episode_0091

This world does not use the Gregorian calendar.

To be precise, the Gregorian calendar came to an end in the year 2000.

It was on March 1st, 2000, when the Great Change occurred.

Concepts that were only found in myths and legends, such as dungeons, towers, monsters, and magic, became a reality.

Moreover, a small number of humans began to manifest transcendent abilities that were only imagined in fantasies.

There is no denying that this world is different from the previous world, as it resembles the original world but has undergone a great transformation.

It is not the Gregorian calendar anymore.

Currently, it is the 200th year of the New World Origin calendar, which marks the year of the Great Change.

Today is a very special day.

Feeling a mix of anticipation and anxiety, I took off my patient gown.

‘Finally…’

Today is the day I am being discharged.

My body, which was in a state no better than a rag, has somewhat recovered.

This is largely due to the exceptional care I received.

High-level healers, who are hard to come by even with money, rotated to tend to my condition.

Top-tier healers, who stored their power in case of emergencies, periodically came to heal me.

In this environment, the only thing I couldn’t survive was death.

The problem was my condition, which was so severe that even if buried with a corpse, I couldn’t say anything.

The blood that seeped into my wounds was hindering my recovery.

I almost ended up buried alongside a corpse. It still gives me chills to think about it.

‘Almost three weeks…’

Apart from the loss of my arm, it took over three weeks for my body to almost fully recover.

Three weeks.

It may feel like a short time when you just let it pass.

But for someone like me, who had the physical abilities of an ordinary person and yet took this long to catch up to a newborn, it was a precious time wasted.

Especially wasting three weeks in the midst of not solving the lifespan issue was particularly painful.

‘What lies ahead…’

The biggest event, the first semester entrance to the Tower, has ended.

The dungeon training interspersed throughout was not a major issue.

The big event that requires attention is…

‘Is the only thing left for this semester the comprehensive evaluation?’

The comprehensive evaluation.

After being surrounded by the blessings of growth and attending lectures from world-class professors for months, the Tower of Growth allowed me to enter once.

It also gave me enough time to consolidate the achievements from the Tower of Growth.

Now, the procedure to properly measure how much I have grown is the comprehensive evaluation.

There will be memory-based exams and exams specific to each major.

And as an institution that nurtures heroes, the most anticipated exam is the comprehensive combat section.

Regardless of major, all students will participate in one-on-one combat.

I will probably participate as a special admission student.

The stakes for me in this exam are very high. If I come in first, I will definitely receive a good artifact.

Students who aim for good results in the comprehensive evaluation have been preparing for it for a long time.

Unlike those who practically ended up in the healing room right after the entrance to the Tower.

‘Am I being greedy? I should be grateful for just surviving…’

I realized once again how greedy I am. I let out a deep sigh and tried punching the air for no reason.

My fist cut through the air. The wind from my arm hitting felt precise. As my body recovered, my senses naturally returned.

‘With this level of recovery, I should be able to fight, right?’

It even felt better. Was it because I did some rope skipping diagonally? My body, which fought to survive, seemed to have achieved growth.

While thinking these thoughts.

– Thud

– ?

The hand that flew swiftly from the side was caught by the wrist. The arm couldn’t straighten out and bent awkwardly.

I turned my head in confusion. Within the range of observation, Professor Atra with a stern face was holding onto my wrist.

As she let go of my wrist, her hand quickly moved towards my face.

– Ouch…

‘Huh?’

And then my cheek was caught. One side of my cheek, caught by her slender fingers, stretched out like a rice cake.

Not knowing English, I tilted my head in confusion, and Professor Atra let out a deep sigh and said, “I must have told you to take it easy for a while, so why are you suddenly throwing punches in the air?”

‘No, just one thing…?’

I put a little force into it, but it was definitely not enough to hurt me.

As I made a puzzled expression, Professor Atra narrowed her eyes.

Gently, my cheek was stretched a bit more. It didn’t hurt. Instead, I had to control my expression to avoid showing any signs of feeling good.

“Even if the diagnosis results are good, you still need to observe for a day or two.”

– Nodding

As I nodded my head gently, Professor Atra’s stern expression softened.

Then, she gently touched the cheek she had pinched earlier.

Her lips curved into a smile. Trying to control the urge to smile, I meekly accepted Professor Atra’s touch.

After receiving a brief moment of comfort, I went through the discharge process.

Although my body was close to recovery, I naturally expected the discharge process to be complicated.

The Central Healing Facility of the Association is truly a place to save ‘unmissable figures’.

Even at that Central Healing Facility, I received exceptional treatment. Therefore, I expected that it would take time to go through the other procedures.

“The discharge process? Oh… that’s already been taken care of. You can just leave.”

‘?’

And then I heard words that were like a highway pass.

I absentmindedly scanned the figure entering my field of observation.

A doctor in a clean white gown and holding… a white stick in her mouth, which immediately brought to mind a cigarette.

For a moment, I thought it was a cigarette and tensed up, but as I saw the candy being observed through her slightly parted lips, my tension eased.

The woman with a distinctive hairstyle, roughly tied up, was named Lianeel Steinlea.

She is a healer from the Association who healed me, who was almost like a corpse, and she is a top-class healer.

