Transformation or Death

A Little Money and a Place to Live Tomorrow is Enough (10)

Even after two days of kidnapping, Yoon Seol-hwa didn’t go outside. Han Jae-jung expressed concern, asking if two consecutive days of absence from work wasn’t dangerous. She knew herself that this wasn’t right.

Nevertheless, Yoon Seol-hwa didn’t step outside.

Yoon Seol-hwa herself knew that her actions were becoming contradictory.

The purpose of kidnapping Han Jae-jung was to protect him safely.

After isolating him from the world where various villains endlessly threatened his life, she wanted to deal with those dangerous elements.

While the purpose itself was simple, the difficulty of each task was high. That was the goal.

The most difficult task, kidnapping and confining Han Jae-jung, was successful.

Of course, realistically speaking, the kidnapping itself wasn’t that difficult.

She made sure not to appear on CCTV and moved his unconscious body to a considerably high altitude.

Given their relationship as ex-lovers and their usual closeness, even if he wasn’t seen for a few days, one word from her testimony would prevent any reports.

The difficulty of the kidnapping was based solely on psychological resistance.

Hurting someone you love with your own hands and restricting their freedom.

He whom she wished could fly freely like a bird in the sky, she had to break those wings with her own hands.

How terrible is this? Can this even be called love? Love should be about mutual respect and admiration, but isn’t this just selfishness?

Yoon Seol-hwa’s love was respect. Respecting others because she wanted to be respected. Not doing things to be hated because she didn’t want to be hated.

For Yoon Seol-hwa, respecting herself was an extremely difficult task. She was someone who couldn’t do anything when her lover manipulated the media and ran away without a word, when he asked her not to correct it or look for him.

While it started as an act to maintain self-esteem, when it reached its extreme, it became self-destructive.

For someone like her, an act of trampling others through selfishness rather than self-respect was extremely difficult.

But she had to do it.

Because Han Jae-jung could die. Because his life was more important than not being hated.

Yoon Seol-hwa prepared herself to endure all the insults in the world from him and carried it out. However, what came back wasn’t insult but affection and understanding. Ŕ

Han Jae-jung accepted this kidnapping without any complaints. It made her preparations seem ridiculous.

Seeing him not blame her made Yoon Seol-hwa feel even more guilty. If only he had cursed at her, it would have been better. Having committed a crime but receiving no punishment created a significant psychological burden.

Meanwhile, in her unconscious mind, she might have thought, ‘Oh? It’s okay to cross the line like this?’

Once attempted, the second time isn’t difficult.

Yoon Seol-hwa’s psychological resistance line weakened.

If she had been insulted as expected, she would have gone out to catch and kill the villains, using that anger as a medium. But there were no insults.

The anger she had gathered beforehand lost its direction, and Yoon Seol-hwa also gained some wavering.

Is it okay for me to be a little more selfish?

According to the original plan, she would have explained everything right after Han Jae-jung regained consciousness and immediately gone out to eliminate the villains.

However, when Han Jae-jung treated her kindly, Yoon Seol-hwa wavered.

Would it be okay to stay together a little longer before going out?

It wasn’t to express untold stories, upsetting stories, or suppressed stories.

She just wanted to have pleasant conversations together. Share trivial stories, share memories, lean on each other silently, and while doing so. Yoon Seol-hwa wanted to recreate those times from so long ago she couldn’t remember how long it had been.

Originally, she planned to do this only until the afternoon. I should go out in the afternoon. But I need to prepare dinner for him. It would be uncomfortable with chains on. Then I’ll go out. I’ll go out when night comes.

Ah, I could be attacked at night. Although I was careful not to be followed, you never know. Night is always a time to be careful of villains running wild. Yes, I’ll go out when dawn breaks.

However, even when morning came, afternoon arrived, and night fell again, Yoon Seol-hwa didn’t leave.

Creating new excuses, over and over, her two legs remained firmly rooted in the room.

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Han Jae-jung. She wasn’t afraid he would disappear while she was gone. That a villain might attack while she was away… Actually, there was a bit of that concern. Since the last attack happened at home, the possibility of a villain attacking this place wasn’t exactly zero.

But the probability is low. It’s also impossible to keep Han Jae-jung confined here forever.

