Chapter 16 – Gamer (2)

Caroline abandoned Bugil-ma beside her and approached Sun-woo, linking arms with him.

“Hi! To meet like this. I’m really happy!”

Unexpectedly, Caroline spoke Korean quite well.

At Caroline’s words, everyone in the room looked at the two with surprised expressions, and Bugil-ma (Moon Byeong-su), who had entered with Caroline, crumpled his face.

But Caroline didn’t seem to care at all. She clung closely to Sun-woo and poured out her words.

“One of the reasons I came to Korea was to find Sun-woo, but I didn’t expect to meet you so quickly. Wow, it’s different from just seeing you. Look how firm your body is. This is no joke, right?”

With her chest pressed against Sun-woo’s arm while kneading his arm, it was actually the other people who didn’t know what to do.

Sun-woo furrowed his brow at Caroline’s sudden friendly act.

But he couldn’t pull his arm away from Caroline’s hands. Caroline kept sending signals that people couldn’t see.

It seemed there was some reason.

In the end, the gathering became a mess. Caroline abandoned her partner and sat next to Sun-woo, chatting and eating like lovers, while dark auras seemed to be radiating in all directions around Bugil-ma Moon Byeong-su.

“Um, I’ll head in first.”

“Ah, I had more appointments but forgot about them.”

After finishing the meal, people began hurriedly leaving. Since the meeting organizer was in a bad mood, it was best to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

“Sun-woo, let’s go to the hotel where I’m staying. They have some good wine there. I’ll buy you a drink.”

After people left, Caroline’s suggestion dealt a severe blow to Byeong-su’s heart.

“Carol! What are you saying? We agreed to see a musical tonight! I already bought tickets.”

“Oh my, we did! I’m sorry. We’ll have to cancel the musical.”

But Caroline’s apologizing face showed no sign of being sorry at all.

“This is definitely world-changing news. First, I’m making my escape. Come back and tell me the story later, friend!”

In the ominous atmosphere, Min-seok greeted Sun-woo and hurriedly fled with the others.

Eventually, only the red-faced Byeong-su, Caroline, and Sun-woo remained at the meeting place.

“Ah, Sun-woo didn’t bring a car, right? Byeong-su, please give us a ride to the hotel.”

At her words, Byeong-su’s face became even more distorted.

With his current feelings, he wanted to storm out immediately, but he was professionally connected with Caroline. He couldn’t completely destroy their relationship like this.

Byeong-su went outside first with a distorted face to pay the bill, and Sun-woo stared at the grinning Caroline.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Is there a reason I should keep going along with this? I feel like I’m caught up in a pretty annoying situation right now.”

“Oh my, annoying? A beauty like me is inviting you to her room.”

As Caroline said, she was certainly quite a beauty, but Sun-woo’s expression didn’t change much.

“If it’s nothing important, I’d like to just go home.”

“No, that won’t do. I’ll definitely compensate you after work is done.”

“So it was work after all.”

“Are you disappointed?”

Caroline asked Sun-woo with a mysterious smile, but Sun-woo just reached out to push her head away.

Sun-woo found her hands that had made the magician’s corpse disappear more unsettling than her beautiful face.

After Byeong-su finished paying, the three got into the four-seater sports car. With Byeong-su in the driver’s seat and Caroline and Sun-woo in the back seat, it looked like Byeong-su was the chauffeur.

Byeong-su began driving roughly. The car continued rapid acceleration, sudden braking, and violent cornering, but contrary to Byeong-su’s intention, the two in the back seat were just whispering intimately.

“Why didn’t you contact me?”

“I’ve been busy with this and that.”

“Hmm. You’re quite a cautious type. That’s not bad either.”

Of course, the conversation content was completely different from what Byeong-su thought.

Even more annoyed, Byeong-su finally asked Caroline.

“How did you two get to know each other?”

At his question, Caroline’s eyes sparkled.

“We got to know each other through work. After meeting several times, he handled work reliably and was very helpful. Moreover, he’s really good at fighting. Strength and stamina. I fell for everything at first sight.”

They had only met twice, but since it was more than once, it didn’t seem to be a lie.

“I like men who are good at fighting. I absolutely hate weak men.”

While speaking, she glanced at Byeong-su. Byeong-su, who saw her through the rearview mirror, breathed roughly and finally stepped on the brakes.

The car stopped next to a quiet playground. Byeong-su roughly opened the car door and shouted at Sun-woo.

“Since you’re so good at fighting, let’s have a match.”

Sun-woo was incredulous at the continuing situation. Caroline’s childish provocation was one thing, but the man who fell for that provocation was equally absurd.

“Oh my, Byeong-su, you exercise too? You didn’t look like it at all.”

“Carol! I’ll show you what true strength is.”

Byeong-su already looked slightly unhinged.

Sun-woo held his head at their conversation, but when Caroline firmly stepped on his foot, he had no choice but to get up.

Sun-woo looked back at her one last time and moved his lips.

‘The compensation better be certain!’

Caroline made a sour expression at his words but nodded as if she had no choice, and seeing the two’s interaction, Byeong-su’s anger only grew.

“I invited you to the meeting with a happy heart after hearing your name, but to humiliate me like this…”

At his words, Sun-woo could only scratch his head.

“You seem to know how to fight somewhat, but I’ll show you what real strength is.”

Finishing his words, Byeong-su took out a small bottle from his pocket. And he took out a round pill from the bottle and put it in his mouth.

Throb!

At the same time, a strange energy stirred around them, and a red light flashed through Byeong-su’s eyes.

