Chapter 88
Chapter 88
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: A Welcome Guest
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‘I need to get a grip. I have to wrap things up properly before I leave.’
Steeling herself, Haon went down to the third-floor workshop and took out the items River and Nova had brought from Bae Anjae's place.
Empty syringes with "Halo's" name on them and a piece of Sniper's armor, stained with potent mana.
‘I wanted to look for more, but they said the floodgate had been lowered, right?’
Haon recalled River's words and organized her thoughts.
‘If he were abandoning that space, there'd be no need to block the water with a floodgate. Bae Anjae intends to keep using it.’
He might be hiding somewhere for now, but Haon was certain that Bae Anjae would eventually return there.
Seeing how desperately he tried to block the hack, there must be information there he doesn't want discovered.
The information extracted from "Eun Haon's" phone must be part of it.
I couldn't find out everything since I was interrupted during the hacking attempt, but...
「Test Subject Number C-31」
The last thing I found on Bae Anjae's server was definitely Woo Hyeseong's test subject number.
‘I was worried it had become a record that couldn't be found anywhere.’
I don't know how "Eun Haon" obtained that data, but I was relieved to think it was obtainable one way or another.
‘To find it, I'll have to hack Bae Anjae's server again, but I'm confident I won't lose in a direct confrontation.’
Haon ordered an analysis of the substance on the empty syringes and the mana remaining on the armor fragment, then went up the spiral staircase.
The computers and screens lined up in the fourth-floor lab were filled with data Haon had been in the middle of investigating.
"Eun Haon's" server also contained a lot of old data related to human experiments.
Woo Hyeseong's test subject number wasn't among them, but the more I dug, the more things turned up.
The experiments were conducted too early to have been done by "Eun Haon," so it seemed she had collected the results of other experiments for her own human trials.
She had conducted many other strange experiments, so if I had the time, I felt like I could spend a whole week just looking through the data on "Eun Haon's" server.
Haon recalled Sniper's condition after absorbing the mana bullet.
It seemed "Eun Haon's" human experiments with the Awakening Sphere, funded by Halo, weren't just for making potions.
"Blue. Pull up any human experiment records that mention mana gathering in the heart or someone coughing up blue blood."
[Understood!]
It occurred to her that the goal might have been to save Sniper, who had become unstable after her forced Awakening.
Seeing as there was no data about Sniper on the server, she must have saved that on her phone too.
‘Then why did they kill "Eun Haon"? Considering they're working with Bae Anjae, it doesn't seem like they wanted to monopolize the potion business.’
Did "Eun Haon" worsen Sniper's condition during the experiment?
Or did she try to kill Halo for Nova's sake?
No matter how much I think about it, I can't figure it out.
Lost in thought, Haon suddenly realized the analysis results weren't back yet and found it strange.
"Blue. What about the analysis results?"
[Processing.]
"Why is it still..."
Haon was about to display the progress of the analysis being run on the third floor when she muttered, "Ah, right."
The server she was using wasn't built for Mana Engineering.
"Blue. Has the Hero Headquarters' server been fully backed up?"
[Backup is currently 24% complete.]
"So that's why."
Building the Dimension Gate, crafting various Mana Engineering items, and on top of that, backing up an entire large-scale server. Of course it would be slow.
It seemed "Eun Haon's" server was starting to fail to keep up.
‘I don't know if I can back up the entire Hero Headquarters server. I'll have to store it for them until they can build a new one.’
After some thought, Haon checked how much money was left in "Eun Haon's" account and made a decision.
‘I need to expand the server.’
*Grumble—*
"..."
To think my stomach could grumble even when I'm rolling in money.
Haon was both embarrassed and surprised by the sound from her stomach, but she didn't have the energy to walk to the convenience store.
‘I'd better just go to sleep.’
I'm in charge of District 2 now, on top of District 1, so tomorrow will be even busier.
After going up to the penthouse and washing up, Haon reached for her usual sleeping pills, then paused.
"Those strong sleeping pills. Stop taking them now. I'll be back tonight."
Juyeol's words, along with the feeling of his lips on her cheek, came back to her unbidden.
Haon touched her slightly flushed cheek and put the sleeping pills down.
‘Is he really coming?’
Juyeol had been a little different lately.
He seemed to have softened strangely after learning she was a different person from "Eun Haon."
Even back when she frequented his safe house, he had been kind in his own way, but this was different.
