Chapter 58: The Unraveling Threads of Fate

#58

Han Dokyeom gazed intently at Beom Yeonhu’s sturdy back. Nearby, fans who had been loudly photographing Han Yuseong began to grumble regretfully, preparing to disperse.

It was around this time that Beom Yeonhu suddenly turned and looked at Dokyeom, just as the crowd started to thin. Their gazes met in the air. His eyes held an intensity as if exposed to a powerful light.

For a moment, Beom Yeonhu broke away from his spot and rushed toward Dokyeom. His faded, worn shirt flapped in the wind. In an instant, the once ferocious dog had transformed back into a gentle puppy, standing before Dokyeom.

His lips parted, and this time, words finally flowed out clearly.

“…I apologize. You arranged such a good opportunity, but I was thoughtless… that’s why it happened. It was too overwhelming a place for me to come alone, so that’s why.”

Wondering what he meant, Dokyeom realized Beom Yeonhu was apologizing for bringing Kang Taesan and two others. The remaining fans who had been photographing Han Yuseong turned their lenses toward Beom Yeonhu.

The clicking of cameras drowned out Beom Yeonhu’s words. Faint whispers reached Dokyeom: ‘Oh, look at his eyes. He’s handsome, must be a rookie.’ ‘What’s his rank?’ ‘I hope he does well.’

Han Dokyeom looked at Beom Yeonhu, then abruptly extended his hand. Beom Yeonhu flinched, then grasped the pale hand. Using that hand as leverage, Dokyeom easily stepped over the safety line.

He then gently pushed Beom Yeonhu back a few steps, moving them to a spot where their words couldn’t be overheard by the crowd.

“Beom Yeonhu-ssi.”

Beom Yeonhu nodded. It was then that Dokyeom noticed his stretched, faded T-shirt. From Dokyeom’s memory, it seemed to be the same one he wore at the last gate. Was it his work uniform?

“Have you been in contact with your Saint lately?”

Again, instead of answering, Beom Yeonhu shook his head, his face dark. ‘Orias’ was the same. Like Beom Yeonhu’s Saint, ‘Vine,’ Orias hadn’t been in contact for days.

“Ha, my Saint is like that too. They’ve grown so brazen, honestly. Don’t they fear the consequences?”

Since the day he met Beom Yeonhu, ‘Orias’ had been completely silent. It seemed they had left home to catch up with a friend, but they showed no intention of returning, like a stray cat.

It meant both of them had run off hand-in-hand, roaming around together.

“I feel partly responsible, so I’m going to do something for you now, Yeonhu-ssi. If it feels right, contact me. If not… still contact me. I’d like to hear why it wasn’t right.”

If the scenes Dokyeom had witnessed in Kang Taesan’s fate were true, Beom Yeonhu would fight alone in this gate, without any allies, and return even more severely injured than before.

Han Yuseong would try to help, but he would be overwhelmed caring for the trainees and caught in an unexpected upheaval. Others would be fine. The problem was that Beom Yeonhu was specifically a C-rank.

“So, you must use this for yourself, Beom Yeonhu-ssi.”

As Dokyeom clasped Beom Yeonhu’s hand firmly, he felt a jolt. However, that was merely the prelude.

‘‘

As soon as the skill was activated, Beom Yeonhu’s hand thrashed wildly in Dokyeom’s grip, like a freshly caught fish. Dokyeom held it tightly, closing his eyes quietly as if letting out a sigh.

The world turned black, and before him appeared tangled masses of threads. These were the qi and blood flows that tormented Beom Yeonhu. Hundreds, thousands of them were intertwined, blocking the flow of magic and causing it to stagnate and fester in a spiral.

Dokyeom sought out a small tangle and began to unravel it. He slowly disentangled the tightly bound threads, coaxing them apart. Only after he was on the verge of exhaustion, his magic almost depleted, could he untangle one single twisted flow.

“Hey, Beom Yeonhu! Aren’t you going in?!”

Just then, someone’s shout erupted from the front of the gate. Dokyeom let out a weary breath, wiped the sweat from his chin with the back of his hand, and raised his head. A fixed gaze met Dokyeom’s face. Beom Yeonhu’s eyes, widened in surprise, trembled slightly.

His anxious eyes silently questioned Dokyeom.

“W-what….”

“Beom Yeonhu-ssi, everyone is waiting over there.”

Dokyeom gestured toward the gate with his chin. Beom Yeonhu’s complicated gaze shifted between the gate and Dokyeom. In the end, however, Beom Yeonhu couldn’t defy the urgent shouts to hurry and turned his body toward the gate.

That was the last glimpse Dokyeom had of him. The long line was soon swallowed by the gate, leaving no trace. Beom Yeonhu was the last to disappear.

Only then did Dokyeom dust himself off, step back over the safety line, and depart. Afterward, he took the subway and bus back to the guild to resolve the minor commotion caused by Agon.

