24-Hour Friendly Market, Specializing in Dimensional Items - Chapter 103

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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24-Hour Friendly Market Specializing in Dimensional Items Episode 103

Episode 103. Cold Faith (2)

Cracks spread like lightning through the stone pillars that had stood firm, and the floor vibrated as if an earthquake had struck.

Murky stone dust rose throughout Suminak, where gentle ripples had been flowing.

The mermaids’ sanctuary that Nasmith had managed to maintain somewhat decently with his lacking abilities was being torn to pieces.

The mermaids screamed and swam toward the entrance at this sudden disaster.

It was complete chaos.

In this confusing situation where the clear seawater was becoming murky, I stared intently ahead.

What clearly revealed its presence even in the hazy scenery scattered with grains of sand was none other than Kim Seol’s eyes.

Not the dark blue eyes like the deep night sea.

Sky-blue eyes that had become so clear and transparent they were almost emerald-colored.

That meant Kim Seol was drawing up her magical power recklessly like an unbridled colt.

In other words, she was absolutely furious with me.

Yeah, honestly, I thought she’d be angry from the moment I put her to sleep without permission.

‘But to be this angry?’

Kim Seol’s eyes were filled to the brim with coldly blazing fury.

I could even feel an eerie madness in those eyes that glared at me without blinking once.

The back of my neck felt chilly from the illusion that the surrounding temperature was dropping.

…No, it wasn’t an illusion?

The sigh I unconsciously let out was scattering as white breath.

They said the domain Kim Seol controls receives winter’s favor.

I never thought I’d get to witness that with my own two eyes while still alive.

“Wait, Kim Seol. There seems to be some misunderstanding…”

As I hesitated and stepped back, a massive scythe revealed itself through the sand grains disturbing the seawater.

‘It can’t be, surely not.’

I used my Appraisal skill with a hopeful heart and squeezed my eyes shut before opening them.

[Deep Sea Frost Scythe ‘Winterfrost’ (S)

A massive staff containing the pressure of the deep sea and extreme cold.

Each swing causes ice crystals to explode, dealing cold damage to enemies within a 5-meter radius.

/Hidden Ability/ When stabbed into the ground while infused with high-purity ice attribute magical power, creates an ice attribute field that deals continuous damage to enemies.]

The weapon that Kim Seol, who usually operates magical power barehanded, only brings out in truly important moments – Winterfrost.

Its massive body seemed twice as large as Kim Seol’s small height.

A blue radiance like condensed deep sea light flowed along the razor-sharp blade.

Pure white ice had formed like frost on the scythe handle Kim Seol gripped.

It was truly a chilling weapon perfectly suited to the name ‘Winterfrost.’

I gasped and stepped back another step.

I was curious about that too!

They say it even has a title attached, so as an appraiser, I couldn’t help but be curious about what kind of amazing weapon it was!

‘But I didn’t want to see it this way!’

Kim Seol stepped forward through the murky water currents.

I frantically waved my hands in denial.

“Wait, let’s talk!”

But my opponent didn’t seem to have any intention of responding to my words.

Soon Kim Seol’s body rose smoothly, and a strange light appeared in her blue eyes.

As winter’s breath clears the path to see-

‘Oh crap!!’

The incantation for Kim Seol’s most frequently used skill, 「Brilliant Water Scales」.

It was such a famous incantation that I immediately thought I should run first before any persuasion or anything else.

Persuasion only works when communication is possible, but what kind of conversation can you have when someone’s eyes are half-crazed!

‘Let’s run first!’

But an S-rank Hunter’s words were faster than an E-rank Hunter’s escape.

Bloom.

Along with winter flower patterns blooming on the pure white sand, my legs froze as if nailed down.

Even when I tried to move by leaning my whole body forward, the snowflakes clinging to my soles completely restricted my movement.

I glared at Kim Seol with eyes that combined absurdity, injustice, and fear, and cried out.

