115
Ch.115 Power Is Needed
The senses of an awakened one are several times sharper than those of a normal human.
Sounds I don’t want to hear, gazes I don’t want to feel—I perceive them all.
Even the emotions embedded in those sounds and stares.
I can notice everything.
“Did you hear? About the Jung family.”
“Ah… I heard everyone died except the kid.”
“But apparently, the surviving child is an awakened one.”
“They say he survived by pressing his back against a corner of the wall and blocking it.”
“Huh…? Then…”
Why did the rest of the family die?
Every time those kinds of stares turned toward me, I felt like my throat was filled with thorns.
I was too late.
By the time I awakened, everyone was already dead.
I couldn’t move until an awakened one came to rescue me.
Stuck to the wall, I survived alone.
“Awakened ones are heroes bestowed by God to save humanity! You have been chosen. Take pride in being selected to save mankind!”
The conscription of awakened ones to fight monsters.
Even after being dragged into the military as superpower human soldiers, people dismissed my ability.
A power that could only create walls.
And not even walls that could move fast enough to strike a monster.
It could block straight-line firepower like tank shells, but monsters aren’t tanks.
If they just sidestepped, it was over—a useless ability, just sturdy. Trash.
An ability that suited me perfectly.
“Ooh? Hey, your ability looks really cool?”
The one who took an interest in that trash ability was an annoying woman.
She started showing up after awakened ones—who were supposed to replace the soldiers’ pointless drills, marches, firearms training, formation drills, and command memorization—were assigned to train us in the field.
“Your name is Jung Ho-young? I’m Yeo Ryeong. Don’t call me ‘instructor,’ call me ‘noona’. Noona Yeo Ryeong. It’s not like there’s a huge age gap between us anyway.”
That infuriating woman was already on the verge of reaching A-rank.
Rumors said she was the daughter of the hero Quake.
For both parents and their child to become awakened ones fighting monsters—was that a blessing or a curse?
“I’m not ignoring you or mocking you, seriously! Your ability really does look amazing.”
“What’s so great about this trash ability?!”
“You’re barely scraping by as a D-rank, yet you blocked a tank shell like it was nothing. The density of your ability is insanely tough…”
“Yeah, that trash ability! It can only block attacks from one direction—what’s so great about that?!”
“…Hmm, wanna make a bet?”
“What?”
“If you do as I say and, within a month, your ability becomes something others envy, I win. If it’s still trash, you win. How about it?”
“Who would take a bet like that…!”
One thing was certain.
Her presence was a blessing to me.
“Good, six walls! You barely managed it! See? Your computational skills improve if you train them!”
“Huff… Huff… Huff…”
“Alright, next training. I’m going to throw this can—catch it midair with your ability.”
Yeo Ryeong taught me uses for my ability that even I hadn’t known.
That my ability wasn’t just for protecting myself—it could be a weapon to trap enemies.
That it could control the battlefield to prevent harm from reaching others.
“What the hell is that ability…? It traps monsters?”
“If we just focus fire the moment the ability activates, even D-ranks can easily take down a Crush-class.”
“See? What did I tell you? Your ability is good, right?”
“…But in the end, it’s still an ability that can’t kill a single monster alone without someone else’s help.”
“Really? You can freely create curved and straight barriers, right?”
“I can. Why?”
“If it’s insanely tough, doesn’t that mean you can use it as a weapon too?”
She made it so I could defeat monsters on my own, without relying on others.
She taught me that my ability wasn’t just for running away—it was for standing and fighting monsters.
And on the day I defeated a monster alone under Yeo Ryeong’s protection, I trembled with the realization that I had the power to fight monsters.
“Haah… Haah… Haah…!”
“Congratulations on your first monster hunt.”
“I… I killed it…! A monster!”
I no longer needed to fear monsters.
I grew confident that I could become anything I wanted.
I honed my ability, now a source of pride, and gradually expanded my skills.
“Did you really talk to me because my ability looked cool?”
