Chapter 41 — Oppa, Look Forward to Your Gift.
Chapter 41 — Oppa, Look Forward to Your Gift.
Translation: GodTL
The night before Min-jun received his mother's call.
"Did Min-jun maybe forget to call me?"
Yu-na, taking a short break in the store's lounge, fiddled with her phone.
She'd clearly given him her business card before parting, saying they should stay in touch, yet several days had passed without any contact from Min-jun.
Given how long they'd known each other, it would've been natural for him to reach out at least once—if only out of nostalgia and surprise at their chance reunion.
To her mind, there were only two possible reasons for his silence.
Either he'd lost her card and couldn't contact her, or... his girlfriend had forbidden him from calling.
Yu-na judged the latter to be far more likely.
'Honestly, what a rigid guy.'
Having spent nearly half her life in the United States, this American mindset of hers couldn't comprehend it.
In the U.S., it was common for men with girlfriends to hang out with other women, and vice versa—nothing strange about it.
'All I wanted was to stay friends.'
Was that too much to ask?
This line of thinking would undoubtedly make more Confucian-minded people click their tongues, muttering about demons in her head.
To soothe her frustration, Yu-na scrolled through her phone gallery, looking at childhood photos with Min-jun.
Pictures from their time as child models together, all the way up to that photo of her kissing him.
'This is too much.'
After all the hints she'd dropped, he still never noticed her feelings.
Yu-na thought Min-jun was particularly dense in that regard.
Gazing at the old photos with a complicated expression, she sank back into thought.
If only she hadn't emigrated—perhaps she, not Sia, would be by Min-jun's side right now.
'There must be some way.'
After finally reconnecting after all these years, she couldn't just let go.
Mid-contemplation, Yu-na suddenly remembered her mother.
Hadn't she said she'd be arriving in Korea the day after tomorrow? Staying for a month or two—partly to visit her daughter, partly to cure her homesickness.
'Mom adored Min-jun too.'
Though it was over twenty years ago, this memory remained crystal clear.
Her mother had once told Min-jun, "I'd love to have you as a son-in-law."
Of course it was a joke, but it showed how fond her mother was of him.
Moreover, they'd often taken turns babysitting each other's children whenever circumstances demanded, so her mother would undoubtedly be curious about how Min-jun had turned out.
'...Not bad, right?'
Even by her standards, this was a pretty solid plan.
Having roughly organized her thoughts, she ran a mental simulation.
'Hang on, Min-jun.'
With the plan formed, Yu-na immediately called her mother.
"Available times... Hmm. Mom, I've got something to handle—I'll call you back soon."
After hastily ending the call, I urgently checked Sia's expression.
Since I hadn't put my mother on speakerphone, no ordinary human could've possibly heard the conversation—though any pure admiration like "Dragons really are different" had to be set aside for now.
What mattered was that Sia had clearly heard every word.
[Oppa.]
An icy voice, and a gaze so cold it sent chills down my spine just meeting it.
This was an unfamiliar side of Sia I rarely saw.
When was the last time she'd reacted like this?
Right.
Shortly after we reunited, when she'd learned some crazy woman tried to get my number.
That was exactly how Sia had looked then.
That same voice, that same frigid stare.
Which meant—
This was undeniably an emergency.
[Mom, that woman, you, together, dinner, invited?]
Sia spoke slowly, enunciating each word with unnatural precision.
Her unusually stiff tone made my entire body break out in goosebumps.
"...Yeah."
No point lying when she'd already heard everything.
[So you're, going?]
...What an impossible question to answer.
The best approach seemed to be reassuring Sia—promising that while the dinner would happen, I'd absolutely cut off contact with Yu-na afterward.
But that was merely the next-best option, far from ideal.
Whether Sia would accept that was anyone's guess.
Even if she could trust me, she'd never trust Yu-na noona.
Haah... What the hell should I do?
With a "might as well get it over with" mentality, I decided to lay everything out honestly.
"Honestly, I don't really want to go because it feels... off. But my mom seems really insistent on meeting her together."
Along with that, I briefly mentioned how Yu-na noona's mother had looked after me when I was young.
"Personally, I don't want to go either. So I'll try my best to convince her not to make me... But even if I have to go, I'll make sure nothing you're worried about happens."
I spoke as carefully as possible, watching Sia's reaction the entire time.
Her expression hadn't darkened further, but since it wasn't the answer she wanted, she just pressed her lips together and stared at me.
That's even scarier.
Maybe I should just tell my mom that Hunter work's been too busy lately and find some excuse not to go...
The moment that thought crossed my mind—
Breaking the terrifying, spine-chilling silence, Sia finally spoke.
[I guess... there's no seat for me there, huh.]
"Uh... Yeah. If I could take you, I would."
Another long silence followed, and then, as if steeling herself, Sia spoke again.
[...Fine. Just go.]
"Seriously?"
That was unexpected.
But when I looked closer, her lips were trembling slightly.
"...Actually, maybe I shouldn't go."
[No. Just... go. I can't let my issues cause trouble between you and your mom. Not when it's their first meeting in twenty years.]
This time, not just her lips—her voice was shaking too.
[So... it's fine. Really. I'll go finish what I was doing. Get some rest.]
Before I could say anything else, she hung up.
She said she was fine, but Sia looked worse than ever.
I considered calling her back immediately, but...
Maybe it's better to give her space to sort through her thoughts.
"Haah..."
I let out a frustrated sigh.
Something about this whole thing felt wrong—like that noona definitely had some ulterior motive.
Anyway.
Lost in thought, I finished the porridge Sia had made for me and was just putting the bowl away when Rokan showed up.
