Chapter 13
Chapter 13
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: Chacha's Commission
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‘I should probably know what kind of person he is before I go.’
Solmae wasn't on the list of Villains. It seemed 'Eun Haon' hadn't associated only with Villains.
Stretching once more, Haon had a sudden thought and stepped out of the bedroom, looking around.
“Juyeol, where are you?”
No answer came, only a clattering sound from somewhere.
“……?”
With a puzzled expression, Haon peeked toward the source of the noise.
Juyeol was standing in front of the door to the stairs leading to the second floor.
He was pressing various buttons, trying to open the door, but it seemed he wasn't having any luck.
“I couldn’t open that one either since I don’t know the password.”
As she approached and spoke, his dark eyes glanced down at her. His expression was complicated.
*Is he just tired?* she wondered, then asked.
“By the way, were you sitting there all night? You could have slept comfortably in the bed.”
Juyeol moved to another door and replied curtly.
“How could I sleep there? It feels wrong.”
“But it was clean.”
When Haon tilted her head, his brow furrowed slightly.
“The bedding might be clean.”
He glanced warily toward the bedroom before examining the locked door.
He had stayed up all night, but he wasn't particularly tired.
With his Hero duties suspended, he hadn't been called out overnight or even exercised, leaving him with an excess of energy.
However, his mind had been racing all night, leaving him mentally fatigued.
“I can open this one!”
A small hand shot out from beside him and unhesitatingly pressed the keypad.
Juyeol's entire focus was on Eun Haon standing next to him.
“Juyeol…”
“Don’t go anywhere…”
“You’re all I have now.”
The words she had mumbled as she drifted off to sleep last night echoed in his ears.
Even as he entered the door Haon had opened for him, his mind was in turmoil.
He knew something was wrong with Eun Haon's head, causing her to treat him like some close friend.
‘Why me?’
But he couldn't understand why it had to be him.
Seeing how she had been afraid of River yesterday, it was clear she wasn't this open and friendly with everyone.
He couldn't be certain, but this goodwill was likely not directed at just anyone.
‘Was I the first person she saw after her head injury? Like a duckling imprinting on me or something?’
Juyeol found this Haon, who acted as if she genuinely couldn't do without him, to be unsettling.
‘And why does she sleep so defenselessly?’
Irritation simmered within him. He felt as if he were being tested.
It was like she was teasing him, daring him to guess whether this Eun Haon was crazy, reformed, or a ghost wearing Eun Haon's face.
Haon, who had been following him around, asked tentatively.
“Juyeol. Do you happen to know someone named Solmae?”
“Why are you asking about that old man?”
“Oh, so it’s Mr. Solmae.”
She covered her mouth in surprise before continuing.
“I was wondering if he might know anything about your sister.”
“He probably would. He treated my sister’s injuries when we were young.”
“Is Mr. Solmae a doctor?”
“A back-alley, unlicensed doctor. A quack.”
“A quack…?”
Haon’s mouth closed unnaturally at his words.
It seemed he’d had a childhood so difficult that he had to seek out a quack doctor.
And it was still strange.
'Eun Haon' wasn't even registered as a Villain, so she could have easily gone to a regular hospital.
The fact that she frequently met with an unlicensed doctor was highly suspicious.
“Do you know what ‘Eun Haon’s’ relationship was with Mr. Solmae?”
“How would I know? I did hear another Hero report that you’d been visiting Solmae often recently.”
*I see*, Haon thought, nodding her head as she looked up at Juyeol.
He was being unusually responsive today. Come to think of it, he’d been rather gentle since last night.
He hadn't just sat by her for a moment before leaving; he had stayed by her side all night. He hadn't sworn or pointed a gun at her either.
Haon’s eyes sparkled with anticipation.
“Juyeol. Does this mean you’re starting to believe I’m a different person from the ‘Eun Haon’ who used to live here?”
Juyeol, who had been trying to ignore her gaze, reluctantly met her clear eyes.
“No.”
At his firm reply, Haon’s lips jutted out in disappointment before she spoke with renewed determination.
“It’s okay. Once my phone is fixed, I can show you a picture of my friend ‘Juyeol’.”
Then she placed her hands on her hips triumphantly.
“Then you’ll believe me!”
Juyeol looked up at the ceiling with a swaggering posture and sighed.
All the photos and videos Hero Headquarters had confiscated from Eun Haon in the past had been fakes.
Every single one was cleverly synthesized and edited; he couldn't just believe whatever she showed him.
But there was a way to confirm if this Eun Haon was truly different from the mad scientist.
