Chapter 124

Chapter 124

I remember when the Monster Parade first broke out five years ago.

That day, I was holding Yujin’s hand and coming back from the nearby supermarket after buying a bottle of cooking oil. A fair amount of time has passed since then, so there are some parts I’ve forgotten or left out here and there, but I still clearly remember how clear the sky was that day and how unusually noisy the road back to the orphanage was.

“Seohee, what happened today? Everyone’s acting weird. They’re all just staring at their phones and talking.”

“I know. If I’d brought my phone out, I could’ve found out right away, but I forgot and left it behind.”

Yujin and I were having that conversation as we climbed the hill leading to the orphanage. That was possible back then because Yujin was still a healthy child with no connection to the word ‘incurable disease’ — not a single ache or pain anywhere.

“Ah, we’re here!”

As soon as the orphanage’s main gate came into view in the distance, Yujin let go of my hand and ran straight ahead. I watched the child from afar and slowly entered the orphanage grounds.

“Yujin, slow down. You’ll fall.”

“I won’t fall~!”

Like most kids that age, Yujin preferred running to walking. The child ran *dododo* on those little feet all the way to the main gate leading to the orphanage building and grabbed the door handle. I walked up behind the child at a slightly quicker pace. The child turned their head slightly, met my eyes, and then flung the door wide open.

It was right then that I felt something was strangely off.

“Yujin, Seohee!”

Had she been waiting by the door? The Director burst out exactly as we opened the door and stepped inside. The Director, who had a bit less gray hair back then compared to now, grabbed us without a word and started checking us over.

“D-Director?”

“What’s wrong, Director?”

Only after a long moment did the Director let out a huge sigh of relief and hug us. Naturally, Yujin and I were bewildered by the incomprehensible situation, exchanging glances with the other kids who were also standing by the door, just like the Director.

—We’re getting news from another area! We’ve made contact with our station’s reporter on the ground, Park Juwon! Are you safe? What’s the situation there right now?!

And then, from the TV that the Director and the kids must have turned on, came the voice of an announcer who sounded extremely urgent.

—We have new information! It is currently believed that a Dungeon has appeared inside Bukhansan! A monster shaped like a beast made of bones is said to be descending from the Bukhansan Dungeon, so please evacuate as far away from Bukhansan as possible! They say it’s near the area bordering Pyeongchang-dong!

At first, I vaguely thought the Director and the kids had put on a variety show or a movie. But it didn’t take long to realize that wasn’t the case. The familiar channel name floating in the upper right corner of the TV screen, the Director’s sniffly voice saying she was glad we were safe. And.

—The photo currently appearing behind me is said to be the monster appearing near Bukhansan!

Even the photo of the ‘monster shaped like a beast made of bones’ that appeared behind the announcer, who I felt like I’d seen often whenever the news was on.

“Unbeliever’s Step.”

And now, I was standing right in front of that very place the announcer had mentioned in an urgent voice on the news — the ‘Bukhansan Dungeon.’

“Activate.”

With a soft murmur, a dull metallic light split the body of the bone-made monster. *Crunch.* As the boulder Jeong Seojin had stepped on let out a harsh cracking sound, a four-legged beast wearing a human skull on its head aimed for his back.

Of course, Jeong Seojin wasn’t the kind of person to fall for such a shallow attack. The monster that had been targeting his weak point was soon crushed to the ground by the flow of magical power he momentarily released. Right after, the dagger Jeong Seojin threw pierced the monster’s neck area. In the end, the monster that had tried to exploit his so-called weak point met its end without putting up any real resistance.

And while Jeong Seojin was doing all of this, I was clamped under his arm, my mouth shut tight.

“Um, Jeong Seojin, please put me down… Ugh.”

“Don’t throw up here. Hold it in a little longer.”

Contrary to his words, maybe he was worried I would actually spill the contents of my stomach. Jeong Seojin immediately set me down on the ground and patted my back, telling me to calm down. It was a sensible and grateful reaction, but I would have been even more grateful if he’d just put me down and fought without me in the first place.

“There’s not much left now. Just hold on a little longer.”

“I’d like to hold it in too… ugh.”

As if I wanted to show anyone the contents of my stomach either. I tried to straighten my back and snap something at Jeong Seojin, but the rising nausea overwhelmed me again, and I bent over. Seriously, you shove someone under your arm, jump, spin, run, fight, do all that, and now you tell me to hold it in? Does that even make sense?

