Chapter 86: Around Louisville (6)

 

Black Sheath wasn’t a cure-all.

 

There were more things it couldn’t heal than it could.

 

Baek Yoorin was an unusual case.

 

It’s likely Baek Yoorin suffered severe injuries due to pure spiritual energy. In that case, Black Sheath helps the wounds heal faster.

 

But it can’t heal something like being hit by a car. Black Sheath is a talisman that reverses physical phenomena caused by spiritual occurrences. If the event was purely physical, Black Sheath can’t do much.

 

Then, what about wounds caused by a psychic throwing a car with telekinesis? The answer is yes—it can be healed.

 

However, it heals much slower than wounds inflicted by pure spiritual energy. I learned this during Jamsuni’s basement fire incident.

 

Back then, the flames and smoke in the basement were real, as I could see them with my own eyes, and despite the effects of Black Sheath, I ended up collapsing.

 

And in this case, he was injured by something tangible: “asphalt.”

 

I felt my back growing damp.

 

The bleeding wouldn’t stop.

 

This wasn’t like with Baek Yoorin.

 

Baek Yoorin was far more resilient than this child.

 

It was probably due to that invisible difference they called “level” among psychics.

 

I turned the corner of the alley.

 

And that’s when a strange sign came into view.

 

<The Maze Begins Here>

 

<Only the Prepared May Enter>

 

That was the sign for the side-dish store.

 

Strange-looking for a side-dish store sign, isn’t it?

 

But they sold real side dishes.

 

I think it was about two months after I’d moved to Louisville. Since I was responsible for Jamsuni’s meals, I realized the need for a side-dish store.

 

Waking up in the morning and preparing breakfast while getting ready for work wasn’t exactly easy. I needed a system where I could just cook rice and pull side dishes out of the fridge.

 

So, I searched for side-dish stores nearby.

 

Or rather, I searched for food stores.

 

As I was staring at the monitor, Nayu, who was beside me, made a comment.

 

“Nayu—want-to-give-advice expression.”

 

“An give-advice expression? There’s no need for that look. Just say it.”

 

When I looked at Nayu, she picked up a paper and pen beside her. She started sketching something with swift strokes.

 

“Nayu—fancy sketch!”

 

It was indeed a fancy sketch.

 

…Same as a fancy sketch by an eight-year-old.

 

“W-What’s this?”

 

“Nayu—recommended shop!”

 

Upon closer inspection, it was a map.

 

A map pointing to a specific shop.

 

After I finally deciphered the map, Nayu gave an additional explanation.

 

“Nayu—danger-warning statement.”

 

“This shop is dangerous?”

 

Nayu nodded.

 

Why on earth would this kid recommend a dangerous shop to me? Back then, I wasn’t close to Nayu and had a bit of a guard up.

 

“Why recommend a dangerous place…?”

 

But Nayu just silently stared at my wallet.

 

“Wait, is this place... cheap?”

 

Nayu nodded enthusiastically!

 

“I can’t resist a good deal.” With those words, I headed to the maze-like shop recommended by Nayu without a moment’s hesitation. And I became a regular there.

 

<The Maze Begins Here>

 

<Only the Prepared May Enter>

 

The neon sign displayed this message, but there wasn’t much to prepare for. All I had to do was walk down the hall after opening the door, and the shop appeared right away.

 

“Master, the maze of flowerbeds has been cleared.”

 

“The speed of breaking through… It must be that kid again…”

 

A voice came as I was opening the door.

 

As soon as I opened it, I was greeted by an endless array of potted plants.

 

“Miss Miro!”

 

“Who are you calling Miss?”

 

A plump woman in her thirties with glasses.

 

Miro yelled in annoyance.

 

I quickly corrected myself.

 

“Miro, my dear noona, I need a favor.”

 

I set down Booster Man Gujeon, who I had been carrying on my back.

 

“Please, treat this child.”

 

“Oh.”

 

With all the hospitals closed,

 

This was the only place where I could save this child.

 

Technically speaking, Miro’s shop wasn’t quite a side-dish store. If anything, it would be better described as a vegan grocery store.

 

The first time I entered Miro’s shop, she welcomed me with a face that had absolutely no trace of customer service spirit.

 

“Congratulations on passing the trial. Was the maze complex enough for you?”

 

“Maze? Was there one?”

 

I thought I heard a crackling sound.

 

Did I say something wrong?

 

Miro muttered, looking slightly irritated.

 

“Hoo, you’re a bold one. Tell me what you desire.”

 

What do I desire?

 

Obviously, side dishes.

 

Specifically, the kinds I was too lazy to make myself, like kimchi and pickles.

 

“Could I perhaps see some kimchi and pickles?”

 

“…Kimchi? Pickles? That’s all?”

 

Miro looked blankly for a moment.

 

Then a young woman, who looked like a part-timer, chimed in.

 

“Did you really come here just for kimchi and pickles? Not for something like raw flower blooms, amaranth, or World Tree elixir?”

 

“Y-yes, yes.”

 

What the heck is World Tree elixir?

 

Miro sold all kinds of vegetables and fruits from around the world. She even made kimchi, pickles, and jams from them.

