Chapter 161
Chapter 161
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 161
Chapter Title: Our Other-Dimensional Selves (2)
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After finishing my talk with the Association Chairman.
I left the room alongside Kim Jung-hoon.
'S-Rank Dimensional Gate, huh...'
This isn't going to be easy.
I wonder what kind of monsters from which dimension are waiting for us.
But even more curious than that.
"Ji-hoo's dad?"
"Yes."
"How much of a signing bonus did you get?"
An S-Rank Hero.
Kim Jung-hoon's signing bonus.
'How much would the head of the K Group pay to sign him?'
They say he's exceptionally skilled even among S-Rank Heroes.
I can't help but wonder how much more he gets compared to me, an A-rank Hero.
Kim Jung-hoon looked at me quietly for a moment before opening his mouth.
"I didn't take any money."
"Huh?"
"Money isn't really an essential thing for me. Having it or not doesn't make much difference."
"..."
Well, yeah.
The K Group Chairman wouldn't sign someone just for the cash.
In that case.
"What kind of terms did the Association Chairman offer? It must've been something better than money for you to sign."
"Hwa-ryeon's dad seems really interested in money. More so than people who claim they don't care about it. I actually like the honest types better."
Kim Jung-hoon let out a hollow chuckle and continued.
"The Chairman promised me a future. One where my son can live safely."
"A future?"
"Yes, a future. One my son would absolutely love."
Heh heh.
Kim Jung-hoon smiled warmly, clearly thinking of his son.
It was surprising to see him smile like that, given his usual cool image.
My curiosity got the better of me, so I pressed further.
"What kind of future?"
"He offered coaching from other S-Rank Heroes for my son and one S-rank artifact owned by the nation. He even promised to secure my son's future even if I die."
"I didn't get any of that."
"Even though Hwa-ryeon's dad is incredibly skilled, you're still A-rank, so that's probably why."
It stung a little.
But that's the difference between A-rank and S-Rank Heroes. Can't be helped.
"Still, aren't you taking a loss? You're the K Group Chairman—no matter what, is it okay to dive into a dangerous S-Rank Dimensional Gate?"
"There's no real reason not to. Besides, S-Rank Dimensional Gates have to be cleared eventually. If we wait two years, it'll turn all of Seoul upside down."
Kim Jung-hoon gazed at me steadily as he spoke.
"For our children's future, what wouldn't a parent do?"
"..."
The moment he said that.
I realized the strange sense of kinship I'd been feeling toward him.
'Kim Jung-hoon is the K Group Chairman, and I'm from the bottom rungs...'
But we're both fathers raising kids.
No matter our backgrounds, we shared that bond as dads.
Kim Jung-hoon looked at me with a soft curl of his lips and extended his hand.
"Let's get along from now on, Hwa-ryeon's dad."
"You too, Si-hoo's dad."
"Once we wrap this up safely, let's meet at the upcoming elementary school sports day."
"Yeah, we have to be at the sports day! Haha!"
Squeeze!
We clasped hands, forging a hot bond between fathers.
'But... is it okay to have such flag-raising talk right before a big mission...?'
A bad feeling washed over me.
***
Before heading out to tackle the S-Rank Dimensional Gate.
I prepared a bunch of side dishes for the kids.
"I made a ton of veggie sides, froze some beef soup in the freezer, and stocked the fridge with meat dishes, so that should be fine."
For mains, I piled up mountains of curry and pork stir-fry.
And just in case, I decided to leave my card for the kids.
"If you want something else, just order it, Hwa-ryeon."
"Okay!"
"Don't order too much. It's not good for your health."
"I can handle it myself!"
Pat pat pat!
Hwa-ryeon snatched the card from me and dashed off.
"Heh heh, time to order some chicken later!"
"Sigh, chicken over Dad, huh?"
That hurts my feelings.
Hwa-ryeon saw my expression and shouted in surprise.
"Hmph, that's not it! I like Dad and chicken equally! More importantly, Dad!"
Pat pat pat!
Hwa-ryeon ran back and tugged at my arm.
"The sports day! You know about it, right!? You have to come! You gotta see me take first place again! Got it!?"
"Got it. I'll be back soon. You trust Dad, right?"
"Not really! But I'll trust and wait anyway!"
"Good. I'll be back before it gets late. Promise!"
Swipe.
I held out my pinky to seal the promise with Hwa-ryeon.
"...!!"
