Chapter 161

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

Chapter 161: Hot Night (5)

‘What? Uncomfortable now…?’

Then, what have they been tearing apart all this time?

As I tried to turn my head to see what was happening behind my back, a warning message promptly appeared.

「Please refrain from moving. Spinal injury may occur.」

These lunatics.

As Yeongwoo reluctantly returned his head to its original position, a heat sensation spread throughout his back.

“…Ugh.”

Then, a sharp sound from somewhere behind, followed by a blur in front of his eyes and an indescribable pain.

“Argh!”

For a moment, it felt like his teeth were being pulled out forcefully, blood oozing from his gums.

Then, the “Berserker” kicked in, holding Yeongwoo’s mind from slipping away as his body tried to escape the pain.

“…Ugh.”

But apart from the “pain,” there was a clear sense that the universal surgery system was tampering dangerously with his spine.

There was significant discomfort in his cervical spine.

‘Are they… are they replacing my spine from the top down? Is that even possible?’

Since moving hastily would result in spinal damage, Yeongwoo didn’t turn back but strained his eyes to glance at his back.

“Father!”

Upon hearing Yeongwoo’s call, Jeonggu, who seemed to be wearing a ghostly expression, responded in a trembling voice.

“What… what’s wrong?”

“Can you see, father? What these guys are doing behind my back?”

“W-well… Eek!”

Perhaps another shocking scene unfolded, as Jeonggu covered his mouth and almost staggered backward.

“What’s going on? Bring me a mirror.”

As Yeongwoo demanded to see the surgery scene himself, Jeonggu hesitated.

“No… it’s probably better not to see. There’s such a thing as death from shock, you know.”

Jeonggu genuinely worried about Yeongwoo’s shock.

Regardless of whether this crazy brat was his son or not, if this kid, who seemed to be crucial to Gangnam… no, to the heart of Seoul, were to die, it would undoubtedly lead to many problems.

But Yeongwoo…

“Stop talking nonsense and bring the mirror quickly. If I’m shocked by a little back surgery, then it means I wasn’t destined to live long anyway.”

Seeing the fire in Yeongwoo’s eyes, Jeonggu reluctantly searched the room and brought a large full-length mirror.

“You’re hopeless.”

“This is all thanks to mother and you. You know my mother passed away, right? Or do you not?”

“What?”

Jeonggu paused with the mirror halfway to Yeongwoo’s view.

“You said your mother died? No, do you even know who your mother is…?”

Jeonggu still subtly drew a line with Yeongwoo, but his tone was unexpectedly softer.

If the “mother” this damn orphan mentioned was someone he knew, that would be the irrefutable evidence of the relationship between Joongwoo and Kim Jeonggu.

But…

“I don’t know who my mother is either. Instead, I know from achievement. You’re the only one of my ‘parents’ still alive.”

“What a shame.”

Damn achievements.

Jeonggu sighed heavily.

And then, he realized that he had been speaking informally to Yeongwoo for some time now.

After witnessing a series of reckless, or rather, childish acts, he finally began to see his opponent as his son.

“Look at yourself now. Is it appropriate to lie down and talk about your mother’s death?”

Finally, Jeonggu stepped into Yeongwoo’s view with the mirror in hand.

Gasp.

Then Yeongwoo could finally see it.

His dorsal skin spread out like a flying squirrel’s, wide open.

“No way…”

As Yeongwoo’s mouth fell open, a holographic forceps generated in the air was seen pulling out a piece of bone from his back.

None other than one of the 12 thoracic vertebrae.

That is, a part of the spine was being carried up right now.

Shirring!

The piece of Yeongwoo’s thoracic spine lifted by the holographic forceps disappeared into thin air along with the forceps.

“Uh! My spine!”

Then, dozens of parts of the “Body Modification,” the unique-grade spine enhancement, which had been dismantled and waiting in the air, gradually descended and entered the gap where the thoracic vertebra had just come out.

“……”

It was literally a spinal replacement.

“How does it feel to see it firsthand?”

