Daddy is too Strong-Chapter 71

When Yong-Yong tapped on the Donate button, a popup window appeared on the SpacePad.

[Minimum donation amount: 10,000 won]

[Minimum amount for a voice message: 100,000 won]

[Insufficient funds. Would you like to top up?]

“Ah, come on! Is this guy a gold digger or what?” Yong-Yong shouted and frowned in frustration.

The function that played a voice message when a donation was received allowed streamers to set the minimum donation amount required for it. In Lee Sang-Woo’s case, he set the threshold at a hundred thousand won.

“O-one hundred thousand won...?” Yoon-Hee was startled when she saw the popup.

That was nearly three days’ worth of their grocery expenses and even exceeded her monthly transportation allowance. Living off the allowance Do-Jun provided, the amount was a significant burden for Yoon-Hee.

However, Yong-Yong seemed unconcerned, shrugging his shoulders and gazing at her with wide, expectant eyes. “Money, pwease.”

“No way! Do you even know how much that is?”

“I can pay you back later. Besides, don’t you want to know when Master is coming back?”

“W-well, I do, but...” Yoon-Hee fidgeted with her fingers and bit her lip.

Of course, she was curious. Hearing directly from Do-Jun would make her very happy. She still had some scholarship money left in her account even after their beef dinner, so paying the 100,000 won wasn’t too difficult, but she wondered how on earth Yong-Yong planned to pay her back.

“Okay, but just this once, okay? I don’t have money for a second time.”

“Okay.”

Five minutes later, a message appeared, confirming that the payment was successful, and Yong-Yong typed into the chat with his awkward, hunt-and-peck typing style.

***

Ding!

[xXSupremeYongYongXx has donated 100,000 won.]

﹂When r u coning home master?

Seeing the message in the chat, Lee Sang-Woo came to a halt.

He could be selective about which normal messages to respond to, but he had to respond to every single donation message. However, he had no idea how to react to this one.

Thinking it was probably just a joke from a viewer, he replied nonchalantly, “Well, who knows? When should I go home?”

***

Meanwhile, at Do-Jun’s house, Yong-Yong was in trouble.

“You stupid!” Yoon-Hee shouted.

“Ack! Why the hell is he answering?”

Yoon-Hee grabbed Yong-Yong by the scruff and shook him vigorously after a hefty 100,000 won just disappeared into thin air without finding out when Do-Jun would get home.

“Lord Izaas, I think you were supposed to mention Master’s name and ask the streamer directly to relay the question,” Karsiel added.

“L-let’s ask just one more time.”

“Stop being silly! Even if I wanted to, I don’t have any more money,” Yoon-Hee said dejectedly.

“Take it out of our living expenses.”

She hesitated as spending the money that Do-Jun worked hard to earn filled her with guilt. But since they had already come this far, Yoon-Hee decided to follow Karsiel’s advice and send another donation message.

She promised herself that she would make sure to repay the money later.

***

Ding!

[xXSupremeYongYongXx has donated 100,000 won.]

﹂Please ask Supervisor Lee Do-Jun, who is next to you, when he plans to return home. Please tell him his family is waiting for him.

Reading the supporter’s message, Lee Sang-Woo turned to face Do-Jun, who was trailing about ten meters behind him, and showed the message while explaining the situation.

The source of this c𝐨ntent is freeweɓnovēl.coɱ.

It was 7:30 PM, and Do-Jun glanced over the message log from the user named xXSupremeYongYongXx and chuckled.

The first message was probably from Yong-Yong, while the second one seemed to have been adjusted by Yoon-Hee or Karsiel. He was a bit curious about where they had gotten the money from, but he felt responsible since he hadn’t informed them that he’d be late.

“Thank you for your support, xXSupremeYongYongXx. Supervisor Lee Do-Jun is expected to return home in three hours. I, Lee Sang-Woo, will do my best to clear the Fissure quickly for the sake of your family’s peace. Thank you.”

﹂Sang-Woo the Guardian of Families, let’s go!

﹂LMAO

﹂Three-hour Fissure clear mission, go!

﹂This is too funny, LOL

Before he knew it, the viewer count had surpassed fifteen thousand, five thousand more than usual since he had entered an A-rank Great Fissure. But what was even more surprising was that the number of viewers was still climbing.

Feeling elated, Lee Sang-Woo raised his fist and shouted, “Let’s go!”

What on earth am I doing here? Do-Jun thought, letting out a wry laugh.

***

They had reached about halfway through after passing the entrance of the Fissure.

Since it was an A-rank Great Fissure with limited information, most Hunters stuck to hunting the occasional Dark Elves near the entrance. Only Do-Jun’s group had ventured this far.

“Is this the entrance to the forest...?” Ye-Ji said.

A rugged, unpaved path lay between the thick trees.

