Global Awakening: Only I Can Respawn

[Because of quest abnormality, the next main quest will activate after a certain time or upon fulfilling conditions.]

Sofia, at least, try to come up with a better excuse.

YuWon shook his head after noticing the message. Since they had completed the quest before time, it was natural for the next quest to take some time as preparations might not be complete.

Besides… why are these fuckers following me?

YuWon looked above and noticed a lot of eyes following him. He had put on a show, but since the gods hated him; he didn't expect so many of them would begin following him around.

Who could blame them? Although the clearing reward went to Soo-Ah as her minion dealt the final blow, everyone knew who the real star of the show was. Had it not been for YuWon, the basilisk would have killed everyone. At least that's what the gods thought.

In reality, even YuWon knew they won because of their group effort. Sure, they might have been his, but without everyone playing their roles, their victory was impossible.

"Is anyone dead?"

YuWon asked as soon as he arrived at the spot.

No matter what, they had caused a 774-foot-tall building to collapse. The ruckus from it should've been enough to cause multiple deaths. But thankfully, no one on their side died, only the Crusaders fell victim to the collapse.

"Who cares about them?"

YuWon scoffed when Professor Ming informed him about it.

Soo-Ah and Min-Joon also joined them. YuWon checked their stats and, as expected, Soo-Ah had leveled up quite a bit.

Min-Joon had leveled up too, but his growth was more modest. Since he hadn't contributed to the battle against the basilisk, his rewards only came from the crusaders he'd taken down.

Still, it's better than I expected.

Min-Joon was covered in blood from the head to the toe. Everyone made weird faces at Min-Joon, but his eyes remained fixated on YuWon, who smiled and patted his shoulder.

"You did well."

Those three words lit up Min-Joon's face. Even Soo-Ah's skeletons were happy and high-fived him and only stopped when she rolled her eyes.

"What about this?" Soo-Ah asked, pointing at the massive weasel.

"Keep it. It's a boss monster, after all."

Soo-Ah clicked her tongue after hearing YuWon's reply. She had hoped to let go of the weasel and take the basilisk instead. After all, having a badass monster like the basilisk was better than a massive weasel.

"The basilisk is useless," YuWon told her as if reading her thoughts.

"Why—?"

"The basilisk skeleton won't have eyes, hence it can't petrify enemies. Its broken fangs prevent it from poisoning anything. Without its scales, it has no defense. Why would you choose such a worthless creature over the skeletal weasel?"

YuWon's words were like a gentle slap to Soo-Ah. She was so lost in appearing cool she forgot the important things. But YuWon wasn't done and leaned in.

"Besides, without its scales, it can't even move properly."

"…I understand."

Meanwhile, the weasel turned away from Soo-Ah. It wasn't pleased to see the master wanted to abandon it. But everything calmed down when YuWon told Soo-Ah to soothe her relation with her summon.

With that, the three of them left the tower. But YuWon saw someone waiting for him.

"So… you're leaving?" Professor Ming asked.

"That's the plan. Nothing worth staying here for." YuWon replied.

"I see… What will you do now?"

"Nothing much. Go around sightseeing maybe?"

"Sightseeing…?"

Professor Ming shook her head. If YuWon didn't want to tell her his plans, then there was no point in asking him about it. From their brief encounters, she had understood that much.

"Can I—?"

"If you join us, who will take care of them?" YuWon said, cutting her off.

Professor Ming looked at her survivor's group. She had hoped YuWon would take the leader's role and lead them. However, he had no such intentions. He didn't want to be a shepherd but a pride's leader.

"Then what if I need help?"

"You already have my contact information," YuWon replied. "Send me a message when you need me. I'll do what I can to help."

With nothing else to say, YuWon turned to meet the rest of the crew. He was eager to see how Yeji had dealt with her father. If she didn't do a satisfying job, then he might have to teach her a lesson instead.

***

She actually did it…

YuWon couldn't believe his eyes when he entered the complex and saw a surreal sight before him. Seok was suspended in the air, trapped in a crude cage pieced together from mangled car parts.

Below him, a cluster of goblins with severed legs writhed and clawed desperately at his dangling feet.

Seok lashed out with frantic kicks, keeping the monsters at bay. Still, it was a fun sight. A slave brand could be seen around Seok's neck, telling YuWon Yeji had turned him into her slave.

"You bastard! What did you do to my daughter!" Seok yelled as soon as he noticed YuWon.

"Your mouth is as sharp as ever…"

YuWon rolled his eyes and continued on.

Seok kept yelling at him, but his yells turned into shrieks when he suddenly got lowered even further.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Pull me up! Please!!!"

YuWon looked up and was surprised to see the one pulling the strings of Seok's life. It was his mother, but the warmth and affection she always showered on Seok were nowhere to be found.

Just how did you accomplish this, little sister?

YuWon had little time to think as Yeji and Gina came running at him. Gina threw her arms around him with such force that he nearly fell over, while Yeji could only wait patiently for YuWon's praise.

"I will never leave you alone!"

Gina complained but immediately folded when YuWon pinched her cheek. The lower ones.

"Don't worry, I remember my promise."

YuWon whispered and Gina immediately went silent. Then, he turned his attention towards Yeji. She smiled, feeling the light tingle of electricity around her neck. But a moment later, her smile vanished.

"I… have something to show you."

Yeji opened her community tab and showed YuWon a message.

[You'll pay for betraying me, bitch.]

The message wasn't of importance, but the sender's name was.

"Hoon…"