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Our eyes met — Shin Haneul happened to be looking this way at that exact moment.

I wanted to ask if this was the life she had so desperately wanted, but I didn't bother saying a word.

Seeing me like that, Shin Haneul's face filled with surprise as she spoke in a pleading tone.

"Oppa, don't come over! You'll get in big trouble like last time...."

"Heh heh, ain't this our former boyfriend?"

Min Hyeokju recognized me even in his completely wasted state.

It seemed I had been burned into his memory just as deeply as he had been into mine.

He kept causing a scene without the slightest regard for the people watching.

Someone might write it off as the alcohol talking, but Awoken rarely get drunk in the first place.

In other words, the mere fact that he was this plastered right now laid bare — nakedly, unmistakably — that every last scrap of power he once possessed as an Awoken had vanished.

Which meant I no longer had any reason to be afraid of him.

"Min Hyeokju, you son of a bitch."

Shin Haneul's eyes went even wider.

The carefully polished beauty from earlier was gone without a trace; her makeup was smeared with tears and her hair was a complete wreck as she fretted over me.

Oppa, you'll die if you do that.

It wasn't even déjà vu — how the hell was she reciting the exact same line from back then, word for word?

I let out a sigh for no real reason.

Sorry, but I don't die anymore.

Because the other guy isn't an Awoken.

Sure, a knife or a bullet would still kill me the same as anyone else, but against him in this blackout-drunk state I was confident I wouldn't lose.

Assault charge? Fuck it, I'll eat the prison rice for a year or two if I have to.

Min Hyeokju delivered the classic line.

What the fuck did you just say? If you didn't catch it, I'll say it again.

"Min Hyeokju, you son of a bitch. This is why you shouldn't have lived like that."

Crack—!

I put everything I had into a full-force slap across his face.

This wasn't some delicate little girl slap.

It was a full swing that made maximum use of the wrist snap unique to Supporters tempered by constant dungeon work — a palm strike any volleyball player would envy, landing dead-on between his cheek and jaw.

The slap sent Min Hyeokju tumbling off-balance onto the floor.

Look at that sorry sight.

There was just one problem.

He still hadn't let go of Shin Haneul's hair.

Yanked along by her scalp, she kept screaming in pain.

For some reason that sight pissed me off even more.

"Let go of her, damn it!"

I stomped down on the right arm that was still clutching her.

Once. Twice. Three times.

Only after several stomps did the strength finally leave his hand.

I was breathing hard.

I hadn't moved much, but the sheer adrenaline had me wound tight.

Min Hyeokju was the same; his face had gone beet-red.

He looked like a demon straight out of hell.

I almost worried his blood vessels would burst.

"You little fucker...."

He finally seemed to be coming to his senses a little.

He was thrashing, trying to push himself up.

"Where the hell do you think you're going, you maggot? Crawl on the floor."

I shoved his rising body back down with my foot.

He lost his balance again and flopped onto the hotel floor like a rag used to mop the tiles.

The same thing kept happening over and over.

Drunk out of his mind, Min Hyeokju had no idea how pathetic he looked as he repeated the same motion like a roly-poly toy.

It was pure satisfaction.

"Trash belongs on the ground."

I kept knocking him down until he was exhausted — and I did it with the sole of my shoe, making it as humiliating as possible.

After a long stretch of that he finally sprawled out flat on the floor, arms and legs splayed.

I looked down at him and wanted nothing more than to hawk a thick loogie right onto his face, but I swallowed the urge and turned away.

Meanwhile Shin Haneul, who had collapsed onto the floor nearby, was staring up at me in blank shock.

Of course she was shocked.

Even if he was drunk, watching her Awoken boyfriend get completely stomped by his civilian ex was something else.

And she wasn't the only one.

The hotel staff and a few guests behind her were all watching with the same wide rabbit eyes.

I'd given him enough of a beating; this felt like a good place to stop.

Shin Haneul's gaze on my back burned, but I ignored it completely.

