Chapter 167

 

“No, it’s not because you’re a constella— I mean, it’s because you, Cloud… you’re part of the holy element.”

My voice faltered in my confusion. But then I remembered—Seong San-ha was also a healer, and not just any healer, but an S-rank one often called the pinnacle of the holy system. If even someone like him couldn’t cure the curse, then just being aligned with the holy element couldn’t be the only reason.

‘What if… it really is because of the constellar link?’

It sounded ridiculous—but the moment that new hypothesis crossed my mind, my eyes widened.

“…I have to test it.”

I tossed some long-lasting treats to Cloud and Root to keep them busy, then walked over to Seong San-ha. The traces of the curse had spread all the way up to his shoulder, and though it was horrifying to look at, the pity I felt was stronger than the fear.

“Tch, I’m only doing this because I have something to gain. You better believe I’ll be getting a reward for this.”

I spread out my crafting tools and set up a simple barrier around the area to prevent contamination. Cloud and Root seemed fascinated by the unfamiliar barrier, poking their heads in and out, but I shooed them out and began by thoroughly cleaning Seong San-ha’s arm from the hand to the shoulder with purified water.

I could’ve sworn I’d filled my storage item to the brim with it before entering the dungeon. Over 500 liters, at least. And yet it was almost empty.

“Well, it has been a while since we came in… Hope the workshop’s still okay.”

I missed Seung-yeon, the customers, and the daily hum of my shop. If I wanted to get back soon, Seong San-ha had to wake up.

His skin felt strangely different from normal as I absentmindedly ran my hand over it, then I snapped out of it, took a deep breath, and lifted his arm.

“So I need to… lick… or suck on this, huh…”

I glanced nervously at his face, then resolutely leaned down and bit into his hand.

“…Mmph!”

Root and Cloud, who had been watching from outside the barrier, jumped in surprise. Their round eyes stared at me in disbelief, and I started to sweat from the embarrassment. Thank god no one else was around.

‘What the hell am I even doing…’

My stiff tongue slowly began to move, and I lightly licked the plump part just below his thumb. Unsurprisingly, since the hand was soaked in purified water, there was no taste. I waited, hoping some kind of system message might appear—but nothing happened. Frustrated, I spat the hand out of my mouth, only to find a neat bite mark where my teeth had been.

“Hmm… doesn’t seem like anything’s changed… Healing Touch of the Divine!”

< Seong Sanha – Hunter >

• Attribute: Holy / Light 

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Still the same. No system window update, no change to the area I’d licked—still black and lifeless. What was I missing?

Frowning, I grabbed his hand again and this time bit down on one of his fingers. But it was longer and thicker than it looked. I couldn’t even get it all in before it hit the back of my throat and made me gag.

“Ghk—cough! Cough cough!”

“Woof! Woof woof woof!”

Root barked wildly in alarm while Cloud slipped inside the barrier and began rubbing anxiously against my leg.

“Mehh.”

“Calm down, Cloud. Urgh, it’s just… big, that’s all…”

I managed to get as much of the finger into my mouth as I could and gave the cold digit a cautious lick. Was anything happening? It didn’t look like it. Tilting my head, I held the hand in both of mine and awkwardly started sucking at it from different angles.

And then… a wet, squelching sound started echoing in my ears.

It didn’t take long for me to realize I was the one making that disgusting noise. The embarrassment hit me all at once, like a slap in the face, as I came to my senses—sitting there, slurping someone else’s hand like some kind of pervert. My face flushed red hot.

“Shit, forget this!”

I tossed Seong San-ha’s hand aside. Unlike the rest of his body, that one arm had been free, and now it dangled limply over a rock.

“Just tell me to make a potion instead, for god’s sake! This is not my thing!”

Fuming with a mix of humiliation and frustration at how dumb I must’ve looked, I angrily shoved all my crafting tools and ingredients back into my inventory.

“So let’s say this can really be purified with a constellar’s power. But it’s not a potion, and it’s not a skill. Then what the hell am I supposed to do? Just… pass on some vague energy? Like I could actually pull that off—wait a sec.”

Pass on energy…?

I mouthed the words again, something about them oddly familiar. I was a potion master. I worked best with set recipes and guaranteed results—not vague crap like ‘feel the flow of energy.’ I sucked at that.

…But then again, it wasn’t completely unfamiliar.

I froze mid-motion, still holding onto a material I had been about to put away, as a thought flashed through my head. On a hunch, I hesitantly said aloud:

“Is it…..Guiding?”

The moment the words left my mouth—Ding!—a clear, chime-like sound echoed around me, and then… system windows exploded into view.

[Castor]
↙        ↘

 [Kang Eui-jin] ⇄ [Joo Hohyun]
Synchronized.

