Chapter 49
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Awakening Amidst Loyalty
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"No!"
Clozer transformed part of his body into mist and pulled a red ampule from his pocket.
"Flicker! Catch!"
He tossed the ampule toward Flicker.
To create an opening for him, he surged forward as mist to assault Choi Min-seok.
"Gahhh!"
In that split second.
Kim Ye-eun, who had closed in unnoticed, swung her sword, severing Clozer's left foot.
Blood sprayed up like a fountain.
Before Clozer could even writhe in agony, the Ghost Sword's blade came rushing in, slicing horizontally across his throat.
His neck, shimmering with mist, fell away with a sickening thud.
At that moment, Flicker rolled across the floor and snatched up the ampule.
He knew exactly what it was.
He hesitated for a moment, but as Choi Min-seok closed in to stomp his head, he had no choice left.
Crunch.
Flicker crunched down and swallowed the ampule.
"Raaarghhh!"
His body began to burn red-hot.
Muscles swelled unnaturally, veins bulging as if ready to burst.
And he let out a monstrous roar.
"Gonna... kill you all!"
Flicker roared as he shoved Choi Min-seok aside.
He whipped his gaze toward Si-woo, slumped against the wall, and charged straight at him.
Kim Ye-eun appeared on Flicker's right flank in an instant.
Her face was twisted with irritation.
"Wanna die?"
She spat the words irritably and swung her sword.
"Grraaak!"
Flicker took a deep gash across his chest and tumbled backward.
Choi Min-seok seized the moment, stepping in front of Si-woo.
He crossed his arms into a guard stance.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡
[Provoke]
The fallen Flicker hauled himself up and began hammering down on Choi Min-seok with alternating fists.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡
[Reflect]
"Gaaahhh!"
Choi Min-seok held his Provoke steady, and Flicker groaned in pain yet relentlessly attacked.
Out of his mind, he kept swinging—but the more he struck, the more damage he took himself.
Even knowing this, he couldn't stop.
"Grra... ahh..."
As Flicker's arms failed to regenerate, Choi Min-seok seized his nape.
Then slammed him into the floor.
Boom!!
The ground cratered out in a massive pit.
Only then did the rampaging red aura finally subside, Flicker's eyes rolling back.
The hulking villain went limp.
"Is it... over?"
As the chaos dominating the battlefield died down, a heavy silence descended.
"..."
Grasping that the situation had ended, he slowly turned to search for Si-woo.
Si-woo leaned against the wall, cradling Kim Yun-seo in his arms.
Blood smeared his face, but he gave Choi Min-seok a faint smile.
"Good job... cough!"
At that moment, Kim Ye-eun scampered over and squatted in front of Si-woo.
She inspected his wounds with a tearful pout.
Adorably pitiful, like a puppy fretting over its injured owner.
Her eyes, gleaming with killing intent moments ago, now brimmed with tears.
"You're bleeding..."
She began wiping the blood from his cheek with her sleeve.
"Does it hurt? You okay?"
"...Ye-eun-ssi."
"Yes...!"
"Mind if I borrow your shoulder for a bit?"
With those words, Si-woo buried his face in her chest and passed out.
"Boss!"
**
Seoul XX Hospital, 21st Floor, VIP Ward.
This place, usually serene and peaceful for dignitaries' recovery, was wrapped in a tense, warlike atmosphere.
The moment the elevator doors opened, two figures stood imposingly in the middle of the hallway.
"Um... it's rounds time..."
The doctor asked in a quavering voice, chart trembling in his hands.
But all he got were sharp glares.
"No."
Kim Ye-eun, slouched carelessly on a hallway chair, answered dismissively.
A keen-edged longsword rested in her hands.
The blood was cleaned, but the ominous aura emanating from the blade couldn't be hidden.
"B-but I need to check the patient's condition..."
"Told you no? The fox inside said no one's getting in. You a doctor? Prove it."
Kim Ye-eun clicked her tongue with a face full of worldly grievances.
Her eyes burned like she might smash the door down any second, yet for some reason, she held back.
"Haa..."
The doctor glanced pleadingly at the man beside him.
But Choi Min-seok stood with arms crossed, eyes closed, silent as a mountain.
An unprecedented sight anywhere in Korea—or the world.
S-Rank Hunters, the Sword Ghost Kim Ye-eun and Choi Min-seok, playing door guards.
Kim Ye-eun stomped her feet in frustration, whining at Choi Min-seok.
"Uncle. You really gonna do this? Why're we stuck out here? Should we just barge in?"
Choi Min-seok finally opened his eyes and replied flatly.
"Endure it. She's not wrong."
"What d'you mean! I wanna see the Boss too!"
"No."
"You're fine though! You can guard two rooms at once!"
"..."
"Just clinging to your wife, bawling all day."
