I Gave Up Being Stronger

“I will take the lead and clear the undergrowth, moly.” Mole Woman swung her arms toward the dense vegetation, cleanly slicing through the foliage.

Jin-Hyeok followed her, focusing on her impressive performance.

‘Why are the number of likes higher than usual? I’m just filming her back. Is her backview that interesting?’ Jin-Hyeok wondered. A competitive spirit ignited within him. ‘What’s so special about her?’

She was just waving her arms around in tight clothes, yet the response from the viewers was inexplicably positive.

“We could crawl through here, moly,” Mole Woman suggested.

They had reached an area full of thorny bushes. Ahead of them was a narrow path, barely wide enough for one person to pass through. It looked like a trail used by small animals. Mole Woman got down in an alluring posture and crawled, with Jin-Hyeok following suit.

‘The viewer count has surpassed ten billion again?’

Jin-Hyeok was puzzled by how they had hit ten billion viewers again while doing so little. The reaction on Storyteller Wang Yu-Mi’s relay channel was nothing short of explosive.

-I just hope it doesn’t get demonetized.

-It’s too sexy!

-What’s so sexy about it? There is no nudity.

-You don’t think that’s sexy?

-Tsk, tsk. How can you think this is sexy? Mole Woman is just Playing efficiently.

-That’s what makes it sexy.

-I guess some people only see what they want to see, you dirty bastard.

Wang Yu-Mi hastily interjected. “Please refrain from making sexual comments or provocative jokes about the performers. You will be kicked out immediately without a warning.”

Jin-Hyeok became curious. ‘Why are there so many viewers?’

If he could pinpoint the reason, it would be a huge help for the channel.

‘I should ask Yu-Mi about this later.’

***

After passing through dense vegetation and damp swampland, Jin-Hyeok finally arrived at the Pangea Temple. It appeared to be an ancient structure. The air was filled with the cries of unknown birds and the buzzing of insects.

Jin-Hyeok continued his livestream as he surveyed his surroundings.

“The walls are covered in moss, and vines cover the entire temple,” he narrated. There were so many vines that Mole Woman had to keep clearing a path for him. “This seems to be the entrance. Up close, it looks much more massive and imposing than I expected.”

“So, this is the Unexplored Dungeon from Hell… This should be fun, moly.” Mole Woman discreetly glanced at Jin-Hyeok. As the Korean Region’s top Navigator, she had always wanted to Play alongside him and did not want to miss today’s opportunity. So, she launched into her prepared spiel. “By the way, Chul-Soo, do you know why this Dungeon has remained unexplored for so long, moly?”

“I’m not sure.” Jin-Hyeok almost smirked as he caught on to Mole Woman’s intentions. His comrades had become quite perceptive lately. This would surely pique the viewers’ interest before the actual Dungeon raid.

“It’s because of the Prophets’ prediction, moly.”

“Prophets?”

Jin-Hyeok had learned about this only recently. The Arvis Server had Players known as the Prophets. They calculated the potential rewards from Dungeons into points and shared this information with other Players. Thanks to them, Players could estimate the rewards without directly clearing the Dungeons.

Only three Prophets were universally recognized as true experts, and their fees were astronomical, so most Players were not even aware of their existence.

“According to top-secret information, the Prophets gave the Pangea Temple zero points. It received the lowest score among all Unexplored Dungeons in the universe. In other words, you won’t gain anything by clearing it, moly.”

For most Players, it would be common sense not to attempt such a Dungeon. However, Jin-Hyeok was anything but a common player.

‘Even struggling can make for good content!’ he thought. Not getting a reward was not necessarily bad. Plus, by continuing to analyze Mole Woman, he could figure out why the viewer count was unusually high. ‘And if we do happen to get some reward, that’s a bonus in itself.’

“I see. So, that’s why the Pangea Temple has remained unexplored until now?” Jin-Hyeok said.

“Maybe so, moly.”

“But that doesn’t matter to me. I’m not after any special reward. I just want to awaken the Great Sword Spirit.”

Mole Woman felt slightly confused. ‘Isn’t that a special reward in itself?’

Ignoring her puzzlement, Jin-Hyeok stood before the vine-covered door.

‘I sense bloodlust behind that pillar.’ Jin-Hyeok could unmistakably tell that it was a human’s bloodlust. ‘An Assassin?’

Though the realization excited him a bit, he did not let it show. Such plot twists were more effective when he acted surprised.

‘I’m sure Mole Woman sensed it too.’

Mole Woman also refrained from mentioning the Assassin.

***

There were only three trusted Prophets in the universe. They were triplets known as the Three Sister Prophets. Hailing from the Arvis Server, these sisters were blind, but they possessed the power to discern the value of Dungeons.

