Faster Than Anyone, Forging Our Own Path (1)
After finishing my first time with Shin Yu-hee, we washed up and headed straight out of the room to Shemiri's restaurant for breakfast—or whatever passed for morning here. To eat. And to claim our thirty Exchange Vouchers.
Shin Yu-hee looked seriously uncomfortable along the way, though.
"Sunbae."
"Yeah."
"Looks like Park Chang-su and his crew are in there. You wanna go in anyway?"
Maybe it wasn't the dead of night yet. The restaurant was packed with Park Chang-su, Choi Yu-jin, and the rest of their gang.
"What do we do? Force our way? If you're cool with it, I don't mind..."
"No need to pick a fight we don't have to."
"Worried they'll start asking questions?"
"Obviously. They already grilled us at night. Imagine if they do it while we're eating."
"They say even dogs don't mess with you when you're eating."
"These guys are worse than dogs. Sorry, Shemiri, but we'll grab our first meal somewhere else."
"You're still going, though."
"Gotta, for the fixed thirty vouchers per hour."
At the entrance, I waved toward the counter. Shemiri, who'd been eyeing Park Chang-su's crew with a bored expression, spotted us and gave a minimal wave, keeping her face neutral as a greeting.
"Come to think of it, I've never seen any other restaurants. Or anyone else coming here."
"That's..."
They should be around originally. But this was a special stage crafted by the angels.
"Probably some newbie safe zone setup. A restaurant only rookies can access."
"Makes sense. With Shemiri-ssi around, guys would've shown up just to ogle her."
"Maybe the arena itself blocks access from this side."
Beyond the stage's safety measures, the arena had its own rules. Orders from Chekhov and the management were absolute. Piss them off, and you'd end up as monster chow.
"Other spots might have guys staring, but they won't approach recklessly."
"Why not?"
"Outside the arena, they avoid direct fights. Ever think about it? Why not just stab someone before they step up?"
"Yeah, but..."
"They're scared of management's payback. Get caught, and you're dead. 'Tried to survive by killing someone who wasn't even fighting.'"
Assassinations weren't unheard of. But if you got busted, the killer's head flew off in some pathetic way.
"If you're gonna kill anyway, better rack up one win first, right?"
"What about half-killing them before the match? Stab 'em preemptively. This place doesn't seem that fair."
"That's why they band together. Solos don't risk late-night shanks, and if they think someone's targeting them, they hole up in privates or stick with their crew."
I pointed between Shin Yu-hee and myself.
"We're fine for now. Until the newbie protection ends."
"So we're not getting targeted yet?"
"Right. Doesn't make us invincible, though. If someone attacks, fight back and protect yourself. Cops exist, but they can't stop random muggings instantly."
"...Better not make enemies, then."
Shin Yu-hee scratched her cheek, scanning the surroundings.
"We've each killed one already. What if their buddies come at us?"
"Then they become our next targets. We rack up our wins."
"Ah. True. We're not staying here forever—just hit five wins fast and bail. Especially us; we have to get out... Huh?"
"What?"
"Just hypothetically."
Shin Yu-hee stopped walking.
"What if we end up stuck here long-term? The tutorial angels don't seem to have safeguards for that."
"Yeah. No hand-holding info, either. Just one goal: figure it out yourself."
"Angels okay with that? From their talk and the contract, making us heroes seems like their top priority."
"Bureaucrat mindset, maybe."
I wasn't about to side with Estiel just because I planned to sleep with her later.
"Or they've handled so many heroes, they just cull the weak and focus on promising ones. Or..."
Time to inject some urgency into Shin Yu-hee.
"Maybe they leave us to fend for ourselves here while tending to those past the goblin stage."
"Ah."
Shin Yu-hee's mouth dropped open like she'd just remembered something forgotten.
"Those people... what're they doing now? In an arena like this? Or somewhere totally different? Better than us since they cleared goblins...?"
"Can't say for sure, but mind if I speculate?"
"What?"
"Probably not harder than us. Tougher than goblins, but with eighty-eight together, they can hero it up and gain combat experience."
Orc settlements were classic for that. I'd built my monster-fighting chops there too.
"Survival logs mention beasts like slimes, orcs, werewolves. They'll face those in groups. Helpers like Shemiri or arena management for support."
"So we won't know anything until we escape with five wins?"
"Yep. Whether we're getting weeded out or outpacing them."
Officially, anyway. Stockpile Goddess Points to find out. Contact Estiel for intel, but in Chekhov's Arena, only two surefire ways to earn points. Meeting Estiel on purpose was pointless.
"Who knows? First to five wins might get a bonus from the angel."
First Escape. The first out scores Goddess Points. Solid hero intel. Or later, make that guy pay for past bragging.
The other was just a 'theory,' but plausible. Goddess Points rewarded demon-slaying feats. Strong demons lurked here. Tutorial or not, high stakes, but doable.
No reason to try, though.
If I could snag surer gains than points.
"Sunbae. That place up ahead looks like the restaurant."
Shin Yu-hee pointed to a crowd. Medieval inn pub vibes.
"...Straight out of a movie."
"Yeah."
If Shemiri's felt like a college cafeteria or company cantina medievalized underground, this was pure pub. Counter guy, quiet diners at tables.
And the vibe eyeing us warily at our entrance.
"S-sunbae...?"
"It's fine. No worries."
I led Shin Yu-hee straight to the counter.
"Boss. Here for a meal."
"New faces, but you got vouchers?"
"Of course."
I pulled out the Exchange Vouchers I'd ripped from Dex's pocket.
"Bread, soup, roasted meat. Two sets, ten vouchers total. That's it here."
"No booze? Fine, ten it is."
"Coming right up. Grab a seat."
The bald owner nodded at empty spots. We sat at a wooden table.
"Cheap stuff or expensive?"
"See for yourself when the food comes."
"......Their meals five vouchers a head?"
"Bingo."
Stale bread. Thick soup, barely any chunks. Scant meat bits. Mid-meal bowls, sure, but blatantly—
"Total rip-off... Shh."
"Watch your mouth."
"...What if we just keep Park Chang-su away completely? If any girl sunbaes approach, I'll flip out."
"Better than that, just eat at Shemiri's anyway?"
"At least there..."
"Not rock bread."
The red truth hit post-Shemiri's: other places were pure trash, hers the most edible by modern standards.
"You ever house-hunt? One-room."
"Yeah. Dad made me scout solo—realtors or online, no signing, call if I liked one."
"Ever have that? First place meh, check others, turns out they're all dumps, first was best."
"...Yeah. Exactly that vibe."
Clunk.
"Here ya go."
Shin Yu-hee forced a smile at the wooden bowls of bread, soup, and meat, picking up the bread.
"Sunbae."
"Yeah."
"Joking, but... nothing weird in the food, right?"
"Weird? No poison, at least. Get caught poisoning, management lops the owner's head."
"Safe to eat, then... Ah."
Grabbing the bread froze her expression.
"Sunbae."
"Yeah."
"Found a weapon."
"Hard as hell."
The bread was brick-solid.
"......No refunds, huh?"
"Nope."
"......Figured."
Shin Yu-hee gripped her bread like she wanted to crush it, aiming it at me.
"After this, next meal's at Shemiri's. Crowds or not."
"Me whoring out to Shemiri okay?"
"That's..."
She dunked the bread in soup.
"...I'll spectate."
Splunk.
The bread refused to soak.