Inside a back-alley Cafe in the bustling district, some heavyweights had gathered.
Although not so much now, these were the ones who had once held ranks within the top 10 of the Awakened before the Gates disappeared.
“Long time no see! How have you been?”
“I heard Gwanak-gu is in the palm of your hand now? Congratulations on becoming the boss!”
“I heard you started the Heuk Yeom Ryong Pa recently, too? I wanted to join, you know.”
“How have you been all this while?”
“Yes, Ihwan-ssi, you’ve been well too, right?”
The greetings exchanged by the students and adults created a starkly different atmosphere.
Today was the day the Awakened who had once been among the top ten in the ranks gathered together.
The place was a Cafe run by a Barista Awakened.
Although their powers were gone now and they couldn’t brew the coffee with restorative effects anymore, the Cafe owner’s skills had become famous simply for the taste.
Thanks to renting out the whole Cafe, they could meet comfortably.
It hadn’t actually been that long since they’d last seen each other, but so much had happened that it felt as if ages had passed.
While everyone was happily exchanging greetings—
‘Dana’s not here?’
Do Ihyeon glanced around the Cafe, searching for someone he couldn’t see.
He wondered if Dana would come along with the Four Heavenly Kings and the Yeon siblings, but since they hadn’t arrived yet, he had to wait.
After about five minutes, with everyone chatting and sitting in their seats—
“We’re here!”
Han Ji-bin’s cheerful voice rang out from the entrance.
Hearing that, the first to spring up was Do Ihyeon.
“Oh, Ihyeon’s the one who’s happiest to see me?! I’m so touched!”
Han Ji-bin’s eyes widened at the unexpected figure standing up, then he broke into a joyful shout and ran over.
Do Ihyeon looked down at Han Ji-bin, who had rushed over and given him a big hug, with a slightly sour expression.
He wanted to push him away or step aside, but he couldn’t.
Dana had come in together with the Four Heavenly Kings.
‘It’s been a while……………?’
Dana entered holding hands with Ban Eun-hyeol.
Seeing that, Do Ihyeon’s eyes grew tinged with sorrow.
As heavy rain poured down outside, the two shook their umbrellas at the entrance, put them away, and then walked in arm in arm.
“Oh, what’s this? Are you two dating?”
“Ay, hyung. You’re slow with the news. Everyone already knows, right?”
At James’s surprised comment about the two, Baek Jiwoo looked around and asked.
Except for the adults, everyone had already heard that Ban Eun-hyeol had a girlfriend.
But today, somehow, the vibe between the two felt different from usual.
It wasn’t that anything had changed, but there was something……………
‘They always looked good together, but today they really look like a perfect couple.’
Everyone was thinking something similar.
Ban Eun-hyeol and Dana both had long, straight black hair—similar yet different—and both were tall with slender figures.
They really made a perfect pair.
“Ah, the Yeon siblings are here!”
James greeted Yeon Ha-yeon and Yeon Hyeonggwang warmly as they were the last to enter.
At first, everyone briefly caught up with each other.
After the Gates disappeared, what everyone had been doing, and how they planned to wrap up their Guilds—those were the main topics.
Cha Hyeonseo and James leaned towards disbanding their Guilds since there was nothing left for them to do, while the students opted to keep theirs.
It was because everyone was deeply attached to the organizations they had established and run.
Of course, Guild activities had completely changed from what they once were.
Now, the names of the groups they belonged to—Hyulhyang, Onsaemiro, Heuk Yeom Ryong, Jijon—served as their backers.
The clearly outstanding Guild Leaders became valuable networks for their Guild members, and they even argued over whose Guild was superior.
There were even suggestions to settle the Guild rankings with a big showdown.
Now, Guild culture had fully taken root among the students.
‘It’s nice to see everyone again.’
Do Ihyeon, amid the gentle chatter, gazed at Dana.
Words he couldn’t bring himself to say lingered in his mind, and at that moment, he realized Dana was looking at him.
He didn’t avoid her gaze.
Their eyes met in the air.
Dana, after greeting Do Ihyeon with her eyes, immediately turned away and began talking with Ban Eun-hyeol.
Watching that left a bitter taste in his mouth.
He regretted it so much he could go crazy.
