Chapter 66: The Real Hanon Appears

A beachside road during my summer vacation.
I was running, face to face with a boy.
A boy who looked exactly like me.

“Seeing you up close, it’s amazing. You really look just like me.”
The real Hanon smiled at me as if he found it fascinating.

“I’ve heard a lot of rumors about me. Something about being called ‘Lightning Punk’?”
I hesitated for a moment.
That one… well, I felt a bit bad about it.
After all, I had tarnished his reputation.

“Ha, it’s fine, really. I don’t particularly care what people call me. Honestly, it’s been fun watching you in action and getting into it. Maybe that’s why…”
Hanon’s crimson eyes locked directly onto mine.

“I’m dying to know your true identity.”
Hanon began to pick up his pace without breaking that gaze.

Realizing his intention, I scowled fiercely.
I reached out to grab him.
But Hanon, with his agile movements, easily dodged my hand.

Damn it, this guy’s dodge skill is maxed out!
Hanon’s unique trait is [Evasion].
Even magical attacks are dodged by his insane reflexes.
If he was determined, even I couldn’t catch him easily.

“So I thought I’d figure it out myself! Just for today, I’ll live your life a little!”

“Wait—!”
Before I could finish, Hanon darted off into a group of students doing their morning training.

If I chased him there, things would get messy.
‘Damn it.’
I had no choice but to turn around and head into the bushes.

There, I unwound the veil bandages.
My true face was revealed.

After rewrapping the bandages, my face quickly changed.
I transformed into someone who wouldn’t stand out no matter where I went in this world.
That was none other than my original appearance from my homeworld.

With this face, even if someone saw me, it wouldn’t be an issue.
I quickly donned the attire of a staff member working on the beach and dashed off.

In the brief time it took to swap my shroud, Hanon had already bolted and disappeared.
It wasn’t for nothing that he’d invested all his stats in agility.
He was absurdly fast.

‘Hanon will figure out what I’ve been up to.’
Since he said he’d live my life for the day,
He’ll definitely go looking for the people I’ve been involved with.

There are four people closely tied to me currently present at Aron Sea.
Isabel, Sharin, Hania, and Iris.

‘Not Iris.’
Hanon isn’t reckless enough to make such a move.
If he went to Iris, who knows what could happen?
Besides, Hanon harbors a subtle fear toward Iris.

‘That means it’s not Hania either.’
Hania spends all day by Iris’s side.
Naturally, she’s excluded.

‘That leaves…’
Isabel and Sharin.

My steps quickly moved toward the room where they were staying.
I arrived in front of their room and took a light breath.
Hanon was nowhere to be seen near the room.

The surroundings were eerily quiet.
It made things even more unsettling.
It felt like the calm before a storm.

Amid the tension, I raised my hand.
Knock, knock-
I knocked twice.

“Yes?”
A voice came from inside, followed by footsteps.
The door creaked open, revealing a familiar face.
It was Mina, Isabel’s friend.

She tilted her head when she saw me in my staff attire.
“What’s the matter?”

Hanon wasn’t inside.
If he were, Mina wouldn’t be acting this relaxed.

“There’s a message for Sharin Sazaris. It’s from the Blue Tower.”
“The Blue Tower?”
Mina’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Just a moment.”
She dashed inside.
Soon, I heard her waking someone up.

“Rin, Sharin! There’s a message from the Blue Tower! Wake up!”
“Uuugh…”

Sharin, who wasn’t a morning person, was dragged out reluctantly by Mina.
Still groggy, Sharin stared blankly at me.
From the looks of it, she didn’t seem to have a hangover.
Well, after throwing up everything, it’s no wonder she didn’t.

After staring at me for a while, Sharin tilted her head.
“…Huh?”

Through Mirinae, Sharin could see through the veil bandages.
She wouldn’t be able to see my true face underneath, but she would immediately recognize me.
And with her sharp mind, she’d likely figure out that something had happened to me.

Sharin rubbed her eyes, then turned around and headed back inside.
“Wait a sec.”
She was probably going to change clothes.

With her help, I might even be able to catch Hanon, no matter how evasive he was.

“Sharin! What if you fall asleep while changing!”
…Might be able to, right?

* * *

Thanks to Mina’s help, Sharin eventually emerged, dressed and ready, though her face still looked sleepy.
“So, is that your real face?”

It was technically my real face.
“Nope. Fake.”
In this world, I’m Vikarmern.
So, it’s a fake face.

Sharin gazed at me with a disappointed expression before leaning her head against the wall.
Her face still looked drowsy.

“So, what’s the deal? Why’d you call me so early in the morning?”
She gave a lazy smile as she spoke.

“Missed me already?”

“The real Hanon appeared.”
Sharin’s expression shifted slightly.

She knew that I must have a specific reason for appearing like this.

“What happens then?”
“I don’t know. That’s why I need to catch him.”

I have no idea what Hanon is planning.
Which is exactly why I need to catch him first.

