episode_0052

“The way to give courage…”

Sihoo muttered as he wiped a glass with a dry cloth.

What did I say to Se-ah back then?

Since meeting Se-ah, many things had happened.

From Anna’s past to the incident in Chinatown…

He hadn’t even thought about Se-ah until now.

Sihoo pondered deeply, but besides the expensive wolf ears he received back then, nothing else came to mind.

It was the same for Lina.

She seemed exhausted as if she had pondered ‘how to give courage to children’ dozens of times already.

Just by looking at the bartender, it wasn’t like his lifelong dilemma would be easily resolved.

The inexperienced teacher eventually grasped his head.

Then, with a deeply melancholic expression, he let out a heavy sigh.

“Indeed… Even a teacher like me can’t solve what Sihoo can’t, right?”

His gesture of holding his head looked cute, like a rabbit lowering its ears.

Sihoo stared at him intently and eventually apologized.

“I’m sorry. You’ve come a long way, and I couldn’t provide a proper answer…”

“No need to apologize! I’m the one who should be sorry. Coming here and saying strange things…”

She hastily clapped her hands.

The inexperienced teacher picked up a pretzel from the table, lips tightly sealed, eating it.

Like a melancholic rabbit eating its food.

“Sigh…”

Sihoo gazed down at her defeated figure.

The bartender silently clenched both hands, cheering inwardly.

It had been a long time.

When looking at all the people he had encountered so far, Lina was the most ‘normal’ person he had seen.

Realizing this anew, Sihoo suddenly wanted to help her.

If he couldn’t help her, he truly wanted to at least give her courage.

“—.”

The clock at the Moment Bar now pointed to 11 o’clock.

Outside the window, the siren indicating curfew soon blared.

Once it passed 11 o’clock, it signaled that even if monsters appeared, they wouldn’t be protected by the Association.

Yet Lina still lingered at the bar.

She was more than qualified to do so.

There would likely be no opponent stronger than Lina in Korea, and even if there were, they would be almost equal.

As the bartender prepared a cocktail, Lina muttered to herself as if pouring out her inner thoughts.

“Perhaps I won’t be able to become a good teacher…”

Sihoo took her words somewhat jokingly.

The woman before my eyes is a powerhouse in the U.S. Top 100.

Who could be a student worthy of her teachings?

“In fact, my grades as a professor in Korea are the worst.”

“That’s a bit surprising.”

Sihoo said as he chilled a glass with ice.

Given that the education level in the U.S. is naturally higher than in Korea, he assumed she would be good at teaching too.

“My ability lies in strengthening muscles. If I set my mind to it, I can lift cars and become as tough as steel.”

She tapped the table with her finger, looking embarrassed.

“I quickly adapted to my abilities. That’s why I became an S-ranker just a year after becoming a Hunter.”

Lina boasted in a melancholic tone.

An S-ranker in just a year…

Sihoo remembered his past when he struggled as a healer for over three years, only to end up as an F-ranker.

As that past came to mind, the corners of his mouth unconsciously drooped.

“So, at first, I couldn’t understand students who couldn’t adapt to their abilities.”

Ah, is that so.

Like a genius soccer player struggling as a coach after retirement.

Why can’t they do something so simple? It was puzzling.

Lina was a typical genius Hunter.

It was hard for her to easily understand candidates who fell short.

“If my grades are last this quarter, I’ll be summoned back to the U.S. I want to stay here as much as possible since my father is in Korea…”

Lina’s large pupils flickered.

One couldn’t help but glance at her as she chewed on the pretzel, mumbling sadly like a forlorn rabbit.

Siho almost smiled at her appearance but held it back.

And with a serious expression, he asked the young professor,

“Are you being summoned forcibly?”

“Yes… Since I’m a Ranker, I can’t stay abroad without a clear reason. Even if my parents are there. Immigration is also impossible. A Ranker leaving means a weakening of national power…”

It was a valid point.

Suddenly, a Ranker who had been in charge of the country’s defense becomes a Ranker in another country.

It’s like losing a nuclear weapon.

“But that’s a separate story. Regardless of whether I’m here or not, I want to be a strength to my students.”

She spun the empty pretzel plate around.

“Because I love those kids.”

With that statement, Lina made eye contact with Siho.

The kind and pretty professor smiled towards the bartender.

Siho thought that smile was truly beautiful.

And the moment he saw that pure and bright smile, he wanted to help her in any way he could.

That feeling turned into words and came out of Siho’s mouth.

“I’ll make you a cocktail.”

The bartender replied with a subtle smile, eyes narrowed.

Having listened to Lina’s story all this while, she placed the chilled glass on the table.

1 ounce of dry gin in an ice-filled shaker (30ml).

1 ounce of fresh and tangy lime juice (30ml).

Half an ounce of sweet and smooth sugar syrup (15ml).

After adding all of these, shake vigorously.

Then slowly pour it over the chilled glass…

Grade: ★★★★☆(Flawless)

Effect: Willpower increases permanently by 10 points.

Information: Siho’s unique recipe, not the traditional one. With a whopping 30ml of lime juice, it has a strong tangy taste. Balanced with 2 pumps of sugar syrup.

“Lina, I actually don’t know much about the Academy.”

The pale greenish liquor filled the cold glass.

“I didn’t even have the qualifications or tuition to enter as a lower-level ability user.”

She twisted a lime peel to sprinkle its juice.

“But when I went on raids, there was a sister like you who gave me courage.”

She slowly dropped the lime peel into the Kimlet.

“Whenever things got tough, that sister always said something to me.”

Siho pushed the martini glass slowly towards the young professor.

“Don’t rush. You’re doing well.”

The bartender spoke as if following someone.

