Chapter 88. Long-lost Friend
“I found you!”
At first glance, everything seemed fine.
“I quickly conjured some wind as a buffer, but I wonder if he’s alive?”
Rustle.
I carefully lifted the fallen Earthling in the flower bed.
“Hey. Are you okay?”
Then, good news came.
She furrowed her brows a few times and suddenly opened her eyes wide.
“Oh!”
Once she regained her senses, the stunned figure froze for a moment, then said:
“You…”
You?
“Who do you think you are to meddle in someone else’s business! Do you know how hard I worked for this? Why did you interfere! Why did you interfere! Aaaah!”
People around here sure have a unique way of treating their lifesavers.
*
This is seriously the worst.
After all that courage I gathered for that one attempt, to have it all end in vain.
“Ugh!”
The self-employed Gu Seo-hyeong gritted his teeth, glaring ahead.
Nothing was pleasing him since a while ago.
He was irritated by the failure of his attempt, hungry, and above all, he couldn’t find his glasses!
“Everything’s ruined because of your nosiness!”
Gu Seo-hyeong started venting his frustration at the man who saved him.
“Do you think someone would be grateful just because of your meaningless pity? I mean, how dare you meddle without knowing the details! What am I going to do now? You’re responsible!”
But the response was just a calm, almost too calm reply.
“Calm down.”
With poor eyesight, Gu Seo-hyeong had no idea what was in front of him, so he had no choice but to rely on the voice to continue the conversation.
“You just fell, so you might be in shock. Please take a seat over there.”
The blond man pointed somewhere.
Frowning and looking closely, that seemed to be an outdoor seat at a nearby convenience store.
“No matter what happens to others…”
Despite grumbling, Gu Seo-hyeong walked over to the chair.
As he said, to be honest, his legs had been trembling too much to stand anymore.
“Huh.”
As soon as she sat down, she slumped her head on the table.
But then, what do you know.
After sitting in silence for a while, she heard the bell of the convenience store ring a couple of times.
Ding, ding.
When she raised her head again, there was a drink she had never seen before on the table.
It was a cafe latte.
“I felt awkward just sitting still.”
Apparently, he hastily purchased it as a sort of cover charge…
Even after receiving the coffee, Gu Seo-hyeong showed no signs of gratitude. Instead, she glared at him with narrow eyes.
“Are you really so bothered that I saved your life?”
Gu Seo-hyeong furrowed her brows deeply, almost as if in violent affirmation.
The man across from her chose his next words carefully after a moment of silence.
“Still, suicide isn’t a good option.”
So, he was going to spout the same useless advice about life being precious, like everyone else?
“Oh, is that so?”
“Yes, well…”
Gu Seo-hyeong turned her head as if there was nothing more to discuss.
But…
“Anyway, dying is irreversible.”
That sentence felt slightly different from what she expected.
“No matter how advanced technology gets, there’s still no way to bring back the dead in this world…”
“Hmm?”
“Such matters should be approached carefully until at least such skills become available…”
Irreversible? Technology? Skills?
It sure sounded like he was talking about how precious life is.
‘His word choice is really peculiar.’
As she felt a vague sense of unease, that voice came again from across the table.
A low and clear sentence from a man.
“Anyway, let me objectively assess your situation.”
“E-evaluate?”
“It means let’s think together if it would really be better to die like this. Cautiously.”
“…!”
“If you look through a third-party perspective, you might find reasons to live that you didn’t know about yourself?”
As soon as Gu Seo-hyeong heard that, her brows furrowed intensely.
“What if you find my life is hopeless too? What are you going to do about it?”
Of course, the man answered without a single hint of embarrassment.
“I’ll just push you off the roof again.”
“Huh?”
“I’m saying it like I’m responsible. If you don’t like falling, I’ll find some other way to make sure you die. Deal?”
Saying he would help her commit suicide if they arrived at the same conclusion together sent a chill down Gu Seo-hyeong’s spine.
‘What?!’
How could someone say they’ll kill another so nonchalantly? Especially someone they already saved once.
Gu Seo-hyeong closed her mouth, feeling an unexpected tension.
But the other party seemed oblivious to her feelings and continued asking.
“Anyway, why don’t you explain your situation a bit. Why were you trying to kill yourself?”
Having to spill her life story to a stranger with dyed yellow hair wasn’t exactly appealing…
‘Fine. I’m going to die anyway, so I might as well get some complaints off my chest.’
With that thought in mind, Gu Seo-hyeong began to explain why she had found herself on that rooftop.
*
Gu Seo-hyeong (具諝炯) is an actress in South Korea.
She debuted in the entertainment industry 16 years ago after being selected as the model for a boiler commercial.
With her innocent eyes, fair skin, and decent acting skills, how could someone with all that not be popular?
There’s no argument—she was the best young actress of her time.
This was the common perception society held towards her…
But perhaps this was a prelude to her misfortune.