"How's your condition?"
Rokan sat on the edge of the bed, studying me.
"A little tired and my body feels heavy, but otherwise, nothing major."
"Still, don't even think about pushing yourself."
Not like I could do much even if I wanted to—I didn't even have my sword.
Speaking of which... what's the status on the Dragon Bone Sword I left with him?
"Ah, Lord Rokan. I don't mean to rush you, but... any updates on the sword?"
"Ah, the sword. I'll do my best, but it won't be the same as before."
He reached into the air and pulled out the broken Dragon Bone Sword I'd handed him yesterday, placing it in front of me.
It was still in the exact same condition as when I'd left it.
"I've seen many Dragon Bone Swords in my time, but I've never seen one this badly damaged."
"Never?"
"Never."
According to Rokan, Dragon Bone Swords were far more durable than I realized—even if Dragons tried to break one, it wouldn't be this easy.
And judging by his added comment that "what you see isn't everything," the damage was clearly worse than it looked.
"Could it be... because I clashed with that emperor's sword?"
"I can't say it had no effect, but that wasn't the direct cause. My guess? The sword was pushed beyond its limits—that's the real reason."
"Beyond its limits?"
"Dragon Words."
Seeing my confusion, Rokan elaborated.
To summarize:
When I was trapped in that space, I unconsciously wrenched every last drop of power from the sword to invoke the Dragon Words. That let me temporarily push the Dragon's power within it to its absolute limit—
But the backlash from that is what wrecked the sword like this.
"Think of it like how you ended up half-dead after wielding that power."
It wasn't definitive yet, but Rokan was fairly certain his theory was correct.
It would also explain why I was unconscious for three days and still hadn't fully recovered—my body simply wasn't ready to handle Dragon Words.
"So... you're saying all the conditions just happened to align perfectly, and that's the only reason I could use Dragon Words at all?"
"That's correct. And on top of that, the environmental conditions likely played a significant role as well."
Hearing it laid out like this made me inexplicably sullen.
So the day I could wield Dragon Words completely on my own, without external factors, was still far off.
"Still, you did well. Regardless of the process, the fact that you managed to use Dragon Words even once holds meaning in itself."
And beyond that, he said he was simply grateful that I had returned alive.
"Now that I think to mention it—when we found out you were trapped in the Gate, Shasha fainted on the spot."
"...Ah."
...She fainted?
The image formed in my mind, and a dull ache spread through my chest.
If I had been gone for much longer—or never returned at all—Sia would have probably...
...I don't even want to imagine it.
Guilt welled up in me, both toward Sia and, for some reason, Rokan as well.
But as I silently dwelled on what Sia must have felt during that time—
Rokan wrapped me in a warm embrace.
"If you hadn't fought desperately and given up instead, Shasha would have felt like she lost the world. In that sense, thank you. And I'm proud of you."
Gently patting my back, Rokan then returned the broken sword to the Subspace.
"I'm thinking of visiting that place you mentioned soon."
"But that dungeon is probably owned by the guild..."
The words They won't just let you in rose to the tip of my tongue, but I quickly realized how pointless that worry was.
What couldn't a Dragon of Rokan's caliber do?
"...Never mind. That was a stupid thing to say."
"At any rate, going there might help me find another clue to unlocking your power."
After saying that, Rokan left a potion by my bedside, just like yesterday, and excused himself for a while.
Left alone, I downed the potion in one go and stared at the large, darkened screen—
The same screen where Sia and I had been video-calling for hours before Rokan arrived.
...Is Sia okay?
I hoped she was, but right now, she was probably deeply unsettled.
I felt terrible for making her feel this way.
And that guilt soon twisted into resentment toward Yu-na noona.
This noona, seriously.
If I didn't reach out, she should've just assumed I wasn't interested.
Why did she have to escalate things like this?
The moment the call with Min-jun ended—
Sia stared blankly at the darkened screen, her eyes unfocused.
That woman definitely planned this.
After Min-jun didn't contact her despite receiving her number, she must have orchestrated this to force an encounter.
She created a situation where Min-jun had to meet her again, then used it as an opportunity to subtly close the distance between them.
Her assumption was almost certainly correct.
She got me good.
If she told him not to meet her in this situation, she'd just look like she was throwing a tantrum.
That's why it was so infuriating.
She could feel it so vividly—how Min-jun was trying his best not to make her anxious, and how that woman was desperately scheming to create a connection between them.
It wasn't that she didn't trust Min-jun.
But she had no idea what that woman might try next.
How can I make sure she never gets close to him again?
Consumed by unease, her composure began to fray.
To steady herself, she took a deep breath and picked up the Dragon bone she had been refining for Min-jun's sword, carving into it with even greater precision.
For now, I'll trust Min-jun.
And once I find out exactly how that Yu-na woman clung to him during their meeting, I'll come up with an even more detailed countermeasure.
Overthinking it wouldn't change anything right now.
So for the moment, she would focus solely on forging the sword.
Her hands moved swiftly, shaping the bone.
Sia began envisioning the sword's design.
Since it would be the only one of its kind in the world, shouldn't its design be just as special?
What should I make stand out?
Should she engrave Min-jun's initials into the blade?
No.
Rather than just his initials, why not include her own name as the creator as well?
Wasn't it common for legendary swords to bear the name of their maker?
Or... perhaps she could carve both her and Min-jun's likenesses into the hilt.
People might think it was a joke, but she was dead serious.
One way or another, she wanted to scream to the world that she and Min-jun were lovers.
Oppa will love it, right?
Humming to herself, she resumed shaping the bone.
In more ways than one, this would be an unforgettable gift—for both her and Min-jun.