Chapter 56

“I guess I’ll just go back and forth to the underground training room until Thursday.”

She fell asleep like that. She hadn’t realized it, but she must have been exhausted, as her whole body felt weary. Come to think of it, she had practically collapsed into sleep that day too. Cho-i realized anew that she felt fatigue even if she wouldn’t die, and surrendered herself completely to sleep. The next morning, Cho-i immediately went down to Paehyeok’s practice room and texted someone. To whom, you ask?

“Do I look like I’m free?”

The Guild Master of Paehyeok was Taehyeok Sa. He seemed to be in a bad mood, standing quite casually with his hands in his suit pockets, which Cho-i found amusing. She chuckled and walked down to the training ground, saying,

“If I get completely thrashed by them, you’ll lose face too, won’t you? Help me practice.”

“If it’s practice, Dongju Kim or Yeonhan Kim, who are both S-Ranks, would be better.”

“No, you’re the Scythe if I want to hit you as much as I want.”

“…Do you think you can hit me as much as you want?”

Taehyeok Sa stepped onto the stairs leading down to the training ground, following Cho-i. Cho-i turned around and grinned.

“No.”

She stepped off the stairs and onto the ground, continuing,

“But I have to make it so.”

She grinned.

“You’ll help me, right?”

“…If it’s that, then I have to. Just a moment.”

“Why?”

Taehyeok Sa went down to the practice room and made a phone call. A few minutes later, his secretary came down to the basement and handed him something. As Cho-i reached out to touch it, he made a shushing sound, and then Taehyeok Sa took it first.

“It’s an A-Rank item, the Ring of Blazing Fire.”

“Why the Blazing Fire?”

“As expected, you knew nothing about your opponent.”

“Should I?”

“You should. Because for you, they’re quite the worst opponent.”

“Why?”

He said, slipping the ring onto his finger.

“They use Flames. And as you know, what’s the most painful death?”

Cho-i then frowned and laughed fiercely.

“Burning to death.”

“That’s right. You know well.”

Perhaps satisfied with Cho-i’s answer, Taehyeok Sa asked again.

“So, do you have a countermeasure planned?”

“No!”

“I figured as much….”

Taehyeok Sa held out the hand with the ring. Flames rose in a circle around Cho-i. She immediately jumped to the side to get away from the spot, but the Flames followed her, tracing a path. She avoided the Flames by stepping off the wall and jumping in the opposite direction.

“Just avoiding Flames isn’t the solution.”

“I know!”

Cho-i shouted, answering Taehyeok Sa.

“Devil’s Hand, come out!”

Immediately, Black Hands popped out, filling the practice room floor. The Flames were blocked by the hands, and the Black Hands, far from burning, began to rampage even more.

“Aaak!”

This time, her face was scratched again. As she rolled on the floor, Taehyeok Sa saw the Devil’s Hand lunging at him too, frowned, and quickly floated into the air. But the Devil’s Hand grew longer, with joint after joint, and reached for Taehyeok Sa.

“Stop, stop!”

When Cho-i shouted, it stopped abruptly. Since the control level was low, it would run wild without specific commands.

“Go in, go. Go.”

The Devil’s Hands disappeared back into the floor, and Cho-i’s facial wound healed completely. Taehyeok Sa descended from the air to the floor and asked,

“What is this now?” “A hidden item I got from this dungeon.” “But… it seems to attack indiscriminately, whether it’s you or me.” “That’s because the control level is still low. Oh, it stings, it stings.”

She still felt the sting from the scratched area and touched her face once. Taehyeok Sa looked at her as if she was pathetic, then said,

“Still, it’s quite useful. Good for causing chaos. I just wish I had more control.” “That’s why I called you for help.” “Because I’m the only one who can handle it?” “Yes.” “Hmm… alright.”

There was no reason for him, as the Guild Master, not to step up when his guild member was getting stronger. But Cho-i added,

“And if I think I’m getting beaten, I’ll use that, so just know that.” “That…?”

Taehyeok Sa asked with a voice full of unease, and Cho-i looked at him as if asking what he was asking about.

“That thing that beat you last time.” “Was that something you could use whenever you wanted?” “Yes, it’s a skill.” “This is crazy.”

With that, he would definitely win. Even he, an SS-Rank, suffered a crushing defeat without being able to lay a finger on it. The only problem was that last time, Cho-i Hyeon’s mind fortunately returned, but there was no guarantee it would happen again this time.

“I’ll have to go in with you.” “Even though you got beaten too.” “But I can’t let you kill Gihyeon Park.” “Why? If he dies, we can just take over the guild, right?” “It’s not that easy. In Korea, Geumsin, Hwayeon, and Paehyeok maintain a balance, and if one of them collapses, we’ll face excessive scrutiny. Both domestically and overseas.” “It’s complicated.” “It is. So I’ll have to accompany you on this.” “Alright. They’ll probably nag about you bringing my parents, so you tell them first.” “I’ll take care of that.”

