Was Happy Being a Despised F-Rank Healer, You Know? - Chapter 76

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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11. For the Half-Human (2)

 

I needed to determine whether to suppress the mana or let it flow first.

 

I slowly wrote down hypotheses in my notebook.

 

If I completely blocked the mana flow, there was a possibility of a rampage occurring.

 

Then a buffer would be necessary.

 

‘What could I use as buffer material…’

 

I opened the storage cabinet and checked the small bottles one by one.

 

Dried herbs, processed bone powder, liquid refined from monster blood.

 

Among them, several were experimental potions I had made before the final dungeon.

 

I thought I’d never actually use them, but I didn’t expect them to be useful like this.

 

I took out one bottle and held it up to the light.

 

It was a liquid with a pale gray tint.

 

It was a prototype with very mild mental stabilization effects.

 

Instead, I had designed it to have almost no side effects.

 

“If I use this as a base…”

 

I muttered to myself as I calculated.

 

Mix in a little magic stone powder here, and dilute it once more to lower the absorption rate.

 

That would prevent sudden changes.

 

The effect would be slow, but that would actually be better.

 

Quite a bit of time had passed.

 

Looking out the window, I saw the snow had gotten a bit heavier.

 

I could see it accumulating white in the boarding house courtyard.

 

I stopped my hands and closed my eyes for a moment.

 

The final dungeon.

 

The sense of unease I felt in that final moment.

 

‘This isn’t the final dungeon.’

 

That judgment wasn’t wrong.

 

But officially, it was over.

 

And no one questioned it further.

 

That was even stranger.

 

Normally, an investigation team would have been assigned, calling in students one by one for questioning.

 

Especially in my case, it would have been even more so.

 

But nothing happened.

 

The school quietly declared vacation, and the students dispersed.

 

‘They covered it up from above.’

 

That was the conclusion I reached.

 

I couldn’t tell if it was the government, guilds, or someone else.

 

Either way, it was dangerous territory to dig into.

 

So I decided to keep an even lower profile.

 

Not getting deeply involved in dungeons, incidents, or among people.

 

This part-time job was an extension of that.

 

Something I could do outside dungeons, not inside them.

 

I closed the notebook and got up from my seat.

 

I washed up briefly and lay down on the bed.

 

When I turned off the light, the room was engulfed in darkness.

 

But my eyes wouldn’t close easily.

 

Gong Seo-yun’s words came back to mind.

 

“Strange.”

 

His expression when he said that.

 

It wasn’t wariness, but closer to expectation.

 

I found that expectation burdensome.

 

Expectations always make people dangerous.

 

Still, this time, I couldn’t completely turn away.

 

‘Tomorrow I need to get more materials.’

 

I closed my eyes and steadied my breathing as I thought.

 

Organizing things one by one like this made my thoughts feel a bit lighter.

 

I slowly drifted off to sleep.

 

***

 

When I opened my eyes in the morning, the air in the room felt unusually cold.

 

I only then remembered that I had barely used the heating all night.

 

When I threw off the blanket, the air touching my skin immediately woke me up.

 

I sat up and checked the window first.

 

Outside the window, quite a bit of snow had accumulated.

 

A white line had formed over the low wall of the boarding house courtyard, and the alley was also quiet, having lost its color.

 

This is always the scenery when winter vacation begins.

 

Fewer people, and sounds settle down.

 

I slowly washed my face and changed clothes.

 

I took out a thick knit sweater and a coat that came up to my neck.

 

There was a high possibility I’d have to be outside for a long time today.

 

The waste processing team had indoor work too, but the warehouse and transit areas were mostly exposed to the outside.

 

As I packed my bag, I checked the potion bottles one by one.

 

Emergency recovery potion.

 

Stamina recovery potion.

 

And two bottles of stabilization-type prototypes I had reorganized last night.

 

They weren’t complete enough to call finished yet, but they were at least at a level where they could prevent sudden deterioration.

 

I shouldered my bag and left the room.

 

From the boarding house kitchen came the smell of someone cooking ramen.

 

I thought ramen from morning was odd, but during vacation, even that was natural.

 

I quietly left through the front door without greeting anyone.

 

The sound of stepping on snow was distinct.

 

The unique silence of a day with heavy snow covered the alley.

 

There were hardly any people on the way to the bus stop.

 

I walked with my head down, organizing my thoughts.

 

Today was the day I’d meet Gong Seo-yun again.

 

Yesterday we had parted too hastily.

 

The story about his sibling, the explanation about the curse – everything had been cut off in the middle.

 

Today I needed to listen to the story more calmly.

 

The waste processing team warehouse was on the outskirts of the city.

