episode_0050

A hardware store that is almost completely worn out.

A large yard with a rusty sign and few people.

There was a blue porter parked in front.

Most of the stores nearby have a [Lease Inquiry] sign.

I stood in front of it and looked at it for a moment.

‘Yeah…it’s no different here than it was then…’

A street that has been devastated since the Gate once appeared.

Originally, it was a place where tourists and ordinary citizens lived normally,

As soon as the gate incident occurred, no one lived here anymore.

Of course, the management bureau reassured citizens that it was safe, but

It wasn’t effective against very anxious people.

Now it was practically a ghost town.

Sigh…

I opened the old gate and entered the hardware store.

Inside, the sound of strong metal being struck was heard,

The intense heat could be felt quite strongly even from beyond.

“Please stay~“

I entered the hardware store with a friendly smile,

Inside, Surtur was sitting wearing a welding mask.

She was absorbed in soaking without even looking at me.

He just calmly knocked on the metal and spoke to me.

“Not accepting customers~ Find another place~“

“Teacher Surt~ It’s me~“

“Huh?“

She looked at me with her mask up.

A sweat-soaked black tank top and a gray work jacket.

In addition, is it upholding the belief that safety comes first?

He was wearing dull black military boots, work gloves, and a heat-resistant sleeve.

“What…what, why are you here?“

I lifted the E-Mart bag I was holding in my hand.

“I stopped by briefly while passing by. Have you eaten?“

“Ah…no, that…wait a minute, how did you know my home address?“

Surtur was startled and pulled up the zipper of his work clothes.

My whole body was drenched in sweat and I quickly started wiping myself with a towel.

Seeing her after such a long time moved me a little,

Looking at the hardware store that looked so similar to that day five years later,

I took out a chair leaning against the wall and took a seat.

“I came here to check how much repair work has been done on Levatein…and to see you, teacher.“

“Hey…even if you are my student, you know that this is really burdensome, right? I should have at least contacted you in advance.“

“I know that if I had contacted you, you would have prevented me from coming. Hey, don’t worry too much though. I couldn’t see a single person around here.“

“Okay… That’s true, but… If you’re caught alone with your student like this… you could get kicked out of the academy… “

She quickly wiped away the beads of sweat that had formed between her deep cleavage.

Next, he showed me a red liquid contained in a mold.

“Now look, this is what I made by melting all the blade pieces together. I made the form after roughly looking at the blueprint. What do you think, it’s pretty cool?“

“Oh…I’m glad though. This time, all the handles and fragments were gathered together.“

“So… I only heard that it was mortgaged and sold to a relic collector… Wait, what about this time? What does that mean?“

Surtur looked at me with meaningful eyes,

I was a little worried about what to say.

But anyway, I was planning on spending some leisurely time with her today.

I got up from my seat and picked up the bag containing the ingredients.

“Let’s eat first. I think you probably haven’t had a meal yet because you’re busy working.“

“Keu…Okay, just wait a moment, I’ll bring out some cup ramen I bought.“

“Heung, that’s it. Eating cup ramen every day. Please excuse me for a moment~“

“Uh…uh…! hey…! Wait…!“

I left Surtur behind and entered her house.

Although it was a little shabby house, the inside was neatly organized.

Perhaps because she lived alone, the only shoes she owned were hers.

The cupboard was full of retort foods like cup ramen and hetbahn.

‘Oh my… I should eat well… Well, since I eat lunch at the academy, it doesn’t matter…’

Just like I did sometimes when I was a commander.

I borrowed her kitchen and refrigerator and started cooking.

Also, Surt’s favorite dish, stir-fried pork, is on the menu.

“Teacher, you like stir-fried pork, right?“

“Yes…that’s right. No, how on earth do you know everything? Oh my… I’m not doing anything like stalking, right?“

“It’s just like that. Oh, if you want to help me, could you cut me some green onions?“

“Tsk…Okay. Do you tell me after you finish eating?“

She began tying her long red hair into a ponytail.

When she braided her long hair with a hair tie, the white back of her neck appeared,

Afterwards, I began to neatly put on my kitchen apron.

It was like she just sat next to me and we started cooking together.

I felt like we were a newlywed couple.

And it had been a long time since I had seen her in such a peaceful atmosphere.

