“Until you find what you want to do in the future. Want to stick with me?”
“!”
Clara’s body stiffened at the unexpected proposal, but her mind was racing. Rohan’s words seemed to carry multiple meanings.
*Clunk!*
Rohan tossed the empty plastic cup and let out a dry laugh as he looked at Clara. He realized how ridiculous he must look, all anxious about whether she’d leave.
“Ah, I really need to stop jumping the gun.”
“…?”
“Since it’s an important matter, Clara deserves a proper explanation, right?”
The girl nodded slightly, still looking dazed.
Rohan took a slow step forward, his voice steady.
“After graduating from Orion Academy, if I settle in Elysium, the academy city, getting a job at the Security Bureau would be stable and safe. But I’m leaning more toward freelancing.”
“What’s this freelancing you’re talking about…?”
“It could mean being a hunter who catches monsters and sells materials like hides and fangs. Or, depending on the need, a butcher who deals with beasts pretending to be humans.”
Rohan figured a detailed explanation was better than vague talk. As he wrapped up, he added another point.
“I also have legitimate access to the southern regions without any tedious procedures. That’s a big advantage.”
No need to go far—the land is crawling with monsters spat out by the Void Whale. Plus, Elysium’s location, sandwiched between powerful nations, is a goldmine for selling rare materials.
“If I set up an office, I could nest somewhere cheaper, away from the central area.”
When Rohan finished and looked at her with a curious gaze, Clara pulled her lips away from the straw and shared her thoughts.
“Your plan is way more detailed than I expected…!”
“I thought it was just a rough sketch, but if you see it that way, I’m grateful.”
“I-I don’t know anything about that stuff…”
As Clara listened, she imagined that even if it were tough, being with Rohan like this would be fun. For a girl focused on living in the present, this kind of imagination was like a single light shining in the pitch-black future.
And Rohan felt the same.
As he spoke, he noticed the part he’d been worried about and felt relieved. Clara didn’t bat an eye at the mention of handling monsters and humans.
“B-but aren’t there people way better than me at Orion Academy…?”
Her trailing words carried the question: Why me? I’ve never shown anything impressive.
Rohan shook his head at that.
Not everyone at Orion Academy is at an abnormal level like Noah. Just look at me and the cadets you see on the street, you know?”
“…”
“And what’s more important than skill is that we have to be in sync, whether it’s physically or mentally.”
Clara’s heart started beating suspiciously fast at those words.
So, she asked a question that made her more nervous than ever.
“Rohan oppa… do you think… we’d work well together?”
“Of course.”
The straightforward answer made joy bloom in the girl’s heart.
It bloomed *really* wide.
“There’s still plenty of time, though. If Clara finds something she wants to do in the meantime, it’s fine to go that way.”
“Mhm…”
Even though she knew his words about letting her go if she wanted were well-meaning, they still felt strangely disappointing to the girl.
‘Why do I act like this only in front of oppa… seriously?’
Clara couldn’t understand why her emotions were swaying like reeds and surging like flames.
She even started to wonder if something was wrong with her mind.
“Getting a steady paycheck is comfortable, but earning based on how much you work isn’t bad either.”
It was a line that didn’t quite fit a cadet who had just entered the academy, as if it came from experience.
But Clara didn’t feel any sense of strangeness from Rohan’s vibe.
So, she answered. Even if it felt hasty, she wanted to give her answer quickly.
Because she was afraid Rohan, who looked at her kindly without any malice, might leave.
“I, um… I’m interested in working with you. I want to do it too…”
“!”
The girl liked how Rohan’s face lit up at her words.
Feeling that Rohan truly needed her, her body warmed up slightly.
“Oppa.”
“Yeah. I’m listening.”
“What… exactly do I need to do…?”
At Clara’s positive answer, Rohan smiled and continued speaking in a slightly raised voice.
Clara noticed that Rohan’s words had sped up a bit, making the older man seem cute to her.
“We’re not just going to sit around for two years until then. We need to gain experience and earn some funds too.”
The girl nodded as she listened.
“Anyway, the immediate task is… a car’s coming. It’s dangerous, so come inside.”
“…!”
Rohan grabbed Clara’s wrist and pulled her inside.
**─ Vroooom!**
A black van speeding through the dark alley.
The person in the passenger seat tossed a cigarette butt out of the slightly open window.
“Huh?”
It definitely didn’t seem like a scene where something special would be felt.
