Chapter 42: I want to stand next to Yuwon

Five years ago, Seoul.

Yoo Seung-ah, having finished elementary school, walked home alone, carrying a bag of ramen her mother had asked her to buy.

Usually, she would return home with Han Shin-woo and Kim Yu-won, but the two had disappeared, saying they had things to do, leaving her no choice but to walk alone.

‘It’s probably because of my birthday, right? They’re both so cute.’

The reason why the two were acting distant today and suddenly told her to go home alone was obvious.

Her two best friends were preparing a surprise for her birthday.

Even her mother, who usually didn’t ask her to run errands, suddenly asking her to buy ramen must have been to give them time to prepare.

Everything fit perfectly.

They hadn’t done this in previous years.

To think they’d gone to such lengths now that they were a bit older.

While walking home, anticipating what they had prepared, something appeared before her.

“That’s…”

An opaque Gate.

Although it was her first time seeing one, Seung-ah knew what a Gate was and thought it was dangerous, trying to move away.

However, the Gate wouldn’t let her go.

“No..! I have to go home..! They’re waiting…”

A strong force emanating from the Gate pulled her in.

Although she was Awakened, she hadn’t yet found a teacher compatible with her trait, so she was practically a normal person at this point.

She was sucked into the Gate.

After a moment of darkness, she saw numerous rocky mountains and a large cave.

A handsome man with white hair walked out from within.

“Was this gacha pull a success? Hmm… She definitely seems to have talent.”

“Uh… Mister, who are you?”

The man before her exuded a power far greater than the S-rank Hunter she’d happened to see before.

No, even the word “far” was an understatement.

The difference was immense.

Even if a thousand of those S-rank Hunters attacked, they wouldn’t be able to defeat this man.

Still, since he hadn’t killed her on sight and seemed capable of conversation, Seung-ah, despite trembling with fear, tried to communicate.

“It’s the first time I’ve been called ‘mister.’ The first one was a reincarnator, an old man in a young body, the second one was just an adult, and this is the first time a real child has come, so I’m not sure how to treat you…”

“Could you… perhaps send me home..?”

The man before her momentarily looked troubled before speaking again.

“Well… sending you back isn’t difficult.”

“Then..!”

Thinking of her friends and parents waiting at home, Seung-ah desperately wanted to return.

“But you can at least tell me where you came from and how you lived, right? After you tell me and we talk a bit, if you still want to go back, I’ll send you right away.”

At first, she was terrified of the power he emanated, but he didn’t seem to have any intention of harming her, and he promised to send her home if she just talked to him. Seung-ah nodded and began her story.

“I came from a place called Earth, and…”

She told him everything she remembered about where she came from and how she lived, and as he listened and empathized, she felt a sense of closeness developing between them.

“So you, Han Shin-woo, and Kim Yu-won are really close, and you like Yu-won, huh?”

She’d never said she liked Yu-won, but she lightly scolded him for jumping to such a conclusion.

“No, I don’t! Why would I like him?”

“From what you’ve told me, it seems like you really do. Put your hand on your heart and think again. You don’t like Kim Yu-won?”

“I don’t like him…”

It was true that she was grateful and her heart fluttered when he saved her.

But was that romantic love? Still young and with more sensitive emotions, Seung-ah couldn’t easily define that feeling.

“Then how would you feel if another girl confessed to Yu-won? And if Yu-won started dating her, and they fell deeply in love and eventually got married…”

“No..!”

Imagining Yu-won with another woman, dating another woman, and marrying another woman made Seung-ah’s chest ache and feel tight.

That couldn’t happen.

The thought of Yu-won marrying another woman was unbearable.

“See? That’s what liking someone means. On the other hand, how would you feel if Yu-won confessed to you? You and Yu-won dating, becoming closer, growing up, and eventually getting married.”

Imagining Yu-won confessing to her, imagining herself in love with him, imagining herself wearing a wedding dress and marrying him, Seung-ah realized.

‘I… I really like Yu-won.’

Her heart pounded in her chest.

Imagining a happy future with him made her heart race like never before.

She decided to call this fiery feeling love.

“But do you think that’s possible for you now?”

‘Huh..?’

“You said that Yu-won is a very talented Awakened, right? Strong enough to hunt a troll alone at the age of nine. He must be even stronger now.”

That was true.

Yu-won, who had appeared wreathed in black lightning and killed the monster when she was first in mortal danger.

