Episode 19
“I’ll keep an eye on these two, so Mr. Han Chasu, please check for yourself.”
Thanks to Jeong Iheun’s considerate kindness, Han Chasu called up the system window from a suitable distance.
And then he found himself more than a little flustered by the barrage of unchecked messages that followed.[ The hidden boss, “Resentment of the Frost Giant Shaman,” has been defeated. ][ ——Dungeon conquest complete—— ][ Notice! ][ Calculating rewards based on conquest contribution. ][ Calculating contribution… ][ Calculation complete ][ Congratulations. ][ Conquest contribution, 1st place: Han Chasu ][ Would you like to disclose your contribution? Y/N ]
Below that was a message saying that, because time had passed, his contribution had not been disclosed.‘No wonder it was so noisy in front of my eyes when I lost consciousness. These must have been flashing by.’Ordinary dungeons did not announce contribution rankings like this after a conquest was completed.
In other words, this was an exceptional situation.
Han Chasu calmly skimmed through the messages that had passed.
“How is it? Just like I said, right?”
Geum Myeonggyeol whined from where he lay sprawled on the ground.
Whether he did or not, Han Chasu kept scrolling down.
His gray eyes swept through the air as lightly as dust.‘Still, this is strange. When I looked at the inventory window, there wasn’t anything that looked like a reward.’“Ah.”
As he scanned down the message window, something caught his eye.[ Please claim your reward within one hour. ][ Unclaimed rewards will be placed in temporary storage. ][ Items placed in temporary storage will disappear after 30 days, so please take caution. ][ Item scheduled to disappear: Cursed Earrings of Resonance ]
Temporary storage, was it.
Han Chasu dismissed the message window and opened his inventory.
At the bottom right of the inventory window.
A red light was blinking over a dull gray icon.
No wonder he couldn’t see it, if they had tucked it away like this. Han Chasu pressed the icon and frowned at the storage packed full of items.
“Why is there so much junk….”
The words he had been muttering quietly came to a natural stop.
It was because he had discovered a pair of items emitting a brilliant blue light.[ Cursed Earrings of Resonance ]
With that fine sheen, anyone could tell it was the reward obtained from defeating the hidden boss.
When he moved the earrings into his inventory and opened their information, a system window soon appeared.[ Cursed Earrings of Resonance ]
Earrings worn by a priest who served an ominous god. The owner’s blood has dried onto them.
He could not see their detailed effects because it seemed a specialized appraisal skill was required, but that much was enough.
Han Chasu pressed a hand to his head with a sigh.
The moment he saw the earrings’ description, he remembered a passage from the original work that had come to mind before entering the gate.[“A message has arrived from Jeong Iheun, Guildmaster of Cheollyeong.”
A savage aura burst from Geum Myeonggyeol as he checked the message.
“You’re telling me that bastard was the one who broke the Plague God’s Earrings.”
Han Chasu, that lowly wretch who had toyed with the Cheollyeong Guild, had even made an attempt on his life.
“I’ll make sure he sees hell even after he dies.”A cruel light settled in the eyes of S-rank curse master Geum Myeonggyeol.]‘I was planning to hand over the item anyway.’Even when he had not known what Geum Myeonggyeol wanted from him, he had intended to comply if at all possible.
Because he planned to remain, to the very end, an innocent B-rank potion maker.
Even for the sake of the future when he would sort everything out and disappear, he intended not to create any useless grudges.
But….
Han Chasu slowly drew in a breath, then turned his head little by little so as not to make it obvious.
Geum Myeonggyeol was sending an intense gaze his way.‘As expected.’After calmly looking Geum Myeonggyeol over, Han Chasu lowered his hand, clenched his fist tightly, and opened it again.
He had no hobby of examining another man’s earlobes, so he had failed to notice.
S-rank curse master Geum Myeonggyeol.
He had come looking for him in order to obtain an item to replace the “Plague God’s Earrings” that Han Chasu of the original work had destroyed.‘They said his combat power nearly doubled after he got his hands on the Plague God’s Earrings. I can see why he’d be regretful.’Han Chasu’s gaze as he looked at Geum Myeonggyeol was serious.
The only fortunate thing was that Geum Myeonggyeol had not realized his crime and come to kill him.‘If that were the case, I would have lost my life on the bridge long ago.’Even so, he could not stop his heart from pounding on its own.
The extreme stress made the back of his neck stiffen.
How had things gotten this tangled?
