Free Web Novel"Ah! Wh-What was that?"
Yohan flinched instinctively at the strange sensation. Wherever Lee Hyunmook's fingertips pressed, a hard-to-describe feeling pulsed through him—ticklish, almost, or like his muscles were twitching on their own. As Hyunmook pressed into a particularly knotted part of his calf, he calmly explained,
"It’s like EMS—low-frequency massage. Not painful, right? It works by sending mild electric currents to loosen the muscles."
“...Y-Yes! It doesn’t hurt at all.”
Yohan was surprised. He’d only ever associated Hyunmook’s ability with brutal, high-voltage shocks raining from the sky—he never imagined it could be used like this.
“Wow, you can even use your powers like this?”
“If there’s no fire around, I use it to heat things up too.”
Yohan nodded in awe. Could he charge a battery, then? Would asking that be rude? Human purifier and human charger... He was still toying with these idle thoughts when things took an awkward turn. This was not the time to be admiring him.
Yohan swallowed back an embarrassing noise rising in his throat. The massage itself hadn’t bothered him before, but now—with that so-called EMS stimulation—the strange sensations were stronger. He tried humming random songs in his head, imagined sad scenarios, anything to calm himself, but it was no use: blood was rushing to all the wrong places.
‘No—no, don’t! Can you not read the situation right now?!’
Scolding ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) himself sternly inside didn’t help at all. Hyunmook’s touch felt too weird... too good... Thank god he was lying on his stomach. As Yohan silently panicked, Hyunmook began to turn him over like he did during the earlier massage. Startled, Yohan shouted,
“Uh—um! I think that’s enough...! I’m super sleepy all of a sudden, so I’d really like to sleep now...!”
He scrambled for the blanket like it was a lifeline. Hyunmook looked down at him with a faint smile, and instead of continuing the massage, gently patted Yohan’s head.
“Goodnight, Yohan.”
“Thanks for the massage! Sleep well too, Hyunmook-ssi!”
Yohan beamed as brightly as he could—then as soon as Hyunmook left, he silently screamed into his sheets. He didn’t notice... right? Please tell me he didn’t notice...! Only after smacking his face into the bed a few times did the shame subside enough to let him sleep.
* * *
Once Yohan could dodge both hands effectively, Hyunmook moved on to teaching him how to sense danger. This training was simple in theory: avoid Hyunmook’s attacks while he stayed hidden nearby.
But when Hyunmook really made an effort to mask his presence, Yohan was left completely in the dark. It was like he wasn’t even there. Despite knowing he was being watched, Yohan got so unsettled that he couldn’t help but call out:
“You’re still around here... right, Hyunmook-ssi?”
Naturally, no answer came.
A little deflated, Yohan began moving like he’d been instructed. The goal was to complete ten laps around their shelter while avoiding as many attacks as possible. Tense, he kept his head on a swivel as he walked. Then—after a few minutes—something wet and slimy suddenly hit his forearm.
“Ugh!”
Startled, Yohan looked down. A thick, sticky black substance was smeared across his skin.
“What the hell...”
He gingerly peeled it off, wincing. It was some disgusting clump of gunk, squirming ever so slightly. He shuddered, then quickly purified it. So that’s why he told me to wear white... It didn’t hurt, but the sheer discomfort was another kind of punishment. When he got hit in the back of the neck, he instinctively shuddered.
Even though he tried to stay alert, Yohan got hit by all ten attacks during his first full lap. By the tenth lap, he could sense the strikes coming... but still couldn’t avoid them. Once all the attacks were finished, Hyunmook finally reappeared. As Yohan purged the grime from Hyunmook’s hands, he grumbled:
“What were you even throwing at me?”
“Some gross mud clumps near the barn?”
“Ugh...” fгeewebnovёl.com
The next day, Yohan managed to avoid five out of a hundred attacks. But the stuff that did hit him was so disgusting that by the second half, he started purifying the mud before it could even touch him. As he brushed off the remaining dirt and straw, he asked cautiously:
“Is it okay to purify stuff before it touches me?”
“Actually, that’s even better. Monsters tend to weaken when they’re purified. Make it a habit.”
