Relief

Il-Hyun and Lee Tae-hee completed the last one of the sites. They got off the transport plane and returned to the hostel.

The mouse was on Il-Hyun’s shoulder, and the small-sized Phoenix was held in Lee Tae-hee’s arms.

They were told that they’re only going to be dispatched for a whole week, but the situation wasn’t as good as they expected it to be, so the period of dispatch was prolonged.

When they opened the door and went inside, they saw Ghost lying down on a spacious sofa, sleeping.

The clothes he wore before they were dispatched were the same as those he’d been wearing when he returned from the field.

“Oh, no! My mask!” Ghost shook his arm and drooled.

Even if it was a nightmare, he started to cry.

Il-Hyun woke him up by shaking his hand up and down.

Ghost woke up and slapped his own cheeks.

“Oh, I was dozing off again.”

“What were you dreaming about?”

“If you’re sleepy, just sleep inside your room. Don’t do it here.”

“It’s okay. I’m not sleepy anymore,” Ghost raised his arms out as if he’s stretching.

Then, he picked up the white bottle on the table.

Two or three small pills popped out and went on his hand’s palm before he swallowed them into his mouth.

“Oh, please give me one, too.”

“Oh, here.”

When Ghost bounced a pill, Lee Tae-hee caught it with her mouth and smiled.

The drug’s identity is a stimulant that can make you sleep.

It was an item that team members recently got used to.

He thought it would be necessary to be wide awake through the use of medicine because of working overtime, but instead, Il-Hyun didn’t know he would come here and see this drug himself.

Of course, the effect was strong enough to be incomparable to those sold on the market. It was even thoroughly tested for safety without side effects on the human body.

“If you saw to it already, then it must’ve been taken care of. A gate like that would’ve been tricky. After all, it seemed like the two best talents in the world went there. At least write to me if you become the team leader soon,” said Ghost as he sneakily checked the clock on the wall, smirking.

Then, Lee Tae-hee smiled awkwardly, her cheeks reddening.

Meanwhile, Il-Hyun, who was dispatched to Europe by Team A and made a remarkable achievement, became a promising prospect to be tied with Lee Tae-hee.

In addition to his skill level’s steep growth, the monsters he killed were posted on related websites and became known to the public.

Of course, he didn’t feel like he was bored enough that would go outside these days.

Unlike Lee Tae-hee reacting with a shy face, Il-Hyun’s already accustomed to Ghost’s remarks.

He took off his defensive coat and hung it on a hanger.

It was as dusty when he went to the scene, and others seemed to prefer washing clothes right away.

But he didn’t have to.

It will be dirty again in an hour or two.

Tuk!

A red fox inside his coat fell off the pocket’s gap.

The general appearance was distinctly different from that of the fox, but the nine small tails on its back fluttered.

The Fourth one, it was Il-Hyun’s new Summoner that had absorbed an Ether.

“Shuncha,” Il-Hyun called.

After taking a bath and leaving the Summoners wandering in the house, he laid down on the sofa.

He didn’t sleep because of that one stimulant he swallowed in the morning, but he was exhausted a lot.

It was rather a familiar feeling that he couldn’t sleep properly because the gates opened several times even at dawn.

If it weren’t for the Awakener body who had a quick recovery in all directions, it would’ve been an abnormal schedule.

“Is the world going to perish? It’s already the 3rd week, and I wish it would be a little quiet after this week,” said Il-Hyun as he blankly looked at the ceiling.

“I don’t think so.. It’s really long this time. You’re still going to Korea tomorrow. We’ll be just a little bit behind you,” Ghost added at the end.

Il-Hyun nodded.

He had already heard that it’s difficult in many ways when you go abroad.

They would be busy compared to the teams already waiting in Seoul, mainly because they would take on the hard gates, which leads to a harsh situation.

“There are five people in one continent, and even though we have the least number of people, the situation had always been like this. I’ve never looked for your team’s help.”

“Well.. Isn’t it that you’ve always believed in us?”

“Something like that.”

“Huh,” laughter leaked from Il-Hyun while lying with his eyes closed.

Il-Hyun also agreed to some extent with Ghost’s words, as he had already heard that the other teams were returning.

The currently dispatched teams are at 8 or 7 in number.

It’s true that even though the continent is small, they’re busier compared to other teams.

“Well, it’s not surprising that Tae-hee isn’t with another person. The chief of Team C pampers his members a lot, and if I happen to join them, I’m going to be here for the next three weeks. What, aren’t you trying to intentionally do extreme training?”

After his words, he looked at Il-Hyun and Tae-hee, who were seated in a squatting position.

A mouse was biting his fingers while it played together with the other mice.

Hmm, thanks to me, It absorbed a lot of cores.

When he thinks about it, even though he has been working alone with no one helping him but the number of cores gained proportionally has also increased.

If there were a lot of people, he wouldn’t have been able to absorb these many cores.

Unlike before, this time, even monsters that came out of the B1 level gate were enough to make do.

“Come, everyone,” Lee Tae-hee called the Summoners wandering around.

Then, three small Summoners gathered in front of her.

