Clothes are important.
So far, I’ve mainly worn gothic lolita outfits in black and white, but these days I find myself wanting to try on different clothes.
Maybe it’s because I’ve been mingling with people. I feel like I’m becoming more human.
“Right?”
[ You’re doing well. ]
Thanks for answering. Talking to myself at home feels so foolish.
Now that I think about it, Erica’s uniform changes every day. It was refreshing to see.
I took out a few pieces of casual clothes from the drawer and then put them back in place.
I can’t tell what would suit me alone. I should ask Erica later to help me.
I also want to get back my clothes I lent her last time.
[ How’s your body? ]
“I think it’s okay.”
[ It seemed a bit severe yesterday. ]
You’re quite perceptive.
I hesitated for a moment while holding a pill.
[ It’s important to take care of your health. You can’t skip your daily dosage just because you don’t feel like it, can you? ]
“I’m not saying I don’t want to take it.”
It’s just a different bitter taste compared to Americano.
The actions I repeated to suppress the pain have unexpectedly become part of my daily routine.
[ By the way, I have something to boast about. ]
As a mature voice echoed, the space distorted and a violet void opened. Crystals detached in a flurry from the crack.
[ I’ve gathered quite a bit of power. Do you see it? ]
“Isn’t it strange that I can’t see it?”
I approached and picked up one of the fallen magical stones.
“But do you need power for something?”
Is there something you want to do?
[ …There will be, someday. ]
“I guess you haven’t thought about it.”
Looking back, I received a lot of help from Bloody too. It must be overwhelming for her to watch me like this.
I left the house after downing a glass of water.
As soon as I opened the office door, as always, I found Erica.
No one was there.
Even though it was afternoon.
“Erica isn’t here!”
“She’s in a meeting.”
Twisting my hair, I plopped down at the desk in front of me. I stretched while watching the director make coffee.
“Oh, speaking of which…”
“Yes?”
“I heard a corpse was found in front of the plaza yesterday.”
“And?”
“You were there too.”
“So?”
Her red eyes shone brilliantly.
“Do you know anything?”
“I told Erica too. I don’t know. Do you suspect me?”
“That’s not it.”
The director waved her hand dismissively. It was a decisive motion.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen you say you don’t know something.”
“How many times have you seen me?”
“A lot.”
I chuckled slightly. As I put the paper cup to my lips, the taste of green tea flowed in.
“I won’t tell you.”
“Oh?”
“The wanted Awakened One ranked number one won’t cooperate willingly with the association.”
I put on a friendly demeanor towards the association to catch Erica’s interest, but I wasn’t entirely shirking my obligations.
“You lied to Erica?”
I hadn’t done that even once until now.
It was broken with yesterday’s incident.
I had lied that I didn’t taste blood while eating chocolate cake.
I deceived her by saying I hadn’t seen Zhukyl.
“But isn’t becoming more human something like that?”
Separately from that.
“In fact, if this green tea were coffee, I would have spilled everything.”
“That’s a shame.”
But that’s it. How could I side with the association after seeing the trembling green-haired woman holding a dagger?
I thought I couldn’t easily become hostile toward her.
It’s a fateful ordeal.
After a moment of silence, the conference room door opened.
“You’ve come!”
I approached intentionally to get close to Erica.
If she just hadn’t pushed me away.
“…Hmph.”
What’s with that? Why is she like this?
Looking at Erica, who wouldn’t even meet my eyes, I suddenly felt sad.
She had been nice to me just yesterday.
“Were you happy?”
“…What do you mean?”
“I mean, were you happy eating cake with me yesterday?”
“Yeah, it was good.”
“Hmph.”
I blinked.
“When did you ignore me freely, now you cling to me today?”
“……..”
“Look at you, no response.”
Now that I think about it, I did act excessively confidently yesterday. Telling her not to be nice to me.
“When we were eating cake, you patted my head… Wasn’t that okay then?”
“No? I just played with you like you were playing with me, right? Can’t I be rude to you?”
Then it shouldn’t be. You always have to comply with me.
“If you don’t behave right now, I don’t know what I might do.”
I glared at her on purpose.
“Go ahead. Then you’ll never see my face again.”
That’s not true. This is too much. It’s gaslighting.
I let my arms droop.
“You still haven’t reconciled.”
Ignoring her voice, I adjusted my clothes.
With my body suddenly feeling weak, I buried my face in the desk.
“But I have to work.”