「Optimizing skill tree…」
「You may now use [Joo Ho-hyun]’s skills.」
「You may use [Kang Eui-jin]’s skills [with restrictions].」
「You may use the power of [Castor] [with restrictions].」
「Due to Castor’s influence, the skill [Joo Ho-hyun] possessed has changed.」
「[Low-Level Guiding (C)] ▶ [Stellar Purification (EX)]」

My jaw dropped.

An EX-grade skill—mine!

Sure, it wasn’t a combat skill, but who was complaining? My heart thumped wildly as I placed a hand over my chest, trembling with excitement.

“Shit, what the hell am I supposed to do now? I’m already a damn potion master… and now I’m getting even more OP?”

I stared at the system window floating in front of me.

Since it was a modified Guiding skill, two familiar options popped up again: Radiation and Contact.

Obviously, I chose Radiation—the one I was more comfortable with.

<Stellar Purification – Radiation>
▶ Play Tutorial
▶ The Fast Track to Failure! Skip?

“I’m not watching that. Next.”

Please select a target.
(Multiple selections available)

• Nearby Awakened: 

▶ Seong San-ha
▶ Kim Seon-jae
▶ Shin Ha-neul
▶ Jung Jae-jun
▶ Jung Su-jin
▶ Lim Ji-won
▶ Yang Tae-oh

.

.

That was it!

I’d been nervously hoping—but of course, just like with Guiding, only the names of those cursed appeared on the list.

Then I noticed something strange.

“…What the hell?”

All the names were crossed out. Not a single one was selectable.

Panic rising, I tried calling each name aloud one by one. Nothing happened.

Only then did I give in and click the tutorial.

But that was no help either.

[Requirements not met. Cannot use “Stellar Purification.”]

“What requirements?! What else do I need!?”

I thought everything was finally going to work out—but no, it hit a dead end again.

No matter what I tried, it all ended with that same damned message: “Requirements not met.”

I was going out of my mind.

Pacing in circles, I finally stopped and looked down at the unconscious Seong San-ha.

“I have the power, don’t I? If I can’t use the skill, then maybe… I can purify the energy another way?”

Just like with Guiding—aside from radiation, there was also the contact method of transferring energy.

I couldn’t trigger it conveniently through a system window, but…

If I did it manually, like the old Guiding process… maybe it would work.

Having made up my mind, I approached the rock where Seong San-ha was lying. Except for the arm affected by the curse, his upper and lower body were tied up, and he was lying straight, staring at the sky. 

After checking the angles here and there, I climbed onto Seong San-ha. Kneeling on both sides of his waist, I placed my hand beside his head.

“…Hey, Seong San-ha.”

He looked so beautiful with his eyes closed as if he weren’t human. I quietly raised my hand and stroked the corner of his eye.

Seeing him like this, he really looked like a man… His straight eyebrows and graceful lips. I traced down to his red lips and cupped Seong San-ha’s right cheek with my hand.

He looked good even now, but I wanted to see him open his eyes and smile. Though a bit annoying, Seong San-ha was better that way.

I moved my lips and then lowered my head to kiss him. Startled by the cold temperature for a moment, when I parted his lips with my tongue, his mouth slowly opened. 

Our moist and slightly cold tongues met. A chill ran down my spine, but sensing that he really wasn’t normal, I moved my body lower and kissed him deeply. 

Whether it was because he was half-asleep or something, though not as much as before, Seong San-ha was also moving slowly. The guy who used to push me recklessly now followed me meekly, which felt strange and made my heart race a little.

“Get up, get up. Seong San-ha. If you don’t get up…”

Is this what they call purification? I began to doubt it. Like when guiding, I wondered if there was some other sensation, so I squeezed my eyes shut and tangled our tongues, but… I didn’t know. The kiss felt good enough to make my shoulders twitch, but how would I know what purification is when I’ve never done it before?

His slow, wide tongue wrapping around me felt so good I couldn’t pull away right away.

If purification isn’t working, then I should stop now. I’ve experimented enough, so now it’s time to quit…

At that moment, a voice that shouldn’t have been heard reached my ears.

“…Is this a dream?”

The low, slightly hoarse voice froze me in place. From head to toe, I broke out in goosebumps until my vision went white.

With a click sound, our lips parted. As his warm lips left mine, the cold moisture on my lips quickly began to dry. When I opened my tightly shut eyes, I met his pale, drowsy gaze.

“Am I dead? Is this heaven?”

“Seong San-ha. So this means…”

“If I’m already dead, I wish you’d finish what you started.”

His hand slipped under my T-shirt and crawled up my back. I stiffened and opened my eyes wide. When he tried to sit up, something seemed to block him, and he twisted his shoulder uncomfortably. Lowering his gaze, his brows furrowed.

“What the hell is this phase now?”