Chapter 102

As soon as she charged, the blue scythes in the air shot towards her. But Cho-i wasn’t afraid at all. She didn’t even think of parrying them. Cho-i took all of it with her body. Boom! A loud roar erupted and dust flew. But Cho-i wasn’t affected in the slightest. The Entity’s attack couldn’t stop her. Swish! Her sword flew at the Fallen Prophet. The sound of her sword slicing through the Entity was incredibly light. The Entity, vertically cut from head to toe, split in half, spraying black blood. Black internal organs squirmed and spilled from its belly, and Cho-i Hyeon recoiled to avoid the Entity. To exert such power against an S-Rank monster. And she hadn’t even finished molting yet. Cho-i Hyeon looked down at her hands. Could she handle this? The thought came to her belatedly.

‘No, I have to.’

Then she heard a cackling sound in her head. It was clear that the Entity was laughing. She added the Entity to her list of disliked bastards and swung her sword once.

“Anyway, the first objective is halfway successful.”

To be able to retain her sanity when using Sanity Paralysis. It still seemed to require the Entity’s consent, but it was a good harvest. Cho-i gathered the byproduct and items.

[Prophet’s Diary (S-grade)]

“What is this?”

Cho-i opened the diary. However, the book, filled with unknown characters, was unreadable. Unable to do anything else, Cho-i just took the item and came out. As mentioned before, Gihyeon Park was still waiting in his car. A lit cigarette was already in his mouth. When Cho-i came out, he held the cigarette in his fingers and quickly hid it behind his back.

“This is outside.”

“Who said anything?”

Cho-i put away her sword and got into Gihyeon Park’s car. As soon as she got in, she diligently buckled her seatbelt first. In fact, she wondered if a seatbelt would even matter, but a trivial thought occurred to her that it was more for the law. If there was a car accident, the car might be destroyed, but an S-Rank hunter wouldn’t be. Click. Just then, Gihyeon Park, who had finished his cigarette, got into the car. He looked a little disappointed at the sight of Cho-i Hyeon diligently wearing her seatbelt.

“What are you disappointed about again, you reeking of smoke?”

“Oh, I just thought maybe.”

“Honestly, you’re so persistent.”

Cho-i chuckled softly. When she laughed, Gihyeon Park also laughed. Cho-i left the dungeon entrance with Gihyeon Park and drove onto the road. She looked out the window, lost in thought.

‘First, since I can now retain my sanity after Sanity Paralysis, I’ll use this to beat Taehyeok Sa to death.’

That was the goal. Cho-i wanted Taehyeok Sa to suffer as much pain as she had. If he died in the process, well, so be it. Although it didn’t seem like Taehyeok Sa would die that easily. She was an avenger. She had been ever since she came out of that dungeon. No matter how much she had thrown her self-respect to the ground, she had not forgotten her revenge. Now that she had found a way to keep entering the hidden dungeon, she didn’t particularly need him anymore. Or perhaps. Cho-i Hyeon turned her head and looked at Gihyeon Park.

‘Switching to him might be okay too.’

As Cho-i looked at Gihyeon Park, he reacted as if he had a sixth sense.

“Why, am I suddenly handsome?”

“You have a nice body.”

“I’m glad you like at least that.”

No matter how Gihyeon Park was evaluated within the guild, he was fundamentally kind to Cho-i Hyeon. Rather than kind, it would be more accurate to say he was a bit greasy and flirtatious, but Cho-i Hyeon had always received flirtation from men, so she didn’t distinguish much between the two.

“Where are we going for dinner?”

“Want to go to CK Hotel?”

“I don’t care where we go.”

“It has to be somewhere you like.”

Gihyeon Park said something good-natured. Cho-i Hyeon, resting her elbow on the windowsill and propping up her cheek indifferently, suddenly asked.

“Do you like me that much?”

“What?”

Gihyeon Park asked, as if it was an unexpected question.

“You like me that much? Even after I beat you?”

“Let’s be clear. At first, I was better than you, right?”

“That’s true.”

“But then I got beaten.”

“Right.”

“I like women stronger than me.”

“…Oh, that kind of preference?”

Then Gihyeon Park said,

“Maybe?”

It was clearly a joke, but to Cho-i Hyeon’s eyes, it didn’t seem like a joke. He really seemed to have that kind of vibe. Regardless of what Cho-i Hyeon was thinking, Gihyeon Park’s car faithfully headed to the CK Hotel. Cho-i Hyeon was dressed casually, as if he had just rolled out of bed, while Gihyeon Park, no matter how you looked at him, seemed to have paid attention from head to toe. His slicked-back hair, his black shirt. Anyway.

“Should I buy you clothes?”

“Why bother for just one meal?”

“It has nothing to do with food, I just want to buy them for you.”

Cho-i Hyeon thought about it for a moment and soon decided that it would be good if it could even slightly annoy Taehyeok Sa.

“Well, you want to use this as an excuse to go on a date?”

Cho-i Hyeon crossed her arms, tilted her head, and grinned.

“Alright!”

