Chapter 103
Chapter 103
Episode 1 Side Story
“Shin Bitnari!!”
“Ah, not again.”
Nari heard her mother calling her from outside the room. At the sound, Nari, who was lying on her bed, snapped her storybook shut. Jeong Suho, who was sitting beside her reading a children’s science magazine, looked at Nari and spoke.
“A-Ah, why is your mother calling again...?”
“She’s definitely going to say something weird to me again.”
At her grumbling, the door swung open. Kang Hana was looking at them while holding a family album.
“Shin Bitnari!”
“What is it, Mom.”
“You’re a traitor. Suho is one thing, but how could you.... How could you!”
Kang Hana flipped through the family album in her hands. Ignoring Nari, whose expression said ‘Let’s see what nonsense she’s spouting this time,’ she pointed at a wedding photo.
“How could you not come to your mother’s wedding!”
“See, what did I tell you.”
Nari sighed and picked up her storybook again. Kang Hana, who had intended to tease her daughter with the excuse that she hadn't attended her wedding, pouted her lips.
“I’m in that photo. Half in Mom, half in Dad.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You said I was a honeymoon baby. So at the wedding, half of me was in Mom and half was in Dad. I guess I went on the honeymoon with you too, right? Are we good now?”
“You...! You! You! Wh-Where did you learn to say things like that!! You’re only in the first grade of elementary school, Nari!”
“From TV. While watching a daytime program for housewives with Dad.”
Kang Hana's face turned beet red, and she couldn't say a word because her daughter’s sex education was far more advanced than she'd thought. Nari let out a chuckle and spoke.
“Mom, you saw that joke on the internet, right? About asking why your kids didn't come to your wedding. I’m telling you, the internet is ruining all the adults these days.”
“You! What kind of way is that to talk to your mother!”
Nari clicked her tongue and shook her head at Kang Hana, who was acting angry out of embarrassment. Suho, who was listening quietly, spoke up cautiously from the side.
“N-No, Nari. Th-They said storks bring the babies.”
“What are you talking about, do you still believe that storks bring them? Are you a kindergartner?”
“No! L-Look at this. So, th-this is a graph of the national stork population and the number of newborns.”
Jeong Suho flipped through the science magazine and began to give a long speech while showing Nari a graph regarding the decrease in newborns following the decline of the stork population.
Sensing that this was the perfect timing to slip away without things getting awkward, Kang Hana quietly closed the bedroom door. As she trudged down from the second floor to the first, she heard her husband, Jihoon, preparing breakfast.
“Ah, honey. Why do you look so discouraged, did something happen?”
He looked worried as he tucked a lock of Kang Hana’s hair behind her ear. She mumbled while picking up a few pieces of gimbap from the table.
“Our daughter’s sex education is better than I thought....”
“Were you trying to tease Nari again? Kids these days are smart.”
“I guess so.... Oppa, stop watching TV with Nari. Oh right, and check the science magazine the kids subscribe to. There was some weird content in it. Suho is going to believe it literally.”
“Got it. I’ll check it today. And... I’ll stop watching TV too.”
Jihoon spoke again as he saw her gloomy expression brighten slightly at his comforting touch.
“Are you going to Busan?”
“Yes. I’ll probably be back by evening.”
“Then you’ll get to see Nahan for the first time in a while.”
“I might see him if I need Nahan’s help, but today’s business isn't that kind of thing.”
“I see. I wish I could be of help too. I know you’re very strong, but I still get anxious sometimes. Since I’m a non-Awakener after all....”
Noticing that Jihoon’s expression had turned slightly sad, she patted his back and laughed.
“Hey, what are you talking about. They say it’s a burden if both people in a couple are Awakeners, so you can just stay exactly as you are. Take good care of Nari and Suho today too. Okay?”
“...Hm, okay.”
Jihoon’s smile contained an effort to understand, but Kang Hana didn't notice the meaning and simply ate another piece of gimbap.
After chewing and swallowing every last piece on the table, she put on her coat. Jihoon spoke while seeing her off at the front door.
“Honey, have a safe trip today, and try to come home early. You know, right? Nari and Suho are looking forward to it a lot.”
“Huh? Is today a special day?”
She asked while fixing the heel of her sneaker with her finger as she put them on. Jihoon smiled as he retied her loose shoelaces and spoke.
“Tomorrow is your birthday.”
“Ah....”
“Honestly, you’re still so indifferent to your own affairs if I don't tell you.”
Now that she thought about it, he was right. October 4th, tomorrow was her birthday. Jihoon spoke while wrapping a scarf around her neck.
“You really should be back by midnight. Today, Nari and Suho will probably take me to the mart and won't let me go because they’re planning a surprise party.”
“Ahahaha, then I really should come back quickly! I might even come home in the middle of work because I’m so excited for the surprise party.”
She beamed at the thought of the two children choosing her birthday present with their tiny hands.
After meticulously knotting the scarf for her, he saw Kang Hana off.
“Have a safe trip today, don't get hurt, and come back well. That’s the most important thing to me.”
“Yep! I’m off!”
She waved her arm big twice and headed outside.
[The Constellation ‘Jade Emperor (Abbr.)’ strokes his beard, saying you should definitely return early today.]
“That’s right. Nothing special is happening today. It’s just Guardian duties, right?”
[The Constellation ‘Jade Emperor (Abbr.)’ says that is true, but looks at you while saying one never knows how work will turn out.]
