Chapter 153

In this life too, there was nothing Soram could do while lava covered this country and monsters poured out.

Han Tae-un believed that the visitor who suddenly appeared was not Jin Soram. More than anyone else, it was Soram himself who wished for that. He had even harbored expectations, no, delusions, that when he opened his eyes again, he might start a different life.

Rather, he wished it was a different life, even if he were reborn as an insect.

However, the place where he opened his eyes was always the hospital with white ceilings. Now even what had happened in each life had become blurry. He often forgot what he remembered with his head, apart from what was ingrained in his body.

Now take my hand. Feel our bodies rising.

Curled up in the darkness, it felt like everything had ended again. Had the Great Rift broken out without him knowing and he had died again? Was it the point where a new life was about to begin? Had it still not ended?

"Hey!"

Along with a shout that came close, light suddenly flooded his vision.

...Huh.

It wasn't a white ceiling, but a ceiling made of logs. Tae-un had pulled out his earphones.

"The cows aren't mooing anymore. It's over."

"Ah..."

"What volume. Your eardrums will burst. Have you been like this the whole time?"

"You, why are you back so early?"

"I said this morning I'd quit the supplementary classes and come back to pack."

"Aha. Good thinking. Why go to school until the vacation?"

"...Take this."

A paper bag was thrust into his arms. Inside were a few pieces of clothing. While he was taking out the top and bottom and socks, Han Tae-un had an excited expression as if watching someone unwrap a gift.

"Han Tae-un, your fashion sense is terrible."

But for that... Soram put the clothes back in the bag exactly as he had taken them out.

"I'll just take one pair of socks. Return the rest."

"...Is it that bad?"

"No. It's more that I should probably go back soon."

When he had searched about dogs and potatoes earlier, he had seen the news section of the portal. There was a headline there that he couldn't help but click on.

<Kim Ga-eul, Seo Min-ki, Jin Soram. 3 High School Students Gather at Seoul Headquarters. Preparing to Become Next Generation Heroes Through Systematic Training>

They had hidden Soram's disappearance. In other words, it meant they would find him before this disappearance became an issue.

It probably wouldn't take long.

"...You're going? To where you lived?"

"Yeah. It could be as early as today. Oh, right."

Soram brought in a post-it note from outside.

"Can you give me your account number? I'll send you money for food, the broken plate, and lodging when I get back."

He couldn't just eat for free from an 18-year-old and leave. He was planning to send a very generous amount of pocket money.

"Forget it. I don't need it. And stay until winter passes. How can you go without a jacket?"

"I came just fine in hospital clothes."

They would come to take him back, and surely they would bring a car.

"What will you eat and live on when you go?"

"I'll have things to do."

"If you try to pull off half-baked scams like this, it won't work in Seoul."

Soram just chuckled. He became curious about how this kid would react when it was revealed that he was the real Jin Soram.

"I'll manage well on my own. Who knows. It might work in Seoul..."

"Stop talking nonsense and stay!!"

Huh? ...Oh...

"Han Tae-un, are you angry?"

"No!"

His deep voice echoed in the room. It was an attitude completely contrary to his words of denial. What's this, why is he suddenly like this? He couldn't keep up with the teenager's mood swings.

Tae-un turned his head sharply. The bag of clothes he had given to Soram was crumpled in his grip. Ah, could he be thinking his sincerity was being disregarded?

"Alright. I'll wear them. Actually, they weren't that bad."

Soram took the bag back from his hand. Their hands brushed. The thick eyebrows that had been raised slightly lowered.

The T-shirt was a sweatshirt thick enough to be fluffy, with a brown cat with aloof eyes drawn in the center.

'As for his taste...'

This time, he only thought inwardly, not wanting to hurt the delicate feelings of the pubescent boy. Soram pulled off the large clothes of Tae-un's he had been wearing over his head.

"Why, why do you keep taking off your clothes... What happened to your body!"

Soram's body was covered in scars. Even this was quickly healed thanks to the tremendous recovery ability of a body that had regressed numerous times. They were all places where bones had been broken and wounds had been stitched up by surgery.

"I was injured during the 2nd Great Rift."

"..."

"Why ask if you won't believe?"

Soram finished putting on the top and took off his pants. Sure enough, his lower body was also covered in bruises. This time, Tae-un didn't turn his head away but stared intently. Then he clenched both fists tightly.

"Who beat you?"

"Mutants."

"I'm asking seriously. Who did this to you?"

"What would you do if someone did this?"

"..."

"Is there anything you can do?"

The words might have been a bit harsh, but considering all the meddling this guy would do in the future, it was worth saying. Still, he felt a bit more guilty when he put on the warm fleece-lined pants.

It was when he had finished fastening his pants and even put on socks. His wrist was grabbed.

"From today, study with me. Transfer to my school next year, and live here until we take the college entrance exam."

The free room and board that was supposed to be provided until winter had suddenly become a year's worth. How bold.

"Even if you haven't been caught until now, what will you tell your parents?"

"I'll handle it."

Tae-un said again resolutely.

"So stay here."

It seemed like he wouldn't let go of the wrist he had grabbed unless Soram answered.

***

It was a time when the sun hadn't even risen yet. Even considering that mornings were late in winter, it was a very early hour. Faint sounds of an argument could be heard through the door.

