The Second Coming of Gluttony - Chapter 29

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 29. Looking Back

The moment Seol was summoned back to the Neutral Zone, gasps echoed across the space. Everyone wore the expression of someone who’d just seen a ghost.
And with reason. Here was someone who’d always completed missions in five minutes flat at most—yet hours had elapsed without a trace. They’d assumed carelessness, a mistake, death from a failed quest. Then she walked back in, bold as brass.
“Ahahaha! Ahahahaha!”
When Seol explained the misunderstanding, Hyeon Sangmin slapped the ground and burst into uncontrollable laughter.
“A skeleton, a skeleton that just….”
Shin Sangah was laughing so hard she had tears streaming down her face, nearly breathless.
Seol felt oddly struck by something. Just two months since the Tutorial ended, and both of them had changed considerably. Whether it was their clothes or simply their bearing, something felt different about them now.
After laughing themselves out, the man and woman grumbled about how difficult it had been to see each other’s faces or even exchange a word. The three of them rekindled conversation like old friends.
Hyeon Sangmin’s Class was Archer. Quick-witted and action-oriented by nature, he’d been generous with his Survival Points from the start. As a result, he’d managed to accumulate points faster than most, earning himself a reputation as a genuinely capable survivor.
Currently, his team wasn’t quite as strong as Odelette Delphine’s, but it was respectable enough, and they were managing missions well.
Shin Sangah had been fortunate since the Awakening Chamber activated. Priest was the second rarest Class after Mage. The moment her identity as a Priest became known, teams had practically lined up to court her—some even offering to give her Survival Points just to join them. She’d chosen the team that offered the highest signing bonus.
She’d been boasting that at least she lived like a proper human being now, until Hyeon Sangmin made a dig about her getting ahead of herself before a newcomer, which made her immediately deflate.
Seol smiled faintly. It put her mind at ease knowing they were both living comfortably and fending for themselves well.
“By the way, what about Yoon Seora?”
The question had popped out while she was listening to their updates. She’d run into Lee Seol-ah and Lee Seongjin from time to time, but had never once encountered Yoon Seora.
Hyeon Sangmin suddenly went quiet. Shin Sangah’s expression darkened as well. Seol’s chest sank at their reaction.
“…She’s dead?”
“No. She’s still alive.”
Hyeon Sangmin denied it. Somehow that felt even more frightening. Still alive—but.
“She’s… having a rough time, I think. Because of her right arm and all….”
Shin Sangah spoke with obvious sympathy.
Seol’s eyes widened. Right—during the treasure hunt, she’d been ambushed by Kang Seok and his gang, hadn’t she? And her right arm had become unusable. The image of her crying by the prize machine was burned into Seol’s memory.
After the Tutorial ended, Yoon Seora had earned roughly 300 Survival Points. Nowhere near enough to last two months. Could she even survive half a month on ruthless rationing?
“The Lee siblings have been helping her out pretty consistently, from what I can tell. Oh, and you helped too, didn’t you, Shin Sangah?”
“Once…”
Shin Sangah spoke hesitantly, her eyes darting away.
“It seems like her ability rank is low, so healing doesn’t help much either… and even when I try to give her some points, she won’t take them. And lately it’s felt like she’s been avoiding me….”
Her words came out smaller and smaller, almost like an excuse. All her earlier boasting about finally living decently now felt deeply shameful.
Hyeon Sangmin waved it off, saying she was overthinking it. Unless she’d been the one to save Yoon Seora’s life like Lee Seol-ah had, there was no reason she should feel obligated to support her—someone so self-reliant by nature wouldn’t expect that.
Seol had nothing to say either. To be honest, she’d forgotten about it entirely, too consumed by her training.
After a long silence, Hyeon Sangmin slowly got to his feet.
“Don’t stress about it too much. If we have room in our schedules, helping out is fine, but you know how it is. Everyone here is too busy looking after themselves.”
That was true. The Neutral Zone was a place where you barely had time to survive. Having the luxury to care for someone else was a kind of excess.
“I should get going for today. Next time we see each other, let’s try a mission together. I’m confident I can be useful by then.”
Hyeon Sangmin tapped his Crossbow and flashed a grin.
“I’m ready too. Whenever you need me, just call. I’ll drop everything and come running.”
Shin Sangah waved goodbye and drifted away.

