episode_0097

“Hey, why did you come to take the D-Class exam? There are a lot of promising candidates in this C-Class.”

“Then why are you here?”

“I heard that the only daughter of the [Changcheon Swordsman] guild leader is taking the exam this time. I have to see this for myself.”

Jeong So-ra, the guild scout of [Changcheongeomga], snorted at the voices of people whispering from afar and adjusted the sleeves of her uniform.

Among the guild scouts, most of whom were dressed in neat suits, she was quite noticeable with her uniform sleeves fluttering, and other scouts who recognized Jeong So-ra seemed intimidated and backed away.

This is probably because they are more worried about the consequences that will come if they are looked down upon rather than the benefits of being seen well by the scouts of the four major guilds.

Jeong So-ra sat comfortably in a chair that was empty on the left, right, front, and back, and watched with interest the 7-4 section in front of her.

This is a viewing room for guild scouts to watch promotion tests.

Unlike the physical fitness test conducted in a large open space, the complex environment of the [artificial crack room] located in the basement of the association makes it difficult to capture all test takers at a glance.

Therefore, guild scouts watch several test takers from the central viewing room through cameras installed throughout the test site.

Go directly to the test site of the test taker you are interested in and take a look.

The spot where Jeong So-ra is located has a clear view of section 7-4, and is a great spot where you can see the examinee fighting an [artificial monster] the size of a large dog straight ahead without any obstacles.

“Look, the [Changcheon Swordsman] scouter is here too.”

“But why are you over there? Isn’t that the 7-4 block?”

If you turn your head to the side, you can see a fairly large number of scouts sitting around and whispering among themselves.

He was probably coming to see the only daughter of the [Changcheon Swordsman] guild leader who was taking the D-level exam in section 7-3.

The purpose is not to recruit people to their guild, but to check how good they are and criticize them.

The promotion test is a festival for hunters.

A place to show off and evaluate those who show off.

Jeong So-ra looked at the beautiful female student in her school uniform, standing with her back straight among the test takers.

[Euncheon Academy] 2nd grade, hobby knife cutting, specialty knife cutting.

Taking after his mother, [Changcheon Swordsman] guild leader, he is unique from the very beginning…

Just like his mother, he is good at using his body.

Chaeengㅡ.

When it was his turn, the stone head cut the approaching [artificial monster] in two with a single sword strike.

She left the exam room immediately without listening to the test proctor telling her she had passed.

The guild scouts were impressed by the level of skill, but Jeong So-ra turned her head with an expression that said, ‘That’s right.’

Anyway, that’s not what’s important right now.

Soon it will be our pretty girl’s turn to take the test.

“…Testee number 11. Please enter.”

“yes.”

Soon after, a woman from section 7-4 enters the exam room with a languid smile.

A woman who grows bigger every time we meet at a restaurant. E-class hunter Eunha.

Will it be possible to hunt [artificial monsters] with fists that are even more like cotton balls?

“Wow… who is that? Does anyone know?”

“……What?! That person is the ‘Jibakryeong’?!”

“Eunha~! Cheer up!!”

The scouts were criticizing themselves after watching the Dol-head test, which ended as quickly as a knife.

They discovered galaxies and became interested one by one. It must be because of looks.

But sooner than that, Jeong So-ra stood up and waved her hand with an exaggerated gesture, cheering for Eun-ha.

Although Eunha didn’t seem to hear her cheering, perhaps because she was nervous, Jeong So-ra smiled and nodded after seeing the guild scouts retreat with regret.

Aside from the guild invitation, I don’t want to bother Eunha for no reason.

Did we develop some affection while eating lunch together?

Kaaang~!

Soon after, Eunha’s test began with a cool drink.

Jeong So-ra opened her eyes and focused more on the test than ever.

The first thing I checked was, of course, ‘body strengthening’.

Isn’t it the human heart to want to check whether the advice was helpful?

And as expected, Eunha was managing her mana in an orderly flow that Jeong So-ra was truly impressed by.

The movement of the muscles that trembled slightly every time the weapon was swung showed that the mana had been properly condensed, and the swinging bat accurately hit the head of the [artificial monster].

It’s hard to believe that this is a person who awakened Mana less than a month ago.

‘She’s really good at teaching, she… But still…’

Kaaang~!

However, as time passes, sadness spreads across Jeong So-ra’s face.

No matter how many times I hit her, the [artificial monster] got up and attacked Eunha.

not enough power

While I’m at it, I’m running low on mana.

