Chapter 15: A tearful farewell

With the boss room looming,
a strange tension hung among the party members.

The bandaged woman broke the silence, addressing me.

“Hey, kiddo, what’s our goal here? Say it yourself.”

Being called “kiddo” as a grown adult irked me a bit,
but causing a fuss before the boss fight would do no good.

I calmly recited what I’d been told.

“The necromancer needs to claim the boss as a new summon, so I absolutely can’t use Heal or Cleanse on it. Right?”
“Good, you get it.”

I looked up at the boss room door.

Beyond it lay a boss that had claimed dozens of awakeners’ lives.
And the woman who resembled my favorite flower, Belladonna, planned to make that boss her summon.

Since Heal or Cleanse hitting the boss would ruin the summoning,
the plan was simple: stay as far from the boss as possible and focus on buffing the party with attack boosts.

“Alright, here we go! Opening the door!”

Ku-goo-goo-goong—

The heavy stone door rumbled open, releasing a stench of decayed dust and mold.

Breathing the air felt like my lungs were rotting.
“Warmed up from the small fry? Let’s have some real fun!”

The bandaged woman shouted, unraveling the bandages on her left arm.
She clawed at her skin with long nails, drawing blood.

Splatter—

As crimson trickled down, her lips twisted into a grotesque grin.

The necromancer, who’d been conserving her strength, began chanting incomprehensible spells, waving her skull-topped staff.
A dark red magic circle etched into the floor, summoning a wraith in black armor and a skeletal giant in a red cape.

All eyes locked on one spot.

At the center of the room, atop a massive throne,
sat a decayed, unrecognizable monster.

‘…How do you fight something like that?’

Fear gripped me the moment I saw it.

Honestly, I wanted to bolt right then.

But Manwol’s elites? They weren’t scared—they looked genuinely thrilled.

…Who’s the real monster here?

“Going in.”

The hooded man vanished, reappearing behind the boss in a blink.
He spun his dagger casually, glancing at us.

“Crazy bastard, I said first hit’s mine!”

The bandaged woman laughed, leaping after him.

“Healer-nim, if things get dangerous, run to me.”

The necromancer, still sweating but staying by my side, began moving away with quiet steps.

Apparently, her summons weakened if I was too close…

In the end, I was left alone in this horrific, nauseating space, grappling with overwhelming fear.

“I’ll end this in one shot!”

The bandaged woman swung a massive sword at the boss.

BOOM—!

An explosion erupted, kicking up a huge dust cloud.

Cough, cough…

As the dust settled,
the boss’s form reappeared—completely unmoved.

…No.

There was one thing.
A subtle change only I could notice.

“…”

The boss’s gaze, previously downward, was now fixed on me.

As our eyes met, it slowly rose from its throne.
Rotten flesh and bloody clumps dripped from its armor.

Then, it charged toward me.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The summons and two damage dealers surrounded it, but they couldn’t stop it.

The distance between me and the boss closed rapidly.

A terror I’d never felt before consumed me.
My arms and legs trembled uncontrollably.

Buzz—

A faint vibration and mana pulse came from my pocket.

The Lumina Bell I’d brought, just in case, pulled me back from panic.

I snapped to my senses and faced the approaching boss head-on.

‘Don’t panic. Think calmly.’

No Heal or Cleanse…

What can I do besides running?
What’s the best move I can make…?

Oh!

“I’ll be the bait! Go for its back!”

I shouted with all my might, gritted my teeth, and ran.

For some reason, the boss was fixated on me.
If it left its back open, the damage dealers could strike and take it down easily.

“Hey, skull! Finish casting while the kiddo baits! Hood, we hit it together!”

I sprinted toward the corner of the boss room, the optimal spot for their combined attack.

Dodging the boss’s strikes and running full-tilt, I was breathless.

Just when I thought I couldn’t run anymore—

“Huff… gasp…”

I reached the corner.

The boss’s shadow loomed larger behind me.

“Now!”

The damage dealers unleashed their attacks in sync.
The necromancer’s summons charged the massive boss.

But—

“Why isn’t it taking damage?!”

It was another crushing failure.

As the boss advanced slowly toward me,
I experienced a fear of death for the first time.

One Lumina Bell wasn’t enough to quell this terror.
My mind began to spiral into panic.

‘I should’ve… refused…’

I should’ve said no when I had the chance…!

But it was far too late for regrets.

Groooar—…

A mace caked with rotting flesh was already raised above my head.

One hit, and I’d be on a one-way trip to the afterlife.

‘Am I… going to die like this?’

The spirit flower was about to bloom soon.
I’d just stabilized Lumina Bell sales.
And… and…

I was finally becoming a community named figure,
with a disciple who’d do anything I say…!

‘I don’t want to die!’

