Chapter 109

‘Are you crazy?!’

He barely caught her as she flew through the air from the attack, and only then did relief wash over him—followed immediately by anger.

Using Instant Acceleration on her own meant she had bet everything on that strike.

“Even if resurrection is possible…”

Shin Jae-heon narrowed his eyes.

He knew the pain of death. He had experienced it once in an RP dungeon where death was permitted.

Back then, his entire body had been torn apart in agony until the pain overwhelmed his mind, leaving him numb to everything else. Only then did he see the system window.

Death was what came after unbearable pain.

That was what he had thought then.

So not you.

After that, he had resolved himself. No matter where, Shin Yuri would not die.

Not you. Don’t hurt.

“Instant Acceleration.”

He muttered once more.

“I will always be in front of you…”

Then he closed his eyes.

It was common knowledge that desperate desire awakened skills—and the intensity of that desperation determined the skill’s rank.

But what did it mean that ‘I Will Always Be in Front of You’ was SS-rank?

It was a promise to die in her place if the chance arose.

“……”

Shin Jae-heon opened his eyes.

It had happened again this time. She had been fully willing to die.

He had already revealed his position anyway, and she must have figured that inflicting at least severe wounds on that swordsman Ephe would keep the next target, Hunter So Yeri, safe.

She probably calculated that even if he died, Hunter Joo Yian’s resurrection skill would make it fine.

“……”

Shin Jae-heon’s lips twisted.

Should I endure this any longer?

—Click.

In the end, he rose from his chair in the office.

Then he glanced at the hunter chat he hadn’t checked in days, boiling with frustration.

Shin Yuri didn’t know his methods.

He didn’t want her crying in secret or agonizing more.

That was why he had to grow stronger than her.

To handle the troubles targeting an S-rank like her, he had to keep getting stronger without end.

Even if it meant uprooting anyone who targeted her, like this time.

Leaving that short memo behind, he left the room.

He didn’t want Shin Yuri to notice him moving in secret.

The desperate wish that she never see his dark side had awakened the skill on the day he became S-rank.

—Snap!

Slipping out of the imperial palace with S-rank stats was easy.

Once outside the palace, he headed for the Eastern Empire.

They say a word without feet travels a thousand miles.

And that was spot on.

I had clearly told Helen to keep secret that I faced the monster alone, but starting the next day, the knights’ gazes toward me turned unusual.

“It seems difficult to control even the knights who inspected the site. We could use forceful methods, but…”

“Forceful?”

“Punish those who speak out—”

“No, not that.”

It’s not that serious a secret, you know?

Perhaps because I stopped them, the rumors spread even further, and some knights even went on “field trips” to the forest where Ephe and I fought.

Like some holy pilgrimage or whatever.

No, if Joo Yian isn’t doing pilgrimages, why are you guys!

“If some sharp-eyed guy figures it out…”

Someone might recognize traces of human combat.

Then we’d be back in the quagmire of RP dungeon penalty risks.

As I was racking my brain, things resolved themselves strangely smoothly.

“May I ask about the monster you mentioned encountering before?”

It was thanks to Helen’s slightly urgent question upon entering my office.

“Why that mon…ster?”

It was strong like a monster, sure. When I asked back, Helen cautiously inquired.

“Was it a type of monster you’ve encountered before?”

“A type I’ve encountered?”

I’m encountering that type right now…

Humans, maybe? I nodded.

“Yeah.”

“So, it was familiar, but with far greater power.”

“Right.”

Humans, I’d seen plenty, but this one was ridiculously strong—

But how does she know? Why the twenty questions?

Did she figure it out from the site inspection?

“Why do you ask?”

But Helen’s reaction suggested my worry hadn’t come true.

Instead, her face paled as she said,

“The entire empire is in chaos right now! The gates too! Their levels are much higher than previously assessed!”

“What?”

Not all roadside monsters had turned into Ephe-likes. As I froze,

“By the grading system from your manual, they all feel at least one rank higher. Not just one or two gates—all of them!”

The grading system referred to the gate classification method—developed by the Guardian Knight Commander, Emperor, Magic Tower Master, and Pontiff racking their brains together (actually from my world)—judging gates by appearance and color from F to S.

And they had all risen a rank?

“Gate colors changed too?”

Helen shook her head at my question.

“No, colors are the same! But the monsters inside suddenly got stronger!”

“Oh.”

I let out a short sigh.

I’d expected changes after taking down the hidden route Ephe.

It was common knowledge that clearing a hidden route made subsequent dungeon clears harder.

That’s why we stayed tense even after catching Ephe.

It only opened the hidden route before the fight; it didn’t seem like an environmental one affecting overall difficulty, so we hadn’t felt it.