“Voila!” Lee Tae-hee took the core out of her arms.

Summoners jumped to the square core, where white light flowed from within it.

“Give me your hands,” Lee Tae-hee said after putting the cores in front of the guys.

Then, every three hands were quickly placed on her palm.

If it was anyone else, they would’ve not cared at all even if the summoners snapped at the object right in front of their eyes.

“Well done,” Lee Tae-hee handed out the cores one by one and looked at the Summoners excitedly eating them.

Il-Hyun had been bitten by an animal once when he was a child, so he was reluctant to summon Summoners even when he first saw them. But now, he’d feel regret if ever he parted with them.

“Well, I gave these guys the core,” Il-Hyun, who saw it, said sorry.

When the Summoners needed a core, they took it from their prey. And when they realized that they needed more than one core, the other team members soon fed the cores to them.

“I work along with you, so I can take care of this,” Lee Tae-hee replied uncaringly.

The Summoners of Il-Hyun were no longer just a small part of his life, time, or just his assistants on the battlefield.

Il-Hyun’s Summoners, which had been getting stronger over the past three weeks, were now able to tackle and solve problems to some extent, making it easier for Il-Hyun to handle the increased work.

Then, they heard the door open.

At the same time, Lee Soo-Yeon and Seok Pil-jun, who had gone on different missions, came back.

But the first thing that ran into the living room was a gray puppy.

The wolf, who went on a mission with the two of them, looked magnificent. It looked at the broken piece of core on the floor while looking around the entire room.

“Oh, I only got three cores in the field....” Lee Tae-hee had an apologetic expression on her face.

“No problem, I got it,” Seok Pil-Joon came in and threw a core.

Then, the little wolf jumped and swiftly caught it with its mouth.

Soon, Il-Hyun woke-up, and Ghost told Lee Soo-Yeon about it.

“Fortunately, it must be over now. The dangerous Seyferon had appeared again.”

“Yeah, it was breathtaking, and it ended well.”

“It wasn’t just a gate or two, but I don’t know if anyone is seriously hurt.”

“I can’t help it. I can’t just work as safely as before.”

There wasn’t enough workforce and equipment anymore, and the situation was always complicated. This was the same for Awakeners all over the world.

It wasn’t the right time to enter the scene before planning everything securely, as they always did before.

When Lee Soo-Yeon sat beside Il-Hyun and tried to lean her body back, the receiver rang at bad timing.

— B1 level gate generation in eastern Sicily! 15 minutes until activation!

“..What?” Lee Soo-Yeon, who was in an uncomfortable position on the sofa, woke-up.

After her, it was Ghost’s turn to wake-up.

“Something just came up, and I’m going with Ghost.”

“Done. You just came in a while ago. I was just taking a break.”

“Have something to eat first,” Ghost said as he picked up his sword.

Lee Soo-Yeon shook her hand at the end of his sentence.

The moment the two left the hotel for the mission, the receiver rang again.

— Another B2 level gate has been created in Nice! I think you need to go immediately because it only has 9 minutes left before it activates!

“Um.. you guys have to delay the dinner this time.”

* * *

Sparkle!

A sign of a broken shop burned down halfway.

A spark that was unintentionally created around the darkened street at night revealed the surroundings.

Broken trees, half-destroyed buildings, overturned roads, and bent streetlights were everywhere.

In the middle of such ruins, Il-Hyun and Lee Tae-hee sat down.

“This time, the city even had some kids.”

A section of the city was completely messed up, but Il-Hyun’s was indifferent.

If it was a virtue that could be done without any personal injury, he was more than happy to perform it.

“Uh? It’s snow.”

“It really is,” Lee Tae-hee said as she looked up at the sky.

As she said that, it began to snow from the sky.

“So, it’s Christmas now.”

It was a decorated street that was broken all the way.

He had almost managed to forget the concept of dates, but there was an exciting Christmas atmosphere in every corner of the street.

“What do you want to do when you go back tomorrow? It’s Christmas, after all. Would you meet your girlfriend?”

“Unfortunately, there’s nothing like that,” Il-Hyun looked at the distant mountain.

Lee Tae-hee chuckled.

“I want to go home and take a rest as if I’m on a day off. I’m not going anywhere, I’m just sleeping in bed. I also want to see my parents’ faces.”

“That’s like any high school student’s vacation, is it not?”

“So, what about your brother?”

“What am I to tell you? He’s the same as always.”

Lee Tae-hee’s laughter burst out.

Following a light laugh, Il-Hyun pushed Phoenix at its side, trying to rise slowly above the city.

I’m glad Korea is safe.

His family, friends, and other ties—everything was in Korea.

After Il-Hyun took the role of an Awakener, the numerous scenes he had seen outside had been terrible, and he didn’t want to imagine that his family would get caught up in it.

Thanks to its well-equipped system, which is interlocked with several high-ranking Awakeners and narrow lands, it can be said that Korea is as safe as it can be.

It was his job to help make it safe everywhere in the world, but unfortunately, he didn’t know how he’d survive it if his home was attacked.

There will be no danger—Il-Hyun thought quietly.

Hopefully.