Chapter 125

Chapter 125

Jinwoon clicked his tongue as he looked at the points Suhyuk had amassed.

“Being a streamer sure is a good job. You’ve gathered a lot.”

On the veranda with a view of the spacious garden. Suhyuk nodded as he sipped the tea Jinwoon had given him.

“I’ve earned quite a bit.”

“Why not just gather the remaining amount? You’re only 300,000 points short.”

Suhyuk had already paid 200,000 points. The remaining amount was 800,000. Jinwoon agreed to proceed with the procedure as points were provided.

Thus, the pending points were 300,000. It would have been less troublesome if he just collected the remaining points and completed the procedure all at once, avoiding multiple journeys and procedures.

“I’m in a bit of a hurry.”

But Suhyuk couldn’t afford to wait. Even if it was inconvenient, he had to use the points he had collected immediately.

“The next trial is just around the corner.”

And there was a possibility that Greg might contact him at any moment. Swallowing those words, Suhyuk urged Jinwoon again.

“Is it difficult?”

“It’s a hassle, but a customer is still a customer. Follow me.”

He gave his affirmative answer in a rather mischievous manner. Suhyuk sighed in relief.

If Jinwoon had told him to come back with the remaining points, he had planned to invest 320,000 points in ‘Selfish Sacrifice’.

That wouldn’t have been a bad option, but it would delay the completion of the procedure.

‘Three sessions for this procedure...’

Although it was a 1,000,000-point procedure, splitting it into multiple sessions was an inconvenience.

Jinwoon’s willingness to accept this without demanding the full payment was purely out of goodwill.

‘Thank you, old man.’

Following behind Jinwoon, Suhyuk sensed that the upcoming procedure would be long and arduous. But no matter how many points it cost, giving up on the procedure was not an option.

The Heart of Thunder he had obtained wouldn’t be easy to handle, just like the lightning skill. Even Thor, one of the higher gods, couldn’t fully control a complete Heart of Thunder.

Upon arriving at the workshop, Jinwoon delivered a warning first.

“This procedure will take longer than the previous one.”

Swish-.

As Jinwoon picked up a pointed surgical tool, Suhyuk took off his upper garment and laid it aside.

“You must not fall asleep. No matter how much it hurts, you must not scream. The effects of the anesthesia will wear off.”

“Understood.”

“Easier said than done.”

Tch, Jinwoon clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“Don’t say you want to quit because it hurts later on.”

“Absolutely not.”

500,000 points was not a trivial amount. No matter how much it hurt, he was determined to endure. When it came to enduring, he had confidence.

“Let’s begin.”

Suhyuk gritted his teeth.

The procedure began.

***

Three days had passed since they lost contact with Suhyuk. Un Hyang waited for Suhyuk to return. She had nothing much to do and thought of it as a vacation.

The only things she did occasionally were check the community and monitor the views on newly uploaded videos.

“I’m suffocating here.”

Cheon Ryang stood up from his seat.

“Why are you so silent?”

“Me?”

“Yes, you. Who else is here besides you and me?”

When Cheon Ryang pointed this out, Un Hyang nodded.

“That’s true.”

“Don’t just nod; talk. What have you been thinking about? You’ve been quiet for days.”

“Thinking about what?”

Un Hyang glanced at the thin, long sword placed beside her.

“Just, sharpening it.”

“Sharpening...”

Cheon Ryang, puzzled, tilted his head and then shut his mouth. It had been three days since Muhwi’s visit. It wasn’t the first time, so he didn’t think much of it.

He thought she had come to persuade Un Hyang once again. But it seemed that wasn’t the case.

‘Is she preparing to fight?’

From that time onwards, Un Hyang had been preparing for battle. She hadn’t been active as a player for a long time, living as a manager in the streaming world.

A sword that hasn’t been used for a long time tends to rust. Un Hyang was silently honing herself, sharpening her edges.

Probably soon.

She would have to use it.

Un Hyang asked, her voice dripping with irritation.

“Why should I? Why should I hide your dirty laundry?”

“You should.”

“Don’t talk nonsense—”

At that moment. Un Hyang’s head turned back. It struck her that Cheon Ryang had been too quiet amidst the commotion. Just then, she sensed a faint presence from inside the room.

“I was about to tell you myself, but you caught on first.”

“You bastards really—!”

“I’m sorry for doing something so petty.”

Though she received an apology, it didn’t make her feel any better. Whether that apology was sincere or not didn’t matter.

Pop—.

Thud-.

Un Hyang, grabbing her sword and rushing to the room, flung open the door where Cheon Ryang was sleeping.

“Cheon Ryang, are you alright—”

Her words abruptly halted as her voice caught in her throat. A man had a sword pointed at Cheon Ryang’s throat, whose body was completely immobilized.

Step, step.

Cha Unhyeop walked up from behind.

“It seems that boy came to Shinryeonseong to represent you.”

Cha Unhyeop’s gaze moved past Un Hyang to the paralyzed Cheon Ryang.

“He’s your closest friend, isn’t he?”

“You people—”

Grinding her teeth, Un Hyang snarled. The entire point of Cha Unhyeop entering through the front door was for this.

His presence had concealed the entry of another infiltrator into Cheon Ryang’s room.

Although the infiltrator’s stealth was impressive, if he had come alone targeting Cheon Ryang, she would have noticed it immediately.

“I won’t insist on going back to the castle. Let’s just move to a quieter location.”

“At least you know how to be ashamed?”

“Indeed,” Cha Unhyeop nodded.

“If ‘we’ lose, we’ll retreat cleanly.”

And with those words.

Whoosh, whoosh—

Numerous martial artists appeared, filling the garden of the inn.

“Really, you’ve become so vile.”

“We will repay this many times over.”

“Today will be the last.”

Swish—

Un Hyang turned around. As she slowly walked out of the room, she glanced back at Cha Unhyeop.

“You, you’ll die by my hand today.”

Meeting her gaze, Cha Unhyeop felt a brief chill run down his spine.

‘A genius...’

Many were called geniuses, but none ever wore that title before their name.

Except for one.

The person who had come to use ‘genius’ as a moniker before her name was Un Hyang, standing right in front of him.

Shinryeonseong desired her talents for that very reason.

‘It was wise to come personally.’

If he had sent lower-ranking disciples like Muhwi, they would have been utterly annihilated.

Swoosh—

As she walked, the martial artists surrounding her parted to make way. The martial artists of Shinryeonseong. To them, Un Hyang was both a living legend and an idol.

Even though they met under these circumstances. She deserved their respect and honor.

“Release him.”

At Cha Unhyeop’s command, the man holding Cheon Ryang’s neck let go.

Thud—

Cheon Ryang’s body collapsed to the floor. Simultaneously, his head, still immobilized by the pressure points, lifted with difficulty.

“No... don’t.”

Pause—

Un Hyang’s footsteps momentarily halted. But she couldn’t turn back now.

“Just sleep a bit.”

Without turning her head, Un Hyang began walking again.

“I’ll be back before the next stream.”

TL’s Corner:

This snippets of events in the background is like a preview of the events that the MC needs to tackle in the future.