LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 102
Chapter 102: Goodbye, My ■■ 3
Why on earth was Shia here?
And at such a precise moment too, right before the guild master in heat was about to assault Yoon-jung, Shia appeared as if she had been waiting for this very moment. Yoon-jung still couldn’t fully grasp the situation.
Though the Sanwoomul Guild’s guild master was notorious for being a despicable human being with terrible morals, he didn’t become a guild master for no reason.
He started his career as a hunter under the Chinese Mountain Association and earned enough recognition for his abilities to establish the Sanwoomul Guild in Korea, serving as a bridge between the Chinese and Korean branches.
Even though he didn’t receive an official hunter title from the government, his abilities were at least A-rank.
Despite being caught off guard, he had been thrown somewhere without even putting up a fight, leaving Yoon-jung understandably nervous.
“Sh… Shia… No, Unnie… What the hell did you do?”
Yoon-jung’s face stiffened slightly as she stared at Shia through the window.
From her perspective, this was like a scene straight out of a horror movie.
The guild master had been suddenly dragged away like an extra in a horror film and disappeared somewhere.
But Yoon-jung wasn’t an idiot.
She knew that Shia had saved her the moment the guild master was about to assault her.
The question was, why?
And how did Shia know to come to her rescue?
Could it be that she had been following her all along?
What had happened to the guild master?
Had Shia killed him because of her?
Yoon-jung’s mind was overwhelmed with various thoughts, leaving her staring up at Shia in confusion.
In the meantime, Shia gave a slight smile and extended her hand to Yoon-jung.
“…Wh-what?”
Her bright smile and outstretched hand seemed to say not to worry about anything.
They hadn’t known each other long, so why was she doing this?
Could she be like this with other people as well?
“Dinner.”
“Huh? Dinner?”
“Have you eaten?”
“……”
Yoon-jung hadn’t had the time to eat dinner because she had been summoned by the guild master and subjected to his harassment.
“If you haven’t eaten, let’s have a meal together.”
“…Wh-what did you say?”
Wait, what?
After beating someone to death, how could she be so relaxed about eating?
“What are you even talking about right now? What about the guild master…?”
“Nothing happened.”
What?
“You expect me to believe that!?”
“Nothing really happened.”
“L-let me go… Wait, huh?!”
As Shia pulled Yoon-jung out of the car, Yoon-jung could see the guild master lying comfortably on top of the car, sprawled out in a peaceful position.
She had clearly heard sounds of something being crushed and broken.
The sound of flesh being torn apart like butchered meat.
Though inexperienced, Yoon-jung knew she hadn’t mistaken the sound of a human body being ripped apart.
She had experienced it herself before.
“He must have been tired. See how he’s peacefully sleeping in this quiet place?”
Just as Shia said, the guild master was snoring softly with a calm expression on his face, leaving Yoon-jung feeling a sense of cognitive dissonance.
“Don’t worry.”
“…..”
“Really, nothing happened.”
Is that true?
The words rose up to her throat, but Yoon-jung couldn’t bring herself to say them.
Shia, looking down at Yoon-jung, made a gesture of putting a finger to her lips.
“He won’t remember ‘that.’”
Who wouldn’t? What wouldn’t they remember?
Yoon-jung wasn’t stupid enough to not understand what Shia meant by ‘that.’
“Let’s go.”
And as if to reassure her, Shia’s hand, which held Yoon-jung’s, felt strangely warm.
Even though she was the Saintess of the Dead, whose hands were always supposed to be cold… Today, her hands were unusually hot.
○○○○○
Dragged somewhere by Shia’s hand, Yoon-jung initially thought it would be difficult to endure the current atmosphere.
Objectively speaking, she and Shia had only known each other for a day.
And it hadn’t been under good circumstances either.
They hadn’t spent any time getting to know each other, nor had there been any meaningful connection or shared experience.
They were nothing more than acquaintances who had exchanged a brief conversation.
If they had been neighbors or had known each other from before, that would be one thing. But having been suddenly rescued by Shia in a dangerous situation and now sitting face to face at a street stall was awkward enough on its own.
