“Back here again, huh?”
As I sat still, staring at the sky, I heard a voice calling me from behind.
I didn’t even need to turn around to know who it was.
The voice, the essence of magic, the subtle aura… everything was familiar.
The sound of footsteps approached and plopped down next to me.
“……”
Silence fell for a while, occasionally broken by the distant roars of monsters. While I was lost in thought, a sidelong glance came my way.
A brown braid hastily tied back, and bright green eyes filled with tension and worry greeted me from a beautiful woman.
Choi Ji-yeon, the heir of Taesan.
“Um… well…”
An awkward voice followed, dragging out the words as she looked for my reaction.
“What’s up? Do you have something to say?”
“No, I just… wanted to check if you’ve cooled your head.”
With Gop-hwa quieting down, I patiently waited, and Ji-yeon asked me while cautiously checking my expression.
I shrugged my shoulders.
“Yeah, it’s cooled down well. Taesan’s effect is great.”
The troublesome Gop-hwa had calmed, and right now, Taesan was poking its head out.
The fiery emotions that had burned moments ago had fizzled out, replaced suddenly by a feeling of calm.
If Chang-hae had erupted… I’d probably just be cold.
‘Truly, there’s no one like a bipolar patient.’
A wry smile crossed my face at the sudden thought.
Gop-hwa, Chang-hae, Taesan. Every time these three unique abilities come up, it feels like my emotions are being manipulated.
Suddenly, anger flares up and I charge in like a mad dog, and then I cool off and collapse, becoming normal, then sink back… it’s truly insane.
“…Taesan…”
As I chuckled while pondering this, Ji-yeon’s expression fell.
She hesitated for a moment before gathering her resolve and speaking up.
“Earlier, emotions got the better of me. It wasn’t necessary, and I reacted irritably… It was my fault; I’m sorry.”
Any signs of her earlier awkwardness were gone, and her voice was firm now.
The tension and worry remained, but she didn’t shy away from meeting my gaze.
I examined her eyes for a moment, then turned my head away as if avoiding her gaze.
“…Why should you apologize? It was ultimately my fault. I couldn’t control a side effect and ended up snapping.”
“No. That’s not it. I should have remained calm knowing the circumstances; it was my fault for not doing so…”
“Okay… Tsk, fine. Let’s just agree we both messed up.”
For a while, we went back and forth arguing about whose fault it was until it suddenly felt pointless.
What were we doing, arguing like fools?
“Heh…”
As the realization of our foolishness hit me, a small laugh escaped from Ji-yeon.
“What’s so funny?”
“Just…”
Raising an eyebrow at her response, she shook her head while chuckling.
I stared at her for a moment before changing the subject.
“…Well then. How’s it outside? Is it still the same?”
“Yeah… still the same.”
When I asked about the situation outside, Ji-yeon’s laughter abruptly stopped.
Her face aged ten years as she shook her head, giving me a rough idea of the situation outside.
“Ugh.”
It still sounded like chaos. I couldn’t help but let out a deep sigh.
The situation I had been worrying about since attending Shio-ram had finally erupted.
In a place crammed with people and observational devices, my abilities had gone wild.
As a result, the unique abilities of my three great families had been exposed to the world… and it was chaos.
Unrelated factions were in an uproar, especially the three great families were completely turned upside down.
Remembering being swept around in that madness made my body shudder. It was a painful memory I didn’t want to recall.
In the end, I was halfway hiding out in the magic frontlines, unable to bear it anymore.
At least, I wouldn’t have the guts to enter the magic frontlines.
“Huff…”
I couldn’t boldly say there are no regrets…
But one thing was certain… even if I could go back, I would have acted the same way.
If I hadn’t used my powers back then, everyone I could have saved would have died.
I could preserve them only by using my abilities.
Of course, some would mock that it was a meaningless act.
…No, I might think it was meaningless myself.
“……”
No matter how much I struggled, the chances of stopping the tower’s invasion were slim, and even if I did succeed, it would probably be meaningless.
“Tsk…”
I knew that, but I couldn’t just sit still.
I would have accepted it if it was something utterly impossible.
If it was an unattainable delusion, I would give up and resign myself.
But it was right in front of me.
Within reach, at a distance where I could stretch out my hand and save them.
There were too many people to turn away with excuses that it was meaningless.
So I questioned myself.
If those lives were not fake, if this world wasn’t going to disappear in vain.
If I turned away from that, lived life like a dead man, then one day, when someone asked me if I had the right to be aggrieved… I wouldn’t have the confidence to answer with conviction.
So I fought like this.
Not just for others but to be able to face myself with dignity.
When I would eventually be unfairly treated and grieved, I wanted to assert without hesitation that I had not lived a life deserving of such treatment.
It may be too high a wish for my vessel.
I was just a greedy fool who sought abilities far beyond my means.
I had become a psycho with emotions jumping up and down while desperately trying to reach my goals.
Yet, with only a few successes, there were countless lives I could not save.
“Hey, junior, digging a hole again?”
“?”
“What’s wrong? Did Gop-hwa flare up again?”
