CH 28

Chapter 28

Nightfall Forest

As soon as I finished speaking, everyone’s expressions seemed to harden momentarily. Taking advantage of everyone’s silence, I explained step by step why, logically, I should depart with them.

In the middle of my tirade, my audience appeared to try and stop me, but I kept my voice firm.

I had to argue insistently at times like this. And, I wasn’t wrong. It would be in everyone’s best interest to have me accompany their operation.

Perhaps my logic convinced the others…In the end, we decided to go together.

When Min Joo-hyuk looked at me with a complicated expression, I shrugged my shoulders. This wasn’t anything to look so grave about–I couldn’t comprehend his emotions.

I heard Park Yul’s voice from the front, “Yihan-ah. First, I didn’t tell you to remain because I thought you’d be a hindrance.” Park Yul made eye contact with me, “Even if you come, we can leave straight away. Please tell me if you’re having a hard time.”

Raen nodded and approached my side. He gently wrapped something around my shoulders–his robe now covered my back. “Yihan, we’re going to be departing now. It’ll be very dark, so try not to be so scared.”

At that moment, a strong wind blew. The scenery around us changed in an instant.

The refreshing but slightly damp smell of the forest; the quiet sound of grass bugs. Against the backdrop of pitch-black darkness, the blue system window floated before my eyes.

「You’ve arrived at the ‘Nightfall Forest.’ 」

A forest where night had fallen? Was that why it was so dark here? As I fell into contemplation, the window blinked as if it were being distorted. Shaking as if the system was broken, black, glistening letters appeared in the window.

「Remember.」

The system window turned off after that brief sentence; the blue light vanished. Suddenly, there was nothing but silence surrounding me.

I couldn’t see anything–Now that the bright light before me had disappeared, I couldn’t tell whether my eyes were open or closed in the midst of this deep darkness.

I felt suffocated; I retreated one step automatically. Simultaneously, I felt a hand firmly supporting my back.

“Yihan.”

That was Raen’s soft voice.

That’s right–I hadn’t been abandoned here alone. Suddenly, I felt like my airways were clear again.

A subtle light extended from the front; Song Ha-gyeon floated a white, perfectly square box in the air. When I met his eyes, I could see the palpable worry in his pupils.

“Sun Yihan, should we return?” Min Joo-hyuk said, right next to me.

I was fine now. The darkness had abated, and, above all, I wasn’t alone in this place.

When I said I was fine, Park Yul extended one hand out to me. “Then, shall we go together, Yihan-ah?”

The leaves, sparkling from what little light was present, looked like pupils in the darkness.

“Let’s go.” Then, as if my deafened ears had become unblocked, I could hear the cries of the grass bugs again. That’s right–there was nothing to fear. The grass crunched beneath my feet.

◇~◇~◇~◇~◇~◇

After a few minutes of walking, we finally came upon flat ground.

Park Yul stood off to the side, seemingly lost in thought, before using magic to instantly summon a decent-sized tent in front of him. It looked familiar.

Min Joo-hyuk circled the location with Raen, casting magic, before bounding to me with a few leaps. “Sit down!”

He magically pulled a large tree trunk from somewhere and trimmed it in the blink of an eye. He definitely had done this more than once or twice.

Perhaps they had a regular routine.

Min Joo-hyuk laid out thin branches in front of my vacant self. “Hey, Sun Yihan. Look carefully.”

He flicked his finger lightly; a flame burst out of his fingertips. The tree branches burned with a crackling noise. A thin cloud of smoke rose over the fire; the surroundings became bright as the smell of burning wood made the air pungent.

How fascinating. Magic itself was always quite amazing, but it was even more fascinating–and perhaps startling–to see flames surge up so quickly, right before my eyes.

When I opened my eyes wide and looked at Min Joo-hyuk, the warrior smiled and ran his hands through my hair. The red light of the bonfire glimmered and reflected off Min Joo-hyuk’s face as he plopped down by my side.

""

“How is it?” It looked as if he wanted to see some sort of reaction from me. I felt sorry for him, but I’ve always been awful at expressing myself or emoting.

Still, I nodded as hard as I could, and Min Joo-hyuk’s expression, at first glance, seemed to be somewhat satisfied.

I turned my eyes towards the burning bonfire. Now that I think about it, they could make light with magic. Did they really need to light this fire?

As soon as I asked, Min Joo-hyuk laughed and answered immediately, “Because it’s romantic!”

Did I hear him right? I turned to stare at the Warrior; Min Joo-hyuk stared back, grinning.

Really–romanticism? Just that? Of course, it’s romantic to create a bonfire in the forest, but…

Then, I felt a warmth gently covering my chilly shoulders. “There’s that reason, but it’s also more efficient to do some things manually.”

That was Raen’s voice.

The redhead sat gently next to me and continued, “It’s better to save even a small amount of mana and limit our magic use. Just in case.”

Ah, I see. Now I understood perfectly. Why couldn’t Min Joo-hyuk explain it like this from the very beginning?…Just as I thought that, I heard Min Joo-hyuk from the other side, “Raen Hyung-nim, elegance is more important than efficiency!”

Ah. He was serious.

