The Golden Gate
Chirp chirp chirp!
At the sound of birdsong, Zien looked around. He had definitely been shrouded in pitch-black darkness, but somehow the world had grown bright.
A lush green forest.
Beautiful sunlight filtering through the leaves.
It was a contradictory feeling, but the scenery felt familiar yet strangely alien.
"Evan?"
A golden-haired girl called out his past life's name. But that wasn't what mattered to Zien.
"...Liza?"
"Yeah?"
Zien pressed his forehead.
"Don't tell me this is... a Magic Art?" The warmth of sunlight on his skin. The fresh forest scent. Everything felt utterly real. Zien's expression hardened.
This scale...
It was an illusion, but not hypnosis. Zien's mind was clear. The situation felt just like a lucid dream. The difference was that even knowing it was a dream, he couldn't wake up.
"Did you hit your head during sparring?"
Liza looked at Zien with concern. It was their 322nd bout today—and his 322nd win. Maybe that dazed look was from getting bonked on the head with a wooden sword.
"I'm fine, Liza. Not a scratch."
"Then let's hurry. Everyone's waiting."
Liza took Zien's hand and led him along. The school building was from a century ago. Far from the cutting-edge tech of today, it bore the name Arpia, not Arcana.
The familiar faces passing by, every object around them—nothing differed from reality. As they entered the cafeteria, Peil and Sina waved.
"Over here!"
"Evan! Liza!"
Zien froze at the sight of them. Liza gave the stunned Evan a gentle push on the back.
"You're acting really weird today."
Me, weird? No, the weird one wasn't him.
"Can't blame him."
Peil mumbled around a mouthful of bread.
"It's the Gate exam today, right?"
Peil said it like it was no big deal. Was he oblivious or considerate? Liza dunked her bread in soup and took a big bite instead of replying.
"What about you, Peil? Lost your appetite too?"
"Then the hungry lady can gladly take it off his hands."
Liza snatched Zien's dessert with a gleeful grin.
"You're awfully quiet today, Sina?"
"It's your breath."
Sina shot back with a smirk and a sharp jab. Peil brushed it off slyly. Liza, of course, eyed the bread too.
Brutal.
Not Peil's breath. This Magic Art was brutally potent.
How do I break out of this? Illusions... he's far stronger than I thought.
The Gate exam grounds.
Hundreds of students gathered before the academy's portal. Liza and Zien were among them. The students' eyes held fear, tension, resolve—a tangle of emotions.
The principal stepped up to the mic for their sake.
The principal's face flushed red-hot with passion.
The principal's eyes blazed as he forced out the words, even holding his breath.
The speech from the 6th-rank Saber principal ended to restrained applause. The students stood before the Gate, each with their own expression.
[Zone 3—Golden Gate]
Predicted Difficulty: Rank 3
After reading the Gate's name inscribed above, Zien thought:
The Gate has changed...
Was Illusion's Magic Art not just replaying the past? Zien's face grew serious as he asked,
"Liza, did you study Zone 3?"
"Study? I'm a martial artist! I smash through with my sword!"
"So you didn't?"
Liza squinted with a cheeky grin.
"Evan the bookworm will handle it. What's it matter to me?"
"We don't know what roles we'll get. We might land close or far apart. Hell, we might not meet until the quest ends."
That was it. The true danger of Gates wasn't demon kings or mega-monsters.
Infinite parallel worlds. Infinite variables. No one knew what a Gate would demand of a Saber.
Even if it ordered them to block the Heavenly Demon alongside the Sword God, or conquer a riddle-filled dungeon—they had to succeed. So.
"Liza, preparation is always key. There's no such thing as overpreparing for a Gate. Got it?"
Zien's tone sharpened, the mood shifting. Liza wilted.
"O-okay... I'll study next time."
"Approach every Gate like it's your last. What if you get a physical penalty? Your prized swordsmanship would be gone. Knowledge is all you'd have left."
Liza started to protest but bowed her head again.
"I'm sorry."
Zien sighed.
She was just an eighteen-year-old student, after all.
"You're forgiven."
Liza beamed at Zien's pardon, stretching dramatically like she'd won.
"Starting off all serious~ Now I'm pumped. Yeah, gotta give it my all!"
Zien felt a pang watching Liza bounce back to her playful self despite the scolding. The Gate had changed to the rare "Golden Gate" he'd only seen once. A blatant challenge.
With my current skill, I can definitely change the ending.
Until now, he'd navigated with past-life memories. But roles had reversed. As Zien, he'd aid the inexperienced Evan. Even if it was a dream, he'd alter the past's conclusion.
Getting to the end should dispel Illusion's Magic Art.
With that resolve, Zien passed through the portal with Liza.
Golden Gate
Zien grasped the name's meaning the instant he saw the resplendent room. From desks to beds, everything gleamed gold—like the Gate's symbol.
"Oh! You're awake! The young master has opened his eyes!"
The physician cried out dramatically.
Young master? My role this time?
Zien tried to rise, but it was no easy task.
He didn't know how long he'd lain there, but his muscles had atrophied.
What the hell is this body?
Frail enough that standing alone was a struggle.
No way.
Zien grimaced, instantly grasping the situation.
Balancing things this way.
You have entered Zone 3 Gate [Golden Gate].
Quest objective remains undisclosed.
Your role: [Second Young Master].
A penalty exists.
[Physical] penalty applied. Assimilating with the role's [Second Young Master] body.
A physical penalty right off the bat. Zien's body now matched the Second Young Master's.
Of all things...
It meant his swordsmanship—not to mention natural movement—was severely hampered. The quest difficulty had spiked.