‘I should have been more proactive before Ban Eun-hyeol got close to her.’
There was no use regretting it now.
But seeing Dana after so long made his heart pound so hard he couldn’t think of anything else.
He tried to soothe his feelings by digging into his cake.
***
Kang Yedam had been enjoying the changed world more than anyone else after the Gates vanished, living each day happily.
He took great pride in having regressed a few months and helping to save the world.
So he deliberately helped his parents with their Cafe, set up many plans with friends, and paid attention to the stories people told.
Lately, the hottest topic was the disappearance of the Gates—so whether friends or customers, everyone brought it up at least once.
Whenever he heard people say it was good the Gates were gone, it made his day.
Today was no different.
“Isn’t it great that we can go around safely now that the Gates are gone?”
“I could never feel at ease at home before. What if a Sudden Gate opened in our house?”
“It’s a relief the Other-Dimensional Beings went back. I still don’t know what happened, but anyway, the Gates are gone, so that’s good enough.”
Customers sitting at a table near the counter, as always, started talking about the Gates.
To be the sidekick of a hero—wasn’t this just like a movie protagonist? Tch, how cool is that, Kang Yedam.
Smiling contentedly, he scratched his nose and listened in on the conversations at other tables.
Just then—
His phone, stashed in his apron pocket, started ringing.
‘Do Ihyeon?’
He hardly ever called lately, saying he was busy studying.
And today was the day the former top ten Awakened were supposed to meet up.
“Hello?”
[You’re at the Cafe, right?]
“Yeah, I was just about to head home.”
[I’m almost there, so wait for me a bit.]
“Huh?”
The call ended.
He hadn’t made any plans, yet here he was being unilaterally told to wait.
‘Guess we’re hanging out after a while?’
Excited, Kang Yedam quickly took off his apron, folded it, and peered out at the Cafe entrance.
He spotted Do Ihyeon quickly approaching between the Cafes, their lights now glowing with orange as dusk settled.
“Hey, friend!”
Kang Yedam happily opened the door for Do Ihyeon.
Do Ihyeon glanced around, then grabbed Kang Yedam by the wrist.
“Let’s talk somewhere there aren’t any people.”
Do Ihyeon’s appearance—he’d been unseen since the Gates closed—caused a stir inside the Cafe.
But his figure soon disappeared into a corner, leaving the rest disappointed.
Regardless of others’ reactions, Do Ihyeon checked that the nearby tables were empty, hesitated, then spoke slowly.
“You… how did you go through Regression?”
“Eh? Why do you ask all of a sudden?”
Do Ihyeon’s expression darkened in real time.
Seeing his friend’s sudden gloom, Kang Yedam asked, surprised.
“Did something happen?”
“No, it’s just…”
Do Ihyeon fell silent, puzzling Kang Yedam—until he finally spoke up.
“Dana came with Ban Eun-hyeol. To the gathering.”
“Ahh.”
He pretty much understood.
‘He must want to confess to her first after Regression.’
Unfortunately, there wasn’t any special method for Regression.
It wasn’t like he got some item from a dungeon or did something special to be able to regress—he just ended up going back when everyone was dying and the situation got desperate, as if someone forced it.
“I don’t really know how it happened… but would Regression really solve your problem anyway?”
At Kang Yedam’s pointed remark, Do Ihyeon lifted his bowed head.
“Isn’t Lee Dana seeing Ban Eun-hyeol because she likes him more? Just confessing early doesn’t mean you have a chance. It’s not like you’re a flirting master or anything.”
“If you really can’t get over her, you’ll just have to wait for them to break up and seize the chance then.”
Do Ihyeon listened in silence.
Then he stood up.
“Where are you going?”
“Just, going for a walk.”
“Tsk, poor guy.”
Do Ihyeon wandered aimlessly from the Cafe streets into a residential area.
Passersby took out their phones to snap pictures of him, but he didn’t bother stopping them.
He walked on absentmindedly, staring straight ahead, when suddenly he came to his senses.
A familiar view came into sight.
‘Why did I come all the way here? What am I supposed to do now?’
He gazed with sad eyes at the entrance to Dana’s apartment complex, and had just turned to leave—
“Oh? Do Ihyeon?”
Dana was standing right in front of him.
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