HIF 10

Healing

I felt the cold sensation of the floor against my bare feet. I hurried towards Song Ha-gyun, who seemed to be quietly stifling a groan.

Standing with the moon behind me, a dark shadow stretched out. Song Ha-gyun’s neatly tied hair was darkly tinged by the shadow.

‘His left shoulder.’

Judging by his actions, he seemed to be injured in that area. Even though I was standing right next to him, looking down quietly, Song Ha-gyun still didn’t look my way. He didn’t seem to have the mental capacity to think about anything else.

I slowly reached out my hand towards Song Ha-gyun. Didn’t the System say I was a Healer? So, even though I didn’t know much, I thought I could heal him.

No, I would be able to heal him. It was a thought close to certainty.

Just as my hand was about to touch Song Ha-gyun’s shoulder, a rough hand grabbed my wrist. Oh, I thought he didn’t even know I was here.

Song Ha-gyun’s right hand, which gripped my wrist, was icy cold. A subtle tremor was transmitted to me. Song Ha-gyun opened his mouth in a low voice.

“…Don’t touch me.”

…Even if he hated me touching him, there was nothing I could do. Seeing that the System was still silent, it seemed like something would only happen if I made the first contact.

I gently twisted my wrist to pull it away. Song Ha-gyun’s neat hand, falling away powerlessly, somehow caught my eye.

I bent down and brought my hand to Song Ha-gyun’s back. This much should be okay, right? The cold, smooth material of his dress shirt was felt on the palm of my hand, and at that moment,

Ting.

I heard a familiar sound. Immediately, the Status Window popped up.

「<The Healer will help you!> Hero ‘Song Ha-gyun’

Heal / Take」

Well, if it’s between the two, isn’t healing the obvious choice? I don’t know why there’s even a choice.

‘Heal.’

At the same time as I thought that,

Hwaaa.

A faint blue light enveloped Song Ha-gyun’s shoulder. The light, which swirled around the area like a firefly, whooshed into my chest.

Startled, I took a half step back. A new Quest Window popped up in front of me.

「<The Healer will help you!> Healing, success!」

<Hidden! Quest> ‘First Healing!’ Success!

As a reward for success, you have acquired ‘Heal other than the Hero (1 time)’.

And a long, bar-shaped gauge appeared in the air. Inside, a blood-red color slowly filled from the left.

It was an ominous color. It didn’t look good at all. My brow furrowed slightly.

At that moment, I felt a cold hand wrap around my wrist as if to restrain it.

I looked down and saw Song Ha-gyun staring blankly up at me. He was still kneeling. I could feel a slight tremor in the hand that touched me. But unlike before, he was holding on tightly.

The moonlight pouring from behind me hit Song Ha-gyun’s face head-on. The moonlight glinted off his Monocle. Song Ha-gyun’s eyes were shaking slightly.

Ah, from his perspective, this was quite a bewildering situation. I hadn’t even told him who I was.

“Ha-gyun hyung.”

Thinking about it after saying that, he hadn’t told me his name either. It seemed like I was the only one who felt like we were close. A faint smile appeared on my face out of embarrassment.

“It’s Seon Yi-han.”

I tried to suppress my embarrassment and continued. Song Ha-gyun looked at me silently for a moment. My reflection was captured in his light purple eyes, which seemed a little calmer.

It felt like his hand holding my wrist tightened slightly. Song Ha-gyun slowly opened his mouth.

“…I know.”

His tone was stiff, but his voice seemed to be trembling slightly.

It was a relief that Song Ha-gyun knew my name. It seemed I wasn’t the only one who thought we were close.

Tick, tock.

The sound of the clock ticking quietly echoed in the silent room.

◇

Song Ha-gyun thought. It was excruciating pain.

After finishing the investigation with Raen and arriving at Ledeo, he immediately locked himself in the first-floor laboratory. Time was always short. Before he knew it, the night had fallen deeply.

He knew that wounds inflicted by Monsters did not heal easily, but this time the symptoms were different. The pain that stabbed deep inside him, as if taking root in his body, was unfamiliar.

The movements of the Monsters were becoming increasingly erratic, making it difficult to respond. They might be evolving. If that was the case, the situation was not easy.

As he was organizing the investigation records, he felt his shoulder throbbing again. He unbuttoned his shirt and stood in front of the mirror. He could see the wounded area turning black.

‘What is this?’

This had never happened before. It was as if he was being tainted by the Monster.

He properly adjusted his Monocle. With trembling hands, he picked up a pen and notebook. Even then, the black area was slowly spreading at a rate that was almost imperceptible unless he looked closely.

…How far will it spread? Once my body is completely tainted, what will happen to me?

No, this was not the time to be agitated. It was a priority to record the new information. He hurriedly wrote down the letters in the notebook.

Then, with a thud, the pen slipped from his hand. The sound of the pen falling to the floor echoed softly. He couldn’t put any strength into his hand. The pain was getting worse and worse. A light sweat broke out.

The painkillers were in the room upstairs. He thought he had put them somewhere in the drawer. His mind was so clouded that he couldn’t use Summoning magic. He didn’t have a lot of Mana level. It would be a problem if he lost his concentration like this.

