Episode 132: The Hot-Hearted Toad
Kim Gap-du was extremely clumsy when it came to placing bets, but he accepted the results without a word.
“We lost.”
Soon he opened his inventory and took out a bunch of elixirs.
He is skilled enough to be a mentor in his third year, and he is also the president of a mid-level club that is similar to a martial arts club, so he has a lot of resources.
Even though each and every one of them was precious and it would have been a shame to give them away, he distributed them without any regrets, thinking that a promise is a promise.
[Taecheongdan (B)]
[Three hundred year old ginseng (B-)]
‘I guess I’ll be going to school from the Mana Performance Center for the time being.’
Taecheongdan is one of the most renowned brands in the Hwandan lineage, and the Sambaeknyeon ginseng is also of a fairly high quality as it has accumulated energy over a long period of time.
In order to melt all that enormous energy and use it as nutrients for the [Core], you will have to stay up all night and visit the Mana Training Room every day for a while.
This is the only thing I received, there were four people in my group.
If he had dissolved this much elixir, there would have been considerable bleeding, but Kim Gap-du did not stop there and distributed elixir to his mentees as well.
“You guys have worked hard too.”
“Go, thank you.”
“Amitabha… … .”
And yet, the fact that the inventory is still not empty shows the club president’s ability to fight.
Then Kim Gap-doo said to Dang Gyu-yeong.
“I will also transfer the promised rights immediately.”
“No, there’s no need to rush.”
But Dang Gyu-yeong slowly shook his head.
If the vested interests are going to come this way anyway, there is no need to take them all at once.
If you receive everything now, you will be well off for now, but Kim Gap-du’s position in the club will be greatly shaken, and the club president may be replaced in the second semester.
There was absolutely no guarantee that the new club president would be friendly to Dang Gyu-yeong and the Thieves’ Club.
On the other hand, if he slowly takes over one by one, it will be relatively easy for Kim Gap-doo to control public opinion within the club, so his position will be secured until graduation.
This is much more advantageous in terms of maintaining a smooth relationship with one club.
‘I’m not in a hurry either.’
The share promised in exchange for me showing some of my skills was a second semester special performance studio season pass and a production VIP ticket.
It’s only the middle of the first semester, so there’s no point in getting a second semester season pass, and it’s not too late to think about getting a production VIP ticket after you’ve collected all the materials.
Kim Gap-doo also expressed his gratitude, saying that he understood the above intentions.
“Thank you. Thanks to you, my neck will stay on.”
Then, he closed his mouth for a moment, stared at Dang Gyu-yeong, and then asked with a lonely expression.
“… … Is it really impossible for me to do it?”
“Yeah, I really hate it.”
Without a second of hesitation, Dang Gyu-yeong drove a nail into the toad’s chest.
Kim Gap-du’s face suddenly became miserable and he was on the verge of bursting into tears, but he barely managed to hold it back and returned to normal.
Dang Gyu-yeong, who had been watching the scene, answered again with a more serious attitude.
“I’m sorry. I don’t feel like it.”
“… … Then there’s nothing I can do, I understand. May you live a hundred years together, Dang Gyu-yeong.”
“A hundred years—”
After throwing out words that could easily be misunderstood, Kim Gap-du let out a deep sigh and turned his head towards me this time.
“Did you say Kim Ho?”
“Yes, senior.”
“I’d like to talk to you for a moment. Is that okay?”
“Yes, it’s okay.”
As I was following Kim Gap-doo to a corner of the arena, I heard Dang Gyu-yeong’s voice explaining earnestly behind me.
“We’re not like that. We’re not even close to that. Don’t misunderstand.”
“… … .”
Judging from the strange gazes of Kwak Ji-cheol and Song Cheon-hye, it was questionable whether the explanation was effective.
Still, I left the rest to Dang Gyu-yeong, thinking he would handle it well, and followed Kim Gap-du.
After walking for a while and making sure there was no one nearby to hear, Kim Gap-du opened his mouth to speak.
“You’re not an ordinary person. I didn’t know you could break the wall so easily.”
“It’s just a shallow trick. All you can do is run away diligently to avoid getting hit.”
“That’s what skill is. I don’t know how much more you’re hiding, but you can be proud of what you’ve shown today.”
Kim Gap-du seemed to have seen through the entire story of the battle, as expected of a third-year class president.
So I decided to stop being so humble and calmly accept the compliments.
“Thank you for your kind words.”
“With that kind of skill, you won’t get beaten up anywhere. However, you can’t predict the future. You always have to be prepared for the unexpected.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
“Have you prepared recovery potions?”
“I’m embarrassed to say, but I don’t have any.”
A very old-fashioned mindset that would rather not get hit in the first place than get hit and recover.
Also, recovery potions are more valuable than you might think, so it’s better to invest the resources you’d need to obtain them into spec-up.
However, Kim Gap-du was too old-fashioned to understand my state of mind, so his brows furrowed.
“In this regard, you are still complacent. Accept it.”
Then he took something out of his inventory and handed it over.
After receiving it, I checked and found that it was three small glass vials containing concentrated liquid.
[Popular Elixir (B)]*3
Elixirs are potions with such powerful recovery power that they are called extra lives.
