Chapter 13
Chapter 13
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: Unintentional Team Kill
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Having personally demonstrated to my disciple what "aggro" means...
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Your account has been suspended for one week] Banned from the game for another week.
Once again, I'd have to endure a long week without a single drop of dopamine.
"Haaah..."
I let out a deep sigh and placed the five Lumina Bells on the table.
There was a ton of time left until the ban lifted.
In the meantime, I figured I'd try making some mana potions using the Lumina flowers.
[Usage Method] ‘Mana Recovery Potion’ - A potion made by mixing flower sap and purified water But to do that, I had one hurdle to clear.
‘What's purified water?’
Purified water... something like that?
After racking my brain, I fetched some tap water and tried using my Purify skill.
...Nothing happened.
I tried it on bottled water,
and even on boiled water, but it was the same.
I had no clue how to make purified water.
On a whim, I searched "purified water" in the auction house app.
[Selling 10 bottles of purified water]
- Direct trade only.
Luckily, I found a listing at a dirt-cheap price.
I immediately messaged the seller my intent to buy, and less than a minute later, a reply came.
[I have a schedule right now, but can trade after 7 PM. Is that okay?]
[That's fine ^^ Where should I go around 7 PM?]
A quick search of the meetup spot showed it wasn't too far from the Bloom Guild building I'd visited before.
‘Hmm. That's pretty far...’
Last time, a ten-million-won jackpot was on the line, so I'd gone without hesitation.
But as the buyer now, trekking that far didn't appeal to me.
Maybe I should give up on the value and trade with someone closer— as I hesitated,
Ding-dong—
Someone rang the bell.
‘No way... again?’
Looked like Bloom Guild had sent another pile of boxes.
But my house was already at capacity with mysterious boxes.
No choice but to start shipping them back, whether Bloom turned hostile or not.
‘What a pain.’
Thud, thud— I trudged to the front door and flung it open.
"Hello."
Standing outside wasn't a pile of boxes, but a woman I'd never seen before.
She wore a neat black suit, her hair tied back in a single ponytail, and bowed politely toward me.
"I'm Ryu Se-yeon, chief secretary of Full Moon Guild."
Her speech was polite and courteous, but she carried an inexplicable air of intimidation.
‘Why would someone from Full Moon Guild come to me...?’
Plus, Full Moon was a name anyone who'd dipped a toe into the Awakener community would know.
Criminals, black mages, cultists.
Even those shunned by society or who'd awakened dark skills—
as long as they proved strong, the guild accepted them without discrimination. That's what it was famous for.
And I think I'd seen it ranked number one in Korea right now.
"I sincerely apologize for visiting without notice and entering your home without permission. I'm sorry."
For their chief secretary to come in person and bow like this.
What on earth could she want...?
‘Wait, that's not the important part right now.’
Bloom Guild aside, how did Full Moon know my address?
The secretary, who'd been silent for a moment, spoke again in her polite, courteous tone, explaining her visit.
"We're here to request your help with a gate scheduled to rampage. Would you be willing to join our party?"
She waited calmly for my answer, then added,
"The team will consist solely of our guild's elites, and we'll guarantee your safety. The reward will be generous."
I couldn't answer right away.
Honestly, I wanted to flat-out refuse.
Criminals, black mages, cultists...
Entering a gate with Full Moon members sounded like a nightmare.
Especially a ‘rampaging gate’? Hard pass!
But with the number one guild's rep bowing like this...
I couldn't bring myself to refuse easily.
A natural question arose.
No matter how rare healers were, did it make sense for Korea's top guild to have zero?
Unable to hold back my curiosity, I asked.
"Sorry, but doesn't Full Moon Guild have any healers?"
A flicker of embarrassment crossed the secretary's face.
"Of course we have one exclusive healer... but she's suddenly obsessed with this community thing and is completely unreachable."
Hmm, I see.
That was totally understandable.
If she'd just gotten hooked on the community, who had time for work?
I didn't know who Full Moon's healer was, but I felt an instant camaraderie.
