Chapter 190: Eunnamu's Plan
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 190: Eunnamu's Plan
“It’s been a while, Catherine.”
“Uh, ah.”
Her lips parted, but no sound came out. Her face, deathly pale, quickly averted its gaze from mine.
A bit harsh, considering I’d gone out of my way to help her.
But I knew she was afraid of me, so it was nothing new.
Aside from that, however, she looked to be in terrible shape.
The mental attack from the Lurker at the Boundary was focused on her.
“Ha-chan-oppa!”
Just then, another voice rang out.
It was Ji-eun, whose hair and eyes were now tinged gold thanks to Geumjok. She beamed at the sight of me.
The problem was, she wasn't alone.
A crowd of hunters and returnees, including Seo-ho, Jo Si-a, and Yu U-jeong, moved with her.
And from the looks of it, none of them were suffering from the Lurker’s mental assault.
I see.
Ji-eun’s ability is empathy.
Since she can fundamentally share her own mental world, her presence allowed them to counter the Lurker’s psychic attacks.
Thanks to her, it was as if Ji-eun were leading an army.
A massive army composed of high-ranking American hunters and returnees, no less.
Naturally, a group of that size would have been a prime target for dimensional entities; they all showed signs of having fought intense battles.
But instead of exhaustion, their eyes held a greater sense of camaraderie.
In a crisis, it’s only natural to grow close to the people by your side.
That’s how camaraderie is born, after all.
Hunters and returnees don't usually get along, but…
In this moment, they were comrades who had to protect each other.
Facing a common enemy, their eyes were filled with trust for one another.
“Let’s all just hang in there a little longer.”
“Man, we would’ve been in deep trouble without you, Ji-eun.”
“Injured to the center! I'll show you what an S-rank healer can do.”
The United States is one of the nations with the largest hunter population.
This incident would undoubtedly shake the country to its core, but it wouldn't be enough to destroy the American hunter market.
Besides, the hunters gathered around Ji-eun right now included a considerable number of S-rank hunters from Alterz.
This…
After this is all over, the landscape of the market might change.
A new landscape of coexistence between hunters and returnees.
And at the center of it all was Ji-eun.
Waving with a bright smile, she looked to anyone like a person helping others out of pure goodwill.
Naturally, the hunters and returnees all felt that goodwill just as keenly.
That was why those prideful individuals were joining forces, if only for the sake of her kindness.
Mental communion.
Through one girl's empathy, the army of hunters and returnees now shared a single, unified thought: to protect each other and overcome this situation.
And I could feel that this resolve would not fade from their hearts, even after this crisis ended.
“Baeksan.”
As I called his name, Baeksan, who had been watching the scene, slowly swept his bangs back.
“I told you, didn’t I? That kid will become one of the puzzle pieces that gather around you.”
In that moment, I felt like I finally understood what he meant.
Just then, Ji-eun reached us.
A few of the returnees and Alterz members seemed to recognize me, their gazes lingering for a moment.
Seeing these world-renowned figures react like that made me realize just how famous I’d become among them.
An SS-rank hunter who’s also dating the chairperson of the World Returnee Association.
I guess it’s impossible not to be famous, even if I didn't want to be.
I gave a wry smile and greeted Ji-eun first.
“Ji-eun, welcome.”
“Heehee, Ha-chan-oppa, I fought really hard!”
And she really had.
“Ha-chan, my head hurts. Hold me.”
Just then, Yu U-jeong sidled up to me.
I easily sidestepped her attempt at an embrace and clicked my tongue.
“Stop lying. You were right next to Ji-eun.”
“Hmph, so mean. You only dote on Ji-eun. Aren’t I on your hunter team too?”
“Just try not to be a burden to her.”
Ignoring her pouting, I watched as Ji-eun approached Si-ho.
“Si-ho, I’ll help you.”
“Okay, thank you.”
Now that’s a real team.
I smiled as I watched Ji-eun use her empathy to shield Si-ho’s mind.
Then, I glanced at Catherine and gestured for her to come over.
“Catherine, you go get some help too.”
“Huh? Y-Yes, sir.”
Catherine replied with a stiff expression, then scurried past me, looking timid in a way that didn't suit her large frame.
Leaving them to it, I turned to call for Eunnamu again.
“Eun…”
Now that the most urgent fire was out, it was time to deal with the Lurker at the Boundary.
But I didn’t need to call her.
Because from the very beginning, she had been staring only at me.
As if her eyes were meant to hold nothing but my image.
Seeing her gaze fixed on me, I smoothed my hair back.
“Eunnamu.”
“Yes.”
At my call, a radiant smile bloomed on Eunnamu’s face.
When I called his name,
He came to me and
Became a flower.
For some reason, the sight reminded me of Kim Chun-soo's poem "Flower," and I gave a wry smile before asking her, “What do we do next?”
At my question, she finally looked up at the sky.
“We need to draw its attention.”
“Draw its attention? You don’t mean…”
Of course, she was pointing to the Lurker at the Boundary.
Even now, it was looking down from the sky, exerting its mental influence on the hunters and returnees.
It was so powerful that Si-ho had been forced to warp space just to avoid its gaze.
