091 – Attending the Reunion with Nymphs and Haildo! #2
“Feeling quite well, aren’t we?”
After suffering for a while from the aftereffects of poison, I woke up feeling refreshed as if it had never happened. My entire body felt reinvigorated, brimming with energy.
It seemed that being bitten by the centipede had worked in my favor.
The mana within me bubbled like a forge.
“Hmm!”
I casually released some magic power. My previous range of mana discharge of about 50 meters had increased to around 60 meters. This meant an increase of 20 percent in the amount of magic power I could wield.
“Good, good.”
According to Ari’s diagnosis, it seemed I had developed antibodies and resistance to the poison. They said I wouldn’t be affected by the poisons of the average creatures emerging from the rift.
Furthermore, the centipede had been given the scientific name “Yormungandr Centipede.” According to the elves, this was because the centipede contained a horrifying poison akin to the legendary snake “Yormungandr.”
Hoo, hoo…!
At that moment, the owl Kalilnoi, who had been sitting on the roof, flapped his wings and flew down to the yard. He then nudged me with his wings or pushed my body with his head.
“Good morning.”
Swish-.
I patted Kalilnoi’s head and feathers. Kalilnoi waddled happily around me, clearly in a good mood.
Hoo, hoo…!
“Now it’s time to wash up.”
I went into the bathroom to wash my face and shampoo my hair. The problem was that Kalilnoi waddled in right behind me, following me into the house.
Being a very large owl, Kalilnoi’s presence made the house feel cramped.
Hoo, hoo…!
He also didn’t like me closing the bathroom door. It seemed Kalilnoi wanted to watch me wash my face and shampoo my hair, so he opened the door wide to observe me.
The scrutiny was somewhat burdensome.
“There was a time when he would run away when I approached. Now he clings too closely. There’s no middle ground.”
“It’s clear that he has opened his heart to the owner of the house…! The owner is someone very nymph-friendly, so it was really only a matter of time…!”
Swish-.
Oinui was stroking Kalilnoi’s wings. Ever since the fight with the centipede, Kalilnoi had been quite devoted to me.
Thanks to this, I often had to carry the large owl around, which could be rather cumbersome. He would only eat the beef that I prepared for him.
“I need to quickly return Kalilnoi to his nymph form. This won’t do. In that sense, let’s eat today’s share of mugwort and garlic.”
Swish-.
I placed the mugwort and garlic from the plate into Kalilnoi’s beak. The owl flapped his wings in rejection, but he had started to accept the food I offered him.
“Will this really work?”
I wondered if mugwort and garlic could revert the owl back to his original nymph form.
Well, for now, I didn’t have any other options.
Anyhow, with that thought, I returned to my daily routine. My daily life was quite routine; I would wake up, wash up, and check on the animals.
Zzi zzi…!
Ahn Ahn reported to me every day whether there were any issues with the vegetable garden or the security of the house. Of course, I couldn’t understand Ahn Ahn’s words—
I could tell that Ahn Ahn’s appearance had changed.
“Ahn Ahn transformed into something like a beetle overnight.”
“They say honey ants can transform…! They have various forms and are also referred to as ‘mask ants’…!”
I see. They said this appearance, resembling a large longhorn beetle, was their summer form. It was cool that they changed shapes with the seasons.
Hioong…!
“Was Kkungkkungi okay too?”
Kkungkkungi lifted his front legs and danced. Kkungkkungi was a spider who loved to dance. Suddenly, Kkungkkungi vanished with a pop.
Kkung kkang…!
Kkung kkang…!
Turning my head, I saw Kkungkkungi playing with Phey, the flying squirrel. Watching the two squirrels frolicking together brought a warm feeling to my heart.
“Come on, hurry up and have some baby Chimmunkies…! If Kkungkkungi produces lots of Chimmunkies, I can rent them out to the rich for 5 billion each…!”
Illinois had come to play in the yard. Now that I looked closely, I noticed Seo Ye-rim’s nymph-friendly electric car parked in the yard.
“Hey. Are you feeling better now?”
Seo Ye-rim approached me and asked. I rotated my shoulders and arms in response.
“Yeah. I actually feel even better than before.”
Kalilnoi wobbled around me on its two legs, creating a significant presence.
“I’ve become friends with this guy. He’s calm, so isn’t he cute?”
Swish-.
I petted Kalilnoi’s head once again. Seo Ye-rim frowned at the sight.
“Is it really okay to pet him like that?”
“He’s good.”
“No. That guy was originally a nymph. Not just any nymph, but a really big one!”
“That’s true, but right now he’s an owl.”
Seo Ye-rim’s thin eyes opened wide. She seemed dissatisfied that a member of the ‘witches’ who had assaulted her was doing well.
I decided to defend Kalilnoi a little.
“He’s currently in a dazed state, only possessing his primal hunting instincts and wariness. If you want to interrogate Kalilnoi about things, the only way is to break the curse and revert him back to his nymph form.”
“Is that so? So right now, he’s just an animal?”
Swish-.
Seo Ye-rim raised her hand.
“…So soft.”
After petting Kalilnoi’s wings, Seo Ye-rim expressed her amazement.
