Chapter 36: The Long-awaited Progress Part 1

Released:

– Graaah!!!

In the ruins where various monsters roared in shrill cries, flaunting their presence and fighting over territory,

Sion arrived at the outskirts of the ruins, exhaled a labored breath, retrieved her hidden tracker and sniper rifle, and checked the time.

“Huff…! Huff…!”

Perhaps it was because she had sprinted with all her might to shake off the thoughts and worries gnawing at her mind.

Despite her mind being crowded with no room to spare, she found there was more time left than expected.

They won’t have noticed, right?

If it wasn’t a sniping training, staying in one place for a long time would have been an unacceptable excuse.

Fortunately, Sion had indeed been undergoing such training.

“……”

The girl who was shouldering a large firearm, put the tracker in her vest pocket.

She then lifted her head to stare blankly at the night sky.

Honestly, at that moment, she wanted to sprint straight to Tigrova and to hell with her safety just to confront the Snow Tiger Emperor.

If the testimony of someone who had experienced the incident firsthand was included, the outline of the past would surely become clearer.

However,

It wasn’t as if one could meet an influential figure like the Snow Tiger Emperor just because one wanted to.

It’s all just daydreaming under the current circumstances.

Facing reality, Sion glanced at the hamburger that was occupying one of her hands.

On the food, which had lost its warmth, the exact same number written on the notepad was scrawled.

“……”

Considering her connection to Rohan, what basis did she have for trusting this enough to eat it?

Under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t have touched such food out of sheer stubbornness, even if she were starving.

Yet Sion rustled the wrapper open.

Without checking the smell or the filling, Sion took a bite of the hamburger.

She thought that if something went wrong after eating it, she might just take it in stride anyway.

It was a mental state infinitely close to giving up on everything.

That was exactly how torn apart she felt inside.

“Mmm…”

At least for the moment, she didn’t sense any problem.

For how long had it been since she’d eaten something so stimulating? It was delicious enough to feel almost euphoric.

Sion devoured the hamburger in no time and gulped down water from her canteen.

“Pwah!”

Her stomach felt a bit fuller, and it seemed to give her a bit of energy.

Rustle!

She clenched the now-empty wrapper. It felt like a dream that she had been in Academy City just moments ago,

Even the fact that she had shared and heard such conversation.

…Rohan.

It must have been a fake name.

Even so, Sion was certain she would never forget the name Rohan.

She knew she hadn’t met many people in her life outside, but she also knew that none of them had been ordinary.

After all, everyone the Elders had brought in or made contact with had reeked of a grim blood scent.

What kind of life has he led?

Based on those experiences, Sion’s intuition told her.

That compared to Rohan, everyone else she had encountered so far were basically ordinary and common people.

…An interesting human.

He was someone who piqued her curiosity in many ways.

Sometimes, she sensed a profound weight that clashed dramatically with his outward appearance,

And the color of that gravity was fundamentally different from the Elders who had lived long lives.

If she had to compare, he reminded her of the father she had looked up to in her childhood.

Beep—Beep—!

The girl glanced at her watch, which rang again.

It was now time for her to return without delay.

“Hoooooo…”

Sion filled her lungs with the night air and steeled her resolve.

If everything I heard today turned out to be true…

Crackle!!!

The electricity flowing out of Zion’s hand burned the wrapping paper cleanly.

***

Time passed.

Rohan, upon opening his eyes in bed, immediately had a thought.

Did Sion make it back safely?

He felt nothing but uneasy. He had no way to contact the elf girl after all.

He didn’t like being in a position where he had to wait helplessly.

Of course, Sion’s fighting power and talent were outstanding,

But that wasn’t everything when it came to living one’s life.

From Rohan’s perspective, Sion was simply a girl who made him worry.

“Hmm.”

Rohan sat up in bed.

Still, I didn’t mention those punks who filled the Elders’ heads with nonsense…

Though his mind was always turning to various topics, his body moved as it always did.

Even if something special had happened the day before, Rohan’s routine rarely changed.

Until he saw signs or a sudden turn of events, he would focus on strengthening himself and keeping track of key figures.

On top of that, he dutifully attended Orion Academy.

All right. Let’s head out again today.

Because he was quite satisfied with his repeating daily life,

He turned the doorknob with vigor.

As usual, Rohan met Ichinose in the training room.

He then sat next to Gilbert in the academy and started listening to the main lecture.

When class ended, he ate a quick meal in the cafeteria and headed to the Spider Lily Bookstore.

It was his usual daily routine.

“Then I’ll leave the rest to you.”

“Yes! Thank you for the snacks!”

When the store manager left work, the last part of his repeating daily routine began.

Bzzzzt—!!!

Before he could even slip his phone into his apron, it vibrated.