Cracking…

Cheap profit…

A fragrant smell began to waft,

Just like she always asked me to do after returning from battle.

I quickly made stir-fried pork.

The same taste and recipe that Surt always ate with a happy expression.

“Wow… It’s crazy… The pork is a bit stir-fried… Is it because I’m a man? “

“I’m glad it smells good. It’s been a while since I cooked.“

“Huh? why? He’s so good at this. If you have this level of skill…did your parents open a store?“

“Hmm… That’s not true, I only ate combat rations for about two years. Almost all of that was gone.“

“Battle rations…? Are you…?“

Surtur looked at me with an expression of confusion,

I watched her with my arms crossed.

She sighed, as if she had given up, and filled up her spoon.

He then put it in his mouth and began to carefully savor the taste.

Thrill—!

“Mi…crazy…“

“Hehe, what do you think? It’s pretty delicious, right?“

“Oh…oh…no…this…this taste…“

She again took a few spoonfuls and started eating.

Every time I eat one bite of the red, savory stir-fried pork.

Surtur’s eyes sparkled and he emptied the entire bowl in an instant.

“It’s…much…tastier than buying it and eating it…“

“Well, there’s more. Please have another bowl.“

“Ugh…Ugh. Thank you.“

By the time she emptied the entire pot.

Surtur smiled happily, looking completely satisfied.

I leaned back on the chair and patted my bloated stomach.

“Wow…I’m happy…You’re really good at cooking…“

“It’s pretty useful, right? It was one of the abilities I had.“

“Anyway…isn’t it time to reveal your true identity? He knows about Levitain’s identity, and he even knows my home address…“

“I think you noticed something. What kind of person do I look like in Mr. Surt’s eyes?“

“Hmm…that’s…“

She leaned towards me,

He spoke confidently while holding a toothpick in his mouth.

“You came here because my mom sent you?“

“Is there a reason you think so?“

Surt triumphantly poured himself a glass of cola and said,

Next, she explained her guess clearly.

“There are two types of people who know about the existence of Levitain. One is my family and the other is loan sharks. However, I paid off all of that crazy amount of debt with the money I earned in the military, so it’s over now… but the fact that you know these things so well… you probably heard about them from my family, especially my mom.“

“Mmmm, and what?“

“When my mother was working as a teacher at Central Academy, there was an uproar for punishing the daughter of the Healer Association, so she eventually gave up teaching. Moreover, that damn father ran into a huge amount of debt while gambling, and thanks to that, the whole family was scattered. “

I began to quietly listen to her story.

After incurring enormous debt, her family chose to flee at night.

After her mother broke the sword, she hid the pieces of it all over Central Academy.

And if one day one of her daughters enters Central Academy.

I hope you can find the sword piece by following the hints she left.

The problem is that the last blade piece and handle were kept by the chairman before Beatrice took office.

The woman’s whereabouts are unknown because she sold it as stolen property.

‘Besides… the other daughters had no interest in the academy at all.’

After joining the military as the eldest daughter and earning money,

After paying off his debt, he managed to enter Central Academy as an instructor.

Although he was not a student as his mother had hoped,

Anyway, it was a good opportunity to step in.

And the past me followed the hints with her and searched around the school like catching a mouse,

Except for the handle and the last piece, I could barely find the rest of the pieces.

“Anyway…that’s how it happened. So, somehow… you, who spoke with my mother, found the fragment of Levitain. They come to check on my daughter and see if she is doing well. So much so that I can even stir-fry my favorite pork. What do you think, am I right?“

“Umm…half right, half wrong.“

“Huh? Well…isn’t it good to get half right…?“

When Surt’s guess was wrong,

I scratched the side of my head as if I was a little embarrassed.

After drinking a glass of cola, I told her the story.

“Rather than that…a little more, deeper. This is something that will give you a headache. Maybe they’ll kick me out and tell me not to talk nonsense.“

“What…what…can it be an alien?“

“Hmm… to put it simply, you could say so.“

“Ha…Okay, let’s take a listen. I made something delicious, so at least I won’t kick you out.“

“You promise, right?“

“Yes. Promise.“

She gave me the little finger,

I carefully began to tell her the whole story.

Just as I told Beatrice the whole story,

To Surt, who has been with me so far.

