The Player Who Stands Above All

Chapter 164

"Haaaaam~"

Lee Shin, sitting on the bed with only his upper body raised, yawned languidly and then looked at them with a wide smile.

"You all look much better than I thought, so it seems you've been doing well without any trouble while I was away."

Pajik-

"If you think this looks fine, you should probably get your eyes replaced. Shall I help you as a younger brother, Hyung-nim?"

Eun Yeonwoo growled as if he weren't joking and wiggled his fingers.

His eyes, bloodshot and red, were set sharply as if they would pierce Lee Shin at any moment.

Although they didn't show it with words like Eun Yeonwoo, the other four were also glaring at Lee Shin with cross-shaped veins on their foreheads, thinking similar thoughts.

And for good reason, they had come all this way, going through all sorts of hardships.

As proof, their appearance was so miserable that even a homeless person who had made Seoul Station their home would pity them.

Their clothes and armor were torn and broken, unable to perform their functions, and their exposed skin was caked with dust and dried blood, making it difficult to even recognize their faces.

On top of that, they were furious to the core because the first thing they had seen upon returning home was Lee Shin, sleeping cleanly on the bed.

But Lee Shin, with a greasy face, had smiled and said, 'You guys look pretty good,' so it was no wonder they were reacting this way.

"Thanks for the offer, but my eyes are still quite useful, so you don't have to bother replacing them."

"But you say that?"

"What?"

Lee Shin said that and smiled brightly.

"Your arms and legs, and even your fingers, don't look like they've been cut off, and you don't have any major injuries that would leave you with a disability. Then you're fine, right?"

As Lee Shin said that, they swallowed the words they were about to say and quietly closed their mouths.

All five of them had seen people die and get injured in various ways on their way here.

Watching them, they could feel that the word 'death', which usually seemed far away, was actually hanging right behind their backs.

Thinking that, they were certainly within the category of 'fine' as Lee Shin had said.

"Hyung-nim is really…"

"Come to think of it, Hyung was like this."

"That's just like you, ahjussi."

"Sigh…"

"…Hah, really. Annoying."

And so, instead of the words they had originally intended to say, they each uttered a short word, and then.

Pulsseok-!

They collapsed on the spot as if fainting.

-Why did these guys suddenly faint as a group?

Yireu, who had at some point perched on Lee Shin's head, tilted his head with a puzzled expression.

"I wonder? It's probably because the annoyance that arose from seeing me disappeared, and the energy that had been welling up with the annoyance also disappeared."

Lee Shin said that and lightly got up from his seat, looking at the five of them.

Their whole bodies' muscles, which had been overworked beyond their limits, were trembling as if screaming.

Judging by their appearance, it seemed they hadn't eaten properly, and they hadn't rested well either.

Lee Shin had let it pass without much thought, but they might have been very shocked to see people die.

-Were humans always such delicate creatures? It seems a little different from what I know.

The human samples Yireu had were composed of Lee Shin and the protagonists of the novels he enjoyed reading.

So it was natural for him to ask such a question.

"Well, I don't know for sure either, but they say that's how normal people are."

-Hmm, is that so?

Yireu looked down at them with a puzzled expression.

And Lee Shin came down from the bed and muttered as he looked at them.

"There seems to be a lot to do, but first, I should wash them."

It seemed it would be difficult to do anything if they were that dirty.

-Hm? Are you going to wash them?

"I have to. Otherwise, I think bugs will swarm."

-Hmm, even if you wash the men, what are you going to do about the women? Are you going to wash the women too?

At Yireu's words, Lee Shin shrugged his shoulders.

"No, I'm not going to wash either of them. There's no reason for me to do such a troublesome and difficult thing."

At Lee Shin's words, Yireu tapped his head with his tail as if telling him to spill it.

At that, Lee Shin said as if it were nothing.

"You heard me call someone before I got home, right?"

-Ah, was that call for this?

"I guess so. It's about time they arrived…"

Ding-dong-

As Lee Shin's words ended, the doorbell rang from the entrance, as if it had been waiting.

At that, Lee Shin leisurely walked towards the entrance.

"Yes, hello. I came on the introduction of Kim Jaehyun-nim."

"We were told there are people we need to take care of…"

As Lee Shin opened the entrance door, there were two men and three women in clean clothes, and…

"It's been a while. Have you been well?"

An orc wearing a yellow fluorescent vest with the fluorescent orange words 'I won't harm you' written largely on it was standing there.

"Hello, the clothes suit you well."

Lee Shin smiled and greeted Tarka, who was wearing the vest he had given him in the past well.

***

"Now, each of you will take care of one of them."

Lee Shin brought the people who were at the entrance and guided them to the five who were fainted in the room.

"…These people?"

"Yes, they may look like this, but they are alive and well, so you don't have to worry too much."

Lee Shin, who had roughly guessed what they were thinking, spoke first.

'It's no wonder they think they're corpses, since they're lying on the floor without any movement, covered in blood.'

-Are they complaining to you, the one who did this, after coming into the house in that state? I think I can see why you keep these guys close.

