"Cough!"
"Kyaaak!"
Esther was horrified to see her companion repeatedly coughing up blood. As always, however, her panic did not last long. Despite her trembling hands, the young guild leader quickly sprang into action.
"Swish—!"
A moment later, Esther hurriedly pulled a healing potion from her pouch and poured it over her companion's face.
***
[Sacred Tree Seedling]. An epic-level reward that appears with extremely low probability in certain gates.
In truth, however, the item was known as 'Spy Coral' in his homeland. It had been mistakenly classified as a seedling because of its resemblance to terrestrial plants, but its true origin lay in the sea. Yes, it was coral—the kind found in the ocean.
Two years after the item first appeared, Earthlings had already discovered through microscopic observation that the Sacred Tree was, in fact, an animal. However, the abilities concealed within this coral had yet to be uncovered.
As had its dangers. Unless an Alphaurn revealed the truth, Earthlings would likely never discover it, even after decades had passed.
How did that alien know the secret of the Sacred Tree Branch?
The Spy Coral had originally been a close companion of the ancient Alphaurn. When its outer layer was scraped away, the tentacles beneath gleamed with a smooth, glossy sheen. Even more remarkably, its blood could protect the body without consuming a single drop of mana.
– Wow! What is this coral?
– It bleeds when I cut its arm?
– And if I breathe it in, something protects me? My body gets stronger!
A helpful creature that sustained life.
That was how the ancient inhabitants of the ocean planet came to make constant use of the coral's blood after discovering its effects. But much like the first fisherman reckless enough to eat a pufferfish, they had unknowingly embraced something with a deadly consequence waiting for them.
A few days later, a strange phenomenon swept through one of Alphaurn's villages. The village's proudest young warriors, all healthy and strong, suddenly fell victim to an unknown illness and eventually died.
Naturally, the ancient people were horrified by the mass deaths and began investigating their cause. After countless studies and painstaking efforts, they finally identified the culprit responsible for killing the warriors.
– No, damn it! This coral uses magic!
The Spy Coral.
The [Protection] effect produced by its bodily fluids concealed a sinister secret. Once a predetermined incubation period had elapsed, it destroyed the organs of anyone drenched in its blood!
What a benevolent guise for such a deadly assassin.
It was, in fact, a survival strategy. By continually producing blood with beneficial effects while alive, the coral increased the likelihood that predators would protect it. And if some unintelligent beast fell into its trap, it would die without ever understanding what had happened—and never return to the coral colony again.
"Cough."
In short, the [Sacred Tree Seedling] was a magical creature that collected the debt incurred by its wounds with compound interest.
Which was why a certain alien was now coughing up blood without end.
Sunday.
Today marked exactly sixteen days since then—the point at which the incubation period came to an end.
For reference, once this upheaval began, the protective effect rapidly disappeared. To restore it, the process had to be repeated from the beginning. The Spy Coral's activity was affected by water temperature, so awakening its blood required bathing in water infused with it, usually at a relatively low temperature.
In more ways than one, the seedling was neither permanent nor convenient.
"As expected, I should've just stayed home today."
On the first day, it revealed its true nature by wreaking havoc on the digestive system, including the intestines and stomach. After that, it moved on to the major organs, even targeting the eyes.
No matter how much the creature was the one that had torn my body apart, tormenting a living being this viciously...
Some might be shocked that something resembling coral could wield such dangerous magic, but in truth, this wasn't an issue confined to alien planets. The time simply hadn't come yet. After all, Earth's animals had already been exposed to the magical upheaval caused by dungeons, just like humanity.
"This place will eventually become quite a sight too, just like the ocean..."
Giryeo briefly imagined a newly evolved species of dolphin hunting sharks with high-pressure jets of water.
"Hunter Giryeo! Move your hand, quick! H-here! This time it's an antidote! Drink it! Or wait, do you need holy water...!?"
Thud.
But this was hardly the time for such idle thoughts.
He was still violently coughing up blood, and right beside him stood the towering figure of the ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) Korean Magic Tower's leader, staring at him intently.
"Oh my."
Losing one's life to an inferior species was a relic of ancient times. Fortunately, modern Alphaurns no longer made use of Spy Corals, and even if they happened to spill their blood, they knew how to deal with it safely.
In other words, Giryeo was perfectly capable of handling the side effects currently afflicting him.
The problem was that the treatment required time. There was no way to stop the blood immediately.
Of all times, he had to be caught like this by someone else...
