Chapter 127
Chapter 127
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 127
Chapter Title: How to Steal the Protagonist's Woman
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"...Sorry. Because I was crying... I made you waste time."
"What are you talking about? In a situation like this, you'd be the one having the hardest time."
"Hehe..."
Min Ha-yeon smiled brightly as she wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and looked up at me.
The atmosphere had changed a lot.
It was on a whole different level from just having some familiarity or affection.
It felt like our trust had been directly connected.
And since we'd gotten past this stifling situation, I dropped the formal speech and talked comfortably with her.
'Good. Definitely feels like a lot of the frustration is gone now.'
[But the most important problem hasn't been solved yet.]
As Armonia said, outside the safe zone, three Shock Bees were still prowling around, threatening us.
'What do I do? Should I just wipe them all out?'
Wipe them all out!?
I won't even open my mouth... No, let's stop there...
[I believe Su-ho-nim could definitely take down those three. However, it's not 100% certain.]
If my mana ran out more than expected and they survived even a strong Bullet Bean, it'd be a headache.
Once mana exhaustion hit, even recovering with Enel would leave me unable to move during that time—that was the biggest issue.
[Su-ho-nim, my recommendation is... how about raising your Magic Power?]
'It's at level 8 right now...'
Armonia's recommendation would not only help break the current situation but also be hugely beneficial for the future.
After all, magic was my main force right now.
[You have 93,000 Enel left. You could go up to 11, but I don't recommend it. It would consume almost all your Enel. I suggest safely raising it to 10 first.]
'How much Enel would be left if I go to 10?'
[About 54,000 left.]
The cost increase was no joke now.
It started at 100, but just past level 10, it was already costing tens of thousands.
'At this rate, hitting level 20 would be impossible.'
[The increase changes after level 10, but I'll explain that in detail later.]
'Okay~ Let's raise it to 10 for now.'
Since I'd overcome regression, there was no need to be stingy about raising stats.
Plus, Magic Power boosted both firepower and mana—super useful.
It was currently my top lifelong asset.
'Let's test it. I'll lure them with weak shots first and fire from near the safe zone.'
[I'll focus on immediately relieving mana exhaustion. Even so, please use it carefully.]
'Yeah, got it.'
As I finished communicating with Armonia, Min Hayeon spoke to me.
"Um... how about using a blessing?"
"No, let's be more careful with that."
Mine were essential and unavoidable, but hers were different.
If we wasted one here that turned out useless later and couldn't reset it?
Considering even the slightest risk, I couldn't let her blessings be used carelessly.
I thought blessings should be assigned as cautiously as possible, even if it meant wasting points or acting recklessly otherwise.
"I have a good idea."
"...What is it?"
Min Ha-yeon looked at me with dissatisfied eyes.
"First, I'll run ahead and..."
"Don't be ridiculous! Hey! You did the same thing last time too!"
Min Ha-yeon cut me off, got angry, grabbed my collar, and started shaking me.
From afar, it might look like lovers playing around, but my brain inside my skull was jiggling like pudding.
I'm gonna puke...
"Th-this is different from last time."
"Different my ass! Absolutely not!"
Min Ha-yeon yelled loudly, clutching my clothes, showing her determination not to let go.
For her, what happened back then must have been something that should never happen again.
Still, I explained the situation to her.
A spell that drew out my mana to its maximum.
I did it to test that.
Even so, Min Ha-yeon stubbornly insisted it was absolutely not okay.
The reason was...
"You lied to me last time too! Don't you remember?"
"..."
She remembered that bluff, so she didn't trust my actions now either.
She wouldn't forget sending her away—despite being able to make recovery potions—while injured, to lure them alone.
Min Ha-yeon grabbed me and spoke in a subdued tone.
"Don't do that... I really don't want to be separated from you like that."
"...Sorry. Then let's go together."
Honestly, going alone would be much easier.
The reason was the safe zone's maximum capacity.
I'd never seen it, but Gay Peepee had mentioned that some safe zones, though rare, only allowed one person.
If we unluckily ended up at a one-person safe zone?
I'd fire a Bullet Bean and then be temporarily out of commission, so she'd have to escape alone.
But I hated that too.
Still, since we'd decided, we needed a proper plan.
The nearest safe zone was about 50 meters away.
"Hayeon, can you hit them with arrows from here?"
"Hm... I can hit them, but it won't do any good."
Min Ha-yeon explained that even after drinking Artemis's potion and focusing in broad daylight before, she couldn't deal damage.
Plus, the only light sources now were the safe zone and moonlight.
She said not only accuracy but damage on glancing shots would be lower than usual.
"Then let's try it with my magic."
"Okay."
Seong Su-ho explained the plan.
It was simple: run to the next safe zone and test his magic there.
Min Ha-yeon had a question.
"Can't we just step out briefly, shoot, and come back?"
Her point made sense.
Why bother running away?
Seong Su-ho explained carefully.
"Unlike my usual shots, this one takes some time to fire. And you can assume I'll be out of it for about five seconds after I shoot."
"Ah..."
He explained that it took time to cast, and if they poked around outside carelessly, a Shock Bee's stinger could send them straight to the afterlife.
So, the core was to run first, create distance, then have him aim while she provided cover for any contingencies.
Seong Su-ho worried the visible safe zone might be one-person.
"Maybe I should go alone after all."
"No! We go together no matter what. If it's one-person, I'll figure out how to escape. And if your magic works, we really have a shot at winning."
Min Ha-yeon hoped that if Seong Su-ho's magic could land a critical hit on a Shock Bee, they could clear the area later, even if not right now.
