Chapter 436: Re: Life in that World Starting From Zero (5)
"Ah. Sigh."
"..."
"Sigh. Sigh. Ugh."
"..."
"Siiiigh."
"..."
'Ha...'
The sounds coming from Lee Kiyeon made even me blush upon hearing them.
I tried to say a word because it was so ridiculous, but after hearing Cheol-woo's warning to act politely, I couldn't easily say something.
Due to that, I had to swallow the curses that were fighting to flow out of my lips.
'What an eyesore. Is she crazy? She's doing that on purpose, right?'
She was blatant enough to make me 100% sure.
It was true that I didn't like her when I first saw her. What I was thinking was just as expected.
I was certain of this right after seeing her with full makeup on and a luxury bag in her possession. She had even reasoned out that she wasn't wearing makeup.
'She definitely is.'
She should be.
'How dare you lie to my face?'
I didn't know how she looked in men's eyes, but she couldn't fool women.
She seemed to value looking good for the opposite sex more than actually preparing for the expedition. I would actually prefer it if she was that kind of person.
I would have been able to stand it if she simply acted like a fox or did something naughty.
I knew very well what type of person she was.
It was not common, but I found more women of that kind in Lindel than I thought I would.
'Cheap-like bitch. Ugh, she really is cheap.'
There was no need to describe her further.
'Did you really reach heroic-grade in your third year? Does that make sense? Do you think you're Blue Guild Jung Hayan's successor? Why is she not receiving offers when she has such a talent?'
She probably didn't do anything stupid enough to cheat her stats, so it was clear that she had gotten into heroic-grade, at least.
The question, however, was how she entered the heroic-grade.
Her legs and hands had no signs of battle. Her scar-less body told me very well how she had lived thus far. She didn't even have the most basic knowledge.
It looked as if it was the first time she saw a temporary party contract. She didn't even know what wizards should do.
'It must be a problem because you've never fought.'
At that point, the answer was obvious.
She only had one reason why a woman with no talent or connection could receive that much push.
'She has a sponsor. And it looks like the sponsor is a large guild executive.'
I was 100 percent sure at this point.
Not only was she provided with various conveniences in life in exchange for her body, but he must have taken her on small and medium-sized expeditions and fed her with experience to gain her current abilities.
If I thought of it that way, all the questionable actions she exhibited could be explained.
'The summoning wizard, my ass.'
Although she had chosen wizard as her primary job, she couldn't adapt because of her lack of intelligence. Her affinity with pets was poor as well, causing her to feel lost.
Her experience was boosted, so she had to change her class, and she couldn't make the right choice in the system in the end.
Although the name sounded good, I could bet that there would be very few skills unique to the class.
'It's too obvious.'
I even rationalized the reason why she came so far.
'She must have been abandoned.'
She must've eventually gotten abandoned by her sponsor and was driven to the streets.
I didn't know exactly what happened between the sponsor and that woman, but it was despicable to see her trying to carry a luxury bag.
It was quite funny that she chose to go on an expedition instead of entering the entertainment district. From the beginning, she wasn't interested in the expeditions at all.
What she was interested in was getting a good guy in order to settle down.
She must be trying to get either Cheol-woo or Daegun. Observing her attitude, I couldn't help but feel like that was the case.
"Do you need help?"
Dummy.
"Sigh. Huh. Yes? Yes? Can I ask for your help? I feel like I'm being too much of a nuisance..."
"I was worried about this march because you didn't seem used to it. You can give your luggage to me. You don't have to refuse. It's natural for the party members to help each other."
"But... I'm really sorry..."
"It's okay, Kiyeon."
"No, you really don't have to do this, Cheol-woo. I feel like I'm shameless..."
'You say 'you don't have to do this,' but you're smiling?'
"It's better to do this than to have you pass out in the middle of the attack. Kiyeon, please take care of your physical strength."
"If you say so... Thank you, Cheol-woo. I will take this favor gratefully."
"And... you don't have to be sorry. Everyone knows that wizards struggle physically."
"Yes. Thank you so much for your consideration."
In the end, it was Cheol-woo and Daegun who carried the bags. Meanwhile, Lee Kiyeon stretched as if she was relieved.
Watching her hold onto her Chanelia Hermes tightly was really irritating. It was as if something was boiling inside me.
Perhaps it was not just me who felt that way. The three people living together in the guild were no different.
"That woman..."
"Have you seen her before, Minji?"
"No. At least I don't think I've seen her near our dorms... but, well, isn't it obvious just looking at her?"
"Yes. It's obvious. Gosh... People just can't seem to change. Isn't she embarrassed? She seems to think that the strength she gained is her own. She's someone who doesn't even know the basics..."
