Episode 170. Hospitalization

Nom nom nom.

“…So, in the end, you ended up saving Nam Daeun-yang.”

Scarlet racked her brain somehow and made an excuse. She loosely combined her experience working with the Iris Guild and things she’d heard to fabricate a non-existent faction for Lee Hoyeon. Not having heard Lee Hoyeon’s intentions for saving Nam Daeun, Scarlet felt compelled to craft words that Lee Hoyeon could use himself, lest his plans go awry.

“So, in the end, you don’t know the exact reason either, Scarlet-ssi.”

Nom nom nom.

Nam Daeun listened intently to the story Scarlet had just concocted while tearing into some chicken.

“Yes. We were just following Lee Hoyeon-nim’s orders… Uh, excuse me. But why the tears…?”

As they spoke, Nam Daeun’s eyes welled up, and Scarlet, mid-sentence, couldn’t hide her surprise.

“I’m sorry. It’s my first time eating chicken…”

Watching Nam Daeun tear up while eating chicken, Scarlet pondered why all the women around Lee Hoyeon were so strange.

“Unnie… You can’t even eat chicken because of me…”

“It’s okay. Dahee-ya. I love you.”

Sniffle…

The sisters hugged each other, rubbing faces, while beside them, Liliana fiercely tore into chicken, determined not to lose her share. Scarlet, regaining her slightly dazed senses, asked Nam Daeun.

“Where is Lee Hoyeon-nim? If he was caught up in the terror too, it would have been easier to explain things if he came along…”

Scarlet, who had been waiting at the Academy’s central fountain for Nam Daeun, didn’t know the exact situation. This was because Nam Daeun had arrived immediately after the terror ended, leaving no time for investigation.

“…He’s probably at the hospital. I don’t know for sure, but the hunters were praising Lee Hoyeon-saengdo’s sacrifice tremendously.”

Nam Daeun hadn’t left the barrier from the start to the end of the terror. Only after all the Mind monsters were dealt with did she slip out of the party venue and head straight here. Therefore, she didn’t know the details.

“…!”

“S-Scout! Hurry and find out what’s happening.”

Liliana, who had been eating without paying attention to the conversation, couldn’t ignore Lee Hoyeon’s name.

“Yes. Understood.”

Scarlet immediately contacted her personal informants. News about the terror attack at the social party was only just beginning to be reported. Besides, Scarlet only had the gist from Nam Daeun, so she wasn’t sure where to gather information. However, her informants, who were naturally interested in that sort of thing, might already know. And then, contacts started pouring in.

“What are they saying? Is he alive?”

Liliana grabbed Scarlet’s arm and shook her.

“He’s in a coma right now and hospitalized. The Saintess and several healing ability users are focusing on his treatment, so it hasn’t been disclosed to the public, and visits are prohibited.”

Please…

Nam Daeun clasped her hands together as if in prayer and shut her eyes tightly. She still had so many questions. Why he saved Dahee and herself, and how she should act going forward-it was all overwhelming.

“Ah, geez. I got worried for nothing.”

Liliana breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing Lee Hoyeon wasn’t dead. As long as he’s alive, that’s all that matters. Convinced that his tenacious life wouldn’t end easily anyway, Liliana dove back into her chicken.

---

“Hmm…”

After Baek Ahyoung left, I pondered deeply but couldn’t come up with any good ideas. No matter how I thought about it, directly telling her to use contraception felt awkward. Of course, that was the best solution. But I was afraid the 100 points of affection I’d built up might drop. Since this was my first time reaching 100 affection points, I wasn’t sure about anything and couldn’t decide on a course of action. She’ll come again anyway for the nursing. I’ll have to probe her subtly then.

‘I still have quite a few women to woo… Getting pregnant now would be problematic.’

