Heading Parties Taste Best When You Tank Them Body-First
Ahead of us, they must have made similar deductions. Not sure if their suspicions extended to us, though. At the very least, the assumption was that a priest and a mage had been exploring the dungeon, gotten attacked, suffered near-lethal blood loss, and vanished without a corpse—dropping only their clothes and gear. It was a scene that looked exactly like that to anyone.
Jimmy, the tank, and Iris were debating it as they stood there. We were too far to hear, but when they approached us over the scattered clothes, I figured they'd reached roughly the same conclusion we had. At least, until Jimmy spoke up in that heavy tone.
"Traces of a priest and mage's death. Both presumed female, looks like they resisted something and got taken out. No corpse makes it hard to say for sure, but the blood loss... no way they survived that. The discoloration suggests they went down around the day our guys found you two."
It was what I'd expected, so I just nodded without panicking.
"You're saying it's highly likely that was us."
"Yes. And we heard sis was found naked, without a single wound. Same for Hanbyeol. What we're worried about is..."
A chill ran through me, and I took a hesitant step back. Jimmy looked at us with pained eyes, the tank wore a confused expression, and Iris stood behind them, her usual smile wiped clean from her face. Had something gone wrong? I hadn't done anything wrong, so I stammered it out anyway.
"Wh-what is it?"
"Can you cast Purify on both of you right here?"
"Huh? Well, that's not hard or anything..."
Purify was a skill I cast on myself all the time. Even in downtime without fights, I'd circle it around my body whenever I felt like it. I'd use it right away if I worried about sweat stench, and I hung it on my bed and clothes constantly too. The lingering sweet scent never fully faded, which embarrassed me at first, but others just asked if it was perfume, so now I just smiled and brushed it off without showing it.
At Jimmy's request, I cast it on myself, and Iris nodded in confirmation. Jimmy looked relieved as he pulled me away from Hanbyeol.
"Sis isn't a doppelganger. Next, Hanbyeol. Does Purify have a cooldown?"
"No, but... a doppelganger? Like from ghost stories?"
The classic urban legend fodder. A monster that copies someone's looks, personality, habits—takes their place entirely. Whether ghost or supernatural mystery, it's vague, so monster fits best. My pupils shook as I stared at Hanbyeol.
"Hanbyeol couldn't be... no way, absolutely not."
The timeline didn't even match. Our possession started back in that prison. So my real worry was this: what if a doppelganger stole the mage's body first, and then Hanbyeol possessed that one? If so...
"Doppelgangers are devils, right? That's why they can't handle Purify?"
"That's right. So if you want to prove Hanbyeol's innocent, just cast it once. If you're worried about mana, rest first—no problem."
Hanbyeol smiled at me all defenseless-like, urging me to go ahead, but what if something went wrong? I couldn't cast it rashly on her.
"Th-there's something I haven't told you guys..."
Even if it put suspicion on me, I couldn't risk that danger on Hanbyeol. Jimmy's easing tension hardened again.
"Sis, we trust you, but for our safety, we need to confirm Hanbyeol's identity. We get that you two are like close sisters."
"I know. I get it, but... just a sec. Let me talk to Iris alone..."
In the end, I had to turn to Iris, the only one who knew we were possessors from another world. She obligingly followed me away from the group, and I spilled my worries.
"The others don't know we're otherworlders yet. Makes it hard to explain... You get it, Iris. Our goal is just to live normally here. Timeline-wise, no chance Hanbyeol got replaced by a doppelganger after possession. We woke up in the prison. Even if she is one, she wouldn't harm you guys. I'm just worried that if she is, Purify might cause something bad..."
"I understand. Then let's say Hanbyeol's a demon hybrid bound to the saintess—she can't receive Purify."
Thank goodness for Iris's cooperation; I sighed in relief.
"Thank you, really..."
"No problem."
Her tone felt a bit cooler, which worried me a little, but the relief that Hanbyeol was safe outweighed it, so we headed back.
"Sorry I couldn't say before, but Hanbyeol actually can't receive my Purify. But she's truly innocent, so please..."
"And since she received Resurrection from the saintess, odds of a doppelganger replacement in this dungeon are basically zero."
"Ah."
Right, that too. Resurrection doesn't work on mobs. Either way, my worries were overblown. I'd missed that key detail in my panic, and now I blushed in embarrassment. Should've just cast it on her. The other two relaxed visibly with relief, and Hanbyeol clung to me again.
"Demon hybrid? First I've heard of that."
