CH 34

Sun Yihan:

I walked with Song Ha-gyeon. As we moved away from the bonfire, my skin came into direct contact with the cold air.

He glanced at me before gently covering my shoulders with a blanket; the warm and cozy blanket felt so pleasant.

It seemed that defensive magic covered a wide array of uses and spells. As we talked, I felt that we had walked quite a long distance; looking back, I saw the burning blaze had become a tiny light.

Even though we were far from the bonfire, our surroundings weren’t completely dark. Song Ha-gyeon levitated a box that gently illuminated the surroundings.

A dirt road with sparse patches of grass lined by thick trees came into view.

A pitch-black forest. Our surroundings were only superficially lit by a hazy light, and it did not penetrate deeply…as if light and dark couldn’t mix.

‘How did this forest begin to grow here?’

How could these plants grow in a place without light? The trees and grass looked dry at a glance, but they had not completely withered.

No–before that, there’s another thing that’s weird. How could a place be plunged into eternal night in the first place?

“Ha-gyeon-hyung, why doesn’t the sun rise here?”

“…I see you’re curious about it.”

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After a brief moment Of contemplation, Song Ha-gyeon raised a hand and materialized a map drawn with light. There were some colored marks on parts of the map. Eyes fixed on the light, Song Ha-gyeon opened his mouth, “…There are some locations that are a bit twisted.”

A forest where the sun never rises; a plain where flowers poured from the sky; a desert that experienced perpetual rain.

However, no one really questioned these places and took them as they were. Song Ha-gyeon himself had only recognized that these places weren’t normal after he took the Warrior’s pledge.

Raen, Min Joo-hyuk, and even Park Yul had also acknowledged the irregularity after becoming Warriors.

“We’re still not certain about anything.” Song Ha-gyeon slowly muttered to himself. He was still studying the phenomena. He raised his hand again and the map gradually scattered into particles of light.

As the specks of light slowly dissipated before my eyes, chaotic and complicated thoughts sprang up inside my brain.

I was probably able to question this space because of the system–even if I wasn’t a Warrior. That was the only thing that made sense.

‘But why?’

I couldn’t figure out the relationships between any of these. It seemed as if all these fragmented pieces were all connected but, at the same time, not.

The system told me only one thing: to save the world with the power I have.

The power must be referring to my healing skills. And, saving the world would probably mean to heal and help these Warriors who are closing the cracks. I would be making an indirect contribution.

But, was that all? Why were there twisted locations that only Warriors could recognize as abnormal?

What was the system not telling me?

The scattered light completely faded into the darkness. Nevertheless, it seemed as if there was an afterimage left in front of me for a long while.

◇~◇~◇~◇~◇~◇~◇

“…Stop here.” After walking a while more, Song Ha-gyeon placed his hand on my shoulder. His movements were soft, but I could feel the firmness in his touch. We stopped walking.

“Sun Yihan, do you see it?”

I could see it. A faintly shining line was drawn on the ground a few steps away from us.

“Don’t cross that,” he said.

That seemed to be the boundary of the defense magic cast in the area. I had no particular desire to leave the safe zone and obediently nodded my head.

I felt his silent gaze on me; when I looked up, he and I locked eyes.

“I just mean that you shouldn’t go out on your own. So, tell me if you want to explore.” Song Ha-gyeon finished by saying he’d go with me. I didn’t think I would want to go out, but I still nodded.

The air was cool–a nice temperature to take a walk. When I was sequestered in the temple, I thought I might like taking walks if I had the chance in the future, but I had no way of confirming it.

Since we checked the defense magic perimeter, it was time to return. I immediately turned my back to walk away–

–But, a quest window materialized before me.

<Surprise Quest!> A courageous step by myself.

On Success: Acquire ‘one brave step’ (1 time)

On Failure: Penalty of being unable to walk for 1 day

A faint blue light emerged beyond the defensive boundary. The failure penalty was brutal–if I didn’t take this courageous step, the system would take away my ability to walk completely? At this point, it felt as if it were just pushing me from behind.

Still, since there was no deadline, it didn’t seem like a quest I needed to complete straight away. At that moment, I decided to contemplate it further and took another step away.

Would you like to give up on this quest?

Time left until automatic failure: 5

Time left until automatic failure: 4

Wait a minute! I turned back again. The countdown stopped–so frustrating. Honestly, this was all too much.

“Sun Yihan?”

I heard Song Ha-gyeon’s voice. He approached me when I stopped in my tracks; he looked at my bowed head with a worried expression.

My heart felt heavy. Still, I didn’t avoid his direct gaze and opened my mouth, “Ha-gyeon Hyung, I think I’ll have to cross and go over there.”

