Star Fruits (1)

When I opened my eyes, a strange ceiling was in front of me.

'Did the mission go well? Considering I'm not injured, it seems like I somehow passed.'

Trying to touch my throbbing forehead, I felt something strange on my arm. A long stand held a bag from which a yellow liquid was dropping.

I was alive.

[Current Friends: 3]

[Would you like to receive your reward?]

'Reward? That's not important right now.'

I swiped away the status window and closed my eyes, lying comfortably on the bed. I crossed my legs as if in my own room and tried to make myself as comfortable as possible.

'I'm finally free…!'

For a moment, a sense of liberation filled me as I escaped the grasp of the World Tree.

'Quick, I need to enjoy this freedom.'

I took a deep, even breath, savoring the relaxation.

I missed having a cell phone, but in my private room, a TV and a laptop were prepared for me. It seemed to be a place for me, the hero of this subjugation of the cult.

-Click.

I turned on the TV and pressed the remote control button repeatedly, searching for something entertaining to watch.

'Wooden Challenge… Knowing Wood… Naughty Tree Offspring. Crazy, does this world have some rule that names must contain the character for wood(木)?'

However, the content was amusing, so I left something on and grabbed a banana from the desk. Peeling it and taking a bite, the sweet flesh melted softly in my mouth.

-We watch a lot.

-Do you know how the action goes?

-Wood Yaho~~!

"This is ridiculous. Heh heh heh."

TV. Fruit. Comfortable posture.

Was happiness such a big deal? For me, leisure was the fruit of pleasure.

As I was enjoying this sweet rest, the door suddenly opened.

"..."

Our eyes met as a nurse entered the room. Seeing my disheveled state, she blushed.

"Pa, Patient, your clothes."

"Huh? Oh, when did this slide down?"

Perhaps because I was too relaxed, my patient gown had slid down, exposing the lower part of my collarbone. I adjusted my clothes and posture, thinking to myself,

'But why is a nurse embarrassed about this? Haven't nurses seen men naked before?'

Her blushing at my face was quite unusual. No, my face? Unconsciously, I reached out to feel my face, and sure enough, the mask I was wearing had come off.

"Do you know where the mask I was wearing is?"

"Huh?? Oh. It's in the drawer under the desk."

"Thanks. Sister."

I thanked her with a playful smile, causing the nurse holding the cart to fidget, and she seemed to swallow hard.

I took the mask out of the drawer and put it back on. My charm decreased by 2.

"Ahh…"

Seeing me with the mask, a sigh mixed with personal feelings escaped from the nurse's mouth. She brought a hand to her mouth to suppress a cough and approached me with the medical cart.

"I will take a blood sample. Please give me your arm."

"Okay."

The nurse holding the syringe gripped my arm to draw blood.

"It'll sting."

Sting. She lowered her head to watch the measurement of the syringe and suddenly spoke.

"Now that you're awake, the vice president will come soon."

"The vice president, as in, from the Korea Hunter Association?"

"Yes."

The nurse calmly replied as she pulled out the syringe. I hadn't noticed from afar, but the magic flowing in her was quite considerable. She wasn't ordinary. Realizing that they even employed such a person as a nurse made me realize the significance of what I had achieved.

"Then, please rest well."

The nurse bowed once and left the room.

A few hours later.

With a belly full of fruit, as I was engaged in a battle against sleep, a knock came from the door.

-I'm coming in~

A boundlessly frivolous voice. It was a noisy voice that I had heard somewhere before.

"Yep!"

The door opened, and a white hand popped out. Without showing her face, the woman, who was fervently waving her hand, spoke with a voice that was, once again, exceedingly frivolous.

"Are you Goo Myeon, right?"

"...Who are you?"

"Oh~ Between us?"

The hand withdrew, and a face peeked in.

The ends of her yellow hair were dyed orange, and she had yellow, star-shaped pupils. It was a distinctive appearance that, once seen, would never be forgotten.

'I don't know this face. But something is odd.'

However, the freshness of that voice felt strangely familiar, so I crossed my arms and searched my memory for a response.

As I pondered, there was indeed one person with such a voice in my memory.

"...A friend of the teacher?"

"Ding Dong Dang~ Hunter Name Fruits. Star Fruits, my name is Byeol. And I'm also the Vice President of the Korea Hunter Association!"

"Oh, yes. I am Lee Shiheon."

"I know. You're that brazen kid, right? The one who slapped Lee Seonghan in the face, the one whose tail we were on."

A noisy woman.

Every move was exaggerated, but her appearance didn't make it look ridiculous at all. Byeol wiggled over to where I was sitting on the bed, bringing her face close to mine.

Her large eyes narrowed like crescents, and her expression hardened.

"So? You're really the one who resolved this case?"

As if she was demanding the truth. I nodded nervously.

