274 – Nymph, Girl, and Squirrel Beasts #2
Among living beings, there is a hierarchy.
Prey and predators.
Predators were beings that ate prey.
The great horned owl was a top predator in the natural world.
Moreover, Kalilnoi, larger and more magnificent than ordinary great horned owls, was originally a body that was a nymph, endowed with high intelligence and sometimes ruthless as a great horned owl.
Having been active in China’s Wuzhizhe, it earned the title of ‘Sealing Shining Gem Kalilnoi.’
In comparison, what about the small baby squirrel beast, Daram?
Baby squirrel beast Daram was a squirrel smaller than a human palm.
It was so young that it couldn’t even properly use the basic technique of squirrel beasts, “Body Bump,” let alone a special move like “Wrathful Barking Strike.”
Yet, Daram leaped toward Kalilnoi, making a sharp sound and bumping its body against it.
Bang-!
It made quite a good sound.
Like a skilled boxer briskly hitting the mitt.
Hoo, hoo…?
Of course, Daram’s attack, small as a fist compared to Kalilnoi’s large frame, might not have been very useful.
However, it seemed that Kalilnoi was quite flustered by the unexpected attack, and after landing, it approached me with little steps.
Hoo, hoo…!
“I know. It seems like you two get along better than I thought.”
Kkung…!
The baby squirrel beast, Daram, climbed up to Lee Ji-hoo’s shoulder and licked his cheek. For squirrel beasts, the act of licking someone is a way for a superior to encourage an inferior.
This meant Daram seemed to think of little Lee Ji-hoo as a younger sibling or subordinate!
Nevertheless, Daram charged at the fearsome predator, the great horned owl, when Lee Ji-hoo was in danger.
Very brave.
“Brave squirrel beasts are strong, you know. In a few years, you might get to fight Kkungkkungi for the top squirrel beast position.”
Kkungkkungi…!
I fell into thought as I watched the squirrel repeatedly licking the cheek of little Lee Ji-hoo.
Well, there are many different types of people, and each squirrel has its own different personality, so there must be various relationships in those bonds.
I felt my understanding of squirrel beasts had deepened.
After that, Lee Ji-hoo was seized by Kalilnoi and flew into the sky to see the neighborhood.
It seemed Kalilnoi wanted to play with Lee Ji-hoo, who showed the qualities of an honorary nymph.
“Let me fly again! Again!”
Flying on the owl was quite an enjoyable experience for little Lee Ji-hoo, and he wanted to fly again.
Soon, Lee Ji-hoo asked me.
“Mr. How do you tame a great horned owl? Huh?”
“It’s still too early for you. Great horned owls don’t usually follow humans well.”
In Korea, only about ten people, including myself, had managed to tame a great horned owl.
No, it could be said that ‘being tame’ was more accurate than ‘taming.’
Being a top predator originally cannot be tamed.
“I never tamed Kalilnoi either. It’s just that Kalilnoi stays with me. In fact, all animals are like that. I didn’t tame Kkungkkungi; he stays with me.”
I said, but I felt like I had just said something quite cool.
I’ll remember it and write it in my upcoming autobiography, ‘The Legend of the Legendary One,’ when I reach the peak of S-rank.
Thinking of quotes to put in my autobiography is always important.
“Ahh-! The honorary nymph candidate Ji-hoo has arrived…!”
“It’s great timing…! Let’s go catch some dragonflies…! Dragonflies are the reds of the red dragonfly family like communists…!”
At that moment, I saw the nymphs approaching from a distance.
The nymphs were running through the fields with dragonfly nets alongside Lee Ji-hoo, while behind them, the little squirrel beast, Daram, scurried about, tugging on Ji-hoo’s collar to prevent him from falling into the mud.
The sight of the girl, nymphs, and squirrel beasts playing together was quite peaceful and pleasant.
“What I must protect is indeed the today and tomorrow of innocent people.”
Kkungkkungi…!
Although I had spent the day teaching Lee Ji-hoo various things, I too had learned and felt a lot.
# # #
Soon, the sun began to set in the autumn afternoon.
I advised Lee Ji-hoo.
“Don’t go around saying that Gumihee is a villain or that you’ll chase and defeat her. If the villains hear that, they might harm you.”
“What if I need to rescue Dad, who’s somewhere captured?”
Lee Ji-hoo seemed to be convinced that his father was still alive.
When I asked him why, he told me something he hadn’t mentioned until now.
“Dad gave me something on my birthday last year. This is called a three-leaf clover of happiness… When Dad is far away, it means we are together…”
It was an item with a three-leaf clover stuck on a yellow sheet of paper.
“Ahh-! This is the ‘Clover Amulet’ that Inoi sold during the nymph bazaar…! The effect of this ‘Clover Amulet’ is to let you know the status of the maker…!”
In the past, the nymphs made money by selling various items such as accessories made by Coris, suspicious alcohol made by Illinois, and these kinds of spell items made by Inoi to visitors in the primeval village.
‘Making Clover Amulets’ was a product prepared by Inoi, something like a DIY kit for making the amulet. The amulets made this way were intended as gifts for precious people.
“It means you can know the status of the maker anytime, anywhere…!”
