S-Rank Healer Gets Kidnapped First – Chapter 31

Author: isuzuuy

My eyes snapped open.

I felt groggy, as though I had spent the night tossing and turning in a light sleep.

“It’s been so long since I’ve had a morning without training…”

I buried my face in the soft mattress and cozy pillow.

I tried closing my eyes again, hoping to fall back asleep.

But—

“I should just get up.”

There was no way the sleep that had already fled would come back just because I wanted it to.

After tossing and turning for a while, I reluctantly sat up.

“…Why did I have a dream like that?”

I muttered while looking through the window beside my bed.

Something enormous had appeared in my dream.

It had a huge body, but its identity had been impossible to make out because it was shrouded in shadow.

‘It was heading toward the headquarters….’

As I absentmindedly retraced the memories, I looked outside.

Without even realizing it, I found myself staring at the alley across the street.

“I think Cha Seohae was looking over there too.”

After muttering that, I stared at the alley for twenty minutes.

Not that the people from my dream were going to suddenly appear just because I watched it.

The only people walking the streets in the morning were busy office workers.

For some reason, the peacefulness of nothing happening made me uncomfortable.

As I gradually became more clear-headed, I let out a deep breath.

“Just in case.”

***

Although there was no morning training scheduled, my feet naturally carried me toward the training room.

My body felt restless whenever I stayed still.

It was all because I’d gotten used to Cha Seohae’s ridiculous routine.

“Good morning.”

“Good morning! Have a nice morning!”

“Oh my! Isn’t that the healer? Good morning!”

Since I greeted people first, I received plenty of replies.

I wasn’t the only one training in the morning, either.

The guild members were also diligently arriving at work and heading into the training rooms they were accustomed to using.

“Huh? Someone’s using D10.”

I stopped when I saw that someone was already using the training room I frequently used.

A guild member passing by glanced inside and said,

“Oh, that one is mainly used by the Master.”

“The Master? Cha Seohae?”

“Yes.”

I thanked him and tilted my head.

“He has his own private training room, though.”

I felt a little deflated at having my usual spot taken and grumbled slightly.

He had a private training room on the 43rd floor. I knew because I’d once gone there when all the other training rooms were occupied.

Thinking about it, I suddenly realized that Cha Seohae had always made me train in D10.

“…So I was the one who came later.”

The fact that he had a place he habitually went to meant he used it quite often.

I considered going somewhere else, but soon changed my mind.

Even though there was still plenty of time before he finished, I decided to go to D10 anyway.

‘If I want to practice buffs, I need someone to receive them.’

I’d been consistently practicing shields, and since I used healing frequently in actual situations, I was gradually getting more comfortable with it.

But I hadn’t been able to spend much time practicing buffs.

I still couldn’t participate in dungeon raids, and buffs were awkward skills to practice alone.

Besides, I couldn’t exactly grab a busy guild member and ask them to become my practice partner.

Receiving a buff could drastically change the way a person’s body moved compared to normal.

It took considerable time to adjust to the altered physical capabilities.

“Cha Seohae, can I come in?”

That’s why Cha Seohae was my best option.

He had the best natural aptitude in Baekyang and plenty of practical combat experience.

Since he met both conditions, he wouldn’t be thrown off just because his physical specifications temporarily changed.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Eek!”

“What was that sound?!”

The moment I opened the door, I heard what sounded like rapid gunfire.

I instinctively froze in surprise.

The guild members nearby reacted the same way.

“Ah, look out! Be careful!”

No, more importantly, the target dummy in the center of the training room was the problem.

Apparently, this was a training exercise designed to improve rapid-fire accuracy regardless of distance. The target dummy had been shattered by the attacks, and fragments were flying toward me.

They were moving as fast as a baseball thrown by a pitcher with all their strength.

The fragments drew closer.

At that moment, I remembered the ‘Unyielding Resolve’ training I’d done with Na Yerim.

