"My friend was rude today, so I wanted to make it up to you."
"Ah, it's okay."
Min Ha-yeon, unsatisfied with my answer, extended her arm and spoke.
Her face was filled with guilt.
"I feel bad. We only earned 3,000 points, and you had to go through so much trouble because of me..."
"It's fine..."
"Sigh... Even if you keep saying it's fine..."
I cut her off and replied.
"If I can be with someone as skilled as you, Min Ha-yeon, I can endure that much."
"..."
Min Ha-yeon lowered her head and stayed quiet for a moment before forcing a bitter smile and speaking.
"Thank you."
"So, don't worry too much. Oh, and this..."
I handed her the Artemis Potion and the Magic Resistance Potion I had made earlier.
"...? What's this...?"
"I had some mana left before bed, so I made some extras."
"But this Magic Resistance Potion... it's worth 20,000 points, right?"
Even for Min Ha-yeon, 20,000 points wasn't a small amount.
Originally, she could only earn that much if she hunted with me.
"I'm not sure, but this is the most expensive potion sold at the potion shop in Zephyrum."
"Yes, I've seen it before."
"Just in case, why don't you keep it?"
"...? There are no magic-using monsters here..."
Min Ha-yeon continued to hesitate, reluctant to accept the Magic Resistance Potion.
While the Artemis Potion could be useful for hunting, she had no idea why the Magic Resistance Potion even existed.
'She probably hasn't thought that the Magic Resistance Potion is the solution to the paralysis wave.'
[For Min Ha-yeon, who isn't a mage, the concept of magic must be confusing.]
For Min Ha-yeon, who had never experienced magic in her life, the paralysis wave was just an unknown, mysterious force.
I needed to give her a hint that this beginner's Magic Resistance Potion could be useful.
I casually dropped a hint.
"It just feels strange to me."
"What does?"
"If you think about it, there are no magic-related monsters in this area. Yet, this item is openly sold, and the description says it can only be used within the village."
"Hmm... That is strange."
Min Ha-yeon listened to me and began to ponder.
I decided to wrap up the conversation.
"I think... there must be a use for it. And there must be a precise timing for it."
"...Ah!"
Min Ha-yeon suddenly clapped her hands, her eyes wide with realization.
I tilted my head and looked at her, pretending not to understand.
But inside, I was relieved.
'Thank goodness.'
[Given her clear reaction, it seems she'll use the potion well if the time comes.]
She was a woman with basic sense.
Even Han Yeo-reum, who was clueless, had figured it out.
I believe Min Ha-yeon would also understand the potion's purpose.
Min Ha-yeon couldn't hold back her smile and laughed at me.
I pretended not to understand and asked.
"Um...? Is something wrong?"
"...It's nothing. No... this... thank you so much."
Min Ha-yeon stared at the Magic Resistance Potion, then sighed and spoke to me.
"I came to make it up to you, but I ended up receiving something even bigger."
"It's okay. I don't want to just be someone you see for a day or two. So don't feel too burdened."
"...Thank you."
Min Ha-yeon smiled, took a deep breath, and said.
"Let me give you one favour."
"Huh?"
In response to my question, Min Ha-yeon smiled and repeated.
"Anything within my power, I'll do it for you. It doesn't have to be right now."
"Haha... I'll just take your kind words."
"No."
Min Ha-yeon said.
"...Alright. I guess I'll have to stay by your side until the day comes when I can use it."
"Hehe... Then I'll go now."
"Okay, take care."
With that, Min Ha-yeon left, and silence fell over the room.
Except for the chat window...
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: Wait a second.
"...? Huh? Why?"
Gekkosu, who had been quiet, suddenly typed in the chat.
Come to think of it, in previous rounds, he would have been throwing a fit by now, but today he was unusually quiet, which felt strange.
The quiet Gekkosu dropped a bombshell.
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: Let's exclude that girl from the mission.
It was an incomprehensible statement.
Gekkosu had always seen Min Ha-yeon as an iron-clad virgin and considered mission failure a given.
"What!? I'm going to do it with her!"
