Chapter 27: Aunt, the Outsiders of the Kaema Plateau.

-Hunter Guild Anonymous Forum-

Anonymous 1: Looks like the Saint who was raiding the Tower of Destruction has quit?

Anonymous 2: No way. The woman who sweeps through the Wraiths would give up on that?

Anonymous 3: What about the guys blocking the 3rd floor?

Anonymous 1: Not sure what happened, but they came out of the tower half out of their minds.

Anonymous 4: See, that’s why you shouldn’t mess with things for no reason.

Anonymous 2: So, are you going to give up on the Tower of Destruction? If you give up on that one tower, your performance will take a huge hit.

Anonymous 3: You’ve got to handle this smart. Besides, that Saint isn’t even a hunter, right?

Anonymous 2: Ah, so you’re saying she has her limits.

Anonymous 4: Then why did they even send people to the 3rd floor?

Anonymous 1: Isn’t it obvious? They were sent to discipline them on our behalf. Anyway, the Saint will have no choice but to keep raiding the tower.

*

Aunt’s house was in the heart of Seoul.

“So, this is my aunt’s place.”

Quite a nice size.

It seems she’s doing well, managing to get such a mansion in these times.

Yeah, everything up to this point is good.

A woman like Aunt must be successful and doing well for herself.

It’s all thanks to the grace the goddess has bestowed.

But something felt suspicious.

“Huh? You. That Saint. What brings you here?”

What on earth is this old guy doing here?

The old man was moving things around.

Was he delivering something to this house?

He even took the time to stitch up some Wraith cloth.

What’s he doing?

Wait, what did this guy just say?

“What brings me here?”

“What about you? What are you doing here?”

“This is my house.”

What?

“???”

“???”

What?

This is the old man’s house?

No way.

No, that can’t be.

“Hey, by any chance, what’s your wife’s name?”

“What weird thought are you having now?”

This is absurd.

“Do you really think I would be up to something suspicious?”

“Well, now that you mention it… you gave me Elixir and all. My wife’s name is Kim Soo-hyun.”

Wow, so here’s the hidden truth!

Could he possibly be… my uncle?

“What? No way, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re not telling me you’re my uncle, are you?”

I didn’t want to think so, but…

If that’s true, that means that kid was battling cancer.

Well, maybe that would be for the better.

Since I gave them the Elixir.

But still, how is this guy making everything make sense now?

“Wait, what do you mean by that?”

“Kim Soo-hyun is my aunt.”

Hearing my words, the old man’s jaw dropped.
“Well, for one, my wife is Korean.”

“And I’m a returnee.”

It’s awkward cracking jokes with a returnee.

“Ah, right… come in for now.”

Once inside Aunt’s house, I heard a shocking story.

Kim Soo-hyun, who is Si-woo’s aunt, almost got seriously injured during the Great Cataclysm.

But back then, this old guy saved her.

That’s how they met, fell in love, and after going through a lot together, they got married in less than a year because of their age.

“Well, that’s quite a heartbreaking story.”

“Hey, I’m your uncle. Is lying down while listening to a sad story really appropriate?”

Well, obviously.

This old guy seems a bit selfish, too.

I pointed at the digital clock on the wall.

“You’ve been talking for two hours about how you met after the Great Cataclysm, your dates, and all the trials you went through.”

My ears are getting tired of it.

“Oh, really? Sorry about that. You see, girls tend to like hearing love stories.”

“I’m not completely disinterested, but hearing about your love life is a bit uncomfortable.”

Let’s be realistic.

Who would ever want to hear about an old guy’s love life?

No one.

It’s not worth listening to.

It feels like my ears are rotting.

“Anyway, thanks a lot for the Elixir. Because of it, she’s out of the hospital and in school now.”

“How old is she?”

“She’s in her first year of middle school.”

First year of middle school, huh?

That’s such a fresh age.

Just one year away from getting middle school syndrome (chuunibyou).

But if you think about the timing, this old guy is something else.

I started calculating with my fingers.

The Great Cataclysm was 15 years ago.

She’s 14 now.

Hmm… so that means…

After taking everything into account, they had a kid during a really chaotic time?

Clap, clap, clap.

My uncle sure is impressive.

