I Gave Up Being Stronger

Chapter 113

“Experience the terror of death that slowly corrodes you. I promise.”

“You won’t die a comfortable death.”

In truth, the nature of the Queen Ant had not changed at all, as evidenced by the lines she just said. Despite saying a torrential amount of words, what she meant remained the same—she was planning to kill slowly and with utmost caution.

‘Good,’ Cha Jin-Hyeok thought.

In other words, she was a coward. Such cautious beings might make fewer mistakes, but they could never succeed in the end. That was what Jin-Hyeok believed, at least.

“I will try to fight the Queen Ant.”

[You have activated the Skill 「Time-Lapse Recording」.]

First, he slowed down the Queen Ant’s speed to the utmost...

[You have activated the Skill 「Exclusive In-Depth Interview」.]

Then, he tried hard to read the movement of the Queen Ant with an Exclusive In-Depth Interview.

In the process, Jin-Hyeok saw a glimmer of hope.

‘It’s much clearer now.’

The silver threads flew toward him.

‘Left. Three strands.’

Jin-Hyeok wondered if he should dodge the attack, or block it.

‘This time, I’ll block it.’

[You have activated the Trait 「Broadcaster’s Barrier」.]

He blocked all three silver threads effortlessly. Two months ago, he wouldn’t have been able to block this easily. However, his current Level range was now in the 90s, and things were distinctly different the moment he stepped into that range.

“That was just a containment attack from the Queen Ant.”

Jin-Hyeok could read the Queen Ant’s attacks much better than before. He even had the leisure to livestream it. Once he had the Queen Ant as a benchmark, he could clearly realize it.

‘I’ve grown.’

The exhilaration felt when perceiving his own growth was what made him excited.

“The next attack is going to be from above my head. And from below the feet. A total of ten silver threads are targeting me.”

[You have activated the Trait 「Broadcaster’s Barrier」.]

He deployed Broadcaster’s Barrier under his feet to block the incoming attacks from below. Then, he swung his sword—the Greatsword of La’kan—and parried several strands of silver threads. He twisted himself to dodge several more threads, before he hurled himself backward, performing two aerial somersaults.

“I’ve avoided them.”

He felt a faint heat on his cheek. Touching it with his hand, he found it was bleeding.

“But I could not avoid them completely.”

Soon, Jin-Hyeok closed the distance between the Queen Ant and himself, and he swung the Greatsword of La’kan fervently.

[You have activated the Skill 「Sharper Spirit」.]

The Queen Ant took to the air using her scale wings, evading his sword with just that simple motion. Jin-Hyeok had clearly grown a lot, but he was still far behind compared to the Queen Ant.

‘It needs to start raining soon.’

If Jin-Hyeok could not dampen those wings to decrease her mobility, he would not stand even a one percent chance of winning.

Du-du-du-du.

The sound of a helicopter reached his ears.

‘It’s here.’

He had asked Maria for this in advance. In case he ended up fighting the Queen Ant, he asked Maria to mobilize a fire-fighting helicopter.

Swoosh!

Water poured down.

“If it were up to me, I would have destroyed the helicopter before it approached. However, the cowardly Queen Ant didn’t do that. This is proof that she is paying more attention to me than expected. It’s easy to read what she is thinking. This is going well.”

Psychological warfare was part of a battle. A strong person who could not conduct psychological warfare was just a muscle-bound idiot. All of a sudden, the Queen Ant brushed past Jin-Hyeok.

“Keuk.”

The Queen Ant had attacked his arm.

“It hurts quite a bit.”

The Queen Ant, who had been sticking to ranged attacks up until now, suddenly approached him and swung her blade-like arm. Although Jin-Hyeok managed to twist himself at the last moment, his left shoulder was still almost completely severed.

“It’s fortunate that her wings got wet, otherwise it might have been my neck that had been severed.”

This was indeed a good fortune.

“Anyways, there is a significant limitation on my movements now. Rather than leaving it dangling like this, it might be better to just cut it off completely.”

Jin-Hyeok himself severed his own left arm and carefully placed it in his inventory. Having dealt this level of injury on Jin-Hyeok, the Queen Ant’s mouth widened eerily from side to side.

“I did promise you wouldn’t die easily.”

The Queen Ant stretched out her ten fingers, firing dozens of silver threads. Jin-Hyeok didn’t feel the need to block them. There was absolutely no bloodlust in her attack.

“This is not an attack that was designed to kill me.”

Instead, it was just an attack with the intention to torment him, rather than to kill. Among the dozens of silver threads, not a single one dealt a fatal blow. All of them just grazed near his skin, causing him to bleed and a searing pain to surge.

“It stings. And my left shoulder is hurting more than I thought.”

He had experienced the pain of losing an arm hundreds, if not thousands of times. However, this was something more.

“Ah, there was poison.”

The area around his left shoulder was grotesquely darkened. It was spreading toward his neck and body, much like a fungus. Jin-Hyeok made a face as if he had fallen into despair. The Queen Ant seemed to enjoy his expression.

“Feel free to be terrified and sing a song of fear. It will continue to erode you.”

