January 1st

January 1st.

The first day of the new year here, in the dead of winter, was always my busiest and most headache-inducing day of the calendar.

While everyone else was sleeping in and sleeping off their hangovers, here I was, dragging myself out of bed before dawn. The things I do.

All around the plaza, people in the same boat as me were bustling about, setting up their stations. Guild representatives, officials from the Kingdom's council, even a crowd of onlookers who'd come out of sheer curiosity. Their reasons differed, but they all stared at the same thing, waiting for the same moment.

"This is making me yawn."

Jaehyuk, sitting beside me, stretched and muttered under his breath. He was lounging lazily with half the white-tiger-emblazoned cloak draped over his armor in disarray, a sly grin on his face. He'd been summoned with me four years ago, and every year around this time he got roped into guiding the newcomers, which meant I was stuck with this useless bastard all day long, whether I liked it or not.

"What were you doing last night?"

"What do you think? Sold off some magic stones I'd earned and hung out with a few Settler girls. Getting up at the crack of dawn on January 1st is just pure hell, you know?"

That was him for you. Even in a world crawling with monsters, all he ever thought about was chasing girls.

"Haah. When are you going to grow up?"

I let out a short sigh and was busy running through today's briefing script in my head when Jaehyuk opened his mouth again.

"You're too wound up, Hajun. There won't be many this time anyway — what's the harm in getting a little less sleep?"

"...Well. That's just a prediction. We won't know until it opens. And there's no telling what the ratio of Koreans will be."

When I answered without real conviction, Jaehyuk rested his chin on his hand.

"Come on, it's a given. Four years ago it was exactly ten thousand of us, remember? It's kept halving ever since — last year it was down to 1,250."

As he spoke, he turned his gaze toward the stone structure standing in the middle of the plaza.

"So this time it'll halve again — call it 625 or so. Haah. But if it keeps cutting in half like this, won't there come a day when nobody comes through at all?"

The Dimensional Gate.

A massive stone structure rising a good ten meters, planted in the center of the plaza. The kingdom's stonemasons hadn't built it — it had simply always been there. Or so they said, though even the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠kingdom's records gave no account of when it had appeared. All we knew was this: starting four years ago, with our cohort, it opened once a year, and each time, random people came pouring through from the world we used to live in. The numbers had been halving every year, exactly as Jaehyuk said.

Jaehyuk and I were stationed in a corner of the plaza in front of the Gate, soon to open for the fifth time. A rough-hewn wooden table with a shabby banner reading [Korean Guild — Baekho] strung above it, and idle chatter to pass the time until the Gate opened — that was our January 1st routine. Same spot, same table, for three years running.

I looked at Jaehyuk sitting next to me.

"Give it a few more years and, like you said, no one might come through at all."

"That'd be a disaster. I don't know about the others, but our guild is at the point where we need every single person we can get."

Jaehyuk muttered beside me, genuinely worried. Since when did this guy give a damn about guild affairs? Probably just upset that the pool of newcomers to play around with was shrinking.

"You miss the newcomers that badly?"

At my words, Jaehyuk crossed his arms and stared out at the plaza.

"Of course I do. Apparently the Chinese are even paying foreigners to come work for them as Settlers now. If the numbers keep halving every year, that means fewer cute rookies for us, doesn't it? Ah~ please, let a whole bunch of pretty Korean girls come through this year."

He had a point. If only 625 came through this time, then by the sixth opening next year we'd be down to around 300. And how many of those would even be Korean?

The problem was that what Jaehyuk was mourning wasn't the guild's struggles — it was losing his chance to ogle the new girls.

"Figures. And here I was wondering why you suddenly cared about the guild. You're here to work, not play. Get your head in the game."

"Oh, like I don't know that. If we're doing this anyway, might as well hope for some pretty ones, right? Last year's batch was seriously disappointing. Sooyeon was the only decent one, so I had a good run with her for a while."

I adjusted the banner's position and asked.

"Don't tell me she dumped you?"

"Nah. Word is she's been missing for a month now. Went out on a party hunt with the Chinese."

My hands stopped for a moment at what he'd said so flatly.

"Missing? She didn't get hit by a demon beast or something?"

"Who knows. Who'd ever find out? Go ask those Chinese guys over there if you're so curious."

Jaehyuk jerked his chin toward the table where the Chinese were seated.

"Fine, whatever — they throw in a lot of magic stones, sure, but partying up with people you can't even talk to? I'll never understand it."

The picture was obvious. We need a healer. Doesn't matter if you're a foreigner. As long as you understand 'heal,' what language do you need? That's how they must have lured her, dangling magic stones. What happened after that, I had no idea. Whether something got her, or she just took the money and left for parts unknown. And even if I found out, there wasn't much I could do about it.

"Reporting it to Longmen ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wouldn't mean anything anyway..."

In this world, guilds were divided by language rather than by nation. Your odds of survival rose even a little when you fought beside people who understood you, so whether you were Taiwanese or Singaporean, if Chinese was your tongue, you joined the Chinese guild Longmen. Language blocs had naturally become power blocs.

