* * *

“Just how long do you plan on tagging along?”

Seo Kangrim spoke as he raced along the course, directing his words at Dokgo Jun running beside him.

Even after the water section ended and they disembarked from the boat, he had been persistently trailing Seo Kangrim.

Dokgo Jun ran without a trace of fatigue, laughing refreshingly.

“Well, I’ve got to stick with you until the finale!”

“I have no intention of doing that.”

Seo Kangrim fully intended to bleed Dokgo Jun dry, but he kept up the pretense of maintaining his guard.

That attitude made it easier to seize the upper hand.

As expected, Dokgo Jun put on a pitiful face.

“Seo Kangrim, are you really going to abandon me?”

Though he looked like he was about to cry, it was closer to an act.

Seo Kangrim stared at him for a moment before turning his gaze away.

“We’re only traveling together until the end of this race.”

“I knew it. Having me as your ally is useful in all sorts of ways, right?”

True to Dokgo Jun’s words, their pace of clearing through the area had noticeably accelerated since he joined.

Other participants, demon beasts, and traps continued to appear one after another, but they breezed through them in an instant.

‘Of course, that’s not the only reason I brought him along.’

As they continued racing along the course, Seo Kangrim came to a halt.

Something lay ahead.

“Looks like a new section.”

[Course 3 is beginning!]

A massive wall stood before them.

At the center of the wall was a door, and beside it sat a single slot machine.

Seo Kangrim quickly read the message that appeared before him.

[In Course 3, you may use a vehicle to travel.]

[A vehicle will be provided based on the slot machine results.]

Seo Kangrim stared down at the notice.

Another gamble left to chance.

This was the worst possible pattern for Seo Kangrim.

‘In my past life, I got a tricycle, didn’t I?’

But this time, the situation was different.

As Seo Kangrim stood in silence, Dokgo Jun approached the slot machine with eyes full of curiosity.

“A vehicle? Sounds fun. Let’s see what comes out.”

-Chakang!

He pulled the slot machine lever without a moment’s hesitation.

An attitude that didn’t doubt his luck for even a second.

The rapidly spinning slot machine began to slow with a chalkang, chalkang sound.

[7!]

[7!!]

[7!!!]

A fanfare of celebratory sound effects erupted as lights flashed brilliantly.

[7.7.7! Congratulations, jackpot!]

“Haha, jackpot as expected!”

Dokgo Jun smiled as if he had expected it all along.

His face carried the look of someone who considered his good fortune a matter of course.

A moment later, something dropped from the slot machine accompanied by a sound effect.

[Take the key and proceed to the next area!]

Dokgo Jun picked up the key from the dispensing slot and headed toward the door in the wall.

The moment the two entered the room, Dokgo Jun let out a low whistle.

Sitting there was a luxury sports car, adorned with a bull-shaped hood ornament.

[You have acquired ‘Red Bull Aldebaran’!]

“Not bad, huh?”

“Right?”

Seo Kangrim said this, then casually took the passenger seat.

He looked at Dokgo Jun with an expression as if it were his own car.

“You not getting in?”

“……Seo Kangrim, I’ve been noticing this for a while, but you’ve gotten a lot more shameless than when I first met you.”

“You said we’re a team.”

Seo Kangrim had no confidence in drawing a good vehicle in the third course.

But Dokgo Jun beside him was a different story.

‘This is exactly why I brought Dokgo Jun along. The results speak for themselves.’

Dokgo Jun, who possessed Divine Grade Four Pillars of Destiny.

With him, pulling a good vehicle was a certainty.

Seo Kangrim remembered that in his past life, the same sports car had been drawn as well.

“Fine, alright. I’ll let you take advantage of me. For now.”

The words ‘for now’ seemed to carry a certain weight.

Dokgo Jun flashed a grin, climbed into the driver’s seat, and immediately stomped on the pedal.

-Buaaang!

The speedometer needle snapped upward in an instant.

Disregarding any speed limits, the car shot forward at a blistering pace.

“Whoa, this is great! At this rate, we’ll catch up to the leaders in no time.”

Seo Kangrim listened to him while continuously checking the nearby monitor.

The leader was still Shin Sooa.

Skirmishes with competitors broke out from time to time, but nothing particularly noteworthy seemed to be happening.

‘What was the Guide of Destiny trying to tell me?’

The message that said events would occur due to connections.

Several events had occurred, but none had been critical.

Seo Kangrim glanced at Dokgo Jun sitting beside him.

‘It probably wasn’t trying to tell me that I’d end up cooperating with Dokgo Jun.’

While he was deep in thought, Seo Kangrim snapped to attention at a sound coming from somewhere.

Amid the clamor of the engine and tire friction, a discordant sound had wedged itself in.

Seeing this, Dokgo Jun spoke in disbelief.

“What’s that? A horse?”

-Dageutak, dageutak!

Ahead, a massive Red Horse was galloping at a terrifying speed.

The people riding atop it were familiar faces.

“Master!”

“Master!”

The riders were Yoon Gyeoul and Yoon Bom.

Yoon Bom greeted Seo Kangrim warmly before glancing at Dokgo Jun beside him.

“Master, I saw it on the broadcast, but did you really form an alliance with Jun?”

“Yeah.”

“Ah, what do we do? We’re supposed to win, though…”

The revelation Yoon Bom and Yoon Gyeoul had received was to pass in first place.

That made Seo Kangrim, representing the Rat zodiac, a clear enemy.

As Yoon Bom hesitated, Seo Kangrim’s voice reached her.

“What are you doing? We’re in the middle of a competition.”

-Pweong!

