Chapter 153

I still remember that pain.

The feeling of something being implanted in my abdomen without anesthesia, and the excruciating pain of having one eye ripped out raw.

In a situation where I couldn’t even scream, I eventually passed out from the pain—that’s my last memory.

“Huuuuk—!”

I woke up screaming, feeling as if I were reliving that agony.

“Huff… hoo…”

‘At least I’m alive.’

Thankfully, I wasn’t in that place anymore.

‘Where am I? What happened?’

Suddenly, I noticed something strange about my body. Among other things, the most obvious was…

‘I’ve almost lost vision in one eye.’

My left eye was messed up. If I closed my right eye and tried to see with just the left, everything was blurry.

‘Damn it…’

“L-Lee Yun-seong?”

‘Huh?’

I turned my head toward the voice and saw Wi Ho-yeon staring at me with wide eyes.

“L-Lee Yun-seong! You’re awake! How’s your body?!”

I was momentarily taken aback by her attitude, but then I understood the situation.

‘Ah, from the clan members’ perspective, I’ve come back from the dead.’

“Ugh…!”

Even though there were no visible wounds on my body, the phantom pain from my eye and abdomen lingered, likely due to the horrific pain I’d endured.

Honestly, I’m not particularly strong-willed—I’m more on the average side.

So, having one eye ripped out raw and my abdomen cut open, it’s no wonder I’m feeling phantom pain.

“Lee Yun-seong, are you in pain? Why all of a sudden…”

“No, no. What about the others…”

As if sensing my curiosity, Wi Ho-yeon answered.

“The others are currently cleaning up the situation and holding a meeting. I stayed behind in the tent to take care of you.”

‘…At least they kept their promise.’

Since I accepted the proposal, it seems Aditi stepped back as promised.

Wi Ho-yeon noticed something strange and asked me a question.

“Lee Yun-seong, but why is your left eye…”

“Ah…”

‘Damn it, is it that obvious?’

From the way Wi Ho-yeon asked, it seemed like it was noticeable just from my appearance.

“…..”

When I didn’t answer, Wi Ho-yeon pressed further.

“Lee Yun-seong, why is your left eye… why is it like that? How…”

“…Ho-yeon, does my left eye look off?”

“Well… it’s very blurry. If your pupil was originally close to black, now it’s more gray. It’s like you’ve lost vision… huh?”

“…..”

“Lee Yun-seong, don’t tell me…?”

“Yes, I can barely see out of my left eye.”

“That’s…”

Since there was no point in hiding it, I just told her the truth.

And honestly, losing one eye isn’t the end of the world.

It might sound like a mental victory, but I’d rather lose an eye than an arm.

‘Besides, Lee Jae-hyo also lost an eye in this battle. Honestly, this is a small price to pay.’

Losing vision in one eye is unfortunate, but compared to what I gained, it’s not a huge loss.

‘At least I didn’t lose my abilities.’

[A Myth Grade entity has forcibly created a new organ in your body. For more details, please check your unique traits.]

[Unique Traits]

[Vessel of Gluttony (Myth Grade) – An organ that endlessly craves magical power. It generates its own magical power and absorbs surrounding magical energy. Permanently increases your magical circulation and boosts your magical stats by 20.]

[Contract with Aditi (Legend Grade) – Aditi can see the world through your eye.]

‘This is insane.’

A Myth Grade trait, no less. For the price of one eye, I’m more than satisfied.

‘And I also got materials that will help with chimera creation.’

At this point, I feel like bowing to Aditi, that monster.

However, Wi Ho-yeon, who doesn’t know I gained from losing an eye, is completely distraught over the fact that I’ve lost vision in one eye.

“H-How… how… It’s my fault. I’m sorry… so sorry. I failed to protect you again. I…”

‘No, Ho-yeon, this is a win. I hit the jackpot.’

“How can I take responsibility… I can’t face you or the Clan Master. It’s because of my inadequacy…”

With a blank expression, Wi Ho-yeon kneeled and pressed her forehead to the ground.

Suddenly, she was bowing deeply to me.

“No, wait, hold on. Why are you doing this again?!”

‘How many times is this now?!’

“…I’ll take responsibility no matter what. I’ll take responsibility for the rest of Lee Yun-seong’s life.”

‘What kind of crazy talk is this?!’

“What… Ho-yeon, why are you doing this? Over something like this, why would you take responsibility for my life…”

“Lee Yun-seong, losing an eye is not something to take lightly. Imagine if you were a swordsman. Would losing an eye not affect your combat ability?”

“Uh…”

‘Well, when you put it that way, she’s not wrong…’

“It’s no exaggeration—if a bodyguard fails to protect their charge and the charge loses an eye, it’s usually punishable by death.”

“What do you mean, death?!”

I was utterly baffled by her words.

“Or… perhaps it’s better if I just die…”

“What kind of nonsense is that? Why would I kill you?”

I was genuinely shocked by what she said.

‘Kill her? What the hell… am I some kind of king?’

Looking at it, Wi Ho-yeon’s values seem to be stuck in the Joseon Dynasty.

“Then… I have a duty to take responsibility for Lee Yun-seong.”

“Sigh… Ho-yeon, are you my parent or something? Fine, let’s say you’ll take responsibility. How exactly do you plan to do that? Should I sue you for damages?”

I wasn’t serious, but she seemed to take my words to heart.

“…I don’t have money, but there’s one thing I can offer.”

“No, I get it, so let’s just get up first. Stop this…”

“I’ll give you the rest of my life…”

“What, what?”

