I Gave Up Being Stronger

‘Isn’t this Cier’s Mystery?’ Cha Jin-Hyeok recognized this Mystery as one famously wielded by Cier, a Martial Artist hailed as the best evader in the universe, before Jin-Hyeok’s regression. ‘Ah… no wonder!’

The first time Jin-Hyeok had faced Cier, he had thought, ‘He is weaker than I expected.’ If suppressing Cier with money had been impossible, Jin-Hyeok would have considered fighting him.

‘I guess Cier has yet to get to the Mystery at this point in his life.’ Suddenly, he got an urge to fight Cier, which startled him. ‘How can I think like that? How can I be so cowardly?’

Previously, Jin-Hyeok used to seek out only the strong. However, he knew that, as a wise person had once said, humans were creatures of change and adaptation.

‘I’m a Streamer now. It should be natural for me not to think of fighting him.’ Jin-Hyeok had almost fallen back into his old mindset from his Sword King days.

After collecting his thoughts, Jin-Hyeok moved forward. “I will take this Myst—”

Seeing Jin-Hyeok suddenly stop, Han Sae-Rin asked. “What’s wrong?”

“It looks like something else is beneath this Mystery.” His Broadcaster’s Insight had caught something faint, like an abnormality in space.

“Oh, you’re right. Wait, I will check it out.” Sae-Rin inspected the floor, making sure not to touch the Mystery.

-If I were her, I would have pretended it was an accident and taken the Mystery.

-They said that’s a Mythic Mystery, right?

-People even kill their kin over such Mysteries, LOL.

-Chul-Soo is allowing her to get close to the Mystery, and Sae-Rin is being cautious. They are both from another world. LOL

-But they still look awesome. Totally romantic.

Unintentionally impressing the viewers, Sae-Rin touched the floor and stood up after a while. “It looks like a secret passage, hidden using the Mystery.”

Being a former Pathfinder, she understood what this meant. “If you consume the Mystery, the Dungeon will automatically disappear.”

JinHyeok was at a crossroads. “Should I explore the hidden passage and uncover something unknown, or should I safely consume the Mystery… It’s a battle of choice.”

His heart pounded. He didn’t know the actual number, but numerous competitors were likely rushing toward this Dungeon. Many had already entered it.

“If I were still a combatant-class Player, I would have secured the Mystery first,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Earlier, he had a moment of realization: he was no longer the Sword King; he was a Streamer, someone who should pursue fun. Exploring the Dungeon would undoubtedly lead to more entertainment.

‘I’m not doing it for me. I’m doing it for the Chul-Soo Landers’ joy.’ Jin-Hyeok resolved his intentions.

Sae-Rin softly sighed. “Right, I thought you might do that. I will keep watch here.”

She was also a Chul-Soo Lander. This Mystery was meant for Chul-Soo to consume.

‘I must protect this Mystery for him.’

“I can use some barriers with my skills as a Ruler. If we utilize that giant door, we might be able to buy some time,” she added.

“Thank you.”

“If you really are thankful, buy me dinner.”

Jin-Hyeok grinned. “I will enter the hidden passage. We need to hurry if we don’t want anyone else to get the Mystery.”

It was a race against time. The viewers could perfectly feel the suspense.

***

Kim Min-Ji abruptly stood up. Even Choi Gap-Soo felt a slight tension in her determined demeanor. He asked, “Um… are you okay?”

“That’s Hell, right? And they are inside an Artificial Dungeon? I know it’s a bizarre place hidden by that Mystery. It’s not a normal place, right?”

“Yes.”

“In such a suspicious place, even if I interfere a bit, no one would notice, right?”

Gap-Soo had a different thought. Due to how suspicious the Dungeon was, the GMs could be managing it directly.

“Answer me,” Min-Ji said.

“You’re right. No one would notice.”

“Good, I knew it. Since Sae-Rin is a Barrier Mage, she can help us in case we leave a trace.”

“When did Sae-Rin become a Barrier Mage?”

“With that giant door there, if I tweak the settings just a bit, no one will be able to get through.”

“Huh.”

Min-Ji disappeared somewhere before Gap-Soo could even respond.

The god known as Chul-Soo Land No.1 had made her move.

***

“It’s similar to the space we encountered earlier,” Jin-Hyeok said.

A dark, narrow, and long passage lay before him. He did not sense any traps. However, the walls appeared to subtly tremble.

“This structure can collapse over time.” While there was a risk of him being crushed, Jin-Hyeok was slightly disappointed. “All in all, this is just a straightforward path.”

However, for the average viewers, it was a bit different.

-Guys, don’t be fooled. A collapsing structure is a real threat.

-Normally, this should be a thrilling situation.

They also pointed out the facts.

-A Mythic Mystery had disguised the entrance, and it could be discovered through only Chul-Soo’s Broadcaster’s Insight and Sae-Rin’s skills as a Ruler. Isn’t that already extraordinary?

-That’s not all. Everyone forgets that Chul-Soo broke through that question-marked probability.

-Even numerous rankers are storming in there.

-If you watch BongMiNaTV, you can see at least dozens of them.

The alliance of Brick and Black Thorn Alliance had stopped most of these Players. Only a few could enter the Dungeon, but the giant door blocked their way.

-Chul-Soo opened that door all by himself, didn’t he?

