Ch.69Chapter 13. Counterattack (1)

Jihye didn’t regret what she had done.

Skipping school without permission, running to a dangerous place. Even spending all the money she had to buy those things.

Because of that, she was able to confirm that Jieun was safe, and somehow help her.

But just because she didn’t regret it didn’t mean she wasn’t scared.

Jihye felt awkward and afraid when dealing with adults.

Perhaps it was because the only adult presence she regularly encountered were the orphanage teachers and school teachers.

The orphanage teachers tried their best to care for all the children, including Jihye and Jieun, but everyone knew they couldn’t replace fathers or mothers.

There were simply too many children for the teachers to look after properly.

Although they never felt financially lacking because of generous donations, maybe that was why. Jihye didn’t find it entirely easy to deal with adults.

And if that adult was a “police officer”…

“Student Jihye?”

A woman who didn’t look much older than Jihye called her name in a gentle voice.

They were sitting in what seemed to be some kind of lounge. It was a space where other people could be present, but all the other areas were empty.

Was it consideration? Jihye recalled the empty interrogation rooms she’d seen in movies and dramas.

Was she not being treated as a criminal yet?

She’d heard that entering restricted areas was prohibited, but she’d never heard what punishment one would receive for doing so. That was natural. Schools don’t teach such specific details.

“Student Jihye.”

When Jihye didn’t respond properly because she was looking around, the woman sitting across from her called her name again.

“Y-yes.”

She was so nervous that she couldn’t answer smoothly. Her voice cracked a little.

“You shared a room with Jeong Jieun, correct?”

At least Jihye herself had never told this woman that information.

Of course, there were many ways she could have found out. It was true that the two shared a room. A quick check with the orphanage would confirm it.

“…Yes.”

Knowing there was no point in lying, Jihye answered. She was just afraid of what question might come next.

She examined the woman’s appearance.

The person who had brought Jihye here was a police officer, but this wasn’t a police station. It was probably some government building.

So was this person in front of her not a police officer? She was wearing a suit, so it was difficult to guess her position from her clothes alone.

“Then… would it be fair to say you were quite close?”

Jihye opened her mouth and then barely managed to close it.

What should she answer here?

But soon, she realized that lying would be meaningless in this situation too.

Jihye had rushed to that dangerous place immediately after receiving the text. She had run with all her might, avoiding those who tried to stop her, and handed food and clothes to Jieun.

Would anyone do that much for someone who was merely “just a friend”? People say friendship is thick enough that no one can easily break it, but in reality, it can break over trivial matters.

Even Jieun wouldn’t have found it strange if Jihye hadn’t shown up. At the time, she had run without thinking, but looking back now, it wasn’t a “decision that could be easily made.”

Even if Jihye denied it here, this person would already be convinced that Jihye and Jieun shared a deep friendship.

Above all, Jihye didn’t want to deny it herself.

Besides, they weren’t just close in the past—they still were close.

“…”

Her choice was to give no answer at all.

Jihye didn’t know much about psychological warfare or political judgment. She had only heard somewhere that it was best not to say too much in front of the police.

It might seem like a pathetically thin resistance to the other person, but she didn’t want to readily spill everything to people who were troubling Jieun.

Seeing that Jihye wasn’t answering, the woman in front of her gave a slight smile and picked up a file from the table between them.

She flipped through the pages, stopping at one particular page and reading its contents.

Silence hung between the two for a moment.

After checking the document for nearly a minute, she finally spoke.

“I heard you experienced something unfortunate recently.”

“…”

Jihye remained silent.

“Did you hear that Jeong Jieun visited there at that time?”

“…”

“When you were in danger, Jeong Jieun came to help you, even risking arrest. That can’t be just an ordinary friendship. Aren’t you like sisters who grew up together since childhood?”

“…”

When Jihye stubbornly refused to speak, the woman thought for a moment, then closed the file.

She placed it on the table and spoke persuasively to Jihye.

“Jeong Jieun is implicated in several charges. But it’s still okay for now. No one has been seriously injured, and no one has died.”

The mention of no deaths made Jihye’s heart clench.

It sounded as if such things might happen as time passed.

“Of course, there are other charges pending. And since she fled during the investigation, some people are suspicious. That’s… well. We could say she was too scared. Sometimes, people around Jeong Jieun’s or your age try to run away because they think the investigation process itself will disadvantage them.”

The woman placed one arm on the table and leaned her upper body slightly forward. Her expression was that of someone giving sincere advice.

“Jeong Jieun is still a minor. Perhaps resolving the situation sooner rather than later would be more helpful. There would be legal advantages.”

“…”

“If we let time drag on…”

The woman spoke in a careful voice.