“Ahahaha! As if. If I wanted a cool ability, I’d have gone to Yoo Anna. You know her ability—kinda scary, right? What kind of trauma makes someone think, ‘I’ll kill all monsters’?”
“Then why did you approach me…?”
“I didn’t like the look in your eyes.”
“My eyes?”
“Eyes steeped in frustration—I don’t like that.”
Yeo Ryeong and I grew closer, spending time together and eventually sharing personal stories.
“You seem upset. Did something happen?”
“Huh? Ah… It’s nothing. Just heard Dad got hurt again.”
“Your dad… Instructor Yeo Woon-jae? The one who sometimes comes for special training?”
Yeo Woon-jae, a hero on humanity’s frontlines.
Yeo Ryeong, raised almost alone because her father was always busy fighting monsters.
“I’m his daughter, yet all I get are reports of his injuries—no time to even see his face. Isn’t that weird?”
“He’s busy… Can’t be helped.”
“Yeah, always busy. Everyone keeps asking for his help. People around him say power comes with responsibility… But why does it have to be my dad? Because of that, I’ve barely spent any time with him. Even after becoming an awakened one… Nothing.”
“Without Instructor, we can’t handle monsters above Despair-class.”
“I know, I know. But I hate how people just keep making him risk his life like it’s nothing.”
Yeo Ryeong hated the reality where awakened ones were expected to sacrifice themselves.
“I awakened an ability that lets me go anywhere I want, but it’s no fun traveling alone. I wish I could go somewhere with Dad just once. Always by myself… So lonely.”
“I’m… Not busy.”
“Huh?”
“If you’re that lonely, ask me to go with you. Consider this a date request.”
“Eh? W-what… You’re acting all manly for a kid.”
“I am a man.”
I… Had fallen for Yeo Ryeong.
“I knew something was off! You’re not the type to be so diligent—why were you sticking around to train someone?!”
“Hey! If you’re coming over, at least call first!”
“Ah, sir… Hello. I’m Jung Ho-young.”
“Who are you calling ‘sir’?! Get out!”
“Since when do you get to kick him out? This is my house!”
One day, while spending time at Yeo Ryeong’s place, Yeo Woon-jae suddenly showed up and got angry seeing me with her.
“…You’re the one with the codename Kage, right? They say you’re a promising awakened one.”
“Th-thank you.”
“Isn’t my student cool? Already B-rank.”
“You, shut up! A teacher getting involved with a student…! My apologies, my daughter’s upbringing was lacking…”
“Did you even raise me? I grew up on my own.”
Instructor Yeo didn’t approve of our relationship.
“I’m sorry, but please break up with my daughter.”
Later, when Yeo Ryeong wasn’t around, he called me aside and shared his thoughts.
“Awakened ones never know when they’ll die. At least wait until the world stabilizes before seeing each other.”
“So it’s not about age…?”
“Frankly, that’s part of it. But these are chaotic times. I’d understand if you met a little earlier. It’s just… You’re both awakened ones. That’s what worries me.”
“You’re afraid one person will die and leave the other behind. Is that it?”
“Yes. I always fear that happening.”
“Then why do you keep fighting?”
“…I don’t want others to feel the frustration I’ve felt.”
Instructor Yeo was a good person, just like Yeo Ryeong.
Kind-hearted, seeing the best in others—it was obvious where Yeo Ryeong got it from.
“I’ve only failed my daughter. As a father, I’ve done nothing right…”
“Without heroes like you, sir, I would’ve died to monsters long ago.”
Yeo Woon-jae was among the awakened ones who fought monsters to save me as a child.
“I won’t die to monsters either.”
“You…”
“You survived for the same reason, didn’t you? So you wouldn’t leave Yeo Ryeong alone.”
In the end, Yeo Woon-jae conditionally allowed our relationship.
“At least become strong enough to defeat me. Then I’ll permit it.”
Hearing that, Yeo Ryeong brushed it off like always.
“He’ll have to allow it if we have a kid anyway.”
“You…”
“Ugh, whatever. You never cared before—why interfere now that I’ve found someone I like?”
