Chapter 368
Chapter 368
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 368
Chapter Title: Lee Soo-hyuk's Return
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Namgung Hwayeong surveyed the half-ruined Murim Alliance headquarters.
Destroyed buildings and collapsed walls. Plaques shattered and rolling on the ground. Earth stained with blood.
It was a sight too painful to behold with open eyes. A wave of guilt washed over her, as if she herself had trampled the Murim Alliance.
The battle at the Murim Alliance was over.
The silver lining was that it hadn't dragged on to the bitter end. Once Jin Doha fled and Uncheon-geuk died, warriors began surrendering in droves.
Some had fought to the last, but they were no match for Ye-ryeong.
Having battled without regard for her own body, Ye-ryeong was now applying salve to the wounds on her arm and shoulder before wrapping them in bandages.
Having shone the brightest, she had drawn the enemies' focused attacks. They weren't pushovers, so it was inevitable that she'd take a few hits.
Squeeze-.
As Unhyang finished wrapping the last bandage around Ye-ryeong's waist, she clapped her hands clean.
"All done."
"Isn't it tied too tight? It hurts."
"It has to be tight for the bleeding to stop. We'll leave it like this for now—get the Divine Doctor to check it later."
The Murim Alliance's Divine Doctor was tending to the critically wounded first. Limbs severed, bellies split open. Compared to them, Ye-ryeong's injuries were mere scratches.
"Suhyuk-ssi, he'll be okay, right?"
Unlike Unhyang's worry, Ye-ryeong reacted with disbelief.
"Why worry about him? Didn't you see the fight earlier?"
"I did. But still, the opponent's no joke."
"Exactly. The opponent's the opponent."
"What do you mean?"
"It's Jin Doha, isn't it? The guy who smashed the back of our heads. Even Gyu-seong died because of him."
"That's why I'm more worried."
"Worried Suhyuk might act on emotion?"
Unhyang's expression said, Of course not. If it were her, could she stay calm facing the enemy who killed someone precious?
But Ye-ryeong thought differently.
"That's exactly why Suhyuk will be even more thorough. It's something that has to be absolutely certain. If he wasn't sure he could win, he would've held back. You saw it too, right? How well that guy endures."
Over the past time, Suhyuk had devoted himself single-mindedly to honing his strength. He could've drawn his sword and charged into the world right away—Jin Doha and Kim Il-su were out there—but he focused even more on growing stronger.
To make it even more certain. As Ye-ryeong said, avenging their comrades was something that could never fail, no matter what.
It might seem like he'd moved on the Murim Alliance Lord's spur-of-the-moment request, but that was far from the truth. Suhyuk had been certain and prepared. The Lord's request was merely the trigger.
"Speak of the devil."
At Ye-ryeong's words, Unhyang turned her head. Beyond the crumbled wall, Suhyuk was approaching.
As Suhyuk—who had chased after Jin Doha—returned, the surroundings fell silent. They'd half-expected otherwise, but it was Suhyuk who came back.
Namgung Hwayeong was the first to approach.
"How did it go?"
Along with her question, she scanned Suhyuk's condition.
His clothes were torn in places, and there were small cuts from sword qi, but nothing deep. Just grazes, really.
At her level, Namgung Hwayeong could tell just from the wounds.
How overwhelmingly Suhyuk had dominated his fight with Jin Doha.
That was why.
Even as she asked, Namgung Hwayeong spoke first.
"......They're all dead, then."
Suhyuk nodded.
He offered no further explanation. It wasn't just Jin Doha who'd died there. Their relationship hadn't been great, but Namgung Gahwi was Namgung Hwayeong's father.
How she would react to her father's death. How she would overcome it and lead this chaotic Murim world once more.
All of it depended on Namgung Hwayeong.
Suhyuk passed by her side. As he drew near, the warriors in the path parted to left and right.
Ye-ryeong waved her bandaged arm and shouted.
"Quit posing and get over here!"
A storm had swept through the Murim Alliance.
Murim had taken a massive blow from this incident. With Jin Doha dead and nearly half the Alliance's members killed or gravely wounded.
It was no small matter—far from quietable.
And at the center of it all was the streamer Lee Soo-hyuk, who had appeared out of nowhere.
"Suhyuk-ssi, check this out."
A few days of solid rest later, during a meal together, Unhyang showed him her kit.
There were plenty more posts like that.
Why was Lee Soo-hyuk there? Did he 1v1 Jin Doha? Or was it a gank? Why roam without streaming? All sorts of threads filled the boards.
For now, most reactions were skeptical.
It was only natural. This involved no one less than Jin Doha. For him to lose to anyone, it'd have to be someone like the Heavenly Demon or Archmage level.
"Everyone's going nuts."
"You made a flashy comeback, Suhyuk-ssi."
"Not a comeback yet, right? Haven't even started streaming."
"You will, though?"
"It's my job. Gotta do it."
