Chapter 90
Chapter 90
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 0
Chapter Title: Your Name
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Was it because of my name?
Perhaps because in my previous life, I never once mingled with anyone.
It was the same back on Earth originally, but in this reversed world where men's and women's roles were swapped, becoming an orphan without parents once again made it even worse.
"......"
If anything, I couldn't adapt to this reality any better than usual.
Everything felt unfamiliar.
The sensation that all my common sense up to now was being turned upside down.
There were even times I felt suicidal, wishing I could just die.
Right then.
"My prince, why do you look so sad?"
"Director..."
If I hadn't met the Director, the first person in my life to ever extend a helping hand to me.
Madam Go Malsuk.
As her name suggested, despite her youthful appearance, she was actually an incredibly old grandmother.
She always wore tight clothes that barely contained her ample bosom, but mentally, she was far more mature than me.
And that Director became the first mentor in my life.
"Come on, go hang out with your friends!"
"If anyone touches you, you tell the Director right away, got it?"
"Doesn't my prince love reading books? That's why I picked some up on my way here this time."
The Director must have been a Hunter back in her day.
Otherwise, there's no way someone her age could look that young.
That must be why.
To me, who was always negative and fearful, the Director gave me chances to challenge everything like an adventure, regret it, and get back up—like she was pushing me to try.
I might have dreamed of becoming a Hunter because I admired her so much, Madam Go Malsuk.
And returning to the present.
"You're going to... restore my power?"
"Yeah. Because my prince wants to save Princess Seolgi, right?"
I had no idea why the Director was in the Velvet Room.
But for whatever reason, I trusted her.
So even though I had a ton of questions, I dove straight into the main topic and nodded vigorously.
"Yes, Director."
"Good."
"I... want to protect 'my woman' no matter what."
"Even if it means you might die?"
The Director's first question.
I nodded again without a second thought.
"The odds of dying during the mana circuit restoration process are 99 out of 100."
Just 1%.
Maybe even far less than that.
Still, I nodded without hesitation, every time.
And right then.
"The only factor that allows a Hunter to awaken to a higher dimension is being on the brink of death."
Blood sprayed from my mouth.
As my pupils shook and my head drooped, the Director's hand plunged into my chest.
"I'm going to forcibly regenerate your mana circuits—not just back to normal, but elevate them to a higher realm—using a principle similar to that, Yongchan."
"Does that mean..."
"Exactly. 'Die and come back to life.' If you can return from the boundary of death, you'll be far stronger than you are now."
Of course, humans end when they die.
But the realm even S-rank Hunters like Branch Chief Eonnyeon had never reached.
A man who could use 'Black Spark'—maybe it was possible.
With that thought, Madam Go Malsuk pulled her arm back out after piercing Yongchan's heart.
Thud.
She caught the collapsing prince in her arms and began casting recovery magic on the body that no longer had a heart.
"Please come back to me, my prince..."
"Where... is this?"
When I opened my eyes, I saw a futuristic city silent as the grave.
The last time I was here, even without people, the sounds of autonomous machines made it feel bustling in its own way.
But not now.
Like a metropolis with the power cut off, this place was utterly empty.
No small noises at all, and the sky was blanketed in dark clouds, ready to pour rain any second.
I wandered aimlessly through such a place.
Walking and walking and walking some more.
Even though I had no destination, something told me it was here, so I kept moving my feet.
Eventually, I entered a familiar café that looked abandoned, its lights off.
"...Levi."
"Player..."
Levi was inside.
My poised and pretty partner with her golden braided hair.
Normally, she'd be slyly dropping vulgar lines like 'fuck me' or 'pussy pussy' and begging for sex.
But Levi, sitting at the table, was deathly quiet.
Her eyes, always sparkling blue, were now as dark as if sunk into the deep sea.
"Mind if I sit?"
"Do whatever you want."
I sat across from her anyway.
Was the coffee machine broken?
Levi not drinking anything felt awkward.
After a brief silence.
"Levi."
"Yes."
"Can I... come back to life?"
I spoke first.
I asked Levi.
With my heart pierced like this, could I really revive?
In response, Levi naturally shook her head.
