Monday morning.
Lee Seo-ah, awakened by her alarm, prepared for school as usual.
Suddenly, while washing her face, she looked at her reflection in the mirror.
Her cheeks, flushed with a faint blush, were moist and vibrant.
‘Was my face, like this?’
A slightly strange thought crossed her mind.
In her memories, her reflection in the mirror had always been dark and pale.
Since when?
She had lived, suppressing and hiding everything within herself so as not to stand out.
Her expressions, emotions, and even her will.
The reason she had stubbornly endured, even like that, was simply the compulsion that she must not die.
Because this life was something her precious father had protected.
Lee Seo-ah believed that no matter how painful it was, she should not choose death.
However, despite that, what always came to mind was death.
Every single day felt like falling into hell, to the point where the very act of her body breathing was cursed.
The beginning was simple.
When she was floundering in grief after losing her father, a boy her age confessed to her in the classroom.
He was what you’d call a handsome, rich young master.
However, she didn’t even have the presence of mind to refuse, so she spent several days like a mute.
At some point, Lee Seo-ah became known as a rude child.
Malicious rumors and bullying slowly led Lee Seo-ah into a swamp of despair.
At first, it was mostly girls, but as the grades went up, bad-tempered boys also began to join in.
Lee Seo-ah pleaded for help from those around her.
She desperately resisted the malice, appealing for help, truly many times.
She only realized later that it was all in vain.
Adults turned away from her.
They did not offer a helping hand.
Because it was more profitable to condone the bullying than to help a plain orphan girl.
Power, money, authority.
The children who bullied Lee Seo-ah possessed these.
Their parents wielded their power unrestrainedly, isolating Lee Seo-ah.
No one offered help.
No one dared to confront it directly.
So, in the end, she gave up.
She remained unresponsive to the violence that grew stronger day by day.
Pain and suffering.
Unreasonableness.
She swallowed the pent-up injustice and resentment again and again, holding it inside as she breathed.
– She just, breathed.
‘Now it’s different.’
She had escaped hell with a simplicity that felt almost hollow.
The pain that had lasted for years vanished in just a few days.
Approximately a month ago.
Everything changed because of one person who came to find Lee Seo-ah.
Lee Seo-ah had many impressions of her.
A truly grateful and beautiful person.
An eccentric but kind person.
An awkward but striving person.
Sometimes frightening and incomprehensible, but a person who held warm compassion.
That’s why she hesitated even more.
Because this person was far too good for her.
Was it truly okay to become her daughter, as she wished?
Could she truly call her ‘Mom’?
‘I don’t know yet.’
She didn’t know, but what was clear was that she felt happy now.
Just like in the past, when she lived with her father…
“Ah, Seo-ah.”
“Director.”
Coming out of the bathroom, the orphanage director was standing there.
She had already greeted her this morning.
Did she have something to say?
As Lee Seo-ah stared at her, the wrinkles around the director’s eyes twitched.
The director, who had been hesitant, finally spoke.
“How have you been lately?”
“…I’m doing well.”
“I see.
That’s a relief.”
What was?
She swallowed the question that had risen to her throat.
Due to her upbringing, Lee Seo-ah had matured early.
She was perceptive like her father, and not unintelligent.
‘Now of all times.’
The middle-aged woman in front of her was feeling sorry now.
She was blaming herself.
Lee Seo-ah understood the director’s feelings and position to some extent.
However, understanding and emotion were separate issues.
“Um, listen, Seo-ah.”
“I’m sorry.
I think I’ll be late for school, so I’ll get going now.”
“Ah…”
Closing her eyes, she walked past the director.
A sad lingering feeling tugged at Lee Seo-ah, but she ignored it.
Returning to her room, she packed her bag and left the orphanage.
The director’s face, glimpsed briefly, was deeply shadowed, making Lee Seo-ah feel uneasy.
“Seo-ah!”
As soon as she opened the door and stepped out, a white and red warmth softly enveloped Lee Seo-ah.
Her uneasy feelings were tinged with bewilderment.
“Oh, Unnie.”
“I’m sooorryyy!!
You’re not still angry, are you?
Huh?
Please say you’re not!”
The beautiful Unnie, Cynthia, rubbed her cheek against Lee Seo-ah’s, making a tearful face.
Was it strange if Lee Seo-ah thought even her sniffling looked beautiful?
“Grok.
Lee Seo-ah.
Good morning.”
“Ah.
Hello, Mister Gobura.”
Following behind, a green dwarf wearing a pink Love and Peace shirt slowly walked over.
