Episode 38: Her Weakness
The lesson learned from this failure was obvious.
‘Comrades! Allies! Just gather anyone!!’
The first person I thought of, naturally, was Seop Baek.
My comrade, a senior knight, and the first friend I made in this world. Though they claimed combat wasn’t their specialty, they never said they couldn’t fight. Plus, they carried around a healing accessory – a Transparent Dragon with skills rivaling Hua Tuo.
Even waste has its use in medicine.
And yet, I had excluded such a useful person from the operation for the ridiculous reason that “their physical condition was still unstable.”
Did my past self carry around severed heads just to fill the empty space on my shoulders?
“Seop Baek! Help!”
Cutting straight to the point — strike while the iron’s hot.
I burst into Seop Baek’s room, asking for help as if retrieving a misplaced item, without any explanation of the situation, context, or circumstances.
“Um… Yes, yes. I don’t know what it’s about, but if it’s something Jung Yong needs, I have to help.”
However, Seop Baek stopped eating their meat stew mid-spoon, smiled brightly, and nodded.
Like an insurance advertisement where help is offered without questions, Seop Baek readily agreed to assist me. To show my gratitude without alerting Leira, I arranged to secretly send another pot of meat stew.
Seop Baek acted modestly with their usual, “Am I a pig or something?” But in the end, they polished off the pot I sent over.
The body doesn’t lie, after all.
‘So, Seop Baek is taken care of. Next, who’s left?’
A woman who currently boasts stats of 0 kills, 18 deaths, and 3 assists.
Her name is Leira.
Thick-skinned as she may be, ultimately, I had to return to Leira.
‘Damn… A thirsty man must dig a well; what choice do I have?’
That’s right. In the end, the one lacking manpower isn’t Leira — it’s me.
Leira is excessively strong for a common maid, and this is a fact. Given the current situation, we need help even if it’s just a cat’s paw. There’s no time for pride.
‘But I do have pride.’
One of the classic traits of a sucker: nothing to offer but plenty of pride – just like me.
I’ve already been rejected by Leira once. And out of misplaced pride, I refuse to grovel even in this life.
So, what should I do?
‘Exploit the opponent’s weakness.’
Thus, I targeted not ‘her’ but ‘him’ — precisely during Leira’s busy dinner preparation time.
“Good day, Senior.”
“…What brings you here?”
A damp, eerie underground prison.
I quietly stared at the bulky man locked inside the iron bars.
My negotiation partner: the senior knight, Guin.
He stared back silently, trying to figure out my intentions. His red eyes swept over me with a chilling gaze before he let out a low chuckle.
“A face that must carry a request.”
“Sharp as always. Were you a fortune-teller in the previous world?”
“I don’t know what you’re here for, but forget it. I’m a madman. I don’t even know when I might lose my mind. Some days, I lose it dozens of times.”
“I’ve heard all that, and it doesn’t matter. You’re just a means to an end. The real request lies with your girlfriend.”
At the mention of “girlfriend,” Guin’s face immediately contorted with demonic rage.
A truly deranged look, fitting of the word madman.
“I’m not locked up because I can’t leave this prison. If any harm were to come to her… you’d better prepare yourself.”
Guin’s eyes gleamed menacingly as he threatened me, as if ready to gnaw on my bones instantly.
What a load of crap. A guy without a girlfriend isn’t exactly going to cry out of sympathy.
I smirked and leaned my head closer through the bars.
“I’m about to hunt Eldritch.”
“…!!”
“I want you to pull your girlfriend into this hunt. That’s all I’m asking.”
Guin’s eyes widened as his crimson gaze pierced through me in the dim light. But his startled expression quickly shifted to mockery and then descent into contempt.
“I thought I was the madman. Now I see that madness is in the likes of you.”
“I’ve been called crazy a lot lately. Couple madness doubled equals extra irritation. Got it?”
People these days lack dreams and hope.
Frankly, I’m tired of this treatment. I’m a bit irritated. Every time I mention hunting Eldritch, I’m dismissed as crazy.
You all remain shackled in your limited thinking, bowing down to Eldritch.
“If you keep ignoring me, what will you do if I actually succeed?”
“Go ahead if you can. I’ll happily call you my son.”
“You’ll regret that until the day you die.”
“Blah blah.”
“Whether it’s nonsense or truth is something you’ll find out firsthand when you eat dog food later.”
“…”
“Anyway, you’re going to persuade her, right? I’m counting on you.”
Perhaps sensing something odd about my unwarranted confidence, Guin asked as I prepared to leave,
“…Do you have a trump card?”
“I do.”
“What is it?”
“Not telling.”
Was it because I refused so confidently that Guin’s face turned more bewildered than angry?
“Are you making a joke with me now?”
Slowly, he stood up. His hulking frame, large as Mount Tai, approached me and gripped the iron bars.
“….”
“….”
Up close, he was almost double my height.
He wasn’t an ordinary man. Of course not— he’s an Alternative Worlder. Maybe of the giant race?
