They Called Me Trash? Now I'll Hack Their World

My mind completely blanked as I stared at the flashing red text.

What the... I thought, my heart skipping a beat.

It wasn’t just level too low, but rank too low.

Just how much strong was this old man before he retired to a border village?

"What is it, boy?" Zen’s gruff voice cut through my shock. "Why are you staring at me like I just grew a second head?"

I immediately blinked, dismissing the error panel before my brain short-circuited.

"Oh, nothing," I lied smoothly, clearing my throat and grabbing the pestle again.

"I was just thinking that you look a lot better now. The color is fully back in your face."

Zen let out a booming laugh, flexing his massive arm again.

"Better than ever, Jin! Now, let’s get this batch stabilized!"

We threw ourselves into the work. With Zen’s restored mana, Tessa’s precision, and my localized edits making the alchemy process flawlessly efficient, we managed to set up the foundation of the entire production line by noon.

When we finally took a break to eat, the adrenaline of the morning wore off, and a heavy, quiet atmosphere settled over the corner table where Tessa and I sat.

Tessa poked aimlessly at her bowl of stew with a wooden spoon, her eyes downcast.

"So," she asked quietly, not looking up. "What will you do now?"

I took a slow sip of water, setting the cup down.

"The Academy starts in just a few days. I need to head back now."

Tessa gave a small, stiff nod.

She didn’t argue or try to convince me to stay. She just began eating incredibly slowly, her vibrant energy from the morning completely evaporating.

Her expression grew visibly gloomy, a dark cloud settling over her usually bright features.

I didn’t thought much of it and gone back to eating.

The rest of the day passed in a blur of preparations.

I spent the afternoon finalizing the guild contracts for Oakmere’s potion distribution, while Tessa completely threw herself into her work.

She aggressively scrubbed cauldrons, organized herb racks, and avoided making eye contact with me for the rest of the evening.

Then I headed back to my assigned room, calling it a day.

---

The next morning arrived with a crisp, cool breeze.

I stood near the center of the village, my storage ring fully packed, saying my final goodbyes.

Zen gave me another heavy—though thankfully slightly softer—clap on the shoulder, making me promise to visit.

Agnes handed me a small, carefully wrapped parcel of baked sweets for the road.

I found Mira and Yenna near the edge of the training square. Mira promised to turn the village youth into an impenetrable defense line, while Yenna simply gave me a dignified, respectful bow, wishing me a safe journey.

Scarlet was leaning against the side of the house, her arms crossed.

"I’ll stay here for a while," the demi-human said, turning her head away with a typical, dismissive huff.

"The food is decent, and traveling with you is a magnet for psychotic assassins and abyssal gods. Don’t die before I see you again."

"I’ll try my best," I chuckled, giving her a brief wave.

I finally turned and started walking down the winding dirt path leading toward the outer gates, where my hired carriage was waiting. I had looked for Tessa at the warehouse, but she was nowhere to be found.

Maybe she don’t want to say goodbye.

So, without waiting further, I moved.

And just as I was about halfway to the gates, my hearing caught the incredibly faint, rhythmic crunch of boots on the dirt about twenty yards behind me.

I stopped walking and let out a soft sigh, turning around and crossing my arms.

"You can come out now," I called out to the empty path.

For a second, nothing happened. Then, a familiar figure slowly stepped out from behind the thick trunk of a large oak tree.

Tessa stood there, nervously fidgeting with the strap of her leather satchel. She refused to meet my eyes, her cheeks dusted with a heavy, embarrassed blush.

I sighed, shaking my head. "Why were you following me?"

"I wasn’t following you," she mumbled defensively, taking a few hesitant steps toward me. "I just... I wanted to say goodbye."

I tilted my head, looking at her skeptically.

"Then why did you stalk me all the way out here? You could have just said it earlier with the others in the square."

Tessa bit her lower lip, reaching into her satchel. She pulled out a beautifully crafted, tightly sealed leather pouch containing a pristine set of high-grade health and mana vials.

"I was preparing this for you," she explained, her voice incredibly small as she walked up and held it out to me.

"I wanted to make sure the purity was perfect. But by the time I finished, you were already gone after saying your goodbyes, and... and I missed it."

I gently took the pouch from her hands. It was warm, humming with carefully condensed mana. Then I looked at her.

Her shoulders were slumped, her bright eyes fixed firmly on the dirt road between our boots. She looked completely miserable.

I shook my head, taking a half-step forward and pulling her smoothly into a tight, secure hug.

Tessa let out a soft gasp, but immediately melted against my chest, her arms wrapping desperately around my waist. I rested my chin gently on the top of her head, slowly rubbing circles into her back.

"Tess," I murmured softly.

"I’m only going back to the Academy. I’m not marching off to some war. I’ll come back to visit as soon as I get a break."

She hugged me tighter, her fingers gripping the fabric of my coat.

"I know," she whispered, her voice trembling as the emotional dam finally broke. "It’s just..."

She buried her face into my chest, the words rushing out of her in a frantic, terrified spiral.

"I’m so scared, Jin. You’re the first person I’ve ever loved, and I’ve never felt this good with anyone before. But in that dungeon... seeing you drop like that. And then those masked assassins coming after you..."

"There’s someone out there who actively wants to take your life, and I don’t even know why! You don’t seem like the type of person who should have a bounty on his head, and I’m just so terrified that one day you’ll leave and you won’t ever come back—"

She bit her lip.

She was completely spiraling, the trauma of the past week dragging her into a panic.

I didn’t try to reason with her fears, or offered any empty platitudes.

Instead, I just gently tilted her chin up, leaned down, and crashed my lips over hers, completely muffling the rest of her panicked sentence.

Tessa froze, her eyes flying wide in sheer shock.

But as the warmth of the kiss set in, the frantic trembling in her body completely vanished.

"Mmm~"

Her eyes fluttered shut, and she kissed me back, her hands sliding up my chest to tangle in the lapels of my coat.

I pulled her closer, deepening the kiss, letting it convey every single ounce of reassurance I couldn’t put into words.

After what felt like a decade, I slowly pulled back, breaking the kiss just enough to let us catch our breath.

The crisp morning air rushed back between us, but the lingering warmth of the moment remained. My chest heaved slightly, matching the rapid, heavy rhythm of her own breathing.

I brought my hands up, gently cupping her face. My thumbs brushed against her flushed cheeks, wiping away the lingering trace of panic that had clouded her bright eyes just moments before.

"I know what happened down there," I said holding her gaze. "It was terrifying. But I came back, right?"

Tessa swallowed hard, leaning her face into the warmth of my palm as she gave a small, tremulous nod.

"And I will come back again. No matter who or what is waiting out there. You have my word."

I leaned forward one last time, pressing a long, tender kiss to her forehead, before finally pulling back and letting my hands fall to my sides.

The profound, suffocating fear that had gripped her shoulders was completely gone. Tessa looked up at me, the gloomy shadow evaporating as a genuine, radiant smile finally broke through.

"Goodbye, Jin," she said, her voice bright and full of life once more. "Be careful."

"I will," I replied, offering her a final, reassuring smile.

Then I turned around, my fingers securely gripping the leather pouch of high-grade potions she had made for me, and walked the rest of the way to the waiting carriage.

As the driver snapped the reins and the wheels began to roll down the dirt path, I looked out the small window. Tessa was still standing by the old oak tree, waving brightly at the departing carriage, until the dense canopy of the forest finally swallowed the village entirely from view.