episode_0015

I slowly explained my plan to Jexa.

However, her expression as she listened to the story was still not good.

“So you’re going to make cocktails and sell them like potions?”

I nodded silently.

“…”

Jexa stared at me with a look that seemed to say, “Is that all your plan is?”

“My cocktails have various buffs. Potions have no taste and you have to drink a lot of them. With mine, just a little sip is enough.”

Finally, Jexa seemed interested and rested her chin on her hand.

The fact that one could replace having to drink almost a liter of potion to replenish stamina with just one glass of my cocktail was a significant advantage, and she seemed to understand that.

At the end of her understanding was calculation.

Jexa, almost instinctively, pondered whether this small woman’s proposal could really be profitable, tossing her lighter as if it were a habit.

“Is mass production possible?”

“Well…”

In truth, that is my fatal flaw.

Since my cocktails require the effects of Angelic Hand to add buffs, they cannot be made in a factory.

So, am I supposed to churn out hundreds of cocktails a day?

If I overuse my skills, I’ll exhaust myself, just like I did in the past.

Seeing my awkward expression, Jexa chuckled, saying she thought I would react that way.

I worried she might try to keep me here and squeeze potions out of me until I die.

“It would take dozens of bottles to try it, right?”

“Yeah…”

Jexa sighed deeply, feeling she had wasted unnecessary time.

For someone like her, I immediately prepared the next comment.

“So, anyway, since mass production isn’t possible, I’m thinking of another strategy.”

“Another strategy?”

“Selling the cocktails I make directly at famous raid camps. You can get more money by selling locally, right?”

Usually, when people face a big crisis, they tend to rush into things.

If they see a decent buff drink when they are short of even one healing potion, their eyes will light up, and they will buy them all.

I urged her to trust me with a thumbs-up gesture.

This is a fact I realized when I was serving at the frontlines in the military, so I am certain.

“Is that all you’ve come up with, just a wandering merchant?”

Jexa looked at me incredulously.

“More like a golden carriage than a wandering merchant.”

“A golden carriage…?”

“That’s right. It’s what soldiers are always waiting for.”

Jexa tilted her head.

It was a curious look, wondering how I knew military terms.

“Oh, that’s… I have an older brother. He’s on leave and he told me everything until I got sick of it.”

“I see.”

When family stories came up, Jexa’s eyes narrowed.

“Is he still alive?”

I hesitated for a moment at that question.

Because the person she referred to as her brother was actually the previous host I had possessed.

“No. He passed away when the Gate opened.”

Jexa’s red eyes gazed at the floor, creating a poignant atmosphere.

I never expected her, who always seemed ready to fight, to show such a reaction.

“My father also passed away at that time.”

Jexa turned her head to look at the desk in her office.

There, a frame with a family photo sat alone.

In the frame, a girl stood harmoniously with her father.

Just like the beautiful Jexa, her father was also very handsome.

Even sitting in the office, his face resembled that of a handsome middle-aged actor.

“You’re quite handsome.”

“He was.”

As Jexa spoke about her father, her expression softened somewhat.

Thanks to that, I could see that she was a warm person to her family, despite having killed countless hunters without batting an eye.

She held the frame, biting her lip.

Instinctively, I could sense from her reaction that something unpleasant had happened between us.

“I… committed a sin that I can never repay to my father, even after his death.”

Jexa left those words hanging, staring blankly at the frame.

The brief silence transformed the tense atmosphere in the office into a melancholic one.

The owner of that office soon rolled their eyes and looked at me.

Their crimson pupils held a gaze of resentment towards the guest who had plunged them into sad memories.

“Let’s stop with the personal talk.”

Perhaps she thought showing me was a mistake, as she quickly covered the frame.

Leaning in, she asked again.

“So, you bothered me just to get a few bottles of alcohol, is that it?”

Her sharp fangs seemed like they could sink into my neck at any moment.

I raised both hands and made an effort to propose to her.

“H-How about trying my cocktail first before making a judgment?”

“I already have a sense of your level from the gin and tonic.”

She remained firm in her expression.

But I didn’t back down either.

“Don’t worry. I won’t disappoint you this time.”

“How do you plan to prove that?”

Jeksah asked, palm outstretched.

I gently touched her finger with mine.

“Like this.”

A faint light emanated from our fingertips as it transferred to Jeksah.

“Angelic Hand.”

Jeksah’s red pupils gradually lost focus.

When I first met her, all I saw were piles of memories.

Since it was a pile created for slaughter, naturally, there were only cruel memories.

But now, what stands before me is Jeksah herself.

This time, I should be able to peek into her memories properly.

Feel free to anticipate.

I will perfectly cater to your taste this time.

I wanted to become a model.

Enthralled by the confident and beautiful models I saw on TV as a child, I practiced their poses diligently.

As I entered elementary school, my passion became clear, and I could finally discuss it seriously with my parents.

My mother opposed my dream of becoming a model, calling it absurd.

However, my father was different.

Despite my mother’s objections, he allowed me to pursue the path of a model.

Confidently, he told my mother, “Let’s believe in her once. Her eyes are serious.”

Thanks to my father’s faith, after ten years, I finally became a top model.

On the day I signed a contract as the exclusive model for the famous brand Red Snake.

I went to the department store with my father to celebrate my glamorous debut.

That day, as I planned to give my father his first gift for always supporting me, I intended to buy the most expensive suit from the brand in this department store.

However, he insisted on choosing a Red Snake tie, believing that buying from the brand our daughter models for would be more helpful.

