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nChapter 29

nWhy he shouldn’t be here b 2}

n“You’re here?”

nA hand on his shoulder and a voice from behind. It was only for a moment that his body stilled. Lee Chang-hoon instinctively swung the spanner he was holding.

nHu-ung!

nA quick surprise attack. But Yoon-seok was faster. He just slightly turned his body to the side to avoid the attack. However, a small space was created in the narrow hallway. Lee Chang-hoon squeezed in the gap and ran away.

nStep, step, step, step!

nThe sound of him jumping down the emergency stairs resonated like thunder. As expected, he was a challenger who strengthened his capabilities with AP. It took him less than ten seconds to reach the car parking lot from the sixth floor.

nVroom! Vrooom! Screechhhhh!

nStarting the car engine in a rush, Lee Chang-hoon drove out of the apartment complex. He had no clear destination. Only an urgent need to get away as soon as possible.

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n“Gasp. Gasp.…”

nLee Chang-hoon returned home after the long ride, white-knuckles gripping the steering wheel as he struggled to catch his breath.

n‘Fuck, I almost **ed up…I didn’t expect him to wait…’

nThe more he thought about him, the scarier he became. What should he do now? Should he go back for revenge? Or should he just give up and enjoy the rest of the day to the fullest?

nLee Chang-hoon headed to the cafe in front of his house, where he often went, to calm down his nerves.

n‘Didn’t expect me to be here. That punk.’

nHe ran while ignoring all the signals. There was no way he wouldn’t know if someone was following him. His heart was still beating violently, but sure that he was safe, Lee Chang-hoon holds a warm cup of coffee to his mouth. It was a cup of tea that slowly melted his tension and calmed down his body.

n“…?”

nPffttttttt!

nLee Chang-hoon, glancing out the glass window, spit out everything in his mouth. He didn’t know how the hell he knew where he was and got here so fast, but beyond that, Yoon-seok was standing still outside and staring at him.

nHe had no courage to escape through the front door. Lee Chang-hoon ran to the bathroom quickly. Then he smashed the narrow window in the bathroom and left the building through the narrow opening.

n‘R-run!’

nLee Chang-hoon ran and ran. It would’ve been better to have his car, but he couldn’t even think of going back home. Who knew if Yoon-seok might be waiting for him there.

n“Are you a track and field athlete?”

n“He’s so fast.”

n“Why is his expression like that?”

nPeople’s attention was drawn to Lee Chang-hoon as he ran through morning city. Everyone was amazed to see him sprinting at an unrealistic speed. However, he only blamed himself for not being able to run faster.

n‘Why… why won’t…the distance widen?!’

nLee Chang-hoon ran like a crazy person. It was clear he knew this area extremely well as he darted through seemingly random alleyways. However, just as soon as he thought that it was enough, he would see Yoon-seok coming to catch him with a leisure demeanor as if going for a drink.

nWhat was funnier was that no one around could see Yoon-seok. People were looking oddly at him for running around like someone was chasing him. Feeling chased by a ghost in a horror movie, Lee Chang-hoon realized that it was impossible to run away. So he moved to a place where there were as many people as possible.

n“Gasp. Gasp.”

nSinchon H Department Store. In the middle of the lobby on the first floor that just opened, Lee Chang-hoon breathed out. It was fine that the employees looked at him with a strange eye.

n‘I’ll be safe here…’

nHe only thought it for a second. In the distance, Yoon-seok showed up again. Trudging. Seeing him slowly walking toward himself, Lee Chang-hoon shouted and pointed his finger at him.

n“Excuse me, look at me! Can’t you see anyone? Don’t you see that asshole?!”

nSeeing him pointing into the air, people cast a look at him as if he were crazy. It wasn’t safe to be around a hundred or a thousand people. If he cut his throat here, these people would scream without knowing what happened.

n“Fuck, **…”

nLee Chang-hoon, stepping back, turned and started running again, but Yoon-seok appeared wherever he went. After running away for some time, he arrived at an abandoned construction site. The reason why he thought it was abandoned was simple: the neglected hardware was rusty, and the tents that hung on the outer walls were worn out.

nAlso, even though it was the weekend, no workers were to be seen. The only thing that existed in this old construction site was this person who he couldn’t seem to get rid of no matter what he did.

n“Kill me, you son of a bitch!”

nLee Chang-hoon couldn’t stand it anymore and shout. After all, the best way to overcome fear was to face it. He was going to die anyway so that he wouldn’t run away anymore.

n* * *

n‘As expected.’

nThe top floor of a waste construction site.

nWhile looking at the stairs leading to the rooftop, Yoon-seok smiled evilly at Lee Chang-hoon. If he was determined, he could’ve knocked Lee Chang-hoon out in his apartment and taken him somewhere remote. However, if the last sighting of Lee Chang-hoon’s disappearance was at Yoon-seok’s apartment, it could be troublesome.

nTherefore, by using his new skills, he allowed Lee Chang-hoon to run away while following his traces. As he expected, after showing himself and following him using his Invisibility, Lee Chang-hoon finally ended up in a secluded area.

n“What do you want? You son of a bitch! How much more do I have to do to satisfy you? Just kill me!”

