Stirring (蠢動) (4)
At Jung-woo's words, Ah-yeon and Hojun's expressions hardened.
It was because they hadn't expected him to make such a definitive statement in this way.
Especially for Ah-yeon, who trusted Jung-woo's words, the shock was all the greater.
"Is it really... impossible? Then are you saying, to solve that, the only way is to kill her?"
"As far as I know, yes."
"Even over there?"
"It's the same over there."
How could you possibly separate something that has already been fused down to the cellular level?
Ji Yeon-hwa and the nucleus of the Erosive Dungeon had become completely one.
The proof was the round, black pearl-like gem embedded in the very center of her forehead.
"Is that so."
Hojun sighed quietly as he spoke.
"Then Hunter Ji Yeon-hwa must be brought down here."
"But!!"
Ah-yeon objected to Baek Hojun's words.
That reaction was quite unexpected to Jung-woo.
"You never really liked Ji Yeon-hwa, did you?"
"... I still don't particularly like her. But that's not enough to warrant killing her."
It was true that every time they met, she'd pick a fight and get on her nerves for no reason.
But still, she didn't hate Ji Yeon-hwa enough to kill her without hesitation.
There was no reason to kill, nor to be killed.
"Hunter Shin Ah-yeon-nim. But you know we can't just leave that alone, right? There are many hunters on this mountain. There's a film crew too. If that thing moves to another place, there's bound to be casualties."
"......"
Ah-yeon knew it too.
If Jung-woo said there was no way, then there really was no way.
Ah-yeon closed her eyes tightly.
"... Alright. But how do we stop that thing? None of our attacks have landed properly so far."
"You'll have to destroy the nucleus in her forehead."
Shin Ah-yeon and Baek Hojun had already fought similar monsters in the 5th Demonic Zone.
Those monsters had been even stronger than Ji Yeon-hwa is now.
"──Shin Ah-yeon, Shin Ah-yeooon!!"
At that moment, Ji Yeon-hwa, who'd just recovered from the recent shock, began to move.
As she stepped forward, black shadows spread in every direction, shredding the mountain trees.
Hojun's sword slashed through every shadow that came his way, while shards of shield conjured by Shin Ah-yeon's gestures prevented further damage.
'This isn't good.'
Thousand Sword, Blade Master. True to his title, Baek Hojun's sword split into thousands, offsetting all of Ji Yeon-hwa's attacks head-on.
But that was all he could do. The swords couldn't advance any further.
Even if he somehow advanced, could he break through Ji Yeon-hwa's defenses?
He was barely scratching her skin; could he really destroy the nucleus in her forehead?
Compared to the monster they'd encountered during the Demonic Zone raid, she was weaker.
But even then, it had taken a combined effort from all the S-rank hunters present to barely destroy the nucleus.
Currently, Shin Ah-yeon was not in her past form, and Hojun himself was not particularly known for firepower, so he had no confidence they could destroy the nucleus.
Ka-ga-ga-gak!!
Even more, Ji Yeon-hwa's attacks weren't just the shadows spreading from her feet.
Guided by her hand gestures, dozens of spells were being shot in all directions.
Of course, before those attacks could hit the ground, Ah-yeon was blocking them at the source.
In short, physical attacks were being stopped by Hojun.
Magical attacks were being blocked by Ah-yeon.
And even that defense was gradually being pushed back.
'At least the fact that Ji Yeon-hwa moved toward the film crew and is now farther from the other hunters is a relief, right?'
Hojun considered whether he should have brought other mentors, but soon shook his head.
It was better that not many people found out about this event.
Ji Yeon-hwa was pegged as the next representative mage of Korea.
If news broke of her being transformed like this, it would have a massive impact on the Hunter world.
"Soo-ah-ssi, please move away from me and help them."
Jung-woo, who'd been keeping an eye on the situation, spoke to Soo-ah, who was at his side in case of emergency.
"Huh? B-but if I do that, I won't be able to protect Manager-nim if Ji Yeon-hwa targets you!"
"Soo-ah-ssi, you're not all that great at protecting people anyway."
"... Well, that's true."
"Do what you do best."
"......"
At Jung-woo's words, Soo-ah hesitated for a moment.
Was it really right to leave Jung-woo here and help Ah-yeon and Hojun?
Or beyond that, should she really be getting involved in their fight at all? She was confused.
Ah-yeon had gotten weaker, but she still had experience as an S-rank hunter, and Baek Hojun was, without exaggeration, one of Korea's top S-rank hunters. Their opponent, Ji Yeon-hwa, too, had been a prospect for S-rank, and now was even stronger as a dungeon nucleus.
