* * *
“Then Anis noona’s potion won’t work either.”
“Most likely. Hunter Anis probably wishes for his death as well.”
Even if an alchemist-type Awakened brewed a healing potion, for Seohwa, it would be nothing but plain water.
After all, an alchemist’s intent was also infused into their potions.
“Hunter Seohwa, did healing skills work in previous rounds?”
“Yes… this is the first time they’ve failed.”
With each regression, the timeline’s rejection had grown stronger, and so had living beings’ hatred toward him.
And now, this was the result.
A situation where he could no longer be healed.
Most likely, for the next…
2,628,026,280 hours.
In other words… forever.
This could be a massive obstacle when attempting to clear the 6th-rank dungeon three years from now.
With even civilians wielding knives and stabbing people, with countless duels against other Hunters, and with numerous 5th-rank dungeons to conquer—having such a critical flaw was… bad.
Almost despair-inducing.
And in that moment, Seohwa saw Kang Yigeon’s expression.
He was smiling.
Even someone unfamiliar with him could tell that this cold man had received good news.
Seohwa didn’t have mind-related skills.
But he didn’t need them.
Right now, Kang Yigeon was pleased.
Because a broken Seohwa would be easier to subdue in the future.
Just as the worst Hunter was about to claim the hidden reward.
“Hunter Cho Wookwon, this must remain a secret.”
“Huh? Why?”
“If word gets out, someone will surely try to exploit this flaw to kill him. We need him alive.”
“Ah… Got it, hyung. I won’t say a word.”
And that’s when Seohwa realized.
‘Ah.’
From now on, he was going to be sick. A lot.
And for a long, long time.
That’s right.
They wouldn’t let him die, but… just enough.
Just enough to keep him weak and obedient.
His resignation was swift.
Seohwa pulled his clothes back on and slumped onto the sofa.
“Kang Yigeon, I’m dying. I’m hungry, exhausted, and…”
Grumble’
“…starving.”
“I’ll call a non-Awakened medic. Wait here.”
Kang Yigeon left the living room.
Cho Wookwon, unwilling to be left alone with Seohwa, quickly followed.
Kang Yigeon would now report this to the higher-ups in his usual cold voice.
Guildmaster Simjin. Director Go Hyeyeol. Team Leader Choi Jihyung.
They might even raise a toast to this delightful news.
Seohwa leaned into the sofa and closed his eyes.
A pitch-black night stretched before him, without a single glimmer of light.
In the first round, Seohwa made the decision to turn back time.
And everyone agreed.
One day, as they continued the dungeon raid in heavy silence—without a single joke to lighten the mood—Seohwa, standing watch, sat alone by the campfire.
“Guildmaster.”
Kang Yigeon approached, limping.
“Oh, our dear aide. Why are you up? You should get some rest when you’re not on watch.”
“I’ll take over. Guildmaster, please go inside.”
“What are you talking about? You’re injured. You need to go wrap yourself in a blanket and sleep, now.”
The healer was recovering their soul power, so Kang Yigeon had to spend the entire day with a splint on his leg. He must have been in pain, but he stubbornly sat beside Seohwa.
“Do I have to order you to sleep as your Guildmaster?”
“…….”
“Fine, suit yourself. Your loss.”
Seohwa took off the warm blanket draped over him and handed it to Kang Yigeon.
As expected, Kang Yigeon didn’t even acknowledge it.
“You get cold easily. Keep it for yourself. I have a flame-type trait—I don’t feel the cold.”
“I’d just feel bad hogging it alone next to you.”
“I’m fine.”
“Then what should I do? Should we share?”
“Yes.”
Seohwa had only been joking, but Kang Yigeon immediately lifted his hips and moved closer.
When Seohwa pulled aside part of the large blanket, Kang Yigeon—his face as icy as a northern duke—quietly accepted the offered warmth.
Their shoulders touched.
He was warm.
Kyuuung, kyuung.
The little snake, sensing the heat, slithered closer.
Seohwa wrapped the tiny creature around Kang Yigeon’s wrist.
It whined a little before settling down as Kang Yigeon gently patted it with his fingers.
A deep, quiet stillness fell.
Seohwa stared at the fire.
It burned, collapsed, then rose again.
Vanished as if it had never existed, then ignited once more.
