"Is this crazy?"
"Is this crazy?"
"...Aren't you being too honest about your inner thoughts?"
"Ah, I see."
I blurted out my thoughts in disbelief at Yu Han-ul's words. But how else could I react to such absurdity?
I carefully looked him over. Was he trying to deceive with lies to make feel safe and then kill ? But no matter how much I looked, I couldn't find any sign of deception on Yu Han-ul's face.
‘Even if this cluster intelligence is foolish, I feel like I should warn him.’
Is it okay for a fool like him to be chosen as the hero? Well, it's probably because he’s a fool that he was chosen as the hero... but still...
"I don’t understand you. Friends? ? You?"
Wouldn't even the system be taken aback by this?
The entity chosen as the hero of Earth, Yu Han-ul, wanting to beco friends with ?
anwhile, the system is trying to put an even stronger leash on my neck whenever it gets the chance.
I was told that to survive as a Hunter, one needs to have a sense of reality, but it seems Yu Han-ul doesn’t have that.
"What the hell are you basing this on?"
"I feel like I've seen enough evidence to believe in it."
"So, what exactly...?"
"Hmm, do I have to hear about your achievents from soone else?"
Yu Han-ul, with a sowhat awkward smile, began picking up his words that made no sense.
"First, you saved the grandmother and the reporters in Eunpyeong District... and in Gwanghwamun, you prioritized the children. With the Chambit Church... should I skip that one?"
"That's..."
"You also prioritized Lee Pyeong-hwa during the dungeon disappearance incident, right? Seolmae too. I didn’t expect you to develop a magic circuit though."
"How do you know about that?!"
"Right before leaving New York, I visited Seolmae separately. I was worried since it was a child I had so connection with."
This... I really didn’t expect it.
Yu Han-ul had gone out of his way to check on Seolmae.
I should have kept in mind that the hero’s sense of responsibility is completely different from ordinary people.
"Recently, the dia's been calling you a new hero who respects low-ranking Hunters. It's like they're posting your good deeds every day."
"That..."
It's true that my actions led to this, but none of it is entirely true. Everything I did was for my own benefit.
However, I couldn't argue against Yu Han-ul's next words.
"And you saved Margarita."
"......"
When I raised an eyebrow, Yu Han-ul smiled.
That smile, like he could see right through ... it was, surprisingly, annoying.
"You broke Margarita's magic core and destroyed the cliff... but at least you gave her a chance to survive. Didn’t you realize that?"
"...Does that an you trust ? By all ans, I helped humanity’s enemy. Shouldn't you be more suspicious?"
"I trust the foolish ones who get carried away by emotions more than those who think with reason and efficiency."
That was definitely a true hero statent.
"And I also know that you were quite fond of your niece in your previous life."
I sighed.
Putting aside the whole niece thing, yes, it was true that I allowed Margarita to survive.
But it wasn’t for the reason Yu Han-ul was thinking.
"I... was just trying to get clues about Orbis. It’s a situation where I need them."
"Still acting on emotions first and then attaching a reason that sounds convincing, huh? Do you really need to act this way in front of ?"
Acting on emotions first and then justifying it—what is this strange term?
I blinked at the unfamiliar word. If he had said "hypocrisy," maybe I would have understood, but being accused of acting out of malice? I never imagined that.
"...What’s with that ridiculously favorable interpretation?"
"Self-objectivity is always hard. I know you better than you think. Who was my superior when I first went to battle?"
"...Wow..."
It was a mory I hadn’t thought of in a long ti.
As Yu Han-ul said, once, I had been his superior.
Back when I was called "Princess" by him in Count Burk’s territory and he tried to protect .
But that was so long ago, and compared to what happened afterward, it wasn’t even a significant event.
Once, we might have had a friendly relationship, but eventually, I beca the destroyer of the world, and the hero struck my neck.
So, I thought it wasn’t worth rembering... but I never expected him to bring it up again.
"And I also know you have a precious family now... and I know that you would do anything to protect your loved ones."
"..."
This, for sure, hit a sore spot.
Jeong Da-jeong.
My blood-related sibling in this life was the most powerful ans of controlling .
