Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: Nayeo-ju Saves the World
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I was grinding my teeth at the unexpected situation when a note, passed hand to hand through several people, reached me.
I turned my head to check, and the sender was, of course, Gwak Ho-young.
His shameless face shrugging his shoulders as if to say there was nothing to be done was quite the spectacle.
I handed the half-crumpled note to Kang Han and glared at the dungeon list filling the massive screen.
But that wouldn't make a nonexistent dungeon suddenly appear.
It was utterly infuriating.
Like it or not, we were now in a position where we had to bid on the flame dungeon.
'Should I just shake the dust off my hands and walk out?'
I pondered for a moment.
But I soon shook my head.
We had strutted into this auction house after a flashy interview, soaking up every bit of attention from the press.
Moreover, we had already announced a joint raid with Taesan Guild.
If we were the only ones to stand up and leave in this situation, it was obvious how the other side would spin it.
'They'd blab that we ran away scared of the flame dungeon.'
And the media would naturally pin the reason on Jang Su-ho.
It would crack the hard-earned image of Jang Su-ho's reliability that we had built through the recent gate raids.
"What do you want to do, Nayeo-ju-ssi?"
Kang Han leaned in and whispered in my ear.
Behind his handsome face filling my vision, I could see the guild members all staring at me.
They looked ready to kick back their chairs and stand at my slightest word.
'No, we can't back down here.'
We had only just restored the Justice Guild's image.
I refused to tuck tail and flee from Gwak Ho-young's—no, probably Sama Young's scheme pulling the strings behind him—petty trick.
"Go ahead and do whatever you want."
I answered deliberately in a voice loud enough for the surrounding hunters to hear.
"They must think we're a joke."
I didn't forget to flash a smile at Gwak Ho-young as I said it.
It wasn't that we were scared of the flame dungeon or worried about Jang Su-ho's condition inside.
We had simply chosen the underwater dungeon because the flame one was trickier to clear.
I thrust out my fisted hand toward Kang Han sitting beside me and said,
"Let's show them what happens when you underestimate the Justice Guild."
"...I like the sound of that."
Kang Han bumped his fist against mine with a grin.
As I watched Gwak Ho-young bid on the flame dungeon's raid rights, I quietly started racking my brain.
There was a full week until the flame dungeon opened.
Even subtracting the one day for joint training with Taesan, we still had six whole days.
Plenty of time.
'Daring to mess with a possessed soul?'
A hollow chuckle slipped through my gritted teeth amid the seething anger of having been played once.
The fate of villains who block the protagonist's path is always predictable.
The next day.
"Agh, that pisses me off!"
Lee Yu-eul shouted it out midway through breakfast after her dawn training.
"Nayeo-ju unnie, did you see Gwak Ho-young smirking?!"
"Heh. Don't spoil the meal by bringing up that jerk first thing in the morning."
"But it's still infuriating! Everyone knows it's their scheme. So damn shameless."
She wasn't the only one boiling with outrage since the auction ended yesterday.
"Starting afternoon training, I'm shooting 300 extra arrows."
"I'm diving into potion upgrades."
Lee Yu-chan and Im Cheong-su narrowed their eyes as they spoke.
The older guild members were just as fired up.
They simply held their tongues in front of the youngsters.
"I made plenty of food. Stuff yourselves and train hard!"
Even Seong Yo-na, who had heard about the auction, was brimming with resolve.
Jang Su-ho was still in the middle of training.
The foodie was skipping meals.
"Better than moping around, I suppose."
Should I go drag him to the table right now?
We're busting our asses just to eat well.
But I decided against interrupting.
Sometimes, throwing yourself into something is the best way to ease the mind.
Instead, I pocketed my dessert tangerine uneaten and flopped onto the sofa.
"Aigoo, so sleepy."
The backlash from a poor night's sleep crashed over me alongside the food coma.
But with errands to run soon, I planned to just close my eyes for a bit.
My brain was still whirring fiercely, though.
It had been briefly mentioned in the novel.
Taesan Guild's disastrous solo attempt—the one that wrecked them utterly—was the flame dungeon.
'Looks like it's that one.'
Kang Han was at the time stripped of his guild's building and name, slaving away mining under Sama Young, so it wasn't detailed.
