Saving My Favorite in a Doomed World Chapter 70

Chapter 70

 

Mages have good intuition. That’s not a hasty generalization. They really did have good intuition. They were beings who inevitably had to become that way.

 

They always kept their eyes wide open to discover the contradictions that existed in the world, and even if they knew how to use magic, their physical stamina was weak, so they scurried around trying to avoid the strong. This was especially true for the mages where Hwashin lived. To activate a single spell, complex formula calculations as well as modifiers were essential.

 

Moreover, the modifiers were incredibly flashy.

 

[The soul’s sacrifice offered to the time called yesterday, and my sincerity shown to you today, and a fragment of the world’s principles that curiosity will find out tomorrow. Oh, heavens! Oh, Dragon! Oh, mana existing in the world! To me—]

 

….It’s so embarrassing, how could anyone say something like this.

 

Anyway, having to go through such times, mages naturally had good intuition when it came to grasping their opponent’s strength.

 

“How about you take the next round?”

 

So, when Hwashin heard these words,

 

“Wow. No way.”

 

He judged immediately.

 

“Why would I fight you?”

 

Elric—or rather, Hwashin—hated being in pain. He hated suffering from injuries more than dying, and he absolutely loathed physical strain. If he got hit even once by Cha Jaeha, one of his bones might shatter, and wasting energy to heal it was even more terrible.

 

Besides, the Red Gate would open soon. He refused to drain his energy before that. Especially this time.

 

– It’s going to be extremely tangled up. Much more than in the original. ….Hey, Elric. Don’t smile with that kind of expression, okay?

 

The third Red Gate.

 

This gate, which opened not long after the second gate, was special.

 

The meaning it held in the original work was the ‘connection of multiple dimensions.’

 

The fact that beings from other dimensions could be brought out was confirmed through Lee Suho. Then, could other heroes met in multiple dimensions be brought out to Korea? Was spatial teleportation actually possible?

 

With such an important future remaining, unnecessarily using his strength here—

 

Whoosh—

 

Cha Jaeha’s fist cleaved the empty air. Something similar to a sonic boom was heard. The protagonist buff really is severe. How could a fist make this kind of sound?

 

However, lightly ducking to avoid that speed, Hwashin sneered.

 

“You’re so impatient.”

 

Lee Suho tightly held onto Jeong Mueum’s wrist. He was scared. He was terrified. Whether it was Cha Jaeha who swung something like that in a spar, or Yoo Hwashin who dodged it as if it were nothing. Neither of them was normal.

 

His eyes couldn’t keep up with the speed. His pupils trembled anxiously. No, it just looked that way. In order to keep up with that speed, he had no choice but to move them like that. Even his eyelids were quivering.

 

Ha Cheongwon bit his lip tightly.

 

‘He dodged that just like that?’

 

Cha Jaeha was also an expert in close-quarters combat. With a ridiculous face, Cha Jaeha was serious. A straight kick swept at Hwashin’s legs. His body tilted precariously to one side. In a normal case, it was a posture where he should have fallen. 

 

“Hup.”

 

Hwashin was different. Like a roly-poly toy, he bounced his waist and returned to normal in an instant. When Cha Jaeha noticed this and reached out to snatch the opposite arm, Hwashin quickly pulled back. 

 

A group dance. It felt like watching a well-choreographed dance.

 

He used to think the saying that an excellent fight looks like a dance was an exaggeration. That it was a scene that only existed in books or movies.

 

‘…But right here, that scene exists.’

 

It was marvelous.

 

The dodging movements looked like a single continuous flow. Cha Jaeha ground his teeth. He just needed to land one hit, but that one hit wouldn’t reach.

 

“Jaeha, do we really have to keep doing this?”

 

I’m getting tired.

 

He meant it. Right now, they were evenly matched since Jaeha wasn’t using [Fire], but there was no telling what would happen if he used it. Natural elemental abilities were fatal to Hwashin.