By sheer size, Greystone — which had absorbed every English-speaking esper regardless of nationality — was the largest. Then came Longmen of China, and in third place, surprisingly, not India but the Spanish-speaking guild Espada. Spanning all of South America, they'd banded together as one despite their different accents, and their numbers exceeded even the Arab bloc with its tangled politics.

The Korean guild Baekho was... well below all that. Even North Koreans who'd lucked into escaping to this world had joined up with us. So somewhere strictly between the French guild and the Japanese one.

The real problem was disputes. Sometimes we'd put translators forward and hold something like a trial, but in the end, the verdict always flipped in favor of whoever had the power. What was the point of law, then? The law only mattered when the evidence was undeniable to everyone. And in this world, where such evidence was hard to come by, the correct answer to any dispute was violence — violence dressed up as law.

"You did report it to Yerin, right...?"

"What for? March into Longmen and ask if they've seen our guild member?"

"Why are you talking like it's someone else's problem? You were the only Korean in the guild she ran with — you two were practically dating."

Jaehyuk stared at me for a moment, then spoke like I'd said something incomprehensible.

"Ugh, why do you keep saying that? Sooyeon's body was a good time, that's all — I just took her around with me. And for all we know, she just went wherever the money was better. None of this stuff is worth fussing over, that's just how it is."

"Look, even so—"

He had a point, but even so, the circumstances worried me. That much was true. But Jaehyuk cut me off, as if he already knew exactly what I was going to say.

"Besides, ask those Chinese bastards anything and they'll tell you nothing. Last time they pushed into Espada's territory with double the numbers and swept up all the magic stones. When Espada protested, they didn't even bother with a translator — just stared at them like, *what are you gonna do about it?* They walk around openly disrespecting every other guild these days, I'm telling you."

"Watch your mouth, you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠lunatic."

I said it reflexively, scanning our surroundings.

"There are ethnic Koreans from China all over the place here. You know what a mess it becomes if word of that gets out."

"Who cares? And for all we know, those bastards really did take Sooyeon. Ugh, I give up."

"Even so, she ran with you. At the very least, report it to Yerin."

Jaehyuk shook his head.

"Hey, you only think that way because you're dating Yerin. And I'm telling you, me and Sooyeon were nothing serious — just, like, friends with benefits. What would a pure-virgin romantic like you know?"

I didn't answer and turned my gaze back toward the plaza. Jaehyuk was already ready to move on to some other topic, but I couldn't let it go that easily.

A month ago, the last time I saw her, Sooyeon had smiled awkwardly at me and said her goodbye. Call me next time the guild eats together. That was the last I heard from her.

Because our guild was small. Because there was no evidence. We swallowed things like this, over and over. Forgetting quickly, the way Jaehyuk did — maybe that was how you survived long in this world. I'd never been very good at it, though. And I didn't know how much longer I could keep swallowing.

Just then, Jaehyuk, who'd been staring at the plaza for a while, suddenly turned to me.

"By the way — you still haven't done it with Yerin?"

I frowned at the abrupt question.

"...Why do you suddenly care?"

"No reason. I'm just curious. It's been what, years since you two got together? Why haven't you? Is Yerin one of those abstinence-before-marriage types?"

"Abstinence, my ass. If the guild master gets pregnant, someone else has to fill her post for months at minimum. Baekho doesn't have that kind of slack. It's called being careful."

That's what I said... but I was human too. Honestly, there were times I felt like I was going insane. I wanted to — I wanted to, all right. But I couldn't let it show in front of Jaehyuk, the only person who knew the situation. The moment I did, I'd become his favorite target, obviously.

"Oh, Hajun, you frustrating bastard. Everyone else does it and nobody's ended up pregnant. Finish inside and you don't get pregnant — how many times do I have to say it? And you've got girls who like you scattered all over the guild, so what's your problem? If it were me, I'd just tell Yerin straight up that I'm seeing other girls too."

Jaehyuk said it like it was nothing.

"...Jaehyuk."

"What."

"Don't cross the line. Say one more word and I'll make sure you never get guide duty again, starting next year."

Losing guide duty every year meant never getting first look at the newcomers. For this girl-crazy bastard, that threat always landed.

Jaehyuk opened his mouth to say more, thought better of it, and turned his head away, muttering quietly.

"Haah, fine, whatever — guys talk about this stuff too, okay, Mr. Hard-to-Get. Ugh. Man, I wish I could date an Awakened."

"Why would an Awakened ever give you the time of day? Wake up."

"You of all people should not be saying that."

"...What's that supposed to mean?"

"What's your deal with Yerin, then? And she's not just any Awakened, either."

"And what's wrong with that? Yerin and I were together long before she Awakened."

"That may be, but... no matter how I look at it, you're punching way above your weight."

"...You little—"

"Forget it. If a decent one comes through this time, help me out. I should get around to dating or something too, don't you think?"

"Jaehyuk. If the newcomers run away because of you, that's a real headache."

I pulled out my tumbler and flipped the lid open.

"If it really is only 625 this time, how many of those will even be Korean? You'd lay hands on a newcomer that precious?"