I had no desire to talk to her right now.

I could have kept stomping Min Hyeokju too, but talk is cheap — I didn't actually want to go to prison.

This was far enough.

At this level he'd be too ashamed to file any charges or reports.

No former Awoken wanted the news plastering his face under a headline about getting beaten senseless by a civilian and then calling the cops.

"Hoo...."

My hands were trembling.

Had I been that tense?

There had always been the chance he might still pull out some monstrous strength against all expectations, so my heart had been racing the whole time.

I raised an index finger to my lips toward the hotel staff and the onlookers, silently pressuring them to keep quiet.

They probably mistook me for an Awoken, so they wouldn't go blabbing about it if they could help it.

They'd be too scared of an Awoken's revenge.

Watching them nod repeatedly, I prayed the whole mess wouldn't blow up any bigger.

I finally got my emotions under control and rounded the corner of the lobby toward the elevators.

I needed to get upstairs fast.

I wanted to see Yoo Dajeong's face — I'd told her to go up to the room and wait.

Looks like I'd be going another round with her tonight.

But Yoo Dajeong hadn't gone up. She was waiting for me.

The pillar near the front desk had hidden her from view earlier; apparently she had watched the entire thing.

She was staring at me with an expression almost as shocked as mine had been.

The moment I got close she started patting and scanning my body all over.

"Why didn't you go up.... Hey, where do you think you're touching? In a place like this."

"You're really not an Awoken?"

"Yeah. Wish I were, but unfortunately no."

"Then what was that? You handled Min Hyeokju like he was a little kid."

"Nothing special. Just dealing with a drunk."

Yoo Dajeong looked at me like I was some rare specimen, eyes full of doubt about everything I'd just said.

Sex with her had been pretty... no, extremely satisfying, but I had zero intention of revealing the secret of my ability to a woman I'd only met today.

So I really wished she'd drop that look.

I pressed the elevator button and said,

"Let's head up."

"Hmm.... Fine. Awoken or not."

"I thought you said you hated Awoken."

"That's because they force things with raw power.... Ah, whatever. Why? Were you the clingy, controlling type too, Junghyeok?"

"I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠don't know. Until recently I was sure I wasn't.... But maybe I do get a little obsessive...."

She understood the meaning behind my words instantly and suddenly shifted her gaze toward the lobby.

As if checking who the object of my obsession was.

Yoo Dajeong seemed like a pretty sharp woman.

"For someone who gets obsessive, you seem pretty cool about it."

"It only looks that way on the outside."

"Hmm.... You're kind of cool, Junghyeok. When I think about the guys I've dated — whether any of them would have saved me while I was getting hit by an Awoken — not a single one of them would have, you know?"

"Well, no man is going to risk his life for an ex-girlfriend. If they were still dating, maybe."

Yoo Dajeong looked up at me with a strange expression after hearing that.

"Hmm~ So if I became your girlfriend, would you protect me against an Awoken?"

"No. I told you, I'm a civilian. Though if it was someone I truly loved, I'd take the hits for her."

"Even if the other person was an Awoken?"

"I'd prefer my next girlfriend not be the type who goes around getting hit by Awoken in the first place."

"Pfft.... Fair enough."

Standing in front of the elevators, my mood felt completely different from how it had been out in the lobby.

The reason I'd ended up at a hotel with a woman I'd just met was probably rooted in something similar.

Yoo Dajeong.

She really was an attractive woman.

Which was why I felt a little guilty.

Because right now I had absolutely no desire to date anyone.

Maybe I was just getting ahead of myself and drinking the kimchi soup before the rice even arrived.

The elevator arrived again and Yoo Dajeong stepped in first.

Just as I was about to follow—

Beep—

Yoo Dajeong's face slowly transformed into pure horror.

It felt like I was watching her in slow motion.

"Junghyeok! Behind you—look out—"

Thud.

Something smashed into the back of my head.

I heard glass shattering.

