NOVEL NEXT Chapter 10
Chapter 10: Self-Healing (3)
"Are you really okay? You look extremely tired! Your dark circles are down to your chin! You didn't even answer your phone—don’t tell me you stayed up all night again just because of [Self-Healing]? You’re going to collapse like last time."
"I told you, I'm fine."
A peaceful morning with clear, pleasant weather.
Eunha, who was arranging freshly baked pretzels on the display stand, avoided Eun Bangwool’s sharp gaze as she clung to her side.
Eunha waved her hand dismissively, insisting she was fine, but even a stranger could see how haggard she looked.
She kept yawning and rubbing her eyes—how could anyone not notice?
And when she felt Bangwool’s eyes on her, she would suddenly put on her usual smiling face, which made her look all the more suspicious.
Good thing she had a cap and mask covering her face.
Otherwise, Bangwool would have dragged her straight to the emergency room.
"Why did they get bigger again?"
"What?"
"Your chest. Is [Self-Healing] making the fat gather in weird places? …Did someone pull on them?"
"A human body isn’t made of rubber."
Eunha leaned against the display stand, trying to endure the dizziness.
…In the end, she didn’t get a wink of sleep last night.
She had been torn apart by the [Red Woman], writhed in pain, then spent the entire early morning deep-cleaning…
Just when she thought she could finally get some rest after finishing the cleaning, something strange had climbed up her balcony and silently watched her as she lay on the sofa.
She pretended to be asleep, afraid that making eye contact would lead to another painful experience.
She had tensed up so much that a cramp seized her thigh—it was pure agony.
Thankfully, when her alarm rang at seven, the thing quietly climbed back down the balcony railing.
What the hell was that…?
Unlike the [Red Woman], there was no clear countermeasure for 'that' in the black book.
It didn’t seem like the type to attack directly.
'But just staring at me like that is scary enough…'
Because of it, she barely slept and now felt like death.
Her head was spinning, and her stomach felt unsettled.
If she turned her head too quickly, she might actually collapse.
She had forced herself to come to work since it was just the two of them running the shop, but maybe she should have just taken a day off.
Munch—...
Lost in thought, Eunha absentmindedly took a bite of a pretzel she had been arranging.
…It was bland.
Incredibly bland.
Was a pretzel supposed to taste like this?
Even the instant coffee she drank earlier to wake up had tasted bland.
She had put in three heaping spoons of salt because it was so tasteless, and Bangwool had scolded her like crazy for it.
…Right.
Because she had chugged an entire bottle of soy sauce last night to escape the [Red Woman], Eunha had now become the most tasteless person in the world.
"Hmm… Fine, let’s say you’re okay. But why are you wearing so many layers? Did you catch a cold?"
At that moment, Bangwool, still clinging to Eunha’s side, tugged lightly at the 'black scarf' wrapped around her neck.
Startled, Eunha instinctively grabbed the girl’s hand.
And just like flipping a switch, Bangwool’s rabbit ears, hidden under her baker's cap, popped straight up.
For a moment, they held hands in surprise.
Bangwool’s cap went flying, her cheeks flushed pink, and she shyly interlocked her fingers with Eunha’s.
Eunha, sweating under the girl's intense gaze, hurriedly adjusted her scarf.
Not only was she wearing the 'pitch-black scarf' covering her neck, but she also had long sleeves and gloves reaching down to her hands…
Maybe she was overdoing it.
But she had no choice.
The wounds from last night’s encounter with the [Red Woman] hadn’t fully healed yet.
The torn-off body parts and internal organs had regenerated like something out of a horror movie, but the skin was healing much slower than expected.
Did the recovery speed depend on the severity of the wound?
Scars and broken senses—things that weren’t life-threatening—seemed to trigger [Self-Healing] only weakly.
Either way, Eunha’s body was now covered in scars, and that was why she was working in this ridiculous get-up.
"Haha… It’s nothing. I must’ve just slept in the cold."
"…That’s as clumsy a lie as ever. But the scarf looks good on you. Can I take a picture?"
Click—!
Bangwool puffed out her cheeks like a hamster and grumbled.
But even as she complained, she took out a digital camera from her apron and snapped a photo of Eunha.
"You make it sound like I’m terrible at lying."
"Say cheese~."
Click—!
Caught off guard, Eunha adjusted her mask but still posed in sync with Bangwool’s cue.
They made a heart shape together and took a two-shot, and as Bangwool smiled happily at the photo, Eunha could only smile bitterly beside her.
She didn’t particularly mind showing her scars to others.
They would just be surprised, that’s all.
But to Bangwool… To this girl, she didn’t want to show these awful scars.