"Really?"

Byeol relaxed her face and hugged my head with a ridiculous expression.

"Thank you~"

I didn't say anything.

Because I could feel the suppressed emotion in her chest through the mask.

Keep the fence rule or whatever.

"It's fortunate that Seyeong's partner is capable. When Seyeong gets angry, it's really scary~ I would have really died if something happened to you."

"Is that so? Please sit here first. Your legs must be tired."

"Oh, you're considerate too!"

Byeol sat on the chair and lifted the corners of her mouth.

At that moment, I had a premonition that things were going to get troublesome.

"So? How did you meet Seyeong?"

"..."

I couldn't bring myself to say the simple sentence that explained we happened to meet during a mission and got along.

"Is that really a necessary question?"

"Of course~ The girl who rejected all proposals is kneeling before me because of a guy, right?"

"...Did she really kneel?"

"Want to know how she asked?"

Although I was curious internally, I shook my head. I decided not to hear it because knowing the truth would really make me feel guilty. Thank you, Lee Seyeong. I will repay this debt double someday.

-Swish. Swish.

Byeol peeled a banana on the desk and munched. Her unrestrained appearance reminded me of Guseul from our first meeting.

"Anyway, thank you. The association will reward you for this."

Reward?

As soon as I heard that word, all sorts of desires poured from my mouth.

"I didn't do it for a reward, but I won't refuse if you give me one. Especially if it's something like mana or something that could help with training. Or even armor would be sufficient."

"Pfft, Pffft."

Byeol burst into laughter at my words, chuckling and clutching her belly. After a hearty laugh, she wiped her tears with her index finger and conceded to my point.

"Okay, I'll consider it positively. We have our reputation, so the compensation will be significant."

"Thank you very much."

"Hehehe."

Who would refuse when an opportunity to become stronger rolled in? I didn't even bait it, yet a tempting rice cake rolled in by itself. I, who couldn't even open my mouth before a prepared feast, wasn't even there anymore.

-Om nom nom.

Byeol peeled another banana and munched on it. One bite, two bites, three bites. After finishing the banana, she licked her index finger.

-Smack.

With an enticing smile, Byeol, pretending to be serious, spoke to me.

"So, the main point. I have a favor to ask you."

I raised an eyebrow at Byeol's words.

"Do you know anything about the Nomad in Lee Seonghan's hideout, I mean, in the basement of Branch 42?"

"Branch 42?"

"Oh, you don't know yet?"

Byeol kindly disclosed some confidential information right there.

An organization targeting the annihilation of the World Tree, Flower, and dozens of cult groups derived from Flower. The cult group Lee Seonghan belonged to reportedly played a role in flexibly providing funds to Flower.

"Lee Seonghan moved too blatantly, so we quickly noticed, but noticing doesn't mean we can catch him."

"Is that so? Can't the World Tree handle it quickly?"

"...The world now is a world where the World Tree cannot exert great power."

That was new information again.

I marveled inside and asked her.

"Is it okay to tell me these things?"

"Why not? You're Seoyoung's partner, so it's fine."

Byeol's tone became frivolous again, and she giggled; I pretended to be serious and shivered.

That was too much- Byeol puffed up her cheeks, took a breath, and returned to the topic.

"So, coming back, do you know anything about the Nomad?"

"If you mean the tree I saw, then, to be honest, I don't know much."

"Really? It was calling you, though."

The Nomad was calling me?

I tilted my head, and Byeol's eyes widened.

"You really didn't know anything?"

"Yes. Well."

"It's okay! What I'm asking is something else. So umm…. I want you to talk to that Nomad in the basement of this building."

"Talk?"

"Yes. It absolutely refuses to talk with me. Strangely, it seems to be looking for you."

It seemed like a very bothersome task.

Seeing my mood sour, Byeol slowly began to cajole me.

"It's a rare opportunity to talk with the Nomad, you know? Especially you, you seem to have an affinity with trees or wood. You'll definitely be able to talk."

"Oh, is that so?"

"Don't you want to try? Talking with the Nomad."

I really didn't want to.

I didn't say anything and kept my mouth shut, and Byeol, with wide eyes as if the sky had fallen, stepped back.

"... Don't tell me. You really don't want to?"

"What's so good about it?"

"Strange. People usually have 'Talking with a Nomad' on their bucket list."

This world was nonsense.

While I was cursing inside, Byeol offered me a proposal in a careful tone.

"So, will you do it if I prepare something for you?"

"What can you prepare?"

She showed one finger.

"...One million won?"

"It's ten million won."

I closed my mouth, remained silent for a while, and then showed a thin smile.

"Why not. Let's go right away."

"Oh, Shiheon! Are you a god!"

Byeol praised me with a voice brimming with emotion.

In any case, money was the best.