* * *

‘D-damn it. What’s with this guy?’

Nam Yoojun was bewildered by the sudden appearance of Dokgo Jun.

The moment Dokgo Jun intervened in the battle, he swung his sword at Nam Yoojun without a moment’s hesitation.

-Kagakang!

Nam Yoojun barely managed to block the strike, but it was a hair’s breadth away.

The attack was both sharp and heavy, and Nam Yoojun could instinctively feel the gap in their abilities.

‘Just what rank is this guy?’

Nam Yoojun had been able to grow stronger in a short period by killing people and absorbing their abilities.

At this point, he could confidently call himself the strongest in Zone 4.

Yet the weight behind Dokgo Jun’s blade and the speed of his strikes were nearly impossible to withstand.

‘He’s at least Ghost Grade!’

What unsettled him even more was Dokgo Jun’s eyes.

They gleamed with delight and madness.

“Haha, you’re stronger than any demon beast I’ve faced so far! Good, this is just the right level!”

Dokgo Jun spouted incomprehensible nonsense, looking thoroughly entertained.

While Nam Yoojun was busy fending off Dokgo Jun’s attacks, another strike came from behind.

-Seogeok!

Seo Kangrim’s sword sharply targeted Nam Yoojun’s vital point.

He barely dodged it, but a thin line opened on his neck and blood trickled down.

The killing intent radiating from Seo Kangrim was just as thick and ruthless as Dokgo Jun’s.

‘I never expected Seo Kangrim to have another ally. I didn’t see this face by the river back then.’

A few days ago, Nam Yoojun had been the one who used a Magical Beast Peach to ambush Seo Kangrim’s group.

He had planned to launch a surprise attack when the demon beasts swarmed in, but Seo Kangrim had seen through it and ruined his scheme.

Nam Yoojun glanced at Dokgo Jun and spoke.

“Mr. Seo Kangrim, you certainly have a lot of allies.”

“He’s not an ally.”

“Right. To be precise, he’s a candidate for ally.”

Dokgo Jun wore a wide grin.

Nam Yoojun couldn’t figure out the nature of their relationship, but right now, both of them were his enemies.

While he was tense with anxiety, Seo Kangrim and Dokgo Jun were chatting as if nothing mattered.

“Seo Kangrim, isn’t this guy a bit weak for a villain? How about we let him run and catch him once he’s grown a bit more?”

“I have no idea why you spout more nonsense every time I see you.”

Rather than trembling before him, they were exchanging idle chitchat.

As Nam Yoojun stared in disbelief, the voice of a god reached his ears.

[‘The Terror of the Living and the Dead’ tells you to flee.]

[‘The Terror of the Living and the Dead’ says he will blind their eyes.]

Nachal swiftly transmitted an item to Nam Yoojun.

When even his guardian god was telling him to run, he had no other choice but to flee.

The moment he pulled out the item, Seo Kangrim’s eyes sharpened, detecting the anomaly.

[The item ‘Poison Fog Seed’ is activating!]

Simultaneously, purple smoke filled the surroundings, and deadly poison began to flood the area.

Nam Yoojun hastily fled and glanced back.

‘An ordinary human would be incapacitated after inhaling the poison fog, but……’

His killer’s instincts were telling him.

That now was the time to run.

Clenching his teeth, Nam Yoojun dashed madly through the poison fog.

The poison fog that filled the area was causing even the demon beasts to collapse one by one.

Seo Kangrim watched the scene from atop a tree.

‘A Poison Fog Seed. That’s an expensive item—Nachal must have supplied it.’

The moment Nam Yoojun pulled out the ‘Poison Fog Seed.’

Seo Kangrim, having identified it, immediately retreated to the treetops.

In the meantime, Nam Yoojun had used ‘Hidden One’ to escape without leaving a single trace.

‘I lost him, but the culprit is confirmed. He does seem a bit stronger than in my past life, though.’

Nam Yoojun had grown noticeably stronger than when Seo Kangrim had encountered him in his previous life.

With the backing of a god, he was no easy opponent.

Amidst all this, a cheerful voice rang out beside him.

“Wow, looks like he got away. Not bad. The timing was about right to slowly let him go anyway.”

Dokgo Jun had followed him up the tree the moment Seo Kangrim retreated to higher ground.

He seemed to be enjoying this entire situation.

Dokgo Jun looked at him and flashed a bright smile.

“Anyway, Seo Kangrim, you’ve got sharp eyes. You took cover the instant you saw it. I survived thanks to you too. At first I was wondering what it was.”

“And why are you acting close with me again?”

Until recently, Dokgo Jun had treated Seo Kangrim like he didn’t exist, and now he was acting as if they were inseparable companions.

Seo Kangrim wasn’t particularly surprised by the change.

‘Cheon Gunam is dead, so he figured he’d take interest in me again. He must have heard that I saved Yoon Gyeoul too.’

Dokgo Jun was currently searching for a protagonist.

With Cheon Gunam having disappeared, it was obvious he would be scouting for a new candidate.

The only person making notable moves in this Education Facility right now was Seo Kangrim.

So it was entirely predictable that he would approach him again.

“Didn’t you say Mr. Cheon Gunam was the protagonist?”

“Sorry. I think I was mistaken.”

Dokgo Jun smiled knowingly and continued.

“Truth is, I was a little disappointed in you. If you were really Hoebinghwan, you wouldn’t have been so helpless in the Room of Fire Bath.”

“And so?”

“But still… you do have the qualities of a protagonist. So raising my own protagonist might not be so bad, right?”

Dokgo Jun’s eyes gleamed ominously.

It was a gaze that made it impossible to tell whether it was goodwill, malice, or mere curiosity.

