episode_0149

149.

“But Yudahee.”

“Huh? Why?”

When Isabelle called out in a solemn voice, Yudahee blinked her eyes and tilted her head back.

A drop of blood fell from her ash-gray hair.

Brushing off the bloodied hair, Yudahee looked at Isabelle.

“Are you okay with leaving that girl alone?”

“Girl? Who?”

Yudahee raised an eyebrow in confusion.

“You know, Jinsuyeon, Jinsuyeon.”

“Oh, her?”

As if just remembering, Yudahee clapped her hands.

Why hadn’t she paid more attention to her until now? Was she just forgetting about her?

Anyway, Yudahee couldn’t sense any sense of danger or tension from this girl.

“What about Jinsuyeon?”

“Yudahee, you said it yourself. That girl’s talent could be a threat to us.”

“Well, that’s true.”

“In fact, she has single-handedly destroyed over ten malignant organizations in the past few months.”

Jinsuyeon’s growth rate is too steep.

It’s only been a few months at most.

But she has grown exponentially and now seems to be incredibly strong.

Honestly, if Isabelle hadn’t investigated herself, she would have dismissed it as mere rumor and exaggeration.

“Just recently, she single-handedly annihilated a cult and even took down Mayongtaek.”

“Wow, that guy?”

Yudahee whistled with interest.

Mayongtaek was a notorious villain who was once a high-ranking hero.

He had enough power to control an entire region, and yet this pretty girl took him down alone…

This is really intriguing.

“Has she already grown that much? Wow, this is really something.”

“It’s not a time to be impressed, Yudahee. You know her goal is us, right?”

“Yeah, I know, I know.”

Having brutally murdered Jinsuyeon’s only childhood friend in front of her, it’s obvious she’s sharpening her revenge blades.

“I didn’t pay much attention to her because I thought she would self-destruct on her own.”

There are many geniuses in this world.

And some of those geniuses have wreaked havoc on Yudahee, vowing revenge.

Unfortunately, most of them self-destructed before reaching Yudahee.

But Jinsuyeon, without anyone’s help, has grown to the point where Isabelle is concerned.

“Maybe she’ll continue to operate alone in the underworld, taking down villains, monsters, and organizations. I didn’t know she had it in her. It’s like watching my old self.”

“Yudahee.”

Scratching her neck and praising herself, Isabelle addressed Yudahee with a serious tone.

“Her growth rate is abnormal. Perhaps…”

Isabelle paused, pursing her lips before continuing.

“…even more than yours.”

A year ago, Jinsuyeon was just a regular Union Academy student.

There was no way she could be a threat.

But at some point, she showed an unbelievable growth rate and now she’s taken down a high-ranking hero.

How strong is Jinsuyeon now?

No, it’s not about the present.

Even if she’s not a big threat now, what about a week from now? A month? A year? It’s unknown.

Jinsuyeon’s abnormal growth rate is too unpredictable.

That’s why she’s too dangerous.

Recently, due to the government’s tracking, attacks from associations and clans, there were various things that kept Jin Soyeon busy, and seeing Ma Yongtaek collapse made Isabelle determined.

She couldn’t just leave her alone anymore.

“Ah, Isabelle, you worry too much. What can she do on her own?”

“Right now, it might not be much, but in the future…”

But who knows what might happen in the future?

If that girl has the potential to be as strong as Yoo Dahee or even more, it’s better to deal with it quickly.

“Isn’t dealing with the church more troublesome? That Roxanne girl is quite persistent. Ah, now that I think about it, we also need to start organizing the church.”

“Well then…”

“After the Hero’s Day terrorist attack is over.”

Yoo Dahee smiled brightly.

“We’ve prepared a lot for Hero’s Day, right? I don’t want to waste our efforts before that. So let’s postpone dealing with Jin Soyeon or the church until after Hero’s Day, how about that?”

“Yes, well…”

It might not be a good idea to suddenly relax when preparing for a large-scale terrorist attack.

But what is this unknown sense of anxiety?

For some reason, Isabelle felt a sense of unease in her heart.

Could it be that this decision might bring about irreversible consequences?

***

“This dungeon took quite a while.”

A dungeon located in Ulsan.

Known as the King’s Tomb, this dungeon boasted a high level of difficulty, but we were able to clear it without much difficulty.

If it were a game, we could have cleared it around the 3rd grade.

Thanks to the help of Soyeon, Yoo Seolhyun, Roxanne, Baek Yurin, Lee Siwoon, and Kang Daehan, we almost breezed through it.

In the original work, only the protagonist’s group had to clear it, but now we could borrow the help of other clan members and church members.

