Chapter 36 - Ah

Copy option from the Skill Rune?

From the numerous copying experiences so far, there was little risk of copying and ending up with wrong options.  Little, but… … .

‘It may be better to use it normally.’

Skill Rune itself is very useful. The possibility that the efficiency would change for worse than just using it was not zero.

In a way, it was a gamble.

And the skill rune was an overly good item to gamble on.

‘Can I preserve it with a coin?’

Coin’s existence came to mind as it was natural. If he could preserve the skill rune with that, he could try it out with peace of mind.

But

[The item cannot be preserved.]

Do-joon frowned.

When he first received it, it seemed like it would work for everything, but now when he actually needs it, it couldn’t do anything? No, just why it wouldn’t work for it.

However, the message window remained silent.

‘Does it mean that skill runes are different from other items?’

It was just a feeling, but he also felt like it was being treated like something special. He couldn’t be sure though.

“Uh… … .”

As the worries deepened, a small moan popped out. Should he copy this or not? Or don’t do useless things and just use it normally?

How many more days will there be to get a skill rune like this in the future? He might never get another in his lifetime. As such, there were little skill runes for sale.

Do-joon grumbled while holding the stone.

Seeing Do-joon like that, Siewellin tilted her head. She didn’t know what Do-joon was worried about.

In the end, Do-joon.

‘Alright, let’s do it!’

He made a decision.

Even if it was gambling, he had no other choice but to bet on this.

In fact, even before he thought about it, it was as if the answer was already there. How could he not try this?

Maybe it would turn into a better option.

‘What if there is a technique that gives me this skill?’

It goes without saying that it would be awesome. Do-joon clenched the skill rune with his eyes shining.

[You can copy one of the options of “Skill Rune: Shadow Bind” to “Kim Do-joon”.]

[Copyable option]

‘Copy!’

Do-joon shouts out loudly in his heart.

Feeling his heart pounding, he waited for the result. However,

‘… … What?’

Weird.

There was no change.

‘The message of success needs to pop up, and the item has to break, right?’’

This has been the case for all hundreds of copying processes that have been done so far.

‘I copied it successfully.’

With such a message, the item would turn into a powder of light and disappear.

Never before has there been such a reaction.

‘What happened?’

Anxiety was creeping up.

No, it was still okay. The important rune did not disappear and remained in the fist properly.

Do-joon decided to use the copy skill once again.

Just then.

Crack!

There was a big crack in the skill rune in his hand. Do-joon was startled by the sudden phenomenon.

The message window appeared immediately after that.

[The original of the relevant option has been found. Do you want to copy the original?]

[Copyable option]

Do-joon’s eyes opened wide. This was a message window that he had never seen before.

After all, the skill rune was something far different from other items, wasn’t it? He had never seen such a message in hundreds of copies he had done so far.

‘Copy and original.’

There was nothing to worry about. If he has to choose one of the two, of course he should choose the original.

‘Original.’

The moment he said that, he felt as if he was losing his sight.

His body didn’t move. He couldn’t even blink his eyes.

[Copy the original “Shadow Bind”.]

‘What’s going on?’

This was the first time he was experiencing it. The only clue was the newly emerging message window.

However, the unfriendly message window did not give Do-joon a clear answer.

As his senses became more sensitive, his eyes were bloodshot. The cold sweat flowing through the spine brought a strange irritation.

Crack! Crack!

In the meantime, only the Skill Rune in his hand was strangely crumbling. As if breaking a hard shell, the outer skin was peeled off, and something invisible was torn out of it.

How long has it been?

It felt like half a day had passed. But in fact, less than a few seconds have passed.

[Ring!]

[Successfully copied.]

[The material “Skill Rune: Shadow Bind” has been destroyed.]

[Copied the original version of “Shadow Bind”.]

[Skill: Acquired Shear Shader’s Thorn.]

As his stiff body loosened, the refreshing feeling he felt for the first time in his life rushed over.

It was similar to what he felt right after awakening, but it was a cooler feeling than then.

“Ah.”

His eyes blinked and his voice came out properly. Do-joon got up involuntarily.

“……?”

Siewellin tilted her head when she saw Do-joon suddenly getting up while being treated.

“…… It’s nothing.”

He couldn’t even explain what he just experienced, so Do-joon just shook his head.

Before he knew it, the treatment was over and all the wounds were healed. Siewellin slapped Do-joon on the shoulder to signify that the treatment was over.

「”It’s finished. You should go to the hospital just in case.”」

“Huh? Yeah, yeah. I have to go see So-eun anyway.”

It was a natural thing to say, but it was strange when she said it.

In the past, even though she was a being who played a similar role to a hospital doctor, she told him to go to the hospital.

Does it mean that she was properly adapting to this world?

