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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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Lee Seol was a concern, but I didn’t have time to worry about her. Leaving her behind, I swung my sword from right to left.
My target was the wolf’s head.
Past the flickering flames, the sword drove into the wolf’s neck, sinking about a third of the way through.
“Grrrr…!”
The beast, its eyes previously fixated on its prey, finally noticed me and glared.
‘What are you looking at, you mutt?’
⚙ System Notification ⚙
[Equivalent Exchange Activated!]
[Consuming 5% pain points to enhance physical abilities!]
-Crack!
I severed the cervical vertebrae, and the sword sliced cleanly through it.
The drooling head rolled lifelessly on the ground.
“Huff… Huff…”
The aftereffects of Equivalent Exchange.
My body, suddenly enhanced, was struggling to adjust. I tried to regain my balance, but I stumbled.
“Seong-hyun-ah!”
Lee Seol caught me, gently laying me down on her lap and smoothing my messy hair.
“Are you okay? You pushed yourself too hard…”
“…”
A new form of torture.
Yes, this was torture.
The feeling of her soft, smooth thighs and the sweet fragrance of her body made me nauseous.
I forced myself to suppress the revulsion and spoke.
“I’m fine. Take care of Ji-hoon. He’ll die if we leave him like that.”
“Oh, right!”
As if just remembering, she set me down on the ground and rushed to Ji-hoon’s side.
“We need to stop the bleeding first.”
“Right.”
We needed to freeze the wound with Lee Seol’s Eternal Snow.
The skin would necrotize, but we could deal with that later with healing skills.
Stopping the bleeding was the priority.
As she tried to activate her ability…
“W-why isn’t it working? My power…”
Suddenly, a sudden wave of cold washed over me.
I didn’t know why. I just instinctively threw myself to the right.
At that moment, a searing pain shot through my left shoulder.
“Gah!”
“Seong-hyun-ah!”
“Grrrrrr!”
The bastard had sunk its teeth into my shoulder.
Yeah, right.
There were two of them.
When I swung the sword in my right hand to threaten it, the wolf bastard tore a chunk out of my shoulder and jumped back.
Blood gushed from the wound.
“This is fucked up…”
I couldn’t feel my left arm. It seemed the wolf had torn through muscle and bone and severed the nerves as well.
I struggled to maintain my balance and grip on my sword.
Lee Seol ran towards me.
“Seong-hyun-ah!”
“Stay back!”
Lee Seol without her powers? She was just an ordinary 20-year-old girl.
I couldn’t fight with a liability.
“Grrrr…”
Its eyes, bloodshot with rage, were fixated on me. It seemed intent on a suicidal attack, enraged by the death of its companion.
“Grrrrr!”
The wolf charged, aiming to ram me head-on. I dodged and moved my body out of its path.
‘I need to finish this in one blow.’
My vision was blurring.
The combination of Equivalent Exchange and blood loss was taking its toll.
⚙ System Notification ⚙
[Equivalent Exchange Activated!]
[Consuming 4% pain points to enhance physical abilities!]
My joints creaked and groaned, but I pushed through the pain.
The distance between us was 1 meter.
Close enough.
⚙ System Notification ⚙
[Equivalent Exchange Activated!]
[Consuming 5% pain points to enhance physical abilities!]
Sensation returned to my left arm, and my body felt lighter.
I feinted a downward strike. As expected, the wolf shifted its body to dodge. It didn’t even consider retreating.
‘See, that’s why you bastards can’t win.’
That was why I’d dodged its initial charge. I twisted my sword, changing the downward trajectory into a horizontal slash.
“Die!”
“Gyaaaaa!”
A clean strike, slicing through the wolf’s eye and brain!
An instant kill.
As I watched the wolf’s lifeless body fall, reveling in my victory…
“Lee Seong-hyun!”
“Seong-hyun-ah!”
Han Yuri and Choi Ah-hyun ran towards me, their faces etched with horror.
‘They got here fast.’
The battle was over. I took a step towards them, but…
“Huh?”
My body gave way. As if telling me I no longer had the right to control it. The world spun.
Then, an excruciating pain in my gut.
I looked down. My stomach was ripped open.
‘That bastard… got me good.’
I’d thought it was just a mutt, but it was a wolf after all.
I heard the three girls shouting as they ran towards me, and then I closed my eyes.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
My consciousness was hazy.
I forced my eyes open and saw a dark, lightless room.
My limbs were bound.
I blankly stared ahead.
A scene all too familiar and a place I loathed.
‘Is this a dream?’
Even though I knew it wasn’t real, my mood plummeted.
I tried to close my eyes again, but the single door in the room opened, and a woman entered.
A white dress, long black hair down to her waist.
Lee Seol.
A thirty-year-old Lee Seol. Ten years into the future.
Enough time for a fresh apple to ripen fully. And yet, an aura of innocence still clung to her.
“Hyeon-ah, are you uncomfortable?”
She wiped my face and body with a wet towel, her touch gentle and careful, as if handling a precious treasure.
“It’s almost over. So…”
She kissed me softly.
“Just wait a little longer.”
The sensation of her sweet breath filling my lungs brought me back to consciousness.
My vision was blurry, but the pungent smell of antiseptic told me I was in a hospital.
I blinked a few times, and my vision cleared. And then I saw was…
“…What are you doing?”
