Chapter 85
Terminally Ill, but It's Okay — Episode 85
What the, what the. That's kind of overwhelming.
Just do what you always do.
You really don't seem to know the law of the wild yet.
.
.
—words like that came tumbling out of Cheon Seo-yoon's mouth.
Actually, there had been even more talking than this, but since she had muttered it all while chewing meat, this was all I could make out.
Either she was seriously misunderstanding something, or she had lost her mind.
It was one of the two, but it wasn't important, so I let it be.
"Eat slowly. If you get indigestion, it'll be a disaster."
I didn't want to lose the counterweight who would go ahead and lure them out just because of some meat.
So I even poured her a drink myself and set it in front of Cheon Seo-yoon.
"Keep eating. I'm going to the tent for a bit."
"Huh? Yeah."
Maybe she was moved by the surprise service.
I left Cheon Seo-yoon staring blankly at the drink and went into the tent.
I quickly organized my things in order to move toward Reina.
And I selected one item that Cheon Seo-yoon might be tempted by and carry around.
"Will this do?"
It was a spare sleeping bag I had bought. It was a premium line from a famous hiking brand, made of goose down, so it was warm and light.
It was more than enough for enduring the chilly nights and dawns of Mount Geumgang.
[Activating trait, Manifestation.]
I manifested an ordinary dagger and drew it lightly across my left palm.
After drawing a suitable amount of blood, I engraved the sorcery formula.
Drip, drip—
I brought my left hand near the driving core of the formula.
Then red dye spread through the bluish sorcery formula.
A 32-stroke Wind-Style Sorcery, Blood Cloud Lure.
It was a sorcery used to lure Monsters by using the caster's blood as a medium.
It had a criminal record of blowing Medusa's head clean off at the auction house, and a battle record of driving Demonkin into a frenzy until they lost their reason.
It would probably perform a similar task this time too.
When the sorcery was completed, a small pattern was engraved on the back of my left hand.
It was proof that the connection was complete.
Now, unless I voluntarily released it, unless all the blood in my body dried up.
I could activate Blood Cloud Lure whenever I wanted, as I pleased.
"I'm counting on you."
I transplanted this aggro-drawing sorcery into the inner structure of the sleeping bag. Then I applied a simple Enhancement.
By investing 3 SP, I changed the sorcery's characteristic red smoke to colorless.
Now even Cheon Seo-yoon wouldn't easily notice it, so all preparations were complete.
I folded the sleeping bag neatly, wrapped it in its cover, and came outside.
I lightly dismantled the tent with the press of a button and put it into a subspace pouch.
"What the—."
I walked toward Cheon Seo-yoon, who was staring with startled rabbit eyes.
And held it out.
"Take this too."
"What is it."
"A sleeping bag."
"A sleeping bag? Why this?"
"It's something I don't need. If you need it, you take it. I'm just giving it to you, so no points needed."
"......For free? No, even if it's leftover, still. Something this nice."
Cheon Seo-yoon waved her hand as if declining, but she was grinning from ear to ear in silent laughter.
That sight was so very Cheon Seo-yoon that I also let out a small laugh.
"If you're going to take it, take it quickly. Or I'll give it to someone else......."
"There's a person right in front of you, who else would you give it to."
Cheon Seo-yoon quickly reached out and snatched the sleeping bag.
Hehe—
Maybe she liked the fluffiness of the premium sleeping bag, because she hugged it tightly to her chest.
"Ahem, thanks. I'll use it well."
"Thanks, nothing. I'm the one who's more grateful."
"Huh?"
"Nothing."
Keep treasuring it like that. Starting tomorrow, you'll be working hard.
I swallowed the last words I couldn't bring myself to say.
Instead.
"Starting tomorrow, the interpersonal matches begin. So go find Baek Sa-young right away and at least form an alliance. Probably from tomorrow......."
I gave her that advice because I wanted to pair her with one powerful ally.
From tomorrow, you'll be everyone's target.
If there are two of you, you can eat in peace and take turns sleeping.......
Well, my ulterior motive was to prepare for the possibility that the strange ones' combat power was stronger than I expected.
While Cheon Seo-yoon and Baek Sa-young drew aggro, Joo A-rin and I planned to go meet the mountain lord...... no, to go rescue him.
The annihilation team was Baek Sa-young and Cheon Seo-yoon, and the infiltration team was me and Joo A-rin.
It was my own two-on-two diversion operation that the people involved knew nothing about.
"I'm going. Work hard. Next time we meet, we won't part on such good terms."
I left behind Cheon Seo-yoon, who was asking where I was going, and headed south.
