Chapter 73
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: Back to the Hero World (1)
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"Umm..."
I let out a soft groan as I woke up.
"Hoo..."
I'd never slept this deeply since entering the wuxia world.
Even after opening my eyes, my mind felt foggy.
The bed and blankets felt so cozy and comforting.
I rubbed against them, burrowing even deeper into the covers.
The temperature was just right.
"...Temperature?"
I glanced to both sides and saw Jeong-seon and Seol-yeong flanking me, hugging me tightly in their sleep.
And my face was buried right between Seol-yeong's breasts.
...No wonder it felt so soft.
It was the most pleasant morning I'd ever had.
"...You're awake?"
"Yeah."
Seol-yeong woke up because of me and gave me a faint smile as she greeted me.
Her expression was utterly natural.
Yeah, this was the smile that had Fengyun so smitten with her.
Honestly, it wasn't the brightest or most radiant smile.
But what mattered was that it was Seol-yeong—the one and only—smiling.
She probably didn't even realize it herself, but Seol-yeong was a woman who looked great with a smile.
I woke Jeong-seon, got dressed, and headed out of the room.
The courtesans spotted us coming out and trailed after us chattering away.
Their intentions were obvious.
"There was a kitten mewling wildly in that room last night."
"Was it that good?"
"I got all flushed just listening."
"So cute."
"Ah, just go away..."
The courtesans teased Jeong-seon as they followed her. She bowed her head and hurried down the stairs.
The courtesans chased her down to the bottom but didn't keep teasing. They waved us off with a few parting words.
"Take care~"
"Come back alone next time. I'll treat you right."
"Jeong-seon, visit Master Lu-zhu next time too."
"Ah, got it."
With that, Jeong-seon clung to my side and hurriedly dragged me out.
She clearly didn't want to stay a minute longer.
Once we were outside, she turned to me with a warning.
"...Don't come here without me."
"...Okay."
I hesitated a bit, but honestly, there was no need to come back.
The courtesans were beautiful, sure, but they couldn't compare to the two women by my side.
[Quest cleared.]
[Numerous related notifications and rewards received.]
As soon as I stepped out of the brothel, countless messages flooded my vision. Mostly quest completion windows.
"Why'd you stop?"
"Hmm, give me a sec. I have somewhere to go. You two head on first."
"Huh? Okay."
Jeong-seon looked at me, nodded, and walked ahead.
Seol-yeong glanced back at me, told me to hurry, and followed slowly.
"Hurry up."
I gave a wry smile.
Yeah, to them, I'd be back soon.
Though for me, a bit of time would pass.
"Hoo."
An unfamiliar ceiling.
Even back in my real, longed-for home, it now felt strangely foreign.
And even—
"...Why does Korean feel so weird now."
I fiddled awkwardly with my phone, a strained smile on my face.
I never thought Korean and my phone would feel this alien.
Thinking about it, I'd just gotten used to the Translation skill.
The wuxia world had been nothing but Chinese.
I hadn't expected to return this soon, honestly.
I'd worked so hard to finally heal Seol-yeong and wanted more time with her.
But two things pulled me back to reality.
First was the skills I'd gained.
The main quest reward for melting Seol-yeong's heart.
The quest cleared while treating her Nine Yin Severed Meridians: Ecstasy Art.
I couldn't help but chuckle dryly at that.
[Quest cleared.]
[Solar Heart Method level rises by 1.]
[Solar Heart Method has reached level 10 (MAX).]
It wasn't entirely unexpected.
I'd always suspected it wasn't some ordinary heart method, but Ecstasy Art? From the Martial Arts Pavilion library, no less.
There was one odd thing, though.
I'd heard Ecstasy Art was more dangerous, but Solar Heart Method hadn't felt that way.
Or maybe...
"Because of how I used it?"
It probably depended on the user.
If I'd had bad intentions, I could've burned through my inner energy during sex with women and absorbed theirs.
Of course, I hadn't.
There were other rewards too.
Hidden quests and extras.
The hidden one was for bedding two women, and the extras were friendly match related.
