To Hell With Being a Hero!

Whooosh…

A mysterious current fiercely circled around Chi-Woo; it became stronger and then weaker. Then the current spiraled and gathered to the center and suddenly whirled around each part of his body before expanding again. Eshnunna stared at him in a daze because of how mystical Chi-Woo appeared. It was then Chi-Woo let out a short groan.

“Kuh!” Soon afterward, one of his arms began to swell in irregular lumps.

Ohhhhhh—!

The current grew suddenly unstable and seemed to run wild.

“Ugh! Urrrgh!” Chi-Woo’s face distorted. It appeared he was trying his best to calm himself, but he looked greatly pained. “Kugh! Kurrgh!” In the end, he vomited a clump of crimson blood and collapsed forward.

Blood didn’t only pour out from his throat, but also from his nose, ears, and eyes. Watching this, Eshnunna brought her hand to her gaping mouth. Chi-Woo’s face became splattered with blood. It seemed he would die any moment at this rate.

“Cough! Damn it! Urgh! Ugggh!” But rather than screeching in pain, Chi-Woo cursed in lamentation, and he slammed his fists against the ground hard even while puking blood. It seemed he would die from frustration rather than pain.

“It’s the 876th failure,” Byeok said while lying on the porch. Eshnunna blinked hard. Did she hear that right? And if she did, did that mean Chi-Woo had done something like this 876 times?

Eshnunna was even more stunned when she heard Byeok say, “You’re going to reach 1,000 by today or tomorrow if you continue like this. Endure for a bit longer. I will save my congratulations for then.”

Anyone could tell by Byeok’s tone that she wasn’t speaking in an encouraging or complimenting manner. She was clearly mocking Chi-Woo. Even Evelyn’s occasional harshness paled in comparison. Chi-Woo seemed to also sense this and glared at Byeok.

“…It’s too hard…” Chi-Woo murmured after heaving for a while. “To control every muscular fiber…bones’ framework…the flow of the blood…and each cell that makes up my body to bring out the best posture and maximize efficiency…” Chi-Woo laughed like he thought the idea of it was absurd in the first place. “Furthermore, to do it every time I move? And in the middle of battle? How could I do something crazy like that? Are you serious? Do you think it makes sense?”

Eshnunna thought the same. She wondered if the flood of questions from Chi-Woo was actually coming from her. But how should she describe it? Eshnunna could empathize with Chi-Woo because that was how she had felt when Evelyn handed her the introductory book. When she read it, she couldn’t understand what it meant at all or even where to begin. Anyone would’ve thought that, but Byeok snorted.

“You’re good at blabbering with your mouth. But you should use that energy to understand this.”

“I understand…!”

“You only understand it in your head, but not yet your body,” Byeok continued, “A brain is an organ that gives out orders, and all the physical parts below it follow them. I’m telling you to transcend this system now.” Then she asked, “Do you think when you breathe? What about when you blink?”

Chi-Woo pursed his lips.

“See. How can you expect things to work out when you try to forcefully carry out with your body what you understand only in your head?” Byeok clicked her tongue. “Man, you are slow. Your Golden Ratio only activates after you fulfill a certain condition. The fact that you aren’t progressing proves that you haven’t even properly realized your goal.”

Chi-Woo’s face darkened at Byeok’s sharp chidings.

“But…still…!”

“Well, as you say, it’s not a skill that everyone can master,” Byeok cut Chi-Woo off before he could go on another rant. Then she continued nonchalantly, “What can we do if you can’t manage to do it in the end? You can be satisfied that you’ve basically dipped your toe into the real thing.”

“…”

“But don’t forget. I understand how you might want to cry out about the abilities you have, but there are two people around you that accomplished this difficult task. Ah, it’s actually three if I count that one guy who died. And you are in a world so difficult that those who accomplished this are struggling.”

Chi-Woo became speechless. There was nothing more he could say to refute her.

‘…Okay…’ Who could he blame? He was the one who said he wanted to shorten the gap between him and other heroes. All Byeok did was respond to his request. He knew that, but…!

“Kuh—!” In the end, Chi-Woo gripped his fist and clenched his eyes shut. Watching him quietly from the side, Eshnunna was startled. Drip—as Chi-Woo’s eyes shuddered, tears trickled down. Byeok shook her head like she thought he was pathetic, but Eshnunna couldn’t bear to do the same.