Reina had apparently already met Lee Dong-wook's group, because five GPS circles were overlapping in a row.
I needed to arrive before those bastards made a move.
Reina's social experience was close to a blank slate, so she couldn't escape the clutches of those thugs.
Even if by some chance she did escape.......
"Hold on."
I stopped because of a chilly sensation spreading down my spine.
Because if those bastards failed, that would also be a problem.
Reina, who had zero flexibility, would never leave those bastards alone, and if she used excessive force before the interpersonal matches began, that would also be grounds for elimination.
"Ah, shit."
Either way, things had gotten busy.
* * *
The night on Mount Geumgang, growing chilly beyond coolness.
A campfire conveying warmth, and the smell of natural high-protein pork stimulating the salivary glands.
And students gathered cozily together, chattering away in lively conversation.
For Reina, who had never experienced a normal school life, this scene itself was like a K-drama and a youth film.
"You haven't eaten yet, right? Come over here. Let's eat together."
"Then I will excuse myself."
So she sat down for now.
She settled in among people whose faces somehow seemed familiar, though she had no memory of them and therefore assumed they were strangers.
Of course, she also knew that this was the midterm period, when it didn't matter at all even if they suddenly turned on her.
But Reina thought that she couldn't give up the romance she had dreamed of for so long just for such a reason.
......No, she forced a justification onto it.
Honestly, she was just too hungry.
She was so famished that she had to eat first without distinguishing friend from foe.......
"You know how to use chopsticks, right? We carved these ourselves."
"Thank you."
"Go ahead and eat first. We'll exchange greetings while eating."
Lee Dong-wook guided her kindly and winked at Kang Cheol-min.
Then there was the man who reigned at the very center of the group gathered around the barbecue.
Though he was so short he was hard to spot, Kang Cheol-min had enough presence that anyone would take him for the group’s leader. He cleared his throat with an “Ahem.”
He glanced at Reina with a reddened face, then nodded his head toward Lee Dong-wook.
The gesture seemed to mean something like, You may introduce me. At that, his lackey sprang into action.
"You know Kang Cheol-min, right? One of the aces of Class A......."
"Tsk."
"Even more famous by the nickname Iron Fist......."
"Nom."
"His overall ranking is a whopping......."
"Korean pork really is delicious."
"......."
But the conversation wasn't getting through.
The oblivious Reina was already distracted by the wild boar.
Without losing the nobility unique to a saintess, she was savoring it piece by piece like a gourmet.
In that instant, a vein bulged on Kang Cheol-min's temple.
As he glared fiercely with wide eyes, Lee Dong-wook gulped.
He was just about to hurriedly open his mouth and try to reclaim the attention stolen by the pork.......
"Which person butchered this?"
"That person. No, Kang Cheol-min did."
Fortunately, an opportunity had arrived.
Lee Dong-wook gestured proudly, and only then did Kang Cheol-min straighten his shoulders and prepare his introduction line.
"I am Kang......."
"Ah, you were over there. I couldn't see you because the pig was in the way. Are you a master butcher?"
"No, I'm not a master, I'm the leader here......."
"Your skill is excellent. You probably didn't even have sufficient equipment."
"......."
As far as Reina was concerned, she had offered thanks in her own way.
But Kang Cheol-min was displeased by the gaze looking down from an awkwardly standing position, and by the situation where the leader had become a master craftsman.
No, he was upset.
Because he, too, was one of the people welcoming Reina's enrollment.
"......Haha, he's a friend who's good at everything. Please eat comfortably. Cheol-min, let me see you for a second."
At that moment, the quick-witted Lee Dong-wook swiftly cut in.
He took Kang Cheol-min to a secluded spot. A place where even moonlight didn't properly reach.
And asked.
"What should we do?"
"What do you mean, what should we do. A seed is a seed, so we do it as planned. We have the sleep herb we collected, don't we."
Kang Cheol-min answered curtly, but in truth, he wasn't entirely comfortable.
Even if he had been ignored, a fan was still a fan.
"Okay, got it. Once she falls asleep, we'll just take the live watch and run. If only three hours pass, it'll be the third day, so we'll be able to earn points."
"Speak properly. It's not running away, it's a strategic retreat."
"I know, I know. Honestly, you'd be enough on your own. We just don't want to cause unnecessary commotion. And to test the sleep herb's effect while we're at it."
"That's true too, but I just don't feel right about using my fists on that delicate body......."
Kang Cheol-min looked at his own fist with a bitter face.
In his eyes, as if looking at a weapon, there was even a hint of coldness.
"Heh heh, if we add the bonus points, we can earn 30 points, right?"
