The Prince Has Arrived

Shhhk—

Thick clouds of dust billowed up through the gap in the shattered doorframe.

Within that haze, a space that had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠been transparent began to shimmer like heat haze, slowly coalescing into the form of a man.

His right hand gripped a three-section staff dripping with blood. His left held a pistol.

Step.

The man standing in the torn doorway, surrounded by dust and the heavy stench of blood.

He opened his mouth with a refreshing smile.

"...!"

At those words, Eun Ye-rin's eyes—still pinned beneath several men—trembled violently.

Just like the stunned Ye-rin, the men who had been about to assault her froze in place.

Anyone would be rattled if an uninvited guest suddenly burst in while they were preparing to gang-rape an idol.

But the silence did not last long.

"Kill that son of a bitch!"

Oh Jeong-hyeon, in the middle of unzipping his pants, roared with bloodshot eyes.

At the same time, the security guards who had been pinning Eun Ye-rin down charged toward the man.

"Die!"

Swish—!

The guards sprang up and attacked the man standing by the door.

The steel pipes they swung, the blades of ice they hurled—every strike pierced straight through his torso.

But.

Shhhk—

"What the hell?!"

The attacked man's form shimmered like a mirage, then scattered apart like smoke.

The men hesitated, confused by their attacks slicing through empty air.

"It's an illusion!"

"Damn it, where's the real one?"

And while they floundered, deceived by the phantom—

Shhhk—

Han Si-woo was already standing at their backs.

Slither.

In a blind spot inside the waiting room.

Three transparent figures crept forward silently. It was me, Lee Ji-hye, and Seo Ji-soo.

While the guards were busy attacking the illusion, we had already slipped inside using cognitive impairment combined with shared stealth.

Before the battle began, I had already activated Prey Search to scan the interior of the waiting room.

Excluding the three who had gone out on patrol, there were ten people inside the waiting room.

Eun Ye-rin sat on the floor in a daze. Cha Seol-ah trembled behind the sofa.

One manager cowered under a desk, shaking. One guard with a broken leg who could no longer fight. And one corpse that had already stopped breathing after failing to receive treatment.

I mentally eliminated the incapacitated from the threat list one by one.

That leaves five active combatants to deal with immediately, including Oh Jeong-hyeon.

After calculating the priority order in my head, I gave Lee Ji-hye an order.

"Hit the big one over there with a Mana Arrow."

"Got it."

Lee Ji-hye answered briefly and gathered mana at her fingertips.

I adjusted my grip on the three-section staff and launched the attack.

Taht—.

Crack—!

I moved behind the long-range magic user and swung the staff.

A dull crunch. His skull caved in, spraying brain matter and blood in every direction.

At the same time, the Mana Arrow fired from Lee Ji-hye's fingertips tore through the darkness.

Bang—!

The blue flash pierced straight through the neck of a flustered guard.

"Guhk..."

The man whose throat had been torn open clutched his neck, spewing blood as he collapsed.

A surprise attack from stealth. Two perfectly healthy comrades had been turned into lumps of meat in an instant.

"You fucking bastard!"

"Where are you?!"

With two comrades dead in the blink of an eye, Oh Jeong-hyeon and the two remaining guards couldn't hide their shock.

Covered in their comrades' blood, they roared in fury and counterattacked.

"Uraaaah!"

Whoosh—!

A guard who had activated Explosive Strike swung his fist and charged.

Since he couldn't pinpoint my exact location, he was swinging wildly.

But there was no way a blind punch like that would hit me.

I took one preemptive step back, letting the incoming fist slide past.

Whoosh—

The moment the guard, having lost his balance, pitched forward—

Thud—!

I slipped into the opening and smashed the staff down on his head.

"Guhk."

The guard with the cracked skull rolled across the floor.

At the same time, another guard cast a skill toward Lee Ji-hye.

"Die!"

Swish—!

Sharp ice shards spread out toward us like a flare.

The condensed ice fragments flew straight at Lee Ji-hye's face.

No matter how transparent we were, there was no avoiding an area attack like this. It was just as dangerous as the flames that had engulfed me earlier.

But.

Ting—!

A blue barrier unfolded from Lee Ji-hye's hand—she had been prepared.

The shield she deployed successfully blocked every ice fragment.

"What?"

"Die!"

Lee Ji-hye fired a flame bullet at the enemy's bewildered face.

Boom—!

"Aaaaagh!"

The man whose face had caught fire rolled across the floor, screaming.

Four combatants subdued in an instant.

With their attacks neutralized and their subordinates sprawled on the ground, Oh Jeong-hyeon's face turned deathly pale.

"Fuck... what the hell are you?!"

Defeated by just two people? Us?

Cornered with no escape from the slaughter, he chose a cowardly move.

Oh Jeong-hyeon roughly grabbed the arm of Eun Ye-rin, who was sitting on the floor trembling.

