022 – Trolley Dilemma #2
It was nice that the house was spacious. Even with several people sitting in the living room, it didn’t feel cramped.
Seo Ye-rim and Yu Ara.
When the two women looked at each other, exuding a strange atmosphere, Yu Ara spoke first.
“Ye-rim, as I mentioned over the phone earlier, I’ve heard a lot about you. I hear you’ve been doing quite well in the T-rank rifts lately? Developing new techniques and all. That’s really impressive.”
It sounded like sincere praise. As far as I knew, the two were somewhat rivals, but it seemed they got along well without any rivalry.
At that moment—
Oinoi, who had been sitting behind me, trembling and holding onto my body like a shield, shivered.
After sneaking a glance at Yu Ara over my shoulder, Oinoi extended a pair of chopsticks.
“…This Oinoi also wishes to eat meat…!”
What Oinoi was aiming for was the piece of pork belly on the plate, slightly cooled and hardened.
Oinoi, who had just been hiding in the room, came out into the living room after Seo Ye-rim arrived and began picking up leftover pieces of pork belly to eat.
“Mmmh… This Oinoi wraps the meat in this lettuce… and feels the harmonious energy of the forest…! It’s a fortunate moment since I was very hungry…!”
Oinoi claimed to be hungry.
Even though the door was closed, it seemed impossible to block the smell of grilled pork belly.
I had set aside some specifically to grill for Oinoi, but just then, Seo Ye-rim spoke up.
“I’ve heard a lot about you too, Ari. I heard you collaborated with the Osa Group to develop various things? What brings you here?”
“You told me over the phone earlier. Senior Haildo moved to a house with a well. So I came here to visit and reminisce about the past.”
“Is that so?”
Seo Ye-rim gazed at me with narrowed eyes.
It felt as though she was questioning the truth of my words. When I casually agreed, “Yeah,” Seo Ye-rim nodded as if she was convinced.
“I see. I thought you were trying to contact the Awakened at Osa Pharmaceuticals to conduct some bizarre experiments. We have a specimen here that took a long time to break through from D-rank to C-rank.”
Could that specimen be referring to me?
The wall between D-rank and C-rank was high and treacherous, making it difficult to cross. I had heard it could be determined within one or two years after achieving D-rank.
I had been D-rank for over eight years, making my ascension to C-rank quite rare.
Seo Ye-rim added,
“I don’t like dragging things out, so I’ll be direct. Yu Ara, if you plan to approach this guy for some weird experiments, just stop it.”
What could that weird experiment be?
Just as I was curious, Yu Ara frowned.
Her usually gentle and friendly expression suddenly made me feel quite terrified.
“You still say whatever you want, as always. I told you, I just came for the housewarming. And I’m not working with the Osa Group anymore. I’m a public health official now.”
With that, Yu Ara stood up from her seat.
“Senior, I think I should get going now. Staying here any longer would just tire us out. It would be rude to come for a housewarming and do that.”
Whoosh—
Yu Ara stepped towards the shoe cabinet and put on her shoes.
Seo Ye-rim remained seated, with her arms crossed, not moving at all.
I thought the two had just had a fight, and now a moody Yu Ara seemed ready to leave.
What should I do here?
Before I knew it, Yu Ara was already in the yard.
As I felt earlier while grilling, her movements were incredibly quick. Was this what being a physical Awakened was like?
“This Core Ye-rim has chased Yu Ara away…! This Oinoi can finally yell and run around freely in this house…!”
Oinoi raised their hands happily.
It looked like some form of independence from imperialism.
When Seo Ye-rim sneered, “Hmph,” I fell into deep contemplation.
What should I do?
It felt like I was reminded of some kind of trolley dilemma.
Surely it was right to follow Yu Ara.
So I went out after her, and she was blowing on her hands while looking around the yard.
“They say the taxi will be here in a little while.”
“Let’s just go inside. We can wait inside, right?”
“It’s okay. But let me clarify one thing; I genuinely just came for the housewarming. I had no intention of using Senior for experiments. I’m not working with Osa anymore.”
The mention of experiments had been bothering me since a moment ago.
But I wasn’t completely oblivious; I vaguely knew that various agencies and corporations had been using “Awakened” for various experiments for a long time.
Yu Ara had worked with the Osa Group based on pharmaceuticals.
The fact that she was working as a public health officer now piqued my interest for several reasons.
“Well then, Senior, I’ll be going.”
The taxi had arrived by then.
Yu Ara got in and vanished.
I returned to the house with a perplexed and awkward feeling.
Upon returning, I found Oinoi devouring the grilled meat.
“This Core Ye-rim conjures magic flames to grill the meat…! Even without flames, the meat gets grilled…. This induction stove must surely be some witch’s magical flame…!”
Oinoi was chattering away in the kitchen, as if they had never hidden. The surreal sight of Seo Ye-rim standing in front of the induction stove, grilling meat, was quite remarkable.
I turned to her and asked,
“What on earth happened?”
“I came to check on you since you didn’t respond. There are some undisclosed areas in this house. It’s also been a site for anomalous rifts.”
Then, Oinoi raised their hand enthusiastically.
“This Oinoi finds something called sponsor coins under the bed every day…! For some reason, the coins sometimes grow on their own…! It’s a strange house…!”
Coins growing on their own?
I thought Oinoi was saying something bizarre, but that wasn’t the main issue right now.
