Chapter 319 - Tutorial 60th Floor (18)

[Yong-yong woke up.] Hochi said.

Yong-yong didn’t have to wake up yet. I wanted to let him sleep a little more.

I just told him I knew. It was inevitable that Hochi disapproved of Lee Yeon-hee. It happened in the Tournament. In fact, even before that, Hochi didn’t want to meet her. If possible, he just wanted to leave her alone.

“Seregia.”

“Yes, Warrior.” Seregia, who had been in human form, replied. Somehow she looked awkward.

“Let’s go. You don’t have to watch the barrier anymore.”

“Am I going to be unemployed again?”

Unfortunately, yes. It was time for Seregia’s role to be handed over to others.

“You’ve done a great job.”

Seregia just nodded her head, without uttering a word of humility. I took her to the front of the portal on the 60th floor.

The portal swirled before me. And indeed, a long-awaited person showed up on the portal.

“It’s been a long time, Mister.” She had put on a nonchalant attitude. I felt that it was a pretense, but this was enough.

I replied with a shrug. “We just met for the first time.”

“I’ve met you several times.”

It was a vague remark. Did she really mean that she’d met me several times? She’d met Hochi not long ago. I would have her know that Hochi was completely different from me. When teaching her about clones, I’d omitted quite a lot. It was because I taught as much as I needed.

“I asked you to wait six months. I came here just six months ago.”

“Yes. I wish you could have come later.”

I was afraid I’d escape as promised before. Lee Yeon-hee shook her head when she heard me.

“I hope so. There are people who want to push me in somehow. I feel like an endoscope. You know, the colon endoscope?” she said with a grin..

“Let’s go. I’ll show you around. Oh, this is Seregia. She appears on the 26th floor; have you met her?”

* * * * * *

Lee Yeon-hee had little interest in Seregia. Instead, she carefully examined the entire 60th floor.

“This is a lot different from what I knew. I heard the original 60th-floor residence isn’t like this.”

“I’ve fixed it many times since I stayed here.”

It was because the reconstruction was inevitable. Lee Yeon-hee scrutinized the surroundings.

It was not because she was curious about the 60th floor. It was to satisfy the curiosity of the countless eyes on her.

I was shocked to see Lee Yeon-hee crossing the portal. I knew she’d come with the eyes of the gods. Honestly, I didn’t know there would be so many.

What the hell? How many are there? In front of Lee Yeon-hee’s eyes, there were still many messages showing the reactions of the gods.

“Hi~”

The windows of the two-story building opened and Yong-yong greeted us. Oh, my pretty son.

“You met last time, this is Yong-yong.”

“…Yeah.”

Next to Yong-yong, who was waving his hand, was Hochi with a sullen face. Lee Yeon-hee hesitated, not responding to the greeting.

“Say hello.”

Lee Yeon-hee waved to Yong-yong in an awkward and uncomfortable manner. Somehow, the action was ridiculous.

“That’s my room. Remember the location.”

Without answering, Lee Yeon-hee turned her head slightly to the side. I didn’t bother to talk to her anymore.

Seregia joined Hochi and Yong Yong Yong. I guided Lee Yeon-hee to the accommodation that I had prepared.

“I’m leaving right away tomorrow, so I’ll just have to stay here for today.”

I had talked with Lee Yeon-hee in advance about this part. We’d take a day off and leave the next day.

“Are you feeling well?”

“…Yeah?” Lee Yeon-hee’s reaction had been slow. Of course, the eyes of the gods may be the biggest reason, but I wondered if it was something else.

“I heard Yong-yong had some trouble with your clone. There’s some aftermath left, right?”

“…Yes, I sent a clone because it was dangerous. I didn’t expect it to cause a lot of damage.”

I was sure the damage was huge. Although I had taught him, Yong-yong’s growth was really no joke. Sometimes, I was surprised as well. I was wondering if this was really a Hatchling who was born a few years ago.

“It seemed stronger than the Dragon.”

“Of course. Oh, come to think of it, you’ve met the dragon.”

Lee Yeon-hee said yes. I tried to keep the conversation going. It was necessary to warm up the atmosphere. It was not good for her to be so nervous and alert.

I brought up the memory of the dragon I had met in the second half of the 50th floor which I had almost forgotten. I started with a story and naturally talked about what happened on the stage.

Soon I and Lee Yeon-hee were both absorbed in the story. It wasn’t difficult. People with a common factor can easily hold a conversation.

To Lee Yeon-hee, I was the only person on Earth who could share and sympathize with her. I could at least bring out the story of someone who was isolated and always needed sympathy and comfort. No matter how weak someone was in communication, this was pretty easy.

“The 17th floor was dangerous, but it wasn’t really that hard. Difficulties and risks come separately.”

That was true. The stages that were dangerous for me were easier to her than I thought.

“The sixth floor was the worst.”

I had no choice but to sympathize with that remark. A long time ago, it was also a topic that came up when Lee Hyung-jin and John Overton of the United States spoke. What was Hell difficulty’s worst stage? We all picked the sixth floor.

