“I…”

“...”

“I think it’ll be fine if we just keep an eye on him for now,” I suggested.

I was lying. I didn’t think it was going to be fine. I knew better than anyone that Park Deok-Gu was doing his best, but if I were asked whether he would be able to catch up to Kim Hyun-Sung, I would have no choice but to shake my head, as that was the reality. Actually, he wouldn’t be able to catch up to Jo Hye-Jin, let alone Kim Hyun-Sung, so objectively speaking, kicking him out of the party was the right decision.

‘Maybe I’ve grown fond of him…’

I thought maybe I really had grown fond of him, as it felt like I was trying to reason with myself. Anyway, Park Deok-Gu relied on me for many things, and he was basically my follower, as he considered me trustworthy. I was sure we would have to remove him from the party someday, but I didn’t want that to happen so soon. I didn’t want a new tank joining the party, as my influence over the party would decrease. I also didn’t want to waste time training the new recruits to become my followers. At the least, I was sure Park Deok-Gu was someone who could throw his life away for me. I didn’t know how he would really act in that kind of situation, but I was certain he wouldn’t run away.

‘Because he’s trying...’

I thought trusting him a bit more wasn’t a bad idea.

“I see,” Kim Hyun-Sung said, nodding.

It felt like Kim Hyun-Sung released a short sigh, so I had no choice but to continue talking, “I know very well that if the vanguard falls, the entire party will be in danger, but I still think there are areas we can improve on, like items. I’m sure there are many methods out there. More importantly, Deok-Gu has been working very hard, so I’m sure we’ll still earn something, even if it’s not that big of a profit.”

‘That something may be really small, though… I honestly don’t have high expectations.’

“He seemed like he has been training in places the other members can’t see, and I even saw him sparring with Ye-Ri recently. Of course, I’m not in the position to evaluate them properly, but it seemed like they were doing a good job,” I continued.

‘He was beaten up pretty badly, though.’

“He’s determined,” I added.

‘Determination is useless...’

“I’m sure he’s slowly improving,” I said.

‘The problem is that it’s too slow.’

“I believe he’ll show a slightly different side during the next expedition. I’m sure of it,” I told him.

‘I can’t say for sure. Hyun-Sung… shit…’

I was used to lying, but this lie was kind of sloppy, as I was busy protecting Park Deok-Gu by expressing an illogical opinion. It wasn’t like me to act this way, but when I looked at Kim Hyun-Sung, I saw him smiling.

“I understand,” he said.

He looked really happy. I couldn’t really describe it, but he looked as if he was happy that he had guessed right. It was like a burden was lifted from his shoulders.

‘This guy… no way…’

I couldn’t help but think he was testing me, because, until recently, our regressor had been kind of wary and suspicious of me. He had a sly side to him, but if he really was testing me through this issue, then he was even more sly than I thought. It was possible he had brought this up because he had doubts about the cold-blooded part of me. I even became a bit suspicious that maybe this was part of Park Deok-Gu’s plan…

‘I’m sure it’s not…’

Anyway, Kim Hyun-Sung nodded while smiling. I had a lot of complicated thoughts, and before I could respond with an awkward smile, Kim Hyun-Sung spoke, “I fully understand what you’re thinking, Mr. Ki-Young. Just now, I told you that I would trust your decision, but I’m sure the day will come where our party members and even Mr. Deok-Gu will be in danger.”

“Yes… I’m aware of that, too,” I replied.

“We’ll keep an eye on him for now, but if he doesn’t show results in his growth or training, we’ll go with my suggestion… and create a second party. Of course, I think it’ll be better if you decide when we should put my plan into motion, because I’m sure you’ll realize the appropriate time even without me saying anything,” he suggested.

“Alright. Let’s do that,” I agreed.

‘Does that mean he’s going to give him a few more chances?’

It meant that Kim Hyun-Sung was going to keep an eye on Park Deok-Gu, but regardless of the reason, I had gotten what I wanted. If he didn’t show any progress during the dungeon expeditions and hunts we would do in the future, he would be placed in the second party, but it was good news that he wasn’t going to be immediately expelled out of the party. In this case, there was only one thing I could do.

‘Make him stronger…’

It would be difficult for Park Deok-Gu to get stronger by himself, but I had many ways to help him get stronger. As I had mentioned earlier to Kim Hyun-Sung, I could get him an item, or I could use alchemy to make his body physically stronger. Of course, there was the question of whether I could even achieve that, but if I obtained a legendary-ranked job, it was possible.

The first condition to getting stronger in this world was to possess anything legendary-ranked—that was the first step. As I was able to find a way to grow despite my pathetic stats, I was sure Park Deok-Gu could do the same, as he was more talented than me. It was funny how much effort I was putting into this matter, but if this was Kim Hyun-Sung’s way of extending the test he had given me, then there was no reason for me not to try it.

‘This is the last time I’m going to take care of you, Deok-Gu.’

It wasn’t because I was concerned for him. I was a busy person, and I had a lot of things to handle. However, Park Deok-Gu’s drooping and pitiful back kept showing up in my head, so I thought it would be good to spend some time helping him.

