I Gave Up Being Stronger

Julius racked his brain faster than ever before. ‘Should I try to make a good impression? But do I really need to do that for Chul-Soo’s sister, rather than Chul-Soo himself? Would Chul-Soo even appreciate that? Perhaps he would prefer it if I gave her a fair challenge?’

He thought Kim Chul-Soo might be grateful if he helped toughen up the Saint of Freedom.

However, Julius couldn’t bring himself to breathe fire at Cha Jin-Sol.

On the other hand, Kim Min-Ji reacted differently.

“Jin-Sol Unnie!” she said.

“Oh, Min-Ji. How did you get there?” Jin-Sol asked.

Min-Ji and Jin-Sol were already on friendly terms, treating each other like close sisters.

“Well, Mr. Choi Gap-Soo and Director Jang Michelle helped me,” Min-Ji replied.

“Wow, I didn’t know the Trinity Club members could do that.” Jin-Sol’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Gap-Soo and Michelle, who were present at the back of the group.

Gap-Soo and Michelle could not hear this conversation, but they simply smiled in response.

“The Trinity Club is amazing, more than I thought,” Jin-Sol remarked.

“I know, right?”

Watching Min-Ji’s bright smile, Julius inwardly gnashed his teeth. ‘That detestable girl!’

Min-Ji had broken through to this place with her power, yet she used the Trinity Club members as an excuse. However, by observing Min-Ji’s attitude, Julius got a general idea of how he should act.

“Hello, my name is Julius,” he said.

“I saw you on my brother’s livestream. You’re the one from the second checkpoint, right? They called you the ferocious Fire Dragon…” Jin-Sol trailed off.

“No, I’m fairly nice. I even let all the intruders who entered my nest earlier go free. Did you see that happen?”

“Sorry, I didn’t.”

“That’s okay. It happens.”

Min-Ji let out a hollow laugh. She had barely stopped him from killing everyone, and now he was putting on this fake act.

“Hmm… that’s strange,” Jin-Sol said.

“What’s strange?” Julius asked.

“I have met someone who has experienced this place multiple times…”

“Oh, you mean that girl who plays the flute?”

“Yeah, that’s right. You remember her?”

“Of course! Her flute melody is incredibly beautiful.”

“Well, she said that as soon as she enters your nest, you start using your Dragon Fear…”

“She must have been hallucinating! The mana is so strong here that people often see illusions.”

“Ah, I see.”

Jin-Sol was a bit worried after the Flutist Healer Jasmine had warned her about the dangers in this Dungeon, but now she felt silly for worrying. In contrast to the rumors, she found the Fire Dragon kind and sociable.

As Julius socialized with Jin-Sol, Min-Ji grew increasingly uncomfortable.

‘Somehow…’ Min-Ji had barged in here because she could not tolerate someone else having a one-on-one fan meeting with Chul-Soo, but now more and more Chul-Soo Landers were gathering. ‘Why are there so many?’

Chul-Soo Landers began arriving one after another, led by Muenne, the mayor of Muren and a rising political figure, and Lessefim, the honorary Chul-Soo Land No.1.

“Ugh…” Min-Ji groaned.

Although it wasn’t Cha Jin-Hyeok’s intention, the place had turned into an unofficial fan meeting for Chul-Soo Landers. Most of them were unaffected by the boiling magma in the area, while those who couldn’t withstand it reluctantly left through magic circles, some even crying from frustration.

“I want to have a fan meeting too!”

“Hey, you’re burning. Get out of here quickly!”

“This level of burns is nothing!”

“Your flesh is melting!”

“Such an injury is to be expected!”

In the end, Julius had to snap his fingers to drive out the severely injured Chul-Soo Landers. Fortunately, he had become quite adept at not killing, so the task wasn’t difficult.

Jin-Hyeok, who had just finished his meditation, opened his eyes and couldn’t help but laugh at the absurd situation.

“How could you guys recklessly come to such a dangerous Dungeon….” He realized that calling this place dangerous could hurt Julius’s feelings since Julius was such a kind and gentle Fire Dragon. Jin-Hyeok wanted to clear up the misunderstanding about Julius being ferocious. “I mean, how could you all enter someone’s nest without permission.”

At this point, Julius decided to give up and change his strategy, resolving to make a good impression on Chul-Soo.

“Welcome to my humble home, Chul-Soo Landers,” Julius said, glancing at Jin-Hyeok’s reaction.

“Julius is so nice. Most would be upset by this,” Jin-Hyeok remarked.

“Of course not. You’re all Chul-Soo Landers. You’ve gathered because you all love Chul-Soo. So, I have to welcome you. Friends, it’s nice to meet you in person for the first time!”

Jin-Hyeok smiled slightly at Julius’s kind-heartedness.

Seeing that smile, Julius felt he could die without regrets now. ‘From now on, I will become a truly good Dragon.’

Julius approached Min-Ji and extended his hand. “I’m really sorry for getting angry earlier, Min-Ji.”

“...” Min-Ji was overwhelmed by an inexplicable sense of defeat.

***

“Muenne, what about your duties as mayor?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

From what he had heard, volcanoes were erupting and earthquakes were shaking things up everywhere across the universe. Strangely, Min-Ji avoided Jin-Hyeok’s gaze when this came up.

“Well…” Muenne thought of what to say.

“I’m sure you’ve made proper arrangements,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“...” Muenne couldn’t say much. She had rushed here in a panic when she thought a one-on-one fan meeting was starting.

“Wait, don’t tell me you just came here without thinking about your position as a mayor?”