Haon opened a photo she had taken with "Juyeol."
She could tell the two apart now. They had the same face, but perhaps because their personalities and expressions were different, they seemed like completely different people.
So much so that she wondered how she could have mistaken them when she first saw Juyeol after falling into this dimension.
‘Even when he's being gentle, he's different from my Juyeol, so it feels awkward sometimes.’
As she looked at the photo of her childhood friend and replayed Juyeol's actions one by one, she remembered the strong arms that had pulled her into the shadows and wrapped around her waist.
The heartbeat she felt against her back, and the sensation of him rubbing his forehead against her shoulder.
His breath and hair tickling the nape of her neck, too.
‘...Why did it suddenly get so hot?’
Haon fanned her heated face with her hand.
[Haon! A most welcome guest has arrived!]
Just then, Blue spread its wings wide and announced the visitor.
"What? R-right now?"
Feeling the heat she was trying to dispel rush back, Haon fidgeted anxiously.
"He, he really came. He did say he would."
As she paced nervously in front of the door, not knowing what to do, Juyeol, who had already made his way up to the penthouse, opened the door and walked in naturally.
In his arms was a stuffed paper bag.
"Ah..."
"Are you sick? You don't have a fever again, do you?"
The moment their eyes met, Juyeol frowned and asked before Haon could say a word.
"Huh? I'm tired, but I'm not sick. Why?"
"Your face is red."
"Wh-what? Th-that's... It just got hot all of a sudden. Don't you think it's hot? Oh, maybe it's because I'm hungry. Anyway, welcome, Juyeol."
"What are you talking about?"
He gazed at her reddened face and rambling, then chuckled, looking at Haon with a hint of expectation in his eyes.
"Don't tell me you were excited that I was coming..."
He trailed off as he strode closer, having noticed something.
Up close, he could see that the photo of "Juyeol" was on Haon's phone.
"..."
He looked from the man with the same face as him to Haon's flushed cheeks, then walked on without a word.
Haon followed him into the kitchen and was startled.
"What is all this?"
"Because this kitchen hardly looks like someone lives here."
He took various ingredients and seasonings out of the paper bag and arranged them neatly in the kitchen.
As if intending to prepare a meal right away, he skillfully began to cook with them.
"You're cooking for me? It's been so long."
As Haon watched with sparkling eyes, Juyeol, who was preparing the meat, asked casually.
"About that 'Woo Juyeol' you've mentioned a few times. Is he really just a friend?"
"Not just a friend, he's a childhood friend who's practically family."
"Family, huh..."
He muttered in a displeased tone and seemed lost in thought, then suddenly slammed the kitchen knife into the meat.
The gruesome sound of chicken bones cracking echoed ominously.
"...!"
Juyeol turned to the startled Haon and said.
"Whatever the two of you were, you're here now. Right?"
"R-right?"
"Then that's all that matters."
"...?"
While Haon blinked in confusion, he moved his hands busily and finished cooking in no time.
"Wow. Your cooking is still the best. It's been so long since I've had freshly made rice, too."
Haon swallowed a mouthful of food in awe and swung her legs back and forth.
"What have you been living on?"
"Nova brought food to the lab almost every day."
"..."
This time, Juyeol stabbed a piece of well-cooked meat with his chopsticks, then looked at the ceiling and sighed.
Haon, who was about to pick up some meat, flinched in surprise and pulled her chopsticks back.
"Hey, what do you have against the meat?"
"...Right. You need to eat."
He muttered through clenched teeth and placed the piece of meat on top of Haon's bowl of rice.
With a look that said she had no idea what was wrong with him, Haon stared at the miserably punctured piece of chicken before popping it into her mouth.
* * *
After the meal, as Haon was preparing a place to sleep on the living room sofa, Juyeol snatched the blanket and threw open the bedroom door.
He looked at the still-empty spot on the carpet and asked.
"Do you have no intention of buying a bed?"
"It's not that, I'm just not sure how long I'd be able to use it if I bought one."
Once she expanded the server, the Dimension Gate's construction would proceed smoothly, so Haon thought she might be going home not long after buying a bed.
Juyeol seemed to take her answer a different way, saying as he laid a thick blanket in the bedroom.
"If you're worried you won't be able to sleep in a bed again, don't be."
"You're coming tomorrow, too?"
"I'll be here every day."