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Chapter 09
“Why aren’t you answering? I asked who it was.”
“There is someone, but… she’s an E-rank tamer.”
“A woman?”
“How did you know?”
“I thought I heard a woman’s voice.”
Suho pressed his temple as he recalled the voice. His head, having slept less than two hours, felt like it was about to split.
“Bring that woman here.”
Shin Ji-yul and Choi Man-deok’s expressions darkened. In gentle voices, the two began trying to calm Suho down.
“Kang Morae’s hunter rank is too low. It was an emergency, so there’s a good chance she succeeded just by luck.”
“T-that’s right, Suho. And if it fails, we’d have to erase your memories again. You know that—being exposed to mental-type powers too often never does any good.”
“At worst, I’ll just get a bit of a headache.”
As if it could hurt more than this. Suho snorted.
“But there’s always the chance of something going wrong.”
“That’s right, Suho. Someone with weak mental strength could be seriously affected.”
Listening quietly, Suho tilted his head.
“That’s strange. Why does it feel like you’re both trying so hard to protect that woman from me?”
Suho’s smile deepened dangerously. Under the heavy pressure bearing down on them, Shin Ji-yul and Choi Man-deok shut their mouths tight.
“Stop playing games and bring Kang Morae in front of me. If it fails again this time, I’ll do it myself.”
Having said his piece, Suho walked out.
Choi Man-deok watched his broad back like a dog chasing a chicken, then bowed his head deeply.
“Team Leader Shin….”
“Yes, Commissioner.”
“I don’t think this has anything to do with rank….”
“I think so too.”
In truth, after the previous two tests, they had already begun to realize it. The power that stabilized Gyeon Suho had nothing to do with rank.
“So in the end, she’s the only one who can tame our Suho.”
“That’s highly likely.”
No matter how much they wanted to protect Kang Morae, with the safety of the world hinging on Suho, there was no other choice.
“We’ll summon Hunter Kang Morae.”
“Offer her a high salary. Top-tier.”
“At S-rank awakened level?”
Choi Man-deok clasped his hands behind his back and lifted his head. His eyes, turned toward the ceiling, were moist.
“At least that much… so I’ll feel a little less guilty.”
“…….”
A synchronized sigh escaped from both of them.
Morae quickly climbed the uphill road. The sun, dyed red, hung on the hill above.
The request had taken longer than expected. The client’s puppy had ended up in a completely different area.
“Phew.”
When she arrived at the villa with the rooftop room, she straightened her back and let out a weary sigh.
I’d give anything for a cold beer right now.
Her legs throbbed from being overworked all day. As she flapped her sweat-damp T-shirt to cool off, a voice came from above.
“What are you doing down there? Come up.”
“Huh?”
Morae looked up in surprise.
“Songi! When did you get here?”
“A while ago.”
Looking down from the rooftop, Songi shook a can of beer. Morae’s face lit up.
“Is it cold?”
“Just took it out of the fridge. Hurry up and come up.”
She rushed upstairs and quickly showered. Wrapping her wet hair in a towel, she went out to the rooftop, where Songi was already sipping her beer. Morae sat beside her and cracked open her own can.
“Ahh, I’m alive.”
It was so cold it felt like ice crystals might form in her mouth. At Morae’s exclamation, Songi snorted with a laugh.
“Did you find the puppy?”
“Yeah. In Suyu-dong.”
“Where’s the owner’s place?”
“Gwanghwamun.”
“That’s far.”
“I think I tamed every animal in northern Seoul. That’s why it took a while.”
“The client must’ve been happy.”
“Of course. They hugged Deokgu and cried their eyes out. I almost cried too. Oh—Deokgu’s the puppy’s name.”
Songi stopped mid-sip and turned her head.
“But weren’t you exhausted?”
“I thought my legs were going to fall off. I walked all the way to Suyu-dong because I was afraid I’d miss him if I took a car.”
“No, I mean the taming. Were you okay?”
“Huh?”
To find Deokgu’s location, she’d tamed everything she came across.
It was her first time taming so many non-insects at once, and all in one go.
