Chapter 57
Chapter 57
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: My Hero (7)
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"Gyeo-ul unnie."
"Yeah."
I'd had a conversation with Cheong-ah once.
"Why did you save me from the lab, unnie?"
"Because you're a good person."
"Bullshit."
It was probably when I was sipping an Americano at a café.
We usually just traded silly banter, so her heavy straight ball caught me off guard inside.
Of course, I didn't let it show on my face. It was a habit drilled into me from my high school days as hunter training kicked in.
I think I smiled like always and said something like...
'Because you're pretty, Cheong-ah.'
No, it was a bit more sincere than that.
'Because you looked pitiful, Cheong-ah.'
That wasn't it either. I let a glimpse of my true feelings slip then.
I must have said...
"Because someone I couldn't save came to mind."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ In my immature childhood, I wanted to be a hero.
Most girls my age dreamed of being princesses or queens, but I was a bit different.
"Unnie, you're amazing! You just looked totally like a hero!"
My little sister watched in awe as I swatted a cockroach with a newspaper.
"Unnie, you're amazing! You can solve multiplication tables? You just looked totally like a hero!"
My little sister watched in awe as I worked through my math homework.
"Unnie, you're amazing! You did all the cleaning and dishes! You just looked totally like a hero!"
My little sister watched in awe as I handled the housework.
"Unnie, you're amazing! You just..."
"Enough."
I had a little sister who called everything I did "hero-like."
She was obsessed with heroes. She'd often praise me, saying I resembled the ones from movies or comics.
Back in those early years, our parents were both working hard and always busy.
I loved hanging out with friends, but my shy little sister only had the TV for company. I think it was around then that kids' shows were running those sentai team-ups.
One day, she started feeling lonely. Naturally, I spent more time at home.
"Unnie, that's Red! He's the leader of the hero team!"
At first, I had zero interest. I just held her in my lap, eyes off the screen as I read a book.
"Unnie, this is the best scene!"
"Unnie, now Green is..."
"Unnie! The heroes!"
It was her hero frenzy that got to me. At first, I forced myself to watch. Then the slick action scenes hooked my eyes. Next, the heroes' epic story gripped my heart.
Before I knew it, unlike other girls my age, my dream was set: become a hero.
A pillar for everyone.
A hero who never lost their smile, no matter the crisis, always saving people.
Someone with the power to take down class bullies in a single second.
"Ah~ I wanna be a hero."
"Don't say it so loud, Gyeo-ul."
Luckily, this world had jobs like heroes.
Firefighters, cops, soldiers... They protected people, rushing into danger to save lives—close to heroes, but missing one key thing.
The one thing was...
"This is Rescue. We've secured one elementary school kid. Oh, Dimensional Beast down safe. No worries."
A monster lay defeated.
The brutal corpse, felled by one man's sword, seeped into young Gyeo-ul's eyes.
Blood spraying, guts spilling—it was gruesome enough to look away, but young Gyeo-ul didn't.
Her eyes sparkled as she stared at the bloodied man.
"Who are you, mister?"
"Me?"
He introduced himself as a hunter. A hero who slays Dimensional Beasts—humanity's enemies—and guards the world.
Hunter.
Those two words echoed deep in my chest...
The hunter smashing the monster looked just like a hero.
Superpowers defying physics, custom hunter weapons that didn't match modern guns.
Even in the near-death chaos of a Dimensional Beast popping up downtown, Gyeo-ul was just mesmerized by the fight.
After a quick debrief, Gyeo-ul went home and declared to her sister.
"I'm gonna be a hunter."
"A hunter?"
"Yeah. I'll smash Dimensional Beasts as a hunter and save people everywhere!"
"Whoa, unnie's really gonna be a hero!"
"Yeah."
"So if I get in danger, you'll come running anytime?"
"Of course. Unnie's number one priority is Yeoreum."
That day, we laughed.
What was so funny about my hero declaration?
The sisters hugged and laughed loud enough to shake the neighborhood.
