Episode 18

Eukk, eukk.

Ma Hana, who had been holding back her emotions all this time, burst into tears.

Heartbroken, the girl acting tough was crying like a child now.

Im Hyeja found it incredibly painful to watch this.

Even she, who seldom shed tears, felt her eyes water.

But in a corner of her mind, a cold thought prevailed that this was an inevitable outcome.

‘…Senior.’

Ma Hana’s father.

And the man she had loved but given up on.

It was a truly regrettable story for her senior, but Im Hyeja believed this was the right course of action for Ma Hana.

Because Ma Hana, this child, lacked talent for it.

To Im Hyeja, a ‘genius’ meant a pure, high-quality gem that might appear once every hundred years, if that even made sense.

For her, working in the field at night, there was no clearer definition than this.

And as far as she knew, it was the story of her senior.

‘…A talent unbelievable for a man to possess.’

He was born with a large amount of mana and high purity. That instantly compensated for his shortcomings as a man.

Moreover, he was born with a robust body and resilience.

Thus, it was only natural for him to become stronger, even though he was in the [Middle Knight] class, which had no merits other than being absurdly sturdy.

After all, those destined to succeed would succeed on any path.

However, Ma Hana only inherited the appearance of the Myoin Tribe from her senior.

She did not possess the most crucial talent for being a Tanker.

‘…An ordinary hunter…? No, probably even less than that.’

She wasn’t bad enough to be called the worst, but she was definitely not a gem capable of surviving in this industry as a hunter.

She was merely a sturdy… rock.

Therefore, even as Im Hyeja was comforting Ma Hana in the moment, she felt a deep sense of ‘relief’ within her.

The death of her senior was painful to take.

Watching his body wither away day by day was like hell for Im Hyeja.

But since it was a natural death, she could prepare for his time of parting.

But this young child.

What if her senior’s daughter had met a gruesome end in the dungeon?

What if all the future held for her was the sight of witnessing this child’s cold corpse at the Guild?

‘……’

Her heart would have shattered at that.

Im Hyeja was constantly worried that such a day might come.

But now, she no longer has to worry about that.

She wiped Ma Hana’s tears with the handkerchief she held.

“Blow your nose too.”
“…Don’t wanna.”
“Oh my!”
“…Hmph!”

‘…Right.’

That was all that was needed.

This child just needed to return to a normal life, live ordinarily, meet a good person in an ordinary way, and die ordinarily.

Yes, that was all that was needed.

‘Is it the heart that dies in the process?’

Often, those who would give up on their dreams were said to gradually lose their hearts.

But for Im Hyeja, such things were not important.

Surviving was 100 times more important than such nonsense.

‘As long as she is alive… somehow, things will work out.’

Im Hyeja looked at the shield of Ma Hana, lying on the floor.

‘…The shield that the Senior had purchased.’

Moreover, it was a shield she had made herself.

It was neither a masterpiece she had poured her heart into, nor an item that incorporated creative methods.

It was simply her first attempt at making a shield, so it was light, reasonably sturdy, and just like any mass-produced item good enough for rough use, lacking even a ‘grade’—it was a weapon below basic standards.

It was by chance that her senior took it.

Im Hyeja deeply regretted that incident.

‘…Even if I promised something better, this child stubbornly insisted on using this one, so I couldn’t do anything for her.’

Im Hyeja resented that shield.

Because it caught this child’s eye, she was led into the world of hunters, and being her own creation, it possessed an unwarranted durability despite having no rank.

It clung to Ma Hana’s body like a stubborn, lingering land spirit.

Although she knew that the shield had saved Ma Hana’s life, Im Hyeja deliberately discarded such thoughts.

‘That… needs to disappear.’

It was an attachment.

Foolishness.

Like a lamp luring moths to flame, it was a cursed object that led its owner to death.

Im Hyeja resolved her thoughts.

Once everything is settled, tonight.

I’ll melt it down in the furnace until it’s unrecognizable.

A moment later.

Im Hyeja gently patted the calmed-down Ma Hana’s head.

“Okay, Meowi. I’ll give you a fair price for the shield.”
“…Meeeooow. But don’t mess up my hair while doing that.”
“Anyway…”

As if finding her reactions adorable, Im Hyeja stroked Ma Hana’s hair and gazed at her intently.

Normally, such a story wouldn’t have made any sense.

But now… when this child as vulnerable and in need of help… maybe she’d accept that offer once again.

‘…Good.’

Let’s at least bring it up.

“…Um, Meowi?”
“*…Sniff… *Yes?”

As if asking why she was called, Ma Hana looked at her, and Im Hyeja scratched her cheek in an awkward manner.

“…Well, the thing is… I’ve been getting a lot of orders lately… but as you can see, I’m on my own. And it’s not like I have a wide network of contacts.”

