HIF 70

It won’t be easy.

“Let’s head out. Please show me the map one more time.”

As Min Joo-hyuk’s urgent voice rang out, a white map materialized in the air before him.

The red glow of the sunset flickered behind Min Joo-hyuk’s back. He clenched his fist over his heart, which was beating as if it might explode, and sprang to his feet.

‘I can’t stop Min Joo-hyuk recklessly.’

If Min Joo-hyuk didn’t go now, the others might be in danger. If there had been someone beside Min Joo-hyuk in the Future Sight, then that person would surely be hurt if he didn’t go.

‘Then it’s better if I go with him.’

Since I have at least a vague understanding of the situation, I just need to keep an eye on things by his side. When the Azure Light flashes, I can push Min Joo-hyuk to safety. This time, I will make sure no one gets hurt.

I quickly reached out and grabbed Min Joo-hyuk’s arm. His firm forearm felt solid in my grip. Min Joo-hyuk seemed about to depart after confirming the coordinates on the map, but then he turned his head toward me. I met his gaze and spoke in a determined voice.

“I’m coming too.”

“No.”

However, Min Joo-hyuk was just as resolute as I was. He brushed my hand away without a moment’s hesitation, almost coldly. I looked at him with desperate eyes. Min Joo-hyuk spoke once more in a low, emphasizing tone.

“I can’t because I’m low on Mana right now. Stay here. If the older brothers arrive before me, let me know immediately.”

Was he just saying it when he said he had fully recovered earlier? If so, it might actually be better to stop him from going. Amidst my swirling, dizzying thoughts, I heard the calm voice of the village representative.

“You are the Priest. Are you completely unable to use magic?”

When I nodded, the village representative thought for a moment and then slowly extended his hand toward me.

“I will use teleportation magic for the Priest. Please come with me.”

“Ah, thank you—”

“No. This friend will stay here.”

Min Joo-hyuk slapped away the village representative’s hand and pushed my shoulder back. Min Joo-hyuk’s brown eyes, fixed steadily on mine, gleamed sharply in the pouring sunset light.

“Min Joo-hyuk. I’m not just being stubborn. You said it’s a dangerous area. It’s better if I go along, just in case something happens.”

“Don’t you think about yourself? I’m saying you can’t go because it’s a dangerous area.”

“Heroes, we don’t have time for this.”

“I’m asking you as well, Mr. Representative.”

As I stepped toward the village representative to grab his arm, Min Joo-hyuk snatched the collar of my clothes from behind and yanked me toward him.

Because I was pulled so suddenly, I lost my balance and leaned into Min Joo-hyuk as if being embraced, feeling his firm body against my back. I felt his hot hand grip my shoulder tightly.

“I’ll take him.”

“No, your Mana…”

Before I could finish my sentence, Min Joo-hyuk took a deep breath and continued calmly.

“I said that to tell you to stay here. If you’re coming, stay glued to my side, Seon Yi-han. The older brothers will come as soon as we get in touch.”

“Alright.”

I was relieved that he was taking me. As I thought that, Min Joo-hyuk leaned down and whispered quickly in a voice so low it was barely audible. His warm breath brushed hot against my ear.

“You don’t entrust your teleportation to just anyone, you idiot.”

Ah, I see.

Soon, Min Joo-hyuk and the village representative looked at each other and nodded, exchanging signals before departing.

Whoosh.

With a strong gust of wind, the scenery before my eyes changed. Seeing that the surroundings were filled with fog, it seemed to be a place close to a valley. The faint sunset covered the leaves, dulling their natural vibrant green.

Min Joo-hyuk and the village representative dashed forward immediately without a moment’s rest. I did my best to run beside them. My lungs felt like they were going to burst from the shortness of breath, but I was able to keep up without falling behind.

“At what point does it become dangerous?”

“We have to go a bit further.”

Neither of their voices wavered in the slightest. I was too preoccupied with my labored breathing to say a word. Besides, I didn’t have anything to add.

Actually, until we arrived here, I had been so nervous that my body was trembling. But since I was currently running to the point where my legs were shaking, I couldn’t think of anything. It felt as if my head was foggy because oxygen wasn’t reaching my brain properly.

Beside me, Min Joo-hyuk flicked his fingers, and a white light exploded high in the sky with a pop. I had seen Park Yul use this before. It was a signal used in emergencies. However, I wondered if it would be visible, given how wide the valley was and how thick the fog was.

I heard a grinding sound as Min Joo-hyuk clenched his teeth. When he reached his hand toward the sky once more, a blue light exploded a couple of times.

“There’s no return signal. It’s a relief if they’re just far away. But what if something happened…”

“Min Joo-hyuk. Huff, get a grip. For now, huff, let’s go. Let’s think once we get there.”

As I spoke while trying to catch my breath, I suddenly realized there were only two sets of footsteps running. One person’s footsteps had vanished.

“…Eh?”

A humming sound from behind overlapped with my voice. I quickly turned my head to see a blue veil had formed behind us. Min Joo-hyuk, who had been standing beside me, had already turned his body and was reaching his hand toward the veil.

Zap.