 

It was then.

 

As if heaven helped, the corporate phone held by the SH Unit rang. 

 

“It’s a Red Gate.”

 

“Me too! I want to see too!”

 

The new S-rank, Ha Yujin, jumped up and down in her seat.

 

“But isn’t this message strange? There’s another instruction in English at the bottom.”

 

“That’s because it came from the US.”

 

Hwashin answered. The spar was halted the moment the phone rang. It was only natural. For Cha Jaeha, his priority was ‘closing the gate’ rather than ‘hitting Yoo Hwashin’.

 

“If a gate opens in the US, they can just resolve it themselves. Why are they contacting us? …..The location where the gate opened must naturally be New York or somewhere like that…… Wait, no, it’s Gangnam District. What is this? A US gate opened in Gangnam District?”

 

Moving swiftly toward the Association, Ha Cheongwon gave a supplementary explanation.

 

“There’s something I haven’t told you. In a recent study conducted by the SH2 Unit, another characteristic of the Red Gate was discovered.”

 

He spoke as he settled his glasses neatly on the bridge of his nose. 

 

“It is that the dimension is far more unstable.”

“What does that matter?”

 

Yoo Jian asked, sticking close to him.

 

“An unstable dimension means it was forced open more so than a normal gate. For instance, that’s the reason why the number of monsters coming out from inside the gate to the outside is significantly lower or completely nonexistent. Because the degree of completion is low, they cannot come out, and in order to resolve this, there was no choice but for you to go inside directly.”

 

Ha Cheongwon was right. The appearance of the Red Gates became more difficult, and in the later half, they were completely unpredictable.

 

“Since the gate is unstable, the dimension entered is inevitably unstable as well. In that process, if a Red Gate of the same dimension opens at the same time….”

 

“They would mix.”

 

Jeong Mueum said calmly. Lee Suho nodded his head.

 

Yes, they mix.

 

In a total mess. All the dimensions. Everything. This was only the beginning. Would it be a little dangerous from now on?

 

Hmm, let’s see. What were the exact details of the third Red Gate again?

 

-In the original, it’s a jungle forest.

 

Riel answered instead.

 

-But it’ll be a little different this time. Because your turn was pushed back, the dimension to be mixed with and the page numbers have changed.

 

Riel’s explanation was as follows.

 

A gate was similar to a ‘rift’. What was called a rift in the world Elric used to live in was simply named a gate here. The principle was exactly the same.

 

Every world has its flow. As the flows of opening dimensions overlap, the contents of the dungeon are determined.

 

-Should I look it up for you? I can do that much at my own discretion.

 

Even before he could answer Riel, Hwashin stopped in his tracks. There was a black van in front of the Association. It was a 6-seater van with more than enough room to carry the entire SH1 Unit.

 

“Ha Yujin, you can’t come along.”

 

“I’m not that stupid, you know? Mister, have a safe trip. I’ll help you next time.”

 

Ha Yujin put her hands firmly on her hips and snorted. Young kids really are full of spirit. Was I like that in my 20s too?

 

How was I? I can’t even remember.

 

“Lee Suho. You get in, too.”

 

Cha Jaeha said as he opened the front door. Without looking back, Cha Jaeha got into the back seat of the car.

 

“Uh, huh? Yes?”

 

Lee Suho’s eyes went round with surprise.

 

“Hyung has acknowledged you.”

 

“But I’m not in the SH1 Unit, and if it becomes a problem later…”

 

Yoo Jian ruffled the hesitant Lee Suho’s hair. She grinned at Suho, who was holding his messed-up, puppy-like hair.

 

“Hey. We have at least that much power.”

 

Don’t worry and get in.

 

The ones heading to Gangnam District, where the gate had opened, were one B-rank hero in the driver’s seat, all the members of the SH1 Unit, as well as Ha Cheongwon and Lee Suho.