I couldn’t go out like this, in some miserable place.

Whether the necromancer claimed the boss as a summon was no longer my concern.

I’d use every skill I had—Heal, Cleanse, anything—to survive without regrets.

‘The fastest, most effective option…’

I opened my skill window.

A message caught my eye:
[Proficiency increased. You can unlock a new skill.]

‘…Oh, right.’

During the Seongbuk-gu gate outbreak,
spamming Heal while using Lumina flowers had boosted my proficiency.

Without hesitation, I unlocked the new skill.

[Holy Light: Releases a beam of condensed holy mana. Has the additional effect of destroying barriers or external shields.]

An attack skill—the one I’d always wanted—appeared in my skill window.

It was holy-aligned, so hitting the boss would likely ruin its summoning.
But—

‘When I’m about to die, who cares!?’

I channeled all my mana.

A brilliant, intense light gathered between my palms.

“Die!”

I fired the beam at the massive figure.

Crack—

Like a plate shattering, the transparent barrier around the boss broke.

The new skill was weaker than expected, only destroying the barrier, not the boss.

But—

‘This is perfect.’

Pretending it was intentional, I shouted to the damage dealers.

“I broke its barrier! Attack now—it’ll work!”

The boss, visibly rattled, looked down at its body as its protective shield shattered.

Seizing the moment, I darted out of the corner.

“There was a barrier? That’s why my attacks didn’t work?”
“You left your back open—time to pay.”

The damage dealers, furious at being toyed with, brought the boss down in one coordinated strike.

With the necromancer sealing the summoning contract, the gate was cleared.

As soon as we cleared the gate,
people in matching black uniforms streamed in—Manwol Guild staff.

They collected monster byproducts, stripped wall materials, and gathered loot from chests, hauling it all out.

Valuable loot would be appraised by the guild’s team and distributed to the party.

‘They wouldn’t stiff me on rewards, would they? Rank 1 guild or not.’

It was a reasonable concern.

But the secretary promised generous compensation, so I decided to trust them for now.

“Good work, kiddo.”

The bandaged woman appeared out of nowhere, ruffling my hair roughly.

“How’d a tiny thing like you think to play bait? Other healers only care about self-preservation—none of them would throw themselves in like you.”
“Haha…”

Her face beamed with satisfaction.

“Hey, ever thought about joining Manwol? We’re the top guild, you know. Say yes, and I’ll make sure no one messes with you. Think it over.”

Who’s messing with me…?

I’m not the type to pick fights anyway.

Manwol’s recruitment pitch was as intense as expected.

If I joined,
gates like this would become my daily routine.

I’d rather die than join.

With an awkward smile, I shuffled backward.

Thud—

I bumped into someone and turned, startled.

The necromancer, who looked like my beloved Belladonna, gazed down at me with an emotional expression.

“Healer-nim… You held back Heal and Cleanse even in a life-threatening situation… to help me achieve my goal, right?”

Sweating profusely, she clasped my hands.

“You didn’t have to go that far… Thank you so much. Thanks to you, I sealed the contract. I’ll never forget this.”

I laughed awkwardly, my eyes darting.

I hadn’t completely ruled out using Heal on the boss…
But her gratitude pricked my conscience.

‘Time to make my escape…’

I bowed to Manwol’s elites.

“Thanks for the hard work, everyone! I’ve got another appointment, so I’ll head out!”

As I turned to leave—

“Wait…!”

The necromancer grabbed my arm urgently.

“Can we… meet again?”

It felt like a scene from a drama, parting lovers.

I nodded with a smile.

“Stay healthy until we do.”
“Thank you. I’ll grow stronger and become an even better healer…”

Reluctant to part, she teared up.

Seeing her, I felt a lump in my throat, my eyes misting.

I’m not usually one to cry,
but lately, I’ve been tearing up a lot.

“Can I… contact you?”
“Of course. Come to my place—I’ll show you tons of pretty flowers.”

After our tearful farewell, I checked the time.
The purified water deal was getting close.

I hurried off.

Tap tap—

Checking the map app as I walked, I felt someone following me and turned.

Swish—

And who do I see?

The necromancer, wiping tears from our heartfelt goodbye, awkwardly trailing behind.

“Haha…”
“…Haha.”

Guess we’re headed the same way.

We exchanged awkward smiles and quickened our pace.

That emotional farewell…
kind of loses its vibe when you’re going the same direction.

Practically running from embarrassment, I reached the meetup spot way ahead of schedule.

I opened the marketplace app to message the seller that I’d arrived.

“Wait…”

A familiar voice came from behind.

“Are you… the purified water…”

No way.
It can’t be.

I slowly looked up at the seller’s face.

“…”
“…”

An excruciatingly awkward silence settled between us.