Chapter 14

She started walking into the abandoned building step by step.

Outside, the police, who had already arrived, were restricting access to non-related personnel and guiding evacuation.

Since the Hunters had also been contacted, it wouldn’t be long before other Hunters entered the abandoned building.

Unlike the Returners, the Hunters had a lot to consider, such as the level of the Dimensional Gate, so it was inevitable that they would be a bit late.

Unless it was an urgent Dimensional Gate, that was the right approach.

With such thoughts in mind, she sensed a presence the moment she took a step.

Soon, a sword-shaped mark began to appear on the side of her neck.

[Come out.]

And the moment she uttered those words, something rolled out with a thud.

It was something very small, like a cotton candy.

It was closer to a black cotton candy, rolling toward her.

At first glance, it seemed just cute, but Ggotbi frowned at the intense hostility she felt from it.

At that moment, the black cotton candy leaped into the air.

It instantly sprouted spikes all over its body like a hedgehog and flew toward Ggotbi, spinning as if it would shred everything in its path.

Then, the sword tattoo on Ggotbi’s neck rotated.

[Explode.]

Kwang!

With a single word, the black cotton candy exploded, its remains rolling on the ground.

Confirming this, Ggotbi straightened her neck and began to move again.

As expected of an abandoned building, the windows were all broken, and there were shattered pieces of furniture here and there, but Ggotbi paid no attention.

Since it was still daytime, the sunlight streaming through the broken windows was bright, and having seen far worse, the abandoned building couldn’t instill fear in her.

‘Which floor is the Dimensional Gate on?’

Ggotbi felt she needed to locate the Dimensional Gate first.

Until the Dimensional Gate was closed, Dimensional Beings would continue to pour out.

Closing the Dimensional Gate as quickly as possible was the top priority.

Thud.

At that moment, Ggotbi stopped upon hearing the sound of shoes.

The sound of shoes clearly indicated human footsteps.

This was an abandoned building.

One might think it could be a homeless person who hadn’t escaped, but unfortunately, the footsteps carried no tension at all.

‘Who is it?’

Could it be a Hunter?

No, but it was still too early for Hunters to arrive.

Feeling something was off, Ggotbi stealthily stretched her foot forward.

Clang!

Suddenly, two people burst in through a broken window.

Startled, Ggotbi reflexively tried to use a spell but stopped when she recognized one of them.

Instead, she quickly erased the tattoo on her neck and asked.

“D-Domi Oppa?”

“Uh, uh. Hi, Ggotbi.”

It was none other than Kang Ha-chan.

He was holding his head with a dazed expression, and the red-haired woman carrying him was someone Ggotbi hadn’t seen before.

But Ggotbi vaguely knew who she was.

She was a Returner like herself and Ayu’s younger sister, Shin Sora.

—

‘I’m never moving like this again.’

After joining Ggotbi, I was holding onto a wall, vomiting.

Since Ggotbi had left by car, we had to catch a taxi to follow, but Ayu said that would be too slow and offered to carry me instead.

I wondered what it would be like to be carried by a girl, but Ayu was a Returner.

What’s the point of acting tough in front of a Returner? So I agreed, and Ayu, now transformed into Cheon Hong-ryun, carried me through the streets.

And immediately, I regretted it like crazy.

Ayu said she would protect me from the wind resistance, but the changing scenery as she carried me was enough to make my mind go blank.

Thanks to that, I was in this state.

Even as I felt like I was dying, we managed to arrive safely, but honestly, it was an experience I never wanted to repeat.

“Domi Oppa, why did you follow?”

As I finally calmed down, Ggotbi asked, sounding like she couldn’t understand.

Hearing her voice, I caught my breath, straightened my back, and spoke confidently.

If I didn’t, my legs would have given out.

“What’s the fun in just eating and parting ways? We should hang out more.”

Hearing that, Ggotbi’s eyes widened.

“Let’s finish this quickly and go for round two. Of course, it’ll be this girl doing it, not me.”

When I pointed at Ayu, no, Cheonma Cheon Hong-ryun, Ggotbi let out a small laugh.

“What’s that?”

“What do you mean? Guild camaraderie.”

“I appreciate the sentiment, but…”

Ggotbi looked at me, both flustered and amused.

“……Domi Oppa, why did you follow as a regular person?”

“Uh, right.”

Thinking about it, I could have just waited downstairs.

When I looked at Ayu, she stroked her chin and smiled.

“Don’t you trust me? Being by my side is the safest place in the world.”

“You just forgot, didn’t you? Stop making excuses.”

“I always speak the truth. How about it? Want to stay by my side forever?”

Why does this girl only say such things when she’s Cheon Hong-ryun?

Back in reality, if I asked her to repeat what she said, she’d be too embarrassed to even try.

“Since you’re here, it’s safer to stay by my side than to go down alone.”

Then, as if she remembered something, Ggotbi quickly shifted her gaze to the wall.

“What’s wrong?”

“Before you two arrived, I heard footsteps.”

“Footsteps?”

Hearing about footsteps, I tilted my head.

Who would be bold enough to wander around where a Dimensional Gate had opened?

“No other Hunters have entered yet.”

“That’s suspicious.”

“Right?”

There’s no way a regular person would be wandering into a Dimensional Gate.

Agreeing with that thought, Cheon Hong-ryun tapped her cheek with her index finger.

“Should I find them?”

“Can you do it?”

