Eternal Gate
76.
"Well? Find out anything?"
I asked Keira as she stepped into the tent.
"Not really… about the same as this morning."
She shook her head, her expression tight.
Same as this morning meant zero progress.
Two days since we'd arrived at Death's Land, and all we'd managed to confirm was that the thing was a space-related magic circle. For better or worse, the circle had stopped expanding over those two days. Death's Land itself had stopped growing, too.
I'd been half-afraid that was the calm before the circle activated, so we'd been pouring everything into the investigation — but even Keira, who'd once been a mage who could do anything, had hit a wall. Nothing in Elena's knowledge of the Order covered this either. Divination was a dead end. She'd said it was information her Rank 2 Holy Power simply couldn't reach.
"Take a break while you're at it. You weren't out there all day, were you? You're already leaking energy through those holes as it is."
"I know. I'm pacing myself. How about you?"
"Me? I did fine. I'm getting used to the broadcasts now."
I'd been here until morning, then headed to Seoul for a shoot and come back. It was a schedule the Association had set up. The world was still buzzing about the White Flower — or more precisely, everyone wanted to know about the one-armed hero. Most of the media had been calling to book me, and I'd cut all of them. This time I'd gone because the Association had asked more than once.
Still, if Death's Land hadn't stopped advancing, I never would have left Keira here alone.
"Elena, is that true?"
"He's definitely better than before. Though he didn't look quite as relaxed as he does when he's with us."
Elena had gone to Seoul with me as my bodyguard.
"Well, of course. It's a broadcast — if you aren't even a little tense, you're in trouble."
I'd gotten used to being on camera, but it still wasn't as comfortable as home. And it shouldn't be. A person on television had to constantly think about how they'd look on screen, watching every move and every word. Causing unnecessary controversy would be a problem.
Somewhere along the way, I'd basically become a media personality. Adapting this fast — maybe it was just in my nature?
Keira, however, put a different spin on my words.
"Well, yeah. Getting horny staring at pretty panelists would be a disaster. You kept him in line, right, Elena?"
"Yes. Maybe because there wasn't anyone prettier than Keira — we got through it quietly."
Excuse me? When did I ever do that?
This time Keira read my protesting look a different way entirely.
"…So there was someone prettier than me? And he still held it together? Jungmin did?"
"No! How does it even turn into that? There wasn't anyone prettier than Keira."
"Ahh, so if there had been, he would've slipped."
"I wouldn't slip even if there was!"
"…Really?"
Keira's eyes slid over to Elena. I followed her gaze.
Elena.
She was beautiful. One of the very few people you could honestly call prettier than Keira. But the reverse was always true, too — Keira was one of the very few people you could call prettier than Elena. In the end it came down to taste. If Keira was a cold beauty, Elena was a warm one. Of course, I liked both of them.
"…Um, if you keep staring at me like that…"
Elena flushed red and dropped her head. Startled, I looked back at Keira. She was grinning with pure mischief.
"See? The second there's a pretty girl around—"
I sealed her chattering lips with mine. For all her talk, she answered eagerly. Tongues tangled, bodies pressed flush together. A moment later I pulled away — and tugged Elena in, the one who'd been half-turning her head while watching every second of it.
"Oh my… mmph!"
Elena looped her arms around my neck like she'd been waiting for it. Not about to lose to Keira, maybe? Her tongue was fiercer than Keira's had been a moment ago. We stayed locked together for about a minute before I let go, and this time Keira was staring at me like she was waiting her turn.
But we couldn't do this here. This was Death's Land, and we were here to investigate.
"That's enough for today. Until we settle this, anything more is going to be hard."
"Tch…"
Keira puffed out her cheeks and glared at me. She was so cute I wanted to pin her down right there, but I held back. Sex we could have anytime. If we didn't handle this, something much worse might follow.
"Not happening. More importantly — were you okay alone? The Association didn't bother you?"
"Not at all. Clean."
"Really? Surprising."
I'd expected the Association to approach Keira while she was by herself. A perfect chance to get close to an Otherworlder.
"Maybe they figured planting a good image is better than clinging. They might be treating this as a long game — let this one pass, then go all-out next time."
Elena's take. I agreed completely. There was no way the Association would ever lose interest in Otherworlders.
"Could be. Anyway — neither of you is going to switch sides just because they treat you well over there, right?"
"Of course not. For me, there's only Lu and you, Jungmin."
Trustworthy Elena, every bit the holy knight. A smile came unbidden.
Keira, on the other hand…
"…If the treatment's like today's, I might switch?"
"What?"
"I mean, hurry up and…"
Keira twisted her body and offered me her lips.
…I never should have poked the lust monster.
Did that mean we had to do at least a short round?
Then an interruption came from outside.
Knock knock knock.
