Chapter 105
Chapter 105
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 105
Chapter Title: How to Steal the Protagonist's Woman
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Two hours had passed since the pair began hunting.
Seong Suho extended his hand toward a blue pillar not far away and said to Min Hayeon,
"There's a safe zone over there. Shall we take a break?"
"Sure, let's do that."
Min Hayeon followed Seong Suho leisurely, not a drop of sweat on her.
She watched his back with genuine admiration.
'One hour... Roughly speaking, that's the same number of monsters I caught all day yesterday... So, 20,000... 20,000 in one hour...'
Min Hayeon hadn't been able to perform properly while in Han Yeoreum's party.
Her archery skills were effective even here, but real combat was different.
With everyone fighting monsters up front, shooting arrows toward that chaos was an enormous burden for her.
In the end, most of her arrows targeted monsters separated from the party members.
But fighting alone like this changed everything.
Seong Suho was behind her, so she could fire freely.
If she were alone, she never could have hunted like this.
But after drinking his potion, her arrow power and focus both surged.
'Han Yeoreum's luck really was bullshit. This guy's the real cheat...'
Min Hayeon let out a wry chuckle as she entered the safe zone.
Safe zones were spots prepared for summoners scattered throughout the hunting grounds.
Later dangerous areas had almost none, but Zephrium was overflowing with them.
The moment Seong Suho entered the safe zone, he busily activated alchemy again.
Min Hayeon smiled naturally at the sight.
'What is it... He's so diligent. Most people would rest first.'
As a former athlete, she valued one thing above all when judging people.
Diligence.
She liked those who played hard but focused intensely when it was time to work.
And Han Yeoreum lacked exactly that.
Staring blankly at Seong Suho, a question arose in her mind.
'...Why did I ever like Yeoreum so much?'
They'd been together so long she couldn't even remember when they'd grown close.
Han Yeoreum, always popular, went through girls like meals.
But he always acted differently around her.
Because he was always by her side, she couldn't help but delude herself.
That he treated her differently from the others.
Though they attended different schools, they started dating, and Min Hayeon trusted him implicitly.
But the price of that trust was his cheating with other women.
He even rationalized it as "you allowed it," cheating freely.
As Min Hayeon's heart sank with contempt for Han Yeoreum, Seong Suho spoke in a puzzled tone.
"Huh? What's wrong with this..."
"...? Is there a problem?"
"Oh... No. I accidentally mixed in another ingredient, but it turned out normal anyway."
"Well, as long as there's no issue with the description, can't we just use it?"
"Yeah, no problem. It was just green herb mixed in, so it's fine."
Green herb was the ingredient for low-grade green potions, recovery potions.
Seong Suho handed Min Hayeon ten bottles of beginner Artemis potions.
As she took them, gratitude and guilt mingled in her heart.
'Even if we're partying together... Just taking stuff feels bad...'
But right now, all she could offer him was hunting hard.
Though anyone else could do that too.
Someone who could keep producing potions like that ten at a time could probably make melee ones too.
'Sigh... Think about it later.'
After some rest, Min Hayeon and Seong Suho resumed hunting.
..
..
"Good work."
"You too."
Seeing the sun set, Min Hayeon and Seong Suho returned to the village.
And the settlement results...
"Whoa... one hun... dred twenty thousand points...."
Min Ha-yeon stared at the settlement screen, dumbfounded.
Not 12,000, but 120,000 points.
The number before her eyes made her mind reel.
And the chat exploding over that number...
Min Ha-yeon skimmed the chat, but the consensus was no issues.
If Seong Su-ho were causing problems, he'd have been sanctioned already.
Let's just settle the points first and then think.... Wait... I shouldn't just settle them normally, right?'
Snapping out of her daze, Min Ha-yeon began the settlement.
As party leader, she adjusted and distributed directly.
Once done, Seong Suho said in surprise,
"I think the settlement's off. I got 70,000 points."
"...Then it went in right."
Min Ha-yeon smiled as she replied.
"We earned this much thanks to you. Gotta treat you accordingly."
"..."
Seong Suho pondered deeply.
Not long after, he grabbed Min Ha-yeon's wrist.
"Huh? Wh-what is it?"
Min Ha-yeon thought he might scold her for shortchanging him.
She thought he meant, 'I provided potions worth 50,000 points per hour, and this is all you give me?'
But it was different from her expectation.
"This is..."
"With this... you and I both end up settling 60,000 points for the day, right?"
"Oh..."
Seong Su-ho had grabbed Min Ha-yeon's wrist and transferred ten thousand points to her.
And he returned her words from the first day with a smile.
'Get close, huh...'
Watching him, Min Hayeon genuinely wanted to get close.
Only one way came to mind.
"Um..."
"...Yes?"
"...Wanna grab dinner?"
Min Ha-yeon invited a guy to eat for the first time in her life.
..
..
Min Ha-yeon and Seong Su-ho sat at a table in the Zephrium inn's first-floor restaurant.
Min Ha-yeon pouted her lips as she said,
"I-I'm paying, so why not go somewhere expensive..."
