My sister also got off the bus with me.
"You're also getting off, noona?"
"Ya. Might as well get some exercise. I'll walk."
"Got it."
Noona walked off, and I quickly strode off towards Shin Yeonseo.
'She does look pretty young.'
The woman I was looking at now was very different from the Shin Yeonseo during the peak of her activity, in 2028. Other than the fact that she had a cute and pretty appearance that would draw attention in any crowd, the 20-year-old Sword Empress didn't look all that special.
'A tennis skirt?'
She was dressed up pretty adorably, to the degree that I couldn't even imagine the Sword Empress of 2028 wearing such a thing. She was wearing a light yellow, short sleeved t-shirt with a heart on it and a white tennis skirt, as well as an ivory reusable bag like any other university student.
'She's cute.'
We were the same age, but she looked two or three years younger than me. The Sword Empress who had taken the battlefield by storm in that famous 'Battle of the Maldives' was not here.
[Player]
Name: Shin Yeonseo
Age: 20
Level: 19
Class: –
Guardian: –
Innate Ability: [Single Hit Finisher]
State: Curious / Fearful / Having fun
Disposition: Inquisitive / Daring / Positive
Summary: Pure, Easily Lovestruck Girl with Two Faces
Class has not yet been selected.
Guardian has not yet been selected.
The state/disposition/summary only show the most representative and can change according to the situation.
Because Eye of Perception's proficiency is not high enough, viewing more detailed information is impossible
'She's outstanding.'
She was already level 19 and even had an innate ability.
'As if anyone would accuse you of not being a top-class talent.'
Her speed of growth matched Fist King So Yoohyun's. There was no doubt, 'Playing' required talent. You couldn't stand at the top with effort alone. Even from the low-level period, there was already such a glaring difference between her and ordinary Players. Her level was proof enough of that.
'Her summary's confusing.'
A pure, easily lovestruck girl with two faces? I was a little confused because the word was hardly used in 2028, but I remembered the meaning. Basically, it was 'a person who falls in love easily', or something like that.
I heard Shin Yeonseo's voice.
"Is it okay to go in?"
She appeared to be contemplating whether to go in or not. It looked like she was talking to someone, so I assumed she was talking to an 'Intermediate Administrator' I couldn't see.
'This is a gate the Sword Empress cleared.'
Flash gates had similar traits to dungeons. If they weren't cleared in time, the gate would collapse, and monsters would come spilling out.
'Well, I'm sure it won't be that hard.'
I had already cleared the 'Seoul Station Dungeon'. A gate was easier compared to a dungeon. That was the established theory, at least. The interior structure was comparatively simple, and the clear conditions weren't all that complicated.
I took the initiative to start a conversation with her. "Are you thinking about going inside?"
"H-Hello!"
Shin Yeonseo looked very lively. As she dipped in a bow to greet me, her hair swished. We'd only exchanged one greeting, but she gave me the feeling of being very outgoing.
"Um… Do you know much about this thing?"
"This is called a gate. If it isn't cleared in time, monsters will come out of it."
"I did hear that from the Intermediate Administrator, but… do you think it's really true?"
It was. Originally, the 'Seoul Station Dungeon' also ended up breaking a few times. It simply didn't this time because I cleared it in one shot.
But regardless, there would be breaks elsewhere.
'As time passes, gates will break out here and there.'
I couldn't cover all the gates and dungeons on my own.
Shin Yeonseo asked, "What is your level?"
I shrugged. This was before the 'Ranking Board' went up.
'Oh, right.' That reminded me, I had to change my settings in advance before the Ranking Board went up. If I didn't, it would become possible to read my info. 'Settings.'
[Opening the Settings Window.]
'Info sharing off.'
[Player info has been changed to private.]
For now, I was someone who hadn't existed in the past. Since I didn't know what kind of butterfly effects my presence would have, I changed my info settings to private. At least for now.
"19," I said.
"Really?"
Shin Yeonseo's eyes went round. Her diverse and ever-changing expressions, along with her blinking eyes, made her look like a bunny.
