Chapter 46: Shouldn’t We Pursue PPL in the Gate? (1)

 

Immediately after realizing we had been transferred.

 

I immediately went into a defensive posture.

 

More seriously than ever before, even in my previous life.

 

-Whip.

 

‘What’s different from the first round? An A+ grade, I’ve never even heard of that.’

 

It wasn’t like me, who had conquered numerous gates before my regression. But I had no choice.

 

According to the status window notification, this was an A+ grade gate.

 

It was a danger that neither I nor humanity had yet experienced.

 

———That day. Just like the colossal gate that had opened in the sky.

 

‘If those monsters come out, I won’t last a minute with my current stats. We’ll all be wiped out before support even arrives!!!’

 

In the worst-case scenario, those monsters might appear.

 

The ones that took my and my master’s arms.

 

The ones that slaughtered Alice’s family.

 

The ones that turned Shia’s clan to ashes.

 

Monsters that embodied irrationality.

 

Just thinking about them made my hands tremble.

 

If it was just me in danger, that would be one thing…

 

But it wasn’t just me here.

 

Alice, my everything, was here with me.

 

“Huh… Yu-jin? It looks safe here for now. You can let go…”

 

-Grab.

 

“Hng, hng!!?”

 

I hugged her tighter, just in case.

 

To protect her with my life if anything happened.

 

With the two of us pressed close together like that.

 

I only turned my head to scan our surroundings.

 

The internal structure. Identical to the first round.

 

Monsters. After scanning with mana, at least within a 100-meter radius, there were none.

 

There probably weren’t any traps either…

 

But traps of a type even I didn’t know could appear.

 

I had to stay vigilant.

 

It took me three minutes to feel secure.

 

‘At least the entrance is the same as the first round. This place is safe.’

 

“Huaa….”

 

Only after confirming safety did I let out a sigh.

 

I quickly looked down.

 

To reassure my wife, who must be trembling with fear.

 

“Alice. It’s safe here….”

 

“Hah, haaa….”

 

Alice, who was snugly nestled in my arms, met my gaze.

 

But now, her face was red all the way to her ears. Her eyes were unfocused.

 

It took me less than a second to realize the reason.

 

-Squish.

 

“……!!!!!!!!?”

 

‘Damn it. I was so surprised for a moment, I hugged Alice like I did before the regression…!!!’

 

I was hugging Alice tightly with both arms.

 

So tightly that our stomachs were touching.

 

Inevitably, various parts were touching each other.

 

Her chest, for example. Her breasts, to be exact. Her bust, indeed.

 

Even the position of my hands was awkward.

 

One hand was on her back. Where her bra hook was.

 

The other hand was on the border between her waist and buttocks.

 

…This was a position right before making love.

 

A position for a passionate deep kiss, taking off each other’s clothes, and caressing each other.

 

Fortunately, she had her back against the wall, so my inappropriate hands wouldn’t be visible to civilians…

 

But she must have noticed.

 

One hand was on her bra hook, the other about to caress her buttocks.

 

Even Alice, who knew nothing about such things, must have noticed.

 

‘She’s in her early twenties now… No, this is sexual harassment!!’

 

-Hastily.

 

“I, I, I’m sorry! I was trying to protect you in case of an emergency!!”

 

I immediately pulled away and apologized.

 

I was really just trying to protect her.

 

But my hands had decided to act like a ‘mating man.’

 

Though it wasn’t intentional, I was really sorry if it embarrassed her.

 

Even though it was a zero-score apology…

 

“……? Why are you apologizing, Yu-jin?”

 

“Because of the hand position… And it touched your, your chest….”

 

“That’s fine. You didn’t touch anything inappropriate, and the waist is fine.”

 

She accepted it.

 

My wife is an angel. I love her so much. Please marry me.

 

-Mumbling.

 

45

 

“I, I should be the one apologizing….”

 

Her face turned red, and she mumbled something, but I left her alone and turned away.

 

From the scale, it seemed there were hundreds of civilians involved.

 

By now, they were probably on the verge of panic from fear.

 

I had to use hypnosis somehow.

 

“Ahem. Everyone, please stay calm. This place is safe….”

 

-Murmur, murmur.

 

“Wow, so this is a gate! It’s really spooky.”

 

“It feels like we’re on a movie set.”

 

“I’m jealous… I wish a guy would hug me so tightly that I wouldn’t have any regrets.”

 

…Instead of panicking, they were busy taking pictures everywhere.

 

It was the first time I was grateful for safety ignorance.

 

Though it was safety ignorance that caused this mess in the first place.

 

-Clap!!

 

“Quiet! You have entered an A+ grade gate. It is extremely dangerous, so please follow the instructions of me, A-grade Awakener Seo Yu-jin.”

 

The hall quieted down with one clap.

 

My voice echoed loudly.

 

This place was dangerous, but at least the entrance was safe.

 

So, listen to me and stay put.

 

“Support from Cheonhwa will arrive soon, so please wait here until the raid team completely clears this gate.”

 

“Huh!? You’re not clearing it yourself, Yu-jin?”

 

“That would be suicidal.”

 

After saying that, I took the lead and sat down on the floor.

 

It might look a bit undignified, but…

 

Who knew what was out there?

 

It was better to go with clan members who could clear an S-grade gate just in case.

 

‘This isn’t some remote village, it’s Seoul. They should be here in fifteen minutes.’

 

* * *

 

One hour later.

 

My expression grew serious.

 

‘Why aren’t they coming? We’re all going to die at this rate?’

 

We were civilians and cadets caught in an A-grade gate.

 

We knew this gate was safe, but from the outside, people must think we were on the brink of death.

 

But no one came to rescue us for an hour?

 

If it were a small clan, I could understand, but Cheonhwa wouldn’t do that.