Chi-Woo had endured for a long time with the goal to become stronger. He thought his master was being unfair, as he kept hitting a wall when trying to progress. And while he had gritted his teeth through everything until now, frustration and despair swallowed him up, and he felt like he couldn’t keep going any longer. But in the end, he couldn’t blame anyone but himself. As someone in a similar position as him, she could understand Chi-Woo’s state of mind.

But what was more surprising was that Chi-Woo persisted even while knowing it wasn’t going to work.

‘What…?’

From his expression, it looked like he was completely sick of this training; even while his face was soaked with blood mixed with the tears he shed, though, Chi-Woo suppressed all his emotions, got into a lotus position, and meditated. Seeing the mysterious current circle around him again, Eshnunna was hit with a strange feeling.

‘I see…he also…’ She lowered her head because she remembered what Evelyn told her and felt ashamed. A great hero who was several times stronger than her was working so hard to become stronger. And he was going through a training thousands of times more difficult and painful than hers. Yet she had complained about the work she had to do when it was nothing compared to what Chi-Woo was going through. No wonder Evelyn told her not to fuss.

‘I…’ Eshnunna realized it now. She couldn’t just accept the possibility of death. She needed to approach her training with the mindset that she might die while doing it. And seeing how Chi-Woo, pain-stricken and pale, appeared like he was going to die any moment now, Eshnunna gritted her teeth. Her thoughts changed as her mindset shifted. Yes, even if she might die, she needed to do this. As soon as she made up her mind, Eshnunna turned on her heel.

“What is it? Did you forget something?” Evelyn appeared surprised to see Eshnunna return so soon.

Eshnunna said, “Just leave those be, Lady Evelyn.”

“Huh? No, it’s fine. I’ll just clean them myself.”

“No.” Eshnunna breathed deeply. “I will try again.”

Evelyn’s eyes widened.

“And.” Eshnunna wasn’t done. “Please don’t quit on me until I say otherwise.”

A short silence flowed. Then Evelyn let out a soft ‘oh~’ seeing how earnest Eshnunna appeared. Evelyn thought Eshnunna must have realized something from the few words she had thrown out in anger.

“It’s not my business if you die in the process,” Evelyn said.

“I don’t expect a funeral. If I die, just burn my body and scatter the ashes into a river,” Eshnunna replied and stomped toward the rod. Seeing how passionate Eshnunna looked, Evelyn smiled. And behind them, there was another girl quietly watching Eshnunna.

***

Her name was Shanaz Hawa—though she should be called La Hawa now that she followed another god as a shaman. Nevertheless, Hawa was living a dream right now. She was chosen by La Bella and was now able to use the growth system. Her original plan was to follow Chi-Woo around to gain merits, but after Chi-Woo declared that he would be acting independently from now on, that plan came to nothing. That didn’t impact her much since she could just follow Ru Amuh anyways, yet there was one thing that Hawa wasn’t pleased with.

‘Why must I depend on others for my growth?’ she wondered. It couldn’t be helped that she had to follow Chi-Woo because of the promise she made with La Bella, but Hawa didn’t seriously want to follow Ru Amuh around like a dog. At the same time, she knew that she didn’t have many options in the current situation, and it wasn’t the time to be stubborn; above all, her rank was still low, and it was her first time using a growth system.

Though she had been trained as a shaman and an assassin since she was young, there was still a difference between her and the other heroes, who had gone through many more difficult experiences than her. And even after gaining merits and becoming stronger, Hawa felt that she lacked something above those things—an ability that would’ve let her stand side by side with other Celestial heroes. In some ways, she was having a similar worry as Chi-Woo.

And while Hawa was wondering about these things, she happened to see Chi-Woo training under some mysterious, arrogant lady. She also saw Eshnunna visiting the place often and later learned that it was because of Evelyn. That made Hawa realize that she needed a hero who would make her more hero-like rather than a mere native. With her mind made up, Hawa thought she should go all out and ask the best hero to teach her. Other people might have called her crazy, but Hawa carried out what she set out to do.

***

At dawn, Chi-Hyun was going to work in the official building when he saw a silver-haired girl standing in front of its entrance. He slightly changed course to avoid her, but had to eventually stop because she had moved to block his path. It was then Chi-Hyun looked down at the small silver-haired girl before him.

“I want to train under you, sir.” In her characteristically stone-faced expression, she went right to the point. But of course, Chi-Hyun responded as he always did. After eyeing her for a bit, Chi-Hyun indifferently turned away and moved, his long coat fluttering past Hawa.

She was so thoroughly ignored that it wasn’t even funny. It was as if he didn’t recognize her at all despite the fact that they had seen each other a couple times before. And though Hawa wasn’t out-rightly rejected, his action spoke volume. Chi-Hyun was telling her to remove herself since he had no business with her.