Her smiling face reminded one of a prosecutor.

“No one starts off strong from the beginning.”

Lina stared blankly at Siho.

Her mouth agape, she pondered how to respond to the bartender.

Soon, she closed her mouth and silently took the glass.

The professor leisurely admired the pale hues.

Unlike Junggil, she stared at the cocktail for quite some time.

“Can I become a good teacher?”

Siho confidently answered her question.

“Yes.”

Leaning her chin on her hands, she gazed steadily at Lina.

“When we talked about Sae earlier, you seemed happier than anyone else.”

The young professor listened to Siho’s words while holding the glass.

So focused was she that the glass didn’t shake at all.

“A teacher who is so delighted by their students’ success couldn’t be a bad teacher, right?”

“So don’t be too impatient about wanting to help your students.”

“Even if there’s no immediate progress, with that steady effort for your students…”

Siho took out a tissue.

“Someday, your students will appreciate Lina’s efforts.”

And she gently wiped the young professor’s teary eyes.

“At that moment, the students will also gain courage to strive.”

With a slight tilt of his head, Siho smiled warmly.

Ranker stared blankly at that smile.

“I guarantee it. Even though I’m just a mediocre bartender…”

Soon, she sniffled.

And with the tissue Siho handed her, she gently blew her nose.

“Thank you…”

She carefully adjusted her face.

The professor still looked as beautiful as when she first saw him.

No, rather than the gloomy expression before, there was now a refreshing and clear feeling.

Soon she faced the Kimlet in front of her.

With a newfound peace of mind, the professor slowly sipped the thick lips from the glass.

Lina, half-closing her eyes, savored the cocktail slowly.

Siho deliberately didn’t ask her about the taste.

He simply admired Lina’s face as if looking at a pretty animal.

A rabbit taking a sip of Kimlet grimaced.

She let out a short sigh, lips slightly pursed.

“Ah- Cheers.”

Expecting this reaction, Siho burst into laughter.

“How is it? Feeling more awake now?”

“Absolutely…”

Lina nodded.

Even with that response, Siho wasn’t disappointed.

Kimlet was meant to be drunk with this taste, and Lina’s grimace wasn’t an unpleasant one.

It was a refreshing grimace, as if shaking something off.

As if to prove this, Lina raised the glass again and drank the Kimlet.

Then, as if sobering up, she exclaimed cheerfully.

“Wow- I feel like I could get addicted to this! It’s strong but…”

The rabbit muttered to himself, his face reddening.

Watching her, Siho smiled proudly.

Soon, the bartender headed towards the ice machine, seeming to have a good idea.

She crushed the ice finely with a muddler.

“Could you give me a glass for a moment?”

“Sure…?”

Lina handed over the dry glass.

Siho then transferred the remaining Kimlet into the glass and poured broken ice on top.

“This way, it becomes a Kimlet Hammer.”

Rating: ★★★★☆ (Flawless)

Effect: Permanently raises Willpower by 10 and Composure by 5.

Information: Ice was added to Kimlet, resulting in a slight decrease in alcohol content.

A small consideration for tipsy Lina.

“It’s amazing. Just by adding ice, it becomes a different cocktail…!”

Lina murmured as she looked at the glass.

“In fact, it’s not a registered cocktail recipe. I thought of the Sledge Hammer and just made it.”

Siho covered his mouth with the back of his hand, looking embarrassed.

Lina gazed at the embarrassed bartender with sparkling eyes.

“Coincidentally, my main weapon is a Jangdori too. Nice to meet you.”

She pointed to the bag she had brought while laughing softly.

Following her gaze, I looked down at the crowbar sticking out of the bag.

In that moment, I was surprised.

Because the crowbar protruding from the bag was covered in blood.

“Hahaha, great. The cocktail is called Hammer. Please make me another drink, no, two more!”

Lina regained her smile in the meantime.

But the bartender’s smile disappeared instantly.

She thought to herself.

Indeed, there is no normalcy here…

The American rabbit gulped down three Kimlet Hammers with wide eyes.

The clock was already pointing to midnight.

“I’m glad I came here.”

Lina muttered under her breath.

“Thank you for saying that.”

Siho replied with a bright smile.

Thanks to the young professor, he had sold three drinks today.

He had crossed the break-even point.

“Siho, every time I look at you, I feel that your eyes are really beautiful. Especially when you smile.”

Lina complimented the bartender out of the blue.

Caught off guard by the sudden praise, Siho was flustered.

“What? That doesn’t suit me…”

“It’s true… with those feminine eyes, and that warm heart.”

She pointed at Siho’s body casually with her finger.

The bartender turned in surprise.

“And even your warm heart. In Korea, people say things like that when they see a woman like you.”

Lina licked the remaining ice.

Then, as if something had come to mind, her eyes sparkled.

“Oh! ‘Jogangjicheo’…”

I don’t know where she picked up that word.

Siho coughed as if caught off guard by her embarrassing choice of words.

“My father always told me to be a ‘Jogangjicheo’…”

Lina mumbled.

With a serene expression, she fell asleep with her cheek resting on the table.

The bartender quietly approached the sleeping customer.

The academy professor was sound asleep like a child.

Her face still retained the freshness of her academy student days.

Siho envied Rena’s school days.

He suddenly thought,

If only he had also attended the academy.

If only he had met a good teacher like Rena.

Then, he wouldn’t have died so emptily as he did back then.

At least, he and his sister wouldn’t have tragically perished…

“…”

Dohyun took out a blanket from the counter.

He gently covered the sleeping young professor’s back.

The dawn shop was incredibly quiet.

Fortunately, it seemed that no monster had appeared in Sindorim today.

Truly fortunate.