“We’re here to see Sara Kyen, the head of the Kyen Family.”

“We’re here to see Sara Kyen, the head of the Kyen Family.”

“We’re here to see Sara Kyen, the head of the Kyen Family.”

The three sisters, shrouded in robes, spoke in unison. Though no one could be seen before the old, dilapidated wooden door, someone responded.

“The family head is not here.”

“We must see her.”

“Leave. She is not here.”

The three sisters spoke together once more.

“Kill Kim Chul-Soo.”

“Kill Kim Chul-Soo.”

“Kill Kim Chul-Soo.”

They had no choice but to retreat without achieving their goal.

Shortly after their departure, the wooden door creaked open. The one who showed up was none other than Yolin.

“This is going to be a problem,” she muttered as she slumped down. Although the ground was dusty, not a single particle stirred. She had an inkling of why the Three Sister Prophets had rushed to the Kyen Family.

‘If Chul-Soo meets the Great Sword Spirit or gains a special reward in the Unexplored Dungeon, it will tarnish the sisters’ careers.’

If Chul-Soo were to obtain a significant reward from a place where the Three Sisters had given zero points, their reputation would plummet. Their predicament was unfortunate, but…

“Asking me to kill Boss with my own hands? That’s out of the question,” Yolin said to the air.

“Death, don’t you agree? Chul-Soo generously supports my history studies. He even pays me for it. Honestly, I can’t think of a better job than this.”

“...”

“Excellent work-life balance and getting paid for the least amount of work is my life motto. Boss is the number one contributor to making that possible.”

“But, Matriarch, we made a pact with the first head of the Pisat Family. We promised that no one would dare emerge alive from the Pangea Temple.”

“We have let quite a few live, considering that promise.”

“But we have hindered them sufficiently from clearing the Dungeon. Besides, most of them were rookie Players incapable of clearing the temple anyway.” True experts often had access to information from the Three Sister Prophets. As a result, they never sought the Pangea Temple to begin with. “But Chul-Soo is different. He will certainly clear the temple. We must stop him. We need to keep our promise.”

Yolin stroked her chin. “I don’t think the Pisat Family is aware of this promise. If they were, they would have sent us an official letter asking us to cooperate with Boss, I mean, Chul-Soo.”

“Well, it was a promise between the founding heads of the family, so they might have forgotten,” Death said.

“Then can’t I just forget it either?”

“Pisat may forget the promise, but Kyen must not.”

“There you go again with that old-fashioned talk. You’re such a stick in the mud.”

“Our proud shadows will eventually kill Kim Chul-Soo.”

“Even if I tell them not to?”

“They are Assassins with honor and pride. They fulfill their contracts by any means necessary, even if it’s a contract from thousands of years ago. Even as the family head, you cannot trample on their pride.”

After pondering for a while, Yolin suddenly stood up. “I should go to Yu-Mi. I need to give her some information at least.”

***

Yolin approached Yu-Mi with a thick book tucked under her arm. “I stumbled upon this while studying history.”

“Go on,” Yu-Mi replied.

“That Dungeon is guarded by an Assassin family that made a special pact with the Pisat Family. That’s why it has remained an Unexplored Dungeon until now. I’m not entirely sure, but highly trained Assassins are likely to be lurking there.”

“Really?” Yu-Mi’s eyes sparkled.

Yolin tilted her head in confusion. “Why do you look happy?”

“Assassins in that gloomy and mysterious temple? This is the perfect content!” Yu-Mi was excited. ‘I need to find the right background music for this right away!’

“No, you don’t understand. These are not just any run-of-the-mill Assassins. According to the records, they are top-tier killers specially trained by the Kyen Family.”

“The Kyen Family?”

“Yes, one of the Seven Great Families. That legendary, enigmatic assassin family whose very existence is considered a myth.”

“You seem to know an awful lot about them for such a secretive family.”

“Well, it’s my job to uncover this information! I have to earn my keep, you know?”

“Wasn’t your motto ‘work less, earn more’?”

“I try to at least do what I’m paid for!”

“Alright, I get it.”

As Yu-Mi resumed her livestream after their brief exchange, Yolin felt a bit frustrated.

“Are you not going to tell Boss?” Yolin asked.

“Why should I?”

“I told you skilled Assassins are hiding there!”

“Wouldn’t it make for better storytelling if he doesn’t know?”

“What?”

Yu-Mi wagged her index finger and made a tsk tsk sound. “If he knows about the Assassins, it kills the tension, you know?”

“So, you’re willing to put Boss in danger for that?”

Yu-Mi let out a small sigh. ”Yolin, you don’t understand anything, do you? Do you honestly think Chul-Soo is unaware of it all?”

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