Chapter 25
Chapter 25
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Reunion with a Fellow Hero
-----------------------------------------------------------------
# Chapter 25
“There sure are a lot of people.”
Seo Woo-jin’s eyes widened slightly in surprise.
And why wouldn’t they? The area around him was packed with people bustling about, forming a sea of humanity.
“…It’s the Empire, after all.”
To be precise, it was the Empire’s border.
Seo Woo-jin and Ailin had finally arrived at the Empire.
He’d half-expected some kind of event along the way.
Didn’t that stuff always show up in novels or movies?
Bandits or monsters, something like that.
‘Nope, nothing of the sort.’
Their journey had been far too smooth.
Smooth to the point of boredom, even.
“This way.”
Overwhelmed by the massive crowds and hesitating, Seo Woo-jin was led aside by Ailin.
‘This place looks familiar somehow.’
Had she been to the Empire before?
She headed straight to her destination without a hint of hesitation, looking nothing like a country knight stuck away in the northern boonies.
But Seo Woo-jin didn’t dwell on it.
‘Eh, she must come here often.’
He didn’t have the mental bandwidth to fuss over little details right now.
Following behind her, they soon arrived at a building.
It was a two-story gray structure.
“Where is this?”
Seo Woo-jin asked.
No matter how he looked at it, it didn’t seem like a gathering spot for heroes.
“Wait here a moment.”
With that, she went inside alone.
“What’s going on?”
They still had a long way to go.
They’d reached the Empire, sure, but their destination was the capital.
It’d take at least another week, probably more.
‘Time’s tight, then.’
Renting a carriage would be ideal, but the travel funds from Sion wouldn’t cover it.
They were barely enough for food and lodging as it was.
As Seo Woo-jin stood by the roadside with a worried look,
“Hey? It’s the D-rank guy.”
He flinched.
His body tensed at the sudden voice.
“Right? It’s you, right? Wow, long time no see!”
Turning his head, he saw a small, petite girl who couldn’t have been over 160 cm.
It was a face he remembered.
‘A hero.’
He couldn’t recall her exact rank or class.
Too much time had passed, and back then, his mental state hadn’t exactly been stable enough to memorize everyone.
But her face? Crystal clear.
‘There was that whole fuss about summoning a kid.’
She looked that young.
Of course, the chaos had only grown when it turned out she was twenty.
“Nice to see you.”
“Wow, how’d we run into each other here? You heading to the Empire too? Awesome, awesome! Wanna travel together? Oh, you alone? The people I’m with…”
She talked a mile a minute.
Like a nephew you hadn’t seen since last Chuseok.
Seo Woo-jin worried his ears might start bleeding from her nonstop chatter.
“Woo-jin?”
Just then, his savior appeared from behind.
Ailin.
“Who’s this?”
She eyed the sudden girl with a puzzled expression.
“A hero.”
“I’m Lee Ji-ah! Wow, you’re a knight, sis?”
A friendly kid.
‘Though “kid” might not fit—she’s not that much younger.’
She looked young enough to pass for niece to his uncle, sure.
“Oh, a hero. Got it.”
Ailin nodded as if it made sense.
Then she introduced herself.
“I’m Ailin, knight of Sion.”
“Nice to meet you, nice to meet you! First lady knight I’ve seen. So cool!”
Lee Ji-ah kept the words pouring out.
“You heading out now too, Ji-ah?”
Seo Woo-jin stepped in to cut her off before it went on forever.
“Yeah! We’re on our way back to the Empire’s capital. Can’t believe it’s been a whole year already—time flies, huh?”
“We?”
There was only Lee Ji-ah in front of them.
“Huh? Where’d they go? They were right here… Ah, over here! I’m here!”
Mid-sentence, she shot her hand up and shouted at someone.
The others came rushing over.
“Where the hell did you go? We’ve been looking everywhere.”
“Hee-hee. Ran into someone I know and just followed without thinking.”
The newcomers were knights in red armor.
Unlike the cute Lee Ji-ah, they were burly, macho types radiating raw power.
‘Testosterone overload.’
No joke—five knights built like hormone factories.
“…Who are you?”
They eyed Seo Woo-jin and Ailin warily.
“Ailin of the Blue Shield Knights.”
“Sion?”
“The northern one…”
Seo Woo-jin hadn’t even introduced himself yet.
But the moment they heard “Sion,” the wariness vanished, replaced by smirks.
“Guardians of the North, huh. And that must be the famous D-rank hero.”
Their smiles dripped with blatant condescension.
The rumor of a D-rank hero heading to Sion had clearly spread far and wide.
As Seo Woo-jin frowned,
“Hey! This is someone I know! Don’t be rude!”
Lee Ji-ah jumped in first, barking at them.
“Keep it up and I’ll really let you have it! You wanna get scolded?”
Hands on hips, scolding them—she looked adorable, but the knights shrank back for some reason.
“Sorry, mister.”
