"……"
I stared blankly at the ceiling, sinking into thought.
Looking back on my past life, I'd never really been on the receiving end of something called care.
That was especially true given the nature of the hunter profession — a job that demanded a constant, desperate struggle against death.
A world where you had to stand entirely on your own.
Grueling work where you put your life on the line every single day.
Anyway, if anything, I was always the reliable, steadfast presence at the center of the battlefield that others leaned on — never the kind of person who needed someone else's helping hand…
"Okay~ open wide for Shin-a~"
"Nom."
I opened my mouth on reflex and accepted the fruit.
Right…
No matter how I thought about it, living like this — just sitting here with my mouth open, receiving excessive amounts of care — was completely against my natur—
"Here comes another one~"
"……Nom nom."
Against my nature.
Cheeks puffed out, I chewed slowly and furrowed my brow as if to signal my reluctance.
Watching my brow crinkle, Jang-mi simply smiled sweetly, as if she found it adorable.
Hmm……
This was all the fault of my current state — this strange, feeble body.
It was so pathetically weak that even trying to lift something slightly heavy made my fingertips tremble.
No wonder Jang-mi and Do-hwa hovered around me with their overprotective fussing.
To break free from all this excessive care and coddling, I'd need to build up some degree of… stamina…
"Here you go, Shin-a~"
"Nom nom nom…"
……I need to build up my stamina.
"……"
It's good, though.
***
And so……
Today, I came to the park.
Blue sky overhead, warm sunlight.
It happened to be the weekend, and Jang-mi had headed off to the guild — truly the perfect timing for a workout.
And……
"Hff……! Hoo……"
I glanced sideways at I-deun, who had been standing beside me for a while now, visibly tense as he loosened up with stiff, mechanical stretches.
"Are you…… ready?"
I asked solemnly. He gulped and gave a resolute nod.
"……Yeah."
The promise I'd made last time.
I'd come out here to keep that promise — the one where I said I'd teach him how to fight.
There's a saying: teaching is the best way to learn.
My plan was to train this feeble body of mine while teaching him at the same time.
"You brought it, right?"
I asked with a serious look. He carefully pulled something from inside his jacket.
"……Yeah. Here."
I took it from him carefully.
A cool, solid weight against my fingertips.
A dagger.
Except…… now that I actually had it in hand, it seemed a bit large for a dagger. A strange, in-between size.
It looked less like a dagger and more like something approaching a machete.
"……"
The blade only looks long because of the blade itself.
The sword is genuinely big. It has absolutely nothing to do with my height being shor—
Anyway.
Grumbling internally, I stepped back and casually asked him, "So, is a dagger your main weapon?"
"Well…… more or less. Honestly, I didn't have much money for personal gear… I just wandered the market and picked the cheapest thing I could find."
He scratched the back of his head with an awkward grin.
"Ah."
A dagger, huh.
I gave my wrist a light snap and studied the blade in my hand.
The advantages of a dagger were its fast attack speed and its compact movements — decent enough as a secondary weapon.
But the short reach meant you had to get right up close to your opponent, which made it difficult to handle until you were completely proficient.
Not exactly a recommended weapon for an inexperienced rookie hunter.
Well, that said……
Swish, shhhk—!
In an instant, the blade left my hand and sliced cleanly through the air.
That sound wasn't coming from my mouth.
I swung the dagger a few times in quick, light arcs, then spun it between my fingers and caught it — and I-deun's eyes went wide as he watched from the side.
"You're really good……"
He murmured, dazed. I smirked with a haughty expression and tilted my chin up slightly.
"I know what I'm doing."
I handed the dagger back to him.
"Give it a try. You must have picked up something somewhere — school, wherever."
"Out of nowhere……?"
I-deun looked flustered, gripping the handle and hesitating. I crossed my arms and fixed him with a stern look.
"Go on."
"Ugh……"
Faced with my firm attitude, he reluctantly steadied his breathing and took his stance.
One hand extended forward, weight lowered — a textbook-correct form.
Oh, that's actually not bad.
His fundamentals were clearly solid.
Then, with a shout, he moved.
Swish— Shwish—!
Cutting through the air, he thrust the dagger forward at empty space.
"……"
"……"
Silence fell.
