* * *

“I told you I’d handle this. Don’t worry; I’ll take responsibility. I’m hanging up now.”

Eunsoo emphasized his words with a firm tone, his voice almost trembling with force.

His expression seemed to hint at annoyance.

And then—click. He unilaterally ended the call.

“What’s going on?”

“Let’s go home. I think I’ll feel at ease if you’re somewhere safe.”

“Eunsoo, something happened, didn’t it?”

“I’ll handle it. You….”

Eunsoo didn’t finish his sentence, but I didn’t need to hear the rest to understand what he wanted to say.

It was the same look he had when he saw my failed attempt at cooking.

“You can’t do anything anyway.”

A weight settled on my chest, constricting it.

At the time, I thought Eunsoo’s concern for me was endearing, but maybe—just maybe—I’d lost his trust since then.

That wasn’t how it should have been.

I needed to try harder to show him the dependable, trustworthy adult he deserved to see.

Even now, it wasn’t too late to change.

“I might be able to do something too.”

I knew how unconvincing my words sounded.

I was just an ordinary person—frail, and even now, I wouldn’t call myself strong.

But surely, I was in better shape than a patient wrapped in bandages.

I grabbed Eunsoo’s arm firmly.

“You’re the one who’s injured. Your wound reopened, didn’t it? Why did you lie when you’re not in a condition to do anything?”

“That’s because if I called them, those guys would come—”

“Those guys? You mean the Espers?”

“…I just don’t want you meeting them. You only just got back… Can’t you stay with me for at least a day?”

I realized I had wronged Eunsoo.

He loved me far more than I’d ever imagined, and because of that, my reckless behavior had hurt him more deeply than I’d realized.

But this wasn’t just a personal issue.

Everything happening here—in the Gate—couldn’t be delayed because of personal matters.

“Eunsoo, this is the field.”

Eunsoo’s life had been far from smooth. He’d been entangled in crime as a child.

At the same time, ironically, Eunsoo didn’t know hardship.

His extraordinary talent, his looks that easily charmed others—everything about him was exceptional.

He had no way of truly understanding the struggles or pain of ordinary people.

But I did. I was an ordinary person, maybe even at rock bottom, and I’d had some experience in the field, however brief.

“In a place like this, people get hurt and die. If a building collapses, the people living there are left homeless. If a company’s building goes down, people lose their jobs. Every time a Gate appears, tens, hundreds of people suffer. How are you going to take responsibility for that? Why would you act so recklessly?”

“I have money! I can pay for the houses, the companies, even the hospital bills—”

“…”

Eunsoo clamped his mouth shut when our eyes met.

It seemed he realized how immature his words sounded.

At least he understood it was wrong—there was some relief in that.

Instead of scolding him further, I reached for the anti-monster gun strapped to his waist.

“Tell me. What do I need to do?”

“What… what are you doing?”

Eunsoo moved to stop me immediately, but I didn’t back down either.

“…”

I gripped his wrist tightly, pinning it down.

When I met his blue eyes with a sharp glare, he finally let go, releasing his grip.

I sent him a grateful smile for conceding and inspected the weapon I’d taken from him.

The anti-monster guns used in Korea were different from the ones I’d used at Polwel’s estate or during my time as a mercenary with Jessica’s team.

They were a slimmer design.

But the basic structure was the same.

Even though “Yang Heewoon” wasn’t a field agent, he’d received basic training on firearms as a guide.

—Click.

By combining Yang Heewoon’s faint memories with my own, I quickly figured out how to activate the weapon.

After confirming it was loaded, I held it properly.

Judging by Eunsoo’s surprised expression, my movements must have looked more natural than he’d expected.

Straightening my back, I spoke firmly.

“I’ll do it.”

---

The task wasn’t all that difficult.

All I had to do was climb to the highest point nearby and set up an artifact to scan the interior from the outside.

The installation process was straightforward.

I’d been trained on it before, and just in case, I had Eunsoo explain it again.

“Alright. I can handle this.”

“Hyung… do you really have to do this?”

“I’ve been practicing my shooting. I even have field experience. Don’t worry.”

…Even if that “experience” amounted to a mere three days.