“Do you still keep in touch with anyone who left the orphanage? As far as I know, some have ended up in prison.”

Jihye knew that much.

No matter how hard the teachers tried, not every “child” grew up to be a good child.

Some became adults without accepting their situation, and others had experienced too much to think differently.

Above all, many failed to adapt to society after leaving the orphanage.

What they could take with them was extremely limited. Although they received subsidies, these were often insufficient for true “independence” in many cases.

Many didn’t have relatives elsewhere either.

In the end, some people definitely went in unfavorable directions.

“…”

Jihye glared at the woman.

The woman’s expression didn’t change.

She maintained the expression of someone just a few years older giving sincere advice to someone younger.

While pretending to be concerned, this was a threat.

No, perhaps she was just underestimating Jihye. Maybe she was trying to persuade Jihye this way so that Jihye would persuade Jieun.

Would Jieun… do that?

Would Jieun really turn herself in if Jihye persuaded her?

She couldn’t know that far. But she didn’t want to do it.

If Jieun was going this far, it meant she had good reason to be angry. Jieun might be a bit picky, but she never got angry without reason.

“…If Jeong Jieun contacts you, please call this number. We’ll do our best to help as much as we can.”

The business card had the woman’s name and contact information.

It seemed she was indeed a police officer after all.

The woman stood up and said, “Then, we’ll take you back—”

“…This is Seoul, right?”

“Pardon?”

“If it’s not too far, I can go by myself.”

“…”

The woman stared blankly at Jihye for a while, then smiled a bit awkwardly.

“Still, we should—”

“…No. I’d rather not. Riding in a police car again is scary.”

Perhaps Jihye’s reason was convincing.

The woman closed her eyes, thought for a moment, then nodded.

“Yes, if that’s what you want… I suppose there’s no choice.”

Jihye also stood up.

Regardless of whether the woman walked first or not, Jihye walked straight ahead and out of the building.

And she threw the business card into the first trash can she saw.

She might regret that choice. Perhaps the woman was truly trying her best to help Jieun. Maybe she was trying to minimize the sentence and disadvantages Jieun would face.

But that wasn’t what Jihye wanted.

Jihye believed in Jieun. In a different way than others did.

Not believing in possibilities like “she didn’t kill anyone,” “maybe she didn’t commit terrorism,” “perhaps she’s being wronged.”

Instead, she believed that Jieun was truly in an unfair situation, that Jieun wasn’t the kind of person who would commit terrorism.

And she believed that Jieun’s current actions were simply expressing her sense of injustice.

She believed that Jieun was fighting for her own justice.

There was no logical basis for this belief. In fact, it was simply a matter of wanting to believe.

Some might find it ridiculous. Perhaps even Jieun herself would find it absurd if she heard it.

But still, that’s just how she felt.

Because to Jihye, Jieun was one of the few people she could consider family.

Because she hoped Jieun would never disappear from her side.

*

Even after getting food, I didn’t feel very good.

The reason I went outside after putting down the heavy convenience store bag was probably because of that.

Isn’t that right? How much money did Jihye spend to buy all this?

To others, it might not seem like a lot of money, but for Jihye, it was almost her entire savings.

Just as I enjoyed buying and listening to music CDs occasionally, Jihye liked going to places like movie theaters.

Unlike me, Jihye had quite a few friends, so she needed money to hang out with them.

So I knew well that the money wasn’t insignificant.

I also knew how scary it must have been to run to that place surrounded by police. It’s not easy even for adults, yet a teenager in her mid-teens broke through and called out my name.

Where did Jihye go? Did the police take her? Would she face any disadvantages?

Thinking about this, I couldn’t purely be happy about receiving the items.

If only I hadn’t said those things, if they hadn’t been broadcast, wouldn’t Jihye have avoided looking for me?

I want to contact Jihye right now. It would be entirely possible with the children’s phones, but James would probably object.

“Jieun.”

While I was staring at the sky with a blank expression, Hayun called me from behind.

When I turned around, there was Hayun wearing tattered clothes.

“…Are you okay?”

Hayun asked after briefly searching for words.

I couldn’t give any answer.

Because I wasn’t okay.

But saying that outright felt like whining to Hayun, which didn’t feel good, so I said something else instead.

“…Let’s check the items.”

Whether I felt good or bad, what was received was received.

I couldn’t let Jihye’s efforts go to waste.

The children had kindly not touched the items I received.

I slowly went over and opened the plastic bag sitting in the middle of the room.

There was a lot of everything.

It was as if she had grabbed everything within reach—all kinds of canned foods, instant foods, even instant rice and ramen.

“…”

I silently looked up at the children.