“Oh, I found it, Jinhyuk. Is this the Bloodbath of Mountains and Seas you were talking about?”

“Oh.”

Soyeon, who had brought down the king of corpses, held up the red-bladed sword of the Bloodbath of Mountains and Seas in a corner.

“Yes, it’s the artifact Bloodbath of Mountains and Seas.”

As one of the final items of the Romance Hero Academy, the Bloodbath of Mountains and Seas was incredibly powerful.

“You take that, Soyeon.”

“Are you sure?”

“You came here to give it to you in the first place. And there’s no one better than you to handle it.”

“Well, if you put it that way…”

Soyeon held the Bloodbath of Mountains and Seas dearly in her arms.

“Use it well, Jinhyuk. Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Use that to deal with Yoo Dahee or whoever.

“There seems to be quite a lot of treasures here. It’s amazing.”

Kang Daehan, who was examining the loot nearby, exclaimed as he looked at the pile of gold and silver treasures.

With this much, even if shared among several clan members, it would be quite satisfying.

“Your abilities are impressive. Being able to preemptively occupy a dungeon like this.”

“Well, that’s true.”

I agreed with Kang Daehan’s words.

The reason I was tackling dungeons with multiple people was because I had decided to pay them various dungeon products in exchange for their help.

I knew quite a few dungeons, but they were too dangerous, so I was planning to visit them later. But if I could receive their help in earnest, the story would be different.

“By the way, Baek Yurin, how are you? Are you getting used to that sword?”

“…Yes.”

Baek Yurin quietly nodded her head.

In her arms was a smooth and elegant sword.

It was the Azure Moon Sword, obtained after clearing the previous dungeon. I had obtained it for her as she had agreed to help me during Hero’s Day, and it seemed to suit her very well.

“It’s starting to feel familiar… It’s a good sword…”

Baek Yurin currently possesses top-tier skills without a doubt.

Although slightly below the high rankers, she can compensate for her shortcomings with items to some extent.

“Is everyone okay? Good job.”

“Ah, Roksanu.”

Roksanu approached me with a gentle smile and brought a drink for me.

It seemed like she had brought the drink herself.

“Jinhyuk, thank you for your hard work.”

“What did I do? I just did a little bit of commanding, others worked much harder.”

“You don’t need to downplay your efforts, Jinhyuk.”

After gently shaking her head, Roksanu raised her chin and made eye contact with me, then smiled beautifully.

“Everyone knows how difficult it is to command multiple people.”

“Oh, well….”

Wait, did I really do anything?

Maybe because they are pros, they were considerate.

“This is a tea that helps with fatigue. Try it.”

“Huh? Oh, thank you.”

As Roksanu handed me the tea with a cheerful smile, Cynthia, who had been watching from the side, chuckled mischievously.

“Hey, Roksanu, are you trying to score points?”

“What? What do you mean?”

After blinking her eyes in confusion at Cynthia’s words, Roksanu blushed slightly and said, “Oh? No, I just brought you something to drink because you looked tired….”

“…Roksanu, do you have a crush on Jinhyuk?”

“S-Soyeon?”

As Soyeon quietly approached and looked at Roksanu with a slightly dim gaze, Roksanu’s shoulders twitched.

Oh my. Soyeon, her eyes lost their sparkle again.

How does she do that?

I’ve never seen that in the game.

“Are you interested? You know that’s not true, Soyeon.”

“…Everyone says that.”

“Wow, young love, huh.”

No, Cynthia, stop doing unnecessary things.

Because of your teasing, Roksanu is feeling embarrassed for no reason.

It’s not just a matter of whistling and teasing about young love, you know?

Soyeon has been getting more obsessed lately, and it’s getting a bit overwhelming for me. And sometimes, when she flips a switch, she gets a bit scary.

“Kook kook. What’s up, Jinhyuk? Popular, huh?”

“Do you feel the thorns in my tone?”

“No way. It’s a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding.”

Although Yoo Seolhyun shrugged and chuckled, I couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of unease.

“…Jinhyuk.”

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

“…You’re not interested in Roksanu, right? That’s right?”

Soyeon, who had approached without me noticing, gently grabbed my sleeve and asked insistently.

“Uh, of course not.”

As I gave a vague answer and looked around for someone to help, I suddenly locked eyes with Lee Siwoon.

Unexpectedly, Siwoon turned his gaze away with a slightly embarrassed smile.

Hey, hey! Don’t pretend you didn’t see and help me. You used to like Soyeon. Have you given up now, is that it?

…It was truly a typical scene, as always.