Chapter 176
Recently, the hottest streamer from Balhae Entertainment was undoubtedly Lee Suhyuk.
He was an extraordinarily talented player, to the point where it was hard to understand why he even became a streamer. He also possessed both topicality and stardom.
One of the representative streamers of Balhae Entertainment. That was Lee Suhyuk’s current position as a streamer.
“It’s been five days already.”
Consequently, John Dale couldn’t help but worry about Lee Suhyuk’s stamina and mental state as a streamer.
“Taking a break from streaming without any reason. Sure, Lee Suhyuk isn’t in a position where he would be affected by such things anyway. But shouldn’t we know?”
– What do you mean?
“Why is he taking a break? Is he really taking a break or is he just resting for a while?”
Eventually, John Dale contacted Un Hyang. He was worried about Lee Suhyuk, who hadn’t streamed for five days without any contact or notice.
Having been in this industry, he had seen countless streamers neglect their streams and get caught up in leisure and entertainment, intoxicated by fleeting success.
John Dale didn’t worry about such people.
There was no need to.
They were just those kinds of people who couldn’t climb any higher; they didn’t have the vessel or capability to do so.
But Lee Suhyuk was different.
‘From the preliminaries to the main event is just a month. Five days have already passed.’
This was something that would never happen with the usual Lee Suhyuk.
‘So far, Lee Suhyuk has spent his time without rest, whether it was streaming or training. As if something was chasing him from behind.’
This was an extremely important period for him. Moreover, it was a time when his stock value had hit its peak.
Lee Suhyuk was not just a player who was good at fighting. According to John Dale, he was someone smarter than anyone else.
He surely knew the importance of this period and wouldn’t have wasted a single second if he could help it.
‘Taking a break at this crucial moment?’
It wasn’t about the company’s loss due to his break from streaming.
As mentioned earlier, Lee Suhyuk’s reputation wasn’t something that could be shaken by a few missed streams, and he was too outstanding a streamer to be scrutinized for that.
The problem lay with his condition.
‘Did something happen? I have a gut feeling about this.’
Injury? Burnout? Or perhaps, some higher level of damage?
It didn’t matter, as long as it was something that could be recovered from.
Such worries piled up when.
– Don’t worry. He’ll be back starting tomorrow.
“Tomorrow?”
– Yes. That’s what Suhyuk said himself, so he’ll definitely keep his word.
John Dale blinked at Un Hyang’s reply.
Had he worried for nothing? Maybe it was presumptuous to think he knew everything about Lee Suhyuk just because he had known him for a long time.
– Don’t worry too much. He’s just taking a short break.
Right. Everyone needed a comma in their life.
For Lee Suhyuk, that comma had just arrived suddenly, without notice.
‘I was being too impatient.’
Only then did John Dale realize how petty he had been.
An unannounced five-day break. A strange sense of unease. And his arrogance from thinking he knew Lee Suhyuk too well.
Those things combined to make it seem as if Lee Suhyuk had taken a significant hit.
“Alright. Let’s let him rest well. And please, make an announcement.”
* * *
“Oh, he’s so nagging.”
Un Hyang grumbled after the call with John Dale. She was in the refreshment room of the best and most expensive lodging on the seventh floor.
– I haven’t hung up yet.
“Yes. I said it so you could hear it. Now I’ll end the call.”
– You, I’m still your sup….
Beep.
The call was coldly cut off as if there was nothing more to hear.
Lee Suhyuk, who had been listening from across the room, asked.
“Is that alright?”
“What is?”
“He’s still your boss.”
“Is he? Seems like it when you say so.”
As if it was a problem she had never considered, she pouted and tilted her head.
Then she brought a fork full of cake to her mouth.
How she liked sweet things so much, and how she didn’t gain weight despite eating them every day, was a mystery.
Lee Suhyuk, who usually didn’t touch sweets, looked at the desserts filling the table for a moment.
These luxurious desserts and the sparkling, lavish lodging — all of it was paid for happily by Un Hyang.
“Sweets are the best when you’re not in a good mood.”
Un Hyang’s expression, with her cheeks full of cake, added genuine persuasiveness to her words.
“Have a taste. Why aren’t you eating these delicious things?”
“Is it alright?”
“What is?”
“This lodging. It can’t be cheap.”
It was a lavish lodging that he hadn’t been able to visit often, even in his past life. It might cost thousands, maybe even tens of thousands of points just for one night.
No matter how big Balhae Entertainment was, they wouldn’t let their streamers stay in such lodging daily.
So, this was clearly coming out of Un Hyang’s own pocket.
“Are we really going to talk about that again?”
“Yes, I should….”
“If you’re going to suggest going fifty-fifty, that’s a no. This conversation is over.”
Lee Suhyuk was baffled by Un Hyang’s firm refusal. While he appreciated her kindness, it was too much, and he worried about her financial situation.
Also, a part of him found it intriguing.
‘Is it the wealth of the Divine Dragon Group?’
There weren’t many players who could casually stay in such luxurious lodgings. He wondered if it was the financial power she possessed as the heir to the Divine Dragon Group.
“I earned these points myself.”
As if she had read his thoughts, Un Hyang began to share her story.
