Saving My Favorite in a Doomed World Chapter 104

The day before the summit.

 

A few hours before Yoo Hwashin and Cha Jaeha were scheduled to depart the country. 

 

“Yujin-ah, eat your food.” 

 

Fried eggs, soybean paste stew, spinach, and lotus root. To add some protein, he threw in braised tofu as well. 

 

It was a perfect menu. Ha Cheongwon sat down with a sense of pride.

 

“Ha Yujin—! You’re going to be late!”

 

“Ha Yujin! I said it’s getting cold!”

 

Only after calling her name three times did Ha Yujin emerge from her room, dressed in her school uniform. After Hwashin treated her illness, Ha Yujin had grown rapidly and was able to enter middle school at her proper age. Though she was fifteen, she had previously looked about ten; now, she had grown enough to finally look like a middle school student.

 

“Oppa, that pink apron looks good on you. Ah, is there no meat?” 

 

“Meat is too heavy for the morning. I’ll make some for you when you get back this evening.” 

 

“Aren’t you going to work overtime anyway? Again?” 

 

“It’ll be fine after I see them off today. Pork belly?” 

 

“Yay! Mhm. But Uncle Hwashin is really amazing. I heard he’s even attending the summit? He’s exactly my type—” 

 

“No.” 

 

“Aw, whyyy. You like that Uncle too, Oppa. No, wait, since he’s younger than you, I should just call him Oppa from now on.” 

 

“Just kill me instead. Kill me first, then go get married.” 

 

Ha Yujin’s cheeks puffed up.

 

“Hmph. He’s handsome, talented, and has a good personality, so what’s the problem? If you keep this up, I’ll never get married, Oppa.” 

 

“Anyone else is fine as long as it’s not that crazy bas… I mean, that crazy gentleman. Actually, is anyone else really fine? Either way, absolutely not him.” 

 

Yujin, pouting her lips, snatched a whole fried egg and walked away. It was a good thing he had fried three.

 

After finishing breakfast, Ha Cheongwon headed straight to the Association. Since Yujin also took classes at a school for Awakened near the Association rather than a regular middle school, she mentioned she would stop by the Association after school.

 

The Association had recently been buzzing with talk about Yoo Hwashin.

 

The man everyone thought was dead not only returned alive from the Gate, but also refused the unit commander position offered by the Association President and, in an unprecedented move, took a seat at the conference table. 

 

Was that even possible?

 

Was this the kind of achievement one person could amass in such a short period?

 

It would be the icing on the cake if his personality were good too.

 

Fueled by his rapid rise to fame, rumors regarding Hwashin’s personality were diverse.

 

Some said he was warm-hearted and well-mannered; others said he was a psychopath who would destroy a person for fun; some even said he was a playboy who seduced every woman he met.

 

Nevertheless, one thing was certain: everyone who heard these unsettling rumors wanted to meet Hwashin. Consequently, they all envied Ha Cheongwon.

 

An S-rank who had known Yoo Hwashin since he was an F-rank and possessed his trust. There were even rumors circulating that his re-awakening as an S-rank was thanks to Yoo Hwashin.

 

Of course, no one actually believed those rumors.

 

What kind of Hero would have the ability to make another person awaken?

 

“Anyway, I’m just saying I’m incredibly jealous—my dear colleague.”

 

Picking up a cup of vending machine coffee, a colleague draped an arm around Cheongwon’s shoulder.

 

“How are things with the SH Unit? Are you crazy busy? I heard a separate event was prepared today since it’s their departure date. What time do we need to head out?” 

 

“You have too many questions. I’ll contact you separately later, so just wait.” 

 

“Alright, alright, man. You sure act like you’re the only busy one. Anyway, it feels like just yesterday you absolutely detested that guy, so it’s amazing you’ve become such close buddies already. So… what kind of person is he?” 

 

“What do you mean.” 

 

Cheongwon, sipping his mix coffee with three extra spoons of sugar, raised an eyebrow. At that expression, the colleague questioned him again as if Cheongwon surely knew something.

