Chapter 340
Chapter 340
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 340
Chapter Title: The Black Soul Ring
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Clementine sat with her hands clasped together in front of a well-maintained grassy grave.
A tombstone stood at the grave, inscribed with several names. They were all the names of the siblings she had grown up with.
Even though much time had passed, Clementine still hadn't forgotten those names and continued to visit this place.
Soo-hyuk arrived with Ye-ryeong to find Clementine.
Clementine finally opened her eyes, which she had closed for a long time, and asked,
"Did you leave the mask somewhere?"
Unlike before, Soo-hyuk had come to see her without wearing his mask.
Soo-hyuk was gradually freeing himself from the mask.
"I'm not streaming right now."
"You weren't streaming then either."
"But we met as streamer Lee Soo-hyuk."
"And today?"
"Today, I'm just here to say hello."
Soo-hyuk said that and sat down beside Clementine.
Like her, he clasped his hands together, closed his eyes in front of the grave. Ye-ryeong also bowed her head before the grave.
A surge of emotion welled up in Clementine's eyes, tears pooling there.
"......Thank you."
Unable to hold back any longer, she shed tears and bowed her head.
After a while of commemoration like that, Clementine removed the ring from her finger and handed it over.
"Here, the item we agreed on."
The Ring of Black Soul.
A divine-grade item born from the gods of death and life.
Soo-hyuk reached out and took the ring. The ring, which had been on Clementine's slender finger, felt small in his hand.
"Once you receive the ring's recognition, its size will adjust automatically."
"How do I get its recognition?"
"Well, I'm not fully recognized by it myself."
Clementine smiled brightly.
"But with you, Soo-hyuk, who knows? You might get its recognition and even tame it."
Soo-hyuk lifted the black ring in his hand to look at it.
There was a hole the size of a finger in the ring, but no light entered it; it was shrouded in shadow.
What would happen the moment he put it on?
He wanted to check the item's options right away, but Clementine's business wasn't finished yet.
"And we agreed to give you a performance bonus depending on the results... How much do you need?"
This request had no set fee other than the Ring of Black Soul.
It was like Clementine herself had written a blank check.
"The more, the better."
Clementine gave Soo-hyuk's shameless answer a puzzled look.
"Why do you say that?"
"Why do you think? It's so shameless and ridiculous."
Ye-ryeong's scolding came from behind, and Soo-hyuk made an awkward face as if to say, Oh, right?
Clementine hurriedly waved her hands.
"No, that's not what I meant."
She had been flustered, but then she burst out laughing.
"It's just... You seem to have two faces, Soo-hyuk."
"Two faces?"
"When you're granting my request, you really look like Lee Soo-hyuk, but in moments like this, you seem like the money-grubber from your streams..."
"That's both me."
Her dry but shocking words left Clementine looking like she'd been hit by a stone for a moment.
Then she burst into laughter and waved it off.
"Now I see you can even joke well."
But unlike Clementine, who was laughing heartily, Soo-hyuk didn't smile.
Moreover, even when talking about her deceased friend, the corner of Ye-ryeong's mouth twitched.
Clementine's laughter slowly faded.
"......For real?"
A top-notch businesswoman wasn't oblivious. In that sense, Clementine was sharp as anyone.
It was so absurd that she hadn't quite believed it, but deep down, she had vaguely sensed it.
"For real, for real?"
Clementine asked Ye-ryeong, not Soo-hyuk.
It was well-known that Blue Eyes guild members were as tight-knit as family. So she figured they wouldn't lie about a dead friend.
Ye-ryeong nodded once.
With no elaborate explanation, Clementine let out a hollow laugh.
"This... I'll have to pay an enormous fee."
She had already braced herself to pay a lot since both Si-woo and Ye-ryeong had moved together.
But if it was really Lee Soo-hyuk involved? With no record of Blue Eyes taking private requests, she couldn't easily calculate the compensation.
"You believe this? You'll take a loss if you do."
Soo-hyuk found it odd that the merchant Clementine was calculating a loss for herself.
"I have to believe it. My instincts tell me so."
"Aren't you taking losses because of those instincts?"
"Gains and losses aren't measured in points alone. In that sense, this situation is a win for me no matter how I look at it."
"Why?"
"If you're even telling me this, it means Soo-hyuk's comeback isn't far off, right? Not as streamer Lee Soo-hyuk, but as Blue Eyes' Lee Soo-hyuk."
Sure enough, calculators were spinning rapidly in Clementine's head.
Soo-hyuk smiled wordlessly. Taking it as affirmation, Clementine smiled back.
How much to pay as the fee?
Her answer came.
"The more I give, the tighter our bond becomes, right?"
Soo-hyuk nodded.
Soo-hyuk asked Clementine for the points needed to level up Selfish Sacrifice.
It was a huge amount, and she was taken aback, but Clementine readily agreed. She seemed to genuinely believe that giving more points benefited her.
"Are you really okay with this?"
"Okay? My back's gonna break because of you, Soo-hyuk."
She had already given him a lot of points. Even without this request, she had sponsored millions during the last collab stream.
