The Player Who Stands Above All

Chapter 223

Wudangtang-!

"…What?"

"Hey, what's that sound?"

At Lee Shin's sudden words, the people in the room were flustered and looked at Cheon Yuhwa with eyes demanding an explanation.

"I, I don't know either…"

But Cheon Yuhwa also couldn't say anything, her eyes wide open.

Cheon Yuhwa was just as flustered by Lee Shin's words.

She had forcibly held on to her body, which was about to collapse, using the healer's heal, Irin's support, and a mental strength that transcended her limits, to clean up the mess left by the three giant monsters.

Because she had been moving so busily, Cheon Yuhwa hadn't heard anything from Irin.

As Cheon Yuhwa stared at Irin with trembling eyes, Irin looked back at her with her characteristic blank, expressionless face, then nodded her head once as if to say it was okay.

At that, Cheon Yuhwa turned her head back to the TV.

-Puhuhu

There, the Lee Shin in the video was grinning widely.

-Ah, it's a shame I can't see the reaction. I hope the prank worked well, but I can't even check.

-I'm sorry if I surprised you, but that's the kind of atmosphere it is, right? Still, if not for this opportunity, when would I ever get to say something like this? Just understand and let it go.

"…That's so like Hyung-nim."

"What astonishing shamelessness."

"I don't think that face will ever disappear, even if he dies."

Those who had been listening to Lee Shin's words with tense faces sighed with expressions of having been deceived.

Those who had been listening with half an ear from the beginning, thinking that Lee Shin was a person who said the opposite, looked at the TV with eyes that said they knew it, without any change in their expressions.

For reference, Cheon Yuhwa, who had been in a bad state to begin with, had been tense and then relaxed, and as a result, her legs had half given out and she had collapsed onto the bed where Oz was.

-Well, but it's probably not that wrong. The part about not being in this world anymore will be the same anyway.

At Lee Shin's following words, some of those present looked at the TV with eyes that said, 'let's see what kind of nonsense he's saying this time,' and a few looked at Cheon Yuhwa with worried eyes, wondering if she would run wild.

"Alice?"

"Unni?"

And they noticed something strange and their eyes widened.

At the words of Lee Shin on the TV, Cheon Yuhwa couldn't raise her head, like a child who had been pointed out for her mistake.

While everyone's gaze was on Cheon Yuhwa, Irin stepped forward and said to them.

"This time, it's real."

"…Are you saying that's real?"

At Oz's words, Irin nodded her head and then flapped her wings slightly as if to show them.

The quick-witted people who saw that realized something and their eyes widened.

"That guy, don't tell me…"

At that moment, Lee Shin in the video said, as if answering.

-The fact that you're watching this probably means I've crossed over from Earth to Carnia.

After that, Lee Shin talked about what he had originally planned, as if it were no big deal.

To summarize his words, it was like this.

After catching the three divine beasts, he was planning to use the hero-capturing artifact that the spy had to cross over to Carnia.

-Since I ran wild quite a bit this time, my identity, which I had been hiding well until now, must have been revealed, and then you guys would have bothered me by bossing me around in various ways, so I just decided to run away.

"He says that so shamelessly."

At Yeonhwa's low words, everyone inwardly agreed.

-Besides, since I made a big move this time and failed, it seems the guys from Carnia will be quiet for a while, and it seemed more fun to be in Carnia than to be bored on Earth.

Everyone inwardly realized that that was the real reason.

Thinking about it again, Lee Shin wasn't the type to care about what others thought, nor was he a person who would obediently listen if he was told to do something.

-Well, for now, I was planning on preparing for about a week and then leaving… but you never know what will happen in life, right?

Lee Shin, who had said that, chuckled.

-This video is an insurance I made for that 'just in case' situation. But since this video is actually being played, it seems something really did happen.

At Lee Shin's words, Cheon Yuhwa trembled slightly.

Everyone saw that, but no one asked Cheon Yuhwa directly what was wrong.

-Well, since it's me, I'll probably do well on my own. By the way, I'm glad it was used. I was originally going to just go without making it because it was a hassle, but I filmed it because I thought something unnecessary might happen.

