Translator: Vine
Translated At: Nyx Scans
Chapter: 97
"Eunha. It's Cha Eunha, right?"
Wonchul slowly walked towards Eunha.
Joy and longing.
And relief.
Those emotions were mixed in his widely dilated eyes.
Perhaps because of that, it was quite some time later that Eunha averted her gaze from him.
"..."
As if something were stuck in her throat, Eunha couldn't say a word.
It didn't seem to be solely because her name had been taken by her contract with the cat.
"When I saw a concept hunter on TV who resembled you, I was unsure. But it really was you."
"..."
Concept hunter.
Just that one word allowed her to roughly infer what kind of TV program he had watched.
If so, he must have also seen Eunha wearing a flamboyant dress and brandishing a parasol.
Her hand, gripping the bag strap, clenched tightly without her realizing it.
What could the director have thought upon seeing that?
However, Wonchul's voice that followed had a completely different intonation than Eunha had expected.
"I'm glad you're alive. I thought you were dead. I'm truly glad."
Pressing his eyes with his hand, he gazed at Eunha with reddened eyes.
"How have you been all this time? You must have heard the news about Yijun, right? Not only is he Korea's first S-Class, but he also became Prime. The kid who couldn't even lift a rifle properly has made it big."
Yijun.
At that name, Eunha snapped her gaze up.
She had completely forgotten due to the unexpected reunion with the training center director.
Eunha's pitch-black eyes quickly scanned her surroundings.
She had to chase after him quickly.
"Right. I happen to be on my way to meet Instructor Jang. You remember him, right? How about it? If you're not busy, shall we go together?"
Towards Eunha, who was looking around, Wonchul suggested accompanying him and extended his hand.
However, Eunha instinctively stepped back before his hand could even touch her.
Her reaction was so cold that Wonchul stopped abruptly, his movement frozen.
"Cha Eunha?"
"...Ah."
Letting out a short groan, Eunha habitually caressed her left wrist.
The wish bracelet.
Not the previous bracelet that looked like it would break at any moment, but one that was much cleaner and a vivid blue.
"I'm sorry, but..."
Eunha, who had been caressing the wish bracelet for a long time, slowly parted her lips.
"You must have mistaken me for someone else."
Even while uttering such dry words, Eunha couldn't bring herself to look at the training center director and kept her gaze fixed on the floor.
What kind of expression was he making right now?
"What are you talking about? There's no way I wouldn't recognize you."
Though his expression was unknown, his voice hadn't changed.
He was strongly convinced.
That she was the 'Cha Eunha' he knew.
Eunha, covering the wish bracelet on her left wrist with her right hand, spoke again.
"I am not the person named Eunha you mentioned."
A little more firmly.
"..."
Wonchul stared intently at Eunha, and Eunha didn't meet his gaze until the very end.
Suddenly, his gaze shifted from Eunha to the bag Eunha was carrying on her shoulder.
<Kang Haengwook Dog Grooming Academy>
The logo engraved on the surface of the bag.
Wonchul's eyes flickered slightly upon discovering it.
He closed his lips, which had been about to say something, and remained silent.
In the silence, Eunha, Yura, slowly turned around and said.
"...I'm in a hurry."
He said nothing more.
He just moved his eyes, silently gazing at the retreating Eunha.
Eunha felt his gaze too.
Even with this much distance between them, the gaze on her back seemed to cling to her, unwilling to let go.
Eunha quickened her pace.
Was it to chase after Yijun, or to escape from something?
She couldn't tell, but she never once looked back.
"..."
Eunha, after passing through a narrow alley and turning several corners, finally, slowly looked back.
Even after waiting for a long time, the training center director didn't appear.
Confirming that no one was following her, Eunha exited the alley.
Cars sped along the main road.
Numerous pedestrians strolled along the sidewalk.
Eunha naturally blended into that ordinary scene.
[The divine beast 'Cat Wandering in Darkness' tilts its head, asking, "Sister, do you really not know that old man?"]
"...That's right. Someone I know."
To be precise, it would be 'someone I knew'.
The training center director's face was much more wrinkled than Eunha remembered.
His pure white hair and bent back were also like that.
The gap of time, which she hadn't quite felt when she saw Yijun, now rushed in like a receding tide.
Eunha, forcefully erasing his face from her mind, fumbled around her neck and took out the pendant.
No, she was about to.
Beep— Beep— Beep—
Despite being in vibration mode, her phone rang loudly.
Eunha rummaged through her pocket and took out her phone.
(Alert) Gate Appearance
2031/9/25 PM 4:32 Rift near ○○ High School, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. Estimated Difficulty B+ Class.
Danger Zone Access Prohibited! Refrain from going out and pay attention to safety.
...It was a gate appearance alert that was no longer surprising.