Unless, of course, the license plate Rohan saw wasn’t 4885.
“That car number… black van with 4885…?”
“Oppa?”
Clara didn’t have time to answer the question in detail.
A notification window popped up in front of her eyes along with a sound.
[Quest has been generated.]
[Yellow Toads]
◇ Quest Details: A vehicle belonging to the human trafficking organization, Huangshan Organization (黃蟾團), has been discovered. Rescue the hostages and report it to the Elysium Security Bureau.
◇ Type: Sudden
◇ Success Reward: 1,500P
◇ Failure Penalty: None
This was a random quest that could pop up while exploring the map of Abyss City.
It was also something Rohan had been waiting for.
‘No traces of combat this time? Plus, rescue and report to the Security Bureau…’
After a brief moment of contemplation, Rohan concluded that this situation was a good opportunity for Clara as well.
He even decided that getting involved with the Security Bureau wouldn’t be a problem.
After all, they had learned about the laws of the academy city, Elysium, in class.
In the academy city, human trafficking falls under the category of crimes where even civilians are allowed to carry out summary executions.
In a world like this, the laws were refreshingly straightforward compared to his past life. The reason for rescuing the hostages was clear—their testimony would be crucial.
“…Clara.”
“Oppa, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. We still have time, right?”
“Uh, yeah? Time’s not an issue, but…”
Clara gulped as she looked at her wrist, which Rohan was holding.
There was no way she could break free.
“I’ll show you a glimpse of what we’re about to do.”
*****
**Crash!**
“—Aaaah!!!”
A scream followed by the sound of something shattering. Men who had been sleeping in the container rushed out, frantically scanning their surroundings.
They had toad tattoos on their hands or necks.
“What was that noise just now?”
The group’s gaze turned toward a building with its lights off.
One of the windows, perfectly intact before they went to sleep, was now shattered.
“Don’t tell me we’ve been caught on our first job after moving locations?”
“Nah, it’s probably just the boss roughing someone up. He’s been on edge ever since we got pushed out of our territory.”
“Crazy bastard… Don’t mention being pushed out in front of the boss.”
“I know better than that. I’d never say it.”
Their conversation was just wishful thinking.
Speculation wouldn’t get them anywhere. Knowing they needed to see the situation for themselves, they moved cautiously.
Just as they were about to head toward the building next door and climb the stairs, they noticed a woman with purple twin tails blocking the staircase.
The fact that the basement door was wide open was serious, but her appearance caught their attention first.
A beauty that could captivate anyone.
The men almost instinctively blurted out some lewd remarks but swallowed them.
The fact that someone so out of place was here raised their guard to the extreme.
“Maybe it’s because I’m out of it, but it’s weird that I didn’t even sense any presence, let alone magical energy, on my way here.”
“What the hell is this? Did you call her?”
“Oh, brother! No way!”
“Could she be a Security Officer? I heard their noses are like works of art around here.”
“Even if they’re good at sniffing things out, we just started… what’s going on?”
Exchanging opinions, they each pulled out their weapons.
The guns and blades in their hands all looked menacing as hell.
“Hey, aren’t you guys the bad guys who do human trafficking…?”
“What the hell is she talking about?”
“Maybe she’s just crazy? If she’s this pretty even when crazy, she’d still sell for top dollar…”
The woman avoided eye contact, her passive behavior only fueling the group’s confidence.
In the underworld, momentum is half the battle.
If you shrink back like that, it just means you’ve already lost.
“I’ve already checked everything inside…”
The girl tapped a pebble on the ground with the tip of her shoe, sending it rolling.
The men’s eyes followed the rolling stone.
“Please, don’t cross that stone and wait there…! You really shouldn’t go in right now…”
As she spoke, the glass window above shattered, shards raining down, and screams erupted.
*Crash!*
*—Aaaah!!!*
That scream definitely belonged to one of the organization’s members.
Specifically, the one guarding the goods.
“Damn it. This is ridiculous.”
“Boss, the boss hasn’t left his post… this is weird.”
One of them, sensing something ominous, tried to step back, but the man who had cursed earlier frowned and stepped forward.
And in that instant.
*Thwip!*
A clean, piercing sound of wind.
The man who crossed the line dropped to the ground with a hole in his head.
In the girl’s pale hand was a silenced pistol, which she had somehow drawn without anyone noticing.
“I told you not to cross the line…”