“Hey. You should try meeting Hunt—.”
Juyeol’s sharp gaze suddenly shifted toward the front door.
“Wh-what’s wrong?”
Slightly frightened, Haon also turned to look at the entrance.
*Bang, bang, bang!*
“Eun Haon! Open up!”
Just then, a frantic knocking on the door was accompanied by a woman's voice.
“Chacha…?”
As she recognized the voice, the fact that a Hero was in her house hit her.
“Oh, what do I do?”
Haon looked at him with concern.
In an instant, Juyeol, who had been right in front of her, melted into the shadow of a large decorative cabinet.
“Whoa.”
So she hadn't been mistaken back in the lab. Now that she knew he was in the shadow, she could faintly feel the shimmer of his mana.
*I wonder if all Awakened can sense mana waves like this,* Haon thought as she opened the front door.
“What’s going on?”
The moment the door opened, Chacha rushed inside, caught her breath, and collapsed onto the sofa.
“The lab was locked, so I came up.”
“Oh. I just had some things to do at home. But why?”
“I want to add something to the weapon I commissioned.”
“Ah.”
Come to think of it, Chacha had said she discovered the dead 'Eun Haon' when she came to pick up her commissioned item.
“I’m taking it today. Your skills haven’t gone stupid too, have they?”
“Well… uh, what did you want to add?”
“Triple the firepower. I’m going to riddle those bastards with holes.”
Her words brought to mind the large firearm she had seen in the commissioned weapons storage.
Haon didn't know who Chacha's "bastards" were, but a cold sweat trickled down her back.
Juyeol, who had been hiding behind Chacha, slid out of the shadows and silently drew his gun.
He looked ready to shoot the bank robber who was about to acquire a powerful weapon.
“Th-that’ll take at least a week!”
Haon didn't know what to do and cried out in desperation.
Juyeol paused, then raised an eyebrow as if to say, *Let’s see how you handle this.*
“You did it right away last time.”
As Chacha narrowed her eyes, Haon waved her hands frantically.
“I don’t have the materials. I’m all out.”
“No way! I need to start preparing now.”
As Chacha anxiously bit her fingertips, Juyeol holstered his gun again and disappeared back into the shadows.
Haon’s heart was pounding. She had almost witnessed someone die right in front of her.
‘I need to spread the word quickly that I’m no longer taking commissions.’
She had absolutely no intention of lending her skills to make 'Eun Haon's' weapons even more powerful.
Making and selling criminal tools to criminals—how could anyone do something so terrifying and unethical?
“I guess it can’t be helped. I’ll just take it as is, then. Give it to me now.”
“No, that…”
Haon glanced between the shadow where Juyeol was hiding and Chacha, then hurriedly followed her out.
“What do you need it for that you’re in such a rush?”
“Halla suddenly told us to vacate the building by the night after tomorrow. Says she’s selling the whole place.”
Chacha’s expression instantly turned grim.
“How am I supposed to put up with her threatening to smash everything if we don't clear out? That damn thug, and our contract isn't even up.”
*So she’s not robbing a bank,* Haon thought with relief, though she wasn't sure if this was a situation to be relieved about.
Still, she decided to count it as a blessing that the weapon would be used against another Villain.
Halla was the boss of a gang that controlled Sector 2 of the old district and was an Awakened Villain.
Checker, the one who’d gotten a monkey wrench to the nose, was a member of Halla’s gang.
Haon mulled over the information from the Villain list as she opened the lab door.
“The weapon looks big and powerful, but I don’t think it’ll be enough against a whole gang.”
“You think I’m going to take them on alone? Everyone living in that building is rising up. Solmae too.”
Haon jumped in surprise at Chacha's words.
“M-Mr. Solmae lives there?”
She had so many questions for Solmae.
But what if he were to lose his life in a confrontation with Halla's gang…
As if reading Haon's anxious thoughts, Chacha scoffed.
“Have you forgotten the saying? ‘In the old district, be wary of any old person, child, or woman who's doing just fine.’”
It was the first time she had heard it, but it didn't sound wrong.
“That old man is no pushover. That’s how he’s managed to survive as an unlicensed doctor in the old district.”
From what she had researched about Gwonyoung City, there was no place more dangerous than the old district.
A person who treated dangerous people in a place like that couldn't be ordinary.
She wasn't completely reassured, but Chacha knew more about this dimension, so she decided to trust her.
‘…He’ll really be okay, right?’
Pondering when she should go meet Solmae, Haon brought Chacha's commissioned item up on the cargo lift.
When she pulled back the cloth, it revealed a machine gun the size of her torso.