Novel Bin Chapter 255: Scout (2)
’In that sense…’
Looking at this silver-haired devil that broke through the wall and stormed in, amusement filled Yoon-seok’s eyes. Magic that must be from a top ranker and the power of Upper Qigong that can break down waiting room walls. Most of the key conditions for colleague recruitment were met.
’All that’s left is personality…’
“W-What? What’s with that offensive look?”
Yoon-seok smacked his lips.
“Nothing. So, what brings you here?”
She cringed under Yoon-seok’s piercing gaze for a moment. When Yoon-seok asked, the silver-haired devil came to her senses and began to yell.
“…You did that thing to my waiting room. Did you ask because you don’t know?”
Sighing silently, Yoon-seok narrowed his eyes.
’Everything else is okay, but is personality the only problem?’
It was his fault about the wall. However, this was mostly offset when he forgave her for putting her feet up on his sacred workout bench. Furthermore…
“I have already fixed the wall as promised, though?”
Yoon-seok dedicated himself to repairing the walls. Speaking informally upon first meeting and even tearing up his ticket without his permission, causing him to lose 300 AP in property damage… he didn’t use these as excuses and took responsibility for his actions.
However, the other party had no intention of acknowledging this.
“What…? Fix…?”
When Yoon-seok asked back confidently, the silver-haired devil, whose hands were shaking, shouted.
“You slap that disgusting thing on someone else’s house and call it a fix?”
“…Disgusting thing?”
Yoon-seok tilted his head.
“Oh, is it nitpicking this time…?”
“Nit, picking…?”
Her eyebrows moved dynamically. It was a slip of the tongue, but Yoon-seok didn’t feel the need to act humble.
“Yes. If it’s not nitpicking, then what is it?”
”I-It’s weird! How am I nitpicking?”
“I don’t want to say this, but my muscle wall is excellent.”
In terms of sturdiness, it was impossible to compare with the existing waiting room wall that could be smashed by one punch, and it also came with its restoration function. However, after hearing this detailed explanation, the silver-haired devil freaked out and stepped back from the wall.
“T-This is muscle?”
Yoon-seok breathed a loud sigh, unable to control his misery.
“Are you going to keep nitpicking like that?”
“No, I’m not nitpicking. I’m serious… if there’s something gross like that in the waiting room, I can’t invite my friends over….”
Was it because of Yoon-seok’s confident reaction? The silver-haired devil shrunk timidly and trailed off.
’She doesn’t have anything else to say, so is she going to keep fixating on that?’
Yoon-seok could admit the only drawback of the muscle wall was aesthetics. To be honest, he didn’t have any problems with it, but it might be a little unpleasant to others. However, the other party was a duel top ranker. She killed countless people to get here, but this was gross?
“Yeah, whatever…”
When Yoon-seok stared at her silently, the silver-haired devil bit her lip.
“I don’t even know why I have to say this. I don’t even know why I can’t get an apology.”
“…”
“Forget about it. Give it back. It doesn’t have to be the way it was… at least return it to its broken state. I-I can’t even break it because it’s so solid…”
Yoon-seok felt embarrassed by her choked-up voice. Was it not nitpicking?
’Come to think of it; her waiting room was well decorated…’
Only then did Yoon-seok realize he had made a mistake. Maybe he judged her harshly since she was a devil and a top-ranker. Naturally, he thought she would be blunt and prioritize practicality like most rankers.
But this silver-haired devil was different.
”Will you go back if I get rid of the muscle wall?”
“I was originally going to get a proper apology… I think it’s good. Since you keep picking at my words over something weird.”
“No, I didn’t pick at your words…”
“If not, what is it? No matter what I say, you don’t want to apologize to me at all.”
She had strength, but she didn’t resort to violence. She waited for Yoon-seok not to punish him for breaking the wall but for clarification and an apology.
“…If I had apologized from the beginning, would you have gone back?”
“Why, should I fight you or something? Would the broken wall come back then? I have to receive an apology first. Then we can find a solution together somehow. Is that not right?”
She was right in every way. However, Yoon-seok couldn’t respond. It was very strange to hear this from a devil, and at the same time, he felt shame.
’Why did I only think that she came looking for a fight?’
Maybe because most of them were like that, that’s probably why. However, looking at it, he was also that kind of person in the end.
’Am I the one who isn’t normal…?’
Yoon-seok had adopted the strong prey on the weak to the bone. When did it start? Even knowing that, he found it weird. No meaning could be found in the act of apologizing. Therefore, he thought the other person would do the same.
’So there are people like this in the Tower…’
Yoon-seok admitted his mistake. And he gladly apologized.
“I sincerely apologize for breaking the wall without asking for your permission. I’ll remove the muscle wall right away, and I’ll find a way later to return it to its original state.”
Did she not think Yoon-seok would apologize so straightforwardly? The silver-haired devil flinched with surprise. But perhaps this wasn’t enough, as she added in a coy voice.
