Chapter 172
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 172
Chapter Title: Meal
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"Aren't you Yamtti?"
Yamtti was quite startled by Seo Ah-rin's question.
'How did she recognize me even after I fixed my face?'
She had thought the customization made her unrecognizable, but someone had spotted her anyway.
It seemed because she had only changed it a little.
"Right? It's you, Yamtti."
"......"
Yamtti neither confirmed nor denied it, just glancing at Ryu Min.
But as if there was no need for that, Ryu Min jumped in.
"Oh? You two know each other?"
"We met in the other world. You introduced her as a real-life acquaintance of Black Scythe back then..."
"That's right. Yamtti and Black Scythe know each other in real life too."
"No way, is Ryu Min connected too...?"
"No. I've never met him. He's such a secretive person..."
"So it really is you, Yamtti?"
Only then could Yamtti relax and answer.
Her master had acknowledged it.
"Haha, yes. It's me. I'm Yamtti."
"I thought you looked similar. Nice to meet you."
"You too. Meeting Seo Ah-rin in real life is surprising, though."
"I'm more surprised you're an acquaintance of Black Scythe?"
Seo Ah-rin smiled as she lowered her voice slightly, revealing her desire.
"Um, Yamtti. If it's not too rude, could you give me Black Scythe's contact info...?"
"That's rude. Well, more rude to Black Scythe than me. He doesn't want anyone knowing his identity."
"Ah..."
Seo Ah-rin looked embarrassed at Yamtti's stern words.
"Then could you at least let me talk to him for a bit? I have something to say..."
"Sorry. Even though we're real-life acquaintances, I don't have his number. He calls me first with caller ID blocked. That's how cautious he is. Even the CPF unit couldn't see his face."
"Ah..."
Seo Ah-rin was convinced but disappointed at the same time.
-I wanted to meet him again in real life...
Ryu Min read her inner thoughts and felt relieved.
'It's not about wanting to know my identity. She just wants to meet me.'
He had worried she might persistently ask about his identity, but that wasn't necessary.
'Well, even if she did, my identity wouldn't be exposed anyway.'
He had prepared Yamtti in advance for such situations.
What to say if asked about Black Scythe in real life.
'Good thing she handled it just as I instructed.'
From reading Seo Ah-rin's thoughts, she didn't suspect Yamtti.
She was just envious that Yamtti could communicate with Black Scythe in real life.
"So, what brings you two to our house...?"
"Oh, I had something personal to ask Ryu Min about."
"Is that so? Come inside first. Have a meal while you're here."
"A meal?"
"You haven't had dinner, right?"
"Well, that's true, but..."
"Then come on in."
Ryu Min smiled and opened the front door, then looked at his younger brother.
"A few more guests are fine, right?"
"Huh? Uh, yeah..."
A chance to treat Seo Ah-rin, whom he liked, to dinner.
He was happy, but it also made him more nervous.
Ryu Won.
* * *
Bubble bubble-
Once the kimchi stew was boiling vigorously and done, Ryu Won placed it in the center of the table.
"I-I didn't prepare much, but please eat."
"What do you mean not much? This is a feast."
As Seo Ah-rin said, there were plenty of side dishes on the table.
Egg roll, stir-fried sausage and veggies, japchae, stir-fried fish cake, and kimchi stew.
It was a lot for one person to prepare, but Ryu Won managed it.
Though it took 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Even that was thanks to Ryu Min's help; otherwise, it would have taken 3 hours.
"I'll dig in."
"Let's see how it tastes."
Slurp-
Seo Ah-rin's eyes lit up after tasting the kimchi stew.
"You made this following a NutTube video?"
"Yes... Is it bad?"
"Bad? It's delicious."
"Phew, good. I was worried it might not taste good."
Ryu Won finally relaxed at Seo Ah-rin's sunny smile.
"I didn't know my little brother had this kind of skill."
"Haha, I don't do it often, but when I do, I nail it."
"Why not study for a Korean cuisine certification? Stop gaming and do that."
"Ugh... Fine, got it."
Ryu Min, Ryu Won, Seo Ah-rin, Ahn Sang-chul, and Yamtti finished their meal in a warm atmosphere.
"Thanks for the meal, Won-ah."
"You're welcome, sis."
Ryu Min looked surprised at Yamtti and Ryu Won.
"What? When did you two get on first-name terms?"
"When you went to the bathroom earlier, Ryu Min. Hehe."
"There's an age gap, so I can't keep being formal forever, bro."
"Won, are you dissing me for being older?"
"No way, sis."
Ryu Won chuckled and headed to do the dishes, and Yamtti quickly stood up too.
"Doing dishes? Let me help."
"I'll help too."
Ryu Min stopped Seo Ah-rin as she tried to stand.
"Leave the cleanup to those two. We have things to discuss, right?"
"Oh, right."
