“Are you okay? What happened to your arm?”
Yuhyun quickly scanned me as he gently eased me from his embrace. Rookie, what is this? I brushed off the glitter and nodded.
“I’m fine now. Are you okay too, Yuhyun? No major problems, right?”
Neither the Elder nor the rookie appeared, and Ppiyak was gone. Since Ppiyak had been with Chaos at the end, he must have gone with him. I could trust the Elder.
“Did I disappear for a long time?”
Worry shone in Yuhyun’s eyes—as always. He checked my arm and nodded.
“A day? It felt like only a couple of hours.”
“The rookie couldn’t find you properly either.”
[He did find you once! But you bounced off...]
A message flickered in midair.
[I’m a System Administrator, but the System relies on the Origin’s power, and much of its mechanics remain unknown—errors are hard to handle! Blacksmith Myeong-woo was completely exhausted helping, too.]
“I don’t blame you. Thanks—really, thank you. Please thank Myeong-woo as well. And tell him not to overdo it.”
Myeong-woo’s in no position to lecture me these days. A big heart popped into view.
[Yes! We did our best, Honey! This time it was so strange—not just a simple error, it felt like someone had intentionally... hacked it in Weh-weh-World terms.]
[It was hacking, but not a simple intrusion. Something more fundamental... it’s hard to explain, but the System showed a timeframe before the System even existed—it makes no sense. That period shouldn’t exist in the System.]
That was right. I’d traveled to a time before the System’s creation.
[Of course, it isn’t entirely impossible—the Origin underlies everything. Since the Origin has existed since primordial times, any era can be drawn forth. But if that happens... in the end...]
The rookie trailed off in silence.
[I’ll investigate further and report back! But—Honey, there’s a penalty!]
[You were missing for over a day, so progress was stalled—]
“It was an error, not my fault!”
[At first it was an error, but then you intervened...]
Still, how could I have stayed passive? We gained useful data, so I nodded.
“Fine—if my fault is 10%, the error’s 90%. You know that, right?”
[Yes. It’s not too harsh. You’ll proceed in a dungeon created by the chain you generated. You don’t have time to make a new dungeon.]
That wasn’t so bad—it was just the setting. Even if Seong Hyunjae chose an environment favoring his team, there were limits. And our team has both Fire and Water. Hot, cold, forest, sea—it didn’t matter. Desert might be least favorable—no water, little fuel.
‘Our team balance really is solid.’
Yuhyun—close-range, single-target and area attacks. Yerim—ranged area. Noah—combat-capable healer. Riette—melee attacker who can switch to defense. With Shishio, our defense support added. Perfect balance. Hard to assemble this synergy even as S-Ranks.
Noah is rare above all. A support healer who can join combat—one in the world, maybe. He was originally A-rank, too.
[In the turn-order phase, your team can neither attack nor touch for ten minutes! Combat skills disabled for both sides! Item combat effects also forbidden! No stealth or teleport, no mini-cookies! You can fly. First team to tag three opponents by touch wins! Ten! Nine!]
[Sorry, Honey! But we’re short on time. Over a day’s passed! Five! Four!]
What on earth? Turn-order phase? Yuhyun hoisted me up and I cast Teacher Skill on him first.
“Yuhyun, what about Yerim and the others?”
“They said we’d start separately. I won the draw, so I get you—”
A bell-like chime rang. Tag?
At once, Yuhyun took off. An endless corridor rushed past, walls looming.
Bang! A door shattered behind us.
“Mr. Han Yujin~ Oh, your arm’s healed?”
It was Mari. I glimpsed her long blonde hair, and Yuhyun kicked away the wall blocking us. Beyond the opening, high-rise buildings appeared. Our world? Yet slightly different—similar development, another parallel Earth. Perhaps where Seong Hyunjae once stayed.
With a thud, Yuhyun leapt into the air, still carrying me. His Willow Leaf Jump—being combat-affiliated—couldn’t be used. Then he dropped down—
Thud! He landed on a vehicle that looked like a bus. Skills constrained, but stats intact. He sprinted across the roof, then leapt onto a bent streetlamp.
“We should join the others.”
“Hold on tight, bro.”
Yuhyun secured me and jumped toward dangling power lines. Just before landing, he threw a fragment of the broken wall to test its safety. If birds could perch here, we’d be fine.
“Shall I fire a flare? They’ll all come running.”
Racing along the line, Yuhyun said, “Mari’s coming after us.” He pulled a flare from inventory.
We have two flyers, so better to regroup midair, wait out the restriction, then fight. Even otherwise, gathering suits our team.
Bang! The flare shot up, black smoke bursting forth. Daylight dimmed the light, but the smoke was clear.
