Chapter 93
Chapter 93
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 93
Chapter Title: My Eternal Bluebird
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Hero Headquarters was still in ruins.
The staff and heroes were commuting to the gymnasium, and Hunter hadn't been able to find a suitable location for a temporary or new headquarters.
It would have been nice if the higher-ups had taken care of it, but with the servers gone too, the cost seemed to be astronomical.
‘There was even talk of disbanding the headquarters altogether and using heroes like mercenaries.’
As Hunter was getting some fresh air outside the gymnasium, something suddenly fell at her feet with a thud.
It was Halla, bloodied and barely recognizable.
“A gift.”
Hunter looked up at the languid voice.
A few steps away stood a man who, though elegant, exuded a dangerous aura.
“...Nova.”
He shrugged, a casual smile playing on his lips.
“I didn't kill her. Though she might die if you leave her like this.”
“How unusual.”
“Someone might not have liked it.”
At those words, Hunter thought of the scientist who had recently died and come back to life.
“...Seeing you like this, I suppose Dr. Eun Haon really is a different person.”
“Annoyingly different.”
Nova narrowed his eyes, a dissatisfied smile on his face.
“Isn't it obvious? Would the ‘Eun Haon’ you know have chosen to die for Ghost?”
He nudged the barely breathing Halla with the tip of his shoe.
“If it were ‘Eun Haon,’ Halla would have been dead the moment she lost Sector 2.”
As soon as Halla confirmed Haon's car had plunged into the river, she had stormed Sector 2.
She had then boldly declared that since she had killed Eun Haon, Sector 2 was hers again.
Chacha and Bani, along with the mechanical cranes, had suppressed Halla's gang quite violently, and for some reason, Solmae had joined in.
It was only when River delivered the news that Haon wasn't dead that Bani finally burst into tears.
Halla, who had been rampaging and vowing to finish Eun Haon off before she woke up, was suddenly captured by Nova and disappeared.
After two days with no trace of her whereabouts, she was now at Hunter's feet.
Hunter called for the medical team to take Halla away. It looked like she would really die soon if left unattended.
Nova, who had been staring at Halla's body being carried away, shifted his gaze to Hunter and asked.
“Isn't there someone at headquarters who might realize Eun Haon is a different person?”
“...”
Hunter silently glanced toward the inside of the gymnasium.
“Worried I might do something?”
Nova added, rubbing a bloodstain on his glove.
“Go ahead. Suspect me. Even I don't know what I'm capable of.”
“Do you know why ‘Eun Haon’ joined forces with Halo?”
Nova let out a dry laugh at Hunter's sudden question.
“Awakening Spheres or money, I suppose. And she could conduct all the human experiments she wanted.”
“According to Halo, she asked for a firm leash to be put on you. I don't know the details, though.”
Leash, Nova muttered a few times before something clicked, and he touched his chest over his heart. The hollow laugh that escaped him was beautiful.
He finally realized who had told Halo about the Awakening Sphere shield protecting his heart.
Who had urged her to tear it out and have it implanted in Sniper.
“‘Me.’ She pulled a nasty little trick behind my back.”
She must have thought that the harder it became for me to deal with Halo, the more I would cling to ‘Eun Haon's’ creations.
I had used ‘her’ feelings to my heart's content, so I couldn't complain, but I felt like I'd been completely blindsided.
He didn't feel betrayed or disappointed. He wasn't even angry.
Instead, Nova glanced up at the night sky, remembering someone who had promised to teach him about the stars.
“But why are you telling me this?”
“Let's just call it a reward for bringing Halla back alive.”
At Hunter's reply, Nova turned away without a second thought, muttering.
“I'd rather get my reward from someone else.”
* * *
Sector 2 was becoming noticeably cleaner, even in the absence of a new boss.
It was thanks to Chacha and the mechanical cranes Haon had prepared in advance.
Chacha was fixing up Sector 2 just as she had with Sector 1.
She had already discussed how to renovate Sector 2 with Haon, so it wasn't difficult.
But the longer Haon remained unconscious, the harder it would become to manage both Sector 1 and Sector 2.
‘I never even wanted to form a gang because I didn't want any responsibilities, but look at me now.’
Chacha sighed and draped a blanket over Bani.
Despite being told several times to go home and rest, Bani had insisted on staying at the Sector 2 office until she fell asleep.
She'd been like this ever since Halla stormed Sector 2, declaring she had killed Haon.
