Level Up Machine

Chapter 99 Business Preparation (2)

“Ah, ah…”

A suppressed moan escaped from Tiria’s lips. A single tear rolled down her cheek.

“Yeong-sik…”

Over Kang Ha-rin’s shoulder, a young man with a slightly sharp appearance was walking towards them. It was Yeong-sik, whom she had been desperately waiting for.

Tiria stared at him with a blank expression, unable to believe the sight before her. She thought she was hallucinating, driven mad by grief.

“W-what? H-how are you alive?”

Interrupting her thoughts, Kang Ha-rin also stared at Yeong-sik in astonishment.

“I’m quite sturdy. I don’t die that easily.”

Yeong-sik shrugged and spoke in a nonchalant voice.

“Yeong-sik…”

“Haha. See? Didn’t I tell you he was alive?”

Gil-soo patted Ara on the shoulder with his characteristic friendly smile.

Ara, smiling brightly, tried to run towards Yeong-sik. But she stopped suddenly, as if remembering something. Her expression darkened with deep sadness.

“Yeong-sik!”

Tiria, who had stood up, ran to Yeong-sik with hurried steps. Placing her trembling hand on his cheek, she spoke.

“I’m not hallucinating, right? It’s really you, Yeong-sik?”

“Yes.”

Yeong-sik nodded with a faint smile. Tears began to fill Tiria’s eyes.

“Ugh, huaaaah!”

She hugged Yeong-sik, shedding tears of a different kind from earlier. The summoners who had come out of their tents were surprised to see Yeong-sik, whom they thought dead, return unharmed, and they began to murmur among themselves.

“Where have you been all this time?! No, why did you do something so dangerous in the first place!”

“I’m sorry.”

Yeong-sik stroked Tiria’s hair as she looked up at him, shouting angrily.

“You said you would make sure no one precious to you would be lost again.”

“That’s why I came back like this.”

He responded with a small laugh. Seeing her act like a child throwing a tantrum felt quite refreshing to him.

‘You were very worried.’

Yeong-sik made a bitter expression as he looked at her dark circles, indicating she hadn’t slept during the three days he was gone.

He regretted not coming here a bit earlier, before Felix’s provocation led to this commotion.

“I won’t forgive you.”

Tiria pouted, her cheeks puffed out. She didn’t like Yeong-sik’s calm demeanor.

‘I suffered so much!’

She recalled the past three days she had spent like a wreck and pursed her lips. She felt unfairly treated.

Tiria wanted to unsettle Yeong-sik, who wore a calm expression.

She lifted her head and looked up at Yeong-sik’s face.

*Gulp.*

She swallowed dryly. An irresistible impulse surged within her heart.

“This, this is Yeong-sik’s fault.”

She mumbled in a small voice as if making excuses. Her sudden words made Yeong-sik tilt his head in curiosity.

At that moment, Tiria slightly tiptoed and pressed her lips against his.

“Huh?”

“T-Tiria unni?!”

The mouths of the Salvator Guild members who were watching dropped open. Yu-na stared at the two, kissing, in shock.

“W-what are you doing, Tiria?!”

Ara, who had been watching with a sad expression, unable to approach Yeong-sik, turned beet red and approached Tiria. Tiria’s actions were too shocking for her to continue wallowing in sorrow.

“Wow! Tiria unni is so bold! I was worried she’d drag it out forever!”

Chae-rin exclaimed, her eyes sparkling.

“Keep up this momentum and just take him! Don’t worry! I’ll stand guard outside the tent and make sure no one peeks!”

She grinned slyly and pointed to the makeshift tent Tiria had been using. Her intentions to spy were blatantly obvious.

“Ha ha. Youth indeed.”

“Hmph. If only I hadn’t stayed in the room back then, Ara would…”

“…I wish they’d realize this is beyond the northern border.”

Beside the chuckling Hwang-hyeon, Gil-soo muttered in frustration. Han-seong sighed deeply as he watched the two.

Yoo Jin, Tae-yeong, and even Park Cheol-tae looked at the couple with expressions of disbelief.

“Ah, ah, that…”

Having given in to the rising impulse and kissed him, Tiria finally realized that everyone around her was staring at her in shock.

Her pale skin flushed a deep red, as if burning. She fumbled, her face reddening as if she might explode at any moment.

A single transparent tear formed at the corner of her eye.

“Kyaaah!”

*Thunk.*

“Oof!”

Unable to withstand the overwhelming embarrassment, Tiria instinctively raised her fist and struck Yeong-sik’s stomach.

Yeong-sik clutched his abdomen and collapsed from the intense shock that shook his entire body. It was a blow delivered before he could say anything about the sudden kiss.

Even though Yeong-sik had gained an incomparably stronger power after unlocking his security levels twice, he could not be unaffected by a blow from Tiria, who possessed the strength of a level 103.

Yeong-sik’s body was lifted into the air, spun around spectacularly, and then slammed into the ground. It looked as if he had been hit by a dump truck.

