novelraw Chapter 223 : Question (1)
Chapter 223 : Question (1)
Chapter 223: Question (1)
At that time.
‘Did I keep too much distance? I lost him midway by not considering the crowd.’
Near Amsa Station, a man was searching for the whereabouts of Sanghyun, who had disappeared.
His name was Alain.
He was the Player to whom Luca Viole had previously given instructions through Brandon.
Until he had received the message, he had been leisurely enjoying a month-long stay in Jeju Island.
However, being rooted in Luca Viole, Alain had no choice but to move obediently according to orders.
There were two main areas of investigation.
The first was to explore and discover the full extent of the abilities possessed by Player Shin Sanghyun.
The second was to find out if there was any sponsor or supporting force backing Shin Sanghyun.
As for the second, a rough outline had emerged through backdoor investigations using his own intelligence network.
The force publicly known to be supporting Shin Sanghyun was well-known—Hyunjung Corporation.
Since they had even signed a sponsorship contract, it would make no sense for anyone to not know.
However, Alain discovered a slightly more peculiar individual—Do Kyungsoo.
Do Kyungsoo may have been unaware, but the Sword Demon–Sword God team had an insider who served as Alain’s eyes and ears.
Thanks to that, he was able to learn about Do Kyungsoo’s unusually caring and considerate attitude toward Sanghyun.
For now, the forces showing interest in and supporting Sanghyun were limited to within South Korea.
Although it was revealed through the investigation that he had recently returned from the United States, no clear interest had surfaced.
‘The issue is the skills. The fastest way to investigate would be to confront him directly.’
Alain had been tracking Sanghyun from the start with the goal of engaging him in combat.
He had staked out the area near Eden Guild, where Sanghyun had some connections, and had achieved some results.
However, because Shin Taeri and Jo Jinho were with him, he had kept more distance than usual, which proved problematic.
In any case, they wouldn’t be together all day, and the moment Sanghyun was alone would eventually come.
When that time came, Alain planned to confront Shin Sanghyun.
Depending on the situation, he even considered killing him.
Luca Viole had instructed that if the chance arose to subdue Sanghyun, he was to be kept alive at all costs...
‘F*** that. If I see an opening for Devour, I’m taking it. I’ll just say I killed him by mistake.’
Alain had different thoughts.
There was only one reason he could be in Korea without any burden.
He had a skill that let him ignore restrictions like national borders and travel long distances.
Simply put, it was a teleportation skill.
Thanks to that, even under the current circumstances with a global Player Union warrant issued,
he didn’t need to stow away or forge a passport—he had simply teleported into Korea with ease.
Leaving would be the same. Once his business was done, he would teleport out.
Then, no one would even know he had been there. After all, the dead don’t speak.
‘For now, back to staking out. Sanghyun’s movements are predictable anyway. If I wait, it won’t take long.’
Alain vanished smoothly into the crowd. He looked like any other foreigner, so no one paid attention.
Goddess of Luck, Lee Siyeon, was also moving busily around that time.
Her possession of a human body on Earth was, on the surface, for the purpose of interacting with Sanghyun.
This was a publicly known fact and wasn’t something that would disrupt the order of the Dimensional Group.
That was because she had always followed the rules of the Dimensional Group without causing any trouble.
Even if a Constellation possessed a human body, they couldn’t use their powers, so...
Even the sheriffs tasked with maintaining order didn’t make a big issue of it. They allowed some deviation.
However, the real reason she came to Earth was separate from the public one.
It was to attempt something that couldn’t be done within the Dimensional Group.
Namely, to contact another Constellation.
‘Late Bloomer Model Student. He was definitely being chased by the Black Guard. If it was a matter of that scale, there’s no way the Constellations of the Dimensional Group wouldn’t know about it.’
When she first heard from Sanghyun about the Constellation named Late Bloomer Model Student,
she thought it was just meaningless interest in a trivial Constellation. Even the name sounded strange.
But as she followed Sanghyun’s curiosity, her own interest deepened, and she uncovered unexpected facts.
It was the fact that the Black Guard, who rarely acted unless there was serious trouble, had stepped in.
To compare it to issues in the human world, it was akin to a Level 1 most-wanted notice being issued and a dedicated task force being formed.
Normally, when something like that happened, the Dimensional Group would share the info collectively. Since other Constellations could also be affected.
But no Constellation had heard anything about it.
There weren’t even rumors. No official bulletin had been released. It was a thoroughly veiled secret.
Why was that?
Lee Siyeon believed it was tied to a secret that pierced through the entire Dimensional Group.
Yes, it felt very dark, gloomy, and reeked of something rotten. Like there was a hidden conspiracy.
And the fact that Sanghyun had sought out a Constellation he had no ties to piqued her curiosity even more.
‘I hope my prayer reaches him…….’
The order of the Dimensional Group wasn’t perfectly built.
There were considerable loopholes. Especially in the process of connecting humans with Constellations.
In other words, even if she couldn’t make contact as the Goddess of Luck, she might succeed as Lee Siyeon.
She could slip past the all-seeing eyes and systemic loops that monitored the Dimensional Group.
Using that method, she planned to make direct contact with the Late Bloomer Model Student Constellation.
There was definitely something to him.
BOOM!
“Whoa.”
“What the—?”
Sanghyun’s deployed Knockback Burst.
