Chapter 214

Chapter 214

Song Ha-Young felt troubled.

‘He is going to remove my Golden Headband?’

The Golden Headband was a Server-grade item that bound her. She had tried to get rid of it numerous times but had always failed. Without it, she would have been free from Kim Chul-Soo and could strike him from behind immediately.

At least, that would have been the case a few months ago. However, her perspective had completely changed during her battle with the Paper Sorcerer Makendra in Giethoorn.

“And I had promised. I had vowed to ensure the freedom of my comrades who are with me. It was a solemn oath and my pledge.

“Today, I had to uphold that vow.”

That day, Chul-Soo’s demeanor had left a profound impact on Ha-Young. She began to feel grateful for the Golden Headband that tormented and bound her.

‘If it weren’t for the Golden Headband, I would have betrayed Chul-Soo long ago.’

Without the headband, fostering the relationship she currently had with Chul-Soo would have been impossible. It was because of the Golden Headband that she was where she was in her life. It was the link between her and Chul-Soo, creating a special bond between them. The fear of drifting apart from Chul-Soo if that special link disappeared overwhelmed her.

Slapping his left palm with his right fist, Chul-Soo said, “Ah! I get it! Your pride is hurt because I figured out something you couldn’t!”

“...Sure.”

‘No, that’s not it! I don’t care about any of that! Am I of no use to you anymore? Are you ignoring me because you think you are so popular now?’

She almost said those words out loud but managed to control her feelings. However, Ha-Young knew it was an excuse. She was well aware that transferring the Golden Headband to Hwa Ta would be more efficient and beneficial for Chul-Soo.

“I...!” Ha-Young’s eyes reddened slightly as she put forth her own justification. “The Golden Headband was the driving force behind my growth...”

“...Huh?”

“I wanted to betray you so badly! To hit you from behind! To steal your weapons and abilities! And live in luxury! But this damned Golden Headband prevented all that. I have been honing my skills to escape its power. But now I realize that only with this can I grow truly desperately and earnestly!”

‘Of course, I have signed a lifelong contract with the System, but that alone is insufficient!’

She would have said this if Chul-Soo had used counterarguments like, ‘Hey, you already signed a lifelong contract, didn’t you?’ but she refrained from that.

“Uh... Oh, I haven’t thought of that,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Jin-Hyeok was also a bit confused at the moment. If Ha-Young did not obey him, he could just use the Tight-Fillet Spell, but for some reason, he did not want to use it. Instead, he proposed an alternative. “Then, how about I beat you harder than when I use the Tight-Fillet Spell?”

“...What?”

Jin-Hyeok frowned as he spoke. On second thought, he realized that it did not seem like a particularly pleasant method either.

‘There is no method more efficient and convenient than violence... But why do I hate it so much?’ he thought.

“...But I don’t want to do that,” Jin-Hyeok continued.

“...You don’t want to?”

“But you agree with me, right? If I beat you harder than the Tight-Fillet Spell, that should give you the motivation that you wanted.”

“...”

“Instead, if another powerful binding item like the Golden Headband appears, I will definitely use it on you.”

Ha-Young bit her lip. Logic said that she should hand over the Golden Headband. So, she seriously said, “Promise me. Like you did back then.”

“You want me to make a vow?”

“Yes. Make a sincere vow. Like you did in Giethoorn.”

“...” Jin-Hyeok was unsure but agreed due to her strong stance. “Alright. If a second Golden Headband appears, I will definitely use it on you.”

The two solemnly pinky-promised. Cha Jin-Sol, silently observing this, tilted her head in confusion.

‘That seems a bit too much... Is that something to make such a fuss about?’

It seemed odd to her that the party at a disadvantage, with such a detrimental item bound to her, would insist on such a promise. She could not quite understand that.

‘Maybe I still have a lot to learn, but is that Golden Headband really that good?’

Jin-Hyeok was starting to see the bigger picture. “So, the research was something that Grandel wanted, not Sephia?”

“Exactly. If I am right, Grandel wanted to research and transplant the Authority of Swallowing to someone else.”

Sephia had no need to research the Authority of Swallowing. She already possessed that power.

“Grandel wanted to transplant the Authority of Swallowing into himself, stealing it from the original, Sephia,” Sae-Rin said.

“...”

“If I’m right, Grandel will betray and devour Sephia.”

‘Wow, what a perfect teaser for my next video!’

If that really happened, the views would be incredible.

***

Sae-Rin clapped her hands in delight. “Really? I can borrow the Golden Headband? That’s fantastic!”

[Do you want to lend out the ?Golden Headband??]

She placed the Golden Headband on the head of Hwa Ta, who was comfortably sleeping(?) on the bed.

[The ?Golden Headband? has been lent out. Renter: Pathfinder]

[The ?Golden Headband? has been applied to ?Incarnation of Greed?.]

[Pathfinder can now use the ?Tight-Fillet Spell?.]

Using an item as soon as one acquired it was a universal rule. Sae-Rin grinned and recited the Tight-Fillet Spell.

“Aaaaarrggh!” Hwa-Ta, who had been unconscious, suddenly got up. He felt intense pain but there was no sign of defiance in his eyes.

Sae-Rin clicked her tongue, seemingly disappointed. “I thought he would resist more fiercely, but I guess I was wrong.”

Jin-Hyeok was also surprised at how docile Hwa Ta had become.

‘If it were me, I couldn’t have tamed him to this extent. I should sincerely praise her.’

“You’ve tamed him well,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“...Thanks. But there is still room for me to grow.” Sae-Rin’s face turned slightly red.

Jin-Hyeok then said to Hwa Ta, “From now on, you will be working in the MK Foundation’s medical department.”

“Me? Really?”

One great thing about the Golden Headband was that it left no aftereffects. While the Tight-Fillet Spell caused extreme pain, the subject returned to normal once the spell ended. Hwa Ta’s condition was relatively good.

“Yes. You will be working as a deputy team leader. You can perform righteous medical practice there.”

“Deputy team leader... What does that mean?”

“You can discuss your salary and such with the team leader.”

“And the team leader is...?”

“You know her. It’s Han Sae-Rin.”

“...”

Sae-Rin was just the nominal team leader. She did not have specific duties; she would just regularly train Hwa Ta. She had just promised to milk all the benefits from Hwa Ta until a proper medical team was formed in the foundation, which pleased Jin-Hyeok. It seemed like a good decision to entrust everything to Sae-Rin.

Afterward, Jin-Hyeok called Terse. “Have you talked with Mr. Gobble?”

—I actually wanted to talk about that. I had a deep conversation with Mr. Gobble.

Terse suddenly became enraged on the phone. Unable to contain his anger, he wanted to come over and talk in person.

—I’m on my way!