The Hero Returns

"Hooo—"

As soon as he heard the message, Su-hyeun let out a sigh of relief.

It was now, finally, the end of it all.

As the tension in his body left, all the strength was drained from Su-hyeun's body. As the effects of Berserk were lost, the temporary boost of health had plummeted to rock bottom.

<<This dungeon attack would have been easier if I had better items with me.>>

Su-hyeun looked at the sword he held in his hand.

The sword that looked like gold had now reached its limit. Su-hyeun had to inject magic into it to prevent it from breaking, but it could no longer endure Su-hyeun's magic.

He made sure the sword would not crumble by injecting his magic. When he had to use Flame, he used magic, and to maintain the sword, he could only use double the amount of magic.

<<Even so…>>

Su-hyeun's gaze went to the stone that fell out from the summoner's head, as well as the broken cane.

"The yield isn't that bad."

If he looked around the interior of the dungeon, there might have been more ether stones left. Of course, there would not be any of a similar grade as the one in front of him.

In a hurry, Su-hyeun took three ether stones with him. In fact, those were only collectively named as ether stones, but each of their usages differed by a little.

<<Emotions.>>

[Lich's Life Stone.]

*An enhanced high-grade ether stone. It has a lifespan of 200 years.

*Limitation: Not a living person's.

[The highest grade of ether stones.]

*It contains a large amount of mana. As it had been used for a long time, its glow had faded.

[Dimension Teleportation Stone.]

*A medium that twists dimensions and space. It can be operated with magic.

These three items.

The explanations were quite simple. The Dimension Teleportation Stone was the main ingredient for the summoner to summon monsters and Lich's Life Stone was the medium that made Lich able to move about.

<<A lifespan of 200 years…>>

A substance that could make humans live more than their expected lifespan.

But, there's a limitation. Only a non-living human could use this item.

"This kid, he used a cheap item."

Usually, Liches would want to have a lifespan of at least 500 years and above and thus made the decision to become a Lich. And the Life Stones that they could obtain were of quality better than this.

Of course, the life stone that Su-hyeun had in his hand now wasn't considered any less valuable either. Even with this alone, it would become quite a useful item after some enhancements. Above all, there was a considerable benefit from this.

<<The highest grade ether stone.>>

The purple stone was in Su-hyeun's hands. It was an item that would be too invaluable to be exchanged for money. In fact, amongst the existing ether stones, there was nothing else as substantial as this highest-grade ether stone in the world right now. If this ether stone appeared in the market, it might be too difficult to give an estimated selling price.

Of course…

<<It isn't an item worth selling.>>

He would use it solely for himself.

Since he couldn't bring the items used in the tower, he needed a separate set of weapons here especially because a good weapon or two right now would help in boosting up his power immediately.

After collecting all his yield, Su-hyeun flopped down onto the ground.

He had to take a rest before heading outside.

Act 4

Both Su-hyeun and Lee Ju-ho started to dig around in the dungeon to search and to collect the ether stones.

There were many discussions about how ether stones were mostly found in the dungeons where the boss was found. And in this dungeon, most ether stones were used to maintain the summoner's stone. Although there were ether stones found on certain parts of the walls in the dungeon, they did not have enough manpower and equipment to harvest all the ether stones.

"Really, I'm alright."

Lee Ju-ho refused the ether stones that Su-hyeun had extracted for him. In fact, it was safe to say that Su-hyeun had completed his dungeon attack alone.

"Are you really not going to accept this?"

"Yes. How can I accept this when I've done nothing?"

"Well, if you say so…"

Su-hyeun quickly put the ether stones in his arms. Honestly, he didn't need to have these stones, but it was better to have them, just in case.

<<Although the amount is quite a disappointment.>>

Either way, it could be said that he had monopolized and harvested all the ether stones here. Su-hyeun talked with Lee Ju-ho about various things as they walked out of the dungeon.

As they exited the dungeon through the entrance where they first came from, their views turned white, and the scene changed.

In reality, a full day had passed, and it was already the early morning. As they stepped out, Su-hyeun and Lee Ju-ho stood rooted to the ground.

"Uh, the people…"

"Wait, didn't you say the attack had failed?"

"Are you the awakeners Mr. Lee Ju-ho and Mr. Kim Su-hyeun?"

"That-that's right! Hey, Ju-ho!"

"Survivors, it's the survivors!"

Dozens of people gathered around, making a scene.

There was a total of over 10 awakeners besides Ahn Min-seok, Lee Eun-mi, and Kim Ba-reun. On top of that, there were a few reporters equipped with cameras.

Countless people were gathered, making a huge mess.

It seemed that the authorities had called other awakeners for assistance upon hearing that the dungeon attack had failed. It wasn't surprising to see the reporters being that interested in the awakeners.

Su-hyeun let out a deep breath as if exhausted.

Lee Ju-ho, who spotted it from the corner of his eye, spoke. "Throw the ball to me and quickly get out of here."

"Will you be alright?"

"I'll say that both of us completed the dungeon attack together. If that happens, maybe the distribution…"

"There you go."

Su-hyeun took out about half a portion of his ether stones and pushed them towards Lee Ju-ho. He then spoke in a loud voice. "So, that's all for the distribution."

"Thank you. If there's another opportunity, I hope we can work together again."

