Chapter 426: It’s Morning!
Within the clouded memories, there had been a familiar voice. But I could not make out what it was saying. Seated in the chair, I looked at Sung Hyunjae. There was a faint weariness on the face standing over there in the wide lobby.
He said that Chief Song and I had come here. Since this was the nightmare dungeon, it could not have been a pleasant sight. Or rather, perhaps I ought to say it had not been a pleasant thing to hear. Fortunately, it was quiet now.
“It is exactly as you are assuming.”
Sung Hyunjae said.
“Song Taewon and Han Yoojin affected the filling of me, and Song Taewon stopped it.”
“Is that all?”
“If there is a little more to add, perhaps only that I had intended to enter the dungeon alone.”
The Sung Hyunjae I had met within this dungeon came to mind. The one who had tried to erase the current Sung Hyunjae. Without thinking, I glanced sideways at myself seated a little farther away.
“In the end, you went in together with Chief Song.”
“That’s right. More precisely, I heard it was Song Taewon who followed me.”
And Sung Hyunjae accepted Song Taewon’s help. From that point on, it’s no longer Han Yoojin’s story—the voice saying that rang in my ears. Han Yoojin, an ordinary F-rank, probably could not even have gone into the dungeon together with the two of them.
No matter what kind of relationship I had with them, I would have had no choice but to stay outside.
“…My memories.”
“It appears to have been a side effect of Plunder. Or else.”
Sung Hyunjae’s gaze flicked once toward behind his own back.
“Perhaps it was to protect Han Yoojin from Crescent Moon.”
“You mean my memories—no, the very fact that I had been involved with the two of you—were erased?”
“Though he only said that Song Taewon had an influence. He died there.”
“And to Mr. Sung Hyunjae, he gave Plunder.”
“And gifted it to me.”
Bound by Crescent Moon, Sung Hyunjae had received the Plunder skill and then come out of the dungeon alone. I had thought he used Plunder to maintain himself, but perhaps he had used it on someone else.
“Did you use it on me, Mr. Sung Hyunjae? No, but the Sung Hyunjae from before the regression… come to think of it, he did say his own memories weren’t perfect.”
He had found my incomplete memories strange, but at the same time had said that his own memories also had problems.
“Could it be that he used a skill he wasn’t familiar with on me, and that ended up affecting his own memories too?”
“I don’t know. But if it was not a side effect.”
Sung Hyunjae looked at me from before the regression. I narrowed my brows and met that gaze with difficulty.
“He probably erased it for you.”
Han Yoojin—who had no special ability, who found it difficult even to face an S-rank who wasn’t holding back. I probably should have stepped back. From my little brother, and from the other two as well.
My throat felt a little dry. They said weakness was not a sin, but it was still sad. It could not help but be. Even if there was no helping it, my chest still stung. From the Sung Hyunjae before the regression, I had been told in effect that I was merely an F-rank who could influence him but that was all. Then from the two who were the same yet different, I was told one after the other, You could do nothing. The sigh rose all the way to my throat.
Even so, if it were the current me, would I have tried to find a way together instead of erasing it? If it were the current me—
“It isn’t your fault.”
At my own words, I furrowed my brows sharply.
“What do you mean, fault, all of a sudden? Hey, I’m you anyway.”
“Yeah. It isn’t my fault either. That’s why we got this far now, isn’t it. Things still aren’t all resolved even now, but at least we’re in a position where we can try doing something.”
Me and I turned to look at my little brother.
“We can even be together like this.”
“…I thought making up with Yoohyun meant it was all over. What the hell is left now?”
At my own words, a bitter smile rose naturally to my lips. Seriously, what was left indeed. My goal had originally been simple. To be acknowledged by my little brother and go back to the way things had been. Only that. Simple did not mean easy, of course.
“In addition, it seems I originally tried to use Plunder to erase the contract with Crescent Moon.”
“…What? No, you should have said something that important first!”
There was a method like that! Though it seemed to have failed. Even so, swallowing not Sung Hyunjae himself but the contract was a method worth considering once again.
“When Crescent Moon’s power entered me, Chief Song Taewon only felt like a threat. Not something with clear intent, but just a part of the power, so it may have been because of that, but I only perceived him as a being that would harm the small moon.”
It had led me to agree to Crescent Moon’s will. Of course, if it had been the untainted me, then even if someone had said Chief Song is attacking Sung Hyunjae! I would probably have thought, So the day has finally come, he’s held back a long time… But back then, I had been sympathizing to some extent with Crescent Moon.