[Selected for the friendly match.]
[Defeat the Heavenly Martial Academy.]
[Eat the Snow Ginseng.]
All three succeeded, so special rewards.
I got Inventory and Quest Board skills.
Inventory just had more slots, but Quest Board was different.
[Quest Board now displays more detailed information.]
I opened the Quest Board right after reading the message, and it felt way more user-friendly than before.
[Conquer Min-ji in the Hero World. - Linked Quest]
[Difficulty 4]
[Villains appear in large numbers.]
And that was my second reason.
"Min-ji... Min-ji, huh..."
After spending so much time in the zombie world and wuxia world, seeing that name left me momentarily dazed as memories resurfaced.
The intense memories from those worlds had nearly made me forget, but suddenly thick curses echoed in my mind.
"...Ah."
A chuckle escaped me involuntarily.
Now that the memories were back, it was baffling how I'd forgotten.
And just like that, I suddenly missed her.
The Hero World was modern too, and I was done with horse carriages—that made it important.
Returning to a previous world via a linked quest was something I needed to experience anyway.
"...This is a first."
A quest world already marked as cleared.
It honestly felt like going on vacation.
"Let's go."
"...Here..."
"...What's wrong?"
"You idiot, stop groping..."
Familiar faces appeared before my eyes.
Way too close.
"Ga-eun... Min-ji..."
Facing them brought the memories back slowly.
Arrogant Choi Ga-eun, who gradually submitted to me. And consistently bratty Min-ji.
Last time, I'd fondled them both in front of that guy Kang Seok to finish the quest, and it seemed time hadn't passed since then.
"...Hey."
Min-ji called out sharply, frowning.
"You... you're really that same bastard I know?"
"...Min-ji, what's up?"
"This fucker suddenly bulked up, muscles all ripped..."
"Really?"
Min-ji smacked my hand away, then started slowly caressing my body.
With suspicious eyes.
It was understandable.
Skills gained after the Hero World and tons of combat experience had transformed my body completely from back then.
Build might be similar.
But not something she'd notice instantly.
Her eye for detail was sharp as ever.
"...Hold on."
She poked and prodded everywhere, then suddenly grabbed my dick firmly.
Inspecting closely? She shook it up and down, looking up at me.
Then whispered softly.
"...Perverted bastard, getting rock hard while under suspicion..."
"..."
"You working out lately? Body's suddenly jacked."
Confirming it, she grumbled pointlessly and lightly kicked my shin.
The familiar strength kick.
Ga-eun belatedly groped my body and dick too.
"...Why are you...?"
"Just curious..."
Choi Ga-eun giggled as she said it.
Our reunion ended like that.
The hero was busy, exchanged a few words with me, then got a call and rushed off somewhere.
"You'll be busy soon too. See you tonight anyway."
"Still, it's been a while..."
"A while my ass..."
True, not from their perspective.
Alone now, I wandered the streets feeling a bit lonely.
And marveled anew at the modern buildings and gadgets.
"Buildings over 30 stories? People don't carry weapons around?"
Perfectly normal things felt astonishing.
That's why I aimlessly roamed this boring street.
Until my pocket buzzed.
"...Oh, phone."
I fumbled it out and answered.
[Red Hero Agency. If you have time—]
Prank call? I hung up.
Then realized this was the Hero World.
Should've asked around?
No time to regret, though.
[Cheongang Entertainment...]
[Kakarot Agency...]
[Korean Hero Association...]
[Hero Department Reporter...]
All wanted to meet me.
Chatting with the Association mid-call, they advised picking an agency within a week.
Many operated as independents, but that meant losing your personal life.
No agency? You'd handle endless meetup requests and hero duties solo.
All the big and small issues from hero work too.
Like, smash villain, break store stuff? Call owner, insurance, apologize yourself...
Hearing that made me crave an agency.
"Can I recommend one?"
A woman from the Association suggested a place.
"...Police?"
"Yes, Violent Crimes Unit. They're recruiting heroes lately."
Police in a villain-infested world.
I fell deep into thought.