It was an ordinary weekend, just like any other.
“The princess really is the biological daughter of the top-tier company, right?”
“That’s how many hints were dropped, and you still haven’t figured it out. Unbelievable…”
“I didn’t figure it out wrong. Don’t be so smug about your faulty deductions.”
“Yeah, whatever. It’s normal to argue while watching a morning drama, so this is nothing. A typical morning.”
“Wrong? Me? What will you do if the princess is confirmed as the biological daughter?”
“Ha, you sure seem confident.”
The name of the drama’s protagonist brought back memories of a nightmare in front of the school gates, but I figured it was just another insignificant fight.
‘This feels off.’
As the voices grew louder, I quickly assessed the situation and jumped out of bed.
The plan for today was to find a gate I could close after rolling around in bed all day and then heading out at dawn, but it seemed like my plans were going to be thrown off from the very morning.
I quickly changed into thin sweats and left my room.
As I stepped out, I could feel the atmosphere shift as my parents’ conversation started to quiet down, signaling the start of a cold war.
“I’ll be stepping out for a bit.”
I muttered in a small voice before slipping out of the house, but I had no idea where to go.
Staying home would just lead to them talking to me through other means, so I figured wandering around aimlessly would be better.
‘Who knew family could be such a bother?’
I stepped out of the apartment complex and onto a street full of shops, feeling a strange sense of unease that something might happen if I went near the school or alleyways.
A quiet, empty lot was also a suspicious spot.
‘I haven’t been to the Han River in a while.’
I missed the view of the river from my apartment, and this impulsive decision seemed like a good idea.
Beep— “Student, please.”
I made my way to the bus stop, took the bus to the Han River, and opened the window to enjoy the cool autumn breeze.
Before long, I reached my destination.
The Han River area was crowded with people out enjoying their weekend.
After scanning the area quickly, I couldn’t spot anyone I recognized.
‘That used to be our home.’
I gazed wistfully at the tall buildings that had replaced the apartment overlooking the Han River, then turned my eyes away.
Walking along the river, enjoying some alone time, I noticed the grass once covered with mats and tents was now emptying out.
I found a quiet spot and sat on a bench, watching the flowing water as I zoned out.
Just then, as if he had the same idea to find an empty spot, a man wearing a cap sat down right in front of me.
‘Why is he sitting in front of me?’
“With the park this empty, why would he sit so close to me?”
I thought that as I stood up from the bench, planning to move somewhere else.
But then, a chill ran down my spine, and that ominous feeling I’d experienced just a few days ago crept up my back.
‘No way.’
I couldn’t be that unlucky, could I?
Every place I go, something happens.
Thud—
‘It’s happening!’
Is this some kind of interdimensional disturbance pushing through a gate?
I quickly scanned my surroundings.
There were only two people near me: the man with the cap and me.
Despite the faint tremor I just felt in the ground, he didn’t seem to notice anything.
He remained seated, unmoving.
If he were an awakened person, even the smallest trace of mana should have been detectable, but he didn’t react at all.
This confirmed that he was likely an ordinary person.
‘It’s better to grab him and run than risk revealing my powers with a surprise gate activation.’
I didn’t have time to hesitate.
“Hey, there’s a monster over there!”
I yelled, pointing toward the far end of the Han River Bridge.
The man turned his head toward the direction I was pointing.
“Run, hurry!”
Before he could see the empty bridge, I quickly grabbed his arm and ran in the opposite direction.
‘Why isn’t he saying anything?’
I found it strange how calmly he was following me, despite the fact that he should be able to outrun me easily with his long legs.
Instead, he was running at my pace, moving sluggishly behind me.
‘Is he smiling?’
I glanced back to see his lips curving slightly into a faint smile under his cap.
This man was definitely suspicious.
A red warning light blinked in my mind.
Could he be a student?
The possibility of numerous horrific scenarios flashing in my mind left me feeling lightheaded.
‘He won’t say something like, “You’re the first woman I’ve saved,” or any other cheesy lines, right…?’
Despite my unease, I kept running, focusing on moving as far as possible from the point where the gate was about to open.
“Ha, ha.”
When I finally felt like we were a safe distance away, I stopped, pretending to be out of breath as I leaned forward, gasping.
The man spoke for the first time.
“Are you going to keep holding on to me?”
His soft, teasing voice tickled my ear.
His pronunciation had a slight foreign accent, making it seem like he had lived abroad for some time.
“Ah! I’m sorry.”
I quickly released his arm, and I felt his gaze linger on my hand before he let go.
I was about to turn and bow in apology, ready to go on my way, when the scene around me suddenly shifted.
The clear blue sky above us, just moments ago, turned into a dark, ominous river.
