CHAPTER 93……………………………….
By the time my vision returned, they were both pulling at me. On my right arm, Kang Kwonhoo was holding me, trying to steady my staggering body, and on my left arm, Baek Sohyeok, who had been waiting outside, was holding me. It seemed like both of them were trying to protect me, but now that it had come to this, it felt strange—almost like being restrained.
Moreover, even after confirming that I wasn’t hurt, neither of them let go of my arms easily. My shoulders were starting to ache from the strain.
“I need to get home. Can you let me go?”
Baek Sohyeok pulled me toward himself while warning Kang Kwonhoo. Naturally, Kwonhoo wasn’t someone to back down at someone else’s warning. If anything, he tightened his grip on me as if he’d been insulted by the provocation.
“Woojin looks unwell. Wouldn’t it be better to take him by car? Walking might be difficult, and what if he teleports and gets motion sickness and collapses?”
I was already past feeling dizzy, so that was an exaggeration. Besides, I wasn’t so weak that a little dizziness would make me collapse.
“My arms hurt… Could one of you at least let go?”
Since neither of them was willing to give in, the standoff only continued. For the sake of my aching shoulders, I had no choice but to complain.
“Sorry. It’s not too painful, right?”
“Did it hurt a lot?”
They asked simultaneously as they finally let go of me. I couldn’t understand why they’d fought a power struggle only to give in so easily.
“It was just a little dizziness, so there’s no need to overreact. My arms only hurt briefly because you both were too strong. I’m fine now.”
Their suspicious gazes were unpleasant, but proving that I was fine would be enough.
“Kwonhoo, I’ll see you tomorrow. I don’t get motion sickness when I teleport, so let’s ask him to take me home. He’s busy too, after all.”
I deliberately referred to the teleport-capable person waiting at a distance. Kang Kwonhoo, perhaps thinking he should check his loudly ringing phone, withdrew obediently.
“Alright. I’ll send the strategy info by email. Woojin.”
Meanwhile, Baek Sohyeok didn’t respond to the suggestion to head back and instead asked with a hint of displeasure:
“Kwonhoo? Are you calling him just by his name now?”
I realized my mistake. Normally, I’d call him “Kang Kwonhoo,” but after internally cursing him so much today, I had naturally dropped his surname.
“Jisoo and Juni have always called him that, so…”
I tried to act nonchalant, but Baek Sohyeok didn’t seem satisfied; his expression didn’t change. Realizing I might be stuck here all day otherwise, I urged him again to go home. I had no time to waste because I needed to check the newly arrived quest and plan accordingly.
“My legs hurt. And the cat’s getting bored; he wants to come out of the cage too.”
Knowing how quickly Baek Sohyeok would respond to complaints about pain, I exaggerated a little. As expected, he immediately called the teleport-capable person, saying, “Woojin’s legs can’t hurt.”
“I should’ve joined your guild too.”
Watching the person rush over, Baek Sohyeok murmured this. His face looked so lonely that I didn’t ask if it was appropriate to say that with a DoHwa guild member nearby.
“Let’s rest a bit before eating. I’ll finish my guild work and come back.”
Baek Sohyeok still had unfinished tasks, it seemed. He prepared to leave for the guild again after taking me home. I felt a little conflicted, thinking it might have been easier to just send the teleport-capable person, but I was also grateful that he cared about me.
“No rush. You can eat slowly.”
I was hungry since I’d skipped a meal after waking up late, but having had a snack earlier, I could manage.
“Alright. I’ll buy something to eat, so don’t bother preparing it by yourself.”
I had intended to snack while he was gone, but his words made me flinch and nod. I decided against sneaking more food; it would be better to enjoy it together.
“Contact me if anything happens.”
He probably had a lot to prepare since we might have to go on a sudden hunt. After confirming he left, I sat on the sofa and opened the status window that had been glowing since earlier.
[Special Quest: “Handling the King of the Planarians, a Different Species”
Difficulty: S
Clear Condition: Participate as a member of the ‘Chaos’ faction in hunting the ‘King of the Planarians’ and achieve at least 10% contribution.
Time Limit: 14 days
Reward on Success: Permanently increases guild members’ mana by 10%, and allows acquisition of one artifact from the ‘King of the Planarians’.
Penalty on Failure: One current member of the Chronos Guild will die.]
Once again, the failure penalty remained the same. Judging by my previous emotional reaction, it seemed they decided to keep it.
‘They seem more excited to find an efficient way to threaten me than to target my life directly.’
The thought of that being, unaware that I wouldn’t follow its wishes this time, made my anger surge.
‘It’s not even confirmed that this quest-giver is just one entity, but it’s probably a single one rather than a group.’
I couldn’t ignore an entity that seemed to oppose the system forever, and I needed a way to address it.
‘Should I call it a god?’
Since it wasn’t human and only interfered with me through quests, I still felt some resistance to calling it a ‘god.’
“First, let’s figure out how to handle this quest.”
I decided to relax while letting the cat out of its cage. Fourteen days wasn’t long, but it wasn’t as urgent as the last quest.
‘How can I meet the quest conditions, avoid the failure penalty, and still not do exactly what it wants?’
I could categorize the quest-giver’s desires into three points:
- The Chaos faction completes the quest.
- I participate in hunting the King of the Planarians.
- The Chronos Guild achieves at least 10% contribution.
The most important was the first. The other two were necessary conditions, but not the first.
‘If I succeed at the second and third but let the overall contribution favor the Order side, that could work too.’
It wasn’t simple to implement, but theoretically, it made sense. I began calculating a plan in my head, feeling like a lone chess player.
‘For now, let’s aim to reach the last fifth floor within a week.’
No matter how capable Jupiter was, it would be impossible to reach floors 4 and 5 within a week. So, we should aim to reach the third floor in two days and track Jupiter.
‘We should try to synchronize our entry speed into the fifth floor as much as possible.’
“Start preparing from tomorrow, cat.”
The battles would intensify from the second floor. My cat’s flying skill would become essential.
“If I want, it should grow again like last time, right?”
I felt sudden anxiety, but decided to trust my Beast Tamer skill and the cat’s loyalty.
‘Even at a low skill level, it followed me, so now that the skill has leveled up, it should be much better.’
The next day, unlike my growing worry after receiving Kang Kwonhoo’s data, the strategy was straightforward.
“Don’t worry; just gather all the wandering Planarians and send them to me!”
The second floor was practically Ryu Jisoo’s stage. Even without riding the cat, she practically flew. She could jump to almost impossible heights and used strength that made me question if it was humanly possible.
“So that’s why she was eager to forcibly manifest her skills.”
I couldn’t help but admire Kang Kwonhoo’s insight and Ryu Jisoo’s abilities. She was so remarkable that newly arrived guild members on the second floor were left staring.
“If this continues, reaching the third floor should be easy, right?”
“The test for getting the door to the third floor is the same for everyone, unlike the random test on the second floor. It’s easier to prepare for.”
Baek Sohyeok, having nothing else to do, explained from the side.
“What’s the test about?”