My credentials weren’t impressive, but calling the Espers for something so trivial felt like a waste.

My success would be the best outcome.

And even if I failed, Eunsoo would be there to step in and handle the aftermath.

Eunsoo looked at me with a conflicted expression.

Was my current demeanor that unfamiliar to him?

I offered a reassuring smile to put him at ease.

“I’ll be back soon. It’s not dangerous, you know that.”

“…Be careful. If anything happens, shout. I’ll come right away.”

“Got it.”

Since we were near the Gate’s entrance, the Espers’ large-scale sweep had likely taken out most of the nearby Monster.

Even after surveying a wide area, I’d only encountered a few smaller creatures.

…Of course, even the smallest monster were too dangerous for a non-Esper like me to face head-on.

I quickly identified a suitable building among the options.

It wasn’t far, the monster were mostly on the lower floors, and the building still had some power, as evidenced by a few lights being on inside.

—Screeech!

While the monster were distracted by the bait I’d thrown, I moved quickly—keeping my footsteps as quiet as possible—and climbed the stairs.

After ascending three or four floors and seeing no sign of the monster, I closed the emergency exit and checked if the elevator was operational. It was, so I used it to reach the top floor.

Once there, I swiftly unlocked the rooftop door and stepped outside.

“Phew.”

I secured the door behind me and locked it before finally letting myself take a proper breath.

It felt as though fresh air was only just reaching my lungs after being trapped for so long.

But there was no time to relax.

I immediately began setting up the artifact.

—Wooooom.

The artifact hummed softly as it powered on.

—Connection and stability verification in progress. Estimated time: 3 minutes.

Reading the message on the display, I let my head droop in relief.

“Haa…”

As I exhaled deeply, the tension drained from my body, leaving my legs trembling.

It wasn’t even that far or particularly dangerous, so why was I so nervous?

“Will I ever be calm in the field someday?”

It still felt like a distant dream… but perhaps this marked the start of something.

To clear my head, I straightened my posture and looked around.

Being at the top of a tall building, the view was expansive, revealing the devastation below: black smoke, traces of explosions, shattered buildings, and fallen trees.

Evidence of countless battles was scattered everywhere.

Somewhere in this chaos were the people I missed.

They would’ve rushed to the scene faster than anyone, especially to a site this dangerous.

“They must think I’m dead… What will they say when they find out?”

I’d worried them too much.

My farewell video was meant to ease their guilt, but judging by their interviews, it hadn’t worked.

If anything, my absence had burdened them further.

As the frequency of Gate incidents grew, Special Team A had gained more opportunities to prove themselves, preventing public opinion from turning completely against them.

Still, I had no excuses if they resented me.

All I could hope for was that my actions hadn’t soured their relationships with Eunsoo.

—Beep!

The alarm signaling the installation’s completion jolted me back to reality.

I need to go back. Eunsoo must be worried.

“Wonder if the Directorate’s rental apartments are still available.”

Since Eunsoo now sees me as someone special, we can’t live together like before.

I’ll need to consult a lawyer about my inheritance, but if it’s already been transferred, I don’t feel the need to reclaim it.

Ideally, I can just rent an apartment from the Directorate.

—Boom!

A heavy noise resonated behind me as the ground shook.

I immediately checked the artifact’s detection status.

Thankfully, the stabilization process seemed to have completed, so no major issues appeared.

Lowering my posture, I cautiously peeked over the edge of the building.

Next to a massive hole—likely where the creature had emerged—was a black, lizard-like monster with no scales.

It prowled aimlessly.

Judging by its enormous body, easily over 8 meters long, a chill ran down my spine.

I consciously took a deep breath.

“Calm down. It’s okay. I don’t think it’s seen me.”

The creature was moving leisurely, heading somewhere.

It wasn’t blocking my route back, and its direction was the complete opposite.

If I moved quietly, I could avoid detection and reunite with Eunsoo—

“…Huh?”

As I alternated glances between the path and the monster, my body froze.

Its tail was raised high, almost as if to show off to its surroundings.

And on that tail… something was caught.

Covered in pale dirt and dust as though dragged through the ground, but unmistakably…

It was a child.

A child, around five years old.

* * *