It's dark.
Seo Woojin blinked his eyes and looked around.
The blue sky he had just seen disappeared without a trace, and only an endlessly deep and dark abyss unfolded around him.
"Where is this…?"
Neither Irene, nor the soldiers, nor the Ice Bugs were in sight.
Not just their appearances, but even their presence couldn't be felt.
"Could it be… I leveled up?"
The current scene was reminiscent of the first time he hunted Snow Wolf and leveled up.
But why? How?
Wasn't he on the verge of death a moment ago?
He had even thought it would be better to die.
But suddenly, a level up?
He couldn't fathom what had happened.
[You have leveled up.]
The words of level up floated in front of him.
"Status window."
Seo Woojin instinctively called up his status window.
And he couldn't help but be amazed.
"W-what level is it?"
——————==
■ Name: Seo Woojin
■ Job Aptitude: Demon King [Not Measurable]
■ Level: 5
■ Skills: Black Flame, ??? [Passive]
——————==
He had risen by an astonishing 3 levels.
All from a few slashes at the Ice Bugs.
It was an experience gained beyond comparison with Snow Wolf.
While Seo Woojin laughed wryly while looking at the status window, he soon discovered something else.
"…Black Flame?"
A newly acquired skill.
It seemed that you could acquire skills from level 5 onwards, and this seemed to be it.
"The question mark still can't be confirmed."
A skill he had possessed since the first summoning.
Other than the fact that it was a 'passive' skill, he knew nothing about it, so he had been curious…
"For now, let's put this aside."
Having realized early on that worrying about things without answers was futile, Seo Woojin checked the newly acquired skill.
[Black Flame]: Burns everything (proportional to mana).
"This is simple too."
Just like the overly simple status window, the skill description was also brief, to the point of being almost empty.
"Is it because I'm always in such a cold place? I got a fire skill."
Of course, it was far from ordinary fire, but fire was fire.
"I don't know what it means to be proportional to mana."
He didn't even know if he had mana to begin with.
Nevertheless, just in case, Seo Woojin decided to use the skill once.
"Black Flame."
As he uttered the skill name while extending his hand…
Whaaa-!
His hand was engulfed in black flames.
"Uh, whoa!"
Seo Woojin stepped back in surprise.
Wasn't it mentioned in the skill description? Burns everything.
It was only natural to be surprised when what was stated was happening right in his hand.
But the black flames were not only not hot, but they were also warm, almost like the space of the abyss he was currently in.
Seo Woojin looked at his hand with a curious expression.
Come to think of it, the skill couldn't harm the caster.
"It means it burns everything except me, right?"
That would make sense.
"Then let's experiment… huh?"
Seo Woojin, who was thinking of burning something, blinked.
The dark flame suddenly disappeared.
"I didn't deactivate it, did I?"
Seo Woojin, who pondered for a moment, nodded shortly after.
"I must be running out of mana."
The fact that the skill was activated meant he had mana, and the rapid disappearance meant the amount was small.
He wanted to confirm exactly what kind of skill it was, but it was a bit disappointing.
"Now what?"
Seo Woojin looked around.
Just like when he first arrived, everything around him was a pitch-black abyss.
"I would have returned to reality by now back then."
A space as warm as a mother's embrace came to mind.
However, nothing could be seen, and nothing could be known.
"Well, it's nice, but I can't stay here forever."
Honestly, the thought of just staying here indefinitely crossed his mind. However, it was not possible.
Unlike before, now he couldn't afford to do that. The faces of soldiers bleeding and dying vividly came to mind. Staying here while abandoning them was another sin.
"…I have to repay."
Soldiers fighting desperately to open a path for him to survive and Irene, who was desperately fleeing. Thinking about them, he had to return.
"Let's not avoid responsibility."
Van Slain wouldn't blame himself for anything.
Even if someone did, he would end it with a few words.
But even if everyone forgave him, he couldn't forgive himself.
"I'm worried about Irene too."
She would surely receive a severe punishment unlike him. Irene was a knight, a commander, and a person responsible for Seo Woojin.
Due to the sacrifices and chaos of the soldiers, a heavy punishment was inevitable.
Although he didn't harbor good feelings towards Irene, he didn't want to see her in such a state because of him.
Moreover, wasn't she the one who saved his life multiple times?
"I need to go back quickly…"
Unlike before, the time spent here was quite long.
Seo Woojin stood still and waited, then sighed and took a step forward.