And the moment those words left his mouth, Ten-Foot Blaze was fired, grazing past the side of Yoon Bom’s head.

Even so, Yoon Bom couldn’t bring herself to counterattack.

Seo Kangrim silently leveled his sword and spoke.

“Think of this as a sparring match. Treat it as a test of your skills and come at me.”

Putting on a convincing enough fight would ensure no backlash for Yoon Bom and Yoon Gyeoul.

Eventually, Yoon Bom raised her rifle and aimed at Seo Kangrim.

An ear-splitting gunshot rang out.

-Tang!

The bullet sliced through the headwind as it flew toward him.

A violent, razor-sharp speed.

But Seo Kangrim was faster still.

-Seogeot!

The bullet, split clean in half by the sword, sailed past him.

A quick glance revealed it wasn’t a live round but a tranquilizer dart.

Ironically, when Seo Kangrim blocked the shot, Yoon Bom appeared relieved.

Yoon Gyeoul shouted in frustration.

“Sis! You can’t let your guard down!”

“B-but it’s Master we’re…”

“Master is strong anyway. Even if we went all out, we probably couldn’t beat him.”

“That’s true…”

Yoon Bom nodded as if convinced.

Then, with eyes far sharper than before, she reloaded.

Seo Kangrim rose to his feet, took a defensive stance, and called out to Dokgo Jun.

“Keep driving well. I’ll handle the rest.”

“Alright. Then I can step on it a bit more?”

-Buaaang!

Without even waiting for a response, Dokgo Jun cranked up the speed even further.

The speedometer had now exceeded 150 kilometers per hour.

The shaking and wind made standing difficult, but it wasn’t impossible.

At that moment, the second attack began.

-Tang, tang!

Gunshots rang out between the thunder of hooves devouring the ground and the roar of the engine.

And with each gunshot, Seo Kangrim’s sword deflected the bullets, letting out a sharp ring.

Meanwhile, the number on the speedometer had begun to climb past 180.

[A fierce battle is unfolding on this side as well! The combat is impressive, but both sides’ driving skills are equally remarkable!]

The commentator’s excited voice echoed through the speakers.

Before long, the car Seo Kangrim was riding in was running neck and neck with the horse.

The horse stamped its hooves wildly, kicking off the ground with even greater ferocity as it surged forward.

Yoon Bom seemed pleased by the fact that not a single bullet had hit Seo Kangrim.

“Then I’ll give it my all, Master!”

-Kang, kakang!

Seo Kangrim’s sword danced through the air as he deflected the endless stream of incoming bullets.

It looked close to a barrage, but each and every shot was aimed precisely at Seo Kangrim.

‘Seriously, she’s a monster too.’

Yoon Bom stood atop the horse as it galloped explosively, firing without a tremor in her stance.

But in Yoon Bom’s eyes, it was Seo Kangrim who appeared superhuman instead.

She had poured out at least several dozen rounds, yet he hadn’t allowed a single one through, slicing them all away.

The bisected bullets clattered noisily onto the hood.

Just then, the car jolted as if it had run over something, and a notification window popped up.

[Entering event zone ‘Trap Field’!]

At those words, Seo Kangrim hastily looked up and stared ahead.

The color of the course floor had changed without him noticing.

A floor divided into black and white like a chessboard.

The moment the car Seo Kangrim was riding in drove over a tile—

-Kwang!

A deafening explosion erupted from behind.

He turned to see massive flames and smoke sweeping the area.

Dokgo Jun glanced at the scene through the rearview mirror and spoke.

“Hmm. Looks like we hit a mine.”

Thanks to their high speed, they had barely escaped the blast.

The tiled road still stretched endlessly ahead.

[The Rat Zodiac Camp and the Horse Zodiac Camp! Both sides have entered the trap section!]

[No one knows what traps lie hidden where!]

The moment the commentator finished speaking, a short scream rang out from the side.

Yoon Gyeoul cried out in alarm.

“Uwaah, what the heck is this?”

Beside them, something had been triggered, and the entire floor was covered in ice.

The horse stumbled in panic on the slippery surface.

Yoon Gyeoul clicked his tongue in annoyance, drew his bow, and nocked an arrow.

“Sis, hold the reins! I’ll handle this!”

[Special Ability ‘Song of the Bow’ activates!]

The bowstring was clearly empty, yet the moment the ability activated, arrows materialized.

The arrows formed from magic power appeared to be made of fire.

When Yoon Gyeoul loosed the arrows at the frozen ground, the surface seemed to ignite, and the ice melted away in an instant.

‘Yoon Gyeoul has grown a lot too. He’s acquired a good special ability.’

‘Song of the Bow’ was an ability that could produce arrows of different attributes.

Seo Kangrim wanted to feel more joy at their growth, but now was not the time for that.

-Pweoeong!

Something exploded from below, and the car shook violently.

Dokgo Jun laughed as if in a bind.

“Hahaha, this is bad. I think the rear tire blew out.”

True to his words, one tire had burst, exposing the bare metal rim underneath.

They were still managing to drive, but if this happened a few more times, they’d be in serious trouble.

Just then, Seo Kangrim noticed a subtle difference as he looked at the floor.

‘The tiles are slightly different?’

A few tiles bore tiny marks.

With ‘Senses’ activated, he could barely make them out even while racing at breakneck speed.

Dokgo Jun had apparently noticed as well, desperately swerving to avoid obstacles, but the marks were too small.

‘For now, the best I can do is avoid them as much as possible? If not…!’

As Seo Kangrim’s mind raced—

A notification window appeared before his eyes.

[The energy of Sal intensifies. ‘Eye that Sees Boundaries’ activates!]