‘Ugh, if only… the main area where the Monster Parade broke out is a mountain region, so that makes it even worse…’

Right now, Seojin and I had come to ‘clean up’ Bukhansan, which was roughly estimated to be the third most monster-infested area. …Actually, to be precise, Seojin was the one handling the cleanup of this area, not me.

‘If Guild Master Kang Mujin had been here, would things have been better than this…?’

Before coming to Bukhansan, Jeong Seojin had entered the building that was the predecessor of Heewon Guild and barged straight into a room labeled ‘Conference Room.’ Honestly, since he walked in so confidently, I thought it was only a conference room in name and actually used for something else. But it really was a conference room, and on top of that, a meeting was actively in progress inside.

And Jeong Seojin, right in the middle of the meeting, with various government officials, Awakeners, and military representatives all stunned by the sudden intrusion of an outsider, asked boldly.

‘Those bone monsters that were roaming the streets this time. Where did they come from?’

Naturally, I was horrified and grabbed his arm to stop him.

‘Jeong Seojin, are you crazy? Interrupting people in the middle of a discussion like this—what kind of behavior is that…’

…Regrettably, my perfectly sensible scolding had absolutely no effect on Jeong Seojin.

Because the people in the room, who had been startled by his sudden appearance, soon wore expressions that said, ‘Of course it’s him,’ and complied with what he asked.

‘We estimate they appeared near Bukhansan.’

‘Actually, there’s another candidate—a building that came up in the Mapo-gu area… a “Dungeon.” But Awakener Kim Miju and her team are handling that one.’

A figure presumed to be from the government side picked up the report on the table and read its contents aloud, while someone across from them, presumably an Awakener, added supplementary information. They all seemed used to Jeong Seojin’s eccentric behavior.

Thanks to that, the only one bewildered by this absurd situation was me. After listening to all the additional information the people in the room provided, Jeong Seojin opened his mouth one last time.

‘What about Kang Mujin?’

‘A large monster appeared near the shelter area, so he left urgently to stop it.’

‘Don’t tell Kang Mujin.’

Because that guy would just nag and annoy him again. Jeong Seojin calmly said something utterly ridiculous, then immediately dragged me off toward Bukhansan. The one saving grace was that the transportation method this guy chose was perfectly ordinary—a car.

Of course, after we arrived at Bukhansan, there wasn’t a single ‘saving grace’ left.

“Ugh, uuugh…!”

“Just hold it in a little. You’re an Awakener too, so you should be able to handle this much.”

“Just because I awakened doesn’t mean I’m as tough as you—ugh.”

The very person who had been fighting with me tucked under his arm ever since we arrived at Bukhansan had the nerve to say things like ‘just hold it in a little.’ I stayed bent over, gagging repeatedly, inwardly chewing on all kinds of curses aimed at Jeong Seojin. Damn it, I hope you step in dog shit while walking. And spill your coffee, and drop your perfectly made ramen by accident…

How much time passed like that? After repeating that ordeal for at least ten minutes, I finally managed to suppress the nausea. I took a deep breath and slowly straightened my back. At the same time, Jeong Seojin reached out both hands to tuck me under his arm again.

Naturally, I refused with all my might.

“I’ll just walk on my own two feet.”

“You’re slow.”

That’s a perfectly valid reason that leaves me with nothing to say. But if I gave in here, the contents of my stomach might really end up on full display. I shook my head again, refusing.

“I really don’t want to tell you what I ate, you know? Isn’t there at least a way to make it less nauseating?”

“A way to make it less nauseating.”

For once, Jeong Seojin actually started thinking seriously. He withdrew the hand he’d been reaching toward me and fell into thought for a moment. I too tilted my head, lost in thought, and stared at him with a serious expression. After all, if Seojin couldn’t come up with a decent method, the damage would be entirely mine.

Fortunately, as misfortune would have it, after a brief moment of thought, Jeong Seojin seemed to have come up with a decent enough method, and his unfocused eyes met mine.

“Then how about I carry you?”

“Huh? Oh. You mean carry me as in—”

“Exactly what I said.”

Jeong Seojin reached his hand out toward me again. This time, I didn’t pull back or refuse, and let myself follow his lead.