The Fantasy Duo
Eris opened her eyes. “I must have fallen asleep.”
She clicked her tongue at her own weakness. Telling Hyun-woo those hard-to-recall memories had been that difficult. She sat up. No one was around. Not Hyun-woo, not Siz. The outside was still pitch black, and since the two weren’t back yet, not much time seemed to have passed. She casually pulled out her phone and checked the time. It was only 8 p.m. She had slept for barely an hour. Yet why did she feel no fatigue at all—actually refreshed? It was like waking naturally after a deep, restful sleep.
“I’m hungry.”
Still, sleep was sleep, and hunger was hunger. Eris was used to skipping meals, so missing breakfast and lunch was fine, but she needed at least one meal a day, which made dinner essential.
“Anything to eat?”
Eris stepped onto a chair and rummaged through the cupboard. Not a single pack of ramen. The emergency stock must have run out. With so little money, that was only natural. Once Hyun-woo brought money home, they would buy tons of ramen and fill the shelves. That is, if Siz allowed it.
“Ugh, I’ll have to ask Hyeonu to buy dinner.”
She didn’t know what he was doing, so calling felt awkward. Eris opened her phone to send a text. She still hadn’t bought a smartphone, so it was a flip phone. She slid her thumb up and the background screen showed Siz’s photo.
“Later I should take a picture with both Siz and Hyun-woo and set it as the wallpaper…”
As she thought that and reached for the message button, the door slid open. Had Hyun-woo already returned? Hopefully he brought dinner. She walked toward the entrance and found a man and woman she had never seen before. The man was bald and massive. The woman had white hair tied into two buns on the sides, and her eyes were black.
The moment Eris saw the woman, she drew a sharp breath. “A possessor!”
She was small with round, innocent-looking eyes, but white hair like that could only belong to a possessor. “It could be albinism…”
Albinism was possible, but these were still unauthorized intruders. It was safer to assume they were possessors and treat the situation as a crisis. Eris quickly pressed the volume-down button five times. Five rapid presses would send an emergency text to a pre-registered contact. Just three characters: “Help me.”
After confirming the message had sent, she tossed the phone onto the blanket and prayed Hyun-woo would return soon. She had to stall for time until he arrived. So Eris stepped out cautiously to assess the intruders.
“Who are you…?”
Three people in the tiny room made it feel cramped, even with two small girls present—the man was simply that large. He shouted in an aggressive voice.
“You the boss of Fantasia?”
“No… Fantasia? What’s that…?”
Whoever they were, they had clearly come looking for her. In times like this, pretending to know nothing was the right move. It was the perfect act Eris had perfected after years of surviving as the weak.
“Don’t play dumb! We did our homework. Eris Selenor of Fantasia!”
“Eris Selenor…? Who’s that…? I’m Casey…”
When Eris claimed not to know who that was, the white-haired girl let out a hollow laugh.
“This crazy bitch is messing with us. You dyed your hair snow-white and your eyes blood-red like a walking neon sign saying ‘I’m a possessor,’ and you’re gonna say you don’t know? What the actual fuck.”
Despite her innocent appearance, the girl had a filthy mouth. But Eris wasn’t about to be intimidated by that.
“I-I’m serious… Mom, big brother, I’m scared… hic, ugh…”
After all, Eris was the victim of a home invasion. Even if they claimed to have investigated, if she kept denying everything, things would get ambiguous. That ambiguity was why they were resorting to rough language.
“Oh, now she’s dragging in a mom and brother that don’t even exist?”
The girl sighed and cracked her neck.
“Your Fantasia crew had the nerve to stomp on our youngest. Even mocked him for his half-moon bald spot. That something a human being would do?”
Ah. That part did sound like something Hyun-woo would do. She didn’t know the details, but mocking a bald guy was definitely wrong. Still, Eris had already prepared her best performance. She began gasping and wheezing as if she couldn’t breathe from shock.
“Hic, hiiik, keck! Keck…”
“Boss, this little shit’s even faking being weak now.”
“Leave her. Brats like this need a good beating to come to their senses—”
That was when it happened.
Cough!
Eris suddenly vomited blood. The girl and the man hadn’t touched her, yet she was coughing up blood and collapsing. Since acting couldn’t produce real blood, both of them broke into cold sweats, panicking.
“B-Boss… maybe she really isn’t the boss? No way the boss would be this frail.”
“N-No way! White hair and red eyes just like a possessor…”
“That’s exactly what albinism looks like. Weak body, coughing blood—anyone can see it’s albinism.”
“Fuck, we’re screwed! Does that mean we just raided a civilian home?”
“Bandalgom must’ve given us the wrong address!”
“Forget the youngest right now! We were never here. Otherwise the Five Great Sects will execute us for this!”
“So we’re just gonna leave this poor kid to die? She’ll be dead if we walk away!”
“That’s true, but… damn it. We came for revenge and now this?”
That was when the door creaked open and an enormous man stepped inside. His sharp eyes made him look extremely fierce. His temperament clearly wasn’t gentle, and his red-tinted pupils gave off an eerie feeling. The girl and man were none other than Baekgom, the top-ranked member of Gangnam’s Three Bears, and Bulgom, ranked second. Even they swallowed hard at the newcomer’s piercing gaze.
Then came Eris’s frail, final whisper.
“B…rother…”
In that moment, there was only one thing Baekgom could do.
“W-We didn’t do this! Please, just this once, forgive us!”