 

“I mean Hwashin-ssi. Based on my memory of seeing him back then, I thought he was a very light and sly person. But according to the rumors, that’s not it at all? He’s quite bloodthirsty. They say he beat up all the B-rank Heroes during sparring. Ugh, I’m glad I’m Support-type. If I were Combat-type, I might have been called out then.”

 

The colleague shuddered violently. 

 

“Hmm.”

 

What kind of person was Yoo Hwashin? Ha Cheongwon took another swig of coffee. It felt as if his throat went dry every time he thought of him. He kept drinking the coffee.

 

His stomach was even starting to feel sour.

 

Was it because of that man… No, it must be because he was drinking coffee on an empty stomach. Wait, no, he had finished his breakfast.

 

“Hey, hey. So, what’s he like?” 

 

The colleague’s elbow nudged his side.

 

“I don’t know either, man…..There probably isn’t a single person in this world who knows that man’s true personality.”

 

Yoo Hwashin was peculiar. He cycled through being eccentric, good-natured, kind, and rude. He didn’t look like someone who had only lived a life once or twice. He changed his impression like a chameleon to suit the situation.

 

At times, he was infinitely untrustworthy. He would rather bite his tongue and die than trust that man. Yet at other times, he seemed vast. Like a great tree that had stood stubbornly in one place, it felt as if anything was possible as long as one was with him.

 

Regardless of what one experienced, one thing was certain.

 

“Forget everything else—he is the person most suited to be a Hero. At least among those I know.” 

 

“Really?”

 

Cheongwon tossed the empty paper cup into the trash can.

 

“Yeah. That’s the one thing I’m sure of.” 

 

After checking a text from Hwashin, Cheongwon left the breakroom.

 

***

 

Time passed, bringing them to today. 

 

Hwashin had returned.

 

On that day, what Hwashin had asked of him with a light nuance was this:

 

‘Please use your ability to see if there are any instances of Gates appearing simultaneously in Seoul. See who goes to those locations, too. And what happens there.’

 

He couldn’t even control his ability properly yet.

 

He had accepted because it was Hwashin’s request, but he lacked any confidence. 

 

The mental type was one of the most difficult abilities to control among all traits. This was because they reacted most sensitively to various factors such as fatigue, stress, and physical strength.

 

So, the method Ha Cheongwon chose was to push his fatigue and stress to the extreme. The stress that his younger sister might die. Seeing how he had predicted the future best when that stress reached its peak, he thought that stress might be the catalyst for his ability.

 

[ My Little Sister☜ : Oppa, when are you coming? Overtime again today? It’s been non-stop since the day after you grilled pork belly for me ㅠㅠ ]

 

After leaving a message saying he was sorry, Cheongwon leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

 

Just in case, he examined the emergence patterns of Gates occurring in Seoul recently.

 

He didn’t know what Hwashin intended by asking for a prophecy.

 

However, what was certain were the statistical data showing that Gate appearances were becoming more frequent and that those locations were clustering in the city center.

 

‘In the end, the only things that can persuade the higher-ups at the Association are figures and clear evidence. Or, the future I see using my ability.’

 

Cheongwon fell asleep right there in his chair. The next day, when he woke up, he could not believe the dream he had seen.

 

Was it a simple dream? Or had he truly seen the future this time?

 

All Cheongwon could do was wait for Yoo Hwashin’s return.

 

And he had returned.

 

“Are you going to die, Hwashin-ssi?”

 

At Cheongwon’s blunt question, Hwashin reacted with an ‘Oh’ shape with his mouth.

 

“Do I die?”

 

Cheongwon was actually the one taken aback by the face that didn’t even look that surprised.

 

Uh… does this reaction even make sense?

 

No, I just said you’re going to die? 

 

“N-No. Shouldn’t you be a bit more flustered? You’re the one who told me that the future I see hardly ever changes, Hwashin-ssi.” 

 

“How far into the future did you see, Cheongwon-ssi? The very distant future? Or a year from now? Or a week? And how do I die?”

 

Cheongwon, who had been walking toward Hwashin, came to a dead stop.

