Chapter 278
Chapter 278
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 278
Chapter Title: 89. Partner (6)
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“……”
Winter thought.
That kid looks really happy.
“……”
It was about half a day earlier.
Summer came out of the water in a wrecked state.
Ji-tae picked up Summer and went into the tent, closing the door behind him as he told her, “Play by yourself for a bit.”
Soon after, an energy Winter found deeply unpleasant seeped out from inside the tent. It was the energy of the Red clan.
This was odd.
Summer's energy had never been this intense before.
So what was this energy...?
Anyway, she was good at playing alone. Winter sat by the warm waterside, humming a little tune with her eyes closed.
Looking back, memories from a very distant past came vividly to mind.
The moment she first hatched from her egg. The noisy voices surrounding her. The hands passing her around like an object.
And when she opened her eyes. The very first thing she saw.
A person's eyes...
The memories from that time returned vividly—not just the events, but the emotions and sensations too. By dwelling on them, Winter could pass the time quite enjoyably all by herself.
Very occasionally.
Winter wished she could stay in that daydream forever.
Meanwhile, a good deal of time had passed.
The tent flap opened. Summer stepped out, looking somehow pained. Her body was covered in wounds that hadn't fully healed.
Why had she gotten hurt like that this time?
Last time, she'd said she'd broken her leg bumping into something. This time, it looked like she'd been in a car accident.
Summer began meditating in a corner of the rocky reef.
...
That evening, after finishing her meditation, Summer became incredibly rowdy.
‘Hey. I got fucking strong for real.’
‘Soon I'll even beat up Ji-tae.’
‘What? Beat up Ji-tae? Oh my god. Yoo Yeoreum. Just how limitless is she...’
Winter frowned.
Definitely a car accident.
She must have smashed her head right into something.
‘Winter. What should I do?’
‘Answer me. Huh? What about your big sis now?’
‘I don't think I'll lose to anyone! Hahaha!’
Winter fled. Summer gave chase.
She pursued relentlessly, grabbed Winter, and launched into a sermon about just how strong she was. Winter finally couldn't take it and plugged her ears, but Summer's voice boomed like thunder, piercing straight through her palms. Kaboom!Rumble! ‘...Ugh.’
‘Don't mess around. Get ready to go deeper tomorrow ahead of time. Time's short.’
‘Yes, teacher♥’
Summer finally calmed down.
After that, Ji-tae and Summer talked a lot until evening.
It was mostly along these lines.
‘We have to go together.’
‘I told you it's fine? I can handle it alone!’
‘It's dangerous. Summer. I'm serious this time.’
‘I've always been serious.’
‘Aren't you scared? You felt it too—what's deeper than what you saw.’
‘Yeah. But listen. If I go alone, you'll just let me die?’
‘No.’
‘Then I won't die. I'll succeed and come back.’
She's always so full of confidence...
Winter found that strange. Every time Summer dove down and resurfaced, her condition was awful. The injuries were always severe. Winter recalled her pained expression. The way she'd vomited blood while gasping for air. Her pale face, as if utterly defeated by something. The way she'd dragged her legs, crawling along.
And yet, after a little while, Summer would laugh like nothing had happened.
Winter was amazed.
How could she brim with confidence after going through that?
How could she laugh?
Wasn't it scary?
...Maybe because she hit her head?
If it were me, I'd be terrified for a whole month...
The day seemed to wrap up like that.
Then, in the middle of the night, Winter happened to open her eyes to a strange sound.
Weird breathing came from outside the tent. Along with a gurgling sound, like something caught in her throat.
When she sat up, the tent flap was half-open.
Winter cracked open one eye and peered outside.
There was Summer. Facing the sea.
Summer was crying.
...Huh?
...Why is she crying?
‘??’
Just as curious Winter started to slip outside, something grabbed her body and pulled her back. Cradled in someone's arms, she turned her head.
Ji-tae shook his head at the child. It seemed to mean don't go.
Winter had no idea why he was stopping her. But she nodded quietly anyway.
It felt strange.
That night, sleep evaded her more than usual.
...
The next morning.
Surprisingly, Summer looked perfectly fine as she ate breakfast.
Her wounds were still there, and her stamina hadn't fully recovered. So while Ji-tae played with Winter, Summer hunkered down in a corner of the tent to build up her strength.
And only as evening fell did she prepare to dive.
‘Yeoreum water baby, dive prep! Skipping entry stretches!’
‘Gonna become a Blue Dragon soon!’
‘Shh! That's way too much, tuna!’
‘Yeoreum's just mackerel!’
‘Anyway, diving in!’
Summer shouted loudly as she embarked on her third dive.
...
And a few hours later, around dawn.
Space ripped open.
The Red Dragon hatchling revealed itself.
An 8-meter-class beast flapping its wings in the sky. The hatchling dragon's majesty shook the entire atmosphere of this vast sub-space.
The kind of pressure that would cause mass fish die-offs in any ordinary sea.
A presence that shoved the world aside, proclaiming I exist here.
But the Red Dragon hatchling couldn't stay airborne for long.
Unbelievable for its massive size, it shook wildly in every direction—like a fly that had inhaled insecticide. It wobbled and flapped erratically before finally plummeting to the ground. Even after crashing, it thrashed its wings in agony. It looked like it was in terrible pain.
Startled, Winter turned to Ji-tae.
‘Want to wait inside the tent for a bit?’
The sea was serene. True to its name.
Summer was quiet.
Ji-tae said nothing.
Sitting by the shore, she had her back to him.
The silence between them stretched on.
Head bowed, Summer gazed down at the sea.
It was so still that even the faint sound of her lips parting reached the shore. And his ears.
Summer spat the words out like she pitied herself.
“I failed.”
Ji-tae didn't respond.
