Chapter 17
Chapter 17
3. The System's Anchor -6
[Stage mission completion confirmed]
[Reward: 500 Credits / Random Box x 3]
The mission completion message was the last thing on my mind.
"Eve!"
I ran toward the amber that held a person inside.
BANG!
I pounded on the amber with my fist, but even with superhuman strength, all I got back was elastic recoil that rattled my bones. Just as I was wondering how the hell I was supposed to get her out of this thing—
Whether the amber had been formed by that plant bastard, or whether the System reacted once the surroundings were safe, the crimson mineral surrounding her melted away smoothly and gradually vanished.
Now I could see her clearly, without any blur. No matter where I looked, no matter what angle, it was definitely the person I knew. Unless she had a secret twin hidden away somewhere, she was Eve.
Sergios stood beside me as I crouched down to examine Eve and spoke.
"...Do you know her?"
"Yes. We're quite close. Though I haven't seen her lately..."
"Then that means you don't know. Let's clear up the misunderstanding first. That terminal is not the Eve you know. Strictly speaking, she's closer to a stranger you've never met."
"What the hell does that mean?"
Was he saying that a terminal from some far-off world just happened to resemble someone I knew on Earth?
He seemed to know something about this situation. When I glared at him, Sergios launched into an explanation with practiced ease, as if this wasn't the first or second time.
"Every world connected to the System has an 'Eve.' They all have the same appearance, the same personality, the same name. Do you understand? This terminal is this world's Eve. The woman you know is alive and well in your world."
"...Is that so."
"This is simply 'the way things are,' so don't overthink it—just accept it. It's like denying the existence of the sun. Pointless."
No, but how was I supposed to just naturally accept that? That my ex-girlfriend was a terminal for this incomprehensible thing called the System—
*Krrk—*
"...Yeah, sure. Fine."
Hoo. I frowned at a faint headache and let out a sigh. It wasn't that shocking, really.
Even if she looked exactly like she'd been stamped out of a mold, and even if he said she wasn't the Eve I knew, it still made me flinch. But let's think rationally.
He said she was a stranger. Sergios had no reason to lie, so the woman in front of me was a complete stranger. In a world where plants were invading through Gates, nothing was strange anymore.
If anything, this was good news for me.
It's a selfish thing to say, but wasn't it a relief that the one who got captured by that plant bastard and had her strength drained was this world's Eve? Not the Eve I knew.
Her bright, lively voice flickered through my mind.
'Stay close to me, Noah. Don’t worry too much. I’m number one among all the Eves in the world!'
It would be best if no misfortune ever happened, but if it had to happen, my honest wish was that it wouldn't happen to someone close to me.
Sergios, as if uninterested in that kind of talk, waved his hand dismissively and straightened his back.
"You carry that terminal. We're returning to the village now."
"The mission showed as complete. The return button's active too. Aren't you going back?"
"I have no interest in the System's missions. What kind of hero rescues citizens fleeing from a bear and then abandons them in a dangerous forest? If you want to go back first, go ahead."
"I wasn't planning on going either."
I'd just asked in case.
I hoisted Eve onto my back and got ready to move. She had the soft, powdery scent of a baby’s skin. Maybe it was because she looked exactly like my ex-girlfriend, but my chest felt strangely unsettled. It was an odd feeling.
The corrupted forest was probably still crawling with plant bastards, but since we'd killed their leader, they'd be in a dazed state. Getting out should be relatively easy.
And no matter how much internal damage Sergios had taken, the fact that he was walking around normally suggested that breaking out of the forest shouldn’t be too difficult for him.
We started retracing our steps.
But there was one strange thing.
"About the System. It already processed 'mission complete' before we returned Eve to the village, right? Isn't that... a bit premature?"
"What do you mean?"
"I get that from the System's perspective, protecting the 'terminal' is the obvious goal. But in that case, wouldn't it be better to set the mission as getting her safely back to the village?"
"That's—because those steps were never necessary in the first place."
Not necessary?
So, from the System's perspective, it was fine to just dump Eve in the forest and leave?
"This isn't exact, so take it with a grain of salt. From what I've observed, every Eve is born with the 『Fate of Survival』. Most likely it's the System's blessing to protect its terminals."
"So it does take some kind of measure. What's this Fate of Survival?"
