Chapter 337: For Crazy Women, Since Old Times (4)

Do Yehee, who immediately found herself in a second-round duel with Kim Sungchul, right after her duel with her younger sister, Do Sihee.

The duel’s outcome tilted so quickly that it couldn’t even be called a proper match, and Do Yehee, after judging that she couldn’t win, immediately surrendered.

She, who had intended to end the duel like that, was now writhing and groaning in pain on the bottom of the black muddy swamp.

“Aaaak! Stop! I said stop…!”

Although nearly three minutes had passed since the moment she realized her defeat and declared surrender, Kim Sungchul’s ruthless violence towards her was still continuing without subsiding.

“I told you I surrendered! I said I lost! Ack, Aak…!”

“……”

“Wh-, why on earth aren’t you stopping…?! I want to know the reason… Euk-kwaaaak…!”

Despite admitting defeat more than ten times already, the pain continued relentlessly.

Her only response to that unreasonable violence was to let out painful screams.

It would have been less painful if the wounds were from being hit by a shield or stabbed by a sword during the duel.

Because a person’s brain has the function of releasing endorphins to neutralize the shock when receiving more pain than necessary.

Besides, it was an era where losing an arm or a leg could be treated just by seeking out a high-ranking healer.

However, the attacks Do Yehee received after declaring surrender were of a completely different nature than before, not aiming to inflict wounds or injuries on her body.

Pressing her solar plexus with a fist formed with sharp knuckles, twisting and pinching her inner thigh with fingers, or twisting the inner elbow as if stabbing with the pointed part behind the fist.

Do Yehee’s mind was becoming hazy from the impact, which focused purely on inflicting pain rather than causing wounds.

‘Do hunters from this union lack basic common sense?! How can they be so brutish, Eu…’

“Eu, A, Aaaaaak…!”

Do Yehee, screaming again from the pain inflicted on her inner elbow, frantically flailed her hands on the muddy floor, sweeping across it.

Do Yehee found her staff, which she had dropped on the floor the moment she first surrendered, and immediately raised the short wooden stick, imbued with elemental magic.

“There’s a limit to how much I can tolerate this! If you think I’ll just keep suffering indefinitely….”

Kkuuk.

“Ah, I won’t do it! I’m sorry! My finger! My finger! My fingeeeerrr!”

Kim Sungchul easily dodged the magic that shot out from the tip of Do Yehee’s staff and immediately grabbed her right hand, which was holding the staff.

In less than a second, as the fingers of her subdued right hand were bent backward, Do Yehee let out another painful scream along with apologies.

Even without this situation, mages were bound to be at a disadvantage as the distance closed in fights against close-combat hunters, so in a situation where their bodies were completely pressed together, Do Yehee’s resistance stood no chance.

As the price for foolishly attempting resistance, Do Yehee had to experience the pain of her fingers bending backward.

“Ah, I get it! It was my fault! Everything was my fault, so please stop now…!”

“……”

“Aaaaaak……Huh?”

The pain she expected to continue stopped, and at the same time, she met Kim Sungchul’s glaring gaze.

Even though his face had been strangely indistinct and unrecognizable from their first meeting, for some reason, only his gaze seemed to be clearly conveyed to her.

As she made eye contact with him, a strange sense of fear bloomed in Do Yehee’s mind.

“What did you do wrong?”

“……”

“You just said everything was your fault. Naturally, you said that knowing what you did wrong, right?”

“……”

“…Or not then.”

“Aaaak! Ah, no! I know! I know what I did wrong!”

Unable to confess that she had just said whatever came to mind carelessly, she answered Kim Sungchul, who was pushing his sharp fist into her solar plexus again, as if making an excuse.

“……”

In the brief silence, Do Yehee desperately tried to concoct an answer that might please him.

“What is it?”

“……”

If she made a mistake with her answer here, the punishment, no different from torture until just now, would surely continue, so she had to quickly devise the answer he wanted.

Contemplating which part would have offended him the most if she were in his position, she carefully offered her answer.

“Th-, telling her not to approach Sihee again as a condition of the duel was wrong…”

“…It’s similar, but wrong.”

“Aaaak! Wait a moment! Stop, please sto-o-op…!”

“Why on earth!”

She was sure that if she were in his position, she would have felt the greatest anger from the words telling her not to approach Sihee!

She couldn’t understand Kim Sungchul’s reaction that he didn’t feel the greatest anger from that part, but anyway, she had to think about escaping this pain somehow.

Amidst the overwhelming pain, Do Yehee desperately racked her brain once more and offered the next answer.

“I, I offended you by presumptuously acting superior, is that what you’re angry about?!”

“……”

“Aaaak! Ah, or at least answer me if it’s no! Ack! Aaaak…!”

Do Yehee, who almost lost consciousness from the intense pain twisting her inner thigh, somehow came up with another answer in her dazed state.

Even as the thought ‘no way’ crossed her mind, she carefully ventured her last guess that popped into her head.

“C-, could it be that you’re angry because I hit Sihee in the duel?!”

Mompchit.

“……”

“You seem to have finally regained your senses a bit.”

“…B-, but that was a legitimate duel! In the first place, that duel was started by Sihee, not me….”

“……”

“No! It’s my fault! Everything, me being violent towards Sihee, was wrong! I’m sorry!”

“……”

Sensing the murderous intent emanating from his sharp utterance for a moment, Do Yehee, along with her desperate apologies, inadvertently took back the excuse that had just slipped out of her mouth.

Fortunately, the torture that had tormented her for nearly 20 minutes did not continue after that answer.

“To be honest, I still don’t understand what’s so fair about this thing you call a duel.”

“…Du-, duels have been passed down for ages, recorded even in Goguryeo’s Subakdo, a long-standing tradition… Ah, Aaaak! No! Tradition or whatever, it’s all unnecessary!”

“…Anyway, since I don’t really understand these customs or traditions you uphold, I’m just going to think about it simply.”

“……”

“Whether the duel you had with Sihee was fair or not doesn’t matter. Just let me see you tormenting Sihee in front of my eyes again from now on. Next time, I won’t let it end like this.”

“It’s the same for Eunbyul, not just Sihee. Whatever the circumstances or purpose, if you dare to torment my precious people, you’ll pay the price again.”

“……”

“Aren’t you answering?”

“Aaaak! Ah, I got it…! It’ll be fine if I don’t do that from now on!”

Do Yehee, desperate to escape Kim Sungchul’s grasp as soon as possible, desperately nodded her head and accepted the conditions he laid out.

Only then could she feel his grasp, which had been tightening around her neck, slowly loosening.

“Hee, hee-eek!”

Quickly escaping from under Kim Sungchul, she scrambled to her feet without even the time to pick up her dropped staff.

Fearing his mind might change, she quickly fled the spot with rapid steps.

“…I will definitely remember today’s events! H-, how dare you insult and threaten my sacred duel! Do you think I’ll just let this slide?!”

“……”

“S-, you said your name was Sungchul, right? I will definitely repay today’s humiliation, so remember this well! By any means necessary, I will… you…”

“……”

“Hee, hee-geuk…!”

The moment Kim Sungchul took a step towards her, the red-haired young lady fled swiftly out of sight like an arrow.

Do Yehee’s appearance, dirtied with mud and tear stains, was already so wretched that it was unimaginable for a chaebol heiress.

Although her appearance was severely and excessively battered for the reward she intended to receive for winning her duel against Do Sihee.

Already, there was no one there to console the battered Do Yehee.