Chapter 34
Chapter 34
Chapter 34: Go Mal-suk (1)
Translation: godtl
"M-Mal...!"
Was it because his heart was swelling uncontrollably?
Without realizing it, Si-mun almost blurted out "Mal-suk!" but—
"Haah! Hey. Watch your language, will you?"
Fortunately, the three-member guild party matched with them earlier spoke first.
"What the f*ck? Who the hell do you think you are?"
"Who do you think? I'm your teammate! Didn't you see the system window?"
The guild member pointed at the air.
The provocative woman, Go Mal-suk, who followed his gaze to check the system window, crossed her arms and clicked her tongue.
"Tch, cooperation. What a load of bullsh*t."
"Understand now? We're party members who have to clear this together, so cut the rude remarks."
"Haah..."
At those words, Mal-suk deeply bowed her head.
With her tightly crossed arms and her foot incessantly tapping, she looked every bit the delinquent she was, but—
"Yeah. My bad."
The words that came out of her mouth were unexpectedly apologetic.
"Huh?"
Even the guild member who had been arguing seemed taken aback by the unexpected response.
He and the two behind him exchanged bewildered glances.
"I said I'm sorry. Need me to say it twice?"
Mal-suk apologized boldly.
Of course, not a shred of remorse could be seen on her face.
-LOLOLOL. As bold as ever, Go Mal-suk!
-I've met her before. I think I have PTSD now.
-She's legit insane. If she just raged all the time, I'd say it was just her schtick.
-For real tho. Most psychos just charge in, but she knows when to back down too.
-Can't figure her out at all LOL.
The chat window exploded with messages.
Perhaps because Bronze Silver Gold was the rank tier with the most players, the chat was livelier than ever about Go Mal-suk.
Meanwhile...
'Our Mal-suk, still the same as ever.'
Si-mun smiled faintly as he watched his former life's dear friend.
"Good grief! Who apologizes with such a bold face?"
"Are you even actually sorry?"
The guild members who received the apology pressed sharply, their eyes narrowed.
Mal-suk's apology had been far too bold—
They assumed she wasn't sincere.
"That so? I apologized 'cause I'm sorry. You want me to say I got a screw loose or somethin'?"
"You're really—! Forget it."
The man who seemed to be the leader roughly ran a hand through his hair.
"We don't even want your apology. We'll be moving separately from you."
"Sure, whatever."
As if she'd been through this countless times before, Mal-suk shrugged lightly despite the man's threat.
At the same time—
[All participants have been matched.]
A new system window appeared in the air.
[The Arena will now begin.]
[Advance to the heart of the Evergreen Forest.]
[Only up to 4 teams may enter the heart of the Evergreen Forest.]
The Arena had begun.
The three-member party approached Si-mun.
"You're Player Kim Si-mun, right?"
"You know me?"
"Of course. We all watched your broadcast last time."
"Ah."
It seemed Special Arenas in the Silver-rank tier really were special.
Si-mun hadn't expected them to recognize him.
-LOLOLOL. This guy's sharp.
-For real, he spotted the ace right away.
-But this guy doesn't seem to realize he's famous?
-No way. His deep-sea broadcasts are the only ones pulling thousands of viewers here.
Unfortunately—
'W-Was I really that famous?'
Si-mun was genuinely taken aback by the chat's reaction.
Without showing it, he listened quietly to the man's proposal.
"No need for long explanations. Come with us."
The man glanced behind him and lowered his voice.
"You don't seem to know her well, but that woman—Go Mal-suk—is a notorious troll in Bronze Silver Gold."
"Exactly. People don't call her a crazy bitch for nothing, you know?"
"You saw her apologizing earlier, right? But that's not even the real issue. The real problem is that once a fight starts, she completely loses her mind."
Even more than their reluctance to lose Si-mun as an ace player, the three Cheetah Guild members were genuinely eager to list all the negative rumors about Go Mal-suk.
How she attacks indiscriminately, friend or foe.
How she's a blood-crazed lunatic.
How she's a certified psychopath.
Every single story was about how utterly unhinged she was.
And incredibly enough—
"Yes. I'm well aware."
Si-mun knew the Go Mal-suk they were talking about all too well.
'Every word of it is true, after all.'
Hadn't he heard the real stories straight from the source in his past life?
Of course, he also knew exactly why these terrifying rumors existed.
"You knew already! Well, that makes things easier."
"Come with us instead. If you stick with her, all you'll see is blood."
"We've been working together for a long time—we're actually pretty decent!"
The faces of the Cheetah trio brightened instantly, convinced Si-mun would join them.
"I'm sorry, but I'll be going with her."
"...What?"
"Why the hell would you do that?"
The three stared at him in disbelief, baffled by his unexpected answer.
-?
