episode_0052

Attacks that come and go again and again.

I opened my mouth again with the determination to do something.

“Hey, are you really going to kill me?”

At those words, the man stopped dead in his tracks.

I could attack right here and there, but I decided to talk to them instead of putting myself in danger.

“As you know, I am a normal person, but I have mana. So you are planning to kill me? Don’t you feel sorry about it?”

He showed his composure with a slightly bitter smile.

In many ways, it was a good statement to make, even if it was just a gamble. The guy might not care about that kind of thing, or he might say something like he’ll check after killing him, so in the end, nothing will change in the situation.

Fortunately, the bastard stopped moving, as if he was shaken by my words.

“Why are you suddenly saying that?”

“I think I’m going to die soon.”

I told the truth, of course. He would have noticed it anyway.

“What a funny guy.”

“I’m kind of like that.”

The guy tried to walk towards me, smiling slightly as if he was having fun. But I was still on guard, so I stepped back when he tried to approach.

“You don’t have to be so scared. I want to talk too.”

“Conversation.”

“There’s also something to talk about about Choi Na-yeon.”

Choi Na-yeon?

For a moment, I couldn’t help but wonder. Are you telling me that?

“What does that mean?”

“There’s no need to think too hard about it. Just make a deal with me.”

*

Choi Na-yeon is running with her eyes tightly shut.

Before she knew it, she had run away from there.

‘Why am I, why am I feeling afraid?’

It was a middle-aged man.

He looked ordinary, but he also had the air of an old man who had gained some insight into life.

The sight of that middle-aged man made Choi Na-yeon run away.

“Why, why…?”

He doesn’t even know.

At some point, I started to see the mana the man was using, and I felt his body tremble. I couldn’t do anything, and I felt like I was going to faint at any moment.

It was such a strange mana.

Choi Na-yeon ran away from that feeling as much as possible.

It was more than scary; it was unpleasant; it was more than unpleasant; it was terrifying. It was a sensation she had never felt before, so she was unfamiliar with it and could do nothing about it.

“Ahh.”

And then, after I calmed down a bit, I was able to remember how stupid I had been.

“He still… … .”

At that moment, Choi Na-yeon stopped walking.

“That ordinary person.”

The boy named Kim Seo-jin, who was younger than him, was still there. The moment he realized that, he automatically remembered what had happened up until just now.

It seemed like he knew something, but that didn’t bother him at the moment. Unlike his previous appearance, Kim Seo-jin confidently stood up to the opponent in front of him and spoke. Not only that, but unlike himself, he continued the fight.

‘I was even scared.’

In fact, I was scared even before I saw that strange mana. That’s why I spoke to him with a trembling voice and even used polite language even though I knew that anyone who saw it would know that it was an enemy.

In a fight with people, the moment you feel even the slightest bit intimidated by the enemy, you lose.

This was a story I heard from a senior with a lot of practical experience.

Even though she understood it in her head, she couldn’t come forward properly. That strange atmosphere was what made Choi Na-yeon hold on.

But Kim Seo-jin didn’t care about that and continued to show a relaxed attitude.

“You’re stronger than someone like me.”

Even though I ignored him because he was just an ordinary person, he was really strong.

But even so, Kim Seo-jin is an ordinary person. So, he must have been in danger.

“What am I doing now!”

I’ve been thinking about it for too long.

You must go back and help right now.

“That, but.”

It comes to mind.

The strange mana from before once again makes Choi Na-yeon unable to move. It keeps her in fear.

“Still, I have to go!”

Choi Na-yeon shouted loudly as if talking to someone and immediately turned around and ran away. She quickly went back to the place she was before.

It didn’t take that long.

She quickly arrived at her original location and approached him quietly, bending down.

As we continued to crawl, there stood the middle-aged man from before and Kim Seo-jin.

“What do you think?”

“That’s a really stupid thing to say. I’m a little worried.”

The two were talking about something.

Choi Na-yeon, who had just arrived, couldn’t figure out what the topic was. She just kept listening to the conversation.

“Okay. I’m satisfied just thinking about it. I’ll contact you separately later. I hope you think about it carefully. Then, I’ll go now.”

