Chapter 48 — Oppa, What's This Picture?
Chapter 48 — Oppa, What's This Picture?
Translation: GodTL
"How did you know these accessories were made from my bones?"
It was only because Sia had once carved a sword from her own bones for me that the possibility even crossed my mind.
To be honest, even as I said it, I doubted it could really be true—but unfortunately, my intuition wasn't wrong.
I stared at the silver-white ring on my finger, carved from Sia's bone.
'...Ugh.'
Goosebumps prickled across my entire body.
The sword she'd given me before at least had a hilt, and since I didn't need to carry it around daily, the discomfort had been somewhat bearable. But this time, it was directly touching my skin.
First things first—composure. Keep a straight face.
Suppressing my emotions as much as possible, I turned my gaze toward Sia.
Sia proudly held out her own hand, adorned with a matching ring made from her bone.
"Oppa, since we're at it, why don't we make a few more couple rings?"
"...Huh?"
"We could make enough to wear on all ten fingers and switch them out depending on the day's mood. How about it?"
Sia was grinning innocently, but that only made my skin crawl even more.
Just imagining wearing rings made from Sia's bones on all ten fingers made me—
Ugh.
"...I really appreciate the thought, Sia. But honestly, this one is more than enough."
"Oppa, seriously. Are you saying that because you think it'd be hard for me? It's not hard at all!"
Completely misreading me, Sia gestured for me to hold out my hand, then snapped a photo of our ring-clad hands together with her phone.
Afterward, she gently stroked the ring on my finger.
"And Oppa, try to wear the ring and necklace as much as possible. There's a faint trace of Dragon's power in them, so they might help a little."
Given what they were made of, I had planned to avoid wearing them unless I was meeting Sia—but hearing that, I had no choice but to keep them on.
I desperately wanted to make an excuse—"That might be difficult"—but right now, I had none to give.
All I could do was nod.
"Alright. Thanks."
With complete resignation, I decided to go along with Sia's request.
"Sia, hold on. I need to use the bathroom."
"Okay!"
Taking a moment to steady my rattled nerves over these accessories, I retreated to the bathroom.
In the mirror, the silver-white ring and necklace stood out conspicuously, gleaming under the light.
Would I eventually get used to these, like I did with the Dragon Bone Sword?
Afraid even a sigh might be heard, I couldn't even let out a breath freely.
I lightly patted my cheeks, forcing myself to regain control.
'They're just accessories. Beneficial accessories. The texture might feel unfamiliar now, but I'll get used to it.'
After hyping myself up in front of the mirror, I stepped out of the bathroom.
But just as I thought I'd finally regained my composure—
"Oppa."
Another problem erupted.
Sia held out a photo strip toward me.
It was the four-cut film photo we'd taken as a final memento when we last met Yu-na noona.
At the time, I'd accepted it but left it untouched because I wasn't sure what to do with it.
If it had just been a photo of Yu-na noona and me alone, I probably wouldn't have hesitated to throw it away.
No—I wouldn't have taken a photo with just the two of us in the first place.
But this one also had my mother and Yu-na noona's mother in it, making it awkward to just discard.
'Why did I forget about this?'
I knew there was a chance Sia might come over today.
I'd only thought about how much she wouldn't like seeing it—but I'd completely forgotten to tuck it away somewhere.
"What's this picture?"
One mountain after another.
Under Sia's icy stare, a chill ran down my spine again.
"Uh... that's—"
My mind went blank.
How should I respond to get through this situation smoothly?
Would it be better to be honest again this time?
Or was there a better way to handle this?
The weather was fairly cool, but for some reason, cold sweat trickled down my back.
In the end, after much deliberation, I decided that telling the truth was still the best option.
That noona had asked to take the photo, but given the atmosphere, I couldn't refuse—so I had no choice but to take it.
And since it wasn't just a picture of her, it wasn't like I could just throw it away.
But honesty alone might not be enough.
So, what came next was crucial.
I rummaged through a drawer, pulled out a black marker, and began scribbling over Yu-na noona's face in the photo.
At my sudden action, Sia looked startled at first, but she didn't stop me.
It might have seemed a little strange,
but as far as I was concerned, this was the best solution right now.
The more Yu-na noona's face disappeared under the ink, the more Sia's stiff expression softened into a faint smile.
Once I sensed her anger subsiding, I could finally relax.
After thoroughly blacking out Yu-na noona's face,
I hesitated for a moment, wondering what to do with the photo—then handed it to Sia.
"Honestly, keeping this photo around would just make me uncomfortable, and I probably wouldn't even look at it much anyway. Do you want it, Sia?"
"Hmm... should I?"
Without hesitation, Sia took the photo and slipped it into her pocket.
Only after the whole ordeal was over could I finally let out a sigh of relief.
Maybe it was just my imagination, but ever since reuniting with Yu-na noona, these kinds of incidents seemed to be happening more often.
'This must be my fate.'
It's exhausting. So exhausting.
How did things even end up like this?
Despite these minor(?) incidents, we enjoyed our date—sweeter and longer than usual—and wrapped it up nicely.
Then, the day after our date.
I had a lunch appointment scheduled with Rokan.
