CH 40

The hands of the man with chopsticks were wandering on the side dish plate. The movement was very slow, as if there were no special side dishes.

“Yeon Seonwoo-ssi, don’t use your skills on that brat, because it seems like he can drain mana from your skills.”

“Not that brat! I’m Ddari, hmph!” 

Please, let’s make a separation between what’s included and what isn’t.

As soon as I shut Ddari’s mouth, who was obsessed with his name, Lee Jehee’s gaze fell on my hand. The force was so bloody that it felt like it was hitting the skin, so I awkwardly raised the corners of my mouth.

“B, but it’s a relief. I was surprised to know that he was eating mana. As you know, I don’t have a lot of mana.”

“….”

“But you don’t know how glad I am that HunterLee Jehee is here with me.”

“….”

“Are you really like light and salt to me?” 

Please say something. Don’t chew on other people’s words instead of the side dishes.

He gave me no response to what I said with a forced smile in an awkward atmosphere. I, who was conscious of the situation, decided to eat slowly.

The warm rice, soup, and side dishes with a lot of variety were incomparably luxurious compared to the usual breakfast. However, I don’t know what it tastes like because of Lee Jehee, who is only chewing rice without saying a word in front of me.

I was still hungry, but thanks to someone, my appetite dropped.

“Seonwoo.” 

“Why?”

“Is it… delicious?”

“…Would you like to try it? But can you eat it? You said you only eat mana.”

I was eating in such an uncomfortable atmosphere, and Ddari stared at the sausage side dishes and said. When I asked if the monster could eat human food, Ddari, who looked like he was about to drool, quickly nodded.

“I’m not full, but I can eat! I can taste it too!”

“…Really?” 

You eat, yet your stomach isn’t full. What a strange body structure.

It was a little suspicious, but he seemed to want to eat, so I put Ddari on the table.

He was ready to pick it up with his hands, so I hurriedly took out a small plate and fork. Then I took some sausage and fish cake side dishes and gave them to him with a fork; he put a plate in front of me and made a moved expression.

“Seonwoo, this looks delicious!”

“Yes. It’s delicious, so eat a lot.”

“As expected, Seonwoo is the best!”

To the point saying I’m the best. 

When I was about to start eating again after feeling proud of Ddari and smiling brightly.

“Are you having fun?”

“…What?”

“It looks like a domestic dog, but wake up.”

Lee Jehee, who was sitting on the opposite side and looking for rice, then laughed as if he was dumbfounded. Then Ddari, who had just taken a bite of the sausage, lowered the fork with a sullen face.

They say they don’t even touch the dogs when they eat. Tsk.

“Okay, can we eat in a more comfortable atmosphere? Don’t worry about it and just eat.” 

I gave Lee Jehee a sign not to do it, and when he started eating again, Ddari quickly cut down on the sausage. Then, he continues to admire how delicious it is.

Do you want to say something harsh when you see that happy face? Anyway, it’s his personality. 

I shook my head inwardly, glancing at Lee Jehee, who was eating alone and quietly.

I’m going to eat, go home, and rest.

With the intention of getting out of this place quickly, I continued to eat vigorously.  Ddari stamped his feet softly on the table, perhaps excited. I smiled at him and ate a big bite of rice.

******

I was going to clean up after the meal, but Lee Jehee told me to leave it because the worker would come and clean it up. Having nothing to do with the words, I rubbed my awkward hand over my shirt and followed Lee Jehee out to the living room.

Sitting in the living room, where the wreckage of the broken guest room door was scattered, I looked at my watch at the thought of slowly going home. I had just finished breakfast, but it was already almost time for dinner.

“Are you sleeping?”

I carefully called Lee Jehee, who was lying on the sofa like seaweed that had blown up again today. The guy who doesn’t raise his head just answers.

“No.” 

Then why don’t you open your eyes? Feeling frustrated, I sighed for a long time and asked what I was curious about. I was going to go home after I cleared up this problem.

“I have a question. To whom should I return the protective equipment I received yesterday?”

I have to return the protective equipment in the inventory, but I don’t know who to give it to. In fact, I brought it from Baek Taera, so I could give it back to him, but— I didn’t want to get involved with him, so I asked.

“Keep it for a while. You can’t bring it and return it every time you enter the dungeon.”

“Oh… Well, yes.”

If Baek Taera had seen it, he would have said that he liked it with a tear in his mouth.

Unknowingly, I held back my laughter as if I were lost in thought, pressing my mouth with my hand with a smudged smile. I wonder why everyone wants to join a good guild.