“Has this woman gone crazy, really!”

At that moment, I hesitated.

Kim Seol was still staring straight at me, but something was strange about her gaze.

Her eyes were too cloudy to be actions committed because her eyes had rolled back from betrayal.

Too clear to be bewitched by something, but strangely hazy to be considered sane.

‘As if she’s looking at something else instead of me…’

As if she was mistaking me for something else.

But before I could figure out anything more, Kim Seol muttered in a smaller voice.

She mumbled so quietly it was barely audible, so I couldn’t tell what she said.

Swish-

The bright blue magical power that erupted from Winterfrost, swung without hesitation, instantly flew toward me.

I had no time to scream or flinch.

The crescent-shaped blade, 「Tilted Frost Flower」, cut diagonally across my body.

However.

“…Ugh.”

It was Kim Seol, not me, who let out a pained gasp.

For a brief moment, Kim Seol’s chest was protected by cold ice crystals, but cracks remained on top of them.

I swallowed dry saliva.

Of course.

‘Right, I was wearing the brooch!’

The Guardian’s Mirror Brooch is an item with the effect of reflecting any attack.

Right now, Kim Seol had received back in full the magical power she had unleashed with genuine intent to kill me.

Kim Seol stared down at the ice blade that had returned to her and muttered.

“As expected… I shouldn’t have trusted…”

At this murderous muttering, I panicked and shouted.

“No, you never trusted me in the first place!”

From the beginning until now, she had consistently shown unwavering efforts to be on guard, so what was that supposed to mean?

Rush forth-.

Kim Seol raised her frost scythe high once again and swung it diagonally without hesitation.

“Ahhh, really-!”

Why does that attack have such a short incantation!

I reflexively covered my eyes and crouched down, but this time too, the attack naturally turned toward Kim Seol.

Kim Seol’s expression hardened at her own ice crystal that bore clear traces of elegant blade marks.

Kim Seol slowly raised her head and muttered.

“I shouldn’t have fallen asleep that day…”

“What are you even saying, seriously!!”

Kim Seol raised Winterfrost high once again.

But the feeling was different from before.

A dry face as if she had calmed her boiling emotions.

But she hadn’t suppressed her emotions – she had coldly frozen them and sharpened them to a fine edge.

A massive storm of magical power was swirling around Kim Seol, so intense that even Seo Jae-hyuk would take one look and say ‘Ah, this is a bit much’ and suggest running away.

I frantically waved my hands and said.

“Wait, I can really explain this. The item I have-“

Thanks to the brooch, it didn’t hurt, but that kind of attack would be a bit difficult…

‘Wait a minute.’

I closed my mouth at a sudden thought.

‘How many times has the Guardian’s Mirror activated…?’

The moment I realized that, my body stiffened.

Once when it deflected Kus’arich’s attack at the Sudden Gate, and twice just now with the tilted frost flowers.

Then the remaining uses would be…

I hurriedly looked down to check, and the brooch had completely disappeared.

No, to be more precise, it had shattered into pieces and was being swept away by the seawater.

In short, there was no item left to protect me from Kim Seol.

I would have to feel pain with every attack Kim Seol made.

‘Should I just open a Warp Gate and run away?’

I had obtained the magic harp, which was a key scenario item, and confirmed that Park Ji-woon wasn’t in that dangerous a state…

The eternal sea covers the world and commands silence-

At the quietly heard incantation, I raised my head.

It was an incantation Kim Seol had never revealed even once before, and just hearing it, the words seemed ominous.

The moment Kim Seol looked at me with sky-blue eyes, I opened a Warp Gate without hesitation.

Merchant’s Mark or whatever, the best strategy was to avoid this first.

But before the blue dot in front of me could grow large enough to put my hand through.

Kim Seol declared under her domain.

Repay with cold faith.

Frost blooming from Kim Seol’s fingertips transformed into butterfly shapes and flew up, and those frost butterflies soon filled the entire massive colosseum.