People walking around didn't even read the alert carefully and were busy turning off the sound first.
"Ah, damn it! I was watching a video!"
"Can't you just turn off this alert completely? It's so annoying, really."
"Go into settings. You should be able to disable emergency disaster text alerts, probably? I turned mine off too. It was annoying."
Not a few people grumbled about the bothersome alert sound.
'...It's nearby.'
Eunha, staring blankly at the alert message on the screen, suddenly thought of the training center director she had just encountered.
Could something have happened?
Though such an old woman's worry arose.
Wheeeeen—
Emergency dispatch. Emergency dispatch.
We ask for the cooperation of drivers to ensure swift arrival at the destination and secure safety.
Along with the loudly blaring sirens, police cars, fire trucks, and ambulances could be seen speeding down the road.
"..."
Eunha, who had been standing frozen in place, shoved her phone deep into her pocket.
Hunters would arrive soon anyway.
The gate auction would have already started, and many guilds would be vying for the winning bid.
There are many hunters heading there.
—Even if it's not me.
In her pocket, the silenced phone vibrated.
Eunha, ultimately ignoring the vibration, gripped the pendant.
And that night.
Beep beep beep—
The door closed with the sound of the door lock.
Returning home, Eunha, without taking off her shoes, leaned her back against the cold front door.
"..."
And she slowly clasped the pendant around her neck.
Even with the tracking skill, she ultimately couldn't find Yijun.
[Cast Spell 'Location Track' Detected]
[You have requested 'Location Track'. Activate Relic 'Black Rose Pendant'?]
[Location Track Failed.]
[No suitable target found. Retry 'Location Track'?]
[Loading]
[Location Track Failed.]
Continued failures.
Was it a simple error?
Perhaps Yijun possessed a special skill or trait that countered tracking.
In any case, Eunha, having failed to track Yijun, had no choice but to return home without being able to ask him anything.
Eunha slowly took off her shoes and entered the hallway.
The feel of the cold marble floor on her bare feet was vivid.
In the dark living room, Eunha, fumbling along the hard wall, stood in the living room and then, naturally, parted her lips.
"Hyuji."
In the unchanging silence, Eunha belatedly realized.
That's right. Hyuji is gone now.
The days spent with Hyuji were less than a week.
But it seemed it would take longer than that to soothe the emptiness left by Hyuji's absence.
Judging by the fact that she still wasn't used to it even after two days.
Warmth was originally like that.
Once it stayed and left, it inevitably made one feel an even greater chill.
Eunha, placing her academy bag on the dining table, reached for the remote control placed beside the sofa.
And she familiarly turned on the TV.
Even if she didn't sit in front of it and watch TV.
It was a habit she had developed while living alone after her mother passed away.
[Next news. The rainy season is said to begin in earnest from this Friday, starting in Jeju Island.]
The TV light reflected on the cold marble floor.
The suffocating silence that had enveloped the entire house finally seemed to loosen a little.
[Especially in areas near the South Coast, strong typhoons accompanied by gusts, thunder, and lightning are expected as rain clouds develop high due to atmospheric instability. Regarding the unrecorded October rainy season news, a Korea Meteorological Administration official──.]
Letting the announcer's voice fade, Eunha, who had walked over to the refrigerator, took out a can of beer from there.
Pssh—
And she immediately downed half of it on the spot.
As the beer, cold enough to give her chills, flowed down her throat, her stuffy and complicated mind seemed to clear up a little.
[Around 4:32 PM today, a rift occurred near ○○ High School in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul.]
"..."
Eunha, sipping her beer near the refrigerator, glanced towards the TV.
The gate mentioned in the news was the very same gate she had heard about through the phone alert today.
[The Korean Hunter Association Gate Management Center has classified the said rift as B+ grade.]
['Pegasus', which participated in the gate auction, was found to have attempted to manipulate the winning bid, drawing criticism from other guilds and the public.]
[While hunters' deployment was delayed due to the bidding issue, there was reportedly a brave citizen who jumped into the rift. This is reporter Hwang Gyujin.]
Bid manipulation?
Did such things happen?
In Eunha's time, there was no such thing as a gate auction, so it was quite unfamiliar.
Eunha, as if drawn, approached the sofa and fixed her gaze on the TV screen.
[About 500 people, including faculty and students, evacuated urgently, but Kim XX (18), who was studying for an exam in the 3rd-floor library, which was the epicenter of the rift, was helplessly caught in the rift.]
[With the gate appearance imminent, the school grounds and campus were engulfed in flames. Appearing before the terrified Kim XX was—.]
Eunha's hand, which had been unconsciously bringing the beer can to her lips, stopped abruptly in mid-air.
[A retired hunter, Mr. Kyun, who served as the director of a hunter training center 30 years ago.]
