Bailonz Street 13

Chapter 174. Reality and Unreality (1)

She was a foreign woman. With bright coral-red hair and deep brown eyes, her attire was distinctly tourist-like. Fortunately, while she was bleeding, no vital areas seemed to be injured. Though the bleeding was getting worse… with proper pressure, she should survive.

I quickly assessed her condition from the corner of my eye while keeping the monster in check.

“Are you crazy? Run away!”

The woman shouted with her remaining strength. I was surprised when she spoke Korean instead of English.

“You… you can speak Korean?”

“Is that really important right now?”

From her perspective, I must have seemed like an ordinary civilian. How alarming it must be to have a regular person try to save her.

But would an ordinary person be able to come here? Would a true civilian be able to hear sounds others couldn’t and pass through a barrier?

A sliver of doubt raised its head. Am I really completely myself?

I’m someone who received intense private tutoring from the Black King. Though my body is different, those experiences are engraved in my soul and will never fade. I don’t know why he put me through such rigorous training, but right now, I’m very grateful for those teachings.

‘If I saw his face now, I might even call him Teacher.’

Though please don’t actually appear.

I easily dodged the ghoul’s charge. Surprisingly, I could see it coming. Compared to the Black King’s attacks, its movements were childishly slow and pathetic.

Simultaneously, I changed direction by jumping off the brick wall. Another step. Using the clothing collection bin at eleven o’clock as a springboard, I rolled and landed safely. My body felt light.

My mind remembered various spells, but I didn’t know if my current body possessed any magical power. Perhaps my previous fighting ability had only been possible because I was borrowing Jane’s power.

I’d never tried experimenting since returning. Of course not—this was reality, wasn’t it? What magic could exist in the 21st century! Reality isn’t a game. That’s something you’re supposed to graduate from after middle school.

But why does all of this feel so unreal?

Ta-dat.

My body moved nimbly.

My body was roughly following what my mind knew about movement. At first, the motions were awkward, but gradually my physical sensations began to revive. As if synchronizing. As if Jane’s lived experience was transferring to me.

“Your wounds—can you move?”

I asked while drawing the ghoul’s attention away from the woman. She looked startled at how skillfully I was fighting.

“This much… I can handle. Are you… ‘one of us’?”

One of us?

“Us?”

“…A magician!”

No, I’m just an ordinary person who crossed boundaries—I was about to answer that way, but stopped when I remembered this was 1870s terminology. Old expressions might still be in use.

So I ended up just giving an ambiguous smile. As I kept dodging around, the ghoul made bubbling sounds and roared. I couldn’t understand it. But I could tell it was pissed… Its face showed it was thoroughly angry at having its meal interrupted.

I tried kicking it, but it was like kicking a block of iron—my foot just hurt with no effective damage. Sure enough, there was only one option left.

I squeezed my eyes shut and reached out my hand.

‘Please…’

Please work. I’ve done this before. Even if it’s just mimicry, I remember how. Even that blunt club-like sword would be fine. Just listen to me. You’re something I summoned. Not Jane—me!

Then I felt a tingling sensation in my fingertips. It spread to my palm, ran up my arm, and reached my heart. It felt like molten iron flowing through my blood vessels. I could almost map out how my vessels were connected. With each heartbeat, hot blood pumped throughout my body.

The sensation of magic.

Magic that exists… within me.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

My heartbeat grew increasingly loud. Time slowed dramatically. The ghoul charged toward me as if swimming through honey.

Would my heart burst at this rate?

Was I forcing it too much?

I shouldn’t have tried this!

Then in the next moment, a cold, heavy sensation filled my grip. It was a transparent sword like an icicle. That unmistakable thing had come to me in response to my desperate cry!

Simultaneously, time returned to normal. The ghoul was instantly before my eyes. I thrust the sword reflexively.

Squelch! Something was pierced.

Sharp claws had extended right in front of my pupils. A moment later and I would have lost an eye. I pulled the extended sword upward. The keen-edged blade easily sliced through the ghoul’s hide.

I heard chunks of flesh dropping. The alley instantly fell silent. Except for blood dripping from my sword, it was completely quiet.

It was over. But I felt no joy at all.

Catching my breath, I stared down at the sword covered in ghoul blood.

“This shouldn’t be happening.”

I came back, didn’t I?

Why are there monsters, and why can I still use this sword?

I thought I was going crazy. Even when I felt eyes watching me, I convinced myself it was imagination. When I caught glimpses of particularly strange things, I told myself I was seeing things. I’m the strange one. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t worry other people. I have to pretend to be normal.

But…

“Reality? This?”

The monster’s corpse was still there.

This isn’t the world I knew. I hadn’t returned to the South Korea where Jung Hee-in lived. All strength left my body.

“Um…”

A voice called out then. The foreign woman had gathered herself and stood up, looking at me.

I looked at her with a complicated expression and released the sword in my hand. With a whisper, the sword dissolved into air and disappeared without a trace.

“Are you okay? Should we go to a hospital?”

“Ah, I have a potion.”

“A potion.”

Wow. This really is like a game.

After spraying a transparent liquid on her wound, she looked at me and said:

“Thank you. You saved my life. I knew there were magicians in Korea, but I never expected to meet one like this.”

“What country are you from?”

“England. I chased that thing all the way here. It was quite a troublesome one. A notorious ghoul from Europe. While being pursued, it devoured the magic of two magicians and escaped…”

She looked relieved that it was finally caught. She added that there would be no more casualties.

“I’m Lily. What’s your name?”

She asked.

“Jung Hee-in.”

“Jung… Hee-in.”

“If that’s difficult, you can call me Jane.”

Sorry, Jane. Let me borrow your name. But I’m so used to it now that your name feels more natural than my own.

Before leaving the alley, Lily suddenly went “Ah!” and cleaned the ghoul’s blood from my hands and clothes. Wow, magic is amazing.

“We would’ve drawn attention going out like that.”

“Thank you, Lily.”

“Don’t mention it.”

We moved to a nearby café. Lily looked around once, then took out a few green stones and placed them on the café table.

“This conversation wouldn’t be good for civilians to hear.”

“You have things like this too?”

“Oh my. Of course. It’s a simple spell.”

Then Lily explained that I was a late-blooming magician.

“Usually, people can handle magic from the moment they’re born. It’s as natural as breathing. But Jane, you seemed completely ignorant of magic despite crossing the barrier. I thought maybe you were one of those civilians who sometimes accidentally slip through the cracks due to bad luck.”

Taking a sip of vanilla latte, Lily continued.

“But suddenly your magic surged. You must have felt it. Circulating through your body…”

“And then I took care of that thing.”

“It’s a remarkably quick adaptation. I think it’s an innate talent. You must have had potential even as a child.”

But that’s not true. I was just an ordinary kid. I lost my front teeth eating candy once, but I never had anything extraordinary happen like stones suddenly floating.

I fell deep in thought. Was there really never anything like that? As I wondered, Lily, perhaps interpreting my expression, said:

“It’s okay if you don’t understand. The fact that you’re one of us is something to celebrate.”

“Celebrate…”

Lily handed me a braided bracelet. It was black with occasional streaks of green.

“There might be things attracted to the scent of newly awakened magic. Wear this bracelet for a week.”

I wonder if I’m just lucky with accessories, or why everything I receive from supernatural beings happens to be jewelry.

After confirming I put on the bracelet, Lily slid a small card-shaped paper toward me.

“Anyway. It was nice meeting you. If you ever come to England, contact me here. I’ll be sure to treat you well.”