The Blind Healer and the Impossible Raid

Why is this even being cleared? The phenomenon of "Awakening" that occurs in some people in modern society. By gaining special powers, they become "Hunters" and earn the qualification to clear dungeons within the gates that appear all over the world. "Gates" and "Hunters." The cause of this phenomenon remains unknown. It has simply become a part of life, something we've grown accustomed to. However, the fact that the appearance of dungeons, monsters, and hunters changed many lives remains unchanged.

Now, dungeons and hunters are actively researched. Compared to the early days, the survival rate of hunters is significantly higher, and being a hunter is considered one of the best jobs with high social status. But that doesn't mean the tragedies caused by gate occurrences have disappeared. It has birthed many tragedies, both on a grand, dimensional scale and on a very small, individual one. Lee Jiyoo was one such victim.

People call Awakening a blessing, but for Lee Jiyoo, Awakening was a curse. Lee Jiyoo lost her eyesight the moment she became an Awakened.

Snap-

"Ouch!"

Lee Jiyoo screamed in sharp pain. While working on a sewing machine at the factory, her hand had been pierced by the needle. Her thumb looked almost shredded, as if a hole had been punched through it.

Whoosh-

Lee Jiyoo quickly healed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the wound with her skill. Then, she fumbled in front of her again to find her position and resumed working. If she didn't work because her finger was pierced, she would get an earful from the factory manager again. Lee Jiyoo hurriedly went back to sewing with her unseeing eyes, acting as if nothing had happened.

Even in this day and age, sewing factories like this existed. No matter how far advanced technology had come, it didn't mean sewing factories were useless. Of course, the work was hard and the pay was low, so almost no one wanted to do it. Most of the people working in this dilapidated factory were people like Lee Jiyoo. Disabled employment program participants. Or homeless people, foreigners, and the like.

Although she had Awakened, Lee Jiyoo couldn't make a living as a hunter. Her unique trait was Healer. Even though she was a healer, a profession treated well everywhere, that was the case. After she accidentally healed a monster during her first dungeon raid because she couldn't see, no one sought Lee Jiyoo out. Naturally, she couldn't join a guild either. She had no choice but to work as a freelance hunter, but there were no requests.

She couldn't do the job she had before Awakening because she had lost her sight. And even if she looked for a new part-time job, there was nothing she could do because she couldn't see. In the end, she found the disabled employment program. It was ridiculous for an Awakened to be looking for a disabled employment program, but Lee Jiyoo had no choice.

Lee Jiyoo's parents had been saddled with huge debts due to failed businesses while they were alive. From a young age, she had always heard the sounds of her mom and dad fighting at home. Then one day, Lee Jiyoo's parents were caught in a gate occurrence and died. Lee Jiyoo inherited her parents' debts in full. She had to start working as soon as she graduated from high school. Since then, until she Awakened, Lee Jiyoo had faced countless tragedies. And it reached its peak when she lost her eyes after Awakening.

The disabled employment program she had barely managed to find was essentially just a facade. Even if companies granted her an interview, they wouldn't hire Lee Jiyoo for various reasons. That was how she eventually ended up at this sewing factory. Even though she struggled to learn the work with her unseeing eyes, her hands were pierced by the sewing machine several times a day.

Snap-

Her finger would be ruined, she would heal it with her skill, and then work again. Now, without even a moment to feel the pain, she would heal her hand on her own and quickly return to work. This was what the factory manager had said to Lee Jiyoo when she was in pain after her hand was first pierced:

'Ah, damn it... I don't know what kind of bullshit this is, the government telling me to take in a blind freak...'

Lee Jiyoo had to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠endure the insults for a long time with her unseeing eyes. 'Hey, why don't you try doing something else instead of that? If you come to my place and do some odd jobs I give you, I can give you the same salary. Hehehe...'

She couldn't see, but she could clearly feel the malice of the factory manager. She could clearly feel the disgusting gaze scanning her body. She wanted to run away crying, but she couldn't. Because if she didn't do this, she had no way to earn money.

'N-no, I'm fine. I can do this job well.'

Instead, after that, whenever her hand was pierced, she would quickly heal it and go back to work. The process of repeatedly piercing her own hand and healing it was agonizing. But if she didn't, what would happen would be even more agonizing. Lee Jiyoo was living in a dark hell all by herself. Sometimes, what she saw—perhaps the dead optic nerves were experiencing post-mortem vibrations—were things like sparks crackling in the darkness.

Then, one day.

"...Y-yes? A-class dungeon entry?"

-Yes. It's a dungeon with mental disturbance magic, and we are short on hunters with mental protection traits.

"B-but I'm only a D-class hunter with the Healer trait..."

It was a call from the Hunter Association. A place that hadn't called her in years was suddenly asking Lee Jiyoo to enter an A-class dungeon. Perhaps this was the call Lee Jiyoo had been hoping for. But an A-class dungeon, all of a sudden? The scale was so huge that it felt surreal.

She would definitely receive a lot of money. A large sum of money she couldn't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠earn even after working in a factory like this for months. But there was no reason for such money to suddenly be given to Lee Jiyoo.

"Is this... voice phishing?"

