The Returnee Wants to Live Comfortably

The Girl with Hope

A child abuse incident occurred at a playground in an apartment complex.

There were two victims, and the perpetrator was an elementary school teacher and a former Hunter.

The perpetrator was called a scumbag, as he had relentlessly bullied one child in his class.
Comments on the article showed a lot of sympathy for the children.

ㄴPoor kids.
ㄴWhat crime did they commit to deserve that?
ㄴThat bastard was a teacher?
ㄴHow does someone like that become a teacher with that kind of character?
ㄴSo the abuse happened just because they're Mutamit?
ㄴTo the comment above, unfortunately, this still happens often these days.
ㄴSome among the top-ranking Hunters are Mutamit too!
ㄴYou guys, don't be surprised. The kid who got it at the playground and the one bullied at school are the same person.
ㄴWhat a psycho. Don't ever let him out of prison.

The perpetrator's name was Choi Suyong.

The victims were Kang Ah-rin and Ma Seongjin.

Among them, Kang Ah-rin was the child who had been bullied even outside the playground incident.

Because of this, civic organizations raised their voices loudly.

And since the victim was a Mutamit, sensitive eyes toward discrimination were renewed by this case.

ㄴAh-rin was living with her grandparents after losing both parents.
ㄴBut you bullied a child like that? And more than once?
ㄴTurns out Ah-rin's parents died in the line of duty as Hunters.
ㄴAnd that bastard Choi Suyong had a connection with Ah-rin's parents. Five years ago, he pinned the blame on them for monopolizing a gate's resources.

When Choi Suyong's motives for bullying Kang Ah-rin were revealed, voices of anger only grew louder.

The resource monopolization case from five years ago.

The real culprit was not Ah-rin's parents, but Choi Suyong, and there was clear evidence.

[You'll need to die just like your mom and dad to finally get it, right?]
[Do you know how stupid your mom and dad were?]
[They trusted me, got screwed over—it all happened at the gate, so there were no witnesses.]

Choi Suyong ended up confessing himself at the playground.

Thanks to the recording function on the security bracelets worn by the victimized children, the truth of the case became clear.

'Of course, the part where I let loose a string of curses at Choi Suyong was naturally edited out.'

Not only child abuse, but also false testimony that turned an innocent couple into criminals five years ago and posthumous insult.

Choi Suyong was imprisoned without a shred of sympathy amid tremendous public outrage.

[The recent child injury incident at a playground.]
[There's a surge in opinions that say, 'No matter how awakened, kids are still kids.']
[Citizens are demanding a harsher sentence.]

Ma Seongjin's family was eating breakfast in front of the TV.

His mother, Han Suyeon, was feeding her daughter Ma Yunhee and commented, watching the news.

"We really had a close call."

"Yeah, we did."

Her husband, Ma Jun-sang, reacted the same way.

At the time of the incident, both parents were out for work, so they found out about the situation late.

Fortunately, when they rushed home, Seongjin was safe and the criminal was being taken away.

"You don't think that criminal will escape from prison and come after our kid again, do you?"

"Why think something so ominous?"

"It's just, you know in dramas, prisons always get broken into or something."

At his wife's wild idea, Ma Jun-sang let out a laugh.

"Haha! I think you're really addicted to those kinds of shows."

"Says the guy who gets all dopey when he sees women celebrities."

"So, which actress do you like this time? Is he better looking than me?"

"Of course! No question about it."

"Tsk."

Ma Jun-sang clicked his tongue at his wife's bold answer.

He felt a bit hurt at how Han Suyeon replied without any hesitation.

At that moment, footage of suspect Choi Suyong being taken in was shown on TV.

"Even if he did escape, he couldn't do anything in that state, just look at him."

Choi Suyong's arms and legs had been burnt to charcoal.

He couldn't clench a fist or walk anymore—his pitiful state was evident.

With his hands and feet like that, he couldn't even wield mana properly.

"But you know what I'm really curious about? That mysterious Awakener who supposedly saved Seongjin and Ah-rin."

There was only Seongjin's testimony about someone suddenly appearing and saving them.

No one knew where he came from—he just vanished like the wind, not unlike Batman.

The couple wanted to at least thank him, but after a short effort to find out who he was... they gave up.

"I really am curious."

Ma Jun-sang kept stealing glances at his son, Ma Seongjin.

Even though his son gave the report, something suspicious seemed to surround him.

Whoever that mysterious Awakener was, he had burned off Choi Suyong's limbs while he was alive.

Seongjin surely saw it up close, and yet showed no sign of trauma.

"Can I have more soup?"

It was only a few days ago, but Seongjin calmly asked for more soybean paste soup.

"With potatoes and tofu, please."

The couple was already guessing who had burned Choi Suyong.

So to the public, they played it off as a mysterious Awakener still being searched for, hoping people would just let it go.

****

When I came to class, I recalled my parents' expressions at breakfast.

Both had looked at me as if they were suspicious.

'Did they realize I'm not just any ordinary kid?'

When I thought about it, it made sense.

Watching a person's hands burn black would traumatize any child, but they hadn't grilled me about it.

I couldn't tell if it was fear or just parental instinct to cover up.

