Chapter 159
Cheon Ryang swiftly turned his head.
Lee Suhyuk had approached the table where the two were seated.
“Why are you so late?”
Cheon Ryang asked.
“The trial took a bit longer than expected”, Suhyuk explained.
“But why wasn’t there any stream…?”
Cheon Ryang glanced at Un Hyang, thinking she should be the one to ask the question.
However, for some reason, she remained silent.
“There wasn’t any stream for this particular trial”, Suhyuk clarified.
“A stream?”
Cheon Ryang questioned.
“Yes. I’m sorry, but can I explain later? I really need to wash up first.”
He hadn’t bathed or eaten properly for nearly ten days. Noticing Suhyuk’s evident fatigue, Cheon Ryang nodded.
Suhyuk then headed straight up the stairs. Cheon Ryang watched him disappear before turning to Un Hyang.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?”
Cheon Ryang had expected Un Hyang to make a fuss upon Suhyuk’s return, but she showed no reaction. This was unlike her usual behavior.
“As long as he’s back, it doesn’t matter”, she replied.
“Aren’t you curious about what happened?”
Cheon Ryang pressed.
“Of course, I am. But he’ll tell us eventually.”
Her trust in Suhyuk was far greater than Cheon Ryang had anticipated. To her, the fact that Suhyuk had returned outweighed the mystery of his disappearance.
“And besides…”
There was something else that intrigued her just as much.
“Doesn’t he seem… different?”
Un Hyang asked.
“Different?”
Cheon Ryang tried to recall Suhyuk’s reappearance.
“In what way?”
* * *
After washing up with hot water, Suhyuk began to eat.
As they shared their early lunch, both Un Hyang and Cheon Ryang kept their eyes fixed on Suhyuk’s face.
“Um…”
Cheon Ryang hesitated but finally spoke as he observed Suhyuk eating eggs.
“Why did you take off your mask all of a sudden?”
“This?”
Suhyuk paused, fork in hand, before replying.
“It was uncomfortable.”
“Uncomfortable?”
“Of course.”
No matter how long he had worn it, a mask would never be comfortable. Cheon Ryang, embarrassed by the obviousness of the answer, rephrased his question.
“I mean, why did you decide to take off the mask now?”
Suhyuk had never shown his face before. While the viewers believed he wore the mask as part of his stream persona, Cheon Ryang had always thought there was another reason.
Perhaps Suhyuk was an ugly man or had scars. Maybe he had committed a crime that he needed to hide.
“There wasn’t any special reason.”
Lee Suhyuk, having roughly finished his meal, wiped the corners of his mouth with a napkin.
“I think it’s just because I lack confidence.”
“Confidence?”
At Suhyuk’s response, Cheon Ryang examined his face with a puzzled look.
“But you look handsome…”
“Not that kind of confidence.”
“Then…”
Cheon Ryang, who was about to ask another question, soon realized what kind of confidence Suhyuk was talking about.
‘Is he talking about his skills?’
That was the only thing he could think of.
But if that was the case, it was strange. Suhyuk’s skills shone brighter than his tall and striking appearance. Wasn’t he the one who had helped Un Hyang defeat several rankers? It was evident that if he became a ranker, he would quickly ascend to a high rank.
So, had he really been lacking in confidence until now?
Has something changed since then?
In his puzzlement, Cheon Ryang silently watched Un Hyang as she focused on her meal.
“Don’t you think something has changed?”
Her words, suggesting that something had changed, made him think that she might have noticed something that he had missed.
Around that time, Un Hyang finished her meal with a slight clatter.
“Will you reveal it on the stream?”
At her question, Suhyuk shook his head.
“No. That wouldn’t be good for the stream. For now, it’s just showing my face to you two.”
It was a wise decision. Suhyuk’s mask was part of his character, just as much as his ability to handle lightning. The mask played a pivotal role in crafting the character of “Lee Suhyuk.”
“The mask isn’t the issue right now.”
Cheon Ryang sighed.
“The viewers are really upset. The stream ended abruptly without any explanation.”
“They would be.”
Suhyuk’s reaction was calm.
It wasn’t shocking news. It was natural for the viewers to feel frustrated since the streamer had disappeared without notice. If he had prioritized the stream, he would have made an announcement in between, but Suhyuk had not done so.
Meeting Odin and learning part of the secret of thunder and lightning were more important to Suhyuk, especially during this crucial trial.
“It’ll be okay.”
While waiting for Suhyuk’s response, Un Hyang suddenly spoke optimistically.
“Okay? The stream might not completely fail, but it will still take a hit.”
“Then we’ll recover it.”
Un Hyang asked confidently.
“What is the theme of our stream?”
“That would be Lee Suhyuk.”
“Right. And what do the viewers want?”
Uncharacteristically sharp and serious, she asked. After a moment’s pondering, Cheon Ryang answered.
“That would be… the best.”
“Exactly.”
Satisfied, Un Hyang smiled.
Then she turned to Suhyuk and spoke in a strong voice.
“The frequency and duration of the stream are important, but the most crucial aspect is the entertainment value.”
It was only natural to want to watch more streams, more frequently.
However, it was crucial not to forget the essence because of stubborn persistence.
“So, from now on, let’s make it clear. Show how you’ve changed, Suhyuk.”
“Yes.”
And that was something Suhyuk already understood.
