Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Unexpected Gunfire
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In South Korea, unlike other countries, gun ownership was still illegal.
'Where the hell did this crazy bastard get a pistol?'
I never imagined Kim Hyun-seong would show up with a gun, intent on killing me and Jeong Sia.
Anyway, there was no time to think.
"Die!"
Kim Hyun-seong bellowed loudly, aiming the gun barrel straight at me.
'Good thing he's targeting me first instead of Jeong Sia.'
I deliberately disrupted my composure.
As my brain registered the excitement, the world naturally slowed down around me.
Everything from my body outward flowed like a slow-motion video.
Only my thoughts moved at normal speed.
'With this body's agility stat, no matter what I do, I can't dodge a bullet once I see it.'
I quickly reached a conclusion.
I decided to move in a way that minimized the damage.
I alternated glances between the gun barrel's direction and Kim Hyun-seong's eyes.
'Where are you aiming, Kim Hyun-seong?'
Luckily.
Both his gun barrel and his pupils were aimed at my heart.
'I can block that.'
If he'd had any experience in Utopia or even committed a murder, he would've gone for my head.
Staring at Kim Hyun-seong's finger on the trigger,
'I was saving it just in case, but investing in vitality feels wasteful.'
I dumped all my remaining stat points into vitality.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ ⚡ Strength: 11 💨 Agility: 12 ✨ Magic Power: 14 💪 Vitality: 90 ⚔ SKILLS ⚔ Burning Vitality (S) Vitality 90.
Just 10 short of 100.
At 100 vitality, a bullet would be a breeze to shrug off.
Still, 90 should only hurt without piercing my body.
Baaaaang-!
With the slowly echoing gunshot, I raised my left arm to cover my heart and charged forward.
Thud! Pain shot through my left arm.
At the same time, my right hand drew a dagger from my pocket.
From here on, it was self-defense. Even stabbing him in the gut with a knife would qualify, let alone a gun.
With the dagger's poison wiped off, it couldn't be linked to Hyeon A-rin's murder.
I regulated my emotions and returned to the normal world.
Gunpowder smoke rose, and Kim Hyun-seong's panicked voice rang out.
"W-What?! Why are you fine?!"
And those were his dying words.
Kim Hyun-seong collapsed with the dagger in his throat, eyes wide in disbelief.
It all happened in the blink of an eye.
"Uh... Huh? H-Han! Are you okay? Wait. I'll heal you right now!"
Jeong Sia finally snapped back to reality.
She must have been shocked.
She cast heal all over my body without even asking where I was hurt.
Still, it was a relief.
She wasn't the type of fool to heal Kim Hyun-seong when someone was dying right in front of her, claiming she couldn't stand by.
"How is it? You okay?"
It was just a bruise anyway, but I couldn't tell the truth.
I hadn't revealed my real level to Jeong Sia yet, since I was hiding it from Park Jeong-hwa too.
"The jacket blocked the bullet, so I'm not badly hurt. Man, Sis's skills are insane. The pain's already gone."
"I'm sorry, Han... Because of me, you almost... died."
Tears welled up in Jeong Sia's eyes.
Crying over something like this.
"I'm not dead, so it's fine. Don't cry."
I pulled the dagger from Kim Hyun-seong's throat, shook off the blood, and pocketed it.
Red blood pooled thickly on the floor.
"Come out first, Sis."
I extended a hand to the sniffling Jeong Sia.
"Yeah."
Jeong Sia took my hand and turned her head away from Kim Hyun-seong's corpse as she followed me out.
In the meantime, people had gathered in the underground parking lot due to the gunshot.
"What was that noise? Gunshots?"
"Are they filming a movie?"
"Oh my god. That blood looks real, right?"
"Huh? Yeah, it does. Call 119! No, 112!"
"Isn't that Jeong Sia over there?"
"Yeah, Jeong Sia. She lives in our apartment building."
"The dead guy looks like announcer Kim Hyun-seong."
"No way! It is him! No wonder he deserved all that hate—coming here with a gun!"
Some people recognized Jeong Sia and Kim Hyun-seong.
All I'd done was stop Kim Hyun-seong from harming Jeong Sia.