Now, the thought of him being a monster didn’t even cross her mind.
To Lee Seo-ah, Gobura was simply a comfortable and kind-hearted adult.
“Gasp! Why did you greet him first?! Seo-ah, what about me!?”
“…Hello, Unnie.”
“Master.
Please don’t get any uglier than this.
Gobura is getting embarrassed just watching.”
“You brat! You’re bragging because my cute and adorable Seo-ah greeted you first!”
Cynthia hissed! Hissed! Her white hair bristled like an angry cat.
Gobura shook his head as if he couldn’t help it, then offered an apology.
“I apologize, Lee Seo-ah.
Your master’s condition isn’t good right now because she’s been digging her own grave all day over what happened yesterday.
I’d appreciate your understanding.”
“Ah, yes… huh?”
What happened yesterday?
She thought for a moment, then her face quickly flushed.
The memory of having an accident on someone else’s blanket flashed through her mind.
Following that, she remembered how embarrassed and ashamed she had been, returning straight to the orphanage after washing up.
It was Gobura who had seen her off.
She had refused Cynthia, who had offered to go.
She had unconsciously said no, fearing that facing her would keep bringing up the incident.
Lee Seo-ah looked back at the beautiful woman clinging to her, on the verge of tears.
Cynthia looked at her with anxious eyes, fidgeting.
‘Could it be that she was so worried because of that incident?’
Something stirred inside her, and a place she couldn’t quite pinpoint felt ticklish.
A corner of her chest warmed.
“Unnie, I’m not angry.
So…”
Just as she was about to say it was okay, and to please smile as always instead of acting like this.
Suddenly, Cynthia pulled something from her embrace and spread it out.
A pair of pure white triangular panties.
It was Lee Seo-ah’s item, which she had worn yesterday.
“I even washed Seo-ah’s clothes sparkling clean and brought them! Look, there’s no stain…!”
“Kyaaaah!!”
Lee Seo-ah shrieked, her face crimson.
****
Special Ability User Management Bureau Headquarters.
In the repaired director’s office, Kim Su-hyeon, who was deeply focused on his work, took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes.
Due to a series of large and small incidents occurring recently, he hadn’t slept a wink for several days.
The most troublesome issue currently was the significant increase in rescue signals from outside [The Wall] over the past month.
Two causes were identified.
One was the rapid increase in the number of vagrants and villains roaming around Daejeon City.
The other was the chaotic movements of monsters.
While the former’s clear reason was still unknown, there was a rough guess for the latter.
‘Cynthia Valentine.’
Kim Su-hyeon was certain that this phenomenon was caused by that inhuman woman acting as a Hunter.
She was active near Gwangju, an almost abandoned wasteland, with her familiar, a goblin, and her daily earnings were extraordinary.
Even by a simple calculation, she was hunting close to 1,000 to 3,000 monsters a day.
Moreover, they weren’t low-level; it was confirmed that even some Grade 1 high-risk species were occasionally mixed in.
‘Actually, the hunting itself isn’t a big problem.’
Unless most high-ranked guilds are determined to launch a large-scale subjugation campaign, they cannot achieve the same performance as Cynthia currently does.
Furthermore, there’s no reason to criticize her for not taking other hunters’ prey or for entering dangerous areas on her own to hunt.
The real problem was the fact that her hunting was having a profound impact on the existing monster ecosystem.
‘High-level monsters inhabiting the vicinity of Gwangju are relocating their territories to avoid that woman.’
Moving south was fine.
However, moving north was a problem.
In reality, this had thrown the existing hunting grounds into disarray.
High-level monsters frequently intruded into areas where low-level hunters hunted.
Furthermore, with the sudden increase in villains and vagrants joining in, the area outside [The Wall] was now pure chaos.
‘Hmph.
I also need to investigate the Old Daejeon City incident.’
The mysterious barrage of explosions that blew away the Old Daejeon City area recently.
A massive mushroom cloud and earth-shattering explosions continued for half a day.
Kim Su-hyeon, who had been away at the time, received the report late and rushed back to the city.
Coincidentally, Shin Hyeon-ah was also with him, and just as they arrived, another incident broke out before they could even plan an investigation into the explosion.
It was the appearance of Cynthia, a Returnee with a level in the 700s.
Subsequently, various events overlapped, causing the investigation into Old Daejeon City to be postponed indefinitely, and currently, due to the external situation and a lack of personnel, the investigation remained only a thought in his mind.
“Surely, that woman wasn’t responsible for that incident too, was she?”
