Chapter 1154

〈 Chapter 1154 〉 1154. The Academy’s Savior

[What do we do now?]

Makina, in her ethereal form, asked.

I looked around the musty warehouse. It was empty inside. A man watching us through the window was visible.

My mana had been sealed—because of the cuffs. Thus, it was impossible to materialize Makina as well.

‘Can you get outside the barrier?’

[I’ll give it a shot.]

Makina flew toward the window but seemed to hit some invisible force field and couldn’t pass through. She pounded on the barrier with her fists and feet before giving up and returning to my side.

[Nope. We’re trapped like rats.]

‘They’ve really set up a thorough containment field here.’

They installed this spirit-blocking barrier in under an hour. Very academy-teacher-like behavior.

[You don’t think we’re gonna die like this, do you?]

‘…Do you actually look kinda excited about that?’

[I never even considered what would happen if you died! I’d be stuck in this dungeon forever!]

‘If I die, you won’t be able to leave this dungeon. You’ll vanish along with it.’

Makina’s face turned pale.

[R, really?]

I have no idea. In the original game, when the player dies, they just restart. The original doesn’t explain what happens to those left behind.

[W, what do we do? If I really vanish… There’s this awesome new game coming out next month… Hey, Sung Yoojin! Wake up! This is no time to sleep! Get up already!!]

Makina was shouting loudly. Luckily, she wasn’t materialized, so at least she wasn’t physically shaking me.

I closed my eyes tightly.

Just like the last dungeon, this one will eventually collapse too.

•••

Creak.

“You’re sleeping awfully peacefully for someone in danger.”

The one who entered by opening the door was Sung Ha-ri. With a spear in one hand, she confidently approached me and took out a key from her skirt pocket to unlock the cuffs.

[Auntie! I knew you’d come save us!]

Makina, who had been sleeping beside me, jumped up enthusiastically. Sung Ha-ri smiled and waved at Makina.

“…How did you manage to get in? The teachers were guarding the entrance, right?”

I asked while rotating my sore wrist.

“I told you earlier, didn’t I? Pure combat-wise, I’m stronger than the teachers.”

I glanced toward the entrance. There lay an unconscious man. She must’ve knocked out the teacher to get in. And standing near the entrance was another female student.

“I can’t believe this. Was all this really necessary?”

It was a woman with long dark-brown hair.

This is Kang Ji-young, who will later become the principal of Maruhan Academy. She looks exactly like the Kang Ji-young I know.

‘On closer inspection, she seems shorter and has smaller bust compared to what I remember.’

Still, she exudes the same sturdy and determined aura.

“Thanks for helping, Ji-young. I’ll take full responsibility. Besides, I was planning to leave the academy anyway. Guess this is just one last ruckus before I go.”

“…This isn’t just ‘ruckus.’ What you’ve done constitutes clear criminal activity. The Hero Association might issue a bounty on you.”

“If they want to, let them.”

Kang Ji-young sighed. She looked at me as I stood up and then turned away.

“This is your choice. Handle it however you see fit.”

“…Thanks, Ji-young.”


“Ah.”

“……”

Gang Ji-young vanished on the spot.

“What about Ryu Hana?”

“Ryu Hana? Oh, that girl who was next to you? I don’t know. Do you have any info on her?”

“…Let’s head outside first.”

We stepped out of the warehouse, passing by the unconscious teacher, and headed toward the back mountain.

“You’ve managed to break the barrier, I see.”

“Ji-young helped me. Though she’s clumsy with magic, interpreting or dismantling barriers is her forte. She also found the key for the handcuffs. She’s pretty good at devising strategies too.”

“But if she’s bad at magic, how did she dismantle this warehouse barrier?”

“She says there’s no relation between barrier-breaking skills and general magic prowess?”

“……If she says so, then it must be true.”

Once inside the back mountain, I activated my Spirit Vision and Heavenly Sight. Piercing through the darkness, I strained to find Ryu Hana.

‘Given Ryu Hana’s personality, she might still be nearby… but I can’t see her.’

After searching for over ten minutes with no success, I scratched my head.

“Bro. Let’s figure out a way to escape. The teachers will track us down once they regain consciousness. It’ll be tough going out the front.”

“Climbing the wall won’t be easy either. There’s a barrier.”

“Right. You know that well.”

I sent Makina to patrol around the academy. Using Spirit Vision, I could share her field of sight. But after thoroughly searching the entire academy, there was still no sign of Ryu Hana.

‘Maybe she escaped the academy? That would’ve been the more rational choice for her…’

She might’ve been captured if she had stayed.

“Hana isn’t here. Seems like she’s not in the academy.”

Makina, upon returning, casually hung onto Seong Ha-ri’s shoulder.

Nodding, I summoned a teleportation spell scroll. With the scroll in hand, escaping the academy would be child’s play.

“Are you really coming with me?”

“If I didn’t intend to follow, I wouldn’t have saved you. You’re not thinking of leaving me behind here, are you?”

“……What if I do leave you?”

“I’ll chase after you and beat you senseless until you regret it.”

“Just imagining it gives me chills.”

I handed her the teleportation spell scroll.

