Chapter 8

After the career experience program was canceled,

many of the children went home with the guardians who had rushed to the experience center.

Yiji boarded the chartered bus without expecting anything. Her older sister was always busy with work.

But just before the bus engine started, her sister came running into the experience center parking lot.

“Yijiiiiii! Are you okay?!”

“Unni? Huh? You didn’t have to come! Why are you here?!”

“Is… huff… that really… the first thing… you say? How could I not… gasp… come?!”

Still wearing only a cardigan over her work uniform, her sister collapsed into the front seat. Beads of sweat poured down her forehead from how hard she had run.

“Unni, I’m fine! Really, nothing happened!”

“Getting dragged into a dungeon counts as ‘nothing happened’?”

Practically crawling, her sister came over and checked Yiji’s arms and legs.

At that moment, her homeroom teacher approached and handed her sister a handkerchief.

“Oh, Teacher!”

“You must have had a hard time getting here, Miss Yiji’s guardian. Let me explain what happened.”

“Thank youuu… Yiji, sit down and rest. Your sister will talk with the teacher. Haaah…”

The ride back to school, which was usually noisy and lively,

was unusually quiet.

The remaining children seemed exhausted from all the chaos and fell asleep one after another.

Yiji also closed her eyes.

As she sat there, familiar voices drifted through the gap between the seats ahead.

“Another student was there too… Yiji is so composed that I’m actually more worried… We’ll continue monitoring her at school…”

“Thank you for your concern… A frightening place like a dungeon…”

Unni. Dungeons weren’t as scary as you think.

They aren’t safe, but… maybe they’re places where you can make friends.

I’m a Hunter now, you know?

…Sentences she absolutely couldn’t say.

Of course, even if her sister learned that she was a magical girl, she wouldn’t betray her.

The problem was something else.

Unni would worry.

She was already this anxious even though Yiji had safely returned from an extremely weak dungeon.

If Yiji confessed that she planned to keep entering dungeons, her sister might actually faint.

What should I do?

Waiting until she became an adult felt impossibly long.

Eleven years… That’s forever.

I’d have to wait a lifetime and then another two years on top of that.

Still, it was true that dungeons were dangerous for a newly awakened Hunter.

Maybe it’d be okay once I get stronger?

If I gain skills… and… what I really need is…

Just as the word companion flickered through her mind,

Yiji drifted off into dreamland.

* * *

“Uuunnn… ni. We’re already home? I was sleeping all weirdly…”

“You’re heavy, so don’t move right now. Just keep your eyes closed a little longer and get up before dinner, okay?”

“…Okay.”

Yiji had turned completely limp from sleeping on the bus.

The moment Hyunji laid her down on the bed, she sank right back into dreamland.

Of course, Yiji wasn’t heavy at all.

If Hyunji had said, It’s okay, sleep more, Yiji would probably have forced herself awake.

She hated being a burden to her sister.

She could be a little more selfish.

Walking into the living room, Hyunji recalled what she’d heard on the bus earlier.

Her homeroom teacher had spoken carefully.

“I’m actually worried because Yiji is too composed. The other student who was dragged into the dungeon burst into tears as soon as they saw their family.”

“I’m almost jealous. That student seems to have a healthy family relationship. As for Yiji, I can’t tell whether she’s denying her emotions or suppressing them…”

“Guardian… you don’t talk like that in front of Yiji too, do you?”

“Of course not.”

At least in front of her little sister, Hyunji tried her best to be as soft and gentle as all the things Yiji loved—rabbits, strawberries, and jelly candy.

“Ahem. We’ll continue keeping an eye on her at school, but please let us know if Yiji starts acting differently than usual.”

“Thank you for your concern. She went somewhere as extraordinary as a dungeon. There’s no way it couldn’t affect her. I’ll keep watch for signs of trauma as well.”

The homeroom teacher smiled oddly.

It was the same expression people always made when they learned that a twenty-eight-year-old woman was raising her nine-year-old sister alone.

“I’m glad Yiji has such a dependable older sister. Have a safe trip home.”

“Thank you.”

If she looked dependable, that was enough.

When it came to anything involving her sister, she always wanted to stay composed.

…Even after what had happened recently.

Once she confirmed that Yiji was asleep,

Hyunji went out to the balcony and retrieved a card she had shoved deep into a drawer.

To Hyunji, who always brightens my world.

Thank you for the past year we’ve spent together…

No matter how hard she tried not to read it,

the final line, written with painstaking care, always caught her eye.

I want to stay with you for much longer.

Hyunji picked up a pair of scissors and cut through that sentence first.

Then she cut up the names Shin Hyunji and Kim Dongha.

