I Gave Up Being Stronger

The Heina family’s mansion gave off an aura different than that of the Pisat family’s, right from the entrance. While the Pisat residence resembled a fortress of swords, the Heina estate was a lavish mansion. Grand marble columns adorned the entrance, and numerous people entered and exited the mansion through the gates, with a long line behind them.

“Is that Lady Fyurel?” one bystander remarked.

“I think it is!”

Lady Fyurel walked arm in arm with a man.

“She seems to have gotten a new toy,” someone whispered.

“This one seems to be of high quality, doesn’t he?”

Suddenly, the gossipers were engulfed in flames.

“Argh!!’

“Ahh!”

Fyurel yawned as she disdainfully watched these people roll on the ground. “Get out of here.”

Although a person was burning before his eyes, Kang Eun-Woo was not particularly flustered. After all, while accompanying Cha Jin-Hyeok, he had become accustomed to such minor incidents.

“Darling, you didn’t hear what those guys said, did you?” Fyurel asked.

“I did.”

“Is your hearing that good?”

“Yes, you need good eyes and ears to be a proper Homepage Master.”

Fyurel’s face turned red. “They were talking nonsense. You know that, right?”

“I know they weren’t.”

“Huh?”

“Just one search will display all the things you’ve done, Lady Fyurel.”

“So?” Fyurel frowned. Red mana began to rise above her. People slowly started backing away.

‘That crazy woman is at it again!’

‘She’s going to create another scene.’

‘I hope the mansion’s barrier can hold up.’

Fyurel was known for acting impulsively, and she was reckless when enraged. Everyone expected a major incident.

“It does not matter. I like you regardless,” Eun-Woo replied.

The mana suddenly transformed into the shape of roses before bursting like fireworks. Perhaps due to the red mana, Fyurel’s face appeared flushed. She once again linked arms with Eun-Woo. “Darling, you’re quite romantic.”

‘Should I livestream this?’ Jin-Hyeok, who had been filming them from a distance, thought about it. Fyurel’s nasally voice was particularly grating. He anticipated a significant backlash from the viewers. ‘I guess a livestream is out of the question. I should just record them for now.’

***

Jin-Hyeok marveled at the sight of the Heina family’s mansion. “I know that the mansion is supposed to be protected by a massive barrier, but…”

He thought he would feel the strong presence of the barrier, but it did not seem to be the case. “This barrier appears to be the same as the Seoul Guardian Tree. It feels like there is nothing here at all.”

Just as the once majestic and imposing Guardian Tree now appeared as a regular tree, the Heina Family’s barrier seemed unremarkable.

“The family’s estate is so vast that we need warp portals to move around. And you can’t get to the main buildings without using a warp portal.”

This prevented outsiders from infiltrating the main buildings.

“The technology here is amazing,” Jin-Hyeok continued. “The warp portals’ destinations change in real-time. You need portal managers to help you get to where you want to go.”

Jin-Hyeok felt like he had entered a new world.

Without these managers, it was impossible to reach the deeper parts of the family grounds. This advanced technology was a key part of the estate’s security system.

‘I should install something like this at home later,’ Jin-Hyeok thought.

Fyurel frowned. “Chul-Soo, you’re still as talkative as ever.”

“That makes me feel a bit sad, Fyurel. You liked me just a few days ago.”

“That was before I fell for my darling.”

“I see.” Jin-Hyeok was relieved that Eun-Woo’s seduction technique had worked on Fyurel, but at the same time, he felt a pang of loss, as if he had lost a fan. Even though he had billions of fans across the universe, losing one of them still hurt. He once again realized the importance of each fan.

“The inner sanctum of the Heina family... This is the first time any outsider has seen it, right?” Jin-Hyeok said. “Due to security reasons, they tell me that I cannot record in there.”

Jin-Hyeok stopped recording and surrendered himself to the warp portal.

‘It’s my first time using so many warp portals in such a short time.’

Had he not leveled up so much, he would have felt nauseous. After continuously using warp portals, he became more adept at navigating them. Then, an idea struck him.

‘Should I try to feel the journey through the warp portal more slowly?’

Normally, a warp portal transported the person using it in the blink of an eye, in roughly 0.3 seconds.

‘What if I stretch those 0.3 seconds to about three minutes?’

This would allow him to explain to his viewers how travel inside a warp portal worked. Cautiously looking around, he used a Skill.

[You have activated the Skill Secret Mode.]

Secret Mode was a Job-exclusive skill for Munchkin Streamers, unlocked at Level 400. It allowed them to record something secretly. With this Skill, no one would be able to discern that Jin-Hyeok was recording something. Even when he spoke, others would not be able to hear it, and only his voice would overlay the video.

“I will try it,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Fyurel had not noticed that Jin-Hyeok was still recording.

[What happens when we move through a warp portal?]

Recently, Eltube channels that catered to satisfying such minor curiosities were gaining popularity. Jin-Hyeok also wanted to make use of this trend.

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

Now with more leisure, he thoroughly observed the process of warping and adapted to this space. “This place feels like the kind of microcosm you encounter when you meditate. Some call it a dimensional rift, sort of a subspace concept. I’m glad I can convey this feeling of swimming through a microcosm.”

Jin-Hyeok was pleased to have recorded something that would surely delight his viewers.

***

After traversing countless warp portals, Jin-Hyeok finally reached the deeper levels of the family estate.

