THIFSGSTW CH 47

Chapter 47: Slowly Approaching

I thought in the pitch-black void that seemed to pull me in.

So my <Future Vision> skill really did activate. It had been a while. What’s happening this time? I felt a bit nervous.

Whoosh.

A gust of wind blew toward me. It was as cold as midwinter. My vision was blurry. Unlike the last time, the <Future Vision> wasn’t clear this time. Through the hazy view, a distant red glow flickered into sight.

I saw golden hair swaying in the wind. It was a view from behind. It looked broader and more solid, as if much time had passed since now.

That person raised a long sword. The red light I had just seen seemed to be coming from a gem embedded in the blade. The sword, lifted high, moved slowly. At that moment—

Swoosh.

I snapped back to my senses.

<Intermediate Future Vision> Skill Activated!

A blue window flickered before my eyes. I was leaning into Raen’s arms, my head bowed low. A mouthful of blood surged up and spilled from my lips, staining Raen’s clothes a dark crimson.

“Haa… cough… Hyung, your clothes….”

I quickly tried to push myself away from him.

“Stay still.”

Raen’s voice came right next to my ear. A quiet whisper. He was holding my shoulders, keeping me steady.

“It’s okay. Just calm down.”

His hand gently swept down my back, but I could sense a faint tremor in his touch.

“Relax your body, Yi-han.”

Unlike his trembling hand, Raen’s voice had not a single hint of unease. It was a soothing tone. And at that moment, my body truly relaxed. I leaned against him.

“Where does it hurt?”

“…I’m fine. Urk… I’m really fine.”

“……Don’t talk.”

I really was fine. I just couldn’t get my words out properly because I was coughing up blood. But I knew it was better not to insist on that right now.

“I’m timing it right now. How long does it usually take to stop?”

Since I had told him that I sometimes coughed up blood, he didn’t seem particularly shocked by the situation. That was a relief. But I had no idea how long it would take to stop. I shook my head.

“…You’re coughing up a significant amount of blood. I’ll wait a few more minutes, but if it doesn’t get better, I’ll call Ha-gyeon.”

Wait, no. That can’t happen. I jerked my head up toward Raen. Our eyes met immediately. Raen’s face was closer than I had expected.

Raen took a sharp breath. Amid the metallic scent of blood, there was a faintly sweet fragrance lingering nearby. He bit his lip slightly and then pressed my head down by the back. My head lowered again.

“What’s wrong, Yi-han? Don’t lift your head. The bleeding hasn’t stopped yet.”

“…Raen hyung.”

I called him in a desperate voice. I felt his body flinch.

“I’m sorry …Did I press too hard?”

The hand on the back of my head loosened, and as if in apology, he gently ran his fingers through my hair.

“No, that’s not it. I just… I want you to keep this a secret.”

The bleeding had almost stopped. As I wiped my lips with my sleeve, Raen’s voice came softly.

“You don’t want me to tell anyone you coughed up blood? Why?”

“You said we’re leaving tomorrow.”

“…Is that really important right now?”

Of course, it was important. If they found out about my condition, they might decide to leave me behind again. I lifted my head again to speak to Raen. Our eyes met directly.

“…Wait, Yi-han. Why are you crying?”

Raen urgently wiped my eyes. His fingertips came away damp with tears.

“I’m not crying.”

I answered immediately. The tears must have welled up because of the coughing. It wasn’t exactly pleasant to feel hot, sticky liquid rising up my throat.

I was firm in my response, but Raen didn’t seem convinced. He tugged down the sleeve I had used to cover my mouth and quietly cast a Clean Magic around us before speaking again.

“If that’s what you want, I won’t say anything.”

If Raen was willing to keep silent, there was no need for me to explain further.

“…Thank you, hyung.”

“So don’t cry.”

It was always Raen who cried. Even now, his voice was the one that sounded more tearful.

At least now, I could leave with them as planned. That was a relief. I nodded and tried to stand. Raen carefully supported me.

“Can you walk?”

“I didn’t cough up blood because I was sick.”

Raen’s grip on my shoulder tightened slightly.

“How can your body be fine if you’re coughing up blood…? No, let’s talk about this later. Where are you going right now?”

“Since you said we’re leaving tomorrow, everyone must be discussing the schedule by now, right?”

“…That’s right.”

“You need to go and talk with them too, hyung. I’ll go with you.”

There was no response. That meant it was a yes. Raen definitely had to go now.

Raen tried to lay me back down on the bed, but when I firmly expressed my intention, he finally agreed, and we headed downstairs together. They said everyone would be in the first-floor hall.

‘What was that future I saw earlier?’

I thought about it as I walked down the stairs. Fortunately, it didn’t seem to be happening anytime soon. Seeing Park Yul, it looked like something that would happen much later.

The <Future Vision> skill was supposed to activate only when something important was about to happen. But the vision had been too blurry to tell the time or place. Only Park Yul’s strong-looking back and the gleaming, sharp sword stood out vividly. Since I couldn’t speak about what I saw in the future sight, figuring it out was my responsibility.

Lost in thought, I reached the first floor in no time.

