Chapter 63

"Hey, you. Who are you?"

"...."

"Can't you hear me? Who the hell are you?!"

"What do you mean?"

"That skill. , for fuck's sake. That skill isn't on your profile. How the hell did you hide it? Are you really an S-rank?"

"Rather than questioning whether my awakening rank is S-rank or not, you should focus on clearing the dungeon. only has 9 hours left."

While the other guild members had prioritized the dungeon raid and set aside their questions about Yoon Seo's identity and skill, Hong Euiyoon, as expected, couldn't hold back. Because of that, the other guild members pretended to focus on their tasks while sneaking glances at them.

"Don't use the dungeon raid as an excuse, you bastard."

Hong Euiyoon reached out as if to grab Yoon Seo by the collar, but Yoon Seo casually dodged. Hong Euiyoon's expression twisted in irritation.

"There's nothing to do until we find the boss monster anyway. Just spill everything already."

"I don't know what you want me to spill."

"Now that I think about it, wasn't it actually you who did something back at the exhibition hall? You can use a shield that lasts over 10,000 hours, so covering an area the size of Yangpyeong should be easy for you. You also knew the bomb would go off beforehand and desperately called out to Kwon Jihan."

Yoon Seo's face crumpled.

"I wasn't desperate."

"So it wasn't Seo Chaeyoon who showed up that day, but you who created the shield. Or…."

Hong Euiyoon hesitated for once before asking,

"Are you Seo Chaeyoon?"

"I am not."

For some reason, Hong Euiyoon's pupils trembled violently at Yoon Seo's firm denial. But soon, he wore a blatantly defiant expression.

"You just stood there doing nothing while people were struggling, only to use your skill at the last moment. You're as cowardly as Seo Chaeyoon. If you're not him, then it's just unfortunate that there are two cowards like you in the world."

People watching the tense standoff sucked in their breath. Fortunately, there were no Seo Chaeyoon groupies here. Alec was in a meeting, and the couple had gone to rest and recover their stamina and mana with potions.

"So, did you have fun watching weaklings tremble in fear while you sat on that overpowered skill?"

"Not really."

"You son of a bitch, you're so damn shameless…."

Just as Hong Euiyoon's already red eyes darkened further, someone rushed over in a hurry.

"Euiyoon hyung, stop and come over here. They're going to use to find the boss monster."

At Soo Jaehee's words, Hong Euiyoon shot him a sharp glare.

"I thought Alec and Kwon Jihan were finding the boss monster."

"They are, but apparently, the drone needs a fire-type skill to locate the boss. The boss has fire attributes, after all."

"…Yoon Seo, just wait right there."

After glaring at Yoon Seo, Hong Euiyoon stomped off toward the camper van, making loud footsteps. Inside, Team 2's leader, Park Soobin, Alec, and Kwon Jihan were in the middle of a meeting.

They had gathered to discuss how to defeat the boss within 's duration. Yoon Seo, using his S-rank hearing, was already listening in, so he knew exactly how things were progressing.

First, Alec would use to make multiple boss-detecting items called . Then, Hong Euiyoon would infuse the drones with a fire skill, giving them 'fire resistance' before sending them out. Since Kwon Jihan had active, he would immediately know once the item detected the boss.

Since the dungeon had been terraformed, they could now use , which would have previously melted away in the lava. In the end, it was all thanks to Yoon Seo.

"Hyung, are you okay?"

Soo Jaehee asked cautiously. Yoon Seo sat down in a recliner he pulled out from the guild's subspace.

"I'm fine. Hunter Jaehee, are you injured anywhere?"

"The healers already took care of everything."

"I see."

"...."

"...."

Soo Jaehee didn't even bother pulling out a chair and just plopped down next to Yoon Seo. He didn't seem to care that his clothes would get dirty. He scooped up a handful of dirt, then let out a hollow laugh.

"This is seriously insane. … When other people retire to the countryside, Hyung could just go live on Mars or the Moon."

Yoon Seo chuckled inwardly.

There would be no such thing as retirement for him.

"It consumes too much mana, so that won't be possible."

"Come on, you can just drink potions. I rarely envy other hunters' skills, but I really envy yours, hyung. Did you want to be a chemist before awakening? My dream was to be a veterinarian."

"Not really. I was just an ordinary student."

"Yeah, I'm not believing a word you say anymore."

His tone was joking, so Yoon Seo simply responded with a faint smile.

