chapter 36

The smiling face of Park Deokgu seemed very transparent to me. I roughly knew what he was thinking.

He seemed to think that I now felt a lot more refreshed. I believe his intention was to distract me with an entirely different set of feelings, this time, romantic. However, this was not a good thing for me.

Because his solution came in the form of a trembling girl in my arms.

“Oppa…”

During the time I’ve known Park Deokgu, I could tell that he hardly thought about himself. He would soon rather focus on the welfare of others than even his own body odor.

Perhaps if Kim Hyunsung had not arrived in time, he would not have been doing that for hours.

“You are here.”

He came a little later than I originally thought. In fact, I expected him to arrive earlier than Hayan.

He looked relieved to see us all in one piece. However, the battle with Jung Jin-ho wasn’t as easy as it looked, what with his clothes being slightly burned, as well as the small stab mark on his cheek.

Kim Hyunsung had the specs that could warrant him being called a monster, but Jung Jin-ho was also not far from him.

‘Monsters.’

However, it was probably one-sided. No matter how long Jung Jin-ho flew, the difference between their basic stats and experience was clear.

Only the variables in magic could have made a difference.

Looking at Hyunsung’s expression, it seemed that Jung Jin-ho was no longer alive.

“The others…” he trailed off. This was a slightly sensitive question.

Before Hayan could open her mouth to speak, I hurried to talk.

“I killed them.”

“Ah.”

Of course, I wasn’t going to accuse Jung Hayan of being a murderer here. It was a cleaner choice to admit to even her kills at this point than have her wallow in regret for what she did.

Kim Hyunsung was a guy who had a tendency to be a bona fide mediator, but he knew better than me that he shouldn’t keep these people alive.

“Jung Jin-ho…”

At my slight prodding, he nodded without saying anything.

Park Deokgu’s expression was a little gloomy, and I was sure my and Hayan’s faces would have sported similar expressions.

The whole party felt a little daunting overall.

Of course, in the case of Jung Hayan, it was a little different, but it was natural to assume that she’d be depressed by the shock of her first murder.

Eventually, Kim Hyunsung nodded and opened his mouth, “It was necessary.”

This trusted party leader had begun to take care of his colleagues’ mentality.

“I know…”

“I seemed to have been aiming for this from the beginning. It is not known how they took over Seok-woo, but it seems that Seok-woo also joined their plan in the middle of it. Perhaps if we were successfully targeted, those in the shelter would not have been safe either.”

“…”

“It may be difficult, but I want you to know that you did the right thing.”

“Well…”

“You did the right thing. Maybe this will become more frequent in the future. This place we are in is just a tutorial and it might be harsher outside. It must have been difficult, but no one will criticize this decision. Not only now, but also in the future. I don’t know if this comforts you, but… I hope you overcome it.”

“Thank you.”

“What… Thank you as well.”

It was a great speech in its own way. In fact, Kim Hyunsung was correct.

None of us ever did anything wrong.

If we let them live, not only would the shelter become dangerous, but they would also have created many victims after going outside.

Even though Yoo Seok-woo became a foothold for my unpleasant experience, what Kim Hyunsung said was an undeniable fact.

‘You removed the trash.’

There was no reason to feel guilty.

“Is Ki-young okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Maybe if I didn’t have the ring that Mr. Hyunsung gave me as a gift… I should have already died. I was saved twice. I will not forget this grace.”

“The wound is…”

“Fine. I was completely healed.”

After I finished speaking, Kim Hyunsung seemed to feel a little better. There was no reason to impress him at this point, as things had already worked out the way he wanted it to be.

I didn’t know what he was thinking in detail, but I felt a little proud of what we managed to accomplish.

We dealt with the group of Jung Jin-ho as planned, and because of that, we even got something better than we expected.

We might have thought of each other as colleagues who decided to move together for the time being, but it seemed that this incident has helped us become closer.

It was the same for me.

We suffered together, went through a crisis together, and overcame it together.

I was sure that we four will certainly have a good relationship, even if we went outside.

Just imagining that you were riding on a stable and comfortable Kim Hyunsung bus would make you feel drowsy.

No, that wasn’t the right word. It would make you feel relaxed.

Even though Park Deokgu and Hayan were already safe, there were also other things to focus on, such as our current statuses.

“You seem a little tired, so for now, I think it would be better to take a rest nearby.”

“I think that’s good too. So is my Hyung… Because your sister also looks a little tired.”

“Yes.”

In the case of Hayan, I knew she still had some amount of magic within her.

I roughly nodded and turned towards Kim Hyunsung, who started to walk towards us. From his expression, I knew he knew it as well.

Of course, it was up to me to choose, but I thought it was natural to think of Kim Hyunsung as someone who knew the future.

“Hyunsung.”

“Yes. You tell me.”

“A new job has opened up.”

“Ah.”

Of course, his expression was a pretty happy one.

“You’ve caught up fast.”

“Yes. Somehow I used magic to catch monsters…”

“Would I be able to hear what jobs are open?”

“Of course.”

Park Deokgu, as well as Jung Hayan, looked at me with expressions that showed interest.

It was a good topic to talk about while looking for a place to rest for the night, and I was also interested in finding suitable materials that can cozy up the atmosphere of our little party.

“Summoner, Wizard, Warlock, Alchemist, and Flame Wizard. There are many options.”

“It certainly seems like a lot.”

