Chapter 67

< Dialogue >

“No, you-.”

Suddenly, I was pulled into a tight embrace from behind. Strong arms squeezed me so hard it hurt. No, it really hurts.

“It hurts, let go a little!”

I understand you’re surprised, but this is too much.

“Ugh, hey!”

My body was lifted and slung over Yuhyeon’s shoulder. I tried to resist, but it was useless, as expected.

“Yuhyeon! Peace!”

Even if it’s my younger brother, Peace is just watching me. He’s following with a frown, but he looks really handsome. Even though he’s not fully grown, his long legs, flowing mane, and tail make him look very impressive. His unicorn horn is more sparkling and his fangs are sharper.

It’s a heartwarming sight, but...

“Put me down! I know I worried you, but talk to me, talk to me!”

“...What more is there to say here.”

His voice, strained with suppressed anger, answered.

*Growl!*

Peace chimes in? ...I’m glad they’ve become close while I was gone, but Peace, I’m being forcibly dragged away. Even though it’s my younger brother, this is still kidnapping. Where are we going? It seems to be towards the beach.

“Yuhyeon, I’ll explain everything. Calm down and let’s talk.”

“Shut up before I cover your mouth!”

A hysterical shout followed by the sound of grinding teeth.

I’m flustered.

I know you must have been shocked by my sudden disappearance. I would have been terrified too. But to refuse to listen to any explanation...

...You’re not really going to cover my mouth, are you?

“Just listen this one time. The truth is, I-.”

“Bro, do you really want to see me go crazy?”

You’re already not normal, but...

“That’s enough!”

“What...”

“Let’s just pretend you died outside the dungeon. I can’t control a living brother. There’s too much at stake for me to handle it myself. My reputation will hit rock bottom if I can’t protect a companion in a D-grade dungeon.”

“...It’s not just rock bottom; people will start to suspect me too.”

It’s not believable for a three-year S-grade combat hunter to lose a companion in a D-grade dungeon. Even as a joke, it’s not funny.

“What about the aftermath? You’ve got a lot on your plate.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

The guild leader said irresponsibly. Just like him to abandon everything and even his life. Did I raise him wrong?

At least he’s calmer now, so I should try to soothe him.

“It doesn’t matter? If you mess up, MKC could collapse, which is a bigger problem than kidnapping.”

“You don’t need to worry. I’ve prepared to reduce suspicion.”

Prepared? What... the monster?

“To be sure, it would be better to cut off an arm or a leg, but I can’t do that. At least there should be some blood or flesh. The sea luthum can’t swallow a person whole, so it tears them with its beak.”

Yuhyeon explained calmly. I don’t want to agree that my brother is crazy, but at least he won’t cut off my limbs, so he’s not completely insane.

I took a step back, hugging Peace’s neck. Peace also seemed to sense the tense atmosphere and was slightly on edge.

“Don’t even think about touching my body.”

“Sorry. I have painkillers, so it won’t hurt. I can recover with a high-level potion.”

“Sorry? Then don’t do it! I said I’ll explain. Besides, do you only care if my body is safe? I won’t be grateful for forced protection. We were just starting to get along, and now you want to go back to barely speaking for the rest of our lives?”

“You never intended to accept me anyway.”

“...What?”

What is he talking about?

“I was foolish to hope. Or maybe I was shameless. You just wanted to establish a foundation quickly and safely.”

“I don’t understand what you’re saying.”

“Don’t pretend. You’ve been hiding everything from the start. The Beast Tamer skill, did you really get it at level 10? It was strange how you readily agreed to raise the Flame Unicorn when you saw it. The feeding costs are astronomical, and even if you said it wasn’t a burden to you, you’re not the type to accept it without hesitation.”

That’s true. No matter how cute and lovable, you wouldn’t suddenly decide to raise a pet that costs ten million won per meal. Especially when I was just an ordinary citizen who had just awakened as an F-grade hunter. I should have immediately said, “No, I can’t raise it.”

Yuhyeon’s gaze grew even colder as I couldn’t respond.

“What did you honestly tell me? You weren’t even surprised when you disappeared today. I tried to hide my skills, but it’s common for hunters to keep some secrets, even from family.

But today, something I couldn’t even understand or control.”

Yuhyeon looked away. I reflexively followed his gaze.

The forest was destroyed beyond recognition.

“...I couldn’t bear it.”

The excuse that I would explain everything rolled around on my tongue. I need to say something.

“Is there anything else you find suspicious?”

“...I don’t know. From the moment you said you loved me, it’s been strange. At first, I was just excited and happy. But when you suddenly said you were sorry, it was odd. I tried to ignore it and pretend everything was fine. It felt like things were back to normal, so...”

“Yuhyeon.”

“You seemed like the old you before we had a falling out, but also like a completely different person. I don’t know.”

Family is family, even after years of estrangement. I didn’t realize Yuhyeon felt such a strong sense of alienation. I thought if I apologized and helped in various ways, it would be enough.

I was wrong.

“I’ve hidden a lot. As you guessed, I planned to raise Peace from the start. The skill to awaken him is correct, but it’s not just awakening; it’s optimization. Yelim’s original awakening stat grade was A~S. The probability of becoming A was higher, but I made her S-grade.”