The quarrel, which Tae-un thought might be from an elderly neighbor who had been drinking, grew louder and woke him up.

"...When did you wake up?"

The boy, who always went to bed earlier and woke up later than Tae-un, was sitting leaning against the wall. Tae-un sat up, rubbing his face that was still not fully awake.

"Did the noise wake you?"

"I was waiting for you to wake up."

He was about to ask why, but the shouting from outside grew closer. It was a very rare commotion in the quiet countryside village.

What's this noise, coming here out of the blue at this hour!

Oh.

This was his father's voice. It seemed the problem was occurring in the main house. Tae-un jumped out of bed.

"I'll go out and come back. Stay here."

"Han Tae-un, wait..."

The boy looked like he had something to say, but confirming his parents' safety was the priority right now. As soon as he stepped out of the front door, the cold of dawn hit him.

Exhaling visible breath, he arrived at the main house to find a situation he had never seen before in all his life living here.

"...!"

Several cars, about a dozen people in suits, and in front of them, a couple who had clearly just woken up. His father and mother.

"What, what is this all about..."

"Han Tae-un."

At that moment, someone's palm touched Tae-un's back, which had frozen in surprise.

"Calm down. Nothing will happen to your family."

"Huh...?"

"I'll resolve this quickly."

He walked down the hill, leaving Tae-un behind. Tae-un snapped back to his senses and followed.

"He's over there!"

One of the gathered people shouted, pointing at the boy. The man who had been arguing with his parents at the front strode towards the two of them.

"Jin Soram! You...! Where have you been until now! And what's with that appearance!"

"Wow, so many people came."

"Come here right now!"

Jin Soram?

Tae-un looked at the boy. A long breath escaped the boy's lips. The face identical to the student hero of the Great Rift hardened its expression.

No way. It can't be.

That person who was even afraid of cow sounds couldn't have fought huge monsters. With those small hands, that small body.

The man who had shouted as soon as he saw the boy came right up to them. At that moment, Tae-un's body sprang forward.

Tae-un stretched out his arm, shielding the boy.

"He's not Jin Soram. He's just someone who looks like him."

"What's this now?"

Suddenly all eyes were on them, and some approached as if to surround them. Facing the large adults, the person standing behind felt even smaller.

"The news said Jin Soram was in Seoul, so why are you looking for him here?"

"Student, you don't need to know, and knowing will only get you hurt. Jin Soram! Are you not coming here quickly?!"

Hearing the coercive tone, Tae-un stood even more firmly to shield the boy. Fortunately, he was taller than the other person. When he put strength into his eyes, the man muttered, "This little bastard..." but couldn't approach.

"Did you hit him, mister?"

"What, what nonsense!"

"There wasn't a single uninjured spot on his whole body!"

"That's because that brat left the hospital..."

As he answered, the man glanced back as if checking someone's reaction. At that moment, the arm blocking between the boy and the man was firmly pushed down.

"The family atmosphere is a mess, but there was no violence from the parents. Probably."

The runaway boy who was pretty, had peculiar eating habits, slept a lot, and was also very timid. Jin Soram came out from behind Tae-un and walked forward. Looking back at the person who had just been protecting him, he smiled faintly.

"See, I told you it was me."

Soram walked between the adults who were much larger than him. Despite being so small, people backed away warily as if he were an animal about to act unpredictably.

"Let's go. I sat here stubbornly, so don't hold innocent people."

"Hey, you..."

Tae-un's parents approached him, urgently asking what on earth he had been doing in the annex. But no sound entered his ears.

Soram, standing in front of the black car, waved at him.

"Take care. These few days were fun."

"..."

"See you in 5 years."

Ah.

Tae-un, who had been in a daze, suddenly ran between the people without anyone being able to stop him.

Tuk.

He grabbed Soram's wrist just before he got into the car.

"Don't go."

"..."

"If it's a place that makes you make that expression, don't go!"

The moment he grabbed Soram, Tae-un also fully realized. No, the fact he had sensed became clearly evident. Soram, said to be a strong awakener, wasn't feeling any cold at all in the strong wind of the dawn mountainside. Rather, Tae-un's hand was colder.

Even so.

"Stay here. I ordered those sound-absorbing tiles earlier. I'll put them up in the room. Then you won't hear the cows mooing anymore."

Now that he knew he was Jin Soram, Tae-un didn't know how else to persuade him. But somehow, he felt he shouldn't let Soram go like this.

Especially not with that face that looked like it might cry at any moment.

"This kid is getting too cheeky. What are you all doing? Don't let him get strange ideas, just..."

The man tried to forcibly push Soram, who had stopped, into the car. As the distance between them widened, the arm he had grabbed was forcibly separated.

"Ah...!"

"..."

At that moment, a blue light flickered in the round eyes that had been gazing intently at Tae-un. Soram grabbed Tae-un's arm and leaped backward. A wide distance was created between them and the adults.

Chwaaak―

The blue mist that had formed in the air scraped the ground. A long line was drawn in an instant. It was the first time Tae-un saw Soram's ability.

"Don't come any closer."

Soram opened his mouth. It wasn't the dazed voice Tae-un had heard for days in his annex, but the cool, mature tone like when they first met.

"I don't want to go anymore."