The Espers Who Regretted Losing Me Chapter 26

“As for the snake… judging by the name alone, it probably won’t chase us unless we trespass into its territory.”

“…What a pain. Still, the Ice Dragon turned out to be pretty squishy. I only hit it a few times and its HP dropped like crazy. How about the red one?”

“That one was easier than expected too. Looks like this integrated gate is low B-rank, maybe even C-rank.”

So it attacks indiscriminately, but it’s not actually that dangerous of a place…

Well, if it were truly dangerous, we wouldn’t have had time to dodge in the first place.

As I was quietly coming to terms with it on my own, Cha Eunhwi continued,

“At this level, there’s no need to deliberately make them fight each other and wait for one to win. While Shinra stays with Guide Yoon Hyea, we’ll take care of it. If she gets attacked unnecessarily, it’ll be a real hassle.”

It didn’t feel like an illusion that the word hassle was aimed entirely at me.

I let out a quiet sigh.

What rotten luck. Why did we have to enter another integrated gate again?

If this had been an ordinary B-rank gate, we wouldn’t have even contacted the director—and he wouldn’t have known I submitted another resignation letter, at least not yet.

Looking worse by the minute, Cha Eunhwi took a pill out of his pocket and swallowed it.

I knew what it was. An emergency stabilizer espers took when guiding wasn’t going smoothly.

It’s not like he’s protesting because he’s sulking…

The guide was right in front of him. The very person was offering to guide him—and yet he brushed that aside and took medication instead. Did he think that would hurt my feelings? Upset me?

Maybe it would have, back when we used first names and acted like friends.

But not now.

The only reason I cared was because if he collapsed or went berserk, it would all be pinned on me.

Though… knowing Cha Eunhwi, he’ll probably manage somehow.

After Cha Eunhwi and Yeon Dogyeong disappeared, I was left alone again with Shinra, swallowing a sigh thick with awkwardness and discomfort.

I really hated this gate. In so many ways.

Silence stretched on again. After a while, Shinra reached out and took my hand once more.

I instinctively started guiding and turned to look at him.

Shinra’s face looked just as upset as mine—maybe even worse.

“…I really hate you, noona.”

Oh, please. I hate you too. I hate you way more, okay?!

I was indulging in those childish thoughts I couldn’t say out loud when it happened—suddenly, without warning.

This time, the ground caved in beneath us, and my body dropped straight down.

“Kyaaaah!”

“Hyea noona!”

Something red wrapped around my waist and yanked me downward. I didn’t even have time to see what it was.

I squeezed the hand I was holding out of reflex, but it was already too late.

My hand slipped free as if coated in oil, and I fell.

Right before my vision went dark, I saw it—

Shinra’s face, frozen in sheer horror.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“…Noo… noona got eaten…”

The first person Shinra ran into—his face soaked in tears, utterly wrecked—was Eunhwi.

Just like Shinra, who had been frantically chasing the snake that had burrowed back underground, Eunhwi had been searching for the fleeing Fire Dragon.

There was no time to ask for details. The characteristics of the snake flashed rapidly through his mind.

A snake that swallows its prey whole seeks a warm place to raise its body temperature.

Given how extreme the environments were here, it wouldn’t have gone to the glacier zone.

The most likely place was where it originally appeared—but there was also a chance it had headed toward the volcanic area.

Eunhwi gripped Shinra’s pale shoulder and spoke calmly.

“Shinra. If she was only swallowed, she’s fine for now. Don’t panic. You keep checking this area. I’ll go to where the snake emerged earlier.”

“H-hyung, I—I…”

“It’s okay. It’s okay…”

Was it really okay?

Even if it looked like a snake, it was still a monster.

But Eunhwi couldn’t show his fear. He was the unit leader. If he panicked too, they might never save Hyea.

She would be fine. She had to be.

Biting the inside of his lip until it split, Eunhwi patted Shinra’s back and immediately used teleportation.

The moment his vision warped, heat bloomed behind his eyelids, and blood streamed from his nose.

Gone was the earlier sense of composure. Faced with the desolate scenery and the stench, he frowned—and then agony stabbed straight into his brain.

His face drained white as his trembling hand struggled to pull out a stabilizer.

He popped several pills and chewed them without water, but the effect was poor.

Instead, blood surged up his throat, and he vomited the half-dissolved medication.

He needed guiding.

He needed the sense of stability that came from holding that small body close, fitting together without gaps.

Eunhwi wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, forced his power like wringing out a rag, and instinctively moved toward where his guide was.

Seeing that, Shinra desperately expanded his barrier range, scanning everything that entered the area.

He considered the possibility that the snake was moving underground—but aside from roaming field monsters, nothing showed up. The gate was simply too vast.

What do I do… what do I do…

Anxiety and fear bleached his mind white.

Tears poured nonstop, as if something inside him had broken. Gasping as though he’d forgotten how to breathe, Shinra suddenly sensed something massive entering his barrier.

It wasn’t far.

He sprinted toward it—only to find Dogyeong.

Dogyeong was riding atop a white dragon covered in jagged ice spikes, a rein of fire wrapped around its body.

He tilted his head, scanning the surroundings—until he noticed Shinra alone.

Dogyeong’s expression hardened instantly, and he jumped down.

“What the hell, Shinra. Where’s Yoon Hyea? Why are you alone?”

Shinra couldn’t speak. No sound came out.

But the moment Hyea’s name was spoken, his body began to shake violently, and Dogyeong immediately sensed that something was terribly wrong.

Eventually, Shinra forced the words out—she’d disappeared into the snake’s jaws.

After that, Dogyeong’s memories blurred, like a faded photograph.

As his concentration shattered, the rein vanished. The white dragon flailed and fled.

Much later, Dogyeong grabbed the dazed Shinra and hurried after it.

It was instinct.

If all the named monsters were eliminated, the exit gate would open.

There was no need to make them fight each other anymore. They had to be wiped out—now.

This wasn’t the time to conserve strength. Monsters were engulfed in raging flames, burning black one after another.

That was when they regrouped with Eunhwi.

Just as Eunhwi had predicted, the Guardian was in the volcanic zone.

Even in his frantic state, he controlled his power with one thought in mind—save Hyea.

The two dragons were slain, but the snake still clung to life.

Then a horrifying thought struck him.

What if Yoon Hyea was unconscious?

If that were the case… she couldn’t be expelled from the gate.

He refused to imagine anything worse.

They planned to enter the snake’s body themselves and rescue her.

If tearing open its belly killed it, the raid would be completed instantly anyway.

Perhaps because it had swallowed a dragon, no presence could be felt now—but once inside, they would know.

Eunhwi forced strength into his unsteady legs.

His body was already beyond its limit, but even if it meant burning away his lifespan, he couldn’t lose consciousness now.

Just a moment.

With his ability, he could save her in an instant.

Truly—just a moment would have been enough.

[ The ‘Guardian of Paradise’ will never allow its treasure to be taken by intruders.
Those who attack the Guardian are forcibly expelled from the gate. ]

The warning appeared before them all at once, stealing the breath from their lungs.

[ ‘Land of Fire and Ice’ and ‘False Paradise’ have been integrated. ]
[ Raid Complete: ‘The Reclaimed Strange Paradise.’ ]

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Clear Time — 00:54:32 (New Record)
Total Deaths — 0
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