Chapter 39 Proposal (1)
To Kim Chae-eun, Do Jae-hyun is a special person. The first time she saw him was after he moved into the next-door apartment. A new person suddenly appeared in the always quiet neighboring apartment, and despite coincidentally running into each other, he never said hello with his cold demeanor. A silent and reserved next-door neighbor.
Even to Kim Chae-eun, who had a lively personality, he was a difficult person to approach. ‘He was too handsome…’ she embarrassedly thought. She had never seen someone so good-looking in her life. Even though she herself had no reason to be swayed by her own appearance, the combination of the cold impression he gave off and his handsome face made it unnecessarily hard to say the first word.
So when she saw him again at the academy application briefing, with a sense of camaraderie as fellow Rune Holder and the same age as the next-door neighbor, she used that as an excuse to finally exchange friendly words. ‘At first, he seemed like a fool’, she still remembers that day. Do Jae-hyun standing at the entrance with a vacant expression, and after she spoke, he followed her like a lost puppy. Somehow, when they both arrived home, he continuously thanked her. Despite looking like a fool, it was quite adorable. His first impression was cold, so it was hard to approach…
‘He is good at cooking too.’ This was what made the perceptions she had about him change at once.
Do Jae-hyun had a lot of reversal elements unlike what he looked like. After awakening as a Holder, he was always going to the training ground every day without a break, and the weapon he handled was different each time, probably because he had the characteristics of a Multi-Holder.
Even when training is over, sometimes they would go home to play and he would show off a surprisingly decent level of cooking to her. His cooking has become more sophisticated and luxurious as time goes by, and now it has become an essential meal that Kim Chae-eun cannot miss on a day.
The first friend she made after becoming a Holder, a friend who seemed lazy but was passionate in everything, and a friend who was more affectionate than anyone despite his cold appearance, became special and precious to Kim Chae-eun.
-Don’t think strange thoughts. Hold my hand. And those feelings became even stronger after going through this incident.
With that simple suggestion to hold hands, her heart raced for some reason. Do Jae-hyun saved her from the brink of death, and because of her, he was also in a life-threatening situation. This incident made Kim Chae-eun think a lot. It wasn’t just because she almost died, but it wasn’t this kind of feeling either: ‘If I had been a little stronger…’
Regret over her lacking abilities, and the desire to become strong enough to protect Do Jae-hyun.
Such emotions kept knocking at her heart. As if…
With a skill, he interrupted Ha Do-kwo, same with Kang Juyeon from the same grade.
“Are you awake? I brought sliced peaches, let’s eat.” At that moment, her father, Kim Myeong-hyun, entered the room carrying fruits. It had become her unique way of nursing her physical and mental well-being after the incident.
Kim Chae-eun seemed determined as she closed her lips and spoke to him, “Dad, teach me swordsmanship.”
“Huh?” Her father replied, surprised.
“I’m asking you to teach me how to use a sword.”
“Chae-eun, you don’t have any runes related to swords, and your specialty is in magic, so learning swordsmanship wouldn’t be very efficient…”
“It doesn’t matter. It’s just a foundation for my own training. I need to improve my physical abilities. I’m too weak.”
“…,” her father fell into silence.
His daughter had a very determined expression. He knew that once she set her mind on something, no one could stop her. She was just like her mother, particularly stubborn. Kim Myeong-hyun put a piece of peach in his mouth, looking resigned, and sighed once again. …The peach was incredibly sweet, without him realizing.
Academy was bustling with the attempted murder incident of Ha Do-kwon. In the original story, it garnered significant attention due to the murder of a fellow student, but the focus was solely on the incident and the <villain> clans behind Ha Do-kwon.
However, this time the situation was different. The attempted murder was thwarted, but suddenly Ha Do-kwon became more dangerous because of the uncontrollable ‘Berserker Potion,’ shifting the focus of attention.
She was the one who first stopped the attempted murder of Ha Do-kwon. Kang Juyeon blasted him away with her ultimate skill. And during that time, the professors couldn’t provide any special response even when they drew their weapons. The discontent and mistrust that had been accumulating against the professors’ inadequate level at the academy were now erupting like a volcano, pouring out criticism.
“The golden era’s heroes, where are they now? The academy’s education level has fallen into an endless abyss… Wow, the headline is too strong. Is there a need to express it this way?”
Reading the news article on my phone in an awkward voice, trying to lighten the atmosphere, but given the situation, there were only negative articles.
The atmosphere of silence seemed to have become more awkward for no reason.
“…”
Inside the popular academy cafe where students often gather, I was sitting face to face with Kang Juyeon. Kang Juyeon, who saved me during the evaluation incident with Ha Do-kwon, her actions were so appreciated that I had said I would treat her to a meal someday.
“Okay. Treat me tomorrow,” Kang Juyeon responded nonchalantly when I brought up the topic.
Since the time we teamed up to conquer dungeons, I had been continuously amazed by her. However, inviting her to a meal was a whole different level of novelty. Kang Juyeon had an image as an elite, cold, and difficult to approach, and it felt strange that I, in this realm, had entered her domain.