 

How do you die?

 

How could I say it with my own mouth? That sight of him dying so miserably. It was enough to make him feel nauseous just thinking about it. Ha Cheongwon sat down next to him, loosening the tie that was choking his neck.

 

Beside Cheongwon, who had his arms resting on his bent knees, Hwashin asked.

 

“Ha Cheongwon-ssi, do you think you know why I left you with such a request?”

 

Did he know? Cheongwon stared at him with a momentarily blank face before opening his mouth. His expression was heavily agitated. 

 

“…I don’t know. I really don’t know at all. No, to begin with, there isn’t a single thing among the requests you make that I understand. Just what do you know? The method to resolve the Red Gate, the fact that you cured my sister. Honestly, among your eccentricities so far, there wasn’t a single one I could understand. I still can’t accept it. ….And yet!”

 

His breath hitched, and his voice turned into one that sounded like he was about to cry. Veins stood out on the backs of his tightly clenched fists.

 

“I! I… because everything you did. Because it was all for the sake of others, I didn’t say anything.” 

 

“….Hearing you evaluate me so highly makes me feel a bit embarra—” 

 

“Of course, I also acknowledge that you joke too much, you aren’t serious about anything, and your personality actually isn’t that great.”

 

….Hmm, so I wasn’t being evaluated that highly. The feeling of gratitude vanished instantly.

 

“Why does a person like that keep doing this? Why! Are you trying to die again?” 

 

“….Trying to die. You say such sad things. Who in the world dies because they want to die?” 

 

“I no longer wish to experience the death of someone I know. Especially not a second death for someone who has already died once.” 

 

“Is that so? Then.” 

 

“…Pardon?” 

 

“Help me not to die. Since I want to live here for a long time too.” 

 

Hwashin’s steady eyes looked at Cheongwon. Ha Cheongwon swallowed hard.

 

When looking at himself reflected in this man’s clear eyes, he becomes unable to say anything.

 

He ends up looking back at himself, who used to work not as a Hero, but as a civil servant burdened by a sense of duty.

 

“You asked why I left you with such a request, right?” 

 

“….Yes.” 

 

“I’m someone who believes in fate quite a bit. But sometimes, mist rolls over that fate, and I can’t see ahead. I can predict the near future, but sometimes, I only feel relieved when I see the goal far away, rather than what’s close at hand. Whether I can achieve that goal, and what will happen in the process. I want to get a bit of a hint. There aren’t many things I think I can’t do, but this is one of them. And Ha Cheongwon-ssi is exactly the person who can give ‘that’ to me.”

 

Hwashin smiled broadly. Tilting his head slightly, he looked up at Ha Cheongwon from below.

 

“So, please let me lean on you a bit. I even saved your sister. Give and take. You know?” 

 

“…..A-ahem.”

 

Ha Cheongwon hurriedly turned his head away.

 

“So. How do I die? Tell me. Are my limbs torn off? Am I eaten by a monster? Or am I trampled to death? Tell me when, how, and by whom I die.”

 

Knowing the future is important.

 

Especially within a storm-like development that changes so rapidly that even a Dragon cannot read it.

 

The advantage he had over Han Jeyu was that he had a Hero with the ‘precognition’ ability by his side. And an S-rank, not an A-rank.

 

Han Jeyu’s ability is definitely S-rank.

 

If two S-ranks knew of the destruction and were involved in this dimension, the precognition ability that reads that future must also be S-rank.

 

And the Ha Cheongwon currently before him was not the A-rank Ha Cheongwon from the original work, but an S-rank Ha Cheongwon.

 

Ha Cheongwon readjusted his slanted glasses and slowly caught his breath. It was difficult to speak otherwise. Because it was a result that even he found hard to believe.

 

“…This future will come in approximately one year. Before this future arrives, hell will first descend upon us. Seven Hells will strike each country, and when all those Hells end.”

 

Ha Cheongwon looked at Yoo Hwashin.

 

“You will burn to death. By the hand of Cha Jaeha-ssi.”