Chapter 246
Chapter 246
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 246
Chapter Title: The Alarm and the Encounter
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Chwi-rip-rip—.
Unhyang sat in the cafe, sipping her strawberry shake.
Her face was hidden behind sunglasses, and she had pulled her hat low over her head. It felt like she was a famous streamer dodging the public eye.
"This is good."
It was a cafe with a high terrace overlooking the streets below.
She had snagged a spot with a view stretching far across the city. Humming a little tune as she shoveled in the sweet treat, she almost felt like she was on vacation.
But she had to keep her wits about her.
'When's it going to start?'
Unhyang wasn't here for fun. If anything, she had come to fight.
She glanced down.
In her view from the terrace, she spotted rankers milling about the streets below.
'Those people could all turn into enemies?'
It was a thought she didn't want to entertain.
Of course, not everyone here was a ranker. Mixed in with the players were residents born and raised in this tower.
Even so, the fact remained that Blue Zone rankers were everywhere.
Unhyang checked the message again and let out a deep sigh.
"So... who is it?"
She didn't even know who she was supposed to help. Su-hyuk had said she'd know when the time came, but the problem was she had no idea when that would be.
Thud.
Unhyang slumped forward, pressing her cheek against the table.
It had already been quite a while since she arrived. At first, it hadn't felt real, but the tension was building.
'We're really going to fight.'
Against this guild.
No matter how many times she thought it over, she couldn't understand why it had to come to this. Helping an enemy of Blue Zone meant they would become Blue Zone's enemies too.
What kind of story did Su-hyuk have with all this?
She trusted him unconditionally. That hadn't changed.
But it bothered her that the person she had to help wasn't Su-hyuk himself.
'What does Su-hyuk-nim see in that person to tell me to help them?'
Was that person righteous? Or a vicious villain worth chasing down by Blue Zone?
And what connection did they have to Su-hyuk?
As her wish that nothing would happen clashed with her curiosity about Su-hyuk's secret...
"Huh?"
The terrace below was starting to get noisy.
Blue Zone guild members were gathering here and there, murmuring. Unhyang lifted her head at the sudden commotion.
"...Is it starting?"
Weeeeng, weeeeng—.
The kit kept blaring noisily.
Ye-ryeong stared at Adolf with cold eyes.
"Looks like you sent a signal outside."
"Kuh... heh heh heh..."
Adolf laughed like a madman.
But it wasn't the laugh of someone consumed by fear. It was the desperate struggle of a man clinging to his sanity.
Ye-ryeong realized her mistake.
"I underestimated you."
Things had gone too smoothly up to now.
For some reason, these idiots had mistaken someone else for her and focused all their attention on watching that person.
On top of that, Adolf had stupidly led her right to where Hyo-min was.
She must have let her guard down in the process. Or maybe it was the joy of finding Hyo-min again mixed with the anxiety of her being unconscious.
Either way, Ye-ryeong had looked down on Adolf.
His skills. And his mental fortitude.
"Kill him."
He was the type who could overcome his fear of death with sheer willpower.
No.
Maybe that's why he even knew about this place to begin with.
Kim Il-su wasn't the type to share its location with just anyone.
Ye-ryeong swallowed a sigh and nodded.
"Yeah."
Stab.
Ye-ryeong's dagger pierced Adolf's forehead.
"I was planning to anyway."
The death of Adolf, a Blue Zone high ranker, was pathetically undignified.
Thud.
His body slumped lifelessly to the side. Several rankers and one high ranker passed quietly like that.
"Poison King... Poison King, huh..."
Ye-ryeong mulled over the only clue Adolf had left, rolling it around in her mouth.
It was something he'd blurted out unconsciously in his fear-addled state. Short, but it gave her some idea.
"You bastards..."
Grind.
Her rising anger made her grit her teeth as her gaze turned to Hyo-min.
Hyo-min lay peacefully in the coffin propped up at an angle, eyes closed.
At least that was a relief.
There didn't seem to have been any pain in the process.
"This makes it a half-assed reunion."
Sighing with regret, Ye-ryeong hoisted Hyo-min onto her back.
Carrying a limp body like that was heavy and awkward. More than anything, it threw off her balance, killing her usual mobility.
"...Sneaking out is off the table now."
Above all, Ye-ryeong was an assassin.
Stealth was impossible in this state. With her mobility hampered, blindly trying to escape would be tough too.
But she had prepared for this.
She hadn't expected to slip away unnoticed after finding Hyo-min.
No.
If she could just find her, that would be enough. She was grateful for that much.
"Nngh."
Securing Hyo-min firmly on her back with one arm to keep her from slipping, Ye-ryeong stepped out the door.
"Let's go home, Hyo-min."
Where?
She thought she heard a voice like that.
After pondering for a moment, a faint smile tugged at Ye-ryeong's lips.
"Home."