No answer. As I took a sip, I felt a gaze on me and turned — Jaehyuk was staring at me intently. Or rather, at what was in my hand.

"...What are you looking at."

"Hey. Isn't that a tumbler?"

"It is."

"Dude, where'd you get that? Let me have just one sip."

And with that, his hand crept toward my tumbler.

"Hands off."

"Come on, one sip."

"It's Yerin's."

"You know how vile the canteen water tastes here. Keep it secret from Yerin and let me have a sip since it's just sitting there — I'm thirsty, and I've got to guide the newcomers later."

"Back off. I'm doing the guiding anyway. Last time I left it to you, the kids came away having learned nothing but weird stuff and kept causing problems. First impressions matter. First impressions."

Jaehyuk pretended to concede and withdrew his hand. I pulled the tumbler close to my body. It was one of the things Yerin had carried with her since crossing the Dimensional Gate. She'd filled it herself before dawn today, saying I'd get thirsty during guide duty. Knowing full well how precious anything from the modern world was here, she'd handed it over without a word.

If he reached for it again, I planned to block him.

Three seconds later, I had failed to block him. From snatching the tumbler to popping the lid, taking a sip, and setting it back in my hand, Jaehyuk needed less than a second.

"Hey. You just used your ability, didn't you?"

"What ability? Fast hands, that's all."

Jaehyuk wiped his mouth with a swipe of his hand and played innocent.

"Wow, the water really does taste different. Smells nice, too — is it because it's Yerin's tumbler? Whatever. If any of the kids coming through this time have a tumbler, I'm getting one for myself."

I knew he was deliberately dragging Yerin into it, and I pretended not to hear. If I took the bait, the conversation would go exactly where Jaehyuk wanted.

"If you want one that badly, buy it with your own money. Why are you eyeing a newcomer's tumbler? Besides, things like that are directly tied to survival — keeping even one more newcomer alive is good for us."

At my words, Jaehyuk let out an exaggerated sigh and grumbled.

"Haah, poor me, don't even own a tumbler, stuck drinking that metallic canteen water again today. It's tragic."

"If you saved even a fraction of the money you throw around on girls, you could've bought a dozen tumblers by now."

Even with my jab hitting dead center, Jaehyuk protested like he'd been wronged.

"Hey, spending money on stuff like this is the normal thing to do. We might not even be alive next year in this shitty world — when you can spend, you spend, and you enjoy it. It's been over four years for both of us. Time to actually enjoy life, you know?"

"Excuses, excuses. When exactly are you going to quit that insane talk of yours and go back to your first-year self?"

At my scolding, Jaehyuk stopped mid-excuse and shut his mouth. The word "first year" must have dredged up some bitter memories from those days.

Four years ago, we'd come pouring out of that Gate just like they would. Ten thousand people spilling through at once, with no one there to receive us — it was chaos, pure and simple. No guides, no interpreters, no one to explain what the hell had happened. Ten thousand people plunged into panic simultaneously, each forced to find their own way to survive. Compared to that, the kids arriving later today had it easy. At least there'd be people out here explaining everything one step at a time.

...The only problem was that those people happened to be me and the bastard sitting next to me.

Perhaps the same thought had occurred to him, because Jaehyuk, eyes still fixed on the Dimensional Gate, spoke quietly.

"Hey, Hajun. Talking about first years just reminded me — when that thing opens later and the kids come through."

He paused for a beat, then went on.

"What do you think decides who gets taken? No explanation of why, no status window, no language pack. Just 21-year-olds dropping out of thin air. If you're summoning people to another world, shouldn't they at least tell you why? I kept yelling *status window, status window* back then — I thought some skill list would pop up."

I laughed in disbelief.

"Are you insane? A status window, seriously—"

"Hey, I wasn't the only one! Tons of people were doing it back then, you bastard. Even Satoshi next to me was doing it."

"The Japanese guild master?"

"Right, that's him now, but back then he was a complete wreck. The Japanese kids would lose their minds if they found out. Ha. If I'd been the Korean guild master back then, by now..."

"If you'd been the Korean guild master, I'd be with Greystone right now. God, terrifying to imagine. The Korean guild master, a man obsessed with women."

A short silence passed.

"Well... maybe not quite a *himbo*..."

Four years ago, I hadn't been so different from the kids about to spill out of that Gate. Dropped here knowing nothing, with no explanation whatsoever. If there had been a status window like Jaehyuk said, or a skill list, would it have been less terrifying? I didn't know. Even if a status window had appeared, I doubt it would've made keeping my sanity any easier.

Right at that moment, sunlight crested the horizon and touched the stone structure, and light began leaking from within. At first, thin as thread. Then, bright as a line. And in a single instant—

— FWAAAAAAASH —

It erupted.

"About time. Time to welcome our pretty ladies. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Ah, I could really go for some kimchi."

Jaehyuk rose from his seat. Whether he was talking about kimchi or about people, I couldn't tell — with him, the two seemed to be the same word.

I stood up as well, turning my eyes toward the Dimensional Gate.