Ha In-Ho was sitting on a chair next to the bed, scrolling through Community. When he saw his superior staring blankly at him, he immediately stood up.
“P-Princess-nim! You’re awake?! Why aren’t you saying anything?!” he cried out.
“Why are you in heaven?” she asked.
“Because you’re not dead. Also, I’ve lived a good life. I’m pretty sure I can get into heaven.”
It was the Ha In-Ho she knew. Gong Ju-Ha grinned.
She touched her chest. “Ah, ow…”
“Don’t touch the area around the wound. The Saintess said you mustn’t,” he said.
“The Saintess?”
“Yes. She treated your injuries.”
The Schumern Saintess. Gong Ju-Ha recalled she had participated in the mission and nodded.
“I should repay her in the future. For now, I want to sit, so help me up.”
“You should just stay lying down for your own safety…”
“I’m a patient. I’m in pain, so don’t make me ask twice and just do it.”
“Ugh.” Ha In-Ho looked like he was about to cry as he very carefully helped her sit up.
Once she was sitting, Gong Ju-Ha held out her hand. “Water.”
“Here you go.”
Even the simple act of drinking water made her chest sting. Gong Ju-Ha placed the cup down and gave a bitter smile.
“How embarrassing. I was trying to act all strong…But it seems like it’ll take a while for me to return,” she said.
“You’ll have to spend at least two or three months recuperating,” Ha In-Ho agreed.
“I suppose I’ll lose my touch.”
“…” Ha In-Ho couldn’t even deny it. However, Gong Ju-Ha shook her head when she saw his apologetic expression.
“Don’t feel bad for me. Don’t pity me either. I’ll just think of it as a long vacation, I suppose.” Actually, she was grateful that she was still alive.
‘And that guy was extremely strong…’?
Janabi was the most powerful monster she had ever encountered.
“Did you guys catch him? The invisible monster, I mean,” she said.
“You mean the Floor Master? Specter and Seo Jun-Ho finished it off.”
“Wow, he was a Floor Master?” She was shocked, but she slowly started to nod. “I see… No wonder he was so impossibly powerful.”
“Thanks to you three, the 3rd floor has formally opened. Now, any Player level 100 or higher can go up,” Ha In-Ho said.
“It’s hot there.”
“It has gotten a lot cooler compared to before. They say that it’s not hard to resume activities there as long as you have a little bit of fire resistance.”
“Hm. Then I guess you’ll be going up soon as well.”
“…”
Ha In-Ho couldn’t deny it. Even though the team leader was injured, that didn’t mean all the other members could stop working. Actually, they would have to work even harder to make up for the fact that Gong Ju-Ha wouldn’t be there.
“Um…?How is Mr. Jun-Ho? Were his injuries worse than mine?” she asked carefully. Seo Jun-Ho’s level was lower than her, so she was worried that something might have gone majorly wrong during the battle.
“Seo Jun-Ho…” How should he say this? Ha In-Ho sighed after trying to find the right words. “He’s alive. And he left you a letter.”
“…A letter? Geez,?it’s not like we’re kids,” she muttered, giddy. She didn’t notice Ha In-Ho’s face darken when he saw how relieved she was. “Give it to me. I want to read it.”
“…”
Ha In-Ho was conflicted. Obviously, he didn’t know what was written in the letter because he didn’t read it.
‘I don’t think there’ll be anything in there that’ll make her feel sad…’?
After all, Seo Jun-Ho was Gong Ju-Ha’s favorite Player aside from the Goblin Guild members. After serving her for so long, Ha In-Ho knew at least that much.
‘But if she hears that he disappeared without a trace and that he’s unreachable…’
It might have a great impact on her. That was what he was worried about.
When he didn’t move right away, Gong Ju-Ha held out her hand, indifferent. “In-Ho. What did I say earlier?”
“…That you’re a patient, and that I shouldn’t make you ask twice.”
“You have a good memory. Now give me the letter.”
“Whooo.”?In-Ho let out a light sigh and ultimately opened the drawer next to the bed. After he pulled out the letter, he added one more thing, “Alright, but I will stay with you while you read it.”
“Yeah, sure.” Gong Ju-Ha nodded cheerfully and immediately ripped the envelope open. The contents fluttered down onto her blanket, and she tilted her head. “What is that…?”
The first thing that fell out was two vouchers. Upon closer inspection, she saw that they were vouchers to a famous restaurant in Frontier’s capital, Leiark.
Gong Ju-Ha let out a light laugh.
‘Geez, what kind of guy asks out a girl like this nowadays? How old-fashioned.’?
It didn’t seem very manly, but she found it cute.
“Huh?” A gem tumbled out onto the bed from inside the envelope. It was a red jewel in the shape of a teardrop. She could tell how much yang energy was inside it simply by looking at it.
“Princess-nim, that’s…” Ha In-Ho froze when he realized its value. The elixir was, at the very least Unique-grade. Especially because Gong Ju-Ha was a flame user, it was practically priceless for her.
“…Where’s Mr. Jun-Ho right now? Can I see him?” she asked, her voice fluttering slightly. The wound in her chest hurt a lot, but she felt so happy that she forgot it for just a second.
“…”
‘She seems really happy.’?
Ha In-Ho could only see it because he had been by her side for so long. His face darkened. If it were possible, he wished that her face would always stay that bright.
“Hm? Can I see him or not?” she pressed.
Ha In-Ho swallowed and slowly opened his mouth. “You cannot…”
“…Why not?” She suddenly grew fearful. Was he in a critical state? Was he hurt? She had thought that Seo Jun-Ho would be in a vaguely better state than she was because he had been able to leave her a letter.
