Chapter 41

At eleven in the morning, Nari woke on the sofa to the sound of a late alarm and looked around. Her face was still young. This was Shin Bitnari at fifteen, not long after her mother had passed away and Korea had finally been freed from the nightmare of a class 1 gate.

That morning, Jeong Suho had shaken her awake asking if she was going to school. When she didn’t move a muscle, he gave up and left with only a single line, telling her to make sure to eat properly.

“...”

This was Jeong Suho’s house, where he had lived alone since middle school. Luckily, after her mother’s death, Nari had been able to take refuge here.

She looked around the house. As expected, Jeong Suho couldn’t handle cleaning or laundry at all. When told to clean, he would just pile everything together, and when he did laundry, he always washed white clothes with ones that bled color.

Well, he had always been prone to mistakes and forgetful, so maybe it couldn’t be helped. With that thought, Nari rose from the sofa and picked up the books scattered on the floor.

“...Work needs to be done.”

In her head, a list of chores lined up. Once she finished tidying, she would vacuum and wash the dishes. She would also do the laundry. She couldn’t go grocery shopping, but she would have to make dinner somehow with whatever ingredients were available.

The house was quiet. No reporters came, and she didn’t have to worry about her father. The TV and the internet could be switched off. And there was work to do.

In this environment, Nari’s heart, which had been dying little by little, began to revive. Yes, if she kept recovering like this step by step, it would be fine.

“...Should I write a thank you letter?”

Muttering to herself, Nari opened the small door to the two-room apartment. She was too embarrassed to say thank you out loud, so she thought she would write it down instead.

If Jeong Suho received the letter, he would surely shed a few tears. Then he would stammer out thanks, his face turning bright red. Watching that would be very pleasant.

Ironically, after being trampled among countless people, Nari had come to hold on to hope that she should at least try to live until tomorrow, and it was because of people.

As she searched her desk for a proper pen and stationery, her gaze suddenly fell on a sky-blue sheet tucked between her books.

“What’s this?”

She usually managed the incoming mail herself. With such a color, she would have noticed. A chill ran down her spine.

[Thank you for applying to Wargod Guild’s open recruitment. We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted.

The entrance date is on N-month N-day. As has already been notified, you must live inside Wargod for two years as a requirement, and this point…]

At some point she had opened the envelope and was staring at the letter inside, her hands trembling violently.

Yes, it has always been like that. No one stayed near her. Not even family. And Jeong Suho must have been no different.

Even so, it was unbearably sad. It felt as if someone had stabbed her in the back, and Nari collapsed right there in the small room.

There had been only one place in the world where she felt safe, and now even that was gone.

“That day we had one big fight, he said he was going to earn money, and that he would be back in two years. I believed him. But in the end he didn’t come back. He kept sending money for a while, then one day even that stopped. It all faded away.”

As Lude said this much, he wrapped his arms around his knees. His tone carried annoyance, resignation, and sadness.

“After that, I stopped trusting people. I was more unstable than most, and there were limits to how much anyone could endure me.”

Everyone eventually left Nari. Because she was unstable. That meant she couldn’t trust anyone fully, and she had to put herself first.

That was the last lesson Jeong Suho had left her. After that, she had become skilled at detecting the signs of people who found her hard to endure and retreating before they abandoned her.

The only ones who had truly endured unstable Nari were two beings, the Lord of Chaos, and this man in front of her.

And even now, she still thought that Kang Ihyun might one day find her too hard to deal with and leave.

“So I was furious, but I didn’t really resent the fact that he left. The problem was how he did it.”

The words “So when you leave me one day, at least be honest” rose to the tip of Lude’s tongue, but he suppressed them and ground his teeth.

“But if it was all a misunderstanding, and he had meant to come back...”

If it was a misunderstanding, then what? Mumbling, unable to figure out what to do, he watched as Kang Ihyun plopped down in front of him.

“Then you have to go solve it!”

“Huh?”

“From what I’ve seen being around you, whenever you’re torn about whether to buy something or not, you always end up buying it! This’ll be the same!”

“Th-That’s true.”

Nari was the type who would hesitate but eventually buy what she wanted.

Not long ago, Kang Ihyun had even said, “Isn’t this just delaying the shipping date? Just buy it right away.”

“But still, it’s so aggravating. I want him to suffer more. I want him to hurt as much as I did. But there were so many good memories too.”

Status effects caused by gates usually disappeared once the gate was cleared. And Lude and Kang Ihyun had a history of clearing class 2 gates together.

Honestly, all it took was teaming up. With just a word, “I’ll help you clear it,” Lude, Shin Bitnari, could save Jeong Suho. Which was why it troubled him even more.

