Iromi buried her face in her knees.
Her memories were hazy.
She thought she had heard a woman’s laughter. A very beautiful voice…
‘What was that…?’
On the home screen of her phone, covered in app icons, there was one empty spot, as if something had been deleted.
*
As they left the waiting room, Gru held Nayeon’s hand tightly, as if trying to comfort her.
Nayeon merely gave her a small smile.
“It’s okay. Romi was just being controlled by a bad person…”
“Yeeah,” Gru replied, lowering her head.
The “bad person” Nayeon had mentioned seemed to have controlled Iromi through her phone. They had definitely disappeared the moment the phone was smashed.
Gru knew that crimes committed by Awakened people never seemed to stop. It was the sort of thing that appeared on the news whenever she turned it on.
“What if bad people do it again?”
“Then we’ll beat them again. We worked really well together today, didn’t we?”
Nayeon bent down and held out her fist. Gru giggled and bumped her own fist against it with a soft thunk.
“Thank you for earlier, Gru.”
At Nayeon’s words of gratitude, Gru stared blankly with her mouth open.
Nayeon smiled gently.
“If you hadn’t been there, big sis wouldn’t have been able to do anything…”
The terror of the helplessness she had felt for the first time was still vivid.
It was this small, soft child who had led her back to reality when she had been helplessly dragged along by shock, fear, and sorrow.
Nayeon carefully pulled Gru into her arms for a moment. Gru hugged her back and rubbed her cheek against Nayeon’s neck.
The child’s warmth enveloped the place where her heart pounded warmly against her chest.
She could find the strength to go on for the sake of this warmth. And from now on, for the sake of this lovely angel, she would be able to do anything.
“I’ve recharged with Gru, so big sis will get her strength back!”
Nayeon declared spiritedly as she sprang to her feet.
“Oh, but Gru. How did you appear there earlier?”
“I did a Gaksital from the ventilation duct.”
“Oh! I see. You really did look just like Gaksital. Amazing.”
“Heehee.”
The two of them clicked as well as if they were friends of the same age.
As Gru walked out of the waiting-room corridor while holding Nayeon’s hand, Wooju suddenly appeared.
“Uh…”
Gru examined Wooju’s face from this angle and that before asking,
“Wooju, did you throw up? Is your tummy okay?”
“You threw up? Was your stomach upset? Should I call your manager?”
“N-no! I didn’t throw up!”
“Wooju’s face turned tomato.”
“No, this is because of the lighting…!”
Wooju scrunched up his face. He wanted to hide his flushed cheeks, but because of his makeup, all he could do was avert his gaze.
“It’s okay. Still pretty. Pretty Wooju.”
Gru smiled sweetly, and Wooju’s face grew even hotter.
Nayeon swallowed a gasp and covered her mouth with both hands.
“Gru, you’re no joke…”
“Huh? What am I?”
“Mm, nothing.”
Nayeon laughed brightly, patted the children on the backs, and led them outside.
Looking back at Iromi’s waiting room, she sensed only one person’s presence.
After the Tower had been conquered, Nayeon had thought the world would become peaceful, but she had been mistaken. Crimes committed by Awakened people were increasing with every passing day.
The criminal organizations Nayeon had helped the dedicated Awakened Crimes Investigation Unit arrest numbered several dozen.
But she had no idea how to handle this particular incident.
Gru had said that there was no longer any connection between Iromi and the unidentified controller. She was completely clean, no matter how they looked at it.
Was it merely the prank of a high-ranking Awakened, or was there some other scheme at work? For now, there was no way to know.
She would inform the dedicated investigation unit, but it was easy to predict that nothing would come of it.
‘What are they after?’
*
The woman opened her parasol.
As she began walking with the click-clack of her heels, her long blond hair, reaching down to her waist, swayed softly.
“What a shame… She was such a well-ripened child. She could have become a lovely student.”
Lost in thought, she pressed her index finger firmly against her lower lip.
“I wonder how she knew.”
It seemed it was no coincidence that the child had targeted the phone from the very beginning.