Wherever we all gathered—that was home.
Woooong—.
The kits went wild.
Flashing red kits. The alert reached every guild member in Blue House.
"What is this?"
"Emergency alert."
"Demon clan?"
"But the location..."
Adolf's alert included location data. And it was right in the guild's heart.
If it was demons, there was no way the alert would come from the center. Confused guild members rushed to gather.
"Vice Guild Master!"
Yi Won-jae was naturally among them.
Guild members spotted him and bowed. Yi Won-jae frowned as he walked through the parting crowd.
"Where's Adolf?"
"Seems like he's down there."
"Set up a blockade first. Don't let a single ant slip out."
"Got it."
After issuing the order, Yi Won-jae eyed the previously unseen staircase.
'Hidden here, huh.'
He had scoured every corner of the guild over the past few days. Every possible spot where Lee Hyo-min might be hidden had been turned upside down.
But he hadn't noticed this place. Meaning it had been concealed.
'Trying to sneak her out behind my back?'
It was a reasonable choice.
Demons were causing chaos outside right now. He didn't have the full picture, but something had definitely gone down among the trial participants.
To distract him in the midst of that, this was the only way.
But.
'Something went wrong.'
A problem had arisen while trying to extract Lee Hyo-min.
A serious enough problem to expose this place to everyone.
"Someone go check it out."
The guild members around him flinched at Yi Won-jae's order.
Dozens had already rushed down the narrow stairs. Yet not one had reported back.
Communication cut off with each one who went down. They couldn't all pile into the cramped stairs, and no one wanted to volunteer knowing it meant certain death.
"No one's stepping up?"
"..."
"Cowards."
His scoffing sneer prompted one to step forward.
"I'll go."
The crowd's expectations could spark courage where there was none. Plus, standing out in a situation like this would boost his standing in the guild.
The volunteer strode down the stairs. They waited for news, but again, nothing came even after a long time.
"...What the hell?"
It was too quiet.
The silence quickly turned to dread. Yi Won-jae's brow twitched.
"Call back all guild members outside too."
"Pardon?"
"Didn't you hear? All of them."
It was an extreme measure.
Half of Blue House's forces were deployed outside the city, guarding against potential demon incursions.
Recalling them all?
"But if the demons push this way, it'll be a disaster. They're already on the move, aren't they?"
"Don't be stupid. Deal with what's already happened before worrying about what might."
"But..."
"And seal the entrance."
"Pardon?"
Seal the staircase entrance.
That meant collapsing it completely, trapping everyone inside.
"Vice Guild Master, Adolf-nim is down there too."
The words from one of Adolf's known allies irked Yi Won-jae.
"He's dead."
"What do you mean?"
"Use your brain. You think he'd send an alert if he wasn't in mortal danger?"
"..."
"The others too. Sealing it buys time anyway. Until the rest return..."
Step.
A footstep echoed from below.
All eyes turned. The noisy surroundings fell silent in an instant.
One of the ones who went down coming back? Or...
Guild members stared at the stairs, tension and anticipation mixing.
What emerged before them was the last thing they expected.
"What, a show?"
A black-haired masked woman, carrying a haggard woman on her back.
Yi Won-jae's eyes widened at the sight.
'Kim Ye-ryeong?'
Why was she here?
"You—"
His question—Why are you here?—cut off abruptly.
What came next was entirely different.
"—So you are the real one."
The moment he locked eyes with Ye-ryeong carrying Hyo-min, Yi Won-jae realized he'd been fooled.
No matter how perfect the acting, the aura and presence were too different. More than that, Ye-ryeong didn't have the eyes of someone caught in a deception.
The mismatched movements, the gaze. And his instincts. It all pointed to one conclusion.
'There's another one.'
Kim Si-woo maybe?
No, impossible.
The disguise checks were thorough. Kim Ye-ryeong might slip through somehow, but not Kim Si-woo.
The tests had been designed with her in mind from the start.
"At least one of you recognizes me."
Ye-ryeong gripped Hyo-min tight with one hand while holding a dagger in the other.
"Step aside if you don't wanna die. My friend's like this, so I'm in a shit mood."
"Friend?"
"What do you mean?"
"Where's Adolf-nim..."
"Did that woman take him down?"
Murmurs rippled through the crowd. Rankers formed a blockade around Ye-ryeong.
'Lee Hyo-min's secured.'
Yi Won-jae's gaze shifted to Hyo-min on her back.
'No room for negotiation.'
He'd wanted to lure Kim Ye-ryeong and Kim Si-woo over if possible, but this threw that plan out.
Fortunately, Adolf was dead. If he'd been with Ye-ryeong, he wouldn't be alive anyway.
So.
"Intruder."
Only one thing left to do.
No choice now.
"No need to capture. She's not worth it."
Better to take her down and claim the credit.
Stepping back, Yi Won-jae gave the order.
"Kill her."