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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Xrecker
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Words have a profound impact. One heartfelt compliment can outweigh 99 insults, while a single thoughtless insult can overshadow 99 compliments.
And unfounded insults rooted in envy, jealousy, or hatred can leave deep, lasting scars. Words spoken casually can inflict immense pain on others.
Yu-ra, after crying for a long time, remained silent. It wasn’t the time for conversation, so I sat beside her, waiting patiently.
Having had her trust shattered, Yu-ra must have been terrified of losing the newfound trust she had placed in me. Or perhaps she didn’t see our connection as significant. Either way, she didn’t know how to fill the void left by the loss of her friends.
That’s why she’d held onto me, with a weak, uncertain grip.
Perhaps she thought I, too, secretly harbored a deep-seated hatred for superhumans.
Fearful that any word might shatter the fragile reality she’d built, Yu-ra remained silent. If this newfound friendship was just a dream, a delusion, all she’d be left with was the betrayal and hurt from the people at the café she’d trusted.
I was still holding her hand, the one she hadn’t let go of even while crying, and I could feel it trembling. She bit her lower lip, then lifted her head, looked at me, and forced a smile.
“Sorry. For suddenly grabbing you like that.”
Her usual smile seemed tinged with sadness. I couldn’t read her mind. What was she thinking?
“It’s okay. We’ll miss the last train.”
“Are you really okay?”
My quiet question made her eyes tremble, and she avoided my gaze. She seemed unsure herself.
“…No. I’m not okay.”
Her forced smile and honest confession were reassuring. There was no need to pretend. It was better for her to express her pain and her struggles. Because I, too, could see that she was hurting.
Calmer now, she turned her head towards the rain-streaked window, her expression blank, her hollow gaze reflected in the glass.
“Was it my fault?”
Maybe blaming herself was easier. Then the others were blameless, without fault. Perhaps believing that her actions had caused them harm, and that they were just being considerate by not confronting her, was better than accepting that they’d rejected her simply for being a superhuman.
“You didn’t do anything wrong.”
But I didn’t want her to blame herself. During the month I’d spent observing her, I hadn’t seen her do anything wrong. She deserved praise for her work ethic, her helpfulness towards new employees, and her positive attitude.
And having been there, I didn’t want her to deny the good she’d done. It might have been selfish of me, but I couldn’t let her internalize the blame.
“Who said you did something wrong? I don’t understand. What did you do wrong? You deserve praise, if anything.”
She turned her head towards me, a faint smile on her lips.
“Really?”
She was smiling, but a single tear rolled down her cheek, and I took a tissue from the table and wiped it away.
“Really. Who taught me the ropes? Who covered for me when I made mistakes? Who dealt with the difficult customers?”
As I spoke, recalling the time I’d spent with her, I couldn’t find a single thing she’d done wrong.
“Those women are the ones in the wrong for gossiping behind your back. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Yeah…”
She sniffled and took the tissue from my hand, wiping her tears. I unconsciously tightened my grip on her hand.
“Sorry. For crying so much.”
“It’s okay. Let it all out.”
I didn’t like that Yu-ra was crying because of those women. They didn’t deserve her tears. But that was just my opinion.Yu-ra felt differently.
She’d believed her coworkers, whom she’d known for at least six months, had accepted her, but they hadn’t, and hearing them talk behind her back had to be devastating. Who could understand that pain?
“I’m sorry…”
I suddenly felt a lump in my throat and held her hand.
“Don’t apologize. Did you do something wrong to me?”
She looked at me with wide, teary eyes, her voice trembling.
“I thought I was being a burden… I’m sorry for being so difficult… I thought you’d hate me if I didn’t apologize…”
Her voice trembled, and tears streamed down her face. Yu-ra was afraid of losing me, too. She thought she was being a burden, that her actions were wrong, and that I might abandon her because of them.
The joy I’d seen in Yu-ra while we were drinking together was different from her usual cheerful demeanor. Usually, she was the one creating the energetic atmosphere, but while drinking, she seemed to be genuinely enjoying herself.
I liked seeing that side of her. Positivity was infectious, and her joyful expression lingered in my mind. I wanted to see that side of her again.
But when her cheerful facade crumbled, she became incredibly vulnerable. I couldn’t expect her to always be strong and energetic. Everyone had moments of weakness.
And in those moments, when her usually strong spirit faltered, who could Yu-ra lean on?
“I don’t think you’re a burden, and I don’t hate you. So don’t apologize to me. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
When we first met as enemies, I’d only seen her strength. When I started getting close to her for my mission, she’d seemed unapproachable. But she was more vulnerable than I’d realized. Yu-bin was like that, and so was Yu-ra.
I felt anger towards the Earth Defense Alliance. What had they been doing while these women were struggling?