I-deun froze mid-thrust, sweat beading on his face, and started watching me nervously.
"Um…… could you maybe…… give me some kind of reaction……?"
"No, it's…… actually not bad."
I meant it.
The trajectory was straightforward, but there was no unnecessary excess — it was pure textbook form.
"They teach it properly at school, I guess?"
"Well…… it is the hunter track, so……"
I caught something odd in that phrasing and tilted my head.
"Hmm…… 'hunter track'? Does that mean there are other tracks?"
"Yeah……? All kinds. For something unusual…… I think there was even one for the entertainment industry."
"Huh…… there's a lot of options. But why did you pick the hunter track specifically?"
"Me……? I wanted to make good money……? I'd awakened, and it's not like I had any special unique trait that would suit another track…… so I applied. But then I got there and turned out I had no talent……"
I watched his shoulders droop and raised one finger decisively.
"Change your weapon."
"Hm……?"
"You do seem to have talent…… that's the problem."
I pointed directly at the dagger in his hand.
"This……?"
"Yes. That."
"But why……? I've been practicing pretty hard with it."
I-deun blinked, looking genuinely confused.
I looked him up and down and asked, "What's your rough time for a hundred-meter sprint?"
"Around…… nine to ten seconds, maybe?"
"That's not particularly fast for an Awakened."
"Still, if I put stats into it properly, I'd get faster."
I snorted and said flatly, "What matters is how fast you naturally are without doing that. Dagger technique is all about speed."
"Ugh……"
I-deun went quiet, deflated.
"In my opinion…… a greatsword suits you."
"A greatsword?"
"You've got the build for it. The reach is longer, and pushing through with raw strength has far better odds."
"A greatsword…… huh…… but I don't have the money for a weapon like that."
Honestly, why don't you have money?
"The magic stones I gave you last time — you haven't sold them yet?"
"I did sell them……"
"Use that. It should be enough."
"Ah…… okay."
"You can earn more by running dungeons."
I-deun finally nodded, convinced.
The young man in front of me had far more potential than he gave himself credit for.
"From what I can see…… you have a natural talent for handling weapons. And…… what level are you at right now?"
"Around 16……"
"Your level is way too low. Didn't you say something before about going to dungeons as part of some extracurricular activity?"
"Yeah. I did."
"Then why aren't you going……?"
He made a forlorn expression and muttered.
"……Because nobody will go with me."
"Ah."
"……"
"……"
Silence settled between us — me having heard his answer, and him with his head hanging low.
Hmm…
Didn't see that coming.
***
I patted his drooping shoulder.
Even though his head was hanging down, my short arms were nowhere near long enough — I had to stretch up on my tiptoes just to barely reach.
Really didn't see that coming……
"……"
I stole a glance at his expression. It was sunken and gloomy.
Poor guy.
"……"
Dungeons, dungeons.
For a D-rank hunter with limited experience and a low level, going alone carried far too much risk.
And it wasn't like I could just go with him right now.
Dungeons are too scary.
What to do.
There was no clear way I could help him with the leveling problem immediately.
"Haah……"
A deep sigh slipped out between my lips.
At the sound of my sigh, I-deun flinched and looked down at me.
"Hey, why are you the one looking all dejected."
My blunt scolding earned me a look from I-deun that mixed gratitude and guilt in equal measure.
"……Because I feel bad that you can't help me."
"You……"
"……"
Our eyes met directly in the air between us.
His gaze was already full of something warm, quietly holding me in it.
Anyway, something like a hot current of friendship passed between us.
A sense of solidarity wrapped around the empty lot.
"Let's do…… what we can right now!"
I declared with firm resolve. He wiped at his eyes and nose in an exaggerated gesture and nodded vigorously.
"Yeah……!"
And so…
"One two, one two."
If he couldn't level up because he couldn't get into dungeons, then what else was there but bodyweight training?
The two of us started working out in earnest in the middle of the empty lot.
I trained my feeble body on my own terms, and he built the foundational strength needed to wield a greatsword — both of us sweating hard.
Running, jumping, rolling under the sunlight, breathing hard for a good long while—
[ Stamina has increased by 1! ]
"……!"
A clear chime rang through my mind, and a translucent window slid smoothly into view before my eyes.
At last, the fruits of my effort.
