The Holy Saintess (2)

Footsteps crossed the ground, steady and unhurried.

Jinsoo walked toward the player he had called out to as Sua.

"Excuse me. Are you Shin Sua?"

"I am. Do you know me?"

She looked him over, puzzled.

"Your younger sister is Shin Sujeong. Four years younger than you. Is that right?"

"Huh? Do you know my sister?"

"Hahaha!"

A hollow laugh broke out of him.

What in the world happened?

The player standing before him was, without any doubt, Shin Sua, the Holy Saintess. And the younger one is Shin Sujeong, the Dark Saintess. The Shin sisters — the two once called the greatest healers in the Tower. Both of them had belonged to that person's party as healers.

Looks like they haven't met each other yet.

He didn't know exactly when the sisters had joined that party. He did know the order. The Dark Saintess, Shin Sujeong, made her name first. Only after that had the elder sister, Shin Sua, joined and come to be called the Holy Saintess.

I have to secure her. No question. Among every healer in the Tower, the Holy Saintess stood at the very top. Well. Not yet, from the look of her. Her appearance didn't match the one he remembered, either, which suggested some extraordinary fortune had found her along the way. Even so, roots don't just disappear. And if he kept Shin Sua with him, he might yet be able to bring Shin Sujeong into the party as well.

"You. You know my sister?"

Shin Sua glared at him, and her speech had dropped into something blunt and familiar.

"I do."

Jinsoo answered just as casually.

"Really?"

The words tumbled out of her, urgent.

"How did you know each other? Is Sujeong doing all right back on Earth?"

"I've never met Shin Sujeong on Earth."

"What?"

Her face went hard as stone.

"Then how do you know Sujeong?"

"You already know the answer."

"Don't tell me Sujeong was dragged into the Tower?"

The color drained from her face.

"Then why are you alone? Don't tell me Sujeong is..."

"She's not dead, so stop worrying."

"Then where is she right now?"

She pressed him, desperate.

"Before that, how about we move? This isn't a good place to talk."

"I don't care. Tell me right now."

"I do care."

At his answer, Shin Sua bit down hard on her back teeth.

"Fine. Where are we going?"

"Somewhere quiet."

Jinsoo led her away.

Shin Sua looked around his lodging.

"This is your idea of quiet?"

"It's a no-PK zone, and it's a space outsiders can't force their way into."

Jinsoo sat down and answered in a calm voice.

"Then talk. Where is Sujeong?"

"I don't know exactly."

"What? What kind of nonsense is that!"

"But she's definitely on a higher floor of the Tower than we are."

"Sujeong is on a higher floor? That's ridiculous! I spent two years on Floor 50! And I never once met Sujeong!"

"You don't actually think ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Shin Sujeong entered the Tower later than you did, do you?"

"What?"

At his words, Shin Sua's whole body locked up like stone.

"You're saying Sujeong entered before I did? That's impossible. I saw her two days before I was dragged here!"

"When exactly were you brought to the Tower?"

"February 21, 2022."

"Not the time you spent on Floor 50. How long have you been in the Tower altogether?"

"A little over three years."

"I arrived on February 22, 2022. But I've only been in the Tower about three months."

"What? Don't lie to me. I don't like games. There's no way you reached Floor 50 in a mere three months."

Killing intent poured off her as she set a hand on her sword hilt.

"This is a no-PK zone. You couldn't draw that sword if you tried. And besides, you've grabbed the wrong point."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Time on Earth and time in the Tower don't flow the same. The Tower's time runs far slower. You and I entered only a day apart. In the Tower, three years have passed. You said you met Shin Sujeong two days before you came, right? If she entered two days ahead of you, she'd be roughly nine years in by now. If she came a day ahead, more like six."

This was why players did not age. One day on Earth was three years in the Tower. Roll through thirty years inside, and barely ten days would have passed on Earth. Players were bound to Earth's time, not the Tower's. It was also why Jinsoo, who had spent decades in the Tower before his regression, had thrashed so desperately to return to the Earth where his sibling waited. Decades in the Tower were only a few dozen days back home.

"How am I supposed to believe you? And even if what you're saying is true, you told me you've only been in the Tower three months. So how could you know Sujeong, who came nine years ago at the long end, or six at the short?"

"I don't intend to explain every circumstance. I can prove I'm telling the truth, though."

"How?"

Jinsoo drew a jewel from his inventory, purple gone dull with a gray sheen, and held it out to Shin Sua.

"Check the information."

"A Truth Crystal? An item like this exists?"

Shin Sua's mouth fell open as she read the purple gem.

"The standard a Truth Crystal uses to judge truth and lies is the user's own thoughts. Unless you're split down the middle or completely insane, you have no choice but to spit out the truth with absolute certainty."

"It's single-use."

"There are ones you can use permanently, too. The price is the problem."

Before his regression, the cost of a permanent Truth Crystal had been pocket change. Not anymore.

Jinsoo activated the Truth Crystal, then repeated, word for word, what he had just said. The crystal judged his words true and erupted in pure white light.

"Now you know I was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠telling the truth, right?"

At his words, Shin Sua nodded.

"You're not going to tell me how you got that information, are you?"

"Nope."

"Do you happen to know where Sujeong is right now?"

"No. I don't."

Despair washed over her face.

"But there are a few places I can guess."

"Where?"

"If I told you, could you actually get there with your own strength?"

Her expression crumpled into something wretched.

"I'll help you meet your sister."

"What? Is that true? You'll help me?"

"Yeah."

Shin Sua looked at the Truth Crystal. It was still pouring out pure white light.

"Why do you want to help me? What do you get out of it?"

"For one thing, I have business with Shin Sujeong myself."

"What?"

