THIFSGSTW CH 67

Chapter 67: Just One Thing

Min Joo-hyuk’s expression was shameless, as if nothing had happened. It was clear now that he was completely fine.

I briefly considered slipping away from the heavy weight pressing down on my thigh, but I decided to let it go since Min Joo-hyuk had been unwell just moments ago, after all.

I covered the corners of his eyes, which were blinking up at me, with my hand. I felt like everyone used to do this for me when I couldn’t fall asleep. I could see the curve of a smile forming on Min Joo-hyuk’s lips.

“You remember how I said yesterday that I was getting a feel for how to use defensive magic?”

“Yeah, you did.”

“I had to test out a bunch of scenarios so I could explain it clearly to the others.”

“Defending isn’t just your responsibility, we all agreed to handle defense ourselves, right?”

“Exactly. So I tested out things like where I’d need to add more mana into the barrier, and how much more it would consume. Then I organized everything based on the cases.”

I looked quietly down at Min Joo-hyuk. So when he said he wouldn’t make any more mistakes, he really meant it. The part about not overdoing it, that had been a lie.

“You used up almost all your mana doing that overnight?”

“Not all of it.”

Min Joo-hyuk wrapped his hand around my wrist and gently pushed my hand away from his eyes.

“Anyway, thanks.”

Min Joo-hyuk met my gaze and gave a wide grin as he suddenly sat up straight. The weight I’d felt against me vanished, and strangely, it felt a little empty. Maybe the space someone leaves behind always feels this sharply noticeable.

◇

After breakfast, I left the lodging and headed into the village.

Min Joo-hyuk said he needed time to recover some of his mana, so I told him to stay and rest. The others said they were just scouting around today, not fighting monsters yet, so I didn’t need to come along.

‘Well, if they’re going to be moving around a lot, it’s probably better if I don’t go.’

Whether teleporting or walking, I’d only get in the way. If they were just looking around, there probably wouldn’t be any major danger unless something unexpected happened.

I strolled through the small village. The summer heat was filled with the sounds of footsteps and idle chatter. The air smelled faintly of dust. Here and there were shops lining the street.

‘How should I ask?’

I confidently stepped outside, but the truth was, back when I lived at the temple, I’d never been outside. And even after leaving, I’d only spent time with the same four people and never met anyone else. This was my first time being out alone.

I suddenly realized how kind their gazes toward me had been all this time. The sharp stares that pierced into me now were overwhelming, and I ended up dashing into the nearest shop like I was running away.

Ring.

The sound of a tiny bell attached to the door rang, snapping me back to reality.

I found myself inside a small shop. Light brown wooden shelves lined the walls. On the shelves were rows of colorful, round items in glass jars. Across the room, a middle-aged woman with her hair tied up in a bun sat in a wooden armchair. She stopped what she was doing and stared at me, eyes wide.

Was she the owner? But then… what was that look for? Did I come into the wrong place? Should I leave? I was frozen, locking eyes with her, when suddenly she spoke up, bustling with energy.

“Oh my, what brings the hero here? Word spread all over the village that you’d arrived. Is there something you need? But what’s with that pale face? Potions are in the building next door—no, no, don’t just stand there, come in and have a seat. You, come out here for a sec!”

Before I knew it, another large armchair had appeared beside hers. She stood and beckoned to me while also turning her head to call someone in the back room.

Uh… what is happening right now? I couldn’t keep up. When I just stood there blankly, she looked like she was about to come over to me.

No, there was no need for her to go through that trouble. I quickly moved and sat down in the chair. As I sat, the chair swayed slightly back and forth. It seemed to be because the bottom of the chair was round.

“Ah, hello.”

My voice came out shaky. This was the first time I’d heard so many words at once, spoken so quickly. I hadn’t even processed what she said.

Focus. I came here to ask something. But before I could speak, someone came out from the back room faster than I could open my mouth. He also looked surprised to see me.

“You’re younger than I expected, hero.”

“Oh my, don’t say that to someone you just met!”

“I just thought so. But you really do look young. I wonder if you’ve reached adulthood yet.”

“Uh, no…”

I wasn’t a hero, but I hadn’t had a chance to explain, so I just let it slide. They must be talking about the chosen hero, Park Yul. He probably wasn’t quite an adult yet either when he was first chosen.

But isn’t there some kind of announcement process when a hero is chosen? These people didn’t seem uninterested in the hero, but it also felt like they didn’t know much.

‘Well, I guess I’m the same.’

I’d lived in the temple and hadn’t even known that heroes existed. Why wouldn’t they publicize something like that? It seems important enough. As I was lost in thought, I heard a sigh in front of me.

“Oh dear…”

The two of them were looking at each other. Maybe they thought I was too young. But assuming someone’s just a kid because they’re not an adult wasn’t right. I took the chance to speak while they paused.

“Um, I wanted to ask something.”

“Of course. If it’s something we can answer, go ahead.”

“Yes, what were you curious abou—oh, wait, my goodness.”

She handed me a glass. It was filled to the brim with a drink and had square ice cubes inside.

“Here, drink this. You look a bit pale, probably from the heat.”

I was feeling a little dizzy, but not from the heat. It was from this whole situation. I’d never been treated this way by adults before. Actually, I hadn’t met any adults other than the temple priests.

“So, what did you want to ask?”

“Is there any place here where I can pray to God?”