Dirt and water... and something like leaves spilled down over my shoulder.

"You fucking dog, where the hell do you think you're running!!"

A man's voice roared from behind me.

Min Hyeokju's.

Had something changed in him in that short time?

The drunken slur in his speech had mostly cleared up.

I suddenly felt warmth spreading around my neck.

Instinctively I brought my right hand to the back of my neck — liquid was flowing.

Curious, I brought the hand in front of my eyes to check. The entire palm was bright red.

Blood.

"Junghyeok! Junghyeok, are you okay?"

I could see Yoo Dajeong calling my name over and over in panic.

But why was everything still moving in slow motion?

Then gradually the sound cut out.

Her mouth was clearly still calling me.

Why?

I'd experienced this before.

Not long ago — today, in fact.

Right.

When the monster attacked me inside the dungeon.

Back then it had been....

What actually happened was this:

Min Hyeokju had grabbed a flower pot from the lobby and smashed it over the back of my head.

It must have been a solid ceramic pot; when it shattered, something on my head tore open.

My vision was growing darker.

Excessive blood loss?

Was I actually dying?

Something felt off for that, though....

And just like inside the dungeon, a strange message appeared before my eyes.

It had claimed all energy was spent, yet the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠moment my body sent out a danger signal the message reappeared.

What kind of energy was it talking about for someone with zero mana like me?

I couldn't understand it.

And that wasn't the end of the messages.

I chose YES, of course.

In that instant the wound on the back of my head closed up as if it had never been there.

I realized it without even needing to touch it with my hand.

My mind cleared.

The surrounding noise that had vanished came flooding back.

Yoo Dajeong, who had been moving in slow motion, returned to normal speed.

"Are you okay, Oppa?"

"Are you all right, Junghyeok?"

I turned my head at the voice that wasn't Yoo Dajeong's.

Shin Haneul was already standing right behind me.

And behind her, Min Hyeokju lay face-down, completely out cold.

"Ah, I'm fine."

"What do you mean fine? You were bleeding that much!"

"Hospital! We need to get to a hospital right now!"

The two women clinging to me left me no room to think.

I started worrying about how to explain that I was already perfectly fine.

But looking at the hotel staff, it seemed they had already finished making the report.

I hurriedly told them to cancel the call — I was already okay.

Maybe they mistook all of us for Diamond Guild employees; the staff followed my instructions far too readily.

"Oppa, what the hell are you doing right now! What if you die?!"

Shin Haneul shouted.

Yoo Dajeong, pushed aside by her, simply stayed quiet.

"I'm really fine. The bleeding already stopped. And you should worry about your boyfriend. Let's go up, Dajeong."

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes. No problem at all. Enough for round two tonight, even."

"You're joking, so you must be fine, but.... Even so, you hit your head. Shouldn't you at least get checked at a hospital? And those filthy clothes."

It looked like quietly brushing this off wasn't going to work, so I even considered the idea of taking a taxi alone to the ER just for show.

But that was too much of a hassle.

At the same time, shoving the completely unscarred back of my head in their faces to prove it felt awkward too. I was stuck.

"Shin Haneul. I told you to stay out of my business. I said my head is fine."

"But...."

"Deal with your boyfriend. Stop getting your ass kicked like an idiot. Worry about yourself more than me. Do you even know what you look like right now?"

Her hair was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠yanked into a wild mess. The makeup ruined by tears was almost painful to look at.

She finally seemed to notice her own state and hurriedly started fixing her hair.

In the end I left Shin Haneul behind in the hotel lobby and went up to the room.

Naturally Yoo Dajeong took the spot beside me.

Getting rid of both women had been impossible, and of course my choice was this one.

On the way up, just before the elevator doors closed, I looked at Min Hyeokju sprawled on the floor and ground my teeth.

Ending it here felt like I'd taken too big a loss.

There had been too many witnesses so I'd held back, but if the situation had been different I wouldn't have left him alone.

And that opportunity arrived far sooner than I expected.