Chapter 153

Nara Shim grumbled. Cho-i Hyeon chuckled and ruffled her hair carelessly. Then she patted Taeyang Kang’s head as if to say ‘good job.’ Taeyang Kang purred contentedly.

“Anyway, that’s a relief then. Come to think of it, I still have two molts left, and no news yet, so maybe it has nothing to do with this dungeon?”

“What’s molting again?”

“It’s just a thing.”

Cho-i was too lazy to explain, so she just smiled brightly, pretending not to notice their curious faces. Regardless, all they could do now was enter the EX-Rank dungeon and break through it. Time was running out, and Hunters would gather.

“If we clear this dungeon, won’t I become the most famous person in the world?”

“Well, if you survive?”

“I don’t think you’ll die, at least.”

“I’ll wipe them all out and come back.”

Cho-i Hyeon’s relaxed words strangely gave a sense of stability to those who heard them. It meant that with her, things would somehow work out. So the three of them finished checking their equipment and spent time eating dinner. Everyone had little time left, but they might have wanted to spend the remaining time normally. And just like that, a week passed.

***

They said countless hunters were pouring into the airport. Cho-i was sitting in the Guild Master’s Office, receiving updates from Yeonhan Kim and Taehyeok Sa. And the first person to arrive was also sitting there now.

“Long time no see, huh?”

“If you’re happy to see me, just one sip of blood…”

“Quiet, you blood pig.”

It was Zhixuan. Zhixuan had arrived in Korea faster than anyone else and was currently staying at the hotel Paehyeok was supporting for Hunters. Though, it was only a day earlier than everyone else.

“So why did you come all the way here?”

“Well, I came to clear the EX-Rank dungeon, didn’t I?”

“No, I mean, what benefit is it to you that you came all the way here?”

“Ah, well.”

He said, turning his gaze sideways.

“Well, I was sacrificed.”

“Sacrificed?”

“The Black Society saw this as an opportunity. A chance for Chinese hunters to make a name for themselves.”

“So they sent you?”

“Well, preparing my food is getting harder, my power seems to be growing, it’s fine if I die there, and it’s fine if I clear it and come back.”

“You should have been less obsessed with blood then.”

“Haha, I have nothing to say.”

He ran a hand through his hair. His long black hair fell behind his back. Cho-i Hyeon watched him and ran a hand through her own hair. Zhixuan looked at her with a strange gaze, then quickly turned his head and spoke to Taehyeok Sa.

“More importantly, how are the preparations coming along?”

“Since it’s a global threat beyond just a national one, they’re moving quite swiftly.”

“Then that’s a relief, but…”

“More importantly, does China not fear losing an SS-Rank?”

“Firstly, many don’t know I’m an SS-Rank, and China has a large population.”

“Ah, really?”

“They think there are replacements for me. In fact, there are several S-Ranks rising from below these days, so I’m actually feeling threatened.”

“They’d prefer someone they can control over someone difficult to manage, I suppose.”

“It hurts my feelings when you say that too, you know?”

Taehyeok Sa pretended not to hear Zhixuan. Cho-i Hyeon looked between the two of them, then clapped her hands.

“Anyway, it’s a good thing he came, right?”

“That’s right. An SS-Rank is precious.”

“Do you treat such a precious person like this? Huh?”

“Then what do you want?”

“Just a sip of blood…”

“Enough. You vampire.”

“Don’t be like that…”

He spoke quite pitifully, but Cho-i Hyeon pretended not to hear. Then, something suddenly occurred to her, and Cho-i straightened her head and asked him.

“Hey, now that I think about it, did your stats go up when you sucked my blood last time, or not?”

“They didn’t?”

“What? Why!”

“Well, that’s because stats only go up if you suck all the blood from the body. Last time, I only sucked enough to cause excessive bleeding, not all of it.”

“You damn bastard.”

Cho-i Hyeon held out her arm to him.

“What is it?”

“What do you mean, it means suck it.”

“Huh? Huh? So suddenly?”

“Don’t you want to?”

“Oh, no. I like it! I like it! But why suddenly…”

“I have something to experiment with.”

“Well, it doesn’t matter to me…”

Zhixuan moved next to Cho-i Hyeon. And he bared his sharp teeth. Were his teeth always that sharp? It’s going to hurt. While Cho-i Hyeon was thinking that, Zhixuan’s teeth sank into Cho-i Hyeon’s wrist. A burning pain shot up from her wrist. Slurp- slurp. And the sound of blood being sucked began to be heard. Whether he had bitten exactly into an artery or not, the sensation of blood being drained was transmitted quickly and vividly. Cho-i Hyeon grabbed her increasingly dizzy head and tried to endure.