The air grew heavy and damp, like it was about to suffocate me.
An unpleasant stench filled the air as the once-green grass faded away.
Everywhere, except the river, turned into a barren desert, with cracked earth spreading out in all directions.
‘Ah.’
I’d been running, holding on to some stranger’s arm… and now, the world around me was completely different.
***
Even in this situation, the man kept his cap pulled low over his head.
‘Can he even see?’
Well, he must be able to see if he’s walking around like that.
It was strange to get caught up in a surprise gate event with such a suspicious person.
I rubbed my forehead, feeling a headache coming on, while my eyes frantically scanned for somewhere to hide.
“My phone isn’t working.”
The man’s voice came from beside me, calmly speaking in an almost carefree manner.
“Have you ever been caught in a gate event before?”
He put his phone back into his pocket and flashed an unexpectedly bright smile, responding.
“Yeah, it’s my first time.”
Ah, that’s why he seems so oblivious to the severity of the situation…
‘No way. Even if he’s never been through something like this, he should at least be more cautious!’
Wait a second.
What if he’s an awakened person whose powers I can’t detect?
Maybe his rank has temporarily dropped, and if he’s trying to hide it, I might not be able to sense it.
It was strange for an awakened person to have never been caught in a gate event, but if that wasn’t the case, then his attitude didn’t make any sense.
“Are you an awakened person?”
I asked, pointing at him with a finger.
He looked at me with a questioning expression, almost as if he was asking if I was referring to him.
With another bright smile, he casually answered.
“No, I’m just an ordinary civilian.”
Is he crazy?
For a moment, I almost cursed out loud.
I had never met someone so shameless, whether before or after my reincarnation.
‘He’s definitely not normal. This guy seems like he’s been steeped in a heavy dose of novel-style secondary character vibes.’
Now that I thought about it, his height made him seem more imposing.
Even though I couldn’t see his full features, his jawline and lips were quite handsome.
‘There’s nothing good that could come from getting involved with him. Once we get out of here, I should just disappear.’
I found a large rock that seemed decently safe and pulled the man along, sitting down on the ground.
His smile hadn’t left his face since we started running.
We’d have to stay together until someone came to rescue us.
“Shahin, make sure no monsters approach us. Stay hidden as much as possible.”
[“Understood, my lord.”]
Since he was an unawakened person, he wouldn’t be able to sense my mana, so I didn’t need to worry.
Shahin, who had been hiding in my shadow, disappeared, and a brief silence fell.
“This is a dungeon, huh?”
The man broke the silence as he casually spoke, as if he were just commenting on the weather.
“I heard from my boss. After it appeared in Korea, it started showing up in other countries too.”
“Boss?”
“Oh, my sister. I call her ‘boss.’”
It was awkward silence again as the man sat next to me, making himself too comfortable, and began rambling on about things I hadn’t asked about.
“My boss is an awakened person. She’s probably aware of where I am, so she’ll come soon, I think.”
Right, if she’s his sister, she might know where he is, but the way he phrased it made it sound…
“When she comes, we’ll be able to leave, so don’t worry.”
He smiled again, completely unaware of how close he had come to losing his life, his overly bright attitude shining through.
“Aren’t you scared? A monster could appear and we could die right here.”
“Hmm, I’m not sure. I grew up in a pretty rough environment, so I guess I’ve lost my fear?”
What kind of environment did he grow up in?
Screeeeech—
At that moment, a screeching cry from a scorpion monster echoed from beyond the rock, so loud it felt like it might burst my eardrums.
‘Who’s there?’
I cautiously peered out from behind the rock to observe the situation.
A figure with long black hair, swinging in the air as they jumped, stood facing a massive scorpion with a dagger in hand.
In that instant, her hair whipped back, revealing the woman’s face.
‘What are you doing here?!’
I froze in surprise, but before I could fully process it, the man sitting next to me suddenly jumped up and shouted.
“Boss!”
Boss?
Does that mean… his sister?
Then, the man, who had kept his hat pulled low all this time, was forced to take it off by the man’s hand, and his bright green hair cascaded down, in a way that shouldn’t look natural but somehow did.
The face of the man I had been guessing would be attractive was truly… breathtaking.
He was so handsome it seemed like a halo was shining around him.
He had sharp features, with slightly upturned eyes and a defined nose, yet there was something softer and fresher about his appearance.
His bright green eyes contributed to the fresh atmosphere.
With his cheerful call, Yeonha-yeon, who had just dealt with the scorpion, turned around.
Her gaze locked directly with mine.
“Ah, hello.”
Flustered, I blurted out something, but my face quickly turned bright red.
It was definitely not the proper greeting for this situation.
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