“…And?”

“I need that hand of yours… Would you like to work under me?”

“…Ah.”

Ma Hana uttered a brief word.

Yes, there had indeed been such an offer a few years ago.

Probably, like then, that phrase is just an excuse now.

‘…For me…’

There was no reason she would need someone who wasn’t even in the production grade to help her..

Being in combat didn’t mean she couldn’t learn other techniques, but reaching the stage of perfection was impossible.

Yet, such words meant that Im Hyeja had been waiting for a long time.

The day she quits being a hunter and returns to a safe life.

“……”

Ma Hana hesitated for a moment.
Soon, she slowly nodded her head.
Im Hyeja’s face brightened with the symbol of acceptance.
And then she embraced Ma Hana tightly.

Normally, it was a proposal Ma Hana would have refused because it was a nuisance to continue it, but now Ma Hana had nothing left.

‘…It’s warm.’

The only remaining family member reached out to her.

Yes… this is enough.

‘I’m exhausted.’

It was hard. It was too hard.
Accepting her offer meant breaking away from her futile past self.

She slowly closed her eyes.

Inside, shivering from the cold, she slowly stepped towards the warmth before her.

Step by step, she moved forward.

Suddenly…

[Really, are you okay with that?]

Then, that voice echoed in her ears once again.

They weren’t just words; it was a hand on her shoulder, holding her.

‘……’

She tried to ignore it.
Because she didn’t want to be hurt anymore, not after all she went through.

“…Okay, then, let’s rest for today, and from tomorrow on, maybe you can help me with the counter? Oh, I’ll also teach you how to manage the night shifts.”
“…Yes, please take care of me, Unnie.”

Yes, this marked the end of her adventure.

That was when it happened.

Bang!

As if he had been waiting just for this moment, the door burst open with a loud noise.

And a voice louder than that noise filled the inside of the store.

“Excuse me!!!”

Huff.
Huff.

The owner of the voice was a dazzlingly beautiful and handsome young man.

Ma Hana let out a flustered remark at the sight of him gasping for breath, head bowed, after apparently running here.

“Mr… Yu Seha…?”

‘…Ah, I’m going to die at this rate. Damn it.’

Huff!

I deeply exhaled the breath that had filled my lungs.

This idiotic body of Yu Seha was overwhelmed just by running for a few minutes.

‘…Still, it’s good that I ran as if my feet were on fire.’

It wasn’t intentional, but it seems I barely made it on time.

“H-how exactly…?”

Ma Hana tried to speak by looking at what happened.

But before that, this red-haired woman next to her was quicker to speak.

“Wh-wh-wh-wh-what…? What?! M-Meowi, se-se-seriously, is he your boyfriend?! Huh?! Answer me!”

“N-no he’s not!”

“Eeehh! You sly thing! As expected of my Meowi. She’s only small in stature. She has a cute and pretty face, and if you strip her down, she’s more impressive than you’d think, right? With that charm, she can easily snag a handsome guy like this. She could totally seduce–”

“Meeooow!! It’s not like that!”

Like sisters, the two of them giggled and squealed.

‘…Who is this woman…?’

I know her well.

Im Hyeja.

She was a character who always appeared in Ma Hana’s personal story, a capable NPC.

Anyway, setting that aside, I looked at Ma Hana approaching with a dazed expression.

“…What exactly… is going on…? Do you perhaps have something important to say?”

Something important to say, huh…?
Hmm, it’s important, isn’t it?

“Yes, it’s a very important matter.”
“…..!!! Could it possibly be another Break Out…?”
“No. It’s a hundred times, a thousand times, a million times more important than some simple Break Out.”
“…Uh, what?”

Huuuff!

I took a deep breath.
I grabbed Ma Hana’s shoulders with both hands and gently pulled her toward me.

“Mr. Y-Y-Yu Seha?!”

Ma Hana was flustered as my face came close to hers.

I pondered for a brief moment at her reaction.

‘…Is this approach too direct, after all?’

No.

Don’t hesitate now.

Haven’t I already resolved the matter in my heart?

Even if I’m treated as a weirdo, I won’t back down now.

I’ll abandon all logic and show her the passionate love of a Supervisor burning within me.

‘Charge ahead if you are a man!’

“Miss Ma Hana!”
“Yes, yes!!”
“I will… I will make it happen!”
“Wh-what is it…?”
“Your dream.”

Ma Hana flinched.

“The dream of becoming an unbreakable shield to protect everyone. The dream of proving yourself as a Hunter. And finally… the dream of continuing your late father’s will.”
“…H-how on earth… do you know that?”
“I will help you. I will definitely push you up there.”

I bowed my head 90 degrees towards Ma Hana, whose eyes were as wide as lanterns.

“So please, I beg you. Miss Ma Hana.”

Please do not give up on your dream at this point.