Chapter 113

“What should I call this?”

Watching the scene, people sighed unconsciously, caught in the contradictory feeling of being pleased yet simultaneously feeling a chill down their spines the more they watched. Indeed, the mere fact that they could feel envy witnessing the sweet atmosphere between Jun-sang and Henes was proof that they now had a little more leeway than when they first encountered the quests.

They grabbed burgers and drinks from a nearby fast-food joint for a simple meal.

“Come to think of it, it’s been a really long time since I bought a hamburger in a place like this,” Jin Se-ah remarked.

Im Seo-yoon picked up on her words. “Why? I’d think you’d eat it often.”

Jin Se-ah shrugged in response. “You know how it is. Regular restaurants are fine, but fast-food places with a lot of young people like this feel a bit awkward to come to alone.”

“Huh? You feel that way, unnie? I actually find it more awkward to go into a regular restaurant alone.” Jung Da-bin said this, and Im Seo-yoon tilted his head, seemingly not understanding. “I don’t know about that. Well, I don’t usually eat fast food myself…”

At that, Jin Se-ah spoke in a tone that sounded as if she were humoring Im Seo-yoon, “Oh, my, of course you wouldn’t, young master.”

“Hmm.”

Watching the others converse, Henes dipped a french fry in ketchup and held it out to Jun-sang. “Ah, say ah.”

Jun-sang frowned and reached out to take the fry, but Henes quickly dodged his hand and said again, “Quicklyyyy.”

Jun-sang sighed at Henes, who was swaying and acting cute, God knows where she learned it. He then turned his gaze to the rest of the group, who were watching them with intrigued expressions. As Jun-sang’s gaze fell upon them, they quickly resumed their halted conversation.

“Ahem.”

“Ah, this tastes so good after such a long time.”

“Right? Should we order another chicken?”

“Won’t we gain weight?”

“There’s no one to impress anyway. Let’s just eat and gain weight.”

They were trying their best to act as if they were deep in conversation, but their eyes were all alight with amusement. Henes, seemingly noticing this, blushed slightly, but nevertheless, she again urged Jun-sang to open his mouth.

“Here. Ah…”

“…” To eat or not to eat. That was the question. The five people mentally rehearsed such lines, stealing glances at Jun-sang and Henes. Would the stoic Jun-sang finally succumb to Henes’s affectionate offensive?

However, there was an existence that shattered their exciting expectations: Mong-mong. Mong-mong, perched on Jun-sang’s shoulder, suddenly turned its head to one side, then squeaked as if it had found something, and quickly dashed forward, snatched it, and ran off.

“Ah!” Henes cried out in surprise, but Mong-mong was already happily munching on the french fry, clutching it with its front paws.

“You…! Mong-mong, you!” Henes placed a hand on her hip and glared, but Mong-mong paid her no mind, busily gnawing on the french fry held in its front paws as if playing a flute.

“Sigh…” Ultimately, Henes’s first offensive failed due to Mong-mong’s intervention. But it wasn’t over yet.

After finishing their meal, Jin Se-ah made another suggestion. “Since we’ve come all this way, why don’t we go inside and play for a bit? It’s been a while since I rode an amusement park ride.”

Jung Da-bin immediately retorted, “What are you talking about? What if we get summoned after riding one?”

“Th-that’s true. Ugh… Well, if we can’t ride, we can at least watch.”

Then, as if on cue, Yoon Seong-ryeol chimed in, supporting Jin Se-ah’s idea. “Oh, that’s a great idea. It’s been my dream since school to escort beautiful ladies like yourselves to an amusement park.”

At his somewhat unusual remark, Jung Da-bin, who had been listening quietly next to him, cautiously asked, “What kind of school did you go to…?”

Yoon Seong-ryeol replied with an embarrassed expression, “Just ordinary—all-boys middle school, all-boys high school, engineering college, military, and then some work at a civil engineering site…”

“…” Only then did Im Seo-yoon realize his mistake of not scrutinizing Yoon Seong-ryeol’s profile more carefully. No wonder he immediately sought the caretaker position as soon as he joined the guild… Why hadn’t he recognized that desperate aura of a perennial bachelor earlier?

