So how is THE Guideline gonna help me become stronger?
It's already night time. Several hours have passed since the Guideline told me to wait for further instructions while claiming it's trying to fix a system error regarding my “backup soul”. Back in my hospital bed, I'm eating the delivered chimaek that was supposed to be eaten on my 22nd birthday three days ago.
I hope Uncle Seung-min used that coupon I saw back then, and not half of his current part-time wages. As for the drink, it's not exactly beer; it's shandy which I can say it's my favorite type to drink whether in private or public. I wonder if I should describe my dinner as chishan (chicken + shandy) the next time my drink is still shandy. It's a good thing Uncle Seung-min bought a two-person meal though I still feel like I could eat more given that I was missing for three whole days.
Anyhow, I still think about the Painting Labyrinth vanishing without a trace seeing there's no mention of it on the online forums and news. Then again, this one obviously spells “national security is at stake” since this is the only Labyrinth that has no living Beast being the boss. As I slowly remember, though it's just bits and pieces of memories, about what happened in there, the Labyrinth itself (the wretched room) is seemingly controlled by a mastermind who might have been the same unknown man whispering to me back in there.
Even if I were to tell this info to Slayer Shin or whoever is stationed at the Alliance, they might suspect me of being involved in the mastermind’s plot regardless if I'm actually kept in the dark as much as they are. I think it's best to stay quiet for now; otherwise…my family…
As I finish my dinner already, I decide to go for a brief walk and possibly be at the rooftop to breath in some fresh air. I find it hard to believe that I'm able to walk now given the last time I remember of my body’s condition was a huge slash on my back and pierced wounds at my ankles and wrists. It's as if a SS-rank healer, whom I remember is an Irishwoman and currently known as “The Slayer of The First Rank'' in terms of having the strongest defensive magic, came to my rescue without me knowing about her. I believe if she and the other two SS-rank Slayers were at that Labyrinth, they would've been able to defeat the mastermind already. The world, including myself, would be grateful and feel relieved if that were to happen. It just needs to reappear someday though deep down, I'm wishing it never comes back at all.
A few nurses insist on coming with me, knowing I'm a survivor of one of the most dangerous Labyrinths. I refuse their accompanying me politely, reassuring them that I'm mentally fine. Finally, I’m at the rooftop. I sit down on the first bench that catches my sight. While I look up at the night sky that has a waning crescent moon, I hear someone sniffling to my right side. I turn to see who it is.
It's a long blond-haired woman, who's dressed in office clothes, sitting at another bench. She looks around the same age as I am. Her height is probably the same as Slayer Ban. I can't help, but feel like I should do something for her. So I get up walking towards her; then, I stop to stand in front of her, asking my slightly hesitant words carefully.
“Are…you okay? Miss…uhm…”
“Hngh! Oh…” the young woman replies once she notices my presence, lifting her head up to see me face-to-face. Her jade-colored earrings look like the clip-on type in my sight. Her dark brown teary eyes stare at me for a few moments. Then, she wipes the tears off her eyes.
“I'm sorry. (sniff) Was I disturbing you? If I am, I shall leave.”
“Oh! No, no! Not at all! I'm wondering why you're crying all alone here.”
I unconsciously wave my hands at her probably to catch her attention fully before she misunderstands any further.
“Oh? That…well…”
“It's okay if you don't want to tell me the reason. In fact, I can leave if you want…”
“Oh! You can stay…uhm…your name?”
“Call me Joo-yeon. And you?”
“I’m Sun-hee. So Joo-yeon…may I know…why are you here?”
I sit down beside her in order for our conversation between us not to have so many awkward pauses.
“I'm recovering from my injuries, I think. I'm not sure what happened to me, but all I know is that I've to stay here for about a month or so.”
“Were you involved in an accident, Joo-yeon?”
“Something like that. It's common for a weak Slayer like me to experience accidents.”
“Eh!? You're a Slayer like my older brother?!”
“Oh~ Your brother is a Slayer too?”
“Yes. In fact, he's currently the strongest S-rank knight in this country.”
Wow~ a S-rank and a knight subclass, huh?"
Hmm~ that's odd. Where did I hear this description before?
“You see…I disappear without telling him where I'll be at. I even left my phone on purpose at my workplace. I guess you can say I want to make him…to change his mind.”
“Wh…why do you have to do this? That is…”
“Selfish, right? I thought that by doing so, he'll think about moving on…”
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“By moving on…did somebody close to him…you know…”
“Yes.”
“Is it his friend…”
“It was his girlfriend. They were planning to live together in the apartment he's living in right now. After her disappearance, my brother was determined to find her or something that might find her in every high-ranking Labyrinth he encounters. It's been three years and I'm worried that I'll never be able to help him be in the present. But I guess it's kind of stupid of me to purposely make this tantrum-like action after all this time, right? Haha… I just don't want…to lose him all of a sudden…”
Lose him suddenly... Is it related to the missing case Slayer Shin mentioned this afternoon?
As she unconsciously goes back to sobbing, I can understand what she's implying even if she doesn't tell me in full detail. Even though we just met, it feels like I can trust her, not to mention I want to cheer her up right now. And so I get up promptly, saying these words with a confident tone in my voice and my hands on my hips as if I'm a girlboss.
“Even if I don't know exactly what happened to him, he's really selfish to not think about those who are still here, especially you! If I ever meet your brother, I'm gonna give him a scolding for your sake!”
“Are you the same rank as he is, Joo-yeon?”
“Well…..no. I'm the lowest-ranking Slayer. But! I'll surely be able to give him a punch someday! You'll see.”