"I've never seen Gaia System send a message asking for understanding before. It actually felt kind of endearing. I used the item I got as a reward right away. Double experience points? That's a jackpot. Once we clear the dungeon and get the EXP bonus, I'm gonna buy a ton of flying items from the VVIP shop. I hope a summoner-usable flying skill pops up too."

"You're a VVIP too, Hunter Jaehee?"

"Of course. It's rare for an S-rank not to be. If we use weapons that don't match our rank, we can't handle the mana load, and they break."

Is that so? Yoon Seo, who had been using lower-ranked items just fine, tilted his head slightly. It seemed to be a matter of mana control.

"My skill, , was also bought from the VVIP shop. I used to be so jealous of summoners who had it, so when it finally showed up, I bought it immediately. I went broke on experience points because of that."

"Does an item disappear from the shop once someone buys it?"

"Yeah, whether it's an item or a skill, once someone buys it, it's gone. The shop updates at completely random times, and you can only open it inside dungeons. If you miss the timing, the shop might be completely empty the entire dungeon run. Considering there are hundreds of dungeons happening worldwide every day and each dungeon has at least five people in it, that means there are hundreds of players online at the same time. But there's only one shop. The competition in the normal shop is brutal. The VVIP tab is a bit better, though. Also, for people like us in big guilds, we don't even need to rely on the shop. We can just ask the item manufacturing department to make something. They still haven't managed to make the invisible cloak I requested, though."

Curious, Yoon Seo opened the shop tab.

There were about ten items available in the VIP section, but no skills. It seemed like most of them had already been bought.

"How many items are usually available in the VIP tab?"

"Usually around 30 items, and when it's full, there can be up to three skills. Right now, since it was just updated, there are still ten items left."

"When was the update?"

"Right after the last battle ended. The guild members all rushed in to buy flying items. might end, but you're not gonna drop dead instantly, hyung."

Soo Jaehee grinned.

Yoon Seo closed the system window and leaned back into the chair. Unlike Earth, this place had three suns and multiple moons. Sometimes there was just one, sometimes two. Tonight, there were two.

With Hong Euiyoon gone, the surroundings were quiet and peaceful. Everyone probably had a lot they wanted to ask Yoon Seo, but no one approached him.

Yoon Seo gazed at the yellow moon. He could feel Soo Jaehee stealing glances at him, but he didn't say anything. Eventually, Soo Jaehee spoke first.

"Hyung, thank you."

"...."

Yoon Seo turned to look at Soo Jaehee. Under the moonlight, his pale face concealed all emotions, making him seem as if he didn't belong to this world.

"What are you thankful for?"

"...."

Soo Jaehee swallowed once, feeling a strange tension, then spoke.

"You tried to keep that skill hidden no matter what. You could've kept it hidden forever, but in the end, you revealed your power to save the guild members. That's why I wanted to say thank you."

"There's no need for that."

"Huh?"

"I mean, you don't have to defend me. Hunter Hong Euiyoon is right. If I had used my skill sooner, we could've saved items and cleared the dungeon faster, but instead, I just stood by and watched. It's only natural to be angry about that. Having great power but not using it to protect the weak is neither righteous nor honorable."

Yoon Seo spoke calmly. Soo Jaehee narrowed his eyes.

"Ah, seriously, why are you making it so hard for me to take your side?"

"There's no need to take my side by glossing over the fact that I was unjust."

"…Ah, damn it…."

Soo Jaehee mumbled in frustration, messing up his hair. He looked like he had a lot to say but couldn't quite organize his thoughts. After a few minutes, he finally made up his mind and spoke.

"Hyung, do you want me to be honest or say something nice?"

"Be honest."

"To be honest, there are probably others who feel the same way as Euiyoon hyung."

At Soo Jaehee's firm voice, those who had been pretending not to listen flinched.

"I mean, it's true that everyone went through hell, right? I knew I wouldn't die even if I fell into the lava, but most people here aren't like us. They spent the past week clinging to life like they were hanging onto a rotten tree branch, feeling anxious and terrified. Their bodies and minds must've been completely wrecked. So, of course, they can't help but resent the fact that you only used your skill now."

"That's true."

Yoon Seo nodded.

Soo Jaehee quickly continued.

"But Hyung, to put it another way, you were the one who sent a lifeline to those people clinging to that rotten branch. In the end, you saved everyone."

"...."

"You know what? Last year, when they tried to clear an S-rank Red Dungeon, dozens of people died. Earlier this year, three more died in an S-rank Yellow Dungeon, and they couldn't even recover the bodies. But this time, that didn't happen. That's why I could never resent you."