Chapter 36

I Am Not a Reincarnator Chapter 36

Paradise (3)

“Grunn.”

The next morning.

Haeun, who had rarely gotten up early, stretched her body.

“...”

Since Oh Jin had left early in the morning with Vega for training, an awkward silence had settled in the small room.

“I should take a bath and get ready.”

It had been a really long time.

Today was the day she had something to do outside.

-Whoosh!

“Gah! It’s so cold!!”

She poured water from a bucket over her body.

Since the hot water didn’t come out well, an unbelievable chill enveloped her body.

‘When I live alone later, I must find a place where at least the hot water works properly.’

Shivering, she picked up a towel.

After drying herself completely, she took out her prosthetic leg from the drawer under the bed.

“Oof.”

A groan escaped her lips as the hard material pressed against her knee.

It was a cheap prosthetic, so the feel wasn’t good at all.

‘Card and ID...’

She rummaged through the drawer, where items hadn’t been touched for a long time.

She had to distinguish things by touch, so it wasn’t easy to find them.

After a few more minutes of searching, she finally found the card and ID.

‘Clothes... I hope there’s nothing strange, right?’

She fumbled into a hoodie and jeans.

She could put on clothes, but she couldn’t check the details or the color combinations.

She worried that she might have put on an absurd combination and pulled at her clothes unnecessarily.

“Sigh.”

Would this fuss make the unseen visible?

She stopped pulling at her clothes and put on a coat.

Finally, she took out a pair of sneakers from the shoe rack and put them on her left foot and prosthetic leg.

-Click.

She grabbed the cane from the shoe rack and went outside.

“Haa.”

The cold air of December hit her.

“...Let’s go.”

Muttering to herself, she extended her cane forward.

Tap, tap, tap.

She walked, using the tip of the cane to check the path ahead.

Despite being blind, she could find her way easily because of her heightened senses as an awakened person.

“Hehe, I can do this on my own, no problem!”

For the past five years, Oh Jin had always accompanied her whenever she went out, so this was the first time she had gone far alone.

She was a bit nervous at first, but it didn’t last long.

The sounds, the touch, and even the faint smells that tickled her nose.

With her superhuman senses, she could map out her surroundings in her mind, making it feel natural to walk even though she couldn’t see.

“Hehe! Did you see that, you bastard?”

She strutted forward, putting on a show of bravado, though she didn’t know who it was for.

Maybe she was too confident.

-Crunch.

“Aah!”

Her face collided with a tree branch that had sprouted from the side flower bed.

She couldn’t detect it with her cane, so she hit her head squarely.

“Tch.”

She rubbed her nose and walked more aggressively.

-Clang!

After all that trouble, she arrived at the bank.

Following the staff’s guidance, Haeun sat down and took out her card and ID from her pocket.

“You want to cancel all your savings and fixed deposits?”

“Yes.”

For the past five years, or more accurately, since the Gate incident began eight years ago, this was the account where she had saved the money she earned as an awakened person for three years.

It was her last ‘lifeline’ that she hadn’t even told Oh Jin about.

“Um, how much is in there?”

She asked in a tense voice.

Grip.

Her hand was sweating inside the clenched fist.

“The total, including interest over the past five years, is 321,754,821 won.”

“...”

321 million won.

It wasn’t a small amount.

It wasn’t a small amount, but...

“A, yes...”

It was far from enough to buy the Dragon Eye.

A shadow fell over Haeun’s face.

She knew.

She knew that even if she had saved a little, it wouldn’t have grown much.

But...

“Customer? Is something wrong?”

“No... No, it’s 321 million.”

Haha.

Haeun forced a laugh.

321 million.

Her desperate ‘lifeline’.

The hope was so thin and transparent that it seemed it would never be within reach.

“...Haha.”

It was indeed a very small amount for someone who had been an awakened person for three years.

But what could she do?

‘When the Gate incident first happened, I didn’t earn much.’

Back then, she fought monsters purely for survival, not for money.

It was only after two years that she started selling the holy oil stones she extracted from them for a proper price.

Of course, as a 7th-class awakened person, she had earned a lot of money during that one year.

