HIF 67

Just One Thing

Min Joo-hyuk’s expression was brazen, as if nothing were wrong. He had undoubtedly recovered completely now.

Feeling the heavy weight pressing down on my thigh, I briefly considered slipping away, but since it was true that Min Joo-hyuk had been unwell until just now, I decided to let it slide.

I covered Min Joo-hyuk’s eyes with my hand as he looked up at me, blinking. I remembered that everyone used to do this for me whenever I couldn’t fall asleep. I could see the corners of Min Joo-hyuk’s mouth curving into an arc.

“I told you yesterday that I got a feel for how to use Defense magic.”

“Yeah. You did.”

“I had to consider various scenarios because I needed to explain it clearly to the older brothers as well.”

“Because you all decided to be mindful of defending, not just you?”

“Exactly. So I tested which parts of the shield needed more Mana infused, how much more Mana was required in those cases, and organized it according to the situation.”

I looked down at Min Joo-hyuk quietly. He was sincere when he said he would avoid making mistakes in the future. But he had lied when he said he would do it without overexerting himself.

“Did you use your Mana until it was nearly depleted just to do that all night?”

“Not quite to the point of depletion.”

Min Joo-hyuk wrapped his hand around my wrist and pulled my hand away from his eyes.

“Anyway, thanks.”

Meeting my eyes with a grin, Min Joo-hyuk suddenly bolted upright. As the weight that had been touching me vanished, I felt strangely empty. Is the void left by someone’s departure always this distinct?

◇

After breakfast, I left the lodging and headed into the village.

Min Joo-hyuk said he needed time for his Mana to recover to some extent, so I told him to rest at the lodging. The others told me that since they weren’t seriously fighting Monsters today but were just surveying the surroundings, I didn’t need to join them.

‘Actually, if they’re moving around a lot, it’s better if I don’t go.’

Whether using Teleport or moving on foot, I would surely be a hindrance. If they were just looking around, there shouldn’t be much danger unless an unexpected situation occurred.

I walked through the quaint village. The sounds of footsteps and the hum of people were melted into the hot summer air. There was a scent of earthen dust. Here and there, shops could be seen along the street.

‘How should I ask?’

I had set out confidently, but I had never gone outside while I was at the Temple, and even after leaving the Temple, I hadn’t met anyone other than the four people I was currently staying with. This was my first time being on the street alone.

I realized anew how kindly they had looked at me while we spent time together. Overwhelmed by the piercing gazes that seemed to prick at me, I opened the door of a nearby shop as if escaping.

Tinkle.

The sound of a small bell attached to the door snapped me back to my senses.

I had entered a small shop. Light brown wooden shelves lined the walls. On the shelves, glass bottles containing colorful, round objects were lined up.

Opposite me, a middle-aged woman with her hair tied up in a bun sat in a wooden armchair. She had stopped her movements and was staring at me with wide eyes.

Is she the shop owner? But why… that expression? Did I enter the wrong place? Should I leave? As I met her gaze with wavering eyes, a bustling voice soon reached me.

“Oh my, what brings the Hero here? The village is so small that news of your arrival has already spread. Do you need something? But why do you look so pale? Potions are in the building next door. No, don’t just stand there, come inside first. Sit right here. You, come out here for a second.”

Before I knew it, another large armchair had appeared beside her. She stood up and gestured to me while turning her head toward a room at the back of the shop to call someone.

Uh… what is happening? I was bewildered. As I stood blankly at the door, she seemed to be approaching me.

No, there was no need for her to go through that trouble. I quickly moved and perched on the chair. As I sat, the chair rocked slightly back and forth. It seemed to be because the bottom of the chair was rounded.

“Ah, hello.”

My voice came out trembling. It was my first time hearing so many words spoken so quickly all at once. I couldn’t even process everything she had said.

Get a grip. I had something to ask. However, someone coming out of the back room was faster than me opening my mouth. He, too, looked surprised upon seeing me.

“The Hero is younger than I thought.”

“Oh, honestly. Is that how you speak to someone you’re meeting for the first time?”

“I only thought it, but I really did. I wonder if he’s even reached adulthood.”

“Uh, no…”

First of all, I wasn’t the Hero, but since they didn’t give me a chance to explain, I had no choice but to let it pass. The ‘Hero’ they were talking about was probably Park Yul, the Chosen Warrior, right? Park Yul probably wasn’t even an adult when he was first chosen as the Hero.

But is there no process of announcing it to everyone after a Hero is chosen? These people didn’t seem indifferent to the Hero, yet they seemed to know very little.

‘Come to think of it, I’m the same.’

I had lived in the Temple, yet I hadn’t even known that a being called a Hero existed. Why isn’t it announced on a large scale? Isn’t it something worth letting people know? While I was deep in thought, a sighing voice sounded from the front.

“Oh dear, what to do…”

The two of them were looking at each other. They seemed to be acting this way because they thought I was young, but one shouldn’t dismiss someone just because they aren’t an adult. I quickly spoke up during the silence between them.

“Um, there’s something I want to ask.”

“Of course. I’ll tell you anything I can answer.”

“Yes. What are you curi… oh, look at me.”

She handed me a glass. There was a square piece of ice inside, and it was filled to the brim with a drink that looked as if it would overflow.

“Go ahead. You look a bit pale because of the heat.”

Actually, I was a bit dizzy. Not because of the heat, but because of this situation. For every one word I spoke, two came back. It was my first time having adults treat me like this. Though I had never met adults other than the Priests.

“So, what are you curious about?”