Judging by the tangled thorny vines blocking other paths, it seemed the Dark Elves used this as their primary entrance and exit.

“How should we proceed—” Lee Sang-Woo couldn’t finish his sentence as a system message appeared before their eyes.

[To those who challenge the Sleeping Forest.]

[This place shall become your grave.]

Dense fog surrounded them to obscure their vision, and the surroundings changed.

The path they had walked on disappeared, and the single route into the forest split into three branching paths. A large iron gate appeared at the entrance to each path, preventing a clear view inside.

“W-what is...”

Looking back, there was nothing but darkness.

[Sangwoo’sWalletAI has donated 1,000,000 won.]

﹂Goodbye, Sang-Woo. Use this to get to the afterlife.

[PorriPorriPorridge has donated 500,000 won.]

﹂You were supposed to send Mr. Civil Servant home, not back to god’s embrace lol.

Both the chat and donation messages started exploding with activity. Simultaneously, the viewer counts surged past eighty thousand, and the stream quickly climbed to the number one spot on the trending list.

└Isn’t this actually really dangerous? I’ve already contacted the Hunter’s Bureau for help.

└What did that poor civil servant do to deserve this?

└It’s his own fault. He walked into the Fissure voluntarily.

└It’s probably a boss zone... No way they’re surviving without an S-rank Hunter.

“A boss zone...?” Lee Sang-Woo muttered, clenching his fists.

Honestly, he hadn’t planned on fighting the boss monster as he knew he wouldn’t be able to defeat it anyway. His plan was to hunt a few regular monsters and leave once the time was up.

“Mr. A-administrator...” Ye-Ji called out to Do-Jun, her eyes and voice filled with concern as if she was caught off-guard by the unexpected turn of events.

[Please select the path you would like to challenge.]

[First Door: Edge of the Sleeping Forest]

[Second Door: Trunk of the Sleeping Forest]

[Third Door: Core of the Sleeping Forest]

The three doors before them led to three different locations of the Sleeping Forest, and the location they entered would depend on which door they chose.

“Let’s go for the edge.” Lee Sang-Woo swallowed hard and suggested.

Even at a glance, the core seemed far too dangerous. It made sense to choose the door that seemed to have the lowest difficulty.

Ye-Ji nodded in agreement, showing her support for his suggestion, but still hesitated.

Do-Jun had been silent until now. He spoke up, drawing the attention of the other two. He glanced at the three doors and said, “It doesn’t look like all three of us can enter the same door.”

***

Do-Jun recalled their conversation from a few minutes ago.

“Mr. Administrator, you should wait here.”

“Hunter Ye-Ji is right, Supervisor Lee. It’d be best if you waited here. The fog might be thick, but if we’re still in our dimension, there’s a high chance the Hunter’s Bureau will find you when they send a team.”

Ye-Ji and Lee Sang-Woo had each entered the doors leading to the edge and trunk of the Sleeping Forest, leaving only one remaining—the one leading to the core of the forest.

Two of the three iron doors had disappeared along with their paths.

Rescue... huh, Do-Jun thought, amused.

Did they genuinely believe that?

The truth was that the Hunter’s Bureau rarely conducted rescue operations for Hunters who voluntarily entered Fissures unless under exceptional circumstances.

It was a different story for civilians, but every Hunter knew the unspoken rule: once you entered a Fissure, the responsibility for your life fell on you and you only.

If rescuing Hunters was the Bureau’s responsibility, it would have to spend all its time doing just that.

Do-Jun walked up to the remaining door. As he placed his hand on it, the door creaked open with a groan.

[Entering the Core of the Sleeping Forest.]

***

Do-Jun slowly opened his eyes.

A vast green meadow spread out around a massive tree that seemed to tower over two hundred meters tall. When he looked around, there was nothing else in sight besides one man standing by a small shelter under the base of the great tree, admiring the meadow’s flowers.

A tiger swallowtail butterfly landed on the man’s fingertip and folded its wings. With a soft smile, the man gazed at the butterfly with satisfaction. He was a dark-skinned elf, over two meters tall, dressed in loose robes.

Do-Jun realized that this man was none other than the boss monster.

“Do you know why this place is called the Sleeping Forest?” the man murmured without even glancing at Do-Jun.

He already knew that Do-Jun had arrived without needing to see him, and his leisurely attitude was evident in his tone.

“I’m not sure,” Do-Jun answered and shrugged.

Whether it was the Sleeping Forest or the Sleeping River, he didn’t care. He only wanted to kill the boss monster quickly and return home as soon as possible.

Everything else was just trivial matters that he didn’t care about one bit.

“The name came about unknowingly as those who trespassed into our Dark Elves’ territory were sent to eternal rest. Personally, I find the name fitting. The Sleeping Forest! Doesn’t it perfectly suit our home, where we deal with intruders?”