“Tsk, what a pissant little kid.”

what?

Did you somehow solve something? With just your own strength?

At that moment, Choi Na-yeon couldn’t help but be amazed. Although she had the ability, she just ran away, but this Kim Seo-jin, who had no ability, held on until the end and solved the case.

He was a great person who could not even be compared to me.

Choi Na-yeon couldn’t help but feel helpless for a moment.

Because his junior, an ordinary person at that, did something he couldn’t do himself.

‘Then what have my efforts been so far?’

It might have been meaningless.

No matter how strong I became, I was ultimately incompetent, and when the enemy appeared in front of me, I couldn’t react properly and just got scared and ran away.

Choi Na-yeon was disappointed in herself.

“But what will Choi Na-yeon do?”

With those words, a man suddenly rushed towards her. Choi Na-yeon couldn’t hide her embarrassment and tried to dodge right away, but the strange mana appeared again.

At that moment, I was hit without being able to move properly.

“I can make you forget what happened today.”

what?

You forgot?

What are you talking about……!

Choi Na-yeon looked at the man without saying anything. The guy was making a proposal to Kim Seo-jin with a blank expression.

“Are you fucking talking nonsense? Let Choi Na-yeon go and get out of here right now.”

“Hmm, that’s strange. Is it okay if I hear things you want to keep hidden?”

Something I shouldn’t enter?

Choi Na-yeon quickly sorted out her thoughts.

If you think about it, Kim Seo-jin’s appearance today gave off a different vibe than usual. Not only that, but you could directly feel that their conversation was something that no one should be able to hear.

That’s why I think his suggestion is a no-brainer.

And isn’t it just the memories that are being erased anyway?

Choi Na-yeon, strangely enough, seemed able to accept it, whether it was because of fear or guilt.

If Kim Seo-jin tells me to do so, I will accept it without any resistance.

“You’re being a jerk. You don’t want to see anyone get hurt because of that, do you? Honestly, aren’t you just doing it because you want to? Stop talking nonsense like a suggestion and get out of here, you punk.”

The middle-aged man laughed heartily at Kim Seo-jin’s words. It was as if he had not laughed in years and was just coming back for the first time in a long time.

“You could have heard our conversation from beginning to end?”

“Of course.”

“You won’t regret it, right?”

“Why would I do something like that?”

“Okay, then let’s really leave.”

The man who left those words let Choi Na-yeon go.

At the same time, he smiled and greeted Choi Na-yeon.

“See you later.”

Leaving those words behind, the man immediately moved to another place.

Choi Na-yeon’s legs gave out as she relaxed. She sank to the ground for a moment and lowered her head.

“Are you okay?”

Kim Seo-jin approached with a friendly smile. To be honest, Choi Na-yeon couldn’t help but feel reassured by him at the moment.

Even though it was only a week, we spent it together.

In the end, even though it was only for a short time, Choi Na-yeon liked the person named Kim Seo-jin.

“Come on, get up. Even if it’s hard, you have to get out.”

“How?”

In a moment of doubt, Choi Na-yeon ended up asking reflexively.

“Didn’t our senior tell you? That we can escape if we defeat the boss. Okay, let’s go and solve this quickly.”

Clearly, Choi Na-yeon herself made that judgment.

In fact, I was certain of this because I had heard information that an acquaintance of mine had experienced a similar situation. But was it really the right decision? I couldn’t help but have doubts.

At some point, Choi Na-yeon couldn’t believe in herself.

“I can’t do it alone. Okay, let’s go.”

But when I saw Kim Seo-jin’s soft smile, the first thing that came to mind was that I had to follow her.

*

For some reason, Choi Na-yeon feels a sense of alienation right now.

As I was walking with Kim Seo-jin next to me, I felt a strong sense of discomfort. I could feel that something was different from my usual confidence.

‘Why?’

Is it because you realize your own helplessness?

Is it because Kim Seo-jin, an ordinary junior whom I used to think was pathetic, took care of things himself?

I don’t know what it was, but in the end I just walked.

“Ah, I think this is it. Let’s take a quick break and then go in.”

Kim Seo-jin, who spoke with a smile, immediately sat down where he had been standing to take a break. Choi Na-yeon followed suit and sat down next to him.

