Episode 18
#7 Illegal Gate (4)
The man stood half-dressed in only pants, his ragged appearance marking him as one of the miners laboring here. His face lay buried under layers of dust, features indistinguishable - clear proof he'd been worked to the bone.
I eased the tension from my body. If he was a miner, he wasn't an enemy. Though him seeing my face complicated things, I could likely coax him into keeping my identity secret...
"Y-you're... K-Kang...?"
The voice severed my train of thought.
"Han Jo-hee?"
To my shock, this ragged figure turned out to be someone I recognized.
"How... how did you get here?"
Han Jo-hee looked ghastly - as though he might collapse dead at any moment. Damn it, I'd specifically warned Im Hyun-soo to stay vigilant. Yet here he was. Not that I could blame him - desperation for money drove people to extremes.
I dragged a hand down my face. Meeting an acquaintance here felt like a double-edged sword. Han Jo-hee's gaze darted between me and the corpse before he sealed his lips shut. His sickly blue-tinged complexion hinted at more than just mana poisoning.
I chuckled dryly while examining my bloodied hands and the lifeless body.
"Misunderstanding."
The laugh meant to reassure only deepened Han Jo-hee's pallor.
Why?
━Look at yourself right now... ugh, never mind.
Hey old man, why start talking then quit mid-sentence? Ray's tone sparked momentary irritation, but pacifying Han Jo-hee took priority.
"Let's say I'm allied with those forced to work here. These bastards happen to be my enemies."
I casually wiped my dagger clean of blood as I spoke. The flimsy explanation would have to suffice - no need to reveal my full plans. Han Jo-hee nodded uneasily, though he seemed to accept I wasn't hostile.
"How long since you arrived?"
"A week."
My tongue clicked against my teeth internally.
━Miraculous you've lasted this long.
As Ray implied, Han Jo-hee teetered on the brink. Even if extracted, the mana saturating his body would soon shut down his organs. His death warrant had already been signed.
Under my stare, Han Jo-hee lowered his eyes.
"Haha... should've listened to you."
No words could offer comfort now.
When my silence lingered, Han Jo-hee forced a bitter smile and asked:
"Why infiltrate this place?"
"Since when do villains warrant reasons for elimination?"
The deflection came easily. Acquaintance or not, revealing intel served no purpose - especially after he'd seen my face.
As I hauled the corpse into a rocky crevice, I posed another question:
"Recall when the last worker arrived?"
"Five days back."
Han Jo-hee's pallor worsened as he answered.
Damn. All survivors would be in critical condition. Even if they escaped now, a week's survival would stretch their limits.
"How many guards total?"
"Four."
"Then two remain."
Excluding the perimeter guard I'd dealt with earlier, eliminating two left pair. Having jammed their comms, they remained unaware of my infiltration. The real issue lay with other miners potentially drawn by the commotion.
Biting my lip at the distant shuffling beyond the ridge, I cursed my shattered mask - brought precisely to avoid such complications.
Han Jo-hee interrupted my brooding:
"Trying to hide your identity?"
"Wouldn't you?" I shrugged, gesturing toward the concealed corpse.
"Stay put. I'll handle explanations."
"You'd do that?"
"If it helps."
Han Jo-hee approached the arriving miners while I pulled my hood low. Though braced for betrayal, none came.
His words made them slump in relief, some even discarding pickaxes. Han Jo-hee shot me a reassuring glance - this area was under control.
An unexpected assist, but welcome.
Current mana reserves: 50%.
Enough for maybe three elemental shots.
Two guards remaining.
Could I manage?
Gritting my teeth, I downed a potion from my belt. Unlike top-grade elixirs that healed instantly, this left my body creaking like rusty gears - still better than nothing.
━Brat complains about broken ribs? In my day, we powered through with grit!
"You don't even remember your 'day'," I retorted with a hollow laugh to Ray's grumbling. Despite his complaints, I felt subtle mana currents enhancing my recovery - the old ghost still worried beneath his bluster.
━The leftovers will be pushovers.
From your lips to fate's ears.
True to Ray's prediction, the remaining guards proved pathetic.
One snored openly at his post. The last fumbled his abilities in panic before I slit his throat.
These worms called themselves Hunters?
Talent meant nothing without cultivation. I spat in disgust. Their weakness stemmed from abandoning proper gate conquests to bully the vulnerable - a bitter reminder of my past life's struggles without such gifts.
With a sigh, I rose from bandaging wounds.
Time to claim my dues.
The cave brimmed with mana crystals yet to be transported. My compression bag swallowed the glowing hoard - several billion won's worth at minimum. Pockets bulging, I left the remainder for distribution. However tainted by impending death, they deserved some reward.
Searching the guard quarters yielded artifacts - mostly low-grade, except one prize:
━They kept this hidden?
"A communal tool, no doubt."
The shelter artifact could create isolated safe zones, its spatial manipulation making it astronomically valuable. Though essential for gate raids, few teams could afford such luxuries.
This windfall would fetch fortunes on the black market.
"Now to dismantle the gate stabilizer."
━They halted a collapsing dimensional rift?
"Higher-grade gates resist it, but works on low-tier ones. Let them strip this dimension bare."
━Your humans impress in disturbing ways.
Removing the device shifted the mana currents instantly. Collapse would follow within hours - we needed to exit fast.
I found Han Jo-hee shepherding fifteen survivors. Their haggard states spoke of prolonged mana exposure without filters. Normalcy would forever elude them.
"Distribute those crystals first."
I handed pre-packed bundles to the group, knowing the riches might poison them later. But none should leave empty-handed after this hell.
Han Jo-hee studied me with conflicted eyes.
"Thanks. Won't pry about your circumstances. Escaping this nightmare's enough."
I pressed a crystal pouch into his hands.
"Your share from the mining."
"But I'm dying anyway."
No denial came. While treatments existed for mana poisoning, their exorbitant costs and minimal effects placed them beyond Han Jo-hee's reach - especially after gambling his life here for family.
"You came for your brother."
Unlike my descent driven by petty rivalry, Han Jo-hee's sacrifice for family demanded respect. Such devotion remained rare.
Once crystals were secured, I declared:
"Exit now."
"Truly... don't know how to repay this," Han Jo-hee murmured.
"Repay me by reporting my death here. Say I couldn't escape before collapse."
His eyes widened.
"Fake your death?"
"I've made enemies of this operation's backers."
"Ah."
"Tell others too. My identity must stay hidden."
"...You spare us, share spoils, and ask only this?" Han Jo-hee's gaze sharpened. "There's surer silence."
He knew.
━Dead men tell no tales.
But becoming monsters to maintain secrets?
'I won't follow Seol Rok-jin's path.'
My villain days died with my past life. No efficiency excuses for discarding humanity.
Han Jo-hee relayed my request.
"Just say we escaped ourselves?"
"Who'd believe that?"
"Won't matter once the gate closes."
The collapsing dimension would erase all evidence.
Their gratitude hung heavy - unfamiliar and uncomfortable. These walking dead offered thanks I didn't deserve.
As we departed, screams erupted near the gate's entrance - workers spotting the guard corpses.
No matter. They deserved their fate.
Freedom lay beyond the glowing portal.
I stepped through...
And faced the unexpected.