Thud. Thud.
Blood continued to spill from the corner of his mouth despite his efforts to hold it back.
Giryeo disliked revealing weakness in front of an Earthling sorcerer, so the current situation irritated him greatly. But there was nothing he could do about it now. He couldn't erase the witness's memory, so what other choice did he have?
"Whoo, whoo..."
Taking advantage of a brief lull in the coughing, he quickly steadied his breathing.
Then he finally managed to say what he had been trying to tell Esther all along.
"I'm fine."
It felt as though the very first button had already been fastened wrong.
But if he didn't stop her now, she would undoubtedly douse him with another potion.
"I'm fine, so put the potion down, Esther. It's not like that's going to make me any bett—!"
.
.
.
Inside the dark cave, the storm had finally passed.
"Uhm."
There had been a brief commotion, but after a rational discussion, the situation eventually settled down.
By mutual agreement, we decided to lean against the cave walls and take a break, both to regain our composure and to recover our strength.
"Ugh."
Incidentally, blood was still welling up inside me.
Seriously, though. Why did Choi Jinhee like this kind of bodily fluid when it tasted like nothing but iron?
After entertaining that pointless thought for a moment, I adjusted my posture.
Even now, a certain someone's gaze remained fixed on me. At this rate, she was going to stare a hole straight through me.
"Of all people, it had to be an S-rank Hunter who caught me..."
Peach-colored eyelids closed over bloodshot eyes.
I quietly shut my eyes and began to think.
First of all, the Sacred Tree Seedling...
The countermeasure itself was simple. Its side effects were only truly dangerous during the first few hours, after which the symptoms gradually weakened.
"If I endure for two days and heal the damaged organs every twelve hours, it'll be over."
In a way, it was similar to Vibrio cholerae on Earth.
That, too, had once been a bacterium capable of killing a person in no time at all, but nowadays, as long as the patient received proper IV fluids, it wasn't much of a threat.
Alright, then.
From this point onward, all I had to do was wait for the side effects to subside.
The real problem was that I'd shown such an embarrassing sight to someone else in the industry.
"Giryeo-ssi."
At that moment, a woman's voice broke through the silence.
"Yes."
I answered without opening my eyes.
Esther cautiously continued in a gentle voice.
"Are you okay?"
"Yes."
"The thing is... how can even such an expensive potion fail to stop the bleeding...?"
If even the head of a major guild called it expensive, that alone said plenty.
Earlier, Esther had already used a healing potion on me in an attempt to treat my condition. It had barely helped.
As long as the Sacred Tree's blood remained active, no matter how many times I was healed, it was no different from pouring water into a bottomless jar.
I opened my mouth to explain, then closed it again.
Afterward, I stood up, walked a few steps away, and coughed up another mouthful of blood.
Gulp.
I'd been spitting bodily fluids onto the ground for quite some time now.
It wasn't exactly a pleasant sight.
By the time I straightened my disheveled clothes and returned to my spot, Esther was already staring silently at the ground.
"Why are you sick?"
"..."
"If a healing potion can't fix it, that usually means it isn't just an ordinary injury. But you look perfectly fine on the outside, so I didn't notice anything until now."
"..."
"Or could it be some kind of curse? Not the kind of skill I use, but something like a ring that attaches itself to your skin and won't come off. There are all kinds of strange phenomena inside gates. Is this because of your work as a hunter too?"
Once Esther began speaking, the questions came one after another without pause.
Her rapid-fire interrogation seemed to be her way of expressing the anxiety she was currently feeling.
I took a deep breath and sank into thought.
Since when had my body been like this...
Or rather, why was it in such poor condition?
I had to avoid those questions as carefully as possible, since anything connected to Alphaurn had to remain secret.
But while I was busy devising excuses, I eventually began to find the entire situation rather absurd.
An archmage trapped inside the very feeding box belonging to the lowly creatures he had once slaughtered without mercy, only to have his internal organs torn apart by their sorcery.
After a moment of thought, I leaned back against the cave wall and offered her a short explanation.
"Yeah. This happened because of work."
If not for that damned overwork, I would never even have considered reincarnation, so technically speaking, it wasn't a lie.
What followed might have sounded, at first, like an excuse intended to conceal the item's abilities.
But part of it was also sincere advice to this primitive wizard.
"So, Seo Esther, if you don't want to end up like me, make sure you start living lazily while you still can."
"Lazily?"
