Chapter 176
Chapter 176
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 176
Chapter Title: Return from the Soul Stone Trial
-----------------------------------------------------------------
[Heh heh. What the hell are you, anyway? I'm dying of curiosity here.]
After that, Mystery kept chuckling, her shoulders shaking with laughter.
Fwosh!
In the blink of an eye, two days passed, and we returned to reality.
Looking around, I saw we were in a cave on Silver Moon Mountain.
I stared blankly at the messages floating in front of me, lost in thought for a moment.
My conversation with Mystery kept replaying in my head.
I wished she'd told me more, but she just kept laughing to herself, so I couldn't get any more information after that.
It was a shame, but what could I do?
Then, I suddenly noticed Lee Seo-jun next to me, drenched in sweat.
"Lee Seo-jun."
At my call, Lee Seo-jun looked at me. He still hadn't fully shaken off the trial's aftereffects.
"You okay?"
"Y-yeah. Uh-huh. I'm fine."
"The trial?"
"I overcame it fine. You?"
"Me? Well, obviously I overcame it."
Lee Seo-jun gave a small smile at my answer.
"Good thing. I figured you'd pass it no problem."
That's when Eun Hye-su approached us.
"Well done, everyone. That was a trial dangerous enough to drive most sorcerers mad, and you passed it splendidly."
"Yes. The medicine from the family head was a huge help."
"Heh heh. I stayed up three nights making it, after all. But overcoming the trial was thanks to your strong wills. Even with the medicine, nine out of ten wouldn't make it through. Now... shall we test if you've properly mastered the Silver Moon Illusion Cycle?"
Paat!
Eun Hye-su swung her hand through the air.
At the same time, light burst from the magic circle beneath our feet.
Darkness rose from the ground and swallowed me and Lee Seo-jun.
Countless illusionary bats swarmed toward me at once.
I activated my skill simultaneously.
[Effect: 'Illusion Sever']
[All illusions dispelled instantly.]
As I used Illusion Sever, all the illusions before my eyes vanished in an instant.
Glancing to the side, I saw Lee Seo-jun looking back at me with a calm expression.
Eun Hye-su alternated her gaze between us with a satisfied smile.
"Excellent. You've all properly mastered your abilities."
"Yes. Thanks to you, family head. Thank you."
Lee Seo-jun bowed his head politely.
That's when it happened.
Grrrowl. A hungry rumble came from my stomach.
Feeling embarrassed for no reason, I gave an awkward smile. Eun Hye-su looked at me and chuckled.
"You've been fasting for three days, so of course you're hungry. I've prepared a meal, so let's head back."
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 177
Chapter Title: Jaun's Hideout Gathering
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A small villa located somewhere in Northern Europe.
It looked like an ordinary villa from the outside, but in truth, this villa was one of the terrorist group Jaun's hidden hideouts.
And today.
All of Jaun's members, scattered across the world carrying out their missions, had gathered here.
"Bert~ How've you been?"
The door burst open, and a black-haired Asian woman, Yi Cheong, waved her hand as she approached Bert.
"I've been good. You finished the Japan mission smoothly?"
"Yeah. The faction's stabilized somewhat, and there won't be any issues with terrorist funding."
"Nice. Glad to hear it."
"What about you? Your recent mission go well? You went after the demon beast's heart, right?"
"Went off without a hitch. Got the demon beast's heart too."
Bert pointed to the 'demon beast's heart' on the table behind him.
"Whoa. So this is a demon beast's heart. Amazing."
Yi Cheong stared at the demon beast's heart on the table in wonder.
It was the heart of a dead monster, yet it still pulsed as if alive.
"Was it tough catching the demon beast?"
"Not really tough, but the Great Magic Purifier's recharge time was longer than expected, so it was a bit of a hassle."
Yi Cheong's eyes sparkled at Bert's words.
"Whoa. So you finally got to use the Great Magic Purifier? How was it? As legendary powerful as they say?"
"Even disaster-grade demon beasts couldn't withstand it, so the firepower's insane. In my opinion, if you aim it right, it'll one-shot anything."
"That good? Sucks I missed it in person."
As Yi Cheong and Bert chatted, Baek Eun-seong wedged himself between them with a snide remark.
"Sucks, my ass. Way better than slaving away like us—lounging in Japan and bossing kids around."
"Tch. Long time no see, Baek Eun-seong, and your negative attitude's still the same."
Yi Cheong crossed her arms, clearly annoyed.
Ignoring her, Baek Eun-seong turned to Bert.
"Bert. So, still no clue why Choi Il-hyeon showed up on that Isle of Rain back then?"
"Yeah. No matter how much I searched, nothing. I checked his research log again too, but the only thing related to the Isle of Rain was the demon beast's heart."
"...I see."
Baek Eun-seong's expression grew serious.
Choi Il-hyeon's appearance wasn't something to brush off lightly.
He'd been the gentleman's close friend for ages and a colleague who'd worked on research together.
Perhaps Choi Il-hyeon had taken something from the 'Isle of Rain' that Jaun had missed.
"Bert, where's the research log?"
Bert walked back, picked up a book, and handed it to him.
"Here."
"Thanks."
Baek Eun-seong looked at the cover of the research log.
It was a book over 15 years old, so it was a bit worn.
The book contained entries about Mystery. There were also notes added by Jin Cheon-woo.
As he skimmed through, he saw missing pages here and there.
The reason Jin Cheon-woo's book was like this was because part of it had been damaged when Jaun lost to the Association in the past.
"No way to fix these damaged parts, right? What if Choi Il-hyeon's reason for coming was written there?"
"How do you fix something already damaged? Even Mystery couldn't do it."
"Hmm. True enough."
Baek Eun-seong pondered as he stared at the research log. Then, as if struck by an idea, he spoke up again.