"Haha... I actually like this vibe."
Min Ha-yeon, who suggested dinner, let Seong Su-ho pick, and he chose the inn restaurant he ate at daily.
The place was very quiet.
No, beyond quiet—only Seong Su-ho, Min Ha-yeon, and the innkeeper in the kitchen occupied the first floor.
Definitely different from her hotel.
'...Most people stay there, huh.'
Whenever Min Ha-yeon's group finished hunting and arrived at the hotel, it was always noisy and crowded.
So many people that even the massive dining hall was packed....
Summoners who scrimped and saved points to stay in the best facilities possible....
Min Ha-yeon reflected, looking at Seong Su-ho.
'...Should I stay here starting tomorrow?'
And what changed her mind most was the interior.
This inn looked sketchy outside, but inside it had a kind owner and good facilities.
It couldn't compare to a hotel, but to Min Ha-yeon, is inn seemed perfectly fine.
As the food was placed on the table between the two awkward companions, the woman's boisterous voice rang out.
"Here, dig in!"
"Thank you."
"Thanks, we'll eat well."
"And this is on the house!"
On the table... soju.
Real soju from Korea.
Min Ha-yeon and Seong Su-ho thought with smiles,
'Weird. They got everything.'
Seong Su-ho looked surprised at the alcohol and said to the innkeeper,
"Huh? This is..."
"Service. Place is always empty, but you come every time, so thanks."
"Haha, thank you. But what to do... Might be too soon to drink with her... Huh?"
As Seong Su-ho explained to the innkeeper, Min Hayeon twisted open the soju cap.
Pop.
The cap opened with a crisp sound.
Min Ha-yeon flashed a provocative smile.
"Don't tell me... are you a lightweight?"
***
'Holy... what kind of alcohol is this strong....'
The moment Min Ha-yeon opened the soju, our dinner table turned into a drinking party.
Already seven empty bottles littered the table.
Of those, I'd only drunk two.
Drunk and disoriented, I still forced my back straight stubbornly.
Min Hayeon beamed playfully.
"Giving up already?"
"...Order two more..."
"Pfft... Still holding up."
Despite five bottles in her stomach, Min Ha-yeon casually refilled my glass.
But after some more, her face flushed with a buzz.
Gone was her usual composed, cool expression—she grinned happily, chatting with me.
No, rather than a conversation, it was closer to Min Ha-yeon's venting..
The content of the venting was badmouthing Han Yeo-reum.
And it wasn't just ordinary badmouthing..
She spilled every stupid thing he'd done to her in detail.
'Han Yeo-reum... What a psycho... Hic... I'm dying...'
The real problem wasn't Han Yeo-reum, it was me.
Just two sojus and my liver is screaming.
'No, no... I can hold...'
I could tolerate recovering my stamina with Enel.
But... I wouldn't cheat drinking with a girl!
'I'm still fiiiine!!!'
I continued communicating like that while focusing on listening to Min Ha-yeon's venting.
It was great to gather information through a drinking session that started by chance, but there was something even better.
"Hey, Su-ho.... Do you understand that? The things that bastard Han Yeo-reum does?"
"Sigh... he's a bad guy.... Ha-yeon... I really feel for you.... Phew...."
Before we knew it, Min Ha-yeon and I had become close enough to call each other by our names..
“Although the distance had been closed by the alcohol, it was a very favorable situation..
The previous day, Min Ha-yeon had evaluated my abilities very highly and formed a party with me, even abandoning her boyfriend..
Moreover, she had suggested dinner after the party and had even led the way to the drinking.
'Armonia.... Phew... just in case I forget....'
'I love only you...'
Tired of my drunken nonsense, Armonia used Enel on her own to sober me.
'...Huh? What... Where am I?'
Fortunately, I didn't black out and listened to Min Ha-yeon's venting for a few more hours..
Despite all that soju, she only got pleasantly tipsy, never blackout drunk.
I endured the buzz as best I could and spoke.
"Still... I envy you, Ha-yeon."
"Haa... What're you saying..."
Perhaps because she was also somewhat tipsy, Min Ha-yeon's expression hardened immediately upon hearing something she perceived as unpleasant.
Looking at Min Ha-yeon, who was knitting her brows, I said.
"You... at least you can meet them. I've been summoned like this... and I have no promise of when I'll be able to meet mine. Phew...."
"...Oh. You... had a girlfriend?"
"Yeah..."
I hung my head, looking gloomy.
I ignored the gay dick and continued.
"Every time... I go to a new world, people look at me with strange eyes... and just when I work hard to get close to them, we end up parting again."
"..."
Not a lie.
While performing missions so far, the only place I had visited twice was the Illunia Continent where Viola lived.
Even then, the locations were completely different....
I had only visited Schutra and the embassy only once each so far.
Kyah... this is exactly like saying, "I had sex with women, but I didn't cheat."'
I downed a shot and continued.
"Keeuh.... But I think I'll be here for a long time.... I think this is a place you can't leave unless you clear every single floor."
"S-sorry..."
"Thanks..."
"Huh?"