The source of all life.
With the heart destroyed, even future medicine couldn't revive it, apparently.
"...I see."
In reality, I'd be scrambling to do something by now.
But crossing into this world always calms me somehow.
So I just accepted it?
...No, I couldn't.
I had to do something.
Because I came to this world right before dying, so there had to be a reason.
Pat pat.
"Levi, thanks for everything up till now."
"...Player."
I stroked Levi's head, gave a short thanks, and stood up.
Just in case this was the end.
I met eyes with Levi looking back at me, and figured it'd hurt too much to part later if we stayed together longer, so I tried to leave first.
"P-Player...!"
Levi... couldn't say anything.
She just watched me.
I had to leave the café, leaving her behind.
Why?
Because I needed to hurry and do something.
Leaving Levi?
I felt bad for her, but from here on, it was my problem.
What are you gonna do?
First, revive in a body that can use skills again.
Especially get back into the suit so I can get strong enough to save Seolgi quickly.
Yeah, the suit...
The suit Levi made...
Levi always recommended this suit to me.
From the moment we met, she sold me this high-performance suit for a mere 10 points.
Looking back, that was an insane bargain.
Yeah...
But why did Levi sell a suit like this for so cheap?
"Levi...?"
"Player..."
I... need to leave the café.
So I can find a way to regain my power quickly.
But strangely, I didn't want to leave this place.
Especially not without Levi.
As if I'd known her forever.
Not just the occasional chats through the chat window, but like we'd been holding hands and walking together all this time.
Is this a false memory?
...No.
I'd always been with Levi.
Since when?
"Player... please..."
"!!"
Levi stared at me, her mouth opening and closing like she wanted to say something.
And I couldn't tear my eyes from her either.
I didn't know what it was, but it felt like we were one step away.
If I pushed forward just a bit more here, I'd finally understand.
The motionless city.
Levi, anxiously waiting for me inside it.
...Her true identity, the one who called me 'Player' as if I were her master.
"Levi."
"Yes, Player."
"You... were the 'Armament' I was wearing, weren't you?"
"Yes, that's right... that's right, Player!"
That instant.
The moment I grasped the truth, the city's power surged back to life all at once.
Still no people, but the futuristic city regained its usual vibrancy, and inside the lit-up café.
Whoosh.
"...!"
"Player, I was so scared. Scared you might never realize who I am."
Levi.
More precisely, the suit that had been protecting my body all this time.
'Armament - Levi' clung to me, wiping away tears now that the user had fully realized her existence.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner? You always said you were just a survivor of future civilization."
"Yes, that's what I said. I'm Levi, a combat-type AI created on the eve of the first civilization's destruction by dungeons, pooling all their technological might."
"You're... an AI?"
Levi wasn't human to begin with.
Just a combat AI designed in human form to approach humans amiably.
That was Levi's true identity.
"Why tell me only now?"
"I didn't tell you."
I asked Levi, who'd hidden her identity all this time.
And she replied as if it was never something she could reveal.
"My program exerts greater power the higher the sync rate with the user."
"So that means..."
"Yes. Only a Player with enough trust to pierce through to my true identity can freely wield this combat AI—Levi."
Levi had been programmed from creation to not reveal everything about herself.
Forced trust couldn't unlock her full potential; it was like a contract the programmers set before the end.
And I was the first to surpass that contract, Levi added.
"Player, if you'd left the café like that, it would've been over for both of us."
"...!"
"Thank you for turning back to look at me one more time."
...So, can I revive now?
Levi nodded, as if reading my thoughts.
But then.
"Player, our sync rate has now shattered the previous 10% barrier by a wide margin."
"Huh?! So... the power I used until now was just 10%?"
"Of course. My power was never meant to be scraped together point by point like some weak shit!"
With those words, promising to show her true power from now on.
"So, Player."
"Yeah?"
Levi made an outrageous proposal.
"How about some creampie sex with me from now on?"
"Wh-what?!"
"Please treat me like the woman you love most. That's the only way to raise our limiter-removed sync rate even higher."
I had no other options anyway.
To revive, I had to awaken the serpent below right away.