 

“First of all, it’s an honor to chauffeur the members of the SH1 Unit and Ha Cheongwon-nim!”

 

Through the rearview mirror, the driving hero’s eyes could be seen.

 

It was a gaze mixed with pride, anxiety, and anticipation.

 

“….And the person next to you is…”

 

“He’s a relative.”

 

“…..Ah, I see! I understand! If he’s a relative of Hero Jeong Mueum, he must be an incredibly skilled person.”

 

When Jeong Mueum answered, he immediately nodded as if he understood.

 

“Since time is of the essence, I will explain as we go. The place where this Gate first occurred is New York, USA. It occurred right in the middle of Central Park, so it’s said an S-rank hero was dispatched immediately.”

 

He glanced at the rearview mirror once.

 

“However, all connections with the heroes at the Red Gate were lost, and upon accessing the gate system, it was confirmed that a Red Gate also opened in an abandoned building in Gangnam District at the exact same time on our side.”

 

Jeong Mueum, who was sitting in the passenger seat, turned his head.

 

“Inside an abandoned building?”

 

“Yes. Strange, isn’t it? High-grade Gates don’t usually occur in such places. Perhaps because of that, pinpointing the location was even more difficult.” 

 

Screech—

 

The car came to a sudden halt, and the B-rank hero in the driver’s seat got out first. The place they entered following his guidance was the 4th floor above ground in the abandoned building. The exterior walls of the building with suspended construction had already crumbled down, and a single Red Gate was situated on a floor where the rebar was completely exposed.

 

“The hypothesis from the US is that these Red Gates are connected and must be closed simultaneously. That’s why an official document came down to us, and the message was delivered. Normally, the Overseas Cooperation Department handles such matters, but those two are currently away in Japan.”

 

Vooom—

 

An ominous sound. The heat haze of the Red Gate was more ominous than usual. Looking into the interior where he couldn’t see an inch ahead, Lee Suho gulped.

 

So he had been inside this.

 

He felt strange. In fact, wasn’t the original world he lived in inside there, and didn’t he have to go back? He still couldn’t believe that he had escaped that ghost story and was among these people.

 

A pair of large hands rested on Lee Suho’s shoulders. Looking up, Yoo Hwashin was staring inside the gate with sparkling eyes.

 

In his eyes, worry, anticipation, anxiety, and joy were mixed together in a horrifying way.

 

After reading all those emotions, Lee Suho asked in a low voice.

 

“….Are you okay?”

 

Despite the small voice, Hwa-shin quickly turned his head and looked down.

 

“Huh? Why?”

 

“….Because you look a little scared.”

 

Hahaha. At Lee Suho’s answer, Hwashin laughed. Cha Jaeha, who had been standing blankly beside him, stepped forward and said.

 

“Don’t trust him.”

 

“…Pardon?”

 

“That guy’s face right now, don’t trust it.”

 

Because he’s not scared. Answering like that, Cha Jaeha disappeared into the gate first. This was already the 3rd Red Gate. All members of the SH1 Unit showed no hesitation.

 

Even if ridiculous additional explanations were attached, and no matter what was inside, what they had to do was set.

 

As long as their profession was ‘hero’, they had to move forward.

 

* * *

 

“Oh.”

 

This is a bit. It’s too different.

 

An exclamation leaked out involuntarily. Obviously, according to the original work, the scenery that should have unfolded before them was a jungle forest. Monkeys twice the size of humans would swing between the trees, and there should be ruins of a never-before-seen civilization.

 

However, what unfolded before their eyes was the exact opposite. Hwashin whistled.

 

“Wow, this. It’s incredible.”

 

A brilliant night view. A feast of buildings where not a speck of nature could be seen. The lights of colorful neon signs, completely illuminating the darkness, washed over them. 

 

At the same time, an alarm rang.

 

「The Battery War」

「From now on, the status window will be visible to your eyes.」

「You will act as the rebel forces of the illusionary city.」