Chapter 79
You can’t save everyone.
Even knowing that, there were still times when the helplessness of being unable to save them all was unbearable.
I gave emergency treatment to those who were still breathing, then moved on to the next.
My healing could restore their bodies in an instant, but no matter how hard I tried, the psychological scars were deep — they would need additional care.
“I can relax their hearts a little too. I’ll cast that buff as well.”
“Thank you, Ye-ah. But it won’t last long.”
Sung Ji-wook spoke coldly, but I could feel his pain as if it were my own.
Even if my buff dulled their memories of being kidnapped, the trauma of losing someone they had spent up to ten years with would remain.
Leng-leng was truly lucky.
The reality I hadn’t wanted to accept suddenly felt real. I had to admit that even surviving like this was a blessing.
Now I understood why Dan Myeong-ah had been so happy.
We handed the remaining murderers over to the Association, sent the rescued victims to the hospital, and asked the Association to handle the bodies of the dead.
Dante and two others had firmly refused to let us see the corpses, so we couldn’t even confirm who had died.
“Someone has to check it out, so we’ll go. Dante Hunter just got back to Korea and has a few things to take care of.”
“Do I have to handle the outside schedule? I don’t want to.”
At Dante’s flippant reply, Sung Mi-joo shot him a sharp glare and sighed.
They, too, were clinging to composure just to endure this brutal situation.
Things that should never happen had happened — and those who had seen the bodies would be even more shaken.
Just because you’ve seen many deaths doesn’t mean you ever get used to them.
“Hunter Dan Myeong-ah, please be careful on your way.”
“Yes, I’ll see you at the Association. I suppose I’ll have to switch to desk work now.”
His farewell smile looked pained.
And it wasn’t just because he could no longer do the job he loved.
I had only met him today, but watching him walk away alone, I couldn’t shake the feeling of loneliness.
“I’ll escort you to the dormitory.”
“Would you? I don’t think I can act tough today…”
[Liri: Ye-ah, you look very tired.]
The divine power of your assigned employee descends upon you.
Perhaps sensing the heavy mental strain, a worried voice echoed — and a single white feather drifted down from the sky.
It brushed my cheek, spreading a gentle warmth through my whole body.
It felt like someone was pouring soft, comforting light into me.
There wasn’t much change in my stats, but that warmth alone eased my heart.
Even though I could teleport straight to the dorm, I asked to get off nearby and walk.
Jeong Hwan-jae didn’t ask why — he just quietly accepted it, as if he already understood everything I was feeling.
“How many of the kidnapped people were from the Hunter Association?”
“Including the ordinary college interns, three in total.”
Considering that five people had been caught up in this today, that wasn’t a small number.
Usually, dungeon raids were done in teams of five to eight. So even the number of abductees was chillingly calculated — enough to disguise it as “an unfortunate death during a raid” or “a mysterious incident in a B-rank dungeon.”
My steps toward the dorm grew heavier and heavier.
Maybe I stumbled more than I realized, because Jeong Hwan-jae crouched down and offered his back.
“We’re almost there.”
“That’s exactly why — let me carry you for the rest of the way. Please, allow me.”
He said it so politely and sincerely that it left me no room to refuse.
I was the one being carried, yet somehow he made it sound like I would be doing him a favor.
No one would see us here anyway, but still, my face grew hot.
His kindness was impossible to ignore, so I quietly climbed onto his back.
He stood up as if my weight meant nothing.
“Ye-ah.”
“Yes?”
“I’ve always thought so, but actually carrying you like this — you’re really light. And small.”
Without meaning to, I let out a small laugh.
It wasn’t a situation to laugh in, and I didn’t even feel like laughing — but something in his words made me smile anyway.
“Yeah, I’m a bit small for my age. I used to be a picky eater and never slept enough.”
“It’s nice… hearing your voice this close.”
Usually, he would lean down to listen when I spoke — a habit born from me keeping my voice low, afraid others might overhear.
But now, with my arms around his neck, my words naturally reached his ear like a whisper.
“I never even got to ask that staff member how to prepare it, or about the fusion of divine power… Honestly, I should’ve gone a little sooner—”
“Ye-ah, you’re overthinking.”
Maybe because I was relaxed on his back, my guard dropped and my thoughts spilled out.
Just as they began to spiral again, Jeong Hwan-jae gently interrupted me.
The looping chain of thoughts stopped mid-track. I found myself moving my lips silently.
“You’ve gone through enough today. Not just today — lately, in general.”
“…”
“So it’s okay to rest. I’ll get you back safely to the dorm. You can close your eyes for a bit.”
Rest? In this situation? There was no way I could sleep.
Still, I wasn’t so tactless as to snap, ‘Do I look like I can sleep right now?’ — so I just nodded softly.
“I know it’s not my fault.”
“When I first awakened…”
It had been a long time since I’d heard him talk about himself.
At some point, between all the chaos and responsibilities, we’d lost the quiet moments we used to share — the ones where I’d help him sleep peacefully.
Over a week had passed since the incident with the murdered staff.
I tightened my arms slightly around his neck — my way of showing that I was listening.
“I didn’t come from a very good home, you know. I used to think, ‘Ah, so this is how my lack shows up.’ Most people didn’t even need their staff to personally instill divine power in them, and Lucy… she was unlucky with her contractor.”
“I see.”
His shadow seemed longer somehow, but neither of us mentioned it.
“But everyone demanded things from me — to stay at the top of the rankings, to keep my honor intact. So whenever something went wrong in the country or an incident happened, I always felt like it was my fault. That my magic wasn’t perfect enough.”
I almost said, That’s impossible, how can you carry that burden alone? — but stopped.
Because that was exactly the message he was trying to tell me.
He must’ve noticed my reaction, because he let out a low chuckle.
“I thought I had to handle everything myself. That I just needed to do better.”
“…I used to think that too.”
“But sometimes, there are things we can’t fix alone.”
He said he’d learned that lesson the hard way — by clashing, breaking, and rebuilding himself within the Hunter world.
And because of that, he wanted to share it with me.
He was clumsily, sincerely trying to tell me — you don’t have to bear it all by yourself.
We walked in circles along the same path near the dorm, neither ready to let go of the moment.
“And then, like it was all a lie — the debuff that had haunted me all my life disappeared when you appeared. So now, I don’t have to blame myself anymore. That’s why… I want to help you too.”
“You already are helping, senpai…”
Suddenly, a deep crimson glow spread through my body.
An unbearable drowsiness swept over me.
My head drooped as sleep overtook me before I could resist.
Traitor. Coward. How could you put me to sleep like this… I grumbled inwardly.
And just before darkness took me, I heard his voice — soft and low.
“Sometimes, let me be the one to sing you a lullaby.”
