FLIA 18

Yohan’s eyes widened. I’m a stronger awakener than my brother?That was his first thought, then he belatedly processed the word Lee Hyunmook had added: purification. Instead of being surprised again, he tilted his head in confusion. Purification? He prided himself on knowing all the classification types for awakeners, but this was the first time he’d heard of such an ability.

“You can cure corruption.”

Stunned, Yohan couldn’t accept Lee Hyunmook’s words right away. The idea that he could cure corruption was simply unbelievable. Then Lee Hyunmook glanced around and reached out, pulling something half-buried in the dirt. It was… a frog!

“Wait a second, that frog’s totally fine?!”

Yohan shouted in surprise, since falling into the Abyss, he had never seen a single intact living creature besides himself and Lee Hyunmook. The frog in Lee Hyunmook’s hand let out a weak ribbit and flailed helplessly. It was huge, but otherwise completely normal, nothing grotesque or monstrous about it.

“That’s one of the monsters you purified earlier. Looks like the others all ran away.”

“Uh, uh, I, I…”

Only then did Yohan slowly begin to grasp reality. He was now a high-level awakener, and he could cure corruption.

The very same corruption that was known to be incurable?

More than the fact he had become a high-level awakener, the joy of being able to treat corruption was indescribable. Sensing his elation, the cluster of lights around him glowed even brighter.

“No wonder things felt strange. Usually, as soon as you enter the Abyss, food spoils, rots, and becomes inedible almost instantly. But the stuff you brought back looked and tasted decent for some reason. And you, no matter how much time passed, you showed no signs of corruption.”

Only now did Yohan understand why Lee Hyunmook had always hesitated or given him suspicious looks whenever he tried to hand over food he’d found.

“Then, then… does that mean you can go back to normal now, Mr. Hyunmook?!”

Could it be that he’d never have to face that terrifying madman Lee Hyunmook again? Yohan asked excitedly, and Lee Hyunmook gave a faint smile before replying.

“Maybe, or maybe not.”

“That’s great news…! …Wait, what? Not?”

Yohan blinked in confusion. Lee Hyunmook dusted himself off and stood, then stopped Yohan from following him and said,

“I’ve been in this place far too long… to go back to normal.”

“But isn’t it too early to say that for sure? I haven’t even properly used my ability yet…”

Lee Hyunmook didn’t argue, but neither did he agree, he just smiled quietly.

“I’m going to pick up some supplies. Just sit and rest here.”

Before Yohan could say anything more, Lee Hyunmook was already striding off. Yohan, still dazed, watched as the man who had nearly died earlier bent down to retrieve a dented can.

Suddenly, a bird, probably one Yohan had purified, chirped as it flew overhead. Now that he looked closely, the grass, once dark and withered, had turned vividly green. In the area within Yohan’s ability range, it was almost as if sunlight was filtering in.

“Can’t go back to normal, huh…”

Yohan murmured in disappointment, shaking his head. Lee Hyunmook had been too quick to assume. If he just kept purifying, over and over, surely Lee Hyunmook could return to normal someday. As that firm resolve set in, Yohan’s eyes snapped open.

The cluster of lights hovering over his hands suddenly fizzled out.

“Huh? Uh—uh?”

“What’s wrong?”

Lee Hyunmook, now holding a pile of canned food, set it down and asked. Yohan, flustered and groaning, cried out in panic.

“My ability isn’t working anymore!”

“That’s normal when you’ve just awakened. You can’t control it well. Besides, you used a bunch of it all at once earlier, it makes sense it’d run dry. Come on, let’s eat.”

Lee Hyunmook’s calm and composed response helped Yohan quickly settle down. Now that he mentioned it, Yohan did feel kind of empty inside.

After soothing Yohan, Lee Hyunmook began sorting the canned food one by one. About a third had been rendered inedible during the monster fights, another third had burst or been crushed. The remaining third was still intact. Yohan looked at them in pity.

“What a waste…”

“Nothing we can do about the ruined ones. We’ll just have to eat as much as we can now.”

