# 021. Long Live the King (5)
Following Jeongwoo wasn’t as difficult as I had expected. While my movements weren’t as graceful as his, they were still manageable. It seems my assumption that I had somewhat adapted to my enhanced physical abilities after becoming an Awakened One wasn’t mistaken. Following Jeongwoo’s movements and realizing what my body was now capable of was quite surprising.
However, there was a fundamental difference in skill level between Jeongwoo and me.
Jeongwoo moved with absolutely no wasted motion, maximizing efficiency to such a degree that his movements appeared as elegant and clean as a dance.
Jaehee felt his suspicions about Jeongwoo, which had been momentarily forgotten, begin to sprout again.
Let’s give Jeongwoo the benefit of the doubt and assume he knows everything because he’s Zero.
But could movements like that be achieved through enlightenment alone?
The spot where Jeongwoo landed was where the black soil ended and the red soil began. After stomping the ground a few times, Jeongwoo nodded. Watching him, Jaehee’s mind became tangled with various thoughts.
The Awakened Ones who came to this practice dungeon were those who hadn’t officially conquered a dungeon yet. Earlier, the tattooed guy had bragged about already conquering a dungeon, but he probably entered with others and didn’t contribute much.
This was Jeongwoo’s first dungeon experience too. But watching him now, he looked like a veteran who had been through dozens of dungeons.
Perhaps it was because Jaehee was distracted that when he jumped toward the red soil where Jeongwoo stood, his ankle suddenly twisted sideways.
“Whoa…!”
Due to his twisted ankle, he couldn’t generate enough power. Though it wasn’t a great distance, he thought he might not quite make it. At that moment, he saw Jeongwoo approaching. Jaehee blinked in confusion, unable to tell if he was falling toward Jeongwoo or if Jeongwoo was coming to him.
Jeongwoo’s face suddenly appeared right in front of him. Their eyes met for a moment. Jeongwoo’s eyes curved gently as the corners of his mouth turned upward.
You, you crazy…!
Jeongwoo’s arms wrapped around Jaehee’s waist. Though his body twisted precariously for a moment, he found himself in Jeongwoo’s embrace. Despite being familiar with Jeongwoo’s body temperature and scent by now, Jaehee’s face still flushed hot.
“Hnngh, J-Jeongwoo…!”
“Hmm.”
With that simple response, Jeongwoo tightened his arms around Jaehee and twisted his body. Only after they landed on the ground did Jaehee understand what had happened. Seeing Jaehee’s unstable jump, Jeongwoo had leapt forward, embraced him, and fallen sideways.
“Hey… Are you okay? Are you hurt?”
In that brief moment, Jeongwoo had wrapped Jaehee in his clothes, so Jaehee only had slightly disheveled hair without even the smallest scratch. During that short fall, Jeongwoo had turned his own body toward the ground to shield Jaehee from impact.
“Yeah. I’m fine. It’s nothing. Are you hurt?”
“H-how did you jump like that from there?”
Thanks to Jeongwoo’s precise body control, they had avoided falling onto the black soil. But even standing and looking now, Jaehee couldn’t understand how Jeongwoo had managed to embrace him and land like that.
Jeongwoo stood up and dusted off his clothes, then carefully examined Jaehee’s arms and legs.
“Did you sprain your ankle? You seemed a bit unstable when you took off.”
“W-wait…! I can walk.”
Despite Jaehee insisting he could walk, Jeongwoo picked him up anyway and set him down on a nearby rock. Then he removed Jaehee’s shoe and examined his foot.
“Hey, hey, it smells! I’ve been sweating. Let me check it myself…!”
“Does it hurt anywhere? I should have carried you. I let you get injured.”
“Hey, what are you talking about? It was my mistake. I was distracted… And I can do that much too. I’m an Awakened One too.”
“But you got hurt.”
“I told you I’m not hurt… Ugh…”
Just as Jaehee was about to insist he wasn’t injured, Jeongwoo pressed somewhere on his ankle and a groan escaped involuntarily. Jeongwoo carefully rotated the foot in different directions. When turned a certain way, a throbbing pain flared up.
“It seems you’ve sprained your ankle. I’ll give you a Healing Potion—drink one and apply one.”
“Huh? A Healing Potion? Is there such a thing?”
“Yeah. You can make them or buy them from the Galaxy Shop. It looks like you haven’t damaged the bone, just strained the ligament, so the medicine should help you recover quickly.”
