The Espers Who Regretted Losing Me Chapter 43

No matter how much I wanted to shout “So what?! Come at me!”, it didn’t change the fact that it would cost me a ridiculous amount of emotional energy.

“Um… do you happen to know me?”

So instead, it was better to become a civilian who had lost all her memories in an unexpected accident.

Being eaten by a monster was a massive incident—trauma afterward would be completely believable.

Even if they tried to check my memories, I could just refuse with everything I had.

I’d say I was too scared. That I didn’t want to remember.

What were they going to do about it if I refused?

And even if they forced their way in, it wouldn’t really matter.

All I’d done was live here—earnestly, sincerely.

Thank god I don’t have a habit of talking to myself…

Whether this turned out well or badly, the dice had already been cast.

My life really was trash.

Anyway, no matter what nonsense they spouted, I was confident I could stick to “I don’t know anything!”

But then—

“Sniff… noona. Hyeya, noona… noona…”

“…Hyeya. Hyeya… Hyeya…”

“Yoon Hyeya, I—I… hic… I…”

What is wrong with these idiots? If anyone’s supposed to cry, shouldn’t it be me?!

Cold sweat poured down my back.

Worse, I could feel their emotions violently surging toward me, so raw it almost made me sad too.

Still… they’re more stable than I expected.

Did they get a new guide?

I didn’t know why only the three of them had come, but people were surprisingly adaptable.

If I get taken back like this, maybe I can use this as an excuse to get out of being their exclusive guide!

Still, right now, sorting out this incomprehensible situation came first.

The problem was—they were just crying.

None of them were actually explaining anything.

And it felt incredibly awkward for me to speak first.

“……”

In the end, all I could do was stare blankly at them until their tears finally stopped.

After a long while, the first one to recover was Cha Eunhwi.

That said, his eyes were swollen from crying so much they looked painful.

“…I apologize for showing you such an embarrassing sight.”

Cha Eunhwi spoke in a hoarse voice as he sat neatly in front of me.

The unfamiliar behavior sent chills down my spine, but I hid it and shook my head.

“It’s fine. But… do you really know me?”

It was honestly shameless to say something like that when I hadn’t actually lost my memories.

But I was bold.

If I didn’t armor myself with shamelessness, I had no idea where my life would end up.

And the fact that the three of them were watching my reactions so carefully made them feel like complete strangers—acting wasn’t even that hard.

At my question, Cha Eunhwi’s already gaunt face seemed to hollow further as he hesitated before speaking.

“Before that, Hyeya… there is something I would like to ask you.”

“Ah—Hyeya. Is that my name?”

“Yes. Yoon Hyeya. ‘Hye’ as in wisdom, and ‘ya’ as in clarity. Hyeya. It’s a beautiful name.”

“Ah… I see…”

W-what is wrong with this guy?

Sure, he was terrifyingly smart, so knowing the meaning of my name wasn’t strange.

But the way he smiled so gently while saying it made my skin crawl.

It even made my speech unconsciously more polite.

As I nodded awkwardly, he cleared his throat softly and continued.

“Could you tell me what you last remember, Hyeya? Before living here, I mean. What you were doing.”

“…I was in a very dark place. Everything around me was shaking.”

I answered while recalling the moment I’d been swallowed by the giant snake a month ago.

“I think I hit my head. It hurt really badly…”

“N-Noona! Were you hurt? Let me see—show me!”

Lee Shinra suddenly leaned forward, shouting as he rubbed his swollen eyes with his palm.

His gaze wavered anxiously, his voice trembling.

The drastic change from his usual rude self startled me.

I flinched.

Shinra sucked in a breath and immediately backed away.

“S-Sorry. I—I was just worried about you…”

“It’s okay. I’m fine now. I remember shaking all alone because I couldn’t see anything. Then suddenly, everything became bright. I saw a crimson sky. I felt like I had to go there, so I ran… and when I arrived, I was inside a huge monster’s mouth.”

Tears welled up in Shinra’s eyes. He tried to say something, then bit his lip hard.

Emotions rode the wind toward me.

Sticky. Deep. Like sinking into a swamp of endless regret.

Yeon Dogyeong—who’d been silently staring at me with bloodshot eyes—reached out and roughly ruffled Shinra’s hair.

That, too, felt strange.

The loudest guy is the one not saying a word…

When I fell silent as well, the snake perched on my shoulder gently tapped my cheek again.

I knew it was a gesture of affection.

But the three men went pale.

Keeping his composure by sheer force, Cha Eunhwi asked anxiously,

“Hyeya… that snake is…?”

“Oh, this one hatched from an egg a little while ago. Cute, right? It’s very affectionate.”

“Kyuruk.”

“……”

To them, did this snake look like the Warden of Paradise?

And the giant rabbit sleeping near the apple tree—what kind of name did it have in their eyes?

I didn’t look at the three silent men, but at the snake instead, pondering briefly.

To properly explain what happened, I’d have to admit I ran all the way here.

They think I was eaten and got sucked into the rift anyway, so I’ll just skip the middle.

Turning back to face them, I narrowed my brows slightly and continued.

“When I came outside, three huge monsters had already been defeated. And at first, the surroundings weren’t this beautiful. But the monster I escaped from suddenly started glowing, and when I came to my senses… the world had changed into this.”

“…Have you been living here the entire time since then? Alone?”

I sensed faint suspicion in Cha Eunhwi’s voice.

It wasn’t because I’d slipped up.

That was just how he was.

“I wasn’t alone. There are lots of animals here.”

I hesitated briefly, hiding my goosebump-covered arms.

To truly fool them, I had to act unlike the Yoon Hyeya they knew.

The easiest way was to smile gently—like I had when I was younger.

Because the current Hyeya never smiled at them.

But that’s physically impossible.

I’d be lucky if my face didn’t twitch.

So instead, I added with clear wariness,

“That’s all I remember. I checked my bag too, but there was nothing that could identify me.”

That part wasn’t a lie.

I hated carrying a wallet, so I kept my ID and cards stored on my phone.

And that phone was useless inside the gate.

I was hiding things, but I hadn’t fabricated anything.

The story lined up perfectly.

As I carefully managed my expression, Shinra finally let a tear fall.

“Noona… I’m sorry. I’m so sorry… it’s all my fault… because of me…”

I swallowed back the urge to shout “Yes! It IS your fault!” and deliberately shrank back as I replied,

“Um… you’ve all been acting very familiar with me, but… I don’t know who you are, and I’ve never seen anyone else here before. So… I’d really appreciate it if you could explain.”

That was about as blunt as stop acting close to me could get, right?

I’d only imagined saying it before.

Actually saying it out loud felt oddly satisfying.

In contrast, the espers’ expressions crumbled.

Not my problem.

Clenching his fist, Cha Eunhwi closed his eyes briefly, then opened them and spoke in a trembling voice.

“…First, I’m relieved that you seem to have been living somewhere safe. Judging by your appearance, it doesn’t feel like that much time has passed—but do you know how long you’ve lived here?”