Skill ‘Effect Nullification’ is activated.

Resisting the effect of the item ‘Defense Nullification Bomb (S-class)’.

Even before the system message appeared, Choi Gang-hu, who sensed something amiss, immediately wrapped his arm around Ryu Seo-ha’s shoulder as they entered side by side.

However, in that brief moment, the boy in his arms already seemed exposed to a mental attack, his eyes glazed over. Choi Gang-hu’s black eyes quickly scanned the surroundings.

A field shrouded in pale fog. Not far away, the dungeon core stood tall in the form of a stone statue. The hunters of the conquest team were staggering around like zombies.

Mission: Input an equal amount of magic from all entrants into the dungeon core (Incomplete)

They probably couldn’t see the message confirming this was a special dungeon. They were already immersed in various hallucinations created by the dense magical fog.

“Ugh!”

Choi Gang-hu secretly activated an item and then, pretending to be entranced by the illusion, grabbed the throat of a hunter who was reaching towards Ryu Seo-ha. He had no intention of asking what the hunter’s motives were.

Skill ‘Memory Manipulation’ is activated.

The unstable skill destroyed the man’s mind while simultaneously revealing some of his memories. A request from what seemed to be the Order, and the delivery of an item that rendered the conquest team’s preparations useless.

“Hah.”

He was already half-brainwashed scum. Despite using difficult methods to screen the conquest personnel, even an A-class hunter who had been an executive since the guild’s establishment needed to be filtered out again.

Skill ‘Flame Breath’ is activated.

He swept away all the monsters lurking around, infusing his irritation into the attack.

Skill ‘Forced Sleep Induction’ is activated.

Next, he cleared away the humans that bothered him. The hunters who had been staggering around completely defenseless collapsed onto the ground one after another.

After gathering the sleeping hunters in one place using telekinesis, he let out a low sigh. Clearing the mission would require precise magic quantity calculation and management.

This meant it wouldn’t be easy to finish even if hunters with clear consciousness concentrated on distributing it. The problem was that Choi Gang-hu had no way to wake them up.

Skill ‘Effect Nullification’ is activated.

He tried to apply his passive skill, which only activated for himself, to Ryu Seo-ha whose magic was compatible with his, but it was of no use.

Thinking he should deal with the S-class boss monster first, he was about to move when Ryu Seo-ha, who was in his arms, suddenly drew a dagger.

“…Ryu Seo-ha?”

He called out his name while grabbing the hand trying to stab the metal into his abdomen, but there was no response. He didn’t like how the black eyes that always sparkled beautifully were now clouded over.

Ryu Seo-ha relaxed the hand that was firmly caught. As the dagger fell downwards, the opposite hand that snatched it attacked Choi Gang-hu’s leg again. It was combat sense that showed experience.

Choi Gang-hu narrowed his eyes and deliberately exposed himself to the flow of magic contained in the fog surrounding his lover. He suddenly became curious about what exactly Ryu Seo-ha was seeing.

He thought he might get a hint to help Ryu Seo-ha escape the hallucination if he experienced it himself. While fending off the magic trying to take over his brain, Choi Gang-hu willingly threw himself into the illusion.

Clang─!

A metallic sound echoed in the narrow office space. It was the sound of the dagger… no, the sharp nail that Ryu Seo-ha had stabbed bouncing off Choi Gang-hu’s solid thigh, unable to pierce it.

“Ugh.”

The small hand firmly gripping the nail couldn’t withstand the recoil and was torn, turning bright red. Choi Gang-hu’s expression crumbled at the sight of Ryu Seo-ha letting out a suppressed groan.

A young boy of about ten years old, looking just like Ryu Seo-ha, grabbed a handful of sand from his pocket and scattered it. While the sand attack blinded his opponent, he seemed to try to escape outside by turning his body.

Skill ‘Spatial Jump’ is activated.

When Choi Gang-hu instantly teleported in front of him to block his escape route, the boy bent his knees as if collapsing, then immediately changed direction with a slide. Blood from his torn palm dripped onto the floor.

“Ryu Seo-ha.”

The young Ryu Seo-ha, who was about to throw himself through a broken window ignoring the pain, suddenly stopped at the sound of his name.

Judging it was too late to attempt escape again in that brief moment, he quickly stood up and pressed himself against the wall. His eyes, carefully observing Choi Gang-hu, were like those of a wary kitten.

“…Do you know me?”

Anxiety that couldn’t be fully hidden was evident in the young voice that asked cautiously, almost in a whisper. Even while rolling his large eyes around, the action of tightly clenching his palm to stop the bleeding caught attention.

