The Phantom's Olfaction

Her embrace looked like it could crumble at any second. Yet I was drawn to it like a magnet. 'This feels familiar too.'

A mural. A painting covered one wall. A woman sat enthroned atop thousands, tens of thousands of people. Beside it, another woman sat upon a figure dressed in golden robes. Sacrifice. I hadn’t understood it before, but now that I knew the past, the meaning of these images was painfully clear.

'Might as well keep going.'

These were scenes I couldn’t decipher in my previous life, and I’d been so obsessed with the skill stone that I had skipped right past them. I followed the paintings. Three women appeared. Beneath them lay a single man.

'The women are the witches, and the man is the sacrifice?'

With that question lingering, I moved to the next mural. 'A tree?' A woman sat beneath an enormous tree.

"……."

I stared at it for a long time before walking on. The world was ending. In the center of the apocalypse, three witches bound to a tree were consumed by raging flames. 'A witch hunt.'

Before the blazing figures stood the sacrifice. Revenge? Or… had he come to save them? My mediocre mind couldn’t unravel the true meaning behind the mural.

I turned to look at the next one.

"What the hell?"

It had been erased. Traces of a painting remained, but most of it was completely wiped away, leaving nothing recognizable.

'Tsk.'

I scoured the entire temple after that. There might have been other clues. But aside from the murals I’d already seen, there was nothing else of note.

With no other choice, I headed for the altar at the center of the temple. A skill stone rested there.

'The second one.' Acquiring this stone had altered my fate forever. The life that had once flowed calm and steady began to pitch and roll like a ship caught in a violent storm.

"……."

Even so, I reached out and took it. Believing I could completely rewrite the past had been nothing but arrogance and conceit. Reality was never that generous, and my own strength was pathetically weak. But—

'I can at least shift its direction a little.'

The moment I gripped the stone, it crumbled into powder and a pure white light enveloped me.

Perfect. I had finally obtained the skill I wanted most.

'Still a long road ahead, though.' To read a witch’s mental state or see their status window, I would need to level the skill up further.

Perhaps because the skill stone had vanished, the temple began to shake. It felt like it was telling me to leave now that my business was finished. The violent tremors forced ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠me to hurry back to the surface.

Rumble…!

The temple sank into the ground in a cloud of dust. After confirming that even the staircase leading underground had been buried, I hurried back toward the tent.

'She didn’t wake up, right?'

I’d even used the sleeping incense. There was no way she would have—

I was an idiot for thinking that.

"Where have you been?"

Han Yuri stood with her arms crossed. Her expression was unusually anxious.

I tried to sound casual. "Just went out for some air. Were you worried about me and woke up?"

I deliberately acted playful, hoping she would snap at me like usual. But today’s Han Yuri was different.

"Yeah."

"……."

"Did something happen when you went back to your family home?"

"No. Why?"

"You’ve been completely out of it since you got back. You know that, right?"

"I think I’m the same as always. Must be your imagination."

"Ha."

When I tried to brush it off, Han Yuri scoffed.

"I might not know everything, but I’d never misread your mood."

Her tone carried an unshakable certainty.

"What is it? Tell me. I’ll help."

"I told you, it’s really nothing."

Irritated by my continued denial, Han Yuri strode forward, grabbed my face, and yanked me toward her. Close enough to feel her breath. She stared straight into my eyes, then ground her teeth.

"Your eyes look like you’re about to drop dead any second, so don’t give me that ‘nothing’ bullshit."

"……."

I let out a small sigh and gently removed her hand.

"Seriously, I’m fine. Stop nagging and let’s just sleep."

"Hey!"

I ignored her and slipped into the tent, crawling into my sleeping bag. About ten minutes later, she followed with an angry huff. Since Choi Ahyeon was sleeping, she had no choice but to climb into her own bag.

'Managed to get through that one.'

I breathed a sigh of relief inwardly and activated Phantom's Olfaction on her. A tense moment. Actually, I already knew. The seed had definitely germinated. Only an idiot wouldn’t notice after seeing how Han Yuri was acting. The real question was the progress. The seed had sprouted, the sprout was growing, and eventually a flower would bloom. If it flowered, it would be irreversible, but if it was still just a sprout…!

'I can still turn it back.'

My heart began to pound wildly. If it had already flowered… what the hell was I supposed to do? No. It was too early to assume the worst.

"Huu…"

I exhaled a shaky breath and used the skill on Han Yuri.

'Fuck. That’s a relief at least.'

I clutched my chest, relieved it hadn’t flowered yet, and let out another sigh at the fact that it was still only in the twenties. There were ways to stop Han Yuri from growing any further. The problem was Lee Seol.

'That bitch is completely unpredictable.'

She was the biggest irregular factor. Because she had awakened Super Sensory so early, her behavior was impossible to forecast.

'Let’s get out of here quickly.'

We cleared Blue Hill, and I immediately called Jihun.

[The number you have dialed is unavailable. After the tone—]

He wasn’t picking up.

'Maybe he’s doing an assignment.'

My guess was exactly right.

Ahyeon stretched and asked, "Are you calling Jihun?"

"Yeah."

"He went to clear the ‘Forest of Despair.’"

