Chapter 6: Heart-Pounding Secret Friends (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 6: Heart-Pounding Secret Friends (3)
How should I describe this sensation?
It was the feeling of reaching a realm that had once been blocked by an insurmountable wall, no matter how hard I tried, now grasped with effortless ease.
The principles behind movements I could never understand suddenly became clear, and the energy within my body, which refused to budge no matter what I did, now moved freely at my command.
A sense of omnipotence, as if I could do anything, dominated my entire being.
I used the energy within my body to burn away the crude poison of the goblins. Such a thing was no longer a problem for me.
For a brief moment, I was stepping into the same realm as the friend I had longed for so dearly.
Even if goblins swarmed by the thousands rather than the hundreds, they were no match for me now.
Only after reaching a stage where I could truly and fully control my own body did I understand what it meant to throw a punch.
I lightly clenched my fist.
There was no need for excessive force.
A natural state.
I thrust my fist straight toward the pack of rushing small demons.
Simple, yet powerful.
It was a strike faithful to the basics.
Pa-ang!
The punch I threw tore through the air, making the most beautiful sound of any strike I had ever delivered in my life.
That single blow contained more than enough power to annihilate every last goblin.
She stared blankly at the traces left by her own fist.
The sense of omnipotence that had enveloped her body slowly began to fade.
Though that feeling of all-powerfulness vanished, the sensation of the punch she had thrown remained deeply etched in her mind.
Suddenly, she understood why his talent had been ranked A-grade.
A power that shows the next stage regardless of the opponent’s level? If not for the side effects, it wouldn’t have been enough to even call it an S-rank talent.
Wait.
Only after thinking that far did she recall the situation just moments ago.
He had used his ability on her.
That meant he had consumed his Innate True Qi once again.
She hurriedly turned around to find him rolling on the ground, coughing up blood.
* * *
Shit.
Holy shit.
It hurts like hell!
It was a bit better than before, but in the end, the pain was the same.
At least last time, I couldn’t even squirm because I was afraid of the pain, but this time? It felt like I wouldn’t actually die from the recoil of squirming.
My total soul capacity had likely increased, but this seemed to be the backlash of using the ability again before fully recovering.
No joke, if I had used the ability again without Resurrection, I would have died…
“Are you okay!?”
“Huuu…!”
This time, it hurt a little less than before, and because I had used it prepared for the pain, it was somewhat bearable.
“I’m not okay.”
But that didn’t mean it was fine.
“Ugh…!”
Blood surged up from my throat and splattered out again.
“Oh no…!”
[The Will of the Saint is moved by your good deed.]
[Recovery rate increases.]
Oh?
I thought I had to be wearing it since it was a ring, but it seemed to have an effect just by being in my possession.
The Will of the Saint.
It was an artifact that gave powerful buffs to the wearer the more “good” they were, and provided necessary buffs whenever they performed a good deed.
Presumably, the fact that I tried to provide the protagonist with a reliable helper while solving her complex was judged as a good deed.
It seemed this thing didn’t think I was a perfectly good person, as the effect was minimal, but it was enough to settle my churning insides.
I finally felt like I could breathe.
“I’m okay now.”
“There’s no way you’re okay.”
I said it because I actually felt better, but she glared at me with a face that didn’t believe a word of it.
Well, if a guy who was just rolling around coughing up blood suddenly said, “I’m okay now~,” I wouldn’t believe him either.
But she’s so pretty that it’s not really scary.
She really is gorgeous. Is it even fair to look that pretty while crying?
Even in this world full of relatively handsome and beautiful people, she stands out as exceptional.
…Not that it matters, since she gets the “Heroine Dies First” treatment in the original story.
“Why did you do it?”
“Do what?”
“You should have run away. Did you come back because there was no exit that way?”
“No? There was an exit, but how could I just leave you behind?”
I knew why she was asking, but now was the time to play innocent.
