Power for Daily Life
I crossed the yard and headed toward the back mountain.
My steps were light, but my senses were already sweeping the entire mountain.
Cheok Jun-gyeong's insight went beyond simple visual information, detecting the aura of nature and the flow of life as well.
The faint energy emitted by the grass and trees, the aura of the underground water veins flowing beneath, and... there it was.
In the northeast direction, along the valley a bit uphill on a sunny slope.
There, an unusually fresh and sweet aura was felt.
It was as if it were waving its hand saying, "I'm here."
Without hesitation, I moved in that direction.
For an ordinary person, it would be a remote place that would take at least half a day to find, but for me, it was as if a bright signpost was visible.
Before long, as I had expected, a cluster of tempting red strawberries unfolded before my eyes.
Strawberries sparkling like gems under the sunlight.
I picked one and put it in my mouth; the sweet-sour juice spread abundantly in my mouth.
How happy Seo-ah would be if she saw this.
I started putting the skillfully but carefully picked ripe strawberries into the small basket I had prepared.
Picking strawberries with this power.
A snort of laughter came out, but the feeling wasn't bad.
On the contrary, it was a bit enjoyable.
The path down the mountain with the basket full.
At the village entrance, I encountered Kim Young-oppa, who, as expected since I had lived in this village, we knew each other.
He was fidgeting with his empty wrist, unable to stand still.
"Grandpa, what's the matter?"
I asked as gently as possible, though it might still have sounded blunt.
Kim Young-oppa looked at me and made a big frown.
"Aigo, Taejun-ah. Big trouble, big trouble. Well, I went to the town and lost the... what was it, the smartwatch or something my son gave me!"
It seemed he was referring to the smartwatch.
When I heard the lost item, he said it was lost near the town bus stop.
But because he was so distracted, he couldn't remember exactly where he dropped it.
Smartwatch...
I closed my eyes for a moment and focused Cheok Jun-gyeong's senses.
I tracked the faint residual energy of the smartwatch Kim Young-oppa usually carried.
Finding the trace of a specific item amidst the complex town aura wasn't easy, but it wasn't impossible.
After a while, I opened my eyes.
"Grandpa, don't worry. I'll find it."
"No, how can you...?"
Kim Young-oppa looked surprised, but I didn't explain further and immediately headed towards the town.
Following the path connected by the residual energy, I carefully sensed all the auras around me.
Traces of aura left by numerous people and things.
Among them, I captured the faint aura of a smartwatch similar to Kim Young-oppa's, left relatively recently.
Next to the bus stop, in the corner of the flowerbed, inside the bushes.
I pushed through the bushes and reached out to pick up the smartwatch slightly covered in dirt.
Fortunately, it didn't seem broken or damaged anywhere.
I returned the smartwatch to Kim Young-oppa.
"Here it is, Grandpa."
Kim Young-oppa's eyes widened.
"No, how did you find this so quickly...! Aigo, Taejun-ah really... amazing, amazing!"
Kim Young-oppa kept saying thank you while exclaiming in admiration, and after him, I headed back home.
Finding the smartwatch was quite useful.
As I almost reached home, I stopped by the village's small store for a moment to buy dinner.
What should I buy?
What was left in the fridge?
While thinking for a moment, I suddenly focused on Seo-ah's aura felt inside the house.
Her subtle flow of thoughts, the emotions of today, and... what she was unconsciously desiring right now.
...Warm and spicy kimchi jjigae.
As if I had read her heart, that menu came to mind clearly.
Without hesitation, I bought one pack of tofu, a bit of pork, and fresh kimchi.
Thinking of Seo-ah's happy face wasn't bad.
I entered the yard holding the strawberry basket and shopping bag.
Seo-ah, who was sitting at the end of the floor quietly reading a book, looked up at me.
Her eyes widened slightly, then she smiled brightly upon seeing the strawberry basket I was holding.
In that smile, some muscle in my face that had hardened for 10 years moved very subtly.
Without realizing, the corners of my mouth lifted.
It wasn't a forced expression, but a natural reaction.
It was new to realize that such a feeling still remained with me.
I stepped onto the floor where Seo-ah was sitting, carrying the shopping bag and strawberry basket.
Creak, the old wooden floor made a small sound.
Seo-ah quietly closed the book she was reading and placed it beside her, slightly turning her body towards me.
A small movement as if she was waiting or had something to say.