'Right? They're interesting guys, aren't they?'

While Lee Shin was having a mental conversation with Yireu.

"Hmm…"

The people Lee Shin had brought split up and began to check the condition of the fainted people by taking their pulses.

"They are certainly alive. It seems there's no worry of them losing their lives, but looking at their physical condition, I can understand why you contacted us so urgently, offering such a high price."

-Does it cost a lot of money to use those guys?

'No, I don't know about that either.'

Although Yireu looked at Lee Shin with eyes that said 'why don't you know that', Lee Shin felt wronged.

And for good reason, it wasn't Lee Shin who had called them, but Kim Jaehyun.

On his way home, while unfolding the Lightning Ray Immortal Art, Lee Shin had contacted Kim Jaehyun and asked him to find five people who could care for tired people.

Since it was them who had come, Lee Shin also knew almost nothing about them.

-Then what do you know?

'A little while ago, Kim Jaehyun sent a text, and it seems these people's job is to serve rich chaebols.'

-Hoo, do they have great abilities?

'Chaebols wouldn't entrust their bodies to just anyone, so probably, right? To be honest, I didn't think they would send people like this when the city is in such a mess.'

While Lee Shin was admiring Kim Jaehyun's usefulness for the first time in a while.

"First, we should give them a shower."

They each took charge of one of the fainted people, and then they split into men and women and disappeared into the bathroom with a bathtub.

Watching them support the fainted ones without thinking about getting dirty themselves, he certainly thought they were professional.

Lee Shin watched them disappear for a moment, then went out to the living room where the guest was waiting.

"Do you like the alcohol? They're quite expensive."

"Hmm, the taste is good, but it's a shame that the quantity is small, so I can't chug it."

In the living room, Tarka, who had already finished more than ten bottles of high-end alcohol in a short time, was sitting, licking his lips.

Lee Shin sat down opposite Tarka and asked.

"By the way, how did you end up coming with those people? It seems you came together from quite a distance."

"Hmm, it's not a particularly interesting story."

"Well, what does it matter? The alcohol will fill the fun, so it doesn't matter, right? If it's not a very long story, I'll just listen."

As Lee Shin said that, Tarka stroked his chin and then said.

"So, before we came out of the dungeon, a human man named Kim Jaehyun came to find us. He said we would be able to get out of the dungeon soon, so don't be flustered."

'Ah, come to think of it, I introduced these guys to [Wonderland].'

-It's been a long time, so I forgot.

Without knowing what Lee Shin was thinking, Tarka was engrossed in rummaging through his memories.

"Well, after that, it's nothing much. I heard about the current situation from Kim Jaehyun, and after putting on the vest with the mark of an ally that you gave us, I went out and fought the monsters."

"Hmm, and then you heard me talking on the phone with Kim Jaehyun?"

"Yes. Something like that."

Tarka nodded his head.

"I was trying to come and meet you, but Kim Jaehyun asked me to escort them, saying that they also had to go to the same place as me. Since I also didn't know the way to meet you, I said I would."

Tarka shrugged his shoulders as if that were the end of it and held the bottle of alcohol in his hand.

"By the way, why did you want to meet me? Ah, don't tell me…"

Lee Shin said with a happy, provocative smile.

"You want to fight me again… or something like that?"

At that, Tarka also smiled back at Lee Shin and gently shook his head.

"As a warrior, I'd love to, but I'll put it off for later. Since I'm a body that leads a clan, I can't irresponsibly risk my life for my own enjoyment."

"Alright, then I'll be waiting for later."

Lee Shin also had no reason to cling to a fight with Tarka, so he just nodded his head once and let it go.

"Then hurry up and tell me. I'll grant most requests."

"Hm? You're saying it quite coolly."

"This side also received help."

Lee Shin said that and tapped his house with his finger.

"Oh, was it supposed to be a surprise gift, did I get caught?"

"Rather than getting caught, there aren't many guys who would do something like this in the first place."

Probably, in the beginning, the guild members of [Wonderland] who had followed Kim Jaehyun would have protected it, and then the orcs who had come out of the dungeon would have protected it.

'Well, considering the various magic circles on this house, they might have thought of it as a strategic point and ended up protecting it by chance.'

-Hmm, that could be.

To be honest, it hadn't been long since he had moved in, and he didn't come home often, so he didn't particularly care whether it was destroyed or not.

At most, he would have been disappointed that he couldn't take a shower.

So naturally, he wasn't particularly grateful or anything, but…

'Still, something fun might happen. It's good to have this much lip service. If it seems boring, I can just run away in the middle.'

-Your way of thinking is very selfish.

'If you're going to say that, please say I'm free.'

Tarka, who couldn't hear the conversation between Lee Shin and Yireu in his head, nodded his head with a serious face.

It seemed he finally felt like he could speak comfortably now that he had said he would help since he had received something.

"Then I'll speak comfortably."

Tarka looked Lee Shin in the eye and said.

"I want to establish a position here where orcs will not be ignored. Help me."

(End of Chapter)