Attending the Alumni Reunion with the Nymph! #3
Since the age of the rifts, awakening occurred during adolescence and the early twenties.
I once read a study claiming that the characteristic mental instability of people in that age range was what made their mana resonate. Whether that was actually true or not, I couldn't say, but it had become a firmly established convention that only young students could become awakeners.
Hot-blooded youth. An age when you could chew through steel. But when you threw people like that into rifts, or gathered them all in one place to train them, certain problems arose naturally.
Namely, romance.
Did I, Ha Ildo, have such problems? It was hard to say I did, but I couldn't exactly claim I hadn't, either.
Slid-.
I glanced at the woman seated next to me. She wore her black hair down to her shoulders, her makeup subtle and understated. She had on a pink dress that suited her remarkably well.
Tap-.
Someone rapped a hand on the table. It was Kim Dan, with her mechanical arm.
"Ildo, you. It's been forever since you've seen Jihyun, hasn't it? As far as I know, you two never even kept in touch afterward?"
Yu Ji-hyun. That was the name of the woman sitting beside me. She was my age, and apparently she'd managed to stumble her way up to B-Rank awakener.
My eyes drifted absentmindedly to her left hand. A ring sat on her ring finger—silver-banded, set with a diamond, the kind that looked fairly expensive.
"Ildo. It's been a while, huh?"
Slid-.
Ji-hyun met my eyes, and I was slightly taken aback. Her voice was brighter and warmer than I'd ever remembered it being.
"Yeah, well. I'm the same as always."
"Really? You look like you've been doing well. Plenty of our classmates have had arms or legs replaced with Auto-Arms, but you don't seem to have a single injury. All ten fingers, too."
She had a point. Looking around at the eight or so 1st-generation classmates here, mechanical hands, shoulders, and legs were everywhere. Kim Dan, for one, had all four limbs replaced.
Meanwhile, I still didn't have a single part that had been swapped for machinery. Was that just luck?
"See this shoulder here, all torn up? A car-sized ant bit me to shreds. Back then we had no suits, no equipment, nothing. We had to endure it with our bare bodies. That's the only reason I survived."
"Oh, come on. What are you bragging about over that? See this leg? A king monitor lizard got me. You remember we salvaged my leg to make serum from it, right? I'm not lying when I say I saved a thousand people with that."
Wearing your injuries like medals and sneaking in a bit of bragging while you were at it. Apparently some things never changed.
As for me, I had no injuries to speak of, so I had nothing to brag about anyway.
Slid-.
I looked at Yu Ji-hyun again. She didn't seem to have any injuries either. Come to think of it, she'd been pretty skilled back in the day, too.
Ji-hyun spoke up.
"Ildo, I've been hearing your name pop up here and there lately. Something about you traveling with dog-squirrels? You've got all sorts of fascinating animals, apparently. It was nice seeing your name again after so long."
"Yes! Dog-squirrels! Show me one, come on!"
Kim Dan drummed the table with her mechanical arm, and before long, Keongkeongi, who had been curled up in my pocket, poked her head out.
━Woof-woof...!
She must have known we were talking about her, mustn't she? As Keongkeongi wagged her bushy tail back and forth, Kim Dan let out a loud gasp of admiration.
"Wow, it really is a squirrel. A real squirrel! Look at that tail wagging!"
"Of course it's a real squirrel. Not just any squirrel, though—a dog-squirrel. It barks like a dog, which is where the name comes from. Supposedly it can even evolve."
Slid-.
Keongkeongi went scurrying all over the tabletop. Watching her, my 1st-generation classmates let out appreciative murmurs of "Ooh" and "Wow."
When Ahn Gyeong-tae, the sniper with his glasses and a glowing red cybernetic eye, extended a hand, Keongkeongi climbed right up onto it.
━Woof-woof...!
"Smart little thing. Really smart. Ildo, you said if we come to where you live, we can catch dog-squirrels of our own—was that true? I'd love to tame one myself."
It was only natural that 1st-generation veterans who'd been through everything would find dog-squirrels fascinating. Besides, I preferred chatting to sitting awkwardly at a reunion, so I decided to explain this and that.
