I Awakened as a Dark History - Chapter 71

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 71
Yoo Ho-yeon was someone impossible to pin down.
Perhaps it was a side effect of his Confusion skill—the way it muddled past and present.
He often offered cryptic advice or spoke as though he knew things about me that he shouldn’t.
There had been times when such knowledge proved useful.
When I’d been ensnared by the Dark Fairy Skill, he’d helped me escape it.
So what I’m trying to say is this:
‘I know I shouldn’t let myself be swayed by this guy… but I can’t help it!’
I turned my head sharply to look at him.
“Why did you suddenly come to the rear?”
“No reason.”
He’d been nowhere to be found from the first floor to the fourth, yet now he was standing right beside me.
Sensing my gaze was making him uncomfortable, Yoo Ho-yeon scrambled for an excuse.
“The fifth floor is too dangerous. Your skills don’t work on Dariha Goden’s anyway.”
I let out a quiet laugh.
Was that concern? How touching.
Thump.
No—it was the Low Blood Pressure Cure I’d forgotten about that suddenly came to mind.
I quickly grabbed his arm before he could react.
Yoo Ho-yeon glanced at his captured arm and tried to subtly create distance between us.
But there was no way for him to slip free now that I had him.
I grinned triumphantly.
“Now that I think about it, you left the last time we were talking midway through, didn’t you?”
At my observation, Yoo Ho-yeon shamelessly tried to play dumb.
Did he think that was all I knew?
I smiled broadly.
“My friend told me you did the same thing with her—just left in the middle of a conversation.”
“Your friend?”
I kept a straight face and nodded.
“Ha Cho-eun. You met her at the Hunter’s Market.”
Yoo Ho-yeon tried to lengthen his stride and slip toward the front of the group.
Of course, with his arm caught in my grip, he couldn’t manage it.
Given my current form as a Healer, it would’ve been obvious I couldn’t match his strength in a direct contest, yet he didn’t try to wrench free by force.
Emboldened by his restraint, I pressed closer to him.
The presence of the Conquest Team nearby made me lower my voice instinctively.
“You said earlier that I’m greater than Dariha Goden. What did you mean by that?”
“Exactly what I said.”
That answer made no sense.
Can’t you pick up on the speaker’s intent? Did they skip rhetoric in your education? What grade were you even earning?
I made an effort to banish those unkind thoughts by glancing up at the sky once, then down at the ground.
“If I take it literally, Dariha Goden is taller than me.”
“…Not height. Strength.”
Finally, a coherent answer came from Yoo Ho-yeon.
Now I could nod with satisfaction.
But while his answer satisfied my immediate question, I still struggled to grasp his meaning.
“You’re saying I’m stronger than Dariha Goden?”
If I fought Dariha Goden, would I really not lose?
In a different form, I might have some chance at victory.
Having considered that far, I took a moment to survey the Hunters around us.
On second thought, even in another form, surrounded by Hunters with stats this formidable, I doubt I’d stand a chance of winning.
The skill Dariha Goden had displayed was that overwhelming.
And the gap in experience between us was staggering. No matter how I looked at it, I had no advantage.
Noticing my skeptical expression, Yoo Ho-yeon narrowed his brow in exasperation.
“Strength isn’t just about winning a fight.”
Did he mean I should evaluate comprehensively all the abilities I’d acquired as a Hunter?
I ran through my skills one by one in my mind and nodded.
Considering even the powers not yet unlocked, I could understand his point.
I’d grown accustomed to acknowledging that my abilities were objectively impressive.
“I suppose that’s the way of it, then.”
Besides, Dariha Goden’s skill wasn’t that important to me anyway.
Life had taught me that exceptions often spawned unforeseen complications—it was hardly rare.
I’d reserved a raw fish restaurant for a client meeting, only to discover one of their employees had a shellfish allergy.
I’d become the exception through no fault of my own, and it wasn’t something I could have announced in advance.
How was I supposed to know things would turn out like this?
There was no point trying to trace the root cause of such mishaps.
It was easier to chalk it up to luck.
But there was something more pressing I needed to pin down.
“What about that story you started to tell me—the one about my friend?”
Worried that Yoo Ho-yeon might have forgotten, I added clarification.
“Do you know anything about the Hunter who saved that friend eight years ago?”
There was definitely something in his reaction—a flicker of recognition.
Even now, Yoo Ho-yeon’s mouth moved as if he were wrestling with what to say.
I gripped his arm firmly, unwilling to let this slip away.
Finally, Yoo Ho-yeon mumbled something like a sigh.
“I don’t know.”
You’re lying.
Even watching you the whole way back on the KTX, I could see through it.
I narrowed my eyes and gave him a sharp look.
Yoo Ho-yeon seemed to realize his words carried no weight.
