Mask 2
There it was again, that crude dwarf insult.
“Hey, you. Yu Dahui.”
Poreng’s ‘seed-receiver’ remark hit Yu Dahui like a slap to the face. She forced down every ounce of anger, eyes narrowing so tightly that she couldn’t even take the shield being offered. Why? In the novel, dwarf teasing was something you laughed off with a polite smirk, never a straight-up challenge. What the hell was the problem? Why was she snapping like this, totally unlike the story?
…Was it me? I’m still supposed to be a virgin… and because of me, I became a woman…
She turned away, ignoring him as best she could. Instead, she poured every ounce of her focus onto the troll. The monster was practically begging to be mounted—his hips bucking with desperate, animal hunger. He leaped forward in a short, furious bound, feet pounding the dirt.
“Human! I’ll turn you into one of my own!”
“Try it.”
I blocked his club with my shield. My agility was no match for his raw strength, but I could still react. He moved slower than Gargash. That made me the victor.
“This one, then!”
The troll swung wildly, the club cracking through the air like a storm. Not the clean, chopping pattern Gargash used—just pure, chaotic frenzy. ‘That’s all you’ve got…?’
Still weak. The heavy impact never landed. I’d grown stronger. I no longer poured divine power into the shield. I channeled the last scraps of it into the sword instead. A faint, pure white light leaked from the blade, flickering like starlight.
THWACK!
The troll’s wild swing met my block. I felt the jolt, then countered—driving the sword straight into his chest. Stabbing was far cleaner than slashing; the damage carved deeper. “KRRRAAAAAK!”
The troll screamed. Not like a proper monster—more like something in pain. Or maybe holy power just burned him worse. Either way, I didn’t stop.
“Human! Die pretty in my hands!”
“What kind of nonsense is that?”
I dodged his charge, the troll leaping at me like a truck. He crashed into the dirt. Before he could rise, I was on him, sword plunging in again. “Whoa, look at that recovery speed. Damn rigged.”
Even the sight of flesh knitting back together made me feel sorry for the weak. A human. Pathetic in every way—strength, recovery, everything. No good at all.
“KRRRAAAAAK…!”
“That a human can reach the top spot is just ridiculous.”
Because of the Return by Death authority…
I kept attacking. The mindless brute swung back at me; I danced around it, shield strikes mixing with sword thrusts, driving it into the dirt again and again. ‘Even trolls are at wildly different levels.’
Of course. I felt it with my own hands now.
“Hah…”
[Player ‘Chosen’ has been defeated!]
[500 coins acquired!]
[One-Handed Sword Lv. 1 → Lv. 2]
The troll was dead. I’d taken it down alone. Even if it was only 500 coins, I still felt the rush.
“Human paladin, you’ve earned my respect.”
Poreng approached, his hammer dripping blood, shaking it with a cheerful clatter. The rest of the troll was gone—cleanly finished.
……
Some unexplained awkwardness hung in the air.
“I feel sorry for your comrades.”
The dwarf said it without a trace of genuine sorrow. His eyes were flat.
“Yeah… well…”
I didn’t care either. They were going to die anyway. A few minutes earlier than they should have. I stared at the corpses of my Korean party with the most pitiful expression I could manage.
Yu Dahui yanked Poreng over.
“Hey, old man.”
“What?”
He glanced between us, then locked onto me. “You need seed-receiver training again.”
“U-uuugh…!”
Yu Dahui’s face turned beet-red as she let out a screech. “Seed-receiver?! I just said it, okay?!”
“Tsk tsk. How’d you end up this cheeky after training? You must’ve suffered a lot.”
Poreng looked at me with genuine pity. Yu Dahui shivered under that stare.
“I-I won’t let some dwarf… dwarf…!”
“Eh.”
That word was off-limits. Poreng’s trigger button flipped.
“Dwarf? You just called me a dwarf?”
“Y-Yes! A dwarf! What’s the big deal?! What are you gonna do?!”
“Calling me a dwarf to a dwarf blessed by iron and fire?”
“Yes! Dwarf crap-bag, dwarf crap-bag! What are you gonna do?! You’re nothing compared to a rat’s tail!”
Yu Dahui had figured out the dwarf’s complex instantly. Every time she said “dwarf,” he trembled. The balance had flipped.
“Human paladin!”
“Yes.”
“It’s not ‘human paladin.’ His name is Kim Jinwu. Call him that instead of weird titles.”
She spoke like she was reporting me, then grabbed my hand and started dragging me toward the Beginner Village. Poreng trailed behind.