And he bows his head and says nothing.

“Hey, over there. Are you okay?”

Kim Seo-jin finally asked her properly.

“Is there anything that is inconvenient? I will help you if I can.”

When she met his worried gaze, she felt somewhat at ease. Maybe that was why Choi Na-yeon looked at her mouth.

“I tried hard to become a proper hunter.”

Speak your mind.

“I trained over and over again, and I never really rested. Especially since I was planning on dealing with people, I deliberately studied things that the academy didn’t teach me.”

I felt a little disappointed.

“Especially because I went all the way to the actual field and came back, but in the end, I didn’t achieve anything.”

In the past, Choi Na-yeon was a first-year student.

She got the chance to go to the field and prepared right away. No matter how much it was a field day, she thought that since she had worked extremely hard, she would be able to achieve results.

But in reality it was different.

‘Ha, I guess it’s because he’s a cadet, but he’s a little annoying.’

‘Hey, hold on. You’re doing well. You’re still a freshman.’

‘But he knows what he’s become and he’s even stepping forward. It’s annoying.’

That couldn’t be called gossip.

Anyone who heard it knew it was true, and Choi Na-yeon herself could feel it.

She realized that real combat was different. In the academy, safety was always guaranteed, so you could rush in a little recklessly, but in real combat, people’s lives were at stake. That’s why you had to be more careful.

But, not knowing that, he continued to step forward and ended up hurting his colleague.

‘Keep on going, keep on going. Haaak.’

‘Hey, this is real combat. You might be a great guy at the Academy, but this isn’t the place. If you act like an idiot, you’ll get killed. No, even if you don’t get killed, I’ll make sure you get killed, so just know that.’

It wasn’t something I could get used to so easily.

Stopping the choice to always run and move boldly was like getting rid of a habit that had been there since childhood.

‘Well, since it was your first time, you did well enough. It’s normal to make mistakes. We’ve done worse, so don’t worry.’

I don’t know if that’s true or not. It could be a lie.

However, Choi Na-yeon herself believes that there should be no mistakes. That is why she trained even more viciously.

For his revenge.

But today, when I got back into the real world, I ended up making a mistake.

In the end, I realized that I couldn’t do anything. When I realized that, I couldn’t help but feel helpless.

It was as if even the pride I had felt until then had disappeared.

I trained even when others were playing.

He even has talent.

But it all felt meaningless.

At that time, I felt pathetic. I didn’t even run away then, but today, I left the place in a pathetic manner.

Strangely enough, Choi Na-yeon told all these feelings to Kim Seo-jin.

Kim Seo-jin smiled faintly as if he was troubled by those words.

“Well, I can’t say anything.”

Kim Seo-jin said.

“Is that really a problem?”

“What?”

“Isn’t that right? Who doesn’t make mistakes? Who doesn’t run away? If you think that about me, it’s okay.”

Kim Seo-jin smiled faintly as he stood up.

“Because I’m a little special.”

bluff.

No matter what anyone says, that appearance was a bluff.

And somewhere I could see the belief in myself.

“And anyway, isn’t senior Choi Na-yeon already amazing?”

“Am I amazing?”

Those words were enough to make Choi Na-yeon question things.

“Yes. Senior Choi Na-yeon said that people might get hurt, so let’s go and take down the boss alone. I told her not to do that because it’s dangerous. On the contrary, I think that part of Senior Choi Na-yeon is amazing.”

Choi Na-yeon bowed her head after hearing those words.

“People make mistakes and things like that. I made mistakes too, so I was able to act that way. Honestly, I don’t know about you, senior, but the reason I was able to show that relaxed attitude earlier is because I’ve experienced the same situation and acted that way many times. If I do it later, I’ll be even better than you.”

Kim Seo-jin approached Choi Na-yeon.

And then he bent down slightly and smiled brightly.

“So, cheer up.”

Choi Na-yeon felt comforted in an instant.

*

Did I really comfort you properly?

I blurted it out even though I thought it was nonsense. I’m not sure.

Because of that kid, Choi Na-yeon continues to fall into depression.

Everything was annoying.