He had no intention of quitting streaming like this. Abandoning something midway wasn't Suhyuk's style, no matter the form.
Besides, he still needed it.
As a means to restore his comrades' honor, tarnished by Kim Il-su. And for the revenue to level up Selfish Sacrifice next.
"It's still amazing no matter how many times I see it. You acting like a money grubber. Were you like this back in the day too?"
"Took me a while to realize. Money's the best."
"Yet you spend it all as soon as you earn it?"
"That's my grievance. Everyone thinks I'm loaded. Truth is, I'm broke as hell."
Unhyang burst into giggles at Suhyuk's joke. Ye-ryeong, beside her, chided her not to laugh at something that wasn't even funny.
As the meal wound down, Suhyuk spoke up.
"The Heavenly Demon came by."
Ye-ryeong flinched mid-bite. Her gaze naturally shifted to Unhyang.
The Heavenly Demon.
Unhyang's real father.
Ye-ryeong asked at the mention of his visit.
"What'd that guy want all of a sudden?"
"Must be very interested in this side. His little brother, his daughter, and me. Everyone connected to him is here. Weirder if he wasn't interested."
Come to think of it, yes. The two were blood-related to the Heavenly Demon, and Suhyuk was the only player to have bested him.
No matter how sedentary the Heavenly Demon was, ignoring this would be the odd thing.
"He's been watching us the whole time, huh."
"He's awfully fixated on me."
Suhyuk checked Unhyang's expression. She looked like her meal might come back up.
Still a big improvement, though. At first, his name alone turned her pale.
He could've mentioned it without her, but Suhyuk didn't. It wasn't something she could avoid forever, and Unhyang seemed to have overcome it quite a bit now.
Suhyuk recounted his encounter with the Heavenly Demon.
"Even watching Jin Doha die, he didn't spare him a glance."
Probably no one knew the Heavenly Demon like Suhyuk did.
"That's the kind of guy he is. Doesn't give a damn about blood ties. So don't worry about it, Unhyang-ssi. No need to attach meaning to it."
"Don't worry. I've... gotten over it now."
This time, she'd severed Uncheon-geuk's head herself. Erased the red script of her fated death with her own hands.
The towering mountain called the Heavenly Demon remained, but he was different from Uncheon-geuk. He was just the man who'd sired her—never directly harmed her, to put it that way.
Of course, he'd wrought all sorts of havoc on the world in her stead.
"But why show his precious face just to say he's watching? In the middle of all this."
"Seems he plans to settle things in this Interguild Clash."
"Settle things?"
Suhyuk nodded. One might expect details, but the words stopped there.
Probably some promise between the two. Ye-ryeong didn't pry if he wasn't volunteering.
Lee Soo-hyuk and the Heavenly Demon. The Heavenly Demon and Lee Soo-hyuk.
Their relationship was longer and more tangled than imagined. Not friends, not enemies. Not rivals or nemeses, either.
Only they knew. And whatever defined it lay in that clash.
"Time to head back."
The Murim Alliance affair had wrapped up in a flash.
"The Interguild Clash is soon."
Ye-ryeong and Unhyang's eyes lit up at Suhyuk's words.
The Interguild Clash.
A festival for all players, but this one was especially meaningful for them.
That day, Blue Eyes would step back into the world.
With the Interguild Clash three days away, the 7th floor bustled with far more players than usual.
The streets were festive as ever. Food stalls, games, spectacles. Some even came just for the vibe, more than the event itself.
And the bigger the tournament, the hottest entertainment was gambling.
"Who'll take the win this time?"
"Murim's out already."
"Runeterra again, then?"
"Didn't their Archmage dip out?"
"He just left the guild. Could still compete solo, right? Then it's a lock."
"This one's really tough."
An Interguild Clash without Jin Doha or the Archmage. Factor in the wildcard Heavenly Demon, and predicting the winner was impossible.
And moreover.
"......Heard a guild called Blue Eyes is entering too?"
Another dark horse emerged.
No one knew their affiliation or exact lineup. But the name alone sparked buzz.
And right then, the man most irked by that buzz appeared on the street.
"It's Kim Il-su!"
Flanked by a dozen or so rankers, Blue Zone marched forward, their banner high.
"Their vice-guild leader spot's empty too, right?"
"They picked a new one recently."
"Lee Soo-hyuk turned everything upside down."
"Shh. Don't say that name lightly. They might hear."
Blue Zone wasn't some terror symbol. But they were a mega-guild with tendrils across the entire tower.
No point in pissing them off needlessly. Folks curse the king behind his back, but face-to-face? Different story.
The crowd parted left and right. No one should have been blocking the way.
And yet.
"Gasp......"
"Why's that guy here?"
The people shrinking back quietly swallowed hard.
In the parted crowd, one man still stood. Ignoring the Blue Zone banner entirely, he strode forward without hesitation.
Wearing a familiar mask that everyone recognized.