‘Come to think of it, Bani got attached to this Eun Haon pretty quickly. Is it like how kids can instinctively tell who's dangerous?’
Stroking Bani's hair, Chacha wondered, ‘When was it for me?’
The old Eun Haon had let her and Bani into the penthouse, maintaining a polite distance, but there was always an undercurrent of ice-cold cruelty and a dismissive look in her eyes.
For all of that to vanish in an instant just because she lost her memory... Looking back now, it was absurd.
Honestly, she hadn't understood even half of the talk about multiverses and dimensional travel.
Still, living with the ‘loony’ Eun Haon was surprisingly fun.
So much so that she found herself wishing Eun Haon would stay this way forever.
‘Wake up already, Eun Haon. They said your life wasn't in danger. Bani's going to collapse at this rate. ...And that Ghost guy, too.’
Chacha thought of Juyeol, who was holed up in the hospital room as if he were Haon's shadow.
To think the day would come when she'd feel pity for a Hero. It was truly unsettling.
* * *
“Sister.”
Haon looked up at the nostalgic voice. Soft sunlight blanketed the orphanage's front yard.
A monotonous melody drifted from the laundry room, and the comforting scent of fabric softener filled the air.
Looking to her side, she saw Parang resting his chin on his arms at the table, giggling.
“Can you make me a snipe?”
“Is that another bird's name? A sandpiper?”
“Yeah. It cries, ‘Kkyak!’”
“Kkyak...?”
Tilting her head, Haon searched for the bird and then used her mana to smoothly change the shape of a wooden block.
“Ta-da! What do you think?”
“Oh, come on, sis. This is a painted snipe.”
“What's the difference? A painted one? Is that a real bird?”
“It is!”
Parang pointed to the pictures on his phone one by one, meticulously explaining the differences between the two snipes.
His round cheeks and chattering mouth reminded her of a chubby sparrow, and Haon couldn't help but burst out laughing.
“Ah, okay. I'll try again.”
And she transformed the wooden block into the exact shape of a common snipe.
“How's this?”
“Wow! A snipe!”
Parang ran around, jumping with the bird model in his hands. It was a peaceful afternoon.
Suddenly, Haon wondered why she was at the orphanage today when it wasn't even the weekend.
‘I should be at the lab.’
Then, as she watched Parang circle the yard like a low-flying bird, she remembered there was something she hadn't said.
“Sister. Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Hmm. I had something to tell you, but I can't remember what it was.”
“It's probably because you don't need to say it.”
“What do you mean?”
“It's true. Anyway, sister. We're done playing now, so I'll see you off.”
Parang came over, took her hand, and led her toward the orphanage gate.
“Parang? Where are we going?”
“He's waiting for you.”
“Juyeol?”
“The other one, too.”
“...Juyeol?”
Haon felt compelled to turn her gaze toward the shadows of the fence. Or rather, she tried to.
But no matter where she looked, there were no shadows here. It was a surreal scene.
In that time, Parang had stopped, and Haon had taken a step outside the orphanage.
Parang giggled and said.
“Sister. Don't think about me too much.”
In that instant, everything before her eyes, except for the orphanage gate and Parang, exploded into fine, delicate strings and scattered.
Haon gasped for air like someone who had just been pulled from the water.
Vibrating strings rained down like a meteor shower in a black space of indeterminable size.
As if each string held a memory, poignant recollections poured down relentlessly.
There was always something she wanted to say to Parang. Her heart ached, and her hands trembled.
Even through her vision, now blurry with tears, Parang shone brightly.
Haon sank to the ground in front of the orphanage gate and hugged Parang.
“Parang, I'm sorry. I... Because of me...”
Haon's tear-filled voice broke off.
Parang hugged her back.
“I told you, you don't need to say it.”
Then what am I supposed to say? What can I possibly say to you...
Haon hugged Parang, who clung to her like a small bird, even tighter.
She felt instinctively that there was no time.
She had to say it. Right now.
Haon met Parang's eyes and stroked his pale face.
“Parang, I love you.”
Was that the right answer? Parang smiled like sunshine and replied.
“I love you too, sister.”
“I always remembered you, even in other universes. I miss you so much.”
“I know. I really do.”
Parang held the bird model in his hand, clutching it to his chest.
“But we'll meet again later.”
From somewhere, a bluebird fluttered over and landed on Haon's shoulder.
It was time to leave.
Haon kissed Parang's head and whispered.
“Thank you. My eternal bluebird.”
Parang disintegrated into finely scattered, glowing blue strings and flew away like feathers.