Rohan’s gaze shifted.

[Clara: (⊙_⊙)‼]

He had a rough idea of what that emoji-only message meant, so he lifted his head.

Off to the side, Clara was peeking her head out just like before and watching him.

So she was already here today.

Perhaps she had kept her presence hidden because there were customers browsing books.

When Clara decided to stay quiet, her presence was impossible to detect.

It was awkward to speak out loud, so Rohan waved a little instead.

Unlike before, she did not run away and instead gave him a small bow.

It was truly a dazzling development.

Should I reply by message?

When he said he was looking forward to the weekly boss battle and asked if she would be all right until it was over,

The girl hesitated and timidly twitched the corners of her mouth at the same time.

It was obvious she was excited, which made her look cute.

As it grew late, the bookstore became quiet.

When Rohan picked up a mop to clean the floor for closing,

Clara quietly stepped outside so she wouldn’t get in the way and waited.

“Phew.”

Clank! Click!

After confirming that Rohan had locked the Spider Lily Bookstore and taken the keys, Clara recited the lines she had practiced while waiting.

“…You worked hard today!”

“Thank you. It’s just my job, but you must have been tired from waiting.”

Clara shook her head from side to side to show it was no trouble.

“Shall we head out? I kept thinking about the game while I was working, and it was troublesome.”

“Ah! I-I get that feeling too!”

When Rohan started walking, Clara began to walk alongside him.

After leaving the alley and reaching the main road, Rohan glanced at the shops that were still open.

He and Clara entered a franchise café.

“I’ll add a muffin and a sandwich… so what would you like to drink? Choose anything you want.”

“You really don’t have to buy me anything! I have money too…!”

“Hmm?”

“I… well… coffee is enough for me. Th-The smallest size!”

Clara emptied her pockets and took out 23 tokens.

In Korean currency, that was roughly worth 2,300 won.

She looked at him with sparkling eyes, as if asking for his opinion.

But the amount was so painfully small that Rohan simply couldn’t accept it.

“I’m getting help from you today. At times like this, let me pay.”

“But even last time…”

Rohan had no choice but to cut her off.

“Are you sure it’s okay to drink coffee at night?”

“…….”

Perhaps she had never considered anything except how cheap it was.

Rohan noticed her eyes darting around and she was unable to answer, and he let out a soft chuckle before looking at the menu.

“Let’s see. Decaf… hmm, fruit yogurt?”

While Clara stood there, unable to do anything but feel flustered,

Rohan had already ordered two drinks and enough food to fill them up.

“Don’t overthink it; just eat. Just help me out with the game in return.”

“Uuuu… th-thank you!”

Rohan carried the tray he received, sat down, and neatly set out the food.

– Company Wave!

As soon as Rohan, who sat across from her, launched the game,

Clara’s eyes turned serious, as though she had become a completely different person.

Her nails glittered as her fingers tapped rapidly on her phone, then she showed him the screen.

“This is a build I put together myself.”

She had written down everything in the phone’s notepad, from team composition to the skill rotation timeline.

Rohan observed it quietly and saw the pool of characters she used, then asked,

“You made this all by yourself?”

“Yes. I can run through it with you today, but there might be days I can’t. If you follow this, you can clear it easily in under a minute.”

“It’s impressively well put together…”

“When I tried it out, I realized you don’t need to spend all your resources on the tank. As long as you level up Glass and boost her HP, she can hold out until her skill is ready once, and as for Order, if you raise her skill to level three or higher, you’ll clear it without any problems.”

“Oh?”

She spoke so smoothly as if she had become eloquent the moment the conversation turned to the game.

They cleared all the weekly bosses together; Rohan mined a bunch of resources to pull for characters and failed.

And the two of them shared moments of joy, anger, sadness, and happiness in an instant.

They sat there for who knew how long, enjoying the game together.

By the time they had exhausted all the content available in one day,

Clara had already returned to her usual self at some point.

“It really is more fun when we play together.”

“Hehe…”

After smiling as if she agreed,

The girl touched her moist lips to the straw and sipped while glancing furtively at Rohan.

A sweet taste lingered in her mouth.

As Clara watched Rohan type away, apparently replying to someone after finishing the game,

She absentmindedly let out a drawn-out sound.

“Um…”

When Rohan lowered his phone and their eyes met,

Clara fidgeted with her fingers and continued to speak.

“I stay at the bookstore until it closes every day… right?”

“Yes.”

He already knew that.

He simply nodded in acknowledgment without denying it.

“Did the manager tell you anything about it?”

“No. Nothing at all.”

“Still, you never ask me anything? Like why I’m there every single day…?”

If it wasn’t just his imagination, she looked ready to confide in him.

Rohan sensed it immediately.

He realized that the progress he had been waiting for had finally come.

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