Of course, this is a popular model, so its effectiveness is considerably lower than that of the genuine product, but it can still treat most wounds in an instant.
It is a higher level than the hyper potion that Shin Byeong-cheol used to treat Ko Hyeon-woo’s internal injuries in Heuksabang.
That’s three in all.
“I don’t understand your intentions in giving me such a precious item.”
“I’m not giving it to you because you’re pretty. I’m giving it to you so that you don’t get hurt and worry, and so that you can always stay by Dang Gyu-yeong’s side and use it if he’s ever in danger.”
So, the toad senior grumbled, telling me to keep it for a while and not waste it.
I upgraded my evaluation of Kim Kap-doo one notch higher.
Even if we leave aside the fact that there is a huge misunderstanding between me and Dang Gyu-young,
It is extremely rare for someone to give up a precious item out of concern for the person they are in love with.
Especially, how many people would be willing to give out powerful potions like elixirs, which are not even good enough to use directly?
I hope that Dang Gyu-young will do well even if he is with someone other than himself.
Kim Gap-du was a toad with a very hot heart.
“I will use it well. Thank you.”
“… … Keep it a secret from Dang Gyu-young. I’m going now.”
Kim Gap-du didn’t even properly accept my thanks, turned his back, and quickly walked away.
I looked at his back and cheered him on in my heart.
‘I hope we have a good relationship someday.’
* * *
The mentoring session had passed, and everyone was quite tired from the 4-on-4 match against Kim Gap-du’s team, so they all went their separate ways to take a break.
Dang Gyu-young and I were the only ones left, sitting side by side in the arena audience.
“What did Kim Gap-doo say?”
“Nothing much, just a quick chat about interpersonal skills.”
“Aren’t you going to say anything useless?”
“You just said a lot of nice things to me.”
He also gave me three good elixirs.
However, this was not mentioned for now at Kim Gap-du’s request.
“I see. He is a good guy.”
Dang Gyu-yeong seemed to have accepted it and moved on.
Even though I didn’t feel like getting close to Kim Gap-doo, my usual perception of him seemed to be just okay.
“… … .”
“… … .”
There was silence between us for a while.
Dang Gyu-yeong stared at the stadium with a more complicated expression than usual, and occasionally tilted his head toward me to look at me.
“What are you thinking about?”
“I just have a lot on my mind.”
This senior is also human, so even if he doesn’t care about Kim Gap-du, he won’t be able to immediately forget what happened today as if it never happened.
“There is a very effective solution for that.”
“… … What is it?”
I answered Dang Gyu-yeong, who asked in a curious tone, in a very serious tone.
“It’s sparring. When you move your body vigorously, all distracting thoughts will fly away.”
“… … .”
Dang Gyu-young smiled broadly.
Then he slowly brought both his hands to my face and grabbed both my cheeks.
“You only have couplets in your head, you punk.”
“Ugh, juntz, ttung-httung-deng-yo (This really works).”
Dang Gyu-yeong looked at me with eyes that said he was going to die from hatred and pulled at my cheekbones.
They say it’s soft and chewy so it’s good to eat, but these days it’s become a total habit.
Then, he bursts into laughter and sits up from his seat.
“Okay, let’s go and stretch.”
We entered the stadium through a teleportation magic circle and stood face to face.
Soon, Dang Gyu-yeong came charging forward with a terrifying momentum, clutching a shadow hammer as big as his upper body.
As I cast the Thief’s Step and take a step back, I land on the ground with a thud just in time.
“You’re being a bit reckless today.”
“If you’re going to loosen up, you better do it properly. This really works.”
“That’s what I said.”
Dang Gyu-yeong already seemed to be feeling much more at ease.
As I continued to back away, Dang Gyu-yeong forcefully threw the hammer that had been hitting the floor.
The shadow hammer that was flying around in a circular motion split into small pieces and rained down various shadow weapons.
In response, as I pointed my root forward, the wind gathered and spread outwards, creating a strong whirlwind.
-Whew!
Because of that, the shadow magic that had been pouring down scattered in all directions, but then changed shape again and became a dozen or so shadow butterflies fluttering and flying towards me.
I continued to back away, rooting myself up, and again a whirlwind formed ahead, drawing the shadow butterflies into its center.
-Whew!
The lump of shadows that had been gathered together became longer and longer this time, and Dang Gyu-yeong slashed the shadow sword that had been created in this way.
The movements are dynamic, similar to swinging a hammer, but the tone is casual as usual.
“Come to think of it, you didn’t forget to go out together this weekend, did you?”
“How could you forget just because it’s been a few days since we talked? You said it was club work.”
“Yeah, it’ll be fun even if you just follow me. You can look forward to it.”
Dang Gyu-yeong smiled confidently.
The intention of this tour is to arouse my interest and make me join the Thieves’ Club.
Unfortunately, I was too worn-out to be interested in such things.
I also realized a long time ago that the event they were preparing was a black market.
Nevertheless, it was true that expectations were high.
Although it is a bit different from Dang Gyu-young’s intention.
‘There’s a lot to pick up and eat if you go there.’
More than just a temporary storage facility.