Regardless, Jin Se-ah’s proposal was passed with Yoon Seong-ryeol’s enthusiastic endorsement and the overwhelming support of the other women. In fact, Jun-sang himself had no strong objections to this proposal. He had already thought it wouldn’t be bad to show Henes around this world’s amusement park, since they were already here. Besides, he had a waiting period, so riding rides wouldn’t be an issue for him.

As Jun-sang showed no signs of refusal, they immediately entered the amusement park with momentum.

“Once you’re at an amusement park, the Viking ship is first, right?” Jin Se-ah’s words were immediately challenged by Jung Da-bin. “What are you talking about? If you come here, the French Revolution ride is first.”

Then Seo Yoo-mi, who had been quietly following behind, said, “Um… I want the carousel…”

Inevitably, the three women’s opinions immediately clashed.

“The Viking ship is first!”

“Of course, it’s the French Revolution ride!”

“The carousel…”

Then Henes spoke, “What’s that? It looks fun.” She pointed to the Flume Ride, an amusement ride that plunges through water.

“Want to ride it?”

“Yes!”

Once Jun-sang and Henes made their decision, the three women who had been arguing amongst themselves fell silent as if gagged. “Sigh… The Viking ship should be first…” “If you come to an amusement park, it’s a roller coaster, and the roller coaster here is the French Revolution…” “The carousel…”

But even as they grumbled, they ultimately had to yield. And they had no choice but to… because this amusement park exploration plan was, from the beginning, part of a scheme to increase Jun-sang and Henes’s intimacy.

When Jin Se-ah and Jung Da-bin first “escorted” Henes to the shopping mall, the first thing they asked about was her clothing preferences. Henes was surprised by their gazes, which were like hawks eyeing their prey, but she soon replied cautiously, “I’d like clothes that make me look a bit more mature.”

“…” Not two words were needed. Jin Se-ah and Jung Da-bin shuddered as they caught the fresh aura of love emanating from Henes’s hesitant words. Then they puffed out their noses and began the process of upgrading her from a cute girl to a lovely young woman. Soft-colored clothes that accentuated her feminine figure, somewhat mature-feeling lingerie, and natural yet subtly alluring makeup… Henes’s appearance, born from the enthusiastic support of Jin Se-ah and Jung Da-bin, was so pretty and lovely that even other women wanted to just pinch her.

“Whew…” While Henes, who had been swept up in the frantic zeal of the two women and was taking a brief rest, Seo Yoo-mi, who had been silently watching, approached her and asked, “Do you… regret it?” Her words, spoken with a rather unique atmosphere, startled Henes slightly, but she soon smiled brightly and replied, “No!”

“…” Seo Yoo-mi, seeing her unhesitating response, nodded and said, “If you have any difficulties… tell me. If I can help… I will.”

“Thank you.”

Anyway. Having gained the full support of the three women through their shopping spree, Henes took her place next to Jun-sang and began riding the Flume Ride first.

“Kyaaaah!”

“…”

And then they proceeded to conquer the amusement rides one by one. The Flume Ride was fine. But the problem began after riding the Viking ship, due to Jin Se-ah’s strong insistence.

“Henes.”

“Yes…”

“Should we rest if you’re tired?”

“Ugh… Yes.” It wasn’t the fear so much as the motion sickness that overwhelmed Henes.

But as Jun-sang and Henes settled onto a bench, Jin Se-ah, as if she had been waiting, said to the others, “Let’s tell them to rest here, and we’ll go look around elsewhere.”

“What at?”

“Like the haunted house… Oh, seriously… What are you arguing about?”

“Exactly! Time is money!”

“Haha…”

Although it seemed too transparent, Seo-yoon also wished for Jun-sang and Henes to work out, so he followed their words without a second thought. Ultimately, Jun-sang and Henes were left alone on a bench in a corner of the amusement park.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“Just for everything.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Jun-sang said that and gently took Henes’s hand as she sat beside him. Henes flinched slightly at the sudden contact but soon quietly moved her hand to intertwine with Jun-sang’s. And she quietly watched the surroundings. Families visiting the amusement park. Girls laughing merrily with their friends. Couples walking briskly, holding hands with slightly awkward expressions. Jun-sang and Henes watched all these people, holding hands.