"There was a time when I worked extremely hard to achieve what I wanted."
My gaze drifted absently toward the bloodstains on my sleeve before I continued.
"When I devoted my entire life to pursuing my goals, the results were excellent. But looking back now, I feel like I was the one who failed the most."
"Failed..."
"Sleeping until the afternoon. Spending two whole hours on a single meal. Ironically, those supposedly 'wasted' hours turn out to be the more important parts of life. Achievements, once you actually attain them... well, they don't amount to much in the end."
You're happy for a moment, and then you stop feeling anything at all.
After muttering for a while, I slowly raised the corners of my mouth.
I made no attempt to suppress the emotions rising within me.
A hollow laugh escaped my lips.
"Anyway, I'm worried about you. From what I've seen, Hunter Esther, you seem to work yourself too hard. You run a guild, go hunting, and on top of all that, you're the S-rank Hunter who appears in the most interviews."
"...Have you seen my interviews?"
"No matter how I look at it, your schedule seems excessive."
Ever since regaining the memories belonging to this body, my facial expressions had begun to feel more natural.
I spoke with an uneven smile that the former Giryeo would probably never have made.
Upon seeing it, Esther flinched and stiffened her shoulders.
Perhaps she wasn't used to seeing such an expression from me, since I'd always kept my facial muscles almost completely neutral.
"I appreciate the concern, but you don't need to worry about that."
I hadn't expected her to answer like that.
"I've already been lazy enough. It's time for me to stop."
"Yes?"
"Hunter Kim Giryeo, did you know? I actually used to be... that. You know."
A loser.
After uttering the word, Esther sat on the ground and wrapped her arms around her knees.
With only the two of us there, it was easy to focus entirely on her story.
"I spent years doing nothing but playing games without ever leaving my filthy room."
It would have been better if there had at least been worthwhile prey around.
But since this place produced nothing more than insignificant F-rank enemies, perhaps she had simply grown bored.
Once Esther brought up the subject, she gradually began unraveling her past.
Dropping out of high school.
Passing the GED.
Turning down college admission.
Then living unemployed while freeloading off her family.
"Unfortunately, my family was pretty wealthy. On top of that, every single one of them was ridiculously kind. They even went so far as to coddle their pathetic youngest daughter. So despite everything, I managed to live just fine."
Esther exaggerated her tone as though she were recounting some major incident, but the longer she spoke, the more indifferent she became.
"As expected."
A curse was the power of hatred.
To awaken such sorcery naturally, a person had to be innately sensitive and filled with anger.
So she must always have found something to despise, something that disturbed her.
Especially in a place like school, where she was forced to mingle with people and things she wanted nothing to do with.
What poison that must have been for her.
So how could I possibly be surprised to hear that she'd failed to fit into society as a child?
"..."
When I simply accepted her gloomy past without much reaction, Esther's expression changed as though she hadn't expected it.
Her drowsy-looking eyes widened for a moment before she fell silent again.
Perhaps because her Earthling features were naturally sharp, even the slightest shift in her expression was surprisingly noticeable.
Lowering her thick eyelashes, the sorceress soon changed the subject.
"By the way, Giryeo-ssi, were you like this when you were young?"
Before I knew it, Esther had recovered her smile.
"The more we talk, the more curious I get. I'd like to hear about your past, Giryeo-ssi. Especially when you were really young."
But the moment she heard my answer, the faint smile on her face vanished.
"My childhood? There isn't much to talk about if you go back that far."
"Why?"
"I was an orphan, so I didn't have many experiences."
The atmosphere instantly turned cold.
Before long, the curse sorcerer hurriedly apologized with an awkward expression, but her apology stirred nothing in me.
After all, I didn't think she'd said anything that required an apology.
"So orphans are treated the same way here too..."
As my ambiguous response suggested, the truth was that a certain alien had never had a proper family in his previous life either.
Just like someone else.
Unlike Kim Giryeo, however, I had never felt ashamed of it.
To me, being of unknown origin had been something akin to Pak Hyukgyuse—an extraordinary being who seemed to have simply fallen from the sky.
Rather than considering it a flaw, I took pride in it.
I had lived with the conviction that, from the very moment of my birth, I was fundamentally different from the common folk scattered through the streets.
Perhaps it was precisely that mindset that had brought me to where I was today.
Earlier, I'd claimed that my body was suffering because of work.
But if I traced the cause all the way back to its root, my previous life had ultimately been ruined by my own arrogance.