“No way… She actually punched him in the stomach.”

“Usually, people slap the cheek…”

The summoners, who had been watching the two with interest, now looked at Tiria with expressions of disbelief.

“Oh my. What have I done…”

Tiria placed her hands on her cheeks and lowered her head like a shy girl.

“I don’t think acting all innocent will solve anything here.”

“Ye-Yeong-sik oppa is writhing on the ground.”

Even the Salvator Guild members stared at Tiria in astonishment.

“I-I don’t know! It’s all Yeong-sik’s fault!”

Shouting at Yeong-sik, who was lying on the ground, Tiria quickly turned and dashed into the tent.

Yeong-sik, still on the ground, stared blankly at Tiria’s retreating figure. It felt as if he had been hit hard on the head with a heavy mace.

“What the hell just happened…”

Yeong-sik looked bewildered by the series of events that had happened in such a short time. Han-seong approached him.

“Are you alright, Yeong-sik?”

“Ah, yes.”

“I understand you might be confused by the guild leader’s actions, but there’s something important I need to tell you.”

“What is it?”

With a broad smile, Han-seong extended his hand to Yeong-sik.

“I’m glad you’re safe.”

After Yeong-sik’s return, the Leviathan Guild and the Salvator Guild began their journey back to the Elnote Kingdom.

The journey back was quiet. There were no conflicts between the guilds and no monster attacks.

‘Still, the atmosphere is much darker on the Leviathan side.’

Yeong-sik observed the significantly reduced number of Leviathan Guild members compared to when they first set out on the expedition.

In contrast to the Salvator Guild, where all members had survived, the Leviathan Guild had lost several summoners during the dungeon raid.

‘Well, it’s not really my problem to meddle in.’

In this world, it was common for guild members to die during expeditions.

In fact, it was rare for all members to survive without any casualties, as the Salvator Guild had done.

‘We almost lost Gil-soo, though.’

Yeong-sik’s expression hardened as he recalled the memory of Gil-soo collapsing while spewing blood from his chest. It was a chilling memory even now.

Yeong-sik’s gaze shifted from the Leviathan Guild to Yu-na. Hanging at her waist was a pair of black and red swords, the Ssangsik.

Later, he learned that she had ambiguously half-passed the “Hero Ragna’s Trial,” leaving her unable to hand over the Ssangsik to anyone else. The sentient swords had chosen her as their master.

“How are those swords?”

Yeong-sik asked Yu-na. Yu-na tapped the hilt of Ssangsik’s sword and replied.

“Well, I’m not sure either. It hasn’t said anything since I first grabbed it.”

“What about the power that settled in your belly?”

“That too, it won’t budge. No matter how much I focus, it only moves a little.”

Yu-na said that with a regretful expression.

“Well, if you keep trying, you’ll be able to handle that power too.”

“I hope so. Honestly, I’m satisfied with the power I’ve gained now.”

Yu-na lightly smiled while stroking her belly.

After obtaining the power of Ssangsik, she had been able to reach the rank of a Ranker. Her level cap had suddenly soared to 101.

From her perspective, who had been stuck in the 90s for years, this alone was enough to be a deeply moving event.

‘I can fully understand why that guardian had such a powerful force when I look at that weapon.’

Yeong-sik looked at Ssangsik with a dumbfounded expression. An item with that level of power was beyond S-grade, reaching SS-grade.

Even excluding the mana-less core of Lacteon, it was being powered by three SS-grade items, so it was natural that the guardian’s power was so strong.

‘Judging by results alone, it’s truly incredible.’

Even an S-grade item was considered a national treasure.

Obtaining three items that surpassed S-grade was an achievement that could only be described as extraordinary.

If other guilds or countries heard this information, it wouldn’t be surprising if a war broke out.

Within Yeong-sik’s knowledge, except for Lacteon Type 2, there was nothing that could compare to those items.

‘The suit…’

Yeong-sik thought of the jet-black suit he had.

No matter how amazing Ssangsik was, it couldn’t compare to the suit he had.

That item alone could shake the power balance.

‘What on earth is its true nature?’

Yeong-sik’s expression hardened as he recalled analyzing Lacteon’s core. With the information he had now, he couldn’t be sure of anything.

‘I need to find the other half of the core.’

Thinking that, Yeong-sik moved his steps. He felt that finding the other half of the core might align the ambiguous pieces of information.

“…There’s a lot to do when I get back.”

Given the significant achievements from the dungeon, distributing them would not be smooth. There was a high possibility of significant friction.

Besides that, within a year, they had to strengthen the guild enough not to be shaken by the kingdom. They also had to find the other half of the core and pay attention to the levels of skills. New weapons they acquired needed to be researched too.

“Haa…”

There was so much to do.

Yeong-sik let out a short sigh.

‘But first things first.’

Yeong-sik’s eyes sparkled. The message window that had appeared when his ‘Manufacturing’ skill reached level 7 flashed through his mind.

“Making that.”

Yeong-sik mumbled with a smirk.