After parting with them, Seol returned to the Plaza. She’d meant to finish a Difficult quest by the end of the day, but her mood felt restless. She thought that if she threw herself into training, at least for a moment, she might be able to forget.
The bulletin board held eleven sheets of Difficult quest papers in total. All were combat-related, and the Survival Points offered for success ranged from 500 to 1,000.
For instance, the Difficult quest she’d cleared—”Survive the Encirclement”—was among the riskiest of that difficulty tier. Since she’d resolved it without much trouble, she was determined to handle the rest just as swiftly.
However, she had exactly 15 attempts remaining, split equally across all quests. She decided to attempt each paper only six times before moving to the next. That alone would secure an additional 43,500 points.
‘This should be enough.’
She could do more. But after talking with Shin Sangah and Hyeon Sangmin, she’d decided not to monopolize the quests anymore. From what she’d heard, quest-running had become easier overall, yet almost no survivor lived as comfortably as she did.
For example, if four people cooperated and succeeded at a Somewhat Difficult quest worth 300 points, the reward would have to be split four ways. Sure, survival rates improved, but after all that grueling effort, each person would only get 75 points.
The fact that even Shin Sangah, who was in high demand, said she lived ‘decently’ rather than ‘comfortably’ said everything.
She wasn’t afraid of criticism for monopolizing quests. But during the treasure hunt, she’d learned something. In her excitement, she’d swept up everything, and it had put Shin Sangah and Hyeon Sangmin through real hardship. Lee Seongjin had even wandered around all night.
Eventually, more teams would start attempting Difficult quests as time went on. Since she was leaving more than half of them unclaimed, the other survivors shouldn’t have major complaints.
Besides, there were higher-difficulty quests available.

[You have successfully completed a Difficult quest.]
[950 Survival Points have been awarded.]
[Survival Points: 128,780 SP]

Seol clenched her fists tight.
She decided to stop attempting quests for now. There was something she needed to do before starting the next difficulty tier.
‘Very Difficult’ quest papers numbered six in total. The lowest reward was 10,000 Survival Points. A tenfold jump. Skimming through the descriptions, the content itself was formidable.
From here on, thorough preparation was essential. I needed to acquire proper equipment, and if necessary, find allies.
At the very top, there was one ‘Impossible’ quest, though I didn’t even glance at it. The reward of 172,800 points was staggering, but the contents were simply too absurd.
Seol turned and walked away.
There was far more to prepare than one or two things, but the priorities were clear.

8th Floor.
Emerging from the VIP Shop, Seol had to exert tremendous effort to calm the pounding of his chest. Two small vials rested in his hands.
Amrita. It would evolve an awakened ability one stage further.
That wasn’t all. Even after purchasing the Amrita, considerable Survival Points remained, so he bought an additional Seonak. With this purchase, the VIP Shop no longer carried Amrita or Seonak that raised magical power level one stage at a time.
Given the astronomical price, his Survival Points plummeted to 38,780 in an instant.
He could have purchased another Seonak with the remaining points. But with superhuman restraint, he held back. He needed to preserve points for equipment as well. The plan was simple: secure the best gear possible, then earn more.
“Mm.”
Even as he tried to contain it, laughter kept breaking through his lips. The whole world appeared rose-tinted.
‘I was planning to drink it at the Lodging… No. Save it and it spoils anyway.’
Unable to resist climbing just two more floors, Seol drained all the Amrita at once, repeating “Nine Eyes” over and over to himself, in case it evolved a different ability.

[The innate ability ‘Nine Eyes’ is evolving.]
[The downward direction (1) of the innate ability ‘Nine Eyes’, Black—Immediate Escape opens.]
[The innate ability ‘Nine Eyes’ is evolving.]
[The upward direction (1) of the innate ability ‘Nine Eyes’, Gold—Golden Law opens.]