Nodding, Yohan began opening the cans one by one. Just then, he noticed Lee Hyunmook crouching by the fire, skewering something and setting it up to roast. When he looked closer, his mouth dropped open. When had he even caught and cleaned them? Three frogs were roasting over the fire.

“F-frogs?!”

Yohan pointed involuntarily, aghast. Lee Hyunmook adjusted the skewers and responded,

“If we let them go, they’d either die or turn back into monsters. Turning them into calories is the better option.”

It was a bit of a shock, but Lee Hyunmook wasn’t wrong. Yohan recalled how the madman Lee Hyunmook had once tried to feed him the rotting leg of a frog monster, claiming it was a side dish. Compared to that, this grilled frog actually looked edible.

“But they’re really big…”

The biggest frog Yohan had seen before was a bullfrog, and these were even larger, nearly the size of a chicken, if he exaggerated a bit.

“The poison and corruption would’ve been removed during purification, but the excess mass would stay the same.”

“Right…”

Suddenly, Yohan grew curious.

‘If I purify one of those giant monster frogs… would I get a giant roasted frog leg?’

And then, another thought struck him.

“Then if I hunt other monsters and purify them, I can eat them too?”

“Exactly. That takes a lot of pressure off securing food and water. Eating corrupted things speeds up corruption.”

Yohan’s eyes sparkled so brightly that Lee Hyunmook absentmindedly reached out and gave his cheek a little flick. Surprised, Yohan looked up, and Lee Hyunmook gently ruffled his hair. Yohan’s cheeks flushed even redder.

The frogs sizzled as they roasted.

It was the first time since falling into the Abyss that they were able to eat their fill. There were more dented cans than expected. Though Lee Hyunmook said he didn’t need to eat, Yohan boldly tried one of the grilled frogs. The appearance wasn’t great, but it tasted surprisingly good, like lightly seasoned chicken.

After finishing their satisfying meal, they repacked their gear. Lee Hyunmook’s backpack had been torn to shreds, so they retrieved the mattress cover they’d once used to tie themselves together and bundled the cans like a knapsack. Then Lee Hyunmook took Yohan’s backpack from him.

“Your arm’s broken. You need to be careful.”

“…Thank you.”

Yohan replied a bit sheepishly. Ever since awakening, the bag hadn’t felt that heavy, but Lee Hyunmook’s consideration still touched him.

With the earlier crisis resolved and their bellies full, Yohan cheerfully followed Lee Hyunmook and chattered away.

“Do you think I’ll be able to punch monsters away with one hand like you?”

Lee Hyunmook glanced back with a faint smile and replied firmly,

“Definitely not.”

“W-what?”

“You’re a healer, right? No combat experience, no training. That makes it even less likely.”

Now that he thought about it, Lee Hyunmook was right. Just because you were an awakener didn’t mean everyone had the same strength.

Damage dealer and tanks like Lee Hyunmook had the highest physical strength among awakeners of the same grade. Next came supports, then healers.

Still hopeful, Yohan asked again,

“Then am I at least stronger than a mid-level damage dealer?”

“If it’s a ranged damage dealer, maybe.”

That gave Yohan hope, and he asked eagerly,

“Then… what about close-range dealers?”

“You can’t beat them. Why?”

“My brother’s a close-range dealer… You have no idea how smug he gets.”

This time, he answered gloomily.

It wasn’t just the gap in strength and roles, unless he escaped the Abyss, it would never happen anyway. The mood instantly turned somber.

Trying to lift his spirits, Yohan forced a smile and changed the topic.

“Do you know what this place is? Where are we going now?”

They had escaped that dreadful subway tunnel into a wide field where they had fought monsters. A dark forest surrounded the field.

“I’ve given rough names to each area. The place we stayed in was the Ruined City. This place would be… maybe the Swamp Zone.”

“Swamp… Zone…”

Even the name gave off a dreadful vibe like they were about to suffer again.

Yohan could only hope his gut feeling was wrong.