Because Bangwool was an 'ordinary person' not even registered with the Hunter Association…
In other words, she had no skills—she was powerless.
"You have a phone, so why use a digital camera?"
"The quality is better~. And can you stop dipping your finger in the salt while talking? Isn't it salty?!"
"The air is tasteless."
"Stop talking nonsense and put the salt grinder down!"
"Aaagh!! Stop squeezing my boobs!!"
She had been exposed to the mana from [Rifts] but had never awakened a skill.
Instead, due to 'Mana Contamination,' she had grown rabbit ears.
A cute but pitiful girl.
If even a bug showed up in the café, she would cling to Eunha and refuse to let go.
On stormy nights, she would be too scared to be alone and insist on sleeping over at Eunha’s place.
She was a timid little rabbit who would nearly faint if Eunha got the tiniest cut while cooking.
Did Eunha really need to show her the scars left by the [Red Woman]?
The scars would disappear in a day or two thanks to [Self-Healing] anyway.
"Haa… Just be honest. Are you hurt somewhere?"
"My boobs hurt. The crazy rabbit squeezed them."
"Of course, I pulled them to make them hurt. I meant your body. If you're not feeling well, do you want to go to the hospital? You know that saying you're fine just makes me worry more, right?"
"…It’s just a cold."
"Where did your [Self-Healing] skill run off to that you caught a cold?"
Bangwool instantly saw through her clumsy lie and reached for Eunha’s 'black scarf' with a displeased look.
Her small fingers lightly touched the knot of the scarf, and Eunha flinched back in obvious panic.
Bangwool’s eyes widened for a moment at Eunha’s reaction, but then she let out a small, resigned laugh.
"…Hmph, fine. You’re not going to tell me, are you? It’s because you don’t want me to worry again."
"…I’m sorry."
"If you’re sorry, buy me something delicious later. How about a family restaurant? A new one just opened nearby."
The rabbit-eared girl, who had reluctantly let go of Eunha, picked up her fallen baker’s cap and returned to the kitchen.
Watching her small, lonely figure retreat, Eunha felt a pang in her chest.
Her lips moved, but no words came out, leaving her feeling frustrated.
The [Black Book], suddenly changing genders overnight…
There wasn’t a single thing she could easily explain.
Eunha pressed her throbbing temples, enduring the sharp headache.
"You two still seem to get along well."
"…Isn’t our Bangwool cute?"
"That’s exactly why I became a regular at this café… Ah, of course, I like you too, Eunha. If I had to choose, I’d date Bangwool and marry you."
"Ban Harin, you’re quite the character."
The regular customer, who had been silently sipping coffee, suddenly spoke in a cold voice.
A beauty who resembled a mannequin made of ice.
Hearing her strange compliment, Eunha was caught between bewilderment and amusement, a small smile creeping onto her lips.
Just how adorable was Bangwool for even someone this peculiar to visit the café for her?
To silently express her thanks, Eunha shoved a half-bitten pretzel into the regular’s mouth before heading toward the kitchen where Bangwool was.
The girl, now preparing coffee, was humming as usual.
But her song was quieter, weaker than usual, and it pricked at Eunha’s heart.
"…You really don’t know anything, right? About the lost item from yesterday."
"Are we talking about this again? I told you this morning, and when you called last night too—I’ve never seen any lost item."
Eunha looked down at Bangwool’s back, her expression tangled with complicated emotions.
This was why she couldn’t tell Bangwool about 'yesterday’s events'… why she couldn’t show her the scars.
Because Bangwool didn’t remember the [Black Book].
She remembered chatting at the café yesterday and even driving Eunha back to Saetbyeol Apartment.
But she didn’t remember picking up the [Black Book] from the café table and placing it in the lost-and-found.
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4. Perception is the connection of existence.
- Have you ever heard the phrase, 'Knowledge is power'?
- Through the act of recognizing and understanding each other, 'they' will draw ever closer to you.
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Perception is the connection of existence.
In other words, if Eunha told Bangwool about yesterday’s events, the terrifying [Red Woman] might come after her too.
And Bangwool wouldn’t even have a 'guidebook' to protect her.
On the other hand, as long as Bangwool remained unaware, 'they' wouldn’t approach her directly.
In that sense, it was truly a relief.
That the [Black Book] had come to her.
That the [Red Woman] had targeted her instead of Bangwool.
Eunha meant it sincerely—she was grateful.
"Haa…"
She let out a bitter laugh, thinking of the [Black Book] she had left at home.
How did things end up like this?
She had only wanted to live an ordinary life.
But for now…
She would have to keep it all to herself.
Letting out a deep sigh, Eunha adjusted the scarf wrapped around her neck.