I Stepped on Their Shadows and Skills Started Copying Like Crazy - Chapter 47

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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47
Shin Yu Sung would arrive at Si Hyun’s Bigo in thirty minutes.
After a noisy breakfast, Si Hyun set out for work as usual this morning.
A tower one floor higher than yesterday.
More people in the Lobby than the day before.
An ordinary commute not much different from any other—or so it seemed, until today proved otherwise.
‘…!’
The moment Si Hyun stepped into the Lobby, a sharp scent brushed across his nostrils.
Among the faint presences of nearby Awakened that his Delicious Scent skill conveyed, one particular aroma stood out—vivid and unmistakable.
A cool fragrance like a winter forest at dawn, after fresh snow. Geom Sung’s scent.
‘Shin…?’
Startled, Si Hyun turned his head to follow the scent, and there—across the crowded Lobby—he spotted a familiar silhouette.
A deeply pulled hood, a mask drawn up tight, the face thoroughly concealed.
Below that gaze fixed squarely on Si Hyun, a faint smile played at the corners of the mask.
The mask couldn’t hide it.
‘What’s he doing here…?’
Nonetheless, a welcome sight.
Just as Si Hyun lifted his hand to greet him, Geom Sung gave the slightest shake of his head.
‘…What? Just now?’
A motion so subtle Si Hyun almost doubted he’d seen it.
While Si Hyun’s mind was still working to interpret the gesture, Geom Sung moved himself.
Toward Si Hyun.
As he passed close by Si Hyun’s side, he whispered softly.
“Ten minutes from now, the Lobby Pojangmacha on the first floor. Come out in five minutes.”
And with that, Geom Sung left the tower.
From the sequence of events, Si Hyun quickly grasped what was happening.
‘Could it be…? Like something out of a movie? Am I being tailed?’
Tower Control HQ, struggling in their search for the Poongyojwa, was now employing the same tactic they’d used when Geom Sung first sought Si Hyun out.
Simply waiting endlessly on whatever floor the Poongyojwa was destined to ascend.
‘So that’s why I’ve been seeing familiar faces in the Lobby lately. I’ll have to be more careful going forward.’
But this wasn’t just anyone—it was Geom Sung’s doing.
Si Hyun couldn’t very well ignore it.
‘Five minutes, he said.’
Standing still, Si Hyun waited out the time, then slipped out of the tower and made his way back down to the first floor.
“Wow, look at all these people.”
The first floor was naturally always crowded due to its unique nature, yet it seemed more packed each time Si Hyun visited.
‘They say a lot of inactive Awakened have been coming back. Maybe that’s why.’
Even this was a consequence of Si Hyun’s tower ascent.
‘Seeing it myself is a strange feeling.’
Si Hyun pushed through the crowd, asking for directions, and finally reached the appointed place.
Geom Sung, already seated, raised his hand to welcome Si Hyun.
“Here. Si Hyun.”
“Ah, there you are!”
Hidden behind his mask, Geom Sung’s smile was bright as he offered his hand first.
Si Hyun awkwardly took it.
“You found the place well. Sorry for the cloak-and-dagger act earlier, but you’ve probably caught on—you’re being followed quite closely these days.”
“Ha ha… I was wondering why familiar faces kept appearing in the Lobby lately. I just thought everyone was eager to climb, but thanks to you, I put it together. But what brings you all the way here, sir…?”
“Ha ha, well, someone took my contact information and never called. If they’d just reached out once, I could’ve at least replied… but ah, this fellow is no easy mark.”
“Ha, ha ha… No, it’s just, well, you’re so busy that I felt awkward calling without good reason….”
“Ha ha, and the very man who’s got the whole world talking says such things? Come, sit down for a bit.”
Shin Yu Sung laughed with an exaggerated gesture.
His hands were empty, but he mimicked holding a card between his fingers.
“Let me buy you a drink.”
* * *
The two of them took seats in a quiet corner of the pojangmacha.
Each with a drink placed before them.
‘Oh, this tastes good.’
A cocktail crafted from expensive Potion as its base.
At hundreds of thousands of won per glass, the flavor was certainly worth it.
A sip.
Si Hyun was absorbed in savoring the taste, but unfortunately the person sitting across from him faced a rather different predicament.
“Mgh…”
Shin Yu Sung lay slumped over the table, forehead pressed against it.
Groaning softly, he was communicating with his entire body that he too wanted a taste.
“…Master?”
“…Si Hyun, is that good?”
“It’s delicious. Even more so since I’m getting to eat it free.”
