novelraw Chapter 147 : Chapter 147
Chapter 147 : Chapter 147
Chapter 147: A Bad Omen Is Usually Right (1)
“Here are the two ice creams you ordered. I will give you spoons.”
I ran into a friend’s younger siblings.
Letting them go felt awkward, so I ended up buying them ice cream.
Somehow, we ended up sitting together at a food court table.
“Thank you for the food!”
The younger brother, Do Saul, excitedly grabbed his spoon.
“Ah… thank you.”
Do Ildeul fidgeted as she stared down at the ice cream placed in front of her.
To be honest, this was a little embarrassing.
Sitting at a table with an elementary schooler and a middle schooler I had just met.
On top of postponing my carefully planned rest.
‘…I was going to play games and then hit the sauna.’
But it would have felt wrong to just pretend I did not know them and leave.
‘And I kind of owe Do Haru lately.’
She got locked in a bathroom because of me, yet I was the one who received a valuable necklace.
If I had any conscience at all, I could not just walk away.
Being nice to her siblings would also look better when I eventually ran into her again.
Ice cream first, then straight to the sauna.
The plan was revised in real time.
“Hyung! Are you a hero too?”
Do Saul asked, ice cream smeared around his mouth.
Even amid the electronic sounds and arcade noise, his voice cut through clearly.
“Eat first. You are getting it everywhere.”
“Do you fight monsters and stuff? Like Flash?”
“I am not a hero yet. Just an aspiring one. A student. Eat first, I said. You are splattering it.”
“Do you swing a sword and—like—are you super strong? They say if you go to my sister’s school, you are crazy strong. My dad said so.”
Cream everywhere. Damn it.
This was why kids were like this.
He was already lost in his own world, completely ignoring me.
Do Ildeul quietly wiped her brother’s mouth and the table.
“I do not know about being strong. I am just getting by.”
“So you are not strong. But that is okay! They said if you train, you can get super strong. I am going to be a hero too. I am the strongest at my dojo! I even beat a middle school hyung.”
“That is impressive.”
The kid pumped his fists in the air, full of excitement.
Definitely Do Haru’s sibling—he talked nonstop.
Genetics? Was this genetics?
Still, there was something endearing about his untainted enthusiasm.
‘…On the other hand.’
The gaze across from me was uncomfortable.
Do Ildeul had barely touched her ice cream and kept sneaking glances at me.
Whenever our eyes met—
“……”
She flinched and looked away.
Head lowered, poking uselessly at the ice cream.
She was not really eating it.
This was already the third time.
‘Is she uncomfortable?’
She was a middle school girl.
Peak puberty.
The most sensitive and incomprehensible creature in existence.
I knew this from experience.
I had a cousin around that age in my old world.
Girls that age were genuinely dangerous.
They could bury someone socially without even realizing it.
Polite to your face, but who knew what they would say behind your back.
If I had even a speck of eye gunk right now?
She would absolutely report it later.
‘That guy had a huge eye booger. It was gross, but I did not say anything.’
Just imagining it was horrifying.
PTSD-inducing, even.
That was something my cousin’s friend had actually said about me.
I discreetly checked Do Ildeul’s status.
[Do Ildeul]
[Embarrassment, Shyness, Frustration]
Oh no. Something was wrong.
Something about me was making her embarrassed and uncomfortable.
And frustrated, too.
‘What is it?’
I quickly scanned myself from the corner of my eye.
Was my shirt buttoned wrong?
No, that was fine.
Was my fly open?
I discreetly checked under the table—securely closed.
Eye gunk? Nose hair?
What was it? What was the problem?
“Um, I will go to the restroom for a moment.”
At that moment, Do Ildeul suddenly stood up.
“Huh? Oh, okay.”
I replied automatically.
She grabbed her phone and hurried toward the restroom.
I still had no idea what the issue was.
‘This is bothering me.’
While my old trauma stirred, Do Saul, left behind, spoke cheerfully.
“This is my favorite hero! He can summon animals like Haru noona, and he uses a sword like you! He is super cool.”
“Is that so. Sounds cool.”
I responded absentmindedly and turned my phone camera toward my face.
That was when I realized—
a thick smear of chocolate syrup from earlier was clearly stuck near my mouth.
‘That was it.’
I had scolded the kid for getting ice cream everywhere.
Turns out I was in an even worse state.
Damn it.
***
‘We really met him.’
Inside the restroom, Do Ildeul finally exhaled the breath she had been holding.
Her reflection in the mirror showed a face flushed red.
She took out her smartphone and tapped a contact labeled [Sibling 1].
A ringtone played briefly.
- Hey, Ildeul. What is it? Make it quick, I am in the middle of—
“Watching a drama?”
- No? Training?
An obvious lie.
Ildeul ignored it and got straight to the point.
“Guess who I just met.”
- How would I know? I do not have clairvoyance.
“Come on! Do not freak out. I just met Ryu Jinwoo.”
The honorific felt cringey for her sister’s friend, but she could not help it.
To Ildeul, Ryu Jinwoo was someone special even before being her sister’s friend.
- Huh? Jinwoo?
A brief silence followed.
- Why?
“I do not know! He said he came nearby to rest. We ran into him and he even bought us ice cream. What do I do?”
- I mean, even if you ran into him suddenly…
Do Haru trailed off, then chuckled.
- First of all, congratulations? You are a Jinwoo fan.