“…W-What about the nitpicking earlier?”
“I apologize for that, too. I misunderstood you.”
“…”
As expected, a belated apology couldn’t relieve her anger. The silver-haired devil watched him silently, and Yoon-seok faced her without looking away. She suddenly froze.
“…Hmmm.”
She suddenly made a strange sound. At first, he thought he heard her wrong, but looking closely, he could see the silver-haired devil shiver quietly. She crossed her legs, and her snake-like tail was swaying passionately.
“Hehe…”
His mind turned blank. Looking at the silver-haired devil, he thought there was finally a normal challenger in the duel rankings…
Sure enough.
“A little more…”
“…”
“Please keep apologizing…”
This woman wasn’t in her right mind.
Blanking out for a moment, Yoon-seok came back to his senses as if cold water was poured on him. Yoon-seok immediately picked up a fragment from the waiting room floor.
「Ingested A75447.」
「Unique characteristic of A75447 Surveillance is applied for an hour at the first stage.」
「If you look closely at the challenger, you can find additional information.」
Only name, floor number, record, and abilities. The information that could be seen as the first stage of Surveillance was trivial, but it didn’t matter. Yoon-seok only focused on her real name.
—Sharon Ephran (23rd floor)
Sadly, he remembered right away what Asnat mentioned about two challengers in the past.
—I’m angry, but both of them have higher ratings than me. I was lucky to get away.
There were only two players in Kilian that ranked fourteenth alongside the King of Steel. One was an Orc, and the other was a devil. And the devil’s name was none other than Sharon Ephran.
’And her nickname was Sexy Woman…’
About the woman who dared to use the nickname ‘Sexy Woman,’ Asnat also added.
‘She’s a crazy, perverted woman, so run away if you meet her.’
“…Hmm.”
Yoon-seok gulped. Although he was surprised that his next-door neighbor that smashed the wall and came to protest was a fourteenth placed ranker… he didn’t expect this was her preference.
’As expected, you can’t judge a book by its cover…’
After realizing that personality wasn’t the problem, Yoon-seok wondered if he would recruit this woman as a colleague.
“Please leave.”
Sharon, who was twisting her body around at Yoon-seok’s send-off greeting, came to her senses. She hurriedly tried to make up excuses.
“I-it’s not like that… it’s just that I haven’t had someone apologize to me in a long time….”
Seeing how she was belatedly embarrassed, it didn’t look like she was the type to reveal herself confidently. But there was no way Yoon-seok would believe her now.
“…”
When Yoon-seok looked at her coldly, Sharon flinched and bowed her head.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to, but I feel weird when I get an apology from someone else…”
At that, his confusion only grew. Did she pretend to be a normal person at first to receive an apology? Or was she normal but unintentionally became like that when she apologized?
“I’m leaving. And… it doesn’t have to be now, but make sure to get rid of it later.”
Sharon hurriedly crossed the wall and disappeared into her waiting room.
’Yeah, I’m the best out of all of them.’
Yoon-seok thought while looking at the hole where she disappeared. Perhaps he was the most normal among the top 100 rankers.
「Returning to Seheranbad.」
After Sharon disappeared, Yoon-seok headed to Seheranbad as planned.
‘I can’t use Death God because of the penalty, so I have no choice but to run there.’
Yoon-seok immediately tilted his head as he opened his eyes. His last whereabouts in Seheranbad was Panthenium, the capital of the Demon Kingdom. After destroying a city full of evil people, Yoon-seok followed Asnat to Kilian.
’But why am I inside a building?’
Panthenium was destroyed. Plus, the place he was before leaving was dozens of meters in the air. However, he was surrounded by walls.
“…”
Yoon-seok slowly looked around. The room was about 30 pyeong, with a thick red book placed on top of something similar to a religious altar in the center.
’The title is New Testament…? What is this? Did Saintrion swallow up Panthenium’s territory?’
That assumption suddenly came to mind, but it didn’t make sense. He would have heard from Ashton. Then, what was happening?
“One million and twenty oneeeeeeeeeeee!”
When he was about to take up the New Testament, a loud shout came from outside. Yoon-seok approached the window. He had to rub his eyes to make sure it was real.
“One million and twenty twoooooooooo!”
In a vast vacant lot located at the city’s outskirts where the restoration had yet to be completed, tens of thousands of people were screaming with enthusiasm.
“One million and twenty threeeeee!”
The flag above the barracks was not Saintrion but a kind he’d never seen before. Still, their identity was too clear.
「The necessary faith of the second stage has been fulfilled.」
「Due to One Muscle’s characteristics, the strength stat of all followers and believers increases by +1.」
Even if it weren’t for the message that appeared.
“We did itttttttttttttttttt!”
Even if it weren’t for the passionate cheers of tens of thousands of people as if they had seen a miracle.
「An invisible light will emit from the members. The degree of light changes according to faith.」
They were emitting a blinding light. Was that why?
“…”
Yoon-seok felt a little scared.