Jin-Hyeok looked around anxiously as if searching for a way to escape. The quick-witted (?) Queen Ant read his movements. She crossed her arms in a nonchalant manner.

“Yes. Since your two legs are still intact, try running away. Every place your feet touch will become a prison that binds you.”

The poison seemed to hold a special power. No matter where Jin-Hyeok fled, the Queen Ant would be able to chase after him.

‘I need to run.’

Jin-Hyeok ran toward the temporary warp portal he had prepared earlier, and the Queen Ant just stood still, simply watching him with her arms crossed.

‘She is completely off guard.’

As expected, Jin-Hyeok had shown the world another IntenseMan moment. He was able to completely deceive the Queen Ant.

‘I am heading to Yeonhui-dong.’

The Queen Ant was completely off her guard. He had succeeded in inducing her to let her guard down, and now it was time to move on to the next step.

***

In the midst of escalating chaos, MiNaTV’s Kang Mi-Na was trembling, her legs shaking as she hastily retrieved her phone. Despite the anxiety that coursed through her, she managed to maintain her role as a Streamer, narrating each event with a shaky but steadfast voice.

“Kim Chul-Soo promised to come. He will come, right?”

Before the Ant army set foot in Korea, Jin-Hyeok and Han Sae-Rin, along with Mi-Na, had meticulously planned out the escape routes.

“Oh, for those who have just joined, let me explain again. We are currently in the process of creating a temporary warp portal with the help of Pathfinder, our Navigator.”

Though the venture had been costly, Jin-Hyeok had managed to finance it, easing some of their concerns.

“Since Kim Chul-Soo has retreated, he is expected to come this way. The odds are fifty-fifty. We have prepared two escape routes, just in case,” Kang Mi-Na narrated the precarious situation, the tension palpable even through the screen.

They had two exit strategies in place. One was being overseen by MiNaTV’s Kang Mi-Na, while the other was manned by BonjourTV’s Bong King, both on standby and prepared to act at a moment’s notice.

‘Please come this way!’ Mi-Na pleaded silently.

Suddenly, a burst of green light emanated from the temporary warp portal that was created on the ground beneath her.

“He has come this way! He looks extremely pale and is on the brink of death! It seems the Queen Ant’s poison is stronger than we thought!” Mi-Na reported with urgency as Jin-Hyeok emerged, his body soaked in sweat and bearing the unmistakable scent of the Queen Ant’s poison.

Though they encountered several Red-Eyed Worker Ants and Warrior Ants along the way, Mi-Na had successfully thwarted their attacks with her Broadcaster’s Barrier.

“Chul-Soo is nearly unconscious, so I will take over the livestream!”

With the aid of the temporary warp portal they had prepared in advance, they continued to move, making strides toward safety.

“We only need to pass through four more warp portals to enter Seoul. Chul-Soo has lost consciousness. I am on my way. Please be prepared, Saintess of Freedom!”

As Jin-Hyeok fell unconscious, his livestream ended abruptly. This, in turn, caused a surge of viewers flocking to MiNaTV, their anxious eyes fixed on Mi-Na’s live updates.

“Yes, thank you for your donation. Yes, welcome to my channel. Please like and subscribe to my channel. Don’t forget to turn on the notifications. Yes! He is completely unconscious. His body is turning dark blue and it seems the poison is spreading rapidly. It seems to be an extremely potent poison.”

The condition of Jin-Hyeok was being broadcast live through MiNaTV. In Yeonhui-dong, Cha Jin-Sol, who had been waiting in advance, was biting her nails nervously, anticipating Jin-Hyeok’s arrival.

“We’re here, everyone! I will hand Chul-Soo over to Saintess of Freedom. The healing process has begun! Look at Saintess of Freedom, gulping down the blood from the blood packs we prepared. No, this isn’t product placement. Although watching her makes it seem somewhat appetizing. But please regain your senses, that’s not a beverage, it’s blood!”

Jin-Sol, while drinking the prepared blood, administered treatment to Jin-Hyeok. After a considerable amount of time, Jin-Hyeok finally opened his eyes.

“Chul-Soo has regained consciousness! But the battle with the Queen Ant was so fierce that... huh? Everyone! Where are you going? Don’t leave my livestream! My livestream is entertaining too!”

Actually, Jin-Hyeok had regained his consciousness a while ago. However, he deliberately kept his eyes closed, focusing his mind and choosing to rest until he felt capable enough to resume livestreaming.

‘I should rest as much as possible until I can manage to livestream again,’ Jin-Hyeok thought.

Before he knew it, his arm was reattached and his stamina recovered to a point where he could livestream again. Jin-Hyeok turned on his livestream. The viewers who had shifted to MiNaTV came flocking back to Chul-Soo’s channel as the livestream resumed. Jin-Hyeok spoke, “I will use the Mythic-Grade Card once again.”

He glanced at Mi-Na. Mi-Na, whose audience had been stolen, was glaring back at him, her face turned a bright shade of red. Jin-Hyeok raised the Mythic-Grade Card with a cheeky smile, causing Mi-Na to have an auditory hallucination.