“What do you take me for?”

Smiling as if it were no trouble at all, Cheon Hong-ryun immediately closed her eyes.

At that moment.

The intangible energy emanating from her made Ggotbi and me hold our breath.

The energy spread throughout the building in an instant, and Cheon Hong-ryun slowly opened her eyes.

A thick arc formed at the corner of her mouth.

“Found them. I’ll bring them.”

With those words, Cheon Hong-ryun disappeared.

Watching her vanish as if she had truly disappeared, even Ggotbi seemed surprised, unable to follow her movements.

“I heard Sora was a Returner. But this much?”

“Ggotbi, what rank are you among Returners?”

“I’m A-rank.”

“Sora is S-rank.”

Even among Returners, there’s a clear difference in power.

Hearing the rank, Ggotbi immediately understood.

Cheonma was one of the top-tier Returners.

“Ayu has a scary younger sister.”

“She’s not that scary.”

“By the way, Domi Oppa, I know you’re close to Ayu, but how do you know her younger sister too?”

I paused at the question.

Come to think of it, from Ggotbi’s perspective, I had only met Ayu in reality a few days ago.

It was strange that I knew Ayu’s younger sister.

I wish her sharp senses would pick up that Cheon Hong-ryun, who just disappeared, was Ayu.

But it seemed she wouldn’t know until Ayu told her.

“Ask Sora about that.”

“Hmm, okay. Let’s focus on the task at hand, right?”

Interpreting my words differently, Ggotbi became motivated.

Her enthusiasm felt a bit forced, but I let it slide.

“Domi Oppa, I’ll make sure to protect you. Let’s close the Dimensional Gate first!”

“I’ll leave it to you.”

Since Ayu left me here, I figured there wouldn’t be any major issues.

—

Thud, thud.

As the sound of shoes echoed, a red-haired woman walked through the corridor of the abandoned building.

She was none other than Cheonma Cheon Hong-ryun.

Her red eyes, which were completely different from when she was next to Kang Ha-chan, whom she called Domi Oppa, were icy cold.

“Should I come in, or will you come out on your own?”

Inside the corridor.

Her voice echoed like a reverberation.

Her voice, spoken as if a beast were whispering, carried a pressure strong enough to make a regular person faint.

And under that pressure, a person walked out from behind an old stone pillar.

Dressed in a school uniform with pitch-black eyes and wearing round glasses, his age was hard to guess.

The only thing certain was that he was holding a white cane, as if he were visually impaired.

“Who are you?”

“You don’t even know who I am, yet you followed me? Cheonma noona.”

His lips curved mischievously under his glasses as he casually mentioned Cheon Hong-ryun.

Seeing this, Cheon Hong-ryun frowned.

His relaxed attitude in front of her was irritating.

“Ah, your expression is too scary! Don’t make me nervous for no reason.”

Despite that, the man’s attitude remained frivolous.

During her time as Cheonma, she would have cut the heads off such people, so Cheon Hong-ryun began to channel energy into her sword with the intent to decapitate him.

“You know I’m Cheonma. Are you from the World Returner Association?”

“……Don’t compare me to that group of cowards.”

At that moment, the man’s expression turned serious for the first time.

His twisted face showed intense displeasure, reminiscent of a demon.

At the same time, the stone pillar beside him began to crack under the intensity of his emotions.

From that alone, Cheon Hong-ryun could easily tell he was no ordinary person.

‘Distrust and anger toward the World Returner Association.’

Sensing his emotions, Cheonma pointed her sword at him.

“Giraseong.”

“Ah, you know Giraseong!”

“Stop being annoying.”

Somehow, he had erased his earlier anger and began to smile brightly.

Giraseong.

While the World Returner Association represented Returners on the surface, they represented Returners behind the scenes.

Giraseong, a group of individuals who pursued the opposite direction of the World Returner Association, included many who were not normal even among Returners.

They had committed countless crimes and were essentially enemies of the World Returner Association.

That man was none other than a member of Giraseong.

“Meeting you was a coincidence, but what about you, Cheonma? Don’t you think the tears we Returners have shed are too precious to accept the current world?”

“Stop talking nonsense. Who do you think you’re speaking to, you societal cancer?”

“Oh my, it’s too harsh between fellow Returners.”

He, who had been smiling all along, sighed and tapped his cane on the ground.

“If you have no thoughts, then so be it. I judge there’s no value in further conversation.”

“Shut up. Tell me why you’re here.”

“Ahaha, what’s with this sense of justice from a woman who killed her own parents?”

The words that followed were enough to snap Cheon Hong-ryun’s rationality.

“Dimensional Gates are quite interesting, aren’t they?”

A camellia flower formed at the tip of her sword.

“Regular people seem to think Dimensional Gates can only be opened from the other side.”

A red afterimage scattered toward his grinning face.

But the man, whose form was torn apart by Cheon Hong-ryun’s sword, disappeared as if turned to dust.

“Isn’t it true that all Returners can open them?”

As his mouth, the last remaining part, disintegrated, Cheon Hong-ryun gritted her teeth.

She had realized that his form had been a fake made of sand from the beginning.

“……Giraseong, what’s your goal?”

Recalling the words he had uttered until the end, Cheon Hong-ryun clicked her tongue in frustration.

Then, she took out her phone.

On it was written “Iron-Blooded Empress.”

Though unpleasant, she thought it necessary to inform her of what Giraseong was up to.