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Perhaps there’s a saying that where there is a meeting, there’s also a farewell.

In the end, I had no choice but to let go of my dear Happy.

Even though I wanted to hold on longer, there was no justification for doing so.

I had already received the extra holy water and unexpected information. On top of that, I was in a situation where my stubbornness had been accommodated.

It was time to set her free.

So, I pretended to cry as I saw her off.

“Goodbye, Happy. I’ll miss you. Sob sob.”

“So, my name is…! Huh… no.”

Contrary to my expectations, the atmosphere during our farewell wasn’t harsh at all.

I thought she might flee the moment she was released since there had been so much between us.

Surprisingly, she was quite calm as we parted ways.

She did look a bit sluggish, probably because she had been tied up for so long.

Watching her stretch outside the cave, I recalled the conversation we had just hours ago.

“I’ve pinpointed Dantalion’s location, and they said they’d be sending a proper expedition soon.”

Although she didn’t have deep knowledge of the Knights, she wasn’t completely ignorant either. She certainly had valuable information.

The reason they hadn’t captured Dantalion yet was that he had been hiding like a true demon, sneaking around everywhere.

Thanks to that, civilian casualties were low, but other countries were understandably on edge.

The quiet meant that somewhere, he was likely gathering strength.

Amidst the ongoing search, they finally discovered Dantalion.

The knights planned to embark on an expedition without delay.

“I guess there won’t be any trouble for a while…”

I wasn’t sure how long that would last, but for now, I was relieved.

In any case, there was plenty of useful information. The most tempting detail was that she received holy water from the knights every month.

Though I had managed to acquire three vials of holy water, I still felt it wasn’t enough.

If I had my way, I’d want to sign a contract and do business with her.

“Should I ask her…?”

Of course, I hadn’t asked yet. I still had a conscience, after all.

Given everything that had happened, it was hard to bring it up casually.

“Ah, just ask.”

But I opened my mouth after a moment’s hesitation.

Yeah, when have I ever been that conscientious?

“Um… how about the holy water you get monthly? Would you be interested in trading with me?”

“…What?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll pay handsomely. At least more than the market price.”

“Seriously? Do you think I’d trade with you, the one with the manifestation?”

She looked at me with a scowl. I nodded with a gloomy expression.

“Yeah, I guess that’s true… Well, it’s fine.”

Honestly, I didn’t have high hopes. After all, she was aligned with the Knights.

“Ahem…”

But just then, she cleared her throat and spoke.

“Well… if you promise not to imprison me again, I might bring some sometimes…”

“Oh, really?”

Hearing those words, my face brightened.

Since my question had been more of a shot in the dark, the joy was even greater.

What caused her to accept such an offer?

Had she perhaps fallen victim to Stockholm Syndrome? Regardless, it was good for me.

So, I beamed and patted her shoulder.

“Come on, how could I ever harm you, the holy water giver? Don’t worry and bring it over.”

“Let go, let go…”

Thus, I managed to establish a new supply route.

*

About ten days went by.

It was soon time to prepare for this month’s Berserk state.

This time, I planned to endure the Berserk state within this cave rather than outside.

After all, I had confirmed during the last ordeal that wild beasts could wander in during the Berserk state.

Last time, it had just been a rabbit, which led to my humiliation, but if something fiercer entered, Yor would find himself in quite a spot.

So, this time, I’d hold my ground in the original spot.

Even though my location had been exposed, it was quite comfortable here.

Moreover, at night, no one could easily stumble upon this place.

Fortunately, over the past ten days, there hadn’t been any intruders in my cave.

For sure, defeating that top-ranked Hanbyeol had a significant impact.

The five million gold hanging from his neck was undoubtedly a large sum, but it would be foolish to challenge him without any strategy. Otherworlders could differentiate between such profit and loss.

Thanks to that, Yor was enjoying a surprisingly peaceful daily life.

“Surely nothing special will happen this time either.”

Splish.

Thinking that, Yor sunk into the puddle.

It was the delightful bath time that came after completing the day’s work.

Today’s evening happened to coincide with a rising moon, so I planned to wrap up my day a bit early.

Whether A or B burst, I needed my stamina to endure.

“Ahh…”

The pleasantly warm water embraced my whole body. I felt good about having heated it up despite the trouble.

Thinking about tonight made me feel a bit grim, but at least I was starting to relax.

While I was lazily enjoying my bath, I suddenly heard a voice.

“Yor! Where are you?”

The familiar voice of Chaerin echoed from a distance.

It was the regular visit time. However, the timing wasn’t ideal this time.

“What the…?”

Yor, flustered, tried to get up from the tub.

But even as he did, Chaerin was striding closer.

She hadn’t been paying attention to her surroundings, so her footsteps sounded uncomfortably close.

With time, one thing had changed: Chaerin’s cautiousness.

Practically a year had already passed since they first knew each other. Naturally, she had visited this cave countless times.

As such, she couldn’t help but become familiar with it.

However, Yor wasn’t the type of person to mind if someone came barging in unexpectedly… so disaster was inevitable.

“What? You were here…”

At that moment, as Yor stepped out of the tub, Chaerin appeared in front of him. Her smiling face quickly turned to shock.

Her eyes shook violently.

Yor smacked his forehead. What kind of lucky pervert situation was this?

He instinctively tried to cover himself but promptly gave up.

“No, no…”

Upon reflection, that would seem too gay. Covering up in a panic like a kid—what kind of man does that?

Instead, he activated ‘Player’s Eye.’ It was an instinctual response.