Anyway, because I wanted to properly express my gratitude…
I took her to a decent restaurant and treated her.
‘My cooking is tastier, but… Honestly, it’s better than most dining out options. My [Cooking] rune skill level is higher, after all. At level 5, my cooking skill can rival that of most chefs’. I thought to myself.
However, I had to be satisfied with dining out, as I couldn’t bring Kang Juyeon to my house. Now, it was cafe time after the meal.
“… The academy has many enemies. There are various forces trying to attack the foundation monopolizing education,” I said.
Fortunately, it wasn’t an uninteresting topic, and Kang Juyeon responded in a low voice, analyzing the situation quite coldly.
The monopoly of the Tak family, operating the Holder Academy, had been a long-standing issue. Many clans and Holders who had grievances with the foundation, which was operated by a single family and foundation for the education of early Holders for the public good, had not cared about the background of the Tak family’s ability to absorb and integrate numerous academies in the Holder realm. What mattered to them was the immediate benefit.
Kang Juyeon was connecting these past circumstances to the current incident, analyzing the situation quite sharply. She was undoubtedly a successor of one of the three major Korean clans, the <Judgment of Fire>.
“Still, it’s all reasonable criticism. The professors’ handling of the situation at that time was disappointing. You almost single-handedly captured the Berserker Ha Do-kwon,” I said.
Thinking back, her [Inferno] was splendid. The best fire magic that [Unquenchable Flames] could create. A never-ending flame that could burn until the target was incinerated. Although it was a skill she had just gained, it was impressive to see such a majestic ultimate skill with my own eyes.
But Kang Juyeon shook her head slightly. “It wasn’t single-handed.”
“What?”
“About that. Do Jae-hyun, I was able to do it because of you.”
What is she saying like this?
Kang Juyeon looked away and took a sip of coffee.
“The ultimate skill I used… There are conditions when using Inferno. The flames of Inferno should burn at a specific point where magic is concentrated.”
“Uh, huh? Hey, you don’t have to say that.”
The conditions of [Inferno] are well known to me. Compared to other parts of the body, only the magical power point of the object to be used can cause the flame to rise. It was a fairly difficult condition for an ultimate skill, but considering the fact that [Inferno] was mainly used as a finishing skill for hunting and its legendary power, it wasn’t such a difficult condition.
But telling me that, is a different matter. Even though we were colleagues who raided dungeons together, there was no need to tell me the conditions for our skills.
Kang Juyeon shook her head as if she was okay.
“To put it in the correct way. That thing back then. If you hadn’t cut that man’s wrist… finding the starting point for [Inferno] might have been difficult.”
“Ah…”
Finally, I understood why she brought this up. At the time I first used [Declaration of Domination] and leaped to Ha Do-kwon, I had deflected the axe the man was wielding, and as a result, I left a deep cut on his wrist. Although I didn’t have enough power to cut it completely, it was enough to create a viable condition for Kang Juyeon’s [Inferno].
“So… I didn’t do it alone.”
“That’s right. Well, let’s just leave it at that.”
Honestly, from my perspective, it seemed like Kang Juyeon’s use of [Inferno] had taken care of everything… but I couldn’t stop her from feeling that my help was significant.
Kang Juyeon was an intriguing woman, the successor of an elite family, yet without any sense of privilege. When we conquered dungeons or fought together, she became a reliable companion like no other. And even though some time had passed since we got to know each other, I was learning new aspects of her.
It was the first time I realized that she talked a lot like this. It is obvious that even to people who aren’t Moon Ga-eun, she opened her heart a little bit. It’s completely different from being Park Jin-woo’s colleague in the original work…It was something completely new to me.
Kang Juyeon drank a little coffee and opened her mouth.
“Excuse me… Do Jae-hyun.”
“Yes.”
It seems like she’s about to say something important.
She paused and then took another sip of coffee…
she spoke carefully.
“By the way… what are you doing during the vacation?”
“..Uh?” What’s this all about?
Are you asking me out on a date?
When Kang Juyeon saw the look of misunderstanding on my face, she waved her hand. “It was just that I wondered if you had any plans of joining a clan or something. If you don’t mind, I would like to propose you for a position within our clan, as an intern”.
“Intern?”
“Yeah. We’re thinking of hiring some interns during this vacation.”
An intern for a clan. Just like regular companies often employ contract workers as interns to gain experience, Holder clans also frequently hired intern members for training or to accumulate experience. Usually, these intern positions were taken by Holders, students who were about to graduate from the academy to gain experience or build their resume. Sometimes, regular Holders who couldn’t find a clan for themselves also became intern members to secure employment.
However, it was unheard of to hire a first-year student like me as an intern in a massive clan like <Judgment of Fire>.
Kang Juyeon, the official successor of the clan, made this proposal. It was quite a bold offer to me.
This content is taken from (f)reewe(b)novel.𝗰𝗼𝐦