Sun-hee chuckles while hearing that last sentence from me. I hope she doesn’t believe what I've just said. I just want to make her feel better even after hearing something absurd like these lying words I confidently say out loud now.
“Thanks, Joo-yeon. I feel much better now. I'll be looking forward to that day.”
Should I be more specific…that I'm of the healer class? Nah~ I don't think I can handle another embarrassing feeling now. I'll save that if I ever meet her again next time.
Sun-hee then gets up, slapping both sides of her cheeks as her wake-up call to facing this issue she has with her brother. She turns to face me; a wide smile spreads over her face.
“Then, I shall go back home and clearly tell my brother about my feelings about his aimless searching,” she says while briefly bowing to me as a sign of thanks. “Probably I was wishy-washy that I ended up holding back what I wanted to say to him after that day back then.”
“I hope he's able to understand your worries for him. Now go and tell him off, little sis!” I exclaim while I make a clenched right hand as a cheering sign for Sun-hee.
We then wave our hands, exchanging our words of goodbye to each other. Once she closes the door, I sit down on the bench, sighing a breath of relief. I probably am having thoughts about my retirement from raiding Labyrinths seeing how I can still help other people with words of encouragement, even if some of those words are exaggerated lies. I wonder who her brother is actually seeing how every S-rank Slayer should've made at least one public appearance. Her beautiful facial features remind me of someone I barely know.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
“That felt good. Now's the time for my sleep.”
As I walk along a hallway, I think about my assigned doctor’s words as he performed a health checkup of me earlier in the afternoon.
“Even though your physical body doesn't seem to retain any signs of internal wounds, I recommend you stay at our hospital for at least four weeks.”
“Is it necessary to be that long? I think one week would be enough for my full recovery.”
“Ms Kang Joo-yeon, I'm aware that Slayers, even if they're of the lowest rank, are more durable than Nons (regular humans). But once I've heard the reason why you're sent here by Slayer Shin, I'm concerned, whatmore puzzled, about how your body is in a fine condition. Too fine, I say.”
“I'm sorry, doctor, but I have no clue on what happened to me back then. I wish I could tell you how I came back with my body being unharmed.”
“It's okay, Ms Kang. I'm just concerned about your mental health that I feel it's a necessity for me to observe you longer. It's for a precaution just in case there's a possibility of a late side effect that could negatively impact your brain activities. I hope you can comply with this request of mine for the sake of your mental wellness, Ms Kang Joo-yeon.”
I’m just glad that this time my hospital fees are being covered by the Alliance since that's their way of making up for their mistake. Otherwise, I've to worry about Uncle Seung-min exhausting himself with more unnecessary shifts. After my four-week stay, I plan to send in my résumé to any well-known guilds I could do administrative work at. Hopefully I'll get accepted even if the job they'll offer is that of a cleaner. For my family's sake, I mustn't care about my pride anymore.
Just as I turn to a nurse’s working station’s left corner, I overhear a grumpy old man’s voice. I hide myself at said corner like the time I did during Jung-han and Chun’s conversation. It's Jang who still is the same old rude bastard as he’s threatening three nurses to tell him where I'm at.
“Where is she!?”
“Sir, I suggest you leave…”
“How dare you treat a high-ranking Slayer like me as if I'm a sore eye!!”
“Mr Jang, you're disturbing the other patients. Right now it's supposed to be their bedtime…”
“Shut up, bitch! Tell me where that useless healer is!! She's not supposed to be here!!”
Huh? What does he mean by that?...
“What's going on here?”
I turn to see my assigned doctor who purposely readjust his glasses as a sign of disgust on Jang's unreasonable behavior.
“You! Are you the doctor in charge of Kang Joo-yeon?!”
“Yes, I am. May I know the reason you're making a ruckus in a private area?”
“I demand to know where that woman is!”
“May I ask what's your relationship with her? Judging by your erratic behavior, it seems you're the abuser that I suggest you leave this hospital at once.”
“Wha…do you know who I am?! And who my sponsors are?!”
“No, I don't know. But I do know that if you don't leave this place in five seconds, I shall call security to drag your wrinkly ass out of this building. 5. 4. 3.”
“Alright, alright! I'll leave, but the next time I come back here, you better not be in my way!”
And with that final word said by the old bastard, he leaves with his feet almost stomping like a child with a tantrum problem. I manage to avoid being seen by him as he turn and walk to the opposite corner in front of me. Then, my assigned doctor tell the nurses to not be afraid in putting Jang on the list of visitors banned from entering this hospital. It feels as if that doctor is the owner of this hospital given the way I see him behaving like a competent and confident leader. As soon as they leave my patient room’s entrance door, I hurriedly walk towards my room. I would love to thank that doctor for standing up to Jang even if I wasn't visible to him at that time; however, it's been a long day and I really need a good night’s sleep.
As I open the door, I put my foot inside the doorway and over the threshold when I suddenly feel some sort of kinetic energy flowing through my body. Then, as once I blink my eyes, I find myself in another place which looks like an isolated forest. It looks like I've been teleported out of nowhere. I don't even know if this is the late side effect mentioned by that doctor of mine. For now, I can't tell what time it is here as the sky above me looks grayish. Not too bright, but not too dark.
“So you're the one Elysian chose for her Guideline, huh?”
I quickly turn around to see an elderly man who looks like the typical wizard I see in those fantasy-themed TV shows during my childhood years. I ask him who on earth he is; my voice tone indicates as a demand even though I can feel the same tremble in my hands like what Ms Han did at the Painting Labyrinth.
“My name is Amergin. I'm here as your judge.”