Translator: Vine
Translated At: Nyx Scans
Chapter: 121
#121. Like Flower Petals Staining Water
2022.11.29.
"Master, I'm telling you, Wolf and I just don't get along."
"First, stop talking nonsense and follow... Huh?"
Yoo Hwan, who was returning with Jaemin after a trip to the restroom, abruptly stopped in his tracks at the sight before him.
"...Master?"
"Quiet."
Siwoo and Eunha were staring intently at each other.
What is this?
The atmosphere was unusual.
Yoo Hwan observed them with a serious face.
From his perspective, he couldn't see Eunha's expression, but he could clearly see Siwoo's face.
No matter how notoriously oblivious Yoo Hwan was to things other than training and combat, he felt it in his skin at this very moment.
That look in Siwoo's eyes.
Unmistakable.
"That kid."
Yoo Hwan crossed his arms and spoke in a pleased voice.
Then, he abruptly turned his back and gestured with his chin towards Jaemin standing beside him.
"I left my phone in the restroom. Follow me."
"Y-yes?"
Yoo Hwan decided to give the young ones a little more space.
'Seeing such a passionate gaze, it reminds me of the old days...'
Isn't this what a man's consideration is all about?
It was about 20 years ago.
"Overthrow! That's it! Good job!"
"As expected of Yoo Hwan!"
"Shouldn't we get his autograph before he becomes a gold medalist?"
At that time, Yoo Hwan was a promising judo athlete.
Those around him believed without a doubt that Yoo Hwan would become a gold medalist in the future, and Yoo Hwan himself aimed for it.
He had never even considered a life without judo.
That day too, Yoo Hwan, having spent over 10 hours at the gym as usual, boarded the subway to go home.
"Please sit here, Grandma."
Yoo Hwan shot up from his seat as soon as he saw an elderly woman with heavy luggage.
Not only that.
He lifted the grandma's huge bundle and placed it on the luggage rack himself.
"Oh my, thank you. The young man is very polite."
Possessing talent and skill, as well as loyalty to his comrades and consideration for others, he was truly an exemplary being.
—Until one day, he suffered a major injury in a sudden traffic accident.
"Unfortunately, I'm afraid you'll have to give up sports now."
The doctor's diagnosis was like a bolt from the blue.
What Yoo Hwan lost that day wasn't just the sensation in his left leg.
He had lost his hope for life, the future he had dreamed of, and even the expectations of his comrades.
"Hwan, it's too early to give up. First, let's try treatment."
"But Director, I..."
"It's okay. You can do it."
Nevertheless, the Director didn't give up on Yoo Hwan.
Yoo Hwan, not wanting to disappoint the Director, devoted himself to rehabilitation, trying every possible method, from injection therapy, manual therapy, to physical therapy.
And so, he continued rehabilitation for 3 years without a break.
The result was not very hopeful.
He was only able to get out of his wheelchair and crutches, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't return to the body he had before the accident.
"Hwan. You don't have to come in starting tomorrow."
The Director, who had spared no encouragement and support, also began to change gradually.
"I hesitated a lot before saying this. I'm sorry. But shouldn't we stop and accept reality now? You... and me too."
Even in the final moment of leaving the gym, the Director didn't look at Yoo Hwan.
His gym comrades, with whom he had shared meals, just placed their hands on Yoo Hwan's shoulder without a word.
On the way home alone.
Limping on his left foot, he boarded the subway, and an ahjumma cautiously gestured towards Yoo Hwan.
"Young man, sit here."
At first, he didn't even realize she was talking to him.
Yoo Hwan, looking around, looked at the ahjumma a beat later.
"Yes...? I'm fine—"
"Hurry and sit. Your leg looks uncomfortable... I'm getting off at the next stop anyway."
The ahjumma, smiling kindly, resolutely made Yoo Hwan sit in the seat she had been occupying.
"..."
Why was that?
What Yoo Hwan felt at that moment was neither gratitude, warmth, nor apology.
Despair.
It was a terrible despair.
Yoo Hwan, realizing reality, finally gave up on everything.
How did he live after that?
Thinking back now, he seemed to have literally just 'lived as it came'.
When he turned on the TV, he saw a comrade from the same gym being interviewed as a famous judo athlete.
Yoo Hwan, clutching the remote control, slowly looked around.
All that was in this dark house were crumpled job search newspapers, dirty Chinese food containers, and a dusty judo uniform.
Days on end where he couldn't even sleep properly without alcohol.
As he drank like crazy every day like that, his money soon ran out.
Yoo Hwan, who had to earn money for alcohol, began to look for any work that would pay.
The only certification he had was a Word Processor Level 3 he had managed to get in his school days.
He had always been bad at English, and having lived his life devoted to judo, he had no work experience, not even a part-time job.
Moreover, due to the aftereffects of the traffic accident, he limped on one leg, and his passion and motivation were at rock bottom.
The only advantage Yoo Hwan had at that time was that he was bigger and stronger than others.
There weren't many jobs he could choose.
