Chi-Woo took Ru Hiana to where Hawa was. After telling Hawa that the conversation had gone well, he stood in front of the statue with Ru Hiana. Chi-Woo had come to awaken Ru Hiana’s powers. It felt like a waste to use his precious divinity so quickly, but since he had enough divinity to awaken at least three more people, he decided to use it generously.
‘I guess Senior is trying to help me feel better,’ Ru Hiana thought, still thinking she was really on a date. But when she heard what Chi-Woo was planning to do, her jaw dropped in shock.
“No, it’s fine! No need for me to get it.”
“Why, what’s wrong with you getting chosen?”
“That’s not what I meant. S-Senior, I’m actually not that angry. You don’t have to go that far!” Ru Hiana waved her hand rigorously. “Moreover, haven’t you not awakened your power yet, either? Why…”
“It’s fine,” Chi-Woo said with a smile. “Even if I get chosen, I won’t be able to do much. I think it would be much better for you to use the opportunity.” Like Mimi had said, Chi-Woo was in the dark about heroic matters; even if he awakened his powers, it would take quite a while for him to learn how to use them. The return of investment would be negligible, but it was different for Ru Hiana; since she was a hero before, she would go through a 180-degree change as soon as she was awakened. Even if she could use only a tiny bit of her original powers, she would become incomparably stronger. That was what Chi-Woo intended to say, but Ru Hiana interpreted his words differently.
She thought Chi-Woo was telling her, ‘My body is in such a severe condition that me awakening my powers won’t make a difference, so it would be better to give the opportunity to someone who can at least make use of it like you.’ Some parts of it were her overactive imagination’s doing, but it was understandable why she would think this way.
“But…” Ru Hiana was aware that in the current situation, gathering enough divinity to awaken someone was a near impossibility. Of course she wanted to awaken her power, but she hadn’t done anything to achieve that goal since there was nothing to be done. Knowing how valuable the divinity Chi-Woo had gathered was, she felt great pressure in accepting it. She also couldn’t understand how sacrificial Chi-Woo was.
“It’s just a bit of divinity,” Chi-Woo egged her on.
Ru Hiana was completely speechless. ‘Just a bit of divinity,’ he said.
“There’s a limit to...” Ru Hiana wanted to end the sentence with, ‘how good a person can be’, but she shook her head. ‘No, he had always been like this. This is the kind of hero he is…’ It was evident when Ru Amuh was chosen and, as she’d learned about more recently when Allen Leonard awakened with his help to solve the food supply problem. No one would fault him if Chi-Woo put himself before others a bit, but he worked for others’ gain to the point of foolishness; and he pushed his body beyond its limits for others. He was like the archetype of a traditional hero who sacrificed himself and only himself to save the World. That weighed Ru Hiana down with guilt further, and she felt ashamed.
She hadn’t been trying to understand Chi-Woo, but instead pushed her frustration on him. Knowing that Chi-Woo was a great hero who had countless experiences under his belt, it seemed obvious what Chi-Woo would have thought of her behavior. Still, he had come to her first to comfort her despite his condition to give her his precious divinity. Ru Hiana believed Chi-Woo’s reason for participating in this exploration must have been from a similar vein.
‘He’s too…great…’ She thought. From the way Chi-Woo regarded divinity, it was evident how great of a hero—no, a person he was. Originally, she had thought Chi-Woo was similar to Ru Amuh, but now, she thought Chi-Woo was a person of even greater character. And she was basically a petty criminal compared to him.
“What’s the big deal?” Chi-Woo asked again when Ru Hiana couldn’t even open her mouth due to her conflicted emotions. “You can protect me well then.”
That was the last straw. Ru Hiana’s eyes shook and brimmed with tears as she looked at him. It was like Ru Amuh had said. She was emotional; she got angry and frustrated easily, but she was just as easily moved.
“Urgh…” Water overflowed from her eyes. “Ugh…Kuh…” She tried to hold her tears back, but they kept falling.
“Urgggh—” In the end, she burst into tears.
“M-Ms. Ru Hiana?” Chi-Woo was taken aback.
“Sen—” Ru Hiana covered her face with her hands and said in a sorrowful voice. “Sowy—. I didwn’t even realiwze your intewntion—” It was hard to understand what she was saying, and Chi-Woo looked around, not knowing what to do. It was then his eyes landed on Hawa, who was leaning against a pole in a corner. Like an audience watching a predictable mainstream movie, she was yawning with a hand covering her mouth. Even when he silently implored her to help with his eyes, Hawa licked her lips like there was nothing she could do.
“Waaah—!” Ru Hiana collapsed to the ground, bawling, and Chi-Woo tried his best to console her again.
Although there was a small hitch, Chi-Woo succeeded in getting Ru Hiana to form a contract with Shahnaz. Since she had served the goddess following Ru Amuh’s footsteps, Ru Hiana had no problem with this arrangement. Likewise, Shahnaz accepted her since she already knew Ru Hiana, and she welcomed another hero who would gather divinity for her.