"Look at her. Do you sense any signs of training, any muscle, any magic power?"
I focused my attention on the Eve I was carrying.
"...No."
"Right. She's an ordinary citizen through and through. I've met dozens of Eves while carrying out missions, and without a single exception, their combat ability was close to zero."
"The Eve I know was like that too. She really hated exercise. She'd say she didn't need to work out because she never gained weight and was perfect."
She was not the type to train in martial arts even if her life depended on it.
"Then think about it. The world is under attack by world predators. Some places hold them off well, but most are utter chaos. In extreme situations where even well-trained warriors die—do you think her survival is a coincidence?"
Hearing it put that way.
The Eve I knew was always lucky. When the Gate Incident erupted, countless people died on Earth. But she survived.
Through countless crises, things somehow worked out, and she ended up living in New York, the safest city-state on Earth. I'd always just thought of it as fortunate, but if that luck was someone's power...
Sergios tilted his gaze upward as if reminiscing about the past, and spoke.
"Even if every citizen of an entire city died, she alone would survive, for whatever reason. As if heaven itself were helping her. The Eve of my world was the same. When a catastrophe struck and an entire city melted away, she was the only survivor."
"But... that doesn't add up. This world's Eve was captured and had her strength drained, wasn't she?"
"That's why I said it was strange. The Eve of my world, Minoas, was branded a witch. A certain court sorcerer tried to seize the 『Fate of Survival』 from her. But the court sorcerer couldn't absorb even a hair's worth of magic power from her."
"Couldn't that court sorcerer have just been weak?"
"By Status Window standards, he'd be around C-rank. A filthy old bastard, but his skill was disgustingly reliable."
In other words.
That meant. Here.
Someone capable of piercing through Eve's 『Fate of Survival』—
"...Yes. It seems something C-rank or above passed through this world."
"........"
A chill ran down my spine.
If it was above C-rank, that meant it was on the same level as those beings I'd witnessed through the Hidden Piece. 『Sky Roamer』, 『Shattering Lord』, and 『Night Moth』. Those colossal beings who bestowed a growth-type 『Skill』 on me with a single gesture.
Was that being some individual on the plant bastards' side? Or a hunter affiliated with the System?
Whatever it was, if it had still been around, the System wouldn't have popped the clear notification so quickly. And it would have dispatched other... higher-ranked hunters long ago. Judging that it wasn't here now seemed the rational conclusion.
But I couldn't shake the unease.
...I picked up my walking pace just a little.
Our escape from the corrupted forest, me and the spear bastard, could be summarized as follows.
"Don't stand in my line of fire."
"No, you're the one swinging your spear while coming toward me. I'm trying to stay out of your path, but your line of fire keeps moving around like a guided missile!"
"I warned you."
"Are you actually insane?"
He'd been walking fine, so I'd assumed he was fine, but his internal injuries were apparently worse than I thought. You know how your form breaks down when you run for too long? When a person's body loses strength, their technique gets sloppy too.
Maybe that was why—the spear bastard, who normally thrust with the control of a true master, was starting to show obvious flaws in his trajectory. In my opinion, this guy had fought alone his whole life.
He'd fought alongside someone else only a handful of times, if ever. Otherwise his movements made no sense. The number of times his spear blade grazed past my head while I was covering his flank wasn't just once or twice.
Anyway, after all those twists and turns, we arrived at the village battered and ragged.
The village girl who'd been lingering near the entrance reacted faster than the guard standing watch. When she saw her friend draped over my back, she came running, shoes flying off her feet.
"Eve! Eve's back! Sh-she's not dead, right? She's alive, right?"
"Yes. I checked her heartbeat, and she's breathing fine."
"Thank you! Thank you, heroes!"
"Hm."
At the word "heroes," Sergios's shoulders rose a little. I smoothed my mouth with my hand and made a request to the girl.
"...First, could you show us somewhere to lay her down? We're planning to set her down and then head back."
"What?! You saved Eve, and you both look badly hurt. You should stay a few days and tend to your wounds..."
"Haha, we appreciate the thought."
I declined with a smile.
Rather than resting in a village with questionable civilization, it would be better in many ways to rest on Earth, even if it was practically in an apocalypse state. Seoul even had doctors, after all.
Following the girl's guidance, I laid Eve down under the roof of some hut.
"...Mmmn."