“The process is over?”

“The Association staff took care of everything from the first day of admission. You can just leave.”

Lianeel explained with a nonchalant attitude.

“Oh, and the Association staff wanted me to tell you. They are planning to deliver compensation for the great contribution to the rescue operation in the disaster, something like that… So if you have time, please contact them.”

“They were considerate enough to let you rest.”

Lianeel once served on the African front, and it seems she has built some rapport with Professor Atra during that time.

After hearing the explanation, Professor Atra narrowed her eyes in a puzzled manner and asked, “That’s how they treat important guests. But wasn’t it different for the actual guests?”

“How would I know what the higher-ups think? They must have their reasons for doing this.”

As Lianeel was responding, she turned her gaze towards me.

“It seems like you were considered someone who must be kept alive from the higher-ups’ perspective. So, please don’t come looking for help again, Mr. Lee Hayul.”

It’s like a doctor telling you not to come to the hospital unless you’re sick, right?

As I nodded with a strange expression, Lianeel spoke again.

“Healing is complete. Once your energy is restored, you can proceed with arm regeneration. The Association has already taken care of the arrangements, so you can receive the regeneration here or separately. Take care of your mental health as well. And…”

There was a brief pause.

“Take care of your body.”

A faint smile appeared on Baeshi’s face at the final words.

Although relatively blunt and shallow in emotion, there was a hint of concern underlying them.

Rianel’s eyes, which had been looking down at me, blinked.

The end of the candy stick clacked. Her mouth, as if pondering something, opened again.

“The diagnosis results were clearly normal. Even if I were to see it with my own eyes right now, it would be normal. However…”

“However?”

Professor Atla furrowed his brow at the nuance that seemed to deny the word ‘normal.’

“There was something strange about Ihayul’s body. It’s not something you would say to a patient, but it’s like…”

– The feeling that someone who should have died is alive.

With Rianel’s words, the doubt that I had been feeling as well brought back memories from the past.

Excessive and persistent violence that a child couldn’t endure.

Even though the abdomen was split open, the memory of it being completely healed the next day.

Being engulfed in flames all over the body, not eating proper food for a long time, and wandering around, yet the body remained alive.

A leg that was clearly severed but regenerated perfectly…

‘…’

The only uniqueness I had grasped was affinity with magic and exceptional physical abilities.

But I kept feeling like there was something more.

I didn’t realize it. Even in the healing room, whenever I had spare time, I introspected, but I didn’t feel it.

It felt like there was something more.

Regardless, I completed the discharge process with the advice(?) of the healer.

“Go in first. I want to emphasize once again, do not come out of Siyolam under any circumstances.”

Professor Atla said that I couldn’t enter Siyolam immediately due to personal reasons.

It seemed that I would handle personal matters over the weekend and then come to Siyolam.

The gate terminal of the Association’s headquarters.

Professor Atla grabbed my shoulder with a nervous look and demanded an answer.

Despite not knowing how many times he had asked, I nodded calmly as if to reassure him not to worry.

However, the worry and concern that covered Professor Atla’s face did not disappear.

‘…Hmm.’

It seemed like too much protection, but considering my state, which I couldn’t distinguish between a person’s body, a corpse, or a rag, it seemed natural…

Receiving the worried gaze, I pushed my body through the gate, with the gaze falling on my back and the back of my head.

With dizziness, I stepped into Siyolam, feeling like I would return soon.

– Ding!

The moment I arrived at the Siyolam gate terminal.

An alarm rang in my ears.

Close by… It was definitely a sound coming from me.

This time, I didn’t miss it. Along with the sound, I quickly scanned the spot where my left arm used to be.

There was no left arm. The smartwatch attached to my left arm was also missing.

Similarly, there was no smartwatch on my right arm.

I had a portable hologram projector, but the alarm that rang from there was not it.

I had a similar experience before.

But back then, I thought it was a hallucination in my sleep or a sound from the smartwatch, and I passed it off.

‘…This.’

I couldn’t possibly pass it off like that now.

‘Don’t I have a status window?’

The suspicion that I had resigned and passed off when I first arrived in this world quietly resurfaced in my mind.

Amidst the suspicion, a perplexed voice also echoed in my ears.

“Um… Ihayul Sengdo-nim?”

‘Ah.’

I’m standing in front of the gate like this.

Realizing this, I quickly moved away.

The stares of the resident staff were uncomfortable…

I wrapped my reddened face with my sleeve and briskly walked out of the gate terminal.

That day was spent checking the presence or absence of the status window all day, lost in various worries.

Suddenly receiving a call from Elia asking if I could spare some time.

In fact, it was the next day that I faced the confession necklace that allowed me to let go of my heart, unable to control the overwhelming emotions and hugged Elia.

* * *

– Ding!

[Here enters Lee Hayul in the Siyolam]

…

[“Curse of the Beauty Park” consumes vitality… consumes…]

– Sizzle…

[Tower Lord of Growth suppresses “Curse of the Beauty Park”]

[Tower Lord of Growth suppresses “Curse of the Beauty Park”]

[Tower Lord of Growth suppresses “Curse of the Beauty Park”]

…

[Tower Lord of Growth lets out a sigh of relief]

* * *