CHAPTER 101……………………………………
“Baek So-hyeok had his trait stolen?”
My head throbbed from the new information Kang Kwon-ho had just given me. The part that especially bothered me was the word “stolen.”
“Of course, I wouldn’t know. Can traits even be stolen in the first place?”
I deliberately tried to act more nonchalant, attempting to dodge Kang Kwon-ho’s question. But judging by the way his eyebrows rose ever so slightly, I wasn’t fooling him completely.
It wasn’t a good sign, but then again, had I ever truly succeeded in deceiving him with words? Thinking that way made me feel a little better. Instead of being frustrated with my clumsy act, I decided to come up with a plausible hypothesis.
“People who can steal traits probably aren’t common.”
If that were the case, it seemed likely that Baek Woo-jin was the one who had stolen Baek So-hyeok’s trait. But then, how—and why—would Baek Woo-jin have taken it? Even forcing my tired brain to think it through yielded no clear answer.
“Then does Baek So-hyeok even know what trait was stolen, or who did it?”
Assuming the culprit was Baek Woo-jin, the only trait he could have taken from Baek So-hyeok was ‘The Pioneer.’ That is, unless the trait had disappeared when I entered this body.
“If someone has a skill like that, it’s possible. Some of these other races can even copy others’ skills, right?”
Kang Kwon-ho’s answer abruptly broke my train of thought.
“That’s true,” I admitted.
“But I have a feeling that this stolen trait is connected to Woo-jin,” he continued.
As expected, Kang Kwon-ho was making sharp deductions. But without any memory of Baek Woo-jin, I had no way of judging whether his reasoning was correct. In a way, that was a relief.
“I wouldn’t know,” I said.
I could tell the truth in front of Kang Kwon-ho, who seemed to detect lies as easily as a ghost.
“Hmm…”
He smiled, eyes narrowing. He didn’t seem to think I was lying, but he didn’t fully believe me either.
“Are you two just going to keep playing around? I have no intention of protecting even Kang Kwon-ho,”
Eziah finally voiced her frustration, standing a few steps back to maintain the barrier.
“Sorry. My magic hasn’t fully recovered yet,” I said.
I still couldn’t stand on my own. I desperately wanted to fight alongside the other guild members, but my body wouldn’t cooperate.
“Even if Woo-jin is like that, that person over there is fine. I’m not going to protect Kang Kwon-ho. If it weren’t for the guild master’s body, I would’ve kicked him out already,” she continued.
“You’re protecting me?”
Kang Kwon-ho responded mockingly. His brief reply carried the sentiment: “Who’s protecting whom?”—and Eziah wasn’t oblivious enough to miss it.
“Don’t you think it’s a bit unfair to be doing this while everyone else is fighting to the death?”
“Not at all.”
Eziah would never beat Kang Kwon-ho in words, even if she were reborn.
Kwang-gwang!
Only after the deafening sound did I turn my eyes to the people in combat.
“I was so focused on Kang Kwon-ho that I missed the most important part.”
He might not have been lying, but this wasn’t the moment to think calmly with others in battle. My gaze immediately fixed on the person I worried about most: Kim Jun. He was dodging flame attacks while looking for openings in the Planarient. Having reached the third floor, he seemed to have learned not to rush attacks recklessly.
“But just dodging won’t be enough to take down the Planarient,” I thought.
The Planarient chased Kim Jun, throwing fire in all directions, closing the distance as if using short-distance teleportation, threatening him constantly.
“It’s a creature that can use short-range movement skills,” I realized.
If it only had attack skills, it would’ve been manageable, but it was quite tricky. Clearly, it was no accident it had survived this long.
“Ugh.”
I forced myself to stand to help Kim Jun, only to hear my body scream in protest. Having drained my magic twice in one day, my body seemed to break down first.
“So this is why I’m not supposed to overuse magic potions,” I thought.
Potions were a temporary solution, as I painfully realized.
Kwang-gwang!
While groaning, a massive fireball rained down on Kim Jun. He barely avoided it. But it was too soon to relax; the following fireball singed his clothing. I worried about how long he could keep evading.
“What are you trying to do?”
As I reached for my sword again, Kang Kwon-ho used Baek So-hyeok’s hand to push me back onto the shield.
Even trying to escape his grasp was useless. Not because of his strength, but because my body was utterly exhausted. I thought to myself that I should have done special training to increase my magic.
“Just watch,” he said.
Unlike me, Kang Kwon-ho remained composed as ever. I was debating whether to use one more potion, despite its side effects. Kim Jun held two purple swords in his hands—similar to mine.
“You’re… going to use swords?” I asked, eyes wide. I hadn’t expected him to wield weapons, but Kang Kwon-ho seemed to know already.
‘Did Jun go to that place constantly to learn this?’
It was good that guild members were growing, but it was frustrating that things were happening without my knowledge.
“I’m not sure you can even call those swords. They’re more like objects formed from poison,” he explained.
“You transformed poison into objects?” I marveled. Jun was young but had impressive ingenuity.
“Guess he wanted to imitate someone,” Kang Kwon-ho said, his gaze sticky on me.
“But I can’t believe the Planarient would die instantly from that,” I added.
Even if the Planarient could imitate object transformation, it wouldn’t have the critical poison skill, so the threat was reduced. But I doubted Jun possessed poison strong enough to kill a Planarient.
“That’s doable. The swords compress power, so the concentration is strong. Besides, I lent him my lab,” he explained.
I wondered how that related to Jun’s poison, and he continued:
“I’ve been exposed to poison about 230 times, enough to build immunity. I have plenty of data on poisons that can instantly kill any creature. Jun studied that data to refine his own poison.”
His words implied he survived poisons lethal to any animal. I thought, he really is strong—stronger than I can imagine.
‘Of course, he used to dilute famous poisons to build resistance deliberately.’
Knowing Kang Kwon-ho was the subject of that story made it both impressive and sad. How bad must his childhood have been, and how many enemies surrounded him?
“Why teach a kid something like that…”
Both Kang Kwon-ho, exposed to poisons from an early age, and Jun, already knowledgeable despite being a student, were equally unfortunate. As a hunter, some of it was inevitable, but it still felt like forcing a child to hold a sword—guilty.
“I wouldn’t have asked him to do it if he couldn’t handle it. The reason I keep him near Woo-jin is that he has potential. If he fails, it’s no good.”
Jun still looked awkward wielding the sword.
Bang!
But just as Kang Kwon-ho said, the sword itself carried enough power to instantly kill the Planarient. Where Jun finally struck, the flesh began to rot. The sword melted into the Planarient’s body after fulfilling its purpose.
“With this level of poison, the Planarient won’t even realize it’s being poisoned before it dies,” I thought.
It was a perfect victory, far exceeding my worries.
“Jisoo and Woo-jin’s younger sibling’s fights are almost done too,” Kang Kwon-ho said.
He had fully adapted to the rapier, blocking incoming attacks effortlessly as he moved through the barrier.
The end finally seemed in sight. Having cleared the second floor so easily, I had thought today would go smoothly—what a long day I now regretted. When Baek So-hyeok finished off the last Planarient, it truly felt like the end.
“Look over there,” Kang Kwon-ho said, turning my head slightly with his hand.
A large fissure had formed midway through the direction he indicated.
“What is… that?”
Through the warped space, a massive door appeared.
