‘Why Is He Here?’
I stopped in my tracks while eating my ice cream on my way home.
Was there any reason for Do Ihyun to come to our apartment?
Except for when he came to see me, I’d never seen him anywhere near my home before.
“What’s going on?”
Do Ihyun just blinked at me blankly, so I spoke first.
Did he really come here to see me without even calling?
He’d never come to see me like this before, so this whole situation just felt bewildering.
As I got closer, Do Ihyun finally seemed to snap out of it and took a step back.
“Sorry, I showed up without even contacting you.”
“What if I hadn’t come out? Were you just planning to wait out here? In this heat?”
He looked even more drained than he had earlier in the day, so I asked him worriedly.
His complexion was so pale, it was easy to notice even at night.
He hesitated for a moment, then carefully asked,
“Want to take a walk?”
I didn’t see a reason not to, so I agreed and started walking around the neighborhood with him.
Maybe because Do Ihyun was always such a recluse, everyone who saw us on the street stared.
I was used to this level of attention by now, so it didn’t really bother me, but it seemed he felt differently.
He kept glancing at me as if checking my reaction to the way people stared at us.
So I suggested we walk down a quieter path where fewer people would be around.
“I guess I just wanted to see you for a bit, and before I knew it, I’d come all the way here. If this is a problem, I’m sorry.”
“Oh… I see.”
Once we were alone in the alley, Do Ihyun finally spoke up about what he’d been holding in.
Hearing him admit so honestly that he’d wanted to see me made me suddenly conscious of the fact that it was just the two of us.
I thought it would be easier to move on after rejecting his confession, but things hadn’t turned out the way I’d expected.
Just like when I received his confession, I didn’t know how to handle such an earnest, one-sided love.
I thought I’d drawn a firm line, but seeing him like this made my heart waver.
“I won’t come looking for you again. Not until you let me.”
“Hmm, then when you’re ready to move on, you contact me first. That would be better than me reaching out.”
“Okay.”
He looked like there was so much he wanted to say, but he didn’t let any of it out.
It seemed there were words swirling in his mouth that he couldn’t say to me right now.
Honestly, the silence felt more comfortable than trying to talk, so I just walked quietly beside him.
Just then, someone emerged from the construction site we’d passed earlier and yelled at us.
“Hey! Isn’t that Do Ihyun from Iljin High?”
Even though I couldn’t see their face, just the tone of voice made it clear they were looking for trouble.
When we turned around, about five or six thugs came pouring out of the construction site.
From their hostile glares, it seemed like they’d either been beaten by Do Ihyun or held some sort of grudge against him.
But who would Do Ihyun, who never bothered anyone, have earned a grudge from?
‘They must’ve gotten properly beaten by Do Ihyun before.’
I quickly figured out what was going on and looked at Do Ihyun.
The timid, rain-soaked puppy aura he had beside me vanished in an instant.
Now that we were no longer Awakened, it came down to nothing but strength and fighting skills.
‘Can he do it?’
I couldn’t recall ever seeing Do Ihyun actually fight someone.
Back when I’d been kidnapped at the construction site before I got close to him, it had been one-sided violence, so I never got to gauge his fighting skills.
Of course, he wasn’t called Iljin High’s top dog for nothing.
As we stood still, the thugs seemed to get annoyed and began to approach us.
“Now that you’ve lost those broken powers, let’s see how you do in a real fight!”
The boss of the thugs, standing right in front of Do Ihyun, started the fight, looking up at him with a crooked grin.
Do Ihyun, looking down at the guy indifferently, said flatly,
“Have we ever fought before?”
He honestly didn’t even remember who they were.
Not only was Do Ihyun not interested in fighting, he didn’t even remember his would-be opponent, which made the thug’s face flush red with embarrassment.
“Hah, let’s see how long you can stay cocky.”
The thug gestured for Do Ihyun to follow him and headed into the construction site.
But Do Ihyun ignored the gesture and just kept walking.
The message was clear—he was going to keep on walking instead of fighting.
The thugs, annoyed, tried to force the issue.
They grabbed me.
