ISAELD 02

Chapter 2

The Perfect Caregiver (１)

Was there any reason for a dream revisiting life’s regrets to include an event different from the past?

A profound sense of dissonance welled up within him.

That was only natural; Jung-woo’s aptitude had never been such a bizarre ability.

‘It was Decent Spearman.’

D-Rank aptitude: Decent Spearman.

It was an aptitude that granted advantages in all spear-related actions, and through rigorous training, he had developed it into ‘C-Rank Veteran Spearman.’

But Perfect Caregiver?

That alone was strange enough, but the grade inscribed next to it was even more bizarre.

‘L? Did such a grade even exist?’

He had served as an exploration team leader at a mid-sized company, yet he had never heard or seen of such a grade existing within hunter aptitudes.

As far as Jung-woo knew, the grades fundamentally ranged from F to A. Beyond that, individuals exceeding the standard spectrum were simply reclassified under the S-Rank criterion, and that was the end of it.

Did this error occur because it was a dream?

He furrowed his brow absentmindedly in thought.

“Daddy, do you have to go to work?”

“…Ah.”

Se-gi clutched tightly onto Jung-woo’s sleeve.

The bright smile that had been blooming on her face moments ago had already reverted to anxiety.

Startled, Jung-woo shook his head hastily and spoke.

“No. Daddy isn’t going to work today. I was just thinking about what we should play together.”

“Really…?”

“Of course, really.”

Only then did Se-gi relax, though she still couldn’t bring herself to release her grip on his sleeve.

A trace of suspicion lingered in her eyes.

“Lying is bad…!”

In that moment, Jung-woo realized.

Se-gi was far more perceptive than he had thought.

She was highly adept at reading adults’ moods; she had simply feigned maturity without showing it, all to avoid burdening her parent.

The implicit message in Se-gi’s gaze—since she had already said it, he had to keep his promise—stirred a profound sense of guilt within Jung-woo.

Thus, he smiled to reassure her.

Deciding to focus entirely on Se-gi right in front of him, regardless of everything else, he spoke.

“Should we eat first?”

“Yeah!”

Simultaneously, he thought to himself.

‘A dream…’

Is it?

Everything was far too vivid to think of it as such, and lacking the omnipotence typical of a lucid dream, his doubts only deepened.

It did not take long for that doubt to morph into conviction.

Around the time lunch passed that day, Jung-woo was certain.

‘This isn’t a dream.’

This could not be called a dream.

After all, if this were truly a dream, he would never have recalled the studio apartment’s trivial defects, the stains etched into the walls, or the trending news of that time—details even Jung-woo himself had forgotten—using the information present here.

Beyond that, time would not maintain such a continuous, seamless flow.

But that was not all.

‘Setting aside the vividness of my senses, a dream cannot manifest information I do not possess.’

“Look at this! My teacher taught me how to make it!”

“Is that a crane?”

“Yeah! I can make this, and a teddy bear~ and a turtle~ and a frog too~”

Se-gi put on an origami performance.

She wanted to show off what she had learned so badly that she had been tirelessly producing all sorts of creations for an hour now, yet Jung-woo had no idea how to make any of them.

Information he did not possess was being outputted.

Therefore, wasn’t there only one conclusion to draw?

‘Time has rewound.’

It was in that moment.

“Here! This is a present for Daddy!”

“It’s a teddy bear.”

“Yeah! Daddy bear! And this is a baby bear!”

Receiving two teddy bear heads neatly folded from blue origami paper, Jung-woo felt a sense of déjà vu.

‘Parents’ Day…’

It would be about two years from now.

He had a memory of receiving a carnation Se-gi had folded as a Parents’ Day gift from kindergarten.

The child hadn’t pinned it on him herself.

Exploration had continued until dawn that day as well, so when Jung-woo returned home, he found Se-gi fast asleep, clutching the carnation tightly in her small hand.

He recalled how she had been so delighted, finally pinning the carnation on him the next morning and saying thank you, and how Se-gi had giggled ‘hehe’ while still pouting her lips.

At the time, he had thought she was just embarrassed, but looking back now, he wasn’t so sure.

‘Maybe she was disappointed she couldn’t pin it on me herself.’

The emotion, suppressed deep within him, surged up once more.

Simultaneously, he faced reality.

‘If…’

If all of this was real.

‘…I can fix this.’

Spend more time with the child.

Look after the child’s world.

He might actually be able to protect her properly.

The moment that fervent desire surged within him, the reason behind this phenomenon no longer mattered to Jung-woo.

Jung-woo carefully cradled the paper bears to his chest.

He felt a lump in his throat.

“Thank you. Since it’s a gift from Se-gi, Daddy will treasure it forever.”

“Hehe!”

