Chapter 15
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Most of the healers were busy helping those who needed healing.
Only Seo Yeonhee and Deroa remained by Mason’s side.
It wasn’t that the others were reluctant to care for him. Quite the opposite, in fact. Feeling indebted, all the healers tried to tend to Mason, so much so that he had to practically shoo them away.
In the end, the ones left were…
“Only the useless ones stayed for my treatment?”
Seo Yeonhee smiled softly, and Deroa, feeling a surge of emotion, retorted,
“Hey, you should be grateful to have a beauty like me nursing you back to health!”
“I think that line would be more fitting coming from Seo Yeonhee…”
“What?!”
Furious, Deroa gripped her staff but sighed deeply upon seeing Mason’s condition.
“Ugh, d*mn it. There’s nowhere to hit.”
Mason chuckled.
His body was undergoing emergency repairs, starting with the organs essential for survival. His limbs, let alone his torso, hadn’t fully recovered yet.
His torso, covered with sterilized medical cloth, resembled an anatomical model, his internal organs fully exposed.
Seo Yeonhee, with a worried expression, asked,
“Are you really okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,”Mason replied nonchalantly.
“Just wait a bit, and my digestive system will be back online. From then on, I’ll be sending you on all the snack runs, so don’t worry.”
“Okay, I’ll diligently be your snack runner.”
Mason turned his gaze to Deroa.
“By the way, Deroa.”
“What, you fool.”
“What’s this ‘Battle Mage’ thing?”
“My title.”
“Nickname?”
“Title. Codename.”
Deroa said with a proud look.
“When this big sis enters the battlefield, I’m f*eaking awesome. It’s a title people gave me out of admiration.”
“Like Sung Kijun’s ‘Holy Knight’?”
“Exactly.”
Mason looked at Seo Yeonhee.
“Then, Seo Yeonhee, you don’t have a title?”
“Huh? Uh… Well…”
Seo Yeonhee was flustered.
“Yeah, for some reason, I never got a title.”
“What did people call you then?”
“Well, Seo Yeonhee, or…”
After a moment’s thought, Seo Yeonhee turned to Deroa.
“Deroa, what did people call me?”
“They called you Yeonhee…”
“Really? There were many people older than us.”
“Even the old geezers used honorifics with you…”
Deroa’s words made Mason nod in understanding. Seo Yeonhee, however, wore a subtle expression.
“Why?”
“No, I just think it makes sense.”
Deroa was abrasive and foul-mouthed, but for some reason, she was easy to get along with. She was the type of person you could become friends with by exchanging insults.
However, Seo Yeonhee was the exact opposite.
Kind and polite, but somehow difficult to approach. There was something about her that made you feel tense, even in the most casual conversations.
“…What’s wrong with me?”
When Seo Yeonhee grumbled, a rumbling sound came from Mason’s stomach.
“Ah, my guts are fixed. Food, food.”
“No, I’m asking what’s wrong with me?!”
Mason laughed heartily.
It wasn’t a bad night.
The night of a victory.
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The Holy Knights’ office.
Seo Yeonhee, dressed in casual clothes, and Sung Kijun were sitting face to face.
The most annoying, or rather, the most important part of being a Player.
Settlement.
“Seo Yeonhee, Deroa. We’ve decided to calculate your share as two servings each.”
“Oh my, I think we did a bit better than that?”
“I wanted to give you three servings each. But Jina…”
The head healer of the Holy Knights was Sung Kijun’s wife, Yoo Jina.
She, the lady of the house, was also in charge of the Holy Knights’ finances.
“She said if we kept giving away money like that, there wouldn’t be any left for the others.”
Seo Yeonhee smiled wryly.
The only way to sway the money-uninterested Sung Kijun was to bring up the people.
She truly was the lady of the house.
“Then, we’ll accept two servings each.”
“Are you sure?”
“We need to maintain a good relationship with the Holy Knights.”
It was Sung Kijun’s turn to smile wryly.
“I don’t know how many times I have to say this, but we are not interested in conflicts between people.”
“That’s enough. Just not siding with Yekaterina… is enough help for me.”
The head of the Inner Circle, Heavenly King Yekaterina.
Leader of the healers and queen of the Players.
Seo Yeonhee was facing her alone.
Putting aside good and evil, or likes and dislikes, it was undoubtedly a difficult task.
Sung Kijun harbored an ambiguous feeling toward her.
A strange feeling of pity, perhaps sorrow.
Because the Holy Knights could have ended up like that too…
“This might sound a bit awkward, but I have a favor to ask.”
“What is it?”
“Lend me Mason.”
Sung Kijun frowned.
“If it involves a fight between people…”
“…Mason will probably refuse.”
“Alright.”
Sung Kijun nodded.
“I’ll allow it if there’s an agreement with the person involved.”
“Don’t worry about that.”
Seo Yeonhee said with a grin.
“If you hear it, I think he’ll agree.”
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Mason was sitting in front of Eun Yuri.
Or more accurately, he was sitting with a mountain of food piled between him and Eun Yuri.
“…”
Today’s main menu was hamburgers.
Seeing 100 hamburgers piled up was quite intimidating.
And so was the speed at which the mountain was disappearing.
“Mason.”
“Yeah?”
“…What’s going on in your stomach right now?”
“Digestion.”
Mason was circulating all the absorbed calories throughout his body. The Smart Cells were dividing, repairing the damaged parts of his body, and the remaining energy was being synthesized into Barbarigen, transforming into his muscles.
Mason’s body was closer to a humanoid organism than a human body, and his healing was more akin to repair than recovery.
‘To have such a muscular body without ever lifting a single dumbbell…’
Eun Yuri felt both amazed and envious.