Since there wasn’t a suitable place nearby, I started talking about the shortcomings of each job and what I planned on choosing later.

For example, a flame mage needed a lot of magic, or in the case of a magician, there was no job that you couldn’t go after.

I hadn’t revealed the exact stats yet, but maybe Kim Hyunsung knew how much spec I had.

“Excuse me… Kiyoung has a little magical power…”

“Yeah. I don’t know in detail since I haven’t met the other wizards, but the magical power itself seems to be low. It doesn’t seem that high compared to Hayan’s.”

“Well…”

It was essential to disclose a certain amount of personal information for a detailed consultation.

There was no reason to hide what was lacking if they had the goal to craft them into advantages.

“Probably, in the case of a flame wizard, it would be better to think a little more. It doesn’t seem that the compatibility between Ki-young and the Flame Wizard is bad, but if you aim for high magic power, there will be room for problems later.”

“Oh, I have a similar idea.”

Park Deokgu looked really cute, trying to piece together the bits of information he was receiving. I didn’t know how old he was, but I knew for sure that he was younger than me.

“Magician too….”

I knew I shouldn’t speak so openly, but I couldn’t help but put in my two cents.

‘You’re not good at chanting.’

Still, I thought that I had been playing the role for one person enough, but my acting was certainly not that polished.

Anyway, Magician was one job that I did not plan to choose, but seeing Kim Hyunsung’s expression like that, I began to have second thoughts.

‘Now, I’m even more confused than before.’

“Personally, it looks a little better to choose from Summoner, Alchemist, and Warlock, but it’s hard being a Warlock, so I personally wouldn’t recommend it.”

“I’m not sure, but you could be in a dangerous situation. At least Lee Sang-chang doesn’t lie to us.”

“Well…”

“You need magical power to keep your familiar, but I don’t know how much magical power you need. Rather, it seems that the alchemist is not bad. It will be appropriate for Ki-young, who has high intelligence.”

“Actually, I was thinking similarly. It seems that alchemy may trigger magic complete with a catalyst…”

“It won’t be as bad as you think it is. You can make potions and many more. If you need a pet, there is also an alternative method called ‘Homunculus’ afterwards, which will be more advantageous. A creature created other than a summoned creature will not have much magic power.”

As Kim Hyunsung spoke, his excitement rose. As such, I thought that his recommendation was also reliable.

Above all, seeing his expression of giddy happiness, I began to feel more and more inclined. After all, those who have the profession of Alchemist were rare.

Occupations may not have been well received, or people may not have a good choice, but anyway, the Alchemist profession itself is seldom obtained.

Similarly, assuming that priests are also rare, the value of potions will increase a little more.

If you consider that there are limits to the divine power of a priest in the first place, a quality potion is a must.

Summoners are also attractive, but if you think about having two similar ones, you might be able to get other summons afterward.

At this point, my thoughts went all over the place.

Park Deokgu, who had been listening to the party’s ramblings for a long time, shook his head and participated in this consultation.

“What are you talking about? Of course, if you are a true hyung, you should be a warlock.

‘…’

“When I think of a warlock who exterminates the monsters by sprinkling the power of darkness, of course, I can only think that he fits Ki-young very well… Doesn’t he resemble a warlock in the making?”

There was no logic behind Park Deokgu’s words, but he spoke as if he truly believed in what he said. He seemed to have forgotten his earlier insistence for the Commander class.

This time, he seemed to be stuck on the idea of me becoming a warlock.

“Well, what does it matter what the public thinks? I think it doesn’t matter much because I’ll blow away the guys who are looking for you. My hyung’s character and the warlock don’t really match, but imagine him wearing a black robe… I think it would be cool just to imagine!”

“The Alchemist would be a better option.”

At this point, Kim Hyunsung’s voice also became quite urgent.

He noticed that Park Deokgu had a strange resonance in his cry.

“No! My Hyung is a warlock by nature!”

Park Deokgu, who was previously a commander parrot, suddenly began to evolve into a warlock parrot.

“Alchemist is definitely better.”

“Unconditionally a Warlock!”

“Alchemist… .”

“The Warlock! I want to see Ki-young displaying the power of darkness.”

“Alchemist!”

“Warlock!”

“Pension!”

“Black!”

“Kite!”

‘They’re making no sense at this point.’

I thought this situation would come again for some reason, but it was embarrassing to see the two heated up more than ever.

Somehow, the power of darkness appealed strongly to Park Deokgu’s heart.

As he turned his gaze to Jung Hayan in the same manner as one would ask a doctor for confirmation, Jung Hayan also shook her head vigorously.

“I can’t choose either. An intelligent oppa who practices alchemy, or an oppa who uses the power of darkness?”

Of course, I didn’t ask for that.

Nevertheless, this unidentified debate seemed to be getting more and more intense.

In the end, Kim Hyunsung had to resort to opening his bag.

“Very accidentally… Quite accidentally… This is the product you found. It looks like an Alchemist-only item. If you choose to become an Alchemist, I’ll give you this as a gift.”

‘Where did that come from?’

Now. I could say for sure that the leather bag Kim Hyunsung carried was a magic bag. I couldn’t even imagine he would bring out such an item so urgently.

Thanks to this, I could be sure that the Warlock’s perception would not be very good, but apart from that, the moment we checked the item he pulled out, we ended up having to abandon our party’s, Warlock Parrot.