Stubborn as he was, I had no choice but to buy him that tie as a gift.

As we finished shopping and headed downstairs for a meal…

‘How did it come to this?’

Surely, the underground floor was filled with people’s laughter.

But now, only screams, cries, and sounds of people pushing each other to survive echoed.

Frozen by the ear-piercing noise, I simply watched people jostling towards the exit.

As they pushed each other out, bodies piled up on the floor, lifeless.

People ran towards the exit, which was gradually getting higher like stairs, like beasts.

Yet, I couldn’t look at it with disgust.

Because that was the only escape route on the underground floor.

There would hardly be anyone calmly lining up to escape through the last remaining exit.

Nevertheless, I couldn’t plunge into that crowd.

Because my body was completely crushed under a falling pillar of fire.

As the building collapsed, fires erupted here and there.

Mannequins in burning clothes fell around me, covering me.

They clung to me as if alive, dragging me down and sticking to my body.

In the end, even as my whole body burned, I just lay here.

The pungent smell of oil and the heat made it hard to keep my senses intact.

Father, seen from afar, is the only one I gaze upon.

My father, who had just finished smoking a cigarette, reaches out to me amidst the crowd trying to escape.

“Just go…”

I murmured words that wouldn’t even reach him.

Because I truly wish he would leave this hellish department store and abandon me.

It’s not the heart of a daughter who wishes for her father to live on.

It’s simply because I no longer want to live.

My body melted in the intense flames, contorting my face grotesquely.

Rather than surviving in this horrific scene, it would be better to just die.

At least then, in the news, they would feature photos from my beautiful days, not my contorted face.

“Top model, Hansurin. Loses life in department store fire accident.”

Ultimately, if you receive attention until the moment of death, you are still a celebrity.

The reason I am so fixated on my appearance is simple.

For a whole 10 years.

I have strived endlessly to become a model during that long period.

When it wasn’t the designated time, I didn’t rest, even slapping my own cheeks if my expression became dull.

If I didn’t maintain a somewhat pretty expression, I could make a mistake on the runway if I let my guard down.

When people saw me, I had to be a perfect doll.

But now that things have come to this, it seems impossible.

It’s empty.

To see my body, which I’ve worked so hard on all my life, disappear in an instant.

The grief of parents losing a child must be like this.

Their daughter, whom they supported and invested in all their lives, suddenly passes away.

As I quietly approached death with such contemplation, someone called out to me.

I knew exactly who it was.

“Soo-rin…!”

Father shouts from a distance.

He barely starts running towards me through the crowd.

But strangely, the saving hand that finally appeared fills me with fear.

Don’t come.

Please don’t come.

Even if you save me, all that will remain is this grotesque body.

I don’t want to live like this.

Falling ceiling tiles strike Father’s shoulders.

Yet, he continues to stagger towards me, holding onto his shoulders.

Hot gas spews from the ground.

Despite coughing, he keeps advancing without stopping.

Eventually, Father reaches a distance where he could touch me in ten steps.

In front of his eyes stands a being that is now unrecognizable as his daughter, but more like a monster.

“Dad, you came…”

It’s strange.

Facing Father, whom I wanted to push away so desperately, my heart trembles.

“Why did you come… How can I survive in this state…”

“Don’t say that. You’ve suffered your whole life. What’s the point of feeling wronged if you die like this!”

He grabs my arms, where the skin has peeled off, revealing muscle fibers.

However, my body doesn’t flinch at all.

It feels precarious, as if my arm will be torn off if he pulls any harder.

In the end, Father changes tactics, clearing debris with his hands.

The more he clears, the more his hands break with shattered nails and red wounds.

One finger hastily bends in the opposite direction while clearing debris, breaking.

“I don’t feel wronged at all… So please, Dad, escape quickly.”

Father pays no heed.

I couldn’t understand why he was so stubborn.

Strangely, Father speaks words similar to mine.

“Who did you inherit this stubbornness from? If you survive, you’ll really get into trouble…”

Groaning, he begins to lift a massive boulder, as large as his body.

For someone with such a lean figure, it’s surprising to see such superhuman strength.

When veins bulge on his forehead, the boulder that was pressing me finally starts to rise.

Finally, I could move a little.

I thought all sensation had melted away in the fire.

But when Father’s hand touched me, I felt a warm sensation.

That warmth flowed into me, injecting vitality.

Thanks to that, I decided to give up my stubbornness just this once.

I finally stood up and gazed intently at my father, who had supported me.

“Do you remember why you allowed me to model when Dad mentioned it?”

“No. It’s been 10 years already.”

My father looks at me and smiles warmly.

Then he tells me, “Our daughter has a serious look in her eyes, which I really like. Your appearance is good too, but I gave permission after seeing that inner side of you.”

At first, his words didn’t evoke any emotions in me.

But as I walked towards the exit, I suddenly felt my eyes welling up with tears.

If I make it out alive, I will apologize to my father.

It means saying to your parents that you’re going to die in front of them.

But I couldn’t say those words to my father forever.

“—!”

As if punishing my stubbornness so far, the ceiling begins to collapse completely.

Fragments rain down like a storm, and in between them, something huge appears.

It’s not a car, train, or airplane.

It was a massive animal foot with tough leather and claws.

The moment that foot pressed on the ground, the ceiling structure collapsed on us.

At that moment, my father pushed me forcefully to the side.

“Dad…?”

My father, who was right next to me just a moment ago, disappeared beneath the rubble in an instant.