Translator: Wan ED/PR: Personal Ghost
64. Faith and test (15)
Tao Sihu told the story he had recalled.
Tao Sihu and the other people remained calm, but Jang Namuk didn’t.
Jang Namuk seemed to be in disbelief and sorrow over the event that was buried in Tao Sihu’s memory.
Hwang Jiho asked Tao Sihu:
“Was the person who forcibly activated your Gwangrim captured?”
“The criminals captured at that time were all people I knew. However, the voice I heard at that time was unfamiliar.”
“I guess the being, who forcibly activated your superpowers, wasn’t among the captured kidnappers, eh?”
Tao Sihu’s story continued.
After the Gwangrim was forcibly activated, the Ship King stepped forward to personally rescue Tao Sihu and ‘Tao Sihu kidnapping incident’ ended.
The Ship King was heavily injured, to the point it left aftereffects, in the process of rescue, and retreated from the front lines.
After that, no one targeted Tao Sihu.
Everyone assumed that the cause of Tao Sihu’s kidnapping was the TC Group’s inner fights over the rights, so as the Ship King left the front lines, they thought it was natural that Tao Sihu didn’t become a target.
But the reality was completely different.
‘Tao Sihu probably wasn’t kidnapped, because the goal of sealing Wúzhīqí was achieved. Or maybe they secretly targeted Tao Sihu again.’
After that, Tao Sihu’s sea sickness and symptoms of brick swimming were said to have become worse.
Everyone, including Tao Sihu himself, thought that it was because of trauma of being kidnapped on a ship.
‘Tao Sihu’s weakness to water might have been caused by Wúzhīqí’s grudges engraved on him at a young age.’
I probably wasn’t the only one who thought this.
Rather, it would be stranger not to think about it after seeing and being involved with Tao Sihu’s desperate fight with water.
Thinking about Jang Namuk and Tao Wonu whose insides were exploding, because Tao Sihu didn’t know how to cherish his life and jumped into water, I felt pissed for no reason.
“…”
On the other hand, Qítiān Dàshèng didn’t say anything until Tao Sihu finished his story.
Tao Sihu waited for Qítiān Dàshèng to open his mouth, but when the silence continued for a while even as he waited, he spoke up first.
“I’m sorry for using my superpowers on your Dong-…”
“Stop.”
As if he just organized his thoughts, Qítiān Dàshèng cut off Tao Sihu.
Qítiān Dàshèng waved his hand and kindly spoke to Tao Sihu, who stopped talking.
“Don’t apologize for something that isn’t your fault. Rather, it’s me who should apologize for leaving you tied by my dongsaeng’s grudges for over ten years.”
Even if he knew that Tao Sihu was innocent, it would be difficult to settle his heart right away like this.
It seems that the sentiments of a being, who obtained enlightenment a long time ago, was indeed extraordinary.
Qítiān Dàshèng still looked at Tao Sihu with a sorry face, as he spoke:
“Let’s meet after Wúzhīqí comes back to her senses. If I mediate, that punk will lend you an ear.”
… Was it really going to end like this?
Didn’t he give the freaking Tight Fillet Spell to find that dongsaeng?
Instead, he was going to help Tao Sihu, so he could get rid of Wúzhīqí’s grudges?
The 20 years old looking Hwang Jiho asked as if confirming.
“This is a person I wanted to protect. You won’t try to wield your hand when I’m not around, right?”
“Hahaha! If I do that, it would be like betraying you.”
He spoke with a smile, but the weight of those words was enormous.
Attacking Tao Sihu would be like betraying Hwang Jiho.
It meant that if Qítiān Dàshèng attacked Tao Sihu, Hwang Jiho would obtain the Tight Fillet Spell.
The words Hwang Jiho said to sound Qítiān Dàshèng out returned to him as shackles to wield.
The three, Jang Namuk, Yu Sang-hun and Tao Sihu didn’t know the meaning of those words, but I and Hwang Jiho had to control our expressions to hide the bewilderment and shock.
Qítiān Dàshèng, who threw those heavy words, conversed with Tao Sihu like nothing has happened.