It seemed like it was dying, but in the end, it always flared back to life.
Just when he thought, ‘This must be the end,’ the fire would dance again, fierce and defiant.
‘How long will this flame last?’
Nothing in the world is eternal.
Everything returns to nothingness.
It’s a cruel truth, but that very impermanence is the only certainty of the world.
Yes, perhaps.
Just like always, the fire will rise again—
Or so he thought.
And then, after its final flicker, the embers would go out.
For good.
“What are you thinking about?”
“Just… something deep and philosophical. Even I have my poetic moments, you know.”
“…….”
“This fire—it’s burning so fiercely, like it will last forever. But in the end, it’ll go out. Because no fire burns eternally.”
“It won’t go out.”
“Kang Yigeon, no matter how we feel, once that wood is fully burned, the fire will die. That’s just science.”
“This fire is made from [Pyromance]. It won’t go out unless I want it to.”
“Ah. I see.”
Seohwa looked back at the flames.
Now that he knew, they seemed even stronger.
They would never die out—
Not unless Kang Yigeon chose to extinguish them.
Even if Kang Yigeon himself died, the fire would continue burning.
…So there really was something eternal in this world, after all.
The emptiness had faded, but instead, his heart felt heavier.
“…Guildmaster.”
Seohwa anticipated what Kang Yigeon would say next.
It must be because of this atmosphere.
The peculiar mood surrounding them made his aide, who had hesitated countless times, finally speak the words he had been holding back.
“In a world where everyone hates you…”
“……”
“How long do you think you can endure?”
Seohwa smiled.
“As long as I need to.”
“……”
“As many times as it takes. Even forever.”
That answer was sincere.
Back then, he hadn’t thought much of being thrown into a timeline where everyone despised him.
After all, Seohwa didn’t particularly like people either.
His decision to return despite the timeline rejecting him wasn’t driven by some noble love for humanity.
His reasons were far more personal.
“In that world, I won’t be by your side.”
“I know.”
“And it won’t be just me.”
“Yeah. Simjin, Wookwon, Anis, Yoonjin noona, Seongyeon noona, Junyoung hyung, Tuyeon… None of them will be there.”
Kang Yigeon murmured bitterly at his indifferent tone.
“So it doesn’t matter to you, does it, Guildmaster?”
“Well, there is one thing I’m worried about.”
Seohwa’s lips curved slightly as he saw Kang Yigeon’s violet eyes flicker with hope.
“…Who am I supposed to have sex with now?”
“……”
“The Kang Yigeon of that world won’t sleep with me. That’s a real problem. Honestly, when I think about it, I almost feel like I should just let the world be destroyed.”
Kang Yigeon pressed his fingers to his forehead and let out a deep sigh.
Seohwa chuckled softly.
Teasing Kang Yigeon was, without a doubt, the most entertaining thing in the world.
If the version of him in the next timeline had this same reaction, that would be great.
“Can’t you be serious for even a second?”
“I am being serious. What am I supposed to do if I start missing my dear aide’s impressive dick…”
Seohwa had been planning to keep going with his teasing, but he froze at the deep furrow in Kang Yigeon’s brow.
“…Uh, are you mad?”
“No.”
“Then… did I hurt your feelings?”
“I’m not hurt. But I am—”
Kang Yigeon met Seohwa’s eyes.
“I’m worried about you. That world will be harsher than you can even imagine.”
Seohwa was the one being thrown into that merciless timeline, yet it was Kang Yigeon who looked afraid.
Ever since Seohwa had decided to use [Flight of Time], this man had been consumed by concern for him.
It was fascinating to see.
How he reacted to Seohwa’s pain more intensely than his own.
How he responded to Seohwa’s fear with more anxiety than his own.
How he felt Seohwa’s sorrow more deeply than his own.
What was love that it could make such a cold, rational man unable to control his own expression?
Seohwa had never once been curious about love.
But watching Kang Yigeon be swept away, unable to resist it, sometimes made him wonder.
What kind of emotion was love?
Would there ever come a day when he understood it?
Would he ever be completely consumed by it, just like that man?
Nothing was certain.
Except for one thing.
If he ever came to know love—
The one he would love would be Kang Yigeon.
That much, he was sure of.
* * *