He would be much stronger now.

“And you said that Han Shin-woo has immense talent for crafting. He could probably enter that top academy you mentioned just with his crafting skills. Right?”

Indeed, Shin-woo would sometimes create things that even adults admired, and he was so talented that he’d even been on the news.

He would be even more skilled in a few years.

“But what about you? What will you do while Yu-won continues to grow stronger and Shin-woo continues to develop his crafting skills? You said you didn’t have anyone to teach you.”

Seung-ah’s trait.

[Celestial Body (S)]

A trait that developed a body close to that of a celestial being, granting strong buffs and increased growth rate for all actions related to celestial arts.

It was a trait specialized for celestial arts.

However, it also imposed penalties for using other types of energy, preventing her from learning Aura, magic, holy arts, or martial arts.

And there was no one on Earth who could teach celestial arts.

“That’s…”

“They will hone their talents as they grow and enter the academy, but you’ll just watch? Of course, you’ll remain friends. Your relationship won’t fall apart just because you’re weak.”

That was true.

They weren’t the type to abandon her just because she was weak.

“But they say distance makes the heart grow fonder. While they make a name for themselves at the academy and in the Hunter world, you’ll just have to watch. Watch them reach realms far beyond your reach. Forever.”

She didn’t want to imagine them becoming so distant that she could no longer reach them.

“Do you think they won’t meet other women along the way? There will be many women who are stronger and more attractive than you. What if Yu-won falls for one of them…?”

“Sob…”

Tears streamed down her cheeks. Still young, she wasn’t prepared to face the worst-case scenarios he described.

“Uh… uh…?”

He had only meant to motivate her, and he froze, seeing her burst into tears.

“I… I’m sorry. Don’t cry.”

Having never comforted a crying child before, he was at a loss.

“Then what should I do…? There’s no one to teach me…”

To her tearful question, he thumped his chest and declared,

“Look no further. Though I may not look it, I’m a celestial being. And not just any celestial being, but the strongest of them all, the one who brought countless gods to their knees. If I teach you, you’ll catch up to them in no time.”

Seung-ah’s tears stopped, and her face brightened.

“Really..?”

“I don’t lie. I’ve turned even the most untalented into formidable fighters. With your talent, this is a piece of cake. But since I’m teaching you in a short amount of time, it’ll be incredibly tough. Are you sure you’re up for it?”

She nodded.

“Yes. I can endure anything as long as I can be with my friends.”

Because she wanted to stand beside Han Shin-woo and Kim Yu-won, whom she truly loved, she decided to take the incredibly powerful man before her as her master.

“Alright. I, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, Sun Wukong, will train you to be the best, so learn well.”

Four years passed.

“Disciple, it’s time to go.”

Seung-ah, who was smashing a rock with her staff, ran to her master at his call.

“Finally..!”

Four years.

The time it took for her, who had been closer to an ordinary person than an Awakened at F-rank, to reach high A-rank.

In just four years, she’d achieved a level of power comparable to the children of the Top 10 Families, who had started training from the age of five and received all sorts of support.

“It’s a bit of a shame. If we had just one more year, you could have broken through the wall.”

“But then I would have missed the academy entrance period. You said if I didn’t return now, the next time the gate opens would be a year later, right?”

Since it involved damaging the Buddha’s seal, it wasn’t something that could be done whenever they wanted.

The gate could only be opened once a year, on the day his power was at its peak.

“Well, honestly, you’re not at a level where you’ll get beaten up anywhere, so I’m relieved… But still, don’t get complacent and keep training hard even without me. You’re the most likely candidate to release me. I can’t place any hope in my first disciple.”

The existence of her senior brother, whom he mentioned several times.

He often praised her, saying she was a saint compared to her senior.

“Understood. I’ll become incredibly strong and come to release you, Master.”

“I believe you. I really do.”

He opened the Gate, and after straightening her clothes, she stepped through.

“See you later, Master.”

“Alright.”

The moment she passed through the Gate, the first thing she saw was the alleyway where she’d disappeared.

And Kim Yu-won standing there.

“Uh… you..?”

Even after several years, she recognized him. Yu-won, who had grown even more handsome over the years.

And Yu-won recognized her too.

Looking into his eyes, she couldn’t hold back any longer.

The feelings she had bottled up for four years exploded, and before she knew it, she was kissing him.

‘I really like you.’

I won’t let anyone take you away from me.