"......Ahem."
"...How's Auntie?"
"...Still unconscious."
"......Annoying."
"We... failed to protect the Boss completely. No excuses for being late."
Kim Ye-eun fell silent at Choi Min-seok's words.
Even she couldn't argue, so she pouted and turned away.
Right after the incident, Lee Ji-ah had choppered in late from Gangwon Province and burst into tears upon arriving, face ashen.
But her grief was brief; spotting Kim Ye-eun, she unleashed a venomous glare.
"You were right there! Right next to him—how'd you let the Boss end up like that?! Gonna kill 'em all!"
Lee Ji-ah screamed in fury, making even Kim Ye-eun flinch.
"Get out. Can't stand the sight of you—go guard the door. No one in. I'll nurse him."
It had been six hours since she'd been booted out.
Kim Ye-eun grumbled indignantly.
"Tch. She hasn't even shown her face."
She grumbled but didn't touch the door handle.
Guilt gnawed at her for not arriving in time to prevent Si-woo's injuries.
"Still... I'll be the first face he sees when he wakes."
She hugged her knees, glaring holes through the door.
**
The room was filled only with the white steam from the humidifier drifting through the quiet air.
Lee Ji-ah sat on the chair by the bed, clutching Si-woo's hand tightly.
Her eyes were red and puffy.
"Boss..."
Si-woo's face under the oxygen mask was deathly pale.
Fractured ribs, ruptured organs, massive blood loss, vocal cord damage, and severe mana depletion.
The doctor had called it a miracle he was alive.
She rubbed her cheek against the back of his hand and whispered.
"Truth is... I'm the angriest with myself. Why couldn't I judge and move like Ye-eun did? So stupid... and I lashed out for no reason..."
She had been raiding the facility with Baek Chang-gi in Gangwon.
Excited to be included this time, she'd gone at it harder than usual.
But hearing Si-woo was in danger, she'd rushed over without a second thought.
Still, the self-reproach for being too late tormented her.
"Wake up soon... okay? I did really well this time. You gotta praise me."
Tears welling, she straightened his messy bangs.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
[S-Rank Villain Flicker subjugation contribution recognized.]
[Managed subject's experience settled.]
[Unsettled experience batch paid.]
Whether sensing her tears or not, a clear chime rang in Si-woo's ear.
A cascade of blue system messages poured down before Si-woo, sunk in the depths of unconsciousness.
His awareness jolted awake as the alerts chimed in sequence.
His body still slumbered, but his inner consciousness stirred.
'...I'm alive.'
His first thought was relief.
Before it could settle, an immense wave of euphoria crashed in.
✨ LEVEL UP! ✨
[Lv. 69]
[Lv. 71 → S-Rank achievement unlocks new skill.]
[S-Rank achievement grants true 'Manager's Qualification.']
Endless level-up notifications scrolling by.
The reward for enduring and triumphing over two S-Rank villains was beyond imagination.
On top of that, Lee Ji-ah, Choi Min-seok, and Kim Ye-eun.
A portion of the experience those three S-Rank Hunters gained flowed straight into Si-woo in real time via Growth Synchronization.
Mana surged through his veins like a burst dam.
Hummm-!
The mana core near Si-woo's heart burned hot.
An overwhelming amount that would normally rupture him—but Si-woo gritted through it, absorbing it all.
It expanded, tore, regenerated, growing vastly larger.
Si-woo slowly opened his eyes.
"..."
"B-Boss?!"
The first thing in his vision was Lee Ji-ah's tear-streaked face.
She stared in disbelief, eyes wide, then threw her arms around him.
"Waaah! Thought you were dead!"
"..."
Si-woo hugged her back reflexively, giving a wistful smile.
He tried to speak, but only a wheeze escaped his throat.
"......"
"I'm never letting go again!"
Lee Ji-ah buried her face in his chest like a sulking child.
Then, commotion from outside—bang!—the door flew open.
"Hey! Move it!"
Kim Ye-eun blew in like a gale.
Seeing Lee Ji-ah in Si-woo's arms, her eyes rolled back.
"Hey! Get off him!"
Kim Ye-eun lunged to pry her loose, but Lee Ji-ah clung like glue.
"No!"
"Seriously! I yielded—so you yield too!"
The room erupted into chaos from the two women's tussle.
Si-woo pinched his brow and shook his head.
Glancing naturally at the entrance, his eyes met Choi Min-seok's at the door.
He approached slowly.
His eyes were bloodshot red.
A face sleepless for days, yet more serene than ever.
Choi Min-seok came to the bedside and knelt deliberately.
Thud.
"...?"
Si-woo reached out in surprise, but Choi Min-seok bowed deeply.
Bending at the waist, he offered the deepest respect he could muster.
"Boss..."
His voice trembled.
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