“Isn’t that expensive? You said points are hard to collect. It’s not like I broke a bone, so…”
“It’s fine. Your injury is more concerning than these trivial things. Potions are meant to be used anyway. Besides, we’re in an active dungeon now. We don’t know what might happen, so it’s best to be in optimal physical condition. Come on, the potion probably won’t taste good, but just drink it all at once.”
Before Jaehee could respond, Jeongwoo quickly took out a potion from his inventory.
The potion was contained in what looked like a thin glass rod, with a pinkish color that had a slight fluorescent tint. If Jeongwoo hadn’t been the one giving it to him, Jaehee might have thought it was poison rather than a potion, given its appearance.
When Jeongwoo pulled out the cork stopper, there was a popping sound and a fragrant aroma wafted out.
“Come on, drink it quickly!”
At Jeongwoo’s urging, Jaehee swallowed the potion. A burning sensation followed by a bitter, astringent taste filled his mouth. Meanwhile, Jeongwoo took out another potion and poured it over Jaehee’s injured ankle. The pink liquid flowed down Jaehee’s ankle before disappearing on its own.
“Huh? What’s this?”
The liquid definitely felt like it was flowing on his skin, but it vanished instantly. As Jaehee was examining his ankle in wonder, a woman’s voice came from behind.
“Excuse me, is that perhaps a Healing Potion?”
“Oh? Se-rin-ssi?”
“Yes… I was running away from a strange monster and came this way when I saw people, but… Did you just use a potion?”
“Ah, yes… I twisted my ankle…”
Since Jeongwoo wasn’t saying anything, Jaehee had no choice but to respond. Even though Jeongwoo seemed aware that Se-rin was approaching, he kept his head turned away without looking at her.
“Are you badly hurt? Wow… This is the first time I’ve seen a potion in person… I’ve heard about them. Can I take a look at the bottle for a moment?”
“What? Sure.”
Jaehee glanced at Jeongwoo, but figured it wouldn’t matter to give her the empty potion bottle, so he handed it to Se-rin. She excitedly took it and examined it, turning it over.
“Wow, it’s a real potion. They say it looks like glass but it isn’t. It’s some special material designed to contain potions. Did you buy it from the Galaxy Shop?”
“Huh? Oh… yes… I see. So it’s not glass.”
Jaehee, at a loss for words, responded awkwardly while continuing to observe Jeongwoo. He wasn’t sure why he was being so cautious, but Jeongwoo’s mood didn’t seem good.
“I should have earned more points during the tutorial! If I’d known about these, I really wouldn’t have eaten anything. How could I have known they’d take so many points for a bottle of water I drank because I was thirsty? When I tried to buy a potion later, I couldn’t even consider it with my points. You two were the last ones to come out of the tutorial, right? No wonder… using such expensive potions so freely. You must have earned an incredible number of points in the tutorial. How many do you have now?”
“Ah, no. Not many…”
Was Se-rin always this talkative? Jaehee looked at her with renewed interest and smiled awkwardly.
When Kang Min-gyu had been pressuring her, she’d only responded with brief yes or no answers, so he had thought she was a person of few words, but it seemed he was mistaken.
“Ah… I’m sorry. I’m talking too much, aren’t I? With Kang Min-gyu, that bast— I mean, that person gone, I feel a bit more comfortable…”
“Ah… yes… I understand.”
“Actually, I was trying to join your group when I saw you coming this way.”
Seeing Se-rin’s reddening face as she spoke, Jaehee realized that by “your group,” she meant Jeongwoo. Well, it wasn’t the first time this had happened. Walking down the street with Woo Jeongwoo, he’d often learn just how many entertainment agencies existed in the world.
Offers to become an idol singer, no wait, an actor, and if those weren’t appealing, then a model—countless proposals would pour in. And it wasn’t just from agencies. He received countless advances from women too. Things were so extreme that during their high school festival, college students and agency representatives would show up just to see Jeongwoo.
“That weird Kang Min-gyu… I mean, that person kept talking to me… I nearly lost my mind. King, what king? If he’s a king, then I’m a king too.”
“Haha… well, maybe the king thing could be real.”
“No way. Being a king isn’t something so simple.”
“Oh…? Have you… met a king before, Se-rin-ssi?”
“Yes… I’ve already chosen my king.”
Se-rin smiled with a blush on her face.