“It’s fine. I’m really going to finish quickly today... and go home early! As long as a high-rank Gate doesn't break out. Please.... Please...!”
Vowing that she would definitely return early today, she ran toward the subway. However, things usually didn't go smoothly on days like that.
* * *
“Hello. I’m the Guardian of the Boundary joining you today. Christian, but you can call me Chris. Are you the Guardian of Order?”
“Oh, um. Hi! That’s right. I’m the Guardian of Order, and my name is Kang Hana. You can call me Hana... or auntie is fine too.”
“Yes, I’ll just call you senior.”
Standing at the subway station, which was the meeting place, Kang Hana blinked. The small boy before her with a prosthetic leg and brown hair still looked very young.
“Um... by any chance, how old are you?”
The boy looked at Kang Hana’s slightly concerned expression, crossed his arms, and spoke in a grumbling tone.
“By the counting method of your country, I’m fourteen this year.”
“A fourteen-year-old is already a Guardian...?”
“What does age matter. As long as the work is done well.”
“That’s true, but I was worried because you look so young....”
At those words, the boy let out a deep sigh while writing something in his notebook.
“You’re truly as peculiar as I heard, senior.”
“Huh?”
“What does it matter. You don't need to worry about the well-being of a Guardian. If I die, my successor will just take over. The work is what’s important, not me.”
Kang Hana shut her mouth at those words and smiled awkwardly. Indeed, all the Guardians except her were like this. No matter what their outward personality seemed like, they were like machines on the inside.
She wasn't entirely without those traits herself. She wondered if it couldn't be helped since they were born that way. While she was thinking that, Kang Hana noticed Chris staring at her intently.
“Can I ask you one thing? I heard you’re the only person among the Guardians who has started a family yourself.”
“Huh?”
Chris stared at her and then toyed with the short braid on the side of his head. He spoke after a moment of deliberation.
“Don't you feel a sense of alienation among your family members?”
“Ah....”
Kang Hana fell silent for a moment. Had she felt it. She touched her lips with a briefly hollow expression.
She couldn't tell herself, but she often heard such things from those around her. She was, after all, bad at reading other people’s expressions or words.
How could a person who didn't even consider her own birthday important look at others closely?
While Jihoon had taught her a lot about forming relationships with others when they were dating, she might've made him feel slighted today as well without realizing it.
Kang Hana felt an indescribable sense of alienation from both the Guardians and ordinary people.
Unable to reach a conclusion, she spoke softly with a bitter expression.
“I... don't really know. Sorry.”
“Well, that’s fine. It isn't like I thought you’d be of any help anyway.”
With those words, Chris turned around and read from the memo in his hand, deciphering his own terrible handwriting.
“Today we’re going to Busan, South Korea. Because there is someone disrupting order.”
“Disrupting order? If it’s Busan, I should've balanced it out for the most part. What’s the charge?”
“Fraudulent activity by a reincarnator. They’ve made their status exactly the same before and after reincarnation. They even inherited their memories.”
Chris snapped his notebook shut after checking only the suspect's basic personal information and let out a sigh.
“Hm, that’s a big case.”
“Since it’s certain that a Constellation is involved. It’ll be a busy day.”
She inwardly checked the order of the tasks she had to do. Conduct an investigation, uncover the relevant Incarnation and Constellation, and apply the rebound.
Things like this happened several times a week.
“I wish everyone wouldn't do things like this. Do they really not know how much the world’s lifespan is shortened every time that happens?”
“Well, humans always want to find loopholes. I think they’d do it even if they knew.”
Chris opened an orange warp portal in the middle of the subway station. Without any hesitation, they headed straight for Busan Station.
They were a fourteen-year-old Awakener and the most famous hunter in South Korea, yet no one took notice of them.
No, it felt more like they were "invisible."
[Trait :: ‘Guardian of the Boundary who Mediates Heaven and Earth’ is activating!]
[Using the authority of the Constellation ‘Guardian Deity of Boundaries and Wanderers.’]
Upon entering the warp portal, a blue sky appeared. Small orange wings were fluttering on his prosthetic leg and her sneakers before they knew it.
They were flying in the sky. Kang Hana’s mouth hung open at the thought. She'd only thought they would transfer locations like a normal portal, so she looked at Chris in surprise.
“I need to get takeoff permission to fly don’t I?! It’ll be a disaster if I hit a plane or get caught on radar!”
“It’s fine. With my ability, there’s no way we’ll collide or be recognized.”
Chris grabbed Kang Hana’s sleeve and headed south. It seemed there was no physical impact indeed, as she couldn't feel the wind or the cold air.
Chris, who was flying diligently while pulling her along, suddenly turned around and spoke.
“I’m saying this out of caution because… I heard you’re the most moderate among us....”
“Hm?”
“This case is a serious crime. If there is even the slightest bit of intent after hearing the circumstances, you must extinguish their soul. Don't go easy on them.”
Kang Hana fell silent and laughed awkwardly at those words.
“But it’s pitiful, and I think there should always be a second chance.”
“Senior, this is a system. A sys-tem.”
Chris recited each syllable as if to emphasize them. Kang Hana mumbled something under her breath, as if she had a lot on her conscience. Chris let out a deep sigh and spoke.
“If the suspect commits a wrong again, that becomes entirely your responsibility. So please, I hope you’ll follow the proper legal procedures.”