By the end of the week, Yohan could dodge or purify roughly 70–80% of attacks. As he brushed himself off again, he asked:
“So... when do I learn how to attack?”
“You probably shouldn’t attack at all, if you can help it.”
Hyunmook’s answer caught him off guard. As he dusted off Yohan’s back—places Yohan couldn’t reach—he elaborated:
“If you don’t know a monster’s traits, attacking it can backfire. Maybe it explodes when hit. Maybe it sticks to you like glue. Or maybe... you’re hallucinating, and the ‘enemy’ is actually an ally.”
Yohan was instantly reminded of the Red Head and the wheelchair monster in the hospital. Both were filled with toxic substances—perfect examples of what Hyunmook had just described.
“Better to use your ability to purify. That throws the enemy into disarray, and gives you a chance to escape. Honestly, if a healer’s being attacked while a dealer just stands there... that team’s already done for.”
Taking it all in, Yohan nodded seriously. From the way Hyunmook had been training and observing him, it was clear he’d pegged Yohan as a pure healer. Based on his stamina and strength, Yohan wasn’t even cut out to be a full support class.
‘Right... contaminated bodies regenerate slowly. I help restore that, so in a way, I really am a healer.’
Once Yohan was dodging 70–80 out of 100 attacks, Hyunmook finally decided it was time to start tracking Yoon Seungryong.
“He’s lazy, so chances are he’s still close to where I last saw him. Let’s do a light recon today, get you some real experience.”
Since it would take about two days round trip, they packed food before heading into the Black Forest. Yohan could now sense the stares of monsters in the darkness around them—something he wouldn’t have noticed before.
They kept their light small to conserve energy. Thankfully, no monsters attacked in the forest. The trouble began when they reached a swamp about 30 minutes in.
The ground grew soft, wet, and foul-smelling. Eventually, their feet began to sink. Yohan, sweating nervously, tried to step exactly where Hyunmook stepped. Just then, feeling something off, he sidestepped—and something whizzed past where he’d just been.
“Gah—what the—!”
Clutching his chest, he turned around and saw Hyunmook patting his shoulder calmly.
“Nice dodge. That was your attacker. One of the blood-sucking types.”
Pleased by the compliment, Yohan looked more closely. Hyunmook had already caught the creature—fluttering like a bird, its wing-tips were jagged like saws. When Yohan purified it, it turned into a familiar forest moth. Once, he would've screamed about it being a giant monster moth—but now? It barely fazed him.
“A moth, huh.”
It wasn’t edible, unlike the frogs, so they let it go. It flapped away into the shadows. It would probably turn monstrous again in time. Watching it disappear, Yohan pressed onward.
The further they walked, the more unbearable the air became—humid, sticky, and thick. Yohan had to fight to yank his legs free from the mire. At one point, Hyunmook raised his spear and stabbed it into the ground. When he sent a jolt of electricity through it, chaos erupted in the previously quiet swamp.
KYEEEKK! KYAAGH! AARGH!
What looked like solid ground had actually been monsters in disguise. They leapt up, screeching from the shock, then fled in a frenzy. Hyunmook calmly pointed with his spear.
“See the areas where nothing jumped? That’s solid ground. Just follow me.”
...So low-frequency massage and swamp-clearing? Electricity was really versatile. As Hyunmook advanced, he gave Yohan space to dodge monsters. If Yohan failed, Hyunmook would swat them away.
The worst, by far, were the bug swarms. They flew with an ominous bzzzz that made Yohan want to scream on sight. Even after purification, they were still just gross, disgusting bugs. Thankfully, Hyunmook never made Yohan deal with those directly—he zapped them himself every time. The air stank of burnt chitin.
After slogging through the swamp, they finally came upon a giant tree monster. Hyunmook fried it, Yohan purified the remains, and it collapsed into a perfect stump just big enough for them to lie on. They ate a simple meal, then Hyunmook angled his spear upright and said:
“I’ll take first watch. You sleep.”
“Oh—okay! Thank you!”
Yohan didn’t complain. He was utterly exhausted. He rolled out his sleeping bag, crawled in, and was out cold the moment he closed his eyes.