Now, not only did he lack parents, but he also lacked a spine, but Jeonggu restrained himself from saying so.

The opponent is Joseon’s Greatest Sword.

And he’s not a stable character by any means.

Jeonggu wanted to live as long as possible.

But Yeongwoo’s subsequent reaction was unusual as well.

“How does it feel? It feels like I’m being squeezed terribly.”

Yeongwoo was already watching the last vertebra exit his body.

Shirring!

Just like before, Yeongwoo’s original spine disappeared somewhere, and next, pieces of pale vertebrae descended to take their place.

Click.

A locking sound emanated from Yeongwoo’s back.

Then lasers appearing out of thin air began manipulating his new spine.

“Argh, fuck…!”

This time, again, ambiguous pain not meeting the criteria for the activation of the ‘Berserker.’

But it was enough pain for a human to lose their mind.

“These bastards!”

As Yeongwoo cursed while the system seemed intentionally causing this, the lasers finished post-processing his spine.

Next.

Thud, thud.

Holographic forceps that had been wide open on Yeongwoo’s dorsal skin started folding neatly.

And then followed by laser suturing.

Ziiing!

“……”

This time, as the pain was much less than before, Yeongwoo gritted his teeth but didn’t let out a groan.

“…Tough guy.”

While saying so, Jeonggu couldn’t help but admire Yeongwoo inwardly.

It was evident that he was no ordinary guy, for better or for worse.

‘But to think this bastard is Joseon’s Greatest Sword… the future of South Korea won’t be smooth sailing.’

Paah!

As the laser show ended, the surgical interfaces that had been displayed in the air were swiftly erased.

Sasat.

And as usual.

Pah!

The surgery table supporting Yeongwoo disappeared without a trace.

“……!”

Suddenly affected by gravity, Yeongwoo reached out his arm just before his head hit the floor.

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

Thunk!

And soon, the familiar system message appeared in Yeongwoo’s view, directed towards the ground.

「The lodging service service has begun.」

「From now on, all buildings classified as ‘residences’ will be in an inviolable state under the lodging system.」

9:00 PM.

Finally, the lodging time had come.

Thud, thud.

Outside the room, Taewon Group employees were knocking on the door.

「Anyone can occupy the residence for a certain period by paying karma.」

「During the lodging period, access to the space can be controlled, and dormitory fees can be charged.」

“Mr. Jeong Yeongwoo, we’re here to process the rental of the room.”

The voices of the employees outside the door.

Upon this, Yeongwoo hastily picked up his equipment from the floor, put it on, and opened the room’s entrance.

Duck!

Then, three employees were seen waiting with a shelf of coins in their hands.

“If we disturbed your rest, we apologize. There was an instruction from the secretary’s office to process the rental on time.”

“Yes, I heard from Suna.”

As Yeongwoo nodded, making way for them, the employees pushed the shelf of coins into the room and activated the rental interface.

Ping!

「Would you like to use the rental service?」

[Parnas Hotel Room 3233]

| Space: Very spacious

| Facilities: Bathroom, Television

| Rental fee: 62,000 karma

| Period: Until tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM

“All set. You can set the number of occupants and use it now.”

As the setting window appeared in front of the entrance of room 3233, the employees left with the empty shelf.

And Yeongwoo waved goodbye to them and turned his gaze to the rental interface.

「How many people are planning to stay? Please enter the number of occupants.」

‘Number of occupants.’

Today, it’s the day when Mr. Kim Taejoon’s family, Jongsu, and Taeyoung come to watch television.

‘So, if we count Mr. Kim Taejoon’s family as three, add Jongsoo and Taeyoung, and finally me and my father…’

Seven.

After calculating, Yeongwoo set the room occupancy to 7.

「7」

Then, the entrance to room 3233, wrapped in a blue shield, flashed to indicate that the occupancy setting had been reflected.

“So… seven people are going to be in this room today…?”

“Yes. They’re here to watch television. You can’t watch it without renting.”

As Yeongwoo opened the room to show the television himself, the last system message of 9:00 PM appeared.

