CH 24

Min Joo-hyuk:

“Sun Yihan,” My choked voice echoed around the quiet room.

It was a dark night, the moon not visible in the sky. There was a small lamp on the bedside table; a faint light escaped from its small flame. That faint light had chased away enough of the dark to reveal the pale face lying motionless on the bed.

“…When will you wake?” My trembling voice dissipated into the air.  I sat on the chair right next to his prone body and looked down at his pale face–eyes closed and expression tranquil–for a long while.

For some reason, he looked cold. My hands reached out to him almost automatically.

When I carefully swept back his black hair, his round forehead was revealed. The faint warmth that spread to my hand reminded me of the excessive heat that my palm had once touched.

It was in the carriage heading home–the first day we met. The unfamiliar heat rising in his fevered cheeks; Sun Yihan’s subdued voice. All that was still vivid in my memories–especially that precarious first impression.

“It’ll be a week soon.”

Did I want an answer? Quite unlike my usual self, my thoughts just immediately tumbled out of my lips. I wanted to hear Sun Yihan’s voice–even if it was made weak and hesitant by fever.

I closed my eyes tightly. Of course, I had no desire to see Sun Yihan in pain, but neither did I want to see him adopt a comfortable expression when he was so hurt. Sun Yihan was a man of extremes and no middle ground.

‘I should have gone with them.’

The regret that tumbled around countlessly in my brain–the regret I couldn’t help but ponder over every hour–came to the forefront of my thoughts yet again. Maybe, just maybe, if my defensive magic was available everyone would have been kept safe.

I swept the wrinkles away from the blanket covering the ex temple-resident. The soft blanket had been heated to a moderate temperature and was a pure, spotless white.

I squeezed the blanket. I could clearly see the day Sun Yihan returned–clothes dyed red and skin paler than this cloth–play out right before my eyes.

Clink– Shatter–

In the shards of my memories, the sound of glass breaking–shattering–seemed to echo again.

There were two people in front of me, stained with blood. One was limp and wrapped in a robe; the other held the first in his arms and quietly cried.

– Yihan healed me. And…

A calm voice followed. I grasped the situation immediately. However, what I couldn’t understand was Yihan’s behavior.

The warriors have been ready for death from the moment we made the Warrior’s oath, but Sun Yihan was not a Warrior. Moreover, it had been less than a few months since we first met.

Using healing magic and importing our wounds into his own body were two vastly different things. And yet, Sun Yihan, why were you so…

“Hey. You.” I cut off the train of thought that followed and called out to the young man again.

I didn’t want to ruminate on this matter alone, I supposed. I wanted to hear what Sun Yihan had been thinking directly from the man himself.

Sun Yihan, who was still lying there with his eyes closed, came into view.

“You’re going to wake up, right?” I firmly grasped his thin hand and placed my forehead on his tepidly warm fingers. “I know. But, still, wake up quickly. Alright?”

There were no external, lingering wounds, so he could wake up at any moment. That had to be the case.

I felt his pulse flutter underneath that thin skin. Then, with a small smile, I continued, “You have no idea Raen Hyung visits every day, do you?”

Raen Hyung had scrounged up an ointment that helped with scarring from somewhere. I had no idea where the scar was located since Hyung-nim didn’t tell me, but the faint, sweet scent of the ointment hung around Sun Yihan every day.

“Song Ha-gyeon Hyung also brings something every time he visits. You’d be surprised if you could see the state of your table.” My eyes turned toward the table; several transparent glass bottles were placed on top. Inside, there were various mysterious liquids in different shades of purple.

There were one or two white sticks stuck in each glass bottle. The scent of grass–a calming scent–gently wafted throughout the room.

“Park Yul Hyung-nim is always coming to nurse you so your body is not harmed.”

Park Yul Hyung-nim came once a day to raise Sun Yihan’s torso and spoon a few mouthfuls of transparent sparking water into his mouth. Apparently, that liquid was a medicine that can replenish a moderate amount of energy.

“Everyone is waiting for you to wake up.”

Everyone was busy. Never before had a demonic beast permeated into another object or being, so this incident had to be investigated carefully. If this unexpected change continued, the situation would become quite serious.

However, Sun Yihan’s situation was grave as well. On the surface, nothing seemed to be wrong with the man, but I couldn’t figure out why he wouldn’t wake up. So, I couldn’t help but worry.

Everyone felt the same way; that’s why everyone showed their face to the sleeping Sun Yihan every day–if only for a short while–even though we didn’t have enough time to sleep.

As I rubbed his hand, I continued to talk, “Me? I don’t really have anything for you.”

I’ll put some candy in your mouth when you wake up; I heard you enjoyed them a lot last time. As I spoke, I tapped the pocket of my outer coat. Lollipops were crammed inside.

Actually, I wasn’t the type to search for sweets to eat. Therefore, someone else had to eat these.

I leaned over our clasped hands, closer to his face. There was a snug, tender, and warm soap-like scent that rose from him.

“Still, I… I’m waiting.”

I closed my eyes. Through the connection of our hands, the shared warmth felt a bit more clear.

The night deepened.

Eyelids, which had been tightly closed for a long while, opened quietly. Clear, water-colored eyes glowed distinctly in the dark.