Usually, no matter who it was, if the person appeared to be an Otherworlder, he would activate ‘Player’s Eye’ first as a habit.

Fortunately, it seemed he wasn’t broadcasting, as there were no visible chat rooms.

Instead, something slightly special appeared.

[Would you like to unlock Mode 19?]

[YES/NO]

It came as a message along with a fog cloud surrounding his impressive endowment.

Such clouds wouldn’t normally appear naturally; they shouldn’t cluster like that.

Yor thought for a moment to deactivate ‘Player’s Eye.’

As expected, his endowment came back into view.

‘…Is it only visible in the system?’

Yor thought this as he activated ‘Player’s Eye’ again.

With this, there seemed to be no reason to cover himself.

“Um, err…”

At that moment, Chaerin was lost in serious thought.

She immediately realized the situation was a disaster.

Entering his home without a thought and then suddenly seeing “a man’s” nude form?

In reality, she would have been taken to the police if it had been the real world. It was a situation that would earn her a red mark.

But most reasons for sexual crimes happen when one can’t control their inner desires. After all, lust can be quite an addictive quality.

Chaerin wasn’t any different in that regard.

Before her, a deeply provocative scene unfolded.

Chiseled muscles with six-pack abs, milky white skin contrasting with crimson tattoos on broad shoulders, and the cloud hiding the important parts of the male body.

Gulp—

Her throat moved significantly. She trembled, her finger hovering over the system window.

The system window before her was tempting her.

[Would you like to unlock Mode 19?]

[YES/NO]

Just once. She only had to pretend she didn’t see it and click once.

Then she could glimpse the forbidden spot hidden behind that fog. Since the situation was already awkward, it wouldn’t be too bad to take a peek.

Just when Chaerin was about to accidentally press ‘YES’…

“Freeze. Move any further, and I’ll log you out for real.”

But hearing that chilling threat from him, Chaerin couldn’t help but regain her senses.

With her clarity returning, the cold reality came crashing back.

She immediately knelt on the floor and apologized.

“I-I’m so sorry!”

“Ha…”

Yor let out a deep sigh.

In such a case, he was also momentarily confused about how to react.

*

“So, what brings you here?”

After that brief episode, I sat across from Chaerin.

For now, I decided to let the earlier incident slip.

After all, it was an accident, and I had indeed been careless.

There was no point quibbling over that, and it wouldn’t yield any benefit.

Though, considering she was still on her knees, it was far from comfortable.

She was sitting like a sinner while her face remained flushed. Clearly, she was thinking about something else.

Having waited for a while, I called her back and asked,

“Hey.”

“Y-yes?”

“What did you come here for today?”

Only then did she hesitate and open her mouth.

“Um… today is the day the moon rises, right?”

“That’s right.”

“So, I thought I’d come to endure the Berserk state with you again…”

Hearing that, I was touched for a moment.

Her words were quite heartwarming.

But at the same time, I hesitated slightly. To be honest, it wasn’t exactly a pleasant sight.

It just happened last time that circumstances aligned, allowing me to take her along.

The Berserk A wasn’t something to show casually to someone, as even seeing it drained my stamina.

I was grateful, but I thought I had to decline.

And there was quite a high chance that B would burst today. What if the Berserk B exploded while she was present?

“Ugh…”

In that case, I wouldn’t be able to hold back.

“I appreciate the sentiment, but it’s fine. I think I’ll manage alone today.”

“Ah, okay…”

Thus, I sent her back home.

That day, the Berserk B kicked in.

*

“Ahh…”

After stepping out of the forest, Chaerin logged out, collapsing onto her bed.

Her expression was dismal, perhaps due to everything that had transpired that day.

‘This isn’t how it should be…’

Initially, she just wanted to chat like usual and endure the Berserk state together.

But then a random incident had made things awkward.

Though Yor had assured her it was okay, she nonetheless felt guilty.

While he was generally easygoing, there was no way he could remain unfazed after being shown a naked body. Perhaps that was the reason she had been brushed off.

Chaerin involuntarily began to berate herself.

‘Ah, I should have been more careful when entering…!’

If she hadn’t moved unconsciously, that incident wouldn’t have happened.

Of course, the sight she had seen was quite captivating.

So much so that even compared to every other lewd picture she had seen so far, it would rank high.

Today’s sight had a stunning impact.

On the other hand, a thought crossed her mind.

‘He’s enduring that alone…’

It was about the Berserk state.

The scene from last time, when Yor had flayed himself alive, still lingered in her thoughts as a shocking memory. It had looked painful and lonely.

And now, he said he was going to endure it all alone.

The time in [Demon’s Saga] flowed at a 1:1 ratio with reality, regardless of logging in.

Thinking about him groaning alone all night was undoubtedly saddening.

It had been about two months since he had taken refuge in the pit, and she hadn’t been able to stay by his side.

Because of that, she hadn’t been able to use the dark vision she had worked hard to learn.

Leaving him unattended just because of a random incident was troublesome.

Though he had already rejected her once…

Thus, she lay on her bed, contemplating for a moment.

Should she go check on him, or should she leave him to his own words today?

The deliberation took a while.

What had started as a daytime concern continued until dusk fell outside.

And when night came, and she realized she couldn’t see the moon, she made her decision.

“Yeah, I’ll just go find him.”

Surely, it was better to be there for him than let him be alone.

Also, she planned to apologize for today’s incident once more.

So, she entered the capsule again.

Then she began to dash through the dark forest towards Yor.