After eating for a long time, Mason slumped down in his seat.
“Zzz…”
“He’s asleep again.”
After replenishing his energy, he entered sleep mode to allow time for repairs.
Eun Yuri was surprised when she first saw it, but now she was used to it.
He would eat his fill, plop down right there, and fall asleep.
When he woke up, his body would be noticeably bigger.
Eun Yuri shook her head.
In many ways, he wasn’t human.
“Is it a… cost-effective ability?”
If you considered him a human, his food expenses would be enormous, but if you thought of it as the repair cost of a combat weapon, it was incredibly cheap.
Eun Yuri rested her chin on her hand and stared at Mason.
Sleeping, Mason had a pure and peaceful expression. Unlike the mad rage he displayed when facing monsters.
Sung Kijun’s words flashed through her mind.
‘People are surprisingly often mistaken.’
Which was the real Mason?
The naive, almost clueless innocence of his everyday life?
Or the fierce, almost cunning intensity he showed in battle?
Eun Yuri felt her head spinning.
‘Both Sung Kijun and Mason…’
Tankers certainly had a knack for getting on people’s nerves…
Just then, someone walked into the diner.
It was Seo Yeonhee.
As Eun Yuri was about to acknowledge her, Seo Yeonhee smiled and put a finger to her lips.
“Shh.”
Her finger pointed at Mason.
A signal not to wake him.
“You don’t have to worry. He won’t wake up even if you shake him.”
“Oh, is that so?”
Seo Yeonhee smiled and sat down opposite Eun Yuri, next to Mason.
“I heard you’re working with the Holy Knights.”
“Yes, thanks to you saving me.”
“How is that my doing? It’s because of your strong will to survive.”
Eun Yuri was uncomfortable around Seo Yeonhee.
It was true that she was her savior, but there were too many dangerous rumors circulating about her. And many of them didn’t end as mere rumors.
The things she had done to confront Heavenly King Yekaterina were no less serious than what Yekaterina herself had done…
Unaware of Eun Yuri’s feelings, Seo Yeonhee said in a gentle tone,
“Sung Kijun is a man who is the same inside and out. He is a leader worthy of trust, so please believe in him and work with him.”
Eun Yuri asked cautiously,
“Then… what about you, Seo Yeonhee?”
“I’d be happy if you trusted me.”
Seo Yeonhee said with a smile.
“But we’re not in the same party, are we?”
A feeling, whether of relief or eeriness, washed over Eun Yuri.
“I…”
As she was about to answer, Mason opened his eyes.
“Mmm…”
He stretched and extended his arms. His trajectory grazed Seo Yeonhee’s chest.
She discreetly moved aside and slapped Mason’s hand.
“You have bad hands, Mason.”
“…It’s my bad sleeping habits.”
Mason grumbled.
He was noticeably larger than before he fell asleep. He had almost the same muscle mass as usual.
Looking at the pile of burgers still remaining, Mason grumbled.
“Ugh, I’m sick of burgers. Is there anything else?”
“Would you like to have dinner with me?”
Eun Yuri flinched.
She remembered the receipt she got when she went to the pasta restaurant with Mason.
The astronomical receipt that had two extra zeros compared to a normal meal.
“Not bad.”
Mason nodded nonchalantly.
“But, are we just going to eat?”
“There’s something even better.”
“Great.”
Mason laughed and got up from his seat.
Seo Yeonhee also stood up.
“It was nice meeting you, Yuri. Let’s have tea together sometime.”
“Yes…”
Seo Yeonhee led Mason out of the diner.
Eun Yuri looked at the table.
The table with a dozen burgers getting cold.
“…”
She sighed.
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Seo Yeonhee’s car was a massive Humvee.
A military vehicle sold to civilians. It was a vehicle with a robust frame further reinforced in every way.
The car, which included new materials derived from monsters, already belonged to the category of weaponry, only lacking actual weapons.
“You like big cars, huh?”
“I don’t like them. I just need them.”
“Are you going to ram into monsters with this car?”
Seo Yeonhee just laughed instead of answering.
“Before I get in, where are we going?”
“To eat.”
“I’m tired of eating.”
“You’re eating with a beautiful woman.”
“I’m always hungry.”
Mason chuckled and got into the car.
The car lurched and tilted to one side.
Seo Yeonhee sat in the driver’s seat and started the engine.
The rough engine roar,”Kuurung,”sounded like a beast.
“I like it.”
Seo Yeonhee smiled and drove off.
“Did you receive the settlement for the last emergency quest?”
“The Elder Worm?”
“Yes.”
Mason scratched his head.
“Hmm? Well, they must’ve taken care of it, right?”
“You didn’t even get an explanation?”
“Nope.”
Mason said confidently.
“I didn’t.”
“You should. Especially when it comes to money.”
“They’ll take care of it.”
“You wouldn’t mind even if they didn’t?”
“As long as they provide the support I need to fight.”
Seo Yeonhee asked, still looking ahead,
“Then what if they can’t provide enough support? What if you can’t expect help from within the Holy Knights and have to seek help from someone else?”
“…”
“That’s your problem, Mason.”
Seo Yeonhee said in a calm voice.
“Your belief that kindness will be repaid with kindness.”
“…Isn’t it?”
“Mostly, no.”
“It’s not…”
Mason had a complicated expression.
He looked as if he understood but couldn’t quite accept it.
“The easiest and fastest way is… money. Enough money guarantees enough goodwill.”
“Why should impurities exist between goodwill and goodwill?”
Mason’s question was either barbaric or progressive. Too much so for modern people.
“Because people are like that.”
Seo Yeonhee said quietly.
“Because it’s faster for one person to change than to change the people.”
“…”