Hearing my firm reassurance, Yu-ra’s sobs intensified, as if all her pent-up frustration had finally found an outlet.
“I gave up so much! I held back and tried so hard to be accepted! I don’t know anymore… I don’t know how much more I have to do to be liked. I don’t know what I have to do… I don’t know anything anymore…”
Yu-ra slowly told me her story. From the first time she experienced the changes, about her parents, her friends, and about her time at the café, from the beginning until today.
She’d finally found a place that accepted her. For the first time in her life, where being a superhuman meant being ostracized, she’d found a place where she wasn’t judged. She’d never had the chance to prove herself, and now, given the opportunity, she’d worked harder than anyone.
And she’d believed that her efforts, fighting to protect Earth with a meager salary, and her efforts to be seen as Kwon Yu-ra, a person, not just Pink the superhuman, would eventually be recognized.
But reality hadn’t been kind.
“It’s okay. You’re doing great.”
Having fought against Pink the superhuman and worked alongside Kwon Yu-ra, I knew how hard she’d worked. I acknowledged her efforts. She was strong, resilient, and hardworking.
If her efforts, so desperate that she cried when she was rejected, weren’t recognized, then the world was wrong.
It wasn’t a big deal for me to acknowledge her efforts. It was simply stating the obvious. But for Yu-ra, hearing those words for the first time was life-changing.
She held my hand and cried again. But these weren’t tears of sadness or betrayal; these were tears of relief, of finally being acknowledged.
I didn’t know if it was joy or a sense of emptiness, realizing how simple it was to hear those words. All I knew was that my words had reached her.
I waited for her to calm down again. She cried until she was exhausted, and I brushed her bangs away from her face.
“Go take a shower. How long are you going to sit here soaking wet?”
She nodded silently but didn’t move from the sofa.
“I’ll stay with you tonight.”
“…What?!”
Yu-ra, who’d been listless, suddenly looked up, startled. She stared at me with wide eyes, and thinking she might be misunderstanding, I flicked her forehead.
“Don’t get any ideas.”
“B-but staying together means…?”
“Are you sure you’ll be okay if I leave?”
She started to say something, then hesitated and closed her mouth.
“See? I’ll stay until tomorrow evening if you’re that worried, so stop imagining things and go take a shower.”
“Okay.”
Embarrassed by her misunderstanding, she blushed and got up from the sofa.
She went to the bedroom to get some clothes, glanced at me sitting in the living room, then went into the bathroom. I turned my gaze to the rain outside.
“I missed the last train anyway.”
I could easily take a taxi home, but I couldn’t leave her like this. While I was on a surveillance mission, I felt like I was learning more about her emotional vulnerabilities than anything strategically useful.
My mind cleared, and I started piecing together what Yu-ra had told me.
I knew the atmosphere within the Earth Defense Alliance wasn’t great, but I’d initially attributed it to personality clashes.
However, the Alliance barely paid enough for superhumans to make ends meet. It was safe to assume that this financial strain was contributing to the negative atmosphere.
There might be people within the Alliance who genuinely fought to protect Earth. But there were limits to how much you could give without proper compensation.
Spacetroe’s peaceful invasion strategy wasn’t oppressive, and the prolonged conflict had eased the initial anxieties.
In this situation, superhumans were being forced to make sacrifices without proper reward, and I concluded this was the main cause of the internal discord.
“I need to do more research on superhumans.”
My previous research had focused solely on their abilities and techniques, from an enemy’s perspective. But Yu-ra had shown me that the social stigma surrounding superhumans hadn’t changed much in the 20 years since they first appeared.
There had to be a clear reason. Public anger and hatred usually stemmed from specific individuals causing negative social issues.
I should investigate any issues related to superhumans. It wasn’t my intention, but I finally had something substantial to report.
Lost in thought, I didn’t notice the time passing. The sound of the bathroom door opening made me turn my head. Yu-ra came out, dressed in pajamas, her hair wrapped in a towel.
“You look beautiful.”
“Huh?”
Her surprised reaction to my casual compliment surprised me. She seemed so out of it that she didn’t even remember her usual narcissistic behavior.
“Why are you surprised? You always ask if you’re pretty.”
“Oh! Right, I am pretty.”
She blushed, nodded, and went to the bedroom, then poked her head out.
“You should shower, too.”
“Why would I shower when I don’t have any clothes to change into?”
I’d just have to put my wet clothes back on after showering, so it was better not to shower at all.
“I’ll look for something you can wear.”
“Your clothes wouldn’t fit me.”
“Just shower! You can’t sleep in those wet clothes.”
Her sudden sharp tone surprised me, and I instinctively nodded. Yu-ra went into the bedroom to look for some clothes.
She was right; I couldn’t sleep in wet clothes, so I decided to shower. I doubted she had anything that would fit me, but I’d figure it out later.
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