For a moment, I thought I misheard her.

“What are you… what did you just say? Did I hear that right?”

“…Yes. I said I’ll dedicate the rest of my life to you.”

“What…”

I was completely dumbfounded.

“I’m an outlaw…”



“Even when Lee Yun-seong was attacked, I couldn’t protect him. At that time, I promised to rescue him, but I failed to keep that promise.”

“That is…”

‘Are you still holding onto that?’

“A mistake is enough once. But this is already the second time I couldn’t protect Lee Yun-seong. As a guard, a second mistake is unacceptable.”

‘No, lady. It’s not your fault I lost an eye.’

I couldn’t tell her that I lost an eye in exchange for tearing my stomach to gain a new organ. It was such a frustrating situation.

Actually, I lost my eye due to a deal, but Wi Ho-yeon had no way of knowing that.

“Since Lee Yun-seong doesn’t intend to hold me accountable, I will repay him for my mistake in my own way.”

After finishing her words, Wi Ho-yeon stood up. She bowed her head to me and continued.

“Then, I will call the others.”

“Ah…”

Before I could say anything, Wi Ho-yeon left the room.

******

“Yoon Seong!”

I was taken aback by Seo Yoo-ju’s reaction upon seeing me.

She ran to me and hugged me tightly.

The sudden physical contact was a bit awkward, but I thought comforting her was the priority, so I spoke up.

“Haha… Yoo-ju, I’m fine.”

“Sniff… Still, still, I’m glad you’re safe. Really…”

‘She must have been really worried.’

“Why… why did you shield me like that? It was too reckless! What if something had happened to you…!”

Even though I was being scolded after saving her, I didn’t feel too bad.

“Well… my body just moved on its own. I’m sorry for worrying you, Yoo-ju.”

“Sniff… Why are you apologizing, Yoon Seong? I’m… I’m the one who should be sorry…”

I patted Seo Yoo-ju’s back.

“What are you two doing…”

Just as Kang I-seo was about to say something upon seeing us.

“Master, it seems Lee Yun-seong is in distress. Since he’s a patient, it would be best to let him rest. He needs to recover.”

Wi Ho-yeon stepped in and separated Seo Yoo-ju from me.

“……”

‘What the…’

Seo Yoo-ju was staring blankly at Wi Ho-yeon.

Instinctively, I could sense that the atmosphere was off.

The other clan members also seemed flustered by the sudden tension.

‘Why are you guys acting like this?’

I had no choice but to speak up quickly.

“Ah! So, what’s the situation now?”

“Oppa, is that important right now? You almost died… huh? Oppa, what’s wrong with your left eye?”

At Yoo Rim’s words, everyone turned to look at me.

Until now, Seo Yoo-ju had been hugging me, so they couldn’t see, but now my left eye’s condition was visible.

“What? Hey, what’s wrong with your left eye?!”

“Brother’s eye…”

‘Damn it, this is driving me crazy.’

I was already tired from dealing with Wi Ho-yeon about this earlier, so I was reluctant to bring it up again.

Naturally, Seo Yoo-ju had the most emotional reaction.

“Y-Yoon Seong, what’s wrong with your eye?”

“Ah… well…”

As I struggled to answer, Wi Ho-yeon answered for me.

“Lee Yun-seong… has lost vision in his left eye.”

“What… lost vision…”

Seo Yoo-ju looked as if the world had ended. Anyone would think she was the one who lost her vision, not me.

“How… how…”

“I don’t know the details, but it seems to have happened inside that cocoon. I don’t know the exact cause. But since it’s only the left eye, there’s no need to worry too much. It’s not a big deal.”

“Not a big deal?! Do you know what it means for Yoon Seong to lose his vision on this continent?!”

‘… She’s saying the same thing as Wi Ho-yeon.’

I guess since I’m not a frontline fighter, and Seo Yoo-ju and Wi Ho-yeon are, their opinions differ.

“Well, it’s still better than losing an arm…”

“… Are you seriously saying that?!”

‘Why are you raising your voice at me? Yoo-ju noona, I ended up like this because I tried to save you.’

“Sigh… So, should I not have saved Yoo-ju?”

I ended up muttering without realizing it.

The problem was Seo Yoo-ju’s reaction.

She looked as if the sky had fallen, completely at a loss.

“Ah… ah…”

It probably dawned on her that the reason I lost my vision was fundamentally because I tried to save her.

I realized I had made a mistake seeing Seo Yoo-ju’s expression.

‘Damn it…’

“… I misspoke, Yoo-ju. That wasn’t my true intention.”

“Ah…”

‘Damn it, why is she acting so scary?’

It felt like she had malfunctioned.

“Yoo-ju? Yoo-ju?!”

“Ah… It’s my fault. That’s right. It’s because of me that you ended up like this…”

“No, I didn’t mean it was your fault.”

“No. If you look at the facts, it’s ultimately because of me that Yoon Seong ended up like this. Because of me…”

“Hey, Yoo-ju noona. Yoon Seong didn’t mean it like that, he’s just annoyed because we’re bothering him. Right, hyung?”

‘Thanks, Hyeon-jin.’

I quickly nodded at Hyeon-jin’s words.

“Really…?”

“Yes, exactly as Hyeon-jin said. How could I possibly blame Yoo-ju? I actually think it’s fortunate. After all, Yoo-ju is safe.”

“Yoon Seong…”

Seo Yoo-ju seemed deeply moved.

‘Damn, Hyeon-jin, I’ll do something for you later.’

I was really grateful to Hyeon-jin for stepping in at the right moment.