Chapter 158
Since that day, Lee Suhyuk continuously sought out Thor.
Boom-!
Whenever he fought him, he wanted to cover his ears. His arms trembled, and his whole body felt like it was burning up from the electrocution. It seemed like his ears would give out first before the rest of him did.
Crackle-.
He pulled himself out of the blue currents, putting strength back into his legs.
He increased his output and charged at Thor again. As he swung his sword, Mjolnir came flying towards him.
Clang-!
Boom-!
The impact that shook the Earth made him feel like his whole body, starting from the hand gripping his sword, would shatter.
But he had no choice. He had to push his output to the maximum just to barely match Thor’s power.
And so, for a brief moment.
“…Ngh.”
Suhyuk, having fought Thor like a madman for a while, finally opened his eyes after a considerable amount of time had passed.
‘How many times has it been now?’
He had fought Thor so many times that he lost count.
Was it six times? Or seven?
Every time they fought, Suhyuk lost consciousness. He couldn’t remember whether it was because he overused lightning and thunder and drained himself, or if it was because he got hit by Mjolnir.
“It’s happened again.”
It was then that Odin appeared before Suhyuk.
“You’re here?”
“It’s the eighth time. Do you think of me as some kind of stamina recovery potion?”
“It’s the eighth time? I thought it was seven.”
“Looks like you hurt your head too, can’t even keep count.”
Vroom-.
A green light enveloped Suhyuk’s body. The scent of fragrant flowers and herbs filled the air, and his tired body regained its vigor.
『Fatigue is being recovered.』
『Fatigue is being recovered.』
『Fatigue is…』
‘It’s fascinating every time.’
How injuries and stamina could recover so quickly, he wondered.
Though he felt sorry for Odin, Suhyuk did treat him as a stamina recovery potion.
The recovery magic of the greatest archmage was unparalleled.
Thanks to Odin, Suhyuk could clash several times with Thor in a short period.
“You’ve improved somewhat.”
“Improved?”
“Yes. At first, you couldn’t last ten seconds, but now you’ve lasted over a minute.”
Thor was indeed extremely powerful.
Using thunder as his weapon, Thor was probably one of the top warriors even in Asgard.
Facing Thor was an invaluable experience for Suhyuk.
“But why are you doing this exactly?”
Suhyuk had spontaneously started fighting Thor.
His goal was always Mjolnir, but midway, it didn’t even seem like he had that goal anymore.
It was as if they were just testing who was stronger. They continued to fight, and each match ended with Thor’s victory.
But there were no complaints.
Each time, Suhyuk survived.
‘If it weren’t for this, it wouldn’t be strange if I had died a few times already…’
Thump-.
At this moment.
Lee Suhyuk was keenly aware of how fiercely the Heart of Lightning was beating.
‘Anyway, I haven’t died even once.’
The Heart of Lightning granted the strongest resistance against lightning attribute damage.
Thanks to this, Suhyuk had managed to stay alive, even though he had lost consciousness several times while fighting Thor.
“When will I ever fight an opponent like that again?”
Up until now, he hadn’t had many opportunities to properly use lightning.
Once the Counter-Fight started, he would be battling numerous rankers.
He considered it training to prepare for that time. Thor was more than sufficient to confirm how far he had come.
“Is that all?”
“Of course not.”
Suhyuk’s eyes gleamed as he moved his recovered body this way and that.
“It’s not certain… but I think I know what that guy wants.”
Odin understood that Suhyuk was not referring to Thor.
That’s why he didn’t press Suhyuk further. The current master of thunder was Suhyuk, and only another master of thunder could save Thor.
“Then, I’ll be off.”
* * *
Several times a day. He fought and lost repeatedly.
Thor no longer avoided Suhyuk. Suhyuk did not hesitate to collide with Thor.
There were several moments when he was close to death, but he managed to survive each time.
After several days.
Flash-!
The thunder Suhyuk discharged engulfed Thor.
Boom-!
The blue thunder was far denser and more powerful than before. Suhyuk’s hand trembled slightly from the high-output thunder he had unleashed in an instant.
‘I got the feeling.’
Sure enough.
Thor, who had previously counterattacked immediately, stood still for the first time.
Upon closer inspection, the cracks in Mjolnir had increased. Little by little, his attacks were getting through.
In the split second Suhyuk’s gaze was drawn to Mjolnir, Thor’s foot moved.
Crackle-.
“……!”
With just a slight movement of his foot, the distance closed in an instant. Although it wasn’t his first time experiencing this, he couldn’t help but be amazed each time.
Whirr-.
Mjolnir, targeting Suhyuk’s torso, cut through the air.
The sound of the air being torn apart echoed in his ears, and Thor’s grasp soon caught Suhyuk by the collar.
Grip-.
Instead of surrendering his throat, Suhyuk reached out his hand.
Boom-!
Without any distinction of who went first, electrical energy burst out, accompanied by the sound of thunder. The severe burn that felt like his hand was on fire lasted only a moment before Thor, who had dropped his hand, chased after the retreating Suhyuk.
Bang, boom-!
Rumble-.
Thunder exploded from all sides. His entire body tingled from the incredibly high-output thunder.
Colliding with it head-on, Suhyuk listened carefully to the sound of thunder.
‘So this is how it’s used.’
The thunder borrowed through Thor’s body spoke.
This is how it’s used.
Even without words, he felt it through his body.
He couldn’t let fear get the better of him.
