Chapter 72

“…It’s taking a while.”

Thinking about Uncle Ho-won, it should be about time for Yoo Ju to return, but even after 30 minutes, she still hasn’t come back.

“Does it take different times for different people?”

It seemed others were thinking the same, as Yoo Rim spoke up.

“…Yoo Ju unnie is taking a while.”

“Yeah, sis. Nothing bad happened to Yoo Ju unnie, right?”

“She’ll be fine…”

Of course, Ute isn’t here either, so there’s no one to ask.

‘Damn… Did something really happen?’

It’s been over three times longer than Uncle Ho-won took, so it’s hard not to worry.

Just as I was getting anxious, Yoo Ju and Ute returned.

“Yoo Ju unnie!”

“Yoo Ju noona, why did it take so long?”

“…..”

‘…What? Why does she look like that?’

The problem was Yoo Ju’s expression wasn’t good. She wasn’t frowning or looking angry, but everyone could tell her mood was low and kept quiet.

“…Yoo Ju, are you okay?”

‘…Did she see some bad memories?’

“Ah…”

“…Yoo Ju?”

‘What, what’s going on, why is she like this all of a sudden?’

Yoo Ju suddenly looked at me and started crying.

“Is something wrong?”

Everyone was flustered by the sudden situation. It wasn’t just anyone, but Yoo Ju crying, so everyone couldn’t help but worry.

“Clan Master, are you okay…?”

“…I’m fine. Sorry, everyone. It’s just… I saw some memories I didn’t want to remember…”

Probably memories from the first round.

Despite Yoo Ju saying she was fine, the worried expressions on everyone’s faces didn’t change.

‘…Are they memories related to me?’

Considering she cried right after looking at me, it’s a plausible guess.

Still, seeing Yoo Ju calm down after some time eased the worry a bit.

“Hyung, I’ll go this time.”

“Alright, go ahead.”

Starting with Hyeon-jin, everyone except me began going to the Record Room. Yoo Ju’s case seemed unique, as it usually took about 10 minutes to come out of the Record Room.

No one cried like Yoo Ju, and the others just came back with a blank expression.

‘Now it’s my turn.’

“Now it’s my turn. I’ll be back.”

“…Come back safely, Yoon Seong.”

“Yes, Yoo Ju.”

“Finally, the last person. Follow me, I’ll guide you.”

“Alright.”

“…Now, open this door and go inside. There will be a book; just open it.”

“….”

Following Ute’s words, I opened the door and went in to see a single book.

‘He said just open it…’

As I opened the book, my consciousness faded.

******

‘…Where is this?’

What I saw was a scene of Earth. The problem was, it wasn’t a normal scene. A memory I didn’t want to remember was unfolding before my eyes.

‘…The orphanage fire incident… Damn it…’

The building was engulfed in flames, and a boy was holding onto a woman, trying to stop her.

“No…! No…! The kids…!”

“Noona! Please…! It’s already too late to go in now!”

“No, Yoon Seong! Let go…! The kids, the kids are still in there…!”

‘Damn it… Why this memory…’

It was a horrific memory I didn’t want to recall. The orphanage fire incident that was widely reported on TV. Because of this incident, no kids survived except for me and my sister.

If my sister and I had been inside the building, we would have been burned to death without a doubt. Luckily, we were outside running errands, so we survived.

‘…Whether it’s unfortunate or happy, the memories that are most intense in one’s life are more likely to surface.’

“Noona, even if you go in, it’s a death sentence! Please, listen to me!”

“Ugh… No, no… Kids!”

“Damn it, Lee Yeon-hwa! Get a grip!”

That was a very tough time for me too. The kids I grew up with in the orphanage were like my own siblings.

But I had to save my sister no matter what.

If the building hadn’t been so engulfed, I might have decided to go in with my sister to save the kids, but it was an impossible situation to make that decision.

‘…No, is this self-justification?’

Anyway, it doesn’t matter. Even if I went back to that time, I would make the same decision. I… just chose the lesser evil over the worst.

‘Damn it, I made a rational choice. Damn it… Don’t think about it…’

Guilt eats away at people. What I need isn’t useless emotions like guilt, but the determination and coldness to move forward.

‘You have to let go of unnecessary emotions.’

Only then can you survive. You have to be determined and cold to live in this damn world.

‘….No matter how much you show me these memories, my thoughts won’t change.’

Soon, the sound of fire trucks was heard, and firefighters arrived.

“Damn…! Everyone, do your best to put out the fire and then go in! Kim Dae-won!”

“Yes..!”

‘…The outcome is already decided.’

The fire was too big, and despite the firefighters’ efforts, only my sister and I survived. No one else made it.

As I clenched my fists at the unpleasant sight and cursed inwardly, the scene began to change.

‘…Tutorial?’

What came into view was the starting point of the tutorial. The scenes I experienced began to pass by.

“Huh?”

“Please… save me! Please don’t leave me…! My… my leg, my leg….! Ugh… Please save me! Please take me with you….!”

‘Sigh…’

The nameless woman with a leg injury I had abandoned at the beginning.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“No…! Don’t leave me…. Ugh…. Ah…!!!”

The sight of my past self abandoning the woman came into view. I knew it was a rational decision, but honestly, it wasn’t a pleasant sight. After all, I had abandoned someone.

The scenes that followed were just as I remembered.

Meeting Jo Chan-ho, Hyeon-jin, the woman whose name I can’t remember, and the young woman, then meeting Yoo Rim and Yoo Hyun. Everything flowed as I remembered.

What felt strange was the scene not long after.

‘….What? Why isn’t Yoo Ju appearing?’

Everything flowed as I remembered up to the point where I parted ways with the group, wandered with Yoo Rim and Yoo Hyun, and encountered the guys who tried to extort food.

