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Suhyuk shared a simple meal prepared by Jinwoon.

The modest table consisted of seasoned vegetables, braised radish, and an egg soup.

Picking up the vegetables with his chopsticks, Jinwoon spoke.

“You’re tenacious too.”

He paused, momentarily taken aback by his own words.

Suhyuk continued eating with his chopsticks and said,

“It’s fine.”

“…That was a slip.”

“It’s natural to compare. We even share the same name.”

Tap, tap—

Suhyuk playfully tapped his mask with his chopsticks as he spoke.

“My face probably looks the same because of this too.”

Jinwoon had mentioned “you too,” implicitly comparing him to the past Lee Suhyuk.

Jinwoon hadn’t intended to voice his thoughts out loud, especially not in his presence. But the long hours of work had affected his focus.

‘What’s there to be upset about?’

Suhyuk chuckled at Jinwoon’s reaction while chewing on the vegetables.

‘After all, they’re both me.’

In fact, he felt thankful. It meant they hadn’t forgotten about him.

Both Jinwoon and Un Hyang.

Being with them brought a sense of ease, probably because of this very reason.

“I almost gave up once during the process. It wasn’t as easy as I thought.”

His back still felt sore from the procedure. The tearing and burning pain had lasted for days, leaving him mentally drained.

“That’s why I said you’re tenacious. I thought you might stop at least once.”

“Really?”

“How’s the effect?”

“It’s great. After all, it’s your procedure.”

Suhyuk was the one taken aback this time.

He had casually spoken as if he knew Jinwoon well. A quick glance showed that Jinwoon didn’t seem to notice anything unusual in his words.

Click—

Actually, Jinwoon seemed more curious about something else, as he paused his eating and asked,

“May I ask you something?”

“Yes. Go ahead.”

“Is this really necessary? For just the 6th floor.”

So that’s what he was curious about.

It was indeed a reasonable question. If anyone, Jinwoon would be aware of Suhyuk’s current condition.

Naturally.

“When you perform a procedure, you learn quite a lot about a person. Especially regarding their physical state.”

Jinwoon seemed to comprehend Suhyuk’s situation as if he were viewing a status window.

“You’re more than a match for most high-rankers already.”

“…Yes, probably.”

Even before the procedure, he could hold his own, but after, the gap widened even more.

Post-procedure, Suhyuk had reached a level where he could rival most high-rankers without even using his Lightning Lord skill.

“Why do you do it? Perfectionism? For the stream?”

“For the process.”

“The process?”

“Yes. In tests, how you proceed is the most important. The result is merely a period at the end of that evaluation.”

This was a value Suhyuk had held for a long time.

“If you only focus on climbing higher, there will come a moment when you hit a wall. Inevitably.”

To conquer the tower, whose height was unknown, one had to proceed step by step, cautiously.

“Is that so?”

Sip—

Jinwoon took a sip of the warm tea, hiding a faint smile he couldn’t suppress.

After all, they were alike.

*

Cha Unhyeop couldn’t believe his eyes.

Even witnessing it, it felt unreal.

Eight elite martial artists of Shinryeonseong had fallen. And it happened within just a few minutes.

Among them was Won-guk.

‘To detect Won-guk’s stealth technique while fighting Shinryeonseong’s elite.’

When it came to stealth techniques, Won-guk was among the top three in Shinryeonseong. While Cha Unhyeop had drawn attention, it was Won-guk who had initially taken Cheon Ryang hostage, concealing himself perfectly.

But Lee Suhyuk had even managed to cut down Won-guk.

‘I miscalculated.’

It was true that they had timed the attack to coincide with Lee Suhyuk’s absence. But it wasn’t because they feared his skill.

The real danger Lee Suhyuk posed was his ability to attract tens of thousands of simultaneous viewers as a streamer. From Shinryeonseong’s perspective, creating a ruckus was undesirable.

However.

Lee Suhyuk had not threatened them with his stream. Instead, he had cut down Shinryeonseong’s martial artists purely with his skill.

‘Lee Suhyuk and the genius.’

Swish—

Lowering his sword, Cha Unhyeop sighed.

‘Both far exceeded my expectations.’

This mission had failed.

His own condition wasn’t great. The recent wounds bled profusely, and now he had another opponent to face.

At this rate…

‘This might be my grave.’

But then.

“Seems like it’s over. Aren’t you leaving?”

Cha Unhyeop squinted at Un Hyang’s unexpected remark.

“Leave?”

“Or are you planning to die here? Do you have two lives, Master?”

She didn’t seem to be bluffing. Her sword was lowered, and she appeared earnest.

“Just promise me one thing. If you return, never come after me again. With that promise, I’ll consider you dead here and let you go.”

“…Really?”

“If you keep hesitating, I’ll change my mind. I’ll count to five, and by then, you better be gone. One, two, three…”

There was no time to think.

Nodding, Cha Unhyeop leaped away. From the center of the devastated forest, Un Hyang’s gaze followed the direction in which he disappeared.