“Let’s treat your wound first.”

Choi Gang-hu nodded and smiled as harmlessly as possible, swallowing the sigh that was about to burst out. However, the suspicious smile meant to reassure only heightened Ryu Seo-ha’s wariness.

“Who…”

As he was sidling towards the entrance, pretending to continue the conversation, he suddenly lowered his body and held his breath. It was because of a unique crying sound, “Wuek, wuek,” coming from outside.

Through the window, monsters moving in groups could be seen. It was a pack of Big-toothed Sea Lions. He had already noticed the background of this hallucination. The Chinatown quarantine zone from 10 years ago.

He must be experiencing a fantasy reconstructed based on memories of surviving there at that time. Ryu Seo-ha’s surface consciousness seemed to be stuck in that era. An unpleasant interest arose.

“How old are you now?”

The young face that opened its eyes wide when he asked without even trying to lower his voice was like a lovely doll. Although grimy from not having washed properly for a long time, his innate beauty couldn’t be hidden.

“Why are you alone? Where’s your group?”

The pack of Big-toothed Sea Lions, seemingly detecting the voice, began to gather around the building making “Wuek, wuek” sounds. It was a critical situation.

The young Ryu Seo-ha, who had been glaring at him with tightly closed lips, quietly took out a lighter. Then the smell of burning stimulated the sense of smell.

Choi Gang-hu’s brow furrowed at the sight of him gritting his teeth and not making a single sob. He could guess why he had attempted such a crude method of stopping the bleeding.

It was to avoid becoming a target for another species with a developed sense of smell while being chased by the Big-toothed Sea Lion pack. A monster with a 2.5m shoulder height started ramming its body through the broken glass.

Skill ‘Wind Blade’ is activated.

The sleek, spindle-shaped body was cleanly split in half as if sliced by a great sword. The collapsing monster corpses reminded one of autumn leaves falling.

The eyes of the young Ryu Seo-ha, who had been looking for a new escape route, widened like saucers. Choi Gang-hu spread his hands to show he had no intention of attacking. The child, hesitating slightly, bowed his head.

Then he approached the dead Big-toothed Sea Lion. Glancing at Choi Gang-hu, the child groaned as he pulled out one of its teeth. While watching quietly to see what he would do, the monster dissection work soon began.

His hands were very skilled at cutting between the joints. If not for the labored breathing escaping through his clenched teeth and the sweat droplets flowing down his slender jawline, one might have thought he was an experienced butcher.

The small hands that neatly gathered the magic stones and teeth separated from the corpse and pushed them towards Choi Gang-hu were covered in blood. Even though the wound had worsened and was bleeding profusely, the child only moved on to the next work.

“Hah.”

He could only give a hollow laugh, feeling as if his heart was boiling. The young face that turned around startled at the slightest sound made his insides ache. For him, life must have been a constant proof of worth.

As the weakest in a zone of the strong, where he had to quietly wait for death if he couldn’t show how useful he was at every moment. The backpack larger than his body that the small back was carrying irritated Choi Gang-hu’s nerves.

“…I don’t have anything to give you right now.”

Thinking Choi Gang-hu was after his bag, Ryu Seo-ha quickly opened the zipper to show the empty inside and explained in a small but clear voice. The convenience store across the street was already empty, he said.

“The intersection market is big, so there should still be some goods left.”

His expression as he looked up, swallowing dry saliva, was calm unlike a child in an extreme situation. However, his gaze was moving busily, looking for points to respond to at each moment.

“If you want, I can bring you what you need.”

“Alone?”

“…Yes.”

“Why.”

The young Ryu Seo-ha slightly chewed his lips. It seemed he was hesitating to give an answer. His mind seemed to become complicated by the attitude that was completely different from common thugs and impossible to grasp the inner thoughts of.

“Where is Ryu Jeong-ah?”

“…”

“With that personality, you wouldn’t have abandoned your sister.”

The child bit his lip tightly as if trying to suppress anxiety. It was understandable to be bewildered when a stranger was smoothly stating his personal information.

“Is there a base nearby?”

“…”

“Did the ones who took control of the group send Ryu Seo-ha out? To get supplies?”

The young Ryu Seo-ha closed his eyes tightly. He must have judged that if he carelessly revealed the location of their base, his sister could be in danger if things went wrong.

But he couldn’t keep ignoring the questions of an overwhelmingly strong person either. The child slowly opened his eyes and stared up at him with trembling eyes.

“There were two companions who came out with me. But…”

The trembling in his pupils gradually subsided, as if he had firmly decided something.

“I killed them.”

It was an icily calm gaze.