-Si-mun, what?
-Dude, are you out of your mind?
-No way you can win with someone like her, even if it is you.
-So... you're into that kind of thing?
The chat was flooded with question marks and confusion, but Si-mun didn't waver.
His reasoning was simple.
'I was wondering how to approach her, but since we've matched, I might as well get acquainted. I've got the Heavenly Demon's quest to clear, too.'
Though he'd been the only one close to Mal-suk, that was strictly in his past life. At this point, he had zero connection to Go Mal-suk as a person.
If he suddenly sought her out based on intel from Park Jin-uk, what would happen?
'Knowing Mal-suk, she'd kick me first and ask questions later.'
Obviously.
If some random guy she'd never met before showed up saying, "Mal-suk! It's me!", what woman would respond with "Oh my! Long time no see!"?
'I might even get stabbed.'
He had to consider the possibility of getting skewered.
That's why, now that they'd been matched, he needed to establish at least some familiarity with her.
And besides—
'The bait should be coming soon...'
There was one more thing Si-mun was aiming for.
[The Constellation Heavenly Demon bursts into uproarious laughter. "Kuhahaha! This girl's perfect! Absolutely perfect!" He radiates immense satisfaction.]
[The Constellation Black Goat gazes at Player Go Mal-suk with keen interest.]
Namely, the Heavenly Demon's attention.
Though—
'But why is Black Goat interested?'
He tilted his head, puzzled by Black Goat's unexpected interest, but that was all.
[Manager Heavenly Demon has donated 100,000 AP.]
=Go with that girl.
Si-mun couldn't help but marvel as Heavenly Demon dropped a staggering 100,000 AP donation.
'I thought he'd just give some small mission, like clearing this arena with Mal-suk.'
He never expected such a massive donation.
'Then again, it's not unreasonable.'
In his past life, most of his conversations with Mal-suk had revolved around the Constellation Heavenly Demon.
'Heavenly Demon was unbelievably fond of her.'
Sure, Mal-suk always cursed him as a "pervy old man" or whatever, but from Si-mun's perspective—someone who'd seen countless Constellation sponsors and knew exactly what they were like—Mal-suk was clearly a player who enjoyed Heavenly Demon's deep affection.
Wasn't this intense reaction proof enough?
In both his past life and this one, Go Mal-suk was Heavenly Demon's undisputed favorite.
-OMG! 100k for real?!
-Holy shit! 100k for a Silver player? LOL.
-Called it. That manager's a total whale.
-That guy? The Constellation impersonator?
The Heavenly Demon's sponsorship instantly shifts the tide of the chat.
Since AP is usually converted to dollars, that amounts to roughly 120 million won in cash.
From the viewers' perspective, it was an amount they couldn't possibly ignore.
'I haven't even settled the AP from the last broadcast yet.'
If I properly account for this broadcast's AP as well, I can finally move out of that cramped studio apartment.
Into a bigger place.
"One of my viewers sponsored 100,000 AP for me to team up with you."
"100,000?!"
"Wha—?!"
The three Cheetah members' eyes bulge in shock.
But what can they do?
"That can't be real!"
"Well, 100,000 is over 100 million won, so..."
"100 million is a bit..."
Money talks, after all.
Was it because of the overgrown vegetation?
Rustle.
With every step, the soft, cotton-like texture gently pressed against the soles of his feet.
But.
'When are they gonna pop out?'
He knew all too well that this softness could turn razor-sharp in an instant.
Si-mun walked forward, maintaining just the right amount of tension.
Or rather—
"Ah, damn, they're tailing me like crazy."
It'd be more accurate to say he was following his provocatively bold old friend.
"Hey. Why are you following me?"
"I told you, it's for the mission."
"Tch!"
Go Mal-suk roughly swept her bangs back.
Despite the lush, beautiful natural scenery around them,
her smooth forehead was creased with irritation.
"I warned you. If you get beaten to death by me later, don't you dare complain. Got it?"
She growled with clear menace in her voice, but—
"Okay. Got it."
"...F*ck."
Si-mun's unfazed response made her exhale a deep, resigned sigh.
Of course.
Damn, sis is scary af.
LMAO, she's terrifying.
But she's legit scary. I met her once, and she tore people apart bare-handed...
WTF LOL, is she a bear or something?!
A bear-woman? LOL
The chat was going wild.
For Si-mun, this side of Mal-suk was familiar.
He knew her traits and true nature well, so he just smirked and brushed it off.
But if this were an average player, they'd have bolted at the sheer, inexplicable bloodlust radiating off her.
Then—
'Yeah. I sensed it too.'
Along with the Philosopher's Stone's voice, a faint presence registered in Si-mun's senses.
'Since this is a Silver-rank Evergreen Forest, it's probably Vegetation Keepers.'