Shin Sua's eyes went sharp as axe blades as she glared at him.

"Nothing bad. I just want to join forces and escape this damned Tower. If I keep her own sister safe and bring you with me, Shin Sujeong ought to think better of me."

Shin Sua studied the Truth Crystal, still blazing white, and her expression eased.

"In short, you see me as a tool for buying Sujeong's goodwill. Is that it?"

"That's right. It's not a bad offer for you, either. You get to meet your sister."

"That's true, but..."

The worry crept in that she would only become a burden on her sister.

"Is that really all?"

Jinsoo hesitated a moment at Shin Sua's question, then spoke.

"I have a young sibling too, same as you. Our parents are dead, and my little sibling is alone back on Earth. So I understand how you feel. That's why I want to help you."

The Truth Crystal she looked to was still shedding pure white light.

"If you don't want to, you can refuse."

Shin Sua sank into thought. The conclusion came quickly.

"Help me. I'll cooperate as much as I can."

Sitting here would solve nothing. And now that he had already met her, she had no way of knowing what nonsense Jinsoo might spout once he found Shin Sujeong. Above all, she believed him. The Truth Crystal had marked it as truth: a man with a young sibling of his own truly wanted to help her.

"Good. Then let's write up one contract."

"A contract?"

"Yeah."

Jinsoo took a sheet of paper from his inventory.

"Check the information."

At his word, Shin Sua read it.

"A Mana Contract?"

"Break the contract, and you pay the price in Mana stats."

A Mana Contract had teeth. If one party violated its terms, a predetermined amount of Mana was permanently erased. Stats were the absolute measure of a player's strength, which made the penalty ferocious.

"The Mana permanently erased will be every point you hold at the moment you break it."

Unless someone was truly desperate, it was a condition they would never accept.

"Fine. What are the terms?"

Shin Sua did not hesitate for an instant. She was desperate beyond measure.

"First: you will never disclose any information about me without my permission. Second..."

Jinsoo rattled off his demands one after another.

"Feels like an awful lot of restrictions on me."

"Then don't. If the contract is made, I'll guarantee your safety and do everything in my power to help you meet Shin Sujeong."

"I'll do it."

Shin Sua wavered for only a moment, then accepted.

"It's filled out. Sign."

At his word, she wrote her name on the Mana Contract without a shred of hesitation.

The contract between Jinsoo and Shin Sua was established.

"You made the best choice. Then here's a gift."

"A gift?"

Jinsoo drew a holy-attribute healer class-change certificate from his inventory and held it out.

"This is a class-change certificate. A healer one, at that."

"Right. Have you already changed class?"

"Yeah. I have."

"Into a warrior?"

"Yeah."

At Shin Sua's answer, Jinsoo laughed inwardly. Figures. Healer and mage certificates are pretty rare.

Players generally class-changed on Floor 50. Some obtained a certificate through hunting, but they were only a handful. Most saved up points and bought one at the auction house. Of the certificates sold there, the cheapest and most common was the warrior's — an awkward middle ground between dealer and tank. Next cheapest came assassin, then archer, then tank. The stronger a class's identity, the higher the price climbed, which was why healer and mage certificates were both expensive and scarce on the market. A mage's damage could, to some extent, be covered by other dealers. A healer could not be replaced. Put simply, healer was the class with the most demand and the least supply, and a healer's certificate commanded a brutal price.

"You're really giving this to me as a gift? With nothing asked in return?"

"Yeah."

"Th-thank you."

Shin Sua bowed her head low.

She had advanced as a swordswoman. But no matter how she struggled, her swordsmanship, her coordination with her companions, her skill proficiency, and her sense for battle refused to improve, and the strain of it had worn her down.

If I can just change into a healer...

Everything would turn on its head. Setting all else aside, healers were exceedingly rare.

I'll have to work even harder.

As things stood, Shin Sua's stats, her common skills, and her exclusive skills were built entirely around a close-range damage warrior. Strength and Agility were her highest, and after those came Stamina and Durability.

Mana and Spirit — the ones that matter most to a healer — are my lowest.

She had not learned a single common skill or exclusive skill a healer needed.

"Change class first. Then learn these."

Jinsoo handed her the healer-exclusive skill books he had bought in advance.

"Okay."

Shin Sua used the healer class-change certificate. Then she learned the healer-exclusive skill books.

He's helping me this much when I'm completely useless.

Shin Sua had been the least helpful player in her party. Because of that, her companions had scolded her more than a little, and her self-esteem had sunk low.

I always thought I was alone.

Her party members weren't bad people. Forming a party together on Floor 1 had been enough for them to drag her, lacking as she was, all the way to Floor 50. Even after they arrived, they had stayed with her until now. They had been kind at first. But as she slowly became the party's dead weight, their attitude had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠changed.

It all happened because I wasn't good enough. From now on, I'll do better.

From here on, she had to go with this man called Lee Jinsoo.

He's kind to me now.

If she fell short of what he expected, the way he treated her might turn a full hundred and eighty degrees, just as her party members' had.

I have to do well.

He had invested an expensive healer certificate in her, and a whole stack of healer-exclusive skill books besides. If she still showed him something beneath his expectations, he would surely be disappointed.

I can't become a burden on Sujeong.

The reason this man, Lee Jinsoo, was investing so much in her and wanted her at his side was her sister, Shin Sujeong.

If I turn into baggage again, the way I was before...

Then the debt Shin Sujeong would have to repay ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠him would only grow.

She wanted to do well.

When she met Shin Sujeong, she did not want to be a piece of luggage that had survived thanks to Lee Jinsoo. She wanted to stand before her sister as a comrade who had been a real help — someone necessary. A player who could be of use to Shin Sujeong.