“……..”
“……..”
As neither of them dared to speak first, the silence continued until Yoon-jung, unable to bear the frustration any longer, finally called out to the street food stall auntie, breaking the seemingly endless silence.
“…Ah, excuse me! Can I get some soju and beer?”
What? Without even ordering food first?
Shia looked taken aback by Yoon-jung’s sudden action, but having already decided to relieve her frustration, Yoon-jung smoothly continued her order.
“How many? Does the brand matter? Are you going to eat anything with it?”
“Just give me four bottles of whatever, please!”
As soon as the stall auntie brought over the beer and soju, Yoon-jung expertly opened the bottles in one swift motion and began pouring soju and beer into a glass in a precise 1:1 ratio.
Then she downed it in one shot.
Gulp, gulp…!
“Damn it! Aaahhh….”
At that moment, the awkwardness and tension between the two seemed to melt away.
“Damn, it tastes awful…”
Only moments ago, Yoon-jung had seemed hesitant and unsure, but now she was downing soju like she intended to finish several bottles.
“Gulp, gulp… Aaaahh…”
“Huh…”
“Damn it, that bastard… The guild master… And even his parents are all damn bastards…”
Though she had only taken a few sips, Yoon-jung was already getting tipsy quickly.
Her appearance reminded Shia of her own, when she had gotten drunk on over 200 cocktails at a cocktail bar with Yeonhwa not long ago.
“…Drink slower.”
“Hehe, it feels wrong to tell him to just die, right? No matter how shitty he is, he’s still a person. And no matter how terrible his parents are… Gulp… I don’t want to be some bastard myself… Gulp, gulp…”
I never thought I’d see someone drink straight from the bottle here.
“Phew! Auntie! Could we get some grilled skewers and fish cake soup as well?”
“Sure thing~!”
“……..”
Unexpectedly, Shia found herself quickly adapting to the atmosphere and watching Yoon-jung eagerly order more food with her brows furrowed.
“Hey! Why are you looking at me like that? Didn’t you say from the start that you’d treat me? What’s the problem now… Gulp…! Are you more worried about your wallet than me?”
Noticing Shia’s gaze, Yoon-jung raised her voice, sounding offended.
Of course, it wasn’t about the money.
“No, it’s not that… But aren’t you, like, 19 years old?”
“Damn it! What matters more is the age of your heart, not your body!”
Well, yeah… I agree with that…
Yoon-jung wasn’t wrong.
Caught by her energy, Shia found herself nodding.
Even though Shia was technically 85 years old, she had been judged to have the mental age of 21.
“I’m about to turn 20 soon anyway, so it doesn’t really matter!”
Still, Yoon-jung was clearly much younger and weaker than Shia, yet her demeanor and energy felt far stronger.
When there’s food and alcohol, there’s no room for awkwardness or distance.
“Anyway… Phew… Let’s drink!”
Wow, she’s really good at this…
But where did she even learn the term “let’s drink”?
“What, you’re going to leave me here to drink alone? That’s so lonely!”
“No, let’s drink together.”
Even though mixing soju and beer like this wasn’t her favorite, Shia figured it wouldn’t hurt to go along with the mood.
Clink!
With the crisp sound of glasses clinking, the two began drinking straight from the bottles.
Yes, they were drinking straight from the bottles.
Both of them.
Gulp.
Gulp.
Gulp.
It was bitter.
The first sip tasted like industrial alcohol, bitter to the core, but the aftertaste was slightly sweet.
Still, even with that, it wasn’t to Shia’s liking.
It wasn’t something she could see herself drinking a lot of.
For a while, the two quietly drank their soju and beer, using the grilled skewers and fish cake soup as appetizers.
It was probably an effort to lower the conversational barriers between them, given the distance that had existed from the start.
By the time Shia had ordered roughly 15 more skewers, which was still not enough to fill her up, Yoon-jung finally spoke up again.
“Gulp… Heh… Hic! Haa… You know, today’s the first time I’ve ever drunk alcohol. I always wondered why adults drink this stuff. You get curious, don’t you?”
