The aftermath was a blur of noise and light, but it all washed over Dae-Hyun, leaving him untouched in the eye of his own private storm. Hospital security, clad in bulky armor and radiating auras of controlled panic, swarmed the area. A proper Hunter response team—their souls sharp, metallic, and professional—arrived moments later, securing the stairwell and examining the remains of the Grotto Leecher.
They asked him questions. He gave them nothing.
"I don't know," he said, his voice a flat, exhausted line. "It just… fell apart." He kept his gaze downcast, the picture of a traumatized, terminally ill patient. It wasn't a difficult role to play.
They turned their attention to Kang Min-Ho, who was more than willing to talk.
"It was amazing!" the large man boomed, his earthy brown aura glowing with fervent admiration. "Sunbae-nim just pointed! Like this!" He mimicked Dae-Hyun's subtle finger motion with a broad, sweeping gesture that nearly took out a light fixture. "And the monster… poof! It understood it was beaten!"
The Hunter team leader, a woman with a [Blade Dancer] subclass and a soul of cool, calculating silver-blue, looked from Min-Ho's earnest face to Dae-Hyun's pallid, hollow one. Her [Appraisal]—a standard Hunter skill—would see a Civillian with a devastating illness, zero combat stats, and no active System-granted abilities. The story was ridiculous. She clearly wrote Min-Ho off as a well-meaning simpleton and Dae-Hyun as a lucky bystander.
"The breach was contained. A faulty damping field in the sub-basement," she announced to the room, her voice cutting through the lingering fear. "The situation is resolved. Return to your wards."
As the crowd dispersed, buzzing with relieved chatter, Choi Yuna pushed her way through. Her silver aura was spiked with jagged lines of worry. She rushed to Dae-Hyun's side, her professional composure cracked.
"Dae-Hyun-ssi! Are you hurt? Your chart says you were in the common area during the breach…" Her hands fluttered, checking his pulse, his temperature, her touch firm yet gentle.
"I'm fine," he murmured, and for the first time, it wasn't entirely a lie. The new 72-hour Stability Buff was a solid wall inside him, holding the decay at bay. He felt… secure. For now.
Her [Appraisal] on him would show the same terminal readings. But her soul-sight, the innate human kind, saw something else. She paused, her fingers on his wrist. "Your pulse… it's stronger," she said, her voice laced with confusion. "And your eyes… they're different."
Before he could formulate a response, a new, non-urgent quest painted his vision in its now-familiar crimson.
[QUEST: 'THE GATHERING']
[OBJECTIVE: FORM A PARTY WITH KANG MIN-HO.]
[REWARD: 24-HOUR 'STABILITY' BUFF. PARTY INTERFACE UNLOCKED.]
The System was herding him again. Forging connections. Building his tools. The reward was meager, a single day, but the implication was vast. A Party Interface. It was a step deeper into the machine.
He looked past Yuna's shoulder. Kang Min-Ho was still standing there, a hopeful, expectant look on his face, like a loyal puppy waiting for a command.
"That man," Dae-Hyun said quietly to Yuna. "He helped create a distraction. I think I owe him my thanks."
Yuna followed his gaze, her expression softening. "Ah, Kang Min-Ho-ssi. He's a regular. C-Rank. Not the strongest, but his heart is in the right place. He's here visiting his mother."
Of course he was. The simplicity of it was almost painful.
Dae-Hyun gestured for Min-Ho to approach. The large man did so immediately, bowing again to Yuna. "Nurse Choi! Your patient is very brave!"
Yuna gave a professional smile. "I'm glad you were both safe." She glanced at Dae-Hyun, her worry still present but now mixed with a nurse's pragmatism. "I'll leave you to it. But you need to rest, Dae-Hyun-ssi. Real rest."
When she was gone, Dae-Hyun looked at Min-Ho. The man's soul was still that unwavering brown, now tinged with a hint of golden excitement.
"You called me 'sunbae'," Dae-Hyun said, his voice low.
Min-Ho nodded vigorously. "Yes, sunbae-nim! I may be C-Rank, but you… you have the eyes of a true Hunter. You see what others don't! You don't just fight the body; you fight the… the idea of the monster!"
The accidental profundity was, once again, unnerving. This fool, with his literal mind, was perceiving the fundamental truth of the Reaper class.
"I am not a Hunter," Dae-Hyun stated, the words feeling like ash in his mouth. "I am sick. Dying."
Min-Ho's face fell for a moment, then hardened with resolve. "Then we are the same."
Dae-Hyun blinked. "What?"
"I am not smart. People say my brain is… dying." He tapped his temple. "But you are strong where I am weak. And I," he thumped his chest, the leather armor creaking, "am strong where you are weak. We are the same. Broken pieces. But maybe…" He gestured between them. "Maybe we fit."
The logic was childlike, unassailable, and utterly sincere. The System's quest glowed in Dae-Hyun's vision. It was a transaction, a cold exchange of time for companionship. But Min-Ho was offering something else—a bond, forged in the simplicity of his worldview.
Dae-Hyun felt the weight of it. This man would follow him into hell based on a single, unexplained gesture. The responsibility was a colder burden than any cancer.
He let out a slow breath. "My name is Kim Dae-Hyun."
A brilliant, uncomplicated smile broke across Min-Ho's face. "I am Kang Min-Ho! But my friends call me Babo."
Dae-Hyun almost smiled. "The Fool?"
"It is an honest name!"
[QUEST: 'THE GATHERING': COMPLETE.]
[REWARD GRANTED: 24-HOUR 'STABILITY' BUFF. PARTY INTERFACE UNLOCKED.]
[NEW PARTY MEMBER: KANG MIN-HO (BABO) ADDED.]
A new subsection of his crimson interface appeared. He could see Babo's name, a bar representing his health, and the simple designation: [Stone-Skin Tank - C-Rank]. His soul aura was now a permanent, steady pulse in Dae-Hyun's peripheral awareness.
He had a party. He had a fool for a vanguard.
He had bought another day.
But as he looked at Babo's beaming, trusting face, Dae-Hyun knew the cost of this particular currency was far higher than any other. He had accepted a life into his care. And for a Reaper, that was the most dangerous burden of all.
To be continued...