Do-Jun yawned, and the man looked at him as if in disbelief.

Had humans finally gone mad?

The man, Einhasad, the leader of the Dark Elves, burst into laughter on the spot, then abruptly stopped, turning serious as he glared at Do-Jun.

“With the mercy of this forest, I shall grant you the honor of becoming its nourishment.”

As soon as he spoke, the wind blew, and the breeze gradually gathered at Einhasad’s fingertips. It then combined with light, forming a green bow.

“Ah! O power of the radiant World Tree! May your glory spread across all lands...” Einhasad raised his arms to the sky as he chanted.

It looked like he was seconds away from attacking Do-Jun, but now, he was raising his voice in prayer to the sky like a madman.

Do-Jun pressed his temples, feeling a headache. “Hey, man, let’s stop there. I can’t listen to this any longer.”

Whether it was an act or a genuine behavior, this man clearly had a terminal case of delulu. On top of that, he was a chatterbox.

Do-Jun now understood why this boss monster was alone in this remote place without any guards.

***

Hunter’s Bureau Headquarters.

Kang-Hyun couldn’t hide his excitement as he read through the information about the Core: The Tutorial Zone was divided into four stages. Upon clearing these, they would gain entry to the first floor of the Core.

What shocked him most was the presence of countless challengers within the first floor of the Core and also the fact that they hailed from Mirror Earths, which were dimensional versions of this Earth.

“The Tutorial Zone is the most critical part, it seems,” he commented.

“Yes, at least according to the materials that Supervisor Lee sent. Your ceiling is determined by the Skill Ring and the color of the Status Window,” Young-Chul said.

Once someone cleared the Tutorial Zone and entered the Core, they had to have a fresh start through the Skill Ring and the Status Window Snake obtained there. The conclusion was that no matter how strong one might have been on Earth, if the rank of their Skill Ring and Status Window Snake were low, they would inevitably be weeded out.

“Is Supervisor Lee stepping back from this?” Kang-Hyun expressed his unease.

Only after receiving this information did he fully realize that the power of Behemoth alone would not be enough to raid the Core.

“He did not mention anything about that.”

“Is that so...”

A brief silence followed.

“In any case, Kang-Hyun, focus on what’s immediately in front of you and make sure there are no issues with the announcement of the new SS-rank. I’ll maintain contact and seek cooperation with Supervisor Lee...”

“Sir.” Kang-Hyun bit his lip, then continued, “I wonder... if I am truly deserving of the SS-rank.”

His expression was dark.

Young-Chul understood why Kang-Hyun was saying this.

He had always stood at the pinnacle of the Hunter world as the supernova, the First Hunter, the Sword Emperor, and the Father of all Hunters. Even now, the general public regarded him as the best and the strongest. But now, he had come to face a monumental wall: the emergence of the unprecedented Do-Jun.

Young-Chul lit a cigarette.

“You operate in different fields,” he said to the sulking Kang-Hyun.

“Sorry?”

“You’re Superman, and Supervisor Lee is the Dark Knight. Each has their own role, don’t they?”

Young-Chul extinguished the cigarette as he pondered, How did the story of the Dark Knight end again?

***

“That calmness of yours...” Einhasad ceased his prayer. “...will vanish.”

In an instant, the sun sank, and its spot was taken over by the moon. The twilight that had stained the land red faded, leaving the field in darkness.

[The hidden face of the Sleeping Forest is revealed.]

[Your Status Window is sealed.]

Whoosh!

As the grass in the field withered and dried up, gravestones and skeletal remains appeared in their place.

These were likely the victims Einhasad had referred to as having entered eternal rest.

Swoosh.

Einhasad’s figure vanished. It was a high-level skill that allowed the user to blend with the darkness and conceal their presence.

“I shall guide you to your eternal rest.” Einhasad’s voice echoed, but his form remained hidden.

[An activatable Status Window has been detected.]

Kyeeeh!

The Status Window Snake coiled around Do-Jun’s wrist screeched as its scales began to shimmer in the colors of the rainbow.

[Status Window (Black) activated.]

[Skill Enhancement Ring activated.]

Pew!

From the pitch-black darkness, a single green arrow shot toward Do-Jun.

Thwack!

When the arrow struck Do-Jun, Einhasad, hiding in the shadows, grinned widely. Then he froze.

The arrow had indeed hit, yet the human appeared entirely unharmed.

“How...” Einhasad’s eyes widened as he came to a realization. “No.”

The Status Window of Earth became disabled when the hidden face of the Sleeping Forest was activated, making any human entering this place inevitably powerless.

However, there was one kind of power that was still usable in such a place.

Swoosh.

Do-Jun’s figure disappeared.