He dropped to his knees and begged desperately. That was all he could do. Even if the man’s soul was male, his body was that of a fragile girl. Surely even a hot-tempered man wouldn’t hit her. But if that man was a battle-crazed mad dog, the story changed.
“You dare lay a hand on my little sister, you bitch?!”
Smack!
With those words, Woo Hyun-woo drove his fist straight into Baekgom’s face.
* * *
When he saw the three characters “Help me,” his heart had dropped. Had Carpediem attacked Eris? Or someone else? He didn’t know, but it was obvious she was in danger because he had left her alone. Regretting leaving her behind, he ran while praying he wasn’t too late. They had only just opened up to each other while sharing their pasts. If he lost Eris—someone he both cherished like a little sister and called “Hyungnim”—he wouldn’t be able to bear it. It was the same feeling he had when running to the PC bang during Choon-sik’s shooting, praying his mother was safe.
Heart pounding like it would burst, he threw the door open. What he saw was Eris collapsed on the floor with hot sauce smeared around her mouth, and the two brothers of the man he had beaten earlier today.
『Title: Baekgom of Gangnam’s Three Bears』
『Title: Bulgom of Gangnam’s Three Bears』
The girl was Baekgom and the guy was Bulgom. Judging by Baekgom’s appearance, she was definitely a possessor. Though she hadn’t shaved her head. What kind of rule did Shaolin have that a half-moon bald guy followed it?
『Title: Bulgom of Gangnam’s Three Bears』
Rarity: D+
Description: Ranked second among the Three Bears of Gangnam Temple, an affiliate of the Shaolin Temple (2nd), one of the Five Great Sects under the Murim Alliance (1st). Said to have shaved his head after his hair burned off.
Combat Power: 230
『Title: Baekgom of Gangnam’s Three Bears』
Rarity: C-
Description: Ranked first among the Three Bears. Completely bald, hence called “White Bear.” Currently grateful his hair has grown back.
Combat Power: 310
Whoa, these guys were no joke. At this point, Shaolin’s rules were clearly bullshit. How could all three be bald? One of them even grew it back.
“B…rother…”
Just as he was marveling at the baldness of Gangnam’s Three Bears, Eris, still covered in hot sauce, called out to him in a dying voice. Bulgom and Baekgom looked flustered. He could only use Situation Observation once a day, so he couldn’t see exactly what had happened, but he could guess. These two were trespassers. He was Eris’s big brother. Eris was a sickly girl. Since Eris was unharmed, she must have lied and claimed she wasn’t part of Fantasia. And she had acted so well that they mistook hot sauce for blood and got worried? Lucky for him. His combat power was only 190—if he had fought them, it would’ve been hopeless. But them surrendering like this was perfect.
“You dare lay a hand on my little sister, you bitch?!”
So he pretended to be furious and punched Baekgom with all his strength. Maybe because they hadn’t prepared like Bandalgom had, even with a 120-point combat power difference, Baekgom collapsed after taking his fist.
You have defeated an opponent you would normally struggle greatly against. Your combat power has increased significantly.
Oh? His combat power had risen by 100. Now it was 290. He could now take on Bulgom. Opportunities like this didn’t come often, so he had to make the most of it. As Baekgom struggled to his feet with tears in his eyes, Hyun-woo punched him again.
“Do you even know how weak my sister’s body is?!”
Smack!
“Kooing!”
Baekgom let out a strange sound and collapsed. He hadn’t made that noise earlier. Maybe that was the sound he made when it really hurt.
You have won a fight. Your combat power has increased slightly.
“Slightly” seemed to mean +50. His combat power had gone from 290 to 340. Time to try again.
Smack!
“Kueeeng!”
This time the scream sounded more desperate. Probably because his combat power was now higher than Baekgom’s.
You have defeated a weaker opponent. Your combat power has increased minutely.
This time it was 350. “Minutely” must mean +10.
“P-Please stop! We were wrong! If you want to hit someone, hit me instead of the boss!”
After taking a 340-combat-power punch, Baekgom’s cheek had split and he spat blood. Seeing that, Bulgom stepped forward, offering himself to be hit instead. Well, no helping it. He’d oblige.
Smack!
“Keeeaak!”
Bulgom collapsed, trembling. Hopefully not a concussion. At least his body wasn’t seizing up.
You have defeated an opponent whose combat power is more than 70 points lower than yours. No combat power increase.
What? No benefit if the opponent was more than 70 points weaker? So exactly 70 points difference still gave an increase? He couldn’t be sure. Either way, he had to experiment. His current combat power was 350, Baekgom’s was 310.
“Let’s see you take four more hits.”
He mercilessly beat the trembling Baekgom, who was begging for mercy. It was a shame to ruin such a cute girl’s face, but that wasn’t his problem. These bastards had broken in to beat up Eris under the excuse of revenge. His combat power kept rising minutely until it reached 390, at which point a message appeared saying it would no longer increase. Even a 70-point gap still allowed gains, apparently.
“Koo, kuieeeeng…”
“Boss is going to die at this rate… Please, just this once, spare him…”
Bulgom was banging his head on the floor, begging for his boss to be spared, while Baekgom’s once-cute face was now swollen beyond recognition. Still, that was what made them bears, right? Or not.
“Ah, by the way.”
Time for the truth.
“We are Fantasia. She’s Eris, I’m Woo Hyun-woo. Did your hair falling out from baldness also make your brains fall out? Falling for such an obvious lie. What a bunch of stupid bald bears.”
At those words, Eris wiped the hot sauce from her mouth and stood up with a grin.
“I did good, right?!”