“Ah, then what about the dungeon clear reward?”

When I asked to deal with it together, Lee Jehee finally raised his head, which he was leaning back. There was a look in his eyes, saying, ‘Oh, there was something like that.’

There were a total of 4 items received as a dungeon clearing reward. A weapon item called a high-level staff, a mysterious item called a collector’s orb, a Nightmare’s horn and a heart.

In fact, I was thinking about gulping it down. However, I quit because I felt uncomfortable carrying the monster’s horns and heart in my inventory. 

What do you mean heart—.

When I brought up the topic to deal with it quickly, he asked in a tone of annoyance.

“What did you get as a reward?”

“Items are the Nightmare’s horns and heart, and the high-level staff is the weapon items. And there’s an item called Collector’s Orb, I don’t know what it is. I don’t think it’s a weapon.”

At those words, Lee Jehee seemed to be in thought for a moment but then opened his mouth.

“You can give the staff and crafted items to Taera. I’ll take a look at the collector’s orb.”

After all, it’s Baek Taera. 

I sighed at the fact that I had to meet him separately and deliver it. I’m sure he’ll start fighting again.

I opened my inventory and took out a collector’s orb with the intention of avoiding it for a while. Lee Jehee, who raised his hand over the orb on the table, swept up the air once. I couldn’t see anything with my eyes, but I could tell that he was using judgment skills through the status window.

[Party leader ‘Lee Jehee’ activates the special skill ‘Judgment’.]

[Party leader ‘Lee Jehee’ is evaluating the item.]

“What? What item is it?”

I was curious about what that was, so I bowed my upper body forward with interest. Then, Lee Jehee, who raised his gaze slightly, read the explanation in his characteristic slow tone.

“Memories marbles collected by the ‘Nightmare’. The Nightmare likes to play with it.”

“Playing with it…?” 

“Yes? That’s right, Seonwoo. Those are the orbs the Nightmare used to play with.”

As he sat next to me and whined that he was bored, Ddari, who held a cell phone, raised his head. However, the guy who seemed to be interested in the word “Nightmare” again focused on my cell phone.

I wondered why it was quiet, but it must have been that he was playing a game. I noticed a small buzzing sound coming from my phone. 

“Used to play with it? Did he play orbs or what?”

I took the cell phone from Ddari and asked him, and he frowned in dissatisfaction.

“Seonwoo, give it back to me.”

“Then tell me. What did the Nightmare play with this?”

As I raised my arms high to avoid his reaching for my cell phone, the guy scrambled his feet and began to explain quickly. The game must have been pretty fun.

“That’s the nightmare’s hobby! Collecting and playing with the memories of humans who came to get rid of him! It creates nightmares!”

“Playing with memories? I really don’t like that bastard. So how do you use those orbs? you know?”

As I remembered what had happened in Han Chorok’s dream, I naturally distorted my expression. Ddari, who looked at me with a blank look, picked up the orbs on the table. Inside the thin glass film, something gray was swirling turbidly.

“It’s easy to use. Like this.”

Cracked!

“You can break it against your opponent.”

“…Huh?” 

“Yeon Seonwoo!” 

[‘Yeon Seonwoo’ uses “Collector’s Orbs” to read memories]

[Existing memory storage: Kim Beomjun]

[New memory storage: Yeon Seonwoo]

[Party leader ‘Lee Jehee’ activates the secondary skill ‘Restraint’]

The orbs hit on the shoulder shattered with a small sound. At the same time, Lee Jehee, who activated the skill, pulled the chain wrapped in his hand and pulled Ddari away from me.

“I, I am not hungry yet! Let go, you punk!”

“Yeon Seonwoo, are you okay?”

“….”

The glass shattered, and the gray smoke inside was scattered into the air. And as soon as the gray smoke disappeared, the memories of others flowed into my head. The life until the death of a man named Kim Beomjun flashed through my head like a fast-forwarded video.

“Yeon Seonwoo-ssi?” 

“…Ugh. yes. I’m fi—” 

“Let go of me!”

Lee Jehee’s voice echoed in my ears as if I was listening in the water. In the meantime, the voice of Ddari felt far away.

There was definitely a view of Lee Jehee’s house in front of me, but the life of another person I saw for the first time was flowing in my head. As I watched the video with the feeling of being a viewer, I slowly lowered my gaze at the feeling of a foreign body in my knee.

The orb, which I thought had been broken by hitting my shoulder, lay on my lap quietly. However, the difference was that the gray smoke changed into a green whirlpool swirling through the yellow.