“Is that so? I’m glad you’re enjoying it. But… couldn’t I have some too?”
“Well, I wouldn’t hold back if I were you.”
At that, Shin Yu Sung heaved a sigh like a child scolded for eating too much candy.
“Sigh… I buy you a drink and can’t even taste one myself.”
The drink in front of him remained untouched.
‘I do feel bad about it…’
There was good reason for Si Hyun to be so blunt.
There were far too many people around.
“The moment you lower that mask… you understand?”
“I understand. I understand perfectly. That’s why I’m holding back.”
Though his words suggested compliance, Geom Sung still touched the rim of his glass restlessly, eager to change the subject.
‘Here’s someone who enjoys good food all the time, yet he’s slouching like this over a drink—what’s gotten into him?’
Confronted with a version of his childhood hero so far removed from his imagining, Si Hyun broke into a quiet smile.
“Still, I’m relieved you’re at least enjoying it. That’s enough, isn’t it?”
Geom Sung finally surrendered the drink and straightened his posture, lowering his voice.
“You saw it? Floor 75 cleared.”
It flashed before his eyes unbidden, even amid his daily routine—how could he have missed it?
The announcement had even come up over Si Hyun’s breakfast.
“Of course. I saw the system-wide notice right away. You must have had quite an ordeal.”
“An ordeal? That’s just my job.”
“I’m always grateful. Because of you, people like us can climb safely without worry. Ha.”
“No, I should be thanking you. That’s partly why I came to see you.”
“…What? Didn’t you already give me your thanks last time?”
Si Hyun tilted his head in confusion, and Geom Sung wore that expression again.
The look of a mischievous child who knew a delightful secret and was bursting to share it.
‘This guy… this is… that same pattern from last time…’
He’d worn exactly this face when teaching Si Hyun what butterfly effect his choice of seven days had set in motion.
“There’s something, isn’t there?”
“Yes, you’ve done something else.”
“Me? I really haven’t done anything this time…?”
“No, you’ve accomplished something great.”
Soon Geom Sung leaned forward slightly across the table and whispered.
“To be honest with you, that floor 75 conquest wouldn’t have been possible with my strength alone. That’s why those seven days you brought me were so precious.”
Si Hyun leaned in as well, lowering his voice to match.
“Right? For that conquest, you needed that item—the Fruit, was it? You said five days were short to obtain it… wait?”
A few numbers suddenly flickered across Si Hyun’s mind.
‘Huh? The math doesn’t add up. Time shouldn’t have passed yet, should it?’
Then Geom Sung broke into a knowing smile.
“You caught on. Yes, I cleared it without the Fruit. Thanks to the Golden Age.”
“Ah…!”
Only then did Si Hyun understand.
What those five base Ability Points from the Golden Age meant for Geom Sung.
Si Hyun had many ways to raise his stats, so five points didn’t feel like much to him.
But for Geom Sung to gain five points, he would have needed to ascend from floor 75 to floor 80.
Not from floor 1 to floor 5, but from floor 75 to floor 80.
‘He tackled floor 75 with floor 80 specifications. That’s how what couldn’t be done got done…! At this rate I’ve earned my thanks.’
Of course, what Si Hyun thought and what he said were different things.
“Come on, what have I really done? It’s all thanks to your hard work. Still, I’m grateful you say it helped.”
“No, others may not know, but I do. Just how much those five points mattered.”
Then Shin Yu Sung suddenly rose from his seat, bowing his head in gratitude.
His expression held a gravity it hadn’t shown before.
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Si Hyun. Because of you, South Korea has bought itself another hundred days.”
In that instant, the gazes inside the pojangmacha converged upon them.
Si Hyun, startled, guided Geom Sung back into his seat.
“Oh, I understand your gratitude, truly. But please, sit and speak comfortably. Sit, sit.”
“Should I?”
The grave expression from moments before had vanished entirely; Geom Sung was grinning again.
“Today I came to express my thanks properly and, as a side matter, to get your contact information. Ah, and there’s one more thing—if you don’t mind, could I take a quick look at that sword?”
“The sword…?”
“Yes, just for a moment.”
Si Hyun hesitated slightly—yesterday he’d confirmed that Yasangok was a valuable item—but then figured there was no way a national representative would covet a casual soccer club’s equipment. He produced Yasangok and set it before him.
“Of course, no reason not to.”
The moment Geom Sung accepted the carefully offered Yasangok, his eyes sharpened with sudden intensity.
Just as Choi Deok Su had looked at it before.
