CH 8

Silence settled in the room.

Three pairs of eyes were drawn to the person who’d collapsed helplessly in his seat, his face pale.

Park Yul hurried to check the slumped person’s breathing; Min Joohyuk carefully laid him on the bed. Raen jumped to his feet and quietly took in the scene before him with a hard gaze. Though the setting sun washed the room in a red glow, the person on the bed still looked pallid.

“His breathing is fine. Fortunately, I think he’s just asleep.”

“I’m still worried, Park Yul Hyung-nim. He’s looked sickly since the first day I met him…”

In between Park Yul and Min Joohyuk’s worried, shaky murmurs, Raen couldn’t add anything to the conversation. Where did it start to go wrong? Why was he like this? Raen was utterly confused.

A vivid recollection of the situation up to this point unfolded within Raen’s head.

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Raen:

The golden glow of the sunset would soon vanish beneath the horizon.

I teleported back to Reddeo after completing a commissioned investigation with Song Ha-gyeon. The thick scent of flowers wafting all over the place prickled my nose.

This time, I had been sent to one of the more twisted locations–places like forests where the sun did not rise and night reigned eternal…or deserts where rain fell constantly. “Ha-gyeon. We had no idea that these places were twisted–straying from the natural laws of the world–until we made a Warrior’s oath, right?”

“…Yeah.”

“There must be a reason for that, so why can’t I find any clues?”

“…Who knows. Still, we’ll just have to keep searching.”

The appointed warriors were the only ones who acknowledged that these places were just a bit off. However, their repeated investigations gave them limited information.

I moved while lost in my thoughts; soon, I made my way to the garden in front of the building. “You’re heading straight to the lab?”

“…Yeah.”

“You still haven’t recovered from your last injury, though, right? Ha-geyon, aren’t you pushing yourself too much?”

“It’s fine. …Raen, what about you?”

“I still have reference materials I want to find in the study.”

“…Alright. I’m leaving first.” After nodding, Song Ha-gyeon immediately disappeared inside. While staring blankly at the empty space where he’d stood, I suddenly remembered that a new person was supposed to arrive.

I bit my lips. ‘Did they say his name was Sun Yihan? He’s probably here by now.’

It wasn’t all that long ago–anxiety wracked my body when I heard that a new person was suddenly joining us. Why now? For what reason? It was unprecedented for someone to suddenly barge their way into the team. Furthermore, it was quite unpleasant for another variable to appear in such an uncertain situation.

Still, I felt I should meet Sun Yihan before making my way towards the study. I had to know what kind of person he was and why he came to us.

‘They said he was going to room with Song Ha-gyeon…’

My pace quickened as I walked into the building. The wind surrounding me slightly rustled my well-pressed robes.

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“Raen Hyung-nim! You’ve arrived.”

As soon as I entered Song Ha-gyeon’s room, I heard Min Joohyujk’s welcoming voice.

And, my eyes soon saw a person leaning, sitting askew, on the bed. It looked as if he was trying to bury his body into the fluffy pillows while covering his knees with a white blanket.

The man was white all over–his skin and the spacious and voluminous robes he wore were both as pale as snow.

The red glow of the sunset poured into the room. Inside, cold and clear blue eyes shone tranquilly. His gaze was locked on me.

‘What is that?’

Mana that matched the color of his eyes. Vivid blue and translucent mana swirled around him. That person was the only one who shone blue in this sunset-red room.

“Raen-hyung. Hello, I’m Sun Yihan.” He introduced himself in a trembling voice; the slender stem of his neck shook. I couldn’t take my eyes off of him–the blue light that threatened to bind the nearby environs to him.

How was this mana so clearly visible? Moreover, I had never seen this sort of mana before.

That thin body was fully enveloped by the blinding light. I could hardly determine whether the mana was contained within him, or if it was just around him. Maybe the mana’s true nature was perched halfway between these two options.

‘But how?’

Sun Yihan was someone who lived at the temple, and none of the residents there had mana. It was therefore impossible for the person before me to possess it.

Was it a divine power? No–I’ve never sensed anything like that within a high priest or an archbishop. I’ve only ever been able to perceive mana’s presence; therefore, that has to be mana… Just in a form that I’ve never seen before.

However, is Sun Yihan alright? That appearance… I rushed to open my mouth and inquire about the strangeness before me. At that moment, our leader firmly cut me off. “Enough, Raen-ah.”

Our Leader Hyung was always someone who made the right choices. Unlike me. So, I thought it best to follow his words.

However, not now. This oddity wasn’t something I could ignore so easily. That fluctuating blue light wrapped around that delicate neck as if it were strangling the young Priest. I couldn’t help but stare at it uneasily.

I was the only person here who could see Mana; normally, it was invisible to most people. However, perhaps due to my high sensitivity, I could occasionally see the flow of mana in the world.

Therefore, I simply couldn’t just pass this by. I had to figure out what was going on with this situation. Unexpectedly, the moment I faced our leader and opened my mouth–

–“…I…” A voice rang through the room, so quiet that it sounded as if it would disappear. The desperate tone made me swing my head immediately towards Sun Yihan.