At last, two layers of the veil shrouding the ability had been peeled back. With this, four of the five directions were now open. The remaining direction was right.
Seol immediately activated the ability and fell into thought.
Yellow meant exercise caution in selection.
Red meant refrain from approach.
Crimson meant retreat recommended.
Black meant immediate escape.
Viewed this way, black was rightly understood as an extension of danger detection.
‘Immediate Escape I can figure out… but Golden Law?’
Yet no matter how much he pondered, the gold eluded his intuition.
His confusion wasn’t limited to that.
The downward direction had opened after the left bearing was unlocked. By that logic, the upward direction should have opened after the right bearing unlocked—but the sequence had shifted. Whether it was because they were opposites, he couldn’t say.
‘I need to figure out what it is before I can use it…’
As Seol climbed the stairs, shaking his head in thought—
‘Gold?’
His eyes suddenly flew wide.
Beyond the railing of the 10th Floor, a vivid golden hue shone. It was just outside the Lodging.
Rushing up, he found a figure waiting quietly before the door. The moment he caught sight of her back, his mind went blank. It was a woman he’d thought he could never meet while in the Neutral Zone.
“You came?”
Sensing his presence, the woman in neat formal attire turned around.
“You.”
Kim Hanna.
“Long time no see?”
She offered a knowing smile. Her entire form bathed in gold.
The confusion was inevitable. He wondered why she was here, and this gold he’d never seen before….
“Can we go in? It’s a bit awkward to talk out here.”
At her measured tone, Seol came to himself. As he opened the door and stepped inside, Kim Hanna let out an exclamation.
“Wow—this is nice, really nice. I never imagined I’d set foot in here.”
Kim Hanna deliberated for a moment about where to sit, then settled into the plush sofa. As Seol hurried to take the opposite seat, she giggled.
“Why are you in such a rush? Shocked?”
“I can’t help but be shocked.”
“Hmm… Before I explain, I should probably satisfy your curiosity first. Fine. What should I tell you?”
Seol, on the verge of asking ‘Why your body appears gold,’ caught himself and rephrased.
“How did you get here?”
“Because I could?”
“Come on.”
“Joking. The Neutral Zone isn’t a place you can just enter freely. But I’m an exception, you could say.”
Seol regarded Kim Hanna intently.
“Idiot. You didn’t read the invitation?”
An invitation? Lee Seol-ah started to ask, then caught herself, opening her mouth instead. Now that she thought about it, the Golden Seal invitation did mention being able to bring one assistant along.
“Don’t worry. Cheonji already knows I’m here. I’ve gone through the proper channels, so no problem.”
“Well, that’s a relief, then.”
Kim Hanna raised her hand.
“Wait, I have a curiosity of my own to satisfy.”
“?”
“About Cheonji and Agnes. Especially Agnes—she seems to be paying you quite a bit of attention.”
“Does she?”
“I’m telling you she is. What exactly did you do to bring the Sicily Group to heel like that?”
Seol-ah’s ears nearly deceived her for a moment. Cruel? A group?
Kim Hanna’s eyes widened.
“Oh my, you didn’t know?”
……
“You really didn’t, then. They’re quite famous—the warmongers of the Southern Region.”
“Warmongers? Agnes?”
“That’s right. A direct subordinate of Cheonji and a high-ranking executive of the Sicily Group. Her alias is the Demon Instructor. There are few in Paradise who haven’t heard of her.”
As the explanation continued, Seol-ah felt ice creeping down her spine. She’d never imagined Agnes was a figure of such consequence.
‘Did I just mess around with someone I shouldn’t have?’
“If you’ve asked all your questions, can we move on to what I actually came to discuss?”
Seol-ah nodded quickly. Now she wondered—why had Kim Hanna sought her out? The Neutral Zone still had about a month left before its conclusion.
“I came partly to cheer you on, partly because I have some advice to give, and partly because there’s something I need to ask of you. So here I am.”
Kim Hanna removed her glasses and gazed at Seol-ah intently. Her expression was far softer than when they’d met at Tan Stream.
“First, I want to praise you. You’re doing far better than I expected. Honestly, I never dreamed you’d do this well.”
“Yet you were so reluctant when I first took out the Golden Seal.”
“That was then. It’s different now. The Golden Seal doesn’t feel like a waste anymore. I mean it.”
The stream of compliments left Seol-ah embarrassed.
“The encouragement is nice—what’s the advice?”
As Seol-ah scratched her cheek, Kim Hanna broke into a grin.
“I think stopping at Difficult missions was a good call. Once you reach Very Difficult, the difficulty rises exponentially. You need to prepare yourself properly before attempting them.”
Admittedly, she’d anticipated as much. The rewards had increased tenfold, so the difficulty must have scaled proportionally.
“And try to make some allies. If I had one complaint, it’s that you work too much alone.”
“Allies…”
“Yes. I’d recommend Odelette Delphine and Ha-O Win. And I’ll be upfront—it’s not just about their abilities.”
“Then?”
“They’re people who could prove useful to your future.”
What Kim Hanna meant was crystal clear.
“You’re talking about connections.”
“You could see it that way. Either way, you share the bond of being from the same cohort. Building relationships wouldn’t hurt, would it?”
“I understand Delphine since she’s a mage, but why Ha-O Win?”
“The underworld has considerable power here. He’s supposedly a high-ranking official of the Triad—the largest organization among them.”
Seol-ah covered her face with her hands. First warmongers, now the underworld—the Triad, no less. These were things she’d assumed she’d never have to deal with in her lifetime.