“Haha—”
Seeing Lee Ji-ah bow apologetically, Seo Woo-jin couldn’t help but laugh.
“It’s fine. Not the first time.”
Compared to the grief he’d taken from soldiers in Massive Guardian, this was nothing.
“These are knights from Lenninstang Kingdom, where I was. They’re escorting me to the Empire, so we’ve been traveling together.”
‘No need for that,’ she whispered to Seo Woo-jin—but everyone heard it loud and clear.
“Ahem.”
The knights coughed awkwardly, embarrassed.
Then one extended a hand.
“I’m Jermin of the Red Wind Knights. These are my subordinates. Pleasure to meet a knight of Sion.”
“…Likewise.”
Ailin shook his hand and greeted him again.
“Right! D-rank mister, come with us. I was getting bored anyway. Cool with you?”
A sudden invitation.
But no harm in it.
She talked too much, sure, but lively beat dull any day.
Seo Woo-jin glanced at Ailin.
“What do you think?”
Traveling together wasn’t bad, but he’d pass if she wasn’t comfortable.
“I’m fine with it.”
“Yay! We’re going together then?”
Lee Ji-ah bounced around in excitement.
Who’d guess she was a woman in her early twenties?
‘Total kid niece vibe.’
“Our carriage is big enough for everyone.”
Without waiting for a reply, she dashed off ahead.
“Let’s go. A carriage? Talk about lucky.”
Time was short, so perfect timing.
The two hurried after Lee Ji-ah and the knights.
“Why’d we stop here, though?”
Seo Woo-jin asked.
They’d come straight here upon entering the Empire, so he was curious.
“I’ll tell you later.”
But Ailin didn’t answer.
Her slightly darkened expression made him drop it.
“Over here—! Hurry up—!”
Through the crowds, Lee Ji-ah was jumping and waving.
“Doesn’t she ever get tired?”
“At least the trip won’t be boring.”
“Right?”
Seo Woo-jin chuckled and quickened his pace.
“So, what’s your rank, Ji-ah?”
The carriage was as spacious as she’d said.
Not enough for all the knights, but plenty for Seo Woo-jin and Ailin.
“I’m A-rank. Class is ‘Fist Master.’ Level? Ta-da! A whopping 26! Height 148! Age 21!”
He’d only asked her rank, and she spilled her whole profile.
On Earth, she’d be prime voice-phishing bait.
‘“Fist Master,” huh? With that tiny frame?’
Imagining her flailing tiny fists made him grin.
“What about you, mister? I know you’re D-rank from the rumors, but what’s your class?”
Now she turned the question on him.
“Oh, I’m a Sword Soldier. Level’s just 10 now.”
He watched her reaction closely as he answered.
Sure enough, a flicker of discomfort.
As he smirked bitterly—expected that—she spoke.
“Mister, can we drop the formal talk? It feels weird hearing it all the time.”
‘Oh, that’s what it was?’
Not his level or rank bothering her.
“Haha, sure?”
Just four years older.
But her baby face made it easy to switch to casual.
From then until they reached the capital, Lee Ji-ah never stopped talking.
Even the stoic Ailin looked fed up.
But thanks to her, he learned a lot.
How heroes from other kingdoms had grown, what support they’d gotten, and so on.
Stuff you couldn’t hear in Massive Guardian.
A few days passed like that…
“We’re here! Finally, the Empire’s capital!”
The carriage door flew open as Lee Ji-ah bolted out.
“Wow, the Empire really is the Empire, huh?”
Seo Woo-jin nodded in agreement.
It dwarfed Sion by orders of magnitude.
“We’ve been waiting.”
Outside, guards in crisp uniforms stood at attention to greet them.
“You must be Lee Ji-ah from Lenninstang?”
“Yes! That’s me.”
She nodded eagerly.
“And this must be…”
“Seo Woo-jin.”
Guessing the question, he spoke up first.
“Confirmed. Please proceed inside. I’ll guide you.”
Following the guard, Seo Woo-jin passed through a massive gate.
Before them loomed buildings larger than any Korean university campus.
“This is the training facility built for the heroes summoned this time.”
‘Built just recently?’
It’d only been a year since they were summoned.
And they’d erected something this massive in that time.
‘In Korea, it’d be slammed as shoddy work…’
But magic existed here.
So not impossible.
‘Even accounting for that, the speed is insane.’
The Empire’s power was beyond what he’d imagined.
Sion would’ve taken at least five years for a project like this.
As Seo Woo-jin marveled and looked around, Lee Ji-ah kept chattering.
“What’s that? Oh, training grounds over there? Huge! Wow, that building’s so cool!”
The guide answered her questions patiently, without a hint of annoyance.
How long did they walk?
The group finally stopped before a building.
“This will be the dormitory where the heroes will stay.”
The banner hanging out front was the exact same one from their summoning.
『We welcome the otherworld heroes who answered the call to stop the 8th Demon King Invasion.』
Now it really began.