The Story Everyone Was Hiding
Connection tone rang once, and the call connected immediately.
“Jihoon?”
“You at work?”
“Yeah. Just sat down at my desk.”
“If you’re busy, I can call back later.”
“No, it’s fine. What’s up?”
“Tonight. Are you free?”
“Tonight?”
“Yeah. Just… let’s grab dinner.”
Yoo Mira didn’t answer right away. Instead, the sound of keyboard typing continued briefly before stopping.
“Something special going on?”
“No. I just thought if you have time today, we could meet and eat together.”
“Did you see the news about the Cheongpyeong Break area?”
“Yeah. I saw it, but… I think it’s better to talk about that in person. Face to face.”
“Got it. I don’t think I’ll be working late tonight. You pick the place.”
“I’ll avoid anywhere noisy.”
“I like that.”
The call ended there. It was neither urgent nor casual—just a promise.
The restaurant we met at that evening was quieter than expected. Yoo Mira looked around as soon as she sat down, then visibly relaxed.
“This place is nice.”
She spoke naturally. “I’ve been going back and forth between meeting rooms and investigation rooms all day. Too many voices, no actual conclusions.”
“Rough day, then.”
“Yeah. Everyone’s on edge because of the Cheongpyeong incident.”
Yoo Mira took a sip from her water glass before continuing. “The number of bodies is one thing, and the nature of the incident is ambiguous too. The news will probably just call it ‘traces of a large-scale battle,’ but in reality, the hunters who attacked the Association were hiding and then got swarmed all at once.”
She paused, choosing her words carefully, then added, “The real problem comes after that.”
“After that?”
“We’ve identified and sorted the bodies belonging to the Dark Guild. The guild leaders of Black Dragon and Wyvern, plus two vice-leaders. Multiple guilds were mixed in… and from the situation, it’s clearly traces of fighting monsters. But—”
She shook her head. “There are almost no monster corpses. No signs of anyone cleaning them up either, and it’s too clean to be monsters eating them.”
Her gaze naturally shifted toward me. “So everyone’s asking why it happened at that exact timing, in that exact location, and why the hunters ended up fighting monsters head-on.”
I nodded slowly. “Actually, yesterday when I went to the Cheongpyeong Break area, I saw something.”
Yoo Mira’s attention sharpened. “There were Dark Guild hunters, and the monster density was abnormal. They weren’t cooperating with each other, and it looked like monsters had swarmed toward where they were hiding.”
“So they weren’t intentionally lured.”
“At least from what I saw… they were all panicking and cursing while fighting.”
Yoo Mira thought for a moment, then asked carefully, “Then… what happened next?”
“I didn’t look any further. I just turned around and left. The situation felt off, and I didn’t want to get involved and make things bigger.”
Yoo Mira nodded after a brief pause. “That was the right call. If you’d moved any further, you wouldn’t have made it out safely.”
“Yeah. I felt the same.”
Yoo Mira softened the mood a little as she continued. “Anyway, thanks to that, the Cheongpyeong Break area has stabilized a lot. High-grade monsters have noticeably decreased, and the phenomenon of them pouring out from inside has almost disappeared.”
“The Dark Guild hunters ended up doing some good, even if unintentionally.”
“It’s unfortunate they died, but at least the monster problem is solved.”
After that, the conversation drifted into small, everyday topics. It wasn’t long, but it felt strangely comfortable. As the meal was winding down, I pulled a small box from my bag. Yoo Mira raised an eyebrow the moment she saw it.
“What’s that?”
“Just… I happened to get it, and it seemed like it would suit you.”
“Aren’t these kinds of things usually given with a bit more atmosphere?”
“That’s not really my style.”
She chuckled and picked up the box. “Still, at least tell me. Why me, of all people?”
I didn’t answer right away. Yoo Mira didn’t miss that brief hesitation.
“See? If you can’t answer immediately, that means the reason isn’t simple.”
“If you get hurt.”
“If I get hurt?”
“I think… I’d keep worrying about it.”
Yoo Mira stared at me for a moment, then laughed like a sigh. “You know that kind of line puts more pressure on the person hearing it, right?”
I didn’t respond.
“Still.” She opened the box and added, “It’s not bad.”