Then a thought suddenly occurred to her.
“If those two became my allies, even an Impossible mission might become possible…”
“Absolutely not. Don’t you dare.”
It had been a tentative comment, but Kim Hanna cut her off sharply. Seol-ah laughed weakly.
“So it’s really that difficult, then.”
“Even if someone told me to do it, I’d have no confidence in success. You’d need at least Level 4 Earthians gathered in company strength before you’d even have a shot. Honestly, I have no idea why they even attach such missions. It makes no sense.”
After muttering to herself, she suddenly narrowed her eyes sharply.
“You’re not thinking you’ll try it just because someone else cleared it, are you?”
“Someone cleared that?”
This was actually the first she was hearing of it.
“There is one. In all of history, just one person.”
“How did they…”
Seol-ah’s astonishment prompted a snort from Kim Hanna.
“This is something only a few know, but that person didn’t succeed through proper method. It was pure luck, nothing else.”
“Even so, succeeding through luck is still success.”
“True enough, but regardless—don’t do it. You’d be better off facing a Spirit Realm monster naked.”
Kim Hanna, who had been opposing the idea vehemently, slowly caught her breath. As she shook her head side to side, her ponytail swayed with the motion.
“I trust you’ll manage wisely enough…”
She trailed off deliberately, then glanced sideways at Seol-ah.
Lee Seol-ah opened her mouth.
“You said you had something to ask of me, didn’t you?”
“Well… it’s sort of incidental, I guess.”
Kim Hanna, uncharacteristically hesitant, cleared her throat.
“Look, I want to be upfront about this first. What I’m about to tell you isn’t a request from me.”
“Then whose is it?”
“Someone’s. One of my superiors.”
“A superior… Shin Young?”
Kim Hanna nodded and continued.
“Anyway, this is just someone else’s request. You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to, but if you help me out, I’d gain something substantial. You might even get some spillover benefit yourself.”
“What is it?”
“You know Yoon Seora, right?”
Kim Hanna got straight to the point. It was an unexpected mention.
“Actually, the person who invited Yoon Seora is from our company. Shin Young.”
“Wait. So your superior is the one who invited Yoon Seora?”
“Bingo. He’s got great instincts. Everyone he’s invited has made it big. This time he even used a silver invitation, so the company had high hopes.”
“But…”
“Exactly. You know how it is, don’t you? At this rate, Yoon Seora’s elimination is certain. My boss has been losing his mind over it, apparently.”
Only then did Lee Seol-ah grasp what the favor was about.
“I’ll be direct. My superior wants you to look after Yoon Seora.”
“That’s too vague. Should I just give her 1,000 Survival Points? She could leave the Neutral Zone then.”
“That’d be worse than not passing at all. More specifically, he wants Yoon Seora to grow properly within the Neutral Zone. If possible, treat her arm, take her with you on Missions, things like that. It’s… what you’d call pulling for someone.”
Pulling for someone. Lee Seol-ah sighed inwardly.
By coincidence, she’d heard about Yoon Seora twice today.
She knew the girl was struggling. It wasn’t that she had no desire to help. But…
[You know how it is.]
She didn’t think Hyeon Sangmin was wrong.
Kim Hanna seemed to be waiting for an answer. She was still bathed in gold.
“…what would you want me to do?”
“Me? I told you. I’m not the one who asked—”
“I know. That’s why I’m asking the opinion of the person who invited me, not the person who invited Yoon Seora.”
Kim Hanna hadn’t expected to hear something like that. Her face went blank as though she’d been ambushed. Then one corner of her mouth lifted slightly.
“If you do it, I’d be happy, of course. That’s one more favor in the books for me.”
She spoke with a slight smile, her expression brightening.
“All right. I can’t promise I’ll do it, but I’ll give it serious consideration.”
“Huh. Not bad. You know how to say nice things.”
Are you really that gambler? she muttered under her breath before continuing.
“Anyway, think it over. Yoon Seora was invited by Shin Young, our top scout. She’s a prospect. Getting her in your debt isn’t a bad move.”
“A debt…”
She’d never thought of it that way, but the word “prospect” resonated. She remembered seeing a special talent in Yoon Seora’s status window when she’d glanced at it in the hall.
Kim Hanna stood up.
“Yeah, a debt. You know the saying, right? The Golden Law.”
“The… what?”
Lee Seol-ah looked up at Kim Hanna in surprise.
“The Golden Law. You don’t know it?”
She winked and walked toward the entryway.
“So whatever you wish that others would do for you, do also for them. This is the Law and the Prophets.”
“That’s… the Golden Law?”
“Matthew 7:12. I don’t think it’s purely altruistic, though. It’s more like an exchange—give and take.”
…
“Who knows? Maybe if you show up like a prince on a white horse and help her out, she’ll fall for you. That girl’s cute, you know.”
It was clearly meant as a joke.
But Lee Seol-ah’s reaction was unusual. Kim Hanna, embarrassed, slipped on her heels. Click, click went the soles as she opened the door and looked back.
“Don’t worry about coming out. And don’t forget—once the Neutral Zone ends, we’re negotiating first.”
“Yeah, okay.”
“Don’t die. I’ll come pick you up in a month.”
The door closed.
Even after Kim Hanna left, Lee Seol-ah stood motionless. For a long time she stood there, turning over the words she’d left behind, again and again.
Until the clicking of her heels faded completely away.

(To be continued in the next part)

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————