“Of course not…”

“Go back.”

“...”

“I’ll visit Muren later.”

“Okay…”

Jin-Sol said with a hint of smugness, “We’ve got the public's attention, Oppa. The entire world is waiting for you.”

“What were you planning on doing after getting their attention?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

“After that? Isn’t that up to your capabilities now?”

Jin-Hyeok tilted his head. “I need to stay here for a few more days. Can you endure it here that long?”

“Can’t you just put up your Absolute Barrier for me?”

“I told you. I need to train.”

“You can put it up while training, can’t you?”

Jin-Hyeok suddenly felt annoyed, sensing an unspoken ‘Are you that weak, Oppa? You’re weaker than I thought.’

“I want to focus on training,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“Hmm, I didn’t expect this. Does that mean I have to leave first?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

While it was natural for Players to face harsh environments, Jin-Hyeok was concerned about his sister staying in this place. Despite her excellent healing and recovery abilities, it seemed difficult for her to endure here for long.

At that moment, Jin-Hyeok had a realization about people’s feelings. ‘Ah! So, that’s why Chul-Soo Landers are…!’

He finally understood Julius’s words from before.

“Of course, I know you’re fine, but as a Chul-Soo Lander, it’s natural to worry.”

‘I guess Chul-Soo Landers across the universe must have similar feelings. They must be worrying about me with such sentiments.’ Jin-Hyeok felt grateful and apologetic.

“Well, if I have to leave first, should I try to draw more aggro for your channel? I can say that you and Julius are having a bloody fight in here,” Jin-Sol suggested.

“Isn’t Marshmallow livestreaming this?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

“It’s not being broadcast. The livestream was cut off and…” Marshmallow shook his head and bit his lip. “I can’t even record in here.”

“What do you mean you can’t record in here?” Jin-Hyeok asked. This was a critical issue for an Eltuber. Jin-Hyeok quickly checked. “My recording is working just fine, though.”

“Of course, yours would.”

“What does that mean?”

“It seems someone has set it up so that only you can record. Like a skilled hacker, for instance.”

Jin-Hyeok’s gaze naturally turned to Min-Ji. She had already jumped into the magma, claiming to enjoy hot springs, and hidden herself.

Marshmallow sighed. “It looks like they have arranged for you to have exclusive footage of this place. Probably telling others not to interfere.”

“I’m sorry about that.”

Encyclopedia flipped his pages dramatically and made a fuss. “No need to feel sorry, Chul-Soo! Marshmallow is a Chul-Soo Lander at heart too! Actually, he came because he wanted to see yo—

“Argh! You book abuser! Don’t you have any intellect? You should never hurt a book! W-Wait, not the lighter! You book arsonist!”

With so many people around, it was too chaotic. Jin-Hyeok ignored the others and looked back at Jin-Sol. “I don’t think you should forcefully draw people’s attention. Don’t do anything stupid.”

“Why is that stupid? I bet the world will go crazy if I tell them that you’re having an intense battle with Julius.”

“That’s too much of a fabrication.” While some level of production was necessary for videos, completely fabricating content was manipulation. That did not align with Jin-Hyeok’s principles. “Besides, it would be bad for Julius’s image.”

“Julius’s image is…” Jin-Sol trailed off. ‘Can his image get any worse? He’s already known as the boss of the worst Dungeon in the universe, and rumors of him being a ferocious Fire Dragon are widespread…’

However, seeing the sparkling eyes of the little child, Jin-Sol did not say it out loud. She instead asked, “Then what should we do?”

“Tell the people that Julius and I are getting along well here. Say I will be out soon, and if any Chul-Soo Landers are worried, tell them not to be. Make sure to let them know I can’t turn on my livestream because I’m focusing on training.”

Jin-Sol felt a little touched. “Oppa, you’re finally starting to understand people’s feelings!”

“...”

“I’m so happy. I was worried you might be a bit sociopathic.”

“That’s a bit harsh, don’t you think?” Jin-Hyeok said. Then he murmured, “I think you’re much crazier than me.”

However, Jin-Sol, seemingly not hearing that, quickly said, “By the way, Oppa, can’t you try killing Julius? He will respawn anyway, right?”

***

On the third day of Chul-Soo’s apparent disappearance, the K-Force escaped from the Dungeon and announced that Chul-Soo was in training and that he would come out soon.

-LOL! Looks like even the K-Force barely managed to escape.

-Is Michelle also starting to step away from managing the MK Foundation?

-There are even rumors that he’s already dead.

-They say the K-Force is hiding his death because there are too many ongoing projects, and Chul-Soo being dead could ruin everything.

The bad news naturally spreads much faster than the good news.

-Is Chul-Soo really dead?

-Yeah, they announced his death.

Jin-Sol was a bit bewildered. ‘Did I mess up the interview somehow?’

She replayed her previous interview several times, but she had only conveyed the facts and never once said anything about Chul-Soo being dead. She hadn’t even mentioned anything close to that. Rather, she had delivered hopeful news that Chul-Soo was doing very well and would be out soon.

Watching the situation unfold, Jin-Sol let out a hollow laugh. “Wow… is this how Oppa feels every day?”

She realized Chul-Soo had it tougher than she thought. Regardless of the messenger’s intentions, people listened, thought, and drew conclusions as they pleased.

“Maybe… he’s happy about this. After all, we’re drawing more attention than we ever did before.”

Still, since Jin-Hyeok had started to understand people’s feelings lately, he could feel uncomfortable about this.

“Min-Ji, you can identify who’s spreading these rumors, right?” Jin-Sol asked.