—Hm…
Shahnaz felt perplexed as she looked at Chi-Woo. Although Chi-Woo was sometimes rude, she liked him at times like this. Now that Chi-Woo had brought another person to form a contract with her, Shahnaz let go of the previous annoyance she had felt towards him.
After awakening her powers, Ru Hiana didn’t move for a while. She stood in the same spot, folding and unfolding her hands repeatedly. Then she turned to Chi-Woo and quickly approached him.
“Senior.”
“Y-Yes?”
“Senior…!”
Slam! Ru Hiana’s palms shot past Chi-Woo’s face and slammed into the wall. Then she pushed her face and body closer to him. Chi-Woo was now pushed against the wall by her, and he hiccupped in surprise. He glanced sideways and saw that parts of the wall had crumbled and were sliding down from the impact. Ru Hiana’s hands seemed to be sinking into the wall slightly.
“You can believe in me.” Ru Hiana heaved with emotions that hadn’t settled yet. “Whatever happens, there’s no need for you to step out. Just hide behind me at all times. I will protect you at whatever costs.” They were so close that their noses were almost touching, and Chi-Woo felt a strange energy emitting from her.
“Do you understand?” Ru Hiana asked, and Chi-Woo nodded frantically without being able to think of anything.
And that was how their date ended. Ru Hiana wanted to stay with Chi-Woo a bit longer like an excited puppy, but Chi-Woo forcefully dragged her back to her barrack house. Then, when he saw Ru Amuh resting in a corner peacefully, he dumped Ru Hiana on him.
“Ruahu! I’ve awakened!”
“W-What. You came back already? What about Teacher?” Chi-Woo felt a bit satisfied to see Ru Amuh getting up while looking a bit disappointed.
Chi-Woo turned to go. On his way home, Mimi spoke to him.
[I am curious. What’s your reason for awakening Ms. Ru Hiana?]
‘Hmm…is there a reason why I shouldn’t? I didn’t use up my divinity, and I still have enough left for me to get chosen.’
[That’s not what I meant. It’s a very impressive deed to help another hero awaken their powers. But you had the choice of awakening other heroes besides Ru Hiana.]
‘Ah, that’s what you meant.’ Mimi was probably talking about what was shown in Ru Hiana’s user information, which Chi-Woo was aware of.
<User Information>
1. Name & Rank: Ru Hiana (☆)
2. Sex & Age: Female & 22
3. Height & Weight: 168.8 & 49.7kg
4. Class: Crusader
5. Title: Romantic Girl
6. Disposition: Lawful Good
<Physical Abilities>
[Strength D]
[Durability D]
[Agility D]
[Stamina D]
[Mental Fortitude C]
[Divinity E]
<Basic Ability(2)>
1. [Basic Swordsmanship C] - a form of martial arts that involves fighting with swords. Although she uses only basic swordsmanship techniques, she is quite skilled.
2. [Basic Hand-to-hand Combat D] - a form of martial arts that involves clashing one’s physical body against another. Although she uses only the basic hand-to-hand combat techniques, she is relatively proficient in using them.
Ru Hiana’s total potential was one star. Of course, since she was a hero, she was still a formidable fighter, but one couldn’t deny that her potential was at the lowest level. In short, Mimi was asking why Chi-Woo had picked Ru Hiana when there were other heroes with higher potential.
‘It doesn’t really matter, does it? It’s not as if I’d picked Ru Hiana as my second star. And you told me before to not judge heroes based on their rank.’
[You know that’s not what I meant.]
‘Yes, yes. There’s nothing much to it really.’ Chi-Woo shrugged. ‘What’s the point of awakening the other heroes? It’s not like they’ll be coming with me or protecting me.’ Chi-Woo continued his thought, ‘Moreover, Ms. Ru Hiana and I know each other.’
Since Ru Amuh’s power might not be enough, he had awakened Ru Hiana just in case. And Chi-Woo hoped that she would protect him well. It was for these two reasons only that Chi-Woo had Ru Hiana’s powers restored. In short, regardless of how others viewed his actions, Chi-Woo had acted solely for personal reasons. It was for his own sake, and he got himself an extra safety measure.
[I now understand a bit.]
Mimi listened to Chi-Woo’s thoughts and continued.
[About what kind of neutral disposition you are.]
‘Didn’t you already know that before?’
[No. I’ll categorize you as an ordinary citizen among those with neutral disposition.]
‘An ordinary citizen? Is that a compliment?’
[No. However, it’s not a criticism either. I’m just saying it as it is.]
‘Yeah, so I’m an ordinary citizen. I’ve lived as an ordinary citizen all my life. What’s wrong with being an ordinary citizen?’