‘Could it be?’

Sun-woo’s eyes widened slightly, and Caroline, standing behind, clenched her fists tightly.

“Bingo!”

But Byeong-su was intoxicated by the power flowing through his body without caring about their expressions at all.

Shortly after, he punched a horizontal bar pole next to him.

Bang!

A tremendous sound echoed through the playground, and the metal pole was deeply dented.

“Did you see that? Apologize quickly and get lost, then we’ll pretend this never happened.”

But now Sun-woo couldn’t quit even more.

“Are we fighting with words?”

At Sun-woo’s provocation, Byeong-su charged at Sun-woo growling, but he couldn’t even reach Sun-woo and ended up rolling on the ground. The ground had caved in due to Sun-woo’s sorcery.

“Argh!”

“How about learning to walk before showing strength?”

Byeong-su looked behind the car with his face buried in the ground, but the deeply sunken ground had already been restored.

Filled with rage, he swung his fist at Sun-woo recklessly, but his slightly strengthened fist was nothing more than third-rate martial arts. There was no way he could hit Sun-woo, who had properly acquired martial arts.

And shortly after, Sun-woo’s fist struck Byeong-su’s face hard.

Thud!

The fist infused with internal energy sent Byeong-su’s body flying several meters backward.

“That’s impossible!”

Byeong-su, who barely got up, looked at Sun-woo with an incredulous expression, but Sun-woo’s eyes were indifferent.

“Damn!”

Byeong-su took another pill and charged at Sun-woo, but it was just a repetition of the previous situation.

“As expected, Sun-woo is the best.”

Caroline, who had somehow approached Sun-woo’s side, grabbed Sun-woo’s arm and looked at Byeong-su sitting slumped on the ground with a pitiful expression.

“Damn!”

At Sun-woo’s seemingly contemptuous expression (though he wasn’t actually thinking much) and Caroline’s openly mocking appearance, Byeong-su’s reason snapped.

‘You must never take three or more consecutively. Excessive consumption will inevitably cause side effects.’

These were the precautions he’d heard when receiving the miracle drug that supposedly gave superhuman strength and wisdom, but now he was angry enough to ignore that warning completely.

Byeong-su threw away the bottle cap and poured all the pills into his mouth.

“Ah! You can’t take them all!”

Seeing this, Caroline shouted in surprise, and a small pillar made of earth rose from the ground below Byeong-su’s face and struck the bottle.

The bottle shattered and several pills scattered on the ground.

Byeong-su didn’t realize the bottle had shattered. He was clutching his chest and trembling. His body was gradually becoming murky in color, and his eyes were progressively turning red.

That’s when Sun-woo heard a voice.

[Contamination source is activating 10 meters in front of summoner Min Sun-woo. Contamination Level 1. Please eliminate quickly.]

Caroline behind him seemed to have heard it too. Caroline hugged Sun-woo tightly.

“Sun-woo is the best! We finally found it!”

But Sun-woo pushed Caroline away. It wasn’t over yet.

“Ca-Caroline. Do you know how much time and money I’ve spent on you? How dare you reject me and hang around with trash like that. Do you think I’ll let this slide?”

Byeong-su began growling with reddened eyes.

But Caroline and Sun-woo didn’t respond to his words. Their conversation wasn’t finished yet.

“I think it’s time you told me how things are going.”

“Let’s finish this first.”

“Sigh. I might get angry if there’s no proper compensation.”

“I promised, didn’t I?”

Sun-woo sighed again and looked back at Byeong-su, who had become a contamination source.

And Byeong-su charged at Sun-woo and Caroline on all fours like a beast.

Caroline dodged backward, and Sun-woo drew his sword from his phone.

Byeong-su was puzzled seeing the sword rising from the phone, but soon that thought disappeared into rage. He rushed toward Sun-woo.

At the same time, an earth wall rose in front of Sun-woo.

Bang!

Byeong-su’s body collided with the earth wall, and the wall crumbled from the impact.

At that moment, the sword in Sun-woo’s hand thrust toward the crumbling earth wall.

Stab!

The sword accurately penetrated Byeong-su’s left chest. Byeong-su, who looked at the sword and Sun-woo with an incredulous expression, immediately collapsed to the ground.

[You have eliminated a Level 1 contamination source. Grade experience increased. The contamination source has no skills. Additional points will be awarded.]

[Summoner Min Sun-woo eliminated the contamination source alone. 300 points awarded. Additionally, 400 points awarded for greatly helping summoner Caroline’s mission.]

When the voice ended, Caroline smiled and spoke.

“The compensation was definitely paid, right?”

As she said, the compensation was reasonably well paid. But he needed to know what was going on.

“Wait a moment. Let me handle the aftermath first.”

She approached the dead Byeong-su and placed her hands on his body. Shortly after, Byeong-su’s body gradually decomposed.

Fortunately, since Byeong-su had parked in a secluded place conscious of people’s attention, there were no people around, let alone CCTV cameras.

When Byeong-su’s body completely disappeared, Caroline got into Byeong-su’s car with a satisfied expression.

“Hurry up and get in!”

Sun-woo was incredulous at her comfortable demeanor as if it were her own car, but he also got in the passenger seat.

“Where shall we go? My hotel? Or Sun-woo’s house? The Korean branch of the Summoner Association is fine too.”

Her words carried some subtle nuance, but Sun-woo shook his head.

“The nearest subway station is fine.”

“That’s disappointing.”

Despite her words, Caroline smiled and started the car.