“This is the end of days. How dare a seed-receiver touch a man’s body?”
“Don’t follow.”
“That’s not for you to decide. Seed-receiver.”
He leaped on short legs, chasing us.
“Human paladin! Thanks to your help, I can avenge my tribe. In return, allow me to buy you a drink.”
“Don’t make me laugh. Dwarf crap-bag.”
“I’m offering repayment to the human paladin, and you’re blocking me? Human paladin, a man like you should be enjoying life instead of chasing seed-receivers around. I’ll teach you my special seed-receiver training method.”
“AAAAAH! I don’t need it! Get lost!”
Yu Dahui’s grip tightened, pulling me harder. I felt a strange warmth at my groin. The soft, smooth contact was distracting.
We kept walking—two people arguing while Poreng rambled about training—until we reached the Beginner Village. The sun was still high, but we’d already come back?
[Safe Zone]
CRRRRR.
The moment we stepped inside, my empty stomach roared. We’d been tense and fighting for hours; it was only natural. Fill the stomach after the fight.
“I’ll treat you. Come this way.”
“No.”
Yu Dahui’s cold voice was unchanged. Now Poreng was the one sweating.
“I’ll treat both of you. So…”
“I said no.”
……
Poreng looked at me with pitiful eyes. His bearded face didn’t look pitiful, but I knew I had to say something. He wasn’t a bad race.
“Hey… Dahui.”
“What.”
“When you think about it, this place is that weird space called the Tower of Struggle. Right?”
“So?”
She shot me a hostile glare, clearly trying to talk me out of it.
“Players summoned from different dimensions… weird species mixed together… cultural differences, right?”
“Culture? Cultural differences? Hah!”
He laughed dryly. “That’s why I laughed. You don’t even have the background knowledge from the novel. It would be even harder for you, who knows nothing.”
[Dwarf Activation: Cultural Shock]
Poreng’s eyes widened as he realized the weight of his words.
“Cough!”
He cleared his throat and stepped in front of Yu Dahui, short legs padding along the ground. “…I think I messed up. Let me apologize first. Can you forgive me?”
……
“I’m sorry.”
His hands were small, calloused, nothing like Yu Dahui’s. He looked genuinely sorry, face serious. Yu Dahui lowered her arms. She’d had enough resistance.
“I… I’m sorry for saying anything out of line…”
We shook hands. We followed the dwarf toward the inn. It was the kind of place you could find anywhere in the Beginner Village.
“My name is Poreng. The dwarf race, blessed by fire and iron.”
We sat down, chatted, and exchanged names.
“Kim Jinwu. I’m human, but not a paladin.”
“Yu Dahui. Human, but not a seed-receiver.”
Yu Dahui gave a curt look, shooting back with the last word. Poreng had already forgotten about the trouble. Only she looked flustered.
“If you’re not a paladin, how do you hold divine power?”
“Haha… there’s a reason for that…”
It was best not to ask about a stranger’s stats or skills. That was etiquette. New players from the Tower hadn’t learned the rules yet. I just wanted to get to the first floor fast.
“I see.”
Fortunately, Poreng dropped it. Yu Dahui still looked curious, but she didn’t push. She was good at reading the room.
“Gulp… gulp…”
Poreng finished his meal and dragged us straight into a tavern for lunch.
“Really? We just ate. Don’t you have to pay?”
Yu Dahui stared at me like I was stupid. Repaying kindness by drinking from noon made no sense.
“I have to repay the favor. How else?”
Take it when you can. Refusing too hard just makes everyone awkward. Defeating a dwarf trying to repay kindness meant the world would end.
“Ah. Kim Jinwu…!”
Yu Dahui played reluctant and followed. Six hours later.
“Ah. Kim Jinwu…!”
“UAAAAAAGH!”
“What… why are you drinking so much if you can’t even hold alcohol…?”
Someone was slapping my back. The rhythmic patting pushed everything out of my stomach again. “UAAAAAAGH!”
After emptying my guts, moving felt impossible. Ah, I was tired. I just wanted to sleep. “The strongest drinker of the Red Beard tribe, that’s me, Poreng! I never lose! I can drink more!”
“Kim Jinwu! Hey! Don’t lie down! Old man! Snap out of it! That kind of talk looks terrible on the ground! Both of you, go to the inn and sleep. Please!”
We’d become friends with the dwarf. The dwarf race was the easiest in the world—you became instant friends the moment you drank together.