“Hehe. People-watching.”
Choi Ah-hyun giggling with her face practically nose-to-nose with mine, almost touching it.
“What did you eat in your dream that made you drool so much?”
“Drool…?”
I touched my mouth. It was wet with saliva. It seemed my sleep-drooling habit had acted up again.
‘But this is too much, isn’t it?’
My hospital gown collar was soaked.
I wondered if my salivary glands had malfunctioned.
“If you saw me drooling, you could have wiped it off. Were you just waiting for me to wake up?”
“Hehe. It was entertaining. Ta-da! I even took a picture!”
Choi Ah-hyun proudly showed me her phone. As expected, it was a picture of me sleeping like an idiot.
“Ugh, you’re so childish.”
I shook my head and tried to sit up, but a wave of pain shot through my body.
“Ugh!”
“Don’t get up. The healer said you’re not fully recovered yet.”
Right.
I’d forgotten that using healing skills to treat Equivalent Exchange injuries is only half as effective.
The frustrating feeling of not being able to control my own body made me frown.
I forced a smile and looked at Choi Ah-hyun.
“What happened after I collapsed?”
“Um… Professor Irena came and took care of everything. She even caught that crazy wolf.”
“What about Ji-hoon?”
“He’s playing games in the next room. His healing is fast, so they said he’ll be discharged soon.”
She filled me in on what had happened.
The grade evaluation was terminated when the monsters went berserk. Our team had won by a landslide.
We were told to come back later for the rewards.
“Ta-da! This is a get-well present!”
“What is this? Acacia?”
“Yep! Red acacia. The flower language is ‘friendship’ and ‘social interaction,’ but I just bought it because it’s pretty.”
Yeah, right.
That sounded like her.
The ditzy Choi Ah-hyun wouldn’t think about flower language.
She placed the pot, overflowing with red blossoms, on the windowsill and handed me another one.
“And… here. Yuri told me to give this to you.”
“A black rose?”
‘The flower language of a black rose is…’
I couldn’t quite remember, but I thought it was something like “death” or “curse.”
There was a note attached to the pot.
I unfolded it.
[If you’re going to die, die quietly. Don’t drag others down with you.]
A very Han Yuri-like message.
It seems she was still pissed about my solo act.
“Where did she go? The library?”
“No. She was called to the professors’ office because of the broken crystal. They said they found traces of something Witch-like on the fragments and needed her testimony.”
A Witch…
In this era, Witches were like urban legends. Mythical beings who hadn’t caused any significant harm to humanity.
‘Well, Han Yuri should be fine.’
It was ironic that a Witch herself was going to give testimony about Witches, but I wasn’t worried.
No one would be stupid enough to mess with the daughter of the Portan Guild Leader.
As I was sorting through my thoughts, Choi Ah-hyun frowned, looking slightly upset.
“I don’t understand. Why are they blaming Witches for the school’s failure to maintain the crystal? There’s no proof that Witches even exist.”
“I know, right?”
She seemed bothered by their suspicion.
Seeing her indignation, I felt a mischievous urge. I suppressed my smile and said seriously,
“Ah-hyun-ah.”
“Yeah?”
“I’m only telling you this, so don’t tell anyone else.”
“Huh? Okay!”
“Yuri and Lee Seol are actually Witches.”
“…”
Five seconds of silence.
Then, she burst out laughing.
“Hahaha! You’re so funny! That’s the funniest thing I’ve heard all year.”
“It’s true.”
“Seong-hyun-ah.”
“Yeah?”
“Actually, I’m a Witch too.”
“…”
“Haha! See? It’s just like that!”
She laughed so hard that tears started to fall.
After that little incident, two days passed.
I could finally move my body properly. As soon as I could walk, I headed to the next room.
[Kim Ji-hoon]
I checked the patient’s name and opened the door without knocking.
Knocking?
Such formalities were unnecessary between men.
But my carelessness backfired this time.
“Whoa!”
“Kyaaa!”
A man and a woman scrambled to hide under the covers.
It seemed my timing was less than ideal.
“I’ll come back later.”
An hour later, after hearing the woman leave, I entered Ji-hoon’s room again.
“You crazy bastard. Calling a prostitute to the hospital?”
“I can’t function if I don’t get laid at least once a day.”
“Idiot. You could have at least locked the door.”
After exchanging some lighthearted banter, Kim Ji-hoon scratched his head.
“Thanks, man. You saved my life.”
“If you’re grateful, pay me in cash.”
“Wow, the rich get richer. Fine, fine. I’ll treat you to something really nice later.”
“Good. Take care of yourself, and don’t overdo it. You’ll wear yourself out.”
“Hehe. You wouldn’t say that if you knew my stamina. Anyway, go get some rest.”
He waved me away dismissively.
He was probably going to jerk off again.
Was there anyone as consistent as this guy?
‘That’s why I like him, though.’
A man whose words and actions matched. That was why we’d been friends for so long.
Feeling a strange sense of satisfaction, I opened the door to my room.
“Oh? Seong-hyun-ah?”
Lee Seol was standing there.
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TFTC! Choi Ah-hyun being a witch is becoming more and more possible
Someone was clobbering his mouth with their own when he was asleep most likely that’s why there’s so much drool i bet.
Although, which “mouth” they were drooling out of is, as of yet, unclear