But around two in the morning yesterday, I recalled that it was a dungeon with a massive interior that demanded huge stamina.
In other words, we'd be stuck inside for a long time.
'Stamina itself should be fine with Cheong-su's tonic.'
The problem was our guild members' vulnerability to dark addiction.
"Especially Jang Su-ho."
The subtly flatfish-like guy was the real issue.
"Huh? Me? Why?"
Speak of the devil.
Jang Su-ho, emerging from the training room, caught my mutter and strode over.
"Did you call me?"
"Perfect timing. Got a question for you."
He was soaked in sweat, fresh from a shower it seemed—no doubt, he'd pushed himself to the limit.
"Last time you went into a flame dungeon, what was the hardest part?"
"Why ask something like that out of the blue."
Jang Su-ho faltered, visibly flustered.
But this was crucial.
"Spit it out."
"Uhmm. Well."
He wiped the sweat already beading anew with the towel draped around his neck, struggling to speak.
"...The heat."
"Heat? The temperature was the problem?"
Jang Su-ho was A-rank.
No way a guy like that couldn't handle the heat from a dungeon of equal or lower rank.
"How to put it. Combat starts, and my head heats up. But in the flame dungeon, it was way worse. Like my reason just flies out the window."
"Hm. Sort of like overload?"
"If we're talking machines, yeah."
"So, if we could deal with that heat somehow, how would it feel?"
"Reduce the flame dungeon's heat?"
Jang Su-ho cocked his head, not quite grasping it, but he answered readily enough.
"Fighting would be way easier. At least you'd recognize me, Nayeo-ju. That's all I need."
Jang Su-ho spoke calmly, but he had grown tougher since then.
He was still scared of heading into the dungeon, but he had found the courage to confront that fear.
"You get it, Jang Su-ho. You're right. No matter the situation, just come find me."
I spoke each word deliberately, etching it into him.
Then I hopped up from where I'd been lounging.
"Okay. Looks like I can handle that for you."
"Handle it? How?"
"There's always a way. I'll be right back. Oh, right."
I placed the tangerine I'd been holding—which had gone slightly warm—in his hand.
"Eat this and keep training hard."
As I left the underground training room, I felt Jang Su-ho's gaze on my back, but I didn't turn around.
Instead, I pulled out my phone from my pocket and made a call.
"Boss, it's me. Mind if I swing by today?"
"You've arrived, Nayeo-ju-ssi."
Jeong Je-hwa opened the workshop door and greeted me warmly.
"Boss."
But rather than return the greeting, I stared up intently at the man before me.
His face flushed under my lingering gaze.
"Something on my face? I just stepped out from finishing up some work..."
"No, it's not that. Your face just looks... better."
"Ah."
Jeong Je-hwa smiled and nodded at my words.
"All thanks to you, Nayeo-ju-ssi."
"Me? I haven't been around in ages—been swamped lately."
"Sure, I was wondering when you'd drop by, but that's not what I meant. Resuming work brought back my energy, and thanks to that, I even started exercising again."
"Come to think of it, your build does look healthier."
His once reed-thin frame now appeared more solid.
"All because you inspired me to get back to crafting, Nayeo-ju-ssi."
Hard to believe this was the same curt, tight-lipped man I'd first met.
He said the most embarrassing things without a hint of bashfulness.
"Come on in, Nayeo-ju-ssi. I've got just the thing to show you."
He was even excited like a kid.
'Am I really that exciting to see?'
The thought made my conscience twinge a little.
As I followed behind Jeong Je-hwa, I said,
"Sorry I haven't been able to visit more, boss. Things have been crazy busy."
"I get it. Still, I've been seeing plenty of you on broadcasts and live streams, so it's fine. Anyway."
Jeong Je-hwa gently took my shoulder and led me to the center of the workshop.
There stood something covered in pristine white cloth, without a single wrinkle.
About as tall as me, and wide enough that I'd need to stretch both arms to span it.
"No way this is..."
As I turned to him, guessing what it was, Jeong Je-hwa beamed and tugged at the edge of the cloth.
Swish.
A chill touched my skin first as the cloth slid away.
And Jeong Je-hwa explained in a low voice.
"A shield forged from millennium cold iron."
Under the workshop lights, an icy blue-silver shield gleamed into view.