Memory Loss.
But for how much longer was this going to keep going?
I was still getting used to these encounters.
Especially when they were things I never saw coming.
But it's fine, it's fine, really.
After all, no man could reject something that brought him love.
With the Awakener compensation built in, pretty much every idol I devoured ended up being a stunning beauty who let me take her down, and I had to wonder how much better that made everything.
Even though I handled the whole thing so calmly, though...
"Heyuan-ah?"
"Hehe... somehow this feels embarrassing."
It wasn't just one person.
The women began to move in slowly, as if the day itself had marked a turning point.
Heyuan had at least stopped at a kiss.
"Sujin-ah...?"
"Teacher... Sunwoo-ssi... Owner-ni-ium... ♡"
Was this some kind of side heroine line, or was the true heroine saying something else entirely?
Sujin's audacity in spouting these weird event-flag words and dragging my finger straight into the unknown world was simply mind-boggling.
After everything wrapped up, she even asked the spirits for cleanup help. She clearly wasn't some weakling who had just been dusted off for a day or two.
"...Ah, no! This isn't right at all!"
"Harin Harin-ah...!"
Harin was still Nature's only shred of conscience, barely holding herself back as she retreated.
Even that was telling—the fact that she had come this close to the edge was worth noting.
By the way, Ayoung and Nari watched from a distance and left without touching me at all.
"Dad...?"
[...Do you see me?]
"Bwoo!"
[Oh...]
Even in Ayoung's arms, the baby seemed to be able to see us.
Was it really true that babies could see something?
[...Haaaaaaa...]
In short, to put it plainly: this was it.
[Had everyone been rotating?]
Was there even a heat cycle for Spirit Contractors?
Seeing one insane scene after another made the reality feel a little distant.
I guess my ability to accept things rationally had hit its limit.
[Isn't this natural?]
[...?]
I stared blankly down, completely at a loss, when Hecate stepped over and answered.
[Sunwoo is the Spirit Contractor I chose.]
Of course I chose her. There was no way a normal Spirit Contractor could have been picked.
—That was a bit awkward to say out loud, though.
[That's right, unnie! Everyone knows Papa is such a cool person, so they all did it!]
[Even hearing you say that makes me happy.]
Nox jumped in too.
Well, what the two of them said made perfect sense.
[It's not just words, Papa.]
[...?]
I was about to brush it off and move on when Nox grabbed me.
[You and unnie—plus the other spirits—are clearly not the kind of Spirit Contractors who can make contracts with just anyone.]
[T-True?]
An A-Class Awakener wasn't some pebble rolling around the street.
Being A-Class meant I was literally a national treasure, one of the few in the country.
Of course there were S-Class people too, but that was a whole different story.
[Plus, because I was so close to Nature, I had grown closer to my original human appearance.]
It meant I was close to the form the one who created humans in the beginning must have had.
As a human. As a person. Naturally, that came with its own charm.
[And I gave my body completely to protect everyone. Who in their right mind would hate someone like that?]
[Many people do.]
[That's just because they're not people but animals pretending to be human.]
[Oh...!]
Nox immediately fired back at Hecate.
Eventually, even the ones who hated me were just ordinary people who would naturally feel affection.
[...Yet I've gone through all sorts of terrible things because of that.]
It was only my own confusion that I was hearing this.
Was I really someone who deserved to be loved?
[That's the only problem, Papa.]
[Huh?—Wub?]
Nox's natural self-deprecating smile made her grab and stretch my cheeks like I was a rubber eraser a kid was playing with.
[For Papa to like someone is happiness for that person too.]
[...Is that plagiarism?]
[Huh?]
[Fan rules are rules.]
[???]
Man, these days were a terrifying era for men.
I scooped Nox right into my arms and patted her back as she pouted.
[No matter what, as long as Nox likes me, that's all I need.]
[!...That's so dirty!]
[You can call it filthy too.]
[Hecate doesn't like me?]
[I never said I didn't.]
Even Hecate, who looked hurt like she was being left out, got pulled into the hug and stroked.
Soon the knees of both girls were completely filled with beauties.
If I became a dad, would it feel like this?
"Excuse me~"
[Rehwa hi.]
After spending time with the two spirits, Rehwa soon came to visit.
Things probably wouldn't get weird again, like before.
"....Ah?"
[Eh?]
I slowly opened my eyes.
"Teacher?"
"....Ah."
Rehwa threw her body over me in a panic.
My body reached out blindly toward her.
"Who are you...?"
"....Teacher?"
"I-I'm... I have no money... My aunt has all of it..."
"..........."
The room fell into an instant silence, thick with tension.
In the blink of an eye, joy and sorrow swapped places.
******************
After two weeks of unconsciousness.