Sun Yihan slightly bowed his head. The translucent blue light dimmed immediately afterwards.

“Yihan-ah?” Leader Hyung carefully placed his hand on Sun Yihan’s back; stroking the young man’s dry back, our leader called out to him again. “Yihan-ah, calm down.”

The light that surrounded the newcomer almost completely faded away. Only then could I properly take in his appearance. The sunset glow poured down on the young man, as if weighing him down. Somehow it felt like it was overwhelming him.

He kept his eyes trained downwards and was shaking minutely. The hands holding the blanket were tightly clenched–almost trembling from the effort–even though the young man looked as if he lacked strength.

Sun Yihan, breathing rapidly, hurriedly opened his mouth. His speech was shaky, coming out in stutters interspersed by hasty breaths, as if he was in a hurry but he couldn’t speak well. His fingertips were pinched white; somehow, he looked desperate.

In front of us, Leader Hyung and Min Joohyuk spoke calmly to each other, but not an ounce of their conversation was audible to me.

Small beads of sweat flowed down Sun Yihan’s thin, white neck. The young man, while breathing heavily, slowly raised his head. Then, in a tearful voice, he said, “…Please believe me.” His desperate gaze was directed at me.

His eyes seemed greatly subdued; somehow, that sight made my heart sink. His eyes were like a window–it felt like the young man was sifting through distant memories…filled with deep despair. As if he were resigned to an unfortunate end… As if he had lost all hope for a better situation.

“Hey, Sun Yihan.” Min Joohyuk sat on the bed and called out to Sun Yihan. Sun Yihan’s body started to tilt as the mattress dipped due to the differences in their weight. Min Joohyuk urgently grabbed the other’s shoulder and supported him firmly.

In that red-colored room, those eyes felt like they were the only things worth looking at–his blue eyes captivated me, a spell broken only when he blinked. Though the last words Sun Yihan uttered were a request for me to trust him, his eyes had already started to close in resignation.

Sun Yihan, still breathing heavily, completely closed his eyes, as if he did not hold a single expectation. Those long eyelashes gently descended onto his cheek.

I quickly came to my senses. My brain, which had been momentarily paralyzed, quickly returned to form. Without much further thought, I stormed out the door.

‘I can’t use summoning magic right now in front of him.’

I couldn’t be sure if the mana surrounding Sun Yihan was normal. I closed the door and utilized my summoning magic hurriedly; my voice shook while casting the spell.

I grabbed the small paper bag that manifested in the air before opening the door again.

I spread the paper bag and placed it under the pallid Sun Yihan’s mouth; he focused his shaking eyes on me. He looked bewildered–as if he had never expected this to happen.

Even though it’s natural to receive help if you’re in a bad condition.

Perhaps he was merely surprised that I was the one helping him. Or, no, perhaps my first guess was closer to the mark. Was my hasty manner of speaking intimidating? Did I touch upon some sort of trauma?

Of course, I didn’t mean to do any of this–I just wanted to ask…to clarify. But my intentions did not matter here. The deciding factor was my tone.

I bit my lips slightly. Perhaps I should have left my questions until later, as Leader Hyung had suggested.

Sun Yihan’s eyes looked slightly moist. His round, wide-open eyes conveyed that he did not expect even an inch of mercy.

My fingertips felt cold–as if all warmth had seeped away.

“Gasp, Haah….Hngh…” Sun Yihan slowly inhaled and exhaled. The paper bag in my hand swelled with each puff of breath before shrinking down again.

Leader Hyung gently stroked Sun Yihan’s back to help him regain his breath; Min Joohyuk held Sun Yihan’s shoulder to support his weak and reeling body.

Soon, his breathing seemed to calm down; the trembles in his body seemed to subside as well.

“Ah.” With that exclamation, Sun Yihan’s eyes opened wide.

Then, with no prior warning, he suddenly collapsed on the spot.

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“Raen-ah.”

I could hear Leader Hyung calling out to me as if to reason with me. My mind, deep in thought, returned to reality.

Sun Yihan lay underneath a large blanket, like a small animal burrowing into the pillowy cloth. He continued to exhale small breaths.

“I think we’ve managed to finally stabilize Yihan-ie now. But…”

“I’m sorry. I was too hasty, Hyung.” There was no excuse I could make for myself–it was my fault. As Leader Hyung said, the questioning could come later. I had been too hurried in my desire to get information.

“I’m not the one you should be apologizing to.” Hyung said before turning a calm gaze onto me–of course I should apologize properly to Sun Yihan after he woke up. I definitely meant to do that. That being said, forgiveness would be a whole other matter.

I hadn’t meant for our relationship to go all wrong–like this–from the very beginning. From what I could glean, Sun Yihan also didn’t seem to know much about the strange mana around him… Had something happened to him in the temple because of its existence?

When I nodded firmly with a grave expression, Leader Hyung relaxed his tense body and smiled softly, regaining his soft, usual air. Then, slowly, he continued, “So, Raen-ah. What did you see?”

At that instant, my body shook; A streak of red flickered past Leader Hyung’s eyes.

TL: Bruh, Park Yul scares me.