Since there was no indication that he would be sent back and standing still wouldn't help, he decided it was better to explore the place even a little.
"Hmm, it seems endless."
How long had he walked? Seo Woojin sat down on the spot, feeling a bit overwhelmed.
Whichever way he walked, all he could see was pitch-black darkness.
"Excuse me, could you please let me go now?" Seo Woojin spoke towards the empty space.
It wasn't an action taken with particular expectations, just a bit of frustration expressed.
Surprisingly, a voice was heard.
"[Still, ■■, possess ■■, ■ one, ■■. Ah, ■■■. All ■■■, patience, have ■■.]"
It was like listening to a radio broadcast filled with noise.
"What, what is this?"
Seo Woojin jumped in surprise, abruptly getting up from his seat.
The fact that there was someone else in this black space besides him sent shivers down his spine.
But before he could guess the owner of the voice, Seo Woojin's body became blurry.
"I'm going back!"
What this space was, who the owner of the voice was, the questions kept increasing with each level up, but for now, he decided to be satisfied with the fact that he could return to reality.
"Anyway, if leveling up brings me back, then…."
Slowly, one by one, he could uncover the mysteries.
Seo Woojin's body disappeared completely from the abyss.
"[I look forward to it.]"
Leaving only the voice of an unidentified entity.
* * *
"Seo Woojin!"
The first voice he heard was Irene's welcoming voice.
Another bright light flashed in front him, his eyes were a bit dazzled. After blinking a few times, his vision returned.
"…Van Slain?"
Returning to reality, he initially thought the first person he saw was Irene.
But it was the handsome young man with silver hair who first caught his eye.
Simultaneously, Seo Woojin realized how he had leveled up.
'This guy saved me.'
The person who bisected the Ice Bug with a single sword that was much larger than the one he was stabbing with his sword.
This time as well, he must have made such an attack at a dangerous moment.
Seo Woojin silently bowed towards Van Slain, who was staring at him without saying a word.
"…I'm sorry."
There were many to receive apologies.
Dead soldiers.
Injured soldiers.
Their families and friends.
And Irene.
But Seo Woojin apologized to Van Slain first.
It was because his expression was filled with sorrow.
"Because of me."
Too many people died.
People who didn't need to die.
"…I'll accept it."
It was different from his usual confident voice.
An endlessly heavy and sad tone.
Van Slain, too, mourned the sacrifice of the soldiers.
Even so, he said nothing more to Seo Woojin.
"Are you okay?"
At that moment, Irene asked cautiously.
"Yes, I'm fine."
Perhaps, if it wasn't for Irene, he would have failed the level up and died immediately.
Although he achieved the level up, it brought him no joy.
"…Fortunately, many of the injured were healed thanks to that light."
Irene tried to alleviate Seo Woojin's guilt.
Of course, it didn't really help.
"How many warriors fell?"
Approximately 900 soldiers engaged in the battle against the Ice Bug's attack.
All soldiers, excluding the wounded and those needed to care for them, participated in the subjugation.
And among them, those who fell…
"229 people."
Breath caught in their throat.
Even if two had died because of him, he would have lived a lifetime of self-blame. But 229?
Strength drained from the legs, and the body wobbled. Irene held onto his arm, preventing him from falling, but he thought it might be better to lose consciousness and collapse.
"Most of them didn't leave proper corpses. Still, we're managing to recover the remains."
Van Slain spoke with a slightly trembling voice. It was painful to hear, but it was information that couldn't be avoided.
"I'll help too." Seo Woojin said.
"Please do so."
Van Slain nodded slowly in response to the reluctantly uttered words.
The soldiers' stinging gazes were felt.
Their eyes were filled with resentment, anger, and sadness.
Seo Woojin faced the soldiers' remains without avoiding their gazes and began to collect the remains of the soldiers.
A sword was found in the corpse of a soldier whose body had been mangled to the point where no one could tell who it was.
A helmet was found on the body of a soldier who was missing from the waist down.
From the body of a soldier whose entire body exploded, just one tooth.
He carefully collected the remains of the 229 fallen warriors, each one with dedication.
Internally, he continuously apologized to them silently.
And he made a vow.
'Never again, never again!'
He promised not to repeat such a thing. With a lifetime of remorse, he pledged to live to repay his debt.
He vowed not to run away and to fulfill their duties as well.
'I'm sorry.'
That day.
Seo Woojin changed.