In a narrow dark cave, you had to beat up an endless stream of skeletons which stank terribly. There was only a tightly closed door in the back, and one failed as soon as it opened.

It was a stage where you desperately had to wait for reinforcements. The support team came so late that it becomes a stage where you have to solve everything by yourself.

A stage where you first feel the absence of others. It was not a loneliness that comes from lack of communication, but a more painful stage because of the sense of isolation. The feeling that no one in the world can help, remained throughout. It seemed like it was good to be independent, autonomous, and active, to do everything without anyone’s help.

But in fact it was never a positive thing. Everyone needed to interact with others. And the sixth floor of Hell Difficulty told the challenger that such exchanges were completely cut off. I didn’t know about other planet’s challengers, but at least the Earth’s Tutorial did.

“I think the hardest time was when I was locked up on the sixth floor for months. How was it then?”

What do you mean? It was too much. I went half crazy.

“My mental-immunity skills were growing. It’s a shame that I could only progress little by little.”

If it had been slower, I would have gone completely insane. Just like on here, the 60th floor…

“But I was a little better than you.”

“Really?”

“I had the fun of exchanging letters with you every day. Do you remember the letters back then?”

Uhm. Of course, I remembered.

[Man, you don’t remember at all. Do you?]

You’re right about that. Damn it. I should’ve talked about another floor, not the sixth floor.

[It seems like your conscience is hurting you too.]

Be quiet. I answered Hochi roughly. What should I say? Lee Yeon-hee continued to speak, as I was trying to find a suitable topic.

“I’m grateful to you. I’ve come all the way here alive thanks to you. Without you, I would have died. Maybe I couldn’t even have gotten out of the first floor.”

I’d appreciate it if you said so. My conscience still seemed to hurt.

“I blame you for deceiving me. But I don’t regret listening to you. I mean it.”

* * * * * *

“I don’t like this,” Hochi grumbled. He’d been like this for a while. I was all confused. “I hate being like this. I really don’t like it, but I’m sorry.”

“Yes, yes. It’s entirely my fault,” Yong-yong, who was listening quietly next to him, shouted.

“No! It’s not Dad’s fault!”

Actually, it was my fault. Damn it. But that’d been my limit at that time. What could I do now that I was lacking?

“Daddy’s not the one who did wrong…”

I patted Yong-yong’s head. Yong-yong was right. I was not the one who caused this problem.

I didn’t make the 61st floor and the Tutorial nor did I make the rules. I was not the one who brought Lee Yeon-hee here either. Lee Yeon-hee and I were just pushed into this dog-sh*t-like environment. There was only a difference in how they acted and how they prepared for it.

But when it comes to the relationship between Lee Yeon-hee and me, the world was wrong, and the gods were wrong. I couldn’t help but conclude that it wasn’t my fault. Justifying it didn’t help at all.

“Why?”

Before answering Yong-yong again, I thought about how to explain it. It was too important a story to tell as it came to mind.

“Because my deeds are precious to me, and my faults and my sins are precious as well. Even if it is a problem caused by another, it is not good to pass on the faults and the sins that I have committed to another person.”

I wonder if I explained well. Seeing Yong-yong’s puzzled expression, I didn’t think I did.

Fortunately, there was someone else who understood me: Hochi.

[Good. With that in mind, apologize to me again after a long time.]

[Yes. I’m sorry.]

[Wow. You don’t look sorry at all.] Hochi giggled as he said so. That’s how I got forgiven by Hochi, and we got along like a family.

[Oh, no! I haven’t forgiven you yet. You’re gonna have to apologize until I’m old and dead.]

I didn’t even know when he’d get old and die. It was more questionable as to whether he’d die.

While talking to Hochi, Yong-yong seemed to have finished thinking.

Yong-yong looked at me again and asked, “Then who really did the wrong thing? No one’s punishing anyone for causing trouble.”

Ah, Yong-yong. That’s not it.

“I meant that you take care of your own fault and not cover up other people’s faults.”

“Then who really did wrong? What about those who made the first problem?”

“Of course, they’ll have to pay for their own mistakes.”

Yong-yong still looked like something was unclear to him.

He thought for a while and said again, “The wrong people won’t be punished by themselves.”

Indeed. I thought so, too. Now, even if they, the gods, thought they did too much to the Tutorial challengers, what were the chances of them saying, “Let’s reflect and pay the price” from now on? If that was the case, they wouldn’t even make the Tutorial like this in the first place.

“Someone will have to punish them.”

“Who?” Yong-yong asked with his eyes wide open. And through Lee Yeon-hee, I told the gods who’d be listening to our conversation.

“I will.”

* * * * * *

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[Entering the 61st floor stage.]

After a day’s rest, I headed to the 61st floor’s stage. Lee Yeon-hee seemed to have given up everything. She was faithfully carrying out her role as the pitiful heroine about to be sacrificed. However, it was easy to see that Lee Yeon-hee had no intention of being victimized. She had come fully prepared.

[Participants (2243/50)]

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