Free Web NovelRoy decided he needed to put as much distance as possible between himself and Taeeon’s farm.
If only his skills weren’t locked, he wouldn’t be struggling like this.
Then a thought occurred to him.
‘Would Godslighting even work on a blood fiend?’
The name’s a bit weird, but a skill’s a skill, right? Granted, he’d been bluffing about attending Awakeners’ High School, and he had no real countermeasures. Of course it was better than a regular high school—but the problem was he was just a first-year who’d only enrolled a month ago.
Roy, running desperately, came to a dead end and skidded to a halt.
“Ah, shit!”
There was nowhere left to retreat. Do you think you can outrun a blood fiend in a human body that can reach sixty kilometers per hour? The only reason he’d managed this far was because he was S-rank.
While Roy hesitated, the fiends quickly surrounded him.
‘I’m screwed.’
He’d expected them to charge headlong the moment he stopped, but for some reason they hesitated. They must have sensed something off about his aura.
His hand tightened on the tripod hoe as the noose of encirclement closed in. The fiends, drooling, bared their fangs. They looked as disgusting as they felt to be bait for them.
Roy’s eyes darted between the three. He locked gaze with the smallest one—it might as well be worth a shot.
“You tumor-looking freak! Cancer of society! Useless trash sucking up oxygen!”
He didn’t know the activation conditions for his skill, so he just yelled. But the Godslighting skill that had worked perfectly around Hojin remained silent this time.
Damn it.
Roy, flushed with anger, screamed at the air.
“You sons of bitches!”
【Skill ‘Godslighting’ activated.】 ƒrēewebnovel.com
Suddenly two fiends flipped onto their backs, paws in the {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} air, like puppies begging for affection.
“????”
What’s happening right now?
He had no time to figure it out. The remaining fiend, enraged by its companions’ abnormal behavior, reared its claws and charged.
“키에에엑!”
“Ah!”
With a whoosh, Roy hurled the tripod hoe and rolled to the side. The attack missed, but seeing two of them afflicted bolstered his confidence.
‘The skill worked, right? Right?’
Hell, it actually worked. He felt a thrill, as if he were playing a game rather than facing real monsters.
“Die, too!”
This time he didn’t dodge the charging fiend—he met it head-on, but
【You cannot use that skill yet.】
The damned status window flashed in his mind.
“Give me a heads-up if there’s a cooldown!”
Roy panicked and tried to dodge, but he was already in the fiend’s strike range.
‘I’m done for.’
He squeezed his eyes shut and curled up as tightly as possible.
Kugugugung!
Jjeojeojeok—
Suddenly the ground trembled, and a fissure raced toward Roy and the fiends from the far end of the farm. An earthquake.
‘What the hell is this now?’
He thought he had no strength left to run, but the next thing he knew, he was sprinting with the fiends.
“Yaaah! Don’t follow me, you bastards! Just go away!”
【You cannot use that skill yet.】 ƒгeewebnovёl.com
Damn that cooldown! Even Awakeners are equal before natural disasters.
At some point he felt his foot step on air and looked down. The crack in the earth yawned with darkness.
“Ah....”
He really was done for. As soon as he realized it, his body plunged downward and the status window appeared.
【Ally ‘Kim Taeeon’ has awakened.】
“What does that matter right now!”
“키에에엑!”
The fiend that had been on Roy’s tail was already falling faster than him. After nearly dying in a car crash, now he’d die by falling?
“Yaaah!”
He plummeted rapidly—but in the face of death, his body moved on its own. He snatched a tree root protruding from the cliff’s side and cried from his heart.
“Save me! Yaaah! Kim Taeeon!!”
✧
Meanwhile, the tripod hoe that shattered the window had threatened Taeeon’s life—and he awakened. At the moment he didn’t even recognize it as awakening; he just thought his senses had sharpened.
His heart pounded. He could hear leaves rustling in the wind and smell the dirt in the air. He even heard a clear, youthful voice.
“Yaaah! Kim Taeeon! Save me!!!”
Getting to his feet, Taeeon sprinted to the window. Seconds ago the ground had shaken violently, and now a massive fissure ran through the farm. If hell existed, it must lie below.
He’d only ever seen disaster news overseas; this was his first time witnessing such devastation. He didn’t even notice his vision had suddenly improved.
“What... what is this...?”
“How dare you repay kindness like this?!”
At the fissure’s edge he saw a tiny figure: Roy, clinging to the tree root, screaming. It had to be the student who’d come to rescue him in his moment of crisis.
“Wait, hold on!”
Taeeon shouted wildly, knowing his voice could never carry, and dashed outside. Sirens wailed as the emergency rescue team arrived just then.
“Oh?! Please help us!”
“Are you the caller? Where’s the blood fiend—”
“I don’t know about a blood fiend, but someone will die if you don’t hurry...!”