If this was truly an opportunity, he would not head in the wrong direction this time.

He had to fix everything, no matter what.

It was the moment he made that resolve.

Ttiring!

【”Children need praise!” You are validating the child’s achievements! One Praise Sticker has been distributed! [Great Caregiver (2/10)] Collect stickers to unlock skills!】

The familiar notification popped up.

Jung-woo’s eyes narrowed.

‘So, what exactly is this?’

It was an aptitude whose true nature he could not fathom.

December 31, 1999. The dimensional portals that suddenly appeared and spewed out monsters were designated as gates.

Those who awakened supernatural abilities through exposure to the gates’ mana and used them to hunt magical beasts were called hunters.

These were concepts known to anyone living in this era.

Among them, when it came to matters regarding hunters, Jung-woo certainly knew more than most.

‘You obtain a game-like interface. Based on the aptitude inscribed within it, you are assigned a role.’

The mechanics of a hunter closely resembled those of a game character.

First, a class granted in the form of an ‘aptitude’; ‘skills’ acquired through quests assigned to each class; and finally, ranks that could be raised by accumulating proficiency.

It was an intuitive system, making it easy to understand.

Delving into the specifics would reveal a multitude of data-driven details, but that was not important right now.

There was only one thing that baffled Jung-woo.

‘A parenting aptitude…’

His head tilted in sheer bewilderment.

While it was unheard of for anyone to rewind time and awaken anew, wasn’t it even stranger for his original aptitude to have changed?

Was it simply a side effect of this time travel?

Or did the aptitude obtained through awakening possess randomness to begin with?

He had no way of knowing.

Even setting that aside, it was still perplexing.

‘A trait that helps me take better care of the child?’

While it was true that awakening brought about all sorts of bizarre traits beyond combat, wasn’t this taking it a bit too far?

‘What kind of skills would even come out of this?’

Lullaby tone correction?

Cooking skills tailored to a child’s palate?

Jung-woo’s impoverished imagination could only conjure up such things.

They would certainly be useful, but whether this warranted a hunter’s awakening was highly questionable.

He spent the day in this ambiguous state.

Meanwhile, the quests were being continuously completed.

【”It’s more fun to play together!” You are playing with the child! One Praise Sticker has been distributed! [Great Caregiver (3/10)] Collect stickers to unlock skills!】

【”Picky eating is bad!” You are guiding the child’s eating habits! One Praise Sticker has been distributed! [Great Caregiver (4/10)] Collect stickers to unlock skills!】

【”You need to sleep enough to grow up healthy!” You are putting the child down for a nap! One Praise Sticker has been distributed! [Great Caregiver (5/10)] Collect stickers to unlock skills!】

·

·

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【”Today’s child is especially cute, isn’t she!?” You are braiding the child’s hair! (You need to improve your skills, though!) One Praise Sticker has been distributed! [Great Caregiver (9/10)] Collect stickers to unlock skills!】

By sunset, it had reached [9/10].

One more, and a skill would be unlocked.

By then, Jung-woo no longer bothered to overthink it.

‘…It’s not like I’m going to treat her well just to get a skill.’

That would be putting the cart before the horse.

What mattered to Jung-woo was making Se-gi smile, not exploiting her for personal gain.

In short, if a skill emerged that helped with that endeavor, he would gratefully use it, but there was no need to become obsessed with it.

Rather than worrying about that, he should focus on the immediate task at hand.

“Are we going to eat something yummy?”

“Yeah, we’re going to eat something yummy. Something super yummy.”

Jung-woo carried Se-gi in his arms and left the house.

The thought that had suddenly crossed his mind was, ‘How many times did I ever take her out to eat?’

He was fairly certain they had never gone out to eat before she started school.

Even after she started school, he had paid for her table when telling her to go play with her friends, but the times they had eaten a meal together could be counted on one hand.

Thus, he decided on dining out.

He would take her to a buffet.

Upon arriving at a restaurant in the bustling downtown area, Se-gi’s eyes sparkled brightly.

“Wow…!”

“There’s a ton of food, right?”

“Yeah! A ton!”

“You can eat as much as you want, Se-gi.”

“Really!?”

“Of course, really.”

She wore an expression of disbelief.

Then, with a worried look on her face, she said.

“But I can’t eat all of that…”

“Hm?”

“We shouldn’t leave food behind…”

Se-gi fell into confusion.

‘Ah, Se-gi doesn’t understand the concept of a buffet yet.’

She must have thought they couldn’t leave until she finished everything by herself.

Realizing this, Jung-woo spoke.

“You don’t have to eat it all. The people here will eat the rest of what you can’t finish.”

Only then did she let out a sigh of relief, ‘Hyuu!’

