Before regression, I had lived trapped in District C-281 for most of my life. The moment I escaped, I was kidnapped and taken to the lab. So even after I was rescued, I had nowhere else to go.
Word spread that I was a B-rank Supporter, and other guilds reached out asking if I’d join them. But after I caused a few incidents, they all left, cursing me on their way out. The only one who stayed until the end was Ryu Sunghyun.
That’s why I chose the Circle Guild. I needed somewhere to stay.
It wasn’t until later that I found out the Circle Guild was much smaller and weaker than I had expected. But I didn’t dislike it. If anything, I was relieved.
A guild this weak probably has a hard time finding Supporters.
They wouldn’t get rid of me easily. I felt at ease, and at the same time, I began to understand why Ryu Sunghyun had stayed when the others had walked away.
With no home and no family, I started living in the Circle Guild’s building as soon as I joined.
That turned into a sense of debt. I got involved in every guild operation, trying to support every member. Naturally, life outside the district became inseparable from the Circle Guild.
[I'll give you one more buff.]
The skill that only worked through physical contact was still inconvenient... but it didn’t matter when it came to the Circle Guild members.
Unlike the “siblings” who had always forced me to give them buffs, the people here were so kind that they never even asked unless I offered first.
[It’s okay. I already got one earlier...]
They were so stubborn about not receiving a second buff after the first that I often had to approach them myself and give it again. The one who always felt the most guilty about it was Ryu Sunghyun.
[That was already three hours ago, and earlier we just held hands.]
[Mm...]
Even when he awkwardly refused, I stared at him without saying a word. Ryu Sunghyun gave a sheepish smile, then carefully pulled me into his arms.
His hands slipped under my shirt, wrapping around my back and waist as he bent forward and buried his face in the nape of my neck.
It was a method I had come up with in case I ever needed to deliver a buff quickly in the field. With more points of contact than just holding hands, the buff’s duration would significantly increase.
Once he felt the buff take effect properly, Ryu Sunghyun slowly let go. He smiled, looking slightly embarrassed, then briefly held my wrist before letting it go.
[Thanks.]
[It’s nothing.]
Sure, I was technically paying off a debt by following the schedule and giving buffs, but my mindset had changed a lot since the days I lived in the district.
If something like that had happened back then with one of the “siblings,” it would’ve made my skin crawl.
Part of the reason was realizing just how good the Circle Guild members truly were. Those who received buffs from me always used that power to help or save others. That felt... genuinely good.
I quietly watched Ryu Sunghyun from behind as he rescued someone trapped beneath the rubble of a collapsed building.
“...It has to be me.”
I felt a hand gently stroke my cheek. The ticklish sensation made my brows twitch, and then the voice came again.
“You need to wake up.”
This time, the person gently brushed my hair back and shook my shoulder lightly.
“Hyung.”
That one soft word dragged my consciousness violently ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) back to the surface. Gasping, I opened my eyes wide and sucked in a breath.
The first thing I saw was a pair of round green eyes looking down at me.
Realizing it was Cha Sahyeon who had woken me up, my frantic heartbeat eased just a little.
“What the... urgh...”
The moment I tried to sit up, a sharp pain shot through my head.
I pressed a hand to my forehead and lifted my gaze. A military truck lay overturned, bodies were scattered, and monsters ran wild on the road.
Kyaaaagh!
“...!”
One monster, passing by, spotted me and charged—only to be instantly pierced by something black and sharp. I looked over in surprise and saw the black shadow coiled around Cha Sahyeon’s body.
Only then did I notice the numerous monster corpses piled up nearby.
It seemed that while I was unconscious, Cha Sahyeon had taken down every monster that approached.
Damn.
From her perspective, she had protected me—and while I was grateful, I couldn’t feel entirely relieved. The lab people might still be watching from somewhere nearby.
Finally understanding the situation, I hurriedly sat up and asked,
“How long was I out?”
“About five minutes...?”
I didn’t know whether to be relieved or not. I hugged the child close and whispered,
“Don’t use your skill.”
Hopefully, no one had seen Cha Sahyeon use her skill during those five minutes. Clinging to that desperate hope, I stood up with the child in my arms.