✧
[(Breaking) Blood fiend sightings near the farm, Sokcho on alert]
[Fear spreads as fiends appear one after another]
Roy, loaded into an ambulance and taken to the hospital, lay resting in a bed. Thanks to Taeeon’s haste, he’d been rescued safely, but it felt like thirty years had been cut from his life.
‘I should’ve gone looking for Yeonwoo first. Instead I found Taeeon and almost died.’
Of all times to awaken. Facing blood fiends seemed preferable. Roy clenched his blanket in frustration, when the curtain swished back and Hojin’s worried face appeared, breath ragged from running.
“Roy! Are you okay? Did you get hurt badly?”
“Hyung....”
Roy, walnut in his mouth, cuddled into Hojin. He felt so glad to see him.
“I almost died because of the boss. I risked my life to save you and didn’t even get a thank-you.”
“What? That guy’s hopeless! I’ll handle this. I’ll make him pay you properly—compensation, everything—just wait.”
“Hyung....”
“You did great. You’re amazing, our Roy. Rest a bit, okay?”
“Mm.”
Though rude to others, Hojin was gentle only with Roy—it thrilled him. As Roy beamed at Hojin’s retreating figure, the opposite curtain slid open and Taeeon appeared.
“Ah! Shit, you scared me!”
“Sorry. I heard voices and waited... I didn’t run away, honest...”
“Oh, okay....”
Roy bowed awkwardly. He’d picked up a lot of swearing since coming to the Wilderness. It proved how tough life here was... Roy slapped his own mouth and scolded himself, prompting Taeeon’s awkward smile.
“You should’ve greeted me first, as you said. I was flustered and only just got to see you.”
He’d come straight after dealing with things and wondered if Roy was upset. Taeeon’s eyes flicked to Roy’s leg, in a cast. He hadn’t been seen since they arrived in the ER—he must have been receiving treatment.
“Heh. You must’ve wanted to act spoiled when you were in pain. But did you get badly hurt?”
“No, just a cracked rib and a torn ankle ligament.”
“That counts as badly hurt...?”
Roy’s pupils trembled. People here seemed to have a high pain threshold. As long as you’re alive, any injury could be fixed, it seemed. Roy couldn’t adjust to that.
“They said they could only treat me this much because there were so many patients. Thank you so much. You saved my life. How can I ever repay you...?”
Taeeon bowed respectfully. Indeed—if Roy hadn’t come, Taeeon’s next appearance wouldn’t have been the ER but his funeral. Roy’s skill payment would have remained sealed forever.
“Ahem. Enough. Sit and let’s talk.”
Roy motioned to a folding chair.
“Thank you. By the way, I heard from the staff you came looking for me. There’s a message.”
The text said some nuisance was on his way and to placate and send him away. But Taeeon disagreed.
“You had an accident at the café, too.”
Of course the farm accident was worse, but he couldn’t ignore the café incident.
“An accident...?”
“Yes. I heard someone in your party drank something and collapsed.”
“Oh? Ah, right.”
Roy’s lips moved as he remembered his own actions. At the time, he’d only thought of finding Taeeon and never considered dealing with the aftermath.
“That... the lemon was too sour.”
“Pardon?”
Roy felt strong nuisance-vibes from his lifesaver. Taeeon pressed his lips to manage his expression and rolled his eyes.
“Uh... I’m sorry?”
“No problem. That’s not important right now. Shall we talk about something else?”
“Oh—compensation, you mean? Of course I should repay you. You went through so much because of me.”
Compensation was absurd. Roy hadn’t saved him expecting anything. Honestly, if it hadn’t been Taeeon, he might not have acted the same. Sure, ultimately his goal was to defeat Chaos Evil—but not out of righteousness. Roy was good at self-objectivity. Now was a time to grow stronger and wait quietly, not to throw himself in. Besides, the Wilderness version of Roy already had everything: a perfect hexagon of little sister, home, wealth, appearance, ability, and personality.
So what he could get from Taeeon was:
“No need for compensation—just your phone number.”
“Pardon?”
Because Taeeon couldn’t stand owing debts. Especially to someone who’d saved his life—he’d keep trying to repay Roy. Unintentionally, Roy had found the perfect excuse to keep him close.
‘Of course, a capable guy can do anything.’
“Let’s be close like hyung and dongsaeng. Whenever I need you, you’re there for me. Always on my side.”
“But you saved my life—how can you ask for that—”
“Ah, come on~ what’s lifesaver mean? Just treat me well from now on. And speak casually.”
【Skill ‘Godslighting’ activated.】
His skill triggered once more—damn this skill’s timing. It never worked when he wanted, then now...
“My lifesaver... Yes. Got it. I’ll be good to you forever.”
“Yeah, right. I told you to drop the honorifics.”
“Okay. If you need anything, just contact me.”
Thus, after Hojin, he’d collected Taeeon as well.
