episode_0038

038

The empty clearing in the forest was filled with an eerie atmosphere.

“Now what?”

Lee Jinhyuk let out a deep sigh.

He couldn’t easily calm his anxious heart.

Carefully glancing at the three men and women who seemed like villains, he thought to himself.

They were clearly staring at him.

Their gaze was unsettling.

“They showed something like a black aura and one of their comrades got seriously injured… Surely they won’t keep attacking, right?”

A sense of tension lingered on Lee Jinhyuk’s face.

He deliberately blocked the magic with his sword and used the black aura, creating a threatening appearance and situation.

Was it a kind of bluff?

He didn’t know what their intentions were, but it seemed there was nothing good about fighting against unidentified strong opponents.

Therefore, Lee Jinhyuk chose to boldly wield his sword rather than just shoot arrows and run away after dodging the sudden magic attack, in order to instill the impression that he might possess some unusual abilities.

By releasing a considerable amount of magic power in the form of the black aura, he inflicted a fatal blow on the magician.

Thanks to the artifact that enhanced the effects by 1.5 times when using absorbed magic power all at once, it was possible to break through the woman’s defensive magic.

So, for them, Lee Jinhyuk’s impression was that of an unidentified swordsman who could cut through even powerful magic and use the black aura.

Although their true strength was unknown, judging from what they showed in this brief moment, it was safe to assume they were not easy opponents.

Of course, they might have a reason to kill those two men and women, but there was no immediate need to do so.

Since his comrade was seriously injured, wouldn’t it be better to retreat and regroup?

“….”

However, the man with the twin swords seemed ready to fight.

Gripping the sword handles tightly, he slowly gathered magic power, making it seem like he wouldn’t be surprised if Lee Jinhyuk attacked him right away.

“Damn, didn’t work.”

Lee Jinhyuk cursed inwardly, clenching a few sheets of parchment tightly in his pocket, which contained powerful magic.

One of the items he brought to deal with the monsters in this forest was a magic scroll.

It was a quite expensive item, so unless it was a large clan, it was not something one would buy casually.

Lee Jinhyuk also had special arrows for large monsters, smoke bombs, clay grenades, electric wires, stun guns, and various other useful items neatly tucked away in his bag.

If he used these items wisely, he could easily defeat most villains.

“Most villains, that is.”

Lee Jinhyuk chuckled nervously in his mind.

The reason he didn’t use the magic scroll from the beginning was that the man with the twin swords didn’t seem like an ordinary villain.

It was none other than the man who immediately noticed the hidden Lee Jinhyuk.

If Lee Jinhyuk had tried to take out the items from his bag and pocket to fight, it could have led to a dangerous situation.

Since the man didn’t seem like the type to give him such an opportunity.

He had already shown that he could cut through defensive magic with the black aura, and instead of retreating, he seemed fully prepared to fight.

He probably thought he could handle it.

Maybe he didn’t realize that he was facing an opponent he couldn’t handle at the moment. What should he do? A cold sweat ran down Lee Jinhyuk’s spine.

“….Phew.”

“Oh, what should I do? I don’t even know anymore.”

Lee Jinhyuk steeled himself inwardly.

He had tried to bluff his way out with bravado, but now there was no turning back.

With the items he had, he had no choice but to deal with the opponent.

As Jinhyuk had that thought, he reached for a magic scroll in his pocket.

“…You, could it be?”

“…?”

The man’s eyes shook violently between the gaps of the mask.

Although his expression was hidden by the mask, the trembling of his eyes revealed a mix of vigilance, anxiety, and tension.

Why?

“…Damn it.”

Matteo muttered curses under his breath, almost inaudibly.

The thought that the young man might be Villerante made Matteo’s body go cold. His mouth went dry, and his spine tingled.

The memories of that day were swirling chaotically in Matteo’s mind.

Because the man known as Villerante was a horrifying nightmare that Matteo never wanted to remember.

A nightmare he never wanted to face again.

The memory of his comrades being brutally slaughtered by that man had become a trauma for Matteo.

