Chapter 96
Thud, thud—
Following behind the man, Suhyuk was engulfed in a peculiar feeling. This vast estate they were walking through, and the man in front of him—it was hard to believe that they were events from over 20 years ago.
“Nothing has changed.”
The estate remained the same. It was still immaculate, with no sign of human presence. How does he manage the cleaning all by himself?
“Do you know me?”
The man asked as he led the way, his back turned. Though the man couldn’t see it, Suhyuk nodded.
“I do.”
“Have we met before?”
Suhyuk hesitated.
Should he say it?
That he was actually Lee Suhyuk. That even though he had changed and it had been a long time, he was the same person from back then.
He opened his mouth slightly, then closed it. It would be fortunate if he believed it. More likely, he wouldn’t believe it. He might even end up hating him, thinking he was a fraud impersonating Lee Suhyuk.
“… No. This is the first time.”
“Is that so? Yet you seem to know me well. There’s something strangely familiar about you.”
Saying so, the man glanced back at Suhyuk. A sharp pang struck his chest. The situation made it hard to keep pretending he was a complete stranger, so Suhyuk answered, mixing in some half-truths.
“I did come knowing about you.”
“How so?”
“You were quite famous, weren’t you? Not anymore, though.”
It wasn’t a lie. Many might have forgotten him now, but decades ago, almost everyone knew him. Suhyuk included. The man who saved him turned out to be this person.
“Jinwoon-ajussi.”
Myojae Jin Woon. He was a formidable martial artist and formation expert from Murim. After adopting new methodologies from the tower, he combined Murim’s formations with Panthera’s magic and then mysteriously disappeared.
A giant who retired from Murim. That was the true identity of the cranky old man standing before Suhyuk.
“Indeed, I was famous. Long ago.”
His tone suggested he still had questions. He stopped in front of a room that appeared to be their destination.
“You’re here for work?”
“Yes. I wish to have a piece of art inscribed.”
“It’s not just a painting done with a brush, I presume…”
Screech—
Jin Woon gestured toward the door, and it opened like an automatic door.
“So, you came for a procedure.”
In the middle of the room, two cups of tea were set out, as if prepared for a conversation. The tea was still warm, indicating it had been set out recently, perhaps in anticipation of such a scenario.
“Have a seat. My legs are tired.”
“Yes.”
Suhyuk sat down as instructed and immediately picked up the teacup. The tea was just the right temperature, warm but not uncomfortably hot.
After taking a sip, Jinwoon spoke.
“I don’t perform procedures on those whose faces I do not know.”
He continued without touching the tea he had prepared.
“That was the case with Lee Suhyuk as well.”
The name made Suhyuk’s hand pause mid-drink. Jinwoon had mentioned his name.
Was it intentional?
Hiding his face behind the mask, Suhyuk looked at Jinwoon. As always, it was hard to read any intentions from his expression or eyes.
‘A face…’
Indeed, Jinwoon was one of the few who knew his face. He was someone Suhyuk trusted deeply and had received significant help from. If it weren’t for him, Suhyuk might not have survived his previous life.
“Whatever you may have heard, if you truly wish to receive my work….”
Swoosh—
Jinwoon’s words trailed off. Suhyuk’s mask slipped off, revealing his clear, defined features framed by his black eyes. Chun Jinwoon’s pupils slightly quivered.
It seemed he hadn’t expected this.
“You’re showing your face more easily than I anticipated.”
“It’s not such a grand face to hide.”
It had been a long time since he had shown his face to anyone. Actually, this was the first time in this life.
There wasn’t any significant reason to keep his face hidden. It was partly because he was used to this lifestyle and partly to maintain an air of mystery for his stream persona.
But justifying hiding his face was negligent in front of someone like Chun Jinwoon, who was too important.
“Naturally….”
After confirming Suhyuk’s face, Jinwoon seemed slightly disappointed.
“You don’t resemble him at all.”
“Pardon?”
“Just the same name, then. Tsk, tsk.”
Clicking his tongue irritably, Jinwoon muttered, and Suhyuk fell into deep thought.
A name.
He recognized the name Lee Suhyuk. It wasn’t just because of the mask. In this era, plenty of people donned the mask and cosplayed as Lee Suhyuk.
However, Jinwoon recognized him because he had watched his streams. A warm feeling enveloped Suhyuk. Jinwoon might have been disappointed, but Suhyuk felt a sense of joy.
The fact that Jinwoon missed him was a deeply welcome revelation. For the first time in a while, Suhyuk smiled without the mask.
Even though he tried to suppress it, a slight smile crept up, causing Jinwoon to frown.
“What’s so funny?”
“Did I smile?”
Suhyuk tried to lower the smile that was hard to control and asked.
“It seems you’re looking for someone in me.”
“Looking for whom? What are you speaking of?”
“Just a moment ago, you said I didn’t resemble him at all….”
“Just talking to myself, talking to myself.”
Jinwoon tried to dismiss it with a wave of his hand, but Suhyuk remained unwavering. Eventually, glancing around as if hesitant, Jinwoon resigned and opened up.
“Fine. It’s about Lee Suhyuk.”
“Yes.”