After taking out the earrings, I explained. “The shield only activates the moment it registers an attack. It blocks once and reflects the impact once. After that, it needs mana to recharge, though I don’t know how long that’ll take yet.”
“Then timing will be important.”
“That’s why you need to be extra careful. It’s not invincibility—just enough time to endure the worst moment once.”
Yoo Mira looked down at the earrings for a moment, then silently put them on.
“…Thank you. I’ll use them well.”
That single sentence was enough.
“I’d like you to wear them whenever you enter a dungeon.”
“Got it.”
As we left the restaurant, Yoo Mira spoke first. “Calling me today was a good idea.”
“Why?”
“I was just thinking about it alone. Talking about it helped me sort things out a bit.”
“Then that’s good.”
After walking a few steps, she turned back again. “And.”
“Yeah?”
“Next time, let’s just eat. No talking about incidents.”
“…I’ll try.”
Yoo Mira smiled, waved, and turned away. Watching her retreating figure, I thought to myself that while we still hadn’t said anything, and we weren’t in a relationship with a name yet, at least now we had reached the point where we didn’t need to explain the desire for each other’s safety.
The moment I opened my eyes in the morning, I drove straight to the Chuncheon Break area. I went deep into a part of the forest where few people ventured and found a small clearing. After checking for any dangerous presences, I cleared away scattered twigs and rocks. Sitting in the middle of the clearing, I asked Arin and Elly to keep watch on the surroundings.
Closing my eyes, the memories of the Lich that had flooded in when I absorbed the dungeon core naturally surfaced. The calculations for manipulating space, the sensation of fixing and transforming coordinates. None of it had fully coalesced into a single flow yet. What remained in my mind was closer to fragments. Some parts I understood, while others still lacked explanation.
Subspace was relatively clear. It was a structure that opened simply by channeling mana into fixed coordinates, and I had already confirmed its stability through multiple uses. But other spatial abilities were different. The structures came to mind, yet I couldn’t quite grasp why they worked that way.
Among them, the first thing that came to mind was Blink. The ability to instantly change position. It was the skill I needed most right now—to dodge attacks, create distance, and regain control of a situation. Above all, since it moved through visible space, the calculations seemed simpler compared to other spatial abilities.
Tracing the Lich’s memories, I reorganized the sequence of how Blink worked. Coordinate confirmation. Mana movement. Calculation complete. Space folding.
It made sense in my head, and I felt like I had it somewhat organized. Now it was time to actually try it.
Opening my eyes, I picked a spot in front of me. Gathering mana, I pushed the calculation forward the moment the flow connected. Space distorted for an instant, but that was it. My body didn’t move, and I only slightly lost my balance.
“Jihoon, are you practicing Blink right now?” Arin asked, sounding surprised as she watched me.
Instead of answering, I gathered mana again. This time the mana connected, but the calculation was late. The space started to fold but then canceled out.
“This time the calculation’s the problem,” Elly said. “It has to finish the moment the mana moves.”
Elly had somehow moved beside me and was quietly observing the flow of my mana.
Third try. Fourth. Mana gathered and scattered, connected and broke. I had to regain my balance several times as my body lurched forward.
“Haha, failed again.” Arin laughed, but Elly nodded.
“Still, it’s better than before.”
She was right. The sensation of failure was gradually changing. From around the fifth attempt, I could feel space folding for a very brief moment. It still wasn’t a complete movement, but I could tell where the flow was breaking.
On the tenth try, I finally succeeded once. The distance was short, and it wasn’t perfect, but my position had clearly changed.
“Jihoon, you did it!” Arin clapped. “The distance is short, but you definitely succeeded.”
Elly silently approached and lightly patted my back.
“Still a long way to go.”
Even as I said that, I was certain. Blink was possible. It was still unstable, but the direction was clearly right.
I continued practicing several more times after that. The success rate didn’t improve much, but the causes of failure became increasingly clear. Before I knew it, the sun was beginning to set, and the forest around the clearing was gradually darkening. There was no need to push myself further. I pitched a tent nearby, lit a campfire, and prepared to camp for the night.
When night fell, the sky opened up and stars appeared. Looking up at the unusually bright night sky, a sudden thought crossed my mind. Not long ago, I had been an F-class hunter. Just surviving a dungeon had been difficult back then. Now here I was, opening subspaces and practicing the ability to fold space. The road ahead was still long. But one thing was clear—I was no longer the person I used to be.