And then, they finally ate.

Jung-woo smiled bitterly as he watched Se-gi happily start eating various things.

‘She was just a kid after all.’

She had started talking unusually early, enunciating every word clearly, and her exceptional manners had always made her seem so mature.

He was beginning to realize that it had all been an illusion born from the child’s considerate nature.

It had been like that since they left the house.

Se-gi had been giggling ‘hehe’ as she fiddled with her clumsily braided hair, seemingly so fond of it.

When they rode the bus together, she sat on his lap and clung tightly to his arm; when they arrived downtown, she chattered about which of the shops she recognized.

Even now, she was busy expressing her thoughts on every new food she tried.

Perhaps the outing itself was enjoyable, as the smile hadn’t left Se-gi’s face all day.

These were things he could have learned with just a single day.

He had lived his entire life without knowing them.

What an inadequate parent he had been.

His heart twinged, but he didn’t simply wallow in melancholy.

‘I’ll just learn these things one by one, like this. Then I’ll be better than before.’

That must be what he needed to do in this life.

He reaffirmed that resolve.

And so, the meal came to an end.

Jung-woo stepped out onto the street, carrying Se-gi, who was exhausted from eating until her stomach was round and full.

Was it a good day?

Did today become a fond memory for Se-gi?

Pondering this, he asked.

“Did you have fun today?”

“Yeah…!”

“I’m glad you had fun. Should we go out to play again next time?”

“Really?”

“Really, really.”

“Really, really, really?”

Her eyes sparkled once more.

Jung-woo let out a ‘puhu’ laugh.

It was the moment he was about to give her an answer.

“Rea—”

Kugugugugugung—!

“Kyaaaaah!!!”

“!?”

The earth rumbled.

The sky rumbled.

People screamed.

A chilling sensation ran down Jung-woo’s spine.

He raised his head, only to be engulfed in horror.

‘A gate…?’

A deep crimson hue.

It was a Second gate, the type that spewed out a single powerful special entity.

It had descended upon the roof of that towering building.

A black arm shot out from within the gate.

Soon, a head reminiscent of a horned beast’s skull, an upper body with an exposed spine, a gaunt waist sprouting black fur, and legs with reverse joints protruded out.

It stood about three stories tall.

An eerie red light lingered within the eye sockets of its skull.

The monster gazed down at the bustling streets.

Waeaeeaeng—!

Sirens wailed.

The city, which had been vibrant just moments ago, was plunged into terror.

As the sirens blared, people shoved one another, compounding the chaos.

Jung-woo held Se-gi even more tightly.

He knew exactly what that entity was.

His legs trembled uncontrollably.

He felt his spine freeze.

‘An A-Rank Champion…?’

Fear.

It was a unique wavelength emitted by Champion entities of A-Rank or higher.

A creature that required at least five hunters of the same rank risking their lives to barely take down.

Why now of all times? Here?

Did this happen originally too?

No, more importantly, he needed to run.

Thoughts flooded his mind.

Yet his body refused to move.

It was then.

“Hic…”

A sobbing sound reached his ears from within his embrace.

“Hic…!”

Jung-woo lowered his head.

“Euh-ung…”

Se-gi was on the verge of tears.

After watching the people suddenly scream and flee, she had buried herself in his embrace and curled up, now glancing up at Jung-woo with tears dangling from her eyes.

In that instant, Jung-woo’s mind went ice-cold.

‘Se-gi.’

He had to save Se-gi at the very least.

This was no time to stand frozen.

Without a second thought, he whipped around.

He pulled Se-gi close, shielding her head and tucking her securely into his embrace.

He muttered to himself as he ran.

“It’s okay. It’s going to be okay. Let’s go home.”

“Uuu…”

“Daddy’s here. Daddy’s right here.”

However—

Kwaaaaang—!

The entity that had been atop the building crashed down right in front of Jung-woo’s nose with a resounding boom.

Its eyes met Jung-woo’s.

Jung-woo’s movements halted.

An overwhelming terror crashed over his entire body.

Action was executed without passing through thought.

Hwak!

Jung-woo instinctively turned his body, shielding Se-gi from the magical beast’s line of sight.

‘I have to protect Se-gi.’

His mind was entirely filled with those words, staining his consciousness black.

The thought that he could give up his life, but never hers, painted over all rational thought.

He squeezed his eyes shut.

It was in that moment.

Ttiring!

Along with the sound, surrealism sprouted.

【”You must protect the child at all costs!” You prioritized the child in the face of a life-threatening situation! One Praise Sticker has been distributed!】

【[Great Caregiver (10/10)]. Congratulations! You have collected all the Praise Stickers!】

The surrealism.

【A skill is being unlocked!】

Began to transform into reality.