Chapter 56
Terminally Ill, but It's Okay — Episode 56
The small park in front of the Taehak dormitory, decorated with charming little touches.
On weekends this place should have been an eyesore thanks to couples strolling hand in hand—Taehak has no rule against dating—but today it was as quiet as a fishing village in the off-season.
That was because, the moment the formative assessment ended, everyone had shouted "freedom" and fled.
Joo A-rin had taken advantage of that gap and planted herself squarely on a bench.
Instead of gimbap, she was chewing over Secretary Noh's voice, absorbed in the call.
The topic of conversation was the aftermath of rooting out the wolf.
"Joo Seol-gwang wouldn't have noticed, right?"
—Most likely not. Once I dug into that Kim Myeong-cheol fellow with certainty, there was gambling, tax evasion....... He had quite a few hidden problems. The grounds for elimination are solid, so the third son's side won't be able to tell that we caught on.
"Thank you for your hard work. Then the remaining seat......."
Joo A-rin calmly laid out what she had already planned.
There were several next-tier candidates, but there was no guarantee that they weren't wolves either, so she requested a more thorough vetting even if it took time, and wanted the group filled with trustworthy people.
It was the proper response, and the right judgment.
"On that note, miss."
But it soon led to an unwanted result.
"I think that mysterious investor will need vetting as well. You say he's someone you know, but wouldn't it be better to be certain about everything?"
"......That person too?"
Joo A-rin feigned fluster and drew out her words.
She was not unaware of Secretary Noh's affectionate concern, but it was also true that ordering a background check was awkward.
She had promised to keep his identity secret, and in a sense the wolf hunt had also been thanks to that person's...... Park Ha-yul's divination.
"Putting the contract aside, is he truly someone you can trust?"
But then came Secretary Noh's next question.
Whether he was truly someone she could trust—that was not a question she could answer easily.
"Actually, that investor......."
It was just as she finally opened her mouth after long deliberation.
Suddenly, two cups of coffee appeared before her eyes with a pop.
This was from the café she often went to.......
"......Americano?"
—Pardon?
"H-hold on."
Joo A-rin, whose words had tangled in an instant, flinched and turned around.
Then the owner of that lush, eye-catching emerald hair came into view.
The president of Dodam, Jeong Ae-ri, was waving with a fresh smile.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt. I'll come back in a bit......."
"No. It's fine."
It had been an awkward question to answer anyway.
With a convenient excuse having appeared, Joo A-rin picked up her phone again.
Saying that she had finished all urgent matters and would be in touch again soon, she hurriedly ended the call.
"Now I feel too bad."
"It's really fine. But how did you know I was here?"
"Hmm~ well, about that."
Jeong Ae-ri chuckled and briefly explained what was hardly a story at all.
She had something to say, had picked up the coffee they both liked, and was just about to head up to the dormitory when the familiar back of a head caught her eye.
"Something to say? To me?"
Joo A-rin asked back, savoring the fragrant yet bitter coffee scent.
"Yeah, I was personally curious about something~"
"......?"
Joo A-rin bit down on the straw and waited for the next words.
It was just as she was inwardly repeating "delicious" and taking a long, full sip with a slurp.
"Are you dating Park Ha-yul?"
"Pffft."
The moment the words ended, black liquid burst out and scattered into the air.
As coffee shot into her nasal cavity and made the tip of her nose sting, Joo A-rin coughed and spat out the remaining coffee.
"Hey, why are you so surprised. Are you okay?"
"Cough. What kind of ridiculous—cough, cough—nonsense is that? Cough."
Startled, Jeong Ae-ri hurriedly patted her on the back.
"So you're not?"
"Of course not. Why would I, with someone like that......."
"Then why were you holding hands? And in front of everyone watching, no less."
"That's......."
She wanted to explain everything, but she couldn't.
Joo A-rin began to explain within the limits of what she could reveal.
She strongly emphasized that they had been entangled through work and had no choice.
"Hmm~"
But the reaction was somehow not entirely satisfied.
"So it's not mutual, is that it? And that's why you joined Dodam......."
Jeong Ae-ri narrowed her eyes instead and kept spouting ridiculous nonsense.
Joo A-rin let out a shallow sigh and denied it once more.
"......Seriously. I told you, it's a misunderstanding."
"Is it, though? The other party doesn't seem to think so?"
Jeong Ae-ri winked with a meaningful smile.
"What?"
"Think about it~ Did it really have to be at that exact moment? It was information he could have told you even after Roberto's proposal. If he dragged you out before then, shouldn't you reconsider what he was trying to do?"
......Timing?
Joo A-rin could only open and close her mouth without answering.
* * *
The biggest difference between fighting Demonkin and fighting Monsters was attributes.
That difference came from the inborn nature of humans and Monsters—
two fundamentally different kinds of beings.
Humans merely wielded attributes, whereas Monsters were born as attributes themselves.
In that sense, right now over there.
The First Sword, dyed red with Fire, came down with the very principle of fire overcoming wood—the simple law that fire conquered wood made manifest.
But the result was more destructive than expected.
The First Sword curved around Cheon Seo-yoon and pierced its target near Goeogong's abdomen—the bulging brood pouch.
Fwoom!
A blaze-like flash flared.
Immediately afterward, Goeogong let out a shriek fit for a lowly Grade 10 Monster and twisted violently.
"Whoa, what the. Shit."
Cheon Seo-yoon, startled by the thrashing, tried to pull her body away for a moment, but I, having literally sprinted as if taking flight using the Cheonjam Thread, shouted without reserve in a low but firm voice.
"Now. Finish it."
But Cheon Seo-yoon's flashing eyes turned toward me instead.
"B-bro? Why are you here.... Wait, was that attack just now yours? Whoa, they said you were weak......."