"The Intermediate Administrator said my level up speed is incredibly fast and she said I might be the fastest one…"
"What's your level?"
"I'm also 19! Wow. There's another person like me, huh? Awesome!"
She was praising herself without any sense of pretense, so I couldn't really dislike her for it.
"In any case, I'm planning on going in."
"W-Will it be alright?"
This woman was not yet the Sword Empress, but an ordinary university student.
'You betcha.'
The past records said that Shin Yeonseo cleared this gate on her own. It wouldn't be that hard.
"I think so, yes. Even a dungeon was cleared."
"B-But that was because the Tutorial Ender was there…"
Miss, even that amazing Tutorial Ender So Yoohyun would be no match for you in one on one. I almost wanted to tell her that. It felt weird to see Shin Yeonseo the Sword Empress being all nervous about a gate in a beginner zone.
"We could go in as a party, then."
Just then, Senia showed herself. It seemed she had gotten the news from Yeonseo's Streamer that I was Playing.
"You're late."
"…"
I had purposely waited a little. Since I was going to Play anyway, I might as well get the eyes of the Guardians on me and get sponsorships, right?
'And we've got two Streamers here, too.'
I could only see Senia, but the Sword Empress' Streamer was definitely here as well. Her Streamer, 'Roa', was poised to be an extremely famous Streamer.
She was sponsored by many influential Guardians. In other words, it was possible I could catch the eye of a few of the Guardians who had supported the Sword Empress in the past.
"Woah. Oppa. You speak down to your Intermediate Administrator?"
"…"
"That's awesome."
Excuse me, we're the same age, so why am I your oppa? You're calling me oppa without even asking my age, miss.
"I'm 20."
Of course, I had the mentality of a 30-year-old uncle on the inside, but it didn't change the fact that right now, I was 20.
"Oh, really? I thought you were definitely older than me."
She broke out into a big grin, giving me the smiling eyes that had condemned countless men to a fate as 'Sword Empress crushers'. Seeing it in person made me think she really was worth crushing on. Looking at that radiant, sunny smile made the world seem so much brighter. At least, that was how she looked on the outside.
'Is that why she's got [Two Faces]…?'
The normal Sword Empress vs. the Sword Empress in battle. It was said that the two were completely different people. I didn't know since I'd never seen her fight, but looking at her summary, it seemed she really did have something like a dual personality.
After finding out that we were the same age, Yeonseo became a little more proactive. "I'll send you a party invite! I also wanted to go in."
Kim Ahyoung got off the bus. She went into a nearby convenience store, buying some chocolate and putting it in her bag.
"Huh…?"
For a moment, she felt her vision dim. She reached out her hand on the spot. Because not far from her, her little brother who'd been talking to some woman was suddenly sucked into the tree by the roadside.
Thud!
She dropped her bag.
'No.'
She remembered. The Jongno of April 28, 2018. Her little brother miraculously came back from there alive, and afterwards, the world turned strange. Monsters appeared, as well as Intermediate Administrators who killed people. It seemed her little brother was getting sucked into some weird place again. Ahyoung ran to the roadside, standing at the place where she had last seen him.
'Where… did you go?'
Stop joking and come out, she pleaded. Her heart dropped and grew cold. He had suddenly disappeared again. For Kim Ahyoung, who didn't know anything, this was a natural reaction. She felt her mind grow blank with panic. For that one week while her brother was missing, for those seven days of the Tutorial, she hadn't been able to swallow a single proper spoonful of rice.
"Where the hell did you go, you crazy bastard?!"
Her back to the tree, Ahyoung slumped to the ground, as if losing all strength. Her body felt completely limp. She mumbled in a daze, "I'll kill you when you get back."
She couldn't think. She just sat there.
"I won't give you any chocolate, dammit. You little bastard."
She had just bought the chocolate her brother liked, planning to toss it onto his blanket. But now, she didn't want to give it to him anymore. She tried calling his phone a few times, but she only heard a message saying, 'Your call cannot be connected'.