“We must be underground,” he speculated. This place seemed to be deep below the ground. Light streamed in here from all directions, suggesting this place used a magical design that allowed light to penetrate even the deepest parts of a mansion.

“That looks like a temple.”

Across the shimmering marble floor, a colossal temple-like structure emerged before them.

Fyurel and Eun-Woo entered the temple, and a sudden burst of light flooded their vision.

“It’s like I’m entering a Dungeon. The surroundings have changed again.”

The temple was intensely hot. Far ahead, they could see a large bowl blazing with fierce red flames.

“A snowstorm is raging ahead of us,” Jin-Hyeok noted.

A raging snowstorm in a fiercely hot place—it was quite the contrast. Soon, a powerful snowstorm swirled around them, nearly blinding them.

“The family’s elders are standing guard on either side of the path leading to the bronze bowl. They have quite a formidable presence,” Jin-Hyeok observed. Any slight misstep would prompt an immediate attack.

One of the elders braved the snowstorm and slowly emerged out of it. “The Frozen Flame is our family’s identity. It’s not too late, Lady Fyurel. Please send them back.”

“But that would disappoint my darling,” Fyurel replied.

“...”

The elders seemed half-resigned, merely hoping Jin-Hyeok wouldn’t cause any trouble.

“Fyurel has quite a strong influence in her family. The resistance from the elders is weaker than I expected,” Jin-Hyeok said, as his heart raced. ‘Does no one realize I am recording all this?’

If anyone caught him, he would receive a significant backlash, and he half-expected a crisis to arise. However, the elders did not seem to notice he was recording.

‘Secret Mode is better than I expected.’

Jin-Hyeok finally stood before the Frozen Flame. It was much larger up close than it had appeared to be in the distance. The area was engulfed in red flames.

Jin-Hyeok felt as if the flame would devour him too. “It’s a strange feeling. The flames are bright and hot, yet I feel cold. Touching that flame might give me both burns and frostbite. This is very interesting.”

Eun-Woo asked him, “Hyung, do you think there is anything special here?”

“I’m not sure.” Jin-Hyeok had not discovered anything unusual. ‘Fyurel said this is where the truth lies, but…’

Facing the Frozen Flame, Jin-Hyeok hoped for some progression in the universe-level Scenario, but nothing of the sort took place. He didn’t even find any clues.

‘Well, if it were that easy, it would not be a universe-level Scenario.’

He understood this logically, but emotionally, it was another matter. Just moments before, he had skipped milestone (3) and gone directly to milestone (4). Of course, he had luck favoring him, but he was still very much Korean.

‘I wish I could just skip ahead. Isn’t there a bug or hack?’ Jin-Hyeok thought this for a moment before shaking his head. ‘No, this is not right.’

His old habit of focusing solely on outcomes had resurfaced. It was hard to stay relaxed when a moment of carelessness could lead to such thoughts.

‘I’m a Streamer. Making the process interesting is also crucial.’

He reassured himself and inspected the Frozen Flame several more times, but didn’t find anything noteworthy.

***

‘For the freedom of Hell!’

Under that banner, the Freedom Alliance of Hell continued their meeting.

“Chul-Soo will soon return to Hell. His next destination is…”

“Ah, it’s the Fourth Hell. He’ll meet with Hell Man in his castle.”

“What’s the likelihood that this information is false?”

“This is an announcement directly posted on Chul-Soo’s channel.”

Fortunately for them, Chul-Soo had revealed his travel route. He had even helpfully announced the exact time of his livestream, allowing them to pinpoint his location and route.

“If we reverse-engineer his path… He will use the Purition Warp Portal. Then, he will ride the Thunder Dragon from there and take the Jaime Warp Portal to the palace.”

“We know his route and timing, but can we just attack him like that?”

As if by agreement, they all turned to look at Lightning Mage Sandyem. He was the one among them capable of launching the most powerful surprise attacks. Sandyem shook his head. “I think an ordinary attack would be meaningless.”

“But your attacks are anything but ordinary!”

“Even my attacks are ordinary before Chul-Soo.”

“Then what….”

“It’s particularly difficult to target Chul-Soo in areas touched by the Guardian Tree.”

One man slammed his fist on the table. “So, what are we supposed to do? Should we just give up and hand over our freedom to Chul-Soo and Hell Man?”

“No, that’s not what I’m saying,” Sandyem slowly continued. “We know his travel route. The subspace within the warp portal, that microcosm-like space, is the optimal space to target Chul-Soo. He would not expect to be attacked there.”

“Can you even attack inside a warp portal?”

“It’s difficult, but possible. We would have to act in less than 0.3 seconds.”

“H-How would that be possible?”

“I’m a Lightning Mage. Before the speed of lightning, 0.3 seconds is almost an eternity.”

“I see!”

Smiles bloomed on their faces.

“However, I will not go in personally. There is a high probability I will die together with him. Do not take it the wrong way. I’m not averse to sacrificing my life for our freedom. But I must consider what comes after. There is also a chance that Chul-Soo might escape. To prepare for any eventualities, I cannot afford to die just yet,” Sandyem said.

Sandyem snapped his fingers. The conference room door opened, and his subordinate brought a trembling young child with a terrified expression into the room. The boy’s hands and ankles were bound with thick iron chains. “We will use this child, a brave warrior who has sworn to sacrifice his life for the freedom of Hell.”