As they watched for a while… a parade began on the first floor. As a procession of people in various costumes began with lively music, Henes’s eyes widened in wonder. Jun-sang chuckled at the sight.

“Want to go see it?”

“Can we?”

“Of course.”

“Then, let’s go together.”

“Okay.”

Henes’s eyes widened at the sight of the female dancers with their legs exposed, but she soon happily enjoyed watching the procession.

But just then. Mong-mong, who had been sitting on Jun-sang’s shoulder, suddenly turned its head to one side and began chirping as if it had discovered something.

“…” Jun-sang turned his head in the direction Mong-mong was looking, wondering what was happening. Then, immediately, something strange appeared in his vision. It was haze. Black haze. A swirling black haze, like a dark halo, was rising from behind the head of one of the newly appeared dancers.

He had seen this phenomenon before. On a certain beach in the East Sea, where the sea wind blew roughly.

“This is…” He rubbed his eyes, wondering if he had seen wrong, but unfortunately, it was not an optical illusion. And, it became even clearer when a new message arrived in a corner of Jun-sang’s vision.

[You have met the special mission activation conditions.]

A short message. And following it, the quest information.

Recover the Dark Seed. :This wicked Dark Seed is an object that should not exist in this world. Sanction the user and recover the Dark Seed. [This is a solo quest.]

“…” Jun-sang frowned. A quest, of all things, at such a time and place. And not just any ordinary quest. It was a Dark Seed recovery quest.

Henes, forgetting her motion sickness, was enjoying the parade with a joyful expression when she suddenly looked back at Jun-sang and noticed his hardened expression. A sudden sinking feeling came over her.

“Surely… is it a quest?” Jun-sang nodded heavily.

“Then… do we have to leave right away?”

“No. Not that.”

How should he explain this? After a moment of thought, Jun-sang first said to Henes, “Go inside for a moment.”

“Yes.” But even recalling Henes was not easy. It was difficult to find a suitable place due to the large crowd. Jun-sang painstakingly recalled Henes near an emergency exit, then immediately sent a message to Seo-yoon.

‘Going ahead. See you later.’

And then he began tracking the target’s location displayed on the minimap. Fortunately, the target was still dancing and circling the amusement park as part of the parade. If it weren’t for the black haze emanating from her head, she would just appear to be a female dancer with a somewhat good physique. But considering the enemies he had fought before, such an appearance was no basis for judgment.

“Hmm…” Jun-sang used his Insight ability to identify the opponent. The result was, as expected, yellow. This meant an enemy of equal or similar level to himself. Considering how much Jun-sang had grown since he first encountered a Dark Seed, this was something that absolutely could not be taken lightly. Only then did Jun-sang somewhat understand the meaning of “special mission activation conditions.” What would happen if quests were indiscriminately given out whenever such an enemy appeared? Instead of fulfilling them, one would merely become prey. This implied that such Dark Seed related quests were only given to those who were somewhat capable of facing the opponent. If Jun-sang had a similar level of skill to other ordinary returnees, perhaps a warning message would have appeared instead of a quest even if he had discovered a Dark Seed user with his Insight ability. Of course, this was just speculation. However, Jun-sang thought it wasn’t impossible. The possibility that the conditions were completely different from his expectations couldn’t be ruled out, but at least this speculation seemed the most likely for now.

Jun-sang silently watched the enemy, who was dancing with a joyful expression as part of the parade. It would be difficult to attack directly here. There were too many onlookers, and there was a possibility that other civilians could be taken hostage if he made a mistake. Therefore, only one method remained for Jun-sang. Waiting until the opponent was alone.

“…” Having made that decision, Jun-sang, who had been quietly blending into the crowd and observing the target, suddenly made eye contact with her.

For a moment. He felt an illusion of being sucked into her eyes. Her appearance was, in a way, just pretty. But mixed within her gaze was something strange and difficult to understand. He didn’t know for sure, but this was probably a type of mental attack. If it weren’t Jun-sang, he might have shown some unusual reaction. She threw a captivating smile at Jun-sang, then turned her gaze to other people.

Was it a coincidence? Or had his identity been discovered by the opponent? Or was it simply bait to lure prey? Whichever it was, he needed to be more careful.

Jun-sang observed the situation in the crowd for a moment, then disappeared into the shadows.