“Help, please!”
Voices I hadn’t noticed until now started rising all around us. I turned toward the sound and saw a woman pinned beneath the truck, crying.
“P-Please... help me...”
“......”
“Please...”
She was pale as a sheet, tears streaming down her face—and I couldn’t sense any aura from her. She was clearly a civilian who had been on the evacuation transport.
My steps faltered involuntarily, but I clenched my jaw and looked away from her desperate gaze.
No.
Behind me, the screams of monsters and people blended into a chaotic mess. I took ragged breaths, doing everything I could not to look back.
It was already dangerous enough that Cha Sahyeon had used her skill to protect me. If I left her to help others, the risk would multiply.
Even if I didn’t intervene, other Hunters would arrive to rescue the civilians. The smartest move was to escape this place with Cha Sahyeon as quickly as possible.
The fact that I was even hesitating was absurd. I’d always been the one protected in the past, and now I was trying to act like I had the right to feel conflicted?
Scoffing inwardly at myself, I forced my emotions back under control.
“Aaaagh!”
A chorus of sharp screams rang out. I looked across the street and saw a city bus, stopped in place, with a monster clawing at the windows.
It looked like the glass could break at any second—and if it did, the people inside would be torn apart.
The situation was the same everywhere. People were trapped in buildings, unable to escape.
The rift had opened so suddenly that many hadn’t had time to evacuate. Monsters were spreading faster than rescue teams could arrive. At this rate, the death toll would be catastrophic.
I saw students crying inside the bus. A woman stifled her child’s mouth as they hid in a building. An old man was crushed under debris, unable to move.
No...
I knew rescue teams were on their way.
But if the bus broke open before they arrived, if the monsters realized people were inside the buildings, if that old man was attacked while pinned...
“......”
I couldn’t bear it anymore. I squeezed my eyes shut. Scenes of people being slaughtered by monsters kept playing through my mind.
Cold sweat dripped from my temple. My heart pounded in my chest, driven by a surge of anxiety and fear.
Even if the rescue teams were fast, it would still take at least ten minutes to get here. Could they really save those people in time? When death was only seconds away?
“......”
At some point, I had come to a complete stop in the middle of the street. Cha Sahyeon looked at me curiously, breathing heavily but not moving.
Stop thinking.
I had to stop thinking and move. I had to get Cha Sahyeon somewhere the lab’s surveillance couldn’t reach.
What did any of this have to do with me? Strangers dying didn’t concern me.
I wasn’t Kwon Taehyuk or Ryu Sunghyun. In this life, I had decided that Cha Sahyeon came first. And yet...
I couldn’t make myself move.
“...Ha.”
I let out a bitter laugh at how ridiculous I was being. What a joke—I really was insane.
I turned and walked into a shadowed alley. Once I reached a dark corner where the streetlights couldn’t reach, I gently set Cha Sahyeon down.
“Kid.”
When I looked at Cha Sahyeon’s clear, innocent face, an overwhelming wave of guilt crashed down on me.
I grabbed the child’s shoulders and bowed my head deeply.
“I’m sorry.”
“......”
“I’m sorry...”
Even as the words left my mouth, I knew how cowardly they were. I was only saying it to lighten the burden on my heart. But I couldn’t bear to stay silent.
Holding the child’s shoulders, I muttered under my breath.
“Activate.”
Bzzzzzt!
Electricity surged the moment I spoke. The familiar pain raced across my entire body, and the hand gripping Cha Sahyeon’s shoulder trembled with tension.
《Hidden Skill: Silverlight’s Blessing (S-Rank) [Activated]》
Exhaling a weary breath, I met the child’s eyes.
Cha Sahyeon still stared at me like she understood nothing—and I had no idea how to explain any of this.
That I was going just up ahead. That I’d save those people and come right back. That I needed her to wait here for just a little while...
I had to say something, but I had no idea how she would respond.
[Main Quest: Locate the lab personnel hiding somewhere in the event grounds. (Time remaining: 7 hours 26 minutes)]

Comments

Loading...