Why? Because Professor Cathy knows I’m a prospective Academy cadet and knows the penalty of my ability.
On the other hand, as far as she’s concerned, I should think she’s just some person I met while hiking who claims to be an Academy professor.
What I was aiming for was image-making by utilizing this information gap.
“It’s okay. I get a bit tired for a moment when I use my ability, but I recover quickly.”
Yes, I was now the naive young man hiding the side effects of his own power to help someone.
Her expression contorted violently since she already knew the side effects of my ability, but there was no way she could say anything to me.
Unless she intended to confess she had been tailing me, she would want to hide the fact that she approached me knowing who I was.
With someone like her, approaching subtly like this is more effective than deliberately showing off your contribution and burdening them.
“That’s… phew. Fine, I understand for now.”
As I expected, she nodded, looking a bit guilt-ridden.
Ah, I intended to stand up, but my body hadn’t fully recovered yet, and I stumbled.
I ended up falling right into the professor’s soft embrace, but instead of being embarrassed, she looked at me with eyes full of worry.
Uh, if you look at me like that, my conscience starts to prick a bit.
The period where I felt like I was actually dying has passed, and I’m planning to get healthier from now on, so you don’t really need to worry that much.
“I’m sorry, but could you help me up?”
But that’s that, and it’s only right to use what can be used.
“Yes, don’t worry. We’ll definitely make it out.”
Now she was looking at me like I was some terminally ill patient.
…Did I go too far?
* * *
After forcing the boy, who insisted on just going home, into the emergency room and even paying the bill, Cathy returned to the Chairperson’s office.
“Ah, you’re back? So, what kind of student was our Kang So-hyun?”
“He’s a good kid.”
Hmm?
The Chairperson tilted her head.
First, because Cathy, who usually insisted on formal speech even when told to speak comfortably, was now speaking casually—a cute form of protest indicating she was dissatisfied with something. Second, because the aura radiating from her had changed slightly.
The Chairperson decided to ask about the more curious point first.
Since the other had dropped the formalities, she would respond as a fitting friend.
“What’s wrong? Are you upset with me about something?”
“Leave that boy alone.”
“That boy? Kang So-hyun? Did something happen between you two?”
Cathy decided to honestly confess what happened in the dungeon.
She figured the Chairperson would find out anyway if she set her mind to investigating, so it was better to tell her before things got complicated.
“Aha, no wonder I thought your realm had ascended in just a few hours. So that’s what happened?”
The Chairperson chuckled, pleased that her intuition was correct.
A power that could temporarily elevate an A-rank hero to the realm of an S-rank… and seeing Cathy now, it seemed that while the power vanished, the enlightenment didn’t disappear entirely.
Perhaps, if his ability could be utilized well, they might even be able to intentionally increase the number of S-ranks.
“No. Don’t even think about it.”
“Hmm?”
Why was her dear friend being so prickly?
“I told you. He’s an incredibly kind kid. He could have escaped the dungeon, but he came back and used his ability on me. Even though he knew he was dying, he smiled and pretended it didn’t hurt. You can’t ask a kid like that to use his remaining lifespan for others.”
“Is that so?”
On the contrary, the Chairperson was a bit suspicious of the part where he came back and used his ability.
Her dear friend Cathy had a tendency to see people in an overly bright and beautiful light.
In contrast, the Chairperson, whose suspicion had grown over her long life, had several doubts.
Of course, it might be a leap, but what if he had information about the dungeon from the start and used Cathy?
Or what if he had pocketed the dungeon rewards during that brief moment he disappeared?
Above all, his background bothered her.
A frail body, a kind nature, even a brush with death.
“Is it because he reminds you of your younger brother?”
Cathy’s expression stiffened instantly.
The Chairperson thought she had moved on, but it seemed talking about her deceased brother was still taboo.
“Now that I think about it, he does resemble him a bit. Kind and physically weak.”
‘Oops, did I go too far?’
