Front, back, left, right. To keep watch in all directions, they needed at least four people. Himself, Joo-Hee, Mr. Song, and Mr. Kim. If even one of the four dropped out, a blind spot would inevitably form. Mr. Kim wiped the sweat from his forehead and asked:
"Mr. Sung, what happened? Give us an explanation." "We just have to hold on like this! Until the blue flames go out completely."
Jin-Woo spilled everything he had learned. Mr. Kim nodded along, ears perked. Having finished the whole explanation in a rush, Jin-Woo tacked on one last thing:
"Everyone can make it out alive."
The rules of this room had always left a path to survival open. The final rule would be no different. Jin-Woo was certain that as long as they trusted each other, they could all get back without anyone getting hurt.
"..."
But Mr. Kim saw it differently. Mr. Kim hesitated and asked:
"Hey, Mr. Sung... You might be right, but... what if time passes and the door closes for good?" "..."
Jin-Woo couldn't answer. It was the conclusion he'd reached after a lot of thinking, but until he saw the result, he couldn't say it was a hundred percent certain. Still, Mr. Kim needed a definite answer. Certainty of his own survival mattered more to him than the uncertain survival of everyone.
"Sorry... I can't do this anymore." "Sir!" "I'm sorry."
With that, Mr. Kim climbed down from the altar. Then, ignoring Jin-Woo's voice, he ran for the door. Mr. Kim glanced back briefly from outside the door, but never returned. Crack. Jin-Woo ground his teeth.
"Damn it!"
He'd saved the man's life, but what he got in return was neither gratitude nor kindness. He trembled with the sense of betrayal. Just as he'd predicted, the moment Mr. Kim left, a hole opened up in their watch. Three people couldn't cover every direction. The stone statues lurking in the blind spots began to slink forward. Kreeeak— Kreeeak— The statues were steadily tightening the noose. Mr. Song, who'd been scanning the area, said to Jin-Woo and Joo-Hee:
"You two go."
His voice sounded resigned. Jin-Woo turned around.
"Sir...?" "Wasn't it me who brought you two here in the first place, just like Mr. Kim said? If somebody has to stay, it should be me." "But—!" "You two have more life ahead of you than I do. You should be the ones leaving."
Mr. Song smiled. It was a small act of kindness — trying to ease the hearts of the two who'd have to leave him behind.
"..."
Jin-Woo nodded reluctantly. His conscience gnawed at him, but there was no time to argue about who would stay. Mr. Song tried to hand Jin-Woo's support over to Joo-Hee:
"Joo-Hee, could you help Mr. Sung?" "Y-yes."
But Joo-Hee, who was about to help Jin-Woo, suddenly collapsed where she stood.
"Ah..."
Joo-Hee tried to get up, but tears started welling in her eyes.
"My legs... my legs won't move."
Jin-Woo's and Mr. Song's faces hardened. Joo-Hee's condition was visibly bad at a glance. Her lips had gone pale blue, and fine tremors ran through her whole body. It was the aftermath of recklessly burning through her mana while already physically and mentally wiped out.
'She overexerted herself healing my leg...'
A lump formed in Jin-Woo's throat. But there was no time to sit here feeling sorry. Kreeeeeeak— Even now the statues were closing in on the altar without pause. Jin-Woo shook off Mr. Song's support and slumped to the ground. Mr. Song's eyes went wide.
"You...?"
Jin-Woo spoke with a resolute face:
"Please take Joo-Hee and get out." "I said I'm staying." "Then who's going to support Joo-Hee?"
Getting Joo-Hee to the door in time when he could barely stand on his own feet was next to impossible.
'Of course...'
There was always the option of leaving Joo-Hee behind. But Joo-Hee had saved his life more than once, and the reason she was in this state right now was that she'd poured all her strength into helping him. He didn't want to survive by abandoning someone like that and spending the rest of his life drowning in guilt.
"There's no time. Go." "..."
Mr. Song, his face set like stone, hauled Joo-Hee to her feet. But Joo-Hee shook her head through her tears.
"No... Jin-Woo, you can make it out. Let me stay instead..." "Didn't I promise to buy you dinner?"
Jin-Woo pulled the E-rank mana crystal from his pocket and pressed it into Joo-Hee's hand.
"Eat this for now. Once we get out of here, I'm going to collect my change first."
When Jin-Woo cracked a smile, Joo-Hee got angry.
"How can you joke around at a time like this, Jin-Woo?!"
Jin-Woo nodded toward Mr. Song. Mr. Song gave the back of Joo-Hee's neck a light chop.
"Ah."
Joo-Hee lost consciousness. Mr. Song hoisted the unconscious Joo-Hee over one shoulder.
"...I'm sorry." "I chose this myself. Don't worry about it."
Mr. Song bowed deeply to Jin-Woo. With that final farewell, Mr. Song quickly left the altar. Kreeeak— Kreeeak— While they'd been talking, the statues had crept right up to them. Jin-Woo, still kneeling, took a deep breath.
"Hoo, hoo—"
His eye caught the sword Mr. Kim had left behind. Jin-Woo reached out and picked it up.
'If it's come to this, I'm taking at least one of them with me.'