"I've got honey ants too, not just dog-squirrels. Dog-squirrels are better for combat, but honey ants handle the housework better. Couldn't bring any of them today, though."
With meat and alcohol flowing, the mood turned pleasant. Even though it had been ages since we'd all been together, the old stories melted the awkwardness away in no time.
"Remember when Ildo got swallowed whole by that fire-breathing crocodile turtle? Absolutely hilarious!"
"That's not—its shell was too hard, so I was trying to destroy it from the inside. There was an ignition organ in there, and it was a monster that would kill itself the moment that organ went down."
Looking back on it now, the regulations back then were bizarre, and our methods for clearing rifts were pure improvisation. Everything boiled down to throwing bodies at the problem—honestly, I had no idea how any of us survived.
In reality, plenty of people didn't survive. A gathering like this used to draw over twenty of us, once.
But nobody seemed willing to show it, so everyone kept things light. Kim Dan, chuckling away as she stroked Keongkeongi with her mechanical hand.
"And remember when Jihyun got caught in that blaze, and Ildo doused himself in water and charged straight in? I remember thinking right then: whoa. That is true love."
A chorus of "Ooooh-" rose from the group. My face felt like it was flushing—probably the alcohol.
"I just rescued someone who was in danger, that's all. Love had nothing to do with—"
"Oh really? Then what was it, Ildo, when you asked me to go see a movie with you over the weekend? To be honest, I was a little happy back then."
Ji-hyun looked at me, her face faintly flushed from the drink. Her crescent-moon smile was oddly familiar.
But I was flustered. And pretty soon, Kim Dan was too.
"Ha Ildo asked someone to go see a movie? For real?"
"He did. Of course, I turned him down. I had a boyfriend at the time. So he really never told any of you anything, huh? I did ask him to keep it a secret, to be fair."
I thought back to when I was nineteen. Ji-hyun had been so outgoing back then, and she laughed so easily at my jokes, that I'd let myself hope. Just maybe.
As was the case with Cassie's spell, I was always weak to people who smiled kindly at me. And at nineteen—well, if a pretty girl smiled at you like that, falling for her wasn't exactly strange, was it?
So I worked up my courage and asked her to go see a movie with me. And I got shot down! It was that blockbuster hero film everyone was obsessed with at the time, no less.
━Sorry. I already saw that with my boyfriend. Opening day.
━Ah. So you have a boyfriend.
Back then, Ji-hyun had been secretly dating an older university student, hiding it from everyone. Something about him, if I recalled, preparing to become a celebrity.
Which was why she supposedly couldn't date publicly. Anyway.
And so my nineteen-year-old romance ended like that, before it ever really got off the ground.
"I had no idea. What about now—are you still with him?"
Kim Dan asked. She must have had her eye on that ring on Ji-hyun's left ring finger.
Ji-hyun raised her left hand.
"No, we broke up ages ago. I just wear this ring for show. Having it on wards off all sorts of annoying attention. I'm single these days, too."
"Ildo! That's great news!"
Kim Dan burst out laughing. She was pretty drunk.
I could feel the buzz climbing rapidly through my own face as well.
"What's so great about it? We're talking about ancient history, all of you. Actually, there's something I want to ask you all. Have any of you ever heard of the 'Witch'? A witch who uses real magic. A nymph, too. A giant nymph."
The whole reason I'd attended this 1st-generation reunion was to dig up a little more information about the Witch. But everyone was too drunk and scattered for it to land.
And so the 1st-generation reunion came to an end.
Or, to be precise, the first round of it. Now we were supposedly heading to a second round.
A second round. I thought of Oinoi, Ang-ang-i, and Kalinoi waiting for me at home. Clearly, I needed to bow out after round one.
"Guys, I'm heading out. I'll come to these more often from now on. And if anyone wants to tame a dog-squirrel or a honey ant, make sure to reach out. They're wonderful for your mental health."
After all, how much softer had my life become since Keongkeongi and Ang-ang-i came into it? I wanted to spread that warmth to everyone.
And right at that moment—
"I'll head out too. I have to get up early tomorrow."
Ji-hyun waved to our classmates. The rest of them wandered off toward the second round, leaving just her and me, headed home.
It was awkward in more ways than one.
