Chapter 627: Continent’s Real Darkness (3)

Perhaps Cho Hyejin’s last words were decisive.

‘”Do what you can. That would… help him…”

He had found his own conclusion.

Didn’t a great man once say that a busy bee didn’t have time to be sad? He thought that saying was just right for him.

Perhaps he thought that training to death and growing was the only way to repay me.

I wasn’t certain, but I nodded when I saw him.

-Ahhhhhhhhhh!!!

-…

-Damn it… Damn it…

-…

-Ahhhhhhhhhh!

‘Oh, that sounds like a bloody fight.’

I thought he might have realized something, but he must have realized this more than I expected. I didn’t know how to describe it, but… It was obvious that he was regretful and was trying to atone for his past choices.

He was swinging his sword recklessly. Rather than learning, he seemed to be expressing his anger.

It had been like that for almost three days.

That was the whole reason why I came all the way to Lindel.

‘I wonder if he can really take classes like that.’

I felt that way because I was ignorant of the way of the sword, but Kim Hyunsung looked even more disappointed. He was frowning as expected. He looked like he didn’t like Raphael at all.

However…

‘He’s taking it better than expected.’

I watched them face each other sincerely.

I also felt that Hyunsung was dealing with him at the same level of physical ability as Raphael’s…

If Kim Hyunsung had been serious in the first place, wouldn’t he have already broken through Raphael without difficulties?

Unlike Raphael, who used the Holy Sword’s light, Kim Hyunsung didn’t even use mana.

He was dealing with his opponent using nothing but basic skills.

‘He really is a genius.’

He didn’t even look like he’s doing anything from my perspective.

Kim Hyunsung deflected his opponent’s sword calmly, breathing slowly while the other tried his best to give him a small scratch.

He fought with limited movements.

Soon enough, Raphael was drained.

He looked exhausted, but he still didn’t let go of his sword.

‘At least he’s determined.’

If not, he wouldn’t have shown that kind of performance.

-That’s it for today.

- Ha… Ha…

- It was a mess and not worth any comments. Did you lose what you’ve been learning?

- …

- Is that all you’ve got?

- Ahhhhhhhhh!!

- …

Rafael tried to jump the gun on Kim Hyunsung while he was talking, but he was shoved away, causing him to skid on the ground with a screeching sound.

Raphael grumbled while holding on to where he was hit.

- I don’t know if I should say you’re brave or if I should call you stupid. Regardless, I told you I would finish the class here. I don’t think we’ll make much progress even if we continue today. Please proceed with the final training privately and get ready to eat.

- Ha… Ha…

“As expected, Hyunsung is really strong.’

He probably didn’t even sweat.

Of course, knowing that Raphael was the opponent, it wasn’t a big deal for him.

However, considering that such results still came out despite similar conditions, Kim Hyunsung really was just Kim Hyunsung.

The Goddess’s Mirror reflected the image of the man entering the building at a quick pace after finishing the training. I hid the mirror in my arms, thinking that Kim Hyunsung might be looking for me. At that moment, someone knocked on my door at the right timing.

“Kiyoung.”

“Yes, you can come in.”

At this, Kim Hyunsung slowly entered the room.

“I heard that you’re here. It’s been such a long time since you last visited the guild.”

‘You haven’t been here long either, man.’

“I can’t help it. As the President of the Continental Protection and Management Committee, I might seem to favor certain guilds too much… Of course, everyone knows that I haven’t completely let go of the Blue Guild, but the public’s eyes are on me.”

“Yes… I know that.”

“By the way, I’m surprised by the fact that this room still looks the same.”

“I think Hee-young took care of it so it would look just the way it was before you left. When they heard that Kiyoung was coming, Manager Kim Mi-young organized it.”

Looking around, it definitely looked exactly like my previous room.

The huge display of bags remained the same, and the magnificently decorated interior remained the same.

Even the lack of windows wasn’t any different.

Looking at the wall, I could still vividly remember the memory of that day. The only thing that changed was that there were new bags on display.

Kim Hyunsung was busy sending a calm smile.

I could feel the expression and temperature difference that he just showed to Rafael, but that seemed to be the normal Kim Hyunsung.

He must’ve been happy that I visited the guild.

‘It’s not bad.’

I also wanted to come again.

Lindel was the only place I could call home.

Since I had one hand on the urban restoration plan, I knew how Lindel roughly changed, but it was definitely different from what I actually saw. The perfectly established figure that was incomparable to the past was full of vitality, and the wonderful development seemed to tell us that time had passed.

Anyone would’ve doubted their eyes if they compared Lindel to its ruined days.

I was so surprised at how Lindel looked when I was on the griffin.

‘I’m glad I came.’

I only stopped by because of Raphael, but I thought it was fortunate that I went over.

Above all, Kim Hyunsung showed a good response, making me feel like I caught two rabbits at once.