“Looks like you care about this one. If you don’t do what I say, things won’t be fun.”
The boss glanced at me and lifted his pinky finger with a sly grin.
Maybe it was because it was dark, or because I was wearing a hat, but it didn’t look like he recognized my face right away.
Of course, I’m not an Awakened anymore, so even if they recognized me, it’s not like they’d run away.
But there was something they overlooked—I’d been pretty good at fighting even before Awakening.
It wasn’t for nothing that I preferred hand-to-hand combat after Awakening, bashing monsters with weapons and bare hands alike.
I was running simulations in my head, figuring out how to get away from these guys.
“You should let go while I’m asking nicely.”
Do Ihyun warned the thugs calmly.
But I could hear his voice tremble, and his clenched fist showed he was ready to throw a punch at any second.
‘That’s too many for him to handle alone… This could get tough.’
I glanced at the guy holding me and the thugs in front of me.
People always say stuff like one against seventeen, but I’d never really believed it was possible.
No matter how much this feels like a story, is that even possible?
So it seemed smarter for me to get out of here first and then deal with these guys together with Do Ihyun.
“Ugh!”
I acted on my thoughts right away.
Apparently thinking I was weak, the thug hadn’t grabbed me tightly enough, and I flipped him over just like that.
With a thud, the guy crashed to the ground, and the others stared at me, eyes wide, before their faces hardened menacingly.
Before they could grab me, I ran towards where Do Ihyun was.
I dodged the ones in front and dashed away, feeling a hand reach out to grab my hair.
‘I’ve got short hair, you idiots.’
They failed to catch my hair, and I managed to reach Do Ihyun’s side safely.
Do Ihyun punched the nearest guy chasing me right in the face.
‘Wasn’t that a pretty loud bang just now…?’
For a split second, I wondered if Do Ihyun still had his Awakened strength.
The sound was so intense, even the thugs chasing us flinched and stopped in surprise.
The guy who took the hit flew back with a single blow.
He collapsed, nose gushing blood.
His hand trembled as he wiped under his nose and checked the blood.
At first, I thought he was shaking with fear, but apparently, it was rage.
His face twisted with anger as he turned, and suddenly, the thugs behind him produced wooden bats from somewhere.
“Gotta bring back some proof we turned Iljin High’s top dog into a bloody mess tonight.”
Wiping his nose, the guy contorted his potato-shaped face.
‘Why are they so obsessed with fighting?’
I couldn’t understand their way of thinking.
If you’re lacking in fighting skill or strength, wouldn’t it make more sense to accept it and train harder, instead of ganging up on someone?
If you win like this, does it even count as a real win?
I’d seen more than a few students get into group fights like this, all in the name of settling the pecking order.
The ones who started the fights usually ended up losing again, getting beaten to a pulp instead of settling anything.
Do Ihyun moved among the bat-wielding thugs, dealing with them effortlessly with his incredible fighting skills.
He managed to snatch one of their bats early on, and after that, there was nothing stopping him.
I’d never fought using weapons before, so I couldn’t just jump in there.
If anything, I might just get in the way.
So, thinking I’d only be a hindrance, I decided to get out of the alley entirely.
I quietly slipped backward, putting distance between myself and the fight, and had almost reached the end of the alley when—
“Where do you think you’re running off to?”
Someone grabbed my hair from behind.
Then, after taking a good look at my face, they let go in shock.
“Isn’t this the girl who used to command Saryeong? From the Hyulhyang!”
“How long has it been since the Gate disappeared, and you’re still talking about old times?”
A big guy standing behind scolded the one who’d grabbed my hair.
They must have decided that, now that I’d lost my power, I couldn’t handle them anymore.
The group surrounded me.
A brawl broke out in an instant.
I fought desperately to get away, while they tried to catch me and drag me to Do Ihyun as a hostage.
Just then, Do Ihyun took down the thug holding him and rushed over to me.
It happened at that moment.
As I fought the thugs trying to grab me, I was pushed back out of the alley and thrown out onto the main road.
Screech—Bang!
My body rolled over the top of a car and hit the ground.