Seo Kangrim recalled the day Yoon Gyeoul had come back as a corpse.

The body had been utterly mangled.

There wasn’t a single unblemished spot on it—if not for the face, he might not have even recognized it as Yoon Gyeoul.

‘It feels strange seeing him alive.’

As Seo Kangrim stood there silently observing the two, Yoon Gyeoul tilted his head and spoke.

“Why are you staring like that?”

“You two look far too much alike.”

Seo Kangrim concealed his true feelings and offered a plausible excuse.

At those words, Yoon Gyeoul’s face scrunched up as though he’d been deeply insulted.

He shot Yoon Bom a glare and said:

“What do you mean we look the same? I’m clearly better-looking than my sister.”

“What’s with that tone toward your sister! And why do you grow your hair out so long? You’re the same height too, which makes it even more confusing.”

“Mind your own business about my style. And I’ll be taller soon anyway.”

Rather than intervening, Seo Kangrim simply watched the two bicker.

In his past life, his relationship with these two hadn’t been bad.

When Cheon Gunam had been spreading rumors about ‘Fortune Stealing’—

the only people who had still associated with him were Shin Sooa and these two.

The twin siblings had even suggested keeping in touch after they got out, but when Yoon Gyeoul went missing, that connection was severed.

Yoon Gyeoul had vanished in the third room, and it was only a week later that his body was found.

He had been the first death to come out of this Education Facility.

‘After that, Yoon Bom became a shell of herself.’

The two had often operated together.

But on the day Yoon Gyeoul never returned, they had quarreled over something trivial and gone their separate ways—and Yoon Gyeoul came back as a corpse.

After that, the cheerful smile that once lit up Yoon Bom’s face never returned.

Seo Kangrim had privately expected Yoon Bom to take her brother’s body and withdraw early from the program.

But she had seen the training through to the very end.

Her former warmth had vanished entirely.

As if avenging Yoon Gyeoul, Yoon Bom had thrown herself entirely into hunting demon beasts, and in return, she had earned high marks.

If you were to name the three strongest awakeners to emerge from Zone 2, they would be Shin Sooa, Dokgo Jun, and Yoon Bom.

‘Yoon Bom was immediately scouted into the Asura Sect1.’

After leaving this place, Yoon Bom had been recruited into the Asura Sect—one of the Five Great Sects—where she went on to distinguish herself.

Her specialty was sniping.

Cases of the Asura Sect’s enemies being silently gunned down had been commonplace.

═══════════════

[Name] Yoon Bom

[Rank] First Dragon Grade

[Five Elements] Metal

▼

[Special Ability] Hundred Shots, Hundred Hits2

[Rank] First Ghost Grade

[Description] When using ranged projectile weapons or special abilities, attacks can be made to unerringly hit their target.

However, mana consumption varies depending on the target’s grade and the intended point of impact.

═══════════════

═══════════════

[Name] Yoon Gyeoul

[Rank] First Dragon Grade

[Five Elements] Metal

▼

[Special Ability] One Shot, Certain Hit

[Rank] First Ghost Grade

[Description] When using ranged projectile weapons or special abilities, attacks can be made to unerringly hit their target.

However, mana consumption varies depending on the target’s grade and the intended point of impact.

═══════════════

Even from the Fortune Window alone, it was clear that both were highly skilled marksmen.

Lost in old memories, Seo Kangrim let out a short sigh.

‘I suffered plenty because of Yoon Bom. The Asura Sect, where she was affiliated, and the Flying Tiger Sect had been in a hostile relationship.’

More than a few the Flying Tiger Sect members had died because of Yoon Bom.

If things continued as they were, Yoon Bom would once again become an adversary of the Flying Tiger Sect.

Amid the siblings’ bickering, Yoon Gyeoul spoke in an irritated voice:

“Ugh, I don’t want to go hunting with her. Kangrim, you don’t have a party, right? Let me come with you.”

Seo Kangrim looked up at Yoon Gyeoul.

Yoon Gyeoul, who would soon be dead.

Seo Kangrim nodded.

“Alright. Let’s go together.”

At those words, Yoon Bom’s face registered profound shock.

Seeing her frightened-puppy expression, Seo Kangrim added:

“Yoon Bom, you too.”

“T-thank you so much!”

“Aww, I didn’t want to come along… Still, it’s better than going with just my sister.”

Seo Kangrim decided he would at least accompany them through the third room.

After all, he needed to save Yoon Gyeoul in this lifetime.

‘Yoon Gyeoul’s Four Pillars are afflicted with White Tiger Kill, which foretells a life-threatening crisis.’

After the Day of Awakening, a person’s Four Pillars of Destiny exerted far greater influence than before.

White Tiger Kill was one of the many Sal—killing energies—that could infiltrate a person’s Four Pillars, much like Peach Blossom Evil Spirit or Traveling Horse Evil Spirit.

White Tiger Kill was a Sal that brought a high frequency of accidents and caused violent, unexpected deaths through unforeseen disasters.

Seo Kangrim wondered how far that influence extended.

‘Can someone born with a death fate be saved?’

If that were possible, he could prevent the deaths of the Flying Tiger Sect’s people.

Furthermore, if Yoon Gyeoul didn’t die, Yoon Bom would have no reason to join the Asura Sect, which would eliminate one of the Flying Tiger Sect’s enemies.

Even setting all that aside, these were people who had shown him kindness in his past life.

He had no desire to just stand by and let them die.

“Then let’s head out. Since it’s the first day, we should just get a feel for things and come back.”

“Got it, Kangrim.”

Yoon Bom was nodding along beside him.

Several people had followed Dokgo Jun through the third room’s entrance, and the trio was about to do the same.

A mountain was depicted on the door.

