Chapter 21 - I'm ready!
[ It's Working! ]
=== It's Working! ===
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[Yoo Ga-on]
Strength: E
Agility: F+
Stamina: E-
Mana: None
Skills: Intangibility (A), Special Meal (SS), Good Job Today (S)
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Well, it's embarrassing, but this is my current status window.
Of course, it's in a better state than when I first Awakened, but—
When the Snail Husband-exclusive status window isn't active, my skills look flashy, but my stats alone make me weaker than an E-rank Hunter.
From now on, I need to figure out how to trigger that overpowered status window instead of this basic one.
'First, when I'm on a quest.'
It activates.
Since the quests themselves mirror the folktale of the Snail Bride, that makes sense.
'And though it's just a theory...'
I've used the Special Meal skill before even when I wasn't on a quest.
Specifically, when I was with Han Cho-yeon.
Back then, since it was active, I'd mindlessly thought about replacing all my daily meals with Special Meals. But there had to be a condition to trigger it.
And I'm certain of at least one condition.
'Having sex.'
It was active both times I slept with Han Cho-yeon and Yoo Ra-eun.
But that condition alone doesn't explain how I was able to use the Special Meal skill before.
If I broaden the scope a bit...
Maybe it activates whenever I'm in physical contact with a quest target.
"That would make sense."
Han Cho-yeon was always clinging to me, and since I hadn't been paying close attention, I never noticed the exact moment the status window deactivated.
I'll just have to test it myself.
Leaning back on the bed, I picked up my phone.
- Me: What time are you coming home today?
I didn't expect an immediate reply.
Even if she was just a researcher, she had to be busy with guild work.
Ding!
"...What?"
But contrary to my expectations, her reply came instantly.
- Han Cho-yeon: I'm already home! You can come over now haha
"...?"
My eyebrows shot up.
"What's this about?"
After a moment's hesitation, I stood up.
"I'll just go ask her."
A few minutes later,
I stood in front of her familiar front door and rang the bell.
Ding-dong—
Click.
The door swung open, revealing a shock of light green hair.
"You're here!"
"Yeah."
She welcomed me with her usual disheveled, effortless charm.
"Didn't you go to work today?"
Han Cho-yeon shrugged.
"I quit the guild."
"What? Just like that?"
"Just like that?"
"Yeah."
She said it so casually that it caught me completely off guard.
"But why?"
"Hmm..."
She paused for a moment, then shrugged as if it were no big deal.
"I wasn't really attached to the place. Besides, with my current abilities, there's no reason to stay."
"..."
"Even in research, being tied to a guild means walking on eggshells all the time. It's annoying."
"Ah."
That made sense.
Right now, Han Cho-yeon possessed S-rank abilities, and after having so much sex with me, her stats had skyrocketed. Setting aside actual combat experience, her raw specs were on par with most S-rank Hunters. There really was no reason for her to be tied down to a mid-sized guild.
"I see. Good for you."
Now that I understood the situation,
I got straight to the point.
"Remember what I told you last time?"
"Yeah?"
"About me having two status windows."
"...Ah."
Han Cho-yeon paused to search her memory, then nodded, her eyes focusing on me.
"I want to figure out exactly what triggers it."
"Test it?"
"Yeah. I think there are specific conditions."
"Hmm..."
Han Cho-yeon tilted her head.
"How?"
I hesitated for a second before giving a simple answer.
"Let's start simple."
"...?"
"Physical contact."
I reached out and touched her arm, which was resting near her waist.
Tap.
Our hands met.
"...!"
Her shoulders flinched ever so slightly.
"...Contact?"
"Yeah."
"...U-Ugh..."
Her voice trailed off, and she quickly looked away.
I caught the tips of her ears turning a faint shade of red.
"We've already done everything there is to do, and you're getting shy over this?"
"That's...!"
I couldn't resist teasing her, and
Han Cho-yeon glared at me, her face flushing.
"This is completely different!"
"How is it different?"
"It just is!"
Her face burned even redder.
I quietly watched her, swallowing the chuckle rising in my throat.
"...Shut up."
Even as she grumbled, she didn't pull her hand away.
In fact,
she gave it a gentle squeeze.
"..."
Squeezing her soft hand back, I looked down.
Our joined hands.
And—
The status window.
"Hmm..."
Nothing had changed.
Was this not enough?
I looked back at Han Cho-yeon.
"..."
Her face was still flushed, and she was stubbornly looking away.
Even though we'd already crossed every line, seeing her get so shy over a simple hand-hold...
"It's kind of cute."
"...What is?"
"Nothing. More importantly..."
Cutting myself off, I pulled her into a sudden hug.
"...Eep!"
"......"
A soft gasp escaped her, startled by the sudden embrace, but she didn't pull away. Instead, she wrapped her arms around me and clung even tighter.
And then—
"Oh."