Even if the hidden route activated, without encountering Ephe, we wouldn’t have cleared it at all.

But we did encounter and clear the hidden route Ephe, so it clearly affected the entire L-rank RP dungeon.

In the form of gate crisis difficulty spiking.

“This is bad… What about people inside dungeons?”

If dungeon difficulties jumped a rank suddenly, it went beyond struggling—they might all be dead.

“That’s—”

Before Helen could answer, I figured it out.

“Ah, they’re on hold!”

It was the divine play.

Most gates in the Western Empire were currently held.

In other words, no teams midway through conquests when difficulty shifted.

Of course, gates on the verge of bursting had extra forces for quick clears, but they were fine.

They’d deployed more than needed for fast clears.

Even with sudden difficulty spikes, they could clear normally.

“How much hold time left?”

“About 50 hours.”

50 hours until scheduled conquests.

I beckoned Helen. No time to space out.

My body felt wrecked from Ephe, but I couldn’t show it.

“How many held gates in our territory now?”

“27.”

Helen answered promptly.

“First, full survey if hold-to-burst times changed on held gates, and bring lists of all teams assigned to them. And…”

Held gate conquest teams could just swap to appropriate forces.

The problem was gates on the verge, about to be tackled.

One of them surely…

“The lower Tera River gate?”

It was C-rank, decent grade, and one we’d been watching closely as it neared burst.

At my words, Helen bowed with a pale face.

“We checked there first, but burst time seems unchanged.”

Still on the verge, though.

And the issue: it was now B-rank level.

A C-rank team would get shredded. B and C diverge sharply.

I have to go myself.

“Bring lists of all parties set to enter imminently. Hurry!”

This’ll burst!

I urgently messaged Mia about gate difficulty news while reorganizing all gate teams.

Reassessing knight, mage, priest levels and reallocating forces for one-rank-higher gates.

And that wasn’t enough.

Cleared even a gate pretending to be C-rank despite B-rank difficulty.

After facing Ephe beyond S-rank, B-rank mobs felt easy.

Problem: I was exhausted.

—Vrrr!

The priests must have noticed, as they piled holy magic heals one after another.

But even if 100 priests plus Joo Yian came, mental fatigue wasn’t fixable.

Feels like a monster-killing machine!

And work didn’t end there.

Right after clearing the C-rank dungeon, I ran into Helen.

“An undetected gate appeared, Family Head!”

Why tell a DPS fresh off a clear—7 seconds ago—that?

“Response?”

“Handled with the reserves you said to use for emergencies!”

Then it’s handled!

Don’t report it like it’s hopeless!

“Got it.”

I waved her off and headed to the mansion.

The Magic Tower and Temple were chaos too. Meanwhile, one was silent.

The status unchanged for days seemed glitched.

No messages, naturally.

No reply from him. What the hell’s this guy doing? In a dungeon maybe?

But too quiet for that?

Ambushed…? Nah, buffs wouldn’t be silent.

His reply came much later. Caught you!

But Shin Jae-heon went silent again.

What the heck?

Too much work pouring in to dwell on it, though.

I clutched my head looking at knight, mage, priest profiles piled on the table, and dungeon info.

“End times, end times.”

On Earth, the world would be in panic.

Lucky this cramped place rarely spawns A-ranks!

A-ranks would’ve become S, and mid-conquest hunters… Oh…

I shook off the horrific thought.

“Handle this first… Yawwwn…”

A yawn escaped unwittingly. Sleep crashed in insanely.

Surprisingly, physical fatigue.

Hunter now, but fatigue like from exercising a decade ago…

“Ugh-yawwwn.”

Too tired for that, though.

Hadn’t slept properly since Ephe fight, paperwork, dungeons.

“Didn’t crash this hard before.”

Would’ve been fine as S-rank. I squeezed eyes shut, opened.

“Just 30 minutes.”

Sleep’s the best medicine now. No other way!

Power naps peak at 30 anyway, so 30…

…Or 1 hour for two peaks?

One hour okay? No, might as well two while at it…

I fought drowsiness, tapping table spots.

“Set alarm… Ah.”

No phone here.

Instead of phone, pulled bell cord for servant.

Face hit table, sleep poured.

“Helen, in 30 minutes…”

Wake me.

Dunno if I spoke clear.

Much to do, but body failing.

Definitely that Ephe wrecked my condition.

Even Joo Yian’s heals have limits.

If heals fixed everything, why hospitals, beds?

No helpful spirit to do work…

—Thud.

Realizing I dozed without dropping bell-pulling arm: brief.

Arm hit “bed,” brief wakefulness heard voice.

‘…ma’am, the High… Priest…’

Mumbling.

‘…you. You’re tired…, …but.’

Soft baritone seemed heard. Then I sank into dreams.