Ch.97The Embrace of the Imperfect Ones

# 97. The Embrace of the Imperfect Ones

“Ugh, it’s so cold…”

Lying down wearing only underwear with spirit stones placed all over my body was harder than I’d imagined. It probably hadn’t even been an hour, but my body was desperate to toss and turn, and the chilly air made me want to curl up under a blanket right away.

What made it even harder was not knowing if this was actually working!

If there was evidence of its effectiveness—like, “if you do this for 12 hours, your affinity will increase rapidly enough to attempt a contract”—I could somehow endure without distracting thoughts.

The idea that I might be suffering for nothing and just annoying the raid leader made it even harder to bear.

‘No. I need to stay strong! It hasn’t even been an hour yet. I can’t give up already!’

I had refused the raid leader’s request without offering an alternative. Instead, I promised to do my best. The raid leader’s sister let me go without saying anything to save my pride, but she didn’t seem to have much hope.

‘Subin mastered fire magic in just one day, and Soyu learned Radiance of Salvation in less than an hour. It shouldn’t be impossible for me!’

The only things I’m better at than others are my personality and persistence!

So…

“Since I’m trying to maximize contact, should I take off my underwear too?”

Ah, whatever!

I told them not to open the entrance carelessly, so they shouldn’t barge in!

Using the excuse of removing my underwear, I moved my stiffened body vigorously to relieve the stiffness, scratched the itchy spots that had been bothering me, and even went out through the other entrance to pick some flowers just in case.

And then, I became completely naked.

“Right… now I’m in a completely ‘natural’ state!”

Please! I hope this isn’t all for nothing!

I buried myself in the pile of spirit stones once more.

**

“Rest well, Leader.”

“I’m really sorry to you and Soyu. Especially you, Seyeon—you haven’t had a chance to rest since setting up the campsite.”

“Haha, it’s nothing.”

“Seyeon, I’ll never forget your dedication. There will be compensation in some form. I promise.”

“…Hehe. Just give me a hug sometime, that’s all I need.”

Despite their officially acknowledged relationship, Seyeon looked around to see if anyone was watching and made her request in a voice as quiet as an ant crawling.

I hugged Seyeon tightly with gratitude, gently stroking her hair.

Seyeon nestled against me obediently with her hands folded against her chest, then after a moment, she bowed her head slightly and scurried away to the campfire.

From a distance, she gestured for me to go inside quickly.

She looked absolutely adorable.

‘She’s really too good for me. No matter how I think about it.’

I nodded to her once before entering tent number 1.

“Seyeon unni won’t have time to be bored while keeping watch. She’ll be too busy reliving that hug and feeling happy about it.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Pfft. Don’t underestimate my ears!”

Inside tent number 1, Yuri was lying down. She seemed to have regained some energy—judging by her speech, she appeared fully recovered. In reality, her physical condition was the most serious.

“You shouldn’t eavesdrop on things like that. And even if you do, you shouldn’t let on.”

“Oh come on, what does it matter between us?”

“Respect people’s privacy, will you?”

“Ack!”

See? She’s writhing in pain from just a slight poke.

“Yuri.”

“Hm? What?”

“Let’s finish our conversation now. The one we didn’t complete.”

Yuri subtly averted her gaze. But how far could she avoid it when she couldn’t even properly hold a spoon by herself? She gave up quickly.

I’d already left Danya in tent number 2 for this very purpose. No matter how pitiful her expression, there would be no escape.

“Oppa… can’t I get scolded later, even if I deserve it?”

“I just want to talk. Why are you so scared? The great Ayuri.”

“You’re good with words. What if you use them to completely destroy my mental state?”

“Sigh.”

I couldn’t bring myself to hit her when she was being so direct. That was actually part of the reason. If she were physically fine, this wouldn’t end with just a knock on the head or a spanking.

I lay down next to Yuri and began slowly stroking her hair while starting to express what I’d been holding in my heart.

“Your impulsive action didn’t just put yourself in danger. You know that, right?”

“Mmm…”

“You’ve been through countless raids, so you know. One person’s mistake often leads to a total wipe.”

There was even a raid leader who once said:

Rather than having end-game specs, it’s much better to have someone who meets the minimum requirements but listens well and remembers strategies.

