The Owner of the Healing Therapy Shop Is Ranked 0th in the World - Chapter 17

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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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The Owner of the Healing Therapy Shop is World Rank 0

Chapter 17

Senior’s figure completely disappeared.

Only then did my gaze, which had been fixed on Senior, finally drop.

I looked around and approached some water plants I spotted, sitting down on them.

The dampness seeped through the fabric of my clothes.

After settling in, I stared once again at the place where Senior had vanished.

Hyeongtaek approached and sat down on the water plants beside me.

We silently gazed at the same spot.

Kugugung-! Kwagwagwang-!

In the distance, enormous dust clouds rose with thunderous roars. They were so massive I wondered if a volcano was erupting.

Hunter Oh, who had been staring blankly at the merciless barrage of skills, pouted his lips.

“That guy really doesn’t seem human. Isn’t he a monster?”

I remembered him saying in an interview once that his goal was to steal Hunter Gangjinseong’s ranking.

He was probably complaining in that sense even now.

I didn’t respond and just calmly listened to his grumbling.

“Doesn’t that guy worry about addiction? Is it okay to pour out mana like that? I’m already starting to experience side effects. How many years has he been a hunter, yet he’s still so energetic? Does that even make sense?”

Despite his sulky tone, his eyes sparkled brightly as he gazed into the distance.

‘Is that admiration?’

The young hunter sitting next to me seemed to be someone who sparkled with competitive spirit and passion.

“Isn’t that really unbalanced? Right?”

“He is an amazing person.”

Even as we exchanged this meaningless conversation, the Wave Wall was turning to dust and disappearing in real time.

“Noona.”

“…”

“Hyung.”

“Yes.”

“Want to make a bet with me?”

“What kind?”

“How many hours it’ll take Jinseong hyung to clear this.”

I turned my head to look at him.

He was someone who really suited that mischievous smile.

“Hmm.”

“Hyung really is a monster, but strangely he’s a bit slow at clearing gates, you know? I’m thinking about four hours.”

I fell into thought.

I already knew that my skill contained in the oil had been cast without problems. So it was obvious that Senior finding the exit was just a matter of time.

Since I, who had no stamina and was busy running around avoiding monsters, took a little over three hours.

“Hmm, I’d say about an hour?”

“Oh, you really don’t know hyung well.”

Hyeongtaek turned toward me and propped his chin on one hand.

“If I win, give me noona’s number.”

“What if I win?”

“I’ll give you my number.”

“…I don’t want to bet.”

“That hurts. Then what do you want, noona?”

“Nothing in particular.”

“You’re really hurting my feelings. Then I’ll specially let noona decide what I want later. Deal?”

“Fine.”

After our idle conversation ended, I turned my head again and fixed my gaze in the original direction.

However, the side of my face still stung.

“Are you going to stay here? It’s cold.”

Even though my skill was working normally, the reason I wasn’t leaving was to prepare for the one-in-a-million chance that something might go wrong.

Not that I knew what help I could provide, but honestly, I was worried.

‘This is why I came all the way to Japan in the first place.’

“Let’s go together. What if you catch a cold?”

He dusted off his bottom, stood up, and extended his hand to me.

“I’m fine.”

I shook my head vigorously. Then Hyeongtaek sat back down next to me with a thud.

“He really makes me feel inferior even in a place like this.”

He muttered something, but he spoke so quietly that it didn’t reach my ears.

How much time passed like that?

A status window suddenly appeared before everyone’s eyes, including mine.

[Gate Clear!]

We all jumped up from our seats simultaneously. I smiled brightly with joy, but Hyeongtaek’s smile contained ambiguous happiness.

It was probably because the bet had ended in my victory.

Having successfully protected my phone number, I ran toward the open space where people were gathering.

Someone over there had shouted that an exit portal had appeared.

Since it took about an hour to clear one gate, I thought there wouldn’t be much trouble clearing all the remaining gates within the time limit.

My steps were light as I ran, kicking off the splashing floor.

