Ancient species referred to monsters from another world that sustained their lives for an extremely long period of time. These monsters generally knew how to survive in the most extreme situations and tended to hide themselves when the environment wasn’t suited for them. But when the right opportunity came to them, they flourished and could even swallow up a country in full.
Their desires to live were disgustingly potent just like, for example, a catastrophe-ranked demon.
This virus was also a type of ancient species. Thus the infected people quickly turned into something non-human, and even a dragon couldn’t heal them since they were no longer human.
“Ah…”
But the infected person in front of them was different. Her symptoms weren’t as severe and could be healed unlike others.
After coming to that conclusion, Bom hurriedly ran up and kneeled next to her. She then used the mana of mother nature to heal the lady.
“You have to stay still.”
“…Who are you?”
“We’re on a mission.”
Green mana snugly embraced her body.
“…It’s strangely… comfortable.”
The woman closed her eyes for a bit. By the time she opened her eyes again, she was already fully healed.
“Ahjussi. I’m done.”
“Okay.”
“But she used a lot of energy… I think she needs to eat something.”
The Regressor wasn’t really interested whether this nameless woman in this foreign land died or not.
But Bom was trying to help with her recovery. Therefore, he enforced the protection around the tent by surrounding it with a hint of his status and cooked a simple soup with the field kit.
“Thank you. Thank you…”
The middle-aged woman slowly swallowed the warm soup.
Her nature of good and evil leaned towards ‘good’ which was a rare sight in a barren lawless area, but her favourability towards Yu Jitae and Bom was neutral. Although they had saved her life, she appeared slightly scared instead of simply liking them.
She stopped eating with half the soup left and opened her mouth.
“I’m, Assiana and I’ve been living in this tribe for 40 years. And around a week ago, people started turning strange…”
“…”
Bom nodded.
“How is it outside the tent?”
“It’s…”
When Bom ambiguously slurred over it, the woman gave a nod back.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})“Ahh… so it’s still like that.”
Her calm voice was filled with remorse.
“They’ve all been… infected right?”
“Yes. The virus is still spreading. If you stay here, you’ll be infected again.”
“I see… I don’t have a family and I don’t mind leaving the tribe either.”
“Then would you like to go out together?”
“Yes. But before that, I know this might be very disrespectful, but may I please ask something?”
“Of course. Please do.”
“There’s a young man in the village who makes tents. He’s a really good person… I’m not worried about anyone else but I’d like to look for him at least.”
Bom turned towards Yu Jitae, and remembering the fact that Bom wasn’t feeling good, he decided to help her with this.
“What does he look like.”
“He… should be wearing blue clothes. He’s a soldier protecting the tribe so he should be carrying a weapon as well.”
Yu Jitae immediately found him. In the front entrance of the tribe was a group of young men, but none of them were savable at this point.
He looked at the middle-aged woman. From that alone, she understood it and nodded with a sorrowful gaze.
She couldn’t go near him because there was a chance that she got infected again.
Death in lawless areas was common. Thinking that, Bom turned her feet.
That was the end of the mission.
***
The mission ended just like that.
If there was another cause, Bom would’ve had to go around investigating into what caused the incident but the reason itself was simple despite its result. An epidemic had annihilated the tribe.
After giving photos to the office, Yu Jitae reported the end of the mission.
“Hmm. I see. Thanks for your work.”
“What will you do to the tribe.”
“What else can we do? Have to disinfect it.”
Meaning that they were going to burn it.
The soldier in the office gave a call to NAN headquarters and after reporting the end of the mission, Yu Jitae returned to the Kahum tribe.
“Can we take responsibility for her a little bit?”
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})“Alright.”
He listened to Bom’s request and brought the woman, ‘Assiana’ to a nearby tribe. It was a sister tribe of the Kahum tribe and after listening to Bom’s explanation, they decided to move further away tomorrow to a place where the virus would not reach.
“Thank you…”
The pale-faced woman bowed down in front of Bom.
*
Only after reaching the other tribe did Assiana cry out loud. People avoided her since she had come from an infected area but since she was healthy, that misunderstanding was bound to dissipate sooner or later.
Now that their task was over, it was time for them to go back.
“…”
He was about to suggest they go back, but Bom was blankly staring at where the Kahum tribe was.
“What’s wrong.”
“Hmm, it’s just that I feel slightly complicated.”
“About what.”
“I wonder…”
Bom remained silent for a long time. Later, when she turned her head away from the tribe, her face looked slightly less gloomy.