What nonsense. Since when.
You beat them all to death before I could even step in.
—was what I wanted to say, but I held it in because the conversation would drag on and we'd miss the moment.
The Fire attribute permeating the First Sword was not a composite attribute like the blue flame that had once burned the Sasikju Queen.
Of course, the First Sword was a special-grade Armament, and its sharp aura and demon-slaying nature were formidable. Even basic Fire was enough to leave Goeogong half-dead, but it was still only one hell of a solid hit. We had to finish it quickly.
"Let's talk after this is over."
Cheon Seo-yoon got excited all on her own, then came to a conclusion all on her own and raised her sword upright.
Hummmmm—
The moment fierce, pure mana particles gathered and formed a blue crystal, she leaped high.
Charging like a rhinoceros, she swung the sword-club, which had now surged to nearly four meters, sideways with all her strength.
Slice—
A short, clean slicing sound rang out, surprisingly slight for something so thick.
The massive body of the Goeogong, the anomaly of Surisan, split cleanly in two and sprawled across the ground.
There was just one problem: it was not dead.
As if determined to struggle to the very end, it raised jaws sharper than a chainsaw and clicked them at us.
......Aha. So that's how it is?
Only then did I fully understand the final message the creature was sending from its life.
It was telling me not to let its death be in vain.
It was begging me to come quickly, land the last hit, and claim the time.
So was there any other way?
I had no choice but to honor its wish and guide it to a meaningful death.......
I manifested the Chungyongwi Warrior's Dagger, gripped it in my right hand, and approached the creature.
No, I had been about to approach.
But before that, a pale hand appeared and grabbed my wrist.
"Just leave it. It's going to die soon anyway. What if it self-destructs like those centipede bastards?"
Cheon Seo-yoon, seemingly genuinely worried, clutched even my sleeve tightly.
Only then did Cheon Seo-yoon's torn clothes catch my eye.
She must have had a hard time against the Goeogong, because her white shirt was stained red here and there, and the neckline was torn long as if ripped.
Be more careful.
I took off the hoodie I was wearing, handed it over, and said to Cheon Seo-yoon.
"The main body can't self-destruct."
"Really?"
"Yeah, so it's right to send it off without pain. There's nothing more agonizing than waiting for death."
Whether it was because of the human-skin mask or the dignity of a prestigious family that had unconsciously activated, a rather embarrassing line slipped out.
"Ah, waiting for death......."
But her reaction was a little strange.
Cheon Seo-yoon, her pupils trembling faintly, soon sighed.
The hand that had let go of my sleeve slid down like a petal fluttering in the wind.
......Did I overdo it?
I was about to take it back, feeling like I had given her a burden rather than clothing.
"I'll borrow this for a bit."
Cheon Seo-yoon snatched it with a swish and quickly turned her back.
......Why is she acting like that.
I stared at her back quizzically, then trudged over.
First, I drove the dagger into the Goeogong's forehead.
[You have defeated the Grade 6 Irregular Goeogong.]
[As a reward, 3 days are added to your Remaining Time.]
[Inter Quest completed]
[As a reward, 5 days are added to your Remaining Time.]
[Remaining Time: 27 days 5 hours 54 minutes]
[You gain 15 SP as a reward.]
[Remaining SP: 31]
['Greed' says it was a decent meal for the first time in a while.]
[Seal release rate: 5%]
I had even remembered to absorb the Demonic Energy, so I had personally taken everything there was to take.
Now it was time to register it with the reader and collect the bounty, but that wasn't easy either.
A ghost with no ID and a Taehak student violating school rules stepping to the front carried too much risk.
"No choice, then."
As soon as I made my decision, I called Viper.
"Oh, Limited Lifespan. Is the hunt going well?"
"A problem came up."
* * *
When I asked Viper to take care of the Irregular's disposal, he first let out a disbelieving laugh.
But his attitude changed the moment he received the verification photo.
He stammered and rambled, then told me to wait and hung up.
So Cheon Seo-yoon and I were now sitting in a nearby patch of grass.
I opened my subspace pouch and handed over the drinks I had prepared in advance, and the two of us sipped in silence while admiring the sunset draping over the cliff.
Cheon Seo-yoon was quiet for a while, then suddenly spoke.
"Didn't we have pretty good chemistry?"
Chemistry?
It was a word that gave me an odd sense of déjà vu, but I answered honestly.
"Was there anything like chemistry?"
"No, bro, you handled scouting and I handled the hunting. Splitting the work gave us good results, didn't it? Though it turned out your skills were no joke either......."
Well. It had certainly been comfortable. She rampaged on her own without me even having to tell her.
Only then did I nod, and a smile formed at the corner of Cheon Seo-yoon's lips.
"Anyway, today was fun. I made a lot of money, and I feel a lot better than I did these past few gloomy days."
Cheon Seo-yoon rubbed the tip of her nose, as if embarrassed by the untimely confession.
"Then that's good."
I answered shortly.
It was also something I was saying to myself, since thanks to her I had lightened the debt in my heart at least a little.
"......What, that's it? Wow, look at how emotionally dry you are."
"Lacking is better than excessive."
"Tch. Anyway, I'm adding you on Gumanet, bro, so if our schedules line up, let's hunt together again."
Cheon Seo-yoon proposed it like a declaration and held out her hand.
But why would I meet you again.
To create an escape route, I recited in a deliberately serious tone.
"It won't be easy to meet again. I don't have much time left now."
"Ah......."
I had expressed being busy in a roundabout way, and fortunately it seemed to have gotten through.
Cheon Seo-yoon nodded slightly, then for some reason looked at me with somewhat sad eyes and said.
"......I'll send messages sometimes."