Yeo Ryeong was stubborn.
If she wanted something, she acted first.
While others hesitated, she’d already slain monsters and saved lives.
Even when faced with impossible choices, she charged forward.
“Does that make sense? Monsters understanding human speech?”
“That’s why we’re researching it! And it’s not completely impossible, right? There was that monster that hesitated before killing a child! You saw it too!”
“That was just a rare aberrant type…”
“If we keep taming monsters like that, it’s possible! A day will come when heroes don’t need to fight!”
The government’s monster weaponization experiment.
The first hero to support it was Yeo Ryeong.
Yeo Woon-jae, unable to resist her enthusiasm, also agreed.
Which was why, when the supposedly tamed monster went berserk…
“No…”
Yeo Ryeong was the most devastated.
“Stop with the command hierarchy crap! What kind of waste of time is this?!”
“Uncontrolled awakened abilities are no different from monsters! Unless we strike precisely, we’ll just create more rampaging monst—”
“Shut up! You pigs! Awakened ones aren’t monsters! We’re not weapons for you to use!”
“W-what?! Pigs…?!”
“Unawakened humans, stay out of this! We’ll take responsibility ourselves!”
And Yeo Ryeong was the first to act.
“Nam Kyung, use your ability. Determine the most effective formation based on all our abilities.”
“Uncle Yeo Woon-jae? Knock them out.”
“This isn’t the time, but… Your ability always feels unpleasant when used in emergencies…”
The optimal formation where no one would die.
Yeo Woon-jae took the strongest monster.
Yeo Ryeong took the second strongest.
“Good, keep it trapped while I use my ability to—”
“Yeo Ryeong, something’s wrong…! This thing isn’t a Disaster-class!”
“What?!”
The barrier trapping the monster began cracking.
Then shattered completely.
“Existence Evolution?!”
“Despair-class…!”
“Noona Yeo Ryeong! We have to run!”
The first B-rank hero we fought alongside panicked, used civilians as bait, and fled—letting the monster escape.
But even against a monster that had grown beyond control, Yeo Ryeong didn’t run.
“I’m the only one who can hold it until Dad arrives. Just go. You know my ability, right?”
“I-I’ll call for backup!”
“But alone…!”
“Go! You’ll just get in the way!”
And I…
“Why did you come back?! What were you thinking?!”
“Yeo Ryeong, let’s do it.”
“You…! Are you serious?”
“With that, we can fight even an S-rank! Even a Despair-class!”
“You could barely maintain it for a moment! And you want to try it now?!”
I should have run.
“Aren’t superpower humans supposed to do the impossible?”
“Ahahaha! Now you say that?!”
“Let’s surpass our limits… Right now!”
Together, we overwhelmed the monster.
Terrified, it tried to escape, but we didn’t let it.
“Keep going! We can finish it!”
If Yeo Ryeong had been alone, she could’ve held out until Yeo Woon-jae arrived.
If I hadn’t insisted on chasing it, what happened next wouldn’t have occurred.
A family, failing to evacuate in time, wouldn’t have appeared before the fleeing monster.
“H-Heroes!”
“Help us! Please, help!”
Spotting us, the family didn’t hide—they ran straight toward the monster.
A panicked, irrational act. Suicide. They didn’t even realize the monster’s strength.
As the monster lunged to devour them, Yeo Ryeong used her ability to protect them.
And in that moment, the monster’s desperate strike landed a fatal blow.
“Ghk…!”
“…Huh?”
A hit straight to her ability’s core.
Her heartbeat faltered, her energy fluctuating wildly.
In her last moments, she used her final ability to teleport me and the stranded family to safety.
As far as her power could reach.
With a smile.
An awakened one’s senses are too sharp.
Even from a distance, her smiling face was clear.
The sound of her skull crushing under the monster’s jaws.
When Yeo Woon-jae arrived, the monster was slain.
What remained of Yeo Ryeong was scooped up with a shovel, placed in a burlap sack.
Cremated. Reduced to ashes.