Chapter 129
Even dealing with the situation right in front of me was already enough to occupy my mind… so what is this now?
I frowned and tried to recall how many low-grade story stones I currently had.
Honestly, I had quite a lot of story stone overall.
All the ones that my master killed in Hermadion had become mine.
But most of them were the lowest grade.
As for low-grade…
‘Probably around twenty.’
Paying six wasn’t impossible.
The issue wasn’t whether I could pay… it was whether it was worth it.
What if I opened it now, only for it to unlock soon anyway?
What if it opened naturally upon reaching the next level?
The window kept urging me to choose.
What if I shut my eyes and spent the stones, only to get a useless hint?
—
[Then, shall we try a different deal?]
—
The window suddenly changed.
The text began to rearrange itself.
—
[Chapter 21, Information Merchant ▼]
Hmm, alright. This kind-hearted narrator suggests we talk about something else.
I believe knowing exactly what the skill ‘???’ is will be an important turning point in determining whether your previous deal succeeds!
So then… what is the skill ‘???’?
[〉 Obtain information. (Requires 10 lowest-grade story stone)]
[〉 Do not obtain information.]
—
The number increased, but the grade dropped.
At that point, it was practically being handed to me for free.
The window shook slightly… as if tempting me.
As if asking, “You’re still not going to take it?”
‘…It’s basically free.’
It really was.
But it didn’t feel good.
Still, I chose to obtain the information.
The window appeared again before my eyes.
—
[‘???’ has exceeded 3. The skill ‘Bond’ is unlocked.]
[The skill ‘Bond’ is sealed because ‘???’ has not been identified. It cannot be used.]
—
Bond?
Something related to emotions?
That would make sense.
Is ‘???’ something like affinity?
Then does that mean… until now, I hadn’t had a single person whose affinity exceeded 3?
But this couldn’t be the kind of “affinity” from dating sims.
If it were, there’s no way Kim Taekjin would have that high of a value toward me.
He doesn’t even know who I am… how would he like me?
At best, it would be camaraderie or basic human favorability.
‘And the first one to exceed 3 is Kim Taekjin?’
Someone who just met me?
For a moment, I looked at Lee Hoin… then stopped.
I decided not to think too deeply about it.
But the window forced itself into view anyway, against my will.
—
[Sa Jaeheon (Eternal □□□) of the “Ruined World”]
Importance: 5/5
???: 1.6/5
<Records>
A character whose actions are confirmed in every chapter.
Search the chapters below to track his actions.
—
Windows I had never checked before…
—
[Lee Hyun (□□□ □□□) of the “Ruined World”]
Importance: 3/5
???: 1.1/5
<Records>
A character whose actions are confirmed in certain chapters.
Search the chapters below to track his actions.
[Lee Hoin (□□□ Companion) of the “Ruined World”]
Importance: 2/5
???: 1/5
<Records>
A character whose actions are confirmed in certain chapters.
Search the chapters below to track his actions.
—
Most values hovered between 1 and 2.
If my interpretation was correct, I already knew better than anyone that Sa Jaeheon’s value would be low… but for Lee Hoin’s to be even lower than his…
‘…That stings.’
How could Lee Hoin’s be lower than Sa Jaeheon’s?
Unless something was wrong with the calculation… does that mean Lee Hoin dislikes me more than the guy who tried to kill me?
Even after all the time we’ve spent together?
I let out a breath.
Something was wrong.
At the same time, I realized… checking this skill in the first place was a mistake.
I had only barely learned its name, and already I was making wild assumptions like this.
If I wanted to confirm whether my guesses were true…
I would have to look at that information.
I’d have to gamble on something that might not even give a proper answer.
‘Lee Hoin’s human-level favorability toward me is lower than someone who tried to kill me?’
Then what’s the problem?
Is the issue that the one who tried to kill me is too high… or… was my entire interpretation wrong?
If it’s not what I think… then in the end…
—
[Chapter 22, Information Merchant ▼]
To unlock the skill ‘???’, you must identify what ‘???’ is. But how can you know what it is? Should you simply wait aimlessly until you obtain it?
Now then, for the uncertain you, here is another choice:
[〉 Obtain information. (Requires 6 low-grade story stone)]
[〉 Do not obtain information.]
