00646 A Dangerous Blind Date(?)
At first, Kim Hanbyul brushed it off, saying it was nothing. But who would believe that, given her pale expression and tense demeanor? When I pressed her, asking if she could at least tell me if it really wasn’t anything serious, she looked like she’d lost her words and bowed her head deeply.
“It happened three years ago. I’m not trying to blame anyone now. You can just think of it as pure curiosity. Surely you didn’t get it by doing something bad, right?”
After I added that, Kim Hanbyul, who had been keeping her head down for a long while, finally peeked up at me.
A few moments later, after shifting uncomfortably several times, she slowly began to speak.
“…I got it during the rite of passage.”
Her next words made me tilt my head in confusion.
“Rite of passage? Where?”
“At the Trap Point.”
Trap Point. That was the place we stayed after leaving the forest—a term for the trap city. Since Kim Hanbyul was now a third-year user, it seemed she had heard about that place somewhere.
Wait, she got a Jewel Mage there?
“When? How?”
“…When you weren’t around. I was wandering around looking for a proper resting spot and happened to find a red jewel. That was the secret class.”
Was she uncomfortable talking about this? I could sense from her tone that she wanted to wrap it up quickly. Honestly, I wasn’t all that surprised.
Still, her story sounded believable. She didn’t seem to be lying, and though rare, it was possible to get rare or secret classes during the rite of passage.
But not all my questions were answered. After passing the rite of passage and entering the whole plain, I checked Kim Hanbyul’s user info several times. I remembered that until about the sixth week of the rite, her class was a regular mage. It was only the day before the graduation ceremony that she was confirmed as a Jewel Mage.
So that meant she had been a regular class for at least a month…
“So you inherited the secret class right then?”
“No, I didn’t.”
When I asked gently, she immediately gave me the answer.
“I don’t remember exactly… but I think it was after the user academy passed the tenth week.”
“So you just kept it all that time?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
At that question, Kim Hanbyul shut her mouth again. Then, as if resigned to what was coming, she closed her eyes tightly. I patiently waited for her to continue.
After about three minutes, I saw her bite her lower lip hard.
“At that time… I couldn’t trust anyone or anything.”
“Huh? You couldn’t trust anyone or anything?”
Her unfocused words made me ask again without thinking.
“Yes. Literally everything. The angel’s words, the rite of passage, the people around me… No, I denied and doubted everything except myself.”
At that moment, Kim Hanbyul paused briefly, then suddenly opened her eyes wide and stared straight at me.
“Why am I here? Where is this place? Who are these people? What’s that monster? What is this jewel? Will I ever get home?”
She took a deep breath.
“Yes. I admit I’m a bit sharp and suspicious by nature. But back then, I had no choice. I tried not to look weak, but inside, I was so anxious I thought I’d go crazy.”
She poured out everything she’d been holding back, speaking rapidly like a machine gun. Yet even then, there was a hint that she deliberately raised her voice, as if trying to hide the fact that she was making excuses.
“So please, don’t ask me why. Back then, I was just a 21-year-old college girl who’d been dumped by her boyfriend and was crying miserably on the way home… nothing more.”
…That sounded like something interesting (?), but the mood was too serious to pry, so I just nodded.
“Alright, alright. So basically, you were too anxious to use that jewel recklessly?”
Exactly. Kim Hanbyul said she didn’t trust anything except herself at the time. That meant she probably held off on using the jewel until she was sure.
“…Something like that.”
She answered weakly.
Honestly, it reminded me of Descartes-level doubt, but thinking back to when we first met, I could understand. Kim Hanbyul was definitely different from Ahn Hyun, Ahn Sol, and Lee Yujeong.
Come to think of it, she was suspicious both at the cabin and at the user academy. That was just her personality. Such a skeptic.
Finally, Kim Hanbyul exhaled deeply, then spoke with a resigned tone.
“…That’s how it happened. Anyway, I’ve said everything, so say whatever you want—insults, blame, whatever.”
Huh? What was that about?
“Huh? What did you say?”
“…Yes?”
“No, why would I insult or blame you?”
“……?”
Kim Hanbyul looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“Why not… aren’t you angry?”
“Why would I be angry at you?”
“Well, that’s because… I hid the truth… and in a way, I betrayed you…”
“…What nonsense are you talking about?”
Watching her trail off awkwardly, I let out a dry laugh. What was she thinking? Did she still have trauma from that incident?
“You found it first. And back then, we were just simple collaborators. Since the ownership is yours, whether you hide it or not is your choice. You get what I mean?”
“Do you really think that?”
Honestly, I felt a little guilty saying it. I did feel a twinge of betrayal when I saw she was a Jewel Mage the day before graduation. But over time, my perspective changed, and hearing her explanation, I understood.
…Besides, in this situation, I couldn’t just say, “Yeah! You’re a terrible traitor!”
I just shrugged. Kim Hanbyul looked confused. Still, as if wanting to say something, she waved her hands around like a conductor, then finally slumped her shoulders.
“…Can we talk about something else now?”
“No way.”
I’d gotten the answers I wanted. Watching Kim Hanbyul sulk, I felt like I was bullying her. It was probably best to change the subject.
I thought for a moment. Come to think of it, there was something else I’d been curious about before…
“Amor Nuntios: This is the effect of a wish spoken solely by user Kim Hanbyul, thinking only of user Kim Suhyun.”
“Oh, right.”
A sudden memory flashed through my mind, and I lightly clapped my hands. It was a message that popped up when Eve’s bloodline condition was updated. At the time, I didn’t know what “Amor Nuntios” meant and was curious.
I glanced over and saw Kim Hanbyul looking a bit uneasy.
“Why are you so restless?”
“I’m nervous about what question you’ll ask this time.”
“…Do you remember the Ganesha incident last time?”
