, we got through today okay, but what are we supposed to say during the witness interview?”

“About what?”

“From their point of view, it makes no sense. A D-rank hunter killed three villains who were probably B- or C-rank.”

The police might suspect that we were hiding our true abilities. If so, they could start pressing us about whether we’d deliberately been given lower ranks than we deserved.

I knew that was a possibility. As soon as we left the gate, I’d tried to summon that mysterious aurora-colored sword aura again, like I had before, but I failed every time.

Still, at least we had video footage of the whole thing.

“We’ll just have to explain it as best we can. Or… we could say there was an unexpected accident inside the gate, and the villains were badly hurt, which gave us a chance to deal with them.”

Unexpected accidents happened inside gates from time to time, so it would make a plausible excuse.

The inside of a gate was still an unknown world to humanity.

“Then we’ll have to make sure our stories match.”

“Right. Let’s think it over and talk about it later. And, Junhwi…”

“Yes, hyung-nim?”

“You and I are only a year apart. Calling me ‘hyung-nim’ feels a little awkward.”

I was only in my mid-twenties. I was still too young to be called “hyung-nim.”

…Listening to him, I was starting to wonder if he’d been in some kind of gang.

“Oh, sorry. I call the older guys in my older sister’s guild ‘hyung-nim.’ I’ve gotten so used to it that I can’t seem to break the habit.”

Junhwi scratched his head sheepishly, as if he’d heard that complaint before.

“Still, it makes me really uncomfortable. Please just call me ‘hyung.’”

“I’ll try, hyung-nim.”

Seriously…

At first, it had been okay, but now I was starting to cringe.

“And, hyung-nim…”

“What?”

I was about to tell him again to just call me “hyung,” but then I caught the seriousness in Junhwi’s eyes and swallowed my words.

“I know I’ve said it before, but… thank you so much for today. If there’s anything I can do for you, hyung-nim, just say the word.”

“That’s what you wanted to talk about?”

“I couldn’t thank you enough, no matter how many times I said it. You saved my life.”

Please, stop.

This was embarrassing enough to kill me.

I hadn’t realized it when we first met, but Junhwi was surprisingly intense.

“Just buy me a meal.”

“I’ll buy you as many as you want! Do you like omakase, hyung-nim?”

“I told you to stop calling me that!”

Maybe it was because I’d been through so much today, but I was completely exhausted.

All I wanted was to collapse into bed and drift off to sleep.

But I should at least call Sia before I went to bed.

“…A call?”

**

Since it was already evening, Junhwi and I had dinner before I headed home.

Was it really right to call her after a day like this?

It wasn’t that I didn’t want to talk to Sia. I just didn’t want to worry her.

I’d told her that morning I was going to a gate, so the gate would probably come up naturally during our call. And if it did, I’d have to tell her about running into the villains.

I couldn’t lie and say nothing had happened. Sia would see right through me anyway. More than that, the wearable camera had recorded everything that happened today.

If she found out what had happened…

Sia would be worried sick.

She might be anxious that something like this could happen again. Or she might lose her composure when she learned someone had tried to take my life.

Knowing Sia, she probably wouldn’t sleep well tonight.

Even so…

I should tell her.

I hadn’t done anything wrong, and it wasn’t something I needed to hide. Besides, she was going to find out sooner or later, one way or another.

I called Sia right away.

As if she’d been waiting for me, she answered in less than a second.

“Hello?”

[Oppaaaa! I missed you so, so much!]

Of course, we were on a video call again.

Sia waved excitedly when she saw me.

A year ago, we hadn’t video-called very often. But since Sia came back, we’d usually made video calls to check in with each other instead of just talking on the phone.

“I missed you too. I can’t wait to see you.”

[I don’t know why time is passing so slowly.]

I couldn’t help smiling at her cute little complaint.

[Oppa, how was your day? Did everything go well at the gate?]

Sia looked at me with bright, expectant eyes, as if she was ready to hear all about it.

But then—

[…Oppa? Did something happen? You don’t look happy.]

Maybe she’d noticed the slightest change in my expression. Her voice turned concerned.

It had only been for a moment, but I’d hesitated over how to tell her.

“You really are a fortune-teller, Sia. You’re right. Something did happen.”

[W-what? What happened? Tell me, Oppa. I’ll listen to anything.]

Just a moment ago, Sia had been smiling brightly.

But—

[Some girl didn’t try to get your number again, did she?]

As soon as I mentioned that something had happened, Sia’s whole demeanor changed.

[That’s it, isn’t it? This is why I can’t relax. Oppa, who was she? Was she a girl who went into the gate with you? Or—]

…She seemed to think it was something involving another woman, like what had happened when we went to the tteokbokki place.

Her expression had turned icy, but only for a moment.

As anxiety started to take hold, Sia tried to bite her nails.