A construction site, built on top of a half-demolished shantytown.
The work Yoo Hwan was assigned there was relatively simple, such as moving heavy luggage like sand, tiles, and bricks.
Since he was stronger and sturdier than ordinary people, and lived from hand to mouth, it was a very suitable job for Yoo Hwan, but,
"Ugh, it's raining. Let's call it a day."
Being affected by the weather like this was a big drawback.
"Then... when should I come back?"
"Well. I can't promise. As you know, the construction itself is creaking right now."
The man scratched his cheek and glanced somewhere.
<○○ Construction, Pushing Ahead with Construction Ignoring Residents' Opinions! We Don't Need Compensation! Guarantee Human Rights! - △△-dong Residents>
A banner opposing the construction was getting soaked in the black rain.
"Well, I know you're in a tight spot, so just wait a little. If something comes up, I'll call you first. Now, now, everyone, pack up, pack up!"
"..."
Eventually, Yoo Hwan, with a few bills in his hand, trudged out of the site.
It had been several days since Yoo Hwan had been living on only alcohol and ramen.
Considering that the rainy season would start today, he would have to starve for at least a few more days, or even more than a week.
Would that be fortunate?
If the construction were to be halted due to strong opposition from the residents...
"Phew."
Letting out a long sigh, Yoo Hwan went to a nearby supermarket and spent all the money he earned today to buy a lot of alcohol and dried snacks.
It was an amount he couldn't finish alone, but he swept up everything he could.
Sitting on a suitable bench, he opened the liquor bottle first, without even opening the snacks, and downed it in one go.
"...Kha."
The strong smell of alcohol stung his nose.
It felt unusually sweet today.
Clang!
Ting, ting...
Yoo Hwan, pushing away the empty can rolling at his feet with his right foot, lifted his head and looked up at the blackish sky.
Heavy rain was pouring down mournfully on this poor shantytown located by the river.
"Nice weather."
Amidst the chaotic air, Yoo Hwan limply laid his body down on the bench, soaked with rain.
He felt passersby murmuring and quickly moving away, but he didn't care about others' gazes.
In a cruel world where nothing went his way, in this moment, drunk to the gills with a belly full of alcohol, he felt freer than anyone.
When he drank until his nose was crooked, he felt as if his body were floating.
Yoo Hwan liked that illusion.
...Ah, it seems it would be okay to die like this.
It was the moment he had such a thought amidst the black rain.
Splash, splash!
The sound of splashing in a puddle was heard, and suddenly, a little girl appeared before Yoo Hwan.
The child, wearing a yellow raincoat and with her hair tied in two pigtails, looked to be about six years old at most.
"It'll hurt if you sleep here!"
The child, with her hands on her hips as if scolding him, raised her eyebrows as much as she could and made a strict face.
Of course, it wasn't scary at all.
Yoo Hwan, at the appearance of the cute child, let out a smirk and waved his hand in the air.
"You're the one who's going to catch a cold wandering around in the rain. Hurry home."
"Ugh, the smell of alcohol! Mister, you drank here, didn't you!"
However, the child didn't even pretend to listen and covered her nose with her tiny hand.
"Can't you see this? Eating and drinking is forbidden in this park! Forbidden!"
And with her other hand, she pointed sharply to the right.
<To create a pleasant environment and protect nature, visitors are prohibited from eating and drinking within the park.>
Yoo Hwan glanced at the banner the child pointed to, then laid back down, using his arm as a pillow.
The child, whom he thought would give up and leave soon, stayed by Yoo Hwan's side and chattered on.
"Mister, I said it'll hurt if you sleep here!"
"It's fine. Ayah."
Yoo Hwan replied indifferently with his eyes closed.
So what if he died like this.
It might even be better.
There was no one to mourn him anyway, and no last words to leave.
"Ugh..."
The huffing child soon disappeared into the rain.
It finally became quiet around him.
Yoo Hwan, without opening his closed eyes, fumbled around the bench with one hand.
And picking up the liquor bottle his hand touched, he poured it into his mouth, still lying down.
The sound of rain grew louder, but Yoo Hwan's heart gradually became peaceful.
And so, Yoo Hwan let go of his consciousness in the pitch-black rain.
Quite some time later.
"Mom, here! Over here!"
The child in the yellow raincoat came running.
Behind the child stood a woman holding a white umbrella.
"Oh my."
The woman, spotting the massive man, Yoo Hwan, sprawled on the bench, was startled and froze in place.
The child asked her.
"Mom, is the mister dead?"
"Narae, you shouldn't say things like that."
The woman, chiding her daughter, cautiously approached Yoo Hwan as if to check his condition.
Just how long had he been out in the rain?
His face was as pale as a corpse's.
Empty liquor bottles and rain-soaked snacks were carelessly rolling around.
The woman, after observing him for a long time, fixed her gaze on his left leg, which had fallen off the bench.
An ankle turned powerlessly, as if bent.
A noticeable scar.
Perhaps... his leg is bad?