“…Five.”

And in that moment.

Whoosh—

Faster than she had moved while fighting Cha Unhyeop, Un Hyang rushed to Suhyuk.

“Suhyuk!”

*

『’Selfish Sacrifice lv6′ resists ‘Lightning Lord.’』

『’Heart of Thunder’ is activated.』

『Resisting status abnormality: Electric Shock.』

『…….』

It seemed he was in a dangerous state.

Judging by the continuous alerts.

‘About three minutes.’

Crackle—

The strength that had filled his body dispersed. As ‘Lightning Lord’ deactivated, he felt like a deflating balloon.

‘The procedure’s effect sure is noticeable.’

Although brief, it was sufficient for combat. Considering that 30 seconds was the limit before the procedure, this was a significant improvement.

‘That’s great, but…’

He felt completely drained, as if suffering from dehydration.

But the fight wasn’t over yet.

There was still one left.

The most dangerous one.

‘I can’t collapse just yet.’

『Fatigue has reached 91.』

His fatigue level was at its limit for further combat. But only he knew that.

He couldn’t let the enemy underestimate him. If possible, he needed to end this fight here.

Fortunately, Cha Unhyeop had departed after conversing with Un Hyang.

Immediately after.

“Suhyuk!”

Un Hyang, running faster than he had ever seen, checked him over anxiously.

“Are you hurt anywhere? Any wounds? I saw you pushing yourself back there…”

It seemed she knew his condition.

After all.

She was not only his manager but also a huge fan of Lee Suhyuk. She was well aware of the side effects of ‘Lightning Lord’ and Suhyuk’s current capabilities.

So, she must have realized.

That his condition was far from okay.

From up close, Suhyuk noticed Un Hyang’s wounds.

Several large wounds. Even more small ones.

Though the blows missed vital spots, likely aiming to capture her alive, the extent of bleeding could have made her collapse at any moment.

“What about you, Manager?”

“Me? Why?”

“You seem well enough to move.”

“Oh, this?”

As if just remembered, Un Hyang looked over her body.

Then.

“Right…”

She staggered as if dizzy, leaning on Suhyuk.

Both of them were out of strength. If Cha Unhyeop had continued the fight, the situation would have been dire.

“Let’s get out of here.”

Suhyuk, who was in a slightly better condition, helped her up, intending to leave quickly before Cha Unhyeop could return.

“Un Hyang! Un-hyaaang!”

From afar came Cheon Ryang’s urgent voice.

They exchanged relieved glances and smiles.

*

Cheon Ryang, who arrived late, carried Suhyuk and Un Hyang back to the inn.

After treating her wounds and bandaging them, Un Hyang quickly fell asleep.

Or rather.

She had already been nodding off on Cheon Ryang’s shoulder.

“This wasn’t what I planned.”

Cheon Ryang rotated his stiff shoulders, aching from carrying them.

Suhyuk looked at Cheon Ryang, who appeared calm as ever.

With dawn approaching, they sat side-by-side on the veranda. Inside, Un Hyang was fast asleep.

“Are you alright, Suhyuk?”

“I’m not injured. It’s just the side effects of the skill.”

His fatigue level was high, but he could still move. Since he had no wounds, there was no risk of reopening any injuries by moving around.

Ideally, he wanted to sleep beside Un Hyang.

But given the situation, he couldn’t afford to sleep soundly.

“… Thank you.”

To Cheon Ryang’s gratitude, Suhyuk nodded.

“Think nothing of it.”

“But still, you fought battles you didn’t need to because of us. And… with…”

Cheon Ryang hesitated, struggling to verbalize the reality.

“…with the Murim World.”

His apology was understandable.

The Murim World was a vast power. In fact, it was more accurate to call it an entire world rather than just a faction.

Becoming enemies with the Murim World was akin to making enemies with an entire world.

However.

“It doesn’t matter.”

Nothing had changed.

Only the timing had been accelerated a bit.

‘We would have clashed with the Murim World eventually.’

The Murim World were the ones who betrayed his comrades along with Kim Ilsoo. Suhyuk would inevitably have to clash swords with them in the future.

But he lacked justification.

The Murim World valued justification above all else. If there was justification, there would be no problem; without it, the entire Murim World would move to eradicate the enemy.

In that sense, this fight wasn’t unfavorable for Suhyuk either.

As a streamer, protecting his manager provided a solid justification.

However.

“Isn’t it time to tell me now?”

He had hoped she would tell him first if possible.

But now, it was truly difficult to wait any longer.

“I feel like I’m already involved.”

The connection between Un Hyang and the Murim World.

How the two were entangled, why the Murim World was targeting Un Hyang.

Why Un Hyang hated the Murim World so much.

“… Alright.”

Cheon Ryang nodded.

Suhyuk had helped them without hesitating to make enemies with the Murim World. Now that things had come to this, it was time to tell him.

“It’s time you knew.”

And so, Cheon Ryang began his story.

TL’s Corner:

Cue Miley Cyrus’s “The climb”.