Blood covered her entire body along with gooey flesh and hard pieces of skull. Cranial fluid splashed into her eyes and brain matter flew into her mouth.

The incident from a couple of hours ago was playing again in Yoo Yeonha’s head.

Chwaaak—!

An arrow had flown into the car before anyone could realize what was happening.

The driver’s head exploded like a balloon. The sickening stench, the sticky texture, the blood and the flesh… she felt disgusted by it all.

Even after emptying her stomach, she still felt sick. Death clung to her like a leech and she couldn’t fend it off.

“…!”

After tossing and turning in her nightmare, Yoo Yeonha opened her eyes.

Darkness filled her view and she was covered in sweat.

She felt nauseous.

Yoo Yeonha staggered to her feet and barely remained standing by holding onto the cave wall.

She threw up yet again.

“…Ah.”

Yoo Yeonha leaned against the wall and fell to the ground from sheer exhaustion.

What happened today left her with a trauma.

Death was much more horrific than she expected, especially up close.

She thought she would be indifferent, she believed she had become tough. Yet…

‘Is it because I stayed clear of real battles for too long, or is it because I’m too young?’

Yoo Yeonha clenched her teeth, blaming herself.

She recalled Licros.

She had personally selected him as an agent of Falling Blossom. The brave Mexican, who volunteered to be the spy, was also a husband and a father of two. But today, he disappeared without a trace.

Yoo Yeonha was the one who burned his body.

“…I’m sorry.”

Her selfishness was the reason for his death.

Deep in sorrow, Yoo Yeonha vowed to forever remember him and to always help out his family.

She wiped her tears and looked around.

Kim Hajin was nowhere to be found even though she remembered he was by her side when she fell asleep.

“Where did he go now…?”

Fear struck Yoo Yeonha, and she turned her smartwatch on instinctively.

[T-The number you have c-called cannot be reached at t-this time—]

But her broken smartwatch was still not working. Left with no other choice, Yoo Yeonha walked up to the mouth of the cave. She didn’t want to be alone inside.

“…Haa.”

With a whip in hand, Yoo Yeonha cautiously approached the cave's exit, then suddenly let out a sigh of relief.

Kim Hajin was sitting by the entrance of the cave. He must have been standing guard but ended up falling asleep.

Yoo Yeonha put the whip down with a smile, and she slunk towards Kim Hajin.

“….”

Seeing him asleep made her remember the horrific dream once again. In it, Kim Hajin was holding Black Lotus’s bow and arrows.

She muttered in pity, “You poor thing….”

Just how much weight was he carrying?

Yoo Yeonha couldn’t even imagine the pain and the pressure he had to bear.

Though Kim Hajin refused to comment, she was sure that he became a member of the Chameleon Troupe to seek revenge against them. Kim Hajin had walked into the mouth of the monster in order to earn its trust and bring it down for good, even if meant he had to get his own hands dirty.

“…He who fights with monsters must take care, lest he thereby becomes a monster himself.”

‘If you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss gazes back into you….’

Yoo Yeonha recalled the famous quote by Friedrich Nietzsche. It made her heart heavier.

Slowly, Yoo Yeonha stretched her arm and smoothed Kim Hajin’s ruffled hair. He looked like a child in his sleep, which made him look all the more pitiful.

‘A person can’t bear that much weight alone. You can ask your friends for help, so why won’t you?’

“….” Yoo Yeonha sat next to Kim Hajin in silence. Was it because of the heat from Kim Hajin’s clothes? The ground and the air around him was warm.

“…Haam~”

The warmth was making her feel sleepy again. This time, she was positive she wouldn’t have a nightmare.

“Uhm…. Ahmm….”

Yoo Yeonha slowly dozed off. She slouched, leaning against Kim Hajin’s shoulder. His firm shoulder was her pillow that served as a gateway to a pleasant dream.

…5 minutes later.

The moon shone into the cave filled with silence and wind.

Under the dim moonlight, Kim Hajin was wide awake. He stared at Yoo Yeonha who was leaning against his shoulder.

“Why does she always misunderstand things?” Kim Hajin grumbled but couldn’t deny that her sleeping face was quite adorable.

He covered Yoo Yeonha with a blanket made from Aether. Wrapped in warmth, Yoo Yeonha sunk into a deep sleep. Away from nightmares, she smiled.