Before she could jump to any more conclusions, I quickly explained.

“Nothing like that happened.”

[It didn’t? Thank goodness. I was worried it might happen again.]

Reassured by my answer, Sia returned to her usual self.

But did she know?

Something much worse had happened.

It hurt to have to tell her, but…

It was something I had to tell her eventually.

“Sia.”

[Yeah?]

I began as seriously as I could.

At first, Sia had been smiling warmly. But when she sensed the unusual seriousness in my voice, her pupils began to tremble.

“…”

As the silence stretched on, anxiety spread across her face.

[What is it? What happened, Oppa? Hm?]

“Something a little serious happened.”

I let out a deep sigh and told her what had happened at the gate today.

I told her that the villains had tried to kill me, that I’d suddenly been able to wield that aurora-colored sword aura, and that I’d used that power to kill them.

Of course, I left out the insults the villains had hurled at Sia and me.

“…That’s what happened.”

After telling her the long, heavy story, I watched Sia’s reaction carefully.

As expected, she didn’t look happy.

She had a lot to say and even more she wanted to ask, but she was trying hard to hold back her emotions.

Especially her eyes.

I could see a complicated mix of feelings in them—more than I could put into words.

At first, she managed to keep her emotions under control. But then the feelings she’d been holding in seemed to spill over, and her expression kept changing.

Perhaps she didn’t want me to see it. Sia turned off her camera.

“Sia…?”

[…I’m just so glad, Oppa.]

Her voice sounded calm, but she seemed to be forcing herself to hold back her emotions.

[I’m glad you’re safe.]

“Thank you. And, in a way, I have you to thank too. If it weren’t for the sword you gave me, that miracle might never have happened.”

[No. You made that miracle happen, Oppa. Thank you so much for coming back alive.]

She spoke brightly, pretending she was all right, but it was obvious she was still holding back her feelings.

For Sia’s sake, I pretended not to notice.

“Anyway, Sia, I came back without a scratch, so don’t worry, okay?”

[…Yeah.]

She tried to sound cheerful, but the slight tremble in her voice made my heart ache.

I had a feeling that staying on the call any longer wouldn’t be good for either of us.

“Ah, I’m tired. Sorry, but let’s end the call here and talk longer tomorrow. Is that okay?”

[Of course. You should get some rest. Good night, Oppa.]

I hung up and stared blankly into space.

Hearing Sia try so hard to sound cheerful had left me feeling awful.

I had a feeling neither of us would get much sleep tonight.

If I could, I’d be by her side, singing her a lullaby, then falling asleep together in the warmth of each other’s arms.

Tonight was going to feel especially lonely.

***

As soon as the call ended, Sia could no longer contain the feelings boiling up deep inside her.

She had finally reunited with the person she cherished after overcoming one obstacle after another. And now, she’d almost lost him in an absurd incident like this.

Despite everything that had happened, Minjun had been more worried about her than himself. Seeing his kindness made sorrow and guilt begin to well up inside her.

Soon, though, those feelings turned into intense fury at the trash who had dared to try to kill Minjun.

And then that fury turned into a heartache so heavy it felt like her chest might cave in.

While Minjun had risked his life to get through that ordeal, she hadn’t been able to do a single thing to help him.

Thank goodness Oppa managed to draw out his power.

But what if he hadn’t?

She couldn’t even bear to imagine what might have happened.

As her thoughts went there, Sia crushed the drink bottle in her hand without realizing it.

Though it was made of plastic, her overwhelming grip didn’t merely dent it. It shattered into tiny pieces as if it were glass.

What can I do for Oppa?

Sia would do anything for Minjun.

Anything at all.

But right now, the only thing she could do for him was listen to him and comfort him.

The bastards she wanted to tear apart were already dead.

Even as a dragon, a being of immense power, she still couldn’t do anything. The helplessness was enough to make her anger blaze all the hotter.

Bam!

Filled with rage at the villains—and at herself—she slammed her fist into the floor.

The floor was solid marble, but a single punch from her left it cracked.

I have to do something.

Not only for Minjun, but for herself too.

If she just stood by and did nothing, she felt like she might go mad.

As she wondered what she could do, an idea crossed her mind.

Just because they’re dead doesn’t mean I can’t get revenge, right?

If she were an ordinary person, perhaps that would be true. But as a dragon, she had the power to do it.

Having experienced reincarnation, she’d been naturally interested in necromancers’ teachings ever since she was a hatchling.

That interest had led her to study their art on her own. As a result, she’d become quite skilled at necromancy, including summoning the souls of the dead.

That’s it.

If the people she wanted revenge on were already dead, she could use necromancy to summon their souls and take her revenge.

They were probably in hell by now.

“I’ll show you there are places even worse than hell.”

Her eyes began to fill with a deep, murderous intent.