‘Most of it went to medical bills.’

Her condition had been so bad that she could have died at any moment, so the medical bills were high.

“Should I put it all in your account?”

“...Yes. Please do that.”

Haeun nodded weakly and stood up.

Tap, tap, tap.

She walked back home with her cane.

‘321 million... 321 million.’

It was far from enough to buy the Dragon Eye, but...

“Hehe. Is that brat still eating calorie bars all the time?”

—Before they broke up.

It was enough to create one last memory.

Bang! Crash!

“Hm?”

As she got closer to home, a loud noise reached her ears.

“What is it?”

She tilted her head in confusion.

Thud, thud, thud!!

The ground seemed to shake with footsteps, and someone grabbed her shoulder tightly.

“What, what is it?”

“Haa, haa!”

Rough breathing.

“Where did you go without telling anyone?!”

Oh Jin’s urgent voice rang out.

“Hehehe! What, were you looking for me?”

“No, this isn’t the time to laugh...”

“Oh Jin.”

Interrupting him.

She smiled brightly.

“Do you want to go on a date with me?”

“...What?”

* * *

How long had it been since they went out together?

“Why this sudden change?”

Oh Jin gently held Haeun’s arm and asked.

A date?

It was an incredibly unexpected turn of events.

“Hehe. I feel sorry for you always wearing old clothes and eating calorie bars.”

“How do you know I wear old clothes?”

“It’s obvious, brat. How old are the clothes you’re wearing now?”

“That’s...”

She didn’t know.

It wasn’t that she couldn’t remember; she had secretly taken them from a donation bin, so she had no way of knowing how old they were.

“Got nothing to say, huh?”

“Grr.”

A groan escaped her lips.

“...But you look pretty clean.”

“Shut up and follow me.”

Cutting off his weak excuse, Haeun pulled his arm.

She walked forward confidently.

“...Which way is the department store?”

“Good job.”

She chuckled.

They laughed together as they headed to the department store.

“Excuse me~!”

“Yes~ Customer!”

“Please pick out five sets of clothes that would suit him.”

“Understood!”

The staff member’s eyes sparkled as she ran off.

“No, why are you asking the staff? I’ll pick them out.”

“You’d just choose the cheapest ones, brat.”

Correct, alchemist!

“And why do you need five sets? Just wear them in rotation...”

“Aah~ I can’t hear you~”

“No.”

Why is this girl acting like this?

“Hmm, sir, you look so good that anything would suit you! This brand and this one...”

The excited staff member recommended various clothes to Oh Jin.

“Which one does your girlfriend like?”

“...”

The word ‘girlfriend’ made Haeun’s lips curl up.

She tapped her cane on the floor and trailed off.

“My eyes aren’t very good...”

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“No, just give me everything you recommended.”

“Wait, I’ll pick...”

“Ignore this guy.”

Haeun pushed Oh Jin back and smiled.

“It will be 3,720,000 won in total~!”

“Here.”

“What?!”

Oh Jin grabbed Haeun’s arm as she took out her card, looking shocked.

“Are you crazy, sis?”

How could clothes cost over 30 million won?

Even if it was ten sets, this was crossing the line.

No, more importantly.

“Where did you get the money...”

“Hehe. The deposit I put in today has matured. I got a good interest, so I’m buying it for you.”

“...”

Oh Jin’s face contorted.

“I don’t need such expensive things.”

“But I’m buying it for you.”

“I don’t need you to buy it.”

“Hey, just wear it, brat!”

Haeun insisted, pushing forward.

She refused a few more times, but she ended up accepting the clothes because Haeun acted like a three-year-old throwing a tantrum.

“Hehehe! Go try one on. Throw away what you’re wearing now!”

“...Haa.”

Oh Jin sighed deeply and changed in the fitting room.

“Wow...”

When he came out, the staff member let out a faint exclamation.

The change in clothes made him look like a completely different person.

“Are you done?”

“Mm.”

“Hehe, let’s go then!”

Haeun grabbed his arm and dragged him somewhere.

She toured the department store, giving him gifts as she thought of them.

“...Sis.”

Oh Jin asked in a low voice.

“Why are you doing this?”