The two who witnessed the massive crocodile getting slammed and flying across the field were stunned.
It was like watching a baseball hit hard with a bat—it soared backward.
The knockback was so strong that the creature’s body bent into a C shape. It looked like its spine might snap.
In the meantime—
Sanghyun immediately assisted Shin Taeri, who had been engaged in a battle with the fox.
There were at least a few seconds to spare before the crocodile could return.
A 3-on-3 balance.
To the fox, who had believed the crocodile would mark Sanghyun, his sudden appearance was an unexpected variable.
She couldn’t afford to shift her focus from Shin Taeri, so her reaction to Sanghyun was half a beat late.
Squelch!
Without hesitation, Sanghyun drove the Sword of Destruction straight into her, inflicting a fatal wound.
The idea that the crocodile would so absurdly be blown out of the battlefield hadn’t even been considered as a possibility.
Taken by surprise, the fox died helplessly in the joint assault from Sanghyun and Shin Taeri.
“Iskiraaah!”
The enraged crocodile, having lost its companion, charged at Sanghyun.
But its fighting spirit was meaningless—
Whoooosh!
“Guhh—!”
The crocodile, caught in the updraft launched by Sanghyun, flew through the air like it was riding a rollercoaster.
Sanghyun laughed.
The creature did seem strong. The problem was that its resistance to skills was practically nonexistent.
At this rate, not just now but even in the future, it seemed likely that it would become nothing more than Sanghyun’s toy.
The crocodile flailed in the air but couldn’t return to the ground. It had already been swept up completely in the air current.
“Let’s help Jinho-nim.”
“I’ll swing wide around to the back.”
“I’ll charge straight in.”
After taking care of the fox and forcing the crocodile out of the battlefield, Sanghyun and Shin Taeri immediately rushed the giant brute.
Though Jo Jinho was relatively weak offensively, his defensive ability was exceptional.
The brute repeatedly slammed its body into Jo Jinho, but he endured it in silence.
He didn’t have a single scratch.
Standing tall like a mountain, Jo Jinho held out impressively even against an opponent twice his size.
“Grrrraaagh!”
Frustrated by Jo Jinho’s solid defense, the brute’s crimson eyes flared as it released a surge of power.
“Ugh!”
At that moment, Jo Jinho and Shin Taeri’s bodies froze. It was a ‘freezing’ effect, unexpected from the brute.
However, Sanghyun immediately used Recovery to cleanse the abnormal state.
Because he had confirmed the freeze and used Recovery instantly, the perceived freezing time was reduced to about 0.5 seconds.
“Grrrrgh!”
As the freeze was nullified effortlessly, the brute once again released power. It clearly intended to freeze them properly this time.
But there was a major problem.
Sanghyun’s Recovery skill not only removed abnormal statuses but also granted immunity to all such effects for the next 6 seconds.
That’s right—complete immunity.
So despite the brute releasing a far stronger freezing effect than before, it had wasted its effort completely.
All battles are about giving and taking.
Since it failed to deliver, all that was left was for it to receive—in full force.
Boom!
Jo Jinho charged in first.
Squelch!
Seizing the opportunity, Shin Taeri dashed in from behind and drove a dagger cleanly into the brute’s nape.
Then Sanghyun used a descending current to enhance gravity and slammed the brute’s body down.
Crunch!
“Gahh!”
In that instant, the brute realized something.
It felt an accident had occurred at the neck area, where Shin Taeri’s dagger had inflicted a deep wound.
The already weakened neck bones and muscles, due to the earlier injury, had been caught in the downward current and ended up breaking.
A catastrophic injury to the neck, one of the most vital parts for sustaining life. What mattered now was that there was no way to recover from this.
Of course, that wasn’t the end.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Crack! Snap! Crunch!
As Sanghyun’s descending currents kept slamming down, the brute’s head retreated inward like a turtle pulling into its shell.
Had it been a turtle or snail, it might’ve looked normal. But the brute was no such creature.
In the end—
“Gughueeek!”
The brute vomited up a foul mix of blood and digestive fluids, eyes rolled back as it died.
With its neck shattered, there was no coming back. It was a perfect death.
“Only one left now. If you two are okay with it, would it be alright if I take him on one-on-one?”
Sanghyun stepped forward.
With all threats to Shin Taeri and Jo Jinho eliminated, the stage was now his.
Given the crocodile seemed to be the leader, he had a strong desire to face it with full strength.
Since returning from the U.S., Sanghyun had come to appreciate how important each and every challenge was.
Every experience became nourishment for growth, and a chance to study how to respond to countless variables and dangers.
Fighting a monster like the crocodile wasn’t something that happened often, so he wanted to gather as much data as he could here.
“Will you be alright?”
Shin Taeri’s concerned voice called out. Then Jo Jinho gently scolded her.
“That’s a bit rude, Taeri.”
“Huh?”
“After everything we’ve seen with our own eyes, do you really think Sanghyun wouldn’t be alright?”
“Well, that’s true, but...”
Shin Taeri trailed off.
Of course, she knew. She knew full well that Sanghyun would face the crocodile brilliantly.
But despite that, she couldn’t help but worry.
Even knowing that, she still found herself wondering ‘what if’. It was no longer just the concern of a teammate.
Perhaps because of that—
Shin Taeri, slightly turning her head, felt her face flush red without realizing it. It seemed the air here was a little warm.