I thought about how to pursue Baek Ahyoung without seeming like too much of a scumbag. If I’m going to win over all the heroines, this kind of situation is bound to repeat itself many times. At first, I considered being honest, like, ‘I’ve entered a game world, and I need to win you over.’ ‘A harem is essential.’ But… that’s obviously ridiculous. If I were a woman, I’d never date a guy who said something like that. They wouldn’t believe me in the first place. Of course, there is a way to prove it. The Heroine Status Screen. If I could just read their minds instantly, I could prove it… but reading minds is one thing from my perspective, and it would be incredibly unpleasant from their perspective. Revealing it would actually hinder my pursuit. There’s also the issue of the sense of loss from realizing the world they lived in is fictional… Well, anyway, it’s not worth considering.

Finishing my thoughts, I checked public opinion on my smartwatch. Since it’s been a day since I collapsed, if today is the day after the terror, the news and everything should be out already. Logging into EveryDay, as expected, the popular posts were all about the social party.

“It’s really causing a stir.”

Well, I was taken aback by the sudden terror, so how much more panicked must the others have been? Since this terror wasn’t in the original story, it was a bit difficult to handle. I entered a post that looked like a summary and checked its contents.

—————————

[Summary of the Association’s Social Party and Terror News.]

Apparently, there was a Mind monster attack at today’s social party. A barrier covering the entire party venue suddenly appeared, trapping everyone inside. I wasn’t there myself, so I don’t know the exact details, but based on a few interviews, dozens of barriers separating hunters were deployed within the venue. With an attack by over hundreds of Mind monsters simultaneously, it must have been utter chaos. But in such a desperate situation, the death toll was kept to single digits. There were even civilians present, so this number is frankly unbelievable. Apparently, the reason is Lee Hoyeon. It’s said he single-handedly broke through barriers that would take three to four active Rank A hunters over 10 minutes of reverse calculation in just 30 seconds, saving most of the hunters. He even refused hunters who tried to help him, telling them to stick together to survive… After saving almost all the hunters, he single-handedly defeated dozens of Mind monsters, saved the Saintess, and then fell into a coma. Apparently, some of those Mind monsters were incredibly powerful. The combat power of the strong Mind monsters Lee Hoyeon defeated is estimated to be at least Rank A, possibly up to Rank S.

Seriously, that’s insane;

Some people are calling it exaggeration and claiming it’s a lie, but check out the interviews with the terror survivors.

That lineup wouldn’t lie.

Besides, there’s no reason for those people to lie to boost the Academy lol

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

These are the interviews I referenced.

Likes: 1530 Dislikes: 89

—————————-

[Does this even make sense…? Can the term ‘genius mage’ even explain that level of power?]

[But looking at the interviews and survivor SNS posts, it seems real? They’re practically praising Lee Hoyeon.]

[Only someone like that can date the Saintess….]

[Our Hoyeon oppa is the best ㅠ.ㅠ I love you!]

“I guess it would look that way.”

I was actually looking for Baek Ahyoung, but since she was being incredibly elusive, I ended up saving the hunters as a side effect. I even nicely packaged the fact that she was pointlessly chasing me by telling her to go to the crowded area over there instead of coming to me. It was a misunderstanding born from the reporters trying to create a scoop and the hunters’ misinterpretations. Seeing the comments praising me felt good, though. Improving my image is always beneficial.

I checked other posts besides this one. Upon closer inspection, there were significantly more interviews and reactions in just the last few hours.

————————-

[Major Guild Leaders Mentioning Lee Hoyeon Now ㄷㄷ]

“It seems Lee Hoyeon-saengdo really played a huge role…”

“It’s not just praise, not even at the level of ‘good job for a student’.”

“They’re treating him like a savior who saved their lives?”

“Is the Lee Hoyeon coin going to Mars?”

————————-

[For real. If you don’t believe the media or this, what are you gonna do?]

[Going to Mars~]

Public opinion has definitely shifted after this terror attack. Famous figures from the Academy’s Celestial Festival were saved by me during this terror, leading to them mentioning me again, and others I saved also spoke up for me.

————————–

[Breaking!! Taebaek Guild Team 1 Leader Who Was at the Academy Celestial Festival Terror Site Makes a Revelation.]