 

And they were all at pretty reasonable prices.

 

They even tasted great.

 

Every time I tried to haggle, she’d go, “Eh, eh, eh! Are they really sold for that price outside?” and ended up giving me a discount.

 

And so, this place became my go-to side-dish store.

 

Over time, I learned that this wasn’t just a side-dish store. The side-dishes were a side gig; the main business was probably the “plants.” Some of those plants might even skirt the law.

 

Maybe the side-dish shop was just a front.

 

Like how some people sell fried chicken to cover for other businesses.

 

But I didn’t care.

 

I wasn’t exactly a stickler for the law.

 

What mattered was that this Miro side-dish shop sold medicinal herbs that could save lives. I’d seen a few customers come in bloodied and leave fully healed a few times.

 

Back to the present.

 

Miro examined the boy and spoke. With the way she was checking him, she almost seemed like she’d been a doctor or nurse in the past.

 

“You want to heal this child? Hmm, the wound is deep. On top of that, he’s exhausted almost all his spiritual energy, so his natural healing rate is significantly reduced. We’ll need both the Hon-Sali Flower and the Sal-Or Flower.”

 

The Hon-Sali Flower and the Sal-Or Flower?

 

I didn’t know what they were, but they sounded expensive.

 

Miro added,

 

“These kinds of flowers can’t be bought with money. So, I require people to pay their value through a trial in my maze. But for a genius like you, who pulled off stunts in the DMZ, my maze won’t be much of a trial, will it? Hmph.”

 

Miro’s body trembled in annoyance.

 

She muttered something under her breath.

 

“Then I’ll give you a new trial. Go pick that flower over there. It’s called the Mandragora, a mythical plant. They say it lets out a scream that curses the picker with a terrible fate.”

 

Miro continued with her ominous tone.

 

A curse that bestows fate, huh?

 

It sounds exactly like something out of a dark fantasy novel—strangely tempting.

 

Could it be that I, too, have spiritual powers?

 

Could today finally be the day I hear the voices of spirits?

 

“Fate and sin are inescapable spiritual forces. The curse of the Mandragora is no different,” Miro went on.

 

“Anyone ordinary would die the moment they pull it. Even psychics at my level suffer a decline in ability if they try. So, how far are you willing to go for this boy…?”

 

God, she talks so much.

 

By now, I’d already pulled out the Mandragora plant.

 

Of course, I didn’t hear any screams or curses.

 

“…You already pulled it? I’ve read enough of this boy’s memories to know you two aren’t particularly close. Are you really sacrificing yourself for someone like that?”

 

Miro looked at me, astonished.

 

And I was equally surprised by what had happened.

 

The boy, Gujeon, was already healed.

 

Incredible.

 

“When did you treat him?”

 

“Hmph, while you were off fetching the Mandragora. This child is a hero. A hero who saves others deserves fitting treatment.”

 

She was right.

 

I nodded in agreement.

 

Miro then added,

 

“I told you that just to mess with you. I didn’t think you’d actually pull the Mandragora without hesitation. Hmph.”

 

So she’d healed him before I even touched the plant.

 

And she kept mentioning “the maze.”

 

There must be more to it than what’s visible.

 

After taking it all in, I asked again.

 

“This kid, he’s over the worst of it, right?”

 

“Yes. He’ll probably regain his strength and wake up in an hour or two.”

 

I stood up from my seat.

 

“Well then, I’ll be on my way. Please take good care of him.”

 

“Haha, such a shy one, aren’t you?”

 

As I reached for the door, I heard her call out from behind me.

 

“Come to think of it, you’re a regular, yet I never got your name. What’s your name?”

 

“…Yoo Hajin.”

 

“Yoo Hajin. I’ll remember that name. The hero who pulled the Mandragora for a young boy. Yoo Hajin.”

 

Being a shy type, I didn’t respond to her and simply walked out. A hero? What a joke.

 

It was time to head back to Louisville.

 

By now, everything should be over.

 

Time to go listen to Jamsuni’s endless whining.

 

****

 

“Ahh, right there, right there… that’s good.”

 

I pressed down firmly on Jamsuni’s back.

 

After her episode ended, she kept whining, insisting I give her a massage because she had “suffered so much.”

 

She’s been going to school diligently these days, so I figured I could at least do this for her. Jamsuni, in middle school. There was a nice ring to that.

 

“Ahh, hiss… just a bit more, a bit gentler!”

 

As I continued pressing on Jamsuni’s back, I ended up voicing something that had been on my mind.

 

“Jamsuni, is a fundamental vow something that can never change?”

 

“A fundamental vow?”

 

Jamsuni held back a groan and responded.

 

“A person’s… huff… a person’s essence can’t be changed. Right there, a little more. If it could change, it wouldn’t be fundamental, right?”

 

She squirmed, twisting her body as she continued.

 

“But you can change the direction of a fundamental vow.”

 

“What? You can change a fundamental vow?”

 

“It’s not really changing it. To be precise, it’s flipping it. Like two sides of a coin.”

 

Jamsuni smiled as she spoke.

 

“In this world, there’s something called Yin-Yang Reversal.”

– – – The End of The Chapter – – –

 

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