If Ji-eun hadn’t been here, there would have been a staggering number of casualties.
“Domi.”
Just then, I heard a voice I wasn’t quite used to.
I turned to see a figure with such an imposing presence that it made me flinch for a moment.
Standing there, dressed in an astrologer-like outfit of mixed blue, white, and black, was none other than Juksim.
It had been a while since I’d seen her adult form, and I was still getting used to it.
My image of Juksim was of a small, slight girl in a stretched-out, boxy t-shirt.
“Should I help?” she asked, pointing to the sky.
I looked at her, wondering if it was even possible, and saw that a staff had appeared in her hand.
“We’re both from the Divine Realm,” she said, as if it were nothing difficult.
“But it won’t be the only one drawn here.”
She seemed to be referring to other dimensional entities from the Divine Realm.
Hearing that, I turned back to Ji-eun.
Our eyes met, and she seemed to grasp the situation, nodding her head.
“I’ll go ask everyone.”
To face a multitude of dimensional entities, the help of the other returnees and hunters was essential.
She agreed to my unspoken request and quickly ran off to ask them.
“Domi!”
In that time, Naek, Do Hwa, and Kkotbi appeared.
One by one, people were starting to gather around us.
“Domi-oppa.”
And finally, Ahyu and Hyeok-seo arrived.
Eunhyeon, the Silver Fox, followed behind them, looking around with a hint of disappointment.
“Ahyu, what about Erebos?”
“He got away,” she said with a short, irritated sigh.
“And I got a strange message from the Iron-Blooded Empress.”
“A strange message?”
“She said not to pursue Erebos for now. I have no idea what that’s about.”
Hearing that, I realized something must have happened on Seol-hyang’s end as well.
As I sensed some vast, unknowable current beginning to flow, Ji-eun waved at me.
From her bright expression, it seemed everyone had agreed to cooperate.
Now, everyone was gathered.
“Juksim, thank you. I’m counting on you.”
When I thanked her, Juksim nodded and began to slowly ascend toward the sky.
She floated into the air, rising higher and higher.
All preparations were complete.
I looked back at Eunnamu, and she nodded in return.
BOOM!
It happened in an instant.
High in the sky, Juksim raised her staff.
Starlight began to pool at its tip.
It felt as if the flow of the world was reversing, centered on Juksim.
A galaxy painted itself across the night sky.
As everyone stared, momentarily mesmerized by the sight…
RUMBLE-RUMBLE-RUMBLE!
Through the galaxy, the gaze of the Lurker at the Boundary fixed squarely upon us.
The psychic shock that followed was so intense it nearly shattered the mental communion Ji-eun had established.
The ground cracked as if from an earthquake, and the surrounding buildings trembled violently.
At the same time, black figures began to swarm from the edge of the horizon.
Everyone instantly recognized them as dimensional entities from the Divine Realm.
That many of them had been hiding all across America.
The sight of those disaster-class beings swarming in like a black storm cloud was utterly terrifying.
But the people gathered here had spent their lives fighting that terror.
“Everyone, please!”
At Ji-eun’s cry, the returnees and hunters readied their abilities and weapons.
They were more than familiar with fighting dimensional entities.
“Fire!”
“Unleash everything!”
A barrage of long-range attacks rained down on the approaching swarm.
After the initial volley, the melee-type hunters and returnees charged forward, and all-out war erupted.
But this was merely a prelude.
The real battle was in the sky.
With the Lurker at the Boundary.
As Eunnamu looked up, black magic circles began to form beneath her feet.
One after another, they appeared, layering over each other as the aura emanating from her grew more and more intense.
At the same time, a stream of blood trickled from one of her eyes.
In the blood and in her pupil, the image of a book appeared.
The Necronomicon.
The mythical tome said to have been created by the Evil Gods.
That book was etched into her eye.
Because the power dwelling within it was what sustained her immortality.
Sh-sh-sh-sh-shk—
I could hear the sound of the book’s pages flipping rapidly within Eunnamu’s eye.
I held my breath and watched in silence as the book in her eye came to an abrupt stop on a single page.
The illustration on the page was of a woman in a black veil, embracing a skull.
In that instant, the woman in the image slowly began to raise her head.
“Hhuk.”
A sharp gasp escaped Eunnamu’s lips.
Her body trembled violently, as if she could barely withstand the power flowing from her eye.
“Eunnamu!”
I took a startled step forward, but she raised a hand to stop me.
As if to say she was fine, she looked at me and said, “I’m going to let the Lurker at the Boundary possess me.”
But her next words were anything but fine.
“Originally, my sister Mari was supposed to help with this part, but…”
In that moment, my sister’s name left her lips.
As my eyes widened in shock at the mention of her name, Eunnamu finished her sentence.
“I’m entrusting that role to you, Ha-chan.”
Mari’s role was simple.
To erase the Lurker at the Boundary after it had possessed Eunnamu.
Because her body was from Earth, my power would only erase the Lurker, leaving her unharmed.
But there was one fatal flaw in this plan.
My eyes began to widen even further.
Because I had just realized what she was truly thinking.