If Taehyeok Sa said he would take care of it, he would really handle it well, so Cho-i decided not to worry about it. He seemed like a guy who complained about everything. She stretched and then said to him,

“So, shall we continue practicing?” “Let’s.”

And so, Cho-i continued practicing, rolling around the practice room with Taehyeok Sa—or, to be honest, only Cho-i was rolling around.

“Aaak! Why am I not hitting anything!” “You’re not there yet.” “Even though I’m S-Rank now?!” “Your technique is too lacking. Your attacks are too linear. I’ll fix that for you.” “Fix your own mind!”

When Cho-i charged at Taehyeok Sa again, Taehyeok Sa blocked her with Flames again. The sensation of her skin burning was terribly painful, but it wasn’t unbearable, so her attacks became increasingly linear. Seeing that, Taehyeok Sa held his head.

“I told her to respond flexibly, but what if she gets used to the pain and becomes even more linear…?” “I only know how to go straight!” “I can tell that by watching. But if your movements are figured out, no matter how strong your attack is, it won’t land.” “What if I make it so they can’t block or dodge even if they see the path?” “If you use that skill, that would happen. But as the King, I’d prefer you keep that hidden as much as possible.” “I guess so, right?”

Cho-i grumbled, rolling on the floor and dusting off the dirt. Taehyeok Sa wiggled his finger again, signaling her to come. Cho-i took her stance and charged at Taehyeok Sa once more. Their practice didn’t end until late into the night.

* * *

“Ugh…”

“Why is the kid turning into a zombie?”

“Training with the Guild Master must be tough, right?”

As Cho-i lay sprawled on the sofa, Dongju Kim and Yeonhan Kim each made a comment. Cho-i reached for the iced americano Yeonhan Kim had placed in front of her.

“How can I not land a single hit…?”

“If you’re going to get hit by an S-Rank, you should give up your SS-Rank title.”

“Think of it simply: you need two S-Ranks to face one SS-Rank.”

“Is that how the logic works…?”

Cho-i groaned as she gulped down her iced americano. Her regeneration was working, but she still felt aches all over her body.

“So, have you improved?”

Dongju Kim asked, sitting across from her. Cho-i tilted her head and replied,

“I’m not sure, but I feel like I’m getting closer. I don’t know why he’s so good at using Flames when it’s not even his ability.”

“Because he has basic combat techniques.”

Slurp- Cho-i finished most of her iced americano and put the cup down. Then she asked Yeonhan and Dongju,

“Then can the two of you beat the Guild Master if you attack together?”

“Well, I don’t think we could win.”

“What? You just said two people were enough!”

“I said you’d need two people to face him, not that you’d win.”

Dongju Kim quickly retracted his statement. Cho-i stared at Dongju Kim for a moment, then turned her gaze to Yeonhan Kim.

“Anyway, it’s not common for the Guild Master to oversee practice, so make sure you learn well.”

“He has to do everything I ask him to.”

“Really? I’m really curious about what happened in the S-Rank dungeon. The Guild Master came out quite injured then, didn’t he?”

“Ask the Guild Master about that. I really don’t know.”

Cho-i abruptly stood up from her seat.

“Where are you going?”

“Training’s over for today, so I’m going for a walk before heading home to rest.”

“Go home safely.”

“You too, unnie.”

After the S-Ranks parted ways, telling each other to go home safely, Cho-i decided to walk home. As she left Paehyeok and crossed the crosswalk, she saw a cafe across the street. While she was looking at it, wondering if it was a new cafe, she made eye contact with someone inside the cafe.

‘Why is he staring?’

The slightly odd thing was that he didn’t turn away but continued to stare at Cho-i. He soon came out of the cafe and stood at the crosswalk. At that moment, the light turned green. The man across the street had bright yellow hair. It was a different feeling from Yeonhan’s platinum blonde. It was literally like he was declaring, ‘I bleached my hair,’ Cho-i walked, meeting his gaze as he didn’t look away.

“Hey, you.”

“Who are you to speak so casually to me on our first meeting?”

The two stood in the middle of the crosswalk. Since the other person spoke disrespectfully first, Cho-i responded in kind. The other person let out a hollow laugh, as if dumbfounded.

“You don’t know me?”

“What, are you Yeonwoo Han? How would I know you? Do you know me?”

“Of course I do, you crazy bitch. Do you think someone who received a sudden duel request wouldn’t remember you?”

“Huh?”

A person flashed across Cho-i’s mind at those words. Now that he thought about it, the voice on the phone sounded similar.

“Gihyeon Park?”

“Yes, it’s me.”

“Why are you at Cafe in front of Paehyeok? Is stalking Taehyeok Sa your hobby?”

“Who’s stalking anyone!”

While he was fuming, the light turned red. Cho-i frowned, grabbed his wrist, and quickly crossed the street. The other person stared at him as if bewildered, then shook off his hand as soon as they crossed the crosswalk.

“Well, I’m glad I ran into you today. No need to wait until Thursday.”

“No. Wait.”

Cho-i said that and started making a call somewhere. Gihyeon Park became even more enraged at being ignored, and the atmosphere became uncontrollably tense.