Heroine Netori-Chapter 57

"No, why are you here?" Caught off guard by Lee Hyun-ah's sudden visit, I was bewildered but couldn't just leave her standing at the door, so I let her in.

"Uncle! Are you feeling okay? I was worried, so I came to see you. Hehe."

With that, Lee Hyun-ah greeted me with a bright smile, holding a pot of soup. It seemed she came to visit me while I was sick, an utterly unexpected identity.

'But is it just me or does she look pretty? Was she always this charming?'

In my memory, Lee Hyun-ah always dressed boyishly and conservatively, but for some reason, today she was wearing something incredibly feminine. It was so eye-catching that it was hard to look away. Plus...

'I never thought I’d see a Pie Slash in real life...'

She was flaunting her assets, which were usually well concealed. Her already ample chest was emphasized by the straps of her bag, doubling its allure. I felt an itching in my hands, wanting to touch them immediately.

"Thanks for worrying about me. Is this soup? How can I ever thank you?"

"Hehe, no need to thank me... We’re comrades, after all! We should help each other out!"

Lee Hyun-ah said this and struck a fighting pose with her hands together, which naturally pressed her chest together, creating a rather large cleavage. This is... quite the stimulation for the morning, isn’t it? Whether she realized how she looked or not, Lee Hyun-ah just grinned and handed me the soup.

"Can you wait just a moment? I'll buy you a coffee as a thank you."

"Can't I come in?"

"No, you can't. Just wait here."

-Click-

She wants to come into my room now? Absolutely not. Even I can see it's a mess, and if Lee Hyun-ah saw this state, any respect she had would fly right out the window. It would be a shame to blow the rapport we’ve built. After hurriedly storing the soup in the fridge, I put on a cap and a coat, then opened the door.

"Shall we go then?"

"Yep! But you look healthy? Are you all better now?"

"There's actually something I've been meaning to tell you about that. I'll tell you on the way."

"Yep! Hehe."

"But how did you find my house?"

"You told me where it was, so I came."

Huh? Did I? I mean, I might have mentioned the area, but I don’t think I gave her my exact address... It feels like a long time ago, and I’m not too clear on it.

"How else could I have found you?"

"That makes sense. I must have been mistaken."

If you say so, then it must be true. Maybe I'm just being paranoid. Maybe it's because of Cecilia that I've gotten so suspicious. Yeah, how could she have found me if I hadn’t told her?

****

"Whaaat? You awakened again? That’s huge...!"

"Shh! Quiet. It'll be a pain if this gets around."

"Oh! Right, right. Shush!"

I made up a story about reawakening to deceive Lee Hyun-ah. I told her that after drinking one night, I suddenly reawakened and that I was dealing with some unknown pain as I adjusted.

"Did you get a new skill then?"

"Yeah. One related to combat."

"Wow!"

Lee Hyun-ah looked even happier than I was, genuinely delighted for me. It was touching to see her treat my news as if it were her own.

"That’s why I’m planning to go to a dungeon this week to test out my abilities. Want to come?"

"What? Were you planning to go alone?"

"No, no, I was just beating around the bush. You know I don’t know how to make reservations and stuff."

"Hehe... That's true. You really can’t do anything without me! I’ll handle it!"

Embarrassingly, it's true. I always leave this stuff to Lee Hyun-ah; I really don’t know how.

"So, shall we just go today?"

"Today...? I'm fine with it. But what about your gear?"

"I always keep it in the car, so no worries!"

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.

Ah, right. She has a car, even if it’s small. Lee Hyun-ah might look young, but she’s actually way ahead of me in the hunter’s world.

"Can you make the reservation then?"

"Yep! Just trust me."

"Thanks. I’ll buy you dinner after."

"Really?"

Lee Hyun-ah perked up at the mention of food. She even started humming happily, excited by the prospect.

"Reservation done!"

"What? Already? How are you so fast?"

"There are ways. Teehee! I booked us for 3 PM at DD-138."

"DD-138? That’s the Orc dungeon?"

"Wrong! That's DD-125. DD-138 is the Lizardman dungeon. Really! Don’t you know anything?"

