The Warmth on My Back

I ran through the Demon King's Castle with the porter on my back.

The labyrinthine corridors, tangled like a maze, hindered the Demon King—whose massive frame was closer to that of a giant—as he crawled toward us. Countless traps impaled his body, leaving the colossal skeleton utterly helpless against them.

It was a completely one-sided battle.

Though we couldn't inflict any major damage, at least in this very moment, we could laugh.

"Pfft, haha! Porter! How did you ever think of using the traps to block the Demon King?!"

"I didn't!"

"Huh?"

"Those traps were originally built for that exact purpose!"

Clinging to my back, the porter explained the layout of the Demon King's Castle.

A castle akin ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to a labyrinth. Countless traps.

Thinking back, there were many strange things about it.

Why would a fortress sealing the Demon King contain so many traps and mazes? Even if it was to keep intruders out, wasn't it bizarre to litter one's own home with deadly traps? If ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠we assumed the 'Demon King' had set them up, it was an incredibly inefficient design.

And the answer to that was remarkably simple.

The traps in the Demon King's Castle had not been laid by the Demon King. Rather, they were meant 'to keep the Demon King in.' Whoever had sealed him away had constructed this labyrinthine fortress to prepare for the day the seal might eventually break.

Though the traps had weakened over time due to contamination by Demonic Qi, the fact that they were still powerful enough to damage the Demon King was proof of their true purpose.

"This Demon King's Castle was actually a labyrinth meant to imprison him?!"

"Yeah! And if we follow the path under the assumption of blocking him 'from the inside'..."

Following the porter's guidance, we arrived at a certain location.

It was a corridor with countless alleyways and forks branching in every direction, its purpose hard to fathom. It could barely even be called a maze; it was simply a network of passages where every single path interconnected.

But hearing the porter's explanation made its utility crystal clear.

Whack-a-mole. I was the mole, and the Demon King was the hammer. If I could dart through the narrow corridors, dodging his strikes while launching one-sided attacks of my own, the victory would be mine. It was an absurdly advantageous and convenient setup.

"Alright! Put me down now! I'll stay out of the way!"

"Okay!"

This was the turning point. A situation where defeat was impossible. A perfect opportunity crafted by the porter. I could win. I could emerge victorious. The odds were overwhelmingly in my favor.

It should have been that way.

So why, then...

...did I feel this creeping dread?

I remembered it vividly.

The Demon King's Castle. The traps. The labyrinth. It had been an incomparably advantageous situation. No matter how strong the Demon King was, there was no way we could lose when we had such a perfect setup to attack him unilaterally. I had been strong enough, and the porter had been absurdly clever.

But that was precisely why it was so strange.

Because in those old dreams, which I could no longer recall clearly, I had undoubtedly lost the porter. The lingering sensation of that loss remained. It had been sorrowful, suffocating, agonizing, guilt-ridden, and exhausting.

Why? How? What happened?

As I jotted down today's dream in my diary, I blankly retraced my memories. Did he not actually die in the Demon King's Castle? Did I lose him sometime after that?

"Sigh..."

My chest felt tight, as if something heavy were weighing down on my heart.

An unresolved question tickled the back of my mind.

"……Siwoo-ssi. I want to hear your voice."

I wanted to hear his voice and find comfort. I wanted to reassure myself that he was alive, that everything was fine now.

Yes. The past life was just the past life.

Even if my past self, the Hero, had failed to save the porter... this time, I had saved him properly. I had managed to rescue him from that Gate.

Is it... fate?

Perhaps the reason I recalled my past life's memories was so that I could save the porter from the Gate that day.

Don't lose him again. Don't repeat the same mistake. My past self, the Hero, was speaking to my current self, the Hunter.

Foreseeing this destiny, she had warned me.

"It's... okay to call him, right?"

I stared at my smartphone, hesitating for a long time.

I kept pressing the power button for no reason, repeatedly turning the screen on and off.

"Okay. Let's do it."

After agonizing over it for what felt like forever... I finally gathered the courage to dial his number.