**

A new day dawned and the morning sun rose.

Sannuri brought Jin Seyeon and Jin Sechan back. Judging by their appearances, I could only imagine the kind of hardship they experienced since we parted ways yesterday. We celebrated our reunion with a simple hug.

“We were ambushed by an archer. We managed to escape but our car was destroyed and we were chased by the Djinns.”

“…You too?”

I learned a new fact. I wasn’t the only one attacked by Leraje. She attacked me and Jin Seyeon at the same time. She was truly impressive.

Anyways.

United once again, we began the strategy meeting. Our goal was to return safely.

We knew that we couldn’t rely on the Association for reinforcements. Fortunately, we had our own means of transportation, ‘Sannuri’.

The conclusion of the meeting was already decided.

However, Sannuri hated being around the [Dimensional Entropy]. So I cut down trees and sharpened stones to make a carriage. Thankfully, Sannuri didn’t mind pulling a carriage.

“Hop inside.”

I led others to the carriage I made. I had only invested 3 hours into making it, but it was sturdy and spacious enough for 4 people, all thanks to [Young Dwarf’s Dexterity].

“It’s surprisingly cozy in here.”

“I agree.”

Yoo Yeonha and Jin Seyeon exclaimed in surprise, but I still had more to show. I put my hand on the carriage and activated [Random Consolidation System].

The number 60 appeared on the carriage.

Soon, the carriage became bigger, lighter, and better in terms of design. The concept of ‘carriage’ was enhanced by 60% exactly. The inside of the carriage was now big enough for 4 people to lie down.

“Enchant.”

Lastly, I activated [Four-colored Enchant].

“Black, Flow Isolation.”

I muttered the keywords. Immediately, Stigma seeped into the carriage, blending it in with the surroundings. This enchantment was used for [concealment].

“Let’s go.”

I climbed into the carriage. The trio stared at me in awe before climbing in as well.

After all passengers embarked, Sannuri started moving.

I stared outside, preparing for a possible ambush.

“…I’m glad I chose you to be my bodyguard.”

I simply smiled at Yoo Yeonha’s compliment. I still felt a little bit awkward around her because of her misunderstanding from the day before.

Sannuri raced across the grasslands of Central Asia. She was running at about 400 kilometers per hour, and the view outside the carriage window was changing at an equally quick pace. Our destination was Pyeongan Island in Korea. At our current speed, we should arrive in two days.

…I suddenly recalled the cold yet beautiful voice.

—My name.

That was what Leraje muttered as she stared at me. I looked at the information I got through [Narrow Escape from Death].

===

[Leraje] [Current Power 9.3 / Potential 9.85]

—Rank 14 Devil

—Invasion Alignment - Neutral & Moderate

—Has taken an interest in you.

—Likes archers like herself.

—Loves board games such as chess….

===

Some of them were settings I came up with and some weren’t. I carefully went over the list.

It was then.

[Sorry, I turned my smartwatch off during training. I just saw your text.]

Suddenly, I received a text from Chae Nayun.

**

[Seoul, Korea — Hero Plaza]

Jin Sahyuk returned to Seoul. No one was by her side. She was visiting the ‘Hero Plaza’ alone.

The Hero Plaza was a large domed stadium located in the heart of Seoul. It was used by Heroes for ‘Ranking Battles’ or ‘Grade Promotion Battles’. Currently, the stadium, which could accommodate a total of 60,000 people, was crawling with Heroes, their managers, and reporters.

—We’ll now start the second preliminary round for the ‘Gate of Glory’!

Only the winners of this tournament would be allowed to enter the ‘Gate of Glory’, formerly called the ‘Demon Realm Gate’.

The Association avoided any mention of the horrors and deaths that lay in wait beyond the Gate and only publicized wealth and fame.

It was a very Association-like way of dealing with the issue.

—A total of 10,000 candidates currently remain in the race. Today, 1000 of the 10,000 candidates will be handpicked by the judges and 500 of the 1000 will advance to the next round!

Jin Sahyuk looked down at the stadium filled with hopeful Heroes. Among the candidates were Kim Suho, Shin Jonghak, Bell, and Rumi.

The task of the second round was to complete a maze. Two Heroes were paired at random and the two had to get through a gigantic maze built in the basement of the stadium.