‘Should I really get tested?’

Well, there was nothing bad about it. Anyway, Do-joon has been receiving regular health check-ups. Just thinking he would receive it a little earlier this time.

But rather than that, there was something that bothered him more.

[Additional option]

– Skill: Shear Shader’s Thorn

Do-joon scratched his head while squinting at the new skill that appeared in the options window.

His shadow reflected on the flickering fluorescent light and disappeared like no one knew it was there.

* * *

The next day.

Do-joon, who saw So-eun yesterday and booked his own check-up, was able to return after completing all of them in the morning.

As a result, there was no abnormality in the body. Rather, he was too healthy to be sick.

“…….”

Siewellin exhaled in relief when she heard the check-up result. Do-joon suddenly asked because he was curious.

“By the way, it looks like you’re done with practicing writing, right?”

「”Yes. My reading and writing is perfect.”」

It looked like she was writing a card to show off her achievements.

She had been immersed in books and TV so far, so she learned all the basics.

‘Then, I shall slowly teach her the store’s work.’

He thought it would be fine if she took care of the store. Afterall, If she doesn’t work in the first place, she would just be unemployed.

“Come here for a second.”

Do-joon changed the sign of the store to open for the first time in a long while. Even when it was closed, the store was in relatively good condition because it was steadily cleaned.

For a while, he taught her about the store, step by step. It wasn’t that difficult. It was just a matter of selling things and receiving money.

「”Can I really do business?”」

“Why? You don’t like it?”

「”No, I like it! In the past, I couldn’t do it because it was banned for me even if I wanted to try it.”」

Do-joon gave a writeful smile as he saw her shining eyes.

It’s not that he didn’t know the minds of those people why they banned it. If she turned into the highest ranking personnel, a saint and wished to do a business, but then all you hear is the voice of a madman.

If he had been in an emergency like that, he would not have thought of using Siwellin as an employee.

‘I’ll have to teach you for a while.’

How long would it take for her to get used to work? Based on the adaptability and affinity he has seen so far, it probably wouldn’t take that long.….

Just when they were killing time, chatting with each other about taking over the business, the doorbell rang.

Ring~

“Welcome.”

「”Welcome.”」

Do-joon saying hello and Siewellin showing the card she wrote down in advance.

But it wasn’t a customer who came in.

“Hello. I come from the association for an investigation. I’m Jo Yoon-min.”

“The association? Oh, I’m Kim Do-joon.”

“I know. I heard a lot from Jia, haha.”

Jo Yoon-min smiled happily and shook hands with Do-joon.

When Do-joon gave her a seat, Siewellin began to make coffee as she learned earlier.

Do-joon carefully observed Siewellin because he was mainly concerned about whether she was doing it right. Jo Yoon-min spoke to him first.

“As you may have guessed, I stopped by because of yesterday’s Kwak Dong-gyu incident. We have to listen to all the survivors.”

“I see.”

The whole story of the incident itself had already been spread by reporters.

Sangam-dong Lava Cave, Double Root Dungeon, and Kwak Dong-gyu.

Those keywords have not been lowered from the real-time search word rankings since last night. But there might be something they haven’t heard.

That was why Jo Yoon-min came all the way here.

“Can I ask for your cooperation?”

“Yes.”

Do-joon nodded. Soon after, he talked about what he knew about the incident, focusing on Jo Yoon-min’s questions.

“Huh… … ! It was Kwak Dong-gyu who triggered the double root?”

“That’s right. He attacked me at first, and then he attacked the floor as if something didn’t work out. I didn’t know why, but right after that, the roots began to grow in the dungeon.”

“Oh my… … .”

The flow of events itself has nothing to hide. The only thing to hide is the story of the Skill Rune from Kwak Dong-gyu’s body.

For a while, the composition of Jo Yoon-min taking notes while Do-joon talked continued.

“I got to know it very well. Thank you for your precious time.”

“No, it’s okay.”

Tuk.

Jo Yoon-min closed the notebook. In Kim Do-joon’s story, there was nothing inconsistent and nothing suspicious.

If anything was suspicious, it was his ability to kill Kwak Dong-gyu, who turned into a monster, and hunt even the B-class boss…….

It was not asked because it was not much related to the incident. Besides, it could be considered rude.

“Can I stop by from time to time like this? I might have some other questions to ask you.….”

“Right. A lot of the time I’m away, so I’d like you to contact me in advance.”

“Oh, yes. I understand. I’m sorry that I came out of the blue today.”

Jo Yoon-min bowed her head and left. Do-joon saw her off and returned to the store.

Meanwhile, a little further from the store.

There were two people who happened to run into each other while heading to Do-joon’s store.

It was Hwang Hyun-woo and Baek Hwi-soo.