Rather than staying here constantly fearing an attack, it would be faster to go outside right now and cut down the villain’s necks.

In fact, Yoon Seol-hwa herself notices it.

That she’s too happy running away from what she needs to do right now.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

No windows, no TV, no internet. Unable to see the world, and the world unable to see this place. A location isolated from reality.

No obligations weighing on her shoulders, no siren sounds constricting her heart, no deployment signals, no one’s cries or cheers.

Only peaceful happiness remains here.

In the midst of this, an undeniable signal came.

The mascot’s eyes lit up and flashed like a siren. Moreover, it had been continuing for several minutes. A clear emergency deployment signal.

An emergency of emergencies that required deployment even from magical girls who were on vacation or outside their jurisdiction due to distance.

[Guardian… Shouldn’t you at least receive the detailed information?]

Too afraid to open that content, Yoon Seol-hwa even refused to let the unicorn’s voice connect with her mascot.

That was a kind of Pandora’s box. The moment curiosity opens it, uncontrollable things would be unleashed.

“But…”

Yoon Seol-hwa agonized. Once she heard that emergency situation, ignoring it would be impossible.

If she looks, she’ll know, and once she knows, she can’t ignore it. It will leave a mark in a corner of her heart for life.

“…But.”

If she goes outside now, duty will weigh her down again. There will be those who criticize her for being late to deploy, and then someone else will appear to criticize those who criticize her.

Countless people suffering from villains will cling to her alone begging to be saved, and the empty gazes of those who have already lost everything will cut into her.

I wasn’t such a great person to begin with. Not someone who should be gathered around and cursed at, not someone who should be cheered for, not someone qualified to save or kill anyone. Really just an insignificant person.

Someone who could be completely satisfied just being with one person they love.

They say if you have ability, use it. They say it’s selfish to have but not give. Yoon Seol-hwa agrees with that. If you have the power to protect people, you should use it.

But why did it have to be me?

If they were going to give power, they should have given desires fitting that power. How did someone so lacking in qualifications end up with so much power?

But without this power, Han Jae-jung would have died. Torn apart by villains, tragically like the parents I couldn’t protect.

Then is this the price for saving his life? Is this duty shouldered to repay the price of his life?

I don’t know well. I don’t know. I don’t know what’s what. Whether I should have had this power, what I should do.

[…Guardian.]

“I.”

Yoon Seol-hwa muttered while looking at her mascot.

“I’m not a guardian…”

The fact that she was hesitating like this now was proof. What kind of guardian would hesitate like this? Someone who hesitates at crucial moments doesn’t deserve such qualification.

“Seol-hwa.”

That’s when Han Jae-jung spoke up.

“Did something important happen?”

He was the one who had earnestly supported her during her magical girl days. He knows about the existence of the mascot and the fact that deployment signals are transmitted from it. That’s probably why he could guess like this.

“…Ah, no. Nothing more important than you…”

Yoon Seol-hwa hesitated with her last words but finally finished them.

“…Exists.”

Han Jae-jung stared at her with serious eyes. Her two blue pupils wavered back and forth and eventually avoided his gaze. At this unusual behavior she would never do normally, Han Jae-jung spoke again.

“Really?”

“…”

“… Seol-hwa.”

He moved closer to Yoon Seol-hwa. He placed his hand on her sweating hand.

“Why did you say you’re not a guardian earlier?”

“…

A moment of silence fell as she chose her words. Han Jae-jung waited patiently until she spoke again.

“That’s… Because I, I’m not qualified…”

“What qualification?”

“That, well, as I said before, I only need you… Who am I to save and protect other people’s lives… That’s too burdensome. I hate the cheers. I hate the criticism even more. I’m not a great person. I’m just…”

As cold sweat evaporated, her already cold body temperature dropped even lower.

“Just, a stupid and insignificant person.”

Han Jae-jung held her hand more firmly, as if sharing his warmth so that hand wouldn’t be cold.

“Seol-hwa’. I don’t think so. You’re plenty amazing.”

“…What are you saying to your kidnapper?”

“To me, you’re not a kidnapper. Just Yoon Seol-hwa. Just Yoon Seol-hwa who protected me. Seol-hwa, don’t misunderstand. I don’t feel any displeasure at all about this confinement. Rather, I feel burdened because there’s only luxurious furniture.”

