Chapter 285

Chapter 285

"For now, I'll put the rest of it away." Though I loathed doing so, I sliced through their silence and put the remaining mementos into the inventory.

I came to this decision since we needed to quickly vacate this location, but I still didn't feel too comfortable with this choice. Fortunately, the servants took their belongings without saying anything further; we began to silently move again.

"[Toolbox Installation]." Meanwhile, Choi Kyung-sik activated certain skills during our journey; green, glittering magic circles shone between pillars, seeping into the ground.

Just as we came above ground...

Weeeeeee Wooooo~!

We could hear police car sirens near the mansion. Did they discover Geum Miyoung's vehicle, half destroyed, in the tunnel? Either way, that was a bad sign for us.

Choi Kyung-sik turned his head towards me and pointed to an escape route he had plotted before we broke into this place. "You should escape through there first."

"...Yeah." I turned on my heels, tensed my thighs, and ran as hard as I could.

Choi Kyung-sik's last murmurs brushed past my ears, "[Prototype, self-destruct]."

"[Your wish is my command.]"

Then, as I ran away, I heard an unfamiliar noise behind me accompanied by a beeping noise. I continued on, hands covering my ears.

Then, a few seconds later...

Boom-!

I heard a deafening roar-the sound of the mansion being half-demolished. I also heard screams from those who had gathered around the front gate.

My feet stumbled in the aftermath of the explosion, but I managed to reach our getaway van without tripping over. Kim Olim started the car as soon as I clambered into the back seat.

* * *

"Any updates with Bae Jaemin?"

"He's not making any particular movements. I'm keeping an eye on any contacts, just in case, but Kim Sangyoon also said he's been quiet."

When we returned to my home after finishing our tasks, it was already 5 am.

The TV was turned on as soon as we arrived; the explosion at Geum Miyoung's mansion was already reported.

Of course, the anchor didn't present this case as breaking news. The case was briefly summarized and transmitted to the audience through long subtitles at the bottom of the early morning news broadcast. It will probably be properly covered later in the day.

"Are we certain that the van wasn't tracked?" Woo Ragi glanced at the black vehicle parked outside the home before suddenly closing the curtains.

Garam answered his question. "I bought this car on the black market, so nothing will appear even if someone tries to track it."

"Seo Dawon even personally cast [stealth] on it." Kim Olim answered, utterly relaxed. Only then did Woo Ragi slowly move away from the window. And, now a little less nervous, I suddenly craved coffee and started boiling water.

"Let's check what's in the inventory and start sorting through." Choi Kyung-sik said, suddenly reminded of our bounty when he saw me sipping on coffee. Lackey, sitting in the corner of the living room with a golden tiara on his head, tilted its head to the side.

I nodded and placed the keys I had brought, one after the other, on the table. Soon enough, Jung Garam rushed to my side; Garam wore a monocle over one eye and observed the keys, one by one, telling me what they contained. "This is cash... These are items. And this one is just full of gold."

"Open the one with items."

"Is there anything Choi Lee-kyung can wear?"

"Can't we cash those in at the market? We should separate salable items out first."

"That's easy enough. Besides, the seller's face is hidden anyway."

As they began to open the keys one by one, the servants gathered and sorted all the priceless commodities that had begun to fill the living room.

I sat quietly, staring at them and drinking another cup of coffee. To be frank, my mind had been stuck on something after returning from Geum Miyoung's mansion; therefore, the dazzling jewels that were laid out didn't really catch my eye.

'[You can summon two or more servants using your vitality]'...huh.'

Pretending to be drowsy, I slipped out of the conversation and checked through the system messages that I had turned off earlier, during my fit of anger.

'The system said that the amount of vitality consumed would be inversely proportional to the intimacy and friendliness I had managed to cultivate with my servant.'

