Butterfly Navigation
“Don’t turn me into a skeleton. Please! Please! Hiiiik. I’ll do anything you say. My power is strong too. Hihk.”
“No, how am I supposed to turn you into a skeleton?”
It was total chaos. Total chaos.
I, Louis—Choi Hyeondo—managed to calm him down by coaxing and soothing him, but he still refused to meet my eyes.
“I’m really not a bad person. I’m sorry I scared you.”
“Hiiik.”
He had to speak a little louder because he kept a five-meter social distance, and every time I took a step closer he jumped in fright.
“I promise. I won’t hurt you. Really. I have no intention of turning you into a skeleton.”
“I- really?”
“Yes. You promised me too. You promised not to scare me!”
“Hiiiik.”
“Haaa… I’m not angry.”
Just like someone talking to a scared street cat, I slowly approached him.
* * *
One year ago.
Choi Hyeondo (Louis), age twenty-seven at the time.
Like every other awakened person, he faced Baek Jongdu and Ahn Seongjin.
“Let’s hear your story once.”
Commissioner Baek Jongdu’s words prompted Hyeondo to begin his prepared speech.
“Ever since I was little I’ve had a severe visual disturbance. You know, the floaters—like specks of dust in the eyes. The hospital says it’s nothing if it doesn’t interfere with daily life, but it kept interfering.”
“Floaters?”
Baek Jongdu paid the irrelevant introduction some attention, but Ahn Seongjin simply stared at his phone.
“Yes, floaters. At first they were just specks, but they grew bigger until they interfered with my daily life. So I got a thorough exam. And there was nothing wrong.”
“But Hyeondo, is this connected to your awakening?”
“Yes. Because those specks turned into butterflies. At first they were pupae!”
‘What nonsense is this?’
Ahn Seongjin lowered his sunglasses and looked straight at Hyeondo.
Pure white eyes.
Ahn Seongjin’s signature trait—White Eyes.
Hyeondo had no choice but to lower his own gaze immediately.
Baek Jongdu asked gently.
“So the butterflies are related to Hyeondo’s awakening?”
Ahn Seongjin’s sharp gaze pressed down, but Hyeondo forced himself to continue.
“Yes. The butterflies are still flying around.”
Baek Jongdu and Ahn Seongjin both doubted the young man’s sanity for a moment.
“Let’s get to the main point. Hyeondo, what skills did you get?”
“Soul Butterfly. It’s a passive skill, and it has no ultimate skill.”
Ahn Seongjin looked at Baek Jongdu with an incredulous expression.
Baek Jongdu shook his head.
“That’s not a lie.”
Clearly the young man before them had awakened and possessed a Soul Butterfly skill.
“What class is that?”
“Guide. In English, it’s Guide.”
“A guide… um, what can that butterfly do?”
“I don’t know. It just flies around.”
“Can it exert physical force?”
“No.”
“What about magic?”
“It doesn’t seem to have any.”
“Does it move according to your instructions or will?”
“No.”
“What does the butterfly look like?”
“Yellow.”
“Huuuuuu…”
Both Ahn Seongjin and Baek Jongdu looked troubled.
“May I ask about your intelligence and will stats?”
“Eight and seven.”
“Huuuuuu…”
It was a sigh disguised as a groan.
“Is there any other ability? A trait or something? Or a new sense?”
“N-no…”
“No hiding either?”
“Y-yes…”
At first it hadn’t been like this, but Hyeondo’s voice gradually grew smaller, like gears grinding.
“Hyeondo, let’s discuss this among ourselves for a moment. Five minutes.”
Baek Jongdu and Ahn Seongjin started exchanging messages on their phones while facing Hyeondo directly.
* * *
“F-class?”
“Hyung, there’s no lie in what he said, right?”
“Everything is true.”
“This is the first time I’ve seen an awakened person like this? Flying butterflies?”
“His physical stats are also very low. He doesn’t have anything worthy of challenging a hunter. Too pitiful.”
