I became a childhood friend of the middle boss. - chapter 23

Episode 23

At that moment, on the cliff.

The family members were watching as Do Gyeon-woo left without hesitation, leaving Do Seung-woo behind.

On the other hand…

“Hey! Do Gyeon-woo!”

Do Seung-woo’s desperate cries echoed vividly.

In another frame, he was captured, trembling and shouting.

“Come back! You bastard!”

His face looked like that of someone betrayed by someone they trusted.

Yet he seemed to cling to a thread of hope.

“No, this isn’t right. It’s just a prank.”

However, contrary to Do Seung-woo’s wishes, he ultimately had to face reality.

The monsters that Do Gyeon-woo had summoned, as well as others drawn in by his cries, began to appear one after another.

“Kero?”

“Don’t come… Don’t come!”

“Kero?”

“If only I could move properly, you wouldn’t stand a chance. Damn it!”

Despite being called a genius, Do Seung-woo was terrified. His expression was not that of a brave lion but rather that of prey before a predator.

“Don’t chase me!”

Do Seung-woo was fleeing from the monsters in a pitiful manner. It was wise to avoid confronting them while still paralyzed, but those watching the screen couldn’t help but chuckle.

“A lion being chased by a toad. Seung-woo is nothing special.”

“He’s running well. Yes, that’s how you preserve your life. Run, run!”

The family members mocked him.

Given that both his and Do Seung-woo’s reputations were at stake, Do Beom-jun couldn’t stay silent.

“Head of the family! We must capture Do Gyeon-woo and punish him immediately! Look at what that bastard is doing, blinded by competition, trying to kill Seung-woo by summoning monsters! Even if our family encourages competition, this has gone too far.”

“San-jun, what do you think?”

“I think…”

Do Beom-jun, blushing as he pleaded.

Do Ye-ik merely laughed. He then turned to his family member, Do Sang-jun, who was watching the evaluation match.

‘Gyeon-woo again…’

Do Sang-jun sighed inwardly. Despite his warnings to his son to avoid trouble, Do Gyeon-woo had only pretended to listen.

He truly was an infuriating child.

However, just as no parent can win against their child, Do Sang-jun had to resign himself and defend Do Gyeon-woo.

“I think it’s okay.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. Similar incidents have occurred several times in competition matches. Even worse things have happened.”

“Hm, that’s true.”

“I don’t think Gyeon-woo intended to kill Seung-woo. He knows we’re watching, and he likely judged that there would be hunters nearby, so he was just playing around.”

“Playing? Playing!? Do Sang-jun, you!”

“And Seung-woo said it himself. Even without Gyeon-woo’s help, he could have killed the Ruddle Kero by himself. The justification was provided by Seung-woo first.”

“Justification…”

Do Ye-ik murmured as if he found it amusing, his shoulders shaking.

“It seems San-jun is right. We can’t stop the evaluation match over something like this and scold a child who has been doing well.”

“Gyeon-woo will be pleased to hear that.”

“Thank you, Head of the Family.”

Do Ye-ik raised his hand to Do Gyeon-woo.

Only then did Do Sang-jun feel relieved. His wife, Han Ji-ae, who had been anxiously listening without interjecting, could also relax.

“That child really.”

Eating unknown fruits and flowers from the gate without fear.

Engaging in dangerous battles against monsters.

Watching only the screen with Do Gyeon-woo, she often held her breath in worry.

Yet, she too was a parent who had to quietly resign herself and cheer for him.

“Just don’t get hurt, okay?”

“I want to eat that fruit too. Mom, when I go to see my brother later, can I try that fruit?”

She clasped her hands and prayed.

Then, she playfully gave her oblivious daughter a light smack on the head.

“By the way, it’s amazing.”

Meanwhile, Do Ye-ik quietly murmured as he watched Do Gyeon-woo advance through the jungle.

His gaze was sharp and never left Do Gyeon-woo.

“If I’m not mistaken.”

Do Ye-ik recalled the swordsmanship Do Gyeon-woo had displayed moments ago.

Just earlier, he had used the seventh type of attack, jumping down from a high place to save Do Seung-woo.

At that moment, it was just a fleeting instant.

—Zzzzt!

In the swirling wind, Do Gyeon-woo unleashed a blue current.