“Considering that, you’re pretty good at mixing it.”
Even though I’m not an expert on alcohol, her mixing skill wasn’t something you pick up without a bit of experience.
“Really, this is my first time, Shia… No, Unnie… I swear I’m not lying.”
“Well, whatever… This is better than you being all awkward.”
“Hehehe, it’s just that whenever I joined my party’s drinking parties with the other hunters, I picked up the moves just by watching them, you know?”
“…I see.”
“They say you can’t enjoy alcohol unless you do it this way, right? I mean, alcohol is just alcohol. Isn’t that right, Shia?”
Shia.
For some reason, it felt so natural hearing her say that.
“……”
“Ah, crap. It’s just a habit. Sorry, Unnie. I must be babbling because I’m already drunk.”
Yoon-jung, apologizing for her slip-up, raised her glass again.
Shia found herself speechless.
She had so many things she had wanted to say.
She had prepared so many thoughts and had things she wanted to ask, but her mind kept going blank, and the words just wouldn’t come out.
“Phew… Unnie, you know what?”
“What?”
Shia tilted her head curiously, and Yoon-jung paused, seemingly choosing her words carefully.
“Earlier, thanks for saving me. If it weren’t for you… I might’ve wanted to kill myself by now.”
“Don’t thank me. It was only natural.”
“Really? Gulp… In that case, let me ask you something. Were you following me from the start?”
“……”
Her silence was as good as a yes.
“Then why were you following me? Did I have honey smeared all over me or something? Did we know each other from before? Or maybe you’re like a starving bee that has a habit of trailing someone?”
“It’s personal.”
“I see you don’t want to talk about it.”
Yoon-jung shrugged.
She didn’t expect Shia to tell her willingly.
“…Unnie, to be honest, my situation is really screwed up. My family situation is even worse.”
“I know.”
“You do?”
“I heard you owe the Sanwoomul Guild a lot of money.”
“Where did you hear that from?”
“……..”
“Gulp, if it’s too hard to talk about, then forget it.”
As if she didn’t mind Shia’s silence, Yoon-jung took another swig from the bottle.
“Phew! From now on, I’m going to vent a bit. I’m going to talk about my crappy life, so is that okay?”
You dragged me here to drink, Unnie. The least you can do is listen to my rant.
With a silly grin, Yoon-jung poured more soju into her glass.
“I was born into a hellhole of a life. My life was hard mode from the start.”
“…I see.”
“First of all, my family was up to their necks in debt. Not from some legitimate lender either, but from loan sharks, or something even worse. I don’t even know the details, but my parents were complete trash. From the moment I was a kid, I had to do all the housework myself.”
I had to cook for myself. Clean up after myself. Wash the dishes, do the laundry, get ready for school — all of it by myself.
My parents would come home drunk, make an even bigger mess, and didn’t care if I starved or died.
“Man, fine, but I wish they’d at least pay the gas bill. Every winter, my hands would freeze so bad that they’d crack. No matter how much laundry or dishes there were, I couldn’t do a thing once the pipes froze up. It was a disaster. But after it happened every year, I stopped caring. Haha…”
Maybe it was the alcohol, but Yoon-jung’s mouth loosened up, and she started to speak more freely.
“When I got judged to be an Awakened, I thought things would finally get better, you know? I thought being a hunter would make life easier. But my parents… God, my parents are both alcoholics who spend all their time gambling at Kangwon Land. Sometimes, they wouldn’t come back for two months… Once, they were gone for an entire year. How could I afford to enter the Hunter Academy in a situation like that? Even the registration fees for the academy were insane, but… Heh… Gulp…”
Yoon-jung twirled her glass as she mixed the soju and beer together.
Watching the swirling foam, Yoon-jung giggled.
“Somehow, my parents knew I’d saved up for the registration fees. And while I was out, they blew all the money I’d saved on their drinks and gambling.”
“…I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Man, don’t hold back. Just call it what it is. It’s bullshit! My parents are bastards! Bastards! Gulp, gulp, gulp!”