Swish, swish, swish-.
Did she find petting him a bit annoying?
Whip-!
Kalilnoi flapped his wings and flew away.
“Oh no—he flew away.”
“His wariness is still really strong toward anyone but me.”
“Really? Anyway, I came to drop Illinois off today. And you have a reunion meeting with the first-year students tonight, right?”
It seemed news of the first-year student reunion had reached Seo Ye-rim’s ears.
That’s right. I had an appointment for this evening.
Seo Ye-rim said soon after,
“Since you don’t have a car, I can give you a lift. I have some things to do nearby anyway. I thought I could drop you off on the way.”
That was a good suggestion. I had been wondering how I would get there.
“I’m curious about what a reunion is…!”
Oinui cut into our conversation. I briefly explained it to Oinui.
“It’s a gathering of people who grew up together, like those who went to the same school or are from the same hometown.”
“Ooh…! I, Oinui, also want to have a reunion…! Gathering the nymphs…! I should also contact Coris…! I’ll also call Yuranoi, who has become an honorary nymph…!”
Shuffling.
As Oinui spoke, he took out his cellphone from his pocket.
“This thing called a cellphone allows you to contact anyone…! I, Oinui, also obtained a cellphone…! I might evolve into a nymph of the latest trends following the latest technology…!”
What could a nymph of the latest technology be?
What was certain was that Oinui loved the cellphone he had recently obtained through Telos Corporation.
It seemed he wanted to brag about having bought a new phone.
# # #
“Is this the place?”
Seo Ye-rim, who parked the car in the lot, looked at the restaurant visible through the window.
The restaurant was an ordinary samgyeopsal place.
It seemed like a place where they would sell fresh samgyeopsal and soju, serving doenjang-jjigae if you ordered rice.
It looked like the kind of place where company managers would lead employees for company dinners.
Extremely ‘ordinary’ vibe.
Seo Ye-rim seemed unable to understand why the reunion of Korea’s first awakened ones would be held in such a mundane place.
“I thought it would be somewhere a bit more expensive and fancy. There are many successful people among the first-year students, right? The living ones, I mean. Though some have been struggling for a long time.”
As Seo Ye-rim said, most of the living first-year students had done well for themselves. They could have reserved a nice restaurant if they put their minds to it.
“But being ordinary is good. Ordinary is.”
“……”
Seo Ye-rim, who was born into a wealthy family and lived her life like a princess, sitting comfortably in the position of an S-class awakened one, seemed unable to understand my words.
That’s understandable.
“Wanna go in together? Once we’re in, you’ll understand what I mean. There are quite a few people bringing family or acquaintances with them. Most of the first-year students know you, so.”
At my words, Seo Ye-rim seemed startled and embarrassed.
“…What? Why would I attend the reunion with you? It’s not that I don’t want to say this now, but I didn’t really like the first-year students! I always thought they were just trying to show off!”
I see.
Well, Seo Ye-rim had come to give me a ride because she needed to do something here.
Asking her to accompany me to the reunion might be a bit much.
“I guess I’ll have to handle this on my own!”
Honestly, I felt a bit nervous about entering the unremarkable restaurant!
I’d dodged gathering with the first-year students several times already!
I had even went AWOL before; now, fumbling in with a bold face felt somewhat embarrassing and awkward.
So I thought that if Seo Ye-rim came along, it might lessen the burden— but I felt that was a bit of a stretch.
“Why are you so nervous about just a reunion? Was there a girl you liked from your old school or something?”
Seo Ye-rim scoffed and laughed.
“Fine. I’ve made up my mind. What’s the worst that could happen? Seo Ye-rim. Thanks for the ride. I don’t know what you have going on, but hope you take care of your business.”
Swish-.
I got out of the car.
I was going to head inside the restaurant before my resolve could falter.
Ding ding—.
As I opened the door and stepped inside, I could already hear the loud chatter of people.
I approached what seemed to be the lady of the restaurant.
“Excuse me, I heard there’s a gathering here.”
“Oh, you should head over that way.”
Swish-.
As I headed in the direction she pointed, everyone’s attention turned toward me.
They stopped their conversations and exaggeratedly spoke upon seeing me.
“…Oh, oh! A handsome guy has arrived! Hahaha!”
“Who is that guy? I have no clue! Heheh.”
“…”
How rude.
I hadn’t shown my face for a few years, and they were making a big deal of it now.
Such mischievous folks.
I felt my face flush, and I just wanted to sit down somewhere.
Soon, a woman named Kim Dan, equipped with a mechanical arm, waved at me.
“Hey! Over here. Sit here. I told you I’d come this time! Haildo, sit here. I’ve saved your seat! Come sit!”
Swish-.
My first-year classmate Kim Dan gestured to the seat in front of her.
But the moment I saw the face of the woman sitting beside me, I couldn’t help but feel startled on multiple levels.
“…Uh, you’re, Ji-hyun.”
“Il-do, hey. Nice to meet you.”
I slightly panicked and couldn’t get the words out.
Then there was Kim Dan, chuckling away.
“Il-do is lucky. You liked Ji-hyun, right? How nice to sit next to her! Events like this happen because you came to the reunion.”