“Yes.”
Relieved that it was a normal question, Kim Hanbyul nodded with a more relaxed expression.
“Then do you know what ‘Amor Nuntios’ means?”
But the moment I said that, her face changed drastically. She flinched as if startled, then her eyes grew as wide as saucers.
“There was a word like that in the updated info back then.”
Feeling like I’d done something wrong, I quickly added, but Kim Hanbyul just stared at me with a look of disbelief.
“Oppa, just be honest.”
“Huh? About what?”
“You were teasing me earlier and now again, trying to make me uncomfortable, right?”
“No? I’m really just curious.”
“L-lies!”
“Hey! Why are you yelling all of a sudden…?”
Beeeeeeep!
Just as I was about to retort to Kim Hanbyul’s playful tantrum, an irritating sound suddenly rang out.
Bang, bang!
Then a couple of explosions followed. Reflexively, I looked up and saw bright white lights streaking across the dark night sky. An emergency signal. I immediately stood up.
“Kim Hanbyul. Wake the clan members right now.”
“Yes, yes!”
I heard her get up and rush off. I gauged the distance and direction of the signal floating in the air, then started running at full speed.
…What on earth was happening?
By the time dawn broke, the sky was clear and cool, without a single cloud. But the mood among the entire expedition was far from good. Just yesterday, the users had been bright and cheerful, but this morning, groups gathered here and there, whispering with grim expressions.
I quietly scanned the surroundings and then focused ahead.
“Damn it, what are you going to do? Because of one of your clan members, we’re all screwed!”
“W-we’re searching the area, but…”
“Cut the crap! It’s been thirty minutes since you started searching!”
“Ugh…!”
Up ahead, Gong Chanho was shouting with a flushed face, while a man stood with his head bowed as if he’d committed a grave sin.
“You worthless bastard…! How dare you run away?”
“U-user Gong Chanho, nothing’s been confirmed yet. Please calm down first…”
Gong Chan-ho was truly furious. When he glanced sideways, he saw his older brother standing nearby with a calm, tight-lipped expression. And there was Han So-young, arms crossed, her face blank and unreadable.
Though everyone was trying to keep their composure, the overall mood was undeniably heavy. I let out a soft sigh.
Earlier this morning, I had rushed to the spot where the signal flare had gone off, only to receive an unexpected report: a confirmed desertion.
The deserter was identified as Lee Jung-pil, a user from the northwest—or more precisely, the northern region. He was a seventh-year veteran archer, well-regarded for his skills. The only unusual detail was that he had suddenly passed out in the giants’ territory but recovered just a day before the march.
Here’s roughly what happened: when the guards came to relieve him, Lee Jung-pil was nowhere to be found. At first, they thought he had stepped away briefly and waited about ten minutes. But when he still didn’t show up, they searched everywhere—and couldn’t find him anywhere.
If we were still inside the Steel Mountain Range, this wouldn’t have escalated so badly. Desertion always meant immediate execution, but there was an unspoken understanding: “He ran because he valued his life.”
But now that we were beyond the Steel Mountain Range, everything changed. Users here were extremely sensitive about achievements and rewards, and since the desertion, all sorts of rumors had been swirling.
Had Lee Jung-pil discovered the city on his own? Or had greed driven him to make a reckless decision? I had no idea what his true intentions were.
Most users didn’t know the situation in Atlanta, so the prevailing theory was to wait and see. But knowing the city was right there, I couldn’t help but feel my anxiety grow.
There was still a glimmer of hope. If Lee Jung-pil hadn’t deserted out of selfishness but for a “pure” personal mission like reconnaissance, and had discovered the city, everyone would be eligible for the achievement. The system would recognize him as part of the expedition team in that case.
But I knew the chances of that were slim. For now, all I could do was hope he hadn’t made a fatal mistake.
“This is… quite a serious atmosphere, isn’t it?”
It was then.
While lost in thought, a carefree voice suddenly drifted into my ear.
I slowly turned around and saw a man striding toward us with an air of ease, a faint, enigmatic smile playing on his lips.
It was Jo Sung-ho, the Eastern Supreme Commander.
---------------------------= Author’s Note =---------------------------
『Q & A』
Q1.
Reader: When exactly will the Hell Duke appear in the human world?
Ro Yoo-jin: Next chapter.
Q2.
Reader: Lies. You’re just going to say you messed up the pacing again.
Ro Yoo-jin: Except for Lee Jung-pil, who was foreshadowed earlier, today’s conversation with Kim Han-byul sets the final stage for the Hell Duke arc. The stage is set. If he doesn’t show up next chapter, I’ll make sure to post two chapters a day until the end. Heh.
Q3.
Reader: You’re sounding unusually cocky today. So when do we get stat points?
Ro Yoo-jin: Ha, once you leave the Steel Mountain Range and discover Atlanta as a city.
Q4.
Reader: Hey, watch your tone. You want to die? Want to start the Loli War again?
Ro Yoo-jin: S-sorry. Just trying on a new persona for a bit. ㅜ.ㅠ
Q5.
Reader: Fine, I’ll let it slide this time. But why didn’t the potion that boosts potential work last time?
Ro Yoo-jin: …Kim Soo-hyun originally didn’t want to take it. Marg forced him, and Hwa-jeong persuaded him. If you reread that part of the story, it should make sense.
Q6.
Reader: So how exactly do the achievement rewards work?
Ro Yoo-jin: It’s simple. They follow a distribution principle. Remember when we left the Steel Mountain Range and each got 100,000 GP? Let’s say 15,000 people crossed. If Kim Soo-hyun had done it alone, he would have earned 1,500,000,000 GP. :)
Q7.
Reader: Hey, guess what the poorest king in the world is?
Ro Yoo-jin: The minimum wage king.