“He left…”
So, when Ha In-Ho spoke, she couldn’t quite process what he said.
“…What do you mean?” she asked. Left? Wasn’t he in the same hospital as her, just in a different room? As she blinked, Ha In-Ho continued, “It’s exactly as I said. He left this one letter and disappeared without a trace.”
“…I don’t get what you are saying,” Gong Ju-Ha retorted. She was confused, unable to understand what he was saying. “He left? To go where?”
“We don’t know. As I said, all he left behind was that letter.”
“…”
Gong Ju-Ha stared blankly at the two vouchers in her hand.
‘These restaurant vouchers…’?
She recalled how he had promised to grab a meal together after the mission. So, why had he just left these vouchers behind without a word?
‘This is frustrating.’?
She wanted to meet him in person and ask him the reason. If she had done something wrong, she would rather be hit once in retaliation and get it over with.
“How was he?” she asked.
“He was much worse than you. They said it would take him at least half a year to recuperate.”
“…” She nodded slowly. “Honestly, I have no idea what he was thinking.”
However, there was one thing she was sure of…
‘Mr. Jun-Ho will return.’?
He was a natural-born Player. He was unique and unmatched by any other Player she had ever met. Even if he tried to hide his fangs, they would show.
“Find me an alchemist. I’m gonna absorb this gem.”
Seo Jun-Ho had the sharpest fangs she had ever seen, and she knew he would come back.
She was sure of it.
‘I have to recover too, so I can ask him what these vouchers meant.’?
She crumpled them in her hand. If he didn’t give her a satisfactory answer…
“I’ll burn you alive…”
At that moment, Seo Jun-Ho felt a shiver go down his spine as he lay in the arms of an ice golem.
***
Frontier’s Observatory Tower was the oldest astronomical observatory in history. It looked like the Silla Dynasty’s Cheomseongdae. It was a hidden location and was hard for most Players to access, and it used numerous booby traps and guard rotations to keep away outsiders.
“What business do you have here?”
“What business do you have here?”
Two young monks were standing at the entrance of the manor housing the Observatory Tower, holding brooms. The golem knelt down to one knee to place Seo Jun-Ho at eye level. He met the eyes of the two monks.
“I am a guest. I bring a letter of recommendation.” When he held out the letter he had received from Shin Sung-Hyun, the two young monks leaned in together to read it.
“Really?”
“Really…”
After whispering to each other for a bit, they opened the gate.
“You must walk alone from here.”
“You must walk alone from here.”
“…”
Considering Seo Jun-Ho’s current state, it was an impossibly grueling request. However, he nodded without hesitation.
“Let me down.”
“Contractor…”
“Now.”
The Frost Queen bit her lip and waved her hand. The golem carefully placed him down on the ground and stepped back.
Slam!?
Seo Jun-Ho lost his balance and collapsed on the spot.
“Gah…!”
He felt like his body was being shredded to pieces. His body was so ruined that even breathing brought him pain.
However, Seo Jun-Ho forcefully squeezed out his magic. Dipping into the small puddle of energy, he strengthened his legs and stood.
“We will escort you.”
“We will escort you.”
The two monks stood in front to lead him. Seo Jun-Ho’s trembling legs moved very slowly, but they patiently waited for him without batting an eye.
“Huff, huff…”?
It took Seo Jun-Ho five steps to pass through the front gate. However, it took him twenty whole minutes to get there.
“…Huh?”
The moment he stepped over the threshold, his pain completely disappeared as if he had never been in pain.
“Please wait here.”
“Please wait here.”
With their job done, the young monks bowed politely and left.
“…”
Seo Jun-Ho looked down at his body in awe.
‘It’s like I’ve been healed…But I wasn’t.’?
His injuries were still there; it’s just that he couldn’t feel the pain.
‘Everything feels hazy, like I’m dreaming. Is this the Sage’s space?’?
It felt like his body was floating.
The place beyond the gates felt very different from the outside world. There were carps flying through the skies instead of swimming in a pond, and clouds made of flower petals covered the skies.
“This is a strange place,” the Frost Queen said. She was right. However, Seo Jun-Ho felt excited looking at all these sights.
‘The Sage of the Observatory Tower may be a lot more powerful than I thought.’?
He was a non-combatant Player, but based on what Seo Jun-Ho had seen so far, the Sage was clearly extraordinary.
And he might be able to give Seo Jun-Ho the perfect advice…
As Seo Jun-Ho stared blankly up at the sky, a voice came from behind him.
“Hm, you came here much faster than I expected.”
The voice was gentle, and simply hearing it made him feel relaxed.
Seo Jun-Ho slowly turned around, and there was an elderly man. He had soft white hair that was neatly tied back, and his clothes resembled that of a Daoist immortal.
“Contractor, that person…”
“…”
Seo Jun-Ho nodded slowly.
The Sage of the Observatory Tower was respected by Players and was even acknowledged by the Six Masters.
And he was blind… .𝒐𝙧𝒈
1. To those who might be confused, Community is the community forums; it’s like a forum where you can create threads, discussions, etc
2. The word used for elixir/potion is more akin to ‘wonder drug,’ but it refers to any consumable item, natural or man-made, that has great effects. It can also be used to refer to potion ingredients.
3. Oldest surviving astronomical observatory in Asia and possibly the world. Built in the 7th century.
4. The word used (?? 神仙) is a common concept in xianxia.