The man, Go Yeong-chun, made his move. He swiftly took out the anesthesia he had prepared and started spraying it directly on Yeona’s face, who was holding the phone.
Tsssk. Pshh-!
It was an anesthesia that could make even a wild boar collapse in just a second. Of course, the manufacturer was none other than Go Yeong-chun himself.
In the life of a porter, there are naturally things one learns, and among them was knowledge about poisonous weeds. Go Yeong-chun made full use of such knowledge.
[Let’s just kill her here. Huh?]
[How boring. What are you timidly doing?]
[Hehehehe. Wasn’t it fun last time? Don’t you want to feel it again? Let’s just kill her fiercely without bothering with anything else!]
Amidst this, the voice of darkness continued.
In truth, he wanted to tear apart the woman and child in front of him without hesitation. However, the last remaining ounce of sanity held him back.
‘There are no witnesses, but you never know. I have to handle this as quietly as possible. The child’s mother will be here soon… Let’s finish this quickly and take the kid and leave.’
His conscience was shattered by Yeona’s piercing scream.
“Kyaa!”
“Eeuaaah! Sun…bae-nim!”
Following Yeona’s scream, the child burst into tears. A crying child was the last thing he wanted. The man roughly grabbed the hand of the child hiding behind Yeona’s back.
“This bitch. This is what happens when someone meddles in others’ affairs. Thanks to your meddling, I might be in trouble. Why didn’t you come here earlier?”
“Eeuaaah!”
At that moment, the child grabbed Yeona’s leg and sprawled on the ground. However, the strength of a child’s grip and that of an adult man are different. Go Yeong-chun didn’t seem to care about the child’s arm slipping from his grasp.
But his hand paused at the following voice. Yeona, who had suddenly regained consciousness, widened her eyes and exclaimed sharply.
“Gah! Bitch, did you just call me a bitch? No, more than that, you just sprayed something in my face!”
“Eeuaaah!”
“Uh? Jaewoo, it’s okay. Come to me!”
Yeona wiped off the unknown liquid and once again took the child’s hand, leading him away. The man seemed so surprised by Yeona’s voice that his grip on the child’s hand loosened completely.
“How are you…”
As mentioned earlier, the anesthesia he had prepared boasted powerful efficacy. It should have made her collapse along with her scream.
But why was she standing there perfectly fine? The man couldn’t comprehend the situation before him.
‘Could it be that I made a mistake? No, it must be something else!’
The man concluded. But the reality was different.
In fact, Yeona now possessed physical stats that surpassed those of a recently awakened man.
That’s not all. She also had resistance to most toxins. This was all thanks to the Hongsalmosa Potion she regularly consumed, the watch received as a gift from the Blue House, and a few miscellaneous artifacts.
Consistent intake of the potion had built up her resistance to poisons, and the watch she wore to avoid being ignored at her new school enhanced her physical stats.
She just wasn’t aware of it herself.
Meanwhile, as the man stared in astonishment.
Yeona took action.
“Jaewoo, it’s okay. Hold onto me tight, little brother.”
“Waaaaah-!”
She snatched the child from the man’s sinister grip. The young child, Jaewoo, instinctively wrapped his arms tightly around Yeona’s neck. Holding him close, Yeona thought to herself.
‘I can’t wait any longer.’
Since the man had revealed his hostility and taken action, she couldn’t just wait for her dad. With determination flashing in her eyes, she made up her mind. Then, she executed her decisive action.
‘Ignorance is no excuse for dying.’
Whack!
Yeona, holding the child in one arm, struck the bewildered man right where it counted. As her uncle always said, the preemptive strike was always the winning move, and the top priority was that spot.
“Aghhhh!, you, you crazy b*tch-!”
As expected, the man let out a painful scream. Yeona swiftly ran past the doubled-over man like a shrimp, ready to fight or flee.