"Where's the rampaging gate located?"
"Gangbuk District, Seoul."
Surprisingly, the gate was just a few meters from the direct-trade spot the purified water seller had picked.
"...Will you give me a ride to the gate?"
"Of course. No need to worry about transportation at all."
Might as well grab the purified water... and fill in for a fellow community addict.
"Alright..."
As I reluctantly agreed,
The secretary spotted someone and a faint smile curved her lips.
"Fancy seeing a familiar face here."
"What are you doing here...?"
A familiar voice rang out at the same time.
"Hello, Healer! Have you opened any of the gifts I sent...?"
Bloom Guild Master Song Yu-hwa strode in, cradling a large box.
She looked pretty shocked at the unopened boxes stacked in the corner.
"Ah, haha... You've been so busy, Healer... You haven't even opened my gifts..."
Song Yu-hwa forced an awkward smile, then suddenly hardened her expression and shot a sharp glare at the secretary.
"Why are you here? Planning some shady scheme again?"
"Shady scheme? Such harsh words. I'm only here to ask for the Healer's help."
Even as Song Yu-hwa openly picked a fight, the secretary kept her composed smile.
"Time is short, so we'll take our leave."
"We? We? Since when are you and the Healer a we?"
Song Yu-hwa's pleading gaze turned to me.
"Shall we go, then?"
But I had to pointedly ignore that look...
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Far off, in front of the gate flickering with red light.
Three figures stood at a distance from each other.
A woman wrapped head to toe in bandages.
A woman gripping a skull staff the size of a human head.
A figure in a deep black hood, gender impossible to discern.
‘...If only it weren't those people.’
—No sooner had I thought that than the secretary dashed my hopes with cold reality.
"Those are Full Moon Guild's elite members."
"......"
...Was it too late to back out?
Should I just say I wanted to go home now?
But... I'd come this far. Bailing suddenly would be weird, right?
"We're here. You can get out now."
Feeling like a lamb led to slaughter, I stepped out of the car.
The instant I did, all three pairs of eyes locked onto me.
Like predators spotting prey. Intense, razor-sharp stares.
"This is the healer here to assist with your gate raid."
"H-Hi."
I steeled my nerves and greeted them, but no reply came.
They just kept staring intently.
Way better than fawning over the healer, sure...
But could they stop staring? It was unnerving.
"Um, p-please take care of me...!"
As I mustered courage for another greeting,
"......"
"......!"
My eyes met those of the woman with the head-sized skull staff.
Her pale blue-gray hair fell long, under sharp eyes ringed with deep dark circles. She exuded a strangely gloomy aura.
‘Belladonna...?’
She looked just like my favorite plant, belladonna.
I couldn't help but feel an instant wave of fondness.
"...Ugh..."
But the moment our eyes met, she started sweating bullets.
Her complexion seemed to worsen rapidly.
Dark circles, listless vibe...
She must be having a bad day health-wise.
Was there anything I could do to help?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ We entered the gate, and the raid kicked off in earnest.
I poured my skills into not being a burden, and soon the party members turned to me with satisfied looks.
"This healer's quick on the uptake and solid. I like her!"
"...Not bad."
The hostility toward me was gone.
All but one, that is.
The belladonna lookalike had avoided eye contact since entering and kept her distance.
‘Why does she keep avoiding me?’
Hurt, I edged closer,
"...C-Could you... back off a bit...?"
She flinched in surprise and reestablished her distance.
Soaked in sweat, she looked seriously unwell.
‘Maybe a heal would help...?’
Cautiously, I cast a heal on her in that moment.
The instant the heal hit, she collapsed to the ground and started vomiting bright red blood.
"Kek...! Kk!"
The party's eyes snapped to us.
"......"
"......"
A brief silence fell.
They glanced between me and her, then suddenly doubled over laughing.
"UHAHA! Team kill... Ahahaha! My sides!"
Pfft... Pffft...
I couldn't make sense of this at all.
I'd just healed her...
Why was she suddenly spewing blood, and why were the others laughing instead of asking if she was okay?