The scent of fresh flowers that had filled the area was now overwhelmed by the sweet fragrance emanating from Lee Sa-young. The sound of his heart pounding as if it were about to explode gradually subsided.
When Lee Sa-young touched the root he was holding, the last remaining stem withered and became poisonous. Even though he had only used his ability once, the garden of life had turned into a pitch-black poisonous swamp. Only after confirming that there was nothing left alive did Lee Sa-young murmur.
"What were you thinking, challenging the master of the rift? ...You said he was under a weakening curse."
The latter part didn't seem to be directed at Cha Eui-jae.
"That's exactly my point, Guild Leader."
Seo Min-gi, who was standing behind for a while, quickly chimed in. He was wearing something that looked like an oxygen mask. Cha Eui-jae lightly slapped away Lee Sa-young's hand, which was covering his nose and mouth.
'Are you going to let go?'
With that intention, he glared at Lee Sa-young, who spoke without even turning around.
"Hey, give me that."
"Pardon?"
"You have a spare, right? Give it to me."
"..."
"I know you stockpiled."
"Yes."
A human-sized shadow appeared out of nowhere, carrying a small oxygen mask over its head, and wobbled over. Lee Sa-young nodded his head.
"Make it bigger."
The shadow quickly grew to the size of an adult man. It handed the oxygen mask to Cha Eui-jae before melting away.
[Artisan's Mass-Produced Oxygen Mask (A)]
[Wearing it in a poisoned area detoxifies a certain level of poison and helps with breathing. Better than nothing.]
[Creator: Hong Ye-seong]
Lee Sa-young whispered.
"Put it on as soon as I let go."
"..."
"Blink to answer."
This guy is full of commands. When Cha Eui-jae glared fiercely at him again, Lee Sa-young, annoyed, replied.
"If you don't want to cough up blood again, listen."
No, I have basilisk venom. Not mentioning one trait has come back as a huge burden on Cha Eui-jae.
Having no choice, Cha Eui-jae blinked. Lee Sa-young released his hand. Anyway, since he was given the item, it was only natural to use it, so Cha Eui-jae put the mask on his face. Thanks to the hard work of the basilisk venom, there wasn't much change whether he used it or not.
The surroundings became very quiet. Just when his heart seemed to calm down a bit, it started pounding loudly again. It was so loud that Lee Sa-young, standing right behind him, could hear it. A strange anxiety rose from his toes. Cha Eui-jae deliberately took a slightly deeper breath. Without even that sound, it felt like the recently disappeared anxiety would consume him.
Then a strong arm wrapped around Cha Eui-jae's shoulder and pulled him closer. With his head lowered, Lee Sa-young whispered in his ear.
"Take a deep breath."
"..."
"You're in shock right now, Hyung."
No, this isn't a shock. How many monsters have I seen? Cha Eui-jae was just...