“But the stronger the ability, the more there must be something hidden, right?”
“Are you saying the ‘Constellation hides its power’ thing again?”
“In the beginning, those who openly show their strength are just empty carriages.”
“But if this young man enters a gate in his current state and tries to hunt, he’ll die.”
“That’s true. Let’s assign F-class for now.”
After the discussion, Baek Jongdu told Hyeondo.
“It’s unfortunate, but Hyeondo, your ability seems insufficient to be a hunter. It’s too bad, but F-class. If you’re thinking of entering gates to hunt, I recommend…”
“I’m going to do it.”
Hyeondo cut him off.
“You mean you want to enter the gates?”
Ahn Seongjin stared at him over his sunglasses.
Hyeondo no longer avoided the gaze of those white eyes.
“No matter what my skill is, I’m going to be a hunter.”
“It’s not a matter of doing or not doing. You won’t be able to with your current ability.”
“I can. Somehow. I will.”
Hyeondo remembered his late father’s words.
‘Hyeondo, there is no such thing as impossible in this world. Anything you sincerely desire and work hard for can be achieved.’
That was the awakened Hyeondo.
‘Please let me awaken too. So I can fulfill the dream Father could not complete.’
Hyeondo’s father was a hunter.
His name was Choi Yeonho. A B-class Magic Spearman.
He was known as one of the strongest hunters, but he didn’t have enough for a luxurious lifestyle; he was just a bodyguard for the rich and made a steady ten billion won a year.
But Father had a dream.
‘Hyeondo, men don’t run away from the fate given to them. I’m just walking that path. How far it goes depends on the fate. How far I can rise depends on me.’
Whenever Father went to hunt in the gates, Mother went to the temple.
She prayed every day for Father’s safe return.
Then one day we could no longer see Father.
*B-class Papyeongsan Gate raid, one B-class hunter missing*
Mother wailed in front of the gate, and I held her hand tightly and waited.
I thought Father would come out laughing from that gate.
But the Papyeongsan Gate that swallowed him was cleared as is.
The gate vanished without a trace.
Father disappeared forever along with it.
“No one’s opinion matters. I’m going to do it.”
“No, Hyeondo. This isn’t a matter of doing or not doing. With your ability you can’t.”
“I can. Slimes or goblins? This is the realm of the impossible.”
‘Hyeondo, there is no impossible in this world.’
“There is no impossible in this world.”
“If you keep arguing like that, you’re only encouraging your own death.”
A butterfly fluttered in Hyeondo’s eyes and gently landed on his shoulder.
Father’s voice seemed to echo.
‘Anything you sincerely desire and work hard for…’
“Can be achieved.”
‘Father was right. I’ll prove it.’
“I’ll show you. See you later.”
“H-Hyeondo!”
“Leave it be. I’m a little hopeful.”
Ahn Seongjin’s afterwords brushed past my ears.
That was the F-class hunter certification given to him.
Everyone would have laughed at it.
But so what? What was there to do?
“Mom, I’ll be back.”
“Hyeondo, are you sure about this?”
“Mom, I’m going to be a hunter too. I’m your son.”
“…”
“Hyeondo, please come back safely. Promise me.”
“Yes!”
Mother went back to the temple.
From that day on, I chased the butterfly.
It seemed to guide me somewhere.
* * *
At Oryukdo Gate
The butterfly guided me to Oryukdo Gate, then to the highway, and when I did the right thing it sat on my shoulder.
Just like Father would pat my shoulder after a job well done.
‘No matter what others say, walk the path given to you, Hyeondo.’
I was going to become a hunter.
KRRRAAANG
This is the path I must take.
I am my father’s son.
KRRRAAANG
I am a hunter.
* * *
From that day on, I simply collected highway garbage until Hyeondo broke down his mental wall.
But Hyeondo, who had been terrified, approached me.
And without a word he held out his hand.
So he’s not afraid anymore?
Phew, good thing.
“Ah, right. I need to wind the clock.”
I almost forgot.
I unclasped the artifact watch from my wrist.