'If Jeong Sia had died here, there'd be no hiding that Kim Hyun-seong was the culprit. Meaning, this incident never happened in the first place.'
An event that shouldn't have occurred did.
Probably, the Jeong Sia from my previous life had been dragged by Kim Hyun-seong to do that explanatory broadcast.
'Well, can't be helped.'
My biggest weapon right now was future knowledge.
Ideally, I'd avoid twisting the future too much, but this was worth the risk.
"Sia!"
"Sis!"
Park Jeong-hwa came rushing in late, out of breath.
"You okay?"
She grabbed Jeong Sia's hands tightly with a worried look.
"Thank goodness. How did Kim Hyun-seong even get here? Did the broadcasting station leak the address?"
"Probably."
"Even so, coming here with a gun to kill her."
Park Jeong-hwa glared coldly at Kim Hyun-seong's corpse before looking desperately at Jeong Sia again.
"Sia. This has absolutely nothing to do with our Resurrection Church. He acted alone. Don't misunderstand."
She was desperate to clear up any misunderstanding.
"Yeah. I know why Kim Hyun-seong did it, so no misunderstanding."
But upon hearing Jeong Sia's response, Park Jeong-hwa turned to me.
"And you? You okay?"
Hm?
Worried about me?
"Yeah, fine. Sis healed me."
I answered, but Park Jeong-hwa's eyes were full of suspicion.
"Healed you? You got shot? I don't see any bloodstains."
She'd already scanned my body in that short time.
'Suspicious.'
It felt like she was gauging just how strong I was.
Well, a level 10 surviving a bullet unscathed would be suspicious.
'...Hm.'
Kim Hyun-seong had known exactly when we'd come out and waited.
'Unless he's from the Thorn Guild, he couldn't know without Park Jeong-hwa telling him.'
And moments ago, Kim Hyun-seong's target was solely me, not Jeong Sia.
Park Jeong-hwa was definitely behind it.
'She wants me out of the picture.'
Without me, they'd have an easier time manipulating Jeong Sia.
"This jacket's pretty good, blocked the bullet. And I put all my stats into vitality."
I didn't press further. The Resurrection Church was about to make its real move.
'Wrap this up today. Please come.'
I wanted to end this tiresome business quickly and head to Utopia.
"You put all your stats into vitality?"
"Yeah. I'm only level 10. Skeletons do the fighting, but I could be in danger, so I invested everything in vitality."
"That makes sense."
Park Jeong-hwa accepted it easily.
She'd probably finished assessing my strength. Of course, it was a fabricated backstory.
"We got a report and came. Who's the reporter?"
Two police officers arrived then.
They must have been patrolling nearby, as they came quickly.
"The dead guy there is announcer Kim Hyun-seong. He tried to shoot Jeong Sia with a gun."
"Right! So the guy next to her killed Kim Hyun-seong while trying to save Jeong Sia!"
"Self-defense. Total self-defense."
"Figure out where he got that gun! Scary as hell!"
Was this the power of public image?
I hadn't said a word, but bystanders were explaining my self-defense for Jeong Sia's sake.
Even though they hadn't seen the fight between me and Kim Hyun-seong.
"Yes, yes. Everyone calm down. We'll handle it. Please step back from the scene. No photos!"
The younger officer controlled the crowd while the middle-aged one approached me.
"Your name?"
"Lee Han."
"From what they said, Lee Han killed the fallen Kim Hyun-seong."
"The murder weapon?"
"My dagger."
"Can I see it?"
I handed the dagger to the officer.
"Here."
The officer compared my dagger to the wound on Kim Hyun-seong's neck.
"Officer, you know our Sia, right?"
Meanwhile, Park Jeong-hwa cautiously approached the young officer managing the crowd.
"Of course. Famous person."
"Then, Sia's really shaken up. Can we go up to the apartment? Her identity's confirmed, and it should be fine without us here."
Jeong Sia, overhearing, spoke up.
"Sis, what about the promise with the Thorn Guild?"
"Who cares about that now! We need to take care of you first. Look, your hands are shaking."
Now that Park Jeong-hwa mentioned it, Jeong Sia was trembling from her hands to her whole body.
Probably trauma from nearly dying moments ago.
She didn't know Kim Hyun-seong had targeted only me.