「For your information, tonight’s weather is an ember storm.」

「Please be aware of spontaneous combustion.」

Today’s weather forecast.

「In 2 hours, an [abnormal climate] ember storm will occur.」

「01:59:59」

‘Ember storm? So, is it wind-based? It could also have a fire attribute.’

Upon seeing the abnormal climate timer start, Yeongwoo glanced at the Golden Goblin.

“Didn’t I buy a cloak today? Something called ‘Firewall’.”

As Yeongwoo scratched his temple and tried to remember the cloak’s name, the goblin automatically rummaged through the pocket dimension.

-Rustle!

Eventually, what the Golden Goblin brought out was the unique cloak ‘Firewall.’

「Firewall」 – Unique Cape

【Ignores all abnormal weather conditions with flame attributes.】

It disregards any abnormal climate related to fire.

So, even in an ember storm that would ignite the body, one could remain unharmed with this.

‘So, does that mean I have two pieces of equipment that can target today’s weather? If it’s a storm, it’s likely wind-based.’

Yeongwoo invoked the tooltip of the narrative necklace already registered in his jewelry compendium.

Pop!

「Eye of the Typhoon」 – Epic Necklace

【Ignores extreme weather of the wind type.】

An equipment obtained after completing the achievement ‘Nocturnal.’

Since there hasn’t been an abnormal climate of wind type so far, there’s a high chance it can be used today.

‘So, I’ll use the Eye of the Typhoon myself, and with the Firewalll, I can take one more person with me tonight.’

With a golden orb also tucked away, tonight’s dungeon entry was confirmed.

‘Am I going crazy? Why is my heart racing?’

As Yeongwoo’s face swelled with anticipation, Jeonggu, who noticed it all at once, looked at him with a terrifying gaze.

“Wha… what’s with the expression? What are you thinking again?”

To this, Yeongwoo briefly looked out the window, which had turned ominously dark, before saying,

“Wanna go sightseeing?”

At that, Jeonggu’s face showed learned terror.

“Huh? Where… to?”

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

Chapter 161: Hot Night (5)

‘What? Uncomfortable now…?’

Then, what have they been tearing apart all this time?

As I tried to turn my head to see what was happening behind my back, a warning message promptly appeared.

「Please refrain from moving. Spinal injury may occur.」

These lunatics.

As Yeongwoo reluctantly returned his head to its original position, a heat sensation spread throughout his back.

“…Ugh.”

Then, a sharp sound from somewhere behind, followed by a blur in front of his eyes and an indescribable pain.

“Argh!”

For a moment, it felt like his teeth were being pulled out forcefully, blood oozing from his gums.

Then, the “Berserker” kicked in, holding Yeongwoo’s mind from slipping away as his body tried to escape the pain.

“…Ugh.”

But apart from the “pain,” there was a clear sense that the universal surgery system was tampering dangerously with his spine.

There was significant discomfort in his cervical spine.

‘Are they… are they replacing my spine from the top down? Is that even possible?’

Since moving hastily would result in spinal damage, Yeongwoo didn’t turn back but strained his eyes to glance at his back.

“Father!”

Upon hearing Yeongwoo’s call, Jeonggu, who seemed to be wearing a ghostly expression, responded in a trembling voice.

“What… what’s wrong?”

“Can you see, father? What these guys are doing behind my back?”

“W-well… Eek!”

Perhaps another shocking scene unfolded, as Jeonggu covered his mouth and almost staggered backward.

“What’s going on? Bring me a mirror.”

As Yeongwoo demanded to see the surgery scene himself, Jeonggu hesitated.

“No… it’s probably better not to see. There’s such a thing as death from shock, you know.”

Jeonggu genuinely worried about Yeongwoo’s shock.

Regardless of whether this crazy brat was his son or not, if this kid, who seemed to be crucial to Gangnam… no, to the heart of Seoul, were to die, it would undoubtedly lead to many problems.

But Yeongwoo…

“Stop talking nonsense and bring the mirror quickly. If I’m shocked by a little back surgery, then it means I wasn’t destined to live long anyway.”