"No regrets, though. These things have to be done to the point where the other side feels sorry. Otherwise, they mean nothing."
Thanks to that, Soo-hyuk's pockets were bulging.
25.6 million points needed to level up Selfish Sacrifice.
Plus a divine-grade item.
This request from Clementine was a bumper crop. Soo-hyuk left her with thanks and parted ways.
Back at the lodging, Si-woo was receiving treatment from Hyo-min.
Soo-hyuk asked Hyo-min since Unhyang wasn't there.
"Where's Unhyang?"
"She'll be back late at night? She's totally battered."
While the three were away, Hyo-min had spent time with Unhyang. It seemed Unhyang had been out doing something and came back that way.
He could guess what it was. After hearing she was forming a guild, training had been part of Unhyang's routine.
Soo-hyuk asked Si-woo, who was changing bandages.
"How's your body?"
Si-woo had fought elite Red Tower mages and Neila.
The battle was overwhelming, but the burns from then were still red across his body.
"Still stings like hell."
Showing his bright red skin, Ye-ryeong scolded him.
"Told you not to fight so brutishly."
"If that Meteor had hit the ground straight, half the kids below would've died. Should I have let that happen?"
"......Good job."
Ye-ryeong belatedly remembered the kids below and patted Si-woo's shoulder. He had his reasons for fighting so recklessly.
"How'd it go?"
"Better than expected."
Soo-hyuk held out his palm with the Ring of Black Soul.
"That's the divine item I've only heard about."
"Only heard about? Hiles wears one on his head all the time."
"Feels different since it's not relatable."
"Different, my ass. What's yours is mine?"
"I won't ask to borrow it, so don't hide it. I haven't seen it all yet."
Soo-hyuk playfully hid the ring behind his back, and Si-woo looked baffled.
Of course, unlike the joke, Soo-hyuk would lend it if Si-woo needed it. This job was solved thanks to both of them, so it was natural.
"Checked the options?"
"Not yet."
"Why?"
"Still says inspection unavailable."
Clementine said he needed the ring's recognition to wear it. Apparently, options weren't visible without wearing it.
"Just try it on."
"She said to check in a safe place if possible."
That was Clementine's advice when handing it over.
"Safe place?"
Si-woo's reaction was, Where's that? Soo-hyuk thought of one person.
"......Maybe go get punched by him?"
Inside a formation in a corner of the Murim World.
Jinwoon was sipping tea on the pavilion of the misty estate.
It was an ordinary day like any other. Sip tea, study formations, eat, sweep the yard. The same routine every day.
The unchanging daily life since his daughter died.
But lately, maybe because of all the noisy events?
It's quiet.
The estate, where no one came, felt somehow vast.
Naturally, Jinwoon thought of a few people.
Soo-hyuk, Unhyang, and even their friend Cheongryang.
They seem to be living noisily.
He had heard about Soo-hyuk. For some reason, he was meeting and moving with Kim Ye-ryeong and Kim Si-woo, old comrades of the previous Lee Soo-hyuk.
He didn't know what connection they had, but it kept bringing back old memories.
"That punk must've completely forgotten about me now that he has new friends."
It wasn't long ago he was hiding from Uncheon-geuk. Now he was a big shot shaking up the tower.
Proud, yet somehow feeling neglected. Had he already forgotten this place? No news in the meantime.
Jinwoon finished his tea, cleared the table, and swept the yard.
Then it happened.
Jinwoon's hand stopped while sweeping.
His gaze turned to the entrance of the estate. He felt the formation shake slightly.
Someone had entered the formation.
"It's that guy."
Jinwoon went out with broom in hand.
Sure enough, someone was loitering outside the estate.
It was Soo-hyuk, without his mask.
"Long time no see, Uncle."
"......Where'd you sell the mask?"
He'd planned to yell first, but seeing Soo-hyuk without the mask for the first time threw him off.
"Didn't sell it; I have it safe. Here, see."
"I see."
Jinwoon nodded reluctantly as Soo-hyuk pulled out and showed the mask.
It wasn't that long since they'd last met, but Jinwoon sensed Soo-hyuk's aura had changed.
His energy being more stable and stronger was secondary. That was expected for a talented player climbing the tower.
What Jinwoon felt was different.
He's at ease now.
Unlike his previous urgency and anxiety, current Soo-hyuk looked much more relaxed.
Because he got stronger? Or got strong comrades?
Jinwoon thought maybe taking off the mask meant he'd shaken off that anxiety.
"So why come here? You made lots of friends. Play with them."
As Jinwoon wondered what to say, he got petty.
Soo-hyuk smiled awkwardly at Jinwoon's pettiness. It was minor now, but he had no idea how he'd react to what he was about to say.
"For new friends, they're too old of friends."
"Come on. How long have you even known them? Someone might think you're really Lee Soo-hyuk..."
Suddenly, Jinwoon stopped.
Soo-hyuk's eyes looking at him resembled someone. No way? The thought crossed his mind, and Soo-hyuk answered with his eyes.
Yes.