I took a deep breath and continued.

“I’ve secretly entered the dungeon. Piyak was brought from there. I have an A-grade stealth skill, and some skills can be shared. I also have poison, curse, and fear resistance.”

“...I know about the poison.”

“You do?”

“Hunter Park Yelim read the memories of a Bricks D-grade hunter. It was strange that the Guardian’s Fruit item didn’t work despite the lack of antidote items.”

“By the way, it’s L-grade.”

“The painkillers won’t work.”

“I can suppress skills.”

“...Resistance skill?”

“Yes. Passive skills can’t be turned off twice in a row. It’s rare to need to turn them off, though.”

“You tried when you were drunk.”

You’re a sharp one. It was wrong of me to try to hide things from you.

“I also have a skill that doubles dungeon rewards and attack skill effects. It’s not very useful to me. My stats are still F, and I have no attack skills.”

“...Bro, your status window is really unique.”

“Yeah, I know. Even if I told you honestly, it would be hard to believe.”

A hollow laugh escaped me. Yuhyeon’s lips twitched slightly.

“Skill sharing is only possible during contact. The cooldown is 15 days.”

I left out the last revenge and Rauchitas’ nemesis, which are hard to explain. I also wanted to reveal the regression, but...

[•⌒• >>∞<< •=• ☞ •≠•]

A message appeared telling me to shut up. Don’t say the infinity symbol. It must mean regression. If I say that, too much system-related information will be revealed.

“And the reason I disappeared earlier is related to the system creator.”

“The system creator?”

Yuhyeon looked shocked. His face finally relaxed a bit.

“I ended up helping the system creator. I can’t tell you the details, but I asked them to send a message to you. It’s the system’s voice. Please send it now.”

Yuhyeon’s gaze shifted to the empty space in front of him. A message window must have appeared. He looked very surprised.

“S...So, there really is a creator?”

“Yes. It’s more strange that it appeared naturally, right?”

“That’s true, but...”

“I’m only telling you this with your permission. It’s a secret from others. You must never tell anyone.”

There was a moment of silence. Yuhyeon’s expression brightened.

“Are your skills also related to the system?”

“Not exactly. I can’t give you the details, but they’re not in a normal state.”

“...Yeah. But why you? Isn’t it dangerous?”

“It’s not dangerous. It’s like what I’m already doing.”

Just gathering S-grade hunters. You were the most dangerous, brother.

I suddenly remembered the drop’s warning to be careful of high-level awakeners. Kindness can turn into violence, indeed.

“Ask me anything else you’re curious about. Don’t keep it inside.”

After a short silence, a deflated voice answered.

“...I’m sorry. I complained that you didn’t trust me, but it was the opposite.”

“No, I would have been out of my mind too if I were you. I’ve hidden a lot. I’m sorry to you too, Peace. You must have been scared. I didn’t expect to take you away so suddenly.”

*Growl*

Peace, who alternated between looking at me and Yuhyeon, suddenly shrank. No, he became younger. Not just in size, but in appearance.

[2nd-Class Unicorn Subspecies ? Flame Unicorn (Youth) Peace

Current Stat Grade C]

His status window also showed him as a youth, and his grade reverted to C.

“Peace, you...”

*Neigh!*

He scratched my leg with his front hooves, asking to be picked up. Damn, you...

“You grew to adult form but stayed as a youth on purpose?”

*Grrr*

Why are you making an innocent face like you don’t know anything? When I picked him up, he wagged his tail.

“When did you grow?”

“After you disappeared and a little while later.”

So he didn’t grow by killing monsters. Did he really stay small on purpose? Since when?

I opened Peace’s inner child skill status window out of curiosity.

[Time to Adult Transformation (71:22)]

71 hours?! I was sure there were over a hundred hours left. I stared at it for over a minute, but the time didn’t decrease. So it must have been the same before, and maybe it’s due to training. I often played with Peace after the skill was applied.

I need to check when we get home.

“Is there a problem?”

“No. But why didn’t Peace grow up until now? Did you get a related skill?”

“I don’t know about a skill, but if you grow up, you can’t be hugged. You said you like being hugged.”

Just for that?

“Still, Peace, show me when you become an adult.”

*Neigh*

If the training effect is real, you might grow up before the inner child skill cooldown ends. I’m already a bit sad.

I petted Peace and looked at my brother. When our eyes met, he looked embarrassed. Sigh, yeah. It’s my fault. Thinking about how worried he must have been makes me feel guilty.

“I want to tell you that the person I trust the most in the world is you, Yuhyeon. Even if you put my life in danger, I would think there’s a reason. That won’t change in the future.”

It won’t change unless someone else dies and regresses in my place.

“So don’t worry or hesitate. You can interfere, but not too much. I’ll get angry if it’s excessive. Imprisonment is also not allowed. It’s not okay.”

“...Bro.”

Yuhyeon came over and hugged me. Peace, feeling cramped, made a small whining sound.

“Tell me if you need help. Don’t overdo it.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t overdo it.”

As long as I only do what the system asks. I shouldn’t take on more tasks.

< Dialogue > End

ⓒ Geunseo