Chapter 39: Behind the Gate

The mound of earth crept along, spreading to the side as if it were a living creature.

The Stone Wall they had spoken of appeared once again.

More precisely, it was the Stone Gate.

“What danger? It works just fine, doesn’t it?”

“Huh? How is that even possible? Usually, something like this ends in disaster!”

“Usually, yes.”

Accidents happen when you don’t fully understand something.

You just have to look around, read the signs.

If you trace the clues in reverse, you can easily find the hidden things as well.

‘Like someone said, maybe if you just see it and avoid it, and don’t get hit, you can even win a fight.’

It’s simple.

Maybe it’s strange not to be able to do it.

“What the… How is this even possible. Ha…”

“Don’t look at me with that scared face. Anyway, we saved time, didn’t we?”

Ignoring Sian, who stared at me with astonished eyes, I reached out and placed my hand on the Stone Gate.

‘The pattern is simple.’

Ssss— I channeled my energy into my hand and infused it into the Stone Gate.

The response came immediately.

Grrrrng— The Stone Gate revealed itself and opened its insides wide.

“Bingo. It’s open. Shall we go in?”

“…Ah.”

“It seemed weird from the start, but I really have no idea what’s going on here.”

All three stared at me blankly, as if they were possessed by ghosts.

Ignoring them, I stepped inside first.

And inside—

“Ho…”

There were things waiting for us that I never could have imagined.

Gajei had been born not just as a commoner, but as the child of a serf.

“This won’t do. Not like this…”

He realized early on that a life spent eating dirt was too miserable.

So, he ran away.

It was a desperate escape for his life.

His family had already died during an epidemic, so he had no regrets left.

After leaving, he learned that becoming a Mercenary would allow him to hide his status, so he ran frantically to find the Mercenary guild.

The result: he met a swindler.

It wasn’t a slaver.

Slavers, after all, needed to have power.

But he was still treated like a slave.

“Get out there!”

“I’ll die out there!”

“Want me to kill you here, then?!”

“Shit. I’m going! Aaaagh!”

He was used as a human shield.

There were plenty of people who picked up naïve kids, didn’t even register them as proper Mercenaries, and just used them.

Still, he learned desperately, any way he could.

No one taught him anything.

‘So that’s how it’s done…’

He secretly learned how to swing a sword and hold a shield.

He was no good with the sword, but luckily, the shield suited him.

His body grew big and strong.

When the time felt right, he escaped in the middle of the night.

His destination: the Mercenary guild that had been his goal from the beginning.

After wandering for years, he finally arrived.

***

“At last!”

There, after taking an appropriate test, he became a low-ranked Mercenary.

D-rank.

Just one step above the lowest, F-rank.

With his tenacity, he took on requests and, during his work, he met two others.

“You’re pretty good. Want to work together?”

“If you’re trying to recruit me, that’s a lousy line.”

“Shut up and just answer. So, what do you think?”

“Sounds good.”

Hoden made up for his lack of attack power.

Sian added unpredictability, and helped broaden their perspective.

And so, they became a party.

From the start, they fit together like they’d been a team all along.

They made up for each other’s shortcomings.

That was enough.

No one spoke of the past.

There was no need.

Their lives were all similar.

Serf, or commoner.

Dreaming of freedom, they became Mercenaries.

‘Wasn’t that enough?’

That was how they had lived.

Sometimes, they even thought their lives were better than those of nobles.

Actually, they figured most nobles weren’t much different.

The nobles they saw while carrying out requests had their own way of life.

Sometimes, their obligations were heavier than a Mercenary’s.

Especially the way they staked their lives on honor—that was the hardest to understand.

Compared to those nobles, they thought they were better.

But—

‘What is this?’

Today, for the first time, Gajei began to suspect there were people truly born different from the start.

Clatter, clatter.

It began the moment the Stone Gate opened—when the undead appeared.

It was bewildering.

“Ugh. We didn’t even prepare any Holy Water.”

Hoden was the first to look dismayed.

It wasn’t the first time they’d faced undead.

But to fight undead, you needed Holy Water.

For those without Auran Yeongongbeop, Holy Water took its place.

Even the lowest grade was necessary to deal with them easily.

-Keeririk. Kirik.

In an instant, dozens of undead appeared.

Zombies, still rotting, and bare-boned skeletons filled the area.

Undead move with hatred for the living.

-Kirik?

The undead, staring at them—the living—clattered forward.

“Damn it. Weapons ready.”

Today, Gajei felt his shield heavier than ever.

Kuuuuung— From Gajei’s experience, even if they tried to run, the undead would chase them until death.

It was better to hold out by the Stone Gate.

Fighting a war of attrition against undead sounded ridiculous, but by using the terrain, they could at least gain some advantage.

That was good enough—or so he thought.

“I’ll block, you stab. Easy, right? Hey, Ray, how many spells can you throw?”

“Hmm… I think it’s better to save my mana for now. Maybe it’s time to show what I can do, though.”

“What?”

What the hell was he talking about?

It was nonsense, impossible to understand.

The unexpected variable had come from their own side—from Rayrn, who was obviously the son of a noble house.

He rolled his wrists and ankles as if loosening up, then stepped forward.

It looked natural—not awkward at all, as if he’d done it countless times.

“What kind of madness is this? It’s dangerous. Fall back.”