It was definitely

‘The Wall Thunder.’

He couldn’t have missed it.

Replaying that scene in his mind several times, Do Ye-ik silently stared at Do Gyeon-woo on the screen.

At some point, the gaps between the trees were widening.

The color and characteristics of the ground changed as well.

The sounds of Mud Kero puffing up were no longer heard.

‘The jungle is coming to an end.’

I quickly assessed the situation.

I was leaving the habitat of the Mud Kero and getting closer to the lake.

Before long…

‘Is that it?’

A massive lake came into view.

I landed on a tree at the edge of the jungle.

Around that time, a message appeared.

[Next objective conditions are being delivered.]

[Defeat the spirit of the lake.]

It seemed I had properly arrived at my destination.

‘There are about five people ahead.’

I quickly scanned the number of people and checked the situation.

They were either stepping on floating platforms on the surface or jumping across the water, battling monsters.

It seemed they weren’t used to fighting on the water’s surface.

‘Well, that makes sense.’

Just stepping on the surface was difficult, and having to fight monsters in that state was bound to be challenging.

Stepping on the platforms wasn’t easy either.

If one misjudged their center of gravity, they could easily flip over with the platform.

Fortunately, they were older, which explained their level of skill.

Among them…

‘Siu-nuna is also over there.’

Do Siu was exceptional.

She was leaping across the lake without using the platforms, engaging the monsters directly.

<Water King Style Attack Type 5>

Lion’s Fierce Attack

A sudden electric charge erupted.

She rushed forward, splashing water as she swung her sword at the monsters.

Screech!

Monsters that lacked facial features, resembling children, covered in blue scales, fell to her sword.

Riding that momentum, Do Siu dashed toward the center of the lake.

Screech!

There the spirit of the lake awaited.

A female monster, also covered in scales, with blue skin.

It was dripping blue blood, and its left arm and tail were severed.

It must have been the work of the hunters.

It looked exhausted at a glance.

Still, it easily deflected Do Siu’s sword with the spear it held in its right hand.

As she was about to step forward for another attack…

Shraaak!

“…!”

The spirit of the lake tore its gills apart, making a strange sound.

Immediately, the surface began to churn violently.

New monsters suddenly appeared in the direction Do Siu had intended to charge.

“Did it call its minions?”

No, it had created them.

Monsters that served as bosses in the game could summon minions.

I frowned.

‘Even if the spirit has weakened significantly, it wouldn’t be easy to approach with so many minions around.’

In reality, the others didn’t dare approach the spirit.

Do Siu had also been waiting for an opportunity, but with the new minions appearing, she was forced to retreat.

At the same time, I could guess the condition of her and the others.

‘…Everyone looks exhausted. Some seem to be struggling to move due to paralysis.’

Even Do Siu was in that state.

With her skills, she shouldn’t have needed to retreat to the outskirts of the lake.

She could have fought the minions while trying to get closer to the spirit.

Yet, the reason she retreated was likely due to her dwindling energy.

Moreover, judging from her movements just moments ago, it seemed she too had been affected by paralysis.

“Hm…”

Could I really face the spirit and its minions alone?

I might be able to dodge their attacks with my gift and look for an opportunity, but I had no idea when that would be.

Before that, my stamina and mana would likely run out, causing me to collapse.

Considering the need to fight while walking on the water only made it more reckless.

“I ultimately need the help of those people over there.”

Thus, I reached a conclusion.

I needed to collaborate with Do Siu, who was starting to resume combat, as well as the other relatives.

The problem was whether those older and more arrogant individuals would be willing to cooperate.

There was no way they would.

“How do I persuade them?”

With no signs of monsters around, I settled comfortably on a branch and contemplated the battle unfolding in the lake.

Crunch.

I ate an energy fruit.

Since I had to fight the spirit like them, I needed to conserve my stamina…

“Ah.”

At that moment, a thought struck me.

I didn’t need to worry about how to persuade them; I already had a way in hand.

Having enhanced my physical abilities with my internal mana, I thought I had detoxified to some extent, but it seemed the paralysis poison from the Rank 2 monster, Ruddle Kero, was much stronger than I had anticipated.

Do Siu felt a tingling sensation in her body whenever she swung her sword and bit her lip.