He had fled alone, despite the voices of his comrades echoing behind him.

For his own survival.

Like mere trash.

“Could it be that guy, the one from back then?”

Matteo clenched his lower lip tightly.

He remembered clearly the ordinary-looking sword with a green gem embedded in the hilt.

Every time a dim light emanated from the green gem, his comrades would scream in terror and fall to the ground.

So, could this man also be Villerante?

“The way he wields the sword is clumsy… Was it a provocation? Or perhaps intentionally creating openings to lure me in.”

Casting spells, sending shockwaves, breaking through defensive barriers, and more.

Compared to what he had shown so far, his movements seemed oddly amateurish. But recalling Villerante’s behavior from the past, Matteo could understand it.

If Villerante, who had treated humans like insects, was now pretending to be weak to mock him, it was possible.

“Leader? Why are you like this?”

Matteo’s hesitation and unexpected silence prompted Ihan to call out to him in a quiet voice.

Matteo, who had always been calm, seemed unusually tense.

Ihan, too, felt a sense of unease.

Could it be that this man was a formidable opponent, causing even the leader to be on edge?

Matteo was a specialist in one-on-one combat.

While he might be inferior to Ihan and Park Soohyung in battles against giant monsters, in one-on-one combat, they were no match for him.

Seeing Matteo so tense, Ihan couldn’t help but wonder if the young man was someone to be reckoned with.

Wearing a sun-protective hiking hat and a cool multi-scarf pulled up to cover his face, it was impossible to see his face clearly. But had the leader figured out who this man was?

“If you retreat…”

“Ah.”

“If you retreat willingly, do you think I will let you go?”

“Leader?”

Ihan couldn’t help but be surprised.

Even though Park Sooyoung was injured, he never imagined that Matteo would back down so easily.

Moreover, the fact that he said, “Do you think I will let you go if you retreat willingly?” implied that the opponent was not someone who would easily back down even if forced to.

“Oh, wait, the scarf… Phew. Almost forgot to take it off.”

As Jinhyuk was covering his face up to his nose, the multi-scarf that had been hanging loosely started to slip down, prompting him to quickly grab and pull it up.

It was a cool scarf for summer hiking. It felt nice to have a cool feeling on the neck when hiking with the scarf dampened with water. He felt fortunate to be wearing it.

Thinking that if his face was completely exposed, he might be retaliated against in the future, Jinhyuk firmly pulled up the multi-scarf.

Of course, the likelihood of that happening was extremely low, but you never know.

Korea is a small country, so you could accidentally run into each other.

“Anyway, it’s fortunate that the man backed off without a fuss.”

Whether it was his bluff that worked or for some other reason, Jinhyuk couldn’t exactly tell, but if they retreated peacefully, it was certainly a welcome outcome.

As Jinhyuk, there was nothing good that could come from confronting them.

They seemed like bad people, but honestly, wasn’t there no reason for Jinhyuk to risk his life fighting them?

It’s not like it’s a matter of life and death.

“If they don’t back off peacefully, there’s no choice. I’ll have to take their lives, at least.”

“No, I’ll let them go peacefully. Please just leave….”

Not knowing Jinhyuk’s thoughts, Matteo looked at Roksanu and Kim Deok-oh with a low voice, scattering vitality, with a determined expression as if he would definitely take their lives.

In the very overtly flowing vitality, goosebumps rose on Roksanu’s skin.

The feathers were so erect that it was impossible not to swallow dry saliva.

She could tell that when that man faced Kim Deok-oh, she didn’t show her true abilities.

Such intense and sticky vitality was something she had rarely felt throughout Roksanu’s life.

But why would a person of that caliber back down?

Who is that young man, anyway…?

“What are you going to do?”

Matteo stared at Jinhyuk with wide eyes.

He didn’t actually plan to kill Kim Deok-oh and Roksanu. It was a kind of bluff. Of course, it was a kind of hostage negotiation that could appeal to a hero, but Matteo was also an individual who could be considered a hero.