"Kyaa!"

Eun Ye-rin screamed as she was dragged into his arms.

Oh Jeong-hyeon snatched up a sharp weapon from the floor and pressed it against her slender throat.

"Drop the transparency! Drop it right now, you bastards! Or I'll kill this bitch!!"

He thrashed with bloodshot eyes.

"Haa... haa..."

Eun Ye-rin, wearing nothing but torn underwear, breathed in terror while pinned by Oh Jeong-hyeon's arm.

A thin line of red blood trickled down her throat where the blade touched.

Shhhk—

At his threat, I released my transparency and revealed myself.

When I appeared, Oh Jeong-hyeon glared and bellowed.

"You—you fucking bastard!"

I rested the bloodstained three-section staff on my shoulder and gave Oh Jeong-hyeon a mocking smirk.

"Pathetic bastard. Taking a woman hostage?"

"Shut up and drop your weapon! Before I kill her right now!"

Oh Jeong-hyeon pressed the blade tighter against Eun Ye-rin's throat.

"Hic..."

The moment Ye-rin trembled in fear—

Bang—!

A sharp gunshot rang through the narrow waiting room.

From a blind spot outside Oh Jeong-hyeon's line of sight, faint smoke rose from Seo Ji-soo's gun barrel.

Even with her injured shoulder preventing her from using a bow, a handgun was no problem. She was the hidden blade I had kept in reserve.

"Uh..."

A stupid groan leaked from Oh Jeong-hyeon's mouth as the bullet punched through his chest.

The hand holding the weapon against Eun Ye-rin's neck lost strength, and the blade clattered to the floor.

Thump.

Blood spreading across his chest, Oh Jeong-hyeon's massive body toppled backward.

With his death, the battle finally ended. Silence descended over the waiting room.

Just as planned.

I shrugged, shaking the blood off my staff.

I had been a little tense at first since the guards were well-built and experienced in combat, but we had won cleanly.

Four left now.

Eun Ye-rin and Cha Seol-ah. And—

"D-damn it."

The guard with the injured leg gnashed his teeth, trembling where he sat.

With Seo Ji-soo's gun trained on him, he couldn't even think of resisting.

The lone manager was still hiding under the desk, covering his head.

None of them seemed willing to fight. If they didn't resist, there was no need to kill them.

"Tie them up."

I ordered Lee Ji-hye to use the sturdy rope we had brought to bind the guard and the manager.

It was right then, as the situation settled, that—

"What... what the hell is this?!"

A sharp scream echoed through the room.

It was Cha Seol-ah, who had been hiding behind the sofa.

Her face was ghostly pale as she looked around the devastated waiting room, body shaking.

"Do you know who I am?! Do you have any idea who I am and still pull this shit?!"

Cha Seol-ah pointed at me with a flushed face, veins bulging in her neck.

"I'll kill you! I'll kill every last one of you, you fucks!"

Her ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠little empire—built by whoring out her body—had collapsed in mere minutes.

It was understandable that she was frothing at the mouth.

Her venomous voice filled the room, but all she could do was scream.

"What is this bitch even saying?"

I simply gave a light chuckle at her desperate threats.

After all, Cha Seol-ah had no combat skills. She posed no threat whatsoever.

Besides, the more she rampaged now, the more entertaining it would be when I fucked her later. I almost hoped she would keep struggling.

I turned away from the shrieking Cha Seol-ah and looked at Eun Ye-rin, who was still sitting on the floor.

Then I extended my hand to her.

Now it was time to tame... no, to coax the idol.

"I'm Han Si-woo. And you?"

"Ah..."

Eun Ye-rin, wearing only a gray bra over her exposed skin.

She instinctively curled up, covering her chest.

With dazed eyes, she looked up at the man who had introduced himself as Han Si-woo.

Her gaze fell to the hand he offered her. A rough palm covered in calluses.

Can I... take this hand?

She knew that hand had taken lives just moments ago.

Yet in this space, it was the only shelter she could rely on.

No matter what, this man had stained his hands with blood to save her.

Eun Ye-rin carefully reached out as she gave her name.

"I-I'm Eun Ye-rin."

Tap.

The moment her fingertips touched his palm, Han Si-woo gripped her hand firmly. He gently pulled her up from the floor.

"Ah."

Her legs gave out and she staggered; Han Si-woo supported her shoulder with his other hand.

The warmth of another person against her bare skin. Eun Ye-rin lifted her head and met Han Si-woo's eyes.

He curved the corner of his mouth and asked.

"Well? Do I seem a bit like a prince?"

At Han Si-woo's question, Eun Ye-rin's eyes trembled.

The word she had been repeating inside her head had just come from the man before her.

A prince. The fairy-tale savior she had dreamed of since childhood.

The one who would rescue her from the hell surrounding her.

But Eun Ye-rin saw the calluses on the palm holding her hand and the blood spattered across his cheek.