“It’s a good thing I came here today. It would’ve been hard for me to visit at any other time…”

“Yes, you’re so busy… Hyejin told me that you’d been really exhausted lately. I don’t think it would be a bad idea to relax a little bit…”

‘Cho Hyejin, why are you talking nonsense?’

“Haha… that’s alight. I’m taking care of myself. I took a break from work yesterday… It’s no different from taking a rest now, right? By the way, how’s everything going?”

“What do you mean?”

“With Raphael.”

“…”

“…”

“I don’t know.”

“…”

“He’s getting better little by little. He’s not very talented, but… I can see that he wants to grow stronger… Usually, people like him have high expectations for growth. Unfortunately, it’s undeniable that he has a limit.”

“…”

“To conclude, Raphael will become strong, but… I’m skeptical about whether he’ll be able to grow to the level that Kiyoung expects.”

“Ah…”

“Of course, it’s a little sad…”

‘Is the Tactic Raphael bound to fail?’

Of course, that was just Kim Hyunsung’s personal opinion.

However, I couldn’t imagine Raphael being used as a tactic. I didn’t think he’d be able to complete the mission.

“He doesn’t have enough experience.”

“Yes! That’s right.”

I was the one that set up the big picture, but it was Kim Hyunsung who carried out detailed missions. If I ordered him to reach a certain destination, it would be his responsibility to carry it out.

Of course, I conveyed the battlefield situation with as much detail as possible and used all the support I could, but I didn’t know when pop up.

It was all about physical ability and stats.

If Kim Hyunsung rolled and rolled in hell in the first round, wouldn’t it have been difficult to carry out that mission?

‘It’s wrong to give up hope too soon…’

“I think it would be better to see what direction he should take and how much he’s growing before making a decision. We’re already running out of time. Let’s have a meal first. You’ve been waiting for a long time. I have some good food ready.”

“Oh, yeah. It’s been a while since I’ve had a meal inside the guild. It reminds me of the past. Of course, I haven’t spent much time in the newly built guildhall, but I still miss being here.”

“Then why don’t you stay a little longer? If you don’t mind…”

“Well, I don’t know exactly… I need to check with my schedule. I’d like to stay a little longer in the changed city of Lindel, but I don’t know when there’ll be an accident on the scene that would require my presence…”

“Yes, I understand…”

Hyunsung was undeniably feeling down.

I also thought it would be okay to extend my stay for about a day. I had a story to tell Kim Mi-young and Sun Hee-young anyway.

Well, it was really because Kim Hyunsung was showing that kind of reaction.

However, I came that day not because of Kim Hyunsung but because of Raphael.

It’s for the guy who tried to forget his pain without even showing it.

‘He can’t stand it when he sees my face… He needs another spoonful of guilt.’

I never would’ve imagined that Raphael would train like a madman for three days. I heard a knocking sound.

‘Raphael must be here.’

I was worried that he’d avoid meeting me, but that didn’t seem to be the case. A faltering voice began to come from the other side of the door.

“Come in.”

He slowly opened the door. It’s the first time I had seen him since I passed out, so everything felt a little awkward.

‘It’s not a big deal…’

Of course, how I felt couldn’t be compared to what he was feeling. Rafael ran to Lindel in the first place because he wasn’t confident of meeting me.

It must’ve been hard to figure out how to face me, what to say when we met again, how to express his feelings, and how to apologize.

However, the expression I actually saw wasn’t what I expected.

Raphael had a look of urgency, and most of all, he seemed worried.

‘Well, this isn’t bad, but…’

I thought he would have prepared himself before coming in, but he probably knew why I was there.

Raphael sighed with great relief when he saw me.

He also thought a little bit about how to react, but the best answer for that was…

‘It’s better to smile as if nothing happened.’

It was more effective to act as usual.

I could assure that my smile would pierce his conscience without mercy.

“I… I…”

We didn’t even make eye contact.

“Well, I… I mean, I mean…”

“It’s alright, Raphael.”

“Yes… yes, Hyung.”

“Everything… is fine.”

“Hmmph…”

He sounded like he was holding back his tears.

When I approached him without a word and tapped on his shoulder, his body shook with his head lowered and facing the ground.

His tears were falling. Although Kim Hyunsung was somewhat curious about the sudden morning drama situation…

‘I can just make up an excuse later.’

After such a long time, he seemed to have finally managed to get over his feelings.

What was a little strange was that he kept making a strange face. After he calmed down, he looked around the luxurious room.

‘Is it because the furniture is expensive? The room is a little spacious, right? It’s okay. You can tell me everything.’

He would have flinched if it were normal, but he’d already fallen silent.

He didn’t have to react to everything.

“Hyung. This place is…”

I wished that he would speak more confidently. The shelves were bothering me, but… there was nothing bad about being confident.

“It was my room.”

He slowly nodded.

It looked like he was about to cry again.