Chapter 73

It was a text message inviting her to a university alumni gathering. Mihwa University was indeed the university Cho-i had attended. The problem was that at the time, she was dating her ex-boyfriend, Hyeonchan An, and due to Cho-i’s timid personality and Hyeonchan An’s gaslighting, she had absolutely no friends.

“I wondered why I hadn’t heard from anyone.”

They say that once you become famous, people will rush to connect with you even if they just brushed past you while eating. Cho-i looked at her smartphone, thinking that her fame had come quite late. Then, Yeonhan Kim, who was watching beside her, asked,

“Why, what is it?”

“Oh, an alumni gathering text message came.”

Then she smiled as if she understood and said,

“Ignore it.”

“Heh, I wanted to try something.”

Then Yeonhan Kim looked at her with an uneasy expression.

“What is that, now?”

“Why, the kind you see a lot in dramas!”

“The one where you dress up lavishly, bring a handsome boyfriend, and surprise everyone around you?”

“Oh my, you know it exactly, my older sister.”

“…Isn’t that too old-fashioned?”

“You don’t know anything. Classic is best.”

“True. But who are you going to take? Should I lend you Dongju Kim?”

Then Cho-i made a serious thinking face.

“Would Taehyeok Sa be better, or Mr. Dongju?”

Then Yeonhan Kim smiled ambiguously.

“After all, the Guild Master is Scythe.”

“For causing a ruckus, Gihyeon Park isn’t bad either…”

While the two were having such a conversation, Taehyeok Sa and Dongju Kim, who noticed their names being mentioned, looked at them.

“Why do our names keep coming up?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Hunter Cho-i received an alumni gathering text, apparently?”

“Alumni gathering?”

Taehyeok Sa looked at Cho-i Hyeon as if he understood.

“Do you need it?”

“I’m thinking about it right now.”

Cho-i Hyeon held out her palm and fell into serious thought. First, she needed to check the date. Cho-i selected the alumni association text and read the rest of the content. The venue was a wine bar inside Nasin Hotel, the number of participants was…

“Just over ten people.”

Entering the link, she saw the number of attendees. Cho-i pondered for a moment and then began tapping her smartphone.

[Is she coming?]

It was a reply with truly no consideration. The sender of the text seemed to ponder for a moment, sending a reply after a few minutes.

[Hello, Cho-i. It’s been a long time. Do you remember we took the same class?]

“What is she saying? I don’t even remember who she is.”

Cho-i grumbled and asked again.

[Is he coming?]
[;; I don’t know who you’re talking about.]
[You know who I mean.]

Cho-i tapped his smartphone and smiled broadly.

[That bastard who introduced me to Hyeonchan An.]

***

Whoosh— The airport was noisy with announcements, footsteps, and the sound of luggage being dragged. Cho-i Hyeon and his companions, who had arrived at Korea International Airport, were pulling their luggage and entering the gate. It had been a long time since a huge article titled ‘Paehyeok Guild Breaks Through US SS-Rank Dungeon!’ had been published in Korea, and the airport was swarming with reporters trying to photograph them. There were so many that it made one wonder if our country had a larger population than the USA.

“They’re coming out!”

“There, there!”

As Paehyeok’s Group emerged from the gate, they rushed forward, shoving cameras in their faces. The other guild members, accustomed to such scenes, walked on without paying any mind. After all, it was tiring to react to every single one of these, especially since they weren’t celebrities. Of course, Cho-i smiled brightly and waved to them. They were probably doing that to make a living. Well, honestly, he wasn’t thinking much about it.

“Everyone must be tired, so go home. Don’t do anything foolish.”

Taehyeok Sa said, looking at Cho-i Hyeon, who was waving at the cameras. Cho-i Hyeon replied without even glancing at Taehyeok Sa.

“It’s none of your business if I do something foolish or not.”

“No one would do anything foolish except you.”

“Unfortunately, I’m an expert at foolishness, so I plan to do something foolish.”

“Do you know how many times the word ‘foolish’ has been mentioned between the two of you?”

Yeonhan Kim said with a laugh. It sounded like he was telling them to stop their childish bickering. Cho-i grinned and gave Taehyeok Sa the middle finger.

“I’ll call you if I need you.”

“I’m not that free.”

“Oh, really? Should I make you incredibly busy once?”

“I’ll try to make time.”

At that moment, Gihyeon Park, who was yawning as if he hadn’t fully woken up, waved his hand.

“I’m tired, so I’m leaving first.”

“Oh, right.”

Cho-i Hyeon held out his smartphone as if he had forgotten about him.

“Put your number in.”

“Oh.”

Gihyeon Park opened his half-closed, sleepy eyes properly.

“What’s the occasion?”

“To call you if I need you.”

“I don’t play hard to get like that guy.”

Gihyeon Park readily entered his number into Cho-i’s smartphone and even saved it himself under the name ‘Gihyeon♥’ before handing it back.

“Is this crazy?”