Tak-

-Ah, the phone fell.

"No wonder the angle seemed a bit strange, this was a video filmed on a phone."

"On top of that, I didn't notice because it was so natural, but that hyung has been eating potato chips from the middle."

"Wow, for real."

Everyone muttered in disbelief, then looked at the screen.

Lee Shin's face was on the screen again.

-Hmm, first, I think I've said everything I need to say, and the rest is about cleaning up after me… Since it's me, I probably ran wild until I was on the verge of death, and then my identity was revealed, right?

It was an eerily accurate self-objectification and situational judgment.

Thanks to wearing the [Gourmet's Mask], Lee Shin's face was not completely revealed.

But the leaders of each country, through the revealed information, had noticed that Lee Shin was the Spear Ghost who had once appeared and then disappeared, and they were gradually tracing his tracks to find his identity.

-In that situation, I suddenly disappeared, so the situation must have gotten a little complicated. You guys must be having a hard time with that problem too.

This was also correct.

Whether they had figured out that Lee Shin couldn't come out or they were just pushing their luck, the Chinese side was making the absurd claim that the Lee Shin in the video was their secret weapon and that they should be given a share of the monsters.

Of course, it was easy to deal with, but considering their current physical condition and the fact that Lee Shin was absent, they were putting it on hold for now to handle things as carefully as possible.

As if to relieve their problems, Lee Shin in the video said coolly.

-I don't really care what you guys do, so just move in a way that's beneficial.

If you're thinking of selling me out, sell me out.

I don't care if you make me a hero or a villain.

I don't care if you make me an unidentified person and create a new character, or if you make me like you guys and add to the deterrent.

At Lee Shin's words, which contained such a meaning, while everyone was calculating in their heads, Lee Shin spoke again.

-Ah, and you don't need to keep or store my share of what you got from catching the three. It's better to use it somehow than to just leave it.

At Lee Shin's words, the eyes of the three mages widened.

To them, what he had just said was more shocking than his previous words.

Although Lee Shin had caused this incident to become so big, paradoxically, the one who had made the biggest contribution to this incident was also Lee Shin.

Therefore, the dividend he had to receive for dealing with the three was naturally high, but since Lee Shin, who had to receive that share, had disappeared without a word, it was bound to be a headache.

But now, that same Lee Shin was coolly saying through the video that he would give up his share to them, so it was only natural for them to be surprised.

"But…"

While everyone was surprised like that, Baekhyun raised a suspicion.

"Isn't Hyung-nim being too kind? Even if he's not here and can't do anything, he's not the kind of person to give up everything so obediently."

"That is…"

"That's true."

At Baekhyun's words, they recalled a fact they had momentarily forgotten, mesmerized by the huge prey of Ziz, Leviathan, and Behemoth.

The Lee Shin they remembered had always caused strange things, but he had never done anything that would result in a loss.

-Ah, of course, I'm not saying this without any compensation.

At that moment, Lee Shin in the video opened his mouth.

At that, the faces of those watching the TV relaxed, as if it were a relief.

Considering Lee Shin's personality, they didn't know what he would do later using this as an excuse.

-Instead of giving up these things, please take good care of the kids I was taking around and my younger sister while I'm gone.

"…Younger sister?"

Naturally, their gazes gathered in one place.

Cheok-

Irin, as the gazes gathered on her, made a 'V' with her fingers and held it out to them with an expressionless face.

It was the result of Lee Shin's short training.

-That's all I have to say. I'll enjoy myself and then come back, so see you later.

Lee Shin said that and waved his hand, which was glistening with the oil from the potato chips, casually.

-While you guys are working your bones off, I'll be enjoying my trip, so do well.

They thought it was a very Lee Shin-like final word.

-Ah, right.

Lee Shin appeared on the screen again with a look of having remembered something.

-Hey, Cheon Yuhwa.

"Huh?"

At Lee Shin's unexpected call, Cheon Yuhwa made a strange sound and raised her head with a surprised face.

-While I'm gone, if something fun happens, don't handle it all by yourself, leave some for me.