That was true.
Ildeul was a secret hardcore fan of Ryu Jinwoo.
The first time she saw him was in a photo where he received a commendation with Seol Hayun.
The cold expression, indifferent gaze, overwhelming performance—her favorite changed instantly.
By the time she learned he was close with her sister, the fangirling had already accelerated.
“I just stared at him and could not say anything. Did I look stupid?”
- You are stupid.
“I am not stupid. That is you.”
- Whatever. Just say you are a fan and ask for a handshake.
So easy for her to say.
“My hands are super sweaty. What if he hates that?”
- Then ask for a photo.
“My condition is terrible today. I was just picking up Saul and heading to his academy.”
- Ugh, what do you want me to do?
Do Haru did not hide her irritation.
She was too calm.
Of course she was—she saw him all the time.
“Still… asking for a photo is probably right, yeah?”
- Yeah. If you really look bad, I can help fix you up. He is resting too, so do not bother him too much.
She was right.
As expected of an older sister—useful at times like this.
Yes. I would ask for a photo.
Just as I steeled my resolve and moved to leave the restroom—
Kuuugugug—
“Huh?”
A subtle vibration traveled through the restroom tiles.
An earthquake? No—something felt worse.
The air grew heavy.
Water pooled in the sink rippled and splashed.
- Hey, Ildeul. Hello?
- The connection is bad. Where are you right now? Send your location. Hurry.
“Unni? Wait, something feels weird—”
Click.
The call dropped.
[No Signal] appeared on the screen.
At the same time, an eerie sound echoed from outside.
Wiiiiii—
A disaster siren.
Do Ildeul’s face turned pale.
‘No way.’
Her gaze instinctively lifted toward the small ventilation window high on the wall.
Outside, pale fog was creeping upward.
Beyond it, the sky was stained an ominous purple.
Then—
Thud.
A faint tremor.
A massive shadow fell across the window.
They held their breath.
Rough, leathery skin slid slowly past the opening.
It stopped—then slowly turned.
“A…”
A single black eye, large enough to fill the entire window and more.
The pupil moved ceaselessly, scanning the restroom.
The moment their eyes met that gaze, Do Ildeul froze.
The arcade was on the fifth floor.
So was this restroom.
Crunch—!
The sound of teeth grinding against concrete.
Then, thin cracks spread across the restroom wall.
***
“Hyung! Shoot that one first! Boss spawn!”
Do Saul shouted urgently.
A heavy assault rifle was in my hands.
Tat-tat! Bang—!
“Wow! Hyung, you are amazing!”
A VR shooter that perfectly recreated firearm recoil and mechanics.
The moment Do Ildeul left, I had finished my ice cream and sat down at the machine.
One of the perks of this world was technology that was absurdly realistic.
Though personally, I preferred old-school click-and-play games.
[STAGE CLEAR]
I cleared the first stage with enthusiastic gunfire.
As the countdown for the next stage began, I wiped sweat from my brow.
‘…They are taking a while.’
It suddenly struck me that Do Ildeul had not come back yet.
Quite some time had passed.
Had something happened?
‘Could it be that?’
There was an unspoken arcade rule.
True both in my old world and this one.
Arcades were dopamine factories, which meant punks tended to gather too.
‘Getting your game money stolen was routine when I was a kid.’
A middle schooler wandering alone here was basically a walking wallet.
I should probably check.
I returned the rifle.
“Saul, play solo for a bit. I will go to the restroom.”
“Huh? Let us do Stage 2!”
“Solo mode. I will be right back.”
I headed down the corridor toward the restrooms.
Sure enough, some sketchy-looking guys were loitering around.
They scanned me, sizing me up.
‘Figures.’
Nothing ever changed.
I shook my head and took a step—
Kuuugugug—
The floor trembled.
A deep, ominous vibration, like the building’s frame twisting.
‘…This.’
The air pressed down heavily.
The telltale precursor of agitated mana.
‘A gate.’
Wiiiiii—
As if to prove my bad feeling right, sirens blared from speakers and people’s phones.
“What—what is that?!”
“A gate? Nearby? What do we do?”
“Hey! I was about to clear it!”
Crack—! Crash—!
At the same time, a violent explosion echoed from somewhere.
From the restroom direction.
‘Damn it.’
I shoved through the panicking crowd and sprinted.
When I reached the restroom, there was no need to open the door.
It was already half-destroyed, barely hanging on.
Through the wide gap, the inside was visible.
It was a horrific sight.
Half of the outer wall was gone, torn open as if clawed apart.
The door had collapsed, twisted by the impact.
Someone was collapsed by the sink, trembling violently.
Do Ildeul.
And beyond the shattered wall—
Gurrrr—
A house-sized monster gaped its maw, trying to swallow the building and the girl whole.
A serpentine body.
Malformed arms protruding from its front.
A massive mouth lined with countless saw-like teeth.
The moment those teeth lunged toward her—
Tap—!
There was no time to think.
My body was already moving.
Instinct took over as I kicked off the floor.
I passed Do Ildeul in a blur and reached for my waist.
The solid grip of a sword hilt filled my hand.
[Draw: One-Cut Severance]
My body executed the motion with ruthless precision.
The blade traced a decisive arc.
Slash—!
A clean sword line carved across the monster’s open maw.
Greeeaaagh—!
A scream erupted.
A shrill, ear-splitting howl tore through the air as the monster recoiled.