Even so, she hadn’t felt tired at all. Just in case, she checked her device, but the PV value still read zero.
That’s right… why am I not tired?
As Morae stood there puzzled, Songi patted her on the shoulder.
“If you’re not tired, that’s a good thing. Want to order dinner?”
The question that had been creeping up on her was brushed aside. Morae shook her head.
“There’s still that soybean milk you brought last time. Let’s make cold soybean noodles.”
“Oh yeah, that was rich and tasty. Now I’m suddenly starving.”
“If we just boil the noodles, it’ll be quick. Can you wipe down the platform?”
“Sure.”
By the time they finished boiling the noodles and eating the soybean noodles, night had fallen.
Against the navy-blue night sky, dots that might have been stars—or satellites—rose one by one.
As Morae cleared the table, fireflies trailed after her, scattering tiny lights.
It was a mystical sight, but Songi remained unimpressed. She’d seen it often enough since knowing Morae.
After quickly finishing the dishes, Songi and Morae lay down on the platform, each holding a can of beer.
“Let’s check the攻略 guide.”
“Songi-songi, does your head hurt again?”
Pressing her temples as she looked at the tablet, Songi shrugged.
“It’s especially fast this time. I didn’t even use my abilities that much.”
When penalties accumulated, awakened ones received signals from their bodies—headaches, flu-like symptoms, and the like.
Strangely, Morae had never experienced any of that even once. Her power was so negligible that penalties never built up in the first place.
“Want some painkillers?”
“They don’t even work. In a day or two I’ll go to the Ability Administration and get a stabilizer shot. I’ll feel like shit for a few days, though.”
Songi especially hated stabilizers. She said it felt like becoming a fly stuck in tar.
That, too, was something Morae found hard to relate to.
I can’t exactly take the pain for her.
Feeling sorry, Morae placed her hand on Songi’s forehead. Liking the cool touch, Songi narrowed her eyes like a satisfied cat.
Morae stifled a laugh at the cute sight—then suddenly, her vision swayed violently.
“Uh….”
The next moment, she saw the waves that made up Songi.
A pale sky-blue wave spread out from her heart, densely gathered around her head. Its shape was so clear it felt almost tangible.
What… is this?
Seeing waves was the beginning of taming, so that part wasn’t surprising.
But the other person was human. And Morae had no intention of taming her at all. So how could she be seeing this?
“Morae-morae, what’s with that look?”
“It’s nothing….”
What’s more, she felt like she could move those waves.
She had never even touched them before—so she didn’t know where this confidence was coming from.
After a long moment of hesitation, Morae quietly took Songi’s hand. Songi, who had been about to take another sip of beer, glanced over.
“What?”
“Songi, don’t move. Just stay still for a second.”
“What is it?”
“Just a moment. It’ll be quick.”
Morae’s light green wave seeped in through Songi’s fingers. Songi closed her eyes without realizing it.
“Ah….”
She felt a warm, gentle energy—so very Kang Morae—flowing up through her veins.
Usually, feeling someone else’s energy caused immediate resistance. But Morae’s energy felt fine.
There was no coercion, nothing oppressive. It didn’t even feel particularly foreign. Maybe that was why, even though it was weak enough to be easily repelled, Songi felt no urge to push it away.
The wandering energy drifted toward her head and gently stroked the tangled mass there.
Then, with a refreshing sensation, the persistent headache that had been tormenting Songi vanished completely. A groan escaped her lips.
“Hngh….”
“Huh? Did that hurt?”
“N-no, no. It’s not that it hurt, it’s just….”
Panting, Songi grabbed Morae by the shoulders.
“Morae-morae, what did you just do to me?”
“I just… there were tangled waves in your head, so I loosened them a bit….”
Songi already knew that Morae’s taming was an ability that used waves. Her eyes widened in shock.
“Did you… tame me?”
“Uh… um, if that made you uncomfortable, I’m sorry.”
“What are you talking about? It felt fucking amazing!”
She snapped, then checked her device. 8 PV. Staring blankly at the screen, Songi muttered,
“What the hell… even my penalty value went down….”
