* * *
But since I couldn’t show it outwardly, all I could do was tap the armrest with my fingertips as the plane took off.
“Are you afraid of flying?”
At that moment, Do Soohyuk, who had been leaning comfortably in his spacious seat, casually asked.
I thought I was acting natural, but apparently, it came off as awkward instead.
“Ahem, no. Why do you ask?”
“You seem uneasy, that’s all.”
As he said that, his pitch-black gaze landed precisely on my fingertips.
Damn, he’s sharp…
To be honest, it wasn’t fear—it was closer to excitement about flying.
But I didn’t bother answering.
And just as I clamped my mouth shut, another suffocating silence followed.
Do Soohyuk, sitting across from me, had been staring at me intently for a while now.
It felt like even my breathing was being scrutinized.
I couldn’t sit still, not with that pressure.
If this kept up, I’d suffocate before we even arrived.
I had to say something to change the atmosphere.
“Um… so, why did you come all the way here, Mr. Do Soohyuk?”
I was genuinely curious, and also trying to distract both of us.
Thankfully, it seemed to work—Do Soohyuk slowly touched his lips as if deep in thought.
“I don’t know. Maybe I was just curious…”
“…”
“Maybe I wanted to find something out.”
But that was only my wishful thinking.
The mood quickly shifted into something far more dangerous.
Earlier, it just felt like I was being observed—but now, the air had turned so heavy it sent chills down my spine.
Before I realized it, Do Soohyuk had half-risen from his seat, wearing an expression like he wanted to dissect me on the spot.
The shadows cast over his eyes were cold and persistent, revealing a relentless intent.
Damn it…
We were midair, so I couldn’t run like last time.
I was cornered—nowhere to go, nowhere to hide.
At this point, I was beginning to wonder if he’d come to catch me, not save me.
“Uh, Mr. Do Soohyuk…”
“…”
Eventually, he rose fully and began walking toward me.
Panic surged.
For a moment, I even considered storming the cockpit.
At least during landing, they wouldn’t be able to interfere with me.
But as if he read my thoughts, Do Soohyuk suddenly paused and turned toward the cockpit.
Crap. That was close.
And right then—
The plane suddenly lurched upwards at a sharp angle.
“What the—?!”
Thud—! Bang! Clatter!
The sudden tilt sent all kinds of things crashing noisily toward the back.
While I was still reeling from the shock, Do Soohyuk—unfazed despite the steep incline—headed straight for the cockpit.
He looked like he was walking on flat ground, completely at ease.
Left alone, I quickly looked out the window to assess the situation.
But no matter how I turned my head, I couldn’t see the front of the plane.
The aircraft was shaking violently—definitely not normal.
Something was definitely happening, but I had no way to figure out what.
“Are planes always this dangerous?”
Even if you’re S-class, if the plane crashes, you’re dead either way.
Sensing the danger, my little bird poked its head out from my sleeve, seemingly alarmed.
Yeah, I wanted out of this situation—but I never asked for a disaster.
This is insane.
I pushed aside the oxygen mask dangling from the ceiling and finally couldn’t take it anymore—I leapt to my feet.
Better to go forward and check than sit here waiting.
But the moment I took a single step—
CRASH—!!
The cockpit door burst open, and I saw Do Soohyuk stepping out.
Behind him, through the opening, I caught a glimpse of something that made my jaw drop.
Unless my eyes were playing tricks on me, that massive shimmering thing outside the cockpit window was definitely… a Gate.
“What the hell is…”
As soon as I realized what it was, Do Soohyuk suddenly rushed over and pulled me into his arms.
The impact knocked us to the floor, but that was nothing compared to what came next.
The plane shook violently, as if an earthquake had hit it, and then—BOOM—the roof ripped open with a deafening roar.
It was unbelievable. It was the exact same kind of incident I’d experienced in that uninhabited dungeon.
“Ugh!”
“Hold on tight.”
The pressure was immense—I was nearly sucked right out of the plane.
The only thing that kept me from flying out was Do Soohyuk, who held me down with his weight.
But that relief didn’t last long.
When I opened my eyes again, I was met with a sight that killed any remaining hope.
This can’t be real.
A wing of the plane had collided with the Gate and was being torn apart.
Sure, dungeons appear without warning, but why now?
The timing was way too perfect—it felt almost intentional.
Then, that familiar nausea washed over me from head to toe.
