Chapter 68
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 68
Chapter Title: Rumors (1)
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"......"
"......"
However, the survivors merely stared coldly at their comrade's question.
Unlike themselves, who had thrown their bodies into holding the Destroyer even for a moment, these people had fled without hesitation.
The heroes felt it was brazen for them to ask how they survived the moment they saw their faces, so they didn't even bother responding.
"What's with that attitude? Oh, come on. Is it because I retreated to request reinforcements?"
"Request reinforcements?"
The Hero Association hero who had spoken first nodded.
"Common sense says we couldn't catch the Destroyer on our own. So I fell back briefly to call for backup."
It was an utterly ridiculous claim.
No reinforcements had arrived even after the Destroyer left.
Everyone dismissed it as nonsense and kept walking without a word.
"No, seriously, how did you survive? Your head was clearly smashed in. You were dead."
He persistently chased after the revived heroes asking questions, but achieved nothing.
Of course, there were heroes like him who failed, but others succeeded more easily than anyone.
"Huh? Kyung-seop oppa. You weren't dead?"
She spotted the hero named Kyung-seop and rushed over, clinging to his arm.
"What happened? I was so devastated when I saw you die."
"R-Really?"
Lee Kyung-seop, who had feelings for her all along, asked in surprise at Han So-min's words.
"Of course. I was so upset I couldn't sleep a wink last night. See how tired my eyes look?"
It was true she hadn't slept a wink.
Though it was out of fear that the Destroyer might come, not grief.
"But... you ended up running away too."
"I had to. Who else would deliver the news to your family if not me? Someone had to tell them."
That was technically the Hero Association staff's job, but Lee Kyung-seop didn't think that far.
"Besides, I'm a summoner. All my summons were wiped out, so I couldn't do anything."
"Well, that's true."
Han So-min was a hero who had acquired summoner-related skill stones because she feared direct combat.
Fortunately, her innate ability aligned with it, allowing her to reach A-rank, but that was her limit.
Lee Kyung-seop knew she couldn't grow stronger without an S-rank level-up stone.
"Anyway, tell me. What happened?"
"Hmm."
For reference, the revived heroes had agreed not to tell the fleeing comrades about the healer, out of spite.
More precisely, they wanted to keep the healer's existence to themselves, but sadly, it didn't even last a day.
"So..."
Lee Kyung-seop felt his heart race as Han So-min gazed up at him pitifully, clutching his arm tightly, and opened his mouth.
"Seo Do-kyung brought a healer who revived us."
"A healer? You mean the healer has the power to bring back the dead?"
"Exactly. That's how we all made it back."
"That's just too unbelievable, no matter how I think about it."
The ability to resurrect the dead?
Not even the Geneva Cult, famous for their healers, could do that.
But with the proof standing right in front of her, even Han So-min had no choice but to believe.
"Their healing powers seem incredible too. They even restored Instructor Kang Ju-young's eyes."
"Instructor Kang Ju-young's eyes? Weren't those blinded years ago?"
"That's why it's so amazing. Anyway, don't tell anyone. Keep it to yourself."
"Of course. You know I can keep a secret, Kyung-seop oppa."
For a moment, Lee Kyung-seop wondered if that was true, but he couldn't say no to her face, so he nodded.
"......"
After staring at Han So-min for a bit, Lee Kyung-seop steeled his resolve and spoke the words he'd held onto for her.
"So-min. In this battle, I realized... we never know when something like this might happen again. That's why I'm saying... I've liked you for a long time..."
"Ah, sorry. Something urgent came up. I have to go."
Han So-min let go of his arm the moment she got all the info she needed and dashed off somewhere.
"......"
Lee Kyung-seop could only watch her back in a daze.
Naturally, rumors about the healer spread like wildfire through the Hero Association in no time.
As rumors of the healer spread like wildfire, the Hero Association buzzed with nothing else.
Some chatted purely out of curiosity, while others discussed the healer's abilities.
"Hey, you hear about the healer?"
"Yeah. So what?"
"What do you mean 'so what'? Word is they even healed Instructor Kang Ju-young's eyes. Don't you think they could treat your sick mom too?"
"......!"
The man was startled by the words but shook his head, returning to his usual expression.