“Hehe. You’ve suffered a lot because of me over the past five years, right?”

“That’s...”

“Today.”

Grip.

She tightened her grip on his arm and lowered her head.

“Today, just follow me wherever I go.”

“...”

Her voice trembled.

“Sigh.”

Oh Jin sighed.

“You might regret this later?”

“Hehe! I have a lot of money, sis!”

Haeun giggled and shrugged.

“Next...”

She snapped her fingers after a moment of thought.

“Shall we go eat?”

“Sure.”

He was hungry anyway, having only eaten a calorie bar in the morning.

“Where do you want to go? Burger King? Or McDonald’s?”

“...Why are those the only options?”

Haeun clicked her tongue.

“Hehe! Just follow me, brat. Let’s try some beef today.”

“Beef?”

Oh Jin’s legs trembled violently.

Beef was a crazy expensive food that easily cost over 100,000 won for two people.

“Beef... really?”

“Yeah, come on!”

Haeun dragged the dazed Oh Jin.

Of course.

She ended up having to lead him from the middle.

“...We’re here.”

“Wow, the smell is amazing.”

As soon as they reached the entrance of the restaurant, a mouthwatering smell filled the air.

Swallow.

Haeun licked her lips, trying to stop the saliva from flowing.

“Let’s go...”

As she was about to say, “Let’s go in,”

‘...What’s this smell?’

Then.

A briny sea smell filled her nostrils.

“...What’s the next-door store selling?”

“Hm? Wait... Oh, it’s a crab specialty store.”

“Crab...?”

Haeun’s mind raced.

The calculation was quick.

“Cough, cough!”

She cleared her throat and dragged Oh Jin.

“Oh, I don’t feel like beef today~”

“You were drooling just a moment ago.”

“No, no!! I want to eat crab today!!”

“Huh?”

Oh Jin tilted his head.

“You don’t like seafood, right?”

She hadn’t eaten much seafood, but she always disliked it.

Even shrimp, which most people liked, she hated. Why would she want to eat seafood?

“Crab is different!!”

“But you hate all crustaceans...”

“Anyway!”

Haeun dragged Oh Jin to the crab restaurant.

“Excuse me~ I’ll order!”

Haeun ordered two boiled crabs.

Steam rose from the red shells.

“Ugh...”

The sea smell from the boiled crabs made Haeun’s face contort.

But only for a moment.

“A~ This is so hard to eat~ Crabs are really difficult to eat.”

After a few attempts to crack the crab, she put down her chopsticks in a theatrical tone.

“...”

The intention was too obvious, so she didn’t even want to play along.

“Here, let me pick the meat for you.”

“A, really? Hehehe! No need to go through the trouble~”

Smiling widely, Haeun leaned in closer.

“Aaah.”

Like a baby bird waiting for food, she opened her mouth.

She couldn’t help but laugh.

“Here.”

“Mmm.”

She picked the crab meat and fed it to her.

“Hehehe. It’s delicious.”

A slightly dazed laugh escaped Haeun’s lips.

“Eat more.”

“Hehe. Don’t just give it to me, eat some too, brat.”

“Sure, sure.”

After a somewhat long meal,

“I’ll go get some coffee.”

“Here, take the card━”

“Let me buy the coffee, sis.”

I’ve been receiving all day, so it feels bad.

“Hmm. Fine. I’ll allow it.”

Haeun straightened her back and said arrogantly.

Puff!

She couldn’t hold back her laughter.

“Hey, what? Are you complaining?”

“Puff! No. I’ll be right back. Stay here.”

Oh Jin turned and walked to the counter.

“...”

Haeun sat in the cafe chair and smiled softly.

She opened her eyes slightly and looked around.

The world was still dark, but

it wasn’t cold.

‘Where should we go next~’

As she swung her legs, lost in thought,

“Excuse me, is that Oh Jin...?”

“Yes, it’s me. Why?”

“Squeal! How! It’s Brain! Brain!”

“Really? Wow, amazing! I was at Seoul Station back then!”

“Did you come here alone?”

The excited voices of two women reached her ears.

“...Damn bitches?”

Haeun’s face contorted.