Chapter 82
[Chapter 5 - Section 2]
It was an impromptu schedule that hadn't been on my plans at all, but there wasn't much to prepare for a 100km land marathon. Running shoes, at most? But I'd already stocked up on good ones long ago for running, the foundation of all exercise. As for anything else, "Hmm... a water bottle and towel, maybe."
But with my body that barely broke a sweat even in intense workouts, I wondered if I'd need them.
Off in the distance, I spotted Song Seon-yeong pedaling toward me fast on her bike.
She's... grown up a bit.
The workout clothes that accentuated her figure, her lips dyed red, the stylish sunglasses... She looked like she'd stepped straight out of a famous women's fashion magazine.
Screech—
She pulled up in front of me and greeted me.
"What do you think?"
...Was that a greeting?
"What am I supposed to do when you skip the subject like that? The outfit looks pretty."
"You understood me just fine, so why complain? But does that mean just the clothes are pretty?"
"Of course it includes the rack they're on."
"Then say it without the subject so there's no misunderstanding."
"Ah-ha! Yeah, you're right."
I was totally in the wrong! I felt extremely wronged, but our conversations had always been like this ever since in the dream, so I was used to it. Any complaints? Regrettably, none. It was regrettable that there were none.
"You should be grateful. My time is really valuable."
"Thanks for coming."
I didn't say anything useless like "you didn't have to."
"...You've changed a bit."
"Me?"
"Yeah. You used to say rude stuff all the time. Treating me like a second-year middle schooler with princess syndrome who thought the world revolved around her."
"......"
Had I? My memory wasn't bad, but I didn't remember that at all!
"Moon-soo."
"Yeah."
"What kind of experiences did you have in Nam Hae-su's dream?"
"All kinds."
"And those experiences didn't include any women, right?"
"...None."
I thought I wouldn't sweat, but damn, I was glad I'd brought the towel.
"For real?"
"Yes. Absolutely none."
"......"
"......"
"I'll believe you for now."
Song Seon-yeong finally dropped her suspicious glare and spoke magnanimously.
It's not just her body.
The experiences in the dream seemed to have influenced my mind and behavior too, for better or worse. As long as I didn't quit being a shaman, it was an inevitable fate I couldn't fight.
"Shall we go?"
"Yeah."
I ran on foot, she on her bike, and we started charging through the 100km.
Running form, stamina pacing, breathing techniques... I'd learned it all in Nam Hae-su's dream, so it was a breeze.
"Not tired?"
"Not at all."
I answered easily to Song Seon-yeong, whose forehead was beaded with sweat.
"That's why I lost."
"Wanna race again?"
"What'll you do if I win?"
"Uh... nothing much."
"Buy me the two-person set at Fast Naru Restaurant."
"Guh!"
Eating two people's worth alone at that notoriously expensive place? Her vicious...
"If I lose, I'll buy it."
"Deal!"
I'd gladly accept her generous donation!
"What's with that smile? So cocky. You already think you've won."
"Obviously! I'm still active duty, you know?"
Aptitude without effort was just decoration. I wouldn't lose to a swimsuit model.
"Freestyle 100m."
"Sure."
It was a choice fitting for Song Seon-yeong, whose endurance was her weak point. My main events were long distances like 10km or 4000m, but that just meant I was slow compared to top-tier pros with monstrous skills. Not slow enough to lose to a model.
Tap, tap.
"By the way... still not tired?"
"Nope."
We were chatting casually like it was a light stroll, but we were in the middle of timing a 100km land marathon record. I could run a bit faster if I shut up and focused, but since it wasn't an official race, I had no urge to go all out.
Besides, this might be a chance?
A rare opportunity to score points with a girl I'd dated in a dream but got dumped by in reality! I'd started feeling anxious about our relationship ever since she told me about that prince Leon.
"Moon-soo. Remember?"
"What?"
"What I said on the hospital walkway after waking from the dream..."
"Seon-yeong! Hold on!"
"......"
Ever since getting hounded by the snipers Nam Hae-su hired, I'd developed a habit of constantly scanning and monitoring my surroundings. And right in my surveillance net, I caught a bizarre scene!
"How can you abandon me, who thinks of you all day, for that bastard... I can't forgive you!"
"P-put down the knife!"
On the park's tree-lined path. A man in his mid-20s gripped a kitchen knife in reverse grip, threatening a woman around the same age.
"Gotta call the cops quick...!"
"Talk it out!"
"Kid! Calm down first...!"
The woman, cornered against a dead-end wall, couldn't escape, and the bystanders couldn't intervene because of the knife in the man's hand. This in broad daylight? I charged straight toward the life-or-death scene.
"I'll never forgive you!"
"Y-you're crazy?! Back off now! Or I'll call the cops!"
"Too late! We'll die togeth—"
Crack!
I stomped the heel of my foot on the crown of the man's head as he raised the kitchen knife high toward the terrified woman. No chance for reaction—in an instant! Compared to armed felons with guns, a kitchen knife was child's play.
"Moon-soo!"
"I'm fine."
"Not you. The pretty lady."
"...She'll be okay, probably?"
I answered Song Seon-yeong's concern, who arrived a beat late, with indifference.
Her wrist was red and swollen from the man's brief grip, but her fair skin was unscrathed. Though,
"She's not waking up?"
As Song Seon-yeong pointed out, the woman had collapsed in the park grass, limp as a rag.
Hmm... was I too hasty?