‘…My right shoulder, my left leg. At this rate, I can’t penetrate deep into the crowd. If I could just move properly,’

She couldn’t exert strength as she wished, and the paralysis was stimulating her mana circuits, putting her in a situation where a mana overflow could occur.

Do Siu assessed her condition and took a step back before the paralysis could take hold.

Screech!

“…”

As a result, the path she had just opened was blocked by the spirit’s minions.

This had happened several times already.

Her face darkened.

‘Is there no way?’

Still, she didn’t give up.

While the other relatives engaged the monsters, she tried to recover as much stamina and mana as possible.

‘…I have to go in now.’

But that was only a fleeting thought.

The condition of the other relatives was worse than Do Siu’s.

After fixing her hair that had stuck to her cheeks, she saw the tide turning and decided to return to the fight.

Splash!

She kicked off the surface, sending up a spray of water.

The relatives, realizing Do Siu had stepped forward, made way for her.

She dashed toward the spirit, following the path they had cleared.

However, even that was met with resistance from the spirit’s minions halfway through.

<Water King Style Attack Type 6>

Do Siu’s blue eyes narrowed as she closed the gap, not missing the movements of the monsters trying to block her.

She extended her left foot forward, stepping on the water’s surface to quickly pivot.

Swish!

The friction she created sent a wave surging upward.

The falling waves obscured the vision of the monsters in front of her.

At that moment, her sword glimmered.

Lion’s Dance.

As the wave hit, the blade shining with a blue light cleanly severed the monster’s neck.

Whoosh!

The monster’s head flew into the air.

Do Siu lost her balance after the neck was severed and passed over the collapsing corpse on the water’s surface.

Then she moved on to the next monsters.

Swish!

Slash!

A dance of chaos unbound by form.

Moving seamlessly to face the enemy in front of her, she adjusted her movements to the situation, rotating her body to enhance her sword’s attack power with mana.

The dance Do Siu performed on the water ended the lives of the monsters in a single blow.

“Phew…”

After catching her breath, she aimed to break through the remaining distance.

Just then.

Screech!

“…Ugh!”

Though she had entrusted the rear to her relatives, they had already been pushed back by the monsters to the outskirts of the lake.

Do Siu clicked her tongue.

If she allowed the monsters to take the rear, she would have to keep an eye on them while facing the spirit.

The burden increased.

She had no choice.

<Water King Style Attack Type 3>

The spirit was right nearby, but Do Siu reluctantly decided to take a detour to clear the rear.

Lion’s Mace.

Her sword struck the monster.

With a sound as if its bones were breaking, the monster slid face-first onto the water’s surface and flew away.

Without needing to check, it was a fatal blow.

She prepared to kill the other monsters as well.

However, just as she was about to raise her sword…

‘My body…!’

Her right shoulder creaked, and suddenly her movements frozen in mid-air.

She had been paralyzed.

That situation, which was unfortunate for her, became a stroke of luck for the monsters.

Screech!

The monsters charged at her all at once.

Barely recovering from the paralysis, she tried to respond to them.

But it was a bit too late.

‘I can handle one. But the other two’

While she dealt with one, the other two would surely take the opportunity to attack.

She gritted her teeth in frustration.

There was nothing she could do.

Minimizing the shock as much as possible…

Splash!

At that moment, Do Siu felt a presence.

Someone was approaching rapidly from behind.

Immediately, that presence passed her by.

“I’ll take the left; you take the right.”

A voice brushed past her ear.

Do Siu couldn’t comprehend the meaning.

However, contrary to her thoughts, her body moved almost instantly.

As an unknown presence suddenly moved to the left…

‘Ah, I see.’

Her body automatically stepped to the right.

Right toward the monster in front of her.

Thud!

Screech…

Do Siu thrust her sword in.

Having taken down one of the three, she turned to see who had helped her.

By that time, that presence had also taken down the other two monsters.

“…Do Gyeon-woo?”

Do Gyeon-woo, who had been called a coward in the family and mocked as a rabbit.

Seeing an unexpected figure, Do Siu’s eyes widened in surprise.

Do Gyeon-woo, unfazed by her reaction, suddenly brought up a topic.

“Sister, do you want to team up with me?”