Chapter 16

And so, after my awakening had concluded, Suspicious Viewer asked me to reveal the contents of my wish.

But my wish—”I wish people would need me”—was so embarrassingly cheesy that I instinctively shook my head while trying to hide my burning face.

Suspicious Viewer, ever the professional, smoothly transitioned to another topic as if no question had been asked in the first place.

[MoneyAndSuspicious: It seems exploring various activities based on the hint from your wish might be a good idea.]

…I feel grateful, but also apologetic.

After hesitating for a moment, I resolved to act on Suspicious Viewer’s advice despite my embarrassment and awkwardly straightened my back.

“So… what should I do?”

Since the core of my wish revolved around “being needed by others,” I figured interacting with people directly would yield better results than doing things alone.

As I pondered this, my eyes landed on Chae-a clinging to me, prompting a brief bout of contemplation.

“Hmm… what do people need? Food? Clothes? Money?”

Wondering if I possessed the ability to create such things, I silently prayed to make something Chae-a needed—but nothing happened.

“You too, I love youuu!”

When our eyes met, Chae-a seemed to interpret it as an affectionate gesture and giggled before hugging me again. I patted her head while searching for other methods.

“Congratulations on your awakening, Hae-un.”

Han Arin returned at some point and approached me with a gentle smile.

“Hehe…”

Too shy to say “thank you,” I bowed deeply instead. As I mentally wondered why compliments never seemed to get easier to receive, I absentmindedly wagged my tail…

“Whoa!”

Startled by the sight of my tail wagging behind me, I froze. Whether it was coincidental or intentional, my tail continued swaying, seemingly unresponsive to my mental commands to stop.

[ShavedSorbetSmoothie: Looks like Hae-un is super happy! Look at that wagging tail!]

[TheifOfMiles: Awwwww she’s so cute!!!]

[MimeWhatMime: So… what’s this ‘special ability’ everyone’s talking about?]

Embarrassed, I tried hard not to cover my face, instead grabbing my tail with both hands in an attempt to stop its movement. Han Arin observed this quietly before speaking up.

“So, Hae-un, did you figure out your special ability yet?”

Shaking my head in response, Han Arin scooped me up gently and glanced around.

“Then let’s work on finding it together. Since we’re already at the training ground, we can try experimenting with different things.”

“Ne…!”

“What exactly did you wish for?”

At this question, I remained silent, much like earlier with Suspicious Viewer, opting instead to wag my tail sheepishly.

—

The training ground was filled with all sorts of tools and structures designed to simulate various scenarios. Though initially mesmerized by their grandeur, I quickly snapped back to reality when Han Arin firmly declared:

“Nope. That area’s too dangerous.”

Thus, we were restricted to the mat where we’d been earlier.

“I want to try those later when I’m stronger.”

While mountain climbing, dodging arrows, and fighting golems looked fun, I respected Han Arin’s judgment and nodded obediently, reminding myself: disobeying orders isn’t wise.

With this adult-like mindset, I attempted a forward roll on the mat—only for my tail to stubbornly stretch toward the restricted section, insisting otherwise. Frustrated, I picked up my tail and gave it a light shake. Seeing this, Chae-a mimicked my actions, enthusiastically patting my tail.

“What are you two doing?”

Han Arin stifled a laugh upon witnessing our antics, prompting me to hastily shake my head in denial.

“Alright, take a short break then.”

“That’s right. Rest is important too.”

At the mention of rest, the chat exploded with comments.

[DentistHater: Is Han Arin really advocating for rest? Isn’t she the hunter who hates resting?]

[RollingForward: Lol true! Maybe she’s just pretending because she wants the babies to rest? So cute.]

[MerongTalksFish: Babies need rest~! Sister doesn’t rest enough and now has osteoporosis.]

Han Arin subtly shifted her position to block my view of the phone, though it was pointless since I’d already read everything. Deciding to play along, I simply wagged my tail.

“What next?”

Struggling to grasp the abstract concept of my ability, I hesitated. Perhaps physical contact was necessary? Tentatively, I reached out and lightly grasped Han Arin’s fingertip.

“Hae-un?”

Surprise mixed with delight lit up Han Arin’s face, but alas, nothing changed.

“Nope, nothing happened.”

Disappointed, I slumped slightly.

“Hmm… what could it be?”

Lost in thought, I closed my eyes when suddenly—

“KYAAAH!”

A sharp scream pierced the air. Turning around, I saw someone clutching their leg and lying on the ground. Rushing to help, I was stopped mid-step by Han Arin.

“Don’t move. It’s dangerous.”

“But… someone’s hurt! We have to help!”

Seemingly struck by a realization, Han Arin hesitated before nodding after confirming there were no gruesome scenes.

[BBQburger: Could this be related to her time in prison? Does she feel compelled to help because of past trauma?]

[NeroRono: Sounds about right. Rumor has it she endured abuse in there, so maybe she’s projecting herself onto the victim.]

[DragonNotLizard: While that might be a stretch, given the context, it does seem plausible.]

Though they seem to misunderstand, helping someone in pain is simply the right thing to do. Ignoring any potential explanations, I scurried over to the injured person.

Fortunately, the injury appeared minor—a mere scrape. Just as I began worrying, laughter echoed nearby.

“Hey Mi-yeon, are you really screaming like that as a hunter?”

“Look, you scared the baby into running over here! You’re making her cry!”

“Hae-un, don’t worry… I mean, sister’s fine…”

Confused by their reactions, I paused. Nearby, a man joked with me.

“Hae-un, give your sister a quick healing prayer.”

Before he finished, Mi-yeon—the supposedly injured hunter—gave him a thumbs-up and grinned. The man reciprocated with a finger heart, exchanging some sort of signal.

“…What are they doing?”

Perplexed, I turned to leave when Mi-yeon loudly proclaimed, “Ow ow ow, it hurts so much! Hae-un, please heal meeee!”

Caught off guard, I froze as she exaggeratedly sobbed, clearly putting on a show.

“Boo-hoo, I want healing nowww.”

Amidst the jeers from bystanders telling her to stop acting cute, Mi-yeon persisted, pointing to her knee. Realizing I couldn’t endure the embarrassment any longer, I steadied myself and reluctantly placed my hand on her knee to heal her.

In an instant, the wound vanished completely, leaving no trace of injury.

“Huh?”

Everyone stared at me in astonishment as Han Arin swiftly picked me up and retreated to safety.

—

[MoneyAndSuspicious: Healing ability, huh? And not just ordinary healing—it seems to be top-tier.]

[HelloHamiong: Aren’t there few people with healing abilities? I heard just having one makes you VIP-level treatment.]

[UgleUgle: That’s a bit exaggerated. Usually, upper-tier healing gets that kind of treatment. But since Hae-un’s ability is likely at least upper-tier, VIP status sounds about right.]

Reading these comments, I realized my special ability was healing and couldn’t help but smile. Maybe I really could help others.

As I stared at my hands, Han Arin spoke softly, glancing at her phone.

“Hae-un, no matter what happens, I’ll protect you. If anyone approaches you with ill intentions, not only will I oppose them, but the entire tower’s mages will consider them enemies. Understand?”

Though her words seemed random, I understood it was a warning.

“And Perseus said he’d like to meet you soon. Shall we visit him sometime?”

Who’s Perseus? Though unsure, I trusted he wasn’t bad and nodded.

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