“Haa.”

Jin Sahyuk let out a deep sigh. The cause of her concern was not the maze but something else.

“…I don’t understand.”

With another sigh, Jin Sahyuk took out the magnifying glass from her pocket. The glass part of it had shattered and only the frame remained. But Jin Sahyuk still remembered the words that had appeared on the glass. Those words represented Kim Hajin’s true feelings.

“…”

She waved the frame of the magnifying glass from side to side as she recalled Kim Hajin’s emotions.

[Pity]

The first was ‘pity’.

If that was all there was, she simply would’ve been mad at the fact that he took pity on her.

However.

[Sympathy] [Mild animosity]

The next were ‘sympathy’ and ‘animosity’. The two words seemed to contradict each other, but those weren’t too confusing either.

What truly baffled her were the countless words that suddenly filled her view afterward.

They overflowed and shattered the magnifying glass.

They instilled chaos in Jin Sahyuk’s heart.

—Emotions that will be 'synchronized' when the Synchronization rate increases (currently 15%)—

[Loyalty] [Faith] [Reason for living] [Happiness] [Sense of guilt for not being able to help] [Desire to be together] [Desire to protect]….

She couldn’t understand the source of the emotions that filled the magnifying glass and was even more clueless about the word ‘Synchronization’.

‘What in the world is Synchronization?’

‘What happens when it increases?’

‘And how do I increase it?’

Jin Sahyuk was completely confused.

“…Haa.”

Jin Sahyuk sighed and looked below.

As she glanced over the arena full of Heroes, she met a man’s eye. He had a handsome face and brown hair.

It was Kim Suho.

The moment their eyes met, Kim Suho’s face stiffened. He then hurried to the stairs.

Tong— Tong— Tong—

The hollow sound of iron stairs rang out. Kim Suho made it to the end of the staircase in no time and stood next to Jin Sahyuk.

“Are you here as a candidate?”

With a nod, Jin Sahyuk answered, “I don’t want to miss out on the fun. Isn’t it obvious? Idiot.”

Despite her insult, Kim Suho only smiled.

“You should stop here if you plan on doing anything rash inside. You know this is important.”

Jin Sahyuk’s face distorted into a frown.

“Who do you think you are?”

“…”

“Who do you think you are to order me around?”

Kim Suho looked at Jin Sahyuk in silence. Jin Sahyuk, too, glared at Kim Suho.

For a minute, they only stared at each other.

Suddenly, Kim Suho smiled and remarked playfully, “Or else, I’ll tell Hajin.”

“What did you say?”

Jin Sahyuk’s face stiffened.

“Mm? So I guess you don’t want Hajin to get mad at you.”

“I dare you to say that again, you bastard!”

Jin Sahyuk was angry. No, not angry. She was actually flustered.

‘Did Kim Hajin tell Kim Suho? Does he know about the things on the magnifying glass?’

“I’m just kidding.”

Kim Suho shook his head, but Jin Sahyuk was still suspicious of him.

She glared at Kim Suho with flames in her eyes.

However, unfortunately, she had run out of time to interrogate.

—Next up is the candidate you’ve all been waiting for~ Swordsman of Wish Kim Suho! He turned down a special offer from the Association and chose to participate in the preliminary rounds! Kim Suho will participate in this mission with intermediate-rank Hero, Yi Yijin!

The host declared Kim Suho’s turn.

“I have to go now. Try not to cause a commotion, okay?”

Kim Suho gave a small smile and left. Jin Sahyuk continued to glare at him.

…It was then.

Jin Sahyuk noticed that someone was staring at her as she stared at Kim Suho. It was Chae Nayun. The mere sight of her annoyed Jin Sahyuk.

But the moment their eyes met— Jin Sahyuk remembered something Bell had said in the past.

‘Aren’t you curious about the relationship between Chae Nayun and Kim Hajin? I assure you it’s much more scandalous than you think.’

Maybe the whole synchronization thing was somehow related to this. Yes, Bell was an asshole, but he was a truthful asshole.

When her thoughts reached that far, Jin Sahyuk glared at Chae Nayun and activated ‘Reality Manipulation’. Jin Sahyuk’s magic power slipped into reality and altered it ever so slightly.

Now, the next team would be— Chae Nayun and Jin Sahyuk.

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