Chapter 87
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Ayaka Mom's Secret (3)
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It's dark.
The first sensation I felt upon regaining consciousness.
'Where am I?'
I came to in a hazy state, as if I'd been sleeping underwater in pitch blackness.
To be precise, my mind had returned, but my body wouldn't budge at all.
As if someone were pinning it down.
After a moment, my body, crushed by that unseen force, began to stir. My eyes and ears gradually opened.
"Yeon Seungmun!"
"Waaaaaaaaah!!!"
A deafening roar pierced through my newly opened senses.
'What, what is this?'
Where am I?
I stared blankly at the sea of people cheering like thunder and the figures on the platform ahead.
But that daze didn't last.
"Lee Seung-woo, you okay? Did you eat something bad?"
The crew-cut guy next to me—no, Joo Han-jin, who would later be called the Wild Dog of Yeon Seungmun—spoke up.
"No, it's nothing."
"You're no fun. Come on, at least smile today."
"Got it."
Joo Han-jin patted my shoulder and headed toward the reporters. Watching him go snapped me back to reality.
Ah, right. I remember now.
What time this was.
'After the Second Korean War, the Han-Chinese War, and then...'
It was the day the military junta seized power.
Yeah, in short.
'I've gone back to the first day of his term.'
Not me, exactly.
"The Republic of Korea will become a nation of true equality and unwavering loyalty, without a shred of shame..."
The general named Yeon Seungmun up there.
I thought that to myself while pondering what was to come.
A lot had happened, but the key ones?
Military service points—more precisely, civil service exam bonuses; shutdown of community sites that bred hate; revival of the death penalty; anti-military discrimination laws, and so on.
Even just the big ones I remembered (by my standards), that was the list.
'Quite a few.'
Well, it made sense.
A guy who took power with guns and tanks knew exactly who his base was.
I mulled that over inwardly as I watched President Yeon Seungmun's speech to the end.
Well, not just him—I eyed the others in their seats too...
Most of them were wiping tears, proud that their academy had finally produced three presidents.
No, I knew their real feelings.
It must've felt like recompense for the beggar-like treatment they'd endured.
I might've felt the same back then.
'Not anymore.'
Thinking of the Yeon Seungmun ritual suicide scandal and gate that would erupt later left a bad taste.
Still, though.
'He showed that guns are needed for real equality. A round of applause can't hurt.'
"...Thank you!"
With that, President Yeon Seungmun's speech ended. Then, after that... what did we do?
'My, my vision...'
Suddenly, my mind floated away. Through blurring sight, I saw the crowd.
Most were ecstatic.
They looked at him with eyes full of faith that he'd save the broken Republic of Korea.
To me, he was just...
[So, can you do it or not?]
[Yes, possible.]
[Then handle it.]
A contractor who bought someone off with a nice meal.
I closed my eyes. My mind sank back into that murky underwater haze.
Then, someone grabbed my arm and pulled me up from the depths.
I didn't resist the touch, letting it haul me to the surface.
I came to safely.
"Hah! Hah! Hah!"
"Ta-Takuya?!"
Or more precisely...
"I-I thought you were dead!"
"Wh-what do you mean—ah, the tattoo."
I'd died once and come back.
Staring at the near-vertical cliff inside the cave, I muttered.
"We fell from that height?"
"Yeah. After we fell, I was fine, but blood was coming from your head."
Ayaka Mom explained while staunching my throbbing head with her own clothes. I thought to myself.
Falling from there had taken its toll.
And for good reason.
'The tattoo's fading.'
The subtle heart-shaped tattoo on my arm was vanishing.
In other words, I'd already used up one spare life.
'What a waste.'
If I'd handled it better, I might not have burned a reserve life. Spending it like this stung a bit.
But I decided not to dwell.
No point obsessing over something already used.
Shaking off thoughts of the tattoo, I peered out of the cave.
Shwaaaaa!
A fierce downpour soaked the land outside.
Yes, it was raining hard. Very hard.
"When will the rain stop?"
"Hmm, judging by the rain... probably not anytime soon."
I sighed deeply.
'This is a hassle.'
If we couldn't get home tonight, timid, worrywart Yuka Mom might do something drastic. It irked me.
As I sighed and pondered, Ayaka Mom approached from behind and hugged me.
She whispered in my ear.
"It's okay, Takuya. Everything will be fine..."
She must've thought I was anxious about our situation.
Big mistake.
This didn't faze me at all.
If anything, it felt cozy. Nice, even.
'Compared to when I lived off bugs, this is paradise.'
My sigh was just from dreading Yuka Mom clinging to me later.
If I told her I'd died once, she'd probably follow me to the bathroom.
Thinking that, I looked at Ayaka Mom and said.
"It's not that I'm scared. I'm just worried how Yuka Mom will chew me out when we get back."
"Pfft, true, Yuka is pretty timid."
Luckily, my words eased her tension. She nodded with a smile.
We shared smiles for a moment.
But then, trouble hit.
"Achoo!"
Ayaka Mom's body shivered.
Probably those wet clothes I'd noticed since she woke.
I inwardly kicked myself.
I should've paid attention.
I hurriedly reached into my pocket for supplies.
Or tried to.
'Can I show her the sub-space pouch?'
I hesitated, but since she knew about hypnosis, she'd probably accept this too. I plunged my hand in.
Pulled out charcoal, a torch, and a Korean steamer, then offered her a sleeping bag.
"Wh-what's this?"
"A sleeping bag. Wrap up in it at least."
She looked flustered but nodded.
Wait, if she knows hypnosis, shouldn't she know about this?
The thought crossed my mind, but it wasn't important now.
"Mom, take off your clothes first."
"M-my clothes? Th-that's..."
I told her to strip out of the wet ones.
Wet clothes sap body heat fast.
She knew that and nodded.
"I'll give you something to wear. Just take them off."
"Okay."
She undressed. I handed her a towel first, then reached for spare clothes...
'What? No clothes?'
My sub-space pouch had none.
'Oh, right. I pulled them out to swap last time!'
Yeah, all spares were out for replacement.
In short.
'Uh-oh. Gotta go naked?'
Ayaka Mom would have to.
Not just her—even I, soaked without realizing, would too.
Realizing that, I pondered seriously. Ayaka Mom, seeing me deep in thought without handing over clothes, asked.
"What's wrong?"
"Well..."
I explained roughly. She pondered, then seemed to decide something.
"Then..."
She unzipped the sleeping bag I'd told her to bundle up in and flung the entrance wide.
"It's cold. Let's huddle together."
Her words left me no choice—for body heat preservation, really.
"Sure."
I climbed in.
Nothing beats direct contact for sharing warmth.
Absolutely no ulterior motives.
Anyway, yeah. That's how it was.