“I like you. I still want us to be a two-top protagonist duo.”

“Find someone else.”

“Everyone else is just a boring extra. No personality, no story… So let’s make up again!”

Dokgo Jun’s face was lit up with excitement.

Seo Kangrim glanced at him and spoke.

“You want me to trust you? How many times have you betrayed me already? Aren’t you deceiving me right now?”

“No, but it’s understandable to be suspicious.”

“At least you know that yourself.”

At Seo Kangrim’s words, Dokgo Jun appeared to be deep in thought.

He looked like he was trying to figure out how to earn Seo Kangrim’s trust.

“What do I have to do for you to trust me? What should I do? How about I catch that guy from earlier?”

Dokgo Jun volunteered himself as a helper.

It was exactly the situation Seo Kangrim had been hoping for.

Seo Kangrim spoke as if granting him an opportunity.

“I’m not inclined to, but I’ll trust you one more time.”

Saying so, Seo Kangrim unfolded the Demon Realm map and pointed to a specific location.

It was where the entrance to Zone 4 was located.

He hadn’t found any weapons while searching the Demon Realm, but he had confirmed the location of Zone 4’s entrance.

“There’s an entrance to another zone here. There’s a chance Nam Yoojun will flee in that direction, so go and stand by there.”

Nam Yoojun’s identity had been exposed, so there was a real possibility he would run.

If his luck was bad, he might even withdraw from the facility entirely.

Dokgo Jun’s eyes lit up as he spoke.

“You’re quick to assess the situation, Seo Kangrim. And you even figured out the location of Zone 4’s door.”

With Dokgo Jun’s speed, even if Nam Yoojun was currently heading for the exit, he would arrive first.

Given Nam Yoojun’s personality, he was more likely to come after Seo Kangrim—the witness—than to flee, but.

Dokgo Jun seemed to ponder something before opening his mouth.

“Then I’ll cover that side. What are you going to do, Seo Kangrim?”

“He might still be inside, so I’ll try to find him.”

“That might be a bit tough on your own.”

As Dokgo Jun had assessed, Seo Kangrim and Nam Yoojun’s stats were roughly equal.

Going alone could result in failure.

But Seo Kangrim’s expression remained impassive.

“I’ll handle my own affairs. Just get moving. If Nam Yoojun escapes while you’re standing here, it’s all on you.”

“There’s no way I’d let him slip away. I’d love to fight alongside you, but I’ll hold back this time.”

After saying that, Dokgo Jun stretched once and began sprinting through the forest like lightning.

Once he sent Dokgo Jun off, Seo Kangrim also sprang into action.

‘Nam Yoojun and I are evenly matched right now. If I find that weapon, I’ll gain the upper hand.’

He had already explored nearly 90% of the Demon Realm.

What he was searching for was right before his eyes.

Seo Kangrim checked the Demon Realm map and moved swiftly.

* * *

‘I’m… I’m going to suffocate…!’

Nam Yoojun was running for his life, barely able to breathe.

His insides felt like they were burning from holding his breath, but he couldn’t risk inhaling.

Only after running for a long while did he finally let out ragged gasps.

‘What the hell were those two?’

He had let his guard down thinking Seo Kangrim was traveling alone, only to find he had another companion.

Dokgo Jun’s skills were far from ordinary, and his unfathomable madness was enough to make even a killer like Nam Yoojun take a step back.

‘Two witnesses. What should I do now?’

He licked his dry lips.

He had signed a waiver stating he wouldn’t hold anyone responsible for death or injury within the Education Facility.

But the Protection Agency wouldn’t be so lenient about indiscriminate murder.

‘Should I just withdraw? No, that’d be a waste. I’d be better off eliminating the witnesses……’

While Nam Yoojun was lost in thought, voices calling his name echoed from nearby.

“Yoojun! Yoojun, where are you?”

It was the people of Zone 4.

Hearing those voices, Nam Yoojun bolted to his feet.

He ran toward Joo Hyeryung.

“H-here, I’m here!”

“Ah. We found you. It’s dangerous these days, so you shouldn’t be wandering around alone……”

“Th-that man was the culprit!”

At Nam Yoojun’s urgent words, Joo Hyeryung looked bewildered.

The brief battle had left wounds scattered across Nam Yoojun’s body.

Nam Yoojun spoke in a voice that sounded close to tears.

“That man named Seo Kangrim! He and his ally attacked me and tried to kill me.”

“What?”

Joo Hyeryung’s face drained of color.

Meanwhile, people rushed over and began treating Nam Yoojun’s wounds.

As he received treatment, the people of Zone 4 grew agitated and began clamoring.

“So the culprit was in Zone 2 after all!”

“We need to catch that guy fast!”

Joo Hyeryung listened with a murderous expression and nodded in agreement.

“Search the area in pairs of two. He couldn’t have gotten far.”

“I-I’ll go too!”

Nam Yoojun leapt to his feet and declared.

The others looked concerned.

“Mr. Yoojun, shouldn’t you rest? You’re injured……”

“No. We need to catch him quickly! That way, our people won’t get hurt anymore……”

At that sight, the people of Zone 4 appeared admiring.

One person patted his shoulder approvingly.

“That’s our Yoojun. Then come with me.”

“Yes!”

The people split into pairs and scattered.

The person accompanying Nam Yoojun worried about him the entire way.

“Still, don’t push yourself too hard. I’ll take the lead, so you follow behind me, Yoojun.”

“But it’s dangerous for you……”

“Haha, I may not look like it, but I was an athletic person even before coming here.”

The man let out a hearty laugh and took the lead.

Nam Yoojun watched him with a smile before closing his eyes briefly.

“I told you, it’s dangerous to take the lead.”

When he opened his eyes, red pupils flashed.