“A fine blade. The vital force dwelling within it is formidable. Is this… the essence of flame?”
“Yes.”
“Excellent. The firepower is certainly impressive.”
“It’s good, certainly. Though sometimes it gets so hot it tries to incinerate the wielder too.”
“I see. Right here….”
Geom Sung returned Yasangok to Si Hyun and let out a soft hum.
“Hmm… but here’s the problem. I actually came hoping to give you a sword as thanks—something modest, you understand—but seeing this blade, I’m afraid anything I’d prepared would only get in the way. All the decent ones I have are government property. Rather embarrassing, wouldn’t you say? Ha ha.”
“A gift? Oh no, no. I’m grateful for the thought alone.”
Si Hyun reflexively waved him off, though his heart said otherwise.
‘Come on, just give it. I’d profit either way stashing it in Bigo.’
Still, it was a shame that Geom Sung had wanted to offer something—it must have been a fine blade indeed.
“That won’t do. Even as I am—South Korea’s strongest—I can’t simply wipe my mouth clean after a thank-you. It’s not proper.”
“Oh no, truly. Just your thoughtfulness is thanks enough. The gift is really unnecessary.”
The proper etiquette was always to refuse three times when someone offered a gift.
The first refusal might be mere courtesy; the second was consideration for the receiver’s dignity.
Only after three exchanges of refusal could both giver and receiver feel truly at peace with the gift.
Si Hyun believed that respecting such unspoken social contracts was how one avoided being pointed at and pitied as someone who’d grown up without parents.
“No, truly, I must insist.”
Geom Sung adopted a deliberately solemn expression.
“Really, it’s fine….”
By now, Si Hyun’s mind was already thinking: ‘Good, that’s three times. I can accept now, right?’
“I wouldn’t feel at ease otherwise if I didn’t give you something.”
“It would be rude of me to keep refusing. If you insist so earnestly, then… I’ll accept with gratitude.”
“Phew, giving a gift shouldn’t be this difficult. You’ll really accept it?”
“Yes.”
‘A gift from Geom Sung himself…!’
He fought hard to keep his lips from curling up in delight.
“Good. So the sword is settled… and you mentioned the blade gets too hot to manage?”
“Yes, even with decent flame resistance, it’s been troublesome.”
“Excellent—the perfect gift just came to mind. Though it may take a bit of time to arrange. Would half a month be acceptable?”
“Whenever is convenient for you. I’m happy to wait.”
“Ha, I knew someone with your broad mind would say that. Then let’s meet again when I bring the gift—this time, outside the tower.”
Outside the tower?
Why, specifically?
“Outside the tower…?”
Geom Sung answered Si Hyun’s barely-a-question with a gentle smile.
“Yes, to discuss Sword Principles as well.”
“Sword Principles?”
“Each of us can share thoughts on our own blades. If the moment feels right, we could even cross swords lightly. Truth is, I’ve been itching since earlier.”
“…?”
“Because my eyes see it clearly—that you’ve finally begun to walk the Path of the Sword.”
Here, Si Hyun fell silent for a moment.
A chill traced down his spine.
‘He can see that…?’
Though the man appeared nothing more than a gentle, smiling simpleton, Geom Sung remained Geom Sung after all.
And to have the chance to cross blades with such a master…
Wasn’t this exactly the kind of fortuitous encounter you read about in martial arts novels?
‘A duel with a supreme expert? I have to take this.’
“It would be an honor. Though truly, I should be the one asking you.”
“Very well. Since we still have some time, let’s work out the details of when and where as we go. It won’t be easy, I’m sure, but we’ll find a way.”
Shin Yu Sung was already as good as a state-recognized figure, and having someone like him extend an invitation presented no particular difficulty.
The real obstacle lay with Si Hyun, who wished to conceal his identity as a Poongyojwa.
“Anyone meeting you outside the Tower undergoes thorough background checks. If it’s Si Hyun, who’s already on the wanted list, your true identity will be exposed in no time.”
Hearing those words, a single solution suddenly crystallized in Si Hyun’s mind.
“Teacher, then what if…”
“…?”
“What if there were a discreet location that could solve that problem? Would you have time for it?”
Shin Yu Sung fell silent for a moment.
His gaze lingered on the cocktail glass before him—one he hadn’t yet touched.
“…Could I drink this cocktail there?”
Si Hyun smiled slightly and answered.
“Of course.”
This had taken place three minutes before Shin Yu Sung’s visit to Si Hyun’s Bigo.
Copy a Skill Just by Stepping on a Shadow
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Killing Part
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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