But he muttered something I couldn’t understand.
“The butterfly…”
“What?”
“The butterfly… is sitting.”
“What are you talking about?”
“The butterfly… is sitting on your head right now.”
“What?”
Where is the butterfly?
It’s nowhere to be seen.
Has he finally gone mad from the immense fear?
Still, I felt too sorry for him.
Hyeondo’s eyes were dazed as he stared at my forehead.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Are you okay?”
“Ah, yes. Sorry. I was shocked too much in the swamp.”
“You’re back now. Phew, good thing.”
It was really good.
He looked sane again.
I almost thought he had a headache.
“Lee Doosik-ssi.”
“What?”
“May I follow you?”
“What?”
“I won’t turn on the YouTube.”
Just the other day he had been yelling about how scary it was, but now he wants to follow?
“But you’re the hyung, right? I’m twenty-seven.”
“Yes. Then I’m the hyung.”
“Then can I call you hyung?”
An awkward silence fell.
I couldn’t think of any reason to say no.
But if he kept following, he would eventually notice my secret…
That was a problem.
Honestly, we weren’t close enough for trust.
“Do you want anything from me?”
“No, I just… I’d like to follow you for a while.”
His gaze stayed fixed on my forehead again.
What an odd guy.
A truly strange guy.
Right. From the very first impression he had been crazy.
A crazy guy who didn’t even care that he peed in his pants.
“Hmph.”
“If you’re bothered, can you just follow me from a distance?”
A public stalker?
Suddenly I had attracted another weird guy.
Without any context, he was openly declaring he would follow.
Haa…
Life isn’t easy.
“I’m strong. My strength stat is thirty-five. You can order me around for anything. So just let me follow you.”
That should be enough for me to smash a Goblin or something besides highway garbage.
After all, an F-class hunter isn’t allowed into a party no matter how high the stats.
“Wait, but how many kilometers can you carry?”
“If I use full strength I can even carry a car, hyung.”
I found it.
“You can let go, right?”
Carriage driver.
* * *
From that day on I went around with Hyeondo.
Hyeondo was surprisingly quiet.
The YouTuber Louis had been a character who never ran out of things to say and was unbearably lively.
Concepts are terrifying things.
Or maybe he was just shy.
“Five Perilok corpses.”
As usual, I bought supplies to plug my straw into my stomach.
‘Two per Perilok. Don’t pick up junk items, only magic stones.’
I gave the order to the skeleton soldiers via sign language.
Surprisingly, the scientifically created sign language was surprisingly easy to learn.
Claude’s mealtime arrived again.
* * *
* * *
[Skeleton Soldier dies. Adjacent Skeleton Soldier’s stats transfer.]
[Skeleton Soldier dies. Adjacent Skeleton Soldier’s stats transfer.]
[Skeleton Soldier dies. Adjacent Skeleton Soldier’s stats transfer.]
…
Nice. Three skeleton soldiers succeeded.
A moment later.
◈ Low-grade Magic Stone +1
Low-grade magic stones entered Tigrial’s Bundle one after another.
…
The bundle filled up quickly.
“You don’t even ask what I’m doing right now?”
“Wouldn’t it be the right thing to do, hyung?”
His gaze fixed on my forehead.
A laser would be coming out any second.
“Stop staring at my forehead. I’ll go bald.”
“Ah, sorry.”
“But Hyeondo, how did you know that catching highway garbage with butterflies gives experience?”
I asked casually.
“The butterfly told me.”
“More than that, what is the butterfly?”
“I see one butterfly. A yellow butterfly.”
“Is it a skill?”
“Yes. The butterfly led me to Claude, circled above the highway, and in the swamp it circled above the leech-filled swamp.”
“So… the butterfly you see is guiding you to safely gain experience?”
“Not just experience, but yes.”
A butterfly? Or Nevia?
Wait.
‘The butterfly… is sitting on your head right now.’
The butterfly is experience…
This bastard!
Suddenly I felt a chill run down my spine.