The Female Lead Saves the World - Chapter 169

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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 169

“Ahem.”
Seo Yu Baek, now sharing the secret, let out a small cough before suddenly checking his phone.
“Oh, I’ve been called. I should get going.”
“Teacher!”
I called out urgently, but Seo Yu Baek had already slipped through the emergency exit door—not even the hem of his white coat was visible.
Running away alone like that.
How cowardly. How utterly cowardly.
“Yeo Joo.”
In the meantime, Kang Han’s expression had grown even more serious as he called my name.
“Well, that is….”
I racked my brain quickly, but no decent excuse came to mind.
Then suddenly an idea struck me.
Couldn’t I just say I spilled something on my clothes?
“Let’s not make up strange stories.”
“Tch.”
I correct myself.
Kang Han’s intuition is remarkably sharp.
“I just spilled something on my clothes, that’s all.”
It’s not entirely a lie, is it?
“So I just urgently borrowed a patient gown. Therefore—.”
“What did you spill?”
“Why are you pressing me like this? My clothes just got dirty, that’s….”
“So what exactly did you spill?”
My continued evasion seemed to make Kang Han feel something was off.
The way he stood with both hands on his hips, looking down at me, reminded me of Na Baek Ho—once he bites down on a toy, he doesn’t let go and just keeps gnawing.
In the end, I averted my gaze and answered while mumbling as unclearly as possible.
“Bluh-red stuff….”
“Red stuff?”
“…Ah, blood. Blood!”
Fine, whatever.
It’s not like I did anything wrong!
I was so convinced of that, I just blurted out the truth.
“…Blood?”
In an instant, all expression drained from Kang Han’s face as if someone had flipped a switch.
Oh, did I do something wrong?
And in the blink of an eye, I found myself cradled in Kang Han’s arms.
“What are you doing!”
“Let’s go.”
“Where to!!”
“To be admitted.”
“No, can’t you see right now? I’m perfectly fine!”
I want to go home!
I thrashed about trying to get back down to the ground, but it was useless.
“Yeo Joo.”
All I got was scolded by Kang Han.
When I finally gave up and went limp like laundry hanging on a clothesline, Kang Han walked over to the ward desk and spoke.
“This is Yeo Joo, a Hunter from the Justice Guild. Please admit her.”
“Ah… yes, of course.”
The nurses were startled by Kang Han’s sudden appearance, and then even more startled by the sight of me nestled in his arms—I could see them struggling to suppress their laughter.
Unable to bear watching their expressions any longer, I buried my face in Kang Han’s shoulder.

