Chapter 171
Chapter 171
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 171
Chapter Title: Friendship? (4)
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20 seconds.
That was how long it took Sharon to demolish every last homunculus remaining.
The moment her wand—adorned with deep green emeralds—flashed with light, a small storm erupted inside the department store.
Siwoo watched in awe as the vortex, born in that cramped indoor space, shredded the homunculi like they were calamari. These were the same creatures that barely flinched even when struck with a sword.
In the midst of the department store, now trashed like the aftermath of a terrorist attack, Sharon tapped the tip of her wand against the floor, signaling the end of the fight.
"Hoo... There. Let's collect them quick."
"Yeah, I'll help."
"I'll handle it fast right now. You rest a bit. You've been through enough."
Once she'd finished mopping up the stragglers, Sharon used every last drop of her mana thriftily, lifting countless corpses into the air with telekinesis all at once.
Unlike Siwoo, whose telekinesis turned into a total mess whenever he tried anything even slightly complex, Sharon's solid fundamentals kept things steady even as she manipulated over a hundred objects. And the crystals she extracted were as clean as if a surgeon had done the work.
Sharon pocketed each crystal as they floated toward her one by one.
"Siwoo, have you ever trained in martial arts?"
"Nah, never."
A slightly awkward air hung between them.
It wasn't clear if the crisis had fully passed, and anxiety lingered about what today's events might foreshadow down the line.
But for Sharon, this was a rare chance to bag a massive haul of crystals after a proper hunt. For Siwoo, it confirmed just how effective his newly established laws of shadow truly were. Neither felt entirely uneasy.
"But how are you fighting so well? It was like watching a movie."
"No idea. My body just moved on its own—I was surprised too."
Sharon's voice rose with excitement, but Siwoo was the most stunned of all.
He'd taken down that many homunculi, yet his body showed no strain whatsoever. His breathing was only a little ragged, like he'd just jogged a medium distance.
It was proof that, unlike his previous reckless use of his body, he'd moved with incredible efficiency this time.
"Oh, right—you must've done your military service. That's where you learned it, huh?"
"No, it's not like that there."
Sharon continued her excited speculation in a slightly upbeat tone.
Dimples of irrepressible joy bloomed on her cheeks. With this much, she could ease her debt worries for a little while, after all.
In total, 103 crystals ended up in Sharon's hands.
She gazed happily at the heavy pouch brimming with homunculus crystals.
This amount would fetch at least 100 million—no, 150 million for sure.
"Siwoo."
"Yeah?"
"I've been thinking..."
Sharon approached Siwoo, who was perched on a shattered display shelf, taking a break.
She hesitated as she watched him remove only his helmet from his armor and run a hand through his sweat-dampened hair. Honestly, Siwoo had seemed pretty cool today.
"When I exchange these, I'll give you 80%. You earned them."
"No way. Our deal was you keep whatever we hunt, and in exchange, you teach me magic."
"Still feels wrong. It's not pocket change."
That condition had been offered assuming he wouldn't participate much in the hunt.
But hadn't this bountiful loot been forged purely by his strength?
Clinging to some outdated verbal contract and claiming "It's all Sharon's!" felt utterly unreasonable.
Siwoo grinned and hopped down to the floor.
Then he ruffled Sharon's hair.
No matter how tough her situation, he always admired how she powered through honestly without cutting corners.
"Nah, a promise is a promise. Backing out now would be weirder. Besides, I'm not desperate for cash right this second."
"Uh..."
"You take it all. I'm satisfied just testing out what I learned from you in the hunt today."
Sharon stared blankly as Siwoo's hand stroked her head.
Just from that simple touch, her heart pounded harder than when she'd bared her chest or even when he'd groped it.
Why were her heels lifting like this?
Why was this untimely smile creeping onto her face?
Afraid she'd end up with a goofy, slack-jawed grin, Sharon frantically covered her mouth and fidgeted.
Siwoo pulled his hand away, realizing her flustered reaction.
Come to think of it, Odile hated uninvited head pats too.
"Let's head back."
Sharon spun around, forcing a calm demeanor—or at least trying her hardest to look calm.
The danger seemed gone, and they'd recovered the crystals. No need to linger in this wasteland.
Back home, she'd treat him to some late-night snacks and relax with a movie. Sharon resolved inwardly to foot the bill for tonight's grub.
"Thanks so much, Siwoo."
"No biggie."
"You always look out for me and help."
"Don't say it like that—it sounds weird. We're symbiotic, right? Good for the sister-in-law, good for the brother-in-law."
Sharon expressed her gratitude without properly meeting his eyes, while Siwoo trailed behind her with heavy steps.
The rare warm atmosphere made even Siwoo a bit embarrassed.
Especially after he'd lost himself in Sharon's "Wanna grope my boobs?" event that morning. He'd been unsure how to face her upon her return.
But thanks to the back-to-back incidents, it could slide under the rug naturally now.
They took the escalator down to the underground mall connecting the department store basement to Sinchon Station.
He stayed vigilant for any monster ambushes, but fortunately, none appeared.
The dimly lit mall interior felt eerie, though.
"Huh?"
Then Sharon froze in place.
She turned to Siwoo with a panicked gaze.
"What's up?"
"Didn't you hear that?"
"Hear what?"
"Just now, there was this huge thud, like a boom."
"No? I didn't..."
He was about to say he hadn't heard anything.
But then a massive, dull rumble shook the entire building interior.
-Thud!
Siwoo and Sharon whipped around, scanning for the source of the sound.
-Ku-kuk... Thud...
Earrings and rings on display shelves rattled and rolled across the glass surfaces.
Emergency exit signs blinked frantically.
Vibrations climbed from their toes through their bodies, making them tremble.
