The spirits next to Idana weren’t just Bisharp and Red.
“Hey, isn’t that the spirit Idana used to command?”
“Who’s that kid?”
Everyone stared at Idana walking out from behind the bars, looking bewildered.
But the most bewildered person here was me.
‘What in the world is going on?’
After Idana crossed over to this dimension, the Awakened recovered their powers, and my spirits returned to me as well.
That meant Idana shouldn’t have anything left with her—but what on earth was that?
My spirits trailed after Idana as she walked straight toward Ban Eunhyeol, not even glancing at us.
“Sahin, Stone?”
Among them were some spirits I’d often called out, fighting alongside me or chatting as we built rapport.
At that moment, Sahin and Stone, hearing my mutter, revealed themselves.
I widened my eyes and looked up at Sahin and Stone standing before me. The other Awakened did the same.
Sahin, puzzled by our gazes, turned his head toward Idana and frowned sharply.
[That’s a fake.]
At first, Sahin had spoken in spirit language without thinking, then clicked his tongue and said,
“That’s a fake, My Lord. I’m not that ugly, you know.”
Complaining about looks even in a time like this. I felt oddly at ease, thinking it was just like the ever-handsome and vain Sahin.
The spirits by my side must be the real ones.
Then how should I explain the spirits following Idana and the bars that had just fallen away?
‘……Don’t tell me.’
I shook my head violently, rejecting the worst possibility that sprang to mind.
Just then, Do Hyeon, who had never approached me first, walked over, bowed slightly, and whispered,
“Looks like Idana has your power too.”
“……”
As the Awakened glanced back and forth between Idana and me, blinking in confusion, I quietly stepped forward and strode quickly toward Idana, who was excitedly saying something to Ban Eunhyeol.
I couldn’t hear their conversation due to Kang Yedam’s barrier, but even just looking, it was obvious what they were talking about.
Idana’s earnest expression and Ban Eunhyeol’s rotten face said it all.
Since she’d wanted so desperately to return, she was probably gleefully confessing her feelings again right now.
Yeon Hayeon, flustered by the spirits under Idana’s control, couldn’t even try to approach while the two of them talked.
They looked exactly like my spirits, so she couldn’t decide if it was okay to force them aside.
“Idan—”
As I called Idana’s name and moved closer to her—
‘……?’
The space beyond the bars behind her quickly became a wall, neatly closing up as if there’d never been an opening.
It happened so fast, there wasn’t even time to push Idana inside before it closed completely.
Yeon Hayeon, Ban Eunhyeol, and I all went pale in an instant. The only person excited here was Idana.
The only peaceful solution had vanished. Because of her, people in this world were about to start dying, and she was actually bouncing with joy?
Anger surged inside me at the sight.
“Do you even know what just happened, and you’re happy about it?”
There was no way I could speak kindly.
Annoyed, Idana put her hand on her hip and cocked her head, making an irritated gesture.
I strode over and yanked Ban Eunhyeol, who couldn’t withstand Idana’s power, firmly toward me.
Idana’s expression hardened at the sight, but she only bit her lip and endured, knowing she couldn’t butt in.
“What’s the big deal? I just returned to the dimension where I originally lived, right?”
Idana folded her arms and tilted her head, her voice sharp as she retorted.
I closed the distance to just a step between us and looked down at her. She flinched and retreated, but, glancing at the spirits behind her, quickly regained her bravado and stepped right back to where she’d been.
“Hah……”
As all the selfish moments of Idana’s past flashed before my eyes, my vision seemed to darken.
Even if I explained what had just happened, I doubted Idana would feel any guilt.
Besides, with the path she’d used to cross over now suddenly gone, I had no way to send her back.
Ban Eunhyeol patted my shoulder a few times as I sighed, my feelings tangled.
Then he stepped forward and asked Idana bluntly,
“How did you cross dimensions?”
“Hmm? Oh, I just went into the dungeon, and there was a fork where I could cross dimensions.”