Unconscious. Days that couldn't be counted on to end when I would wake.
Finally opening my eyes again, Sunu said—
"Memory loss... what?"
—I had lost something important and returned to this.
"If we help the patient recall memories by doing things together, it can aid in restoring the memory."
"..........."
After the formal words ended.
Rehwa stepped out of the examination room and stood there staring into space.
[Memory loss? Suddenly?]
It felt strange.
I was glad to have woken up.
But I never thought I'd wake up like this...
"...No. This isn't right."
Right now, I needed to make the first call.
Rehwa immediately took out her phone and called Heyuan.
"Ah, so. I woke up first, but my memory's a little... off."
Multiple voices echoed from the phone.
They arrived at the hospital room in Nature and Heyuan in about fifteen minutes, as promised.
"Sunwoo oppa!"
!.........
"Ah...."
Heyuan rushed to open the room door and stepped inside.
But no one was there to welcome her.
Actually, there was someone, but they still couldn't respond.
Memory loss.
It was something that could have happened.
Sunu had pushed herself to the breaking point.
Even if something broke, it would have been strange.
"It's okay... for sure. Even if it doesn't work, it's fine."
Heyuan's voice was full of hidden meaning.
But...
"............"
Sunu stayed under the blanket, only watching.
The closer she got, the sharper Sunu's eyes became.
Ambiguous frozen state.
And...
"Teacher. Do you remember me?"
".....?"
"Sujin-ah...?"
Behind Heyuan, Sujin boldly walked toward Sunu.
She was bold enough that, for a moment, suspicion never crossed anyone's mind.
"My name is Nam Sujin."
When Sunu, Heyuan, and everyone else opened their eyes wide at Sujin...
"You are my life slave.."
"....Eh?"
Right now.
What did she just say?
"Primarily sexual service—eep, uuww, ubuubuub?!!"
"Sujin-a-a-a-a-a-a!!!"
"Nam Sujin-iiiiiiiiin!!!"
Before Sunu could even react, Rehwa and Harin hurriedly dragged Sujin away.
"What kind of nonsense are you doing to someone who isn't even in good condition?!"
"If we actually believe you, what are you thinking?!"
"H-Heyuan...!"
Those two dragged Sujin out of the room and scolded her.
"This kind of tasting event... no way I can miss it!"
"........."
Even before Sunu's condition was bad, Sujin's was already terrible.
She lived her life exactly how she wanted.
Normally those two would have shrugged it off as "that's just Sujin."
But right now, the situation was the situation.
"We'll deal with the pranks later. For now, listen to unnie and stay still?"
"Hey... it's a promised event..."
"Want to have some skin-to-skin talk with unnie?"
"....Hiiiing...!"
Rehwa was the kind who wouldn't fall for crocodile tears.
She definitely wouldn't fall for these hikikomori gloomy tears.
Sujin had to get a promise from Rehwa that she would never pull any weird pranks again before she finally let her go.
And in that moment—
—Kyaaaaak?!
—Drrrrrk, tadak!
"Eh...?"
"That person..."
The woman's scream.
The door suddenly flung open.
They all jumped out at the same time.
"Master!.... No. Teacher-ni-ium!!!"
Sunu.
Without even putting on slippers, she sprinted barefoot.
"Wait! Stop there, Teacher!"
"Exactly! If you're running, you have to put on your sneakers first!"
"Harin, what about you?!"
"Uuuuht.....!!"
Her speed was faster than anyone who had just woken up.
But no matter how agile she was, it was hard to break free from Nature's hands.
"I-I have no money... My aunt took it all..."
"I don't need money! Just stop already!"
"Hi, Hii... Seiren, Seirei-eeeeeeeeen!!!"
──!
Seiren.
The water spirit Sunu had contracted.
Rehwa and Harin immediately summoned their own spirits to prepare for a counterattack.
".....Huh?"
"Huh?"
But...
"...Seiren? Why isn't she coming out? She's right here!"
She wasn't being summoned.
Mana was just flickering unstably, but the spirit itself didn't appear.
"...Teacher. Teacher, you're feeling pretty bad right now. Let's come back and talk nicely, okay?"
"Seiren...."
It was a good thing for Nature, who had been trying to grab Sunu.
Rehwa slowly closed the distance, arms open in a safe gesture.
"........Seiren."
But Sunu felt something different.
She took one step back. Then another. Until she was almost at the window.
"Again... huh."
As if she had given up.
She even gave a faint smile.
Something felt off.
Before they could even react—
─Drrrrrk.
"Then... it's over."
"...Teacher?"
She opened the window.
────!!!
She flipped her body back and fell.
And...
"You crazy bitch-aaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"
──???
Rehwa also threw herself toward the falling Sunu.