“I’m okay now.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yes. Besides, there are things that are a lot worse from what I see everyday.”
What she saw everyday probably referred to the events that she was forced to see through Providence against her will. She had mentioned it in the past.
“Do you think we can stay here for a day?”
“Alright.”
Next to the oasis of the tribe they took Assiana to, Yu Jitae and Bom decided to stay the night. In lawless areas, a magic stone was a great currency and Yu Jitae cut the medium-grade magic stone he had and gave it to them.
“T, this…”
It was a lot more than what was required for a one-night sleep. The chief’s eyes twitched for a bit and his gaze headed to Yu Jitae’s waist, at where the bag was.
“Why.”
“Y, yes?”
“You want it?”
“N, no sir.”
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})But he shrunk back.
The chief didn’t behave rashly. A superhuman that received a mission from NAN wasn’t someone to be messed with in a lawless area like this.
“No need for food. Just going to sleep for one night.”
“I see. I see. Haha…”
They were allocated to the chief’s daughter’s tent, which was the most decent one from the tribe.
Bom, who had been following Yu Jitae like someone possessed by a ghost, heaved a sigh after entering the tent and sat down on the bed. The bed was covered with a cloth and was a decent place to lay down on.
Sitting down on the ground, Yu Jitae leaned onto one of the stakes of the tent.
Insects buzzed from outside as the starry night sky of the desert shone from outside the window.
“It’s late already. Lie down and rest.”
“Yes.”
Taking off the jacket, she laid down on the bed. Wearing a tight-fitting, short-sleeved shirt and a pair of military pants, she blankly stared at the ceiling of the tent.
After some time, she opened her mouth with her vacant gaze still on the ceiling.
“Why do these things happen.”
He replied.
“These things?”
“Yes. People suffering, dying and being sad.”
“…”
“It would be great if everyone was happy.”
“It would.”
“Why do you think these things happen, ahjussi?”
“Who knows.”
Bom deeply pondered before opening her mouth again.
“Every result has a cause, right.”
“…”
“Right?”
“Don’t know. What about it.”
“Then, maybe there’s something that caused someone to be this sad.”
“…”
“If the one that caused such things to happen regretted their actions, would things turn out to be better?”
Bom waited for a response but her guardian didn’t reply for a long time.
“It’s not like you to ask such things,” he replied after a long silence.
“Because I’m feeling under the weather…”
Bom lifted her body up on the bed and stared at him.
“I don’t know what the answer is either. Maybe there isn’t an answer in the first place.”
“That’s, unexpected… I thought ahjussi would like, know everything.”
“I don’t know much.”
Yu Jitae gazed up at her with a dim gaze.
“But from what I’ve seen, things don’t always happen the way you’ve put it.”
“Sorry?”
“If there’s one obvious person that caused a miserable thing to happen, it would be over with just killing that one person. But things don’t always go that way.”
Yu Jitae reflected on something.
Since nothing could be changed even if he blamed and detested it, he could do nothing but just live.
“Sometimes there are just, unfortunate events.”
Bom understood the words of her guardian, but couldn’t understand his thought process and his experiences that led to the formation of such words.
But after applying that to herself who couldn’t see Providence anymore, she felt like she was being consoled somewhat.
Without even knowing why. It would just suddenly approach you. Although slightly scary, such things do happen, and because it is just an unfortunate event, those who live on must endure it moment by moment and defeat it. Whether you like it or not.
Perhaps it might just be a long process of accepting one’s suffering. Despite that being a story with not a single bit of hope, Bom felt her muddled thoughts becoming clearer and felt more comfortable.
“…Are you going to stay there?”
Bom blankly stared at him and asked.
“Isn’t it uncomfortable sitting there?”
“Then what.”
She tapped the bed with her hand.
“I’m fine.”
“But it’s wide?”
“I don’t sleep anyway.”
“Then you can stay awake. Lying down.”
Seeing that he was still stubborn, Bom came down and sat next to him.
“…What are you doing?”
“I can’t be the only one in a good place, can I.”
“What’s wrong with that. Just lie down.”
“What’s wrong with ahjussi?”
“What about me.”
“It’s not like this will be the first time we’re on a bed together.”
Did something similar happen before?
“Of course Gyeoul was with us back then… or are you perhaps worried?”
“About what. You teasing?”
“Yes. You don’t have to worry about that. I don’t feel good anyway and I’m not thinking of teasing at all.”