Cho-i laughed heartily and changed her name to Gihyeon Park. Gihyeon Park smacked his lips as if disappointed, but no longer pestered her, waving his hand and telling her to contact him coolly before disappearing. A few reporters could be seen moving in his direction. Paehyeok’s Group got into the pickup vehicle, ascended the Tower, and headed to Paehyeok for now. Cho-i Hyeon lay down, saying she wanted to go home immediately, but Yeonhan Kim soothed her and brought her along. As for how he soothed her:

“Give me the magic stone.”

At the action of reaching out her hand as soon as they arrived, Taehyeok Sa briefly pressed his forehead. He had indeed brought the magic stone and byproducts with him. However, he didn’t know she would ask for them right away, but facing her like this gave him a headache. Cho-i was holding out her hand, and Taehyeok Sa took out a square case from his inside pocket.

“Don’t do anything stupid.”

“You too.”

Taehyeok Sa opened the square case and took out two magic stones, placing them in Cho-i Hyeon’s hand. She joyfully tried to go home immediately, but Yeonhan Kim stopped her again.

“First, let’s make some plans before we go home.”

“Plans? What plans?”

“You, about you.”

Dongju Kim pointed at Cho-i with his index finger, and Cho-i opened her mouth to bite that finger. As soon as Dongju Kim quickly retracted his finger upon seeing her sharp fangs, there was a snap in the air. Yeonhan sat Cho-i down on the sofa first and then sat next to her. Dongju Kim sat opposite Cho-i, and Taehyeok Sa sat opposite Yeonhan.

“First, let’s consider the hypothesis Yeonhan Kim has put forward.”

Cho-i let out a short, “Ah.”

“You mean the hypothesis about whether I can go outside the dungeon in a Sanity Paralysis state or not?”

“Yes. I don’t know why I haven’t thought about Beondo Island until now. That state is definitely dangerous. I try to eat anything, and there’s no one to stop me except myself.”

“You finally admitted that you’re part of ‘anything’.”

“We’re not talking about that right now.”

“I know, I know. Can’t I just not use that skill?”

“Why did you use it this time?”

“Because there was an SS-Rank boss monster in front of me that I couldn’t defeat. Even Nara doesn’t want to keep repeating the experience of her insides melting.”

“Even so, you were too hasty.”

“Just because I don’t die doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt, okay? Please shut up. I used the skill because of you. Screw you.”

Taehyeok Sa nodded with a serious expression. He thought it was possible. Cho-i didn’t offer any particular excuses even while watching him nod seriously. Half of what he said was true. The intervention of the Shire Guild Master and Gihyeon Park was unexpected, but fortunately, there wasn’t much damage despite using that skill, so it was a relief.

“But what exactly is that?”

Dongju Kim asked. Dongju Kim remembered that time. The pressure he felt just by her standing in front of him. The moment he was sure he could never contend with her. Cho-i Hyeon answered without much thought.

“I guess it’s a Mantis?”

“Mantis?”

“Because it was created by a hidden item obtained from the Mantis Dungeon.”

“Now that you mention it, I’ve never heard a detailed story about that time.”

Taehyeok Sa asked. Cho-i Hyeon shook her head with a bored expression.

“It was similar to what you did. You don’t need to know more.”

“…I see.”

At Cho-i’s single remark, Taehyeok Sa’s mouth closed. Cho-i huffed and turned her head away from him. If he hadn’t been Taehyeok Sa, the Guild Master of Paehyeok, he would have died by Cho-i’s hand long ago. But since he was alive now, they were bound to be enemies. Taehyeok Sa acknowledged the mistake he had made in the past, but he wasn’t confident that he wouldn’t do the same if he went back to that time. So he quietly shut his mouth. Cho-i also knew. That bastard was that kind of bastard. As the atmosphere rapidly cooled, Yeonhan Kim spoke.

“Then, how about we agree that Hunter Cho-i will try not to use that skill as much as possible, and we adjourn for today? It seems there’s nothing more we can find out right now.”

“Oh, right.”

Cho-i added, as if something had occurred to her.

“The skill called Pain Sensation that appeared last time might also be related to Sanity Paralysis. A new skill doesn’t just appear that easily, does it?”

“That’s true, but you were in an extreme situation back then.”

“That’s true. Still, I have a feeling it didn’t just appear out of nowhere.”

“Indeed… That skill makes it tricky to attack. A skill that gets stronger the more you’re attacked…”

“Wow, if I pass out for a long time, it’ll really be something to see.”

“We should make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Taehyeok Sa sighed and held his head, and Cho-i didn’t care whether he was suffering from a headache or not. From what she could see now, he seemed to feel a strange sense of responsibility towards her, but from her perspective, it was simply ridiculous. What did you do there, and how did I get out of there? His belated attempt to act like a responsible party didn’t look good. It was almost to the point where Gihyeon Park, who fought fiercely and then came on to her, seemed cleaner.

“Alright. I’m leaving now. I’ll let you know if I find out anything else.”

“Go in my car.”

“No.”

“I’ll take Hunter Cho-i.”

As Yeonhan Kim stepped forward, Taehyeok Sa also nodded. Cho-i left the top floor with Yeonhan Kim and headed to the underground parking lot. The elevator was filled with silence for a moment.