Was It a Dream?
I opened my eyes to find myself in my own bed. That much was normal. I fell asleep in this bed every night and woke up in the mornings. But soon, an overwhelming sense of wrongness washed over me.
This isn't right...?
A blanket was neatly tucked over my body. A faint whiff of women's perfume lingered, carrying a cozy warmth.
"Gah!"
Memories of last night flooded back, and I bolted upright.
"What the hell?!"
My last clear recollection was Kim Seol-bi showing up at my place and us ending up in bed together. Things had flowed naturally, leading right up to the brink of sex. But...
I pulled back the covers. No sign of Kim Seol-bi curled up asleep. No traces of last night's passion anywhere.
"Huh?"
Suddenly, dizziness hit me like a truck, and I collapsed back onto the bed like a robot with a fried circuit.
Why does my body feel like this?
Even with the blanket pulled up to my chin, a chill seeped into my bones. My muscles felt limp, unresponsive.
"Cough, cough."
I was coughing now too. Sure, my abilities were worthless and I'd never become a hunter, but since awakening, I'd never caught so much as a cold.
"Ah..."
I couldn't make sense of it. What the hell had happened?
Was it all a dream?
Kim Seol-bi coming to my room last night.
It felt too real...
But no matter how I turned it over in my mind, it didn't feel like a dream. Movies and dramas love those "was it a dream?" tropes where the protagonist's confused, but usually, you know deep down. Whether last night was real or not—I knew.
No way...
The world was full of all sorts of ability users. Villains were a dime a dozen. Hunters who turned to crime for one reason or another, or those who found it more profitable than dungeon raids. What if the Kim Seol-bi who'd come to me last night was a criminal hunter with hallucination powers?
What if I'd been hypnotized into a fantasy of screwing her, oblivious as they robbed me blind?
"Mm..."
I turned my heavy head to scan the room. No obvious signs of a break-in. It didn't make sense for a powered thief to target this dump anyway. If they'd been after cash or valuables, the place would be trashed. But my room wasn't just tidy—it looked freshly cleaned.
Did I get hidden cammed...?
I knew all about the porn circulating in the shadows. Bastards who drugged people with hallucinations, made them do twisted shit on video, then sold it. What if the "Kim Seol-bi" I'd believed in was some guy or a minor...?
Finally, terror slammed into me. If that video got out...
I'd lose the job I'd barely clawed my way into. Society would bury me alive. Doesn't matter if I'm the victim—what I'd done would stick in people's minds. No way those scum gave my face a mosaic out of kindness.
It even explained why my body felt unnaturally wrecked.
No way that happened...
Logically, Kim Seol-bi suddenly showing up at my place, begging for sex? Absurd. How stupid was I to buy it?
But I couldn't resist.
It wasn't some amateur hallucination trick. A basic awakener like me? No chance to notice or fight it off.
Why me...?
No rational reason for targeting me with crime. Just bad luck. What a shitty life. Got excited thinking I'd be a hunter, awakened with this garbage Unreasonable Favor trait I can't even use, wasted ten years, and now this? Ending up a victim of some sleazy crime.
Maybe they picked an awakener over a normie because they didn't want to kill me outright. Normies might not survive the ordeal.
My heart sank like lead.
"Fuck."
"Fuck, this sucks..."
That's when it happened. A clear chime rang out as my phone vibrated.
It was propped on the headboard and tumbled right onto my head with a clack.
"Ow!"
Wincing, I checked the screen. A text from an unknown number.
Right away, another one buzzed in.
What the...?
"Cough, cough."
Clutching my phone, I scrolled through the recent messages. Over 30 from the same sender while I'd been out cold.
The first one started: Sorry for the intrusion, but I was so worried I looked up your number, Sung-gi... Most were just fretting over me. And from the content, I could guess who it was from.
"No way..."
Kim Seol-bi? So last night wasn't some criminal hunter trick?
With trembling, weak fingers, I typed a reply.
Ding!
Instant response.
"Ah..."
Relief hit harder than I'd feared. So much so that tears welled up from the joy.
My body felt like lead and I was hacking up a lung, but I didn't want to worry her.
Kim Seol-bi coming back to my place... I couldn't have been happier. I noticed dozens of missed calls and texts from work, but who gave a shit?
◆ ◆ ◆
Kim Seol-bi was anxiously chewing her nails. She was at the monthly S-rank hunter meeting.
Supposedly a forum for S-rank hunters to discuss the nation's future, but really, it was just how to suck every last drop from the country's benefits. With only S-ranks present, the talk was brutally frank.
Made her think the country's future looked bleak, but it was inevitable. Not just Korea—the global trend. Politicians and tycoons lined up to cozy up to them. Most "ideas" weren't even from the hunters; they were fed to them.
"Seol-bi, you okay?"
Park Hye-na, seated beside her, asked.
"Huh?"
Snapping to, she saw blood from her bitten nail.
"Ah..."
As an S-rank, the wound clotted and healed the moment she noticed.
"You're off today. Something bothering you?"
"Mm..."
Instead of answering, Kim Seol-bi checked her phone. Finally, a reply from Kang Sung-gi after waiting all day. But now that they'd chatted, no excuse to text more. She was dying to message him nonstop if she couldn't see him.
"You dating someone?"
Park Hye-na whispered with a grin.
"Who? Dong-geun? Or Hyun-cheol?"
She glanced slyly around the room's inner seats.
Did S-ranks only date other S-ranks? Kim Seol-bi couldn't fathom that mindset. The pool was too small. After years around them, she'd concluded none were worth opening her heart to. The thought alone gave her chills. Too many filthy scandals.
"No? Then an A-rank?"
Park Hye-na sighed disappointedly.
"What a shame. If it was just sex, we could date normies no problem. Celebs, anyone—they'd all be ours."
"What are you talking about?"
Kim Seol-bi gasped.
"Oh? You didn't know?"
Park Hye-na looked at her like a national treasure.
"S-rank hunters can't have sex with normies. The guy can't handle it and dies."
"D-Dies...?"
"Yeah, from the mana. You can force it by holding back, but where's the fun?"
Kim Seol-bi suddenly understood what had happened in bed with Kang Sung-gi last night.