No matter how she looked at it, it didn't make sense. So there was voice phishing like this these days, too. Just as she was about to let out a deep sigh and hang up, the man on the other side of the phone shouted urgently.

-N-no, Ms. Lee Jiyoo, please don't hang up yet! I am Shin Jiwoo, an employee at the Seocho Branch of the Hunter Association! Please, help us just this once!

"Y-yes?"

The employee who introduced himself as Shin Jiwoo provided all sorts of evidence to convince Lee Jiyoo that he was truly from the Hunter Association. It was a situation where it was too much like a Hunter Association employee to not believe him. And above all, the call itself had come from the Hunter Association's number. The Hunter Association's number was designated by the government, just like 119 or 112.

But it was a situation where she would have rather believed it was voice phishing. "Why on earth... are you doing this? Why would you need me..."

-We need Ms. Lee Jiyoo. It's hard to explain, but it's a job that only Ms. Lee Jiyoo can do.

"I can't do anything. My skills are just low-level healing skills... and I can't even heal my colleagues properly because I can't see..."

-No. It's a job that only Ms. Lee Jiyoo can do. At least... even one person! Even one person, no? There is someone that only Ms. Lee Jiyoo can save!

"...!"

Even so, the employee named Shin Jiwoo persistently held onto Lee Jiyoo. She could feel an undeniable sincerity in those words. She could feel the desperation. Even though she couldn't logically understand it at all. The words that she could save at least one person. Hearing those words, for some reason, tears welled up in Lee Jiyoo's eyes. It was the first time someone had needed her this much. Being treated as a useless blind person, only to be needed as a healer.

"...I understand."

-Ah...!

She would have rather believed it was voice phishing. The emotions conveyed from the other side of the phone were just too genuine. She wanted to receive such goodwill again, even if it was just once. That was how Lee Jiyoo set out for her second dungeon raid.

Lee Jiyoo's recruitment was a success. I feel sorry for Lee Jiyoo, but I doubt she'll be looked upon favorably by the other hunters once she gets to the gate. It's a sorry state of affairs, but I have to look out for myself first. And besides, Shin Hyung-chul will withdraw soon anyway. If she thinks about it as getting paid without having to fight, it's not all bad for Lee Jiyoo.

A moment later, Shin Hyung-chul called me.

-Hey, person in charge. What are you doing right now?

"Has the additional personnel arrived? It's a freelance healing hunter. Please proceed with the raid together..."

-Proceed with the raid together? Did you just tell me to proceed with a raid after bringing a D-class blind person? Are you trying to play a joke on me? Even if it's a failed dungeon, what are you thinking bringing someone who will only be a hindrance?

Shin Hyung-chul yelled, as if he had met Lee Jiyoo. -Having someone like this around only increases the number of people I have to worry about. The key to this dungeon is mental defense. You do know that, right? Having one D-class healer doesn't change anything! How did you pass the entrance exam with that brain of yours!

I had actually scored quite high on my entrance exam. Thinking about the time I spent studying hard, I felt a lump in my throat, but I swallowed my resentment. What do you guys know? You, who were born with strong power from the start.

"You must include Ms. Lee Jiyoo. Ms. Lee Jiyoo must be in that party. Please, go in with her just once. I beg you."

It would be a disaster if Shin Hyung-chul got angry and said he wouldn't take her in. I tried to appease Shin Hyung-chul appropriately.

-What use is there in taking a blind person like this!

"It's hard to explain, but Ms. Lee Jiyoo will be absolutely necessary for the future. If you're going to declare the raid impossible soon anyway, isn't a little while okay?"

-Ha... well... this is why you civil servant bastards are always wasting money. You should have properly formed a party from ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the start@#$@!-

Shin Hyung-chul grumbled and hung up the phone irritably. Even so, he wouldn't be able to cast Lee Jiyoo aside. Because he basically had to follow the decisions of the Association that controlled the dungeons. Of course, it's because of stupid situations like this that people are saying dungeon management should be privatized. Well, it's Kim Hee-yeon's fault that this dungeon raid failed, and I didn't lie much. Because for my future, Lee Jiyoo has to ruin the raid.

And how many hours had passed?

"...Why aren't they coming out?"

No matter how long I waited, I didn't hear any news that the party had escaped. Given the timing, if the party escaped, monsters would almost certainly burst out. So I was waiting to issue an immediate area control order.

"Hmm..."

Did something happen inside? Even so, they should have just escaped...

I waited for news of the raid party with an anxious heart. A day, two days, a week. Had about ten days passed? I was busy handling other work with an uneasy heart when suddenly, alarms started popping up one after another.

But this only happens when a dungeon is cleared.

"W-wha-what?!!"

Cleared?!! How? I jumped up and shouted without even realizing it. The gazes of others were focused on me, but I didn't have the time to care about such things. The phone started ringing. It was Shin Hyung-chul.

"Y-yes, yes. This is employee Shin Jiwoo of the Seocho Branch of the Korea Hunter Association."

-Huff, huff... Person in charge. You bastard...

"S-Shin Hyung-chul hunter? What on earth happened..."

-I apologize for ignoring your judgment. If it hadn't been for your choice... we would have all been wiped out.

"Yes?"

What are you talking about?