Chapter 174. Reality and Unreality (1)
She was a foreign woman. With bright coral-red hair and deep brown eyes, her attire was distinctly tourist-like. Fortunately, while she was bleeding, no vital areas seed to be injured. Though the bleeding was getting worse… with proper pressure, she should survive.
I quickly assessed her condition from the corner of my eye while keeping the monster in check.
“Are you crazy? Run away!”
The woman shouted with her remaining strength. I was surprised when she spoke Korean instead of English.
“You… you can speak Korean?”
“Is that really important right now?”
From her perspective, I must have seed like an ordinary civilian. How alarming it must be to have a regular person try to save her.
But would an ordinary person be able to co here? Would a true civilian be able to hear sounds others couldn’t and pass through a barrier?
A sliver of doubt raised its head. Am I really completely myself?
I’m soone who received intense private tutoring from the Black King. Though my body is different, those experiences are engraved in my soul and will never fade. I don’t know why he put through such rigorous training, but right now, I’m very grateful for those teachings.
‘If I saw his face now, I might even call him Teacher.’
Though please don’t actually appear.
I easily dodged the ghoul’s charge. Surprisingly, I could see it coming. Compared to the Black King’s attacks, its movents were childishly slow and pathetic.
Simultaneously, I changed direction by jumping off the brick wall. Another step. Using the clothing collection bin at eleven o’clock as a springboard, I rolled and landed safely. My body felt light.
My mind rembered various spells, but I didn’t know if my current body possessed any magical power. Perhaps my previous fighting ability had only been possible because I was borrowing Jane’s power.
I’d never tried experinting since returning. Of course not—this was reality, wasn’t it? What magic could exist in the 21st century! Reality isn’t a ga. That’s sothing you’re supposed to graduate from after middle school.
But why does all of this feel so unreal?
Ta-dat.
My body moved nimbly.
My body was roughly following what my mind knew about movent. At first, the motions were awkward, but gradually my physical sensations began to revive. As if synchronizing. As if Jane’s lived experience was transferring to . ŕàɴȫ𝐁ĘŠ
“Your wounds—can you move?”
I asked while drawing the ghoul’s attention away from the woman. She looked startled at how skillfully I was fighting.
“This much… I can handle. Are you… ‘one of us’?”
One of us?
“Us?”
“…A magician!”
No, I’m just an ordinary person who crossed boundaries—I was about to answer that way, but stopped when I rembered this was 1870s terminology. Old expressions might still be in use.
So I ended up just giving an ambiguous smile. As I kept dodging around, the ghoul made bubbling sounds and roared. I couldn’t understand it. But I could tell it was pissed… Its face showed it was thoroughly angry at having its al interrupted.
I tried kicking it, but it was like kicking a block of iron—my foot just hurt with no effective damage. Sure enough, there was only one option left.
I squeezed my eyes shut and reached out my hand.
‘Please…’
Please work. I’ve done this before. Even if it’s just mimicry, I rember how. Even that blunt club-like sword would be fine. Just listen to . You’re sothing I summoned. Not Jane—!
Then I felt a tingling sensation in my fingertips. It spread to my palm, ran up my arm, and reached my heart. It felt like molten iron flowing through my blood vessels. I could almost map out how my vessels were connected. With each heartbeat, hot blood pumped throughout my body.
The sensation of magic.
Magic that exists… within .
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
My heartbeat grew increasingly loud. Ti slowed dramatically. The ghoul charged toward as if swimming through honey.
Would my heart burst at this rate?
Was I forcing it too much?
I shouldn’t have tried this!
Then in the next mont, a cold, heavy sensation filled my grip. It was a transparent sword like an icicle. That unmistakable thing had co to in response to my desperate cry!
Simultaneously, ti returned to normal. The ghoul was instantly before my eyes. I thrust the sword reflexively.
Squelch! Sothing was pierced.
Sharp claws had extended right in front of my pupils. A mont later and I would have lost an eye. I pulled the extended sword upward. The keen-edged blade easily sliced through the ghoul’s hide.
I heard chunks of flesh dropping. The alley instantly fell silent. Except for blood dripping from my sword, it was completely quiet.
It was over. But I felt no joy at all.
Catching my breath, I stared down at the sword covered in ghoul blood.
“This shouldn’t be happening.”
I ca back, didn’t I?
Why are there monsters, and why can I still use this sword?
I thought I was going crazy. Even when I felt eyes watching , I convinced myself it was imagination. When I caught glimpses of particularly strange things, I told myself I was seeing things. I’m the strange one. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t worry other people. I have to pretend to be normal.
But…
“Reality? This?”
The monster’s corpse was still there.
This isn’t the world I knew. I hadn’t returned to the South Korea where Jung Hee-in lived. All strength left my body.
“Um…”
A voice called out then. The foreign woman had gathered herself and stood up, looking at .
I looked at her with a complicated expression and released the sword in my hand. With a whisper, the sword dissolved into air and disappeared without a trace.
“Are you okay? Should we go to a hospital?”
“Ah, I have a potion.”
“A potion.”
Wow. This really is like a ga.
After spraying a transparent liquid on her wound, she looked at and said:
“Thank you. You saved my life. I knew there were magicians in Korea, but I never expected to et one like this.”
“What country are you from?”
“England. I chased that thing all the way here. It was quite a troubleso one. A notorious ghoul from Europe. While being pursued, it devoured the magic of two magicians and escaped…”
She looked relieved that it was finally caught. She added that there would be no more casualties.
“I’m Lily. What’s your na?”
She asked.
“Jung Hee-in.”
“Jung… Hee-in.”
“If that’s difficult, you can call Jane.”
Sorry, Jane. Let borrow your na. But I’m so used to it now that your na feels more natural than my own.
Before leaving the alley, Lily suddenly went “Ah!” and cleaned the ghoul’s blood from my hands and clothes. Wow, magic is amazing.
“We would’ve drawn attention going out like that.”
“Thank you, Lily.”
“Don’t ntion it.”
We moved to a nearby café. Lily looked around once, then took out a few green stones and placed them on the café table.
“This conversation wouldn’t be good for civilians to hear.”
“You have things like this too?”
“Oh my. Of course. It’s a simple spell.”
Then Lily explained that I was a late-blooming magician.
“Usually, people can handle magic from the mont they’re born. It’s as natural as breathing. But Jane, you seed completely ignorant of magic despite crossing the barrier. I thought maybe you were one of those civilians who sotis accidentally slip through the cracks due to bad luck.”
Taking a sip of vanilla latte, Lily continued.
“But suddenly your magic surged. You must have felt it. Circulating through your body…”
“And then I took care of that thing.”
“It’s a remarkably quick adaptation. I think it’s an innate talent. You must have had potential even as a child.”
But that’s not true. I was just an ordinary kid. I lost my front teeth eating candy once, but I never had anything extraordinary happen like stones suddenly floating.
I fell deep in thought. Was there really never anything like that? As I wondered, Lily, perhaps interpreting my expression, said:
“It’s okay if you don’t understand. The fact that you’re one of us is sothing to celebrate.”
“Celebrate…”
Lily handed a braided bracelet. It was black with occasional streaks of green.
“There might be things attracted to the scent of newly awakened magic. Wear this bracelet for a week.”
I wonder if I’m just lucky with accessories, or why everything I receive from supernatural beings happens to be jewelry.
After confirming I put on the bracelet, Lily slid a small card-shaped paper toward .
“Anyway. It was nice eting you. If you ever co to England, contact here. I’ll be sure to treat you well.”
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