It was a thought that came to mind casually, but it somehow seemed plausible.
If it was the ability she displayed against Eraser this time, such an explosion would certainly be possible.
Kim Su-hyeon began to feel a reasonable suspicion.
Of course, it remained just a suspicion; he couldn’t openly ask her.
His hand carefully touched the corner of his left eye.
He was still afraid of Cynthia.
Knock-knock.
“Come in.”
“Excuse me for disturbing you while you’re busy, Kim Su-hyeon.”
“Guardian?”
Kim Su-hyeon, who had assumed it was his secretary at the sound of the knock, rose from his seat at the sight of the short-haired maid entering the director’s office.
“What brings you here?
Ah, has it been confirmed, perhaps?”
“Yes, that’s right.
The U.S. side has officially confirmed Eraser’s death.
It’s certain, as ‘The Observer’ verified it.”
“It’s a relief that only Jeju Island wasn’t split apart.”
Kim Su-hyeon, who had been inwardly anxious because Cynthia had caused such a commotion while going to catch Eraser and then returned unscathed without reporting anything, let out a sigh of relief.
Then he looked at Shin Hyeon-ah with a puzzled expression.
“If that’s the case, you could have just contacted me like last time.”
“I came because there was more important news to convey.
I also brought five clones, including this body.”
Kim Su-hyeon’s eyes widened, and his mouth fell open.
An ominous feeling began to ring like a warning.
“There was a reason why Eraser, who had gone into hiding, suddenly reappeared.”
“Huh?”
Did that mean he hadn’t just reappeared because his body had recovered from the Archangel’s attack?
“There are those who instigated Eraser with the lie that he had a daughter here in Daejeon.”
“What did you say?”
“They tried to confirm something through Eraser.”
“Confirm what, exactly…”
“Cynthia Valentine.
To find out the extent of her abilities.”
“…!”
Shin Hyeon-ah closed her eyes tightly, then opened them and continued.
“Information has been leaked.”
“Th-that’s impossible!”
Kim Su-hyeon had personally blocked and manipulated the information to prevent any accidents.
Nothing about Cynthia was publicly disclosed except her name, her status as a top-tier ability user, and a Returnee.
Only Kim Su-hyeon, Shin Hyeon-ah, and the Guardians of each country knew about Cynthia’s power.
And when Cynthia’s information was revealed at the summit, Eraser had already begun his activities.
That meant there wasn’t a traitor among the Guardians.
Then, what on earth…
“It’s villains.”
“Villains?”
“The problem was the thousand villains killed to test Cynthia Valentine’s abilities.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“There was a ‘host’ among them.”
Kim Su-hyeon’s eyes snapped open.
“G-Guardian.
Do you mean…”
“Yes.
‘The Alliance’ has begun to move.”
And.
“Their target is likely Cynthia Valentine.
They’ll want to draw her to their side.”
“…We’ll have to stop them.”
His head throbbed.
He didn’t want to get involved, but the situation kept getting more complicated.
Kim Su-hyeon adjusted his glasses, and his stomach began to churn.
****
After the morning’s commotion.
Lee Seo-ah went to school as usual and sat amidst the indifference.
But today was a little different.
A transfer student had arrived.
“Hi hi! My name is Mayuri! Please take care of me from now on!”
She was a girl with incredibly high energy.
Moreover, she was very pretty.
“Uh, the seat is…”
“Teacher! I think that spot looks good! I’ll sit there!”
“What?
W-wait, that spot is…”
The homeroom teacher looked quite flustered and tried to stop her.
Lee Seo-ah also had a somewhat bewildered expression.
Mayuri, with her long black hair swishing down to her hips, walked energetically and immediately sat in the empty seat next to Lee Seo-ah.
Her refreshing face turned back with a mischievous boy-like smile.
“Hi! Nice to meet you!”
“Oh, un.
R-right.”
How to put it.
She was a girl who seemed to exclaim positivity with her whole being.
For Lee Seo-ah, who was shy, it was a bit awkward, but she didn’t seem like a bad kid, so pushing her away felt wrong.
“I forgot my device, so can I share your textbook?”
“…Mm-hm.”
“Hehe.
Thanks, Seo-ah!”
Mayuri pushed her desk right up against Lee Seo-ah’s, their shoulders touching.
Her unhesitating physical contact reminded Lee Seo-ah of someone.
And so, class began.
While Lee Seo-ah tried to ignore the curious glances around them and looked at the textbook with Mayuri.
Lee Seo-ah suddenly noticed something strange.
‘Huh? But did I tell her my name?’