-There are so many people in front of the door, but they can’t open it!

Even famous Barrier Mages could not open the door.

-That’s not how you open that door.

-Chul-Soo: Just push it. It’s so easy.

The consensus was that it just needed a forceful push. Rankers, confident in their strength, tried pushing the door with all their might, but it did not budge.

-Does that even make sense?

-How can Chul-Soo be stronger than all of them combined?

Anxious Mages suggested blowing up the door, which escalated into another conflict. Some of them were worried about the Mystery being damaged and who would be responsible if the Dungeon collapsed.

“Move aside, moly! I am going to see Chul-Soo, moly!” Mole Woman suddenly appeared at the scene. She had to be faster than Lessefim at least.

“Hey, can’t you see that giant door?”

Mole Woman ran toward the door. It sort of looked like an egg flying toward a rock.

“Huh?”

“Hey!”

Something strange happened. Mole Woman just passed right through the door. The rankers hurriedly followed her, but the result was different.

“ARGH!”

“Ouch! I almost cracked my forehead.”

They ended up with bumps on their forehead.

After passing the giant door, Mole Woman met Sae-Rin. She did not ask Sae-Rin any obvious questions about how her barrier abilities had become so strong or how she was holding off so many rankers alone while allowing her through. Mole Woman only asked, “Is Lessefim here?”

“No, not yet.”

“Then it’s fine, moly! So, Chul-Soo went down there, moly?” Mole Woman was in a hurry. She had to reach Chul-Soo faster than Lessefim.

“Be careful, Mole Woman! If you touch the Mystery… oh, nothing happens?” Sae-Rin said.

Something was off. In haste, Mole Woman had touched the Mystery, but it didn’t disappear with her.

Soon, she met Jin-Hyeok. “Chul-Soo, it looks like you are having some trouble, moly!”

“Huh?”

Jin-Hyeok was surprised that Mole Woman had arrived before Lessefim. ‘Is Lessefim occupied with something else?’

Regardless, it was good for his livestream. Mole Woman’s appearance itself would cause a spike in his viewership. She was clad in a form-fitting leather suit that showcased her voluptuous figure.

“Just trust me, moly.”

As Mole Woman thumped her chest, the chat on Wang Yu-Mi’s channel erupted.

-Look at the size of that personality!

-A woman should have a big pair of personality.

-I’ve never seen such a beautiful personality before.

Others replied to these comments.

-The chat is so gross.

-What’s all this talk about her personality?

-The chat is so toxic right now.

Mole Woman moved closer to Jin-Hyeok, appearing larger due to the livestream’s first-person perspective.

“Many viewers must be mesmerized by my beautiful appearance, moly.” Mole Woman smiled broadly, striking a pose like she were a fashion model. “Feel free to admire, moly!”

Then she looked at Jin-Hyeok with twinkling eyes.

[#How about it? #For your channel. #Clickbait. #I am a better Navigator than Lessefim!]

Jin-Hyeok had to admit Mole Woman’s thoughts contained some truths. Videos featuring Mole Woman indeed tended to garner more views on Eltube.

“Mole Woman. Right now, I can’t find anything special here,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“Wait a moment, I smell something, moly.” Mole Woman sniffed the ground and then began digging. “Just wait a moment, moly!”

After a while, she unearthed a small chest. “It seems like this space is hidden for this, moly!”

In truth, following the path normally would have led to the chest. Jin-Hyeok had faintly realized this but did not mind Mole Woman’s actions. Obtaining the chest this way was more dramatic.

He pretended to be surprised as he reached out his hand. “It’s all thanks to you, Mole Woman.”

“This is nothing, moly!”

***

Like most chests, this one was sealed with a barrier.

“Although it seems like you have to spend time exploring this area to gather clues and unlock it, we do not have that luxury right now. We need to quickly take what we can from here and go up to acquire the Mystery,” Jin-Hyeok said.

-You’re lying. Even if you had the time, you wouldn’t explore!

-Shhh. Let’s just pretend we don’t know.

Jin-Hyeok lifted Miri and said, “Miri can freely use the powers I possess. I think that Miri is using me as a medium to draw out and utilize my powers. This time, I will use the power of the Unleashing Technique.”

Using the Unleashing Technique, he forcefully struck the lock, and it shattered.

-Wow, that worked again?

-It works every time. LOL

-Isn’t this an Artificial Dungeon?

-I can hear the cry of injustice from the person who designed this Dungeon, LOL!

-That person is about to burst out of his coffin to tell how wrong this is.

“There is a key. It seems like the designer of this Dungeon loves question marks,” Jin-Hyeok said.

[?’s Key]

It was shrouded by a special setting.

“Let’s use the Unleashing Technique once more.” This time, Jin-Hyeok struck it more gently.

[Marlenvia’s Underground Warehouse Key]

“We’ve discovered the name!”

-That was easy.

-What is Marlenvia’s Underground Warehouse?

Although it was unclear who or what Marlenvia’s Underground Warehouse was, it seemed they had obtained everything possible from this place.

“Let’s head up now. We need to hurry.”

Jin-Hyeok was genuinely concerned about the Mystery. The viewers, who shared in the excitement and remained glued to the livestream, could also feel the tension.

Then, a rope descended from the ceiling.

“Chul-Soo! Climb up!”

It was Lessefim.

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