“Uncle? What brings you here?”

“What’s up with you, Hyun-woo?”

The two met because they had the same destination. As if they had met each other from the beginning, the two headed to the store while having a conversation.

“I came to thank him for yesterday. He saved my life.”

When he was trading in the market a while back, he heard about the store from Do-joon. He came to visit, tracing his memory of that time.

Baek Hwi-soo nodded as if he was satisfied with the answer. Since he also saw Hwang Hyun-woo leaving the gate with Do-joon yesterday.

“I came to Kim Do-joon because I thought he could join our team. I heard that he received a lot of offers from the scouts during the exam, but he didn’t take any of them.”

“Is that why you came here yourself?”

“Well, that’s right.”

Hwang Hyun-woo shook his head, looking at Baek Hwi-soo with a pitiful look.

“Hey… … Uncle, do you think hyung-nim will enter into a 4th place guild? Do you know what kind of person he is…”

Baek Hwi-soo wriggled his eyebrows at Hwang Hyun-woo’s teasing.

“Hey, our guild is not at a place to be ignored like that, is it?”

“Still, will my brother like it?”

Hwang Hyun-woo, who smirked. Having witnessed Do-joon’s fight in person, he was half convinced of the hypothesis that Do-joon would be a disciple of a certain master.

The biggest reason Do-joon was able to kill Kwak Dong-gyu and the Boss Monster was that his fit rate also exceeded 40%.

However, Hwang Hyun-woo guessed that Do-joon’s fit rate was in the 10% range similar to that of his, so he thought that the huge battle at that time would be not Stats power, but some kind of combat skills or martial arts.

“You little one.”

Baek Hwi-soo flicked a finger flick on Hwang Hyun-woo’s head.

Taak!

“Argh!”

It was a finger flick from an A-class hunter, as well as the team leader of Rune Mage. It couldn’t just be light.

“I have to deal with the long and the short to know.”

He wanted to say something more, but Hwang Hyun-woo kept his mouth shut. His throbbing forehead gave him control.

After a while, the two people who arrived at the store opened the door and entered.

“Welcome.”

「”Welcome.”」

As soon as they entered, they greeted Do-joon and Siewellin. When they saw Siewellin wearing an apron as if she were an employee, their eyes widened.

But staring was rude. The two coughed in vain as if they had made a promise and turned their eyes toward Do-joon.

“Hyung-nim! I came to say hi to you about yesterday”.

“Okay, are you feeling well?”

“Yeah! Thanks to you, I am healthy!”

Hwang Hyun-woo was the first to speak. He looked as fast as a new soldier who had just moved in.

It was a little strange for Do-joon to see that, but he was convinced. Perhaps he felt in debt to Do-joon since he saved him twice, he just thought that way.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Baek Hwi-soo, the first team leader in the Battle of Rune Mage.”

Next to him, Baek Hwi-soo pulled out a business card with an impressive smile and held it out.

“I don’t think you came as a customer.”

“Yes? yes, what… … .”

Do-joon received the business card with a shudder. It seemed that this one also came for a different purpose, and not as a customer.

“There are no customers today either. After all, I’ve been opening and closing it on my own so far.….’

Do-joon’s eyebrows slightly lowered at the unknown regret. However, there was no one in this room who knew what was in his heart.

“Hmm… … . The two of you came in together, do you know each other?”

“This guy’s dad and I know each other, so I got to know him through that relationship.”

Do-joon looked at Hwang Hyun-woo again.

He thought he was just the owner of a small equipment store, but he also knew the Rune Mage team leader.

“Is that so? I guess it’s true that the world is so small.”

“Yes, well… It’s not that it’s narrow, but it’s because his dad is in the industry.”

However, it is true that the industry is narrow, so it may not be too wrong. This was because the higher one goes up on this floor, the more ties are made in one way or the other.

“If it’s Rune Mage, are you here for a transaction? I understand that we have already delivered the supplies for this month.”

“No, that’s not it……. I’ll tell you without hesitation, Kim Do-joon, I’m here to make a recruitment offer. Would you like to join us?”

Indeed, that was it.

Do-joon shook his head as if there was nothing to think about.

“I’m sorry, but I refuse.”

“I’ll talk to my superiors and get you on the first team… Okay? Is that what you want?”

“I have no intention of joining a guild.”

Dojun cut off firmly.

“Is that all you need?”

“That is… … .”

He prepared a lot of things. I persuaded the guild leader, contacted the personnel team in advance, and came back from a quick meeting with the support team.

However, he was speechless with the seemingly pointless way of speaking.

“I told you it wouldn’t work, didn’t I?”

Hwang Hyun-woo, who flirted with him saying he knew it would happen next to him, could not be so cheeky.