As Min Joo-hyuk said, the scenery really was picturesque. As I slowly agreed with his opinions, I could hear Raen’s amused voice.

“There you have it. Joo-hyuk likes this sort of atmosphere. I like it as well.”

Min Joo-hyuk nodded, satisfied. Raen calmly uttered, “But that doesn’t change what’s more important.”

“…!” Min Joo-hyuk’s eyes opened wide as he stared at his older comrade. He looked quite shocked. I couldn’t help but think that he had such a diverse range of expressions.

As if he could not back down on this matter, Min Joo-hyuk retorted, “We should listen to Park Yul Hyung-nim’s opinion on this matter.”

“Leader Hyung would say that both are equally important motives.”

“Then, what about Song Ha-gyeon Hyung-nim…”

“He’ll probably say the motive doesn’t matter.”

Raen’s words sounded quite plausible. I could imagine Park Yul and Song Ha-gyeon giving those answers. As I sat, lost in thought, Min Joo-hyuk turned towards me, “Sun Yihan! What do you think?”

Ah–I didn’t think he’d ask me as well.

Min Joo-hyuk’s gaze oozed trust; when faced with his eyes, I, for some reason, wanted to say the opposite answer then what Min Joo-hyuk desired.

Should I give in to my urges? As I contemplated, I looked at Raen. Raen smiled lightly at me… Aha!

Min Joo-hyuk, pay attention! You’re the only one who’s sincere here…

Feeling a little regret at not following through with my original plan, I patted Min Joo-hyuk on the back a few times. I took the easiest route with my answer, “What’s most important will depend on each person, so both of you are correct.”

“Of course. So, what do you think is more important?”

Min Joo-hyuk was being more persistent than I could have imagined. That was valid–there were a few matters everyone had to stand their ground. Of course, I had no idea that this–romanticism versus efficiency–would be a topic Min Joo-hyuk wouldn’t back down on.

Eventually, I managed to muster up an answer, “Hmm, well. I like the romanticism, and efficiency is good as well. Either way, there’s a reason for the things you do. Isn’t that what is most important?”

Min Joo-hyuk stared blatantly at me. He seemed to be waiting for me to continue…but I was already finished?

“Why do you think that?” Raen asked softly.

Raen still had a soft smile on his lips. However, his golden eyes, twinkling in the light of the flames, seemed to have calmed into a more introspective, inquisitive state. I didn’t have any particular philosophy in mind, but I still opened my mouth, “If someone finds importance in something, then whatever it is has gained a meaningful existence…”

I turned to look at the bonfire before us; the small embers sparked and created small pops of light that flew into the darkness. The heat consistently washed over us; the flames burned clear and bright.

“And, being meaningful should be enough.” That’s what I thought, at least. Inwardly, I congratulated myself–I gained some skill in answering sudden questions.

I still remember being unable to say a proper word when I first met Raen. So, people can grow and mature like this, hm? I was proud.

“Hey, Sun Yihan.” Min Joo-hyuk messed up my hair with one hand. No further words followed that simple call. When I turned to look at him, his expression was quite ambiguous; I couldn’t exactly read his countenance.

Raen clasped my hand gently before letting me go, “Yihan. There’s a reason for everything in this world. People or things aren’t made important by others; meaning and importance are inherent.”

“…What?”

Raen’s remark was so abrupt.

Next to me, Min Joo-hyuk continued calmly, “We mean that nothing is meaningless.”

“That’s right. So, I hope Yihan will find his own meaning within himself.”

I could feel their eyes on me; however, I couldn’t follow the conversation…nor did I completely understand the context. Therefore, I had no idea what to say.

After staring at my perplexed face, Min Joo-hyuk grinned. He then grabbed my cheek, lightly stretching them, and brought some levity into the conversation, “Yes, well, don’t think too hard. Who knows–I sure think romance is a better motive for anything.”

“…Ah.”

“Did you hear that, Raen Hyung-nim?”

What do you mean, ‘did you hear that?’ My exclamation wasn’t acquiescence–It meant: ‘Get your hands off me quickly.’

I couldn’t stand by and let him twist my intentions. Even the system willfully took whatever meaning it could from my words… Ah, no. Let’s not think about that. That’s in the past already.

Taking off Min Joo-hyuk’s fingers, I spoke firmly, “I didn’t answer in any particular way.”

“Did *you* hear that, Joo-hyuk?” Raen taunted.

“…Yes.” Min Joo-hyuk became noticeably quiet.

I’ll toss him a bone this time–I continued to speak, slowly, “However, I never really said that I dislike your romanticism. I’ll think about my answer.”

I looked over the roaring bonfire; my mind calmed down once more. Warm heat melted the cold air of winter, and my body became mellow.

White smoke seeped into the darkness around us; I raised my head and followed the slowly rising smoke as it scattered into the night sky. The utter void that was the heavens caught my eye. Nightfall forest–what a perfect name. The air itself almost seemed black, as if the forest was perpetually locked in the darkest hour of the night.

I stretched out one hand high into the sky, trying to push back at this almost-crushing darkness. Of course, though, my hands found nothing to push back against.

Just deep, bottomless twilight.