With those final words, Lee Shin reached out his hand as if he had no regrets, and then a black screen appeared, as if it were really the end.

"…Is that the end?"

Cheon Yuhwa stared blankly at the blackened screen, and Oz, who had been watching her surprised expression with amusement, muttered in a dumbfounded voice.

At Oz's muttering, Cheon Yuhwa's head drooped, and her hands began to tremble.

'It seems she's disappointed that her expectations were off, right?'

'Probably, I think so.'

'She seems embarrassed.'

'No, it just seems like she's incredibly annoyed.'

Those in the room exchanged glances without saying anything and glanced at Cheon Yuhwa.

Then, when Cheon Yuhwa raised her head again, they quickly looked away and pretended to be nonchalant.

"Hoo…"

Cheon Yuhwa, who had composed her expression in the short time it took to take a breath, said in her usual voice.

"First, excluding the political and diplomatic parts… the first thing we need to do is find the guy who summoned Leviathan and the guy who summoned Behemoth."

Although it was something they could only do after their bodies had fully recovered, it wasn't a particularly difficult task, assuming they were in a fully recovered state.

Considering their skills, if several of the Ten Kings were attached, it would be possible to subdue them easily, and the receivers attached to them were still functioning normally.

Gadeuk-

"For reference, I'll be the one to catch the guy who summoned Leviathan, so don't touch him."

"Ye, yes."

Although they didn't know the reason, they obediently nodded their heads at Cheon Yuhwa's fierce momentum.

Cheon Yuhwa, who had been angry at what Gaudi had done to her at the end, soon calmed down and spoke again.

"Although we neutralized the enemy's trick this time, the enemies will start to be wary of us in earnest, so it will be more difficult from now on."

It was an overly optimistic thought that the same daily life as before would unfold.

"So when you can rest, rest as much as possible, and when you get up, please work hard. Because there's a mountain of work to do."

At Cheon Yuhwa's words, those who had guilds sighed, and those who didn't have guilds just smiled with relaxed faces.

"But I have a question…"

"What is it?"

Crowley said, pointing at the TV.

"Lee Shin, what trick did that guy use to cross over to that world?"

"Ah, that is…"

"He used this."

While Cheon Yuhwa was hesitating, wondering how to explain, Irin said, taking out a golden bead from her bosom.

"We each received one, with instructions to use it when we see someone presumed to be Gaia's hero. When this breaks, it restrains the person nearby and sends them to Carnia. For reference, the coordinates are the center of the temple, so don't think about testing it carelessly."

"What?"

At Irin's words, Cheon Yuhwa looked at her with a surprised face, and Crowley asked back with a hardened face.

"Then what happened to that guy now?"

"Oppa is fine. He erased the coordinates of the magic circle at the last moment and prevented himself from going to the temple. And it's certain that he's not dead."

Irin said, looking at the tattoo on her hand.

Because the distance to Lee Shin was too far, it was impossible to talk to him, but it could be used to know whether he was alive or dead.

Because if something had happened to Lee Shin, the tattoo engraved on her body would have disappeared.

At Irin's firm words, Cheon Yuhwa calmed down and said.

"First, since there are many things to do, let's postpone the topic of that guy and that world. If it's that troublemaker, just by being in that world, he'll be able to inflict enormous damage on the enemy's forces."

"It's a bit of a funny thing to say, but…"

"If it's oppa, it seems possible."

Lee Shin's situation was also important, but there was nothing they could do right now.

So for now, it was better to do what they could, such as organizing what they had gained, cleaning up the damage, or proceeding with the plan to make the land on the Chinese side the territory of the demi-humans.

At that moment, Irin held out a USB to them.

"First, I've put the basic information I know in here. So if you have any questions, ask them after that."

"What? Are you going to do something too?"

At Oz's words, Irin nodded her head.

"Yes, I have something to do."

With those words, Irin slightly opened the door next to her.

"Kyaak!"

"Heeik!"

Then, the two who had been listening to their conversation with their ears pressed against the door fell into the room.

(End of Chapter)