“Wow. Given the timing of the Great Cataclysm, you sure moved fast.”

“Hey, why do you have to put it like that?”

It’s a real compliment.

The hero himself didn’t even enjoy a woman properly.

He didn’t let us watch either.

There’s such a thing as living vicariously through others, but that hero has no sense for that.

Pathetic.

Anyway.

“My goddess will surely bless my cousin.”

“No, don’t. Your goddess is dangerous. Don’t.”

This old man is rude.

-Oh, I just realized. That girl who was battling cancer? She was originally fated to die. You changed her fate.

In other words, she’s alive thanks to me.

“The goddess says, since she’s alive because of her, you should quietly follow her words. Your cousin can become the first disciple on Earth.”

“Um, can we not?”

Half-joking, but it’s a bit sad when he reacts like that.

But there’s something strange about the furniture in this house.

It’s all really expensive stuff.

“Just kidding. So, what’s with all this furniture?”

“I bought it all today.”

Did he sell Wraith cloth and buy all this expensive furniture?

Well, it’s not bad.

After all, I helped him make enough money.

If he didn’t use it, it would’ve been a waste.

“Well done. You’ve earned a lot, so this is the right thing to do.”

“Well, I wanted to make up for what I couldn’t give my daughter.”

“That’s understandable. So, where’s Aunt?”

I should at least meet her.

Since she treated Park Si-woo well, I should be courteous.

“I’ve called her. She’ll be here soon. But you know…”

“Yes?”

“I don’t know… you really don’t match your photo.”

“Well, that’s life. Who knows? Maybe in a past life, you were a cockroach.”

“Isn’t that too harsh?”

Bang!

The sound of the front door breaking.

And a new figure appeared.

“Si-woo’s here?”

A woman with a familiar face from my memories opened the front door and entered.

“Hello, Aunt.”

“Wait a minute. Is this really Si-woo?”

“Yes.”

Even though I smiled politely and greeted her as my aunt, she grabbed my cheek, stretched it, and stared at my face for a moment.

Then, her eyebrow twitched slightly.

“Oh, well, I see. Hmm.”

“You’re taking it surprisingly well.”

Aren’t most people shocked?

Or maybe she’s someone who knows a lot about returnees.

Judging by the atmosphere, she seems to be involved in that line of work.

“Well, I’ve been in charge of counseling returnees recently. With cooperation from the Bureau, I get access to personal information about their past lives. You know, people turning into slimes or harpies and whatnot. I know a lot of different things.”

“Really?”

Are those slimes and harpies the same people I saw on the forum?

Well, if she’s seen that kind of thing, she’d probably think someone like me is pretty mild in comparison.

“At least you’re… different in race or something. Anyway, you’re human. But I heard from Yu-jung that you’ve lost your memories.”

“Well, it’s something like that.”

In truth, there are some things I just don’t want to remember.

It’s like saying I have no reason to be tied to the past.

I’m not sure how to respond to this.

It seems like Park Si-woo has received a lot of help from his aunt.

If he truly doesn’t remember anything, that might be fine.

But since I owe her a debt of gratitude, I figured I should at least show my face.

It’s just the right thing to do, isn’t it?

How should I put this?

-Our esteemed follower showing such a cute side!

Enough already.

“If you don’t want to, that’s fine. I understand what you’ve been through. But still, it’s best to act as your heart leads you.”

“My little sister is someone I’d love to smack.”

“Except for that.”

Other than that… well, I don’t really have much.

Honestly, if we bumped into each other on the street, I could just ignore her.

But the issue here is with my aunt, isn’t it?

No matter how I look at it, it feels… not uncomfortable, but there’s a strong sense of her being a stranger.

To be honest, my aunt feels a bit… uncomfortable?

Not exactly, but it’s very awkward.

In my past life, she was the only one who treated me well, so I thought I’d come and see her once.

There’s a slight sense of warmth in seeing her again, but nothing that feels strongly like a blood connection.

“I’ve counseled a lot of returnees, so I understand.”

So, she’s a specialist in counseling returnees.

“Well, I don’t think my aunt is a bad person. She gives off a good feeling.”

“While you’re here, why not stay for a meal? My daughter, Sua, should be here soon.”

Sua… is she the one who took the elixir?