“You both came down together.”

Everyone was gathered in the hall. A glowing map floated in the air, crisscrossed with lines like a spiderweb.

“Is everything settled?”

“…Yeah.”

“But Yi-han, you look a bit pale. Are you okay?”

My body flinched. I was about to say I was fine, but no one was actually looking at me. Instead, their gazes were fixed behind me, staring at Raen.

“…Raen hyung?”

I quickly turned around. Raen raised his eyebrows slightly as if nothing was wrong. At the same time, a chair was pulled over behind me. I heard Min Joo-hyuk’s firm voice.

“Sit down and listen, Sun Yi-han.”

“But everyone else is standing?”

“…Sit down.”

Before I knew it, Song Ha-gyeon had stepped closer and placed a hand on my shoulder. I slumped down into the chair. Somehow, by the time I came to my senses, I was already holding a cup of hot tea with a rich, bitter scent.

“Yeah. Let’s drink this while we listen.”

Park Yul slowly brought the glass to my lips. Raen must have given him some kind of signal. So he really just meant he wouldn’t speak about it, huh?

Raen began speaking in a calm voice as if nothing had happened.

“Our destination tomorrow is the center of the land. From there, we’ll send messages to each village.”

“Are you talking about the report that monsters are seeping into other areas?”

“Yes. If they have seeped, it’ll be difficult for me to detect them with magic.”

“When we checked the Nightfall Forest, it seemed highly likely that rifts had opened in other regions too.”

“That’s right. That’s why we need to hurry and inform them of the situation.”

That was definitely a serious issue. as the ruined world that the system spoke of slowly approaching? I swallowed hard.

“We’re not going anywhere dangerous just yet, Yihan-ah. So you don’t need to be so tense.”

That was a relief. Of course, after sending the messages, we’d have to start closing the rifts for real and that would be dangerous.

“Raen hyung, have you cast a detection spell over the entire land?”

“No. Only in the outer regions where rifts were most likely to appear. But now… it doesn’t matter anymore.”

Raen’s voice was serious as he continued.

“If the surrounding villages get affected too, they need to be prepared. We must send out the warnings.”

“The larger villages have already been contacted, but it was difficult to reach the smaller ones from here, wasn’t it, Raen?”

“The leader hyung is right. If we could cover all the villages from here, that would be ideal… but I’m still not skilled enough…”

Park Yul cut in firmly.

“You know that’s not what we meant.”

“Yeah. Not at all, Raen hyung. You’re the best at detection magic. If it weren’t for you, we’d have to check each village one by one.”

“…I see. I’ll do my best and finish quickly.”

Raen gave a small, embarrassed smile. He wasn’t being humble, he really thought he was lacking. Why, though? I was pretty sure I’d heard he was outstanding even back when he attended the academy.

Next to me, Song Ha-gyeon spoke slowly.

“…Raen. You’re the key to this.”

“That’s not what I want to hear, Ha-gyeon.”

“…I always mean it.”

Raen calmly pointed to the center of the map. A tiny flower was drawn there.

“This plain is always covered in flowers. But not a single flower actually grows there.”

“Huh? How?”

“They rain down like a shower. Yi-han, you’ll understand when you see it.”

I couldn’t quite picture it, but I nodded for now.

“Alright, let’s see… was there anything else?”

“…Ah. Yi-han was curious about something.”

“Huh? About what, Ha-gyeon?”

“…The distorted location.”

Song Ha-gyeon trailed off, then met Park Yul’s gaze and nodded.

After saying that, Song Ha-gyeon nodded at Park Yul, making eye contact. Park Yul immediately continued speaking.

“Yi-han, you realized that a forest where the sun never rises isn’t normal, didn’t you?”

That was accurate. I nodded as well. How did Park Yul figure that out from just a few words? Come to think of it, everyone here seemed to communicate just fine without long explanations.

‘Wait. That means I’m the same way too, doesn’t it?’

Now that I thought about it, they always knew what I was going to ask before I even spoke. And I had grown used to it, without even realizing.

For some reason, my heart pounded. My face felt a little warm. I needed to stay alert. I couldn’t take all this for granted.

“…I see. Yi-han, you noticed that place was distorted too.”

As Park Yul murmured to himself, Min Joo-hyuk’s bright voice cut through.

“Hey, Sun Yi-han. Then you’re going to love the place we’re heading to next.”

“Really? Well, I guess… it does sound pretty fascinating, with flowers raining down and all.”

“Yeah. I think you’ll like it.”

Min Joo-hyuk smiled brightly. Then—clap!—a sharp sound rang out.

“Alright, let’s wrap this up and head upstairs. We’re leaving early tomorrow.”

“Yes, Park Yul hyung!”

I climbed the stairs slowly. Tomorrow, we’d be setting off again.

I never imagined I’d get to travel to so many places. The days I spent staring down at the endless white landscape from the temple felt like a distant memory.

My heart felt a little unsettled. Maybe I wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight.

…Of course, that was a ridiculous thought. My mind and my reality never quite aligned. I fell asleep in an instant. I was always like this.

…Hopefully, I’d wake up on time tomorrow.