“Come to the next irregular luncheon. Your friends said they were looking forward to you coming.”
After that, Qítiān Dàshèng had a chat with us. Qítiān Dàshèng just asked about our personal details and shared well-wishing remarks, but the atmosphere was so pleasant, the nervousness from when he first appeared seemed to be a lie.
While he asked for each of our names and exchanged codes, it became late.
“Kids have to sleep well to grow tall. Go to sleep.”
“You speak like you have raised a child, eh? Yet you don’t have descendants.”
“Hahaha! Are you still angry because I visited without a word? Pardon my rudeness please.”
I guess the two heads weren’t bothered by us watching.
Jang Namuk and Tao Sihu made subtle expressions while watching the two.
“Does Jiho and Qítiān Dàshèng know each other?”
“Uh, that guy is Jiho? The 1st year class 0 Hwang Jiho?”
“Didn’t he grow a lot when we didn’t see him?”
“…. It doesn’t seem to be that.”
In this area, it seemed that Tao Sihu was more quick-witted than Jang Namuk.
But as Tao Sihu was a son of chaebeol, he would know about the rumors regarding Hwang Myeong Group, and would notice this much.
“…”
Yu Sang-hun, who could clearly differentiate between the teen and 20 years old looking Hwang Jiho, just watched the situation.
When sun rises, Yu Sang-hun may come to our class to confirm Hwang Jiho’s appearance.
However, if I wasn’t going tot say anything, it seemed he wouldn’t comment on it either.
It was in contrast to when he stubbornly kept saying he would follow me and snatched my crow mask.
Wouldn’t it be much better if he pretended not to know before?
“Namuk, Sihu, stay at the hotel with me today. I think I should observe Sihu’s condition a bit more.”
“Ah, yes!”
“I paid the hotel bill. Feel free to use it until tomorrow.”
Qítiān Dàshèng, Jang Namuk and Tao Sihu decided to remain in the hotel, while the rest decided to go back.
Yu Sang-hun said he had planned to go to the Association as Yu Sang-hui’s guardian, as their parents-nim were absent for a business trip.
I wanted to go too, but hearing it was only possible for the family, the homeroom teacher and a lawyer to see her, I took a step back.
‘If I use my connections with the Association, I can forcibly go…’
I felt that if I go, I may put a burden on Yu Sang-hui, who was mentally pushed into a corner.
I’ll look at the situation, and if I see things turning out badly for Yu Sang-hui and Tao Wonu, I should go visit them.
When we were about to leave the suite.
“Uisin-ah, I feel like you were also there.”
As if aiming for a moment when I let my guard down to watch my reaction, Qítiān Dàshèng threw a question out of the blue.
How should I respond?
It was natural to think that I was the same person as the Crow Mask that was with Yu Sang-hun.
Should I have disguised Yu Sang-hun more thoroughly, so he wouldn’t be recognized?
I belatedly regretted it, but it was already too late.
Qítiān Dàshèng spoke with certainty.
“If that’s the case, you have a pretty high level transformation technique. You looked like a completely different person.”
“Don’t annoy people with some useless sounds. Didn’t you say that kids have to sleep well to grow tall? It’s late, so they better go to rest quickly.”
The 20 years old looking Hwang Jiho cut off Qítiān Dàshèng.
Seeing Hwang Jiho help me, Qítiān Dàshèng smiled as if finding it exciting, so it may have become even more of a blunder.
“Jiho-ah, see you next time then.”
“Yeah, see you next time.”
Jang Namuk believed that the 20 years old looking geezer was Hwang Jiho until the end.
* * *
Next day morning, my dormitory room.
The moment I opened my eyes, I checked the news.
Luckily, last night event didn’t land on the main news.
The topic that received the most attention was an article about Yeo Raehun’s single record.
Yeo Raehun’s debut single was said to climb the domestic new music releases rankings and enter the top of the overseas charts.
The media company, that didn’t have a very good relationship with the company Yeo Raehun was affiliated with, deliberately released the picture of his bald head from his monk days, thinking it would bring negative opinions, but it had the opposite effect.
Thanks to the release of Yeo Raehun’s picture in the monk robes, it advertised him to the people who didn’t know he was ‘Saint of Naejang Mountain’.
