Yeon-hee released all the summoned creatures and started gathering the remnants with me.
“But what exactly are you planning to use these for? They’re toxic, so you can’t even sell them like Big Boar.”
“Ah… I have my uses for them.”
Before I knew it, Lee Young-chul approached and started talking to Yeon-hee. While subtly checking me out, I quickly activated and deactivated my stealth skill, trying to appear as if I was sitting down, which made his face light up.
In his eyes, it must have looked like Yeon-hee’s magic was running low, and I’d soon be released from the summoning.
‘So that’s how it appeared to him? I hope so.’
“Two runes acquired!”
‘Oooh— as expected of a thief, he never loses his touch.’
Jin-kyeong struggled to wave his arms and showed off the two runes simply depicting the figure of a giant.
‘They’re mine! Mine! Hah-hah—’
We had agreed that if we acquired three runes today, the first three would be ours, so those belonged to me—of course, assuming Yeon-hee would hand them over.
Helen quickly brought the runes over and handed them to Yeon-hee.
“Honest and trustworthy Helen. Remember that.”
“Ah, yes…”
She seemed to struggle in battles, so it was touching to see her trying to make up for it with such efforts.
“This is the Rune of Giants… look, it’s a real giant figure.”
With only the upper body drawn, it was hard to believe it was a giant, but it was named the Rune of Giants once it was revealed that the small dots drawn below represented human figures.
Rune of Giants (Low Tier)
– Strength +8
Rune of Giants (Low Tier)
– Strength +9
‘Both have good stats.’
“Il-wol gets them all.”
Yeon-hee said this while staring at the runes. When I looked up at her, she awkwardly seemed to indicate I could be protected by Il-wol anyway.
“Clap, Clap, Clap!!”
Of course, I didn’t decline and stuffed them right into my inventory.
Strength: 97(+17)
‘Haha, with this, I can at least compete in strength with Lizardman 1.’
Just as I was happily chuckling to myself, the signal to move out was given again.
“But Yeon-hee? Did you really give all the runes to the skeleton?”
“Yes? Ah… yes…”
“Is there some special story behind it? It feels like you’re particularly favoring the skeleton, heh heh.”
Helen asked curiously.
“Ah, no! It’s just my first summons…”
“Aha! It’s your first summon! No wonder!”
I didn’t quite understand why that was a big deal, but I hoped they’d drop their interest in me.
“The skeleton… received two runes of giants…”
Chill—
Lee Young-chul’s mumble, just ahead of Jin-kyeong, sounded oddly high-pitched for his build, as if he had finally found the voice that suited him. His voice was very low and gloomy, yet it carried an irresistible shiver.
‘He isn’t even trying to hide it anymore. Next battle, then.’
He probably wouldn’t be able to withstand anything more than this. Even now, he was fidgeting restlessly, like a dog desperate for something.
As I examined him more to focus, I sensed something alien deep in his robes.
‘What’s that…?’
It was faint to the point that I could say it had mana like fragments attached, yet it was inside some pocket. Maybe it’s a consumable item? It could be poison or perhaps a powder to momentarily boost speed.
‘Whatever it is, it means he has another card to play.’
I moved on, keeping my tension high to prevent any possible outburst from him, and soon encountered another group.
But they weren’t monsters; it was a meeting with another party. Normally, if not near the entrance, avoiding contact with other parties is standard, making this unusual.
“Whew~ Quite the impressive bunch here, hehe.”
“Lee Young-chul! It’s been a while. With your great skills, it’s enviable teaming up with those beauties.”
“Haha, hello!”
They seemed to be familiar faces to Lee Young-chul.
‘So that’s why they approached. They must be quite close.’
Even this lunatic managed to socialize well with others.
Lee Young-chul asked for our understanding, chatted briefly with them, and returned with a very pleased expression.
‘What did he hear that made him so happy?’
Thud-thud—
“Hah, what should we do? I heard from those folks that this place is completely dried up, so I think we need to go deeper.”
‘Of course.’
He seemed so pleased to have found an excuse to venture further from the entrance. If we went deeper, encounters with other people would almost disappear.
“Is that so? Hmmm- it seems a bit dangerous to go deeper… What do you think, Yeon-hee?”
“Eh? Um— I think it would be okay.”
“Then we’re in. Let’s go.”
“That’s a wise choice, everyone…”
Lee Young-chul, looking quite invigorated, widened his stride and charged ahead confidently.
“15 monsters detected… How to engage? Is it lizardmen again?”
“Yeah… that’s probably best.”