Wouldn't she just get in the way if she joined their fight?
Even Ju Ji-sang, known for his A-rank skill, was only able to struggle against Ji Yeon-hwa.
"I can do it."
Almost as if he'd read Soo-ah's mind, Jung-woo patted her shoulder and spoke.
"You've already blocked attacks from an S-rank hunter several times, haven't you?"
Her sparring with Ah-yeon. The blue flames had stopped even her magic several times.
That power should probably work on Ji Yeon-hwa too.
And as he'd said before, Soo-ah had already been complete a long time ago.
She was just the only one who never realized it.
Trapped inside her cocoon, she thought that was all there was to the world.
Because everyone else said the same.
So now was the time to crack the shell.
To fully emerge.
"Soo-ah-ssi."
"A-alright! B-but Manager-nim, you must be careful too!"
"No need to worry. I already showed how I can escape from hunters in Mission 3."
"Ugh, uh... I still think this is different...!"
After saying that, Soo-ah hesitated for a moment, and then turned and dashed toward where Ah-yeon and Hojun were.
'What the—?!'
When Soo-ah ran straight toward the fight, Hojun thought she must be crazy.
Hojun, who had witnessed Soo-ah's flashes of brilliance throughout the missions, still thought their current opponent was too strong.
If Soo-ah charged in—as if she'd lost her mind—she'd obviously get torn apart by Ji Yeon-hwa's attacks.
Fwoooosh!!
But the blue flames that wrapped around Soo-ah's sword burned away the shadows rushing toward her.
And even the magic shots flying at her lost a great deal of their power as they met the faint flames emanating from her body.
"I— eek!!"
Even Soo-ah, who usually lost her senses in combat, kept her mind sharp now; unlike usual, reason had overcome instinct at the sight of such a formidable foe.
Perhaps she hadn't realized it herself yet.
But a swordsman like Hojun, who'd wielded the blade for so long, couldn't help but notice the change in her.
Thanks to this, the burden on Ah-yeon and Hojun eased, and the tide of battle gradually evened out.
"What the hell are you?! So cocky. Cocky, I say!! That kind of thing makes no sense!!"
Ji Yeon-hwa's nervous shrieking felt like it reflected Hojun's feelings as well.
That dazzling talent.
Hojun felt like he was witnessing it again.
Like the first time he saw Shin Ah-yeon.
The sleeping potential inside the still-young Lee Soo-ah, the flapping wings of a genius about to emerge.
"Aaaaahh!! I hate it, I hate it all!! Why did you call me a genius? I'm nothing!!"
Having screamed Shin Ah-yeon's name, Ji Yeon-hwa, as things didn't go her way, began to rampage further.
Deep resentment, despair. Longing. Dark emotions swirled, and the corrupted earth flipped.
Ku-gu-gu-goong!!
"Watch out...!!"
The side of the mountain gaped wide like a giant monster's maw, about to swallow them all.
"......!!"
Ji Yeon-hwa's gaze shifted.
Within what remained of her instincts, a hint of reason detected the danger.
Behind the three who blocked her path, there still stood the man—who had been quietly standing there the whole time.
Park Jung-woo, Shin Ah-yeon's manager.
An arrogant man—those were about the only words left in Ji Yeon-hwa's mind.
'Why.'
An ordinary man.
Not an awakener, just a regular human.
Yet for some odd reason, her eyes were drawn to him.
His fist.
That tightly clenched fist was about to move.
"Wait!!"
At that moment, Ah-yeon shouted.
She too had realized what Jung-woo was about to do.
"I get it now, just—please, wait a second."
At Ah-yeon's words, the strength drained from Jung-woo's clenched fist.
And somehow, his eyes seemed to show surprise.
Kwa-ji-ji-jik!!!
As Ji Yeon-hwa's power tore up the ground, the mountain's fangs loomed over their heads.
Just before the massive landslide swallowed them up, Ah-yeon just barely made it to Ji Yeon-hwa's face.
"Why were you looking for me?"
In this critical moment, Shin Ah-yeon asked her.
"I know you hate me. Is that why you were looking for me? Did you want to kill me with that power?"
A deep sense of despair welled up in Ji Yeon-hwa's heart.
She'd resented and longed for everything Shin Ah-yeon had; now, that anger was boiling over.
"But that's not it, is it."
Yet Shin Ah-yeon denied it.
"That's not why you were searching for me, is it, Ji Yeon-hwa-ssi?"
She kept asking.
Why she'd sought Shin Ah-yeon all this time.
Ignoring the voice of purpose screaming in her mind, she had called out only for Shin Ah-yeon.