"Oh, my stamina went up."
I muttered, glancing at the window, and I-deun — who had been wiping sweat beside me — peered at my face with curiosity.
"……Hm? Must be because you're a kid — it goes up fast."
"Yay."
I cheered internally.
This……
Have I gotten ridiculously strong all of a sudden?
I'd worked out hard and my stamina went up — did I maybe just develop abs or something?
I made a smug face, lifted my shirt slightly, and poked myself with a finger.
Squish~
"……"
"……What's wrong? Does something hurt?"
I-deun asked with concern as I froze up.
I lowered my hand and stared off into the distance.
"It's nothing."
***
"Good work today."
I wiped the sweat from my forehead with my sleeve and said my goodbyes.
"Yeah. You too. And…… thanks."
The look I-deun gave me as he looked down was full of genuine gratitude.
"……"
My own feelings, receiving his thanks, were not entirely comfortable.
Honestly, aside from the advice to switch weapons, I hadn't really managed to help him with his biggest problem — leveling up. That nagged at me.
Going into a dungeon was still an unsettling prospect.
Just then.
"Ah……! It's Shin-a!"
A bright, energetic voice carrying from far away.
"……?!"
In an instant, an alarm went off in my head.
Every hair on my body stood on end, and before I knew it, I'd thrown both hands up to shield my head in a defensive posture.
A figure charging toward me with ferocious momentum from a distance.
Brown hair glinting in the sunlight, and even from far away, that familiar face radiating 'I am a high-energy person' from every pore.
It was Ji-woo.
Just look at that outstretched hand, reaching for my head with reckless intent.
But?
Who did she think she was dealing with.
I had just survived a hellish training session and proudly claimed a hard-won Stamina +1 — the owner of a full six points of stamina.
A completely different dimension from the weak me of before.
I zeroed in on that rough hand barreling straight toward me and twisted my upper body with quick precision.
Swish—!
"Hm……?"
Ji-woo stopped in her tracks, feeling nothing but empty air, and blinked in momentary surprise.
I stepped back smoothly and tilted my chin up with a triumphant expression.
See that?
That's me~
But……
Huh?
Ji-woo's silhouette, frozen in front of me, began to blur.
Where did she——
I blinked, and felt a presence behind me.
"Gotcha, Shin-a~"
Whoosh—!
My body was swept up into the air.
Ah.
***
Pat pat, pat pat pat—
"Hehehe…… Shin-a is so cute! Did you want to play tag with your unnie? Dodging all over the place like that!"
Hands ruffling through my hair without mercy.
I was thoroughly trapped in Ji-woo's arms, helplessly having my head petted.
Not a chance.
Honestly, I'd known from the start it wouldn't work.
It was just…… I got a stamina point earlier, so I was feeling myself a little, that's all……
My pride stung a little and I stuck out my lower lip, but with no sign of Ji-woo letting go, I eventually gave up resisting and went limp.
Anyway, that wasn't the important thing.
Was there any way to help that poor young man level up?
I was racking my brain with my head hanging down, when—
"Oh."
A flash — one brilliant idea cut through my mind.
"Excuse me."
I rustled around in her arms and looked up. Ji-woo stopped petting me and looked down at me with a bright smile.
"Yeah? What is it, Shin-a?"
"Would you be willing to take me and that oppa over there to a dungeon sometime?"
My small finger pointed directly at I-deun, who was still crouched in the corner of the empty lot.
"Hm?"
For a moment, Ji-woo's large eyes filled with surprise.
My gaze, I-deun's gaze, and Ji-woo's gaze tangled together in a triangle in the air between us.
And exactly three seconds later.
"Oh, that sounds really fun~!"
Ji-woo broke into a bright smile with her signature high energy and agreed far too easily.
Yes.
"Wait, hold on……"
Ji-woo suddenly pulled the corners of her mouth down and wiped the playful expression clean off her face.
……Was it a no after all?
I was swallowing nervously, waiting for her next words, when—
"If Shin-a calls me unnie~ I'll go with you~!"
"……"
The serious expression from a moment ago was nowhere to be found. She was staring at me with sparkling eyes, applying full pressure.
Her entire body was screaming 'hurry up and call me unnie!'
"U…… unnie……?"
"Perfect! Decided! Let's go~!"