The Female Lead Saves the World - Chapter 116

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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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Yeo Joo Saves the World – Episode 116

I was grinding my teeth at this unexpected turn of events when a note passed through several hands and reached me.

[No Underwater Dungeon. Planning to bid on Flame Dungeon instead.]

I turned to check, and the sender was naturally Gwak Ho Young.
The sight of him shrugging his shoulders with that shameless expression as if to say “there’s nothing I can do about it” was infuriating.
I handed the crumpled note to Kang Han and fixed my gaze on the massive screen displaying the Dungeon list.
But that didn’t make a missing Dungeon suddenly appear.
I was thoroughly displeased.
We had no choice but to secure the Flame Dungeon, whether we liked it or not.
‘Should I just brush this off and walk away?’
I considered it for a moment.
But then I shook my head.
We’d made a grand entrance into this Auction House, complete with interviews and drawing the full attention of the press.
And we’d even announced that we’d conquer it jointly with Taesan.
If we stood up and left now, it was painfully obvious how they would use this against us.
‘They’d spread rumors that we fled because we were afraid of the Flame Dungeon.’
And the media would naturally find the reason in Jang Su Ho.
It would tarnish the safety record we’d worked so hard to establish through the past few Gate conquests.
“What would you like to do, Yeo Joo?”
Kang Han leaned in and whispered the question to me.
Behind his handsome face filling my vision, I could also see the faces of the guild members watching only me.
They all looked ready to jump up from their seats at my single word.
‘No, I can’t back down here.’
Not after we’d worked so hard to restore the Justice Guild’s image.
I wasn’t about to let Gwak Ho Young—or more likely Sa Ma Young orchestrating things behind him—make me tuck tail and run with their petty tricks.
“Let them try whatever they want.”
I answered in a voice loud enough for all the nearby Hunters to hear.
“It seems they’ve really underestimated us.”
As I said this, I made sure to smile at Gwak Ho Young.
It wasn’t fear of the Flame Dungeon or concern for Jang Su Ho’s condition that made us avoid it.
We’d simply chosen the Underwater Dungeon because the Flame Dungeon would be more troublesome to conquer.
I extended my clenched fist to Kang Han sitting beside me and said:
“Let’s show them what happens when you underestimate the Justice Guild.”
“…I like the sound of that.”
Kang Han laughed, bumping his fists together.
I quietly began to think while watching Gwak Ho Young bid on the Flame Dungeon’s conquest rights.
There was a week left until the Flame Dungeon opened.
Even subtracting a day for joint training with Taesan, that left six full days.
Time was on my side.
‘How dare they touch a Possessed One?’
Bitter laughter spilled from between my clenched teeth, fueled by the sting of that one blow.
The fate of villains who stand in the protagonist’s way was always predictable.