“…Why?” Song Ha-gyeon asked absentmindedly, before shaking his head. Then, he ruffled my hair a few times. “No…You can tell me later.”

Before gently sweeping my bangs back, he said, “Let’s go.”

“Thanks, Hyung.”

I meant it. Song Ha-gyeon may be speaking nonchalantly, but I knew that this wasn’t an easy decision. I couldn’t use any magic, and going beyond the barrier would be dangerous.

Of course, I would be fine thanks to the system, but Song Ha-gyeon doesn’t know that. He’d definitely be concerned. Since everyone seemed busy and tired, I hadn’t wanted to become a burden… But…

Slight guilt weighed on my mind. However, I couldn’t even apologize to him–after all, apologies needed to be justified.

I didn’t even deserve to voice my apologies if I didn’t truly feel sorry–empty apologies only serve to comfort the speaker.

Just as I thought that, Song Ha-gyeon said, “…It’s alright.”

‘What’s alright?’ I wondered if I accidentally spoke out loud.

Fortunately, that wasn’t the case.

Still, I didn’t understand what Song Ha-gyeon meant. Was he saying it’s okay because he’s accompanying me? Or was he forgiving me for being so willful without any explanation? Was he referring to something else?

Still, I felt somewhat reassured–though I didn’t yet know what he meant.

Humans were selfish like that. Even though I didn’t comprehend him fully and his words should be meaningless, I felt relieved.

Song Ha-gyeon’s neat appearance was reflected in my eyes. He walked with a calm demeanor, and I matched his steps by his side.

The tree line was quite dense outside the boundary line; the path of light leading me was clearly visible.

‘It’s here.’

The light stretched vertically upwards at that point.

At that spot was a big, thick tree; the light seemed to stop at the top. I exhaled deeply; my heart calmed.

I took out a piece of paper imbued with floating magic and calmly explained to Song Ha-gyeon that I must climb that tree. He wanted to oppose it at first, saying that it would be dangerous, but he agreed eventually since my mind was set.

Though he said he would accompany me, I shook my head; judging by the quest description, I needed to climb on my own.

“I’ll be right back.” I looked away from Song Ha-gyeon even though he seemed like he had more to say. After tearing the paper, my body floated upwards.

It felt strange, like my feet were stepping on nothing…like I was walking on nothing but wind. The light that followed the lines of the tree trunk continued upwards for a long while.

Then, at some point, it cut off with no warning.

I had arrived at the highest point of the tree; there was a thick branch that stuck out alone. I clambered carefully on top of the branch. Silence reigned in the area; no wind blew.

I stood on both feet, but the window acknowledging my success did not appear. Did I have to touch the end of the light? If I tiptoed, the end was just barely within reach.

I grasped the wooden trunk beside me firmly, and slowly reached up…

Pop–

A clearly audible sound rang out; the eerily unfamiliar sound dissipated into the silence. It felt as if my fingertips passed through a thin–paper thin–curtain. The sky seemed to fluctuate momentarily.

What’s this?

I hurriedly retrieved my hand; simultaneously, I heard another pop in my ear. A strange sensation–not quite a temperature contrast, but something similar–passed by my hand. At the same time–

Swoosh–

The road of light disappeared instantly. There was nothing left–only darkness. I was left in a place where nothing could be seen.

My legs became a little weak, but perhaps that was because I had been on tiptoes for a while.

‘Ah, wait a minute.’

I felt my body falling down; the cold wind buffeted my ears. I had no time to properly react. The quest window materialized as I fell.

<Surprise Quest!> A courageous step by myself, Success!

As reward for your success, you’ve acquired ‘one brave step’ (1 time)

Really? It’s showing me this now? I closed my eyes, despairing. What would it feel like when my body slammed into the ground? I was certain it would be nothing pleasant. I was worried about Song Ha-gyeon as well–wouldn’t he be utterly startled?

…How long would it take until I reached the bottom anyway?

I stiffened my muscles, bracing myself for impact.

“Sun Yihan!”

I heard an urgent voice.

The speed at which my body was falling had slowed down. I opened my eyes slightly and realized the surroundings were now slightly brighter.

A grassy scent–a familiar scent. Before I knew it, I was in Song Ha-gyeon’s embrace.

It was warm–No, it was hot. Perhaps too hot. My heart thumped as if it were about to pop out of my chest. Song Ha-gyeon’s face, though the man still held onto me, was blurry in my view.

I took a deep breath–now was not the time to be so absentminded. Song Ha-gyeon must be shaken, so I needed to say something to reassure him.

I narrowly managed to calm myself down. I tried to smile and speak to Song Ha-gyeon, who must be flustered by this situation.

“…I came back super fast, right?”

Ah–this wasn’t what I meant to say.