Seo Ah-rin and Ahn Sang-chul followed Ryu Min to the living room and sat on the sofa.
"Shall we hear what you wanted to talk about?"
"Prophet. It's about this thug named Hwang Yong-min I met today..."
Ryu Min listened calmly to Seo Ah-rin's story.
"So, Hwang Yong-min doesn't show up in searches?"
"Yes. Exactly, it says he doesn't exist. Do you know anything about this...?"
"It's exactly as it sounds. He doesn't exist in this world."
"What? Th-then the person I saw was really a ghost...?"
"Where are there ghosts in this world? And it wasn't just you; dozens saw him, right?"
"Yes. What on earth is going on?"
"Hmm."
Ryu Min pretended to ponder, then brought up the excuse he had made up during dinner.
"No choice now. I'll tell you everything."
"What...?"
"Hwang Yong-min is already dead. But someone revived him as an undead."
"Whaaat? U-undead?"
"......"
Their reactions differed, but both had wide eyes in shock.
Not because they didn't know what undead meant.
They were just shocked that undead really existed.
"There are player classes that can revive corpses. Hwang Yong-min was brought back as undead. That's why I told you not to touch him... but someone did."
"Wow... Revived as undead. Who would do such a thing...?"
"I don't know. I saw it in a prophecy, but only his back."
It was a lie, but mixed with truth.
There really was a necromancer class that controlled undead.
Dark mages summoned undead, but it was summoning, not raising corpses like necromancers.
Shamans exploded corpses instead.
'Only necromancers can make corpses move like normal people. But they can't make them talk like Hwang Yong-min.'
That difference didn't matter.
What was important now was convincing Seo Ah-rin.
Fortunately, she believed Ryu Min's lie outright.
"S-so I met a kind of zombie?"
"You could say that."
"Ugh, goosebumps."
While Seo Ah-rin rubbed her arms, Ahn Sang-chul asked curiously.
"Prophet. Is that necromancer a Korean player? What's his level?"
"I don't know the details."
"Will that guy become a threat to us later?"
"Who knows. Dangerous if we make him an enemy, right?"
He played dumb, but Ryu Min knew.
The necromancer would be an obstacle ahead.
'More precisely, an obstacle for the Reaper Church.'
Even knowing that, Ryu Min hadn't eliminated him.
He planned to use even that obstacle.
'Light shines brighter in the darkness.'
No one saw Ryu Min's lip curl up.
* * *
After Seo Ah-rin's group left, Ryu Min patted his brother's shoulder.
"Good job."
"Haha, no big deal."
"Your cooking skills are pretty good."
"Maybe I should get that certification like you said. It's fun making it, and I might have talent?"
Ryu Min laughed along with his giggling brother, but not out of joy.
It was a smile to hide his bitterness.
'Certification... That's a luxury for me now.'
No matter how great players were, their lives were on the line.
Fail to pass round 20, and life ends.
Planning a future with certification studies in the midst of that?
A luxury players couldn't afford.
'Yeah. My life doesn't matter. My role in this final regression is to create a world where at least my brother—my brother alone—can live normally.'
For that, he needed to eliminate variables and stick to the plan.
Click-
Back in his room, Ryu Min lay on the bed, deep in thought.
He reviewed future plans, checking for any disruptive variables step by step.
'Could Seo Ah-rin be a variable? No. She's too involved now. Removing her would create a bigger variable.'
She knew of the connection between Yamtti and Ryu Min, but that changed nothing.
As long as they insisted no contact with Black Scythe, she wouldn't pry or suspect.
Her thoughts confirmed it.
'What about Ahn Sang-chul and Jeffrey?'
Ahn Sang-chul was always with Ma Kyung-rok or Seo Ah-rin, so reading his mind was easy.
Meaning, easy to handle if needed.
'But not Jeffrey.'
Unpredictable, like last time.
Emotionally driven fool when it came to Christine.
'Hmm, I hate pesky flies.'
As he checked potential threats one by one, a call came from Ma Kyung-rok.
-Prophet. This is CEO Ma.
"Yes. What's up?"
-Are you free tomorrow afternoon? Jeffrey from before and my future father-in-law are coming to Korea to meet you. Seems they want to apologize in person for Jeffrey's earlier threat.
'Jeffrey and Nathan are coming?'
They could apologize over the phone, but coming in person showed they grasped the severity.
"Got it. What time do they arrive tomorrow?"
-Around 3 PM at Incheon Airport.
"Then tell them 4 PM at a nearby cafe. I'll send the location."
-Yes. Will do.
After hanging up, Ryu Min immediately called Yamtti.
"Yamtti. How many domination slots left?"
-PleSeBa's chairman and police chief are dominated, so three left.
"Good. We can use one."
-What's going on?
"Meeting Jeffrey and Nathan tomorrow."
-To apologize?
"Who knows until we meet. So..."
Ryu Min smirked.
"Be there just in case."