"The original."
"Huh?"
"We just need to find the original."
The research log Jaun currently possessed was a copy.
The real original was held separately by the gentleman. If they could retrieve that original, it might eliminate any gaps in their future plans.
"How do we find the original? He kept it separately."
"Isn't there some way to track it down?"
"No time for that. Whatever. Don't overthink Choi Il-hyeon. We just do our jobs. We don't even have a lead on the original anyway."
At Bert's words, Baek Eun-seong gave the log one last reluctant glance.
It was a shame, but Bert wasn't wrong.
9 PM, in front of the Silver Moon family's main gate.
The Silver Moon family members had gathered to see us off.
"Thank you for putting us up these past few days."
Lee Seo-jun bowed politely, and Eun Hye-su replied with a gentle smile.
"No need. I owe you as well, so don't be so grateful."
With that, she turned her gaze to me.
"And as I said before, you are a benefactor of our Silver Moon family. We never betray our benefactors. Contact us anytime you need help."
Eun Hye-su pulled a piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to me.
It had a phone number written in black ink.
"My contact info."
"I'll reach out if I need help."
I took the paper and tucked it into my pocket.
With this, I'd gained the sturdy ally that was the Silver Moon family.
I wasn't sure how it would affect future events, but as a prestigious house, they'd surely be a big help.
"Alright. Time for you to head back. Oh, right. Seol-ah, you say goodbye too."
Eun Seol-ah nodded and looked at me and Lee Seo-jun.
"Thank you for curing my illness. And see you next year at the Sorcerer's Academy!"
Eun Seol-ah spoke in a voice full of energy. I stared at her blankly for a moment before giving a light smile.
"Yeah. See you next year."
Eun Seol-ah shyly bowed her head and handed me a piece of paper.
It was another one with a phone number, just like before.
"...My number. If you ever need anything, I'll help too."
I took the paper.
"Sure. I'll call if I need to."
With the goodbyes done, Eun Hye-su chuckled.
"Greetings finished. Off you go."
"Yes. We'll be going now."
After the farewell, Lee Seo-jun and I walked straight toward the portal gate.
Lee Seo-jun walked along, then said to me,
"Feels kinda weird."
"What does?"
"Nah. Just feels like we've grown attached in this short time."
"Attached, my ass. We only stayed with the Silver Moon family for about three days total, including last week."
"...True. But we went through so many unusual things."
Unusual things.
We sure did.
We slayed a demon to cure Eun Seol-ah's illness, found Jin Cheon-woo's soul traces, and endured the Soul Stone's trial.
"Whatever. Think about what we're doing next."
"Next..."
Lee Seo-jun pondered for a moment.
"First off, like you said, we've learned our goal—the illusion protection spell—so we should head to that barrier-sealed space next."
"When? Right after we get back to Seoul today?"
Lee Seo-jun shook his head.
"We've been grinding all weekend. We should rest today. Aren't you tired from the trial?"
Thanks to my stacked recovery traits, I wasn't that physically tired.
Mentally, maybe a bit drained.
"I'm fine. Not tired at all."
"Figures. Your stamina's on another level."
Lee Seo-jun muttered in exasperation.
"Still, let's rest today. We have classes tomorrow."
"If you wanna rest, do it."
"Oh, right. And thanks."
At the sudden gratitude, I looked at Lee Seo-jun. He walked ahead with a serene expression.
"For what?"
"Learning the spell at the Silver Moon family. That was your advice."
"Oh."
That was it?
"If you hadn't given me the hint, I probably would've given up without even thinking of breaking the barrier."
Not true.
Even without my advice, Lee Seo-jun would've learned the Silver Moon Illusion Cycle from the Silver Moon family to pass the barrier.
That's what he did in the original story.
"You would've figured it out even without me saying anything."
"No way. How do you look at a barrier and think to learn protection magic from the Silver Moon family?"
"You could've done it."
At my firm words, Lee Seo-jun fell silent for a bit. Then, with a dubious expression, he nodded.
"Maybe? Well, beyond that, I owe you a lot. Coming all this way with me is to help me out, right?"
"If that's the thanks, I'll take it."
Lee Seo-jun chuckled at my response.
Beep!
The dorm door chimed cheerfully and swung open.
As I stepped inside, Gretel greeted me.
"Ngah."
I smiled and scooped Gretel up into a hug.
She'd gained even more weight in just a few days.
I didn't know the exact kg, but maybe around 15 now?
"Gretel. You're growing like a weed."
"Ngah."
"And your fruits are growing like weeds too."
"Ongah?"
A flicker of anxiety appeared in Gretel's eyes. Ignoring it, I inspected her up and down.
"Hmm... You're gonna end up bigger than me at this rate, huh?"
Then a sudden thought struck me.
What if Gretel kept growing and got bigger than me?
Would she still go "ngah" like now?
Imagining it felt kinda creepy.
But picturing a Gretel saying something other than "ongah" felt off too.
"Gretel. Don't grow any bigger from here. Stay this cute size forever."
Not understanding, Gretel tilted her head.
"Oh, right. I got something tasty for you, Gretel."
I set her down and showed her the chicken box in my hand.
I bought it because this tree-species kid loves meat so much, but I wasn't sure if it'd suit her tastes.
Still, from living with Gretel for months, I'd learned her palate was very human-like.
So fried food should be fine?
"This is called chicken. It's fried chicken."
I pulled a piece from the box, and curiosity filled Gretel's eyes.
She must've caught the sweet aroma.
"Don't swallow the bones. Put 'em in the bag, got it?"
Gretel nodded vigorously.
I patted her back and flopped onto the sofa.
"Hoo..."
The moment I sank into the dorm sofa, a deep sigh escaped me.
Nothing beats being back in my room for peace of mind.
"...About time to buy some new traits."