episode_0034

11. Seonyudo Settlement (1)

When morning came, we quickly cleaned up and ran towards the Seonyudo settlement.

To be exact, I rode Yeonseo’s summons and ran because there was no reason to walk any longer.

The wide width of the Seonyu-ro road connected to Yangwha Bridge was also a reason for being able to move quickly.

” So there was a summoner that took the form of a horse? What was its name? ”

It is a Pegasus, a horse with a graceful, curved body made of ice and blue, transparent wings on the side.

But why is it running instead of flying? When I asked Yeonseo, she said that when she was making it, the first thing that came to mind was Pegasus and she didn’t even think about it flying.

It’s not like he can’t fly at all, he can glide, so he says he sometimes flies when he and Hyunseok go out together.

” This guy’s name is ‘Markab’. ”

” That’s quite an unusual name. Where did you get it from? ”

” I mostly get my names from constellations. Pretty romantic, huh? ”

” Surprisingly, you say. Oh, right! By the way, did you think about it when you said you’d name my skill? ”

” Of course! I’ll let you know when I get to the settlement and rest. Look forward to it. ”

” Heh, you seem pretty confident? ”

” Oh, but don’t expect a name that’s too unique. I’m a summoner, so using unique names helps me materialize the form of my summons, but you’re mostly a melee fighter, right? ”

” Huh? Right. Of course, it’s not like I can’t do long-distance shots either. ”

” Of course, you already have a lot of experience in this world, but the quality of the techniques you use now is different, right? In that case, it would be better to concretize the form through ‘starting words’ rather than just thinking about it.

Since I’m going to focus on proximity, I like to keep it short and memorable. ”

” Ah~ So you’re saying I shouldn’t expect anything like the names of your summons? It’s okay. I’m not the type to really care. ”

” Really? Then that’s fortunate, and so is Hyunseok. Right? ”

Hyunseok, who had been running quietly at Yeonseo’s words, nodded and answered.

” That’s right. In my case, I tend to use it in a similar way to ‘권’ or ‘각’. ”

” Oh. Okay. ”

Since yesterday, I’ve been avoiding talking to Hyunseok. To be exact, he tries to approach me, but I tend to avoid him or end it right away.

I don’t even know why he acts like this. It’s just that the more I talk to him after that, the more I feel like he’s starting to rebel…

I think it’s a quick ending because I think if we talk any further we might end up fighting.

I don’t want to keep creating this situation, but what can I do when it can’t be done? I just hope that time will solve it.

*****

Since then, Charlotte and I have had simple conversations.

Charlotte said that there was no need to apologize even though she was sorry, but her expression was filled with dissatisfaction.

Like a child going through puberty.

I asked Yeonseo too, but she just changed the subject, saying that it would be resolved with time, so I felt at a loss.

” Yeonseo, are you sure it’s okay like this? ”

” It’s okay. Time will take care of everything, so don’t worry and just look forward. ”

” No, but still… isn’t this wrong? ”

Then Yeonseo sighed and raised her finger at me with an expression that said she was tired of it.

” Hyunseok, as I said, this is a problem that time will solve. It is definitely not a problem that I can solve by getting between you two. Why do you care so much about Charlotte in the first place?

Isn’t it okay just like this? ”

” That’s not it! ”

I couldn’t help but shout out when Yeonseo said, “Isn’t it okay like this?”

Yeonseo paused for a moment as if surprised and headed toward the side of the road.

” Sorry. I don’t know why I suddenly yelled. Haha.. ”

” Hoo, Charlotte! Let’s take a break here. Since the settlement is right in front of us, it’ll be okay to take a break. Do you want to take a look around? ”

” Huh? Yeah, I got it. ”

Yeonseo, who had sent Charlotte off like that, nodded to the stairs leading down from the bridge, put her arm on the railing, looked out at the river, and opened her mouth.

” First, would you like to answer my question? Why do you care so much about Charlotte? ”

” Well, now we’re close friends and he’s a younger sibling that I have to protect? ”

” I’ll protect you… Is that all? ”

Those words struck me like a thorn. Yeonseo must have noticed something, so she glanced at me and then looked back at the river, waiting for my answer.

I answered, clenching my fist and thinking of Charlotte… no, my younger sister, Luna.

” Actually… they look alike. So much so that they’re exactly the same… ”

” Sister? Huh, so? ”

” I’ve said this before, but I was so intoxicated with my power that I lived recklessly. Because of that, my parents and my younger sister died.

