109
After eating breakfast, Doun stopped by the hospital for consultation. When he explained in detail the panic symptoms he’d experienced yesterday, the doctor asked with concern.
“Doun-ssi’s symptoms could worsen, but do you absolutely have to go to the tower? As your attending physician, the tower isn’t an environment I’d like to recommend, so I’m worried.”
Doun’s severe depression, insomnia, and anxiety symptoms mostly stemmed from incidents that occurred inside towers.
Continuous gaslighting, exploitation, and betrayal by those he trusted like family, the death of someone close, an environment where psychological tension had to be maintained for long periods, anonymous ridicule and criticism pouring in.
Though his symptoms had been alleviated thanks to new relationships he’d formed after returning as a hunter, from a psychiatrist’s perspective, the activities taking place within the bizarre structure called Veritas Tower could only be seen as harmful.
Research on hunters’ strange blind devotion was actively underway in the medical field. People who awakened as hunters showed desire to climb towers to varying degrees. Some experts even claimed it was group hypnosis.
“I have to go. I’ve received too much without giving back. Everyone’s good people and it’s not an atmosphere where we take risks during conquest like before. It’s just that symptoms appeared because a situation similar to that time occurred…”
“I see.”
“Yes. If there’s medicine that could help when such symptoms appear…”
Doun said while staring at the corner of the tissue box on the desk. After receiving all that help, he couldn’t now say he couldn’t go on tower conquest using panic as an excuse. He had no intention of dropping out of conquest with such excuses in the first place, and above all, he enjoyed tower conquest.
“I’ll prescribe medicine you can take when needed, but you must come immediately if symptoms worsen. Doun-ssi, let’s make a promise.”
The doctor looked intently at Doun. Kind-looking but resolute eyes. Doun suddenly thought of someone with similar eyes.
“Yes. I will.”
A clear smile spread across his anxious face. The doctor narrowed his brow while prescribing medicine. He could only hope the person sitting before him would never need to take this medicine.
* * *
“I’m back.”
Doun muttered while taking off his shoes at the entrance. Then he heard footsteps and a shadow fell over his face. When he looked up, he saw Samin’s face welcoming him.
“Was it very hot outside?”
“Yeah. It was really hot.”
“What’s that in your hand?”
“Coffee.”
“Is there one for me too?”
“Did you think I’d be stingy and only buy mine?”
Doun handed over the carrier containing drinks. Samin grinned looking at the drink in his hand. After washing his hands, Doun came out to the living room having removed his hat and mask. Then Samin, who had handed him the drink, began speaking.
“We need to prepare for Floor 55 now, but I’m a bit worried.”
Doun, who had been taking a sip of coffee, tilted his head.
“Why? What are you worried about? Is it because of what I did yesterday? I went and got medicine today too. I’m fine.”
“No. Honestly, I’ve seen hunters do that sometimes, so it’s not a problem. Hyung calmed down quickly too… Of course I’m not not worried, but you bravely went for consultation.”
“Then what are you worried about?”
“The problem is that we camp out at the guild building before highest floor conquest.”
“…Camp out?”
Doun’s head tilted.
“You know there’s a training room in the basement of our building and a place to sleep in between, right?”
“Yeah.”
Doun recalled the guild building in the station area he’d once casually visited. The building Samin had purchased with cash without loans had a training room in the basement comparable to high-end private training facilities, and on the ground floor were three meeting rooms, a break room equipped with various game machines, and sleeping quarters that could be called studio apartments.
The interior was neat, and the break room full of game machines that guild members frequently visited had traces of score competitions and snacks with names written on them rolling around.
He’d been very surprised that a guild with fewer than twenty members had facilities on par with major guilds, and apparently they even camped out there.
“We hole up there for at least two days, all together searching through videos from other countries, analyzing videos, and discussing. We give feedback too. But…”
Samin hesitated while glancing at Doun.
“But what. Why are you stopping mid-sentence?”
Doun looked very curious. His large eyes grew a bit larger and his cheeks twitched. Except for being intimidated and depressed, he was curious about many things and couldn’t stand not knowing. Samin covered his mouth with his hand and said:
“I’m disappointed that I can’t do naughty things with hyung when we’re with guild members… Ahhh!”
Doun lightly smacked Samin’s forearm without hurting him. Though only a light slapping sound was made, Samin made a big fuss about it hurting.
“I thought it was something else. Is that all you think about?”
“I have other thoughts too, but you don’t give me a chance to say them!”
“I can finally earn my keep. I’ll really work hard on conquest.”
Actually, he’d been uncomfortable all along. He’d been recruited for Floor 55 conquest, but they’d lost the first conquest and caused various troubles. Everyone said it was fine, but he couldn’t help being conscious of it.
“What do you mean earn your keep? Just by getting the movement skill and joining us, hyung has already done everything.”
