After a few more days passed, Seo Ye-in’s ultra-first kill move penalty was lifted.

On top of that, her obsession eased up noticeably, because the side effects of “Dang Eunbi Potion No. 2” had finally worn off.

The problem was... the “pep-you-up” effect disappeared too.

In one corner of the training grounds, a single sloth was °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° sprawled facedown.

“......”

Next to her, the hologram Seo Ye-in was squatting alone.

She’d revived again through Challenge Austerity.

Poking the sloth over and over, she asked—

Not doing it?

“Later......”

Ahn Jeongmi added a line in an intentionally strict tone.

“My lady, didn’t you promise? That you’d work hard.”

“I wanna go home......”

She was so sick of everything that it looked like she didn’t even care about conditions anymore.

And winter break had already gone by quite a bit, too.

Ahn Jeongmi tried persuading her again.

“Kim Ho is watching as well. Please, just a little more effort.”

“Later......”

Maybe because she’d been getting more than enough attention lately, she seemed less greedy.

Or maybe she really was just that annoyed.

From Ahn Jeongmi’s perspective, there was nothing else she could do now.

Watching, Dang Gyu-young and Zhuge Soso traded a couple lines.

“And with that, the age of ‘I can’t......’ is over.”

“A rival has voluntarily dropped out.”

“Behold, the era of Soso-Gyu is upon us.”

“Huh? It’s the Soso-Soso era.”

“......?”

Dang Gyu-young’s eyes narrowed.

Then, in a calm voice, they warned her.

“Zhuge Soso. If you keep smacking the back of my head, our friendship can’t last forever.”

“Dang Gyu-young, as you know, I don’t have much time left, do I? This time, you give way.”

“I don’t have time either. Break is already short.”

Dang Gyu-young grumbled.

With the Dragonslayer Academy guard job and the re-enrollment issue to handle, they were planning to enter Dungeon Island before break ended.

Zhuge Soso shot back.

“Either way, you’ll see Kim Ho once classes start. I won’t.”

“.......”

Dang Gyu-young shut their mouth, apparently thinking she had a point.

Zhuge Soso smiled softly.

“I’m borrowing him for a second.”

“......Hold on. Why do I have to lend him out? This isn’t some Kim Ho bus. That’s straight-up freeloading.”

“......You’re annoyingly quick on the uptake!”

“You’re always like this! Hey!”

The two started bickering again.

I slipped in between them and asked Zhuge Soso.

“Is it because you have something to say?”

“Yeah. At least once before I go.”

“Once is fine.”

I had something I wanted to ask too.

So after getting permission from the sulking Dang Gyu-young, we set up a separate spot.

We sat facing each other, sipping coffee for a bit, and Zhuge Soso seemed to settle back into her usual calm, gentle demeanor.

Maybe she realized it too, because she gave a wry smile.

“If it were any other time, I would’ve explained properly and Gyu would’ve understood. But we always end up fighting. I get childish for no reason.”

“Doesn’t that just mean you’re that close and comfortable?”

“Yeah. One-of-a-kind friends.”

Zhuge Soso nodded with a smile.

Then she continued with a subtle look.

“And this whole ‘Kim Ho bus’ thing... if I talk about it seriously, I think Gyu would accept it. We’d bicker a bit, but still.”

“Probably.”

“What do you think? About the relationship between the three of us.”

In the end, my opinion mattered most—since I was the driver of that so-called Kim Ho bus.

I answered in an even tone.

“I don’t try to block people who come toward me. But it’s not like I just accept anyone without thinking, either.”

“......So you’re saying you don’t hate it?”

As Zhuge Soso’s lips curved into a smile, I tossed the question back.

“What about you, noona? Sometimes I can’t tell if you’re joking or if you mean it.”

“.......”

Zhuge Soso sipped her coffee in silence for a while.

Then she turned her head and stared into the distance before speaking.

“......Honestly, it’s both. It’s fun, and I do like you. But I don’t know for sure either.”

“That’s how people’s hearts are.”

“Yeah. That’s why I think it’s a shame. If I had more time, there would’ve been more chances to get to know you.”

If she’d been sure, she might’ve re-enrolled with Gyu too? 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Zhuge Soso added it playfully.

I nodded in agreement.

“Still, you’ll have chances to see us from time to time.”

“Come see me. During break, or on a dispatch mission.”

“If I end up on the Murim Alliance side, I’ll contact you.”

At my words, Zhuge Soso’s eyes narrowed.

“......Somehow that sounds like ‘we’ll see’ to me? You caught your fish and now you’re acting like this?”

“You have to set priorities clearly.”

With all the places I had to go for world peace, I couldn’t just keep hanging around the Murim Alliance.

And going just to hang out was even less possible.

“You’re surprisingly cold when it comes to this.”

“Given the situation, what can I do? Still, later on, we’ll see each other more often.”

“Why later?”

“Because world peace might come. Or I might graduate.”

Zhuge Soso’s eyes narrowed again.

“Are you telling me to wait two years?”

“Like I said, it could be earlier.”

“But I still have to wait.”

“If you can’t wait, then there’s nothing I can do.”

We didn’t have enough certainty about each other yet.

I couldn’t just force it.

Naturally, Zhuge Soso looked extremely dissatisfied.

Arms crossed, she glared at me—then, as if an idea hit her, she raised her eyebrows.

“Kim Ho.”

“Yes, noona.”

“Then let’s confirm just one thing.”

“What is it?”

Zhuge Soso leaned toward me and stuck out her cheek.

“One kiss.”

“What does kissing have to do with waiting?”

“It has a lot to do with it.”

