Was Happy Being a Despised F-Rank Healer, You Know? - Chapter 174

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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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18. Who Opens Their Eyes (13)

It was before the play began.
Isang Hee met the man near the Academy Exterior Wall.
‘The Unnamed Guild, they called it.’
Despite the hour when no outsiders should have entered, one of their members was there.
Narin Academy’s security couldn’t possibly be this lax. Which meant that whoever had penetrated such defenses earned her trust all the more.
Isang Hee studied the man.
An ordinary-looking fellow. A neat coat, a face she might’ve passed on the street a dozen times. If someone said he was a temporary staff member stationed at the Academy, it would fit perfectly.
“The item?”
“Here.”
The man answered curtly and offered a flat, elongated case.
She took it and opened it. Inside, cradled in a hollow recess, lay a small object, perfectly placed.
A transparent sphere, its diameter about two finger-joints, its surface smooth as glass.
“This is really that precious Healing Orb?”
The Healing Orb was an illegal item.
It was said to be extracted from the life force of one of the few Healers and crafted in secretive ways—and the process was, regardless of what else was true, undoubtedly cruel.
Those who made them illegally couldn’t produce many, and since simply enslaving one Healer was far more efficient than crafting these, the orbs had become almost obsolete.
Acquiring one would have required serious money.
Yet these people simply offered to provide one.
‘For a full month, even.’
After that, she’d have to pay, but that wouldn’t be a problem.
She planned to use it only for emergencies while claiming she had some healing ability; she had no intention of revealing it as her main power.
‘I’ll just say it’s a limited Heal Skill.’
Isang Hee didn’t know.
The moment she used it, Narin would be crawling with seasoned High-rank Hunters who could recognize this ability’s true nature.
“Pretty…”
Inside the sphere, countless thin threads of light twisted together. There were no particular decorations, no external power source, yet the orb itself radiated a beautiful shimmer.
It was small enough that simply holding it would make it look like an attractive ornament.
“We don’t have time—admiration can wait.”
“Right, how do I use it?”
“Hold it in your hand. Channel your Magical Power above a certain threshold, and it will automatically release the healing component.”
Isang Hee touched the sphere lightly with her fingertip.
In that instant, the light threads inside shuddered once, then fell still—as though they had read her.
“It’s attuned now, so it will only respond to your Magical Power.”
“It’s mine.”
“Yes.”
The outsider responded with a smile tinged with amusement at her childish display of possessiveness, yet he affirmed her words.
“Temporarily, it should be able to substitute for the level of healing an F-rank Healer can produce.”
Precisely because its capacity was limited to that alone was it an obsolete item.
His quiet murmur didn’t reach Isang Hee’s ears.
If she played it well, the audience would remember, and she’d make an impressive showing for Yuhan Seong.
Isang Hee smiled brightly, removed the Healing Orb from its case, and gripped it in her palm. She planned to keep it in her pocket and use it when the moment came.
“Discard the case.”
“Of course. Now, the second item.”
The man produced a second object.
It was a ring.
An ordinary-looking silver ring.
Simple and clean in design, so unremarkable she could wear it without drawing notice. Yet Isang Hee already knew what it was, so she accepted it with utmost care.
“Is it really true I can control people however I want with this?”
“Of course. Long-term control is difficult, but five minutes is easily sufficient for a kidnapping.”
A flicker of something sinister crossed the man’s face before vanishing.
Isang Hee didn’t see it; her eyes were fixed intently on the ring.
“How does it work?”
“It responds to Magical Power as well.”
Items of this type, etched to respond only to a specific person’s Magical Power, were rarely used within the Guild itself.
If such a Magical Tool were ever discovered, they could trace the power and quickly identify the culprit.
High-rank Hunters wouldn’t even need that much investigation.
These items were too easy to expose, which was why they’d fallen out of use—and this young girl knew none of this.
‘No matter. If we can secure that famous Jin Hali.’
It figured that flies would swarm to a Healer gaining fame outside and wandering about so openly.
That little Healer brought it all on herself.
Concealing such thoughts, the man continued quietly and swiftly.
“Inject Magical Power, and microscopic needles protrude from the ring’s outer surface. Prick them, and the compound injects. It doesn’t render the target completely unconscious—it strips away reason. They become a living puppet.”
“A puppet… I like that.”
Wasn’t that precisely the fate an F-rank deserved?
Isang Hee thought that no day since enrolling at Narin had been happier than this.
“Once in that state, any command will be obeyed. I trust you understand the rest?”
“Yes—sneak out of the stage, meet you, and flee Narin as instructed.”
Isang Hee slipped the ring onto her finger.
Today was a fateful day, so she’d wear it on her ring finger.
“It won’t leave any trace, right?”
“Once the command is executed, the compound naturally breaks down. No trace remains.”
At least not externally, anyway.
It would certainly leave a signature on any Magical Tool examination.
He omitted that detail from his answer as Isang Hee caressed the ring.
There was a scene in the play where Yeon Bong-i faints on stage. It was played for laughs, but that moment would serve perfectly.
Once it became known that Jin Hali had gone to this man of her own will and fled the Academy…
‘Expulsion.’
Evidence of collusion with an Illegal Organization and conspiracy.
And beyond that.
Yuhan Seong would never see Jin Hali again.
An F-rank Healer was worth less than this Healing Orb alone, no matter how skilled at brewing potions—she’d be nothing in an illegal Guild like this.
Isang Hee was certain of it.
“Excellent.”
The man nodded and was turning to leave when—
“Oh, there’s nothing else?”
The man paused.
Then, with no reluctance but simply a matter-of-fact tone, he spoke.
“There is one thing I could offer as a bonus, though I’m unsure if you’ll have use for it.”
Despite the flatness of his voice, mischief glinted in his eyes.
“What is it?”
He produced a small cellophane pouch. Inside the transparent bag lay several yellow candies.
At first glance, they looked like lemon drops.
“Amnesia Candy. The concentration is very low, so it’s harmless enough—more of a novelty toy than anything.”
“What does it make you forget, and for how long?”
“Its effect is peculiar. For about an hour after consumption, your most cherished memory becomes hazy.”
“Your most cherished memory? That’s too broad a category.”
“Depending on how you use it, there’s nothing quite so entertaining. Care to try it?”
Isang Hee considered, then picked up about ten.
And she smiled slowly.
A delicious thought had occurred to her.
“Actually, now feels like the perfect time to use them.”
“You’re someone I can see eye to eye with, clearly.”
Heh heh, laughing, Isang Hee thought.
It didn’t matter who.
Anyone who cherished and protected Jin Hali—anyone except Yuhan Seong—should eat this candy, humiliate themselves on stage, and suffer.
If it happened to be someone performing with her, well, Isang Hee could demonstrate her composure handling the situation, impressing Yuhan Seong in the process.
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
Neither of them noticed that the keenest assassins and formidable support-class Hunters were focusing their gaze on them.
The outsider and Isang Hee exchanged cursory goodbyes and parted ways.
***
And now.
Isang Hee was savoring the most minor event among all her plans.
‘I’d love to laugh outright, but I can’t—what a shame.’
Isang Hee watched Lee Si-hyeon, who was usually so straightforward and cheerful that she rarely panicked, drained completely pale.
“W-what do I do? I seriously can’t remember anything!”
“Amnesia Candy? Who puts that kind of thing here?”
“Can’t you remember it again?”
“Ugh, I can read it and it makes sense, but when I try to recite it without looking, my tongue won’t move!”
Was that what the effect was?
She’d been told it simply made memories hazy for an hour, after all.
But since this was an even more satisfying scene, Isang Hee let it pass.
That was her first mistake.

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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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