This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 516

“···An illusion?”

What does she mean by an illusion?

To be honest, I just couldn’t understand.

So, I have to say I don’t get what my sister’s intention was when she brought that up.

“Are you talking about something like a ghost?”

I asked that question with a slight frown, aiming to clarify that part.

I thought if I could make it clearer, I would be able to provide a proper answer, but—

Somehow, my sister’s reaction felt a bit weird.

It was as if she seemed relieved after hearing my words.

“From what you just said, it seems like nothing serious happened, huh?”

What on earth does this illusion my sister mentioned mean that she’d feel such relief right after?

Showing a curious expression, perhaps she perceived my feelings through my look.

A low “Ah…” escaped my sister’s lips, revealing a piece of information I hadn’t heard before.

“You know that there’s something queen-like among the Another Ones, right, Yoonseo?”

“Yes.”

How could I not know that?

It’s one of the things I’ve heard over and over again from Chae-rim and Dogun right in front of me.

“Then you remember that the queen of the Another Ones can’t move away from the tree located at the center of Heogye?”

“Yes.”

Of course, I remembered.

When I decided to join the exploration team, I’d ingrained all the potentially variable information about exploring Heogye into my mind.

And among that was precisely the information about the queen of the Another Ones that Chae-rim just mentioned.

Anyway, what’s that supposed to mean?

With a look that screamed ‘what’s the point?’, it seemed my sister caught on to what I was hinting at.

She continued in a slightly apologetic tone.

“The thing is… there’s something I forgot to tell you earlier…”

To sum up what my sister was saying, it seems that besides the queen’s main body, illusions can freely move away from the tree.

And the moment such an illusion follows after you, it gets pretty annoying.

Just looking at Dogun and my sister, they held it together reasonably well until they encountered the queen’s illusion, only to face frequent attacks from the Another Ones from then on…

“I was really worried that such a thing might happen to the exploration team as well.”

So, I asked the question out of caution, but her reaction made it clear that she hadn’t seen anything like that, which relieved me a bit.

“Although the reason behind it still isn’t fully revealed, from what I saw, the queen has a considerable curiosity about humans. Especially… she’s even more intense towards the humans she takes an interest in.”

The moment I heard that, the image of the Another One disguised as a human trying to kidnap Dogun flashed in my mind.

“No way…”

“Yep. I think Dogun is one of them.”

Then my sister added that’s why she was more worried.

“I know this might be a bit… awkward, but from my perspective, I couldn’t dismiss the possibility of you, Yoonseo, being taken hostage by the Another Ones.”

“…”

“And as soon as that happens, Dogun would have obliged to the Another Ones’ demands, knowing it was a trap.”

Yeah, I’m sure that’s exactly how it would go.

Dogun has that kind of personality.

If it were Dogun, he’d definitely make that choice while knowing that complying with their demands could mean he’d never return to reality.

And thus, I couldn’t argue back at all at my sister’s words, which could have sounded a bit unpleasant.

“So… we need to be cautious going forward. Got it?”

“… Yes.”

I only chose this path to get Dogun’s left arm back, so why are the factors I have to consider only increasing?

I agreed with my sister’s words, but… my mind couldn’t help but feel cluttered.

It was so complex that it felt like I was staring at a tangled ball of yarn.

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‘Let’s see, I think I’ve got everything I must pack…’

It felt like I had packed everything necessary.

Why haven’t the two who said they’d be back shortly returned yet?

Honestly, given the amount of time that has passed, they should have been back by now…

As I was muttering to myself while looking at the bags I’d placed on the bed for convenience, those two who had briefly stepped out of the hospital room returned.

“Seriously, both of them can’t stand to be proper…”

That aside, why does Yoonseo look like that again?

While Chae-rim’s expression hadn’t changed much since leaving the hospital room, Yoonseo’s was quite different.

If I were to compare the two, her expression had dimmed a bit.

It seemed she was trying her best not to show it, but after being friends for over ten years, it was impossible for me to miss.

In that sense, while others might not notice, my eyes would never be deceived.

And in my eyes, it looked as if Yoonseo was… pouting because someone scolded her.

It felt like I was looking at a puppy that had just been scolded by its owner.

If Yoonseo had a tail like a puppy, right now it would probably be drooping down in a terribly defeated manner.

‘This must be…’

She must have gotten a scolding from my sister.

But why was she scolded?

My sister wouldn’t just scold Yoonseo for no reason, so there must be something behind it…

Ah, or maybe she did something worthy of being scolded during her business trip…?

To be honest, that was all I could think of at the moment.

And if that was really the reason why my sister scolded Yoonseo, there wouldn’t be much for me to intervene in anyway.

Since it wasn’t something trivial and it had to do with work, honestly, wouldn’t it be awkward for me to step in there?

So, instead of intruding, I thought it might be better to…

‘Let’s have pork cutlets and kimchi stew for dinner tonight.’

That’s something both Yoonseo and Chae-rim love.

Among those, Yoonseo especially liked kimchi stew made with a mix of pork belly and spare ribs.

Pork belly is known for its melt-in-your-mouth flavor, while spare ribs are great for picking out the juicy meat.

Considering they’ve only been eating hospital food lately, something rich, spicy, and addictive sounded perfect.

If I didn’t showcase my skills now, when would I?

So, I figured it wouldn’t be bad to prepare a hearty meal to celebrate the discharge today.

Sure, eating like this every day would be a waste, but today was a somewhat special occasion.

‘Now then, let’s see…’

For Yoonseo, there’s the pork cutlet and kimchi stew, and for Chae-rim… maybe LA galbi.

Everyone generally eats well without being picky, but I remember their reaction was the best when I made LA galbi before, so…

‘And for my senior…’

To be honest, my senior’s favorite food is street-style toast, but while it’s good, it might not fit the party food vibe. So, I could maybe prepare the pork neck steak I made last time, which she had an excellent reaction to.

Oddly enough, my senior preferred pork over beef.

To put it accurately, she didn’t particularly like beef.

She once said that beef felt too fatty for her taste and always made her stomach upset after eating it, but well, tastes vary from person to person.

Alright, so confirmed are the pork cutlets, kimchi stew, LA galbi, and pork neck steak. Now, I just need to figure out Bora’s favorite dish.

Bora tends to eat whatever is made for her, but her extreme dislike for beans contrasts with her lack of any standout preferred dishes.

So, there’s no choice.

Rather than deciding on my own, I should ask Bora what she wants to eat first before deciding.

‘That said…’

Listing them out made it seem a bit too meat-heavy, didn’t it?

Should I try to awkwardly add in some salads or something…?

Perhaps it was the thought of finally returning home after several months.

I felt a bubbling excitement welling up inside me.