No matter the reason, an athlete had used violence on a civilian. A fair judge would sort it out, but I felt a twinge of regret and self-reflection for my meddling.
"She'll be fine."
Probably mild concussion or mental shock.
"You saved her 'cause she's pretty?"
"As if. You know how high my standards are."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Then what about me?"
"Huh? You? Back then on the school rooftop..."
* * *
As I answered Song Seon-yeong's question, my vision shifted in an instant.
Unpaved roads, tiled roofs, silk clothes... A place filled with architecture and people in styles you'd see at a history museum or folk village.
And guards.
"Who goes there!"
"An intruder!"
Clank! Clank! Clank!
Soldiers clutching crude spears came swarming.
Surrender? Run?
The dilemma was brief.
Tap.
No reason for a runner like me to take risky gambles. Who knew what they'd do? Bad spot too.
"Eek!"
"A thief?!"
Pretty girls in matching outfits held mops and brooms—cleaning tools.
Maids? No.
Palace maids. Women working in the palace. Too young to be prim and proper. But the ornate buildings, grand scale, the dignified clothes and cleanliness of the people... Everything screamed this wasn't some ordinary place.
"Halt!"
"Hmm. Mind if I borrow that spear?"
"Aak?!"
I dodged the spear tip aimed at me and kicked the soldier's hand away.
Whoosh— Grab!
I snatched the now-ownerless spear and mercilessly bashed the ones blocking my path.
"Aak?!"
"Guh?!"
And if a wall or fence blocked my straight path?
Tap.
I vaulted over with pole-vaulting form, no detour.
"...What manner of disaster is this."
I didn't know the way, but bulldozing obstacles in one direction would lead to escape eventually. Just a shitty starting point.
Didn't see this coming!
I'd only saved a woman threatened by a stalker, and got sucked into a dream right there?
Ding-ding-ding!
Urgent bell tolls rang out.
"Close the gates!"
"Close the gates!"
Screech— Boom!
City walls too high even for pole-vaulting. The only exit slammed shut right in front of me.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
"No running now!"
"State your identity!"
Sorry to the sweating soldiers chasing me, but,
"...Just break through."
Every time the spear tip dulled in rough combat, I swapped it quick and pierced their encirclement.
Another route...
Ping!
A chill made me duck—an arrow whizzed over my head.
"Hiiing~!"
"Hing~!"
Horsemen appeared. Bows in their hands...
Cavalry archers?!
A unit that didn't exist in the romance fantasy novel I Became the Youngest Daughter of a Count Family.
They showcased archery skills from galloping horses without stopping.
Ping—!
High accuracy too—I couldn't ignore the arrows.
"This is insane!"
Cavalry archers shooting from afar on unhittable horses. I'd known their terror from history books, but experiencing it was beyond imagination.
"Out of the way!"
Judging flat ground escape impossible, I bolted for the wall stairs.
"Hiiing~!"
"Hing~!"
As expected, the cavalry archers who couldn't climb gave up pursuit and shot at me scaling the wall.
"Pardon."
"Guh?!"
I grabbed a soldier by the throat with my left, hoisting him as a shield.
Pok! Pok! Pok!
Bonus: My superhuman reflexes, a touch beyond human limits, dodged every incoming arrow.
"I'll handle—"
Pok!
A cocky general who stepped up got his throat pierced by my spear and fell.
And the sword he dropped.
"Perfect."
I was more confident in swordsmanship, taught long-term by Valentine, than the brief spear training from the military. Shorter weapons shone in tight spaces.
Clang! Slash!
I cleaved every foe in my path, sprinting atop the wall.
Just give up already...
Clang!
My blade met resistance for the first time.
"Who?"
"You're pretty good, huh?"
The man answered my question oddly. Didn't look like regular army. Hunter or bandit vibes from his unique outfit. Young, handsome face!
No time for a leisurely fight, so I swung again— Slash—
"Huh...?"
"But that's all."
I couldn't react properly to the mystery man's sword strike.
Thud.
What the...
My waist severed, I died pathetically.
* * *
"Moon-soo? Moon-soo?"
"...Yeah."
Bloodstained wall stones were gone; blue sky filled my view.
"Phew! Thank goodness! I was about to call Manager Seo."
"Manager... Seo Hye-ju?"
"Yeah. That's her."
Song Seon-yeong nodded demurely beside me lying on the grass and offered a water bottle.
"Want some?"
"Not really..."
"Drink. You must be heat exhausted."
"Okay."
I drank the water she handed without protest.
My whole body felt drained. Not just a feeling.
Died so stupidly.
Short sleep, no rehab needed, but death had tanked my physical stats.
"How long was I out?"
"About five minutes?"
"Got it."
The woman I'd saved still showed no signs of waking, and the knife-wielding man was being dragged off in cuffs by cops.
Wee-oo! Wee-oo!
An ambulance sent by Manager Seo Hye-ju pulled up by the park path. Nurses and doctors piled out... plus her.
"Huh? You weren't asleep?"
She asked upon seeing me and Song Seon-yeong fine.
"Woke up right away."
"...I see. We should check how many brain cells died."
She'd guessed I'd died in the dream and worried about aftereffects.
"Look after her instead."
I pointed to the 20-something woman still out cold.
"Bad luck."
"Yeah."
A random civilian I'd saved on the way falls into a dream? Unbelievable.
Unless it's no coincidence—someone orchestrated it.
Time to get back to work.