Turning my face to the side, I saw a report. With a gentle puff of air, it flew far away.
“There’s a battle between Awakened factions regarding residency in Yangju City. One of them, the Hwan faction, interacts with our association.”
Yangju City, compared to the outskirts, is notable for the frequency of incidents.
It’s characterized by groups split up to expand their territory.
“The Hwan faction, which had been occupying the lower area of Yangju City starting from Baekseok-eup, had a large battle with a rival faction as they pressed forward. Currently, they’re officially at a ceasefire, but it seems they will start again soon.”
“Are you talking about the faction led by the rank 9 Awakened?”
I momentarily fell into thought at Erica’s words.
Iris, right? It’s been quite a while since I met her.
“That’s right. Communication with the headquarters was momentarily cut off, and they were only watching, so I thought it’d be a good idea to show up and offer support while I can.”
“I don’t want to go!”
“That’s a big deal.”
A silence fell. I raised my finger at Erica.
“I’ll consider it if you beg me to go with you.”
“I don’t need that. I can go alone.”
I blinked at Erica as she walked away.
I didn’t expect this.
I looked back at the director.
“What should I do?”
“Erica has a certain standing as a ranker. But the atmosphere there might not be ideal.”
The circuits of thought formed a straight line.
When I descended to the lower floor, I saw Erica along with several staff members. A box laid on the office table filled with magical stones and healing devices.
I quietly approached and stood beside her.
“Go away.”
“I don’t want to.”
“You said you wouldn’t follow me?”
As I was watching the busy staff moving around, another box was placed.
A long piece of paper fluttered.
“This is the end of today’s list. Three boxes of 1000mp magical stones. One box of healing devices. We also added the magic fusion device.”
“When will the firearms come in?”
“Ah… We’re currently not in a sufficient state on our side for firearms. Since the last group extermination, no finished products have been supplied. It will take some time.”
Seeing them nod, I tilted my head.
“The broken ones are fine. Iris can repair them quickly.”
The staff’s gaze shifted toward me and then back to the piece of paper.
“The new hunters from last time should have quite a bit collected. I’ll prepare them by the next order.”
“Great!”
I was smiling contently when a glance came my way.
“Are you offering help or what…?”
“If you beg me to stay, I’ll help you for sure.”
“I absolutely don’t want that.”
“I really want to see you just once.”
“That will never happen.”
Having stopped my whining, Erica didn’t say anything else as I followed behind her.
After getting out of the vehicle, I looked around. The shadows cast by the crumbling buildings under the scarlet sky were staining the ground.
No normal places could be seen since this area was Yangju City.
I spotted a cage. A fence covered in countless thorns was present too. As I got closer, I saw a warning sign with a skull drawing and English text.
Warning!
“Danger! Flammable liquids or vapors! High-voltage electricity!”
“Don’t come closer.”
“When did I ever listen to you?”
“Since the time you were being clingy with me.”
I couldn’t say anything.
This requires a measure.
I turned my gaze away. At the entrance of the cage stood two hunters in uniforms.
“Did you contact them?”
“No. They said it’s unreachable.”
The gun was raised. I pulled out my knife.
“Stop! Identify yourself….”
The blade curved. The gun broke instantly, debris flying through the air.
I saw the trembling uniforms. A dagger was swung. I wielded my knife and deflected the dagger.
As I concentrated magic power on the knife and got my course steady, a thought struck me.
It would be bad if I died. Killing someone is a bad thing, right?
Pain surged in my head. The knife fell.
“Ah!”
“What are you doing? How can you act so suddenly!”
“They raised their guns first!”
“That can’t be helped in this situation!”
I don’t care about that.
Holding my head, I staggered back as the doors behind the two hunters swung open.
“What is happening?”
Red hair fluttered. Her red eyes glinted brilliantly. The rifle she held in front of her black uniform gleamed.
“Iris.”
“What’s up? Orly?”
“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”
In an instant, Iris’s pupils narrowed. It flowed toward the gasping hunters next to her.
“Still so aggressive.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Erica took a step forward. An ID was presented.
“I’m sorry. I’ve caused trouble. I’m a ranker dispatched from the Gyeonggi Province association for support.”
“Oh.”
The red lips parted.
“It’s okay. Thank you for coming, it must have been tough.”
“Why is it so friendly excluding me?”
Erica glared at her.
“Why don’t you take a look at the mess you’ve made?”
The hunters groaned.
I twisted my hair.
There’s not really a problem.