A being that would harm the moon she had raised. Since I had Yoohyun too, it had been comparatively easy for me to sympathize. At the same time, because it was Sung Hyunjae, I also seemed to have felt a little, Why do I have to go this far for him?
“So I could suppress it by telling myself that Chief Song is not that kind of person, but if the contract itself could be erased with Plunder…….”
“I merely tried it.”
“…Would it be impossible?”
I turned to Young Chaos, who was standing slightly crooked.
“I don’t know about that.”
“Yeees. It’d be nice if we could find out how Crescent Moon, who must have appeared inside the dungeon, reacted!”
Whether she had simply been on guard because Song Taewon could swallow Sung Hyunjae, or whether the possibility of breaking the contract existed too. In any case, Chief Song seemed to be an important key.
…Even if it was something Chief Song himself did not want.
“Is there perhaps any way to draw out even a little more of Crescent Moon’s memories? Couldn’t there be something left in the dungeon?”
“It would have been possible before it disappeared.”
“What? Then beforehand—!”
“If memory had been added to the power left behind without the will, you would have been devoured.”
R-right, I see. Still, it was a shame. Was there really no way to draw it out again? If I went into the mental world and pulled Crescent Moon’s power out again—
“Do not think foolish thoughts.”
“I’m not.”
Maybe I should try going into the mental realm again with Sung Hyunjae as the target. Since there was also the contract with Crescent Moon, I might be able to learn something more.
“Second, smack First on the back of the head once.”
“…Hyung.”
Instead of smacking the back of my head, Yoohyun grabbed my shoulder and shook it lightly. Elder really is quick on the uptake.
“As long as that bastard is still fine, Crescent Moon won’t intervene rashly anyway. So stop thinking about that and focus on getting out of this dungeon.”
“Yees.”
Let’s put it on hold for now. As I rose from the chair, a faint sound came from beyond the door across the lobby. Fwoosh—something flared into flame.
And then, tap. Something knocked once against the glass door before going quiet. There were no words. My insides grew hot.
“Go upstairs.”
Young Chaos said firmly. Yoohyun grabbed my arm and pulled. The me from before the regression also rose, led up by my little brother’s hand.
“Come on, let’s go. It’s late.”
Unable to turn and look toward the door, I moved my feet. We really did need to escape this dungeon as quickly as possible.
“Did you sleep well!”
“Good morning! Kim Seobangs!”
When we came down into the hotel lobby, Yerim and Yoon Yoon greeted us in lively voices. The cloths covering the glass doors had all been removed, and morning sunlight was streaming long across the floor. I checked just in case, but there was no trace of anything outside the door.
As we headed to the dining room with the kids, I saw Song Taewon and Sung Hyunjae, who had arrived first. Young Chaos had also already claimed a seat early on. Wow, that smells good. Did the rookie prepare breakfast for us?
“Chief Song, you worked hard.”
“It was nothing.”
Thankfully, Chief Song looked less tired than yesterday. Had Sung Hyunjae told him about what happened during the night?
“Mr. Yoojin.”
Noah’s voice came from the kitchen side. Why was Mr. Noah in the kitchen—huh?
“M-Myeongwoo?”
Beyond the open kitchen, Myeongwoo smiled at me. He didn’t look angry. Probably not, right? More importantly, is this what free breakfast meant! Rookie! You bastard!
“So that’s Hunter Yoo Myeongwoo?”
The me from before the regression quietly asked.
“Uh, yeah. That’s right.”
“He doesn’t look like a production type.”
“He’s a blacksmith. He’s got to be strong too.”
After telling Yoohyun and me to go sit down, I approached the kitchen area. Hm, it really feels like it’s been a long time since I last saw him.
“H-hi? I mean, I was doing just fine.”
“Yoojin.”
“Yeah.”
“I heard your leg got hurt.”
Myeongwoo said that with the same smile still on his face.
“Well, there was a monster here that did it! It must’ve been the dungeon boss, so we should kill it.”
I almost blurted out that the bastard who ruined my leg had his own leg cut off too, but I hurriedly changed what I was saying. Better to blame a monster than say I got dragged around after being kidnapped.
“And the mana imprint?”
“It’s fine! Totally fine. Really.”
Mr. Sung Hyunjae, Chief Song, they didn’t say anything, right? There’s no way Myeongwoo saw everything that happened in the dungeon, right… damn it, that would be bad.
“Let me see.”
“Uh, okay.”
I quickly turned around and went into the kitchen. After examining the mana imprint, Myeongwoo looked toward Young Chaos.