Cho-i approached him and linked arms with him. Gihyeon Park’s eyes widened slightly, as if he was a bit flustered. Cho-i Hyeon pulled on their linked arms and headed towards the CK Hotel. The first floor of the CK Hotel consisted of various luxury brand stores. So, there was no need to go anywhere else.

“So you want to be photographed, huh?”

“Since Taehyeok Sa is keeping an eye on me with some strange sense of responsibility, if he thinks I’m switching to someone else, he’ll probably pay some attention.”

“Hmm, you’re going to use me like that?”

Gihyeon Park grinned, bent down slightly, and looked into Cho-i Hyeon’s face. Cho-i Hyeon smiled back at his grin and said brazenly,

“If you do well, I’ll even consider really switching.”

“So you’re giving me a chance. I’ll do my best.”

“Good luck.”

Cho-i Hyeon linked arms with Gihyeon Park and headed to the luxury brand store. As soon as Gihyeon Park entered, he went to the showroom. Cho-i Hyeon followed him, and a staff member approached them.

“Are you looking for something?”

“Just browsing.”

As Gihyeon Park answered casually in informal speech, Cho-i Hyeon kicked his shin from beside him.

“Ouch!”

“Your mouth, your mouth! That darn mouth!”

“It hurts.”

“I hit you to make it hurt, you idiot.”

After saying that, Cho-i Hyeon replied to the staff member in a rather pleasant tone.

“We’re just looking for some clothes. Anything.”

“Ah, then if you come this way…”

Cho-i Hyeon and Gihyeon Park were both recognizable figures. There was no need for a personal shopper room, as the goal was to show as many people as possible that they were together. Indeed, people in the luxury brand store began to recognize the two and started murmuring. Gihyeon Park, seemingly accustomed to such situations, casually touched the clothing displays without a hint of concern.

“Want to try it on?”

“Why?”

“Otherwise, I’ll just buy everything.”

“Don’t waste money, you rich jerk.”

Cho-i Hyeon now had plenty of money, but her spending habits hadn’t significantly expanded. She mostly splurged on items, but wasn’t very interested in everyday clothes. Cho-i flipped through the clothes and picked out a dark navy dress with a gold-decorated belt. The dress, which ended roughly at thigh-length, suited Cho-i Hyeon’s fair skin well.

“Buy it?”

“Shut up, you upstart. Let me just try it on, okay?”

Cho-i immediately went to the fitting room and tried on the dress. The size was a good fit, and the length, which fell just above the knee, wasn’t bad. When Cho-i casually came out in the dress, Gihyeon Park, who was sitting on the sofa outside, smiled faintly.

“It suits you.”

“What doesn’t suit me?”

“That’s true.”

Gihyeon Park stood up and spun Cho-i Hyeon around before extending both arms.

“What do you want?”

“What’s the harm in hugging me once?”

“Do you want a scandal too?”

“If a scandal’s going to happen, it’ll happen now. Under the title, ‘Luxury Date for Two?'”

“Oh, an article with that title will be out by tomorrow. I’ll bet my wrist on it.”

“You’re so quick to bet your wrist when they just grow back anyway.”

“Then I’ll bet your wrist.”

“My wrist is precious.”

“Look at him, trying to save his skin.”

As the two conversed, the entrance began to fill with murmurs. Cho-i Hyeon and Gihyeon Park turned their heads at the sudden commotion. They had expected people to gather to see a hunter, but a larger crowd than anticipated had gathered, and among them stood a black-haired man a head taller than most. A sleek suit and annoyingly handsome features. In other words,

“Taehyeok Sa?”

It was Taehyeok Sa. Cho-i Hyeon immediately made an annoyed face, and Gihyeon Park looked fed up.

“He followed us all the way here. It looks like an article’s already out, doesn’t it?”

“Let me see.”

Cho-i Hyeon leaned close to Gihyeon Park and peered at his smartphone. The title at the top of the site was immediately obvious.

[Gihyeon Park♡Cho-i Hyeon, a luxury brand date for two?!]

“Wow, that title is really bad.”

“I know, I’ll find who wrote it and cut them.”

“But who’s that bastard who saw this and followed us?”

Even though Cho-i Hyeon wore a very displeased expression, Taehyeok Sa approached them casually. He then stood askew and looked at Gihyeon Park.

“Stop coveting other people’s possessions.”

“Who said she’s your possession?”

Cho-i Hyeon grumbled.

“She’s trying to run away because you treat her like a possession, you bastard.”

Cho-i Hyeon, in her new dress, was stuck between the two men. She sighed deeply, and, regardless of what they were doing, decided to buy the dress and asked the employee.

“Is there anything more comfortable to wear?”

“Oh, would you like to see this line?”

The employee, seemingly burdened by the two men, subtly moved closer to Cho-i and stood there. Then, showing a white cotton dress, she said,

“This product is our best seller these days. It’s a length that slightly covers the calves, so…”

Just then, Taehyeok Sa, who had approached without Cho-i Hyeon noticing, spoke from behind her.

“Your ankles are slender, so that length would be perfect for you.”