Still, I was glad there was no sign of hostility toward me.

"Good morning, Seongjin."

Ah-rin greeted me the moment she entered class.

The beast ears that were always drooping now stood upright, and her gaze was much livelier.

She didn't look like the bullied child anymore.

"Weren't you taking some time off?"

I was surprised that Ah-rin had come to school.

Considering the aftereffects of what Choi Suyong had done, she should've taken a few days off.

"I'm not hurt anymore! See? All better."

Ah-rin brightly rolled up her long sleeves and showed her bare arm.
Amazingly, the wounds from before were gone.

Mentally and physically, she showed no sign of having gone through such a traumatic ordeal.

"What about the electric shock?"

"I'm totally fine. After sleeping in all weekend, my body felt super light."

She'd been hit by the spark of a B-rank Hunter.

Even with power control, an elementary student should have lingering effects.

That she recovered over a single weekend was astonishing.

'Mutamit or not, their internal structure is basically human in most cases.'

She had remarkable healing and bone strength.

Even among extraordinary Mutamit, her body was special.

People used to scoff at her dreams, but their judgment was dead wrong.

Without any obstacles, Ah-rin might someday become one of Korea's top Hunters.

"Oh!? We have Korean class today?"

Ah-rin was suddenly startled looking at the class schedule.

It seemed she left her book at home.

"Anyone I can borrow a book from?"

"Nope."

And it was first period, so there was no time borrow from someone else.

Also, Ah-rin had no friends in other classes.

"Want to share mine?"

"Okay..."

Left with no choice, I moved my desk next to hers.

It was still sad that I was the only friend she could sit with for class.

Some kids even smirked at us moving our desks together.

As they started teasing us with singsong voices, I glared at them fiercely.

"Eek!"

Back in Mewzealand, I sometimes scared off monsters with just a look out of annoyance.

Turning away a bunch of kids was nothing compared to that.

"Seongjin, I have something I want to say."

The moment I opened my book, Ah-rin looked at me with a pitiful face.

"I'm going to have to say goodbye to you soon."

Her sudden declaration surprised me.

I could tell from her voice and expression that she wasn't joking.

When I asked why, Ah-rin replied in a trembling voice.

"My grandma and grandpa said we can't stay here anymore... They're going to take me back to our hometown."

Not long ago, Ah-rin's family got their assets back thanks to that incident.

They were finally able to recover what that bastard stole from them.

But the elderly guardians still weren't reassured.

― Our only granddaughter could've been in real danger, again.
― How many times has it been now?

When the two seniors arrived at the scene, they'd hugged Ah-rin tightly.
She had almost died, after all.

"There are lots of grandma and grandpa's friends in our hometown. They've all been friends since childhood."

Seems some old, reliable friends were waiting for them.

Now that the family's name was cleared, the friends instantly stepped up to help.

"Even now, grandma and grandpa didn't want me coming to school... They said something might happen at school too."

Honestly, it wasn't a bad decision.

I could come to school unscathed, but Ah-rin was unlikely to be fine both physically and mentally.

Even if her body healed, she could have trauma.

"But I convinced them to let me attend school for just one week."

She was even bullied by schoolmates.

Adding the playground incident on top, it was heartbreaking.

It wasn't unreasonable for her guardians to think of school as dangerous.

"I got a scolding for arguing, but they agreed to let me go just for a week."

Still, Ah-rin wanted to come back, even if just for a short while.

"Because I wanted to be with you, Seongjin—even if it's just a little longer."

I was her only friend.

There were still things she wanted to do and see with me before leaving.

Granting those wishes was Ah-rin's final hope.

"And I'm sorry, too. I've received so much from you, but I haven't been able to give you anything..."

She sounded like someone despondent over her helplessness; guilt seemed to urge her body and mind.

But then she smiled and went on.

"So, I've decided. I'm definitely going to become a Hunter. I'll become a Hunter and become someone worthy of you, Seongjin, and come back for you."

This wasn't just a simple dream.

It sounded more like a life's purpose than the pictures hanging on the back wall of the classroom.

"Will you wait for me till then?"

This was the moment a lonely child gained her first real goal.

Even after fifty years of a harsh life, I had no reason to look down on that touching resolve.

"Of course."

"Promise?"

Ah-rin shyly offered her pinky.

When I hooked mine with hers, her face lit up with happiness.

She looked more angelic than ever before.

"Even if I'm living elsewhere, I won't forget until the day we meet again. Can you be my friend for just this last week?"

This was the first time since my reincarnation that I saw someone determined before my eyes.

People who found their goal without losing their spirit could only be beautiful.

For the first time, I felt genuine purity, not the fake kind I'd felt in Mewzealand, and it made my heart feel at peace.

****

So Ah-rin and I spent that week together.

Even though we couldn't go on any dazzling outings, she had a great time just coming to class.

And then, the day she was to move away arrived.

I ran to Ah-rin's house and formally faced her grandparents.

― Thank you so much.
― It was all thanks to you.

The two embraced me suddenly and spoke.

I watched as the moving truck, piled with all their things, drove away.

I saw Ah-rin waving and smiling through the window—until the truck finally vanished completely.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Huh, it's sad...
Will there be a timeskip???
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】