Chi-Woo had brought back the sole survivor from the academy stuck centuries ago. It was a mysterious, white-haired girl dressed in all white. Although it had appeared like she wouldn’t be able to survive the night, her condition improved considerably thanks to the holy water Chi-Woo gave her. She even opened her eyes for a brief moment during the night, but she soon fell asleep again; it didn’t seem she had recovered fully.
Another day passed after that, and after looking after her the whole night, Eshnunna changed shifts with another person. She then took care of personal business and rested; the sun was already high in the sky by then. She assumed the girl hadn’t woken up yet since she hadn’t been contacted. While wondering when the girl would regain consciousness, Eshnunna gently opened the door to the room the girl was staying in and rubbed her eyes. Swish. A cool breeze brushed past her cheeks. Eshnunna stopped and opened her eyes slightly.
“Snooore—” The native in charge of watching the girl was sitting by the bed, snoring with her head down. A gust of wind rushed through the open window again; outside, a couple of strands of blanket intertwined like sausages being hung dry. Hesitantly, Eshnunna turned around, her mouth slightly ajar. The bed where the girl should have been lying on—
“…” It was empty.
* * *
One of Chi-Woo’s traits that Philip evaluated highly was his diligence. Disregarding unavoidable circumstances, Chi-Woo had never skipped training. Even today, after finishing his morning exercise, Chi-Woo immediately went into meditation to try to use the ability he gained yesterday. Because of the nature of the exercise, Chi-Woo needed to focus for a long time, and it wouldn’t be until noon that he finished meditating. Then he would go to the square to get his share of food before recommencing his training again. He was like the model knight or friar devoted to their cause. Even Philip remained silent when Chi-Woo trained.
As usual, Chi-Woo opened his eyes again when the sun was in the middle of the sky.
“Haaa—” Small bits of refined energy flowed into Chi-Woo through his nose and lips. Then a long sigh followed. Chi-Woo appeared refreshed after finishing his meditation.
‘It’s addictive.’ It was the same feeling he got from sweating through a hard exercise and then taking a warm bath or going to the sauna afterward. He had felt that his body was becoming polluted after remaining pure at all times inside the cave due to his daily bath in holy water, but after using Divine Inspiration, his body seemed to be getting fully cleansed in the same way. Furthermore, he also felt that his exorcism mana had been increasing.
He was taking a small step at a time. If he worked hard three times every day, it seemed his dream of reaching C rank for exorcism would be achievable.
“Ha! Ha!” Chi-Woo got up from his spot and swung both fists into the air. Then, after drawing out a substantial volume of exorcism mana, he struck the ground.
Bam! Craack! His fist dug into the dirt, leaving a deep dent.
“…Whoah.” He couldn’t believe it even when he was staring right at it. At this point, it seemed he would be able to shatter most stones, if not boulders. If he had been in this state when he first came to Liber, he would have gone around swinging his fists. It was then he realized from his core that he was gradually becoming less human.
—What are you punching the ground for? Are you showing off your strength?”
Chi-Woo heard a familiar voice. Philip was looking down at him while lying horizontally in the air.
With his head arched back, Chi-Woo decided to demand outrightly.
‘Teach me.’
—What?
‘Anything.’
—Ah, it’s meaningless.
Philip shook his head and snorted.
—But what do you want to learn?
‘Uh…swordsmanship?’
—I thought you said you didn’t need that.
Chi-Woo didn’t know how to respond for a moment, but quickly thought to Philip, ‘Now that I think about it, I don’t think it would be bad for me to learn it.’
—Changing your mind left and right~ Can’t you be firmer in your stance? You are a man.
‘Are you really gonna act like that? You sound so petty,’ Chi-Woo responded.
—What do you mean by petty?
Philip said while yawning wide.
—You have already chosen your path. Even if you decide to change course midway, you should at least stick to it and get a taste first.
‘You laughed at me when I first said I didn’t need to learn swordsmanship. That’s why I’m asking you right now.
—Yeah, I did laugh at you. But that was for a different reason. I never said that path was the wrong one.
Philip said calmly. Chi-Woo was at a loss for words again. He wanted to ask if Philip was playing with him, but by the look on Philip’s face, that didn’t seem to be the case.
—The hardware has been optimized; no need to bother with the software.
Chi-Woo wondered what the exact words Philip was using that they would be translated into ‘hardware’ or ‘software’.
—I know your judgment skills are lacking, but do you think the gods are complete idiots? That they would give you all sorts of things without thinking?
When Chi-Woo looked confused by this statement, Philip hit both sides of his chest in frustration.
—Did you really not feel anything when you taught that blonde lady on my behalf?