Just as he predicted—
Rustle.
"Oh? Humans?"
A voice as light as the sound of footsteps reached them.
Vegetation Keepers.
"Oh my! How did these harmful creatures get here?"
"Why be surprised? Just clean them up."
Tiny bodies with wings so thin they were nearly transparent.
They looked like Tinkerbell incarnate—adorable, lovable little beings.
But—
'Four Vegetation Keepers... This could be dangerous.'
Anyone who had faced Vegetation Keepers even once would never see them as small and cute.
Why?
"Kids, it's cleanup time!"
"Don't leave even a scrap of flesh behind—it might pollute the forest!"
They were infamous as high-maintenance magic-type monsters.
And worst of all, they could summon plant-type monsters—utterly vicious little things.
Crackle.
"Skreee!"
The surrounding vegetation twisted and tangled, letting out eerie cries.
The plant monsters summoned by the Vegetation Keepers—Sharp Vines.
'Each Vegetation Keeper summons two Sharp Vines, so eight in total. Add the four Keepers, and that's twelve enemies.'
The summons themselves weren't too troublesome, but—
"Giggle! Trees, attack!"
"Grass blades, slice that filthy flesh apart!"
With their summoned Sharp Vines leading the charge and their nature magic backing them up, their combo was downright murderous.
Of course.
"Aack!"
Less than ten seconds after the battle began, Go Mal-suk was already rolling on the ground, covered in blood.
Si-mun briefly muted the flaming chat window.
But he didn't lift a finger to help Mal-suk.
He simply crossed his arms and stepped back.
Not because of her earlier warning, nor because she was a notorious troll.
'It should be kicking in any moment now.'
Si-mun watched indifferently as Mal-suk took a beating.
As if responding to his thoughts—
Swoosh.
The posture Mal-suk had maintained—crouching defensively—suddenly loosened.
"Tsk tsk tsk!"
"Heheh! Look at her bleeding all over!"
"We'll take out this trash in no time!"
Seizing the opening, the Sharp Vines and Vegetation Keepers launched a combined assault.
Then—
Thwip.
"Huh?"
The razor-sharp leaves of the Sharp Vines, which should have sliced through flesh without resistance, were caught in a bloodstained hand.
Normally, an unarmed hand would've been severed without mercy.
But defying all logic—
Squelch.
The blade-like leaves crumpled like overripe fruit in that human grip.
Then—
Crunch!
The flower-like head of the Sharp Vine was gruesomely impaled.
Without even a scream, the Sharp Vine collapsed.
"W-what?!"
Before the Vegetation Keepers could process what had happened—
Crack!
"Aaaah!"
In the blink of an eye, Mal-suk lunged forward and crushed one of the Vegetation Keepers in her grasp.
That was the signal.
Thud.
Splortch!
Like some incomprehensible monster from a horror film—
"Aaaargh!"
"S-save me!"
"Ggrk...!"
Mal-suk tore through the Vegetation Keepers and Sharp Vines with terrifying speed, ripping and crushing everything in her path.
The viewers gasped in shock at her brutal combat prowess.
Only one person remained unfazed.
'Hmm. She's even more violent than when we first met.'
Si-mun didn't so much as blink at the gory, spine-chilling spectacle.
"Kyaaaaaa!!!"
Mal-suk let out a shriek that could rival a banshee's wail.
Before long, only one Vegetation Keeper and two Sharp Vines remained.
Then—
"Eek! S-stop her! Someone stop that monster!"
"Ggrrll..."
The Vegetation Keeper hurled its last two Sharp Vines at Mal-suk and turned to flee—a common tactic among intelligent monsters in dire situations.
It would either lie in wait for an ambush later or call for reinforcements.
'Can't have that.'
Prolonging the fight was out of the question.
'She's only holding on because of her Trait. Once this is over, Mal-suk's gonna collapse.'
At last, Si-mun uncrossed his arms.
The Transmutation Power gathered at his core surged familiarly to his fingertips.
Snap.
With a light Finger Snap—
Thunk.
"Ghk!"
A jagged stone spike erupted from the ground, impaling the fleeing Vegetation Keeper.
"Huh...?"
Mal-suk, having just finished shredding the last Sharp Vines, stared blankly at the skewered Vegetation Keeper.
Slowly, her head turned toward Si-mun.
"Grrrr..."
Her eyes, now crimson as blood, locked onto him.
"Tch. So it's come to this."
Si-mun wasn't startled—just let out a deep sigh.
The reason was simple.
'Well, I kinda saw this coming.'
Alongside his younger brother Kim Si-hyeok and Lee Yu-jeong, she possessed one of the highest-tier SSS-rank Traits.
'But the damn drawback of the Heavenly Execution Star...'
The worst possible Trait.