The problem was treating villains like bugs, not actually being more heroic than heroes by punishing them.

Of course, whether or not this kind of threat would work was uncertain.

He could simply dislike villains and punish them.

Therefore, Matteo could only look at Jinhyuk with a tense gaze, and Jinhyuk remained silent for a moment, then nodded as if to say it was over.

For a moment, Matteo could feel a sense of relief. The tension didn’t completely dissipate, but he couldn’t help but feel relieved. Damn it.

“Okay, then….”

Matteo glanced at his subordinates discreetly.

Han-gwa and Park Soo-young seemed slightly puzzled, but they nodded without saying anything, trusting Matteo’s judgment.

Eventually, they slowly backed away from Jinhyuk, Roksanu, and Kim Deok-oh, ready to support them if Jinhyuk decided to attack.

They kept their weapons raised, ready to respond to any surprise attacks, as they cautiously backed away, keeping the tension high.

Slowly, very slowly, they retreated until they became a dot in the distance and disappeared.

“Phew….”

As they disappeared from sight, Jinhyuk could finally relax a little.

I thought I was really screwed, but somehow things seemed to have been resolved.

It’s too scary to walk around here alone.

Why does it feel like there’s a villain lurking around?

I just came here to farm for an Abyssal Ring, but I have no idea why all this bad luck is happening, seriously.

“By the way, that guy didn’t show up, I thought he would come in the middle.”

Was the location of the cave with the big horned black boar not close enough?

In the end, the big horned black boar did not reveal itself.

In fact, when Lee Jin-hyuk deliberately shot the female wizard with his sword, it was a calculated move to lure the big horned black boar by causing bleeding.

He thought that the big horned black boar, being very sensitive to the scent of a woman’s blood, might come in the middle and give her a beating if a significant amount of bleeding occurred.

He had planned various scenarios such as taking advantage of the excited big horned black boar attacking the female wizard to escape or to attack together, but…

Anyway, since they retreated on their own, it could be considered fortunate that the big horned black boar did not come.

“Uh….”

At that moment, a woman cautiously expressed her gratitude.

“Thank you….”

She was a woman Lee Jin-hyuk had never seen before, but her voice seemed somewhat familiar.

Lee Jin-hyuk, who did not recognize the face of Rocksanu disguised, just chuckled for a moment because the voice sounded like something he had heard before, but soon shook his head and returned to his senses.

It wasn’t just one or two similar voices, so he decided not to worry about it now.

Lee Jin-hyuk finally took out a healing potion from his bag and handed it to the woman.

It was meant for the man with a shoulder injury.

The healing potion was quite expensive, but considering the money he had already earned in stocks and the money he would earn in the future, it was not a big burden.

“Thank you, but I can’t just take this….”

“You could attract monsters with the smell of blood.”

Suddenly, with that one word, Lee Jin-hyuk moved his feet.

There was no need to get involved with them any further.

It was an unpredictable situation when the villains might return, or a monster might come attracted by the smell of blood.

There was no loyalty left to help, so Lee Jin-hyuk quickly went on his way.

The only kindness Lee Jin-hyuk could offer at the moment was handing over the healing potion.

Of course, in a situation like this, that would be enough.

“….”

Rocksanu, after watching Lee Jin-hyuk’s back for a moment, suddenly opened the lid of the healing potion and applied it to Kim Duk-oh’s wound.

And as the wound was somewhat healed, Rocksannu began to walk with Kim Duk-oh, thinking.

Due to the hat and multi-scarf, she couldn’t see the man’s face clearly, but judging from his face and voice that could be seen and heard, he seemed to be around Rocksannu’s age or a couple of years older.

To have such skills at a similar age to Rocksannu.

Both Seong Yura and that man seemed to be skilled individuals that Rocksannu did not know about.

But, how should I put it?

That man seems familiar from somewhere.

She couldn’t be sure because she couldn’t see his face clearly, but she had a feeling that she had seen him somewhere before.

Was it just her simple mistake?

Or had she met him somewhere before?

As of now, Rocksannu couldn’t know.