Chapter 163: Awakening Complete
A consciousness that had been swallowed by deep darkness.
A mind that had sunk to the very bottom of unconsciousness slowly lifted its head above the surface.
As Jenna gradually regained consciousness, the first thing she felt was warmth.
’...It’s warm.’
The feeling of a frozen body slowly thawing.
A smile formed on Jenna’s lips all on its own.
Then, suddenly, a question struck her.
’But, how?’
She was sure she had passed out buried in the snow.
Could this be heaven?
Jenna strained to lift her tightly shut eyelids. The first thing that came into view was a ceiling of rough, uneven stone.
And a translucent hologram.
[Awakening complete]
A hologram floating right before her eyes.
The moment Jenna read the message displayed there, her eyes flew wide open.
’Awakening? That’s...!’
She had heard of this.
When a non-Awakened person awakens as a hunter, a notification message like this appears.
’But why now, all of a sudden?’
Jenna was bewildered.
Meanwhile, as if the system had recognized that Jenna’s consciousness had returned, a stream of new messages filled her vision one after another.
[Basic skills have been unlocked.]
▷Passive: Dream Training
▷Passive: Eye of the Daydream
Unfamiliar messages appearing without warning.
When Jenna’s gaze drifted to the words Dream Training, the skill’s detailed information immediately popped up in the air before her.
-----
[Passive: Dream Training (Lv.1)]
[Gain experience every time you dream.]
▷Experience gained: +10~50%
-----
’Dream?’
The moment she registered the word dream.
A memory flashed through her mind.
’Come to think of it...’
The dream she’d had at dawn that day had matched the situation right before her death with astonishing accuracy.
Almost as if she had glimpsed the future itself.
As she recalled that moment.
Detailed information about the second passive skill, Eye of the Daydream, popped up before Jenna’s eyes.
-----
[Passive: Eye of the Daydream (Lv.1)]
[Grants a low chance to glimpse the near future even while awake.]
▷Activation chance: 3%
▷Activation interval: 1 hour
-----
Dreams. And the future.
As she connected the two words in her mind, the fog of questions that had clouded her head began to slowly lift.
’I feel like I’m close to figuring it out...’
The feeling of a puzzle missing just one piece.
Just as she furrowed her brow.
Ding!
[A unique skill has been unlocked.]
▶Future Sight
Along with the cheerful chime.
The unique skill’s information was revealed.
-----
[Unique: Future Sight (Lv.1)]
[Allows you to see the future through dreams.]
[Special Ability]
▶Unlock condition: Skill Level 5
-----
’Ah!’
The moment she saw it.
Jenna’s closed eyes snapped open.
’So that’s what it was.’
Now she finally understood.
The dream she’d had at dawn that day hadn’t been an ordinary dream. She really had seen the future.
But not every question had been answered.
Because at the time she’d had that dream, Jenna hadn’t yet awakened. As those questions swirled round and round in her head once more.
Plop!
She heard something fall.
Turning her gaze, she saw a towel soaked in warm water. And just beyond the towel stood a girl wearing the uniform of Brooklyn Girls’ Academy.
’Who is that?’
Her vision was still blurry, so Jenna narrowed her eyes to bring things into focus.
Just then.
"J-Jenna!"
The other girl called her name first.
Then she rushed over in a single bound and threw her arms around Jenna without a word of warning. In a voice on the verge of tears, she said.
"You’re awake. Sob! Thank goodness."
A face with tears welling up in her eyes.
She looked unfamiliar at first glance, but the voice and the features were unmistakably etched in her memory. It didn’t take long for Jenna to realize who it was.
"...Alice?"
Jenna’s closest friend in the world.
The voice was definitely Alice’s. Eyes round with surprise, Jenna asked again.
"Alice, is it really you?!"
"Yes! It’s me."
"Oh my god..."
Jenna’s eyes went wide.
As if in utter shock.
"You! How did you lose so much weight?!"
"You idiot! Is that what matters right now?!"
Alice shrieked at her.
Then, pulling Jenna’s shoulders into her arms, she burst into the sobs she had been desperately holding back.
"You were buried so deep in the snow, I really thought something terrible had happened to you! Sniff!"
"...Oh."
At those words, it finally sank in for Jenna.
The fact that she really had almost died.
A moment later, relief and guilt crossed Jenna’s face in equal measure. She gently patted the back of the endlessly sobbing Alice, as if to soothe her.
Just then.
"...!?"
"J-Jenna!"
Familiar voices rang out.
Mindy and the children, the ones she had tried to save even at the cost of sharing her own body heat. Realizing Jenna was awake, the kids came rushing over in a stampede.
"Waaaah! Jenna!"
"Are you okay...?"
The children’s faces were etched with worry.
Jenna nodded and spread her arms wide. Then, together with Alice, she pulled the children into a tight embrace.
"Mm-hm. I’m sorry for worrying you all."
Jenna smiled faintly.
Feeling the children’s warmth against her whole body, she finally truly felt that she was alive.
How much time passed like that?
Around the time everyone had more or less collected themselves.
"Pardon me."
An unfamiliar voice tapped at her ears.
A woman with short brown hair.
Looking to be in her twenties, she spotted Jenna sitting up and bowed politely.
"Hello. I’m Aria, a B-rank hunter with the Coral Cave Shelter."
"...!"
A B-rank hunter. Aria.
The moment her introduction ended.
Jenna went stiff with nerves.
"Ah, yes! I, I’m..."
"You’re Jenna, the student. Correct?"
Aria beat her to it.
Jenna nodded cautiously, and Aria’s next question soon followed.
"Are you feeling any discomfort? Trouble moving your arms, or a fever, anything like that..."
"Oh, no. I think I’m fine."
"Phew, what a relief."
She let out a sigh of relief.
Aria said with a bright smile.
"In any case, you’ve only just woken up, so don’t worry about anything else and get some rest. Oh, and if there’s anything you need, anything at all, just say the word."
"Th-thank you..."
Jenna wore a dazed expression.
It was the first time in her life she’d been treated this kindly by a hunter. Then, just as Aria was about to rise from her seat.
"U-um, wait!"
"...?"
"Is this place, by any chance, Coral Cave?"
Aria had introduced herself as a hunter from Coral Cave.
That, combined with the cave-like terrain surrounding them, led Jenna to guess that this place might be the Coral Cave Shelter itself.
And.
"Yes, that’s right."
Jenna’s guess hit the mark.
Watching Aria answer with a beaming smile, Jenna asked in a curious tone.
"How did I end up here...?"
It was a natural question.
The pit where she’d been buried in the snow was dozens of miles away from the Coral Cave Shelter.
Even for a hunter, covering that kind of distance would be a struggle. And not just with Jenna, but carrying Mindy and all the children too?
’Unless someone teleported us here...’
It made no sense at all.
As she waited for an answer, Alice suddenly spoke up, wiping the tears from her eyes.
"Your uncle came."
"Huh? Uncle? Who are you talking ab..."
"Your uncle! Your mom’s brother!"
The moment those words landed.
Jenna’s face went blank, as if she’d just heard something she never could have imagined.
And a moment later.
"...What?"
Jenna’s eyes grew as wide as saucers.