Su-ryeon spotted it, her eyes widening as she pointed her index finger at our pinkies.
"Dragon Laser Beam."
Whirr!
"W-What?!"
"C-Cold!!"
Suddenly, Su-ryeon interrupted our promise.
'Is she jealous or something?'
Su-ryeon crossed her arms and approached us.
"Dad, no flags allowed."
"Huh?"
"That was totally a flag just now. If you'd hooked pinkies, you never would've come back."
"T-That bad?"
"Yeah, that bad."
Su-ryeon stood firm, declaring it a flag and blocking us.
Maybe she had a point.
Cho-ryeon approached too, hugging Mangmung.
"Unnie Su-ryeon's right! Dad, you need to cut back on what you say! My intuition's telling me it's bad!"
"What, it's just a slightly tougher everyday job. It'll be fine, right?"
Shake shake.
Cho-ryeon shook her head vigorously, rejecting my words.
"No! The air there is bad! Something big's gonna happen for sure! Don't go, Father!"
"Why's she suddenly acting like a shaman?"
My daughter telling me not to go on the S-Rank Dimensional Gate raid.
My girls always try to stop me from working.
I gently stroked Cho-ryeon's head to reassure her.
"It's fine. I'll be back soon. What could go wrong?"
"That's the problem, Father!! You can't say stuff like that!!"
"No problems at all. It's okay, Su-ryeon."
"M-My senses are really bad this time...!!"
"Mang mang-!!"
Mangmung barked loudly in agreement with Cho-ryeon.
Mangmung's an opportunist who sides with whoever gives more snacks, so I ignored it.
"Anyway, Dad's going. I'll be back soon. Lots of sides in the fridge—eat those and wait. Got it?"
Pat pat.
I stroked their heads to reassure them.
And on the day of the S-Rank Dimensional Gate raid.
I waved to the kids as I headed out the door.
"I'll be back quick before the sports day. No mischief—wait nicely!"
"Do whatever!"
"Hmm, no matter how I look at it, way too many flags."
"M-My intuition's screaming! Father, turn back now!"
Still.
It's something that has to be done.
If I don't, Seoul—where my kids live—will shrink bit by bit, and the population will hit saturation.
Clearing the Dimensional Gate is the right call, no matter what.
'For the kids' future, I have to do it.'
I'll keep working so my daughters can grow up in a good environment.
Just fulfilling my duty as a father.
Dreaming of returning home safe with money in hand, I left the cozy house and headed toward the S-Rank Dimensional Gate.
***
An S-Rank Dimensional Gate is different.
The dimension itself is different.
The mana density in the air is different.
The class is different.
Everything's different, basically.
"Ah, my body's already feeling heavy."
"Don't let your guard down even at the entrance. Stay focused."
"Right right."
Two S-Rank Heroes chatting at the vanguard.
Oh Jin-seong and Kang Hoon.
They'd been deployed for this S-Rank Dimensional Gate raid too.
'Oh Jin-seong. Tall and handsome. Manipulates wind freely with mana. He's hogged all the AC, fan, and ice cream ads.'
Jealous.
When do I get to shoot one?
I glanced at Kang Hoon beside me.
'Kang Hoon. Rugged, manly looks—swept up all the underwear and men's product ads. Turns his body steel-hard with mana, from what I hear.'
Among us, Kang Hoon had the most field experience—a total veteran.
With 30 A-rank and S-Rank Heroes mixed in, he might as well be the raid leader.
I stopped burning with envy and looked around.
"Anyway, the vibe here's brutal."
Incheon really felt like demon realm now.
Buildings had all melted into grotesque shapes.
But the weirdest part was the special 'phenomenon' of this Dimensional Gate.
"Is that the dimensional rift everyone's talking about...?"
A faint glimpse of another dimension beyond the blue barrier.
This S-Rank Dimensional Gate had a phenomenon called 'dimensional rifts.'
Rifts connecting to other dimensions everywhere—fall in, and getting out's tough.
From what I heard, only one person had ever escaped from one.
"Tch, fall in and you're basically dead."
"Don't jinx it, Junior Lee Ha-jun."
"Han Ji-su!"
"I told you to call me senpai."
Han Ji-su was joining this raid too.
She approached me with a blank expression.
Then whispered.
"Be extra careful this raid, Lee Ha-jun. One slip, and you'll get sucked straight into a dimensional rift."
"I heard. They say hands come out from those rifts and drag people in?"