"Yes, go ahead. Once we check the CCTV and confirm self-defense, we'll release Lee Han right away."
"Thanks. Let's go, Sia."
With the police's okay, Park Jeong-hwa grabbed Jeong Sia's shoulder and headed to the elevator.
Of course, I had to let it play out, but only when Jeong Sia was in front of me.
"Auntie, Sis has to stay with me and go up together."
I stopped them.
With Park Jeong-hwa and the Resurrection Church already scheming, I couldn't let just the two of them move.
"What? Can't you see Sia's condition? She needs to rest now."
Park Jeong-hwa snapped at me as I held them back. Pretending to care about Jeong Sia...
"No need for long talks. Sia Sis."
I ignored Park Jeong-hwa and looked at Jeong Sia.
"Better to wait here a bit and go with me. Or do you prefer going alone with Auntie without me?"
Forcing the choice on her.
'Ten minutes ago, she'd have followed Park Jeong-hwa blindly.'
But not now.
"Sis, let's go up together after Han's investigation. That's better for my peace of mind too."
I was the one who nearly died for Jeong Sia's sake.
'Jeong Sia doesn't know Kim Hyun-seong targeted only me.'
Given her personality, guilt alone would keep her from leaving me behind.
"Hear that, Auntie? Sis is safer with me, so we'll go together. Just wait a bit."
Park Jeong-hwa's expression hardened as things didn't go her way, ignoring me.
Then, the middle-aged officer who'd been comparing my dagger to the wound approached.
"Lee Han, we'll take this dagger as evidence."
Huh? Taking the dagger?
At the sudden statement, I asked immediately.
"Evidence?"
"As you know, field officers have full authority here."
"So investigation methods vary by officer."
From his tone, the answer was clear.
"I'll confiscate this dagger as evidence in the murder case."
Honestly, I didn't get it.
Why need evidence in a murder that didn't require investigation?
'No point arguing; it'll just hurt my mouth.'
The officer had already decided. Words wouldn't change his mind.
"Fine. Just wrap up the case quickly."
The officer nodded, asked a few questions to me and the bystanders.
About 10 minutes passed.
"Self-defense is clear. You're free to go."
The officer closed the case.
"Got it."
"We'll contact you if anything comes up."
I approached Park Jeong-hwa and Jeong Sia, who were waiting off to the side.
"Sis, it's over. Let's go up."
Jeong Sia's face was still dark, shock lingering.
"Let's hurry, Sia. You need rest."
Park Jeong-hwa glanced at me before supporting Jeong Sia to the elevator.
We arrived at Jeong Sia's apartment.
"Sia, sit down first. I'll get you some water."
Park Jeong-hwa sat Jeong Sia on the sofa and headed to the kitchen.
I plopped down next to Jeong Sia.
Honestly, I didn't expect her to be this crushed by fear of death.
'It's all experience. Gotta toughen up gradually.'
But I couldn't just stash a legendary healer away and pamper her. I could only hope Jeong Sia overcame it.
Was that woman crazy?
"Here, drink and calm down."
Park Jeong-hwa returned from the kitchen.
"Thanks, Sis."
"Me too?"
She held a glass of water in each hand.
I didn't expect her to get one for me too.
"It's just water. You kept Sia safe. Honestly, I might've misjudged you. Thought you were just hanging around her to mooch money, using that secret skill as an excuse."
Ridiculous.
It didn't faze me, knowing her true nature.
"Right, Sis. Why would I tell only you two about [Resurrection]? Let's not misunderstand each other—you're the people I trust most."
But Jeong Sia took Park Jeong-hwa's words at face value. She gave a weak smile and sipped the water.
Well, my throat was dry too.
The moment I lifted the glass Park Jeong-hwa gave me,
"Han! Don't drink it!"
Jeong Sia shouted urgently and slapped my hand.
The glass fell, water spilling on the floor.
She wouldn't go this far just to make me drink carrot juice instead.
"What's wrong, Sis?"
I turned to see Jeong Sia slowly rising from the sofa.
Instead of answering me, Jeong Sia looked at Park Jeong-hwa.
"Why are you doing this to me too, Sis?"
Her face filled with profound sadness.