"I know, right? I don't know why she came with us all of a sudden and do that shit. Maybe she was thrown away by her sponsor."
"Isn't she trying to get a suitable man to act like a madam? These days, they do that a lot to clear up their history. Although I don't know where the rumors started, the stock price of Lee Cheol-woo and Kim Daegun from the Friendship Clan is also rising these days. Honestly, they are pretty good. One is a frontline warrior, and the other is a priest. They are people who didn't join a large guild not because they couldn't, but because they didn't want to. Their future is promising, and she was like a gold digger on the prowl. It was better if she didn't come. She smiles gently and says something like, 'you're so cool and reliable.' while innocent Cheol-woo just laughs at it. He's just too nice. I haven't been able to fully understand what kind of person would fall for such a woman, but seeing Cheol-woo makes me slowly understand it."
"You sound as if you hate her. Have you talked to him about it?"
"Yes. I told them before leaving... They said she doesn't look like that type of person. I was even scolded not to be rude to her."
"Gosh. Unbelievable. It's so obvious. You just have to look at her, and you'll immediately see that she's a gold digger, yet they don't think she looks cheap? Among the people working at night, those who look like that are widely spread. Listen to her deliberate moaning. You can see her intentions clearly. Does she think that still works these days... so vulgar..."
"Do you know what's even funnier?"
"What?"
"If this expedition goes well, I think she's thinking about getting accepted as a member of the clan. It makes no sense. Really. Just thinking about living face-to-face with someone like that makes me want to hurl."
"Gosh. Really? That can't happen. Hey."
"I know. It doesn't really make sense."
"How about you go and talk to her?"
"I beg your pardon?"
"You can just go blackmail her. The choice is yours, but it wouldn't be bad to give her a warning. If that woman was sponsored and it was by a big one, she would be scared to proceed with the expedition. She would tremble..."
"That's true. Well, but what if the expedition is canceled because of that? Cheol-woo is really looking forward to this expedition...."
"I don't think I can keep tolerating her. Because of people like her, other women are insulted. If you're going on an expedition, you have to act as an adventurer, you know, instead of becoming a burden. Women are not subject to protection in this continent, right? Look at people like Cha Heera. Instead of having her as a role model, some people use their femininity to exploit others. That's a problem."
"I know, right? It's annoying."
We heard a voice speak while we were quietly talking about her.
"We will take a break here."
"Already?"
"Yes. Just a short one. I'm a bit tired. I'm sorry. Sorry, Daegun."
"No. I was just about to take a break too. It seems like it's too much to set up a camp, so let's just find a place and have a meal. If there's anything like a snack, we could..."
'Really... you're too nice.'
Everyone knew that the reason why they were taking a break wasn't because of Cheol-woo.
It was probably in consideration of Lee Kiyeon.
The way he claimed to be tired to help her just showed that he was indeed an innocently good man. As I quietly looked at Cheol-woo, I saw him getting water and handing it to the woman.
'You're a real fool.'
The way Lee Kiyeon took the water as she smiled at him caught my eyes.
She even seemed to have rubbed her hand with his when she took it from him.
When I saw Cheol-woo's very red face, I thought it was almost certain.
'Ha!'
The next look of her was a spectacle.
"Oh my God..."
"Are you okay?"
Why did that cup of water spill on her chest?
"It seems like I keep showing my clumsy side. Actually, I was a little tired last night... I'm not like this usually... I'm really sorry."
Hah. I wouldn't be surprised if she was tired every night.
"If you have something like a handkerchief, could you lend it to me for a second?"
"Yes... Oh, okay."
"I'll wash this and return it when I have time. Is it okay to wipe off my sweat too?"
"Yes, yes, it's fine."
'Ha.'
It felt like fire was spewing out of my eyes.
"Wait a minute..."
"Yes."
"I'll go over there, unnie."
"Okay. Control yourself."
I wasn't trying to threaten her or anything of the sort, but I couldn't stand it without saying a word.
As I walked toward the place where the party members and Lee Kibitch was, I could see her looking at me with a wide smile.
"Minji, how can I help you?"
"I want to ask you something."
"Sure, if I have the answer..."
"Who was it?"
"What do you mean?"
"The Black Swan? Blue? Red Mercenary? Or is it from the other side? I thought it was a large guild... It's above medium in size, at least, right? Do they still do that? There are a lot of trashy guys here."
"I don't know what you're talking about..."
"You know everything. You don't have to pretend like you didn't understand."
"So what are you saying..."
"Who was your sponsor?"
That felt good.