Of course, Saex the Dual Axe was never a troller. But Ayuri in the lower floors definitely was.

What if I had been a little late?

What if Danya, who used life-transferring magic, hadn’t been there?

Or worse, what if she had died before even getting that far?

I didn’t even want to imagine it. But for the future, we needed to address this clearly.

“If you had died there.”

Yuri’s body, which had been quietly listening to me, trembled. Her eyes desperately begged me not to continue.

But I didn’t stop.

“Our raid would have ended right there.”

“Oppa!”

“It would have been a tremendous shock. Extreme sadness. Extreme loss. Extreme guilt. And the sense of defeat and loss of motivation from having our primary and ultimate goal—getting everyone safely to the top floor—fundamentally denied.”

The rest of us would have been alive but not truly living.

We say we’re “literally risking our lives” to climb, and there have been several dangerous situations.

But if someone actually dies.

That’s different.

There’s a vast difference between believing there’s danger but we can overcome it together and safely ascend…

And someone actually dying, creating the fear that I could die at any moment too…

“What good would it do if I give perfect orders and know the strategies inside out? I’d always remember that failure and death. Even with a perfect plan, I could never feel secure, and might act overly cautious instead. I might even refuse to continue climbing because I couldn’t bear to lose anyone else.”

“You’re not that kind of man, Oppa.”

“Yuri.”

The guilt of bringing her here arbitrarily. The responsibility that came from that. The trust and affection that was already there.

These alone were heavy enough, but Yuri… she had become too precious.

“I don’t know how you see me, but I’m not perfect. I might seem that way because I have excellent raid members, but on my own, there’s little I can do. At best, I can cook and recall game information.”

“That’s not true! You’re—”

“Yuri. Promise me.”

I stopped stroking her hair and looked directly into her eyes.

“Promise you won’t do that again.”

Yuri bit her lip and nodded. She seemed to have something to say, so I waited, but she ultimately didn’t speak.

“Let’s think together about the side effects of your skill. And don’t use Bloody Lust without my permission.”

“Okay.”

“And I…”

Though it was because of her impulsive mistake, being chased by countless monsters while slowly dying… how painful and frightening it must have been for Yuri.

With regret in my heart, I kissed her forehead.

“I will never leave you alone again. Even if it’s part of a strategy or plan.”

“…”

“You were really scared, weren’t you?”

Instead of answering, Yuri somehow managed to move her creaking body to nestle into my arms.

I silently patted her back. Soon, my chest became damp.

Even the youngest, most energetic, mischievous, and physically strongest member was still human.

Just as I wasn’t perfect, neither was she.

The embrace of imperfect people gradually dissolved each other’s wounds and mistakes.

“Oppa.”

“Yes?”

“Am I Saex? Or am I Ayuri?”

Perhaps because her face was buried against me, Yuri’s voice sounded muffled. She seemed to not want to show that she had been crying. Since I understood her anyway, I answered without asking her to repeat herself.

“You’re Ayuri.”

“But, I didn’t say anything because it felt like making excuses… but thinking about it now, I don’t think that was really me back then. Like a truly crazy woman, obsessed with blood.”

“Is prolonged exposure to blood the problem?”

“Probably. Does that mean my class skills just keep rising? And it seems to get worse as the skill level increases. It’s definitely different from when we were on the first floor.”

Barbarian Warlord.

A class with extremely destructive and intuitive class skills, but one that demands a heavy price with no way back.

I don’t deny the influence.

But my thoughts are firm.

I am me, and Yuri is Yuri.

“Of course the me from there and the me now are different. It’s like being mixed with the impurity of a character. Even so, don’t doubt yourself. You are you. And don’t worry. We’ll never let you go down the wrong path.”

“Oppa…”

“I said we’d think about your skill’s side effects together, right? I’ll figure something out, so our Yuri should put those worries aside and focus on recovery. Okay?”

Yuri nodded.

‘Right. Let’s leave it at this for today. I’m tired too.’

When Yuri’s condition improves, others like Seyeon or Subin might scold her. I could casually join in then.

I decided to detach Yuri for a comfortable sleep. But Yuri clutched my clothes and wouldn’t let go.

“Yuri. We need to sleep.”

“Just a little longer.”

“Huh?”

“Just a little longer, stay like this.”

Our Yuri.

She had more tears than I thought.