“You damn Vampire Bat…”

Zhixuan raised an eyebrow without letting go of her. His face seemed to say, ‘Didn’t you tell me to eat?’ And Taehyeok Sa was watching all of this. Taehyeok Sa stood with his arms crossed as if to intervene if Zhixuan crossed the line. Cho-i Hyeon felt her blood being drained, and at some point, her consciousness suddenly cut off. Cho-i Hyeon’s body fell backward, but her wrist was caught by Zhixuan, stopping her just before she hit the ground. Her long hair scattered across the sofa. Slurp- slurp. And Zhixuan did not stop drinking blood. A very strong will to drink all the blood from her body was palpable. He had an ecstatic look in his eyes, while Taehyeok Sa had a very displeased expression towards the entity.

“That’s enough.”

Cho-i Hyeon’s skin had turned so pale that all the blood had drained, revealing blue veins. And at that moment, Taehyeok Sa intervened with Zhixuan. Still not satisfied, he smacked his lips, a look of regret on his face, and pulled away.

“S-Rank blood is always intoxicating, no matter when I drink it.”

He said, his mouth smeared with blood. Taehyeok Sa frowned. Zhixuan hadn’t let go of Cho-i Hyeon’s arm yet, so her body was awkwardly slumped on the sofa. Zhixuan looked down at her, then made an ‘ah’ sound and gently laid her on the sofa.

“I’m sorry, I got a little carried away.”

“It’s fine.”

Taehyeok Sa looked at Cho-i Hyeon’s body, which was not yet breathing. After a few seconds, she began to breathe again. A soft, shallow breath. Only after her breathing reached his ears did Taehyeok Sa look away and at Zhixuan.

“I don’t know what Cho-i Hyeon was trying to experiment with, but from now on, I won’t allow it.”

Then Zhixuan scoffed.

“What are you to Cho-i Hyeon? Did she agree to this?”

“……”

“Hahaha!”

And just then, Cho-i Hyeon regained consciousness and sat up. She immediately looked into the air. The two noticed that Cho-i Hyeon was looking at something. It was probably a system window. What was floating in front of Cho-i Hyeon was the supporter registration window. As expected, she knew this would happen. She smiled broadly and added Zhixuan. With this, all supporter slots were filled.

[Supporter Registration] [Nara Shim] [Suui Kim] [Taehyeok Sa] [Zhixuan] NEW!

‘Not bad, hmm~. Not bad.’

Cho-i Hyeon, who was looking at the registration window with a satisfied expression, immediately spoke to Zhixuan.

“Why don’t you just settle down in Korea after this job is over?”

“Excuse me?”

“They’re already trying to keep you in check, aren’t they?”

“That’s true, but it’s still too soon to give up that position.”

“Really? Then if you ever get kicked out, come to Korea.”

“Yes, if I’m still alive, I’ll do that.”

“You weren’t planning on dying obediently anyway.”

“That’s true.”

As Zhixuan grinned, Cho-i Hyeon smiled back. While the two were doing that, Taehyeok Sa waved his hand, making them look his way.

“Anyway, what happened just now?”

“Oh, supporter registration.”

“Ah.”

Taehyeok Sa nodded as if he understood what it was.

“Now that I think about it, I didn’t get the details then. How many people are registered as supporters right now?”

“Nara Shim, Suui Kim, you, and now Zhixuan just registered, right?”

“What’s a supporter?”

“I don’t know exactly. But it seems like everyone’s stats go up when we link up.”

“Stats go up?”

“Yeah. It means it won’t be bad for you guys either.”

Cho-i Hyeon confidently straightened her shoulders. Then something suddenly occurred to her. Cho-i Hyeon said, “Uh-oh,” and turned her gaze to the left, retracting her straightened shoulders.

“Of course, there’s another thing…”

“Another thing? What?”

“Can be used as food in an emergency…”

“…”

“…”

The two men fell silent for a moment. Zhixuan’s face, in particular, turned pale as he had been exploited by her several times.

“I don’t have a hobby of being food!”

“Then do you think I would have given you blood if I did?”

“That’s different from this!”

“What’s different? It’s the same!”

“Both of you, quiet for now.”

Taehyeok Sa calmed the two down. Taehyeok Sa seemed to be pondering what she had told him. Then he soon spoke.

“First of all, the fact that our stats go up is good news for us.”

“Exactly!”

Cho-i Hyeon clapped her hands.

“But being used as food is a bit concerning. It’s a problem if our allies try to eat us during combat. Who was Suui Kim injured by last time?”

Cho-i Hyeon slowly turned her gaze.

“It was because of me…”

“I knew it.”

“Ahahaha.”

While Cho-i Hyeon was laughing awkwardly, Zhixuan interjected.

“I don’t want to be someone’s food. Can’t I cancel it?”

“In this situation, I don’t want to cancel a skill that boosts stats. I just want to minimize the side effects.”

“First, I don’t know how to cancel it.”

“How can that be! What about my consent?”

“There isn’t any, you blood pig.”

“Stop calling me a blood pig!”

“No, you jerk!”