Ever since reuniting with his granddaughter in this unfamiliar world, Rokan often called either me or Sia to have lunch together—perhaps because eating alone felt too lonely.
Since there was still some time before the appointment, I decided to kill time by browsing the internet.
Unsurprisingly,
the moment I logged on, the entire web was flooded with articles about yesterday's Gate Break.
'Well, that's to be expected.'
An S-rank—practically Calamity-rank—Gate Break appearing in the heart of Seoul was already headline-worthy.
But the fact that a single person had stopped it without a single casualty? That spoke for itself.
I skimmed through the headlines one by one.
<Who Was the Hunter Who Stopped the Gate Break? Authorities 'Investigating'>
<[VIDEO] Wyvern Slaughter—Has Another Sacred Hunter Emerged in Korea?>
Beyond these, countless other articles were pouring in, each with explosive view counts.
After reading through them, it seemed like things would get really troublesome if it came out that Sia was at the center of it all.
This time, I went on YouTube and played some videos of Sia's battle from yesterday.
Though the footage was limited by the recording equipment, making Sia's figure unclear, the intensity of her fight was still vividly captured.
But as I replayed the clips a few times, a thought suddenly struck me.
If I mastered Dragon Words and freely wielded a Dragon's power... could I ever reach that level of strength?
I couldn't even imagine it.
Me, wielding such overwhelming power.
'But... it's not impossible, right?'
After all, wasn't I steadily growing—even earning recognition from the Dragon Lord himself?
This time, I scrolled through the comments.
Many people were desperate to know Sia's identity.
Some wondered where this divine being had come from, others speculated she might become Korea's next top Hunter, and a few even remarked that despite the poor video quality, her beauty still shone through.
Though it wasn't about me, seeing all this positive attention directed at my girlfriend filled me with a quiet sense of pride throughout my reading.
It almost felt like I was the one being praised.
I wondered how things would unfold from here.
Though Sia's true identity would likely remain undiscovered, I couldn't help but be curious about what might happen next.
Had Rokan seen these articles too?
Since our meeting time was approaching, I pushed aside these random thoughts and teleported to Rokan's Lair.
The moment I arrived, I was greeted by an extravagant lunch spread.
"Thank you for inviting me, Lord Rokan."
"I should be the one thanking you. It's nice to have my son-in-law keep me company so I'm not lonely."
After exchanging pleasant greetings, we began our meal.
Naturally, the conversation turned to yesterday's events.
"Lord Rokan, have you seen the news?"
"That Gate Break incident? The one Shasha stopped."
"Yes."
Of course—there was no way he wouldn't know about his granddaughter's exploits.
"At first, I thought she might have unnecessarily involved herself in something she didn't need to, but then Shasha told me she was on a date with you nearby."
"That's right."
He'd probably already heard the gist from Sia, but I recounted the situation to Rokan again.
After listening, he nodded in understanding.
"Our kind doesn't usually interfere in human affairs, but I suppose that explains it."
"There's something I've been wondering—if you're a Dragon, couldn't you stop all the Gate Breaks happening worldwide?"
"I could, but there's no real need for me to do so. Gates are your people's problem."
"Even if it could save countless lives...?"
If I had power like Rokan's, what would I do?
I'd probably use it to make some difference in the world.
But Rokan's perspective seemed different.
"That's your concern, not mine. To be blunt, I have little interest in human lives."
"Well..."
I wanted to argue, but no words came to mind.
"From my standpoint, whether a plague spreads here or a Gate breaks open, it doesn't matter. The only things that concern me are experiencing this new world and ensuring Shasha's safety."
Maybe I'd grown too comfortable around him because of his usual grandfatherly demeanor.
From a Dragon's perspective, we might just be interesting little insects.
Just as we wouldn't care much about a few ants dying, Dragons might not be bothered by humans perishing in droves.
Seeing this, I realized I still didn't fully understand Dragons.
If I ever hoped to wield a Dragon's power completely, I'd need to comprehend—and accept—their values to some degree.
As I sat there silently lost in thought, Rokan must have mistaken my silence for hurt feelings, because he added:
"Of course, I care about your well-being too. You're the one our Shasha loves. If you're happy, she's happy. If you're hurt, she'll grieve."
So don't take it too hard, he said.
There was something oddly endearing about that.
Anyway, between discussions about Sia and other topics, the meal eventually came to an end.
Now that we'd finished eating and I was already at Rokan's Lair, there was only one thing left to do.
"Lord Rokan, if you have time, I'd like to request a sparring match."
Obviously, it had to be sparring.
But Rokan declined, saying today wouldn't work.
"Apologies. I have matters to attend to today."
"Ah... I understand. Then next time, whenever you're free."
Honestly, he'd always been so accommodating before.
It wasn't like Rokan had to set aside time just to spar with me—he wasn't some training partner on call. I'd taken it for granted.
That aside...
Now my schedule was a little awkward.
Should I train alone in the Lair for a while, or head out now to find a Gate worth tackling?
Just as I was deep in thought about how to spend the rest of my afternoon—
Rokan made an unexpected suggestion.
"Min-jun, have you considered going for a rank re-evaluation?"