“Is Isabel not inside?”
“Bel’s diligent; she’s probably off training.”
“Then it’s certain he went to Isabel.”

I sighed and turned around.
There aren’t many places at Aron Sea suitable for training.
If I search, I’ll find them eventually.

“Sharin, help me catch Hanon.”
Hearing that, Sharin approached and grabbed the hem of my clothes.
Then, with a mischievous grin, she said.

“Gotcha.”

I felt like flicking her forehead, but it was a little cute, so I let it slide.

“As long as I catch him, it’s fine, right?”
“If you’re at it, feel free to give him a good scare too.”
“Sounds fun.”

Sharin’s interest was piqued.
With her help, catching him was now guaranteed.

Wait for it, real Hanon.
The fake Hanon is coming for you.

* * *

A beachside road, a little ways from Aron Sea.
A woman was walking along the path connected to the nearby beach park.
The breeze blew her honey-blonde hair, making it dance in the air.

Her name was Isabel Luna.
A student at Zeryon Academy.

After a light morning run, she was now taking a leisurely walk along the beach path.

Her eyes gazed at the crashing waves of the sea.
The salty smell unique to the ocean wasn’t particularly pleasant, but it did give off a summery vibe, which wasn’t entirely bad.

However, Isabel’s mood was somber.

Ever since experiencing Lucas’s death, she often felt this way when alone.
Though, she was doing much better than before.

In the beginning, she had felt utterly drained, unable to muster any strength.
It was as if a massive weight was dragging her to the bottom of the deep sea, trapping her in an unescapable abyss.

That suffocating sensation, where even breathing felt impossible, had mostly subsided now.

These days, she could at least lift her head above water.

‘…Am I forgetting Lucas?’

There’s a saying that time heals all wounds.
Isabel used to think she’d never understand it, but recently, she started to believe there might be some truth to it.

Lucas had been her most cherished friend. ss fellow border nobles, they’d spent their childhood together, and she thought they always would.

‘Lucas was…’
To Isabel, he was both a friend and like family.

There had been a defining moment when Lucas became like family to her.

In Isabel’s childhood, she had an older brother, one year her senior.

A mischievous yet caring older brother.
But one day, misfortune struck, and her brother was caught in a carriage accident.
Though he narrowly survived, his injuries slowly weakened him, and he eventually passed away.

Her mother, overwhelmed with grief at the loss of her eldest son, cried every day.
Her father spent his days comforting her mother.
In the process, neither could care for Isabel.

Despite losing such a significant presence at a young age, her grief was overshadowed by her mother’s sorrow, leaving no one to console her.
And it was during that time that Lucas became her support.

‘I must have leaned on Lucas to cope with the shock of losing my brother.’
But leaning on Lucas came with its own cost after his death.

Unlike in her childhood, Isabel had grown too much.
Because of that, she couldn’t lean on anyone anymore.

‘No, that’s not it.’
It was fear of leaning on someone.
Having already lost someone she relied on, she felt incapable of doing so again.

And so, Isabel broke down.
She walked the same path toward death as her brother and Lucas.

‘That’s how it was.’

Her gaze drifted back to the ocean.

They say that those resolved to die can no longer see colors.
Everything appears gray, devoid of beauty or life.

But the ocean before Isabel sparkled with an emerald hue, dazzlingly beautiful.
It felt as if the sea were speaking to her, telling her to live.

“……”

Why was she still here like this?
Isabel stared blankly at the sea.
She didn’t need to ask.

One person had already come to mind.

「As long as you’re fired up, you won’t think about dying.」

She recalled the words Hanon had spoken while arguing with her friends.

「Isn’t what you’re doing now the ultimate insult to your friend?」

And she remembered the day on the wall when Hanon had called her out for going down the wrong path.

「Well then, we’ll see who’s right in the end.」

Those words had sounded like a promise to stay by her side.

「Besides, I’m not interested in dating anyone.」

Last night.
She remembered his drunken rambling and how she, too, had unintentionally revealed part of her true feelings.

It was embarrassing, even though she’d been drunk.
But still.

That’s when she realized,
‘I thought I could never lean on anyone again.’
Yet here she was, repeating the same pattern.

A part of her chest ached as if being weighed down.
It was unmistakably anxiety.
The kind of anxiety that came from having lost two precious people.
The fear of losing someone again.

Even though she knew this was dangerous,
She had no idea how to rid herself of it.

“Lucas.”
She quietly called his name.

“Am I broken?”
The day her brother died,
Maybe she lost some critical piece of herself.

Just then.

“Isabel.”

A familiar voice reached her ears.

The moment she heard it, Isabel’s eyes widened.
The anxiety that had gripped her heart disappeared.
And her face instinctively brightened.

It was such a swift change in emotion that she didn’t even realize it herself.

“You…”

As Isabel began to call him as she always did.
She froze.

Standing there was a boy with black hair and red eyes.
The face was undoubtedly familiar.
But her previously bright eyes turned cold in an instant.

“Who are you?”