•••

A week passed. I was still trapped in the dungeon.

Now, I had to find a way to escape.

‘Raphael. He must be the mastermind. To get out of the dungeon, I need to find him.’

Finding him wouldn’t be easy. Unlike the last dungeon, he’s hiding deep and not showing his face this time.

“Did Raphael make Ryu Hana disappear too? What happened to her?”

Did she die at Raphael’s hands? Or did she complete the trial and exit? No way to tell. The former seems more likely, but I hope it’s the latter.

“Ugh… Don’t use the palace like that, you brat…”

Makina, lying beside me asleep, mumbled something in her sleep. Even as a mechanical spirit, she dreams about gaming.

I got up and looked around.

It was a motel.

Currently, I’m a fugitive, constantly moving from place to place.

Click!

The door opened, and Seong Ha-ri entered.

“Bro! The sun is high in the sky. Are you still… Oh, you’re awake.”

She walked in wearing a white t-shirt and jeans. A bounty has been placed on her now too—1 billion on me, 200 million on her. Unlike me, where death doesn’t matter, her bounty comes with a condition: she must stay alive.

On the bright side, authorities haven’t announced our bounties on TV or radio, so daily life hasn’t been greatly affected since civilians generally don’t bother looking for wanted posters.

“What’s up? You seem cheerful for midday.”

“I took a job from a broker. We don’t have to worry about running out of money.”

Seong Ha-ri sat on the bed and pulled out a document. It wasn’t a job request but instructions on how to meet the client.

“This job is bodyguard duty. For one week…”


For one day of guarding the client, that’s all we need to do. The fee is 100 million won per day, so a total of 700 million won. Isn’t that insane?”

“Are they giving us a job like this? Something seems off.”

It’s only been five days since we met the broker. There was no trust or anything.

“That guy also recognizes our skills. The broker’s commission is 20%. The money we actually get is only 80 million won per day.”

“…If we split it between two people, it’s 40 million won each. Come to think of it, it doesn’t seem too expensive… Who’s the client?”

“Looks like some local gangsters from North Hamgyong Province. They’re apparently struggling caught between Chinese and Russian mafia.”

“Any other information?”

“Nope. You’re supposed to meet the client directly and talk. If you feel uneasy, just turn down the job. But if you accept, you need to head to North Hamgyong by 8 PM.”

Seong Hali said this with an oddly excited tone. She seemed thrilled about getting our first hundred-million-won job.

I stared blankly at her while checking her affection level.

『Seong Hali Affection Level: 55』

An affection level of 55 indicated romantic feelings.

Her affection went up even though I didn’t do anything. It was strange.

“Big brother? Why have you been acting weird since earlier? Are you still sleepy?”

Seong Hali grabbed my shoulder and pulled me closer. In an instant, the distance closed, and I could feel her breath. Her face turned bright red. She didn’t resist—not because she couldn’t, but because she chose not to.

“……”

“……”

We silently exchanged glances.

Her eyelashes fluttered. She closed her eyes and tilted her chin slightly upward. It was obvious what she was waiting for.

‘If she’s waiting like this… I should obviously give it to her.’

I placed my hands on her firm waist and kissed her. My tongue pushed past her soft lips and entered her mouth. Our tongues intertwined as I marked her mouth with my saliva.

I moved my hand from her waist to caress her right ribcage. Seong Hali shivered. That was all.

‘…Right. This Seong Hali in front of me is fake.’

The real Seong Hali would’ve reacted more intensely. I felt a strange sense of longing and reached for her butt. Through her jeans, I could feel the nicely shaped, bouncy curve.

“Wha?!”

Seong Hali broke the kiss and hastily backed away. Her face was redder than ever, and her lips were moist and shiny.

“What’s wrong?”

“N-No, that feels a bit inappropriate…”

I grabbed her hand as she tried to escape. Standing up, I pushed her back onto the bed instead. Lying on the bed, she blinked nervously.

I climbed on top of her, bringing our lips close again in the same aggressive position.

Before she could say anything, I kissed her. My hand headed toward her waist. I grabbed the hem of her white t-shirt, ready to lift it up.

“Hmm… Stop being noisy… Wait, are you two having sex?”

Makina woke up, rubbing her eyes innocently. Startled, Seong Hali shoved me off and jumped up.

“I-I need to make lunch! I’ll go grab some takeout. Just wait here!”

And with that, Seong Hali ran off.

I clicked my tongue and glared at Makina. If Makina hadn’t woken up, Seong Hali and I would’ve already been together physically.

“This dense person.”

“What? Why?! What’s wrong with me?!”

Makina acted defiantly.

“If you had kept sleeping, we would’ve already done it. Can’t you wait a little longer? Can’t you hold back?”

“Why should I pretend to sleep?! That’s unfair! You guys could’ve gone somewhere else!”

“This one doesn’t even show remorse and keeps arguing back.”

Bam!

“Ahhh!!”

I smacked Makina’s head. She teared up and flew into the air before kicking me. Blocking her kick with my hand, I smirked.

“You’re rebelling? Fine then, let’s see how you handle this.”

“Die, Sung Yoojin!!”

Makina and I kept bickering until Seong Hali came back.