As if unleashing all her pent-up anger, Yoon-jung downed the bomb drink in one shot.
“Cough…ugh… Ahh…”
She vomited out her anger and alcohol.
“After that, I haven’t really seen my parents much. Heh… There were times I wanted to kill them… But I couldn’t…”
Gulp.
“Nothing much has changed since then. I couldn’t enter the academy. I ended up joining the Sanwoomul Guild to cover living expenses. I took on more debt… Somehow, my parents contacted the guild master and borrowed money in my name… So now I can’t even leave the guild… Heh… At least some of the older guys in the guild are rough, but they’ve got some decency, so there’s that.”
“Do you want me to help you?”
“…”
Shia spoke sincerely.
She could help.
She could pay off the debt Yoon-jung was carrying. If anything threatened her, she could…
“Unnie, do you know why I’m telling you all this?”
But instead of answering, Yoon-jung looked genuinely offended.
“Do you think I’m telling you all this to get some pity or to beg you for help? No. I’m asking you not to meddle. Don’t get involved in my life. Just quietly pretend you don’t know anything and go on your way.”
“…Why?”
“Why are you suddenly trying to butt into my life?”
“I… Even if my life has been a mess, I’ve worked really damn hard. My life might be crap, but I never gave up, and I worked hard… Gulp! But if you suddenly swoop in and fix everything with just a few swipes of your card, or by grabbing some necks and throwing people around, what does that make my life? For you, it might be easy to fix. Just a little interference, and no one would complain or get in your way. But for me? I had to fight like hell because I couldn’t do any of that. And if you suddenly show up and fix everything, what would I even say? I’d end up whining like a loser… ‘Why didn’t you come sooner, Unnie?’”
Yoon-jung’s point was simple.
Shia’s sympathy made her feel like her life of struggling suddenly became meaningless.
“…I’m sorry. I said some harsh things… Maybe I take after my parents. I’m sorry for spewing so much crap…”
Having said that much, Shia couldn’t tell Yoon-jung not to worry, that it was okay, or to not reject help.
“I appreciate your concern, and I’m really grateful that you saved me earlier… But my life isn’t all that bad. Someday, I’ll pay off my debt through my hunter work. If the guild master steps out of line, I’ll take him to the association and file a lawsuit… Or maybe, who knows? Maybe the guild master will turn out to be a decent guy, and we’ll settle down and start a family…”
“…Don’t even joke about that.”
At Shia’s reaction, Yoon-jung chuckled and tried to stand up.
But her body, still too young and now overloaded with alcohol in a short amount of time, failed her. She felt dizzy, her vision spinning.
“Heh, hehe… Maybe I drank too much…”
Watching Yoon-jung stumble and collapse onto her shoulder, Shia recalled the words she had heard from Yeonju earlier.
ㅡㅡ
[To sum it up… Park Yoon-jung and Shia have no connection whatsoever.]
“……”
[I even checked the resident registration of all her relatives up to the sixth degree, but the result was the same. There is no connection between Yoon-jung’s maternal or paternal sides and Shia as of 2024.]
“…I see…”
[Yes, they are perfect strangers. Complete strangers. There isn’t a single drop of shared blood between them. Well, if you look at it from a racial perspective, sure, but I know that’s not what you’re looking for.]
ㅡㅡ
Complete strangers…
So, that’s how it is.
Was I really barking up the wrong tree this whole time?
Have I been chasing after a meaningless ghost, listening to nonexistent voices…?
“Hehe…”
“Careful…!”
“Damn it! I’m drunk… Haha…”
Now I can understand how much trouble I gave Yeonhwa when I was drunk.
As she held the now-unsteady Yoon-jung, Shia gently whispered into her ear.
“Mom…”
“Huh, hehe…”
“Are you really… not my mom?”
Shia’s voice trembled as if she might cry at any moment.
“…Heh, h-haha… No way, lady… How could I be your mom?”
Why…?
Again.
Why do you keep denying it…?
Could it be… lies again?
Why…?
Even though I try to give up, even though I try to accept it… Why do you give me false hope in the end…?