I sat by the campfire, quietly gazing at the night sky. There was no need to push myself any further. I asked Arin and Elly to take the night watch and stoked the fire a little more. The two spirits silently spread out around the perimeter, surveying the forest’s edge. In the meantime, I went inside the tent, settled into a seated position, and slowly circulated the Harmony Heart Method. Without forcing mana upward, I let the flow organize itself.
Closing my eyes, the sensation of Blink I had been repeating earlier resurfaced. The calculations were correct, and the structure wasn’t wrong. The problem always broke at the same point. Right before the mana folded space, my body couldn’t follow the flow. I still didn’t know why. But one thing was certain—even if I kept trying in this state, nothing would change.
After organizing my thoughts, I entered meditation. Within the flow of the Harmony Heart Method, I let unnecessary calculations sink one by one. I had no idea how much time had passed. When I opened my eyes, morning light was already seeping through the trees.
As dawn broke, the inside of the tent brightened first. I got up and packed away the tent. The campfire had already gone out, leaving only the silence of the night in the clearing.
“Going to practice Blink again?” Arin asked, yawning.
Instead of answering, I looked at a spot a little farther away. My calculations were faster than yesterday. Mana gathered, and the flow didn’t misalign. For a moment, I felt space folding, and my body lurched forward. Then I fell over.
“……”
Dirt and grass clung to my clothes.
“Jihoon, does this count as a success or a failure?” Arin tilted her head.
“Failure, since I fell.”
As I tried to get up, my foot slipped again. Not giving up, I steadied my mind once more. Slowly circulating mana, I recalculated the coordinates in my head. The space in front of me folded, and this time my body clearly moved. The casting speed was still too slow for practical use. But the sensation was gradually improving. No, I planned to practice until I could move just by shifting my gaze.
The more successful attempts I made, the messier my body became. Falling, slipping, dirt and grass sticking to my clothes. This was enough. After checking the inner area once more, I decided it was time to head home and stopped practicing.
I took out the breakfast I had prepared in advance from my subspace pouch. The food inside remained in much the same condition as when I had stored it. After filling my stomach, I cleaned up the trash and stood up. At that moment, Elly approached and silently held out her hand. Water began to envelop my body, and soon the dirt and moisture clinging to me slowly fell away along with the water. Even the dampness soaked into my clothes disappeared, leaving me clean in no time. It was neither warm nor cold—just like air brushing past.
“Thanks to Elly, my body’s clean now.”
At my words, Arin laughed and nodded. “Right? Traveling with a water spirit definitely has its perks.”
“You can shower, do laundry. Nothing beats this when camping.”
I brushed off my clothes and said, “It’s definitely convenient. I never even thought about this before.”
Arin shrugged for no particular reason. “Exactly. At least you won’t have to go back covered in mud.”
Elly didn’t join the conversation. Her gaze was already directed deeper into the forest, and naturally, I turned my head as well.
“Now let’s take a look further inside.”
Saying that, I began walking deeper into the forest. The further in I went, the more noticeably the atmosphere changed. The air grew heavier, and the forest’s sounds gradually diminished. I avoided what needed avoiding and quietly dealt with only the orcs and trolls that caught my eye. The fights were short, leaving behind neither unnecessary movements nor unwanted noise.
But something was strange. The monster density was excessively high. There were almost no traces of movement or signs of fighting over food. The area was unnaturally tidy. It was as if they had received a signal to gather in one place, clustered in an orderly fashion within a designated range.
“This place… is definitely strange,” Arin said, lowering her voice.
Elly had already moved ahead. When she returned a moment later, she spoke carefully. “A-class monsters are gathered around the gate. They’re not fighting each other… they’re just waiting, maintaining a certain distance.”
Arin frowned. “A-class monsters don’t usually stay still like that. They all have different territories and tendencies—there’s no way they’d bunch up like this.”
Elly nodded. “It’s like… they’re waiting for someone’s judgment. As if they received orders not to move.”
Hearing that, I stopped walking. I had seen enough, and there was no reason to go further.
“This is unsettling. Let’s head back.”
Before I could even finish speaking, the air trembled ever so slightly. A gate appeared ahead. The rippling light gradually turned red, and with a loud explosion, the gate collapsed.