Rubbing the back of his neck as he calmly reflected on the situation, Han Chasu soon identified the cause.‘This is all because I possessed a villain’s body.’And not even a major villain from the original work, but a supporting villain so pathetic he was beyond insignificant.
But what could he do about it now?
It had already happened, and Han Chasu could not undo it.
Even if he found a way to go back….
“Mr. Han Chasu.”
“Ah, Guildmaster.”
“Are you all right?”
When did he get this close?
At the distance where their breaths could touch, Han Chasu stepped backward.
Charred debris scattered at his feet.
“It seems I startled you. I apologize.”
Jeong Iheun straightened from where he had bent down with an awkward smile and stepped back.
“It looked like the paralysis over there would wear off soon, so I thought I should let you know.”
“Ah.”
When he craned his neck to look behind Jeong Iheun, Geum Myeonggyeol was wriggling this way and that.
From the look of him, he was ready to break free and rush over at any moment.
“What would you like me to do?”
Whoosh, a flame lit the space above his head.
“Shall I leave him in a state where conversation is possible, or would you prefer him incapable of resistance?”
It was the sort of question one asked when asking whether he preferred his steak well-done or rare.
“Neither is necessary.”
Han Chasu shook his head with a grave expression.
“All I wanted was to know the reason for the attack and receive an apology for it.”
He had not yet received a proper apology, but Han Chasu was not particularly fixated on that.‘Having Jeong Iheun stomp him is enough.’If it came down to hand-to-hand combat anyway, he had no chance of winning.
He was A-rank, and the other side was a proud S-rank.
He decided to be satisfied enough with having seen him thoroughly dealt with by Jeong Iheun.‘Rather than provoking him directly and creating trouble later, it’s better to just leave him alone.’That was far more advantageous for survival as well.
“Is that so?”
Jeong Iheun looked as though he found Han Chasu’s decision unexpected.
But the victim was unquestionably Han Chasu.
Moreover, now that he had experienced how Han Chasu rarely bent his stubbornness, Jeong Iheun obediently accepted it.
“Understood. If that is what you wish, Mr. Han Chasu.”
Together with Jeong Iheun, who shrugged his shoulders, Han Chasu approached Geum Myeonggyeol.
Just then, the paralysis had worn off and he was trying to rise.
“Ugh, I really didn’t think you’d hit me in the back like this.”
“Guildmaster Geum Myeonggyeol.”
“Mr. Han Chasu, how can you make a person like this with that prim and proper face?”
Instead of soothing him, Han Chasu took out the reagent bottle he had placed in his inner pocket.
“Guildmaster Geum Myeonggyeol. Who was the one who attacked me first?”
“Mm.”
“And who would be the one currently holding the gate return stone?”
Behind Han Chasu, Jeong Iheun folded his arms and smiled.
“…….”
He had finally managed to shut him up.
He had needed to borrow Jeong Iheun’s authority, but for now, this was enough.
Han Chasu slowly held out his hand toward Geum Myeonggyeol, who glared up at him as if wronged.
“You said you were looking for this.”
On his rather firm hand lay a pair of earrings.
At first glance, they were simple earrings that did not seem particularly unusual.
They were made of thin silver strands hanging down like lines of rain, dotted with blue gemstones.
Toward the earrings lying carelessly on his palm without the slightest sense of danger, Geum Myeonggyeol unconsciously reached out, then clenched his fist.
The expression on his face as he looked at Han Chasu was filled with disbelief.
A rare item dropped by a hidden boss. On top of that, it was something he had rammed into a car to obtain.
There was no way he would hand it over this easily.
Sure enough.
“I would very much like to give it to you as well, but it seems that won’t be possible.”
“Ah….”
“Because it has ended up like this.”
Watching Geum Myeonggyeol’s despairing face impassively, Han Chasu placed the pair of earrings onto Geum Myeonggyeol’s hand.
Naturally, the earrings lay there quietly.
However, the very next moment.
“Damn it, why?”
Geum Myeonggyeol discovered that there was only one earring on his palm.
The other half was somehow already resting on Han Chasu’s hand.
What that meant was clear.
“Don’t tell me that’s a couple item?”
At Geum Myeonggyeol’s trembling question, Han Chasu nodded and skimmed the item information once more.[ Cursed Earrings of Resonance ]
Earrings worn by a priest who served an ominous god. The owner’s blood has dried onto them.
Below the basic description of the item, it said this.
-Couple Item (Bound)
The hidden boss drop item from the Frost Giant dungeon, the “Cursed Earrings of Resonance,” was a couple item that had to be worn by two people.