“Teaching me will also benefit you,” Hawa said.

Chi-Hyun stopped walking. Then he turned around halfway and glanced at Hawa. Hawa felt a wave of nervousness swallow her up and gulped hard. Though she had heard that Chi-Hyun and Chi-Woo were brothers, Chi-Woo was a completely different type of person. If she had to describe Chi-Hyun, she would say he was a cold, brutal killer. She could just tell by his eyes. He was someone who had killed countless lives and was so heartless that he didn’t feel any sort of guilt for it. Considering that, it was difficult to tell what such a man would judge as valuable or beneficial.

“Two sentences,” Chi-Hyun said. “Finish your explanation within that limit.”

“I need at least three sentences though.”

“Do that.”

“You’re his brother,” Hawa quickly said. “And he’s your younger brother.” These were all facts both knew so far. “I’m his believer.”

“Believer?”

Hawa thought Chi-Hyun’s response was positive. The fact that he asked a question meant that he allowed her to speak more. Rather than saving it, she revealed her greatest card:

“Goddess La Bella personally accepted me as her follower on the condition that I protect your brother with all I have in whatever situation.” To further support her point, she added, “I’m sure you must know what it means as the one called the legend.”

Chi-Hyun had his body fully turned around now and was walking toward Hawa rather than the building.

“How can I trust what you say?”

It was then Hawa felt the need to be mindful of each word she uttered henceforth. She couldn’t give him answers like ‘How would I dare lie to a legend? Or ‘Can’t you figure it out yourself?’

“I swear on this spot that if there’s even a hint of a lie to my words, I will lose all my powers, receive divine punishment, and die an excruciating death. I swear this upon Goddess La Bella’s name.”

After making a contract with a god, the contractor couldn’t rashly swear upon the god’s name. It was because they could receive the exact punishment they said they would receive for breaking it. And since Hawa went so far as to do this, Chi-Hyun couldn’t help but believe her. Soon, Chi-Hyun’s eyes glinted with curiosity as he looked at Hawa. He looked as if he had discovered a toy that he didn’t mind having, but found it worthwhile to play with.

However, the whole situation wasn’t very favorable for Hawa. In the first place, it wasn’t a good idea to reveal the conditions one agreed to while establishing a contract with a god. After all, the more binding the conditions were, the more others might exploit them. And Hawa just revealed that she could never betray Chi-Woo; this was a secret she didn’t even tell Chi-Woo and had to keep hidden at all costs. But if she wanted to be taught by this man and develop her powers to survive, she needed to hold onto Chi-Hyun somehow.

Perhaps Chi-Hyun might say, ‘That’s beneficial for my brother but not for me.’ But Hawa thought she could risk it after seeing how Chi-Hyun treated Chi-Woo in the battle at Shalyh City.

“Hm…Is that so…” Chi-Hyun responded just as she thought he would. The existence of a trustworthy companion for Chi-Woo’s survival was indispensable. One’s skills, abilities, or how great the gods they served were secondary. What mattered to Chi-Hyun most was how much one was willing to dedicate themselves to Chi-Woo. This was the same reason why he revealed Chi-Woo’s identity to Noel before; he hoped that she would die in place of Chi-Woo in case of an emergency.

Hawa was the perfect fit for his goals. Though it was a bit concerning how quick-witted and bold she was to dare make him an offer like this, she was in a state where she couldn’t betray Chi-Woo even if she wanted to and had to throw herself before Chi-Woo no matter how dangerous the situation was. Thus, Chi-Hyun could instruct her in the hope that she would become a better meat shield.

“Fine,” Chi-Hyun eventually said.

Hawa’s face brightened—to think Chi-Hyun would really accept the deal. With this, she would be instructed under a hero much greater than Eshnunna’s master. She would be taught by the overwhelming presence called the legend, who was at the top among even those arrogant Celestial Lights. Hawa was sure that if she learned under a hero like that, there was no way she wouldn’t gain anything.

“I heard that gods of the complete neutrality type like La Bella don’t easily take followers, but…” Chi-Hyun said. “I suppose you’ve got something if you were accepted.” Chi-Hyun smirked coldly, and the smile at Hawa’s lips disappeared immediately. She raised her head as anxiety suddenly swept through her. Perhaps she should have thought more about this matter before acting out.

“I suppose we should check your skill,” Chi-Hyun said.

‘What? Already, at this spot?’ Hawa wondered. But before she could ask, her vision turned dark.

“!”