I Became a Raid Boss-Chapter 141: You’re Always Welcome! (1)

An officetel located in Seoul.

“Huaaaahm...”

Donghyuk, the security guard of the building, let out a long yawn.

“Ugh, so boring.”

When he first started working at this officetel, he couldn’t hide his nervousness.

Anyone could tell just by looking that it was a luxurious place.

“People who live in places like this are supposed to be picky...”

They might ask him to throw out their trash, run errands like buying cigarettes or alcohol, or even complain that he wasn’t greeting them properly.

Donghyuk had read all kinds of stories and horror tales online about unreasonable residents, and he assumed the people here would be just like the ones in those posts.

“If I can’t handle it, I’ll just quit.”

Later, he’d have a drink with his friends and tell them, “There were people like that,” and laugh it off.

Even a trivial story like that could serve as cheap entertainment over drinks.

But surprisingly, life as a security guard at the officetel wasn’t as bad as Donghyuk had imagined.

In fact, it was quite comfortable.

There were no troublemakers, and the workload wasn’t particularly heavy.

He hoped to stick around for a long time.

Thinking this, Donghyuk stifled another yawn and tried to focus on his job.

His responsibilities varied, but his most important duty was to prevent any suspicious individuals from entering.

That’s why, as he kept his eyes wide open and stared through the glass outside—

“Huaaaahm...”

Before long, he sighed and lowered his gaze.

Due to the building's layout, anyone entering had to pass by his security post anyway.

As long as he wasn’t completely inattentive, he’d inevitably notice anyone who approached.

So, Donghyuk redirected his attention to other tasks.

Tap, tap.

He heard a faint tapping sound.

Lifting his head, Donghyuk spotted a small girl standing in front of the door.

“...A foreigner?”

Seeing the girl’s striking pink hair swaying around her waist, Donghyuk mumbled without realizing it.

But none of the residents here were foreigners like her.

Could it be that one of the residents had dyed their hair?

Even so, something felt off—Donghyuk had been working here for months, but he’d never seen such a small girl come and go.

“Even a shut-in would go outside at least once, wouldn’t they? ...Or maybe not?”

After a moment of deliberation, Donghyuk reached his own conclusion.

“She’s a guest.”

To think he spent so much time pondering such a simple matter.

Maybe he was just that bored.

Donghyuk smiled wryly as he checked the visitor log and looked up again.

“...Huh?”

The girl who had been standing at the door just a moment ago had vanished without a trace.

He had definitely seen her there clearly.

“A... ghost?!”

A chill ran down his spine, and his body shuddered.

No human could disappear so quickly.

And if a ghost dared to show itself in broad daylight, how powerful would it have to be?!

“I knew it was too good to be true, being so comfortable...!”

A ghost in the officetel?

While Donghyuk spiraled into panic, feeling like the protagonist of a horror game,

“Ka... ahem...! ...Are you okay?!”

A soft voice pierced his ears.

When Donghyuk instinctively looked up, he saw a woman—a familiar face—helping the fallen girl back to her feet.

“Are you hurt? Why’d you run off ahead?”

“I’m fine.”

The woman brushed off the dust on the girl’s clothes as she scolded her, and the girl responded calmly.

Only then did Donghyuk realize that the girl hadn’t vanished but had fallen out of his line of sight.

And as soon as he understood that, an unbearable wave of embarrassment crashed over him.

“Ughhhh....”

Broad daylight and ghosts? Really?

This was all because of that horror game stream he’d watched a few days ago.

Donghyuk, who had been soaring on the wings of imagination, plummeted like Icarus, writhing in shame.

“Um, is something wrong?”

If not for the voice addressing him, he might have wallowed in his embarrassment forever.

But his survival instincts forcibly brought him back to his senses.

“Ahem! It’s, uh, just a cramp in my leg. Anyway, who’s this with you?”

“Ah, she’s the girl who’ll be living with me from now on.”

“Oh, from abroad?”

“From abroad... well, yeah, something like that.”

“...What’s that supposed to mean?”

Though he found her vague answer odd, Donghyuk skillfully completed the registration process.

The girl, supported by the woman, moved cautiously as if she wasn’t feeling well.

“She looks familiar....”

A strange sense of déjà vu tickled his brain as Donghyuk stared at the girl’s back.

Then, the girl suddenly turned around, and Donghyuk quickly averted his gaze.

If she caught him staring, she might think he was some kind of pervert.

And it wasn’t hard to imagine what would happen if rumors spread about a security guard ogling a young girl.

“...”

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing.”

Fortunately, his desperate act of feigned ignorance seemed to work, and the girl continued on her way.

“But seriously, she’s really cute.”

Her voice was cute, too.

“A celebrity? Or maybe a child actress? With that kind of face, she could do anything.”

If that were the case, it might explain the déjà vu he felt.

Perhaps he’d seen her fleetingly in a video without realizing it.

“Phew... let’s get back to work.”

Donghyuk slapped his cheeks lightly to refocus and picked up his tablet.

Fortunately, no one had witnessed his embarrassing display.

Well, no one except one person.

+++++

"Why is she looking at me like that?"

If I had sensed hostility or malicious intent, I would have snapped at her, but since it didn’t feel like that, I couldn’t figure out what to say.

"...Are you tired?"

"Huh?"