I spoke to her.
"Are you getting a taxi?"
"No, I thought I'd walk. Actually, Ildo—what we were talking about earlier. The Witch. I've heard of that somewhere before. I have something in my files about it."
"Really?"
Well, of course. I'd figured someone among my old classmates would turn something up.
"My place is close by. Want to come along? I can find the file and hand it over in no time. It won't take long—ten minutes, tops?"
"Uh, sure?"
And so I found myself walking awkwardly beside Yu Ji-hyun. Genuinely, extremely awkwardly.
Before long, she let out a little chuckle.
"Back then or now, whenever you get nervous you clam right up, huh? You were the same when you asked me to the movies. You really haven't changed a bit, Ha Ildo. It's been so long, and honestly, I like that you haven't."
"No, I'm sure I've changed plenty. I've become a lot more impressive than back then."
"Well, maybe there. Anyway—I broke up with my boyfriend. Being an ordinary civilian, maybe, but he just couldn't understand my life as an awakener. Everyone I met after him was exactly the same."
"Ah. Is that so?"
Well, fair enough. Awakeners did dangerous work. It was only natural they'd have a hard time mixing with ordinary people.
"So, Ildo. I was really glad to see you tonight. It brought back old memories. It suddenly hit me today—if only I'd gone to see that movie with you back then. So what about you now?"
"Me?"
"Have you ever dated anyone?"
"There was someone, almost... ."
I thought of Cassie. Of how she'd tried to seduce me with her wiles and have her way with me. Take that out of the equation, and there hadn't been a single pink-hued current running through my life.
"Nope, never."
"Really? I see. Well, that's possible too."
Beep beep-.
We were walking down an alley when a horn sounded behind us. I turned to find a car pulled over; it slid up alongside us and smoothly rolled its window down. A familiar face leaned out.
"Hey! Where do you think you're going instead of home? Oinoi and everyone are waiting for you!"
It was Seo Yerim. Wasn't she supposed to be off taking care of business?
Apparently she'd finished. And apparently she'd been planning to drive me home.
"You know Ji-hyun, right? You've gone into rifts with her a few times—you worked with the women's team a lot. She says she has files on the Witch, and her place is nearby, so we're heading there now."
"Is that so? Then get in. I'll drive you. Ji-hyun, it's been a while. I'd heard news of you now and then, but I never expected to run into you like this."
"Yerim... or should I say Ms. Yerim now? Nice to see you. You really don't need to give us a ride—it's close. I'd rather walk."
Rather walk? Seo Yerim's electric car had a ride quality that was no joke whatsoever.
It pained me deeply to watch my classmate pass up this opportunity.
"Come on, Ji-hyun, ride with us. The electric car is unreal. You can't even feel it rolling. One ride and you'll never say you'd rather walk again. There's a reason people pay for good cars."
"...Well, alright?"
Slid-.
And so the three of us climbed into Seo Yerim's car.
Befitting a flagship of the 5th Industry, her electric car didn't even feel like it was moving, and it was so comfortable that drowsiness threatened to overtake me. In the blink of an eye, we'd arrived at a cluster of studio apartments near the university district.
"Ms. Ji-hyun, you live somewhere a lot more modest than I expected. I assumed all the 1st-generation survivors were living in fancy apartments by now, Ildo aside."
Slid-.
Seo Yerim stepped out of the car. Ji-hyun muttered something like, "Well, everyone's financial situation is different," and headed up the stairs.
Her apartment was on the third floor. The thought of stepping into a woman's room made my heart beat a little faster.
Beep-beep-.
She punched in the code and we went inside. The place was messier than I'd expected.
"A bit cluttered, huh? I haven't had time to organize. Just wait a second—I'll find the file and bring it right out. It should be around here somewhere... ."
Rustle, rustle-.
After kicking a pile of clothes vaguely out of the way and sweeping aside a cup-ramen container or two, Ji-hyun started rummaging through her drawers—while Seo Yerim stood glaring at her with her arms crossed.
Rustle. Rustle.
Five minutes passed. Ten. And at last, Seo Yerim spoke.
"Don't bother pretending to look for something that doesn't exist, Yu Ji-hyun. You don't have any files about the Witch."