Boldly omitting any sad or desolate incidents in between,

I told her what we had been through so far, even though it had been quite a rough ride.

About 30 minutes passed like that.

She went outside with a cigarette in her mouth,

I stood next to Surtur and looked at the yard without saying a word.

‘At that time, I trained a lot with Surtur here… but I couldn’t awaken, so I didn’t get any results…’

Cheap profit…

She lit a cigarette,

He exhaled and exhaled white smoke.

“…He came from the future… That’s really interesting. You…I called you commander? A child like this?“

“Among them, Mr. Surt was the most difficult to recruit. But because I was that strong, it was a choice I wouldn’t regret.“

“Hmm…yeah, that sounds pretty good.”

” Mr. Surt… you believe my story easier than I expected?”

“Well…what…”

Surt turned his head and shook off the cigarette ash,

Then he looked at me and smiled.

” If you look at his actions and appearance, he doesn’t seem like a child at all. What can I say, it feels like an adult has entered a child’s body.”

“Uhm…I see. I’m glad you trusted me so easily. I was worried that I might get beaten up and kicked out.”

“Oh… my head really hurts… Tsk… Then how old are you? Probably not 17.“

“Let’s see…I was 22 before I came…and I lived here for about 5 years after that…so I’m 27, right?“

“What…then…you are older than me…?“

Surt had just been discharged from the military.

He was now approximately 24 years old.

She was a trustworthy sister when she walked around the battlefield with me.

I actually listened to her speak. Now, I was older than her.

“Now that I think about it, it turns out that way.“

“Uh…you can let go of that. Commander.“

“Push…suck…“

“Hey…Hey! Well…what are you laughing at? Embarrassing people.“

Suddenly, he became polite and called me commander.

I found that situation very funny at that moment.

I sat down next to her and stretched out my feet comfortably,

He placed his hand on Surtur’s knee.

“Thank you for trusting me. Surt. In the future…and this time too…please take care of me.“

“Ha…Okay, what can I do? By the way, you are amazing too. After going through so many terrible things…how are you still so sane? If it were me, I would have gone crazy a long time ago.“

Surtur held my hand as if he was worried,

I looked at the empty lot without saying anything.

It was so terribly painful,

The end of the road was not visible.

Every time I take one step at a time.

Like being sucked into sticky mud.

Every day is like a nightmare for me.

I gritted my teeth and lived tenaciously to survive somehow.

Before I came here, I was already full of wounds.

The girls who treated me so warmly.

Because I promised myself that I would definitely protect it.

“Because you were there. Because you…somehow lifted me up when I was almost broken.“

“…Tsk. The young one went through a lot of hardships…“

She opened the cigarette pack and handed me one.

Then he put it in my mouth and slowly lit it.

“Don’t worry. He said he knows everything that will happen in the future. That’s enough. That’s already enough.“

“Yes…Thank you, Surtr.“

I took a careful drag on my cigarette,

Then toxic smoke began to fill my throat.

“Kellogg…Kellogg…! Cluck cluck…!“

“Ugh…shit…I guess they gave me something I can’t even bloom for no reason…I shouldn’t have told you in advance.“

She patted my back and looked at my face,

I smiled and took another sip.

“You know what, Surtr? Neither of us could quit smoking until we died.“

“Tsk…the world has reached that point. It’s even weirder to quit. Oh, then what? Can we just let go?“

“Because other people have eyes too…it would be better to be respectful. I still feel like you are my older sister.“

“When it’s just the two of us…I’m more comfortable this way.“

She smiled and put her arm around my shoulder,

Then he pulled me close and smiled at me.

“Then Commander, don’t worry from now on and just trust me. Because my sister will beat them all up.“

“Yes, I can trust Surtr. Please take care of me this time too.“

“Just making eye contact with you made me feel as good as if I had smoked 10 cigarettes… It was all because of this fate, right…?“

“Um…actually, that’s my charm skillㅁ…“

“Shh… Even if it’s just when you’re next to me. Get some rest. Because it’s safe here.“

She smiled brightly and placed her finger on my lips.

I remembered her from the past and ended up laughing.

There will come a day when I will tell all my children this way.

If only everyone could slowly accept my story like this.

And if only we, together, could prevent this ever-so-slowly approaching catastrophe.

There was nothing else I wanted more than that.