He was not riding a white horse. He wore no fancy clothes. A bloodstained tracksuit and a three-section staff—that was him.

He was fairly handsome, but he didn't possess the striking looks of actors or male idols from the entertainment industry.

The gap between fantasy and reality.

He had clearly saved her, but he was neither a fairy-tale savior nor a prince on a white horse.

Of course, this was not disappointment in Han Si-woo as a person.

It was simply disappointment in her own naïve self.

"I... don't know."

A weak voice flowed out.

Eun Ye-rin let out a small sigh and lowered her eyes.

"No... perhaps a prince on a white horse never existed in the first place."

An answer that shattered the wish she had clung to until now.

Her words carried resignation—an acceptance of this cruel world.

Han Si-woo did not deny her answer. Instead, he withdrew the hand that had been on her shoulder and spoke calmly.

"That's right. There's no such thing."

He turned his gaze toward the corpses littering the waiting room.

"There might have been once, but at least now there isn't."

In this hell where people turned into zombies and killed one another, there was no picture-perfect fairy-tale prince.

No matter how desperately she waited, a prince would never come to save Eun Ye-rin.

Because one had never existed.

However.

"Even so, keep making an effort. Endure. Survive here."

Instead of planting false hope, he made her face reality.

At his resolute tone, Eun Ye-rin clenched her fists.

Having felt the changed rules of the world with her entire body, emptiness flooded her eyes.

"For what...?"

Her voice shook.

"There are no more fans to listen to my songs, no more people... so what am I supposed to strive and endure for now?"

Eun Ye-rin asked him almost accusingly.

A world where the spotlight on stage and the cheers directed at her had vanished.

Until now, she had endured for the expectations everyone placed on her, for the sake of not ruining her dream.

She had held on because she believed a prince would one day come to save her. But now nothing remained.

Not the fans, not the public. Not even the prince who was supposed to save her.

All that was left was this brutally harsh and terrifying world, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and the wicked woman who had tormented her—Cha Seol-ah.

"...What am I supposed to live for?"

Eun Ye-rin asked again, clutching his collar.

She knew it was meaningless and rude to question her benefactor like this. Still, she asked.

Because she felt she would collapse if she didn't.

The sorrowful question of someone who had lost her reason to live.

"..."

Han Si-woo did not answer her question immediately.

Step—

He simply took one step closer and looked straight down at her.

"I don't know. I don't know if something like that even exists, and even if it does, I can't tell you. You have to find it yourself."

"..."

It was a cold answer.

Eun Ye-rin quietly lowered her head.

She already knew. She had simply thrown a tantrum like a child. There was no one who could answer a question like that.

She should apologize quickly. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Say she was sorry for throwing a fit and acting childish.

And thank him for saving her.

Even if he wasn't a prince, he was the benefactor who had saved her.

After this expression of gratitude, she would wake from her long dream.

Eun Ye-rin swallowed the sorrow rising in her throat and tried to speak. But before she could, his voice reached her ear.

"However."

Han Si-woo's voice sank low.

"I can help you like I did today."

"...!"

At his words, Eun Ye-rin's shoulders flinched.

"If anyone tries to hurt you, I'll kill them all. So find your own answer for what you should live for."

Han Si-woo answered lightly, the bloodstained three-section staff still resting on his shoulder.

It was a chilling answer with not a trace of romance, yet it reached her more deeply than any flowery rhetoric.

A sensation she had never once felt while being exploited by Cha Seol-ah and her group.

It was a promise of safety for Ye-rin, who had trembled in anxiety and fear for so long.

His single confident statement melted Eun Ye-rin's heart.

"...Ah."

The fear and anxiety that had bound her melted away like snow.

Tears slid down Eun Ye-rin's cheeks.

Without realizing it, she reached out with both hands and clutched Han Si-woo's collar tightly.

The damp tracksuit soaked with blood. Yet she did not let go. Instead, she gripped even harder, clinging to him.

She cast off her former weak self without regret and made a new vow.

"I understand..."

Eun Ye-rin bit her trembling lip hard.

Her wet eyes now held a clear resolve different from before.

"Then I'll... try hard again."

Yes. Even if there were no more fans or princes, that was no reason to give up.

For herself. To survive in this insane world.

And for the benefactor who had protected her. She just had to try.

It would be effort in a slightly different direction than before, but she would stop running and face it head-on.

The light had returned to Ye-rin's eyes.

The gaze she turned toward him burned with a passionate light that had not been there before.

"Good."

Han Si-woo smiled faintly.

Eun Ye-rin had steeled her own resolve. But this was not the end—it was the beginning.

And the first step of that beginning had to be taken by herself.

Han Si-woo jerked his chin toward Cha Seol-ah, who was still screaming in the corner, and asked.

"In that sense, I have a question. That bitch. How do you think I should deal with her?"