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[Yoo Ga-on]
Strength: A+
Agility: C-
Stamina: A
Mana: B+
Skills: Intangibility (A), Special Meal (SS), Good Job Today (S)
[Quest]
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As a sudden rush of vitality surged through my veins, I saw the status window flicker to life.
Sniff, sniff...
"Oh, it's working!"
Sniff...
"Wait, what?!"
For some reason, a bright red Han Cho-yeon looked up at me, still sniffing.
"Looks like we need more surface area contact."
"Mmm... I like it..."
I did my best to ignore Han Cho-yeon, who was currently sniffing me like an enthusiastic puppy, and tried to think.
Should I train with these boosted stats to prepare for any unexpected fights?
Testing the limits while holding onto a dazed, clingy Han Cho-yeon, it seemed that tightly linking arms was the bare minimum. But could I actually fight like this?
Should I wait until a quest offered a combat-related reward?
...Or...
Should I just focus on clearing the quests—which forced themselves on me anyway under threat of death—and surround myself with S-rank powerhouses?
It was a pretty shameless mindset, but since the system was forcing my hand, I had a decent excuse.
Well, it wasn't like I hated it, so I couldn't really complain, but still.
Anyway,
It would definitely be easier to just raise my own specs enough to survive a surprise attack and focus on boosting the people around me, but...
'Still, how can I call myself a man if I just stand back and watch?'
I didn't know how many women would end up in my life, but I had no intention of hiding behind them while they fought my battles.
Even if I couldn't commit to just one, I loved both Han Cho-yeon and Yoo Ra-eun.
With that in mind, I looked down at Han Cho-yeon.
"Cho-yeon. Is there a training facility nearby? Somewhere private."
"Hmm? Of course. But why?"
"If I'm going to protect you, I need to practice."
...Ah, fuck.
The moment the words left my mouth, I realized how incredibly cringy they sounded and instantly regretted it.
"Pfft... hehe. W-Who's protecting whom?"
"No, I mean..."
"Hehe, hehehe..."
Watching Han Cho-yeon try and fail to suppress a massive grin, dying to tease me, I forced myself to continue.
"Look, in my current state, I honestly can't fight."
I tried to sound calm.
"It's great that my stats spike like this, but it's meaningless if my body can't keep up with the sudden power."
"Heh... 'I'm going to protect you'... Pffft..."
"......"
"...Alright, alright. Shall we go right now?"
This time, instead of preparing a Special Meal, we grabbed a quick bite to eat and headed out.
It was purely because I wanted to test my baseline stats without the buff.
It was absolutely not because I was sulking and refused to cook for her.
*
A short while later, we arrived at the training facility.
Even though it wasn't a particularly popular spot, there were still quite a few people around since it was the middle of the day.
Hunters were swinging weapons, testing their skills, or practicing party coordination.
"There are more people here than I expected."
"Right? But a place like this is still fine. Completely empty training grounds only exist in the dead of night or out in the countryside."
Han Cho-yeon shrugged.
"But if we go further inside, they have private training rooms. We can rent one for a small fee."
"That's perfect. It'll be much more convenient."
There was no need to draw unwanted attention.
If I did something to stand out and caused a scene in my current state, it would be a massive headache.
"This way."
Han Cho-yeon confidently led the way.
After a quick payment at the front desk, we were guided inside.
I really needed to find a way to make some quick cash.
Click.
As the heavy door clicked shut, the noise from the outside world instantly vanished.
The room was spacious.
The floor was padded for shock absorption, and basic training equipment lined one of the walls.
The center of the room was completely open.
"Oh."
It was a much more professional setup than I had anticipated.
"This room registers mana reactions and is reinforced so you can safely use most skills. People don't use them much because the equipment is a bit outdated, though."
"Then it's perfect for us."
I slowly walked into the center of the room.
And then,
I gently pulled Han Cho-yeon's arm toward me again.
"...Huh?"
"We need to keep the status window active."
"Ah... right..."
She naturally linked her arm with mine.
This was the condition I had just confirmed.
With this level of physical contact, the status window remained active.
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[Yoo Ga-on]
Strength: A+
Agility: C-
Stamina: A
Mana: B+
Skills: Intangibility (A), Special Meal (SS), Good Job Today (S)
[Quest]
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"So we have to stay like this the entire time?"
"For now, yeah."
"Mmm..."
Han Cho-yeon let out a soft, pleased hum and clung even tighter to my side.
She then pulled me over to the control panel near the entrance and tapped the screen.
Whir—
The floor vibrated slightly as a metal pillar rose from the center of the room.
A shape began to form on top of it.
A humanoid dummy.
A faint blue glow of mana flowed across its surface.
"It's a training dummy. It's reinforced with mana, so it won't break easily. Even if you do damage it, it self-repairs pretty quickly."
"Whew..."
For the first time since my Awakening,
it was time to test my true strength.