The light Min Joo-hyuk fired bounced off the shimmering blue veil. Through the veil, I could vaguely see the village representative standing outside.

“What are you doing?”

Min Joo-hyuk said in a cold voice, pulling me into his arm. The blue veil was shimmering, surrounding us over a wide area. The drifting thick fog was blocked by the blue veil, slowly gathering inward and obscuring our vision. Only the pale sunset was pouring through the veil.

Only the sound of the hot summer wind brushing against the leaves echoed quietly. I felt cold sweat dripping down my chin.

Because the situation had been unfolding so urgently, my thoughts seemed to have stopped and wouldn’t connect. I reached out and placed my hand on the blue veil, but it was firmly blocked.

‘Is this Barrier Magic?’

I remembered what Song Ha-gyun had mentioned. Magic that cannot be passed through from either the inside or the outside. But why now…?

The village representative was standing about two steps away behind the barrier. Because of the shimmering veil, I couldn’t see what kind of expression he had. A muffled voice, blocked by the barrier, reached me.

“You are… too late. Heroes.”

Late for what? Beside me, Min Joo-hyuk spoke in a low voice.

“What do you mean? Release this immediately.”

However, the village representative was already gone from sight. He had either moved far away or returned to the village.

Min Joo-hyuk looked around, gauging the range of the veil. To avoid being an obstacle, I stepped out of Min Joo-hyuk’s embrace and took a step to the side.

“Min Joo-hyuk, is this Barrier Magic?”

“…Something like it.”

“Can’t we get out with teleportation?”

“No. We have to break this first.”

Min Joo-hyuk’s voice trembled slightly. He seemed to be trying his best to act unfazed to reassure me, even though he was nervous himself.

For some reason, the blue veil was gradually narrowing. Min Joo-hyuk closed his eyes and concentrated with his palm pressed against the veil. I saw cold sweat trickling down the nape of his neck.

The fog gradually gathered toward the boundary of the veil. It piled up, encircling us from both the outside and inside, slowly blocking our view.

‘Wait.’

If this is the situation, then Min Joo-hyuk being attacked isn’t while fighting monsters, but…

Before my thought could finish, Min Joo-hyuk spoke.

“Ah, got it.”

At the same moment a blue light flashed in front of Min Joo-hyuk, the blue veil vanished instantly, like a soap bubble bursting.

The fog that had gathered around the veil scattered all at once, making the surroundings clear. Min Joo-hyuk’s brown hair swayed lightly in the wind. The sunset settled low over him.

Without thinking further, I threw my body toward the left where Min Joo-hyuk was. Since Min Joo-hyuk was larger than me, I used all my strength. Min Joo-hyuk slumped to the ground.

Thuck.

I felt a sensation of skin being pierced. I should have moved my body away too, but unfortunately, I was a bit late. A vibration throbbed from the pierced area, like a beating heart. Something hot flowed down from my right shoulder, quickly soaking my clothes.

A crashing sound echoed from not far away. Startled, I looked over to see the village representative rolling on the ground, tightly bound by something like ropes made of blue light.

It seemed Min Joo-hyuk had tied him up. He had acted quickly. However, Min Joo-hyuk didn’t pay any attention to that; he just sat there, staring up at me blankly. His brown eyes were shaking violently.

Still, I was relieved that Min Joo-hyuk seemed to have no issues other than being surprised by the fall.

‘I should have realized sooner.’

I should have noticed at least when we were trapped inside the veil; this was my mistake. I was so bewildered by the situation that I was late to realize. I never even imagined I would be attacked by a human. If I had pushed him just a bit later, it would have been a disaster.

“Whew…”

I took a deep breath to calm my mind. Since the veil surrounding us had been deactivated and the village representative was captured, I thought we could just teleport back and sort things out.

Hey, let’s go now. I was about to say that to Min Joo-hyuk when I turned my head and glanced at my right shoulder.

A blade, shaped like a dagger, was precariously embedded, piercing the shoulder line just below my neck. The smooth blade that hadn’t been fully driven in gleamed sharply in the sunset.

It had no handle; both ends were blades. Oh boy, it won’t be easy to pull out.

‘Still, I should probably remove the blade, right?’

The large wound seemed to be healing on its own, but it would be a problem if it closed while the blade was still embedded. Perhaps because too much blood had flowed out, my vision blurred slightly. I bit my lip to wake my dazed mind and reached my hand toward the blade.

Just then, a voice that sounded like it was being ground out came from the slumped Min Joo-hyuk.

“Why the fuck do I always…”

It was a trembling voice. It sounded as if it were tinged with tears. It was my first time seeing Min Joo-hyuk like this, and it felt as if my heart had dropped to my toes.

“Min Joo-hyuk, wait. I think I know what you’re thinking…”

I hurriedly crouched down in front of Min Joo-hyuk. I realized it now. I hadn’t completely saved Min Joo-hyuk. Since I was hurt, Min Joo-hyuk would have no choice but to blame himself, even though it wasn’t his fault.

Feeling sorry, I didn’t know what words to use. After agonizing for a while, I forced my stubborn lips open.

“I’m sorry for making you worry. But I’m really okay right now. So… Min Joo-hyuk? Are you listening to me?”