The only reason I wanted to exist as a human in this world.
"I think you and I... should stop the 'enemy of humanity.' I believe we can cooperate."
"You..."
"Of course, if you want to take revenge on for my past life, that’s another story."
Revenge for my past life.
Even though it might sound like a serious threat, Yu Han-ul said it with no hint of tension on his face.
Does he believe that I don’t have any intention of revenge?
Or does he think the system would intervene if I opposed him?
‘...I don’t know which one it is.’
I considered my options.
Of course, Yu Han-ul’s words were a little absurd.
Putting aside our shared past lives, now in this life, we were supposed to team up.
Is that even possible?
But...
‘It’s not a bad story for .’
Actually, it’s even better.
Thinking about it, there’s no reason to stop him if he foolishly believes in .
Of course, it’s annoying to hear him misinterpret my actions, but that’s just my personal frustration.
As long as Yu Han-ul isn’t hostile toward , I’m freer to act.
So, the answer is clear.
Let’s act rationally.
‘Let him keep thinking what he wants to think.’
After all, it’s not like I care if Yu Han-ul gets hurt by his own belief.
In the end, it’s his own ankle that will get hurt.
‘But still, Jas Chen [N O V E L I G H T] needs to be more cautious.’
If Yu Han-ul continues to be misled, it will work to my advantage.
If Yu Han-ul ever learns that I’m cleverly avoiding quests and punishing or using criminals...
Even if he’s friendly now, with his personality, he’d put on trial and throw into prison.
If he ever finds out what’s really going on, I’d be in trouble.
I nodded to Yu Han-ul.
“I understand your intention. Then, let’s consider this an alliance.”
“Hm, I think there’s a better word than 'alliance'...”
I understood what Yu Han-ul ant, but I wasn’t going to back down on this one.
I replied firmly.
“I don’t do friends.”
“...Yeah, you really don’t seem to have any friends.”
“What did you say?”
“Oh, don’t worry about it. Everyone has their flaws. I think you have a lot, though.”
This brat... is he mocking ?
I glared at Yu Han-ul.
‘Well, he was never the type to hold back his words, even though he was polite before.’
Was it because I was a rookie Hunter recently awakened, that he had tried to watch his words around ?
But now that he’s recovered all his mories, does that an he doesn’t feel the need to treat carefully anymore?
In a way, Yu Han-ul’s attitude toward Han Jae-young was similar.
The hierarchy seed to have vanished.
‘...It’s annoying, but I’ll have to put up with it.’
I wasn’t planning on showing Yu Han-ul any extra respect either.
“Ahem, but there’s one condition.”
Just as I thought the conversation was winding down, Yu Han-ul suddenly spoke up.
“A condition?”
“Yeah, if you find any clues, don’t act on them alone. Talk to first. Especially if you find any clues about Theodora, let know. I’ll share them with you.”
“...I’m not planning on working with you.”
If you are reading this translation anywhere other than Novelight or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.
Well, when the ti cos to fight Orbis, I do intend to use Yu Han-ul as either a sword or a at shield, but I don’t plan on working with him for every little thing.
However, Yu Han-ul smiled as if he had expected my answer.
“I feel the sa. I wouldn’t want to work with soone from my past life either. I prefer being a freelancer.”
“...Hey, I wasn’t that bad of a superior, was I?”
“I think it would be better as a friend.”
“...If sothing cos up, I’ll share. In exchange for you turning a blind eye. But...”
I stood up and smirked.
“I don’t need any friends.”
Yu Han-ul laughed again.
“Friends aren’t sothing you decide to have, Your Highness. That’s why they’re annoying.”
“...You’re really annoying!”
And make up your mind, whether you’re using formal or informal speech.
After finishing the conversation with Yu Han-ul, while enduring my exhaustion, I still had one more mountain to face.
"To think it would be reincarnation out of the Three Sacred Treasures..."
The next evening, when I was called to the Guild Leader's office before leaving work, I blinked in surprise at Han Jae-young’s sudden question.
"Three Sacred Treasures?"
What was that again?
As usual, Han Jae-young was sitting in a fancy office chair, spinning around... not very maturely. And in front of him were tarot cards.