"I really can’t remember these things. Hyun-ah, I’m just going to trust you on this."

"...Yes, yes! Just trust me!"

****

"But what kind of skill did you get? I won't tell anyone. Can you tell me?"

"I don't know exactly yet. I think I need to try it out on some monsters to understand it fully, but if I had to say, it's an eye-related skill."

As we drove to the dungeon, Lee Hyun-ah cautiously asked. She probably thought I would keep it a secret, but I had no intention of doing so. It was a piece of information I needed to reveal sooner or later to explain my sudden growth in combat skills.

"Eyes?"

"Yeah. Think of it like it’s for spotting weaknesses."

"Wow! Isn't that amazing? Uncle, you can't remember stuff like that!"

What? Was that the amazing part?! Yeah, I guess you’re right... It's true I learned it the hard way by getting it wrong so often that this kind of reaction was inevitable.

"Hey, I did end up memorizing it, eventually."

"But every time we go to a different dungeon, you have to memorize new stuff. Are you going to get hit every time you forget?"

"Well... not exactly..."

"Hehe. Just kidding! Lighten up! It won’t be like that anymore!"

It’s always up and down with you...! Lee Hyun-ah laughed so hard she had to hold her stomach, and as if that wasn't enough, she playfully slapped my thigh. Really, I wish she’d focus on driving... It’s definitely not because I’m upset or anything.

But the physical contact today is a bit much. Starting from the cafe, she's been subtly touching my arm, trying to link arms, or pressing her chest against me... It’s pretty forward. What happened to personal space? I can't recall us ever being this close, and it seems odd. Now that I think about it, she was like this during our chat yesterday too. It’s a bit suspicious...

Daughter, your dad might be developing an overactive imagination because of this. What am I supposed to do now?

****

Regardless of what Lee Hyun-ah does, I decided not to worry about it for now. The important thing at the moment is to test out ‘Observation.’ I got it before entering the romance fantasy world, but this was the first time I'd use it against monsters. It was time to see how different it is when used on people.

"Hyun-ah, don't intervene until I give you a signal. Got it?"

"I’m worried... but okay, I’ll trust you!"

I used to hunt in sync with her, but today I planned to try it alone. I needed to see how much I've improved.

Just then, two Lizardmen, looking like scouts, appeared before us. Perfect for a test.

[Observation]

As I activated the skill, I felt mana drain from me. A slight feeling of powerlessness came over me as a translucent window appeared next to the Lizardmen.

[Weakness: Left flank (injured)] [Weakness: Right instep (injured)]

'!!!'

Insane, these aren't just any weaknesses! Instead of general weaknesses known to everyone, individual-specific weaknesses were displayed. It was far more useful than I had anticipated.

Confident now, I charged at them. Taking advantage of their confusion from my sudden attack, I executed my favorite 'dazzling combo' before slicing at the one with the vulnerable flank.

The creature screamed in agony.

The effectiveness of ‘Observation’ was beyond my expectations. The weak spots glowed, making them easy targets. It felt like taking an exam with an answer sheet, the hunt was ridiculously easy.

The potency of ‘Observation’ didn’t stop there. When one Lizardman fell, its enraged comrade lunged at me with a spear, but its trajectory appeared holographically in front of me. I effortlessly dodged the attack, grabbed my sword in reverse grip, and stomped on its injured instep.

Subduing the writhing, disarmed creature was as easy as eating cake.

"Phew..."

In moments, I had taken down two Lizardmen. The speed of the hunt was incomparable to before. And the mana consumption from ‘Observation’? It was so minimal that it hardly seemed worth worrying about, a stark contrast to its use on humans.

"Haha... That was truly epic."

There was no need for healing or purification spells; I didn’t even get a chance to use them. At this rate, I could clear dungeons on my own without Lee Hyun-ah.

"Hyun-ah, did you see that? It was incredible..."

Huh? But Lee Hyun-ah’s expression was bizarre. She was smiling with her mouth, but her eyes told a different story. Her eyes darted around as if she were anxious.

What’s with her? It’s kinda creepy...