“You all take a step back first. I think something interesting just showed up.”

Seeing Rayrn’s smile, Gajei thought they were doomed.

To smile in a dangerous situation like this—maybe he’d just gone mad.

He’d seen plenty of crazy nobles while taking on requests.

Maybe it was just youthful recklessness.

The kind that makes you think you can do anything when you’re young.

But the sword is fair.

Even the most brilliant noble dies if a blade pierces his neck.

No—he dies all the same.

‘Should I just run for it? Leave them behind? Ugh, damn.’

He even considered turning his back and running.

But running was never a good idea.

The undead were faster than you’d think, and they never tired.

Slow-footed Hoden would be caught right away.

“Damn it… Maybe I should cover the front, and if you’re going to jump in, do it then—Ugh!”

Thwack.

Before Gajei could even finish speaking, Rayrn darted forward.

Complete disregard.

‘We’re screwed!’

He really thought it was over.

But it wasn’t.

-Keeririk!

Whoosh— The skeleton swung its old club fiercely.

Undead weapons were coated with poison.

Touch it, and you’re instantly poisoned.

“Dodge!”

“I won’t get hit.”

Whoosh— He was fast.

Rayrn dodged the skeleton’s club without even grazing it.

Whoosh— whoosh— He seemed to anticipate the following attacks, dodging them perfectly.

And then—

“So simple. Let’s see how tough you really are.”

He drew a sword—from who knows where.

He’d seen Rayrn use subspace when collecting monster carcasses.

He hadn’t mentioned it, but that was an expensive thing, so Gajei had assumed he really was from a noble family.

But to think he kept a sword in there.

And that sword—

Shaaak— Paang!

Was swung faster than he could even imagine.

Even the A-rank Mercenaries he’d seen long ago hadn’t swung their swords so cleanly.

Crack-crack-crack— The skeleton’s skull was sent flying.

It was crushed to bits.

If the head is destroyed, even the undead die.

“Watch out!”

But for a brief moment, the body can still move without the head.

It’s a deadly interval.

Inexperienced Mercenaries who don’t know this get caught off guard.

Keeririk— The headless body, burning with hatred, hurled itself at Rayrn.

Trying to crush him, to coat him in poison.

“Ho. Interesting.”

Rayrn’s eyes gleamed at the sight.

Once more, he moved with impossible agility.

This time, instead of a sword, with his fist.

Thud— He drove his fist into the skeleton’s ribs.

‘What…?’

He’d only hit the ribs.

But still—

Boom!

A huge sound echoed, as if a cannon had gone off, and the entire skeleton was shattered by the impact.

From that moment on, Rayrn was unstoppable.

“How…?”

“Crazy… What are we even looking at? Did we bring a monster along? Or is he possessed or something?”

Hoden muttered.

Gajei wanted to ask the same thing.

Rayrn was a monster.

He wasn’t a normal person who would die if a sword pierced him.

He was a monster with an iron wall for a body, that wouldn’t even let a blade touch him.

‘Crazy…’

When he was younger and less experienced, he might not have realized.

But now, with experience, he understood.

‘It’s not just efficient—it’s art. How is that even possible?’

He wasn’t a mage.

He moved with reflexes and agility that humans shouldn’t be capable of.

‘Is he using Auran Yeongongbeop or something?’

He dodged in places where there was nowhere to step.

He accelerated without even pushing off with his feet, as if the laws of physics didn’t apply.

He was fast.

Efficient.

He dodged every attack by the smallest margin.

Knights who had mastered Auran Yeongongbeop—no, even they couldn’t move like this.

If anything—

‘Mercenary… at least high-ranked…’

Those who realized Auran Yeongongbeop on their own, not by inheriting their family’s method—high-ranking Mercenaries—could sometimes move like that.

Only those types could use empty air as footholds and twist their bodies at strange angles.

But even they couldn’t do it continuously like this.

“Whoa… This is fun.”

Rayrn pulled off those moves with a relaxed smile.

Even top Mercenaries would have trouble staying that calm.

Sure, they could smash a skeleton if they wanted.

But not while moving like that.

Usually, they’d rely on brute force alone.

“That’s… Auran Yeongongbeop…”

“Insane…”

All his past Mercenary experience told him the same thing.

That kind of movement was only possible for someone who could wield Auran Yeongongbeop freely.

A body that moved like a miracle.

Thud. Thud. Crunch.

Rayrn pierced through everything as if he’d been possessed by a god.

He felt dazed.

Last night—they’d tried to take advantage of Rayrn’s apparent naivety to make a quick profit.

Now they felt ashamed.

If not for that supposedly naïve noble kid, they would have been the ones to die.

“Ha… Haha… What the hell were we thinking, dragging someone like that along?”

“…Let’s just shut up and be careful from now on.”

“Even if you suggest another scheme, I won’t do it. It’s madness.”

“…Agreed. So what do we do now?”

“For now, we just watch. Anyway—shh. They might hear us.”

Even as they reflected on yesterday—

-Kieeeeeek!

The undead kept falling.

If their bodies were shattered into pieces, even undead couldn’t move.

“More! More!!”

Thud— With every breath—no, every movement—one more fell.

Rayrn’s movements were only getting faster.

Inside the dungeon, surrounded by Stone Walls, it was like a stage built just for him.

And on that stage, Rayrn shone brighter than anyone.