* * *

After being admitted, I lay curled up on the hospital bed and spoke.
“Ah, it hurts. The pain of betrayal.”
At that, Seo Yu Baek, who had come to visit me briefly, let out a small laugh.
“I’m sorry, Yeo Joo. But when Guild Master Kang Han got angry, it was terrifying.”
“No, teacher. You’re S-rank too! How could you selfishly run away alone? Our guild master can just beat me and I’ll heal myself!”
“…Wouldn’t that be terrible in its own way?”
“Well, I suppose, but still—how could you blow up the fact that I coughed up blood!”
“I didn’t say anything about coughing up blood. He asked if you had blood on your lips and whether you’d coughed blood, and I couldn’t lie.”
“How petty, and after we made a promise too.”
“To be honest, I was worried about you too. Think of it as a friend’s meddling concern for a friend, and forgive me.”
“Hmph.”
When you say it like that, what else can I say?
“Fine then. But you have to bring me delicious food.”
“Should I order fried chicken?”
“Deal.”
Fried chicken makes everything forgivable, obviously.
The fried chicken arrived with the speed you’d expect from a delivery app, and I shared it happily with Seo Yu Baek before being left alone in the hospital room again.
Seo Yu Baek left excitedly for home, saying he’d be off work in two days.
“I want to go home too. I want to sleep while petting Na Baek Ho… Na Baek Ho!”
“Kyaang!”
The door suddenly slid open, and Na Baek Ho shot in like an arrow through the gap.
With a sound like a whoosh, the creature burst in at full speed and dove straight into my arms.
Then, looking up at me, it unleashed a barrage of complaints.
“Kruu, kruuung!”
“I know, I know. My ears are ringing!”
“Kyaaow!”
“I went to the Guild to pick up Yeo Joo’s belongings, but Baek Ho wouldn’t come out of the bag, so I brought him along.”
Kang Han set a small duffel bag on the table as he spoke.
“Is it okay to bring animals to the hospital?”
“I confirmed with Director Seo Yu Baek on the way, and he said Familiar is fine.”
Oh, that’s convenient.
“And it seems Baek Ho was quite worried about Yeo Joo. He wouldn’t eat his snacks and just waited at the Guild entrance.”
“Hey, you still need to eat your snacks.”
“Huff.”
Na Baek Ho, who had his ear pressed against my chest, narrowed his eyes into slits and glared at me with a small sigh.
“What, you little brat.”
“Uurgh.”
Here was Familiar, who had unleashed a torrent of complaints the moment he arrived, yet when I said a few words, he simply closed his eyes as if annoyed.
Exasperated, I gently nibbled on Na Baek Ho’s round ears without hurting him, when Kang Han approached the hospital bed.
“Let me ask you something, Yeo Joo.”
“This is when the Guild Master scares me the most.”
“There’s nothing to fear. If you speak the truth.”
Then what happens if I lie?
…I’d rather not know.
“I just need to confirm something.”
“What is it?”
“When you use your skill, your stamina decreases each time, doesn’t it?”
“…Why are you asking me something like that so directly?”
“Because I hope the answer coming back will be equally direct.”
“Sigh.”
There’s no way I can deny it when he’s already figured everything out and is asking me straight up.
“Yes, that’s right. To be precise, I use stamina instead of mana to activate my skills.”
“…So it was as I suspected.”
“But when you think about it, it’s not really a bad condition. I have Chung Soo’s tonics, and stamina-boosting items are fairly common.”
Kang Han, who I thought would make a fuss the moment he learned the truth, was surprisingly quiet.
His green eyes settled calmly, as if he were contemplating something.
For a moment, only the sound of Na Baek Ho’s rhythmic breathing filled the hospital room.
Then Kang Han quietly opened his mouth.
“I can see my own status window.”
“…Isn’t that supposed to be a secret?”
“Since you shared your secret with me, I’m sharing mine in return.”
“No, but still. Hmm. Well… anyway, thank you for exchanging secrets with me. You don’t have to worry about the Guild Master’s secrets leaking from me.”
“I know. I trust you that much.”
“My goodness, I’m grateful.”
Kang Han smiled silently and spoke.
“I’ll come pick you up tomorrow. Rest well until then.”
Kang Han gently stroked Baek Ho’s round head one last time before leaving the Hospital Room.
I caressed Baek Ho’s soft, round head, still warm from Kang Han’s touch, and fell into a daze of thought.
Had Kang Han ever revealed his secrets to anyone else within the Sejong Barrier?
Absolutely not.
Not even to his comrades who fought alongside him risking their lives.
“Then why is he telling me this?”

* * *

As the sky that had been dark all night began to brighten.
The Training Facility beneath the Justice Guild was already brightly lit.
“Phew.”
Boom!
Kang Han, having finished his workout drenched in sweat, removed his wet shirt and gulped down water.
Letting the sweat drip down across his collarbone, he thought of Yeo Joo, who should be sleeping in the Hospital Room by now.

“That’s right. To be precise, I use stamina instead of mana to activate skills.”

The suspicion he had hoped was wrong proved correct.
Every time Yeo Joo used a skill, it was as if she were cutting away her own stamina and giving it to someone else.
Though his breathing had not yet returned to normal, Kang Han immediately moved toward the Simulation Training Ground.

[ “Implementing A-Rank Relicia.” ]

An announcement from the program echoed through the Simulation Training Ground as a female monster in a crimson dress materialized in the air above.
Relicia, whose signature attack involved tearing opponents apart with her elongated nails, fixed her pitch-black eyes—devoid of any white—upon Kang Han.
Kang Han gripped Muk Chang firmly in one hand and exhaled a measured breath.
While he had been re-awakening skills and watching the Justice Guild flourish, he had grown complacent without realizing it.
He needed to become stronger still.
So his guild members could trust him and enter Gates without hesitation.
So he could protect them all.
And above all, so Yeo Joo would never have to use her skills to heal anyone again.
Whoosh!
Kang Han swung Muk Chang in a powerful arc, his resolve crystallizing.
He never wanted to see her coughing up blood from overusing her abilities.
Crackle—!
His body, wreathed in electricity, shot forward like an arrow toward Relicia.

* * *

A few days later.
Fantasia Guild kept its promise.
They announced that the accident that had occurred inside the Dungeon two years ago was caused by Kim Min Jung’s rampage.

[ Fantasia Guild: “Sung Yo Na is merely a victim.” ]
[ A-Rank Sung Yo Na Officially Joins Justice Guild ]
[ Sung Yo Na Breaks Two Years of Silence ]
[ Casualties from Hunter Rampage—Perpetrator Faces No Legal Consequences ]
[ Are High-Rank Hunters Walking Time Bombs? ]
[ Hunter Rampage Crisis—Is This Really Acceptable? ]

I pressed the button and turned off my phone screen, which was plastered with news headlines, muttering to myself.
“Hmm, it seems the time has come.”

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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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