Was he reading fortunes? I didn’t think divination was one of the fairy’s specialties.
"Reincarnation, huh? That’s a little different from what I expected. I thought you were a hybrid of a different race, similar to ..."
‘He was speculating that I’m a hybrid of another race?’
Given that Han Jae-young is part fairy, it makes sense that his guess would lean toward hybrid rather than reincarnation.
If that was the case, I could understand why Han Jae-young has been acting so friendly with lately.
The sense of kinship makes people treat others as if they’re their own kind.
"I didn’t say anything."
But that sense of kinship was just a misunderstanding, and I wasn’t responsible for it.
I didn’t actually say I was a hybrid of another race.
I was just using Han Jae-young's curiosity to my advantage.
‘Still, he figured out that I was reincarnated.’
I had a feeling that Han Jae-young would catch on to so of the truth. After all, a lot of information had flowed into his hands.
From the artificial monster "Dingshinbul," to the fact that all these dinsions are connected, and even eting Margarita in this dungeon.
He even overheard so of my conversation with her.
If he hadn’t figured it out by now, I’d have been disappointed.
The problem was how Han Jae-young would act now.
‘Whatever happens, it doesn’t really matter.’
My relationship with Han Jae-young started from his one-sided curiosity, and I’ve used him enough.
Everything I wanted from him in the beginning is already mine. I don’t care if his interest in fades away.
Actually, I’d be glad if it did.
"...I’ve got a question."
After a while of fiddling with the tarot cards, Han Jae-young suddenly spoke up.
His face looked just as tired as mine.
"What is it?"
I already had a good idea of the kind of question he was going to ask.
Whether I could use magic from my past life, what my relationship with Margarita was, who created the Dingshinbul, and our relationship, and so on...
There were plenty of things Han Jae-young could ask.
However, the question that ca out of his mouth was unexpected.
"So, Da-on, the reason you chose Earth over the other world is... because of Jeong Da-jeong, right?"
"...What does that have to do with anything?"
"No, there’s nothing wrong with stepping up to protect your family."
Whoosh!
Han Jae-young threw one of the tarot cards onto the desk. It had a picture of a demon on it.
...Does he really have prophetic powers?
"But, I’m a little scared of when that motivation of yours fades away."
"It won’t happen."
At my reflexive response, Han Jae-young nodded.
"Yeah, I know you’re very close to Jeong Da-jeong. I understand you’re doing everything to protect her. But... a person living for only one purpose is scary in many ways."
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
"No, it’s just... as a friend, I’m a little worried."
"Friend?"
The word “friend” slipped out of my mouth in disbelief.
Yu Han-ul said the sa thing, but why was everyone suddenly talking about being friends?
"Who’s saying who’s a friend?"
When I glared at him in disbelief, Han Jae-young smugly wrinkled his nose.
Honestly, even if Yu Han-ul was annoying, Han Jae-young couldn’t even co close to his level.
"Friendship isn’t sothing you choose or avoid. It just happens, whether you like it or not."
How can they both say the sa thing, Yu Han-ul and Han Jae-young?
From the outside, it looked like they were just getting practical, but deep down, are they both the sa kind of naïve?
I really don’t get their personalities.
"To say it just happens, I’ve never had anything like that before."
"Well... that's probably because you’ve been living in a limited space like school. If you were unlucky, that’s what happens."
"Is that so."
"Actually, Da-on, your personality is the real problem."
"...If you're done talking, can I go now?"
"Hey, we’ve gone through so many hardships and spent so much ti together. And our goals are the sa. Doesn't that make us friends?"
Han Jae-young pulled out another card, smiling as he waved it in front of . This ti, the card had an image of lovers on it.
"What does that an?"
"Well, it’s open to interpretation, but the reversed position ans it's not a good sign."
"Stop it, just stop."
"Then, let's take the advice of a friend and move on from these cards and talk about sothing more constructive. This is the real discussion."
Han Jae-young set the tarot cards aside and took out a report.
"This is a report about the recent dungeon conquest. We need to decide how much we should reveal to the governnt, which has been monitoring our actions. Let’s discuss it."
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