The Owner of the Healing Therapy Shop Is Ranked 0th in the World - Chapter 21

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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 21

Knock knock.

Just as I was intently watching Mimi sleeping soundly, I heard a knocking sound.

I poked my head out toward the store entrance.

The lobby with the lights off was dark, and it was already past 8 PM.

‘It can’t be a customer. Is it Nara?’

She might have come after hearing my tearful voice on the phone earlier.

I hurried over to the store door with quick steps.

The person who knocked on the door was an unexpected figure.

“Senior?”

What brings you here without any contact? As I opened the door in confusion, Senior said to me.

“Can I come in?”

“Of course. Please come in.”

He was dressed in comfortable casual clothes. Beige slacks with a black knit sweater. It was a common outfit, but when he wore it, it somehow looked more expensive and gave off a model-like feeling.

“What brings you here?”

He suddenly held out a black plastic bag that was hanging on his wrist.

“What is it?”

When I opened the rustling bag, I couldn’t help but widen my eyes.

“Cat treats?”

Churu, pouches, chicken breast treats – it contained just about every kind of cat treat you could think of.

But how did he know I was raising a cat?

Just as I was about to ask why he brought treats, I remembered the phone call I had with Nara.

From how noisy it was, it seemed like they were in the middle of an alumni gathering.

“…I guess you heard from Nara.”

He just nodded silently.

“I didn’t know what was wrong, so there wasn’t much I could buy.”

“…Thank you.”

Senior’s gaze fell on Mimi sleeping by the window.

“Oh, please sit here!”

I belatedly realized I had been keeping him standing in the middle of the store.

When I pulled out a table chair and pointed to it, he obediently sat down.

It seemed he didn’t come just to bring Mimi treats.

“Um… I’m sorry. You told me to come to the alumni gathering, but my cat suddenly got sick.”

After hearing my apology, Senior stared at me intently.

I blinked my eyes.

Why is he looking at me like that?

“It doesn’t matter.”

This moment of awkward silence flowing between us as we sat facing each other was such an ordeal.

Being naturally quiet, he seemed comfortable with this kind of silence, but I wasn’t.

After glancing at him while pretending to drink water, I finally spoke first.

“Um, I was actually going to contact you about the next country to conquer.”

“Yeah.”

“Which one have you decided to go to? I figured you’d probably visit countries on the same continent consecutively, so I thought it would be good to give you all the necessary oils at once.”

Instead of answering, he rummaged around in his pocket and pulled something out.

What keeps coming out of there?

What came out of his pocket was nothing other than just paper.

A crumpled A4 sheet folded several times.

Wondering what this could be, I unfolded the paper, and I nearly fainted.

“C-can you really show me something like this?!”

The paper contained what could be called state secrets. It was a very, very important document listing priority countries for conquest, including conquest rewards offered by each country and benefits between nations.

Is it okay to just carry this incredible thing around in your pants pocket? And folded up all crumpled like this…?

My hands holding the paper seemed to be sweating.

“I can’t decide alone.”

“Why, why not? You could easily decide by yourself…”

“The Store Owner should decide things like this.”

Senior looked at me, frozen stiff, and let out a small laugh.

I kept alternating between looking at the classified information written all over the paper and Senior. Even though the paper clearly stated why each country should be supported first, I couldn’t understand his intention in asking me.

“I’m just a chess piece. You’re the player.”

“A chess piece…”

I suppose from Senior’s perspective, he might think of himself as a chess piece.

It didn’t sound very nice. It made me feel like I had become an exploitative boss using him.

But it wasn’t entirely wrong either, so I could only purse my lips.

“Hmm.”

After much deliberation, I returned the paper listing twenty countries to Senior.

“We can’t ignore the interests between countries, but… I still hope you’d pay attention to weak nations that have nothing to offer.”

“Mm.”

“But the most important thing is what Senior wants. I’m just in a position to hand over items and cheer from behind.”

“You cheer for me?”

“Of course! I worry a lot because it’s dangerous work, and the time limit is so tight… I’m sorry that all I can do is cheer.”

“You worry too?”

“Yes. I’m constantly anxious about what if you get hurt because of me. I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep until Senior comes out of the Gate.”

This is strange. The more I spoke, the more Senior’s lips curved upward.

The Senior I know isn’t someone who smiles this much.

My lips trembled pitifully as I gave an awkward smile while facing him.

“You’ll wait until I come out of the Gate?”

“Even if I can’t follow you directly, I’ll wait while watching the broadcast…”

Seeing how he was subtly demanding support, worry, and waiting, it seemed Senior wanted me to participate in the Gate conquest in this way.

Since it wasn’t difficult, I clearly conveyed what Senior seemed to want to hear.

“I’ll definitely wait until Senior finishes conquering the Gate. I’ll cheer hard too…”

“You will?”

“You mustn’t get hurt.”

After finishing my words, I watched Senior’s reaction.

‘Is this what he wanted to hear?’

Senior’s face when I glanced at him…

He was smiling so widely that his dimples showed.

At this expression I’d never seen before, I could only stare at Senior blankly for a while.

It was a beautiful smile that was hard to look away from.

* * *

After leaving Yebichnna’s store, Jinseong took out his phone for the first time in a while.

Hundreds of missed calls were recorded.

As if he wasn’t tired of calling that much, even at this moment when he briefly took out his phone, Ean’s call came in.

This time, he didn’t ignore it and pressed the call button.

“Yeah.”

-H-hello? Are you really crazy?! Where are you! Where?!

“On my way.”

-You’re late, you’re late! You know there’s a press conference going on right now?!

“Ah.”

-Ah? Huh? Ah? You’re making nonsense sounds! I’m about to announce the next target country! What are we supposed to do without you!

“Where did you pick?”

-Germany! Germany! Germany!

“Change it, to Mongolia.”

-What? Not France, not England, not the United States, but Mongolia? Did you get shot in the head? You do know Mongolia is ranked 15th, right?

“Yeah, we’ll start with Mongolia and go to nearby neighboring countries in order. I’ll be there within an hour, so get the plane ready.”

-…Let me at least hear your reason for choosing Mongolia.

Jinseong hung up the phone just like that.

After putting his phone in his pocket, Jinseong stared at the shadow in the distance toward the park.

Then he compressed the sand beneath his feet into dust, forming it into a very small ball and sent it flying toward the shadow.

* * *

“Ah, I got caught…”

Before she could even realize that her tailing had been discovered, she had no choice but to offer one cheek to the dust ball that flew in at the speed of light.

An S-rank’s attack was on a different dimension.

He had merely thrown some compressed dust.

Whoosh-.

Where the dust ball that grazed her cheek had struck, there was a crater larger than her face.

That S-rank Hunter had deliberately thrown it to make her dodge, but if it had hit directly, her head would have already exploded.

“Phew, that’s one brutal warning.”

The person who emerged from the darkness while wiping the blood flowing down her cheek was none other than A-rank Enchanter Shinnara.

Without her tailing item, it would have been impossible to find Gangjinseong.

Because he had used his skill to suddenly disappear in order to shake off the many people following him.

Sohee stood in front of a store called ‘Wihyang’ while humming.

Inside, there was a tall, slender woman tying her long hair into a ponytail.

“A girlfriend?”

A strange light flickered in Sohee’s eyes.

She made a square camera shape with her fingers, just like she had done to Jinseong in front of the bar, and captured the woman’s appearance.

“Huh, she’s not a Hunter?”

Sohee tilted her head in 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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