The Regressor thought about something before standing up from the ground. Bom smiled before heading to the bed with him.
He sat down and so did she.
It was strange. It seemed that Bom being in a ‘bad mood’ seemed like a really serious problem. As if to prove that, an insect that would never be able to even approach her due to the difference in status was resting on her shoulder and yet she didn’t even notice it.
He reached out with his hand and aimed at her shoulder.
“…?”
Seeing the hand suddenly approaching herself, Bom widened her eyes.
Right before his hand landed on her shoulder,
“…?!”
Bom flinched and fell back. She fell from the bed and landed on the ground with her bum while her head bumped into a box.
“Ouch… what are you doing?”
“What’s wrong?”
Yu Jitae wondered what was wrong with her.
Despite that, his gaze was still on her shoulder because the insect was still grabbing onto her shoulder. It was an ‘odourful spider’ whose liquid would cause a big room to stink.
When he approached her and again reached his hand out, she shrunk her body.
“What’s happening?”
“Stay there. I have to grab something.”
“Sorry? Grab which?”
“Just stay there. Don’t move.”
“No, but why? I’m feeling under the weather right now. You can’t come closer to me.”
“What does that mean.”
“You’re coming closer right now…”
“Just stay still and don’t move.”
“Why?”
He picked up the insect from her shoulder and threw it outside. Then, he revealed a little bit of his status which had previously been hidden, so that things like insects wouldn’t show up.
Bom heaved a sigh after that.
“So that’s what it was…”
Meanwhile, the Regressor felt her dragon heart trembling like crazy and found it strange. Was she scared like before?
“Anyway, please go back a bit. There’s not enough space for me.”
“Ah, right.”
While moving to the other side of the bed, he thought to himself. It suddenly hit him but for some reason, he felt amused.
Like that one time in the past, seeing Bom not knowing what to do despite always being calm and poised was slightly enjoyable. It wasn’t a common feeling for him.
He thought to himself. The mission had ended already and they had to go back tomorrow after spending the night today. Bom said she wasn’t feeling good but looked completely normal on the outside.
Feeling amused for some reason, he stared at her face.
“You said you weren’t thinking about teasing, right.”
“Sorry?”
“Isn’t that what you said?”
“Ah yes. Today’s a day off.”
Her being uninterested in teasing him instead made him feel intrigued.
He leaned forward with his upper body.
Now, he would try teasing her a little.
“…?”
Unlike usual, her eyes twitched as Yu Jitae raised his hand.
He didn’t know how to make others perplexed. All he knew was that he had to be close, with careful and subtle movements.
Because that’s what Bom had always done.
“Why are you coming closer again? What could you be trying to do…?”
At times like this, how would Bom reply.
She would probably act like she didn’t hear it.
“Your hairstyle’s always the same.”
“Well, obviously? Because my hair doesn’t grow…”
He mimicked what she would do in a situation like this, and carried his hand over to her forehead. Then, he gently pushed the green bangs away.
A white forehead. Beneath which her green pair of eyes widened in a fluster.
Bom looked away and stealthily pulled her head back. Realising that she was clearly feeling troubled, he again felt some amusement. It was similar to a child being amused from playing with a toy.
Thinking that he could make her more perplexed, he went closer as Bom crossed her arms in front of her body and protected herself in surprise.
“Why? You, already saw my forehead just then?”
“I did.”
“Then why are you coming closer again? Why…?”
It would be difficult to tease her again once she was back to normal. After coming to that conclusion, he approached like a bulldozer. Bom pulled her body back with her bum on the bed but before long, a stake of the tent blocked her back.
“Ah…”
She couldn’t run away anymore and the anxiety that covered her face soon spread to her eyes. Yu Jitae was approaching her selfishly. He was like a carnivorous beast and looked different to how Bom usually closed the distance between them.
Startled, Bom reached her arms out and stopped Yu Jitae by the chest. The meagre arm strength wasn’t enough but he stopped nonetheless.
“What’s wrong?”
“What’s wrong with you, ahjussi…?”
“What about me.”
“Ah, I get it… You’re doing this to tease me right? Because I’m not feeling well? I’m good at guessing things like this, you know.”
“You wanted to be closer.”
“But it’s too close.”
“So, you want to go further away?”
Her own words of the past acted like shackles that bound her feet.
“I’m sorry…”
“What?”
Not knowing what to do from the perplexity, her eyes turned teary.
“…Please let me live.”