“No, not you. The one you’re impersonating. Since you wear the same mask, I thought your personality might be the same, but the face is entirely different.”
Indeed, the faces of Suhyuk’s past and present lives were vastly different. In his previous life, he had a rather sharp appearance; now, aside from his gaze, he had a softer countenance.
“Why are you looking for that Lee Suhyuk?”
“Had a close relationship. But, as you know, he suddenly up and died. Damn fool.”
The words almost slipped out of Suhyuk’s mouth in response to the grumbling.
“……Do you miss him a lot?”
Not alive, nor dead, but still here. I have returned.
“Miss him?”
In response to Suhyuk’s question, Jinwoon uttered words he would never have said if the real Suhyuk were in front of him.
“If I didn’t miss him, I wouldn’t have bothered to make you take off your mask.”
“Is that so?”
Suhyuk, who had just managed to suppress his rising smile, finally broke into a bright grin.
“That makes me happy.”
*
Following Jinwoon, they arrived at a large pavilion. This place, inhabited solely by Jinwoon, was expansive enough to accommodate an entire mid-sized guild.
As they reached the pavilion, Jinwoon glanced at Suhyuk and spoke.
“Don’t touch anything.”
Click—
Jinwoon grabbed the door handle and pulled. Instantly, the same sharp scent that had hit Suhyuk when he first entered the estate assaulted his nose.
The scent was so strong that anyone with a weak stomach might have retched immediately. Casually glancing around the interior, Suhyuk inwardly marveled.
‘He’s added more since then.’
He hadn’t expected everything to be unchanged. With the overall level of players having risen, it stood to reason that Jinwoon hadn’t remained idle over the past 20 years.
The pavilion was Jinwoon’s workshop. The workshop was filled with plants and liquids that reeked strongly, along with unique materials and tools like sharp awls and brushes.
“You might not know this, but my procedures are quite expensive.”
At Jinwoon’s blunt statement, Suhyuk nodded. Quite expensive was an understatement. But considering the effect of the procedures, it couldn’t be said to be overly costly.
“How much are you prepared to spend?”
“As much as needed.”
“As much as needed, you say….”
Jinwoon appraised Suhyuk up and down at his answer.
“Then we must first find out how much you can handle. Take off your top and sit down. I’ll examine you.”
Complying with Jinwoon’s instruction, Suhyuk stripped and took a seat. Jinwoon moved behind him and placed a hand on Suhyuk’s back.
“The canvas isn’t bad. For someone who just reached the fifth floor….”
Jinwoon referred to a player’s body as a canvas. His procedures usually involved intricate formations or drawings on a player’s back, similar to traditional formations.
Slowly inspecting Suhyuk’s body, Jinwoon murmured in a low voice.
“…Impressive.”
He seemed genuinely surprised. Given his usual stinginess with praise, the statement was significant. Suhyuk’s body was in exceptional condition, far beyond what one would expect for a fifth-floor player.
“How much can you handle?”
“There are many kinds of procedures. The method and cost will depend on what you want.”
“What I need is stamina.”
An answer he had prepared in advance.
“I need the stamina to endure Lightning.”
That had always been an enduring challenge for Suhyuk, both then and now.
Lightning.
A skill with immense power that placed a significant burden on the user’s body. Using it in the battle against Jung Yuhan had forced Suhyuk to take a day to recover his fatigue.
Never mind the Lightning Lord. Despite having gained several dozen stat points since then, reaching that level was still out of reach.
‘While I’ve improved a lot… it’s still not enough.’
He knew it was greed. In reality, much had already been improved to a surprising extent. Thanks to the Heart of Lightning, he had gained complete immunity to electrocution, and his resistance had significantly increased.
The skill level of Selfish Sacrifice was showing more remarkable performance with each increment.
Yet, he needed to push his greed further. So far, he had overcome the penalties of Lightning by doing things he hadn’t done in his past life.
Now, it was time to incorporate what he had done in his past life as well. After all, Suhyuk had once managed to overcome half of Lightning’s drawbacks.
“You desire what even we couldn’t achieve.”
We.
Suhyuk and Jinwoon had long strived together to overcome Lightning. Suhyuk trained relentlessly to build stamina and continuously leveled up while climbing the tower.
Jinwoon researched procedures to enhance Suhyuk’s physique, constantly advancing his studies.
Yet, as if mocking their efforts, lightning became increasingly powerful, placing heavier burdens on Suhyuk’s body.
“Do you know that Lightning is what killed that man?”
He was certain of it. In his previous life, Suhyuk was killed by nothing other than Lightning. That wasn’t incorrect.
If Suhyuk had overcome Lightning, he would have survived, killing Kim Ilsoo and all the enemies present at that place.
“I suspected as much.”
“Knowing this, you still intend to take on the challenge?”
“Yes.”
Nodding without hesitation, Suhyuk revealed his intentions plainly.
“Even if the outcome is the same, I won’t regret it.”
“…Is that so?”
Jinwoon burst into laughter, finding Suhyuk’s answer amusing. He felt a strange exhilaration. The problem that had ended in failure felt like a returning opportunity.
Jinwoon made his decision.
“In that case, I can help you.”
He decided to accept the young man standing before him as a guest.