Soon Eunha, who was bleeding from the nose, stumbled, and the [artificial monster], who did not miss the chance, rushed in and bit her on the shoulder.

The exam is over.

Crash! Wow!

Jeong So-ra frowned and turned her head at the sight of Eunha being attacked by an [artificial monster] and biting off her shoulder.

I didn’t mind seeing other test takers get hurt, but I couldn’t bear to see Eunha get hurt. Is it because I am so gentle?

In the end, Eunha will fail the test.

Because the ‘minimum conditions’ are to defeat the [artificial monster], collect the magic stone, and hand it over to the supervisor.

Also, how much you have been hurt is also scored… so it will be difficult to pass even with empty words.

‘Still, you have talent. If you work a little harder, you’ll pass next month… ‘

“Kwaeee!!!”

However, at a time when Jeong So-ra was thinking about how to comfort Eun-ha, who failed the exam,

A horrifying, terrifying scream scratched everyone’s eardrums.

A soul-wrenching sensation.

Jeong So-ra’s instinct when she senses danger generates mana.

Other guild scouts also unconsciously adjusted their weapons and looked in the direction from which the sound came.

Jeong So-ra’s gaze turns to the 7-4 block as the atmosphere suddenly becomes more violent.

… … Eunha, who had just been attacked by an [artificial monster], was standing there with blood dripping from her shoulder.

Instead of holding an aluminum bat in one hand, he held an old jigsaw.

Excited. Excited. Excited. Excited.

Dangerous.

Jeong So-ra’s heart is pounding like crazy after overcoming numerous crises while fighting monsters coming from the border.

Why is Eunha standing there, and why is the [artificial monster], whose corpse can only be moved by a magic stone, lying on the ground trembling in fear?

The fear of incomprehensibility creeps out.

… … Clap!

And then, the lights went out.

Sudden power outage.

But it’s different. Even she, a B-class hunter, cannot see in the dark.

Jeong So-ra swallowed hard and lowered her posture.

This is no ordinary power outage.

Yeah, it’s like…

It looks like someone is behind his back, covering his eyes with his palms…

『I don’t want my child to be in trouble… so close your eyes?』

I heard something’s voice.

Jeong So-ra sat quietly on the chair.

I can hear other guild scouts taking their seats.

No, I couldn’t hear it.

I didn’t hear anything.

Nothing happened, nothing happened.

When the blackout ends, you won’t remember anything.

『Rest assured. I’m only letting you close it this time.』

Darkness, as always.

Because there is nothing.

… … .

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

… … .

I resented the world.

Because I lived an unfair life.

I had an unfortunate accident and regretted my wrong choice.

The sadness that comes from regret becomes resentment and eats away at one’s heart.

『Ah… it doesn’t cut well.』

There is a lot of resentment built up, but there is no place to release it.

Because I don’t have the courage to blame others…

Something that had nowhere to go was piling up high in the sky.

… … You don’t even have the courage to hate others.

It was the heartache of someone weak.

『It’s dyed red, red~』

sang a nursery rhyme

I will become a school teacher next spring.

Although I have enough money at home, this is the job I have dreamed of since I was young.

​

How do we teach children?

Should I draw a picture? Can everyone read text?

Joyful thoughts overflow.

Memories are mixed.

​

​

Nope! Nope!

I moved my hand in the dark.

The feel of an old jigsaw cutting bone is cool and hard.

flinch! flinch!

Something struggles as it is cut by the jigsaw.

It is a struggle to escape from pain.

cute.

Isn’t it like an insect being cut into pieces without being able to resist at all?

Sagak… The ‘fly’ in my stomach quietly curled up like a frightened herbivore.

My stomach doesn’t hurt.

I moved my hands with joy.

Nope!

Because of the power outage, I can’t see an inch ahead.

It’s strangely dark.

Even if you take out your smartphone and use the flash, you won’t see anything.

But it’s okay.

All you have to do is cut it.

Even now, I’m just… walking in the dark, writing down the first thing I come across.

It doesn’t matter who it is.

‘is not it? Does it matter?… Right. I was taking a promotion exam.’

My head is a mess.

Just as white and black are mixed to create gray, it feels like someone is splitting a woman’s head in half and using a thick brush to shuffle her mind.

I don’t know.

It’s just sad.

The woman moved her hands eagerly.

The muscles are tough and difficult to cut.

The pain of having my whole body cut into pieces by a jigsaw.