“The salary here isn’t as small as you might think. Also, I had saved up quite a lot of points from before.”
“Was it that obvious?”
“I’ve been a fan of masked people for a long time. I can tell everything just by looking at your eyes.”
Feeling a bit awkward, Lee Suhyuk finally brought the cake he usually avoided to his mouth.
Seeing him like that made Un Hyang giggle quietly.
“Don’t feel so bad about it. This is for you too, Suhyuk.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“To be honest, I’ve put a lot on the line with you, Suhyuk.”
“Put a lot on the line? Do you mean a bet?”
“I never expected it”, Lee Suhyuk asked incredulously, and Un Hyang nodded in response.
Given how she had often grabbed Cheon Ryang’s neck over his gambling issues, it was indeed a baffling turn of events.
“I’m different from Cheon Ryang”, she said.
“So, it was obvious again?” he asked.
“You’re not exactly trying to hide your expressions in the first place.”
“At this rate, you might as well be reading my mind.”
Un Hyang, clearly exasperated, continued to talk about Cheon Ryang, who wasn’t present.
“He always wastes his salary on unsure bets. Unlike me, who bets only on sure things.”
“I’m sure Cheon Ryang thought he was betting on something certain, too.”
“A bet on Schneider?”
“That was a bit foolish.”
Omar Schneider—he was a player from the Blue Zone who had competed against Lee Suhyuk on the third floor.
At the time, most players had predicted Schneider’s victory. Despite Suhyuk gaining the Heart of Lightning, most believed it would be difficult to beat Schneider, who had spent over a decade mastering the Thunder Cave on the third floor.
But in the end, it was Suhyuk who emerged victorious.
“You must have bet on me, Un Hyang.”
“Of course”, she replied, exaggerating a shrug that made Suhyuk chuckle.
He seemed to understand what it meant that she considered this his win as well. Truly, her words brightened his mood a bit.
“Feeling a bit better now?” she asked as they were halfway through their cake.
Suhyuk cocked his head for a moment before nodding.
After all, he had been resting for days.
“I wasn’t that tired to begin with. You know, there was no chance of getting hurt during the Counter-Fight—”
“No, not that.”
Grinning mischievously, Un Hyang looked at him.
Instinctively, Suhyuk knew what she was hinting at.
“I thought you said you wouldn’t bring that up.”
“I said I wouldn’t ask for the reasons.”
“Isn’t that essentially the same thing?”
“Not quite.”
She stabbed a pancake drenched in syrup with her fork.
“Sometimes, people need to eat delicious food in a nice place and get a good sleep. Physical exhaustion isn’t the only fatigue one can feel; invisible fatigue and wounds need healing too.”
That day, she had unexpectedly brought Suhyuk to this place without asking for a reason.
“Don’t worry. I won’t ask why you’re feeling this way.”
Interestingly, she seemed to see right through him, both then and now.
“It’s not the type of wound that’ll heal quickly”, he responded, his face showing a smile for the first time in five days.
“But I won’t stay down for long.”
He had a promise to keep—an extremely important one he couldn’t afford to break.
But that wasn’t all.
‘I need to find them too.’
Hwang Gyuseong and Lee Hyomin were alive.
That possibility gave Suhyuk hope that Shiwoo and Yerang might also be out there.
His mood brightened as he thought of Shiwoo and Yerang.
“Feeling better now?”
Un Hyang observed, startling Suhyuk into touching his face.
She seemed to understand him better than friends who had been with him for decades. Suhyuk awkwardly changed his expression several times.
The sight made Un Hyang burst into laughter.
But suddenly—
Clatter—
Empty plates on the table began to shake gently.
The previously pleasant atmosphere turned grim instantly as a suffocating pressure filled the air.
Looking around, Suhyuk saw others at the tables seemingly unaffected, continuing their conversations as usual.
‘… What is this?’
He couldn’t sense any special power, any recognizable magic, or any skill—it was just a presence.
A familiar feeling he couldn’t easily forget. An overwhelming presence he had encountered before.
‘No way…’
Thud—
The presence slowly approached from beyond the restaurant door.
Tremble—
Un Hyang’s face turned pale, and her shoulders tensed up, trembling like a leaf.
Only the two of them—Suhyuk and Un Hyang—seemed aware of the approaching presence.
“Run”, Un Hyang managed to say, her lips quivering.
“They’re here for me. So—”
“You’re wrong.”
When had he gotten so close?
Suhyuk had thought he was far away, but now he was standing right behind Un Hyang.
Long, jet-black hair cascaded down his back. His stern, combative gaze focused on them—a strikingly handsome man over 190 cm tall.
“I’m not here for you”, he declared, shifting his gaze to Suhyuk.
“I came to see this little sparrow.”
His red eyes pierced through Suhyuk. Anyone with less mental fortitude would be overwhelmed by just making eye contact with him.
Suhyuk recognized him, even though it was the first time seeing him in this life.
No one in this tower would fail to recognize him.
‘…Heavenly Demon.’
The demon of the heavens, the Heavenly Demon. A colossal shadow within the Murim World, belonging yet not belonging to it.
Lee Suhyuk’s legend had vanished. The strongest player of this era had come to find the two of them.
TL’s Corner:
Heavenly Demon appears.