'Why.'
Moving with ugly emotions of resentment and jealousy.
Or so she thought.
"Because I thought I could do it."
She'd yearned for it.
She'd desired, and she'd despaired.
But before all that, she'd held admiration.
She'd wanted to become like her.
There had always been an idealized, blurry hope in her mind.
"Because I thought it would be possible."
So she sought Shin Ah-yeon.
She couldn't do it, but thought Shin Ah-yeon could.
Ji Yeon-hwa had been moving toward hope.
"As s...."
The moment she touched what was believed to be the ultimate magic stone, Ji Yeon-hwa realized something was wrong.
An uncontrollable power dominated her body, her mind clouded, and as she lost consciousness, fear overwhelmed her.
She realized she couldn't control it.
She sensed that Ji Yeon-hwa—the person—would be swallowed and disappear.
"... Help me."
So she sought someone who could.
Someone who always seemed like they could do anything.
For Ji Yeon-hwa, Shin Ah-yeon was just such a person.
"Yes, if that is what you wish for."
Ah-yeon's tone was strangely different from usual.
Jung-woo noticed it as he watched their conversation.
And a question arose.
'What is this?'
Normally, this would be impossible.
Shin Ah-yeon was a great mage, but not at the level of her prime.
Even at her peak, this was something she could never accomplish.
But still, Ah-yeon reached out to Ji Yeon-hwa.
As if it was only natural that she could save her.
Kwa-gwa-gwa-kwang!!
At that moment—
The landslide caused by Ji Yeon-hwa's power swallowed them up.
***
【Are you the manager who discovered the rift?】
Suddenly, I remembered that moment.
When I thought it was all over—at the moment when everyone ignored the rift that was accidentally found inside the dungeon.
Only one person reached out to me.
Together, we found the rift, rescued people from there.
At the moment when I couldn't get away and was about to get sucked into the rift...
I desperately reached my hand out to Ah-yeon.
Even now, it felt like a nightmare.
Reaching out to Shin Ah-yeon, who reached out to save me—shouting for her to rescue me because I wanted to live, waving my hand but unable to reach hers.
【───.】
Thinking back, I faintly remembered her saying something to me at that moment.
Of course, I couldn't hear her, and right after, I was sucked into the darkness.
That was my last memory as I was drawn into the rift.
'... Strange.'
I watched Ah-yeon, unconscious in the darkness, with Ji Yeon-hwa nestled in her arms.
Soo-ah, too, was lying unconscious nearby.
Fortunately, it seemed none of them was severely injured—just knocked out from the shock.
'Is this really possible?'
Ji Yeon-hwa, who had gone berserk, had calmed down.
Not only that—her very appearance had changed.
Like a deflated balloon, she'd shrunk to the form of a child.
Normally, nothing like this could happen.
It was as if her body, ravaged by corruption from the nucleus, had been forcibly reconstructed.
'She became a half-demon.'
If corrupted by the nucleus, one becomes a heartless monster with a demon's heart.
Ji Yeon-hwa had become such a monster, and there should have been no way to save her.
Yet now, Ji Yeon-hwa showed no such signs.
She simply slept quietly, breathing in peace.
Even though the demon's heart—the nucleus—was still embedded in her forehead, her body had somehow transformed to endure it.
'No matter how much of a genius a mage she is, is this even possible?'
Thinking about it, during the rift incident three years ago, there had been two "miracles" on par with today's event.
Even in a world where magic was highly advanced, it took hundreds of mages working together to close a rift—but one mage closed it alone.
And a man who was with her was sucked into the rift, yet didn't die and crossed into another world.
This all happened in a single incident.
Thinking about it, it felt less like these miracles happened because Shin Ah-yeon was amazing or I was lucky, and more like something else was at play.
'The common factor here and in that incident—there was always someone who asked Shin Ah-yeon for help.'
Coincidentally, I knew of an existence that could demonstrate such power when someone wished for it in such situations.
And that strange manner of speaking Ah-yeon used with Ji Yeon-hwa just now—that too, I'd heard before.
No—more accurately, it was a turn of phrase I could never forget, used by someone I knew.
'No way...'
The problem was, that person no longer existed in this world.
Neither in that world, nor on Earth.
"... Mmm."
I quietly moved over to Shin Ah-yeon.
I hesitated for a moment.
If I checked her back, I would know for sure, but I'd have to take off Ah-yeon's clothes to do that.
"What exactly are you doing?"
Just then, a man battered and bruised addressed me.
It was none other than Baek Hojun.
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
A tiny bit of info from the other world.
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】