Though it was near a small creek, making me hesitant, the number was even lower than those we encountered before. Surely there wouldn’t be an issue.
…
…
…
“Whew— it feels like I lose a kilo every time I fight.”
“Seriously, there’s no need for dieting.”
The Helen-Jin-kyeong duo was still struggling, but they were starting to feel more confident. Both had a certain grit and if trained well, they might even manage to challenge to C-rank.
Yeon-hee had dismissed all summons and was resting for a moment perched on a low rock. Even though she had two artifacts and one semi-artifact, the three tight battles had left her quite fatigued.
Stomp-stomp—
“Ah, Lee Young-chul! Come over here and rest!”
The duo, who had taken up spots next to Yeon-hee, waved to Lee Young-chul, who was walking over with his head hung.
Lee Young-chul was placing something around us, probably items filled with a recognition-impairing spell.
“Ha… kick… hehehe… done.”
“Eh? Is something going on?”
When Lee Young-chul suddenly started laughing as he reached within 10 meters of us, the three of us just tilted our heads and watched.
I wondered if he was really that tired or if there was something unsettling about it.
And I felt a bit drowsy too…?
Just as an overwhelming wave of sleepiness washed over me, I felt astonished when Yeon-hee suddenly jumped up from her seat to cast a spell, only for her knees to buckle and she slumped back down.
“Wha… Yeon-hee, what’s happening…?”
Plop— plop—
‘Sleep!! A power so strong it seals the mouth!!’
It felt like my head had been smashed with a hammer, but it was only a fleeting moment before my body turned lazy and the dry ground beneath my face felt like a soft bed.
‘Where is Il-wol…?’
“AAAAAAAAAAAH!! F*ck!! Yes! This is it! The expression of not knowing what’s happening! Hahaha! The way they collapse with their tongues twisted is the best point, right? Hah… I’m really losing my mind here.”
—!!
“I… you son of a…!”
Helen, her eyes bloodshot with rage, wanted to unleash a barrage of insults at Lee Young-chul, but her tongue was twisted and she couldn’t articulate properly. The frustration made tears stream down her face.
“What you drank is a special sleeping powder. Colorless and odorless. Do you know how much I spent on this? No, no, it’s more like a sleep fragrance since I liquefied it, right?”
Lee Young-chul approached the three of them, removing his arm and leg guards one by one.
“Hah— this is the third time now. Smacking the back of the team’s heads is a risky endeavor that I honestly wanted to avoid. But seeing your expressions, I doubt I’ll be able to hold back in the future. This really puts me in a bind. I’ve been cautious while working on this.”
He shook his head, stroking Helen’s prominently revealed thigh.
“Ha-ha, but don’t get me wrong. It’s not a high-grade product that’ll knock you out instantly. That’s much more expensive. But since it’s a lower grade, it’s actually better, right? You’ll be clearly aware while you’re drowsy, watching your companions suffer. You get to see what happens to them. Hehehe—”
Lee Young-chul seemed to have taken a bit of the scent himself, or maybe the excitement had him reaching a euphoric level, as his words tumbled out more than usual.
“But this effect doesn’t last long, so I’m planning to start with cutting off your legs. You’ll understand, right? If the audience leaves suddenly in the middle of a show, it’ll lose its flavor, right? Are you listening? That’s the gist of it anyway.”
Swish—
“Ugh!! Ugh!!”
“Ugh! Ughhh—!!”
Yeon-hee, Helen, and Jin-kyeong all thrashed violently, glaring at Lee Young-chul as if they wanted to kill him.
“Cackle— what a wonderful glare. Please keep that expression until the end. Hah… Truly, today is the best day. Ah! Yeon-hee, how hard was it to endure until that monstrous skeleton disappeared? How can your summoned creature be stronger than you? Absolutely absurd.”
While lightly swinging the great sword he had pulled out of his inventory, Lee Young-chul looked at Helen.
“Dressing so seductively, were you secretly waiting for this situation? Hmmm… I’d love to respond, but today’s protagonist is not you. It’s a pity you’ll have to enjoy it from the audience. Then—”
Lee Young-chul raised his sword high into the air.
“Yikes—!!”
As Helen tightly shut her eyes…
[Slam]
Fwoosh—!!
“Cough?!”
‘This bastard really talks too damn much. I waited to see if he’d spill some secret info like Jo Gi-man, and all I got was this— wasted time.’
I stopped waiting and shoved Arhen’s dagger deep into his neck.
“Cough- Gurgle—”
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