I walked down the road with my phone in my pocket. It wouldn't stop vibrating, but I didn't care.
On the way to the convenience store, people bustled around me. I arrived at the front of the store shortly after.
"Where's mine?"
"Buy it yourself with your own money, kid."
My friends were already gathered at the outdoor table, preparing to eat. Instant ramen and rice balls were spread across the table.
"We finally meet up after all this time and this is it? Cup noodles and triangles?"
"I'll go to a steakhouse if you're paying."
"Do you even have a conscience?"
Naturally, I went inside, bought my own ramen and rice balls, and came back out. As I was rubbing my chopsticks together to start, my friends were still glued to their phones.
"Put the phones away. We're finally hanging out."
"Hey, did you even check the message I sent?"
Since I rarely check my texts, I wiped my glasses and turned on my phone. On the screen was a girl with animal ears—half-donkey, half-rabbit, I couldn't tell.
"Ugh, you massive geek..."
"I'm a man of culture, I told you! It's a tower defense game. Just try it. One try."
I tapped the ad and opened the App Store. The title of the game appeared.
ARKNIGHTS
Beeeeeep—
As my distant senses returned, hearing was the first to recover. Tinnitus rang in my ears as my other senses trickled back one by one.
The agonizing pain I felt when I passed out had vanished, but Yujin could feel the blood pumping through his body as he stared at the ceiling. Unlike the dilapidated factory he usually stayed in, a clean, white ceiling greeted him.
The smell of medicine and sharp alcohol hit him. Yujin frowned and tried to push himself up, but a slender, pale finger pressed against his chest, keeping him down.
"You should stay still for a bit. You'll only make things worse if you overdo it."
The girl had deep black hair with a bluish tint and dark eyes that looked like a fading twilight. Her clothing was clearly not something a slum-dweller would wear. Yujin instinctively reached for his sword, but the nameless girl caught his hand and placed it back on the bed.
"The moment you wake up, your first instinct is to look for your weapon. Hmm... I think Casti would actually like you."
"Who... are you?"
"Don't be so wary. I'm the savior who rescued you from the brink of death. You should be thanking me, don't you think?"
The girl spoke with a faint smile playing on her lips.
"My name is Kalaisha. I came here under my master's orders to kill a man who threw away his honor... but meeting you seems like a strange twist of fate."
Hearing her speak in riddles made Yujin scowl. He wanted to move, but his body felt as stiff and rigid as a wooden log.
"Don't push yourself for the time being. The price for using Arts so recklessly is high. For now... I'll let the outsiders in."
With that, Kalaisha opened the door and stepped out. Immediately, Theresia and Theresis burst in.
"Yujin... sob... Yujin!"
"…Sigh."
Theresia stared at his face blankly for a second before bursting into tears. Theresis rubbed his face and let out a long, heavy sigh.
"Can I punch you once?"
"I'm a patient!"
"The fact that you're being so bold about it makes me even more annoyed."
Theresis raised his fist but lowered it when Yujin shouted back. Seeing him rub his eyes, it was clear he had been under an immense amount of stress.
"Don't worry. I'm fine. I'm alive, aren't I?"
"Yuuujin..."
Theresia buried her face in the bedsheets, weeping. Her eyes were bloodshot; she had clearly been crying since the moment he collapsed. Yujin moved his arm to stroke her hair. Theresis just kept sighing as he watched.
"You should be dead."
"What?"
"If that girl Kalaisha hadn't miraculously appeared, you would have died in that courtyard. What were you thinking?"
Theresis's face twisted with emotion.
"I told you not to fight if you couldn't win. I told you I wouldn't blame you if you ran. We've already received so much from you—"
"Theresis."
Yujin cut him off with a serious expression. Theresia lifted her head to look at him as well.
"You guys are my family. Theresis, if Theresia were in danger, would you turn your back and run?"
"…No."
"And you, Theresia?"
Theresia shook her head vigorously. Yujin gave them a wide grin.
"Same for me. I consider you my family. That's why I couldn't run."
Theresis was left speechless. He turned the question inward: If Yujin was about to die, would I run away to save myself? The answer was an undeniable "No." He couldn't find anything to say.
Theresia looked at Yujin and came to a realization. Yujin would keep moving forward. Even in the past, a skilled mercenary had once invited him to leave this place and travel the world. If she didn't work hard, the gap between them would only grow wider.
Her path was set. She would get stronger—strong enough to stand by his side and fight. Her Arts were rare, involving mental interference. She could also launch physical attacks like the Casters people often talked about. If she polished her talent, she could shine.
Through her tears, Theresia gritted her teeth. She vowed to never let something like this happen again.
After their brief reunion, Kalaisha suddenly kicked the door open and strolled in.
"Alright, alright! Enough with the tearful reunion. We need to discuss future plans—"
Kalaisha came in with a bright, cheerful smile. But Yujin had to ask.
"Why did you save me?"
From Theresis and Theresia's conversation, it was clear. Yujin had been on the verge of death, and Kalaisha was the one who pulled him back.
"Umm... well."
She seemed hesitant to answer. Yujin stared at the well-dressed girl, trying to figure out her motive. Theresis and Theresia stared too.
"Is it because the person you killed was the one I was supposed to kill?"
"…What?"
The man Yujin had killed—Tarkan. He was far too strong for a regular slum mercenary. And he was the man Kalaisha was sent to execute. The puzzle pieces finally clicked into place.
The person "from the Royal Court" that Aorn and Theresis had mentioned—it was Kalaisha. She had been patrolling the backalleys, tearing them apart to find Tarkan. Tarkan was a criminal on the run who had drifted into these slums to hide.
But he had run into Yujin. They had fought to the death, and Yujin had emerged the victor.
The reason Tarkan had even ended up here was that Kalaisha had failed to catch him and had been chasing him toward the slums!
"…Wait a minute."
As the atmosphere grew tense, Kalaisha took a few steps back, looking around awkwardly. Theresis and Theresia realized what had happened at the same time and fixed her with a glare.
"Don't tell me... were you watching while Tarkan and Yujin were fighting?" Theresia asked. Kalaisha avoided her gaze, her eyes darting around the room.
"Uh... well... you see..."
Theresis looked at his sister and commented, "There's no way a person could be that much of a piece of work. Yujin was betting his life and facing death against that monster. Surely she didn't just sit back and let someone else do her job because it was easier...?"
Kalaisha, breaking into a cold sweat, shut her eyes and pressed herself against the wall.
"You were just... so good at fighting! I mean, you even awakened your Arts in the middle of it!"
"My life was the collateral for that!"
"Eeeek!"
The conclusion was obvious.
"Are you serious?! How can someone be like this? If you had helped during the fight, I wouldn't have nearly died!"
As Yujin shouted in disbelief, Theresia glared at Kalaisha.
"So you dumped your responsibility on him, let him almost die, saved him at the last second, and acted like a hero?"
Theresis added his own icy commentary. Kalaisha looked like a sinking ship, sweating profusely under their combined pressure.
An angry Yujin tried to kick off his covers and lunge at her to grab her by the collar, but since his injuries weren't fully healed, he collapsed the moment his feet hit the floor.
"Gah!"
"Aaah! Yujin!!!"
It was a total farce.