 

It was close to areas where dungeons frequently opened, and at a distance from residential areas.

 

After getting off the bus and walking a bit, I could see a gray steel building.

 

Several people were already standing in front, smoking cigarettes.

 

“Oh, Jin Hali.”

 

A familiar face called out to me.

 

It was someone I had worked with last time too.

 

“Hello.”

 

I bowed my head lightly.

 

He glanced at my bag and smiled.

 

“You brought potions again. You really are a healer.”

 

“It’s just a habit.”

 

I answered nonchalantly.

 

When I opened the door and went inside, the distinctive smell hit my nose.

 

It was a mixture of metal, magic stones, and dried monster tissue.

 

It was difficult at first, but now I’m used to it.

 

At least it’s better than inside a dungeon.

 

I put on gloves and stood in front of the workbench.

 

Today’s workload wasn’t much.

 

Most were corpses of small monsters.

 

Low danger level, and relatively simple to dismantle.

 

That’s when I felt a familiar presence from the door.

 

I turned my head.

 

Gong Seo-yun was coming in.

 

He looked as quiet as usual today.

 

His black hair was neatly arranged, and his clothes were practical.

 

If there was any difference from yesterday, it was that the area under his eyes had gotten a bit darker.

 

“Hello.”

 

I greeted him first.

 

“…Hello.”

 

He answered briefly.

 

We were assigned to the same workbench.

 

We silently began the dismantling work.

 

For a while, only the sound of knives moving continued.

 

“What you mentioned yesterday.”

 

I was the first to speak.

 

“Your sibling’s condition, can you tell me more details?”

 

Gong Seo-yun’s hands stopped for a moment.

 

He briefly looked around.

 

The other people were focused on their own work.

 

“…Can’t keep them at home.”

 

He said in a low voice.

 

“If people notice, it becomes a problem immediately.”

 

“So that’s why you came here.”

 

I said quietly.

 

He nodded.

 

“The Processing Team tends to turn a blind eye to taking parts of corpses.”

 

I understood.

 

That’s illegal according to regulations, but it’s an area that’s overlooked in reality.

 

Especially for corpses related to curses or mutations.

 

“Is it just about solving the meal problem?”

 

I asked.

 

“No.”

 

He smiled briefly.

 

“If that were the case, I wouldn’t have gone this far.”

 

At those words, I didn’t ask further.

 

Instead, I opened my bag.

 

And took out a small bottle.

 

“This.”

 

I placed the bottle on the workbench.

 

“It’s the stabilizing potion I mentioned yesterday. It’s not complete yet though.”

 

Gong Seo-yun’s gaze fixed on the bottle.

 

“This… is it okay to use?”

 

“Not too much at once.”

 

I said clearly.

 

“While monitoring the condition, in small amounts.”

 

He hesitated for a moment, then picked up the bottle.

 

His hand trembled just a little.

 

“Thank you.”

 

He said.

 

Those words weren’t light.

 

I shook my head.

 

“It’s not time to be thankful yet.”

 

The work continued after that.

 

But the atmosphere had changed from yesterday.

 

While we both conserved our words, it felt closer than before.

 

When lunchtime came, we took a break.

 

We sat on the bench next to the warehouse.

 

Cold air entered deep into my lungs.

 

“Will you keep working here during vacation?”

 

Gong Seo-yun asked.

 

“Probably.”

 

I answered.

 

“It’s safer than going into dungeons.”

 

He smiled briefly at those words.

 

“That sounds very much like Hali.”

 

“What do you mean.”

 

“You seem like someone who calculates danger rather than avoiding it.”

 

I didn’t answer.

 

I neither denied nor affirmed it.

 

That was an area that didn’t need to be brought up in words.

 

Snow began to fall again.

 

This time it was a bit thicker than yesterday.

 

***

 

After hearing about Gong Seo-yun’s sibling, that dungeon kept lingering in my mind.

 

The place where that child was first cursed.

 

More precisely, it was a place where they were swallowed, which would be a more accurate expression.

 

“That dungeon, is it still there?”

 

I asked while locking the warehouse door after finishing work.

 

Gong Seo-yun nodded.

 

“It hasn’t been completely cleared. It’s been left alone because its grade is ambiguous.”

 

At those words, I began calculating in my mind.

 

A dungeon that hasn’t been completely purified.

 

The possibility that curses remain.

 

And the fact that the half-human, half-monster state is being maintained.

 

“Then we should be able to go in and take a look.”

 

I said calmly.

 

Gong Seo-yun looked straight at me.

 

“…It’s dangerous.”

 

“I know.”

 

I nodded my head.

 

“But if we don’t look at the cause, there’s no solution either.”

 

He fell silent for a moment.

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