On the other hand, the man, Go Young-chun, was enraged. The last thread of rationality vanished like melting snow. His mind was consumed with the single-minded determination to grab and tear Yeona apart.
Gritting his teeth, he straightened his back and hurriedly chased after Yuna. Jaewoo, who noticed the man following him, closed his eyes tightly and buried his head in the back of Yuna’s neck. A voice like a spell was heard in the child’s ears.
“Hu-uh, hu-uh. Hold onto Noona’s neck tightly. It’s okay. It’ll be okay. It’ll really be okay….”
It was the voice of Seoul Academy’s senior, Dok Yeona.
Meanwhile, at that moment.
Exiting from the F-grade dungeon, Jong-sik was expanding his perception. He was the one who harbored the magic embedded in the dungeon, in other words, searching for mines.
“It’s a closed-type dungeon, so there shouldn’t be monsters. They must have used humans as hosts.”
Since there wasn’t much time left until his promised meeting with Yeona, he planned to quickly wrap things up and leave.
Of course, if he had to travel far, he would have to wait for the next opportunity. The thought of toast kept popping into his mind.
‘Two pure beef patties on a sesame seed bun, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions. Parapappapam. come fast. Friends~’
“I wonder why I’m suddenly craving toast. Hmm.”
Anyway, just as his mouth watered.
Suddenly, he felt a familiar energy.
It was an energy consistent with the demonic energy that was spreading inside the dungeon.
“I’ve got you now. You’re not far from here. Hehe.”
For a moment, Jong-sik pounded the ground. But the more steps he took, the colder his expression became. There was only one reason for that.
He sensed the man’s energy near where he had promised to meet Yeona. Sure enough.
A moment later.
Jong-sik could see a man grabbing Yeona by the hair.
“This crazy bastard. How dare she hit me?”
“Ack! Let me go!”
Yeona resisted roughly. But even in the midst of it, she tightly held the child in her arms, rendering her unable to use her hands.
And witnessing this scene, Jong-sik’s eyes burned with determination.
“You’re dead. You bastard.”
At that moment, the man who had grabbed Yeona’s hair pulled out a sharp dagger from his embrace. Then he indiscriminately struck it towards Yeona.
Of course, Jong-sik wasn’t just going to stand there and watch. He fiercely wielded his magic blade with a stern expression.
Clang!
With the man’s severed hand falling to the ground along with the dagger.
“Aaaahhh! My, my hand!”
In intense agony, the man fell to his knees. Thanks to this, Yeona, who had escaped from his grip, ran forward again.
And then she saw him. Her Uncle, Jong-sik, approaching her.
“Uncle?!”
Feeling relieved that she was alive, Yeona’s legs momentarily gave out. Jong-sik grabbed her shoulders and lifted her up, saying,
“Sorry. I’m too late.”
“Ugh, ughhh.”
At his words, Yeona couldn’t hold back her tears any longer. The child in Yeona’s arms was already unconscious.
“For now, let’s go straight home. There’s no point in staying here any longer. Okay?”
“Sniff! I-I’ll report this to the police.”
“No. Go home and wait. Don’t do anything. I’ve made myself clear.”
Quiet as the eye of a storm. Despite his seething anger, Jong-sik’s expression as he spoke was peaceful. But there was undoubtedly anger beneath the surface.
Unable to resist Jong-sik’s words, Yeona nodded her head vigorously. And so Yeona left.
Meanwhile, the man, Go Yeong-chun, was fleeing, his severed hand discarded. It was only a momentary escape from the pain. Instinctively realizing the situation was dire, he fled.
But the man couldn’t escape from Jong-sik. The magic blade that had severed his hand now sliced through his ankle.
“Aaahhh!”
There was no left or right choice. Crimson blood spilled onto the ground. The man writhed on the ground like a crushed worm.
Jong-sik grabbed the man’s hair, just as he had done to Yeona, and dragged him away. Back to the abandoned station where he should have gone.