nWhile he looked at him quietly, Lee Chang-hoon acted upset as if the world were unfair to him. As if the victim was himself, and Yoon-seok was the persistent bully. For Yoon-seok, his acting shocked him, but he showed no reaction.

n“I just need you to answer a few questions.”

n“…You followed me here just to ask me questions?”

nLee Chang-hoon looked ridiculous, but Yoon-seok didn’t care.

n“Coins, how many do you have left?”

n“…”

nIt wasn’t something to hide, but Lee Chang-hoon didn’t answer. He didn’t even know what his intention is, but he showed resistance regardless. Yoon-seok broke one of Lee Chang-hoon’s fingers.

nCrack!

n“Argh! Arghhhhhh!”

nHe was screaming loud enough to reach the dead. But Yoon-seok didn’t care. Since he was constantly scanning within a twenty-five-meter radius within his Tracking skill, he could just hide with Lee Chang-hoon if someone approached.

n“Coins, how many are left?”

nWhen he asked while holding another one of his fingers, Lee Chang-hoon replied reluctantly.

n“Two! Two left!”

nYoon-seok used the Eyes of Truth to find out if it was true…

nIt was a lie.

nCrack!

n“Ahhhhhh! Fuck!”

nYoon-seok looked down at Lee Chang-hoon without saying a word for three minutes while waiting for it to recharge. He didn’t care how he looked to Lee Chang-hoon right now. When the time was up, he asked the same question again.

n“Coins, how many are left?”

n“One! One left! You’re going to kill me now?! You son of a bitch!”

nIt was the truth this time. This time, Yoon-seok didn’t break his fingers and waited for the reuse time to finish.

n“How many days is your ticket?”

n“Three days…no, one day! One day!”

nLee Chang-hoon changed his words when he moved to break his finger again. That was a close call. Yoon-seok continued to ask one question at a time until the waiting time was up. After Lee Chang-hoon realized that he could find out the truth, he answered most of them honestly.

nAnimals learn from pain, and Lee Chang-hoon was no different from that.

n‘He doesn’t have enough AP for the F-rank ticket, and with only one coin left….’

nWithout killing him in reality, he would be most likely die in the next match. But you could never know people. If he was sent back there, there was no way to know what he might say in the chat room while waiting for the final duel. If he exposed him there, a second Lee Chang-hoon incident might happen.

nYoon-seok was determined again that Lee Chang-hoon must die. But before that, he decided to ask him a personal question.

n“What had I done so wrong for you to bully me? You didn’t do it because you were afraid of Kang Hyung-woo.”

n“Pffttttt…”

n“Are you laughing?”

n“Isn’t that funny? That’s proof that you’re still a jerk. Do you think gaining strength will change who you are?”

nCrack!

nYoon-seok broke Lee Chang-hoon’s finger. The Eyes of Truth said his words were the truth, but…

nNo, it was because he was annoyed instead of it being true.

n“Argh!”

nDid he notice that Yoon-seok’s mood was disturbed? While screaming in pain, Lee Chang-hoon laughed.

n“Why did I bully you? Yeah, there’s a reason.”

n“…?”

n“I just don’t like guys like you.”

nThe Eyes of Truth was re-charging, but he could tell without the skill.

nIt was the truth.

nYoon-seok waited before asking again.

n“What would you do to my parents if I wasn’t here?”

n“Pfft!”

nWhat was so funny? Lee Chang-hoon laughed as if he had gone insane. Then, he stared at Yoon-seok and slowly imagined the details in his head.

n“You know that car spanner I had earlier? I was thinking of starting by pulling out all their teeth with it. I’m sure the oldies would try to convince me, but I don’t want to hear that.”

nLee Chang-hoon knew that today was the last day of his life. That was why he seemed to have decided to go all out, and the terrible things he said were enough for his thoughts to turn white.

n“And then, um…I haven’t thought about it, but it would be **ing interesting to film and post on the Internet. Didn’t you want to know what happened in the past? How your mom and dad play at night? Pfft! Arghhh!”

nYoon-seok grabbed Lee Chang-hoon’s neck and slammed him into the floor with a nasty smile. The Eyes of Truth were telling him those words weren’t nonsense, but the truth.

nYoon-seok felt like something had gone blurry in his head. These guys weren’t human.

n“You said you hated guys like me, didn’t you?”

nYoon-seok stepped harder on his neck so that he couldn’t say anything.

n“I hate guys like you.”

nNow he understood. He understood how to deal with things that weren’t even human.

n“I’m a jerk? I’ll make you the real jerk today.”

nYoon-seok clenched his cracked fingers tightly in his hand. And he pulled with all his might.

nPukk!

nThe fingers came off the bone. Lee Chang-hoon couldn’t even scream because of the pressure on his throat. All he could do was wiggle on the floor like a bug.

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n“Don’t worry, you gained strength, right? Then you won’t die so easily.”

nPukk!

nYoon-seok regretted it when he had to crack even one finger more. Invisibility, Tracking, Tracing, and even the Eyes of Truth he’d purchased.

nThe skills that he prepared weren’t necessary. What he needed the most were skills related to healing. Yoon-seok wanted Lee Chang-hoon to suffer unforgettable pain.

n“Please don’t die.”

n“Ub-ub!”

nLee Chang-hoon looked up at Yoon-seok. What was he thinking?

nPukk!

nIt didn’t matter to Yoon-seok.

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