* * *
I nodded toward Eunyul.
“Okay. Yeah, let’s go.”
I had heard of it before—a space to honor the victims of dungeon incidents.
They said the damage happened so often, there was never a day it was completely empty.
A bitter taste spread in my mouth, and a dull ache pressed in my chest, but I was with the others.
I chewed my toast slowly, making sure no emotion showed on my face.
“Oh! After we go to the memorial, do you want to check out this place nearby that has amazing pudding bingsu? Or if you want a proper meal, there’s a tonkatsu place, a samgyeopsal place, and oh—oppa, weren’t you more of a seafood guy? There’s a great seafood stew restaurant too…”
“Eunseo. Are you seriously talking about food when we’re heading to a memorial?”
“What can I say? These dungeon and gate accidents happen so often these days—are we supposed to live like it’s a funeral every single day? If anything, when you’re down, that’s when you need to eat something good! Otherwise, how are you supposed to survive the sadness? It’s a survival mechanism.”
“Yeah. Eunseo, Eunyul, let’s eat something good. It’s all on me.”
“Woohoo!”
“Wait, hyung, what money are you using?”
“I’ve got plenty. Don’t worry.”
Truthfully, I had no money.
I had a little bit of allowance left from what Mom sent, but definitely not enough to proudly say I was buying for my siblings.
What I did have was a card.
Right after I was discharged, Taehwan gave it to me as emergency funds.
Right before I got into my mom’s car, he’d reminded me, “You’ve got to maintain your pride as the older one in front of your siblings,” and then said, “Just don’t let them make you call me.”
Getting a card from a friend and being told to use it freely… I don’t think that’s normal.
But going home after so long and having nothing to show for it would’ve been pretty pathetic.
Especially since there’s such a big age gap between me and my siblings.
Just this once—I’ll lean on him, just this once.
“Thanks for the meal.”
“Huh? Oppa, eat more!”
“Nah, I’m full. I’m gonna change clothes real quick.”
“Hyung, use my room to change.”
“I’ll be out in a minute.”
“Take your time. I’m gonna eat another one anyway.”
“Okay. Thanks.”
—Click.
Until I entered the room, I was smiling naturally.
But the moment the door closed, I let out a long sigh.
A wave of self-loathing hit me.
I really do feel like I’m leeching off Taehwan too much.
He said he was busy yesterday, and I still ended up worrying him…
“When will I be able to earn money…?”
I’ve gotten used to walking now.
Running doesn’t scare me like it used to, either.
But walking and running… for someone like me, those are just the bare basics—not something that needs training.
I’ve still got a long way to go before I’m fit to be a hunter.
There’s so much to learn—how to use my powers efficiently, how to handle swords and other weapons, how to fight monsters, how to use items like potions…
There’s a mountain of study ahead, so earning money is a far-off dream.
“And after all that, I lost the sword I received…”
Han Jihye told me what happened to my sword. It was completely snapped in two.
Luckily, given the circumstances, I won’t be charged for it—but losing the sword itself was depressing.
I’d finally taken a step forward, and now it felt like I was being dragged back again.
Despite what people say about awakened high-class hunters becoming rich, here I am—an actual S-class—unable to earn a single cent.
I haven’t even gotten my license yet. It’s starting to get really frustrating.
As a Hunter, I hadn’t made much progress.
Instead, I’d just pointlessly “grown up” in strange, unnecessary ways…
“I need to train hard and work so I can become independent soon.”
The memory of the sensation on my lips tried to resurface again, so I slapped my cheeks with both hands.
Despite being located in a busy part of the city, the joint memorial altar was modestly maintained, probably because there weren’t that many visitors.
It didn’t seem to be a major dungeon accident in terms of casualties, and none of the victims were famous, so public interest was low.
Even when I briefly saw the news this morning, the focus wasn’t on the pain of the victims or their bereaved families, but on the bitter regret over losing a valuable detoxification mana stone-producing dungeon.
The coverage had turned into a blame game.
“Wouldn’t a dungeon that spawns monsters like that be extremely dangerous anyway?”
It didn’t seem like it was a dungeon anyone could properly manage in the first place, but apparently some guilds still hadn’t let go of their attachment to it.
I couldn’t help but feel a mix of emotions.
Still, there were a fair number of condolence wreaths, and since it was the weekend, it looked like the Management Bureau had sent colleagues to visit.
So it wasn’t entirely deserted.
Except for when I was really young, I had never visited a memorial altar before, so I was a bit awkward.
But thanks to my smart younger siblings, I managed to get through it just fine.
As we stepped out, talking about what to eat for lunch, I unexpectedly ran into a familiar face.