Firstly, Gu Seo-hyeong found public attention to be very uncomfortable. She was born with an introverted personality.
She despised the idea of appearing on TV, hated attending filming sets packed with adults, and found acting repeatedly until a good scene emerged extremely displeasing. Everything about it was something she didn’t want to endure.
However, every time she mentioned wanting to quit acting, her parents reacted in shock and dissuaded her.
Because everyone would be disappointed.
Despite enduring hardships, she continued her acting career, even as her popularity declined and she watched younger actors surpass her. It had been 15 years since then.
“Sniff.”
Finally, Gu Seo-hyeong hit her limit. Late last year, she was diagnosed with panic disorder due to stress.
‘I can’t live like this anymore.’
She decided to retire from showbiz.
Of course, she had some future plans. After all, she had earned quite a bit from her appearances.
‘A shop in my name!’
To achieve her long-time dream of opening an accessory workshop, Gu Seo-hyeong approached her parents.
‘Huh?’
But surprise!
Her parents had already spent all her earnings they were supposedly saving.
“Mom, what do you mean?”
“Ahem.”
Without getting to touch the money she earned throughout her life, it was all gone.
All because of her father’s ridiculous cryptocurrency investment.
“I’m sorry. But what can I say? Until last year, it was producing good returns. Look how much that 10 million won I put in has grown,” he kept showing her on the computer.
And if just losing money were the only problem, it’d be fine. Their family’s reactions were even more absurd.
“Hey. At least we didn’t go into debt like others.”
“Oh dear, are you really that angry over a little money lost?”
“Seo-hyeong, money comes and goes, you know?”
Gu Seo-hyeong was furious beyond measure at her family’s shameless excuses and yelled through tears.
Then, please make money right away, even if it’s by selling this house. That way, I can start my shop and finally quit this job…
“What? Sell the house?”
But the cold response she got back was chilling.
“Is that any way to speak to the parents who raised you? How could you move the house where the whole family lives?”
They had no intention of returning the money to her.
“And why do you want to quit acting all of a sudden?”
“…”
“Is it because the opportunities to be hired have decreased?”
“Dad, I’m just so tired.”
“Stop whining. Everyone else lives hard.”
“I want to die.”
“Remember what I always said? If you’re really determined to die, you can achieve anything!”
Since that day, Gu Seo-hyeong was completely exhausted by her family and severed ties with them. She had lost her last support.
So, that was the situation from last year.
“After that, I left home and took out a loan.”
Now we’re getting to the real main cause.
“No matter how bad the situation is, clinging onto my dream of having a workshop in my name…”
Entrepreneurship…
Listening quietly was Gi-ryeo, who finally spoke up.
“Well then, for the sake of your shop, shouldn’t you live with all your might?”
Suddenly, Gu Seo-hyeong burst into tears.
“Yeah. If I had a shop, I would’ve lived my best! But it was burned down in that massive Dungeon Break last August. Now, I’m really done for!”
She didn’t want to break down in front of a stranger like this.
“Moreover, the gate accident insurance I took out turned out to be a total scam!”
“Huh.”
“Boo-hoo. Why, after working so hard, am I drowning in debt…!”
Once she began to cry, her sadness poured out like a dam breaking.
“I’ve heard your story. Now, I’ll tell you my thoughts.”
However, Gi-ryeo calmly continued the conversation without getting swept away by her emotions.
As an alien soul, he hadn’t deeply empathized with the emotional expressions of people in this world yet.
“Honestly, I think it’s too early for you to die.”
“Where do you see that!”
Tap.
Giyeo clasped his hands together on the plastic table.
“To get to the point, it sounds like you’re struggling because of debt, right?”
“What’s wrong with that!”
“Then, instead of rushing to die, why not at least try to pay off that debt…”
However, the response was far from positive.
“My debt is about 240 million won. And I have third-tier financial companies involved! Are you going to pay it off? Everyone talks so easily!”
Sniffling, Gu Seo-hyeong glared at him fiercely.
As if saying, don’t speak so lightly about someone else’s life.
“Do you think I didn’t want to pay off my debts? But this situation… The shop is gone, and I hate the thought of going back to acting even more than death!”
“…!”
“But individual rehabilitation doesn’t meet the requirements, so that’s out too! Anyway, I seriously…”
Gu Seo-hyeong stuttered, half-crying as she uttered:
“What should I do? I’m so worn out… I’ve never had a good day ever since the Gate appeared.”
Crying this heartbreakingly, even an alien would naturally feel some movement in their heart.
But for some reason…
“Showbiz?”
Giyeo stared in silence with a cold expression.
“Excuse me. I have a question.”
Then, a brief question came out.
“Why are you avoiding the Hunter industry?”
“What?”
“I mean, you’re an Awakened, and yet you’re not considering working as a Hunter at all…”
With her eyes wide open in confusion, Gu Seo-hyeong looked at him. Then, Gi-ryeo seemed to realize something late.
“Wait, did you not even know that you’re Awakened?”
