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Kim Hajun stood in a dark alley with a brown, paper bag held in his hands. He glanced down at his root bracelet, using one of its functions to check the time. As he had confirmed earlier, it was way past closing time for the smiths. He had been invited by Pan to meet at the blacksmith’s place after work, but it seemed like something had held up the punctual smith once more. A sigh escaped from Kim Hajun’s mouth. Pan must’ve seen something special in Tafel to make him break his schedule twice in such a short amount of time.
Kim Hajun’s root bracelet flashed amber, and a cloak appeared on his body, hiding his face and suit from view. He stepped out of the alley, and a familiar voice caught his attention. His brow furrowed as he turned his head to the side and made eye contact with a pair of purple irises.
“Kim Hajun?” Tafel asked, raising an eyebrow. “What are you doing here?”
Cold sweat ran down Kim Hajun’s back. Standing behind Tafel, the leader of the Virtuous Hand, Mary, was gripping the hilt of her sword with a murderous look that’d give any police officer probable cause to put her under arrest. “You’ve got the wrong person,” Kim Hajun said, his voice creaky. He glanced at Mary’s hand, but the armored woman didn’t show any intentions of relaxing her grip. Hadn’t she beaten him enough back in Vur’s residence? Why was she still so bloodthirsty?
Tafel squinted at Kim Hajun before leaning forward to get a better look under his hood. In response, Kim Hajun pulled his hood down and angled his head towards the ground before turning around and walking away. Tafel’s eyes narrowed even further, and she grabbed Kim Hajun’s shoulder, causing him to jerk backwards. “No, I don’t think so,” the demon said and removed the man’s hood. A smirk appeared on her face. “See? I knew you were Kim Hajun.”
Kim Hajun relaxed his face and let out a sigh. “Are you looking for me for violent reasons?”
“Violence?” Tafel asked and tilted her head. “Why would I want to hurt you?” She followed Kim Hajun’s gaze, turning her head to look at Mary. The red-haired woman still looked upset about being forgotten. Tafel released Kim Hajun’s shoulder and took a step to the side. She gestured towards the cloaked man. “If beating him will make you feel better, don’t let me stop you.”
Mary’s expression darkened. “Beating him won’t make me feel better about you forgetting me.”
Kim Hajun’s shoulders relaxed; though, the action wasn’t visible from the outside.
Mary’s eyes narrowed. “Unless we beat him together.”
“What?” Kim Hajun asked, instantly regretting the moment he opened his mouth. Clearly, there was something wrong with Mary’s brain. Beating him wouldn’t bring her joy unless she did the action with Tafel. In that case…. “Why don’t I take the two of you somewhere you can slaughter as many things as you want? B-besides, Vur’s not here to heal me, so you’d only be able to beat me once.”
Tafel turned her head towards Mary. Since it was technically the demon’s fault for forgetting Mary, it was up to Mary to decide on what they’d do. The black-armored woman narrowed her eyes and slightly unsheathed her sword with her thumb before letting the blade fall back into place with a clinking sound. She repeated the action, causing chills to run down Kim Hajun’s back with every clink. “Fine,” Mary said, “but we’re not bringing Vur.”
Tafel scratched her head, and her fingers bumped against something spiky. The bat skeleton Lindyss had given her as a chaperone was still chilling in her hair, so safety wasn’t an issue if they didn’t take Vur. Although Vur would agree to come if she asked, Tafel had a feeling he’d rather be sleeping instead. “Okay,” the demon said and nodded. “We won’t bring Vur, but we have to bring back a snack for him.” She looked around before her gaze landed on a building in the distance. “We can buy some food from there.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Kim Hajun said and shook his head. “Where I’m taking you, there’ll be plenty of snacks for you to bring home to Vur.” He cleared his throat. “Do you remember the Angry Bovine Cave I told you about? It’s in a hidden location on the second floor of the tower, and clearing it will grant you a piece of equipment.”
“Oh, yeah,” Tafel said. She nodded. “I remember you saying something about that, but then you ditched us, so we climbed the tower without you.”
Mary furrowed her brow. “Is that the place with lots of cows?”
“Yes,” Kim Hajun said. “Right, as the leader of the Virtuous Hand, it’s no wonder that you’ve been there before. What did you think about it? Wouldn’t it be relaxing for you to kill those cows again?”
“I went there, but I didn’t clear it,” Mary said and shook her head.
Tafel raised an eyebrow. There was a region that Mary failed to clear? “Were the cows strong?”
Mary shrugged. “I didn’t see the cows. It smelled bad, and the floor was covered by a layer of wet poop. I made one of my minions go in, and he sank into the stuff up to his knees, so I decided to skip the reward.”
A disgusted expression appeared on Tafel’s face, and she looked at Kim Hajun with it.
Kim Hajun’s face froze. Wasn’t Tafel supposed to be a seasoned adventurer? Why was she afraid of getting dirty if it meant being rewarded in the end? “I suppose that look you’re giving me means you don’t want to go to the Angry Bovine Cave?”
Tafel crossed her arms over her chest. “Obviously. Why would you even suggest that place?”
“It’s a great place for becoming stronger,” Kim Hajun said. “There are also lots and lots of cows for Mary to take out her anger on. Don’t think of the manure layer as a detriment. Prolonged periods of fighting while standing inside of it will actually strengthen your lower legs. It’s similar to training by fighting underwater. The added resistance on your legs will naturally increase the strength of your core and increase your stamina over time.”
Tafel shook her head. “No matter how fancy your words become, you’re not going to sell me on wading through a knee-deep pool of cow poop. If you don’t want to be beaten by Mary and I, think of something else for us to do.”
This guy is the most miserable regressor I’ve ever seen