Then every bit of the sentimental nonsense about love.

Before long, the card was nothing but scraps of paper.

I should’ve cut it up sooner.

I hope Yiji didn’t happen to see it yesterday…

Anxiety washed over her.

Last year, Hyunji had kept her relationship a secret from Yiji.

She didn’t want her sister worrying that she’d become an obstacle to her dating life.

Thank goodness she never told her.

How would I even explain what happened?

That after one year of dating, the other person had proposed all by himself—

and canceled it all by himself.

One day, just before their first anniversary,

her boyfriend, Kim Dongha, handed her that meaningful-looking card and said:

“Dress nicely. You have to.”

The location written on the card was an outrageously expensive restaurant.

One famous for marriage proposals, too.

Was he planning to propose?

More than happy, she felt bewildered.

They had only dated for a year.

They’d never once seriously discussed a future together.

Still worried, she went.

…In hindsight, an actual proposal would’ve been preferable.

On the day of the appointment, in a private dining room,

Dongha had seemed strangely gloomy all evening.

The moment dinner ended, he bit his lower lip dramatically and said:

“My mother opposes our marriage.”

What kind of nonsense is this?

As Hyunji sat there stunned,

Dongha launched into an emotional monologue.

His mother had investigated her family after hearing he wanted to marry someone.

His family was actually quite wealthy.

She could never become their daughter-in-law.

He wanted to embrace every part of her.

But his father had high blood pressure, so he couldn’t push the matter further.

And on and on.

Then came the finishing blow.

Handing her a gift bag from a jewelry brand, Dongha said:

“Will you promise not to cross the line? If you do, we can stay together a little longer.”

…How had she managed to run out of there?

The only thing she remembered clearly was swinging the shopping bag at him.

When she came back to her senses at home, only the empty gift bag remained in her hand.

Well, at least it made cutting him out of her life easy.

“Cross the line? Keep my place? Did I ever beg you to marry me, you narcissistic bastard?!”

He probably never intended to marry her in the first place.

He just wanted to enjoy some forbidden-love fantasy while teaching me my place.

Did a second-grader really need to know that someone like this existed?

She wouldn’t even know how to explain it.

She wanted to pretend it had never happened.

Still, I should’ve checked the trash more carefully!

While cleaning up every trace of him, she’d forgotten that the card was still inside the shopping bag and had left it out on the balcony.

I spent half a day worrying that Yiji might’ve read it…

And then an even bigger problem exploded.

Her sister had gotten caught up in a dungeon!

Even if it had only been a low-level dungeon,

a dungeon was still a dungeon.

Just imagining how frightened that tiny child must have been made her chest ache.

After throwing away the shredded card,

Hyunji headed toward Yiji’s bedroom.

I wonder if she’s having nightmares.

Sleep patterns were a direct indicator of mental health.

She waited for quite a while.

Throughout that time, Yiji’s breathing remained deep and steady.

Thank goodness.

Hyunji leaned through the crack in the door to get one last look at her face—

and froze.

Huh?

In the dark room,

she spotted something strange.

Something soft-looking and strawberry-colored drifted across Yiji’s room, sparkling faintly.

If she had to compare it to something,

it was about the size of two containers’ worth of slime.

What was that just now?

By the time she blinked,

it had vanished without a trace.

The only thing sparkling nearby was the metal decoration on the bed frame.

Did I imagine it?

Yiji had gotten tired of playing with slime a long time ago.

No matter how much she looked around, nothing had changed.

But a sweet scent brushing past her nose awakened a memory.

Right! The tumbler! I still need to wash it!

Soon, Hyunji grabbed Yiji’s school bag.

Seeing that the tumbler lid was open, she nearly panicked.

Fortunately, the bottom of the bag was completely dry.

Looks like she drank all the strawberry soda.

Until Hyunji left the room with the tumbler,

Yiji didn’t even stir in her sleep.

In fact, a small smile rested on her lips, as if she were having a wonderful dream.

Feeling somewhat reassured, Hyunji left the room.

And the soft, mysterious creature that smelled faintly of strawberry soda also relaxed,

settling comfortably beneath the bed.

* * *

The next morning.

“Did you sleep well, Unni?”

Yiji smiled brightly from across the dining table.

Judging by the tuft of hair sticking up from being pressed against her pillow, she’d slept extremely well.

“I slept great. Why are you up so early?”

“I just… woke up!”

Was it her imagination,

or was there a strange excitement in Yiji’s voice?

Well, it was certainly better than depression.

Hyunji pulled out something that would make Yiji even more excited.

“Yiji. Here. This is for you.”