“I’m asking what happened not because of your reason for coming here, but because you just chased Yu Ara away. Wasn’t that a bit rude?”
“I always say what I want. And I don’t think I did anything wrong. Yu Ara. She says she’s not working with Osa Group, but she’s still seeing Lee Joon-Hun.”
I was aware that Yu Ara was still seeing Lee Joon-Hun. It was clear that their encounters weren’t purely romantic or professional, but rather from some unusual perspective.
What exactly was their relationship?
Thinking about such things, Seo Ye-rim spoke.
“Anyway, next time, make sure to respond well to calls. And try not to show Oinoi to Yu Ara if you can help it. Oinoi, you shouldn’t just make friends easily with anyone.”
“Mmmh, don’t underestimate this Oinoi…! In that sense, I’ll gift this ‘drawing’ that this Oinoi made to Core Ye-rim for grilling the meat…!”
Whoosh—
Oinoi tore a page from the sketchbook and gave it to Seo Ye-rim.
What kind of drawing would a Nymph create?
“The title of the painting is ‘Night of the City’…!”
Seo Ye-rim received the drawing from Oinoi and made a subtle expression.
Naturally, it was a peculiar drawing.
Oinoi wasn’t particularly good at drawing.
# # #
Yu Ara got out of the taxi and headed for the break room.
She was going back to get the luggage she had left behind.
Dawn.
Late at night.
Yu Ara stopped abruptly in front of the lit break room.
She sensed a presence inside.
“Come in.”
At the voice coming from inside, Yu Ara took a deep breath and opened the door. The man sitting in a chair immediately frowned and began cursing.
“Hey, Yu Ara. Didn’t I tell you to stay here in the break room because I have to check you today? Are you not even listening to me anymore?”
He was Lee Joon-Hun, known as an S-rank Awakened.
Yu Ara wasn’t particularly surprised to find him waiting for her in the break room, as he hadn’t been seen in the media or at work for a few days.
Yu Ara calmly approached the desk to gather her belongings.
Just then, Lee Joon-Hun twitched his nose as she brushed past him.
“Have you been drinking?”
“…….”
“Are you out hunting again? You always drank before working.”
Crack—
Yu Ara clenched her fist so tightly that it made a noise. Lee Joon-Hun spread his hands, acting defensively.
“Whoa, take it easy. If you get mad, I can’t handle myself right now. How did I drop to B-rank? Damn it, B-rank!”
Lee Joon-Hun felt a bubbling anger from within him.
The reason for that anger was singular.
“Can a person’s internal magical capacity decrease? Has this ever happened? There’s no one like that. Isn’t internal magical capacity supposed to only increase? So why!”
Bang—
Lee Joon-Hun slammed his fist down on the desk.
He covered his face with his palm and spat out the words.
“Why is my magical capacity decreasing? There’s so much that I have to do. Is it a temporary situation? Is it permanent? What about you, Yu Ara? Have you found out something? You’ve been running around everywhere.”
“…….”
Gulp—
Yu Ara tightly gripped the scalpel placed on the desk.
At that moment, Lee Joon-Hun spoke.
“Cough, you met Haildo, didn’t you? That guy, the first-generation student. He was D-rank. Investigated it. He’s now C-rank. Cough, cough, ugh─. He leveled up?”
Whoosh—
Lee Joon-Hun clutched his throat.
Was it swelling? For some reason, it felt difficult to breathe.
“Cough, cough. Ugh, what’s with the sudden coughing─.”
Lee Joon-Hun continued to cough.
As an empath with extensive experience in medicine, Yu Ara recognized this as an allergic reaction, but she still couldn’t identify the exact cause.
Yu Ara picked up a syringe containing an immunosuppressant.
“Haildo, I’ve met that guy a few times, but he’s really nothing special. There’s no need to take the time to see him. I won’t meet him anymore either.”
Whoosh—
Yu Ara brought the syringe closer to Lee Joon-Hun.
Lee Joon-Hun grabbed her wrist and glared at her.
“Someone who just leveled up from D-rank to C-rank isn’t nothing special. I want to find out how he managed the jump from D to C, so make an appointment for tomorrow. If it’s possible to go from D to C, then you can climb back up from B to S.”
“…….”
“What? Are you trying to care for someone you know? That’s laughable. Yu Ara, how many friends have you sold off? Are you feeling guilty now?”
“─Let go.”
Yu Ara spoke flatly.
At that moment, Lee Joon-Hun felt a chill at the fierce expression Yu Ara briefly showed and released her wrist.
“…Alright, now I’m seeing a bit of the Yu Ara I know.”
The recent situation had greatly bruised Lee Joon-Hun’s pride.
And now, all he could do towards Yu Ara was open his mouth.
“You seem to be under some misconception. Cough. Think about who allowed you to get the public health officer position at the agency. If I say it, getting you sent back to the field is a piece of cake. Cough.”
The field.
At that word, Yu Ara’s heart trembled slightly.
It felt as if the smell of flames and blood wafted into her nostrils.
Her life had always been like that.
“There truly are no heroes in this world. Only the contrary exists.”
“Why aren’t you contacting me quickly?”
Yu Ara now clutched her phone.
She felt like she had become someone standing on the train tracks.
She was both the one taking the train and the one standing on the tracks, contemplating.
She was even the one lying on the tracks.