[…You’re not like this with other people, but you’re always trying to play jokes with me.]
Mimi complained for a bit and continued.
[It’s the same for other dispositions, but the neutral disposition can be separated into different categories. And among them, the ordinary citizens favor the “appropriate” action rather than the “right” action.]
‘Appropriate? Right? What’s the difference?’
[Try putting them in the context of ‘individual’.]
What is right for individuals. What is appropriate for individuals. There was a clear difference between the two. In short, Chi-Woo tended to make his choices based on what was suitable for him. Even though Mimi had said she was simply making an observation, he didn’t feel too good about it
‘Ah, man. Do I really have to hear that after spending my own money? Seriously, what the heck.’
[…Yes, yes. I guess so.]
Mimi sighed.
* * *
The news that a small number of people were going to search for food soon spread throughout the fortress. When Eshnunna found out that Chi-Woo would also be going, she became more and more worried each day. Chi-Woo might not be aware of this, but the only reason why Eshnunna had been able to make it to the fortress was because of him. He was the one who had lifted her up when she was about to fall. However, Chi-Woo was now on the verge of collapse. If Chi-Woo disappeared…would she be able to endure that intense sense of loss as when she did with Yohan again? Eshnunna was not confident she could endure it.
Thus, she couldn’t just stand still like this. When she met him last time, she had turned around and angrily told him to do whatever he wanted, and she wouldn't get involved anymore, but there was no way she could just wash her hands off this matter. However, what could she do when there wasn’t a priest among them or even access to proper medicine or medicinal herbs? Eshnunna pondered for a long while and quickly went looking for a specific person.
“Medicine and medicinal herbs?”
The person Eshnunna sought out was none other than Allen Leonard. Currently, he was the only hero who had awakened their power in addition to Ru Amuh.
“Hmm…I understand. We’ve decided to set out soon anyway.”
Zelit had suggested a plan for heroes who had awakened their powers to work with other heroes to catch monsters and collect divinity together. However, since Ru Amuh was leaving for a few days to search for food, the responsibility had been passed over to Allen Leonard.
“But I can’t make any promise,” Allen Leonard said bluntly. “I’ve been asked to do something else. My main task is to clear the land and grow crops and try to awaken even one more hero.”
“But—”
“I understand the necessity of developing medicine and medicinal herbs. I’ll look for it, but it won’t be my main priority.” Allen Leonard’s tone was very business-like, and it was different from when he was talking to Chi-Woo. Even though he didn’t treat her with animosity, he didn’t treat her favorably, either. He was going to keep his promise to Chi-Woo, but his grudge against her hadn’t disappeared. “I trust that you understand me, and I’ll take my leave. I’m extremely busy right now.” He was about to turn around when—
“No, you can’t.”
Allen Leonard stopped.
“You need to find it. At all costs.”
Allen Leonard turned to stare at her like she was being ridiculous. He hadn’t thought that she was such an unreasonable person. However, when he saw the desperation in her eyes, he realized there might be a reason behind her insistence. “Is there a reason why I need to prioritize this task?”
Eshnunna took a few deep breaths and slowly explained the whole situation to him—without leaving out a single detail.
“W-what?” Hardly anything surprised Allen Leonard, but he couldn’t help being shocked by this turn of events. “Is that really true? Is Teacher’s condition really…!”
Eshnunna closed her eyes and nodded.
“I can’t believe it. Even though he’s in such a critical state, why did he…” Allen Leonard was overwhelmed and clutched his head. “Wait. Is he going outside in that condition?”
“Yes, we all tried our best to stop him, but Sir Zelit said we needed him, and he said he’d be going…”
Considering the situation, Allen Leonard could understand Zelit’s reasoning, but understanding and empathizing were two very different matters. “…He’s out of his mind.” Allen Leonard chewed on his lip. “Damn it. Teacher is also crazy. There should be a limit to him acting like a hero…” He blinked and paced around in a frenzy while clenching his fists. “Tell this to Zelit.” He continued after a pause, “I’m planning to leave for a while, and it might take a long time. I’ll push farming and awakening the other heroes’ powers all to a lower priority. And please bring me one or two natives who are familiar with this area and are knowledgeable in medicine and medicinal plants. Quickly!”
“Yes, I’ll look into it right away.”
“And one more thing please. Keep this a secret between us. If Teacher finds out about this, he’ll again…”
Eshnunna nodded and moved quickly. Allen Leonard sighed deeply. ‘Of all people…!’ Even if everyone died, Chi-Woo must not. They were just starting to make some progress. He was completely indispensable to the group.
‘I need to keep him alive. At all costs.’ Allen Leonard began moving very quickly. On that very same day, he took only basic equipment and provisions and left the fortress with two natives that Eshnunna found for him. Then a week passed, and Allen Leonard hadn’t returned, but the sun rose still. It was the day Chi-Woo would leave to search for food.