◇~◇~◇~◇~◇~◇

Sun Yihan:

When I opened my eyes, I was lying down in a dark room. A warm and cozy blanket covered me. Raen probably managed to take good care of me and bring me home. What a relief.

Rrring– Rring— Rring–

Just as I was waking up and still dazed, several status windows pushed into view all at once. Shouldn’t the system at least give me time to figure out my current situation?

As the thought flashed through my head, all the status windows flashed away and vanished. My view became dark again. After a quick, haphazard glance through the notifications, I judged there was nothing too urgent, so it would be okay to check through slowly.

For some reason, my right arm was quite heavy.

I rolled my eyes to look to the side: brown hair shimmering in the faint light came into view. Min Joo-hyuk leaned onto my arm as if he were burying his face into my hand.

I had no idea why he was there, but this was quite fortunate for me: I should ask how much time had passed.

The sun was setting before I fell unconscious, but now it’s the middle of the night. It seems that at least several hours have passed me by. Furthermore, I was in excellent physical condition. I suppose this is why people need to sleep–most things feel better after waking from a good night’s sleep.

“…Min.”

Before I could properly call out to the Warrior by my side, a dry cough burst out of my throat. My coughing voice sounded so dry and cracked even to my own years. What’s this? Was I asleep for longer than I had thought?

For some reason, my mind recalled the first day I arrived here. A day had passed in the blink of an eye back then.

As I recalled that bitter memory, I heard a clattering noise.

“Sun Yihan?” Min Joo-hyuk stood up straight; the chair rolled on the ground behind him. His shaky eyes were focused on my face.

I wanted to answer him, but I couldn’t speak well since my throat was too dry. I merely gazed at the Warrior and blinked quietly. He, in turn, sat on the bed as if all strength had left his legs.

“Hey, Sun Yihan.” He called out my name as if he were confirming something.

His actions were understandable; the last time he saw me, I was bleeding quite heavily. Of course, though, I was fine, so there’s nothing to be worried about.

‘Come to think of it, what happened to the wound?’

Since I imported Raen’s wound, the wound should have remained on me. However, my body wasn’t in a bad shape. I’ll need to investigate later.

As I was lost in thought, Min Joo-hyuk swept back my hair cautiously. His fingers trembled as they approached me. The Warrior slowly rose to his feet and placed some soft pillows behind me to support my back.

“Drink.” He poured some water into a glass and placed it in my hand. A few sips later, my throat felt much better.

After checking that I finished drinking the provided water, Min Joo-hyuk placed the glass back on the table. “It’s been just under a week.”

“What?” I said, utterly puzzled. A week? What? No way!

“I’ve been asleep for that long?”

Min Joo-hyuk nodded, a complicated expression on his face.

What a catastrophe–I didn’t expect this at all.

Urgently, I told him, “Hey, Min Joo-hyuk, come over here for a second.”

“Why? Are you not feeling well somewhere?” His voice was full of worries. He quickly knelt on the bed with one knee and sat down by my side.

As soon as Min Joo-hyuk placed his hand on my shoulder, I reached out as well; my fingers brushed the area slightly above his eyelids. 

Rrring–

Simultaneously, a system window popped up.

「<This Healer will help!> Warrior ‘Min Joo-hyuk.’

Heal/Import」

‘Heal.’ Just as I thought that, a blue light hovered and circled around Min Joo-hyuk.

A startled voice cried out, “No–Sun Yihan. Hey, wait a minute.”

“Sleep a little. You look tired.” I gently stroked down Min Joohyuk’s eyelids. The shining light poured into me instantaneously; the Warrior’s body collapsed and leaned against mine.

A refreshing scent–like a cool wind passing by–filled my nose; I could hear Min Joo-hyuk’s breaths in my ears. Unsurprisingly his body was quite firm…and also quite heavy. He was surprisingly bigger than I had realized.

I worked hard to get out from underneath the Warrior and laid Min Joo-hyuk down in my place. I even covered him meticulously with a blanket. The Warrior slept soundly, breathing out evenly.

I knew this would happen. ‘Has he been sleeping properly? As soon as I healed him, he fell asleep–as if he needed to be relieved of his fatigue. I had no idea how roughly everyone would treat their bodies until I awoke.’

""

Still, as I saw just earlier, there was a way to empty the ‘healing gauge’ before the red liquid reached the end. I’ll have to read further on the detailed methods later, but I immediately thought I could now heal others without worrying about the cooldown time.

‘Well then, let’s go and see Raen first.’ After all, I have to thank him for safely bringing me home.

As soon as I contemplated where I should go next, a quest window, accompanied by the usual ringing sound, popped up before my eyes.

<Surprise Quest!> Find the Warrior!

Accept/Refuse

Did I really have any reason to refuse? Of course I accepted. As I mentally made my decisions, the window changed to show the following screen:

< Surprise Quest!> Find the Warrior!

On Success: You’ll acquire the flag ‘Warrior-nim, I’ll come to find you (1 time)’

On Failure: Failure to acquire the flag ‘Warrior-nim, I’ll come to find you (1 time)’

Who is the Warrior you want to find?

‘Ah, I guess I have to make my choice first.’ When I mentally decided upon Raen, a new quest window popped up.

Choose a location to search for the Warrior ‘Raen!’

1) The Studio

2) The Laboratory

3) The Study

4) The Greenhouse Garden

Mmm… The choices included locations I had never seen before.