The same sensation I felt before being dragged into a dungeon.
Through the torn ceiling, I could clearly see the clouds—ones that had been below us just moments ago.
Something didn’t make sense.
It felt like we were inside a dungeon, but… why did the sky feel so close?
“Wait, no way…”
A bad feeling crept in. I quickly raised my fist and tried to summon my ability.
And then—my heart sank.
Just like that, my powers were gone. Again.
No ordinary dungeon would have its gate that high in the sky.
No chance to escape, no room for maneuvering.
There was only one place it could be.
“An EX Dungeon…”
It had to be.
A place so rare, most never enter even once—and here I was, about to go in twice.
I was still struggling to accept the situation when it happened.
KABOOM—!!
With a thunderous crash, the falling plane smashed into something hard.
The shockwave exploded through the fuselage, sending everything into chaos.
I was lifted into the air like there was no gravity.
Just for a second, I thought I saw buildings outside the window—but before I could make sense of it, I was slammed violently into a corner.
Explosions rang in my ears, followed by a high-pitched ringing that numbed my hearing.
“Argh!”
I writhed in pain, but even as I rolled around on the floor, Do Soohyuk’s arms still held me tightly.
He planted his feet to keep us from sliding, gripping the seat beside us like he meant to anchor us there.
How long did we endure that?
Finally, the shaking began to subside.
My mind was a mess, and with him clutching me so tightly, I couldn’t even figure out what had just happened.
The floor was tilted at a strange angle—we were barely hanging on to something, that much I could guess.
“Haa… Haa…”
Pain radiated through my body like I’d been beaten all over.
I shook my head, trying to breathe, but the dust and acrid smoke made it nearly impossible to open my eyes.
“Hey… Mr. Do Soohyuk.”
“…”
“Mr. Do Soohyuk?”
Just moments ago, he had been holding me with such force—now, he was slowly going limp.
It was already hard to breathe, but now his weight was pressing down on me too.
The pressure was unbearable.
What the hell…
What’s going on?
“Do Soohyuk…”
As I called his name and tapped his back, I suddenly felt something wet.
Something was wrong.
I looked at my hand—and froze.
My palm was completely drenched in bright red blood.
“…Shit.”
Panicking, I forced my head up to look—and there it was.
A long metal pipe had pierced through his shoulder, right below the wing bone.
It must’ve been shrapnel from the explosion earlier.
Wasn’t that supposed to be an S-Class coat?
I’d just assumed it was an item…
Too obvious, wasn’t it?
Normally, something like this wouldn’t have left even a scratch.
But this time was completely different.
A situation where even our lives could be at stake.
He got hurt while trying to protect me—there was no way I could just ignore it.
Damn it.
Clenching my teeth, I struggled and thrashed until I finally managed to wriggle my heavy body free.
Without even a second to catch my breath, I hurried to check on Do Soohyuk’s condition.
Thankfully, the wound seemed to have missed any vital spots.
It meant that as long as I used a potion, it wasn’t a critical injury.
The real problem was that we were still on the plane.
Even now, debris was falling from the sky, and the aircraft trembled ominously.
Even if I healed him, escaping from here took priority.
“Lean on me. We need to get out of here first.”
I slung Do Soohyuk’s arm over my shoulder and tried to lift him up, but the weight made me stumble several times.
Still, since he hadn’t completely lost consciousness, we were at least able to move forward.
“Watch your step. If we fall, we’re not getting back up.”
Carefully avoiding the thick smoke and scattered debris, I spotted a gaping hole in the side of the plane.
Through some twisted stroke of luck, the opening connected to the inside of a building.
Just as I’d feared, the plane had crashed into a structure.
Maybe because it was a small aircraft, it had ended up precariously lodged at the building’s edge.
“Can’t believe we’re alive…”
The plane was completely wrecked, but thanks to Do Soohyuk shielding me, I had come out relatively unscathed.
Maybe just some serious bruising.
With my strength fading fast, I didn’t waste time.
I hurried toward the hole.
It still wasn’t time to relax, but the solid feeling of a building floor beneath my feet brought a sigh of relief.
Why is it so cold, though?
The moment we got out of the plane, white mist puffed from my lips—it was unnaturally cold.
Shivering, I looked around.
There were all kinds of boxes and random items piled up, with cleaning tools scattered on the floor.
It looked like the storage room of some building.
* * *