“I will. By the way…”
Nodding, Suhyuk looked alternately at Un Hyang and Cheon Ryang and asked,
“Do we have any points settled?”
There was something really urgent he needed to spend on today.
* * *
After finishing his meal, Suhyuk fell asleep until the evening. When he woke up, the sun had already set.
There were only two days left until the Counter-Fight.
What he needed now was rest. Overexerting oneself out of excitement was something only amateurs did.
‘…even so.’
Suhyuk eventually got up.
It was simply too difficult to stay lying down. It felt as if Thunder, which had now become his, was urging him to move quickly.
No, it wasn’t just that.
Two days.
The Counter-Fight was just around the corner. Around this time, his body always got worked up, but this time it was worse.
He couldn’t get rid of the feeling that something was prepared and waiting for him at the upcoming Counter-Fight.
Step.
Suhyuk eventually went outside. Although he didn’t intend to move his body intensely, there was something he needed to do today.
Outside, there was a festive atmosphere.
People were gathering to watch the preliminaries of the Counter-Fight.
In the midst of those people, Suhyuk reached a place completely unrelated to the Counter-Fight.
A small, shabby tavern in a nearly deserted alley.
There, he approached the drowsy proprietor.
“Do you have any owl-distilled liquor?”
The hook-nosed proprietor opened his sleepy eyes and asked,
“Will you drink it now?”
“I plan to drink it on a moonless night.”
“Come in.”
The man, as if he had never been dozing off, led Suhyuk inside.
The inside of the tavern was a branch of Dark Map located on the 7th floor. There were several branches of Dark Map on the 7th floor, and this one was situated in the heart of the city where the Counter-Fight was taking place.
Right after he returned from finishing his test.
Suhyuk had checked a message on his kit.
It was a notification that the requested information had been secured and he needed to visit the nearest branch.
The man who led him soon stopped in front of an old door lit by a candle.
“You have to enter alone here.”
“Thank you for the guide.”
Suhyuk gave him a tip of 100 points. The man bowed and retreated, and Suhyuk opened the door and entered.
Inside.
“Huh?”
A man with bronze skin, surprised to see Suhyuk, looked at him.
“Seeing you again?”
Greg, the informant Suhyuk had met at another Dark Map branch, was sitting there.
“Why are you here?”
“I was transferred here a while ago. Is this fate? It seems like you’re going to be a regular customer of mine.”
Lee Suhyuk sat across from Greg. He didn’t intend to indulge in useless chatter and got straight to the point.
“Did you get the information?”
“If you’re talking about that request from before, I remember. Let’s see…”
Greg rummaged through his desk drawer and pulled out a small piece of paper, which was an invoice for the information Lee Suhyuk had requested.
“The price is quite high. Was it difficult to obtain? It seems you got the information recently.”
“How much?”
“300,000 points. What do you think? Can you pay for it?”
Lee Suhyuk frowned at the price set by the Dark Map. The assigned price directly reflected the value of the information. The more expensive it was, the more valuable and difficult it was to obtain.
300,000 points. It was a somewhat ambiguous price. It was expensive, but not enough to qualify as S-class information. It was probably moderately valuable and moderately useful information.
“I’ll pay.”
Fortunately, Lee Suhyuk had that many points at his disposal. Thanks to viewers who had been eagerly watching his videos while he took a break from streaming.
『300,000 points have been used.』
Once he paid, Greg began to speak.
“The request was about what Blue Zone did in the demon forest and the truth behind the rumors of a traitor in Blue Eyes.”
He conveyed the information in a somewhat businesslike tone.
“Blue Zone managed to secure a human in the demon forest.”
“A human?”
“Yeah. We were a bit surprised about it too. A human living in the demon forest? Whoever it is, they must have nerves of steel.”
With this, Greg hinted that he couldn’t obtain detailed information about the human.
“As for the veracity of the rumors, it’s still being investigated. To give you a mid-term briefing, there are many guild members within Blue Zone who claim that Kim Ilsoo is the real traitor.”
Lee Suhyuk already knew that much. But what he really wanted to know was where the information originated.
Who spread the information? Is this person an ally? Could it be another one of Kim Ilsoo’s schemes?
Knowing this was essential to manipulate the rumor.
“The price is too high for the information.”
Blue Zone secured a human in the demon forest. That was all he learned for now.
Thankfully, he had some leads.
‘Shiwoo was looking for something there.’
Shiwoo and another person visited the forest after Blue Zone had swept through it. Their purpose was likely similar to that of Blue Zone.
‘Perhaps…’
This was information worth 300,000 points to Lee Suhyuk, even if others might not see it that way.
But clearly, there was a reason why the price was set at 300,000 points.
“Obviously, this isn’t the end.”
Greg continued as if the real story was about to begin.
“While we don’t know the identity of the human, we did figure out who they are with.”
“Who?”
“A person named Cha Minwoo. Do you know him?”
Lee Suhyuk nodded. He had heard of Cha Minwoo. A genius player who, like himself, once ran a Lee Suhyuk-themed stream before eventually joining Blue Zone.
It seemed that Cha Minwoo was with the human secured by Blue Zone.
“Then, you would also know what time it is now.”
In an instant, a thought crossed Lee Suhyuk’s mind, and his eyes widened.
“Cha Minwoo is in this city.”