Yes, yes. It'll be fine. I'm the savior who rescued Siwoo-ssi from the brink of death. He'll definitely answer with a smile, right? He might even be thrilled to hear from me. He did say he was my fan.

I had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠even practiced smiling properly.

Hehe. Maybe I'm surprisingly expressive after all?

"...Ah."

A yawn, a drowsy voice, words trailing off.

He was sleeping.

Ah, of course. I called him the moment I woke up. Did I call too early? He'll think I'm rude for ignoring basic etiquette, won't he? What if he starts to dislike me?

"Ah, yes! Yes! It's me!"

"Pardon? Oh, well, you see..."

Uh, I just wanted to hear your voice...

That's why I called...

Come to think of it, we aren't actually anything to each other yet... We were childhood friends in our past lives, but... to him, I'm just some stranger who suddenly called him at the crack of dawn...

"Yes, yes! Um, I was just wondering if you were feeling alright. Just calling to check on you..."

"Ah. That's a relief..."

It was an excuse that had slipped out of my mouth without thinking, but hearing his answer brought me genuine peace of mind.

Yes. I saved him. I saved the porter. The Hero couldn't save him, but I could.

Somehow, the tension melted away, and a soft chuckle escaped my lips.

"Hehe..."

Ah. So that's why the Hero used to laugh like that...

Because being with the porter brought such comfort. Because the anxiety vanished. The relief must have naturally brought out that laughter.

Somehow, I felt like I would have many reasons to laugh in the future.

With that pleasant premonition, the dread I had felt from the dream completely evaporated.

"Pardon? Oh, well, you see..."

A puzzled voice drifted through the phone.

Will I seem weird if I keep holding him on the line? But I want to hear his voice just a little longer...

"……Siwoo-ssi. By any chance, are you free this weekend?"

"Ah, well... I wanted to ask you some questions as a witness regarding what happened inside the Gate... Since the Gate Mutation itself was such a major incident, and we're lacking related data... and..."

I just lied.

I had rambled incoherently, but thankfully, Siwoo-ssi didn't seem to suspect a thing.

Siwoo-ssi, are you actually really naive...?

Is it because he said he's my fan? Does he trust me so easily because of that? Or because I'm his savior? Or maybe he just thinks there's no reason for me to lie to him.

He shouldn't trust people so easily...

What would he do if I harbored bad intentions? If an S-class Hunter decided to use force, Siwoo-ssi wouldn't even be able to resist.

"Hehe... Then, shall we meet on Saturday?"

"Um, no. Not the headquarters... Let's meet at a cafe near the guild instead. Since we're just going to talk."

"I'll text you the address!"

The call disconnected, and I immediately began thumping my bed in excitement.

Yes. Yes! Yes!

"Hehe... Porter..."

Ah, I can't wait.

How am I supposed to wait until the weekend? Should I have asked to meet on Friday instead? No, the weekend is better. He might have said he was too busy on a weekday.

And even if we met, we wouldn't have been able to talk for long.

Besides, meeting on the weekend makes us look closer...

"Ah! Clothes!"

What should I wear?

My closet probably only has clothes I bought ages ago. If I had known this would happen, I would have bought some outfits when my manager urged me to. Well, there's still a bit of time. If I call a boutique today, they'll probably deliver by tomorrow, right?

I should ask my manager.

"Unni."

"Um, I want to buy some clothes. Could you call a boutique for me tomorrow?"

"Yes. I have plans on Saturday, and it seems I don't have anything suitable to wear..."

"Pardon? Yes..."

"It's not exactly a date..."

"Wh-what?"

"Pardon?"

Click. The line went dead.

It's... not a date.

Though I wanted us to become close like we were in our past lives... we weren't even close yet... and just because I liked him in my past life didn't mean I liked him in this one... I just, well, wanted us to be friends... I only wanted to stay by his side...

A date? A date?

Is this... a date? Huh? Really? This is a date? Did I just set up a date?

"H-huh?"

I stared into the mirror. My face was as expressionless as ever... but for some reason, my ears were flushed bright red.