Cathy was the one she had ordered to tail him; how could he have known and specifically targeted her to use?
Logically, it made no sense.
She had already nearly finished the investigation on him, and there was no information suggesting he was that intelligent, nor did there seem to be any secrets in his birth or upbringing.
Her intuition was usually good, but it wasn’t always accurate.
Perhaps the resemblance was just a coincidence.
Feeling apologetic toward Cathy, she changed the subject.
“Right, I don’t want to see a prospective Academy cadet die from using his ability either, so don’t worry.”
Fortunately, Cathy’s expression softened quickly.
“You promise?”
“We’ll see.”
“Hey…!”
She could have just promised, but despite feeling sorry, Cathy was so fun to tease that she couldn’t help herself.
Still, since it was her friend’s request, she decided she should avoid messing with Kang So-hyun as much as possible, even if he seemed interesting.
Thinking so, the Chairperson lightly stroked the head of her cute friend who was lunging at her.
* * *
My god.
A hospital bed being this soft.
Is this even possible?
I think I heard somewhere that using a mattress that’s too soft in a hospital can cause secondary injuries, but apparently, that doesn’t apply to this novel world.
Or maybe it’s just because I have no external injuries but went through an exaggerated admission process.
I rolled the ring—today’s harvest—over my hand and looked at it.
“The performance is definitely solid.”
It said it would increase healing power, and indeed, not only the internal injuries but even the minor scratches from climbing the mountain had almost vanished.
Since my Innate True Qi was also steadily recovering, starting tomorrow, I might be able to upgrade from a ‘super pathetic body’ to just ‘clumsy.’
“Man, that’s damn hopeful.”
I have to enter the Academy next month, which will be crawling with young and immature superhumans, so the fact that I’m clumsy doesn’t exactly feel pleasant.
“Relying on Professor Cathy as my only insurance feels a bit unstable.”
Well, despite various lingering anxieties, I’d say I started off on the right foot.
At least the immediate threat of sudden death is gone, right?
There’s no nagging about interfering with the settings, so this is a huge success.
[Circumstances of interfering with the story by stealing a specific character’s Fortuitous Encounter have been confirmed.]
Ah, shit. Of course. Saying something like that in a webnovel is an immediate flag.
[However, it has been confirmed that the role’s influence on the main story is minimal.]
[This time, we will let it slide.]
“Gee, thanks a lot. Really.”
If the hospital suddenly collapsed and a dungeon appeared, honestly, I wouldn’t have the confidence to make it out alive.
[Yes, always be grateful.]
…?
What? Was that a joke?
I waited to see if there was anything else, but no other response came.
Unbelievable. Crazy thing.
Ring ring!
“Hmm?”
The smartphone—which I didn’t even know I had until Professor Cathy, the one who put me here, forced her way in and entered her number—started ringing with a tacky default tone.
Did she say they give these to all Academy cadets?
I wondered if Cathy was calling to check if I was okay, but it was an unknown number.
[I heard you were hospitalized?]
A girl? It’s a voice I don’t recognize.
Granted, there are more voices I don’t know than ones I do, but at the very least, it wasn’t a voice I’d heard before.
“Who is this?”
[…]
The person on the other end of the phone didn’t speak for a long time, as if they were dumbfounded, but soon answered in a slightly angry voice.
[So now you’re going to treat me like a complete stranger?]
I’m asking because I seriously don’t know who you are.
[Fine. I’m sure you don’t even want to hear me say hello, so I shouldn’t have called. Sorry.]
She said that and hung up.
“…No, seriously, is asking who someone is that big of a crime?”
I could just not know.
“Ah, whatever.”
I’m too tired today.
Whatever I need to do for real, I’ll start tomorrow.
I lay down on the bed, hoping the performance of Resurrection would meet my expectations.
…If only, at that moment.
If only I had known the identity of the person who called, I would have just called back and apologized.
It was only in the slightly more distant future that I came to regret it.