I was a little scared. Make that very scared. But I feigned calmness and met his blazing red eyes.
“The moment I harbor murderous intent, I cannot control myself.”
“Like before when you flipped into Rage Mode?”
“That time, Leira managed to restrain me just in time before I broke the bars. But… she’s not here now.”
He might twist my neck any second.
Why complicate things? Just say it plainly. Are we at a political hearing now?
As I gave him a look of disdain, he slammed the iron bars with a resounding clang that echoed through the entire prison.
Guin glared at me with a chilling killing aura.
“Are you coercing me?”
“What? Coercion? I’m just making a proposition. Hop on the Jung Yong Coin train.”
“… What does that even mean?”
Dammit. I involuntarily let out technical jargon in frustration.
Anyway, I began explaining succinctly to Guin, who was clearly confused about the situation.
“I understand why you can’t trust me. I’ve heard everything about what happened here. Quite a rollercoaster ride you’ve had.”
“…So Leira went talking about unnecessary things again.”
“Hence, I’ve already given up trying to make you trust me.”
“Why is that?”
“You. No matter what kind of nonsense I might do, you won’t believe in me until the end, right?”
Guin didn’t say anything.
That’s right. That’s the truth.
I stepped closer to Guin, defying him, leaning my head forward.
“Did I misjudge something? Has your trust in me grown like a young sapling?”
Of course, if Guin decides to punch me and call me a fool, there’s a high probability I’ll lose my head right then and there considering his stats that I couldn’t still make out.
But persuasion is a show.
If I appear confident, the opponent won’t see me as weak. Risk-taking is inevitable.
This is the human principle I’ve learned in over two decades of being a sucker.
— Why are you looking at me like that?
— This isn’t betrayal from me.
— I never placed any trust in you to begin with.
… This was also the solution Halsenberg taught me 21 times for dealing with sewer situations, Guin.
“… Hrrggh….”
Guin clenched his fists momentarily but then slowly relaxed his grip, quietly observing me.
As expected, though predictable. Thankfully, I don’t have to worry about him breaking my head.
As I sighed in relief, Guin suddenly slouched, sitting down on the spot.
He looked up at me, now at eye level.
“… Knowing that I won’t trust you, and still making this proposition, is that so?”
“Yes.”
“Are you really…this confident?”
“Yes.”
His tone and expression had softened somewhat.
Not soft, but rather trembling internally.
I barely suppressed the triumphant grin threatening to break out on my face.
“What if what you’re saying is a lie?”
“Honestly, the chances of it being a lie are much higher than the truth?”
This was what tripped me up when persuading Halsenberg.
Without evidence, it’s impossible to prove I’m not lying. So, I didn’t lie.
This way, even if my words are baseless, there’s still a bit of credibility.
‘Right here.’
I immediately sensed it.
I needed to deliver the decisive blow. Transform Guin’s hesitation and distrust into hope and expectation.
Right here. I had to flip the script and turn the tide.
“Let’s be honest. I can’t give you trust. What I can offer you is something else.”
“What is it?”
“Harshenberg’s future and Leira’s smile.”
“Shit… The words taste bitter on my lips.”
Even recognizing the sincerity of my own words makes me want to throw up.
I admit, without reservation, if my head exploded for real, it’d be warranted. Guin, please smash my skull for this.
It’s too cheesy, I can’t take it. It feels like my limbs are being sucked into a spatiotemporal storm.
‘Restrain it, Jung Yong. Do you want to fail again? Think of something sad.’
But I suppressed it, keeping a serious expression. I hid the cold sweat and fired concentrated Trust Eye Beams at Guin.
Has heaven seen my earnest performance?
“… Hrrgh.”
Guin emitted a low groan.
Doubts started creeping into Guin’s eyes. His sinister red gaze aimlessly floated in the space for a moment.
“…Really.”
Suddenly, a sharp blue light returned to Guin’s eyes.
I didn’t miss it.
“Really. Can you… bring back a smile to Leira?”
“Yes.”
“Over years… no, over more than a decade, I’ve inflicted too many wounds. I couldn’t do anything.”
“I can.”
That’s enough. Let’s stop here.
Talking more would only reveal my hand. There’s a reason they say to leave when the applause peaks.
I turned around dramatically to walk away. I exaggerated my steps to ensure my footsteps echoed loud and clear in the prison.
“You’re free to distrust me. The choice, however, is yours.”
Even the final words hit perfectly. Damn, Jung Yong, you’re cool.
As I celebrated inwardly, I walked away, leaving Guin behind. The sound of my steps reverberating through the dark prison.
Guin remained lost in contemplation for a while, alone.
…….
….
… So how did it turn out?
How did it turn out?
“Hey… you… What did you tell Guin?”
That evening, the moment the checkpoint update ended, and Leira grabbed my collar, her reaction made it obvious.
The operation was a grand success.
The usually expressionless Leira was now red-faced and flustered. It felt like a decade-old blockage had cleared.
This must be how the old man in a toothpaste commercial felt.
Translation provided based on the glossary without commentary or notes.