* * *

The next day.
“Ugh, this is infuriating!”
Lee Yu Eul cried out while eating breakfast after dawn training.
“Yeo Joo, did you see Gwak Ho Young smiling?!”
“Ugh. Don’t ruin my appetite by bringing up that bastard first thing in the morning.”
“But still, it’s so aggravating! Everyone knows it was all their scheme. The shamelessness of it, seriously.”
It wasn’t just Lee Yu Eul who had been seething with indignation since the auction ended yesterday.
“I’m shooting an extra 300 arrows starting afternoon training.”
“I’m going to upgrade potions.”
Lee Yu Chan and Im Chung Soo spoke with narrowed eyes.
The older guild members were equally determined.
They just didn’t voice it in front of the younger ones.
“I made plenty of food. Eat your fill and train hard!”
Even Sung Yo Na, who had heard what happened at the Auction House, was fired up.
Jang Su Ho was still training, in fact.
That food-loving guy had even skipped meals.
“It’s better to see him like this than listless.”
Should I go drag Jang Su Ho to the table right now?
It’s all for survival anyway.
But I decided not to interfere.
Sometimes doing something, anything, puts the mind at ease.
Instead, I set aside one mandarin orange—my dessert—without eating it, then sprawled out on the sofa.
“I’m so sleepy.”
The effects of not sleeping properly last night crashed over me along with drowsiness.
But since I had to go out soon, I planned to just close my eyes for a moment.
I wanted to drift off right then, but my mind was still racing furiously.
There was a brief description of it in the novel.
The Flame Dungeon was what caused the Taesan Guild to fail spectacularly when they recklessly attempted it alone.
‘That Dungeon does seem similar to this one, though.’
Back when Kang Han had been stripped of the Justice Guild’s building and name, toiling away under Sa Ma Young’s command, the details hadn’t been thoroughly covered.
But what I remembered most vividly from around two in the morning yesterday was that the Dungeon’s interior was vast and demanded considerable physical endurance.
In other words, we’d be spending a long time inside the Dungeon.
‘Physical stamina should be fine since Chung Soo made that tonic.’
The real problem was our guild members’ vulnerability to darkness addiction.
“Especially Jang Su Ho.”
That guy was subtly reckless—a genuine liability.
“Huh? Me, why?”
Speak of the devil.
Jang Su Ho, who happened to be emerging from the Underground Training Facility, overheard my muttering and strode over with long steps.
“Did you call for me?”
“Good timing. I need to ask you something.”
Drenched in sweat as if he’d just showered, it was clear he’d pushed himself to his limits during training.
“When you entered the Flame Dungeon last time, what was the hardest part?”
“Why are you suddenly asking that?”
Jang Su Ho seemed rather flustered, his words trailing off.
But this was an important matter.
“Just tell me.”
“Well, it’s…”
Jang Su Ho wiped away sweat that quickly dripped down using the towel draped around his neck, struggling to find the words.
“…The heat.”
“The heat? The temperature was the problem?”
Jang Su Ho is A-rank.
There’s no way someone of his caliber couldn’t withstand the heat of a Dungeon ranked lower or equal to his own.
“How do I explain this… When I start fighting, my head gets hot. But in the Flame Dungeon, it was especially intense. It’s like my rationality flies away too quickly.”
“Hmm. So it’s like a kind of overload?”
“If you compare it to a machine, then yes.”
“Then what if we could somehow manage just that heat?”
“Reduce the heat of the Flame Dungeon?”
Jang Su Ho tilted his head, not quite understanding, but answered nonetheless.
“Then fighting would be much easier. At least you’d be able to keep an eye on me. That’s all I need.”
Speaking matter-of-factly, Jang Su Ho had grown noticeably stronger than before.
He still feared entering the Dungeon, but simultaneously, he’d developed the courage to face that fear head-on.
“Jang Su Ho, you understand well. You’re right. All you need to do is find me, no matter what situation arises.”
I spoke to Jang Su Ho deliberately, etching each word into his mind.
Then I rose abruptly from where I’d been lying.
“Okay. I think I can handle that part.”
“Handle it? How?”
“There’s always a way. I’ll step out for a bit. Oh, that’s right.”
I placed the mandarin orange that had grown slightly lukewarm in my hand into Jang Su Ho’s palm.
“Eat this and keep up the good training.”
As I slipped out of the Underground Training Facility, I felt Jang Su Ho’s gaze on my back, but I didn’t turn around.
Instead, I pulled out my phone from my pocket and made a call.
“Boss, it’s me. Would it be okay if I stopped by for a bit today?”

* * *

“You’re here, Yeo Joo.”
Jung Je Hwa opened the door to the Secret Workshop and welcomed me.
“Boss.”
But rather than greet him properly, I stared intently up at the man before me.
As my gaze lingered on his face for a moment, Jung Je Hwa’s cheeks flushed.
“Is there something on my face? I just finished up some work and came out….”
“No, that’s not it. Your face looks better.”
“Ah.”
At my words, Jung Je Hwa smiled and nodded.
“It’s all thanks to you, Yeo Joo.”
“Me? I’ve been busy lately, so this is my first visit in a while?”
“Of course, I was curious about when you’d come, but that’s not what I meant. I simply meant that once I resumed my work, I regained my vitality, and thanks to that, I’ve started exercising again.”
“Now that you mention it, your physique does seem to have improved.”
Jung Je Hwa’s frame, which had always been lean, now appeared more toned than before.
“It’s all thanks to you, Yeo Joo, for inspiring me to work again.”
Was this really the same person I’d met at first—that taciturn, quiet individual?
Jung Je Hwa spoke without a hint of embarrassment, uttering words that would normally make one blush.
“Come in, Yeo Joo. I have something to show you.”
In fact, Jung Je Hwa was practically bouncing with childlike excitement.
‘Does my visit really make him this happy?’
The thought pricked my conscience a little.
I followed Jung Je Hwa while speaking.
“I’m sorry I can’t visit more often, boss. I’ve been so busy lately.”
“I understand. But I see you often through broadcasts and live streams, so it’s fine. More importantly.”
Jung Je Hwa gently grasped my shoulder and led me to the center of the Secret Workshop.
There stood something covered with pristine white cloth without a single wrinkle.
It was quite large—the height was roughly my own, and the width required me to stretch both arms wide.
“Could it be….”
As I turned to him, having guessed the identity of the covered object, Jung Je Hwa smiled broadly and pulled at the edge of the cloth.
The fabric slid away with a soft whisper.
Along with the sound of the cloth sliding, I felt a chill against my skin first.
Then Jung Je Hwa explained in a low voice.
“It’s a shield crafted from eternal cold iron.”
Beneath the Secret Workshop’s lighting, a shield of shimmering blue-silver emerged, gleaming with an almost ethereal radiance.

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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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