"This is..."
The ceiling cracked like parched farmland.
He could feel the concrete pillars and rebar—meant to hold the building firm—screaming as they split and bent.
The ensuing vibrations and noise made it clear.
"Wh-what's happening?"
Yes.
This noise wasn't coming from any one direction.
The entire building was shrieking in agony.
"Over here!"
Sensing the crisis, Siwoo grabbed Sharon's wrist.
"Eek!"
Sharon was yanked into Siwoo's arms, landing softly against him.
This was bad.
Not that he minded holding her close, but anyone could see this was the prelude to collapse.
Siwoo amplified his mana while cradling her, activating his teleportation spell.
"Si-Siwwoo...!"
"Hold still!"
"Not the time— we gotta run!"
"I'm trying to run! Trust me and stay put!"
With the roar growing louder, they shouted over the din.
Sharon, unfamiliar with Siwoo's coordinate teleportation spell, urged him anxiously.
The teleportation spell was notoriously finicky.
It required countless variables, and mana drain scaled massively with distance and passengers.
Best case was teleporting straight home, but there was no time for leisurely calculations.
So he set the destination nearby the department store.
-Kwa-gwagwagwagwang!
A sound he'd never heard in his life.
Not just sound—more like a shockwave of explosive force. Far down the corridor, the ceiling began crumbling.
Like dominoes toppling, the wave of destruction raced toward Siwoo and Sharon.
No matter how efficient the laws of shadow made his magic, he had no confidence in tanking that impact.
Amid the deafening noise that left his ears ringing, Sharon seemed to scream.
And just as a massive concrete chunk plummeted right in front of Siwoo's feet.
He barely pulled off the teleportation.
The department store's 12 stories collapsed.
Having successfully teleported outside, Siwoo tilted his head back and watched the massive building—he had to crane his neck to see the top—crumple limply.
-Ku-gu-gu-gung
Mass and position equated to energy.
A concrete behemoth weighing tens of thousands of tons plummeting from dozens of meters up released energy akin to a mass weapon just from collapsing, radiating it everywhere.
As sound, shock, vibration.
With five underground floors, it looked like the earth was swallowing it whole.
Glass shards scattered everywhere, huge concrete slabs larger than people rained down like hail.
Thankfully, the heaviest debris didn't reach Siwoo and Sharon's position, but dust and grit spread like a desert sandstorm, engulfing Siwoo as he shielded her.
No idea how long it took to build that structure.
But the bustling department store, always packed with crowds, turned into a pile of construction waste in under 20 seconds.
"Ugh... uh... hee... We almost died..."
Sharon burrowed into Siwoo's arms, terror-stricken.
And rightly so—it had been a razor-thin escape.
The corridor crumbling like a sandcastle swept by the tide, the deafening blast that briefly deafened her, the collapse creeping right up to her nose.
Sharon had been certain she'd be crushed to death.
And without Siwoo, she would have been.
Even a witch couldn't offset a building's collapse without mana.
"You okay?"
"Okay? It was... freaking terrifying... I thought I was done for. For real..."
"Everything's gone too smoothly today, huh? My luck's rotten... But we did pretty well, all things considered?"
He tossed in a light joke laced with truth to brighten the mood, but Sharon's shoulders still quivered faintly.
Truth be told, Siwoo wasn't unaffected either.
If he'd mistimed it, they'd both be flattened inside right now.
Still, experience maybe?
After all the rough patches lately, it didn't hit as a massive stressor.
And with Sharon trembling like this, how could he show weakness too?
"Here, any injuries?"
"No injuries, but... h-hold on... My body's stiff... Can't move..."
Sharon clung to his collar, frozen solid.
Pondering how to soothe her, Siwoo gently patted her back. She gasped ragged breaths, like a blockage had cleared.
Her eyes brimmed with pathetic tears at the corners.
"Shouldn't have suggested going underground. The homunculi must've done this too, right?"
Anything else would be too coincidental.
The building collapsing right as they entered the underground mall, like it was lying in wait.
"Dunno if they've got that level of smarts. Ugh, whatever... My legs are jelly... Let's rest. Head home and crash hard."
Sharon groaned and finally released his clothes, squatting in place.
Unfortunately, they didn't have time for a leisurely break.
"........."
"........."
Humans naturally fall silent before astonishing, incomprehensible sights.
Sharon and Siwoo were just like that now.
Far off.
Where the department store entrance used to be.
As the summer breeze cleared the dust and grit settled, it came into view.
A colossal beast the size of a decent building stared straight at Sharon and Siwoo.
And it kicked off the ground, charging right at them.
Sharon's face went deathly pale.
"Si-Siwwoo, we gotta run. That's... that's not something we can handle."
Each bound shook the earth.
Despite quadrupedal gait, its height alone was easily 30 meters. Eerily similar to the homunculi they'd been smashing all day—like their damn mom.
But if it were just size, Siwoo—with newfound confidence in his skills—and Sharon—who'd witnessed his prowess—wouldn't be so scared.
What truly triggered alarm were the countless crimson eyes embedded densely across its body.
Siwoo's shock bordered on absurd laughter.
"No wonder luck was on my side... How many eyes does that thing even have?"
His rotten fate, dragging him into chaos today as always, had led him faithfully down the thorny path once more.
The teleportation spell wasn't spammable.
And it demanded considerable calculation time.
Escaping with Sharon would take at least 30 seconds. But eyeing the mother beast's approach, it'd trample them in under 10.
Siwoo scooped Sharon up princess-style.
She wasn't heavy to begin with, and with the armor's strength boost, she felt weightless.
"Wh-what are you doing?!"
"You're out of mana! This is faster!"
He spun and bolted straight for the distant boundary of the backworld realm.