‘Well, that’s…’
—Without further ado, try to do something and ask about it later.
‘Can’t you at least tell me what I should do?’ Chi-Woo grumbled.
—Well, if it’s just that…
Philip’s pupils turned round.
—Do the real thing.
‘What do you mean?’
—Get out and find a place where there are enemies. Where you can face one of them at a time.
Doubting his ears, Chi-Woo asked, ‘You’re joking right?”
—Do you think I’m joking? Aren’t you swinging your sword to survive? Then go swing your sword at least 10,000 times, defeating one guy at a time. I’m sure that when you’re put in a desperate situation, you would finally start to think and wonder if there’s a method that will let you swing your sword one less time.
Chi-Woo was tired of Philip’s nagging, but he got a gist of what Philip was trying to tell him. Philip was asking Chi-Woo what he was doing when he didn’t even fully understand what he had and telling Chi-Woo that he should learn about himself before thinking about doing things. If Chi-Woo understood his assets better, he would naturally know what to do. Chi-Woo picked up a stone rolling on the ground and scratched his arm hard with it.
—What are you doing?
Drip. Philip clicked his tongue as he saw blood trickle down Chi-Woo’s arm.
—Why are you suddenly hurting yourself? Are you sick or something?
‘Be quiet. I am testing my Divine Blood.’ Chi-Woo raised his wrist and checked his user information. Then he coated his thumb with saliva and rubbed it over his injury. The bleeding subsided until his injury disappeared completely.
—What, shit.
Philip was stunned, same for Chi-Woo.
‘It really does become more effective with saliva.’ With this, he had proven his ability to heal himself. He also wanted to test the effect on his mouth and wondered if he should go to Shadia for help. Then, his eyes suddenly burst open in realization. Some time later, he heard someone urgently pounding on a door.
* * *
Chi-Woo hurriedly ran to the palace, and when he opened the door and entered, he saw a man and a woman. One was Eshnunna, and the other was someone he didn’t expect to see.
“Mr. Allen Leonard?”
“Oh! It’s been a while.” Allen Leonard greeted Chi-Woo with a smile on his face.
“Yes, hello…” Chi-Woo’s eyes shot towards one spot even while he answered. It was the bed a girl with white hair and dress was bound to with her arms and legs tied. Heave—! The girl looked teary, and she breathed heavily like she was very scared. She looked like a puppy separated from the rest of her siblings and adopted into an unfamiliar home.
“…Why is she like that?” Chi-Woo asked, wondering why the girl he saved was tied up like a prisoner. After letting out a long sigh, Eshnunna explained what had happened earlier in the day. In short, the girl had escaped when a native had fallen asleep. Upon realizing this fact, Eshnunna went outside, and there, she happened upon a cat—no, Nangnang—taking a noon nap. Feeling the urgency of the matter, she woke up Nangnang and asked him for help. And while chasing after the girl through traces she left behind, they ran into Allen Leonard’s group.
“She looked suspicious,” Allen Leonard spoke up. “She doesn’t seem like a hero or a native, and when I tried to talk to her, she didn’t react at all, so…” He saw the suspicious girl while returning from his mission with a couple of heroes. Since she didn’t reply to their questions and instead tried to run away, they captured her. On their way back, they ran into Nangnang. They returned to the capital like that, and after checking her identity, he immediately called Chi-Woo.
“I felt a bit iffy about capturing a little girl, but it would seem I’ve done the right thing,” Allen Leonard said with a laugh, but then he seemed taken aback by the look on the girl’s face; it looked like she was about to cry. It made him feel like he had kidnapped an innocent girl and forced her to come here. “Uh-um. Even though I’m curious, I’ll hear about it later on. Now that I’ve done my part in taking her here, I’ll take my leave.” Allen Leonard left the room as if he was being chased out.
“…I apologize,” Eshnunna replied with a small voice.
Chi-Woo shook his head; he didn’t think it was Eshnunna’s fault.
“She doesn’t say anything in response to us,” Eshnunna continued with traces of exhaustion seeping into her voice. “Even when I simply ask her her name, or explain her current situation, she never says a word in response…and she doesn’t even touch her meal.” True to her words, the plate on the table was untouched.
Eshnunna asked, “What are you planning to do?”
The girl seemed to be extremely anxious still. Chi-Woo organized his thoughts for a bit and said, “Would you mind waiting for me outside?”
“What?”
“I think she’ll be a little less nervous with fewer people.”
Eshnunna thought he had a point and immediately left.
“Mr. Philip, you too.”
—…Tch.
Philip disappeared through the wall. Even though there were only two of them now, the girl’s attitude did not change. Her wariness intensified when Chi-Woo took a step closer. Ignoring her reaction, he got even closer and reached out with both arms.