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: No, no. There's something off about her. She's been coming on strong since the first day. It doesn't fit the mission.
"I don't care!! I'm going to do it with her!!"
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: LOL, are you crazy? Do whatever you want with her. But she's not part of the mission.
"What kind of nonsense is that!!!"
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: LOLOLOL I clearly said the conditions had to be approved by me, right? She's a no.
Wow, this guy is using the conditions to wiggle out.
I couldn't understand it at all, so I asked.
"Wait, just based on looks, she's top-tier in the village, right? No, she's number one! Plus, she's skilled. No matter how you look at it, she's the most suitable woman for this mission, isn't she?"
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: Nah, I thought she was okay on the first day too, but since yesterday, something felt off. No matter how I think about it, it feels like she's determined to give herself to you.
"That's ridiculous..."
Outwardly, I was annoyed, but inwardly, I was impressed.
'Damn, that's creepy. This guy's intuition is no joke.'
[It's fascinating. Even if Min Ha-yeon's acting isn't great, he doesn't know about the regression, yet he figured it out by instinct. That's not ordinary.]
'Maybe it's because he's so devoted to his faith that he can pick up on things like that?'
[....]
'Ah, is it because he's gay?'
[You don't need to say that to me.]
Because it's you, I want to say it.
But if we let this slide, it could cause problems later.
If he keeps saying no to every girl we meet, I might end up having to jerk off 100 times, which would be insane.
"Wait, if you keep saying no, this mission is doomed to fail."
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: Wow, what a great idea!
"Hey, this guy..."
Gekkosu, seeing my exasperated expression, typed cheerfully.
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: LOLOLOL Just kidding, just kidding. Exclude her. But if you find a girl like that who's a total 10/10, I'll even set up a weekly donation for you.
"Weekly donation? What's that?"
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: It's 10,000 points automatically sent every week. And once it starts, it's mandatory for three months.
"Huh? That's a lot of points. If I complete the mission and that, wouldn't it be a bit tough?"
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: Damn... But next week, I'll loosen up. Damn, I got screwed over by that last guy, so now my entire fortune is 100,000 points.
I poked around just in case, and it turned out that 100,000 points really was his entire fortune.
But I was curious about who that "last guy" was.
"By the way, who was that last guy?"
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: Ugh... sigh... That bastard knew I was out of points and reported me right away. What a jerk...
"...You should be reported for sexual harassment."
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: No, damn it, he happily took the points and flashed his dick with a grin, but as soon as the points ran out, he cut me off. Wow, I've never seen such a jerk before.
"..."
I couldn't figure out who was the bad guy here.
Was the point guy was bad or the sexual harasser was bad...
One thing's for sure.
'I am good.'
[....]
Don't stay silent.
***
Min Ha-yeon left the inn where Seong Suho was staying and wandered aimlessly before sitting on an empty bench and lowering her head.
"..."
She didn't say anything, just stared intently at the Magic Resistance Potion Seong Suho had given her.
As she stared, droplets began to fall onto the potion.
Min Ha-yeon sighed as she saw her own tears falling onto the potion.
"Sigh... Suho... why do you keep helping me like this..."
She felt guilty toward Seong Suho.
In the repetitive daily life after death, she had been focused only on spending happy times with Seong Suho.
In her first real relationship, Min Ha-yeon was filled with thoughts of how she could get closer to Seong Suho.
But Seong Suho, who couldn't retain his memories, continued to help Min Ha-yeon in various ways even in the repetitive situations.
Seong Suho saved her in moments of crisis.
When Min Ha-yeon was lost and confused, he provided her with answers to move forward.
Without asking for anything in return.
"Sniff... I... I'll save you no matter what. And... I'll go all the way..."
As Min Ha-yeon wiped her tears with her sleeve, her determined eyes reflected the moonlight, shining brilliantly.
***
"I am good!! I want to have sex with Min Ha-yeon!!"
└Guardian of the Gay Dick: LOLOLOLOL You crazy double-faced bastard LOLOLOL So damn funny LOLOL
[....]
...
...
...
Today, Han Yeo-reum's behaviour was similar to yesterday's.