But reality's walls were sky-high.
Becoming a hunter wasn't for just anyone.
First, awaken as a Psyker—and rank high.
Even bottom-tier Grade 5 hunters pulled over 100 million won a year, plus tax breaks and housing support.
The only job letting a fresh 20-year-old high school grad touch that cash? Hunter.
The insane popularity, competition, and must-awaken condition crushed Gyeo-ul's spirits at first.
But...
"Nothing's impossible in this world!"
She started prepping for hunter life from childhood.
Basic fitness, studying famous hunters' styles, Dimensional Beast data, cramming for top hunter schools—she hustled.
Diligent at school, diligent at home. Yeoreum quietly cheered her on.
Maybe the heavens were moved by Gyeo-ul's grit.
She awakened as the world's first S-rank Psyker with dual abilities.
Aptitude test results out, everyone raved: "God-given talent!" Even Arcana—top rep in Academy City—sent love letters.
Her hero dream edged closer.
That night, hugging her sister, her vague goal started turning real.
So at 17, Gyeo-ul packed with excitement.
"Unnie."
Gyeo-ul dragging her suitcase out.
Yeoreum seeing her off at the door.
The sisters struck their favorite anime hero poses.
"You gotta come back a real hero!"
"Yeah."
Their special promise, named after seasons.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Ever heard of the trolley dilemma?
A runaway train with busted brakes barrels down the tracks.
Five people on the line—do nothing, they die. Switch tracks, they live, but one person on the new line dies.
Switch is right in front of you. What do you do?
The trolley problem.
Simple math says save the five. But if that one is someone close—or brings big rewards—the difficulty skyrockets.
"Leader, what's the call?"
Hunter Yamada Sota pressed Gyeo-ul for a decision.
"Damn, stabilizers are out... Kill it! What're you waiting for, boss!"
Hunter Han Ga-eul demanded Gyeo-ul decide.
This was before Gyeo-ul became a full hero, fresh out of Arcana, building her hunter rep.
At 21, leading "Hound Dog" team, handling Dimensional Beast and Psyker incidents worldwide.
While her team was in Korea, a "Psyker Mass Rampage" hit a Gangnam department store.
Back home, staying at base with the team, Gyeo-ul buzzed to see her sister after so long.
Every time she looked back, Gyeo-ul thought:
If Yeoreum hadn't been in that store, if I hadn't seen her like that... could I have become a warmer hero?
"Ah..."
The crumbling department store—that's where the sisters met.
Red sparks flew from Yeoreum's body.
Why was a non-Psyker like Yeoreum showing Dimensional Beast signs?
Why did those bright, hopeful eyes now stare so hollow?
One incomprehensible thing after another.
Her big sis brain froze, but hunter Gyeo-ul's raced.
Civilians evacuating, rampaging Psyker-turned-beasts tangling into hell.
Injured teammates, her own Erosion Rate maxed.
Don't kill Yeoreum now? Hell unfolds in her mind.
'So if I'm in danger, you'll come running anytime?'
The top priority stood right there.
My first fan, who called me hero, right there.
But why was I aiming my gun instead of rescue?
"Ah..."
No.
"Aaa..."
The heroes in our anime weren't like this at all.
"Aaaa..."
More hopeful, brighter, more beautiful endings—
They were supposed to bring those.
Why did I make such a cruel choice?
If I'd rationed stabilizers better, told Yeoreum to stay home today... this nightmare wouldn't have happened.
Bang.
The bullet pierced Yeoreum's forehead.
Gyeo-ul lowered her gun, watching her sister fall.
That's probably when her eyes started showing that abyss-dark glint now and then.
"...Prioritize rescues. Any hopeless Psyker—shoot on sight."
"Got it!"
"Ga-eul, move!"
Staring at her sister's body, Gyeo-ul couldn't look away as her team faded into the distance.
The hero fire died.
Childhood dream snuffed out.
Left behind: one hunter with an empty heart, butchering Dimensional Beasts and Psykers.