He moved his heavy feet and stood in front of the door.

Click, he opened the door and saw someone sitting on the windowsill. Blue moonlight was pouring in behind him.

‘Ah, the new guy who was supposed to come. Was it Seon Yi-han?’

It seemed they were going to share a room. He nodded slightly to Seon Yi-han and walked over to open the dresser. He had to find the painkillers quickly.

There were many things in the drawer. Too many. It seemed almost impossible to find the small glass bottle containing the medicine in there.

“…Ugh.”

A deep pain suddenly struck. He didn’t know how, what to do.

No. What he had to do was clear. He had to see how the wound was changing. And he had to record it. He raised his trembling hand to pull up his clothes, but he couldn’t move any further because of the pain.

A white, slender hand slowly approached him, stopping still. The loose fabric fluttered with the small movement. The pure white cloth seemed to glow as it absorbed the moonlight.

Seon Yi-han was already standing right next to him.

“…Don’t touch me.”

He didn’t know what would happen if he rashly touched him. If this black taint were to spread, it would be irreversible.

A bandage that had fallen right in front of him came into view. He must have taken it out of the drawer and put it down earlier.

His vision was blurry. He had to bandage it up before he lost consciousness. No one should touch the wounded area. He reached out his trembling hand and squeezed the bandage tightly in his hand.

At that moment, he felt a hand carefully touching his back. Even though it was touching him through his clothes, the temperature was scaldingly hot.

At the same time, he vaguely saw a faint light bursting out on the left side of his vision. A blue light was enveloping his left shoulder. The pain slowly disappeared.

He lifted his head sharply. Seon Yi-han’s figure was captured in his clear vision.

The round moon was shining behind Seon Yi-han. Seon Yi-han’s clothes, standing upright beneath it, seemed to be fluttering slightly. His figure, shining pure white in the moonlight, seemed to be fading away.

Seon Yi-han took a half step back and staggered slightly. He frowned slightly, as if he was uncomfortable.

At that precarious sight, he reached out his hand without realizing it. The hard, dry wrist he felt in his hand was excessively hot.

“Ha-gyun hyung.”

It was a soft, quiet voice. It felt firm even though he didn’t speak forcefully. The way Seon Yi-han called his name sounded unfamiliar.

Seon Yi-han paused for a moment. And then he smiled faintly. It was a smile that shone brighter than the round moon floating behind Seon Yi-han. But the way he gently raised the corners of his lips felt a little bitter.

“It’s Seon Yi-han.”

He opened his mouth involuntarily at the hesitant voice that followed.

“…I know.”

But there was more that he didn’t know than he did.

The bandage that had fallen powerlessly from his hand unraveled and slowly rolled to Seon Yi-han’s feet. Silently, in the room where only the sound of the clock ticking could be heard.

◇

The moon was still bright. It was the middle of the night.

“…Seon Yi-han.”

Song Ha-gyun, who had been sitting still for a long time after calling my name, suddenly got up and reached out his hand to my forehead. His cool palm touched me.

Song Ha-gyun looked at me with a thoughtful expression. Then, he grabbed my wrist and slowly walked over to sit me on the bed.

Song Ha-gyun poured water from the kettle on the table next to the bed and handed it to me. Ah, I drank it earlier too.

The glass in my hand was warm. The tea was still warm and at the right temperature.

“…You have a fever. Sleep more.”

I shook my head at Song Ha-gyun’s words. I was tired of sleeping now. It had been a long time since I had opened my eyes.

“…Have you. eaten?”

I shook my head again at the slow question. Song Ha-gyun, who had been staring at me quietly, walked away from me and headed towards the dresser.

Song Ha-gyun came back with something in his hand. A light purple, small, square… paper?

Song Ha-gyun, who had come in front of me, bent down to meet my eyes. My reflection was captured in his unwavering, calm eyes.

Somehow, a faint scent of grass seemed to be spreading around us. A neat, large hand slowly approached my face.

Song Ha-gyun slowly swept up my bangs and gently placed the paper he had brought on my forehead. It was cool. The scent of grass seemed a little stronger.

Song Ha-gyun propped up the pillow and leaned me against the head of the bed, then opened his mouth in a quiet voice.

“…Does your head, hurt?”

“No.”

“…You have a bad fever. Aren’t you cold?”

“I’m okay. What about you, Ha-gyun hyung?”

“…Yeah.”

Song Ha-gyun answered my question casually, as if his own affairs were not something to worry about.

Song Ha-gyun, who had been looking at me to gauge my condition, gently covered my lap with a blanket.

‘I thought he would be more curious.’

Isn’t there something more important than figuring out my condition? Like asking how I healed him.

As I was thinking that, Song Ha-gyun put one hand on the back of my head. Then he spread out his other hand and pressed the paper on my forehead.

“I’ll be back. Rest. …You can sleep more.”

After saying that, Song Ha-gyun walked out of the room. His footsteps were so quiet that they made no sound. His dark purple hair, which had been illuminated by the moonlight, completely disappeared outside.

He’ll be back? Where to? The question came to me belatedly, but the person who could answer it had already left.