According to Inoi, if the person who made the amulet died, this amulet would also show significant stains or tear.
In other words, the fact that this amulet was intact meant that Lee Ji-hoo’s father was still alive somewhere.
“Why didn’t you tell anyone else about that?”
“Well, Mom wanted to think of Dad as dead and wanted to remarry the swimming instructor… No matter how much I said, she just said, ‘Do you really think things like amulets are real?’…”
That was a terrible reason indeed.
However, Lee Ji-hoo’s story contained a lot of information.
Could it be that Lee Ji-hoo’s father, from whom the shadow was taken, was still alive?
From Gumihee’s point of view, did she even need to keep him alive?
Seo Ye-rim was also someone who had only had her shadow taken and hadn’t suffered significant attacks from Gumihee.
Logically speaking, when someone’s shadow is taken and they lose their abilities, it would be the best time to defeat that opponent.
I set up a hypothesis here.
Could it be that for Gumihee to use someone else’s shadow, the owner must be alive?
If that’s the case, many stories need to be reconsidered.
I recalled that Gumihee had taken teleportation abilities from the level 0 fugitive “Blinking Movement.”
It was difficult to chase after Gumihee who teleports here and there, but it would be easier to track down the one who had their abilities taken.
If we could find and secure the mover, it might become much easier to corner and capture Gumihee.
“Illinois, can you take Lee Ji-hoo home?”
“Of course…! I, Illinois, am the best driver with a normal driver’s license…! The Illinois car hasn’t been seized by the Telos group…!”
“This Inoi also wants to go on a nymph drive…! By the way, nymph drive means nymphs riding around in cars…!”
When the nymphs went for a nymph drive, I took out my phone and contacted Kang Cheol-Min.
I had heard that Kang Cheol-Min had been released under a judicial deal on the condition of chasing after the mover and Gumihee.
Before I could finish the ringing, Kang Cheol-Min answered.
“Come to the café.”
He said what he had to say and abruptly hung up.
He must have been nearby.
I went to the café without a word.
There, I saw Kang Cheol-Min ordering a chocolate brownie and cutting it into small pieces with a very tiny fork.
He seemed surprisingly sensitive for someone his size.
“Kang Cheol-Min, have you been watching me?”
“No. To be precise, I’ve been protecting you. From my estimations, the chances of Gumihee and her crew contacting you are very, very high. After all, those guys hold a grudge against you.”
“…A grudge? Because I’ve been doing too well lately? Villains often can’t stand successful celebrities, right?”
It was easy to imagine that my fame would make me a target for villains, but Kang Cheol-Min, who was cutting the brownie, frowned.
“No. As you might have guessed, Gumihee and the mover are subjects of the previous ‘Superhuman Soldier Project.’ And you know well when this ‘Superhuman Soldier Project’ began, right?”
“When I underwent the secondary awakening?”
When I became the world’s first secondary awakener, the world that had to fear the terror of the rift was filled with great hope.
A mood had formed that humanity could also fight against the rift terror.
Since then, I provided my blood and hair for collection and actively participated in various experiments to provide information.
The experiments at that time significantly increased the world’s understanding of awakened individuals, and the equipment of awakened individuals was also enhanced.
Kang Cheol-Min said.
“The Second Impact. Those experiments were called that. It was a stage where humanity evolved beyond Homo sapiens. But in places you don’t know, even more cruel experiments were ongoing. You wouldn’t want to imagine what they were about.”
“Back then, that kind of atmosphere was tolerated. We were immediately child soldiers. Of course, looking back now, I think we were somewhat caught in a kind of madness…”
Tap-.
Kang Cheol-Min handed me a newspaper.
It was written in a foreign language, making it difficult to read.
“People of Korean descent are going missing one after another in South America. You must have seen some of these people. They were officials of the previous government. Some were even the scientists who injected you.”
“Are you saying Gumihee and her gang are hunting down the experiment officials of the previous government?”
“Exactly. Haildo. Now you understand. In a way, the madness of experiments started because of you. If I’m the bitter subject, you shouldn’t be forgiven either.”
In other words, Kang Cheol-Min’s words meant this.
“Gumihee is a villain born because of me?”
If I hadn’t undergone a secondary awakening, experiments like the ‘Second Impact’ wouldn’t have happened.
If that were the case, inhumane and unmerciful experiments wouldn’t have occurred either.
And villains like Gumihee wouldn’t have been born.
However, after shoving the brownie into his mouth, Kang Cheol-Min casually said.
“Of course, Haildo, even if it wasn’t you, someone would eventually reach secondary awakening. It was something that was bound to happen someday. But saying this, you’ll feel a sense of responsibility, won’t you?”
Chuk-.
Kang Cheol-Min handed me a USB.
“There are coordinates in here. The coordinates of one of the previous government officials.”
“What am I supposed to do with this?”
“If you feel responsible, go meet him. He’s a human we know well. He was our instructor who taught us. After all, neither you nor I have ever fought and defeated our instructor, have we?”
Instructor.
That mention plunged my mind into irrepressible memories of the past.
Haildo, arise.
Now, there were no nymphs to restrain me, and that memory for me had become an incredibly intense scar, imprinted on my soul.