‘Do I save him? The one who left me behind? Or do I leave it, let it be his fate?’

While he hesitated, Kang Ihyun crossed his arms and sighed heavily.

“Think of it the other way. If you don’t deal with Jeong Suho’s case here, can you really stand going down without closure? Once you leave here, you’ll never see him again. You know?”

“...No.”

Kang Ihyun gave him a look as if to say “See?” Surprised at the childish, almost petulant expression, Lude blinked.

“But why are you so annoyed?”

“What? I’m not annoyed.”

[The Lord of Chaos shakes his head back and forth with a troubled expression, saying, ‘He’s definitely sulking.’]

“See, you are mad. Did I do something wrong?”

“What? I’m not mad. I’m just like this because you’re too careless.”

The two bickered, going back and forth about whether they were mad or not, until Kang Ihyun grinned at Lude.

“I’m joking. I’m just, I’m more nervous than usual. But when you think about it, we’re stuck together anyway because of the pact.”

“Oh. Sorry. You must be tired.”

Lude missed the hint in those last words, which could have sounded faintly ominous, and simply apologized.

When he looked ahead again, Kang Ihyun was smiling at him, holding out his hand as always.

“It’s fine. How could I refuse you? Do as you like. And I prefer it when you’re your usual bold self rather than brooding.”

“...Really?”

“Of course! You’re always so straightforward and it’s great to see.”

Feeling strangely stirred by those words, Lude looked away and took Kang Ihyun’s hand.

With a grunt, they both stood. Lude brushed off his trench coat. Kang Ihyun had said he liked his bold and straightforward self.

Remembering those words, Lude’s face flushed a little. Clearing his throat, he spoke loudly.

“Right. Brooding over him doesn’t suit me! I’ll deal with it quickly, settle it clearly one way or the other, and think about the rest later!”

“Exactly! I love that bold side of you. Now let’s think about what to do next. Together!”

At his words, Kang Ihyun clapped his hands. Lude, more confident now, folded his arms and grinned.

“First of all!”

“Yes!”

“I need to get back to my room before lights-out.”

“Oh.”

Kang Ihyun looked at the clock. It was almost time. As Lude opened a dimensional rift, he glanced back at Kang Ihyun.

“...Thanks. For talking with me today.”

“It was nothing. Go rest now.”

“Well, sometimes it feels like you know me better than I know myself. If it weren’t for you, I would’ve just suffered alone.”

For once, Lude spoke his gratitude plainly. Before stepping into the rift, he looked back at Kang Ihyun, who smiled with his eyes.

As he crossed, he faintly heard Kang Ihyun’s last words.

“You say I know you well? Of course I do...”

* * *

“I told you the gate was to be entered alone, didn’t I?”

“What of it? Honestly, whether Korea collapses or not has nothing to do with me. I’m saving it out of kindness, so don’t you think I can make a small demand?”

The next day, in the meeting room. Lee Jisung, Kang Ihyun, and Lude in sunglasses sat with arms crossed.

The tense mood from the previous night was gone. Both Lude and Kang Ihyun carried themselves with confidence.

‘...Right, he was always like this.’

Recalling the personality he had seen of Lude on YouTube, Lee Jisung sighed heavily.

“Even so, I told you not to let Kang Ihyun know. And what? Now it’s not just him, but three of you entering a gate together?”

“That gate at Migeum Station, Kang Ihyun helped clear it. Without him I couldn’t have done it.”

“I’ll never tell Grandpa. I promise. I’m too old to be controlled like that.”

“Then why bring Jeong Suho too?! You two are enough.”

“Oh, he’s a hostage.”

“What the...!”

Lee Jisung’s sharp tone was met with Kang Ihyun’s smile. He placed his arms on the table and laced his fingers together.

“That’s not the whole reason, is it?”

Kang Ihyun smiled at him as if he already knew. Lee Jisung’s expression stiffened behind his raised sunglasses. Kang Ihyun chuckled and went on.

“You’re right, Mr. Lee. I have connections. And I know about your affairs.”

Lude stared at Kang Ihyun. After he had insisted they bring Lee Jisung into a three-way meeting, promising to handle everything, maybe he had known something after all.

Kang Ihyun smiled.

“Lee Jisung, an A-rank production Hunter. Before you joined Wargod, you were a force to be reckoned with. But after joining, you went quiet.”

Lee Jisung twitched and fiddled with his sunglasses. Kang Ihyun’s smile faded and his voice grew calm.

“Looking closely at the people in ‘Owl,’ I realized something. They were all famous before Wargod was established, but forgotten after they joined. Why is that?”

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.