[Confirming entry of ‘Seo Kangrim’, ‘Yoon Bom’, ‘Yoon Gyeoul’.]

[You have entered the Room of Cold Ice.]

The moment the door opened, a blast of cold air swept over them.

In stark contrast to the second room, the surroundings were blanketed in ice and snow.

The cold seeped into their very bones.

[The energy of Water permeates this Demon Realm.]

[The energy of Water counters Seo Kangrim’s destiny.]

As the biting wind hit him, Seo Kangrim could already feel his shoulders growing stiff.

The difference in his body’s condition compared to just moments ago in the Room of Fire Bath was night and day.

Yoon Bom was shivering violently as well.

[The Room of Cold Ice begins.]

[Hunt at least one of each species of demon beast that appears in Hanbing Gorge.]

[Demon Beast Species Hunted: 0/10]

[Time Limit: 2 weeks]

Yoon Gyeoul checked the assignment and spoke with a slightly excited expression.

“Oh, cool. Let’s go catch some right away. Should we split up and scout around first?”

“Let’s not go too far today. It’s the first day, after all.”

There was a great deal to prepare for here.

The third room demanded more than just fighting demon beasts.

Seo Kangrim led the two on a search of the surrounding area.

Before long, they spotted something moving across the pristine snowfield.

“Wait here a moment.”

What Seo Kangrim had spotted was a Snow-horned Rabbit, a demon beast that appeared throughout the Cold Ice Demon Realm.

-chwaaak!

The blade traced a diagonal arc, and the Snow-horned Rabbit’s neck was severed in an instant.

The body went still, and warm blood dripped onto the snow, melting small holes.

Seo Kangrim called back to the two waiting behind him.

“Got one.”

The two pushed through the snow and approached.

Seo Kangrim extracted a Spirit Jade from the Snow-horned Rabbit’s mouth and stood up.

“This looks like the Spirit Jade Ahn Nabi mentioned.”

“That’s Spirit Jade?”

“Probably. When I touched it, the Shop Window popped up. Try touching it yourselves.”

Seo Kangrim wiped the Spirit Jade with snow and placed it in Yoon Bom’s hand.

Yoon Bom’s eyes went wide.

“Huh? It says the Shop Window opened!”

Upon her first contact with Spirit Jade, Yoon Bom’s shop system had unlocked.

Yoon Gyeoul gazed at it intently, seemingly eager to try touching it himself, so Seo Kangrim handed him the remaining Spirit Jade.

Yoon Gyeoul’s face lit up with wonder.

Seo Kangrim brushed the snow from his clothes and said:

“I took a quick look through the Shop Window and found some protective gear. I think we should buy warm gear first.”

The defensive equipment provided by the Fate Protection Bureau was fairly high quality, but it wasn’t suited for polar conditions.

It couldn’t block the cold, and the footwear lacked both waterproofing and insulation.

Wandering around in this outfit would be a perfect recipe for frostbite.

‘Besides, from the third room onward, there’s no safe resting area.’

The first and second rooms had designated rest areas, but this place had none.

If they ventured too far in this state and couldn’t make it back, they would simply die of exposure.

“For now, let’s focus on hunting Snow-horned Rabbits in this area to collect Spirit Jade, and use it to buy equipment from the shop. That’s our goal for today.”

With that said, Seo Kangrim activated Ten-Foot Blaze and applied the flames to their hands and feet.

Since both were recognized as Seo Kangrim’s allies, the flames caused them no harm.

Yoon Bom said, her eyes brimming with gratitude:

“It’s warm! Thank you so much…”

“How do you know all this stuff, Kangrim? Have you played a lot of games?”

“I’ve just been around the block a few times.”

Seo Kangrim replied nonchalantly and stole a glance at Yoon Gyeoul.

Yoon Gyeoul was absorbed in browsing the Shop Window.

Seo Kangrim calculated the timeline in his head.

‘When did Yoon Gyeoul die?’

Seo Kangrim didn’t know the exact circumstances of how Yoon Gyeoul had died.

He had only heard that Yoon Gyeoul had gone missing about a week after entering this place.

The location where the body was found had been quite far from the entrance.

‘Since I plan to keep them nearby collecting Spirit Jade without venturing far in the early stages, they should be safe for now.’

When Seo Kangrim glanced at the two, Yoon Bom was struggling to navigate the Shop Window.

“Hmm… What should I buy? There’s so much stuff, I have no idea.”

Yoon Gyeoul was wearing a slightly sullen expression as well.

With tens of thousands of items jumbled together without any category sorting, it was inevitably overwhelming for first-time users.

It wasn’t as if Seo Kangrim had been using this Shop Window for years, though.

Even so, he turned to Yoon Bom and Yoon Gyeoul and said:

“There are rabbit fur coats and fur boots. Those look good. If we have enough left over, we should get gloves too.”

“Oh, nice. But do they sell bows too?”

Yoon Gyeoul seemed more interested in the weapons on offer than the practical gear.

Seo Kangrim already knew about them but pretended otherwise and asked:

“Bows? Do you know how to shoot?”

“Yeah. I’m an archery athlete. My sister does marksmanship.”

Yoon Gyeoul said, pointing at Yoon Bom.

The older sister Yoon Bom was a marksmanship athlete, and the younger brother Yoon Gyeoul was an archery athlete—together they were known as the Divine Bow Siblings.

The siblings had become national team members at a young age.

The surviving Yoon Bom had honed her specialty to become an indisputably top-tier sniper.

‘If I prevent Yoon Gyeoul’s death, Yoon Bom won’t end up joining the Asura Sect.’

the Flying Tiger Sect had many strong fighters, but no sniper of Dragon Grade or higher.

If he could recruit both Yoon Bom and Yoon Gyeoul?

‘I should steer them both toward the Flying Tiger Sect if at all possible.’