Butterflies landed densely on my shoulders, where I had taken out the magic harp, and all over Sminac’s massive fortress.

While I was mesmerized by the enchanting wing beats of butterflies sparkling like scattered diamond dust.

‘C-cold…!’

A chill rushed in that made it feel like my lungs would freeze just from breathing.

Looking around, I noticed that everywhere the frost butterflies had landed was frozen solid.

The floor, walls, light, and sea were trapped in ice, sparkling brilliantly.

An unreal scene like an ice fortress built in the middle of the sea.

In this place where everything was frozen as if time itself had stopped, only Kim Seol’s jet-black hair fluttered.

Ah, this means I was frozen too.

‘Hey, let’s talk. You really need to give me time to explain.’

I wanted to say that, but even my mouth was frozen.

And the frozen things began to break one by one.

Sharp cracking sounds like breaking glass rang out simultaneously.

Everything that had been frozen became crystals broken into irregular structures, floating through the seawater.

The ice crystals that had been binding me also fell with crackling sounds.

‘If the mermaids had still been here, they would have…’

A chilling scene flashed through my mind just imagining it.

Even the stone pillars that had firmly supported Sminac for so long became fairly large ice chunks and collapsed.

A strange sight as if the ice crystal containing all of Sminac was being shattered piece by piece.

Even after creating a situation that would make Nasmith, who had fled long ago, cry his eyes out, and committing tremendous property damage, Kim Seol’s expression was subtle.

Because I, who had been the sole target of this attack, was standing perfectly fine without the horrible fate of having my upper and lower body separated!

Rather, she just muttered with clouded eyes as if she couldn’t understand.

“…Why did you die in front of me?”

I finally moved my now-freed mouth.

“I’m not dead though?!”

“…Why?”

I felt a strange sense of déjà vu from Kim Seol’s face as she muttered blankly.

This wasn’t a question directed at me.

The moment I realized that, I became certain that Kim Seol had some major trauma.

Then I had to try to start a conversation by any means before Kim Seol unleashed another attack.

‘Whatever happened, I can’t have a conversation if she’s spacing out like that.’

Though the cold made it feel like my skin was tearing and my whole body felt awkward as if it wasn’t staying in place.

“Hey, let’s talk-“

It was the moment I shouted irritably.

Crack-

A very ominous sound occurred.

I didn’t know what kind of sound it was, but what was certain was that it was a sound coming from very close by.

Crack-

This is…

‘It’s coming from my face…?’

Realizing that, I froze for a moment.

No, to be precise, it was coming from the Mask of All Things that had been covering my face well!

I quickly turned my head and felt around my face.

The texture of the mask under my fingertips was smooth, soft, and…

‘It’s cracked!’

From the center of my forehead to the tip of my chin, there was a clear straight crack in the once-sturdy mask.

It was even making cracking sounds as it split from the top, so at this rate, it breaking was just a matter of time.

My mouth fell open at the shockingly devastating situation.

I hurriedly pulled my hood over my head.

Let’s get out of here.

Before Kim Seol could see my real appearance, suspicions or whatever, getting out first was the priority.

It was when I raised my hand to summon a Warp Gate.

‘Ah, has this girl really gone crazy!’

At the merciless ice crystal that pierced deep into the back of my hand, I gritted my teeth and held back a scream.

Hundreds of ice crystals moving freely according to Kim Seol’s will were pointing their sharp ends toward me.

One of them removed my hood before I could even block it with my hands.

As the shadow that had been cast over my face suddenly disappeared, Kim Seol said in a sharp voice.

“Only doing suspicious things…?”

At the same time.

Crack-

The mask split in two.

Long hair that I hadn’t felt in a while covered the back of my neck and shoulders.

Kim Seol’s voice pierced into the back of my head as I froze in place.

“You… what are you?”

Unlike before, her tone carried a hint of confusion.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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