‘Don’t dodge. Watch.’

I steeled myself and stubbornly kept my eyes open.

Was it the result of my training?

I could see the fragments moving.

I was happy, but there was no time to celebrate.

Now.

“Divine Protection.”

The shield expanded into a spherical shape, like a balloon being inflated.

Clang!

The fragment bounced off the shield and flew toward the opposite wall.

Only after seeing the fragment firmly embedded in the wall did the corners of my mouth finally lift in relief.

“I don’t close my eyes anymore.”

Courage has always been my problem.

I didn’t close my eyes when faced with attacks I was familiar with, but whenever I encountered an unfamiliar attack, my eyes instinctively shut first.

I thought I’d gotten somewhat better after training with Na Yerim, but when Cha Seohae took over as my trainer, I realized the truth.

My courage hadn’t actually improved.

I’d simply ‘adapted’ to her skill.

I’d struggled so much because of that.

I’d even grabbed guild members I barely knew and begged them to attack me.

‘Everyone was shocked when I suddenly asked them for something like that. But after I explained the situation, they all willingly helped me.’

It was all thanks to the guild members.

‘I still can’t say I’m perfect, but this is how I learn to adapt to actual combat.’

I wasn’t looking for anyone’s approval.

It was probably okay to indulge in a little self-satisfaction every now and then.

Just as I was basking in my accomplishment—

“Oh! Yeonhee, you finally did it!”

“Congratulations! Double thumbs up!”

“Hahaha! Thanks!”

The guild members who had watched the entire process applauded me.

I was embarrassed that I hadn’t realized how widely the story had spread, but I was happily accepting their congratulations when—

“Who is it?”

“Eek!”

A low voice came from beyond the door.

The people who had been happily exchanging words of encouragement instantly froze like statues.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

The sound of heels striking the training room floor grew increasingly distinct as someone approached.

“Y-Yeonhee, you should get out of here…!”

“The Master absolutely hates being disturbed during training!”

“Gasp…”

Why didn’t they tell me that before I opened the door?!

‘They clearly knew Cha Seohae was in D10!’

I was about to protest in indignation when I heard someone approaching behind me.

“If you’re some inconsiderate bastard who opens the door while I’m training…”

“Uh, uh. Cha Seohae!”

“……”

Cha Seohae, whose expression clearly said I’m angry, abruptly stopped speaking when he saw me.

This was my chance, so I hurriedly apologized.

“Sorry for interrupting.”

“Why are you…”

He frowned in confusion before hurriedly taking off his goggles and noise-canceling headset.

His bare face, which had looked almost like a video game character with the two accessories on, was revealed.

Of course, even without them, he still looked unrealistically handsome.

“Are you hurt?”

“Gasp…! Did you just hear that?”

“No. I think I heard wrong.”

“You didn’t hear wrong! The Master was interrupted during training, yet he actually asked if she was okay…!”

“Hey, hey. Read the situation first. Read the situation.”

“…I don’t think I heard anything either. W-We should get going!”

“Thank you for your hard work!”

I swallowed nervously as I watched them flee.

‘No, how can you leave me alone with someone who hates being interrupted during training…?’

I awkwardly looked up at Cha Seohae like a rusty robot.

‘Look at that expression… It’s back to normal.’

Just when I thought his expression had softened and apologized, he seemed angry again.

Afraid that his anger might spill over onto me, I tensed up.

“Haa.”

Perhaps because everyone had left and the room had become quiet, he seemed to have calmed down.

He let out a low sigh and said mockingly,

“What good is running away when I’ve already memorized all their faces?”

His muttered words sent an inexplicable chill down my spine.

I quickly answered the question he’d asked me earlier to change the mood.

“I’m perfectly fine! Didn’t you just see? The fragment flew all the way to the other side!”

He turned to look at the opposite wall I was pointing at.

Then he ran a hand through his hair and chuckled.

