Chapter 43
My brother wanted to become a veterinarian.
Though we only met after we'd both grown up, I knew he genuinely loved animals.
On his days off, he made a habit of looking after stray cats.
He'd regularly bring animals scheduled for euthanasia to the orphanage he funded with his own money, to have them raised there.
It was all to ease the loneliness of kids separated from their parents, whether by choice or circumstance.
At the same time, he hoped caring for the creatures would teach them the preciousness of life.
That was the kind of man Seo Boseok was.
He poured all his intentions into his actions.
Rather than direct treatment, he was the type to teach prevention methods hands-on.
"...I lack that man's talents, so I only learned post-treatment measures."
And even that, I gave up halfway.
Healer Awakeners started popping up everywhere, and I lost my place.
"That was just something I did for Baridegi on a whim. I wasn't after anything in return."
"...Really now.
I must have misjudged you, child."
The temperature dropped.
Had my insistence irked Baridegi?
She wasn't a particularly famous deity in Korea, so I had no idea what her temperament was like.
"You are a far gentler soul than I imagined."
"Thank you for the kind words..."
"I watched your face closely as you spoke, child.
Yet you held your convictions with unwavering resolve, without the slightest flinch.
A child with such an expression could never lie."
...Huh.
'Is she mistaking the Surprise Texture Mask for my real face?'
Of course, every word was sincere, without a shred of deceit.
Still, my conscience prickled.
'Damn this mask—why does it fool even constellations and deities like her!'
The anonymous creator had made only two of them.
And maybe that's why Zion—who later climbed to third in the Hunter rankings—kept using one religiously.
Whoosh!
She covered her mouth with her fully unfurled fan.
"I meant to bestow but a single gift, yet my heart has changed."
The fan folded shut again.
With a graceful smile half-veiled by it, she lowered her hand.
Then Baridegi began to dance, swaying lightly.
"Blood hardens, soul scatters. O bearer of our bond, reclaim thy name."
She struck a deep, resonant rhythm.
"Beneath the great grandmother tree, under the black vein, I have awaited thee."
Boom...!
A drum's thunder echoed. The world pulsed.
Baridegi spun gracefully, her five-colored robes trailing rainbows through the air.
"May this dance, born of frail shaman bones, light the path for the living toward the righteous realm of Saha..."
That was when it happened.
"...Gasp...!"
Baridegi's eyes rolled back. Facing her clouded, grayish-white pupils, I flinched involuntarily.
It was a fleeting moment. An alert bloomed in my vision.
Heaven's Secret Leak: Exclusive Skill Shop
Eternal Blessing new authority unlocked!
'Holy shit!'
I nearly clamped my hand over my mouth like an idiot!
'An exclusive skill shop window...!'
What kind of overflowing serendipity was this?
I'd just been griping about my lack of attack skills after the Greenbelt Gate.
Thanks to Han Biyeol stepping up, EXP gains were plentiful.
But plain leveling had clear limits.
'COEX and Paju were the anomalies.'
Normal gates meant close-quarters brawls with monsters.
Borrowing Hemo's cold assessment, I hadn't escaped D-grade yet—and skills were crucial right now...!
'Heaven's Secret Leak.'
A blessing was a heavenly being granting power directly to a human.
But with constellations at odds, direct contact with humans was blocked.
That meant holders like my brother or me were only tapping a fraction of our blessings' potential.
'She forced it open for me.'
Her very body was a conduit linking heaven, the underworld, and the living world.
That final dance was a hallmu—a ritual to glimpse the heavens from the mortal realm. A divine descent.
...To this extent?
I steadied my pounding heart and dismissed the alert for now.
"Goodness."
Baridegi tucked back a stray lock of hair, her lips tinged blue with fatigue.
"Not even a star, nor worthy to challenge one—yet I leaked heaven's secrets, and this is my fate."
"...To grant me such an extravagant boon."
"Nay, child. I was a myth withered to its last. To make this end meaningful is joy enough for me."
"Was it that tree draining your life force?"
After all we'd taken, maybe. That monster tree suddenly felt infuriating.
Grind.
Baridegi shook her head gently at the sound of my gritted teeth.
"Half right, half wrong. It hastened my decline, true—but I was fading regardless."
The Baridegi myth was ancient. Obscure, known only to a few...
A fringe legend, if you had to label it.
"Grieve not for me, child. Old yields to new—that's the natural way."
"Would it be selfish to want to delay that cycle?"
"Aye, selfish. But to my ears, it's the sweetest greed. Thank you, truly."
"It might not just be words..."
