35. [An Extra Has Died.] — [Ivy Lane] [Got it. I'll go. What's the address?]

Han Ye-seo showed me her phone screen and grinned brightly.

"See? Told you!"

"...Yeah."

"No matter how much of a homebody someone is, if a friend begs them desperately, they'll come out!"

Honestly, it was unexpected.

I hadn't thought it'd be this easy to drag Ivy outside.

Han Ye-seo looked at me with her usual mischievous smile full of playfulness.

Ugh. She was plotting another prank, no doubt.

"So, what's the deal with our academy's top heartthrob asking me to call Ivy out? I'm dying to know!"

"...It's not like that."

"Really? My lips are sealed, so you can be honest!"

"I saw her floating around on the ink earlier."

"That's not what ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I meant by weight!"

Han Ye-seo let out a sharp yell.

I still couldn't get used to her volume.

A while later, Ivy finally showed up.

She was in casual clothes, different from her usual uniform.

Honestly, this was only the second time I'd seen her out of uniform.

The first was at ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Han Ye-seo's place.

The image of her in pajamas, drenched in sweat, flashed through my mind for a second...

Ugh.

I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again to shake off the thought.

She waved awkwardly. I waved back just as awkwardly.

She tilted her head at the sight of me.

"Do I look weird?"

"No! You look great!"

"Really?"

"Yeah. You look really pretty."

Ivy froze in that pose for a moment, then squeezed her eyes shut and sighed.

"...Sigh, whatever."

"I mean it!"

My awkward demeanor must've rubbed her the wrong way, so I quickly made excuses.

Ivy shot me a quick glare before turning to Han Ye-seo.

Ah, I'm screwed.

To think I couldn't even compliment a girl I liked naturally and caused this mess.

I regretted it inwardly.

"So, what are we doing today?"

"Yeah! A light stroll?"

"A stroll? In this weather?"

Ivy was right.

It was February—smack in the middle of winter.

Monster-induced weather anomalies were everyday now, but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠today was a rare day without any.

In other words, normal February chill.

That explained her puffer jacket.

Ivy glanced at our outfits.

My sharp senses picked up exactly where her eyes lingered.

"...Why are you two dressed so lightly?"

"Well, when your Stamina stat goes up, negative sensations dull a bit."

"Oh...?"

Her eyes sparkled with interest at my explanation.

"So higher Stamina weakens negative effects too?"

"Uh... probably? I got poisoned once, but it didn't faze me much."

"For real?"

Han Ye-seo, who'd been listening, tossed in a casual remark.

"...Maybe you didn't feel the poison because you're a monster."

"Your Stamina's pretty high too, isn't it?"

"Nah, even I was bedridden for three days after poison."

Ivy, who'd been listening, drooped her head with a strangely disappointed look.

I didn't know why she was bummed, but I wanted to cheer her up.

"No matter how much Mana you build or stats you raise, we're still human at the core."

"Human..."

"Get sick, you die. Can't breathe, you die. We're all the same. It's about how long you can hold out."

In the end, the war between monsters and humans boiled down to endurance.

Most people lived day-to-day now, without grand hopes.

Maintaining the status quo was the biggest goal.

No one believed in tales of eradicating all monsters and returning to the pre-outbreak era.

The golden generation's blazing flames of hope were long gone; this generation just struggled to keep a fragile candle from flickering out in the wind.

They headed to the front lines to be the firewood to relight it.

It used to be for money, but now it was duty.

Because they believed their special birth had a purpose there.

I've gotta hold out till the end.

A chuckle escaped me.

Ivy asked.

"Why the sudden laugh?"

"Just did."

"...Laughing while staring at my face feels kinda weird."

"I was lost in thought for a sec. Wasn't laughing at you!"

"Sure?"

A twitch. For a split second, Ivy's gaze and some ear muscles flicked backward.

Only I noticed.

I checked behind her—nothing.

...Huh?

Something felt off.

Ivy had been acting awkward since earlier.

Like she was bracing for something—or sensing a threat.

"Ivy, is something up today...?"

My words trailed off unfinished.

A piercing alarm blared from all directions. The emergency speakers installed across the city screamed in unison.

Me, Han Ye-seo, and Ivy jumped up almost simultaneously, pulling weapons from our bags.

"...What's that?"

"Huh? Can't fight barehanded!"

Han Ye-seo held a ball of bundled white hair strands.

It looked like her own hair.

Ivy eyed her strangely.

"Why the weird look?!"

"Not content with making clothes from hair... now you tie up people with it as a hobby?"

"It's a weapon, not a hobby!"

"How do you use it?"

"Melt it into liquid, control it to wrap around the enemy? Then squeeze—snip!"

Her casual delivery of that chilling explanation felt deeply unsettling.

It was standard for monsters, but against traitors or ability criminals...

I stopped imagining.

Focus on the now. Though... something felt off about Han Ye-seo too. Her tone and actions seemed like she was lying.

A shudder. Ivy suddenly trembled. Her breathing grew ragged.

"Ivy?"

"No, I'm fine. Just felt stuffy suddenly."

"You sure?"

Her eyes were confused.

A seizure? Panic attack?

"I'm fine."

Ivy cut me off firmly.

...Not a machine voice.

Normal monster alerts detect Mana reactions and play automated voices.

This was a panicked civil servant's voice broadcasting manually.

Couldn't detect a breach inside the barrier? Something's wrong.

This was still downtown, even if away from central Seoul.

A densely populated area shouldn't be this sloppy.

Politicians' corruption was timeless, but monster defenses? Even the elites poured passion into those.

A breach didn't just doom civilians—it doomed them too.

Cut off. The alarm and voice stopped abruptly.

Unnaturally timed, like someone silenced it manually.

Everything felt wrong.

Ivy spoke up.

"Based on vibrations from the ground, the monsters are splitting into three groups. Aiming for central destruction and ambushing evacuating civilians."

Focusing my senses, I felt it—vibrations from three directions.

Strength and Stamina boost physical prowess, but with her low stats, this precision...? Had to believe since I felt it myself.

"Three groups..."

"Looks like we'll each have to block one direction."

Han Ye-seo and I chimed in.

Three of us, three paths. Perfect.

I clenched my eyes. Only one choice. No cost listed.

No alternatives.

Hold out.

No nearby heroes with downtime, apparently.

Few retired or rear-line heroes.

Gangbuk especially had thin forces compared to other areas.

Because of Ham Deok-gyu.

The problem is...

I turned to Ivy.

"You okay?"

"Yeah."

"......"

"Don't look at me like that. I'm in Class A too."

Confident attitude.

Class A. Future assets—the 21 ability users destined for A-rank hero status.

Believe her. Had to.

She must have her own trump card, some ability letting her face a monster alone.

One of the few who could keep up with my speed too.

She'll be fine.

She has her spear.

Yeah.

"I believe you."

"Okay."

We split toward the three paths.

Hoping nothing happened to each other.

"...Ha."

Ivy Lane whispered one word. Again.