He and Winter were the only ones who'd seen what just happened. He'd made sure Summer's form wasn't visible from outside.
“...Surprised, huh? Popping out like that.”
“Wasn't surprised.”
“Yeah? Well, figures. First time seeing my dragon form. What'd you think? Pretty?”
“No.”
“Can't even say it was pretty as a white lie?”
“No.”
“……”
Summer picked up a pebble.
She tossed it into the water.
Splash—
Ripples spread across the tranquil sea.
“Why'd you come out.”
“Why? No big deal. Just got tired on the way down. Tried to push through, but it wasn't easy.”
“How far down did you go.”
“Just about right. Ah, naturally a little past 500 meters.”
“Heal up and go again.”
“No need.”
“What?”
“I'm done now.”
Ji-tae's brow furrowed.
Summer picked up another pebble and held it in her hand. Then she started tossing it up and catching it.
The motion looked terribly distracted.
“Summer.”
“Ah, honestly, this is plenty already.”
“You can't quit here.”
“Why not? I went down to 500 meters, didn't I? Gained a ton of mana. About 1.8 times more than when we started. That's enough.”
“It's not. You're still short. I didn't set up this training just to fill you up with that much.”
The pebble...
Stopped in Summer's hand, halting its erratic flight.
“What'd you set up, then?”
“Huh?”
“That damn flag you could barely even see—you shoved it down into the water?”
“No. I haven't finished prepping...”
“I just don't wanna do it anymore.”
Summer's voice rose a notch.
He couldn't see her face. So her expression was hidden.
“This is fine. It was training to make me stronger anyway, right? I'm strong enough now.”
“Summer.”
“What. I worked pretty damn hard. Yeah, I tried at 200 meters, but 500? That was the hardest I've ever pushed myself.”
“……”
“I did enough. This much is plenty. How am I supposed to try even harder? You can quit stuff midway when you feel like it.”
“Summer. Calm down first.”
“I'm not worked up. Just stating facts.”
“Yoo Yeoreum.”
Ji-tae's voice rang out sternly.
Startled, Summer's words cut off abruptly.
Her hand grew distracted again. The pebble bounced into the air once more.
“Still. I'm serious. I did enough. I really think it's time to rest...”
“……”
“At least I didn't cause trouble. I swam up to the 200-meter mark, then teleported the rest.”
Summer stood.
“I'm heading out. You two can stick around and play more. Won't affect that. That thing under the sea... that bastard won't even dream I was there.”
He let out a sigh and spoke.
“Yeah. You did well. I know you've been working hard all this time. But Summer. You have to go back.”
“Don't wanna.”
“You have to.”
“Don't wanna.”
“This isn't something you can just say no to. You must.”
“Don't wanna. Don't wanna. I said I don't. I'm quitting.”
“Says who.”
“I decided. Why? Can't I even decide for myself?”
Summer's voice began to rise in agitation.
“I don't wanna. I can not wanna! It can hurt when I'm hurt! I can hate the feeling of blood flowing! My ears going deaf can frustrate me! My eyes going blind can piss me off! That's how it was for me. For me!”
“Yoo Yeoreum.”
“Don't talk. I'm leaving!”
“You can't. If you bail now, you won't ever be able to later. You need to learn that failure builds momentum. I told you before, didn't I? You have to succeed this time.”
“No? I don't wanna.”
“You can do it. You've done it before. Why avoid what you know you can handle.”
“You think I don't wanna? I can't—!!”
It was a scream that tore at her throat, laced with sobs.
“I can't! I absolutely can't anymore......!”
The scream faded into silence.
Summer's breaths came ragged. The ends of her words began to tremble.
Soon, sobs welled up from her chest. Hic, hic... They couldn't pass her throat and just circled inside.
“Wh-why are you doing this to me? You already know.... Y-you know what I wanna say, right...? You've tried it.... You know how hard it is...”
“……”
“D-do you really have to hear me like this, all ugly? D-does that make you feel better...?”
With those words, Summer raised a hand to wipe at her eyes. Tears already streaked down, beading on her chin.
Summer began to cry. Just like that night.
There was only one reason.
“I'm... scared......”
Summer curled up and sank to the ground. Even suppressing the sobs with her throat had reached its limit. She cried out loud.
“It's too scary.... I can't do it anymore......”
The grief beaded up, too heavy to hold, streaming down endlessly.
“The sensation of my flesh tearing hurts too much...”
“Bones breaking and grinding out of place is too horrifying...”
“When I bleed, it feels like my energy's being sucked away—it's torture.... Like dying...”
“Going down...? It's dark. Can't see ahead, surroundings closing in. Like being locked in a tiny room.... Chest gets so tight.... It was scary......”
“Go deeper and it quiets down.... No sounds at all. Lose all sense of direction.... Feels like I'm turning stupid.... Scary......”
“Even deeper, time feels wrong.... Sensations go haywire. Can't tell right from wrong.... I felt like I was dying down there for almost a month.... Too scary......”
“Weird things attack me. Biting. Clawing. Stabbing. Why do I have to get hurt by crap like that...?”
“Heart crushed, solar plexus squeezing like crazy. Hold it back by force, but ten minutes later it hits again.... I just wanna breathe.... Why do I have to huddle up like a beggar, holding my breath...?”
“Why only me...?”
All the emotions she'd bottled up, crouched over.
So long suppressed—they finally burst forth.
“What did I do so wrong...?”
Summer wanted to scream it over and over.
But she held back. Afraid it'd make her seem childish.
She couldn't hold it anymore.
“Didn't... try hard enough...?”
“I tried so hard...”
“I really, really tried so hard...”
She couldn't contain the surging emotions.
So the child wept bitterly.
“So please... let me stop now...”
“Please......”