The Tone-Deaf Healer Kills with a Song - Chapter 109
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Tone-Deaf Healer Kills with Song – Episode 109
“Ah, well…”
To be honest, that was the case.
Until now, I’d assumed Harp’s abilities were sealed after his Assigned Staff Member died.
If it wasn’t a seal, then something equivalent must have occurred, or one way or another, an insurmountable situation arose that led to his retirement.
But that brilliantly clear blue light completely erased the pain in my shoulder.
I couldn’t tell if there was any bruising, but the pain itself vanished entirely.
As I stared at him in shock, he withdrew his hand and shrugged his shoulders.
“Everyone thinks that way, so you don’t need to make such an embarrassed expression. It’s true that I deliberately chose not to use my power.”
Harp glanced briefly at the passersby around us, then started walking ahead as if to indicate he didn’t want to discuss this further here.
I hurried after him. I wanted to hear his explanation at least once.
“Um…”
“We’ll talk about the details later. This isn’t really the place for it right now.”
“Yes…!”
He shook his head as if he knew exactly what I wanted to ask.
I understood clearly now. He hadn’t lost his abilities.
He could use them sufficiently, and judging by the speed and casting power I felt, he could return to active duty immediately if he wished.
If he was refusing to go back into the field, that was purely a psychological issue on his part.
Healing doesn’t reach the wounds of the heart.
I found that fact deeply regrettable.
* * *
“Thank you.”
“You’ll like it.”
“Yes!”
Jung Hwan-jae had brought drinks that thoughtfully catered to each person’s taste.
He’d mentioned coffee so casually that I wondered if he’d actually bought that, but he hadn’t.
He skillfully handed a latte to Harp as if he knew his preferences, and prepared a matcha latte for me.
I did like matcha, but I’d never asked him to buy it or mentioned that I liked it in front of him.
It seemed he must have been carefully observing and remembering that I bought it regularly.
[Liri: People who understand what you like are rare.]
‘I think so too.’
For some time now.
Liri had softened her reaction toward Jung Hwan-jae. Previously, she seemed to dislike him quite a bit.
I wasn’t sure what change of heart had occurred, but I found it quite pleasant.
“So what do you want to hear from me so badly that you’re even bribing me like this?”
Harp’s expression suggested he had no interest whatsoever in what we were giving, what conversation we were having, or what we were thinking.
He’d inserted a straw into the ade out of courtesy, but he simply stared at us without any intention of taking a sip.
But before Jung Hwan-jae could even open his mouth, Harp spoke again.
“It’s obvious. Why did you retire, what kind of existence was your Assigned Staff Member, how can a Hunter operate after their Assigned Staff Member dies.”
None of those three.
Without realizing it, I blinked, and Harp’s gaze sharpened toward me.
Eyes that seemed to have been transplanted directly from a dragon’s pupils stared at me intently.
I blinked involuntarily in response. Sung Ji-wook opened his mouth as if to object.
“We….”
“Or perhaps you came to ask about Hunter Kim Kyung-hoon.”
“….”
Sung Ji-wook couldn’t hide his bewilderment, his face betraying his shock.
Mine probably looked little different.
I’d suspected he might know, but I never imagined he’d come at us with such a direct strike.
To him, Kim Kyung-hoon was a figure so malevolent that he’d driven an Assigned Staff Member to death.
There was no way he’d view us kindly for seeking information about such a person.
I couldn’t begin to fathom what lay beneath that serene voice and expression.
[Liri: You don’t need to be so tense.]
The Assigned Staff Member’s divinity responds to your tension.
White light appeared from somewhere, flickering just enough for only me to see, before quickly settling my mind.
Was it acceptable to squander divinity like this? Ever since learning that an Assigned Staff Member could face a meaningless death, I’d found all of this distasteful.
But I couldn’t very well tell them not to do it simply because I was worried.
“We came to ask about Hunter Kim Kyung-hoon.”
It was Jung Hwan-jae who broke the lengthy silence.
He seemed to think a direct approach would be best. I’d heard Harp was unusually perceptive—what if he didn’t let this slide?
Jung Hwan-jae, unaware of my complicated feelings, maintained a composed expression. Of course, he would naturally understand more than I did.
There was no way he hadn’t worried about what concerned me, no way he hadn’t wrestled with what troubled me.
“Precisely what about him?”
“We’re tracking him. He suddenly disappeared without a trace.”
“Disappeared without a trace?”
For the first time, a crack appeared in Harp’s serene expression. His eyes held the look of someone who couldn’t comprehend the very words he’d just heard.
“Yes.”
“You’re saying he didn’t die—he vanished?”
“That’s correct.”
“I assumed he was dead since he didn’t appear in the Ranking Tournament.”
He murmured more to himself than to us, then crossed his legs the other way and settled back.
Harp fell silent, tapping his cheek rhythmically—a habit it seemed he had when lost in thought.
None of us dared ask what he intended to do about it.
“If someone who relies so heavily on power didn’t show up for the Ranking Tournament, there are only a few possible reasons.”
“For instance….”
“He encountered someone he couldn’t possibly defeat, no matter how hard he tried in the tournament.”
A pang of guilt.
“Or he’d already been caught by such a person once before, and his pride took a significant blow.”
Another pang, then another.
“If that’s not the case, then he must be focusing on pointless secluded training just to surpass that person—which he shouldn’t be doing at all.”
This is complete collapse.
I hadn’t even fought, yet I felt like I’d lost. I stared blankly at Harp.
How could he know so precisely without even looking?
I couldn’t even imagine how much he must have thought about and agonized over him to reach such a conclusion.
Unable to hide my bewilderment, he added with a slight smile.
“Ah, it’s not that I figured it out because of any ill will. That person is just a bit… predictable.”
He spoke casually, as if reading a predictable person required no effort at all.
Without realizing it, I nodded slowly.
I had to admit that Kim Kyung-hoon was someone whose emotions showed plainly on his face.
The problem was that because he was so unguarded, I could feel malice and murderous intent radiating from his entire being.
“But ultimately, asking me to talk about Kim Kyung-hoon means I’d have to explain everything I mentioned before.”
“To use a tracking skill, you need to find traces that person left behind. And you’re the only one who has those traces for certain.”
Just as Jung Hwan-jae was about to speak, Sung Ji-wook opened his mouth faster.
I blinked in surprise at his straightforward approach, something I could never have imagined.
“So you’re saying you’ll track that bastard based on the traces of Kim Kyung-hoon remaining in my body?”
“So please help us. We can’t find him without you.”
“….”
He, who had been speaking fluently until now, fell silent for a moment.
I found myself at a loss for words in a different way, staring at Sung Ji-wook. I hadn’t expected him to be so direct and blunt about it.
It wasn’t just me—Jung Hwan-jae seemed flustered too, his expression showing his confusion.
“Do you think I have no desire for revenge against that bastard? I might want to kill him if I find him.”
“I know you won’t do that. I saw it in the Ranking Tournament. You praying alone.”
Sung Ji-wook’s face brightened.
Harp’s face grew even more pale with shock than when he’d fallen silent.
“What are you talking about….”
“Just as you borrow the power of the sacred Ancient Dragon, you won’t taint your strength and your path with meaningless slaughter. I also know that you registered a skill born from that vow separately with the Valkyrie Network.”
How far did Sung Ji-wook know? How did he find out about that fact?
Unable to even ask, I simply stared at him as Harp’s response continued.
“…It’s ironic that a promise made with someone who’s already gone still remains. Fine then, what do you need me to help with?”
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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