"You know it's incurable. Other healers gave up. No way this one can do it."
"Can other healers resurrect the dead? Exactly. In my book, this healer's one of the greatest ever."
"......"
A healer who could even revive the dead.
Just those words shook the man's heart.
"At least you should meet them and ask. What if your mom passes and you regret it later? You sure you won't?"
"......"
Unable to confidently say he wouldn't regret it, the man fell silent in thought.
What if that happened? It was silly to even ask himself, but he'd definitely regret it.
'Why didn't I seek out the healer?'
Whether the healer could cure her or not was another matter, but he needed to meet them.
"Problem is, I don't know where to find the healer."
His counterpart felt the same, but there were ways to track them down.
"Seo Do-kyung brought them, right? He probably knows."
"Seo Do-kyung? Doubt it."
Seo Do-kyung was a good man, but he drew firm lines, so he'd likely refuse to answer.
"Tell him your situation. It's your mom."
"Yeah, you're right."
When it came to his mother, there was no room for hesitation.
With that, he headed straight to where Seo Do-kyung was.
Luckily, Seo Do-kyung was at the Hero Association, making him easy to find.
"More people looking for me today than usual."
Seo Do-kyung looked utterly exhausted from the previous visitors and preempted his answer.
"If it's about the healer, I have nothing to say. Otherwise, sorry in advance."
"It's about the healer. As you know, my mother's hospitalized with an incurable disease."
Seo Do-kyung sighed deeply, looking troubled in every way.
"I know. But last night, someone else answered when I called. They probably changed numbers."
"......I see."
"And even if I reach them, it's an issue. Last time, we paid three trillion in skill stones as compensation."
In short, the price was astronomical.
"Before that, they wanted a level 10 skill stone to restore my abilities. They know their worth well."
The man bit his lip at the implication that no ordinary compensation would move them.
Even for an A-rank hero, acquiring a level 10 skill stone was no easy task, so meeting them seemed pointless.
"They're not a hero, just a civilian. They'd still charge that much?"
His colleague nearby chimed in, questioning if they'd demand such fees from civilians.
Seo Do-kyung thought probably not but held back, replying as if he had nothing more to say.
"No idea. Anyway, I have no way to contact the healer."
"If the number's changed, nothing we can do. Sorry to bother you."
The man left those words and exited the room.
"......"
Left alone, Seo Do-kyung pondered if he truly had no way to reach the healer.
'Come to think of it... my son was the one who first told me about the healer.'
It started when his son Seo Ji-ho insisted on meeting them once.
'So someone around Seo Ji-ho must know the healer.'
Asking his son seemed the fastest way.
He was also bothered that the healer had revived Na Seo-ha, then healed Kang Ju-young and told her to become his woman before leaving together.
'Maybe Kang Ju-young knows too.'
Seo Do-kyung hadn't witnessed it firsthand after being revived, so it was just a guess.
Jeon Il-seop and Na Seo-ha, who had seen it, hadn't told anyone either.
'Plenty of others must be thinking the same.'
Seo Do-kyung figured Kang Ju-young wouldn't stay quiet for long and let out a small sigh.
I spent the weekend in the physical training room building my strength and stamina.
Since all my physical abilities were sealed anyway, training like everyone else wasn't hard.
Thanks to training hard all weekend, my strength and stamina both went up.
'Did they really level up this easily?'
I asked Lee Seojun about it, and he nodded as if it were obvious.
-Up to E-rank is easy. Numerically, it's like going from 20 to 40. But D-rank needs 80, so that's tougher.
My physical abilities, sealed multiple times, were around D-rank now.
With strength and stamina up by about 20 each, I got it and did magic training in the evening.
"Fire."
Whoosh―
For reference, magic was getting easier day by day.
Thanks to the five acquired skill stone abilities assisting appropriately.
'And mana control feels smoother too.'
If I kept at it, decent results might come.
Though after experiencing Na Seo-ha's grand mage prowess, I wasn't getting my hopes too high.
'Oh yeah, I should change the mana amplifier's form, and have Ha Chae-jeong and Ga Se-yeon drink the Blue Moon Flower brew too.'
Since it came to mind, I decided to wrap it up this weekend.