“So it just happened by chance?”
“Maybe my desperate desire to see you, Eunhyeol, opened the Dimensional Gate.”
I couldn’t stand listening to Idana’s soft voice as she spoke with Ban Eunhyeol.
I moved in front of him, forcing distance between them. Idana’s eyebrow twitched, but I didn’t care.
“That’s it? You just crossed dimensions with nothing happening?”
That couldn’t be right.
When I possessed someone, I’d gotten a status window saying so, and the people in this dimension got a window about an outsider possessing them.
If there was a ‘Dimension Outsider Invasion’ status window, there was no way nothing had appeared for Idana.
“No error pop-ups or windows with ‘error’ written on them?”
I stepped closer, my voice threatening.
Idana stood there, not avoiding me, and looked up as she answered.
“Error? Nothing like that. Oh, but I did get a warning window.”
“What warning?”
“It said if I crossed dimensions, I’d be considered a monster.”
“What?”
“What?!”
At Idana’s words, Yeon Hayeon and Ban Eunhyeol echoed in unison. Seeing Idana speak so nonchalantly about becoming a monster to cross dimensions, I was shocked.
‘I knew she was out of her mind, but this is even worse than I thought.’
I’d seen plenty of her strange ideas and actions, but for her to say she became a monster so casually—it was beyond imagining.
But even after seeing our reactions, Idana seemed not to realize anything was wrong, and asked sharply,
“Why, you crossed dimensions too, so why wouldn’t I be able to? Maybe the system pitied me for living such a hard life there and gave me a chance.”
“A chance? Are you completely out of your mind?”
I pressed my palm over my face in frustration.
“Why? Didn’t you cross over the same way as me…?”
“If I had, do you think I’d be living normally here right now?”
“You could live just fine outside the dungeon even as a monster. In that dimension, there were Awakened who summoned monsters as pets, you know? That one was super popular.”
“O……”
I had no idea where to even start pointing out what was wrong.
Idana stared at me with wide eyes, as if she couldn’t understand.
My blood pressure felt like it was spiking.
I stretched out both arms to stop Ban Eunhyeol and Yeon Hayeon, who were about to speak in my place, then squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again as I spoke.
“You’re an intruder now. This dimension considers you an intruder and even gave a status window warning you.”
“What…?”
Idana’s wide eyes narrowed instantly.
“What on earth are they talking about over there?”
“Who is that kid, anyway? Some kind of clone of Dana?”
“Wow, only in Korea do we see stuff like this.”
While Dana, Ban Eunhyeol, and Yeon Hayeon were talking to the mysterious newcomer, the Awakened watching from behind were dying of curiosity over the situation.
“I’m gonna go over there.”
As Baek Jiwoo, unable to contain his curiosity, tried to walk over to Dana—
A large hand landed firmly on his shoulder.
“Don’t go.”
It was Do Hyeon.
With both top Awakened, Yeon Hayeon and Ban Eunhyeol, on the other side, the only one left to keep the Awakened in line here was Do Hyeon.
Baek Jiwoo pursed his lips and stepped back at Do Hyeon’s low warning, rare as it was for him to step in.
Just then, Cha Hyunseo, who had been watching with his hands in his pockets, spoke up.
“You look like you know something.”
Do Hyeon glanced around at the Awakened who didn’t understand the situation. If possible, he wanted to handle things without revealing Dana’s identity.
That was the same for all those Awakened who knew the future thanks to Kang Yedam.
So they’d deliberately said nothing, trying to solve the problem themselves—but things had gone off track.
Do Hyeon met the eyes of the Awakened who were in on the situation.
As they all hesitated, not knowing what to do—
“I tried to stay out of it even when the boss was distant, but I think it’s time we were told, too.”
Yeon Hyeonggwang, in an unusually low voice, looked at Yeon Hayeon with eyes full of disappointment.
In that moment, a blue rectangle of light flashed in his eyes.