Perhaps that meant there would be no big issue in summoning Seo Dawon. Maybe it would be similar to the burden of summoning Lackey. Then, after summoning Lackey and Seo Dawon, I would be able to call upon another member of [Red Lotus]. This was truly a huge increase in power.

'Also, it said two or more people, right? I almost missed that clause in the excitement of being able to summon two spirits. Then... In theory, it would be possible to summon all the [Red Lotus] members.'

However, I was quite spooked at the price: my life.

I looked at the raised, slightly translucent bumps on my right hand: injection marks. When I saw those scars, I remembered the medicine that made me nauseous as I drank it; the pain that suddenly could be only alleviated by painkillers. My brows furrowed automatically.

'Considering how the [Vengeful Ghost Memories] drove me half to death... Realistically, summoning more than two people would probably be fatal.'

At my current level, it was too difficult to handle the risks that arose from making contracts in the first place.

However...

'...This is one skill I can't give up on.'

This skill could summon all the guild members at once. In addition, since the Servants were originally part of a guild and not single-player lone wolves, they were bound to be more effective when working in tandem. I was afraid, but, if I were to shift my perspective, perhaps the resulting penalty was something I could endure since I had already overcome so much pain in the first place.

"Well, even if it takes my life away...If I were to originally live to 100 years old but my lifespan was reduced to something like 80...wouldn't it still be alright? Or...If the skill causes me to vomit blood or other similar symptoms, hospitals and modern medicine are quite good nowadays.'

Over the course of my frequent hospitalizations, I've become somewhat resistant to pain; the thought that 'I can endure' passed through my mind. In short, the desire to use this skill-and my expectations as to its great results-trumped my fear of pain.

However, I doubted that the servants would agree with my thoughts. Even now, I couldn't tell whether or not they saw me as a hamster or human; humiliatingly, they treated an adult man as if he had no limbs or like an infant.

They were being overprotective because of my comparatively low stats. Moreover, the biggest obstacle was that the Servants could peruse through all of my status windows.

'They'll probably check my status window and read the risks as soon as I state that I've gotten a skill upgrade. Then, they'll never let me use it. Especially Seo Dawon... Seo Dawon would forbid me from summoning more than two people at all costs.'

How could I persuade these people?

I drank my last sip of coffee while brainstorming, when...

[Would you like to activate the Status Window Editor?]

'...Huh?'

Startled by the sudden notification, my lips jolted away from the rim of the cup.

However, my coughs didn't attract the attention of the servants that were still sorting and classifying the items. After slyly glancing at them, I cautiously moved my finger to the [activate] button and pressed it.

[If you select 'edit mode' from the default option in the status window, your status window's privacy and ' information disclosure' levels can be changed.]

[The current level of information disclosure and privacy for User 'Choi Lee-kyung' is set to 'full reveal.']

[Press the 'options' button to switch to partial disclosure.]

[If you want to private only a specific portion, you can specify privacy levels for each section before pressing the option button.]

I was so dumbfounded I almost laughed helplessly.

'How could this be? What amazing timing!'

It felt like someone was generous enough to support my need to use this skill. Of course, this wasn't an entirely pleasant feeling-the timing felt ominous. It felt like I was trapped in someone's grasp, unable to escape or resist.

However, though I felt unsettled, I couldn't help myself. I dragged my cursor to highlight the sentences that mentioned the newly added 'vitality' and 'life force' in the summon skill.

[Are you certain you want to keep this section private?]

[Please note that the edited portion will be restored to its original text if you screenshot the undisclosed portion.]

[Editing complete.]

With that, the highlighted sentence was erased from my status window. The text implied I could use this skill without any consequences.

At that moment, I heard a familiar voice from behind. "Aren't you tired?"

I looked back suddenly-as if I was startled awake. But, before I did so, I felt as if I were embraced by a chilly scent brought in by a winter breeze. Seo Dawon smiled down at me, who stared back with wide-open eyes.

———-

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TL: Wtf...the system seems so sentient. And malicious.