Suddenly, a hand pressed against my cheek. Turning my head, I found Ji-yeon’s worried face staring at me, her fingers digging in more.
“It’s nothing.”
“Nothing, huh? Your expression says otherwise. You’re clearly thinking some gloomy thoughts.”
“I’m not.”
“I don’t know what you’re worried about, but…”
As I dodged her insistent poking, Ji-yeon stood up alongside me.
“If you need help, just say the word. I’ve benefited from you so much that I’ll be here to help with everything I have. Don’t worry, as you know, I’m someone of worth.”
Ji-yeon’s expression as she said this was surprisingly confident, contrasting sharply with her earlier cautious demeanor.
“……”
People are so confusing.
One moment reliable, the next moment like a timid creature… While human nature is diverse, Ji-yeon seems to exhibit this trend distinctly.
And that makes her even more endearing. Especially when she shows that timid side, it’s like I unconsciously feel a sense of kinship?
One of the reasons I bonded with her so quickly was because of her oddly crinkled demeanor upon realizing I had activated Taesan. It opened my heart rather easily.
So I hoped this person wouldn’t die. If the future continued, I wanted her to be happy.
I smacked her hand that brushed against my butt with a strange expression.
“I’m stronger than you, senpai. And stop touching my butt.”
“What? When did I touch your butt? I just dusted it off!”
Ji-yeon, catching an absurd expression as her hand was slapped away, shouted in disbelief.
“Oh… But can you spare some time later? I have something I want to discuss.”
After rambling on a while, Ji-yeon finally fell silent.
With a deep sigh, she stealthily glanced over at me again.
I tilted my head.
“Is there really a need to wait? Just tell me now.”
“No. I want to talk about it later. It’s something that needs a bit of mental preparation.”
“What kind of mental preparation…? Fine, I’ll swing by once more inside, and then I’ll make time for you.”
I replied with incredulity, but for some reason, Ji-yeon insisted on discussing it later.
In the end, I promised to find time on my way back from the depths of the magic front.
“But it might take a while. I need to sort some things out first.”
“Okay, I’ll wait.”
Finally, upon hearing she was fine with waiting, Ji-yeon smiled faintly, looking relieved.
*
[ HP has reached 0. ]
[ The player will die. ]
[ Bad End 4 – Died in the “Core of the Magic Realm.” ]
[ Settling data. ]
[ Round: 3rd ]
[ Selection setting: Vessel ]
[ System title: Triple End ]
[ Cause of death: Self-detonation due to the backlash of unique abilities. ]
*
“…Huh? Hae-yul?”
My hazy consciousness slowly resurfaced.
My ears, muffled as if submerged in water, cleared up, and I heard the voice calling me.
[Huh?]
[Huh?]
[What the…?]
[Triple End.]
[Dream.]
[Sorrow.]
My mind floated back to reality.
My senses returned. Immediately, a cool breath swept over me from the soft thing pressing against my body.
The voice I felt above me seemed like Baek Ahrin was calling my name.
[Eh?]
[Yes… What’s going on?]
I responded in a daze from just waking up.
Pulling my head out from where it was buried, I looked around.
Soon, I found Baek Ahrin’s face wearing a strange expression.
Her blue eyes flicked between my face… the confession necklace and my lips, then she grabbed a tissue lying next to her and dabbed it on my lips.
– Mmm…?
Wondering what she was doing, I tilted my head. Why was she acting this way? As I showed my confusion, the tissue soon became damp.
‘?’
A question mark floated above my head. The tissue rubbing against my lips collected some moisture as it went.
“Ugh, it’s all wet now.”
Baek Ahrin, brushing the moisture away from my lips with a melancholic look, glanced down at my face.
My dazed expression.
She let out a chuckle and pulled out a fresh tissue to wipe off her breasts, which were now soaked.
The very spot I had just been buried in.
‘Uh…’
Various pieces fell into place in my muddled brain.
As consciousness returned, my mouth was agape. The wetness around my lips and Baek Ahrin’s chest…
I figured it out. My face turned a vivid array of red.
“You were drooling while sleeping, huh? Looks like you slept really well.”
As she delivered the final blow with a playful expression, Baek Ahrin patted my rear…
My face dropped utterly.
*
On my way to the classroom, Ji-yeon suddenly squinted her eyes while rummaging through her bag.
An itch in her nose was building, and despite her efforts to suppress it, it wasn’t working.
“Eh, eh-choo!”
In the end, she sneezed.
Her body jolted with the force, swallowing any surrounding chatter momentarily.
Her friends nearby gawked with wide eyes.
“What’s up? Ji-yeon, what’s going on? Why’d you sneeze all of a sudden? Caught a cold?”
“If a Taesan wielder caught a cold, we’d all be dead by now, right?”
“Haha! That sneeze! Pure adorable!”
“Ugh, no…”
Amid the teasing during an already dull moment, Ji-yeon was bombarded by her friends’ relentless banter.
Holding her own against the playful onslaught, Ji-yeon puffed out her cheeks, ready to burst.
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