“…”

“Seol-hwa, I’ll say it again. Don’t misunderstand. Before, you told me it’s okay to hate you as much as I want, right? That’s the biggest misunderstanding.”

Han Jae-jung quietly gazed at Yoon Seol-hwa. Yoon Seol-hwa’s appearance was still young. Despite being the same age, if she walked down the street, one hundred out of hundred people would think she was younger.

Perhaps it wasn’t just her appearance that was young.

“I don’t hate you. No matter what you do, even if you take my life, I won’t hate you.”

She was still a girl.

No different at all from when she was 18 when Han Jae-jung left. She hadn’t grown from that time.

That appearance from then, that heart exactly as it was, she had waited for him without changing at all.

A kind of stubbornness and dullness. At the same time, purity. In some sense, it was the utmost devotion

“So Seol-hwa, have confidence. You’re an amazing person. Someone worthy of receiving infinite love from me. Love yourself as much as I love you.”

Han Jae-jung truly sympathized with her. With the anguish she must have felt until deciding to kidnap him, with the anguish she must be feeling now. There wasn’t even a hint of resentment or anger in that sympathy.

“This might sound a bit self-conscious, but I felt like you’d only listen if I said it this way. And Seol-hwa, you protected me.”

Until now, and always.

“You took care of me when I lost my parents. You became a star to protect me from villain’s attacks. So you’re my guardian. Forever and ever.”

Han Jae-jung felt somewhat embarrassed as it felt like he was praising himself more with every word. So he smiled slightly.

“So Seol-hwa, if you’re sad, I think I’ll be really sad too. Because my shining star is gradually growing dimmer. Because the light that will accompany my path is fading. Um… So, what I want to say is.”

Yoon Seol-hwa smiled together.

“Don’t make choices you’ll regret. And don’t forget that you have an ally. Ah right, besides, if it’s a deployment order for villains, you never know. The villain you’ve sworn to defeat might be the enemy right now.”

“…Yes.”

“Seol-hwa’, if it’s hard, you can always rely on me. And you can use me as an excuse anytime. Whether you want to run away or move forward, it’s okay.”

“Yes.”

Yoon Seol-hwa nodded confidently.

“I’m okay now.”

“Have you decided?”

“Sorry for hesitating.”

She lifted Han Jae-jung’s hand and placed a small kiss on the back of it before standing up.

“Wait just a bit, I’ll be back soon.”

“Okay, I understand.”

Yoon Seol-hwa ran out without looking back. A flash of starlight was visible beyond the entrance.

“…Saying she’s not a guardian while acting like this.”

How could someone who would run out at any excuse not be a hero? Han Jae-jung smiled wryly.

“Well, now I just have to wait.”

Perhaps forgetting the promised conditions in her hurry to leave, Han Jae-jung’s neck was clean without any decorations. In the end, Han Jae-jung himself picked up the chains and put them around his neck.

[Are you serious?]

“What.”

[You’re not going to escape?]

“Well, that’s how the quest came out~”

Han Jae-jung answered while swinging the heavy chains as if they were a necklace.

[The quest content wasn’t like that… No, nevermind. Any more interference would break my duties.]

“Yeah, let’s shut up a bit.”

[Suddenly I feel like talking.]

“You’re really rebellious.”

[Not as much as the Guardian.]

“Hey, I’m pretty normal.”

[….]

“Now you’re quiet again. This is driving me crazy.”

While chatting with the belt like this, a cautious voice came from the belt.

[Wait a moment.]

“What.”

[Starlight detected.]

“…It’s not Seol-hwa, right? Coming back to get something she forgot…”

[This isn’t a joke.]

“She hasn’t come.”

Han Jae-jung also raised his guard.

“What villain now…”

[No, it’s not a villain.]

“What?”

[What’s coming is a magical girl… Oh. It’s getting closer.]

Bang! The entrance opened roughly.

“Gyeonwoo has arrived!”

Hahaha, with a loud laugh, an uninvited guest strode in.

“It’s been a while, brother!”

“…Davi?”

White Davi had invaded.

How in the world?

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