“I see.”
Huh? What was that supposed to mean? Myeongwoo slapped my back hard enough for it to sting a little.
“Take better care of your body.”
What… why is the nagging strangely short?
“It’s not like I was trying not to…. More importantly, what happened with you?”
“I’m having the time of my life.”
Myeongwoo said as he lifted the lid off a pot. Then he briefly explained his situation.
“…You really participated in making the dungeon?”
“As support, support. So I can’t really be deeply involved with the dungeon itself. Even though I’m the rookie, it seems like I’m only allowed to check an extremely limited portion of the information inside the dungeon.”
“Even so, that’s incredible. It’s the transcendents who manage dungeons!”
Even if it was only as support, it was amazing. At this rate, was Yoo Myeongwoo going to become a full-fledged dungeon administrator or something? Like the rookie’s successor becoming another rookie.
“…Tentacles are a no-go.”
“Ah, that.”
Myeongwoo tilted his head slightly. Wait a second, I’m getting a suspicious feeling here.
“It did look convenient.”
“Hey, hey. Protect your identity as a human.”
“The rookie said—”
“Don’t listen to the rookie. He just wants to work you even more efficiently! You already said you’re having a hard time. On top of that, he even sent you here to cook. That damned volleyball-looking bastard.”
“I said I would come. He said he had originally been planning to give you sandwiches and chicken.”
What kind of breakfast is chicken? On top of that, Myeongwoo’s current body was apparently at the level of a non-Awakened person without even any skills. It looked like his Rank had dropped drastically, just like with Young Chaos.
“Did the rookie happen to tell you that?”
Rejecting the order to go sit down, I cracked eggs into a bowl and asked casually.
“Tell me what?”
“That I regressed.”
“…I know this dungeon is a record that is both future and past.”
So he had already more or less guessed.
“Yeah. It’s the future that disappeared when I went back to the past.”
The loosened egg mixture sizzled as it ran onto the heated pan.
“I wasn’t there, was I?”
“No, Myeongwoo. You’re a friend I met completely anew.”
There was a high chance that Yoo Myeongwoo had died before I even Awakened in the life before the regression. Suddenly, I looked back at Noah, who was opening the rice cooker. Mr. Noah was likely the same. Bonds that had not existed before the regression. The old people who continued on, and the new people.
“Then I’m probably one of the people who became happiest because you returned to the past, Yoojin.”
Myeongwoo said.
…Why does he always casually say things that make me emotional?
“Me too, Mr. Yoojin.”
Noah chimed in while holding the rice paddle. His brightly smiling face almost seemed to sparkle.
“I’m happy that I got to change this much.”
“Well, Mr. Noah, you were amazing to begin with.”
“What about you, Yoojin?”
The answer to Myeongwoo’s question came easily.
“Of course I like now way better too.”
Even if the hard things are piled up like a mountain. Even if there is a thorn forever lodged in my chest. Still, there are just too many good people now, so I can’t help but say I like it.
Breakfast, naturally, was delicious. After eating with us, Myeongwoo returned to the position of dungeon administrator, sighing heavily the whole way. Seriously, how hard is that bastard rookie working Myeongwoo?
“Then let’s head straight to the Hunter Association.”
We had to finish this before the sun went down again.
“Mr. Sung Hyunjae, would you like to rest? You stayed up all night, so you must be tired.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to finish it quickly?”
Well, that was true too. Since we only needed to wait outside the area anyway, we decided to all move together instead of leaving anyone at the hotel.
The Hunter Association, located in the same Gangnam, was not far away. Maybe because it was only just around the start of work hours, unlike last time, there were not many Hunters outside. A-rank. Within this dungeon, that meant three S-ranks.
“Yoohyun.”
My little brother quietly stepped forward. Not over the ground, but over willow leaves, he approached the Hunters in an instant without a sound. Since they had S-rank stats, they noticed quickly—but even faster than that, the acceleration skill of the ceremonial robe activated.
Crunch—
A neck was pierced through by the tip of a blade.
“Wha—!”
At the same time one of the remaining two tried to shout, a thick arm wrapped around his throat. Crack, the sound of bone breaking was heard, and Yerim—who had teleported together with Chief Song—unleashed cold air straight at the face of the last man.
With his vision obscured and his mouth frozen shut so he couldn’t make a sound, the last one was also subdued in an instant.
Yerim could have just stayed back, though. Anyway, lastly—
Craaaash—!
Lightning struck down toward the Hunter Association building. It was only a fake inside the dungeon, but it still felt damn satisfying.
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