“True. You’re the only one who could block that.”

“Hehe.”

Perhaps because it was recognition from an experienced S-rank, I felt strangely proud.

Then I suddenly remembered that I hadn’t come here just to make small talk.

“Can I train with you?”

“How? To practice shields?”

“No, buffs.”

“Ah. Sure. Come in.”

He readily accepted my proposal for joint training.

It wasn’t a one-sided lesson where I was simply being taught. This was training together as equals.

Maybe because it was my first time doing things this way, I was secretly nervous.

“It’s been a while since I’ve done joint training. How about we synchronize our movements a few times, then run the simulator?”

“Huh? Sure.”

Cha Seohae closed the door and even locked it.

I pretended not to notice and took my position.

“Do you have any buffs you prefer?”

“I’ve only received basic ones like attack-speed increases and damage increases, so I don’t really know anything besides those.”

After hearing his answer, I realized I’d asked a pointless question.

“Those are the basic buffs, so excluding those two, I’ll see what kind of buffs would suit you. We’ll be raiding Gates together, so it’d be good to figure it out in advance.”

Cha Seohae listened to me, then slightly raised the corners of his mouth.

“Yeah. Sounds good.”

His amused response made me blink.

“What are you smiling about?”

“Nothing. I just thought it was interesting that you’re going to find a buff that suits my fighting style. I didn’t know receiving this kind of attention from someone could feel this good.”

He continued speaking, but eventually seemed unable to hide his emotions any longer.

His lips curved into a beautiful smile.

It was much brighter than the subtle smile he’d shown before.

His unexpected answer, combined with how honestly he expressed his emotions without trying to hide them, somehow made me feel awkward.

I mumbled,

“If you go on the community forums—or, no. Even if you just go online, there’s tons of information about Baekyang and Cha Seohae. It’s nothing special…”

“I told you. It’s interesting.”

Cha Seohae casually spun the loaded gun before slipping his finger into a stable grip.

“It depends on who gives it to you.”

Apparently, that mouth of his had absolutely no understanding of embarrassment.

[Training Start]

At that moment, a window announcing the start of training appeared.

Cha Seohae turned his gaze away from me and put on his goggles and headset.

‘Phew.’

I also put on my safety equipment and secretly sighed.

It was fortunate that the window appeared just then.

Otherwise, he might have noticed how embarrassed I was.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

This was my first time watching Cha Seohae train.

It was on an entirely different level from when he went easy on me while training me.

His training wasn’t about stimulating his reflexes.

The targets moved so quickly that I wondered if the exercise was meant to train dynamic visual acuity. I could barely even follow them.

The targets appeared and disappeared like flashes, remaining visible for barely a second.

‘…Is he even human?’

I quietly backed away, wondering if he might actually be a monster disguised as a human.

[Training Complete]

[Elapsed Time: 2 minutes
Remaining Time: 28 minutes]

[New Record: 54 seconds]

I could only blink at the first round, which had ended in an instant.

‘What? Did it even start?’

He was moving so quickly that it looked like the training would be over the moment I cast a buff on him.

“So, did you pick one?”

“Huh?”

Cha Seohae turned toward me, removing only his headset.

For some reason, the look of anticipation in his eyes felt burdensome.

“This isn’t a training exercise that can show you everything about my fighting style, but if you’ve already thought of a buff that might suit me, tell me.”

“……”

I studied Cha Seohae’s face.

There was a slight flush across his pale face.

He was genuinely looking forward to my answer.

“Reload…”

I couldn’t bring myself to say the words that had risen all the way to the tip of my tongue, so I swallowed them back down.

‘You’ve only trained for two minutes. What am I supposed to judge from that…?’

A surge of emotion welled up inside me.

But if I got angry here, it felt like I’d be the one losing, so I quickly racked my brain.

I felt like I had to come up with something to win this.

…Though he had no idea what was going on in my head.

“Reload?”