Seeing the fire in Yeongwoo’s eyes, Jeonggu reluctantly searched the room and brought a large full-length mirror.

“You’re hopeless.”

“This is all thanks to mother and you. You know my mother passed away, right? Or do you not?”

“What?”

Jeonggu paused with the mirror halfway to Yeongwoo’s view.

“You said your mother died? No, do you even know who your mother is…?”

Jeonggu still subtly drew a line with Yeongwoo, but his tone was unexpectedly softer.

If the “mother” this damn orphan mentioned was someone he knew, that would be the irrefutable evidence of the relationship between Joongwoo and Kim Jeonggu.

But…

“I don’t know who my mother is either. Instead, I know from achievement. You’re the only one of my ‘parents’ still alive.”

“What a shame.”

Damn achievements.

Jeonggu sighed heavily.

And then, he realized that he had been speaking informally to Yeongwoo for some time now.

After witnessing a series of reckless, or rather, childish acts, he finally began to see his opponent as his son.

“Look at yourself now. Is it appropriate to lie down and talk about your mother’s death?”

Finally, Jeonggu stepped into Yeongwoo’s view with the mirror in hand.

Gasp.

Then Yeongwoo could finally see it.

His dorsal skin spread out like a flying squirrel’s, wide open.

“No way…”

As Yeongwoo’s mouth fell open, a holographic forceps generated in the air was seen pulling out a piece of bone from his back.

None other than one of the 12 thoracic vertebrae.

That is, a part of the spine was being carried up right now.

Shirring!

The piece of Yeongwoo’s thoracic spine lifted by the holographic forceps disappeared into thin air along with the forceps.

“Uh! My spine!”

Then, dozens of parts of the “Body Modification,” the unique-grade spine enhancement, which had been dismantled and waiting in the air, gradually descended and entered the gap where the thoracic vertebra had just come out.

“……”

It was literally a spinal replacement.

“How does it feel to see it firsthand?”

Now, not only did he lack parents, but he also lacked a spine, but Jeonggu restrained himself from saying so.

The opponent is Joseon’s Greatest Sword.

And he’s not a stable character by any means.

Jeonggu wanted to live as long as possible.

But Yeongwoo’s subsequent reaction was unusual as well.

“How does it feel? It feels like I’m being squeezed terribly.”

Yeongwoo was already watching the last vertebra exit his body.

Shirring!

Just like before, Yeongwoo’s original spine disappeared somewhere, and next, pieces of pale vertebrae descended to take their place.

Click.

A locking sound emanated from Yeongwoo’s back.

Then lasers appearing out of thin air began manipulating his new spine.

“Argh, fuck…!”

This time, again, ambiguous pain not meeting the criteria for the activation of the ‘Berserker.’

But it was enough pain for a human to lose their mind.

“These bastards!”

As Yeongwoo cursed while the system seemed intentionally causing this, the lasers finished post-processing his spine.

Next.

Thud, thud.

Holographic forceps that had been wide open on Yeongwoo’s dorsal skin started folding neatly.

And then followed by laser suturing.

Ziiing!

“……”

This time, as the pain was much less than before, Yeongwoo gritted his teeth but didn’t let out a groan.

“…Tough guy.”

While saying so, Jeonggu couldn’t help but admire Yeongwoo inwardly.

It was evident that he was no ordinary guy, for better or for worse.

‘But to think this bastard is Joseon’s Greatest Sword… the future of South Korea won’t be smooth sailing.’

Paah!

As the laser show ended, the surgical interfaces that had been displayed in the air were swiftly erased.

Sasat.

And as usual.

Pah!

The surgery table supporting Yeongwoo disappeared without a trace.

“……!”

Suddenly affected by gravity, Yeongwoo reached out his arm just before his head hit the floor.

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

Thunk!

And soon, the familiar system message appeared in Yeongwoo’s view, directed towards the ground.

「The lodging service service has begun.」

「From now on, all buildings classified as ‘residences’ will be in an inviolable state under the lodging system.」

9:00 PM.