"........"
As soon as her back touched the ground, Eve furrowed her brows slightly and let out a mumbling sound. I thought she might wake up, but that wasn't it. Probably sleep-talking.
Was she having some kind of bad nightmare?
At that moment, I clearly felt the difference between the Eve in front of me and the Eve I knew.
Eve, you see. No matter how uncomfortable the sleeping spot, she sleeps soundly, breathing softly. As if she were in a paradise far removed from the world's chaos, she falls asleep with such peaceful, even breaths.
So the Eve in front of me, having a nightmare—how should I put it. She felt like an angel who'd shed her wings and descended to earth. There was something off about it.
"That kind of expression doesn't suit you. I hope you have good dreams. Eve."
That's why I said that. Not because I had any ulterior motives.
"...How pretentious, you gigolo bastard."
"Shut up."
"If you ever talk to me like that, I'll kill you."
"If that situation ever comes up, I'll rip my own tongue out first, so don't worry."
As if I'd ever say that kind of line to a guy. I'd have to be insane.
I checked Eve's condition one last time, then stood up and asked the village girl. Sergios had said all Eves had the same personality. This was to confirm it.
"Hey. What kind of person was Eve normally?"
"Um, uh... well, she's a really pure, kind, perfect friend who's a huge source of strength."
That description wasn't much different from the Eve I knew. I frowned without realizing it, and only then understood. The reason I'd asked the girl that—actually, I think I'd wanted to be told otherwise.
You know.
Doesn't everyone end up wanting the things they love to be one of a kind?
Maybe I'd wanted to believe that the Eve I knew was special. That she wasn't some clone-like existence of the System.
"I'm heading back. Are you staying?"
"I'll go too. There's nothing left to do here."
Right. Time to go back.
We pressed the return button at the same time. I’d already received the secret dagger manual Sergios had promised while we were making our way through the forest. In other words, there was nothing left to get out of this place.
My body began to be enveloped in a hazy light, and preparations to return to my original world were complete. Probably only seconds remained until the return.
One thought crossed my mind. I'd probably never run into this bastard again, would I?
We hadn't even added each other as friends. And the number of D-rank hunters was at least a hundred thousand. That's about how many concurrent users the bulletin board showed. In that case, the probability of randomly matching with the spear bastard again within a year was less than 1%, even at the highest estimate.
And besides, look at everything this bastard had done to me. Every little thing, he'd start by throwing his spear, and not a single word of apology for the misunderstanding. He didn't even offer any lip service.
Honestly, if he hadn't blocked Monstera's beam, we'd all be dead, wouldn't we? If someone blocks that for you, couldn't you at least say, "That shield you're holding, made by the combined efforts of great scholars, is truly impressive quality"? Couldn't he manage that much lip service?
I think I'd earned the right to at least one complaint.
And the spear bastard seemed to be thinking the same thing. Seeing his eyes full of attitude, he was probably planning to pick a fight, just like me—saying my movements were garbage, that I was no help, something like that.
Fine, then. We'd trade barbs cleanly and part ways. It had been a stage where I'd gotten solid gains and learned solid lessons. But that was that, and grudges were grudges.
Okay. Ready.
We faced each other and simultaneously left our final parting words.
"I'll forgive you for dropping the formal speech from now on. Rookie hero."
"Please stop with the posturing. It was awful being with you, and let's never see each other ag— ah."
A chilling silence fell.
Um.
This made me the bad guy.
I hastily threw out whatever words I could to salvage it.
“Hey, kidding. That was a joke. Next time we meet, can I call you bro?”
"........No."
Of course it didn't land at all.
Whoooosh—!
We were enveloped in light and returned to our respective worlds. Inside that blinding brightness, I clearly saw Sergios's expression—grinning fiercely. That stoic bastard smiled.
That smile couldn't be a real smile.
⋯⋯I needed to look into some way to disguise myself perfectly.
<One 『Archetype(源)』 detected. Attempting download of identification name 『System(■■)』.>
<Downloading... Progress 0.01% - Operation aborted. (Reason: Target's seal has been restored / Continuing download risks detection)>
<The Hungry Ghost(餓鬼) is still incomplete, so it is judged that the promised time has not yet come.>
.......
Beep—!
<comment: I always believe in you, Noah Won. Have a good day today too!>
Silence.