"You picked a lot."
Her gaze lingered on the basket of red ripe strawberries.
Her voice was calm as usual, but a small joy was felt in it.
"I thought you'd like it."
I answered nonchalantly and placed the basket and bag on the floor.
The unique sweet-sour aroma of strawberries spread.
In the shopping bag, the smell of the tofu, pork, and kimchi I just bought mixed, announcing today's dinner menu.
The kimchi jjigae she would like.
What expression would she make seeing this.
Seo-ah carefully picked one strawberry from the basket and held it up to the sunlight.
The red flesh shining transparently like a gem.
Her smile deepened a bit.
"Really pretty... I remember when I was little, going to the mountain with Dad and picking them."
Her voice as if recalling a distant memory.
I silently looked at her.
10 years ago, if I hadn't gone into the gate, could we have accumulated such small memories together?
Perhaps with my father and mother, our family might have gone up the mountain to pick strawberries.
But the past is just the past.
Before irreversible time, it's pointless thoughts.
What matters now is Seo-ah in front of me.
"Try it."
As I said shortly, Seo-ah looked at me surprised, then nodded slightly and put the strawberry in her mouth.
Her small lips smacking and eyes slightly closing in satisfaction.
That sight somehow... was comforting.
Emotions that I had forgotten or tried to ignore during 10 years of wandering in hellish battlefields slowly rising.
"It's delicious. Really sweet."
Upon her praise, I just shrugged my shoulders.
Since I picked only the best ripe strawberries with Cheok Jun-gyeong's power, it couldn't be bad.
Using great ability for such trivial things is funny, but if I can see that small smile of hers, it's not a bad deal.
"Dinner... I'm going to cook kimchi jjigae."
As I poked the shopping bag, Seo-ah's eyes widened.
"Eh? I wanted to eat spicy kimchi jjigae today."
An expression mixed with surprise and joy.
I slightly avoided her gaze instead of answering.
I couldn't say 'I read your aura'.
She would think it's just coincidence.
"Sometimes I feel like that."
I muttered and leaned against the pillar.
The sunlight was warm, the wind gentle.
Seo-ah picked another strawberry and ate it quietly smiling, and I looked at her.
Perhaps, maybe it's possible that a truly ordinary life exists.
For a moment, the thought passed: instead of the battlefield's screams and blood, this afternoon filled with Seo-ah's laughter and the sweet aroma of strawberries.
Yes, this was the life I wanted.
But peace is always short, and the world's principle is that unwelcome guests come.
As if mocking my such sentiment, a sharp alarm sound tore through the quiet afternoon of the rural village.
Beep beep—! Beep beep—!
D-Rank Gate Occurred! D-Rank Gate Occurred! Near the fields west of the village! Repeat! A D-Rank Gate has occurred near the fields west of the village! Please have all residents evacuate to a safe place immediately!
Suddenly, all nerves in my body stood on end.
A conditioned reflex ingrained in my body for 10 years.
A cold killing intent and tension rose along my spine.
But that was momentary; upon realizing the alert said 'D-Rank Gate', all tension in my body relaxed and deep irritation surged.
Ah... noisy.
I pressed my furrowed brows with my hand.
The moment of peaceful afternoon sleep I found by chance, the lazy sentiments just beginning to bloom were shattered.
Wanting to live quietly, why doesn't the world leave me alone.
Annoying.
"Seo-ah...!"
From beside, Seo-ah's anxious voice came.
Looking back, Seo-ah had a pale face, staring out the window towards the west of the village.
Fear was in her pupils.
10 years ago, this village also suffered great damage from the gate incident.
The horrific memories of that time must have resurfaced.
I followed her gaze out the window.
No need to look.
Cheok Jun-gyeong's senses were already vividly conveying the commotion happening at the west fields of the village.
A black crack the size of a palm, the gate was open.
From its size or the mana leaking out, it was a lower-tier D-rank among D-ranks.
Truly insignificant.
Inside, about 20 blue-skinned goblins were crawling out laboriously, messing up the cultivated fields and making squeaking sounds.
What they held were rusty short swords or crude clubs.
The villagers' screams and urgent shouts reached here.
Some young men held rusty iron pipes or farm tools and clumsily confronted the goblins, but for untrained civilians, even a D-rank monster is a threatening existence.
They would get injured easily.
"It's okay, Taejun? A gate... isn't it dangerous?"