This is a huge problem.
I’m not joking.
It’s not that Mi Jeong, who used to be a poker-faced cool beauty, has become lively like any other ordinary girl that’s a problem.
It’s her unique trait and reason for existence.
The problem lies in the fact that she hasn’t activated my exclusive trait, ‘Guardian Knight’ at all.
Has there ever been anyone who automatically activated the Guardian Knight just by being by my side?
Yerina outright rejects activation, and Yulia also turns it off frequently.
At least when Jill is around, the activation rate is so high it’s almost like there aren’t any exceptions, but the catch is Jill is asleep.
When Jill is in a light sleep, the Guardian Knight is on, but when she enters deep sleep and fully loses consciousness, the Guardian Knight turns off.
On the other hand, Mi Jeong doesn’t sleep.
Except for a few special situations, she doesn’t even close her eyes.
She was the kind of person who made me forget I had a trait that always activated the Guardian Knight as long as I was within a certain range.
Huu… My stamina is draining…
Now that her advantage has disappeared, it’s nothing but inconvenient.
First of all, all my stats have shrunk to a fifth of their original and I’m taking a -5 penalty, so my body feels unbearably heavy.
Just walking a little makes me exhausted, and the sword and backpack feel like they’re going to break my waist.
Is this… the field of vision of regular people…?
I may technically be a superhuman in stats.
But the moment the Guardian Knight was turned off, I plummeted to the level of an ordinary person in an instant.
There were a few times before, when I couldn’t activate the Guardian Knight because I was away from Mi Jeong, but never had it been off for this long.
As I’m starting to feel mana exhaustion, my stamina depleting, and muscle spasms kicking in, I gradually realize.
These superhumans really are just a total scam…
Yoo Jin, I’m struggling… Is this… a communication issue? It’s too heavy…
Huu…
Mi Jeong, grumbling beside me, barely keeping up.
No matter how heavy the load was before, she always walked silently.
Now, she’s blinking her red eyes as if she’s about to collapse, suggesting that her stamina has completely drained.
Let’s take a little break.
Haaa! Finally…!
There’s definitely a difference.
It’s fundamentally different from Mi Jeong.
It’s not just that her emotions have returned.
Something fundamentally significant has changed.
But I still can’t pinpoint what it is.
Mi Jeong, try to activate the communicator. I need to contact Linda.
Alright. Wait a moment. Picking up the microphone… adjusting the channels… Ah, Linda! Can you hear me?
Mi Jeong is tapping away at the microphone, attempting to initiate communication.
But after a long while with no response, she checks the microphone connection and adjusts the channel again.
What do we do, Yoo Jin? It keeps malfunctioning!
What’s going on?
Y-Yoo Jin! Why’d you hit me?
Machines need to be hit to be fixed.
I attempted my last-ditch strike against the device, yet no response from Linda comes through the communicator.
Even when switched to the emergency channel, silence persists.
Is the communicator broken?
I cautiously opened the communicator’s lid, but…
I quickly closed it again.
I’d just be looking at something I couldn’t even fix.
Looking at the gears entangled in an elaborate mess only makes my head spin.
I couldn’t tell whether the malfunction originated from Linda’s side or ours.
If it’s an electronic issue, Linda can fix it on her own, and it should restore itself.
If it’s the latter, we’ll have to go find Linda or Cern directly.
Either way, our itinerary has become severely tangled.
For now, I can only hope Linda manages a successful fix. It’s too much of a waste of time to head to Clockwork City right now. Right now…
Huh?
Uugh?
My speech is getting longer.
Mi Jeong and the Nameless are staring at me intently.
For now, I need to do something about Mi Jeong.
I need to activate the Guardian Knight somehow.
I pondered whether I could use the Nameless as a substitute.
But regardless of how much time I spend with the Nameless, the Guardian Knight doesn’t activate.
Doubtlessly, the Nameless has an unfounded confidence, being the leftover of Kali, and doesn’t seem to recognize that he needs protection from me.
So the Nameless is out.
That leaves two choices.
First, I’ll find a way to return Mi Jeong to her original state, making her the ignition source for my Guardian Knight once again.
And secondly, I can abandon Mi Jeong.
You…
Yes?
What’s the reason you’re traveling with me?
Hmm. Because I’m a slave?
…
Because she’s a slave.
That means she isn’t following me of her own will.
If that’s the case, then it’s perhaps right to let Mi Jeong go.
After all, I have plenty of money.
Though Mi Jeong is physically just a child, given her years, if she had money, she could absolutely live independently.
So if she desires, shouldn’t I let her step back from the dangerous front lines to live peacefully?
That thought crossed my mind.
‘This current state is the correct one.’
And above all, the expression of ‘fixing’ Mi Jeong is problematic in itself.
The Mi Jeong in this state isn’t wrong.
This is rather the correct state.
A Blood Ghoul who has regained reason should express a range of emotions just like Tranquilia.
What was abnormal until now was my own perception.
If I think this way, there’s only one choice left.
…
I must liberate Mi Jeong.
I know it must be done, but it’s hard to say the words.
You look like you have a lot on your mind. Is there something bothering you?
There is.
What is it? I’m here to listen. It’s a slave’s duty to relieve their master’s worries, right?