The thread of fate that was everything in the world was so thin and easy to break,

The woman envied the jigsaw that cut her into small pieces.

So the sawing continues.

Because I want other people to be as envious of this jigsaw as I am.

I hope it gets cut to pieces.

To meet the true [Thread of Destiny] that cannot be broken by any hardship.

Cutting off the life in front of you with a thin jigsaw.

‘Ah… that’s a shame.’

The woman swallowed her regret.

Every time I saw, I felt my life disappearing.

I guess it feels similar to saving on delicious food.

The woman cuts off little by little, deliberately avoiding important organs, in order to prolong the present time even just a little.

[Red Woman] must have felt this way too.

A disgusting consensus is formed.

‘Ah… Is there anything that won’t die even if you cut it?’

It’s dark so I can’t see.

Who is cutting it now?

The artificial monster that bit your shoulder?

The test proctor who came running with an ‘emergency recovery potion’?

Or one of the test takers waiting in the back?

I don’t know.

Let’s cut it and think about it first.

『Everyone is dyed red~』

Sing a nursery rhyme.

Because I like it.

This is because the warm and cozy lyrics and hopeful melody seep into your heart.

This is a fact that I only realized now, but when I sing this children’s song, my heart becomes depressed.

It’s probably because I regret it.

As if ruminating on past regrets,

We will hum our favorite children’s songs forever.

“ㅡㅡㅡ! ㅡㅡ!”

Something being cut by a jigsaw shouts.

But the sound was as faint as a dying candle, and even that silenced with the sound of boiling blood as the woman found the man’s neck by groping in the darkness and sawed the area around the vocal cords.

Suddenly the woman realized.

The reason why sawing in [Red Woman] hurts so much.

Because it is shared.

This is because the pain of a woman who was sawed to death by her lover, and of someone who desperately wanted love, is conveyed through a jigsaw.

So my heart ached.

I realize it again.

‘Then how many times will my pain of being sawed be conveyed?’

The woman moved her hand, channeling the pain she had been through into a jigsaw.

The stomachache I endured for the promotion test, the time of pain I endured for the physical fitness test.

Sawing, repeated several times, is captured on an old jigsaw.

“Grrr…!

It seems to be quite effective.

Someone who was cutting their shoulder with a jigsaw screamed in pain and stopped moving.

He died of shock… Surprisingly, he went away comfortably.

‘… … Oh, that’s right. hearthstone.’

A woman who realized that she was currently in the middle of a promotion exam put her hand into the chest of ‘someone’ who had been cut into pieces.

As I penetrate the cold skin, I touch something that looks like hard minerals.

Is this a magic stone? You’ll find out when you open it.

The woman used ‘Body Strengthening’ with the small amount of mana recovered in the meantime to tear off the mineral caught in her hand.

Crash!

Something is torn away with a cool sound.

This is the end of sawing.

A woman holding the heart of something looked around in the darkness.

Still can’t see anything.

… … It’s a bit disappointing.

Is there anything else?

‘Um… Well, that’s okay. Let’s finish it quickly. ‘Because I have to study a lot to teach children’s songs.’

The worry was short-lived.

The woman stretched out her hand holding the jigsaw.

And… it started spinning slowly, clockwise.

『It’s dyed red, red~』

After this song ends, walk forward.

Until something catches on.

… … .

… … .

… … .

… … Clap!

Then, the light came on.

Like a trembling breath waking up from a dream.

​

​

『Tsk……! Ai, you’re dazzling.』

​

​

As the vision suddenly became brighter, the woman raised one arm and covered her eyes.

I feel like I had a bad nightmare.

What were you doing now?

She frowned and looked around with difficulty.

​

Test takers sitting on chairs with blank faces.

Likewise, the guild scouts were sitting idly by.

And… a piece of meat with its joints dismantled.

​

​

Did you saw the [artificial monster]?

thank god.

“hmm…? Ah, Director. Here is the magic stone.”

“…….”

Eunha handed the [artificial monster] magic stone to the test proctor who was sitting on the floor.

He took the jigsaw that was pressing down on the supervisor’s shoulder and stood up.

“…….”

The test proctor was lying on the dirt floor and staring at the ceiling with a blank face.

She soon gazed at the magic stone given to her by Eunha…

He opened his mouth like a drunk person.

“……I passed.”

“and.”

“I passed.”

Eunha was happy.

I’m a bit lost, but I guess it’s okay if it ends well.

“I passed.”