House Owner Authority (EX-Rank) (1)
Crash!
"Gasp! Huff! H-huff!"
I'd only run three steps, but my whole body was drenched in sweat. Those three steps had drained every ounce of strength I had left in this desperate situation. If I hadn't had the Protective Necklace, I would've needed ten lives to make it out alive. Still, I'd somehow survived and made it back home.
As I burst through the front door, Yoo Seo-ah was waiting in the entryway.
"J-Jinseong-ssi! Are you okay? Huh? That person..."
She rushed over in shock at my dramatic entrance, then her eyes went wide as saucers when she spotted Baek Ji-an in my arms.
"Jinseong-ssi, if I'm not mistaken, isn't that the Dragon-in-Waiting Division Leader? Why is the Dragon-in-Waiting Division Leader with you...?"
After saying I'd bring back some hunters below C-rank, here I was carrying an S-rank powerhouse, the Dragon-in-Waiting Division Leader Baek Ji-an. No wonder Yoo Seo-ah's eyes were bulging like that.
I kicked off my shoes like they were trash and headed inside, answering as I went.
"Childhood friend. Fifteen years."
"What?! You're childhood friends with the Dragon-in-Waiting Division Leader?! I-I had no idea!"
She was floored by my response. I'd never told anyone about my connection to Baek Ji-an, so her reaction was pretty fresh.
"Wh-why didn't you say anything...? About being childhood friends with the Dragon-in-Waiting Division Leader."
Yoo Seo-ah glanced at me cautiously before continuing.
"If you'd mentioned back then, before you awakened your unique ability, that you were childhood friends with the Dragon-in-Waiting Division Leader, things might've been a bit easier for you..."
That's when I got why she was saying this. She was probably implying that if I'd bragged about my connection to Ji-an, I wouldn't have been treated like dirt.
I carefully laid Ji-an down on the living room floor and answered her question.
"I didn't want to hold my friend back."
"Pardon?"
"Sure, if I'd gone public about being childhood friends with her, my life might've been easier, like you said... but I'd feel bad. She's already so busy."
"Ah... I'm sorry, Jinseong-ssi. I said something unnecessary."
"No, don't apologize. I'd react the same way if I found out you were childhood friends with Baek Ji-an."
I reassured her so she wouldn't feel bad, then stripped off Ji-an's outer clothes and checked her body inch by inch with my hands to see if there were any external injuries. I'd confirmed yesterday that the Healing Massage worked even over clothes thanks to her.
Squeeze, squeeze. Hmm, big and firm.
The results matched what I'd seen with my eyes earlier. Fortunately, no external wounds. So it had to be internal injuries that did this to her. What the fuck did that Baek Gung-hyuk bastard do?
To fix internal injuries, I'd need the Healing Body. I scooped Baek Ji-an up and sat on the sofa, cradling her in my lap. She had big tits and ass but a small frame overall, so she fit perfectly against me when I sat her on my thighs.
I started the Healing Body treatment for her internal injuries.
"...Eek."
Yoo Seo-ah was staring holes through me from the side, her face beet red. Her pupils were trembling like she was seeing something insanely embarrassing.
What? Why's she like that?
"Seo-ah-ssi, what's wrong?"
"Hic?!"
At my question, she flinched hard, then avoided my eyes completely before speaking.
"J-Jinseong-ssi... Did you touch my body like this too...?"
Ah. Her words brought back memories of treating her wrecked body with the Healing Massage. She'd been passed out then, so she had no idea what I'd done. I'd glossed over the details when explaining the treatment before.
Seeing me give Baek Ji-an a Healing Massage check-up must've made her blush like that. Yeah, it was embarrassing enough to look away.
I thought for a second, then answered.
"'Touch' sounds weird, so say I massaged... no, treated you instead."
"D-did you treat my body like this?"
"No."
"Th-then, as expected? You didn't just grab and... no, treat my body all over like that just now, right?"
"I treated you way more roughly. Compared to what I did to you, what Ji-an just got doesn't even qualify as treatment."
"H-heek...?!"
At my answer, white steam erupted from the crown of her head. It was mana reacting to her emotions, converting to heat and venting out—a rookie mistake for poor mana controllers. A hunter like Seo-ah shouldn't be steaming from her head even if she tried, but she was mortified.
But I hadn't groped her body like that out of some pervy urge. Sure, I didn't hate touching it, but I didn't want to touch a healthy one. Back then, she was on the brink of death, not a single inch of her unscathed. I had no choice but to massage every damn corner.
"A-aaaah..."
Even if it was objective fact, the person involved couldn't help feeling embarrassed.
"I'm gonna check Ji-an's Black Box now. Watch it with me."
I asked her to join partly to change the subject.
"Y-yes?! Sure!"
But it wasn't just that.
"I need to know what insane bullshit she went through to end up on the verge of death."
As her one and only childhood friend, and as the Safe House manager.
I had a duty to face and deal with what she'd endured.
"If I lose it to rage and try something irreversible, stop me. Please."
Yoo Seo-ah would be my safety belt if the Black Box pissed me off enough to lose reason.
"...Got it! I will!"
Thankfully, she agreed without hesitation.
"Alright, then. Playing it."
House owner's will confirmed.
Reproducing Baek Ji-an member's Black Box footage from the time of incident via laptop.
The video started playing on the laptop screen on the living room table.