"And even if my arrows don't damage them, I can at least harass them."
"Yeah. Let's do that."
After they finished talking, about 15 minutes remained on the safe zone.
Relieved by her agreement to go together, Min Ha-yeon hooked her arm in his and said with a wry smile,
"Isn't it weird? We just met, and here I am clinging like this..."
"No, it's not. I'm grateful, actually."
"..."
"I thought regression was all good, but it wasn't. If my memories get wiped like this again, keep telling me. I'll try to believe you to the end."
"...Why do you believe what I say so easily?"
Min Hayeon looked at Seong Su-ho with suspicion.
From her perspective, he'd only met her recently.
For him to accept and understand her confession like that was bound to raise doubts.
Seong Su-ho answered her honestly.
"I believe people who believe and rely on me. That's it."
"...Hehe."
Feeling good, Min Ha-yeon hugged his arm tighter.
She thought to herself,
'So that's why I like this guy.'
A man she'd approached for his abilities had stolen her heart at some point.
Until now, she hadn't exactly known why.
But now she understood the vague feeling precisely.
'How could I not like someone who trusts me like this?'
Min Ha-yeon smiled brightly and said to Seong Su-ho,
"Did you decide on that one favor I told you to pick last time?"
"Ah... I haven't set one specifically."
Seeing that, Min Ha-yeon chuckled inwardly.
'If I leave him like this, he'll skip it forever.'
She'd offered one favor, but he didn't seem to want anything.
If they were closer like before, he'd probably tease with a cheeky request, but they weren't there yet.
'Gotta push harder.'
Resolving herself, Min Ha-yeon said,
"No good. After the boss fight, you have to ask for one. Or else..."
"...?"
She glared playfully.
"I'll decide for you. Whether you like it or not."
"Haha..."
Seong Su-ho laughed helplessly without answering.
After all, a favor between a man and woman could only really be one thing.
And he wasn't the type to say, "Give me points."
'...But if he actually asked for points, that'd be hilarious.'
Even she laughed helplessly at the absurd idea as she wrapped her arms around his.
Time passed just like that...
"Alright, get ready to go."
"Okay."
The two took positions as the safe zone timer ticked down.
00:01 [2/2]
Just in case, Min Ha-yeon drank an Artemis potion.
Seong Su-ho pulled bullets from his pocket, ready to fire.
"I'll shoot weak ones at those two first. Ha-yeon, harass the remaining one."
"Got it."
"Go!"
With Seong Su-ho's shout, Min Ha-yeon stepped out and shot an arrow at one Shock Bee.
Paat!
The arrow shattered against the Shock Bee, which flinched briefly before flying toward her.
Tang!
With an enormous gunshot, the Shock Bee hurtling at Min Ha-yeon plummeted to the ground, writhing.
It was Seong Su-ho's magic.
But aside from its agony, no external wounds were visible.
Seong Su-ho fired at the approaching two as well.
Tang! Tang!
"Now, let's go!"
"Okay."
Seong Su-ho grabbed Min Ha-yeon's arm and started running.
The pitch-black forest made it hard to distinguish even trees right in front.
It was not easy to flee.
But the distant safe zone guided their path.
Buuuung...
Hearing the propeller noise behind, Seong Su-ho yelled,
"Over there!"
"Huh!?"
But Min Ha-yeon reacted with alarm to his shout.
Someone was inside the safe zone.
"What!? Don't come here!"
"Of all the..."
Seong Su-ho looked troubled at Han Yeo-reum yelling at them from inside.
Han Yeo-reum shouted at the pair,
"This safe zone is one-person! Go somewhere else, quick!"
"..."
Even in their crisis, Han Yeo-reum prioritized his own survival, trying to shoo Min Ha-yeon away.
As soon as Min Ha-yeon and Seong Su-ho reached it, they confirmed.
Min Ha-yeon pounded the barrier desperately and sighed deeply.
"It's true. Really only one person fits..."
"..."
Seong Su-ho pondered quietly, then glanced back.
The Shock Bees were almost upon them.
But beyond the approaching bees, Han Yeo-reum's condition looked bad too.
"Get lost!!"
"...?"
Min Ha-yeon realized why Han Yeo-reum was acting up by checking the time inside.
00:01 [1/1]
Only about a minute left at best.
"Let's go quick too! We'll get caught like this."
"Yeah."
Seong Su-ho agreed, and the two moved immediately.
But as they did, Han Yeo-reum's scream echoed from behind.
"Fuck!!"
His safe zone vanished, and he started chasing after us.
Min Ha-yeon glanced at Han Yeo-reum and thought,
'If Han Yeo-reum dies now, it'll be trouble... I need to confirm if Su-ho's magic works first.'
Min Ha-yeon stopped running, turned, and nocked an arrow at the Shock Bee chasing Han Yeo-reum.
But at that moment...
Shuuk!
Pak!
"Aaaagh!!"
Something pierced her arm as she aimed.
'Ow! N-not now!'
She instantly knew what the pain was.
A Shock Bee stinger.
Mind reeling in pain, Min Ha-yeon smiled bitterly watching Han Yeo-reum run past her.
'Why on earth did I ever like a bastard like that?'
Buuuuuung!!!
With a massive sandstorm-like roar.
A Shock Bee loomed, its jaws wide toward her.
Even in the dark, its vivid form was unforgettable.
'I'm dead anyway...'
Sensing death, Min Ha-yeon squeezed her eyes shut.
The moment she did, slicing winds rang out.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
An incomprehensible sound.
'...?'
Min Ha-yeon cracked her eyes open, and in her vision...
"You okay?"
Seong Su-ho stood beside her, bow in hand.