'Please. Please, let nothing happen.'
Ahyoung cried while leaning on the tree. Time passed.
Meanwhile, Kim Hyukjin, who possessed a transcendent level of sense for 'Playing' but was otherwise not all too meticulous, went into the gate with Shin Yeonseo.
"I think a gate is far simpler in structure than a dungeon," he said.
He was talking to Yeonseo, but at the same time, he was also saying it to the Guardians who were watching.
Yeonseo smiled brightly. "We're the same age, so how about dropping the formalities?"
"…"
Hyukjin turned to stare at her, and her earlobes became slightly red. She gave a faint laugh of embarrassment. Many people described her smile as a 'cheat-level smile', and Hyukjin was able to feel that with his own eyes.
"Hello?"
"Regarding dropping the formalities, I'll consider it if we get out of here alive first."
Yeonseo's expression became a little stiff at that. Jongno had been a terrifying place for her as well. She was able to adapt quickly to Playing thanks to her outstanding talent, but it wasn't like she had completely shed her fear from that time yet. She would need a little more time to completely adapt. It wasn't that she was lacking in any way, it was just that Kim Hyukjin was unique and strange.
Meanwhile, Yeonseo's Intermediate Administrator, Roa, sent a whisper to Senia.
Excuse me, Ms. Senia. What's with that Player? He said he was level 19.
His info is set to private.
It was currently the early stage of Playing. The competition between Streamers hadn't gone into full swing yet, but the veiled fight between the Streamers to acquire quality content was well underway.
Come now, don't be like that. Did you tell him in detail about the difference between a dungeon and gate, Ms. Senia?
…
Otherwise, he couldn't have realized the difference between them with a single look. A Player of that level can't have that much intuition yet, right?
…
We're not allowed to get too involved in their Playing.
I haven't done anything that goes against the Commandments, so please mind your own business.
In fact, Senia was the more curious one here. How in the world did Kim Hyukjin know the difference between a gate and dungeon? She had never told him. It seemed Roa had gotten the whiff of 'something big'.
I'll stream that Player, too. Well, I can stream whoever I want, but I'm just letting you know, to be ethical about it.
You cannot.
Why not?
Senia stared at Roa. She was as expressionless as ever, but Roa was able to read 'confidence' from Senia's face, a faint confidence within that expressionlessness. It came off looking like a sort of sense of superiority, and the fact that it was indeed superiority was proven by Senia's next words.
Because Player Kim Hyukjin has already signed an exclusive contract with me.
Eh? Exclusive contract?
Roa stared slack-jawed at Senia. An exclusive contract could only be made with three Players total.
You've already signed something like that? Seriously? Something you can only do three times?
Roa was shocked. Senia had already used one of her three chances. Roa also got a whiff of something extraordinary from that Player, but it was still too early to come to a hasty conclusion.
There's a very high chance he could be an early bloomer… but you already used one?
It's none of your business.
Senia ended the conversation there.
[Anonymous Guardians are entering Channel #19207 in great numbers.]
Several Guardians also jumped from Roa's channel to Senia's. That meant the Guardians also had an interest in 'Player Kim Hyukjin'.
Meanwhile, Hyukjin continued to walk. "The Safe Zone goes up to this green line."
"Yessir, Safe Zone, roger that."
Yeonseo nodded, acting like an elementary school student learning something fun. Hyukjin walked past the green line.
[Leaving the Safe Zone.]
[You have entered the Flash Gate – 'Underground Tunnel'.]
This gate's name…
'Is Underground Tunnel.'
It didn't look that dangerous.
'I should check once.'
He glanced behind him. The door they had come in through was still there.
'Because it's not escape locked.'
If things got dangerous, they could still escape. The gate didn't seem to have a very high difficulty. This field called 'Underground Tunnel' took the shape of a big clearing.
[Monsters are spawning.]
With that notice, various spots in the clearing began to shimmer.
'Huh?'
But something unexpected showed up.
'Those things come out here?'
____