If she’s my cousin, it shouldn’t be an issue.

“Sure, I’ll stay and eat.”

A meal sounds nice.

I think I’ll stay and have something to eat.

I felt a warm sensation in my chest.

*

Kaema Plateau.

The Kaema Plateau is a highland region located in the northern part of the Korean Peninsula, often referred to as the “roof of Korea.”

Long ago, it was formed by a volcanic eruption from Mount Baekdu, and there were talks of using it as a tourism resource if Korea were ever unified.

However, much has changed since then.

After the Great Catastrophe, when the world was struck by disaster, the Kaema Plateau also experienced severe upheaval, and it has since become a nest for monsters.

Due to the influence of another dimension, the bitter cold never leaves, and winter persists 365 days a year.

Even Korean hunters rarely visit the Kaema Plateau.

To venture there, you’d need high-performance equipment designed for gates, and you’d have to send high-ranking hunters.

The rugged terrain and concentration of monsters make even camping a challenge, so hunters generally avoid the area.

In essence, it became a land of despair.

But there were outsiders who arrived in this place.

“So this is the saintess’ hometown?”

“No wonder her personality was like that, living in a place like this.”

The ones who arrived were the Hero’s party.

A while ago, the Hero’s party reached the Demon King’s castle and discovered traces of the saintess Karina’s dimensional travel.

The traces were unmistakably connected to the goddess Karina served.

The magician Maria, having already been treated like a criminal, had ransacked the Magic Tower for all the necessary materials and crafted a dimensional travel scroll based on the goddess’ traces.

They crossed over using it, but they hadn’t anticipated the bone-chilling cold that hit them as soon as they arrived.

“I told you we definitely came to the wrong place.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You just threw us into a dimensional shift without proper testing.”

“Maria, I trust your magic.”

The Hero placed a reassuring hand on Maria’s shoulder.

“Hero…”

“In fact, according to your record of illegal experiments, you’re known among dark magicians as a pioneer of black magic.”

What did he just say?

A pioneer of black magic?

“No way! What did the saintess do in my name!?”

“Well, um… I found out by accident, but trust me, you don’t want to know.”

Erin shook her head.

“What do you mean, Erin?”

“Well… you see…”

“What is it? Hero, tell me!”

The Hero sighed and reluctantly handed the records to Maria.

[Illegal Magic Experiments on Population Control]

[Details: Toward the end of the Human-Demon War, the Demon King’s forces were in retreat, leading to a population boom and a subsequent food shortage. These experiments were conducted to control the population.]

[The experiment was successful, and the spell has been named the ‘Contraception Spell.’ It is expected to be approved by the Master of the Magic Tower.]

Maria blinked, her eyes wide in disbelief.

She rubbed her eyes and read the records over and over, but the contents didn’t change.

In short, it was a sexual magic spell designed for middle-aged nobles engaging in affairs.

And her name had been used in its development.

The Magic Tower had classified this spell as black magic, and naturally, Maria, allegedly the one who led the experiments, had been promptly expelled and branded as a dark witch.

“So, the saintess used my name to add credibility to this sex-related spell?”

Her hands trembled in fury.

The betrayal was unbearable.

When she’d lent her name, she hadn’t known what it was for—now she did, and it was infuriating!

“Well… yeah, that’s about right.”

“When I meet her, I’m not letting her get away with it. I’m going to cast Meteor on her face!”

How can I hold back?

I can’t hold back!

“Before that, won’t your skull get crushed?”

“I can’t hold this in!”

And that wasn’t the only illegal experiment on record.

There were various others—each one more outrageous than the last.

It was clear that Maria couldn’t escape her reputation as a dark witch.

At that moment, a strange sound echoed across the Kaema Plateau.

Krrrrraaaaarrrgh!

From beyond the mountain peaks, an eerie voice rang out.

Looking closely, they saw it—an endless horde of monstrous beings.

“It seems there are monsters here too.”

Maria pulled out her staff.

“It looks like it.”

Erin readied her bow.

“We’ll have to deal with these before we can find Karina.”

The Hero gripped his holy sword tighter.

On the day the outsiders arrived in the Kaema Plateau, the light of battle shone brightly, and the uncountable cries of monsters filled the air.