‘… It’s not a time to look at that right now.’
Was I relieved because the TC Research Institute incident didn’t appear on the main news?
I read the articles about my Playable Character’s activities like possessed, and then belatedly typed in ‘TC’ into the search bar.
Once I searched, articles come up.
‘There is an article about the TC Research Institute blackout and an article about the otherworld conquest. They probably couldn’t block that.’
Only simple facts were written in the articles.
Blackout at the TC Research Institute, sudden occurrence of otherworlds in midst of it, zero injured thanks to quick conquest, investigation into the blackout.
Even the comments only treated it like an ordinary incident.
‘I’m glad there were no injured’, ‘Thank you for your work in the conquest’, etc, there were no any eye-catching comments.
‘… Looks like the association buried it well.’
However, the things remaining to be solved still piled up.
There were many things among the facts that I learned last night.
‘Yu Sang-hun’s awakening incident, Tao Sihu’s forced Gwangrim activation… wouldn’t the two of them be connected?’
Superpowers stimulated by outside force.
Considering this mechanism, the two had points in common.
‘The Demons that conspire with the TC Group probably holds the key to the solution.’
The Demon that was captured in this incident, fell into Qítiān Dàshèng’s hands.
As this Demon was lower rank than the priest of Avaritia, the interrogation process may be somewhat easier.
‘I got Qítiān Dàshèng’s contact information, so I’ll have a chance to obtain a hint later.’
After finishing the preparations and heading to school, I checked if there was no other eye-grabbing articles.
Between Yeo Raehun’s articles, there was an article that caught my eye.
‘The articles about new and outstanding Players! Ju Su-hyeok and An Dain’s aliases were mentioned!’
It mentioned that the two made their names known through solving small incidents and diligently participating in otherworld conquests.
But as the few large scale massacres that were in PMH disappeared, they didn’t obtain fame as quickly as in the game.
I was sorry for the two, but there was nothing I could do about it.
‘… The two people are saving people in seen and unseen places, worthy of the main characters.’
Just yesterday, An Dain protected the Student Council’s members from the superpower poison, and Ju Su-hyeok’s friendship saved Tao Sihu.
As expected of the title hero and title heroine.
When I tried to search for a few more articles about the two people, a message arrived.
[Hwang Jiho] Have you slept well?
[Hwang Jiho] As I let you go for the sake of your sleep, I very much hope you have slept well.
… Should I read another article?
I reflexively thought like this the moment I saw the message, but I decided to answer.
‘There are many things to talk about regarding yesterday events, so I can’t help it.’
Last night, Hwang Jiho wanted to take me straight to the tiger mansion, but I barely escaped.
I managed to cook something up by saying it was late, so it would be impolite to visit and that I wanted to organize my thoughts and rest alone.
Because though there was a lot to talk about, I felt like I was spending too much time at the tiger mansion these days.
[Hwang Jiho] I got in touch with Yong Jegeon this morning. He was at the Association.
I guess after Yong Jegeon finished the otherworld conquest, he cooperated with the Association’s people.
He said that he stayed at the Association as a Player, who conquered the otherworld that suddenly appeared, and as a guardian of Tao Wonu and Yu Sang-hui.
Yong Jegeon also did work worthy of a teacher, huh?
… though there was a high chance that he was at the Association for his own amusement.
[Hwang Jiho] Yong Jegeon said he hadn’t felt the presence of ‘Eyes’.
[Hwang Jiho] I guess, though Demons like to watch, they don’t like being watched, eh? It seems there are no ‘Eyes’ in the location they are at.
One of the biggest problems I was worried about was solved.
Liking to watch, but hate being watched?
It was a ridiculous reason, but I was glad that no one saw the Student Council’s members or Yu Sang-hun.
Just when I almost arrived at the classroom, Hwang Jiho sent an additional message.
[Hwang Jiho] Today I plan to talk with the two painters about ‘Imoogi’s Rise To Heaven’. You come too.
*~*~*
Translator’s note: Hwang Jiho’s enormous trust in Jo Uisin that he will rest. Is there anything more touching?
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