"Aigoo, young master! You've lost your speech!"
The physician fussed over the silent Zien.
"Water! Fetch water first!"
At the physician's order, a young maid hurried in with a cup.
Muscles melted away. A body long unconscious. The reactions around me confirm it.
Zien's judgment was swift.
They called me young master.
In Zone 3, "young master" meant a noble house's son. Having experienced the zone multiple times, Zien slipped naturally into character.
"Where am I?"
The physician rushed close at Zien's first words, making a fuss.
"Young master, this is your annex! Have you lost your memory?"
The elderly physician looked anxious.
"Well, it's understandable. It's been about a month since you regained consciousness..."
The physician approached the door and flung it wide.
"All wealth flows through the Golden Gate. We procure with gold, resolve disputes with gold—this is the supreme trading company, the Golden Gate!"
The grand main gate came into view, Golden Gate inscribed in gold above it.
The physician chuckled proudly, pointing.
"And you, Second Young Master, are the Golden Gate's second son."
The physician's face saddened. A month comatose as the Second Young Master—memory loss wouldn't be odd. With that, he began explaining kindly, step by step.
"A month ago, you were ambushed by bandits en route to meet the Namgung family's heir. A poisoned arrow struck you then, and you've been unconscious since."
"Bandits' poisoned arrow? Then who saved me that day?"
"Heh heh, doesn't the Peerless Sword stand by your side, young master?"
"Peerless Sword?"
"Yes! The Peerless Sword! Flower of the Battlefield! Your bodyguard warrior."
The physician stroked his beard with a smile.
"As the sole eyewitness to the scene, I've ordered the maid to fetch her."
"Maid! The young master summons her!"
Ha. Zien let out a hollow laugh.
Zone 3 folk were mostly dark-haired. But the woman entering had an appearance too alien for the zone. Flowing platinum hair like silver light, pale skin like clear water. Paired with a longsword—no wonder Liza stood out so starkly.
"Ah~ Young master~ You're awake?"
It took less than ten minutes to hear Liza's sarcasm again—something he'd expected wouldn't come for a while.
Claiming important talk, Zien dismissed the physician and maids. The physician insisted on staying out of worry, but.
[To find the bandits.]
One word from Zien, and they withdrew.
Now, only Liza and Zien remained in the grand annex.
"Told you. What do you think, Evan~?"
"...What was your quest objective?"
"Short one. 'Protect the Second Young Master.'"
"The core of the quest is my role, then."
The key to clearing the Gate lay with Zien's assigned Second Young Master role. Hiding the objective, slapping on a physical penalty—the demands were excessive for a Rank 3 Gate.
Being an illusion, the logic's a mess.
"Evan, your quest... kaput."
Liza crunched into tanghulu snatched from a maid. Crunch. Smack. The candied fruit's sugary burst was vivid.
"This stuff's sneakily good."
Zien somehow caught that amid it all.
"Still undisclosed. That uncertainty's part of the difficulty too."
"I see." Liza nodded, tapping her temple.
"Any role memories left in your head?"
"None. Wiped clean, probably from the coma. You?"
"Me? All good. No penalties like some people~"
To prove it, Liza swung her sword. Her longsword whistled through the air.
"When the Second Young Master was attacked, my bodyguard role arrived late."
So Liza only remembered after the young master took the arrow. Zien puzzled.
"Why? Don't bodyguards stick with their charge?"
"The physician said it earlier. Heh, elopement of love..."
Liza snickered slyly. Zien grimaced.
"A backstory I really didn't want to know."
"Still, thanks to your stellar bodyguard, you survived."
"Remember the bandits' looks?"
"Yeah. But I don't think they were real bandits."
Zien felt oddly proud at Liza's confident tone. Yeah, Liza had a sharp mind.
"Why's that?"
Zien prompted, and Liza shrugged cutely.
"Well..."
She pondered briefly before continuing.
"Too small a group for bandits. And the poison on the arrow was the clincher."
Liza's eyes narrowed. The glutton vanished; a Saber’s seriousness emerged.
"Poison. Academy said Zone 3 bandits rarely use it. Simple reason: they need ransoms from hostages."
Zien nodded approvingly. Solid deduction. Bandits usually wanted cash.
Buy expensive poison just to kill a money-making hostage? Absurd.
Liza's reasoning pressed on.
"They bolted the moment they saw the bodyguard. Six bandits fleeing at the sight of a woman?"
Zien nodded. One of two things: they'd sensed her mana, or they knew her strength beforehand. Either way, no ordinary bandits.
"Someone's behind it."
Zien wobbled trying to stand. He kept forgetting this was the body of some rich Zone 3 heir—poisoned by an arrow and bedridden a month, no less.
"The physician called me Golden Gate's second son. So there are other brothers?"
Now the real questions. Liza tapped her tanghulu necklace. The half-eaten treat vanished in light.
That's not what pockets are for.
A non-combat Saber using her pocket for weapons or artifacts to store half-eaten snacks.
"Golden Gate direct line: one older, one younger."
"Names?"
"Eldest: Hwang Yusung. Little bro: Hwang Cheolsan. Different mothers from you."
Zien pictured the scenario. Rich family. Half-siblings above and below. Assassination attempt.
A lead on the quest objective has been found.
The three Golden Gate brothers compete to become heir to their father, Hwang Chung.
Determine the Golden Gate's successor.
Gate-style hologram alert floating before them.
"Liza."
Zien smiled—a rare sight that puzzled Liza.
"Yeah?"
"The quest objective just revealed itself."
"Whoa! Hidden plot? Hidden quest? What’s it say?"
"Says we wrap it in two days?"