He glanced back — Mr. Song and Joo-Hee were safely exiting through the door. Thank God for that.
'As long as the one dying is just me...'
It wasn't some grand notion of sacrifice. There was a calculation behind it. Even if he made it back, he'd spend the rest of his life missing a leg. Hunting would obviously be out of the question, and it was questionable whether he could even manage a normal life. With a high school diploma and no skills to speak of, his future looked bleak.
'Mom's hospital bills, plus little sis's tuition...'
In that case, he might as well make sure every last won of compensation went to his family.
'Dying during a raid — the family compensation is 300 million won, or 400 million won?'
More than a nobody E-rank Hunter's worthless life was worth. Kreeeak— Kreeeak— Clank. The bastards had finally arrived. The first statue to reach the altar stepped inside. Jin-Woo fixed his gaze on it and held the sword straight.
"Come."
But the attack came from behind. Thunk! A long spear punched through his back and out through his chest.
"Guh!"
Jin-Woo coughed up a mouthful of blood. Pain crashed over him like a tidal wave.
"If it had been just a little higher, there'd be a hole in your heart!"
The lecture Joo-Hee had given him just a few hours ago flashed through his mind like a montage.
"Ugh, aaaaargh!"
The statue raised the spear. Jin-Woo, impaled through and through, was lifted into the air. He thrashed against the pain for a moment, and then the statue slammed him into the ground. Bam!
"Guh!"
The sound of bones shattering rang through his body. Every muscle contracted from the agony.
"Ugh... uhhh..."
The statues closed in one by one around the trembling Jin-Woo. They formed a circle around him. Jin-Woo looked up at them and shuddered.
'I don't want to die... not like this.'
Now that the moment of death had truly arrived, tears pricked his eyes. His family's faces flashed before him. Joo-Hee's face — the one who'd worried about him right up to the end — appeared too.
'I don't want to die...'
He didn't want to end his short twenty-four years of life like this. Thud. The statue with the sword stepped forward, face blank. It raised the blade high. Jin-Woo trembled, but refused to look away. At last, the sword dropped straight down. Shiiiiink—!
'Just once — if only I could have one more chance!'
Jin-Woo's eyes went wide. That's when it happened. Tsss—! As if someone had pressed the pause button on a video, the sword that had been plummeting downward suddenly stopped. No — it hadn't stopped. It had slowed down so much it only felt that way. One millimeter per minute? Slow, but the sword was undeniably still heading down.
'W-what is this?'
Jin-Woo couldn't hide his confusion. And then a woman's voice he had never heard before echoed in his head:
"[You have fulfilled all completion conditions for 'Secret Quest: The Courage of the Powerless'."]"
Secret Quest? Fulfilled all completion conditions? He had no idea what any of it meant.
'Wait — more importantly, where is this voice coming from?'
But the voice continued on, regardless of Jin-Woo's will:
"[You have earned the qualification to become a Player. Do you accept?]"
Earned the qualification? Do I accept?
'Sounds like they're offering me something...'
Having grown up poor his whole life, he'd never turned down anything free. But that only applied to the living — once you were dead, free or installment, what was the difference?
'...'
While Jin-Woo was hesitating, the voice in his head pressed again:
"[You have very little time remaining. If you refuse, your heart will stop in 0.02 seconds. Do you accept?]"
He didn't know if it was a hallucination or what, but the fact that he was about to die — that much he could absolutely relate to. Besides the sword bearing down on his head, countless other weapons were flying at him from every direction. At this point, he had given up caring.
'...Fine. If you're going to give it to me, give it.'
He didn't even need to say it out loud. He'd only formed the thought in his mind. And yet the voice responded immediately:
"[Welcome. You are now a Player.]"
Flash— A blinding light engulfed his entire body, and Jin-Woo lost consciousness on the spot.
6. Penalty
He opened his eyes. A stark white ceiling and the sharp smell of disinfectant. The hard feel of a hospital bed under his back. Jin-Woo knew right away where he was.
'The hospital?'
Since meeting Joo-Hee, a B-rank healing-type Hunter, his visits had dropped off considerably, but the hospital was still as familiar to Jin-Woo as the convenience store he stopped by on his way home from work. It had gotten to the point where there were rumors that the designated Hunter hospital even had a designated seat for Sung Jin-Woo. Jin-Woo sat up. He placed his hand on his chest and felt the steady beat. His heart was pumping fine.
'I'm alive?'
That wasn't all. His body felt unusually light, completely different from the usual. Normally when he woke up in a hospital, his mind was foggy and his body was hard to move. But this time was different. He felt refreshed, like he'd just woken up from a solid night's sleep at home.
'What is this...?'
If he thought back to what had happened before he lost consciousness, this should have been impossible. A sword had been falling right in front of his eyes. Even granting a lucky miss, he'd been surrounded on all sides by terrifying enemies. Even a strike team of A-rank — no, S-rank Hunters would have struggled against those things.
'I got out of that alive?'
Had he been dreaming? Fortunately, there was an easy way to check. Jin-Woo pulled back the blanket covering him. If it was real, there would be no leg. If it was a dream, there would be a leg.
"Are you awake?"