Roje cautiously reached out her hand towards him.
The moment a faint, light green light spread from her hand,
"..."
Yoo Hwan, whom she thought was unconscious, slowly opened his eyes.
"Wow, mister! Mister isn't dead! That's a relief!"
The excited child began to jump up and down.
The rainwater collected in the puddle splashed mercilessly on Yoo Hwan's face with her movement, but Yoo Hwan himself didn't even flinch, his eyes wide open.
His gaze was fixed solely on the woman before him.
A person so white as to be completely out of place under such a black, cloud-filled sky.
That was his first impression of her.
"Narae... my child said there was a sick person here, so I came, but if I've disturbed your rest, I'm sorry."
"Ah, no..."
Yoo Hwan, who was about to shoot up from his seat, suddenly staggered.
It was because he had put his left leg, which had no sensation, forward first.
Thanks to the results of long rehabilitation, he barely managed to regain his balance, but Roje, watching him, finally became certain.
Indeed, this person, his left leg...
"Where is your home? I'll call someone to take you there."
Roje spoke to Yoo Hwan cautiously and kindly.
"..."
Yoo Hwan kept his head down and didn't answer.
"Gasp! Mom! Was the mister homeless?! What do we do?"
Roje, gently holding the jumping child's shoulder, spoke again in the same tone.
"By any chance, do you have nowhere to go?"
"..."
Yoo Hwan was silent again this time.
Nevertheless, Roje asked without a single change in her expression.
"Then... would you like to come with me?"
At that question, Yoo Hwan, who had kept his head bowed low, slowly lifted it.
—Why.
His clouded eyes held doubt and caution.
"I'm a doctor."
Before him, Roje smiled whitely.
"If there's someone before me who looks like they're about to die, and if I can save that person, of course, I must help."
It was a beautiful smile, like flower petals staining water.
"..."
"..."
Amidst the heavy rain obstructing their vision, Roje and Yoo Hwan exchanged gazes for a long time.
Yoo Hwan scrutinized Roje as if sizing her up, and Roje didn't avoid his gaze.
It was truly a strange thing.
The sound of rain beating against his eardrums, the child's chattering voice, the car horns blaring from afar—at that moment, he couldn't hear any of it.
Only one thing was audible.
"If you'd like, follow me."
A dazzlingly white,
"I'll help you."
Her voice.
Yoo Hwan followed Roje as if possessed by something.
He found out that her identity was 'Doctor Plant', Korea's first-ever S-Class healing hunter, the very next day.
Yoo Hwan wondered why the famous Doctor Plant had taken him in.
Whenever he asked about it, Roje would just reply like this.
"You, if I had left you like that, you would have just died."
At first, he couldn't quite accept it.
A complete stranger, whether they died in the rain or not, should have been of no concern.
However, the more time he spent with Roje, the more Yoo Hwan gradually came to understand.
The Rose Guild led by Roje, and the various institutions run by Rose, were teeming with people who had lost their homes and families, and patients diagnosed as terminally ill by hospitals.
Roje extended her hand to each and every one of them.
Though she couldn't save everyone on Earth, her argument was that she couldn't ignore those in need right before her eyes.
"That, I believe, is the reason I awakened as a healing hunter."
The woman named Keum Roje, Doctor Plant, was a much greater person than Yoo Hwan had thought, and much more than the media portrayed.
The fact that she had healed Yoo Hwan's leg, which other doctors had all shaken their heads at, in less than a month was one thing,
but what was more, was the fact that she had instantly cleared the dark, cloud-filled life of Yoo Hwan.
What Roje had healed wasn't just Yoo Hwan's leg.
His heart, his life, even his dreams.
She had fixed all the creaking parts back to their place, or even to a better state than before.
Yoo Hwan, after recovering his leg, happened to become an Awakened on a certain occasion, and soon after, he contracted with the divine beast Monkey.
Yoo Hwan rising to the ranks of Korea's S-Class hunters after Roje happened about a year later.
Even thinking about it now, it was truly a series of magical, gift-like events.
Yoo Hwan thought.
If the reason Roje awakened was to help people, then perhaps the reason he awakened was to help her.
"Mom! I drew this!"
The little child, Roje's daughter Narae, came running with a sketchbook.
"Let's see. Wow, our Narae is so good at drawing too."
Roje smiled happily, looking at the picture her only daughter had drawn.
"This is Narae, this is Mom... and who is this?"
"It's Uncle Yoo Hwan!"
Narae answered cheerfully with an innocent face.
Before he could even get used to his title changing from 'Mister' to 'Uncle Yoo Hwan', the smart and capable Narae did another admirable thing.
"Mom, you know, I wish Uncle Yoo Hwan was my dad."
"Oh my..."
Roje blinked.
"Ahem, ahem."
Yoo Hwan, his face beet red, coughed repeatedly.
Was it that funny?
Narae giggled as if she would fall over.
They were happy days, as if drawn in a picture.
—Until that day, when Narae was swept away by an Unknown Gate.