I smiled at Min Hayeon apologizing.
"Without you, I'd be alone again... Whew..."
I flopped face-down on the table, pretending to sleep.
Reason...
'Damn, any more and booze'll kill me... Time to rest...'
Min Ha-yeon approached my slumped form.
"H-hey... Sleeping like this..."
Flustered by the sudden situation, Min Ha-yeon shook my body to try and wake me up..
As I remained slumped, the innkeeper's voice reached me.
"Oh my... what to do... I've already secured a room so that's fine, but I don't have the strength to carry the young man...."
"Ah, I'll take him to the room."
"Oh, thank you!"
Min Ha-yeon slung my arm over her shoulder, shaking me.
"Su-ho! Seong Su-ho! Ah... He's totally out..."
"....."
I gave no reaction, feigning sleep.
She somehow managed to keep her arm around me and carry me to the room.
'Hngh! Hngh! Boobs jiggling!!!'
My reason was gradually falling into darkness, corrupted by the bouncing of Min Ha-yeon's breasts.
Her breasts, roughly a D-cup, were well-covered by a white blouse, but they couldn't hide the undulating waves of flesh.
While I was admiring the sway of her white blouse, we arrived at the entrance of my room..
Min Ha-yeon, huffing and puffing, brought me to my room but then looked troubled..
"Oh, right.... I can't enter another person's room without permission...."
Due to the nature of the lodging facilities, there was a function that completely blocked outsiders.
Min Ha-yeon agonized for a moment, then tried to open the door just to lay me down inside.
"Huh? It opened?"
Feeling her hand enter, she fully stepped in.
'Phew... it would have been a disaster if I hadn't said that....'
Hearing Min Ha-yeon's words, I immediately granted her permission to enter my private space
Min Ha-yeon let out a hollow laugh as she looked at me, whom she was hugging.
"Hey... how could you just grant permission like that just because we're party members.... I'll have to tell you about this tomorrow when you wake up."
She laughed, gently laying me on the bed.
Very gently...
She stayed quietly in the room for a long while, then spoke toward me.
"...No, I'm the one who should be thankful.... Thank you for listening to my story today."
Min Ha-yeon probably thought I was truly asleep and said something embarrassing due to her intoxication.
After finishing her words, she left the room, leaving behind the pretending-to-sleep me.
"...Is she gone?"
"...Any more and I'd die."
Sobering cost 100 Enel.
It wasn't much, but I thought it wasn't good to keep using it for useless things.
Then again, drinking until Min Ha-yeon was completely wasted wasn't a great idea either. If I made Min Ha-yeon drunk, slept with her, and then she got pissed and ratted me out to Han Yeo-reum, I would be crossing a river of no return.
“Well, now its bedtime anyway.”
I washed roughly, lay on bed, and told Armonia,
'Armonia. Play 5th run footage. That last boss scene.'
'Huh? Is something wrong?'
Armonia tended to view communication as very important
'Aha!'
One reason I brought Lena aboard: to cover Armonia's sleep.
I had been worried because there had been no word, but I decided to trust Armonia with it.
Since she had now adapted to the ship, it seemed Armonia was gradually teaching her how to use the ship's systems.
'Got it, teach well~.'
Comms quieted, footage appeared before my eyes.
I had already watched it quite a bit over the past few days, but no particularly helpful hints were visible.
'Sigh.... Ah, it's ended.'
The video stopped at the same time that the 5th-run version of me shouted a hint.
But...
(Krrooooar!! Well, what shall we try now.)
([My goodness.... Of all moments, at this exact time....]
(...? Armonia?)
As I thought deeply about what scene this was, I realized it quickly..
'Ah.... That was me from this run.'
It was an image of me stretching after leaving the Colosseum.
Normally, when Armonia was there, she would have played it on a loop, but since there was no one operating it this time, it seemed to have skipped forward
'...She really took a lot of care of me.'
Smiling at the footage.
I knew Armonia was capable.
And she always understood my actions as much as possible and dealt with them calmly..
“It was a trivial situation, but perhaps because of the alcohol, I felt a sense of gratitude toward her.”.
'Phew... if I'm that grateful, I should find the hint quickly.... Huh?'
“Just as I was about to call Armonia, I suddenly felt something strange.”.
“The 6th-run version of me was having countless conversations with Armonia.”.
But...
Something off.
“Yet, I didn't know what it was....”
“I couldn't tell if this feeling was confusion caused by the intoxication or if I had actually seen something strange.”?
That moment.
'No, wait... Hold on...'
Lying on bed, I kept watching 6th run, hunting that inexpressible info.
What... Why'd this scene suddenly feel wrong...
And that instant.
“As the 6th-run video continued to play, one part caught my eye.”
“It was a scene where Armonia was communicating with me.”
((Su-ho-nim is currently caught in the 5th regression. 7 days have passed.)
It was something she had said immediately after we got a room at the inn in the 6th run.
As soon as I saw that video, I quietly called Armonia..
'...Armonia.'
'Why...'
'Didn't you regress?'
I'd found the clue to break the regressions.