Of course, Agon’s matter was only resolved after Dokyeom endured a hundred repetitions of Bae Juhyeok’s nagging and threats in real-time.

There were no further incidents after that. The next day, Dokyeom and Agon visited a white sandy beach, strolling along the shore as the sea breeze enveloped them. Agon repeatedly gazed out at the distant ocean with a wistful expression.

Dokyeom wondered if he was thinking of home, but whenever he spoke to him, Agon would blink slowly, looking at Dokyeom with a face that seemed to recall his place.

It was around that time that Beom Yeonhu called. The sun hung still in the middle of a cloudless sky, blazing down.

Dokyeom had expected the raid to take longer, but perhaps it was the prowess of four A-ranks; the clear-out was finished in a single day. As if to announce this, Beom Yeonhu’s first greeting upon answering the phone was a ragged gasp.

It was the kind of breathing one would hear from someone who had just emerged from battle in a gate.

–…It’s me, Hunter Han Dokyeom.

“I told you to contact me if you liked it, not to call me as soon as you came out. You’re quite impatient, aren’t you?”

Dokyeom spoke, enjoying the cool breeze. Beom Yeonhu fell silent. The wind blew several times, and the waves ebbed and flowed, yet he remained silent, like someone who couldn’t find the words.

Eventually, it was Dokyeom who broke the silence.

“This is Eulwangri Beach. It’s a bit far from Seoul, but… you can come if you want.”

Click.

The call ended without warning. Dokyeom stared blankly at his disconnected phone for a moment. ‘Is he coming or not? This puppy bastard.’

He let out a wry chuckle, still looking at his phone, when a message immediately came through. It was Beom Yeonhu’s typo-ridden message, saying he would be there soon.

Dokyeom shoved his phone carelessly into his pocket and headed toward Agon, who was facing the waves. Agon seemed to enjoy the waves tickling his feet, as he hadn’t moved for hours.

Dokyeom stood beside Agon, feeling the waves on his bare feet.

And two hours later, a taxi screeched to a halt at Eulwangri Beach. The door burst open, and out stepped Beom Yeonhu, still wearing the same stretched-out T-shirt Dokyeom had seen the previous day.

Covered in what looked like bodily fluids or blood, Beom Yeonhu scanned the beach, quickly spotted Dokyeom, and dashed towards him with long strides.

“Hunter-nim.”

Beom Yeonhu, panting heavily, looked even more wretched than before. Dokyeom had hoped he would appear confident, but he seemed more dejected, more stagnant than progressing.

Unable to speak even after seeing Dokyeom’s face, Beom Yeonhu shifted his gaze around before bowing his head deeply.

“Why? Did you make a mistake inside the gate?”

“No, it’s not that….”

“Then did someone persecute you? Who? Just tell me; I’m Han Dokyeom, and I’ll raise hell.”

Only then did Beom Yeonhu lift his bowed head and look at Dokyeom. As their eyes met, an unfamiliar sensation washed over Dokyeom.

Beom Yeonhu was… different. At that moment, Dokyeom’s vision turned completely black. He staggered, and an urgent hand firmly gripped his shoulder, holding him steady.

A sound grazed his ears. Behind it, countless afterimages appeared.

[Instructor! There are still people over there!]

[That Beom Yeonhu bastard always has to go into a den of monsters and cause trouble! Why does that punk have to come all the way here to be a nuisance?!]

[W-wait! Instructor, there’s one of our trainees in there!]

[That person is protecting them right now!]

Amidst the swirling horde of monsters, Beom Yeonhu stood, his forehead torn and bleeding. Cradled in his arms was a trainee, unconscious and limp, barely breathing. They were a B-rank Healer Hunter, the only trainee without combat ability.

[We can’t go in because of the monster horde!]

[Why does it have to be Beom Yeonhu…! I could have saved them if I were there!]

The dark-haired man beside Kang Taesan tore at his hair and shouted. Kang Taesan’s hardened face was filled with dismay. Han Yuseong drew his dagger and lunged into the midst of the monster horde.

However, a grotesque pack of monkeys was already baring their teeth and rushing toward Beom Yeonhu. As dozens, hundreds of them clumped together like a giant ball, people screamed, but no one dared to attempt a rescue.

It was a moment when everything seemed to be over. As someone, sensing death, collapsed to the ground, Dokyeom witnessed a marvel within that chaos. A shiver ran through him.

CRASH— BOOM—!

[W-what….]

The sound of the earth shaking and the world splitting echoed nearby. Han Yuseong pulled back his sword and retreated. Something erupted countless times from among the monster horde. They were jagged rock formations. The surrounding area was covered in sharp, rocky outcroppings, their tips violently piercing and crushing the monsters.

The rock formations, which had shot up like bamboo, ceased. Silence descended upon the world. The horrified faces of the people searched for survivors. Their desperate gazes, sweeping the surroundings, simultaneously stopped somewhere.