"I'll explain later."
"Alright for now. Sorry for the suspicion—we figured you two were doppels who'd kill us and steal our bodies and spots. Glad it's not the case, proven."
"Yeah, I get it."
"And those clothes look like the ones you two wore. If you got attacked, pushed to the brink of death, then ended up unscathed at the entrance... means someone saved you. Ring any bells?"
Another tricky question, so I groaned and stalled for a moment. Glanced at Hanbyeol, but she just shook her head.
"Sorry, I don't even remember passing out. Entered the dungeon with Hanbyeol, got around here, blacked out, woke up... in prison. No traps the whole way till now."
"Nothing for me either."
"Hanbyeol's a pretty high-level mage, but took near-death wounds before even noticing..."
Jimmy picked up a stone from the ground and chucked it over the scattered clothes. A sharp whoosh cut the air as it bounced back, its once-smooth surface now covered in countless gashes.
"Cross that line, and invisible blades swarm from everywhere like that. It's a trap."
Looks like Hanbyeol and I were the first victims of that one. Ivy must've suffered pretty bad hitting it. Made my heart ache a bit. Hanbyeol seemed indifferent, sticking to my side, but Iris looked pale.
"Think a shield or divine barrier could cross it?"
"Not sure."
"Wh-why send me?"
Iris's question got Jimmy eyeing the tank. He recoiled in horror and stepped back big, but couldn't withstand Jimmy's piercing stare and raised his shield.
"Fine, whatever—with sis here. Buff me up, I'll check it out!"
Brave words, but this was reality, not a game, so worry hit me first.
"I can layer a barrier and heal if you get hurt. But it won't block the pain—is that okay?"
"Gotta keep my manly pride in front of the ladies. Can't back out looking pathetic. Hit me with all the buffs."
With that, I slapped on even the long-cooldown damage reduction buff. A blessing to cut incoming damage for a set time on a single target, a protective barrier around him, and a DoT heal to buy time till my cast healed him if wounded. Confident now, the tank strode forward.
The barrier shattered instantly. His leather armor shredded to rags in seconds, and the DoT heal was just a band-aid holding his life together. I shoved in a Rapid Heal, but he vanished without even a scream—leaving his armor and shield on the ground.
"...So that's what happened."
"Ah, ahh..."
I alternated between the gruesome sight and Jimmy, mouth hanging open. Wasn't he a comrade? How could you treat someone's life like disposable straw and shove them into the meat grinder? Fine in a game—die, respawn, discuss and adapt. That's the fun of a first clear party. But this was real. Sure, Resurrection brings you back, but no corpse means no rez. I prayed it over the armor, but nothing.
"Sis, you can stop."
"Resurrection... won't work..."
"He's alive. Let's head back to the entrance for now."
My legs buckled, and Hanbyeol supported me. I glared up at Jimmy with resentment, but no guilt flickered on his face for sending a teammate to their death. Crime syndicate roots—no loyalty there? All that talk of brotherhood before? Moments I'd thought him decent felt wasted now. Maybe he was someone to avoid after all. I tore my eyes from him and told Hanbyeol I was fine. She still fretted, propping me up—my unbound arms made balance tricky, and my wobbling must've looked bad.
Steadying my shocked heart, I confronted Jimmy.
"'Alive'? That's just a guess, right?"
"You two got booted out alive, didn't you? Jonathan will be too. Near-death wounds knock you out and eject you from the dungeon."
Jonathan—that was his name. Learning it now, with him possibly dead, weighed heavy. Pitying his death felt hypocritical.
"Still just a theory. What if it's wrong? We should've gone back for more test gear..."
"Actually, the stone's scratches weren't that deep. Trap's an illusion. Cross the line, get ejected—scratched if nonliving. Distinguishes living from objects, probably."
"Mana flow I sensed matched. Not a low-level trap, but that power level—if aggressive, shouldn't just be blades. Cost-wise spells: forced teleport, stun, wind blades. Fits the mana moved perfectly."
I stared blankly at Hanbyeol's confident words. When did she adapt to this world so seamlessly? While I reeled from the party member's evaporation, she analyzed coolly. Right—main healer couldn't lose it like this. Exit first, confirm the truth. Only seeing Jonathan fainted at the entrance let me relax. Naked and suddenly appeared, he'd gotten stomped by the waiting team, but otherwise fine—hastily covered in sackcloth. Tension drained; I slumped onto a big rock. Legs still trembled. I'd thought someone died before I could even act.