"Hm?"
I tore my gaze from Baridegi.
There lay the fairy, flower crown discarded beside her.
"Hemo."
At my word, Hemo shot forward like lightning, pinning the fairy. She glared wide-eyed, scrambling to flee.
Too late.
"Eeeeeek! Let go! Let me gooo!"
Caught by Hemo, she thrashed wildly. But my vine mine had sealed her tight.
"Boo hoo."
I reeled her in using Hemo's fin. The fairy pleaded with slaughterhouse eyes.
"Spare meee..."
"You tried to kill me first?"
"Th-that was... the great grandmother tree...!"
"She's right here. What excuse is that?"
"...Ah..."
Glancing at Baridegi, the fairy's despair deepened.
Like a failed coup general.
Success makes revolution; failure, rebellion!
'This one's a rebel.'
I proposed to the sniffling fairy.
"Wanna live?"
"Eek...!!"
Don't take it as a death threat, kid.
I spoke calmly again.
"Then do one job for me."
"...Wh-what...?"
I asked the Surprise Texture Mask for my kindest smile.
"S-save meee!"
Hm, flop.
Whatever.
* * *
After rattling off my impromptu scheme for a bit.
The fairy shared her honest take.
"You're insane?"
Getting called crazy by a monster? It stung more than expected.
"Call it genius instead."
"Geniusly insane."
Thwack!
A knuckle rap the size of her head shut her up. Leaving the fairy to her sulking, I turned back to Baridegi.
"What do you think?"
"...A notion I never could've conceived. Truly unforeseen... so I grasp it not."
"If others react the same, we're halfway to success."
The more absurd the plan, the harder you push through their shock.
"Then, could you lift the time stop? I need to convince the other Hunters."
"Ah, heavens. Even my mind..."
"Please."
"But first."
Baridegi tore her fan like jerky—five colors total.
"The five directional colors, right?"
Red, blue, white, yellow, black.
"Usually random, but draw one."
"...Pardon?"
"This is your clear reward for this space. You must claim it. The prior gift was mere whim—pay it no mind."
Whoa. I could pick from a random box? And this was the real prize...
I reached out carefully. My fingertips trembled inches from the pieces.
'This one.'
I grabbed it.
Baridegi smiled softly.
But then.
"Wh-what?"
Suddenly, one color snapped in her hand.
The half-piece slipped from her grasp into my free hand.
'What the hell...?'
Baridegi blinked in shock.
I'd unintentionally robbed her blind.
〔……. ……!〕
Hemo poked me with her fin. Above it, a golden die gleamed.
Five.
1.5x all acquisitions.
The air turned awkward in an instant...
* * *
Baridegi transformed into a white deer and vanished into the woods. Time resumed.
The frozen cheers erupted anew. Felt weird. Like I was the alien.
"Seo Hunter!"
A North Ocean Guild member called out.
But my brother nudged me with his elbow.
"He's talking to you."
"Me?"
Sure enough, every Hunter stared my way. Fresh sight—major guild elites focused on little old me.
Having just wrapped up with Baridegi, I was caught off-guard.
"Thank you! We can finally escape this godforsaken gate!"
"Ah."
I paused, then spoke.
"On that note, mind if I make a proposal?"
"From our lifesaver? Anytime!"
"Who the hell are you to decide...!"
Namgung Hyunil barged in as usual.
But cold stares shut him up.
He was top-tier in Korea.
That was it. Ordering his guild into shady deeds had tarnished his rep, and now he had nothing left.
No more pulling strings with Credits.
Their sudden goodwill felt off-putting.
'Gotta use this momentum now.'
With Namgung Hyunil pinned by icy glares, I said it.
"I think we should let the Greenbelt Gate break."
"...Break? What...?"
Brows furrowed across friend and foe alike.
"Gate Break."
"...???"
Leave it be and let it burst.
I dropped the reckless idea. Something a monster might say.
"Not a bad deal for you all, either."
"...Seo Hunter."
Jeong Hamin raised his hand.
"That's... startling. Care to explain?"
"Of course."
Gate Break mirrors a gate's ecosystem onto reality.
'Normal breaks are dangerous because monsters spill out and slaughter people.'
No friendly monster species toward humanity. None, period.
"As I told Jeong Hunter, this Greenbelt Gate's in the DMZ, right?"
"...Yes?"
"Bluff."
"Huh?"
"Partially true."
"Why lie then...?"
"No way to convince you otherwise. Had to wing it."
Ahh, refreshing.
'It's all over anyway.'
R&Y Hunters' image might take a hit.
Whatever.