"Yeah, some rifts are trap types. Once you're in, the structure makes escape hard. Stay sharp."
Han Ji-su said that, then turned back to scanning ahead seriously.
She seemed genuinely worried about me.
'She definitely has a thing for me, right? Should I just confess?!'
As I pondered punishing her with a confession.
S-Rank Hero Oh Jin-seong's voice rang out from the front.
"Everyone, heads up! Monster ahead!"
Monster.
At the word, all the heroes readied for battle.
Maybe because they're S-Rank and A-rank Heroes.
Their speed was on another level from regular heroes.
Thud thud!
Huge footsteps echoed.
Thud!
The monster slowly revealed itself from between the buildings blocking our view.
It resembled a dinosaur, but made of stitched fabric like a stuffed toy.
'Looks like a T-Rex doll. But kinda familiar...'
Similar to the doll I bought Hwa-ryeon.
It didn't flee at the sight of me, so Dragon Fear didn't work.
The monster stared at us blankly.
Riiip!
Then it opened its mouth wide and began gathering mana.
Kang Hoon bellowed at us.
"Everyone, big dodge to the right!! It's a laser-type attack!!"
At his words, I dodged swiftly.
The moment I did, the dino doll fired mana where we'd stood.
-Rooooarrr!
Pew!
"Crazy."
A massive hole punched through our spot and back beyond.
"What the hell was that destruction beam..."
"Hey!"
Oh Jin-seong, right behind me, stared.
"What're you?"
"Me?"
"Yeah, you! Aren't you A-rank? Why're you so fast?"
He seemed pretty shocked I was faster than him.
I brushed it off casually toward Oh Jin-seong.
"I'm pretty quick. Raised kids fast too."
"What're you talking about."
As we bantered.
Kang Hoon stormed over, yelling.
"No chit-chat—focus!! That monster looks harmless but it's danger— E-Everyone, watch out!!"
Kang Hoon's face went pale white.
I whipped around at his words.
"Ah, set way too many flags."
This is nuts.
For some reason, a dimensional rift had spawned right behind us.
And it was a trap type, of course.
'Formation split left and right... No rift on the right side.'
The rift appeared next to us who'd dodged left.
Mana hands extended from the rift, wrapping around the heroes.
"H-Help! I'm being dragged!! Cut these hands!!"
"D-Damn, I'm going in! I'm out first!! If you fall into a dimension, don't go solo—find each other!!"
Whoosh!!
Heroes losing composure one by one, sucked into the rift.
Even the S-Rank Heroes made their choices.
"Hey, Kang Hoon. I'm not dodging—going in."
"Gonna save them?"
"Yeah, I'll do it. Who else will? Sigh, here goes."
Oh Jin-seong waved lightly and entered the rift.
He could've dodged but chose to enter to save his comrades.
'...Cooler guy than I thought.'
Figured he was just an ad model.
Looks like he's solid deep down.
Kang Hoon turned to me, the last one left.
"What about you, Lee Ha-jun?"
"..."
"I know who you are. And I saw your speed just now. We two can dodge this rift. What's your plan?"
"I..."
The left side bugs me.
But the right does too.
If I bail and those heroes lose to the dino doll...
"We won't lose. Kim Jung-hoon's S-Rank over there, plus Han Ji-su and 13 other A-rank Heroes."
Voice full of certainty.
That sealed my decision.
"Can't just abandon those heroes."
Into the dimensional rift it is.
I threw myself in immediately.
Then, suddenly, Kang Hoon followed, saying.
"Good choice, Lee Ha-jun."
"Ahem..."
Feels embarrassing for no reason.
Getting props from an S-Rank Hero made me feel oddly flustered.
Face flushing a bit, I passed through the rift.
And witnessed.
"...This place."
"Seems like Incheon. A very old one."
"..."
The sky was red.
Incheon, but aged like ages had passed.
Exactly the same spot we'd just been.
Just like time had flown by.
Looks like the dimension we landed in was...
"The ruined Earth, right?"
"Probably. Looks like we time-traveled. A time-shift dimension."
It resembled a future Earth in utter ruin.
'Hmm, maybe I shouldn't have come.'
Should've just fought the dino doll outside.
Slight regret crept in.
"Let's hurry and link up with the other heroes."
"Yeah..."
Sigh.
And so, with S-Rank Hero Kang Hoon, I began searching for the heroes dragged into the dimensional rift.
In the future Republic of Korea.