The problem was the situation after that was different from my memory.

When I faced the leader of those guys…





The scene began to change again, ending with me passing out from being choked.

“… Ugh… Where is this?”

“Oh, oppa!”

“Bro!”

“… What, what’s going on… How did… Ugh…”

“Are you okay, Yoon Seong?”

I stood still, shocked. The scene unfolding differently from my memory was shocking, but the fact that Jo Chan-ho saved me was even more unbelievable.

“Uh, Byeong-ok?”

‘Is this… the first round?’

Judging by how things were unfolding differently from my memory, it seemed like the first round. What was puzzling was why I was seeing scenes from the first round.

‘What the hell… What’s going on?’

I let out a hollow laugh, unable to believe it. Why was I recalling scenes from the first round that I didn’t even remember?

‘First… observation is key.’

I didn’t understand what was happening, but it was natural to think that observing the situation was the priority.

‘Luckily, I didn’t slip up. If I had reflexively blurted out Jo Chan-ho’s name, it would have been a disaster.’

“Byeong-ok… How? Did you save me?”

“Yes, fortunately, with the help of Yoo Hyun and Yoo Rim, we were able to save you.”

“First of all… thank you for saving me.”

“Not at all. It was the natural thing to do.”

I noticed Jo Chan-ho treating the group with a friendly expression. I could guess why he was acting like that.

‘… Yoo Hyun’s healing ability, and Yoo Rim is at least average.’

He probably saved me because he thought Yoo Hyun’s healing ability would be beneficial to him.

Also, although it’s a bit awkward to say this myself, I was somewhat useful in combat, at least during the tutorial, so his decision made sense.

“By the way… what about the others…?”

“Hmm… Unfortunately, we couldn’t save the others. So-young was taken by the monsters… and Kyung-sil seemed to have been taken by the monsters too. I’m not sure about Hyeon-jin.”

“… I see.”

“But it’s a relief that you all are safe. Let’s rest here for a bit and then move.”

“Understood, Byeong-ok.”

‘… Where is Seo Yoo-ju?’

Seo Yoo-ju must be in this tutorial too. Of course, since it’s the first round, she wouldn’t be as overpowered as in the second round, but she’s definitely alive.

‘It’s changing again.’

As the scene shifted, what came into view was our group meeting Seo Yoo-ju.

Our group, including Jo Chan-ho and me, had grown to about ten people, having recruited a few more.

‘… Kang I-seo and Ho-won are missing.’

I wondered if Kang I-seo or Ho-won were among the group, but they weren’t there.

‘More importantly… that’s Seo Yoo-ju from the first round…’

“Oh… a survivor. Please calm down. Nice to meet you, my name is Jo Byeong-ok.”

“Ah… I, I’m… Seo, Seo Yoo-ju.”

I could see Seo Yoo-ju being a bit wary of meeting strangers.

‘… She’s very different from now.’

Unlike the confident, charismatic Seo Yoo-ju from the second round, seeing her so clumsy now felt strange.

In the past, I must have noticed her talent when I checked her status window, as a glint of interest briefly flashed in my eyes.

“Haha… We were just gathering survivors. How about joining us? As you can see, monsters are popping up everywhere, so we all need to work together.”

“Yes, yes… I’d like that.”

Seo Yoo-ju, unaware that Jo Chan-ho was shady, seemed to accept his offer.

“You seem to use a spear… have you chosen a class?”

“Ah… yes. I, uh, ended up killing some monsters… and got the Intermediate Spearman class…”

‘… She’s so careless. Really careless.’

She’s definitely different from the second round. Unlike the battle-hardened Seo Yoo-ju from the second round, this was before she adapted to the tutorial, so it’s understandable, but it was frustrating to see her blurt out her class without being asked.

It was natural for Jo Chan-ho to be surprised by the mention of Intermediate Spearman.

“… Intermediate Spearman, you say?”

“Yes, yes… that’s what it says in my status window…”

“That’s good. You must be quite talented.”

After Seo Yoo-ju joined the group, the combat power of the group noticeably increased.

She was scared of monsters and a bit clumsy, but that was natural at the time. It was a completely understandable reaction. In fact, I couldn’t help but admire her for showing such a decent performance even during the tutorial.

‘As they say, you can tell a tree by its roots.’

The way she killed monsters in an instant by swinging her spear a few times proved that she had top-tier talent.

Jo Chan-ho also couldn’t take his eyes off Seo Yoo-ju.

‘… Is he reconsidering?’

Given Seo Yoo-ju’s talent, it was natural that she would be useful to Jo Chan-ho, but his expression suggested he was worried she might become a threat to him.

‘It’s understandable.’

With mediocre talent, it might be different, but Seo Yoo-ju’s talent was monstrous. Jo Chan-ho couldn’t afford to let his guard down.

But it seemed he wasn’t planning to eliminate her. Since she was kind-hearted and not overly aggressive, he probably judged that she wouldn’t pose a threat to him.

The problem was that after a few scenes, a shocking scene unfolded before me.

“Byeong-ok.”

I approached Jo Chan-ho right after he secretly killed someone.

‘What the hell… What is this?’

Even Jo Chan-ho seemed surprised that I had come to him. It was only natural to be flustered after just committing a secret murder.

“Ah…!”

Jo Chan-ho immediately swung his sword at my neck, but he stopped mid-swing upon hearing my next words.

“I have a plan, Byeong-ok.”

Even though my neck was slightly cut and bleeding, my expression didn’t change as I spoke. It was impressive even to me.

“… What are you talking about? You have to die anyway. You know my secret. If this is some kind of trick…”

“I’ll let you kill more people.”

‘You crazy bastard.’

I couldn’t believe my eyes.