A three-day, two-night trip. It was the longest E-rank assignment there was.

'Tsk.' The timing couldn’t be worse.

"Did you have something to tell him?"

"No. But are you two okay on stamina?"

"Yeah, I’m fine. Yuri, what about you?"

"About forty percent. Why? Want to do another one?"

"Yeah."

The Dungeon of Healing. This time, I would clear it no matter what.

"Welcome back."

"I’m here to challenge it again."

"…You’ve changed quite a bit."

"Is that a compliment?"

"Who knows."

I looked away from her and stared at the crystal. Light began to rise. My past flowed out. From the day I was hospitalized to the days I was tormented by witches. Honestly, saying it was easy to watch would be a lie. Still, I endured it by pinching the flesh of my thighs. Thanks to that, I somehow managed to see the entire past.

"Congratulations. You may now enter the Dungeon of Healing."

"Thank you."

With permission granted, I turned to leave when the nun murmured softly.

"Be careful not to let yourself be devoured."

"……."

Thud. That nun was still impossible to understand.

Fortunately, the other two had passed easily and were waiting for me.

"Sorry. Took a little longer than expected."

"Ten minutes! You owe me late fees… huh? S-Seonghyun!"

"Hey… you!"

Their eyes were fixed on my legs. I looked down. My pants were soaked in blood.

***

After entering the temple, things moved quickly. While the two were resting, I secretly took the skill stone and learned Dispel.

'This should be effective enough now.'

On the way back to the dormitory after clearing the dungeon, I told them, "You two go on ahead. I have something to take care of. I’ll head back later."

"Huh? Seonghyun, aren’t you pushing yourself too hard? You did an assignment and then a dungeon…"

"Yeah. Just rest for now."

"I’m fine. A tank’s ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠got to tank, right? Anyway, go on ahead~."

I waved at them and headed to the meeting place. Of course, I didn’t forget to stop by the bathhouse to wash up first.

Shin Suyeon must have arrived early. She was standing in front of a mirror, fixing her hair. The moment she sensed me coming, she waved.

"Seonghyun! Over here!"

"Sorry. I’m a bit late, aren’t I?"

"No, I just got here too. But…"

"Yes?"

Shin Suyeon stared at my face for a moment, then smiled softly and took my hand.

"How about we postpone the Dispel for later?"

"Huh? Suddenly? It’s better to use it every time the cooldown is up…"

"It won’t take long. Just a little while? Please?"

"…Well. Alright."

The side effects from Dispel had disappeared anyway. A short break should be fine.

The place she led me to by the hand was somewhere we had visited once before—the trail around Namsan. The only difference was that it was night now. It was summer. Many people were out trying to escape the sweltering heat. Shin Suyeon avoided the crowds and took me to a quiet set of stairs, then had me sit down. The entire city of Seoul stretched out before us.

"The night view here is pretty nice, right?"

"It is. But why did we come here…?"

She smiled gently and sat beside me.

"Just a moment."

She gently pulled my head down and rested it on her lap. The classic lap pillow.

"Is this what you brought me here for?"

"Hehe… yes."

She fidgeted with her hands, looking embarrassed. I couldn’t help but chuckle. A gentle breeze blew, carrying the distant sound of people talking. It felt like a scene from a dream.

In the distance, I could see families. A child holding their mother and father’s hands. Another child running around with their older sister. Children and their families laughing brightly, as if this moment was pure happiness. Memories I never had. Time that was never allowed to me.

'So this… is what a family is.'

I closed my eyes. To protect my mind, to protect my soul, I turned away from reality. At that moment, Shin Suyeon gently stroked my hair.

"Don’t push yourself too hard."

"…I’m not pushing myself."

"Anyone can see that you are."

"……."

"Ahyeon called me. She said you seemed to be having a hard time lately and asked me to meet you."

Choi Ahyeon?

"Just in case, I met with her, and wow… you really looked terrible."

"I washed up thoroughly before ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠coming."

"I’m not talking about your appearance. I mean what’s inside."

When I looked at her, she placed her hand on my cheek. I could feel her warm body temperature.

"If you’re struggling, I wish you would talk to me too… but you wouldn’t, would you? So."

"……"

"This is the best I can do for you right now."

She turned my face toward the night view and continued stroking my hair.

"Slowly. One step at a time."

"……."

"I may not be able to help you with big things… but I can at least be the place you return to."

Suddenly, something surged in my chest. Without thinking, I grabbed her hand. Even at the sudden contact, she simply held mine back as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"I’ll always be here, waiting for you."

Ah.

"When you want to lean on someone, when you’re exhausted and tired. Come to me anytime."

This woman was playing dirty. Too dirty.

"Because I’m always on your side."

Really… so unfair.

The tension that had gripped my body slowly melted away. The murky fog in my mind gradually cleared. She must have noticed the change in me.

"Hehe. You look a little better now."

Her laugh. That pure, innocent, radiant smile soothed the shattered pieces of my heart. Could someone like her really exist in this world? Could a person like this truly exist?

I thought to myself that the best ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠thing I had done in this second round was—

"Huh? You just smiled! You smiled, right?"

—meeting her.

That summer night view was the most beautiful sight I had ever witnessed in either of my lives.