So you know that since then, I’ve only been using it to suppress or subdue power, right? ”

” Get to the point. Get to the point! ”

” Okay. Right, ”

I continued speaking, scratching my head nervously.

” That’s why. She looks so much like my dead sister that whenever I see Charlotte, I think of Luna. Maybe that’s why I’m seeing Charlotte as Luna.

That’s why I don’t want to hurt you. That’s why I want to protect you. But I don’t know these days. It feels a little different. ”

Yeonseo looked at me with a bit of surprise, then turned her head again and slowly knocked on the railing. After a while, she moved away from the railing and came towards me.

Then he poked his finger into my chest

” Okay. First, let’s do this. Stop seeing her as your little sister. Charlotte isn’t Luna, you know? And she’s not weak enough to need protecting, you know? ”

” Huh? Is that all? ”

” That’s all? Don’t you know how big of a difference this makes? Let’s start with that. Okay! Stop patting my head. Even though you two are good together, it’s easy to misunderstand from the perspective of someone watching. ”

Yeonseo’s words were for a different reason than I expected.

” Huh? Easy to misunderstand? Do you like it better than that? Charlotte? ”

” Okay! Stop acting like I’m your little sister. Got it? ”

” Yeah, thank you so much for the advice. ”

” What, with this much? But is it really that similar? ”

” Yeah, want to see this? ”

I opened the pendant I was wearing around my neck and showed it to Yeonseo. Yeonseo looked back and forth between the photo in the pendant and me.

” Oh… I guess so… ”

With those words, I heard Charlotte calling us and turned my head down.

*****

I felt a little uncomfortable when Yeonseo suggested we take a short break, but I went along and headed to the playground under the bridge.

Well, it was a ruin that used to be a playground.

” Hmm, looking around, there are only ruins here and there because of the tower’s desolate area. ”

I sat on a bench that was still in decent shape in the ruins of the playground and looked up at the sky, recalling what had happened earlier.

A little while ago, Hyunseok and Yeonseo were talking, and Hyunseok suddenly shouted.

“That’s not it,” he said.

What exactly is it not? Is it about helping others? Or is it about me?

I thought about many topics, but the one thing that kept coming to my mind was that it might be about me.

But why the two of them? Why did they need to raise their voices and talk about me like that? But the more I thought about it, the more negative thoughts came to mind, so I shook my head and soon got up.

” Yeah, it’s not like anything will happen if you think about it anyway… right? What’s that? ”

As I moved away from the playground, I saw a parking lot and behind it the shape of a building, so I looked up and saw ‘the shape of a person being chased by something in the sky’.

I quickly called Hyunseok and Yeonseo and we headed there.

Surely I wasn’t seeing things wrong, I was really being chased by a demonic creature called a ‘Harpy’, with the upper body of a woman and the lower body of a bird flying in the sky, flapping its wings instead of arms.

” I’ll knock those guys down with the wind first, so Yeonseo, go to that guy with your summons. Charlotte, protect them after that! ”

At Hyunseok’s words that made the wind blow through his legs and fly quickly, Nae and Yeonseo immediately took action.

The harpies were blown away by the wind that Hyunseok created and soon began to chase after Hyunseok, who was luring them.

” Summon! Big Dipper! ”

Meanwhile, two ice statues in the shape of bears holding shields appeared and began to protect the man, and we approached the man, or rather, the woman who had fallen, as we should call her.

” Are you okay? If you have any injuries, please show me. ”

I quickly supported her and checked her wounds. There were no serious signs of injury, but there were places where Harpy’s feathers were stuck or cut, so I pulled out the feathers and quickly began treatment.

Only then did she catch her breath, turn her head towards us, and open her eyes.

” Who…who..? ”

” I’m a traveler passing by. Do you have any settlement affiliations? ”

” Thank you. My name is Choi Won-kyung, and I live in Seonyudo Settlement right over there. ”

Choi Won-kyung is 28 years old and is said to be in charge of exploring and recovering resources at the Seonyudo settlement.

The reason she, who lacks fighting ability, took on such a task is because her ability is ‘marking’.

This is because when you mark an object or living thing, it appears on the map she carries.

” If it’s okay, your sister, come to me now. Charlotte! You help Hyunseok. It might be a bit too much for you to do alone. ”

” Got it! ”

At the moment I was about to go to Hyunseok, Yeonseo handed me a note.

” First, I wrote down some simple synonyms, okay? ”

” Yeah! Thanks! ”

I quickly sent my divine power to Rosario, put on my protective gear, took out Durandal and Curtana, placed Curtana in the place where Yeonseo and Wonkyung were, and headed towards where Hyunseok was.