“Is there perhaps a place here where I can offer a prayer to god?”

“No, there’s no one here who believes in god. There isn’t a building for prayer, but if you go around up there, there’s a bell tower.”

“That’s right, you should try going there. Aren’t you curious why the valley over there is called Cloud-Flowing Valley?”

As I nodded quickly, she continued with a benevolent smile.

“You’ll know once you go up there. It’s something that hits you right in the eye when you see it yourself.”

“Thank you for letting me know.”

I had somewhat expected that there wouldn’t be a place to converse with god. It was a shame, but there was no other way.

“But why is there a bell tower? Do they ring the bell?”

“The bell rings on its own when the day ends. At midnight.”

Was that so? I don’t think I heard it last night. As I thought about it silently, he looked at my face, smiled, and spoke.

“You must have gone to sleep early. You can’t hear it once you’ve fallen asleep. It’s a bell sound that can only be heard if you’re awake.”

It must be a bell that rings via some kind of magic. Then again, it would be difficult if a bell rang while one was sleeping.

Just as I was about to stand up, he quickly added.

“You’ve gone through a lot of trouble coming all the way here.”

“Right, coming all the way into these mountains. I was actually worried that something might happen since I heard the valley side was blocked off. Oh, you. Put some more snacks in there.”

What snacks? Looking back, something was being stacked neatly inside a paper bag so large it would take both arms to hug.

“T-that’s, it’s okay… Thank you. I’ll be going now. Goodbye.”

I stood up hurriedly. I bowed my head and walked toward the door, but a paper bag was floating right in front of me.

“At least take this. There’s nothing else I can give you.”

“We only have children’s snacks here. I don’t know if it’ll suit your taste, but please take it.”

“Or, if you have nothing urgent, stay a bit longer.”

“No. …It’s really okay.”

I was flustered because I had never imagined a situation like this. The paper bag floating before my eyes looked too heavy. It didn’t seem to be the weight of the objects, but some other kind of weight. Perhaps the weight of a burden.

“Oh my, how virtuous. He won’t accept anything.”

“Then just pick one thing and take it, Hero. That much is okay, right?”

“……Thank you.”

Unless I took at least one thing, this conversation would surely not end. I reached my hand deep into the paper bag. Pulling out a thin, smooth stick that caught my fingertips, I turned around and quickly bowed.

I thought I heard a warm voice saying, ‘Get home safely.’

Tinkle.

I closed the door and stepped out, slowly catching my breath. The peaceful streets of the village were visible. Nothing had changed from before; it was still the same.

The blue morning energy in the sky had vanished, and yellow sunlight had settled in. It felt as if I had entered and returned from another world. Time had passed in an instant.

‘So this is what the world is like.’

My heart felt strange. If the world is like this… perhaps that is why Park Yul, Song Ha-gyun, Raen, and Min Joo-hyuk are doing their best to save the world, even at the cost of such sacrifice.

They were warm people. It was a warm world. My perspective had been narrow. I thought the Temple was the entire world. Because the people there and the life there were my whole world.

But it wasn’t. The world was this wide, and even a short encounter and a short amount of time were this warm. If the people of the world were all as kind as they are, it would surely be hard to turn away from such a world.

Only now did I feel I could slightly understand why they were trying so hard to save the world.

‘Ah, right. What did I pick?’

What I held in my hand was a large, flat lollipop of brilliant rainbow colors. Hmm… good. I’ll eat this slowly later. As I carefully tucked it into my clothes, although it was just the light weight of a single candy, it felt strangely heavy.

I walked toward the large bell tower rising at the far end of the village. Since not much time had passed since I came out, I thought it would be fine to go up the bell tower and then return.

‘I arrived at the bell tower really quickly.’

Even though it was in a secluded spot furthest from the village entrance, perhaps because it was such a small village, it took only a moment on foot. There were no people or buildings around.

Reddish-brown bricks were stacked high, and an arched open space was visible at the top. The peak of the roof rose sharply, painted white.

‘Can I climb up there?’

It was higher than I thought. Considering my stamina, it didn’t seem easy, but I didn’t want to give up. I stepped boldly into the entrance at the bottom.

Perhaps because it was enclosed on all sides, the interior felt a bit cool despite it being summer. It had the characteristic scent of an old building. I climbed the spiral stairs leading inside. And when I stepped on the final stair.

“Wow.”

A hot summer breeze blew in. A silver bell larger than my body hung from the center of the ceiling. It wasn’t shining, but it looked quite pristine, without a single speck of rust. When I brushed the surface with my fingertips, I felt the rough texture of metal.

I went to the open wall and knelt down, and the height was just right to see outside. The sky, warmly dyed in yellow sunlight, felt as if it were right in front of me.

‘So why is it called Cloud-Flowing Valley?’

As I pondered that and shifted my gaze to the distance, I suddenly felt my consciousness fading.

Wait, this was familiar. I quickly turned my body and leaned properly against the wall. Simultaneously, my consciousness was sucked into a deep place.

Whoosh.

Hazy mist. A pale sunset. The back of a figure with brown hair fluttering in the wind. I couldn’t see clearly, perhaps because of the mist.

In front of him, standing straight, a vivid Azure Light burst forth. At the same time, I thought I heard a chilling sound—thwack. My knees buckled.

Flash.

I came to my senses.

A Status Window was floating before my eyes. And someone was shaking my body slightly. A youthful voice was heard right next to me.

“…Hero, Hero! Wake up!”

Blood was pouring from my mouth. What on earth is happening right now?