Had she “seen” that the infected medium was the phone?
Could such a small and young child really possess an ability like that? She had looked no older than three or four.
“Impressive… I thought Zhenya was the only one who could sense me.”
Korea really was fun. Although she had impulsively decided to come to Korea after tearing down all her foundations, she had been surprised by how little she regretted it.
Korea was more enjoyable than she had imagined.
The country that had brought down the Tower.
‘His’ country.
Irina liked Korea’s flawless perfection. Things that were perfectly put together were even more beautiful when they fell apart.
Ever since she had been so young that her memories were hazy, breaking things had always given her an ecstatic joy.
“I hope we get the chance to meet again…”
The child had piqued her interest considerably.
She felt a slight curiosity about what the child could do, and how far she could go.
Suddenly, Irina looked up at the sky beyond her parasol. It was a clear day, with flocks of sheep-like clouds drifting across the blue sky.
He must be beneath this sky as well.
“I wonder what Zhenya is doing… I want to see her soon.”
Irina walked along, humming to herself. Children who recognized her greeted her with bright faces. Irina smiled back and waved lightly.
*
[Title: The Big One Has Arrived!]
The sixth S-ranker? Shin Nayeon, you are invited to the National Pride Club.
[Comments]
- Is it for real that the number of S-rankers is second only to America?
- Please let it be me next Please let it be me next Please let it be me next Please let it be me next Please let it be me next Please let it be me next Please let it be me next Please let it be me next
- So re-awakening really is a thing. But why someone who was already a highly successful A-rank Hunter?
Those who’ve got it, get it.
They say it wasn’t re-awakening but achievement completion.
Isn’t that even crazier? Reaching S-rank through achievements.
[Title: You went to visit a filming set and ended up reaching S-rank?]
Basically the top celebrity in the industry.
The greatest GOAT in show business.
(A picture of Nayeon standing with her arms crossed)
The Great Nayeon
[Comments]
- How’d she do it?
- If she’d stayed an idol, she would’ve broken through to SSS-rank.
- She came to the Hunter world to balance the human world.
[Title: The reason Nayeon was able to reach S-rank, smiling brightly]
On Jurim: “Want to join Hyeonak? If you’re S-rank, we’ll accept you.” (He really said this during a special interview.)
At Hyeonak, anyone below S-rank is an untouchable pariah, so Nayeon awakened.
[Comments]
- Meme support (a picture from On Jurim’s previous interview)
This meme is so worn out.
I carried it around so much to insult On Jurim, lol.
- How did the On Jurim mockery meme get turned around like this? LOL
- So this was foreshadowing, LOL
- LOLLLLL Back then, we failed to see the grand meaning behind it. “The Great Jurim.”
[Title: You want to become S-rank?]
I left all my know-how at Hyeonak.
(A meme with Jurim’s face pasted onto an One Piece character standing on an execution platform)
[Comments]
- Why is On D. Roger showing up here?
Fact) At the Hyeonak Research Institute, they exploit aliens and experiment on A-rank Hunters as part of a project to mass-produce S-rankers.
I want to be exploited by a bad man and reach S-rank too…
GAY
[Title: When is Hyeonak recruiting new members?]
At this point, I could suck big bro Jurim’s toes.
[Comments]
- Jurim will let you suck them? Where do I go?
Take a number. I’m first, you bastard.
GAYs
- Suck On Jurim’s toes and become S-rank vs. Become Shin Nayeon’s dog
No contest. Who wouldn’t become Shin Nayeon’s dog?
He’d have to neuter me.
Now that’s a perfectly balanced contest.
Isn’t sucking toes basically neutering anyway?
Stop making me agonize over a happy choice when neither of them would let me do it.
GAY TOO
[Title: The one thing Young, Pretty, and Rich Shin Nayeon is unable to possess]
I am Choi Chungnam, the thirty-ninth-generation descendant of the Jeonju Choi clan and the only son of the fifth generation.
Shin Nayeon, I offer myself to you.
[Comments]
- Chungnam, grow up.