Zhuge Soso set her face into a dead-serious expression.

“Watching Sloth and Gyu like it so much... I figured if I get a kiss too, I might lean toward waiting. Maybe.”

“That feels forced.”

“Hurry and try it! I don’t have time!”

Zhuge Soso kept pointing at her cheek with her finger.

And with her mouth, she added sound effects.

“Tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock~”

There wasn’t even one percent mood to be found, but a kiss wasn’t exactly something I couldn’t do.

Feelings had built up, in their own way, up to now.

So I pushed aside the question of whether this was right, and lightly pressed my lips to Zhuge Soso’s cheek.

“.......”

“.......”

A brief silence drifted through the air.

Zhuge Soso pulled out a fan for no reason and began fanning herself slowly.

It was still winter and chilly, yet she looked like she was feeling warm.

I asked her.

“Do you feel like waiting now?”

“About six months? No, I’ll be generous and make it eight.”

“Why eight months?”

Zhuge Soso covered her mouth with the fan as she answered.

“Come renew it before that.”

*****

Just as Mo Yongjun had said, the Murim Alliance delegation left the Dang family before long.

Until the very last moment, the Sword Saint maintained an exceptionally courteous attitude toward me, and said—

“I truly hope you accomplish what you seek.”

“Thank you. I also pray you find achievement, Sword Saint.”

“My thanks.”

Mo Yongjun smiled awkwardly as we shook hands.

“Let’s see each other when classes start.”

“Let’s do that. Get home safe.”

Zhuge Soso and Dang Gyu-young bickered all the time, but when it came time to part, they both looked genuinely regretful.

“If you go, what am I supposed to do alone when I’m bored?”

“I’ve been having fun lately too.”

“I’ll message you.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll come by a lot too.”

And just like that, the Dang family—briefly crowded—became quiet again.

And we returned to our own daily lives.

Meaning we practically lived on the training grounds and trained.

Seo Ye-in made it very obvious how annoyed she was, but in the end she cleared the Challenge Austerity quest anyway—and as expected, the reward that came out was—

[Legendary Unique Skillbook Fragment C]

Unfortunately, C wasn’t the end, but out of basic decency, I figured it would wrap up around D or E.

Dang Gyu-young also powered up through Challenge Austerity, and even used the necromancer grimoire they’d received from the Elder Council Head.

▷[Shadow Extraction] [4/5]

Lab Director (A)

Dark-Shadow Commander (A)

Blood Sword Commander (A+)

Ghost Demon (A)

(None)

I powered up too.

[‘Sylphid’ rank will increase. (B+→A+)]

[‘Movement Command’ rank will increase. (D→C)]

▷Forced-Movement Resistance Penetration Rank 2

▷Additional penetration Rank 2 every 3→1 minutes

The penetration itself stayed the same, but the cooldown dropped dramatically, so the additional penetration effect would trigger far more often.

Even so, time kept flowing fast.

Winter break felt like it was ending... but it wasn’t over yet—an awkward in-between point.

Dang Gyu-young started preparing to leave.

Because for re-enrollment, they had to enter Dungeon Island early.

So the rest of us began discussing schedules too.

We’d come here following Dang Gyu-young in the first place—so it would look strange if only we stayed behind at the Dang family.

Meanwhile, Ahn Jeongmi made Seo Ye-in a proposal.

“My lady, how about stopping by Hyeseong for the remaining time, at least?”

“Not bad......”

“They say the madam will be staying there briefly as well.”

“Mom too.”

Those gray eyes sparkled.

She’d followed me here, putting everything else aside—but it seemed she’d still wanted to be with her family, deep down.

And yet she didn’t seem willing to give me up either, because she tugged at my sleeve.

“Come with me.”

“Not sure.”

But I held off on answering.

Following blindly was the worst play.

If there was a way to use even this short time more efficiently, it was right to switch routes toward that.

To confirm, I asked Ahn Jeongmi.

“Can you contact the Nether King Dragon for me?”

“They said he is away.”

“What is he doing?”

A strange look crossed Ahn Jeongmi’s face.

“From what I heard, he went to obtain materials. They said he’s making an item for you, Kim Ho.”

I already had a promise for a time-series item.

So it looked like he was out there bullying boss monsters again to “procure” materials... forcibly.

I nodded and asked again.

“Did he say when he would return?”

“Not for certain.”

Then the odds of receiving the item within winter break were extremely low.

There was no guarantee the Nether King Dragon would return on time, and I had to account for crafting time too.

If I went with them to Hyeseong, that meant I’d have to come by again later.

‘Somewhere else is better.’

I ran through the places I planned to visit someday.

For now, there were three big ones.

Ruby, Topaz, and the Emerald Mage Tower.

‘The last two aren’t urgent.’

The “tutoring reward” I was supposed to receive from the Song father and son could just be delivered through Song Cheonhye.

The Thunder Lord was worth meeting at least once—he was one of the strongest even among S-ranks—but that would pay off more after I grew even stronger.

Going to the Emerald Mage Tower was basically about meeting the Mountain-Giant Dragon that lived nearby.

More precisely, it was for strengthening Crow Tree.

But I still didn’t have enough materials prepared, and there was no way the Mountain-Giant Dragon would meet me just because I showed up.

So postponing that was the best play too.

‘Ruby would be an easy trip.’

I didn’t have anything promised there, but if I went, Hong Yeonhwa and that master? elder? number three? would welcome me.

If things went well, I might even pick up one or two hidden pieces.

So I took out the communications crystal orb.

‘I should ask Hong Yeonhwa.’

Whether it was okay to come visit.