“Ah.”
“Hello, Jung Jehee. Fancy seeing you here.”
“Ah, hello!”
It was Han Jihye.
She was dressed neatly in a black suit and wore horn-rimmed glasses I hadn’t seen on her before.
I’d said goodbye to her just yesterday on my way to the hospital, and now here she was again.
I hadn’t imagined we’d meet over the weekend, so my heart nearly dropped.
I didn’t know what to say to her in a non-work setting.
To make matters worse, my younger siblings were right next to me.
So, overly self-conscious, I ended up blurting something stupid.
“W-What brings you here…? I mean, you’re here to pay your respects, of course, but…”
“Yes. I saw you coming out and waited. There’s something I didn’t get to say yesterday.”
“To… to me?”
Was it something that could be said in front of my siblings?
Maybe we should talk in private?
While I hesitated, Han Jihye suddenly bowed deeply toward me.
“I’m sorry. Because of my careless judgment, you ended up in danger and had such a terrible experience. I truly apologize. I also offer my apologies to your family.”
This time, I was startled in a completely different way.
I couldn’t bring myself to touch her, so I quickly sent a silent ‘help me!’ signal to Eunseo, who hurried over and helped her up.
I was really thankful to be with Eunseo at that moment.
Only after Han Jihye straightened up could I calm my pounding heart a little.
“You don’t have to apologize. It was an accident. Even from my perspective, it seemed safe enough.”
“But you hadn’t intended to go, and I persuaded you. It was my judgment call, and because it was wrong, you were put in danger. That’s clearly my mistake. And not just some minor danger, it could have cost you your life.”
“I-I’m completely fine! And also…”
In the end, it was the “Gray Coat” who took down the monster.
All I did was buy time—though saying it aloud felt a bit awkward…
Not sure what else to say, I fidgeted with my fingers, then forced a smile.
I wanted to show her I was really okay, to reassure her.
“If I hadn’t been there, who knows what would’ve happened? I think it’s a good thing. I couldn’t save everyone, but if buying time helped save even one more person, then that’s enough for me.”
“……”
Back then, the only people who managed to buy time against that terrifying monster were me and Cha Taeyang—and even he had been there to protect me.
Imagining what might’ve happened if I hadn’t been there was even more horrifying.
“…I see.”
“It was scary, and it was horrible, but it’s something you eventually face as a Hunter. Please don’t feel guilty.”
“Ah… Well… I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Okay, sure!”
Han Jihye looked visibly flustered, clearly not expecting me to react this way.
Her usually composed demeanor had given way to an awkward expression, and she kept fiddling with her hair in an uncharacteristically hesitant way.
She had always been businesslike and to the point when talking to me.
Seeing a side of someone I’d only vaguely thought of as a “colleague” that didn’t quite match her usual image—it felt oddly… endearing.
That gave me the courage to say something I hadn’t planned to:
“Um… if you haven’t had lunch yet, would you like to join us? My treat!”
I’d let my emotions get ahead of me and invited a stranger to lunch without checking with my siblings first.
I regretted it a bit afterward, but thankfully, my siblings were understanding.
More than that—they actually got along with Han Jihye better than I did.
Especially Eunseo, who seemed to click with her right away, maybe because they were both women.
On the surface, their personalities seemed like total opposites, but the conversation flowed naturally between them.
“You’re amazing. The Bureau is like a dream job! Did you do really well in school?”
“The dream job… that might be a bit much. I was slightly above average in school, but it’s not that impressive.”
“No, it totally is! The competition’s insane. And it’s not like you can get in just by studying well—they test your physical abilities and reflexes too!”
“Well, if you think of it that way, it also means you don’t need to be extraordinarily gifted in any one area. As long as you’re decent all around, you have a shot.”
“Oh! I’m not great at studying, but I’m pretty athletic. Do you think I’d have a chance? Or would I still lose out to Awakened candidates?”
“There are separate tracks for Awakened and non-Awakened applicants, so you don’t need to worry about that. Are you interested in a position with the Bureau?”
“Of course! It’s my dream job!”
“She’s serious. She once asked me if she should drop out of school, take the GED, and just start studying for the civil service exam.”
“Ah… I see. Still, personally, I would recommend finishing high school first…”
I had no idea Han Jihye could talk this much.
Eunseo was definitely cheerful and sociable, but still—Jihye was really keeping up.
Partway through the conversation, they even exchanged numbers and started calling each other “unnie” and “dongsaeng.”
Honestly, there was a reason I hadn’t joined in and had stayed quiet, despite supposedly being the one who should have acted as the bridge between my siblings and our assigned Bureau administrator…
* * *