As quick-witted as he was, Lee Ju-ho replied on time in a loud voice as well.

It was an amicable scene of equally distributing the ether stones after the end of a dungeon attack. It was such a familiar scene that others could notice that both of them had safely completed the dungeon attack.

"Oh my, did you really complete the dungeon attack?"

"Just the two of you? A yellow level dungeon?"

"Wait, doesn't this tell a different story? The dungeon was obviously…"

"We're from Ilsung Daily! I'd like to ask a few questions!"

Not just Kim Ba-reun, but the other party members shouted loudly in surprise, and the other awakeners began to frown and question.

Taking advantage of the confused situation, Su-hyeun quietly made his escape. Although there were a few who approached him, Lee Ju-ho had blocked them out.

"Now, let's all calm down. I'll explain the details to everyone here. Let's not tire the exhausted."

But Lee Ju-ho should have been the most exhausted person instead.

Su-hyeun felt apologetic for throwing the situation on Lee Ju-ho and leaving first, but he thought that it would be even more burdensome if he were to be captured on screen.

Eventually, Su-hyeun left the place in a hurry. The remaining half of the ether stones could be considered a labor cost.

When he had left the crowd and reached midway on the mountain, the mobile phone in Su-hyeun's pocket started ringing. He then checked that it was a text message from Lee Ju-ho.

<<I'll return the remaining half of the ether stones to you later. Or should I change them to cash and transfer it to you?>>

It seemed like Lee Ju-ho was quite concerned over the ether stones that he had received earlier.

Imagining the scene where Lee Ju-ho took the time to send a text message amongst the curious crowd brought a smile to Su-hyeun's face.

In fact, it didn't matter much whether he received the ether stones or not.

<<Just think of it as a thought of gratitude.>>

Su-hyeun sent a reply to Lee Ju-ho's text message and started hurrying on his way.

There was someone worried about him.

* * *

As he was on his way home, Su-hyeun hurriedly bought clothes from a nearby clothing store.

It was uncomfortable wearing clothes that were severely torn and filled with dirt. Moreover, Su-hyeun could not return home in this state.

Shin Su-yeong nagged Su-hyeun for not contacting her, staying out the whole night, and returning in the morning. They met just as Su-hyeun was returning home and when Shin Su-yeong was about to leave the house for work.

"I'll see you when I'm back home, son."

Shin Su-yeong said that with a dull expression in her eyes as she was leaving for work. Su-hyeun let out a deep sigh and muttered.

"I have to let her know, too…"

In any case, if he were to continue working as an awakener, things like this would happen more often. He could not bring Shin Su-yeong so many worries every single time.

<<If I say this…>>

Su-hyeun sat in front of the door and took out the C-rank awakener's registration card to look at it.

If he showed her this, how would she react? Probably like the mother from his previous life…

<<Whatever.>>

His mind would not think of it any further. He had decided to take a good rest before thinking about it. It was too exhausting for him today.

<<I have things to attend to as well after I wake up.>>

Su-hyeun put the two ether stones and the Dimension Teleportation Stone into his bag, along with the remaining highest-grade ether stones he had left over after distributing half to Lee Ju-ho.

After waking up from his sleep, he had to deal with these.

* * *

Three hours.

Su-hyeun only had slept for three hours. For others, it would just be a nap, but for Su-hyeun, it was a long sleep.

When he woke up, the sun was already hanging over the sky. Su-hyeun took a shower, got changed and was prepared to leave the house.

<<The place where I could conveniently trade would be…>>

An ether stone trading store near Gangnam Station. It was a store where he could most conveniently dispose of the ether stones.

Su-hyeun took a cab, the transport which he would usually choose. Since he could trade ether stones for cash in the future, he could easily afford the taxi fees.

After a 30-minute drive, the taxi came to a stop at Gangnam Station.

He paid the taxi fees with 20,000 Korean Won and alighted right beside Gangnam Station.

Gangnam Station was busy with working adults from early in the morning. The crowd was filled with people heading out for lunch, as well as students who were out to play.

It had been a long time since Su-hyeun was out in a crowded area like this. Su-hyeun took a while to look at his surroundings and then went on his way through a familiar route.

<<Was it around here?>>

Amongst the tallest building in the area, there was a huge auction house where they had rented out five entire floors from the building.

Su-hyeun's feet stopped right there.

Buzz—

When the sizeable automatic door opened, a spacious and vibrant lobby appeared.

It felt similar to the entrance of a luxury hotel's lobby. The lobby personnel saw Su-hyeun's arrival and spoke.

"Welcome. How can I help you?" It was a male staff donned in a clean and neat outfit.

Su-hyeun looked at him and replied, "I came to sell my goods."

"When you mean goods?"

"They are ether stones."

As Su-hyeun replied, he took out the ether stones that were kept in his pocket and showed the staff. Although they were the size of small marbles, he had a fistful of them.

These were considered to be shabby compared to the highest-grade ether stones that Su-hyeun kept.

But…

"Are these really all ether stones?"

The staff's eyes widened in surprise.

Though they might have been small, they were ether stones harvested from a yellow level dungeon which over 10 B-rank awakeners had to gather in order to complete.

It wasn't surprising to see him shocked by the ether stones mined from that dungeon.