“No, we don’t have anyone who believes in God here. There’s no building for prayer, but if you go around the hill, there’s a bell tower.”

“Oh, that’s right. You should go see it. Aren’t you curious why that valley’s called the Valley of Flowing Clouds.?”

I quickly nodded, and she smiled warmly as she continued.

“You’ll understand once you get up there. It really hits you once you see it for yourself.”

“Thank you for telling me.”

I’d half expected there wouldn’t be a place to speak to God. It was disappointing, but there wasn’t much I could do about it.

“But why is there a bell tower? Do they ring a bell?”

“The bell rings by itself at the end of the day, at midnight.”

Really? I don’t remember hearing it last night. I was thinking it over when he smiled at me and said, “You must’ve gone to bed early. You can only hear it if you’re awake.”

So it was a magical bell. That made sense, it’d be a problem if it woke people in their sleep. I was just about to stand when he spoke again.

“You’ve come all this way, it must’ve been tough.”

“Right, coming all the way into the mountains. We were so worried when we heard the valley was closed off. Oh, hey, pack some more snacks in there.”

Snacks? I turned and saw a huge paper bag being filled with neatly stacked things, so big I’d need both arms to carry it.

“It’s… it’s okay. Thank you. I should get going now. Goodbye.”

I hurriedly stood up. I bowed my head and walked toward the door, but right in front of me, the paper bag floated up.

“Take at least this. We don’t have anything else we can give you.”

“All we have here are snacks for kids. I don’t know if you’ll like them, but please take them.”

“Or if you don’t have anything urgent, you can stay a bit longer.”

“No, it’s really okay.”

I’d never imagined this kind of situation, so it was overwhelming. The floating paper bag looked heavy, but not because of its contents. It felt heavy for another reason, it felt like the weight of expectation..

“Oh dear, what a kind soul. Doesn’t want to accept a thing.”

“Then just pick one thing, Hero. That should be fine, right?”

“…Thank you.”

There was no way this conversation would end unless I took something. I reached into the bag and pulled out one thin, smooth stick that my fingers brushed against. I turned and quickly bowed.

I think I heard a warm voice faintly say, “Take care,” as I stepped outside.

Ring.

The bell chimed again as I stepped out and took a deep breath. The peaceful village street came into view. Nothing had changed, it was just the same as before. The bright yellow sunlight had replaced the cool blue air of morning. It felt like I’d stepped into a different world. Time had passed in the blink of an eye.

‘So this is what the world is like.’

My heart felt strange. If the world is like this… maybe that’s why Park Yul, Song Ha-gyeon, Raen, and Min Joo-hyuk are willing to go so far, to the point of sacrifice, to save it.

They were kind people. It was a kind world. My perspective had been too narrow. I’d thought the temple was the whole world, because the people and life there were all I knew.

But it wasn’t. The world was this wide. Even a brief meeting, even a short time, could be so warm. If everyone in the world was as kind as they were… it would be hard to turn your back on it. Now, I think I can finally begin to understand why they’re trying so hard to save this world.

‘Ah, right. What did I even pick out?’

In my hand was a big, flat rainbow-colored lollipop. Hmm… okay. I’ll eat it later, slowly. I carefully tucked it into my robe. Even though it was just one piece of candy, it somehow felt heavy.

I started walking toward the large bell tower standing at the far edge of the village. I hadn’t been out that long, so I figured I had time to go up and come back.

‘I reached the bell tower so fast.’

Even though it was the most remote part of the village, it had taken only moments to walk there, probably because the village was so small. There were no people or buildings nearby.

Reddish-brown bricks were stacked high, with an arched opening near the top. The pointed roof was painted white and stretched up like a spire.

‘Can I climb up there?’

It looked higher than I expected. Considering my stamina, it might not be easy, but I didn’t want to give up. I stepped through the entrance at the bottom.

Despite the summer weather, the inside felt cool, probably because it was enclosed. There was the distinct scent of an old building. I climbed the spiraling stairs inside. And when I stepped on the final stair—

“Wow.”

A rush of warm summer wind blew through. In the center of the ceiling hung a massive silver bell, larger than my body. It wasn’t shiny, but not a speck of rust marred its surface, it looked perfectly preserved. When I brushed it with my fingertips, I felt the rough texture of metal.

I moved toward the open wall and knelt down, finding the perfect height to see outside. The sky, bathed in warm yellow sunlight, seemed to be right in front of me.

‘So why is it called the Valley of Flowing Clouds.?’

As I pondered that and shifted my gaze into the distance, a sudden wave of dizziness hit me.

Wait. This felt familiar. I quickly turned and sat back properly, leaning against the wall. At the same time, my consciousness was pulled deep inward.

Whoosh.

A blurry mist. A faint sunset. The back of someone’s head with brown hair fluttering in the wind. Maybe because of the fog, but I couldn’t see clearly.

Right in front of the person standing upright, a vivid blue light suddenly burst forth. At the same time, there was a chilling squelch sound—he thought he heard it faintly. His knees buckled.

Fwoosh.

I snapped back to my sense.

<Intermediate Future Vision> Skill activated!

A status window appeared before my eyes. Someone was gently shaking my body. A youthful voice called out from right beside me.

“…Hero, Hero! Get a hold of yourself!”

Blood was pouring from my mouth. What… what in the world is going on right now?