“You originally brought me to conquer Floor 55.”
“That’s true, but I clearly told you from when we first went to the training floor together. That it didn’t matter if we couldn’t clear Floor 55 first. I said it at least twice. Why do you keep feeling guilty?”
“…Just because I feel guilty?”
Doun fidgeted with his fingers while watching Samin’s mood. As if something displeased him, Samin’s lips twitched, but he didn’t argue further.
“I’m really good at all-nighters. It’s awkward to say, but I’m a bit confident in analysis too.”
Before falling into a depressed flow, Doun timidly tried to change the subject. He couldn’t take it for granted forever that Samin would comfort his low self-esteem remarks. Then, surprised by the unexpected statement, Samin wiggled his cheeks and interrupted with a mischievous face.
“Oh? Someone who’s really good at all-nighters, why are you on the bed so… Ahhh! Ahh!”
His grinning face became completely distorted. Doun hit Samin’s back with a bright red face while fuming.
“Please, your mouth! That mouth of yours!”
“Hyung, it really hurts! Hit me gently! Samin’s breaking!”
Whether it really hurt, Samin curled up like a bean bug and started begging desperately. Doun’s palm, mixed with sincerity, stung enough to raise goosebumps. At the groans with all pretense gone, Doun withdrew his hand while grumbling.
“You have to get hit at least once a day, really.”
“Wow, thanks to hyung I think my tolerance will get better.”
Samin gently rubbed his back while pouting his lips. Yet his eyes were smiling. Because he was helplessly happy every time Doun’s increasingly comfortable treatment of him showed in his actions.
* * *
He didn’t quite understand why everyone left their perfectly fine homes to gather at the guild building, but after actually spending time there, he could understand the reason.
‘This… feels exactly like coming to a retreat.’
Doun thought while scanning the guild members gathered in the spacious break room with his eyes.
“No, the floor boss takes exactly 3 seconds to form a body from gas state. Damage only goes in when it has a body.”
“Right. I tried to freeze it in gas state but it was nowhere near possible with my magic. It made a huge scratch on my pride.”
Do Hyeonwoo and Kim Siwon were discussing while wearing very comfortable clothes and sitting cross-legged. Behind Kim Minhyeok and Jang Hyeonseong, who were checking conquest videos from other countries on tablets and laptops while scratching their napes, he could see Hong Chan cleaning a large whiteboard brought from the meeting room.
“Isn’t there a way to attack when the floor boss scatters into gas? What do you think, Doun hyung?”
When no particular answer emerged, Do Hyeonwoo asked Doun in frustration. When the question came to him, Doun paused to choose his words before speaking.
“Do you know the Serpent Ghost that appears just before the Floor 31 mid-boss?”
“…Floor 31.”
Do Hyeonwoo hesitated. When was it that they’d gone to conquer the 30s? Moreover, the Serpent Ghost Doun mentioned wasn’t even a mid-boss or floor boss. It was difficult to remember the characteristics of numerous ordinary magical beasts appearing on dozens of floors one by one.
Especially if it was a magical beast appearing on Floor 31, which they’d conquered long ago and didn’t even glance at anymore.
“No.”
When he answered honestly, Doun fiddled with Samin’s tablet that had been placed next to him with the screen off. Doun accessed a site that converted videos automatically uploaded to the Veritas System so they could be viewed on regular devices.
In Korea, it was a place where access was only granted to people with hunter registration cards issued by the Hunter Management Office. At the top of the site, after entering ID and password and completing personal authentication, Doun’s name and Veritas nickname appeared.
[Lee Doun (Magnetic, S), welcome to access.]
Kim Siwon, who looked at the screen, muttered:
“Only S-ranks really have red here?”
“Here?”
When Doun asked back, Kim Siwon tapped the top. The box background with Doun’s name, Veritas nickname, and rank was red.
“When the guild master accesses, it’s red here too. We used to joke that maybe the Hunter Management Office thought the guild master was a dangerous person, but apparently S-ranks just have different colors. When we access, it’s green here.”
“Ah, really?”
Doun nodded while listening to Kim Siwon. Then he entered keywords in the search bar and scanned the list. When he clicked the video at the top, a video of successful conquest from when Doun was in Chronos Guild began playing.
“…Mm. Here, look, ah. The angle…”
Doun was watching the video where the ‘Serpent Ghost’ he mentioned appeared and clicked his tongue. The angle was terrible so the phenomenon he wanted to explain wasn’t clearly visible.
“What about the Serpent Ghost?”
“This one also scatters and reassembles its form like the Floor 55 floor boss.”
“Yes.”
“When catching this, I remember attacks working even in gas state.”
“How?”
Samin, who had been quietly listening to the conversation with his chin propped, suddenly interjected. Instead of his usual playful face, his face was so serious it felt like a different person, making Doun’s heart start beating rapidly.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