Whether he cared or not, Lee Dong-wook took out the sleep herb powder and approached Reina.
Sleep herb was a medicinal herb used as the raw material for sleep aids. No matter how strong the opponent, one spoonful would make them fall into a sleep they couldn't escape.
For that reason, as soon as Lee Dong-wook discovered the sleep herb, he had raised both hands and cheered.
He couldn't count how many times he had praised himself for being interested in drug manufacturing as a Magic Track student.
Even Kang Cheol-min, who usually openly ignored him, had backed down a step as soon as he learned of its efficacy, hadn't he?
This was an opportunity.
The hope of the weak, and a lifeline to climb upward.
"Miss Reina, shall I sprinkle some seasoning powder for you too?"
Lee Dong-wook naturally sat down beside Reina and shook the sleep herb powder.
He made his pitch, saying it was good for recovering energy and contained a bit of salt, so it was a substitute for salt.
"I’m curious. Go ahead, please."
Naturally, Reina held out a piece of meat without suspicion.
Then a pinch.
The white powder fluttered down onto the meat.
Reina bit into the meat eagerly with expectant eyes, and at that moment, Lee Dong-wook clenched his fist, certain of success.
"Hmm."
Reina chewed slowly, as if savoring the taste.
She remained silent until she had completely swallowed it, and only after a gulp sounded did she open her mouth again.
"How should I put it? It tastes burnt."
"What? That can't be."
It was an unexpected answer, so Lee Dong-wook tilted his head.
"No. It definitely tastes burnt. The taste of Satan......."
And along with Reina's fishy smile, the atmosphere shifted violently in an instant.
There wasn't even time to react with a "Huh?"
"Aaaaargh!"
Lee Dong-wook felt a terrible, piercing pain in an instant and collapsed.
Something had flown in and struck his chest, and looking again, it was a wild boar's hind leg bone.
Reina had struck him with the bone she had been gnawing the meat from.
"X—!"
Feeling that something had gone wrong, Lee Dong-wook tried to deploy magic with a pale, terrified face.......
Wham.
......but it ended at the attempt.
"Ghk!"
The speed was so fast that not even an afterimage remained, so there was no time to respond.
"Hey, what are you doing. Hurry up and help......."
Lee Dong-wook shouted toward the rest of his teammates.
Crack—
But they were nowhere to be seen, as if they had all fled.
"These traitorous bastards......."
Smack—
"You think you'll get away with this."
Squelch—
"N-no, Saintess. Please."
Lee Dong-wook, who had been beaten without pause, was so dumbfounded that tears were about to come out.
He had definitely confirmed that she ate the sleep herb, but it had no effect, and the saintess he had thought would be easy turned out to be terrifyingly strong.
"P-please spare meeeaaah!"
When Reina picked up another hind leg bone from the ground and held one in each hand, Lee Dong-wook recoiled in horror and scrambled backward.
Because he thought that if being hit with one hurt this much, being hit with two might really kill him.
"Wait, stop."
That was the moment an unexpected savior appeared.
He didn't know why that bastard had shown up here, but fortunately, it had an effect.
Reina had stopped the beating. No, the attack, at his words.
"H-Ha-yul, please save me. That one's a complete crazy bitch."
Lee Dong-wook threw away even his dignity and ran over, panting.
Wheeeeeeng.
Just then, as a drone that had detected the commotion approached, Lee Dong-wook let out a sigh of relief.
Now he was saved.
If Park Ha-yul bought him time, he planned to approach the drone, show his wounds, and confess everything.
"Whoa~"
But suddenly, Park Ha-yul muttered to himself and gestured toward the drone to go away.
"Hey, you crazy bastard, why are you sending the drone away? You think it'll go just because you....... Huh?"
Wheeeeeeng.
But it really went.
"......What is this."
"What do you mean, what is this. It's destroying evidence, you bastard."
Destroying evidence?
Lee Dong-wook, who had been tilting his head, suddenly felt a chilling, bleak killing intent from Park Ha-yul's back.
He had only thought of him as a fool who was only book-smart about theory, a worthless leech of the Sulga family.
But the force emanating from him now was Seol Yoon-gi. No, perhaps even greater.
Rustle.
As he even felt a pressure as if transparent strings had flown out and bound him, Lee Dong-wook realized that things had gone wrong.
The ominous premonition soon became reality.
"You're probably just following the setting too, but I guess I held back too long. I'm feeling a certain way. Let's just get hit first."
Park Ha-yul blew a breath onto his fist, then drove it forward.
Wham—
"Hup."
Lee Dong-wook's vision flashed white once again.