"You don’t look so good. Maybe you should’ve stayed in Demonins a bit longer to recover? I guess I pushed you too hard."

"That’s not it."

When Daeun mumbled something about inviting me to live with her...

I shook my head to reassure her.

"It’s just... everything feels a little unfamiliar."

It sounded like an excuse, but it wasn’t entirely a lie.

I had lived on Earth once, but most of those memories were either completely gone or faint enough to feel like they could disappear any moment.

I was feeling two contradictory emotions—unfamiliarity and familiarity—at the same time.

After Daeun’s sudden suggestion that I move in with her, things progressed quickly.

"Sure, why not."

"...Huh? Are you really okay with deciding so easily?"

"I don’t like how stifling it feels here."

Since I had always planned to leave Demonins eventually, I had no reason to refuse.

"Do as you like. It’s not like you ever listen to me anyway."

"That’s true."

"I don’t understand why you’re taking on the hassle of looking after such a brat."

Edel had been the same, practically shoving me out with a relieved expression.

And that’s how I ended up standing in front of Daeun’s officetel.

By the way, everything had moved so quickly that I hadn’t had the chance to ask until now.

"What about you, Daeun? Are you okay with this?"

"Huh? What do you mean all of a sudden?"

"You’ve taken in an extra mouth to feed."

Admitting it was hard, but I wasn’t much help right now.

I could barely manage to walk on my own, so not being a burden was the best I could hope for.

On top of that, her expenses would increase, and I’d probably just get in her way.

"A burden? I was already thinking this place was too big for me alone and kind of lonely, anyway."

"What about the cost?"

"If I was worried about that, I wouldn’t be living in a place like this. Oh, Kana, you probably don’t realize how expensive this place is, do you?"

"...."

I couldn’t tell if she was trying to reassure me or boast.

Her smug expression was quite annoying.

"Besides, Kana, you’ve helped me so much already. You saved my life, paid for most of our travel expenses, bought me an expensive ring... After receiving so much, it’s only fair that I give back now!"

"Then buy me a house."

"...That’s a bit much."

Daeun, who had been brimming with confidence moments earlier, deflated in an instant.

"I-I mean, I could buy you a house, but could you really live on your own? Earth things are very different from Sillia’s, you know."

"I’d figure it out."

"You can’t be so nonchalant about it! Do you know how often kids mess around and cause accidents with stuff they don’t understand?"

"...Kids?"

"Yes, kids! What else would you be if you don’t know anything?"

"...."

I hadn’t told Daeun that I’d lived on Earth before.

Technically, I was a rookie with prior experience, but without clear memories, it was as good as starting from scratch.

So, I couldn’t argue against her accusation and kept my mouth shut.

If it was just a case of memory loss, that would’ve been fine.

But what I did recall was different from what I was seeing now.

For example, the thing in Daeun’s hand.

"What’s that?"

"This? It’s a phone."

"...A phone?"

"Hmm... How do I explain this?"

The phones I remembered didn’t look anything like that.

Misinterpreting my stunned reaction, Daeun had eagerly explained it to me.

In any case, my memories weren’t much help.

"Ohhh... you don’t know what this is? It’s called an ‘elevator.’ It’s used to efficiently go up and down tall buildings."

Seeing me speechless, Daeun took the chance to tease me, her tone smug.

Her attitude annoyed me, and I pouted in response.

"Bragging about something like this."

"Something like this? You little...! Just admit how convenient modern technology is!"

"This is something I could do too."

"Huh? Kana, you could make something like this? It might seem simple, but it actually works on an extremely complicated principle. You can’t make it that easily."

"I didn’t say I could make it. I said I could do it."

"...Not make it, but do it?"

Sensing something off, Daeun met my eyes.

"At the end of the day, it’s just about going up and down, right?"

I knew a much faster way to achieve that.

It might be a bit dizzying, but I could guarantee it’d work.

"Want me to show you?"

"...No."

Daeun backed down.

As an awkward silence began to fill the air, the elevator chimed at just the right moment.

Daeun quickly stepped out of the elevator and ran to the door.

Beep, beep-beep-beep.

Clang!

"-Come on in! This is where Kana will be living from now on!"

Hurry up!

Daeun, so excited that she flung the door open, kept urging me forward.

Did she forget I could barely walk on my own?

I glared at her sulkily and slowly shuffled forward, leaning against the wall for support.

"...Oh, sorry."

Realizing her mistake, Daeun came back to help me, and together we made it to the door.

The slightly ajar door swung fully open.

Daeun’s home was revealed.

"...Wow."

I stepped inside as Daeun puffed out her chest proudly.

It was spacious and luxurious.

Different from the grandeur of the castle I’d grown tired of, this place exuded a different kind of elegance.

And then, another sight greeted me.

"Daeun."

"Hehe, what do you think? Do you like it?"

"...The house is messy."

"...What?"

Scattered items and trash littered the place.

It reminded me of the first time I visited my father’s old home.

Though it wasn’t as bad as back then...

Why are the people who take me in always like this?

"W-Well, I usually clean every day...! But I’ve been so stressed these past few days that I couldn’t!"

The sourc𝗲 of this content is frёeωebɳovel.com.

"Sigh...."

What choice did I have?

I couldn’t complain to my benefactor, so I decided to endure it.

With a deep sigh, I dragged my weakened body into Daeun’s home.

"I’m serious!"