Finally, the lodging time had come.

Thud, thud.

Outside the room, Taewon Group employees were knocking on the door.

「Anyone can occupy the residence for a certain period by paying karma.」

「During the lodging period, access to the space can be controlled, and dormitory fees can be charged.」

“Mr. Jeong Yeongwoo, we’re here to process the rental of the room.”

The voices of the employees outside the door.

Upon this, Yeongwoo hastily picked up his equipment from the floor, put it on, and opened the room’s entrance.

Duck!

Then, three employees were seen waiting with a shelf of coins in their hands.

“If we disturbed your rest, we apologize. There was an instruction from the secretary’s office to process the rental on time.”

“Yes, I heard from Suna.”

As Yeongwoo nodded, making way for them, the employees pushed the shelf of coins into the room and activated the rental interface.

Ping!

「Would you like to use the rental service?」

[Parnas Hotel Room 3233]

| Space: Very spacious

| Facilities: Bathroom, Television

| Rental fee: 62,000 karma

| Period: Until tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM

“All set. You can set the number of occupants and use it now.”

As the setting window appeared in front of the entrance of room 3233, the employees left with the empty shelf.

And Yeongwoo waved goodbye to them and turned his gaze to the rental interface.

「How many people are planning to stay? Please enter the number of occupants.」

‘Number of occupants.’

Today, it’s the day when Mr. Kim Taejoon’s family, Jongsu, and Taeyoung come to watch television.

‘So, if we count Mr. Kim Taejoon’s family as three, add Jongsoo and Taeyoung, and finally me and my father…’

Seven.

After calculating, Yeongwoo set the room occupancy to 7.

「7」

Then, the entrance to room 3233, wrapped in a blue shield, flashed to indicate that the occupancy setting had been reflected.

“So… seven people are going to be in this room today…?”

“Yes. They’re here to watch television. You can’t watch it without renting.”

As Yeongwoo opened the room to show the television himself, the last system message of 9:00 PM appeared.

「For your information, tonight’s weather is an ember storm.」

「Please be aware of spontaneous combustion.」

Today’s weather forecast.

「In 2 hours, an [abnormal climate] ember storm will occur.」

「01:59:59」

‘Ember storm? So, is it wind-based? It could also have a fire attribute.’

Upon seeing the abnormal climate timer start, Yeongwoo glanced at the Golden Goblin.

“Didn’t I buy a cloak today? Something called ‘Firewall’.”

As Yeongwoo scratched his temple and tried to remember the cloak’s name, the goblin automatically rummaged through the pocket dimension.

-Rustle!

Eventually, what the Golden Goblin brought out was the unique cloak ‘Firewall.’

「Firewall」 – Unique Cape

【Ignores all abnormal weather conditions with flame attributes.】

It disregards any abnormal climate related to fire.

So, even in an ember storm that would ignite the body, one could remain unharmed with this.

‘So, does that mean I have two pieces of equipment that can target today’s weather? If it’s a storm, it’s likely wind-based.’

Yeongwoo invoked the tooltip of the narrative necklace already registered in his jewelry compendium.

Pop!

「Eye of the Typhoon」 – Epic Necklace

【Ignores extreme weather of the wind type.】

An equipment obtained after completing the achievement ‘Nocturnal.’

Since there hasn’t been an abnormal climate of wind type so far, there’s a high chance it can be used today.

‘So, I’ll use the Eye of the Typhoon myself, and with the Firewalll, I can take one more person with me tonight.’

With a golden orb also tucked away, tonight’s dungeon entry was confirmed.

‘Am I going crazy? Why is my heart racing?’

As Yeongwoo’s face swelled with anticipation, Jeonggu, who noticed it all at once, looked at him with a terrifying gaze.

“Wha… what’s with the expression? What are you thinking again?”

To this, Yeongwoo briefly looked out the window, which had turned ominously dark, before saying,

“Wanna go sightseeing?”

At that, Jeonggu’s face showed learned terror.

“Huh? Where… to?”

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]