He pressed his fingers against the corner of his eye with one hand.
“I really don’t know.”
It was the same thing he’d said before, but somehow different this time.
Yoo Ho-yeon continued, adding to his words.
“I went missing for about a week eight years ago, but I don’t remember anything from that time. So I really don’t know.”
My mouth opened slightly.
I closed it before my expression could turn completely foolish.
I was caught between uncertainty about what to say and how to say it.
I gathered what little saliva I could and swallowed hard before finding my voice again.
“Is it possible… for abilities to manifest before someone undergoes an Awakening?”
Yoo Ho-yeon stared at me intently. I chose my words with care.
“My friend thinks you saved them eight years ago. They’re certain about it, but the timeline doesn’t match your Awakening, does it?”
For the first time, Yoo Ho-yeon’s expression mirrored mine.
Bewildered. Confused.
As our emotions aligned, my tongue loosened.
“And according to my friend, I used power back then too. But I don’t remember it either.”
The regret of saying too much came only afterward.
I covered my mouth with one hand, then let it drop.
‘This much should be fine. He doesn’t remember anyway.’
Yoo Ho-yeon fell silent, his eyes darkening.
I rolled my eyes from side to side.
Was there more information needed to make sense of this?
And would it be right to share it?
Such worries made my head spin.
But before my thoughts could settle, Yoo Ho-yeon spoke first.
“If that’s true… then you really are closer to me than Dariha Goden is.”
“What? Closer in what way?”
Yoo Ho-yeon made a dry washing motion with his hand.
Something indefinable—a deep anguish—clung to that brief gesture.
“And yet I abandoned you…”
Was he experiencing Confusion right now?
I tilted my head to study his face.
Thankfully, his pupils were still that deep brown.
He squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them again.
“How do I…”
Yoo Ho-yeon shook his head back and forth.
His expression became ambiguous—whether he was abandoning something or steeling himself, I couldn’t tell.
“Never mind. Let’s put that aside for now.”
“Put what aside?”
When I pressed the issue, Yoo Ho-yeon waved his hand dismissively.
I crossed my arms, displeased with how he always left things unclear.
“Wouldn’t it be better to just speak plainly? Hiding things here and there just because you’re worried something might go wrong only breeds misunderstanding.”
At the company, work-related matters were never concealed.
If a mistake happened, it was better to report it immediately.
That way, you could fix it together.
At my observation, Yoo Ho-yeon clarified right away, unlike his usual manner.
“I’m not hiding things because things might go wrong. My Confusion is genuine Confusion. It only overlaps with the future to a certain degree—it’s far from perfect.”
Yoo Ho-yeon paused to collect himself.
“The scenes I see through Confusion are fragmented, and the emotions I feel from them are shallow.”
Yoo Ho-yeon averted his gaze from mine, sneaking a glance down at the ground.
Even as he performed this guilt-ridden action, he didn’t stop speaking.
“But the person who triggered the strongest emotion within that Confusion—that was you.”
Yoo Ho-yeon finished and crumpled his face up.
Judging by that, the emotion couldn’t have been anything good.
‘Did I become a criminal or something? Am I really going to turn dark? Get corrupted by a skill and cause trouble?’
Finding no purchase on any of it, my eyes began darting of their own accord.
Yoo Ho-yeon continued in a voice thick with guilt.
“I don’t understand why I felt that emotion myself, or how I should treat you.”
If that was the case, I couldn’t extract any more information from him.
My resolution, in the end, became simple.
For now: don’t become a criminal, don’t turn dark, don’t get corrupted by a skill.
Just as I was about to nod in agreement with that vow, Yoo Ho-yeon leaned toward me.
A hushed whisper reached my ear.
“So for now, be careful of Dariha Goden.”
“What?”
My Stone Tablet translation mate?
It was a bewildering piece of advice to receive while I was already trying to let go of matters related to the Stone Tablet.
“Why?”
Yoo Ho-yeon glanced sideways at Dariha Goden in the center of the Conquest Team.
“Because you bounced off the skill, he seems to think you’re some kind of entity from the dungeon rather than a Hunter.”
I lifted my hand and grasped the back of my neck.
Yoo Ho-yeon moved to brace my back in alarm.
Of course, since I hadn’t actually collapsed, Yoo Ho-yeon didn’t end up catching me.
Yoo Ho-yeon hastened to continue speaking to me.
“It’s fine. I’ll stick with you and block Dariha Goden’s approach for now. Even if you bounce away during combat, I’ll make sure you don’t get hurt.”
‘That’s not even the problem!’
Why did I keep getting tangled up in misunderstandings?
‘What did I even do!’
Unable to resist the blood pressure rising in me, I tilted my head back.
The Low Blood Pressure Cure that never existed was completely healed.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————