“I’ll head out first, Mr. Hyun-Sung,” I said.

“Alright…”

“By the way, what were you going to say earlier…” I asked.

“It’s nothing. I’ll tell you the next time we have a drink,” he replied.

“Oh… okay,” I mumbled.

“I trust you, Mr. Ki-Young,” he added.

‘That fox… I knew he was testing me.’

“Haha… I’ll see you tomorrow,” I said and chuckled.

“Okay…”

I carried the sleepy Jung Ha-Yan and left Kim Hyun-Sung’s room. She was pretty heavy, but I was stronger than an ordinary person, so I had no trouble taking her to her room. I guess she must have fallen asleep, as she was tired from all the walking we did today, but that made it easier for me to move. After all, if she found out where I was headed right now, I knew she wouldn’t like it.

After closing the door, I walked away at a brisk pace. I was planning on visiting her anyway, so this was the perfect time. I had kept pushing back our meeting, as I had been too lazy and busy, but now, I had a good reason to visit her.

I had decided to help Park Deok-Gu, but I honestly had no idea where to start, as I didn’t know exactly what was preventing him from growing. I couldn’t even diagnose him myself. I wasn’t a counselor, as I could only read status windows and peek at a person’s nature. Park Deok-Gu’s magic stats were incredibly low, but his stamina and endurance stats were above epic rank. Yet, he was growing really slowly despite that. Of course, that wasn’t the only problem. It broke my heart to say this, but when it came to battle sense, he was also below par compared to the other players around Kim Hyun-Sung.

‘If I were to be honest…’

Even if Kim Ye-Ri’s stats were lower than Park Deok-Gu’s, he wouldn’t be able to defeat her, as every person had varying levels of battle sense. It was the same as someone having legendary-ranked magic and intelligence, yet still being less knowledgeable than Jung Ha-Yan when it came to magic.

Not only was Park Deok-Gu having a hard time keeping up with the others in stats, but he was also lacking in experience and battle sense. To make things worse, he still had a rare-ranked job, and his attribute was still unavailable.

‘It’s a mess…’

There was hope in the fact that his attribute was still unavailable, but there wasn’t much you could do about the battle sense one possessed. I also had to check Park Deok-Gu in the future. I wanted to see a stronger Park Deok-Gu, as seeing that would help me figure out how to help him grow.

Kim Hyun-Sung didn’t know that much about Park Deok-Gu and me, but the shaman who knew the future me might know something about Park Deok-Gu.

Before I even got to her room, a Yozora guild member greeted me first. When I waved my hand, the door automatically opened, and like last time, she was lying stretched out on the ground.

‘Kasugano Yuno.’

Her long hair was loose as usual, and her eyes were closed. The shaman I had met by chance started talking, “I’ve been waiting for you, Master.”

“I’m sorry for not meeting with you earlier,” I said.

“It’s fine. The fact that you’re here is a great honor, as I know better than anyone else that you live a busy life. Please come in…” she offered.

“Did you know I was coming?” I asked.

“I-I didn’t know,” she stuttered.

“Then…”

“I waited until you came to me, as I was certain you would visit…” she answered.

I didn’t know what to say.

“It must’ve been hard,” I commented.

“That’s not true. The thought of waiting for you made me feel a bit better… I actually enjoyed it,” she explained.

‘This is why… I can’t be with her.’

“Ahem.”

“I’m sure you came because you have business with me,” she said.

Kasugano Yuno seemed a bit disappointed when she became certain that I only came to visit her because I had business to do with her. I felt bad, but I couldn’t tell her that I came to see her. I visited her because I needed her help, and I didn’t have a lot of time. I was sure this wasn’t enough for her, so when I quietly sat down, I patted the seat next to me. She slowly got up and sat next to me. As expected, she looked happy. She wasn’t like Jung Jung Ha-Yan, who often expressed her feelings openly, so it seemed like she was trying to hide her smile.

“Well, I guess you can say I came here for a different reason,” I told her.

“Knowing that you understand my feelings is more than enough to make me feel happy. I feel like I can fly. Master, please tell me your wish,” Yuno requested.

Hearing her say that made me think that it wouldn’t be bad to go straight to the point, as she seemed happy just by being with me. I actually had a lot of questions regarding Park Deok-Gu.

“It’s regarding the Dark World,” I started.

“Okay…”

“You said you found me in a ruin, right?” I asked.

“Yes. I found you as you were dying,” she answered.

“So… that happens two years from now, right?”

“That’s right. I don’t know the exact date, but I believe it’s two or three years from now,” she responded.

I had a question about that.

“Was I the only one there? Were there others? Like…”

Before I could finish, Kasugano Yuno spoke, “You’re asking about that big-framed man.”

“Do you know him?” I asked.

Kasugano Yuno opened her eyes and looked at me. I saw darkness where her eyes were supposed to be. I felt a shiver down my spine, as this was something you would usually only see in horror movies.

‘Don’t look at me…’