In the moment of fear, this power would no longer be his own.
‘I’ve definitely improved.’
Until now, Lee Suhyuk had dealt with lightning in a brutish manner, consuming his stamina.
He thought that was the only way to handle lightning, so he focused on increasing his stamina to manage it better.
It wasn’t a wrong thought.
After all, both thunder and lightning put a burden on the user’s body.
However, through his previous battles with Thor, or rather, with thunder, Suhyuk had learned one thing.
How to handle it, both thunder and lightning could minimize the burden on the body and increase their power depending on how they were used.
‘I was thinking too primitively.’
Feeling thunder course through his entire body, Suhyuk looked at Thor.
Thunder had shown him how to manage it using his own body.
He had learned enough. In fact, Suhyuk had mastered controlling thunder much more easily than in the beginning.
This would suffice.
Now, it was time to awaken Thor.
“Isn’t it about time you came to your senses?”
The past days of fighting.
They weren’t just his own practice. This fight was one where he and Thor were against thunder together.
“Just for a moment. Trust me—”
Suhyuk’s gaze momentarily flicked to Mjolnir held in Thor’s hand.
“—Let go.”
Blurred—
For a moment, color returned to Thor’s eyes.
His blue eyes, reminiscent of thunder, focused. Crackling, the thunder emanating from Mjolnir wavered unsteadily.
In that fleeting moment,
Slide—
Mjolnir slipped from Thor’s hand.
Before it hit the ground, Suhyuk grabbed Mjolnir, holding it firmly. The moment he grasped the damaged and cracked Mjolnir, thunder struck from the sky.
Boom—!
For a moment, his vision turned white as if he would lose consciousness.
All sound vanished. It felt like falling into a white space devoid of color, sound, or anything else.
If he lost consciousness, it would be over.
Suhyuk focused on the sound of thunder emanating from Mjolnir, gripped in his hand.
『’Heart of Thunder’ whispers to you.』
『’Heart of Thunder’ shows interest in you.』
He barely managed to read the message.
It wasn’t clear what it was saying or why it was showing interest.
For some reason, he felt he could hear its voice.
Thunder screamed. It claimed this was cheating. How could he rely on Thor’s aid?
But who cared about that?
Anyway, thunder was now in his hands.
Crack—
The cracks on Mjolnir rapidly increased.
“Isn’t it enough that you tormented it this much?”
Crackle—!
Mjolnir violently shook as if protesting against his question.
He understood.
It had been forcibly split in two; its anger was understandable. The curse of thunder wouldn’t be resolved this easily.
Thus, he had a thought.
“I promise.”
Another way to quell thunder’s wrath.
“I will hold the one who convinced Thor to make you this way accountable.”
If that didn’t work, there was no other choice. He had no option but to burn time until he could control the thunder.
Zzzzzt—.
Fortunately, the thunder’s rage gradually subsided.
Thud, pieces of Mjolnir fell to the floor. Inside Mjolnir, which turned into a handful of stone dust in Suhyuk’s hand, a small blue gemstone shone brightly.
Suhyuk examined the shape of the gemstone in his hand.
The second and last fragment of thunder.
Although he obtained it sooner than expected, it didn’t just bring him pure joy.
“What are you, really?”
The truths he learned through this trial confused his mind.
Thunder and lightning. What kind of person wielded that power, why did he fight against gods?
And why did the thunder teach him how to wield itself?
『Hidden Stage – ‘Thor’ has been completed.』
『You have leveled up.』
『You have leveled up.』
『Your level…』
『…』
『You have acquired the ‘Heart of Thunder’.』
Blurred—.
His vision blurred. His body felt overwhelmingly heavy, like a sponge that had soaked up water in an instant.
The Hidden Stage he aimed for was over.
It was time to refocus on matters at hand.
* * *
The Counter-Fight was only two days away.
At the dorm, Un Hyang was trembling with anxiety. Despite the passing time, Suhyuk had yet to return.
“Surely, he will return in time for the Counter-Fight?”
Cheon Ryang, sitting opposite her, looked at her with an exasperated expression.
“Why hasn’t he turned on the stream? Are we sure something didn’t happen to him? What if he never returns…”
“Just stop it already, stop.”
Zap, Un Hyang glared at Cheon Ryang. While she seemed intimidating, Cheon Ryang remained unperturbed.
“If something had gone wrong during the trial, he’d be logged out and back by now. Since he isn’t back yet, doesn’t that mean the trial is going well?”
It was a comfort she heard multiple times before. And it was also true.
But despite that, her anxiety didn’t easily dissipate.
“That’s true, but…”
“Why isn’t there a stream? There must be a reason. Maybe it’s a trial he doesn’t want to show on stream.”
“Really, do you think so?”
“We’ve had this conversation at least ten times already, haven’t we?”
“…Have we?”
“He’ll be back soon. Try not to worry too much.”
Cheon Ryang sighed out of frustration. Un Hyang silently nodded and Cheon Ryang leaned back into his chair, sipping coffee.
“I’m worried just as much…”
Suhyuk’s determination regarding the Counter-Fight had always been resolute. It was clear that his desire to participate in this Counter-Fight wasn’t merely for the content.
There was no way he’d disappear for no reason right before the Counter-Fight.
Something must have happened, for sure.
“Ah!”
Then it happened.
With wide eyes, Un Hyang suddenly stood up from her seat.
“He’s really here!”