—
I had to use it.
It felt like I was being played, but what else could I do?
In the end, I chose to obtain the information.
—
[Hint! To unlock ‘???’, raise the level to 2.]
—
Ah, you bastard.
The window began shaking wildly, as if mocking me.
—
[To raise the level to 3, you only need to record 3 more people.]
[How is it? Isn’t that kind?]
—
Kind my ass.
I let out a sigh and pressed my fingers to my brow.
Three people.
If I record just three more people, the level will become 3… and that damn ‘???’ will unlock.
For now, I exhaled and looked past the tunnel.
“What do you want?”
Lee Hoin still held his sword.
Kim Taekjin stood facing us.
There was a high chance Do Yoseol had sent him.
I didn’t know why his ??? value was so high… but still.
Kim Taekjin stayed silent for a moment before speaking.
“I want to come with you.”
At that, I instinctively frowned.
He wants to come with us?
What’s his angle?
Why?
Why did he judge us to be better than Do Yoseol and Yugil?
I frowned, thinking.
“Ha.”
Lee Hoin let out a dry laugh, clearly finding it absurd.
Despite the sharp reaction, Kim Taekjin spoke again.
He seemed to have already made up his mind.
That was the strangest part.
We had no intention of accepting him.
“I heard about Mr. Lee Hyun.”
And then… he went straight to the point.
Maybe he thought persuasion and roundabout talk wouldn’t work.
Or maybe there was another reason.
He wasn’t someone lacking awareness.
“Mr. Do Yoseol evaluates Mr. Lee Hyun as naïve, but… well. You can’t judge everything from just a brief encounter, but still.”
There it was.
A professional running his mouth.
“Rather than naïve, he’s the type who lacks a firm will. I know that’s what he meant when he phrased it as ‘naïve.’”
Blunt words, one after another.
A clear display of how much he knew… how much he had analyzed.
This much…
I am not hostile to you.
He was showing it openly.
“Mr. Do Yoseol is that kind of person. The type who avoids losses even with a single sentence.”
“…Let’s get to the point. You didn’t follow us just to badmouth someone behind their back. What does hearing about Mr. Lee Hyun have to do with wanting to come with us?”
“Mr. Do Yoseol likely thought Mr. Lee Hyun was simply swept along. That’s why he said what he did. But the last Mr. Lee Hyun I saw made a choice. According to Mr. Do Yoseol’s explanation, he isn’t someone with a particularly strong sense of self, but he clearly chose to leave. He wasn’t swept along.”
Silence settled briefly.
“Some say he has no self, but what I saw was someone with one. He chose, of his own will, to go find Mr. Nam Muyeong. He said there were things he heard from you… and things he still needed to hear.”
“……”
“He didn’t know where you were. Didn’t know where you went. Had no contact information. And yet, he abandoned all the other weak people at the mart to go find you. That… was refreshing, more than I expected. I didn’t think Mr. Lee Hyun was that kind of person.”
One eyebrow lifted.
So?
“You can tell how Mr. Lee Hyun lived his life just by looking. The profession of being a police officer is like that to begin with. The fact that he abandoned all of that just to go hear something–”
“Excuse me.”
“Mr. Do Yoseol phrased it as him being put on a leash by someone else, but I saw it as the process of him gaining a sense of self. To Mr. Lee Hyun, hearing a few words from you was more important than this place. From his perspective, this space was ‘less important.’ He made a judgment. Based on his own values.”
Kim Taekjin continued.
“After he left, I asked around about him. Whether he was always like that.”
That kind of person.
The nuance was strange.
“I asked Mr. Do Yoseol. I asked others too. But they all said no. In fact, they didn’t even believe he had left. They believed he would come back.”
What does Lee Hyun’s behavior have to do with wanting to join us?
Changing one person and survival are separate matters.
It’s not like Lee Hyun is even with us right now.
“Excuse me.”
As I tried to call him again…
Kim Taekjin spoke:
“I kept asking around about Mr. Lee Hyun like that, and eventually I met someone who knows you, Mr. Nam Muyeong. Mr. Kim Woohyun. You know him, right?”
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