“Ummph! Ummmph!” The girl’s eyes widened, and she frantically tried to move. “…!” She tightly shut her eyes and then—
Swish, swish. The tightly tied rope around both her hands was released.
“…?” The girl carefully opened her eyes. While Chi-Woo tried to untie the rope around her ankles, the girl quickly ran away like he was a cockroach as soon as she was freed. She moved to the corner of the room and tried to stay as far away from Chi-Woo as possible. Then, she moved her head from side to side like she was looking for an escape route. In the meantime, Chi-Woo simply observed her quietly.
The desperate look on the girl’s face soon gave way to realization as she touched her neck. With widened eyes, she looked down; only then did she look back up at Chi-Woo.
Now that he thought about it, she did have a necklace when he first saw her, didn’t she? Chi-Woo looked around to see whether she had dropped it or someone else had taken it and put it aside. Then he saw a necklace with a small crystal hanging on the bedside. Unlike before, it did not shine anymore. However, when Chi-Woo held it in his hand, it began to shine again. Because his eyes were blinded by the dazzling brilliance of the crystal, Chi-Woo didn’t notice that the girl’s wary eyes had turned surprised.
“What? It was turned off?” Chi-Woo tilted his head and turned around. He put the necklace down where the girl could see it well and moved back. As soon as he let go of the necklace, the light went out again. He gestured at the girl, telling her that she could take it back. The girl eyed him for a moment before—
Grab! The girl’s white, bobbed hair swished, and she quickly took the necklace before wrapping it with both hands and holding it in her arms like a child holding their new water bottle. Then she moved back to the corner again. Blinking light sipped through the gaps between the girl’s fingers.
Chi-Woo decided to try talking to the girl, whose eyes were glued to him. “Do you know how to talk? Miss, can you hear me?”
“…”
Eshnunna was right. The girl didn’t say anything. “I’m the person who saved you at that academy.” Chi-Woo scratched his head and sighed. “I won’t talk for long, since I’m told that you’ve already heard what happened to you.”
Moreover, he could understand her reactions. “…You must be confused. I get it.” To her, she had gone to school, and a few hours later, centuries had already flown by in the outside world. It was not something that someone could easily accept in a day or two. “However, the current situation is…extremely bad. The outside is dangerous, even here.” Chi-Woo continued, “I’ll advise you to stay here until you calm down, but…if you insist on leaving, I won’t stop you.”
With that, Chi-Woo walked to the door and opened it. Even though there were many things he was curious about, he couldn’t force her to talk. Chi-Woo decided to leave the final decision to the girl.
“You can leave.” He reached out with a hand like he was guiding her outside. The girl got up awkwardly but surprisingly did not leave. Even though Chi-Woo stood as far away from the door as possible, she remained where she was, standing awkwardly. The way she looked at him was slightly different too. Of course, the change was minuscule at best, and there was still a keen wariness in her gaze.
Chi-Woo asked, “Are you not leaving?”
The girl touched her necklace and moved it around as if there was something she wanted to say.
“Then…”
Growl—It was then the sound of her stomach growling rang in the room. Chi-Woo halted and pointed at the plate with a smile. “Shall we eat first?”
The girl’s cheeks reddened.
* * *
As soon as Chi-Woo got out, Eshnunna glanced at the inside of the room and asked, “How were you able to do it?”
Munch, much—The girl had her face stuck in the bowl, eating like her life depended on it.
Chi-Woo shrugged and said, “Ms. Eshnunna, I have a favor to ask you.”
“No,” She immediately refused because she remembered how had come back on the brink of death a few days ago.
“No, I’m not going anywhere.” Chi-Woo’s wry laugh only made her narrow her eyes. “I wanted to ask if you could do some research for me.”
“…About what?” Eshnunna tilted her chin up as if she was giving him a chance to explain first.
“Would you be able to perhaps find out something about Kabala?”
“Kabala…?”
She frowned, but agreed in the end. After leaving the research up to Eshnunna, Chi-Woo told the girl to relax until she calmed down and went back to his place. Once he opened the door and entered, he realized he hadn’t heard the sound of the door closing behind him.
“…Hah.” Chi-Woo had thought it was strange that the girl had looked startled when he told her while she ate that he was leaving, but he hadn’t expected her to leave the palace with him.
“So.” Chi-Woo turned around. Did she seriously think she had done a good job of hiding herself? He could see the short-haired girl furtively glancing at him with only her head popping out from between the door. “Why did you follow me??”
* * *
At the same time.
“Then, as of now, we hereby announce that the eight recruitment has officially ended.” A matter-of-fact yet beautiful voice rang out in the hall high above.