 

There must have been a valid reason.

 

-Whisper, whisper.

 

“Alice. Listen to me without making a sound. Something must be wrong outside.”

 

“……?”

 

“There’s no way the raid team wouldn’t come for an hour. There must be a restriction on the number of people or a ban on additional transfers. It must be some kind of gimmick.”

 

There must be something about the gate itself.

 

Since it was humanity’s first A+ grade gate.

 

It wouldn’t be surprising if there was a bizarre gimmick.

 

“So…”

 

“In the worst-case scenario, we might have to clear the gate with only the people here.”

 

Which meant, the people here had to clear this gate.

 

Excluding the civilians…

 

It meant just Alice and I had to clear it alone.

 

It was natural for her to be shocked.

 

“You said earlier that entering alone was suicidal.”

 

“That was an exaggeration, but it is extremely dangerous.”

 

“Then what do we do? Compared to Yu-jin, I’m not much help….”

 

“I was about to discuss that…”

 

So, let’s put our heads together and figure it out.

 

My IQ 100. Your IQ 140.

 

Our combined IQ of 240.

 

I was about to say this.

 

———When a groan of pain echoed through the hall.

 

“Ugh….”

 

“Yu-jin! There’s a pregnant woman whose water just broke!!”

 

“Eck.”

 

No way, a pregnant woman, of all times, gets caught in a gate during her full term, and her water breaks in just an hour?

 

I was at a loss for words.

 

But I couldn’t show it.

 

Because the pregnant woman’s gaze was on me.

 

“Wh-when is the raid team coming…?”

 

“Well, that…”

 

“If you tell me… I’ll try to hold on….”

 

Even with her face pale with pain, she tried to smile.

 

That smile…

 

Held trust in me, in the Awakeners.

 

This was Korea, the strongest country of Awakeners.

 

The raid team would come to rescue us soon.

 

Just hold on a little longer.

 

This trust.

 

My expression grew serious.

 

“It seems something has happened outside. It’s strange that not a single Awakener has entered in an hour.”

 

“Yu-jin!? Why are you saying that?”

 

“We might have to clear the gate with only the people here. Without additional support. Essentially, just by myself.”

 

Despite Alice’s restraint, I spoke honestly.

 

No matter how long we waited, no rescue would come.

 

We were in big trouble.

 

Despair crossed the pregnant woman’s face…

 

“So….”

 

“So, what, I’ll just clear it quickly and come back!”

 

“…What?”

 

How could I leave her in despair?

 

I slung my katana over my shoulder with exaggerated movements.

 

Wearing a confident smile befitting the former top S-rank.

 

“Don’t you know me? I’m Seo Yu-jin. The future S-rank Awakener Cheonhwa recruited for 20 billion. An A-grade gate is a piece of cake for an S-rank.”

 

“But earlier you said it was suicidal…”

 

“I was joking around because I thought the clan leader would scold me if I cleared it first.”

 

I took one, two steps forward.

 

My eyes gleaming golden.

 

“I’ll be back soon, so wait comfortably. It’s dangerous not to feel any pain at all, so just feel a tenth of it.”

 

-Ding!

 

[The target falls into a ‘perfect’

 

state of hypnosis.]

 

“…Yes!”

 

The face that had been contorted with pain relaxed significantly.

 

The cheers from the surroundings were a bonus.

 

Alice, however, had a completely different expression.

 

-Whisper, whisper.

 

“Are you crazy, Yu-jin? You said it’s dangerous.”

 

“It’s fine. It’s doable.”

 

“But…!!!”

 

“I told you before. I’m quite strong.”

 

Despite Alice’s concerns, I stood firm.

 

Who am I? The former top S-rank.

 

I was a seasoned warrior who had closed dozens of S-grade gates alone.

 

On the other hand, this gate?

 

Even with the plus, it was just an A-grade.

 

There was no way those monsters would appear in a mere A-grade gate.

 

In other words, this gate was no match for me.

 

And most importantly.

 

“There’s no way I’m the only Awakener here.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Alice. You’re here too.”

 

Though it was overshadowed by me, there was a genius Awakener who had swept through the entrance exam’s eighth stage with sheer firepower.

 

If Alice and I teamed up, we could even break through the lower ranks of an S-grade gate with my current specs.

 

I had been reluctant to take my wife to the battlefield, but…

 

Well, things had come to this.

 

It was embarrassing, but I might as well rely on my wife a bit.

 

‘I promise. No matter what happens, I’ll protect you with my life.’

 

-Smirk.

 

“Lend me your strength. Comrade of the Pine Leaf’s Eye.”

 

“……!!!”

 

Alice’s anxious expression changed.

 

First, a bit of confusion.

 

Then, eventually, into gratitude.

 

“Yes!!! I’ll definitely be your strength, Yu-jin!”

 

“……?”

 

She seemed excessively delighted.

 

Was the Pine Leaf’s Eye that good?

 

Well. I was just relieved she was willing to follow me.

 

“Thank you. Then let’s go, Alice.”

 

“Yes!!”

 

“And everyone, stay put. Once you cross this barrier, you can’t come back. Don’t loiter around.”

 

As if on cue, we both stepped forward.

 

Towards the semi-transparent barrier, down the stairs.

 

Towards the entrance of the dungeon where we couldn’t return until the boss monster was defeated.

 

Our footsteps echoed in unison as we descended.

 

Without any fear or hesitation.

 

Step. Step. Twice.

 

———Slightly offbeat, hesitant steps followed belatedly. Step.

 

‘Wait. Footsteps from behind… a monster ambushing from the stairs!!!’

 

-Whip.

 

“Alice, behind me!!”

 

The sound of my katana being drawn, like a bolt of lightning.

 

Click.