[Video]

“If this is real, shouldn’t the Association investigate, you fucker?”

“Was our country always this corrupt?”

“How is it that even a Team Leader from a guild like Taebaek can’t speak out.”

————————–

“What’s this now?”

I clicked on a video while browsing through various posts. In the video, a man was bowing his head with a sad expression.

• Greetings. I am Jeon Yeongsu, Team 1 Leader of the Taebaek Guild. I was present at the Victoria Academy Celestial Festival. However, I was unable to speak due to pressure from a certain guild.

“Huh…”

He must have received threats close to death, but speaking out like that shows incredible courage.

• Since my life was saved when I was facing death, I can’t do this to my benefactor. I will reveal everything. I was threatened by the Shinyoung Guild. Many others must have been threatened as well.

I thought his face looked familiar; he has the look of a supporting character who plays the role of a dumb but kind person next to the protagonist.

“Why stir up trouble then. Tsk.”

The Shinyoung Guild is going to have a tough time because of this. They’ll probably be quiet for a while during the cleanup, right? When Park Kang Hyorin brings information about the Shinyoung Guild, I’ll just release it when I have time. Besides this video, a huge number of hunters voluntarily defended me. This all happened in just 10 minutes. Events were unfolding in real-time even as I was gauging public opinion.

And then, there was another noticeable video. It was a post with significantly more likes than others.

————————–

[Party Venue CCTV Footage Partially Recovered and Released. Lee Hoyeon is truly amazing….]

[Video]

“Seriously… This is why the Saintess fell for him.”

“Fucking cool.”

“Ah… I’m speechless.”

————————-

[Wow… Wow hahaha, I’m just amazed.]

[You said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating, you said you weren’t dating]

[He’s the real deal. Even as a guy, I felt my heart flutter seeing him take a knife for someone else.]

[Gotta admit it. Lee Hoyeon is a real man.]

“…What on earth is it that makes them praise me so much?”

I don’t think I did anything that cool at the party. When I played the video, static-filled black screen appeared at first. After a moment, the screen stabilized.

“Ah… this must be the time.”

In the video, Baek Ahyoung was seen treating me, tears streaming down her face. And below her, there was my collapsed figure, bleeding. Of course, I wasn’t bleeding profusely. It was just a cut on my forearm. However, the blood flowing from the cut on my forearm during the intense battle stained my clothes, making it look like I was bleeding all over my body.

“And why is the video quality so good? It’s making me uncomfortable.”

The technology was so advanced that both my face and Baek Ahyoung’s were clearly visible. I continued watching the video. Shortly after, my pained expression hardened, and I pulled Baek Ahyoung towards me, shielding her with my back.

Fwush-

And then, a dagger, flying from somewhere, embedded itself in my back.

“Ugh… That felt really nasty.”

The sensation from that moment flooded my entire body. The chilling feeling of a blade piercing my body. In the video, I coughed up blood, spitting out a little. It must have been because my insides were messed up by Blood Beat. I didn’t realize it then because I was so dazed, but seeing it now is quite fascinating. My face contorted after being hit by the dagger, and as Baek Ahyoung’s eyes widened, the video began to blur. Then, with a crackling sound, the video cut out.

“…Wow, okay, this is pretty cool.”

If I find a video of myself cool while watching it, then it must be genuinely cool. I was about to check the comments for more reactions when I heard a knock.

Knock knock.

‘What is it?’

Baek Ahyoung had said that visits and caregivers wouldn’t be allowed for a while.

“Yes. Come in.”

The person who opened the door was someone I truly didn’t expect.

“You seem to be in decent condition. Student Lee Hoyeon.”

“…Hello. Chairman.”

“Sorry to bother you while you’re resting. I have something urgent to discuss.”

Standing outside the door was the Chairman of Victoria Academy. Why on earth is this person here? And what could be so urgent?

“Please come in first, Chairman.”

“Mm, alright.”

The Chairman leisurely entered the room, took a seat, and I waited nervously for his next words.