The only difference was that his condition had improved somewhat.
"Min Ha-yeon, you really didn't go anywhere else yesterday, right?"
"Sigh... Cut it out. I told you. I just stopped by the potion shop and the store."
"...From now on, tell me whenever you go somewhere."
"You're driving me crazy..."
By the way, his improved condition was only superficial.
The dark circles were gone, and his haggard appearance had disappeared. In just one day, he had returned to being a perfect handsome man.
But was it just my imagination that his mental state seemed to be deteriorating?
The hunt proceeded smoothly as usual.
'I'm starting to get curious. It won't be this relaxed from the first floor onward, right?'
[There's no information about the upper floors, but according to the Zodiac team that broke through the lower floors, the biggest inconvenience is the living conditions.]
A leisurely life like in Zephyrum Village was a thing of the past.
[They even sent a warning to be cautious of summoners.]
'The fact that there are Red Summoners means there must be such groups.'
In other words, the most dangerous thing wasn't the monsters, but other people.
[Other than that, the difficulty is set appropriately, so ridiculously strong enemies won't appear.]
'Hehe... But given how the boss looks...'
Even if it wasn't made to be caught, seeing something like that made me worry about the first floor.
And along with that worry, another question arose.
'Will Han Yeo-reum even go to fight the boss?'
[I can't be sure, but given Han Yeo-reum's personality, he might just spend the seven days and pass.]
'Well, I guess...'
For someone who relied solely on luck, that place must have been pure terror.
If he died without understanding anything like in the 5th round, he might have gone in clueless like in the 6th round.
But since he experienced it properly in the 6th round, he would definitely be cautious.
'But I'm curious. What will they give if we pass?'
[I think there will be a significant reward.]
I have a feeling they won't just give points and call it a day...
Honestly, I was confident Min Ha-yeon and I could survive if we went in together.
If only two Shock Bees appeared, they wouldn't be able to use the paralysis wave, and luring two away would be manageable.
But...
'Min Ha-yeon probably won't want to go in.'
[I think Min Ha-yeon would prefer to pass as well.]
Without knowing what the reward is, there's no reason to risk her life.
Since my real goal is Han Yeo-reum's downfall, I decided to put the boss fight on the back burner.
...
...
...
When evening came, Min Ha-yeon visited my room as usual.
But there was one difference...
"Can we talk for a moment?"
"Ah, sure."
For the first time, she suggested we take a walk together.
Min Ha-yeon and I wandered around the dark village without saying a word.
And the place we arrived at was...
"It feels really eerie coming here at this time."
"I was so shocked the first day I came here..."
The place we arrived at was the Colosseum.
The earthen floor and the dark brown brick walls.
People were randomly summoned here, and one of them even had their head blown off.
No matter how much I wanted to forget, I couldn't forget that.
I was curious why she brought me here, but I didn't ask.
I decided to wait for her to speak.
Min Ha-yeon and I soon arrived at the center of the Colosseum.
In the center was a plaster pillar with a crystal orb on top.
It was the crystal orb that transported you to the boss fight.
Min Ha-yeon stared at the orb intently before turning to me.
"Do you know about the boss fight?"
"The boss fight?"
I pretended not to know and listened to Min Ha-yeon's explanation.
It was simple.
No one knows what's inside, and if you clear it, you automatically move to the next floor.
After finishing her brief explanation, Min Ha-yeon looked at me with serious eyes.
"Don't go in."
"...? Isn't there some kind of reward?"
"No. I mean... I don't know. But please, don't go in."
Min Ha-yeon was looking at me, waiting for an answer.
On the last day, over 90% of the summoners in Zephyrum would definitely go in.
Because they mistakenly thought the boss fight was just a bit tougher than the monsters near the village.
And Armonia told me that even I, in the 5th round, confidently went in without knowing.
Actually...
"...Please. I won't let you go until I hear your answer."
"Hmm..."
If Min Ha-yeon wasn't going in, I had no reason to go in either.
"Well..."
Just as I was about to answer her...
"You damn bastard, why are you with Ha-yeon?!"
The troublemaker Han Yeo-reum appeared.
***
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