“I wonder what skill Mari has.”
Samir had seen her fight, but I knew little about Mari. Appearance doesn’t reveal alignment—hunters defy stereotypes.
“Mr. Han Yujin’s brother is fast!”
Mari called cheerfully, spreading her arms. Her hands gouged into the side of a car with a crack. The heels of her red shoes scraped the road as two cars barreled through the smoke.
No need to warn her—it was a straightforward attack. But instead of aiming at us—
The cars slammed into a utility pole. Spinning through the air, they tore down lampposts and trees. Yuhyun’s foot sprang off the bending wires, launching him high.
Understanding me, Yuhyun spun me forward, and a bike dropped from a drawer. With a thunk, we landed. The engine roared as we took off.
“Isn’t that cheating?”
Mari jabbered. Yuhyun drew wires—a black cable snaked over the asphalt, hurling shards toward Mari. But they hit an invisible barrier and shattered.
“So that’s what no attacking meant.”
To mark our location, he fired another flare.
“These streets are weirdly straight.”
Every path was a straight line—no alleys, buildings packed tightly. If it’s all straight—
Seconds later, rrrumble! A building collapsed ahead. Director Song? Manager Hyuna? Great roadblock. Yuhyun steered—despite an impassable barrier, I trusted him and kept speed.
Yuhyun crouched, wrapping two wires around his arms. As the fallen building neared—
Two wires struck the ground like gunfire. Simultaneously, I popped the bike’s front wheel. The recoil sent us flying like a spring.
Beneath us lay rubble. We soared—then—
A utility pole sliced through the air toward us. Frightened, I pulled in the bike and Yuhyun swung me around in midair, landing on debris as he angled his foot on the pole’s tip.
It was Moon Hyuna, grinning, wielding a utility pole like a spear. Each step she took shook the fallen building, whipping up gusts. Yuhyun shielded me.
“I’ll tap your palm! Palm!”
Why the skewering? Crack! Like thunder, her pole struck an intact building, crackling across its surface.
Before Hyuna finished, she tossed a bomb below. I have Blessing, Yuhyun has Flame Resistance. The blast hurled us back, then—
Skreeeetch— Riette’s stiletto cut across debris, stopping us. It was Taewon Song—barehanded yet as threatening as any pole.
Yuhyun hurled a wire at the building. No hook, but it bit into the wall, and he kicked off to perch on the vertical surface. Below, Hyuna waved.
“You went missing to fix an arm?” Thɪs chapter is updatᴇd by novel{f}ire.net
Director Song said, his words contradicting his actions.
Seong Hyunjae stepped onto the rooftop railing. His eyes narrowed as he looked down at us.
“You look precarious—let me lend you a hand.”
My refusal met with a chink as a dagger severed the wire holding me. Acting fast, I stepped onto the building and Yuhyun snapped his wire around the railing to anchor us. He broke the wall with his foot to make a foothold.
“I’m fine on my own.”
“Sometimes it’s okay to lean on someone.”
True enough. I extended an arm toward Seong Hyunjae.
“Come here. Hands behind you, lean on me. I’ll comfort you.”
Had ten minutes passed? Seong Hyunjae’s eyes widened—he looked younger. Not like Sigma, but still.
“Then why draw chains? Your tastes are intense.”
“They’re just sturdy chains—I can’t use combat skills.”
He said it reassuringly.
Craack! The chains drove into the rooftop, embedding so deep the ends were invisible. The building’s front where we stood cracked and broke away.
Yuhyun and I kicked through the collapsing wall. Below, Hyuna and Director Song waited. Mari approached. Yuhyun flung another wire high.
Yerim’s bright voice called as cords looped around me, halting our fall and pulling us up. But of course they wouldn’t let that stand. Below, a curved blade spun at the wire—Samir had arrived.
Just before the blade cut the wire, golden claws halted it. Golden-feathered wings shimmered in sunlight.
“Mr. Yujin! So glad you’re okay!”
Riette, caught by Noah’s hind leg, shouted.
Noah released her, and Riette grinned, fangs flashing before she leapt high.
No—touch, ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ palm tap! Never played tag? Why are they all trying to kill?
‘Maybe some never have, but...’
Seong Hyunjae? Hard to imagine. Riette likely chased kids like vermin, Noah got caught by Riette, Yuhyun... he never played tag with me. I’d played hide-and-seek, but not tag. I should’ve played more as a kid.
“There are too many openings!”
Amidst the tremors, Hyuna darted at Riette. Being bigger is a disadvantage—Riette instantly humanized and dodged. In any case, the ten minutes were up.
“Everyone, let’s go!”
I cast Teacher Skill on the entire team.