[You don’t have a Mythic-Grade Card, do you?]

Regardless, Jin-Hyeok continued the livestream.

‘I will acquire the ability of the Blood Priest,” Jin-Hyeok stated confidently, indicating that several conditions had already been met. It seemed he had grown slightly more accustomed to the Card since this was not his first time using it.

‘Huh?’

His body, which was decaying from the Queen Ant’s poison, began to revitalize.

“It seems to be thanks to the Enhanced Human and Enhanced Revival Trait that I copied.”

Normally, these two Traits should have caused a significant clash with other Traits. However, Jin-Hyeok could feel the transformations occurring within his body.

‘The All-Rounder Trait is gently harmonizing these two Traits with my other Traits.’

However, this wasn’t something he could disclose on the livestream.

“The Almighty Jack of All Trades Trait is mitigating the rejection tendencies of these two Traits toward other Traits. Now, I will use Abnormal Status Healing, one of the Blood Priest’s Skills.

The current state of Jin-Hyeok was far from normal.

“I think I need some blood.” He urged his sister to come closer, “Come closer?”

“Huh?”

“I’m going to suck the blood out of Jin-Sol.”

Jin-Hyeok bit down sharply on Jin-Sol’s nape.

“Ouch!”

Jin-Sol was taken aback. She had always been the one to suck other people’s blood, never the one on the receiving end.

‘My stomach feels queasy...!’ she thought.

This sensation of having all her blood drained, if exaggerated a bit, felt like her internal organs were being pulled out through her neck. It sent a strange chill down her spine. An urge surged within her to push Jin-Hyeok away at this very moment. Suddenly, she realized something.

‘He’s been enduring this all along? While appearing unaffected?’

Being the victim of blood-sucking transcended mere discomfort—it was downright revolting. It felt as if the organs inside her were being obliterated, invoking a primal and instinctive fear.

‘So this is how it feels to have your blood sucked.’

Jin-Sol bit her lips tightly, trying to control the turmoil of emotions raging within her. Now she could truly feel the weight of what her brother had been bearing all along.

However, this was a misconception on Jin-Sol’s part. In truth, Jin-Hyeok had not experienced as horrendous emotions as she did. Initially indifferent to negative emotions, he also had Imperial Resilience, which differentiated him from Jin-Sol. Anyway, the disgust that Jin-Sol felt transformed into a surge of affection toward her brother.

“Oppa...,” Jin-Sol managed to utter weakly. “I need you to stop now...”

Jin-Sol wanted to yell at Jin-Hyeok to stop sucking, and that she felt dizzy, but she couldn’t. She lost consciousness and fell to the ground. Only then did Jin-Hyeok regain his senses. He scratched the back of his head.

“I must have sucked too much blood unknowingly. Sucking blood feels really good. It seems I couldn’t control it since it was my first time.”

He had been so engrossed in the act of blood-sucking that he had not paid much attention to Jin-Sol’s condition. She was pale as a sheet, and if he had sucked any more blood, he would have had to return some of the blood he had absorbed.

“I guess I should focus on recovering now.”

Jin-Hyeok picked up Jin-Sol and headed home. He laid her down on her bed, and then he too laid down.

“It seems like the recovery will take quite some time. I will adjust the screen briefly. This is the first time I have revealed my livestream in the third-person perspective. However, I have significantly altered my face using the Deceiver’s Mask.”

Jin-Hyeok turned off the screen momentarily. Then, he laid down an avatar he had created using his Multiple Lives ability on the bed. The avatar looked just like the current Jin-Hyeok and was even poisoned all over its body. Then, Jin-Hyeok used a Level-70 Skill exclusive to Streamers.

[You have activated the Skill 「Fixed Camera」.]

It was a Skill that allowed him to install an external camera and livestream through that camera. He even changed the title of the livestream.

[A sleeping livestream has begun.]

This was sort of a sleeping livestream and a recovery livestream. After laying the avatar down, Jin-Hyeok moved to the living room to begin his actual healing process.

[You have activated the Skill 「Abnormal Status Healing」.]

Perhaps because he had consumed a large amount of his sister’s blood, which had a good compatibility, the recovery was not as difficult as he had anticipated. It felt far more effective than when Jin-Sol used it, leading him to ponder,

‘Maybe I have a talent as a Healer as well?’

He could not help but smirk as he once again realized the true power of his All-Rounder Trait. Then, he stepped outside and headed toward the nearby Guardian Tree. A few people seemed to recognize him, but the only person who truly identified home was Kang Mi-Na.

Overwhelmed with excitement, Mi-Na shouted, “K-Kim Pyeong-Beom!! Kim Pyeong-Beom has revealed himself!!! The Kim Pyeong-Beom who succeeded in killing the Level 90 Flying Toad a few months ago! That’s right, Earth’s strongest Swordsman has shown himself! Yes, you heard right! The person MiNaTV revealed a few months ago has appeared! Thank you for your donation, Mr.FunnyGuy.”

The viewer count on MiNaTV began to increase exponentially.