…
If it were the real Mi Jeong, she wouldn’t ask me if I had worries like this.
That’s not the Mi Jeong I know.
With that thought, I find it increasingly easier to talk.
I just feel confused. I know I should let her go now that she has become useless and lacks justification. Yet I keep feeling attached to her, which makes it harder.
Hmm. Is it about a close friend?
We’re not close. Not at all.
Then why the attachment?
I don’t know… Maybe I got attached. But that person has changed. A lot. So there’s no reason to stay together anymore… yet I don’t want to let go.
Are you afraid of parting?
Not really.
As I hold Mi Jeong’s hand and talk, my thoughts begin to clear.
Have I ever been the kind of person who feared change?
Was I someone who vaguely feared parting?
If we limit it to the past, that’s true.
But not now.
I know when to go.
I’ve learned that I must repeat encounters and partings.
I’m accepting it.
If letting Mi Jeong go here is the path to happiness for both of us,
Then I’m ready to do so willingly.
But now, what’s causing me to hesitate?
‘It feels oddly foreboding.’
An inexplicable sense of foreboding.
It has been wrapping around me since yesterday.
At first, I thought it was just a common cold or a type of gloomy mood.
But as time passed, I realized something was different.
This is ‘sight.’
A gaze felt when someone is watching me.
That undefined sixth sense has been bothering me relentlessly.
‘Mi Jeong’s change isn’t just positive.’
Something occurred around last night.
To both me and Mi Jeong.
Or perhaps to the entire world globally.
With that certainty, the thought that I must not let Mi Jeong go grows stronger.
Mi Jeong’s sudden switch to vibrancy is not a result of her ‘regaining’ emotions…
I can’t shake the feeling that she has ‘lost’ something.
Then I should begin by sorting out Yoo Jin’s feelings about that person.
You’re right.
Let’s wait and see for now.
Hasty judgments often invite anger.
I must uncover the identity of this ‘discomfort’ I feel before acting.
The time it takes in that process…
It doesn’t matter how long it takes.
Because this involves my ultimate support, Mi Jeong.
It didn’t take too long before I could spot the ‘discomfort’ everywhere.
Something happened after last night.
Evidence to further solidify that conviction appeared.
Did the monsters suddenly become weaker? What do you mean by that?
I’m serious! I felt a definite decrease in strength, even if it’s just a little bit.
It’s true. We entered a dungeon this morning, and there was definitely a noticeable difference compared to yesterday. And the monsters seem to be moving a bit chaotically.
According to the mercenaries’ chatter, since last night, the strength of all monsters has declined.
Of course, I won’t simply judge that based on the chit-chat of a few nobodies.
I even stopped by a nearby mercenary group to collect information.
As a result…
It was revealed that, except for a few support classes, most of the mercenaries feel the decline in monster strength.
There were no notable changes aside from that.
‘Is it really okay for so many changes to happen overnight? Mi Jeong’s personality has brightened up, the communicator is malfunctioning, and the monsters have weakened.’
Three seemingly unrelated events occurred simultaneously overnight.
It’s definite that there’s some correlation.
But I can’t uncover the cause-and-effect relationship.
What the hell do Mi Jeong, the communicator, and the monsters have in common…?
I got a hint.
Monsters.
Mi Jeong, too, is a kind of monster, so it could be seen as an effect that has occurred to all monsters.
The communication issue might not be a malfunction of the communicator itself, but rather a problem with Linda.
Though she’s moved past it now, Linda was also once a type of monster.
If it were ‘an influence targeting monsters,’ that would explain it.
Then the question that arises is, what is this influence?
What could cause a decline in strength among all monsters and change Mi Jeong’s personality?
Asking whether Mi Jeong’s power has also declined feels like a false claim; it seems she hasn’t.
She’s still effectively using formations and magic.
It’s driving me crazy…
Eat something, Yoo Jin! I don’t know what you’re doing but!
Uuugh! Uugh!
…I have nothing for you, so just stay out of the way. I’m cooking stew for Yoo Jin!
The call brings me to the dining table, folding the newspaper.
Delicious aromas are wafting through the hotel room.
It seems Mi Jeong has cooked something again.
The Nameless, who had been perched on my shoulder sharing the newspaper, has transformed back to human form, clinging to Mi Jeong.
Mi Jeong is far more brusque in dismissing him than usual.
Is that… tomato soup?
That’s right! Is it seasoned right? Do you want to taste? I can’t eat it… Hehe.
It’s delicious…
Yes!
It’s surprisingly tasty.
Mi Jeong is jumping for joy at this.
Soon, she brings the soup to the plate.
Her cooking skills are completely different from her usual image.
They said her physical age is 13, but did she learn to cook to feed her younger siblings?
Did you cook it for your younger siblings?
…
Oh.
After a moment’s silence, I realize my mistake.
I asked about Mi Jeong’s past, something I’ve never been curious about or asked before.
Has it hurt her?
Is it something she doesn’t want to remember?
As I gaze at Mi Jeong, she has a strange expression.
B-brother…?
What’s wrong?
I don’t know… I think there might have been one… Probably not…
Mi Jeong winces, holding her head as if in pain.
After a few more questions, I finally understand what Mi Jeong has lost.
What about your home? Your family?
I don’t know… Everything…
That was nothing other than her memories.