On the floor where Jong-sik and the man had passed, vivid bloodstains were left behind.
Some time later.
“Aaaahhhh!”
The man screamed as he was thrown by Jong-sik.
Thud!
“Grrgh.”
Simultaneously with the sound of something breaking, foam bubbled from the man’s mouth.
And thus, it began. The man tasted hell for a while. The pain was so intense that he begged for death.
“P-please kill me, kill me. Ughhh.”
However, Jong-sik did not grant him a peaceful death. As a result, Go Yeong-chun’s body was utterly miserable.
Of course, Jong-sik didn’t stop there. He even burned Go Yeong-chun’s soul.
“How dare you lay a hand on my niece.”
There was no trace of emotion in Jong-sik’s eyes as he looked down at the body. Even though it was his first kill. Ah, but it meant the return afterward.
Anyway, Jong-sik contacted someone afterward.
It was Nam Woo-jong, the head of the association, who always said to contact him if any trouble arose.
“Isn’t this Dok Jong-shik?”
“You said to call you anytime if there was trouble, right?”
“Of course. So what’s going on?”
“I killed someone.”
“….”
“A human who tried to kill my niece and a child, no, a villain.”
Although he had clearly told Yeona not to report it, it was inevitable. So Jong-sik took the lead.
Moreover, the child with Yeona wasn’t even his relative, so he couldn’t tell her to keep quiet.
Meanwhile, Association Chairman Nam Woo-jong was troubled by Jong-sik’s subsequent words. He was worried that he was being asked to handle the aftermath of killing an innocent person.
“Heh heh. What nonsense. But are you sure he’s a Criminal?”
“Do I seem like someone who just randomly kills people?”
If he was indeed a criminal, then this was not a problem. It was a deed worthy of praise.
And one deserving of praise shouldn’t get entangled in trivial matters.
“Surely not. You’re not that kind of person. So where are you right now?”
“Here is…”
“Our people will be there soon. Just wait a moment. That much should be possible, right?”
“Of course.”
In the end, Association Chairman Nam Woo-jong took action. After hanging up the phone, he quickly dispatched one of his direct subordinates.
A moment later,
The police sent by Chairman Nam Woo-jong arrived at the scene. Normally, they would have taken Jong-sik into custody to investigate the circumstances before and after the incident, but they didn’t.
There were instructions from above. Thanks to that, Jong-sik could return home straight away.
Naturally, the restaurant door was locked. There was no way they’d be selling food at a time like this. Jong-sik opened the front door and entered the house.
“Uncle!”
“Hyung!”
“Jong-pal, hyungnim!”
His family welcomed him with excitement. Even Jong-pal and Trigo were coming out of the room. It seems they were planning to visit Jong-sik.
“Hyung, are you okay?”
“Hey. But what about Yeona? I couldn’t properly check earlier. She’s not injured anywhere, is she?”
Jong-pal was concerned about Jong-sik’s well-being, and Jong-sik was worried about Yeona’s well-being.
“Oh, she’s fine. Thanks to you, I was able to come back safely. You have no idea how surprised I was!”
He must have been really surprised. Jong-pal’s hand holding Jong-sik’s shoulder was trembling. Jong-sik firmly held his younger brother’s hand.
“You don’t need to worry about me now.”
“You’re saying that now? How can your little brother not worry about his big brother! And why did you tell Yeona not to report to the police? Why…!”
Jong-sik chuckled and reassured Jong-pal’s worries. Then he changed the subject.
“I called the police myself. So don’t worry, okay? By the way, is the kid okay? The one Yeona was with.”
At his laughter, Jong-pal let out a deep sigh and said,
“Ha, I contacted his parents’ contact information when I came to my senses for a moment and called them.”
It was then.
Knock, knock.
Someone began to knock roughly on Jong-sik’s front door. It seemed even the tiger comes when called. Somehow, he had a feeling he knew who the visitor was.