"There's been a change in the magic circle. You should come see it."
At the Association staffer's words, we looked at each other — then went out the door as one, no one waiting for anyone else.
"What's going on?"
"W-well… you should just come…"
We followed the staffer into Death's Land. Han Seongmin was already standing over the magic circle.
"Division Chief, what is it?"
"It'll be faster if you see for yourself."
I turned my head and looked down into the hole. Above the white magic circle, a wavering blue ring had formed.
"…A Gate?"
The thought slipped out before I could stop it. Aside from the difference between horizontal and vertical, it was identical to a Gate in every way.
"I think so too."
Han Seongmin agreed from beside me.
"Don't tell me someone's already gone in?"
"No. We only just found it ourselves. We wanted your opinions before deciding anything."
Opinions, huh…
We'd have to go in eventually. Whatever was waiting on the other side, if we couldn't close it, going in was the right call.
Wait — could we close it?
I looked at Keira with a sliver of hope, and found her wearing a surprisingly startled expression.
"Keira? You know something?"
"Yeah. I just need to check one thing."
Keira picked up a pebble from the ground.
"Keira, wait—"
She tossed it down before anyone could stop her.
"What the hell are you—"
Even Han Seongmin couldn't intercept the stone in time. But when the pebble failed to enter the Gate and simply stopped on top of it, his words stopped too.
"That's it. Elena, you've seen this before, right?"
"Yes. That's exactly it."
"I'd appreciate a detailed explanation."
At Han Seongmin's request, Keira glanced around, then spoke.
"We should move somewhere quieter first. That thing can stay as it is for a while."
"Understood. This way."
Han Seongmin gave a few orders to the Association people, then led us to his tent.
"It's an Eternal Gate."
Keira began her explanation.
"An Eternal Gate is a Gate that stays permanently open. Anyone can enter."
"Anyone can enter?"
Han Seongmin echoed, startled.
Had I worn that same look the first time I heard about Eternal Gates?
"Yes. Even non-Keepers can go in. The interior is similar to other Gates — there are monsters, and there are resources. Generally, Eternal Gates are far larger than a Keeper's Gate."
"I had no idea something like that existed… but how can you be sure that's what this is?"
"I can't be certain. But the odds are high. Two reasons. First, the Gate opened horizontally. Second, it's still in the process of opening."
"I get the horizontal part, but how is 'still opening' evidence?"
"A normal magic circle's effect completes all at once. The preparation before activation can take a long time, but once it fires, the effect is usually designed to appear immediately. Ambiguous cases like this are rare. So we should treat this circle's effect as summoning an Eternal Gate. And Eternal Gates always open like this — a Gate appears suddenly, then fully opens after anywhere from a day to about a month. You'll probably be able to watch it grow little by little. I just confirmed it a moment ago."
"Then for now we should treat it as an Eternal Gate. How do we respond?"
"First, we need defensive forces. Monsters do come out of Eternal Gates. After that, assemble a team and start exploring."
"Monsters come out?"
Han Seongmin's expression got a lot more animated.
"Yes, monsters come out. Normally it's small ones in small numbers, but depending on where the internal Gates are positioned, large monsters can emerge too. And given that this is not a normal situation, I think we should lean harder into defense."
"Not a normal situation meaning…"
"Eternal Gates generally form on their own. At least, that's how it was in our world. Elena?"
Elena nodded.
"In our world as well, they were known to open spontaneously."
"Elena says the same. That's what makes this abnormal. This is the first time I've ever seen an Eternal Gate appear because of a magic circle. I've never seen it in our world's records either. I'm over ninety percent sure this is an Eternal Gate, but I have no idea what effect the circle is having on the Gate itself. Whoever set the circle up, looking at the secondary effect — Death's Land — it's hard to believe they meant this world any goodwill. In that case, the smart move is to call in S-rank Keepers and fortify the defense. We have no idea what kind of monsters might come through."
"I see. Understood. I was thinking along the same lines. I'll consult with the Director. But to announce this and get help from other S-rank Keepers, we'd have to reveal that the two of you are from another world. Are you all right with that?"
Keira turned to look at me. Through her long explanation I'd been nodding along, thinking how pretty and impressive she was — and I nodded again. The Association already knew. No reason to hide it. At this point, making it public was probably better.
"It's fine. Tell them if you need to. Gathering strong fighters is what matters more. The energy gathered in that circle was massive enough to wipe Cheolwon off the map, and all that power had to have gone somewhere. Something is definitely going to happen."
Keira finished with force.
"Understood. We'll mobilize the full capacity of the Association."
Han Seongmin answered her with equal gravity.
With the Association's power, we should be able to get through this without major trouble.
Probably…?
Personally, I hoped it would just pass like that — but the feeling that it wouldn't was definitely not my imagination.