^[Main Quest: Clear the Maze Gates that threaten Earth’s safety! (2/22)]^

^[Sub Quest Clear!]^

^[1 stat point awarded as completion reward, stat skill tree opens!]^

* * *

Hyeongtaek, who had been staring helplessly at Yebichnna’s retreating figure, rubbed the back of his neck and muttered.

“A phone number… this is the first time I’ve failed to get one.”

He let out a self-deprecating laugh and slowly followed behind Yebichnna.

“Hm?”

Just then, something strange caught his eye.

The ripples that spread each time Yebichnna stepped on the splashing floor were slightly different from normal ones.

Usually they just spread in ordinary circular shapes, don’t they?

He looked down at his own feet and tilted his head.

* * *

“I wonder if Mimi came too.”

Making a day trip to Japan and back left my whole body aching.

As soon as I entered the store with my exhausted body, I looked for Mimi, but she was nowhere to be seen.

“Her food is untouched too… Is she still in Japan?”

Ugh, I don’t know.

I carelessly threw my bag on the floor and collapsed onto the sofa.

Even though I hadn’t done anything inside the gate, perhaps due to all the tension, extreme fatigue washed over me.

I was ready to fall asleep immediately, but there was something I needed to do before sleeping.

‘Opening the skill tree!’

For a suddenly appeared sub quest, the completion reward was quite generous.

Just being able to open the skill tree would let me know where it would be a good choice to invest the stats I had.

I touched ‘Accept Quest Completion Reward’ with a joyful heart.

^[You can open the skill tree for one of the following stats: Vision, Hearing, Smell, Taste, or Touch.]^

“What, only one is possible?”

I felt like I’d been scammed.

I felt scammed, but since complaining wouldn’t change anything, I immediately started deliberating.

If I could only choose one sense, I needed to be quite careful.

‘I should think about which sensory organ will be most necessary going forward.’

My plan to read the opened skill tree while humming and go to sleep was ruined.

“Hah, this is troubling.”

When I invested 1 stat point in Vision, the level 1 skill had the effect of showing me the path to a target I was looking for.

So if I invested 1 more stat point in Vision, would that effect stay the same with just the level going up? Or would a skill with a different effect appear?

Since Mimi wasn’t here, I had no one to ask, which was frustrating.

It seemed like I should decide on this important matter after Mimi returned.

After closing the status window, I lifted my heavy body.

I belatedly realized that I’d been covered in dust all day.

“Let me wash up and sleep…”

As I was dragging my heavy legs toward the bathroom, I heard a phone notification sound.

After being confused by the unfamiliar notification sound for a moment, I belatedly remembered that I had changed phones.

That latest model phone was something Ean had given me. Saying he’d contact me when necessary.

The only saved contacts were Senior Jinseong and Ean, just two people.

I turned on the phone screen to check the message that had arrived.

[Come to alumni association]

“Hm?”

Seeing the message content, I naturally thought it was a text from Nara. But thinking about it carefully, she didn’t know this phone number.

When I checked the sender again, my eyes widened like lanterns.

“Senior?”

Why was he suddenly telling me to come to the alumni association? And with such a firm tone?

With the mysterious message content, I had to spend a night full of worries.

* * *

Jinseong, who had arrived home before Yebichnna, sat perched on the edge of the bed without moving an inch.

From when Ean went into the kitchen to prepare dinner until all the food was set out, he stayed in that same position, just staring at his phone.

Jinseong was writing a text with a serious expression, tapping away.

[Are you coming to the alumni association?|]

Tap tap tap tap.

His thumb quickly touched delete.

[Come to alumni association?|]

As soon as he finished the sentence again, he deleted the text once more.

After repeating writing and deleting text dozens, hundreds of times like this, he roughly swept his bangs back, overwhelmed by the rising self-loathing.

“Haah…”

What was he even doing?

Just as he decided to delete all the message content and was about to press the delete button.

“Ah.”

The text was accidentally sent.

“Ah.”

He repeated the same word like a broken machine and eventually flopped down on the bed.

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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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