The gazes of the children standing around me were fixed on the contents of the bag.

I silently took out several cup noodles. They were bulky items, so as soon as I removed them, the bag’s volume decreased significantly.

It wasn’t dark outside yet. We would need to eat something to keep moving for the rest of the day.

When I pushed the ramen toward the children, their expressions brightened.

At that sight—I felt emotions that were difficult to describe in many ways.

Yes, let’s eat first and then think. About what to do with the things inside.

…And about what to do next.

*

I have to admit one thing.

The smell of “proper food” that I hadn’t experienced in a long time was truly amazing.

Most people might question the use of the word “proper” for a cup of ramen per meal.

But for us who had survived the last few meals on just some vegetables, canned ham, and tuna, a complete single dish deserved to be called “proper” food.

“Whew…”

Dalia, who had finished drinking all the ramen broth, exhaled lightly. It was a satisfied breath.

Judging by her slightly flushed face, she seemed moved by the taste.

“I never thought this could taste so good.”

“I think anyone here would feel the same way.”

Rose agreed with her statement.

Though I didn’t verbally agree, I thought similarly. The ramen I ate after so long was delicious. I thought we might eat it all within days if we didn’t firmly make up our minds not to.

Given that, imagine how delicious the instant rice or curry that came with it would taste.

But soon, all the children put on determined expressions, as if trying to stay focused.

The food in our hands was limited.

If we ate it all now because it was delicious, we might have to survive on small portions of canned food for a long time afterward.

Even though we could obtain energy from mana, it was impossible to go for days without eating.

James said the goal was to reverse entropy, but he hadn’t claimed success yet. The total amount of energy generated in our bodies couldn’t exceed the total amount of energy remaining in our bodies.

We didn’t know when the next call would come. Even if we went out during a call, we might not be able to get food. And going out freely to get food could be dangerous.

As a result, we needed to set up some way to be self-sufficient here.

Perhaps thinking the same as me, Delphinium spoke up.

“…Was there any cultured meat among what was brought?”

At those words, I put down my cup noodles and spread out the bag in front of me.

Would there be uncooked cultured meat at a convenience store? Most items would probably be instant foods. Even if the ingredients were cultured meat, if the tissue wasn’t alive, it would be meaningless for “growing.”

“…Found it.”

But contrary to my thoughts, Delphinium seemed to have a different idea.

What Delphinium took out was a refrigerated food item.

“What’s that?”

“It’s meant to be grilled.”

Delphinium said while checking the ingredients of the hamburger steak.

“It’s not cooked yet.”

It was a bit questionable that there would be completely uncooked items among convenience store products, but even if there were, it was just frozen food. It was probably mixed in while Hayun was grabbing various instant foods.

“It might fail.”

When I looked at it skeptically, Delphinium said expressionlessly.

“But there’s a method worth trying. If we can definitely keep even one cell alive, it’ll be fine.”

In my era, cultured meat was still too expensive for proper commercialization, but it was different in this world.

Even in an age where space is traversed by warp, there are times when direct exploration is necessary. When studying celestial bodies or researching places where life cannot exist, it’s natural to stock up on food supplies inside the spacecraft.

That’s where cultured meat comes in.

…Why on earth would they sell “usable cultured meat” at a convenience store? Perhaps it was imported for aliens.

Just as there are humans who love space, there are aliens with similar interests.

Especially aliens who have traveled all the way to Earth tend to have such tendencies more prominently.

Of course, many might just be tourists visiting for a few days, but the number of wealthy individuals leisurely wandering through space enjoying travel would be greater than the entire human population.

“…I guess there was a fresh food section at the convenience store.”

I wasn’t sure if Delphinium was happy or what, but I decided to think of it as happiness.

“If it succeeds, does that mean we can keep producing meat?”

“Yes.”

Delphinium nodded.

“But it might fail. It’s better not to expect too much.”

No, after already giving us all that hope, saying that is…

…

Well, anyway.

At least we’ve secured food for a few days. No, if we’re frugal, it might be enough to last for weeks.

I just hope that “magic” can be sufficiently omnipotent.

The briefly improved mood sank again after we finished eating and conversing with the children.

Reality was still not great. To be honest, I still felt like I was in the dark. A part of my brain was circling around the nonsensical thought, “Should I have given up back then?”

But still.

At least I confirmed that there was someone in this world, out there, who believed in me.

I recalled Jihye’s face.

Though struggling, Jihye smiled at me. There was no trace of fear of me on that face.

Rather, to see me, she had shaken off all those difficulties and run to me.

Jihye… even after experiencing all that, she wasn’t afraid of me. She didn’t dislike being associated with me.

That one thing—at least, was comforting.