“When we’re inside the Gate, no matter what happens, don’t panic. Stay where I can see you.”
There were about two hours left until the Gate opened. The team members were taking a short break and running through their final checks before going in.
“You’ve checked everything?”
“Yes. Then for the last—”
BOOM—
Just as they were about to inspect the supplies, a loud explosion rang out from somewhere, followed by a powerful gust of wind. The wind howled with such force it felt like it would rip the temporary shelter apart. But the Espers recognized the familiar sensation behind that noise immediately.
“The Gate just opened.”
“But wasn’t there still time before the expected opening?”
“Yeah, but that’s just an estimated time. Even with the latest systems, nothing’s perfect. There are always variables—especially with an S-rank Gate. Honestly, being off by just two hours is pretty good.”
Tae-hwan spoke with a calm expression, as if he’d expected this all along. Just as he said, predictions could always be off. There was a reason they started waiting near the Gate a full day in advance.
“No need to panic. We’ve already prepped everything, right? Grab your bags—we need to head in as quickly as possible. From this moment on, we’ve got exactly one week.”
Tae-hwan reassured the startled Seo-ha and Joo-chan, giving them a firm pat on the back. Sure, the early opening of an S-rank Gate was shocking, but their preparations were done. The team left the now half-tilted temporary shelter and headed toward the Gate.
“What’s the reading?”
“It’s… about 15 times that of an A-rank Gate. I’ve never seen numbers this high.”
“This one’s big—even among S-rank Gates. We’ll try to handle it safely, but just in case, have all the other S-rank Espers gathered here by the seventh day. We’re heading in.”
After a short conversation with a staff member, Tae-hwan walked to the Gate’s edge. Just standing in front of it, he could feel it—something was different.
A sense that once he went in, he wouldn’t be coming back out so easily. Anyone who claimed they weren’t scared would be lying.
“I’ll go in first.”
He’d tried to steady himself, be the responsible senior. But maybe his nervousness had shown. Rion, who had been standing near him, suddenly stepped forward and entered the Gate ahead of him.
Right behind him, Yu-won moved toward the Gate. The Guides, though visibly anxious, followed carefully behind.
“Ugh, now I look bad. Let’s go.”
“Rion-sunbae’s just weird. Ugh, I really hope we get out before the week’s over.”
“Don’t jinx it. Stay positive. Let’s go.”
No matter how worried they were, they couldn’t send the Guides ahead alone. The Espers picked up their pace, and before long, the entire team had vanished into the Gate.
“Let’s hope nothing goes wrong…”
Someone standing outside the Gate muttered quietly, eyes fixed on the entrance where the strategy team had disappeared.
***
Thankfully, things inside the Gate weren’t catastrophic—at least not yet. The temperature was about the same as outside, and the terrain looked normal.
“That only makes me more anxious.”
“Same. When the environment seems normal, you can’t predict what might show up…”
“Let’s drop the gear here first. I’ll go up and scout the terrain.”
Rion quickly set down his gear and rose into the air to scan the area. From above, it looked like an ordinary forest.
“…Hm?”
But something felt off. One patch of underbrush was… squirming, like the forest itself was shifting.
Rion watched it for a moment before realizing what he was looking at. Alarmed, he descended back to the ground.
“Guides stay here. We need to move to that forest area, now.”
“Already?”
“Yeah. It’s heading this way. They’re monsters disguised as foliage. And the fact that they’re moving in a group means they’re more intelligent than the average creature.”
“Ugh, I hate monsters that do coordinated attacks…”
“Less whining, more moving.”
At Rion’s sharp tone, Joo-chan got to his feet. Rion quickly lifted the Esper team members and moved them toward the forest.
“No time to breathe, huh? I hope the Guides will be okay.”
“We left Seo-jin behind. If anything unexpected happens, he should at least be able to buy them some time.”
ROOOAARR—!
Had the monsters sensed the Espers moving? A fierce roar erupted from their direction.
Rion was briefly puzzled. Why would monsters bother hiding in the underbrush only to reveal themselves by roaring?
That’s when Su-jin let out a shocked scream.
“Th-They’re—! They’re separating?!”
“What do you mean, separating—? …Shit.”
Rion had made a mistake. He’d assumed these were single monsters camouflaged like plants—but that wasn’t it.
The leafy parts were other monsters.
From the backs of the crawling plant-beasts, dozens of winged creatures suddenly burst out, unfolding their wings and preparing to take flight. Rion tensed, swallowing hard.
So this was an S-rank Gate. Even the low-tier monsters appearing at the entrance were leagues above the usual.
“Min-cheol-sunbae, Seo-ha—you two take the skies with me. Everyone else, focus on the ground!”
“W-What about me?!”
“If you lose control of your firepower here, you’ll set the whole place ablaze. Stay on the ground.”
Rion left the rest of the team on the forest floor, save for Min-cheol and Seo-ha, whom he kept airborne. Suppressing the aerial monsters would require one of his weakest skills: simultaneous activation.
I only crammed training for a week… but I worked hard. It’ll be fine. Even if it’s not, I still have to do it.
Rion narrowed his focus, eyes locked on the monsters flying toward them. If even one slipped through, the damage could be massive.
Normally, Rion would’ve handled aerial combat alone. But today, he had a bad feeling—so he kept both teammates up with him.
THWACK—
“GYEEEKK!”
“What the—?! I can’t see anything!”
Bad feelings always proved true.
Instead of dropping after getting hit, the monster spread itself wide, blocking Seo-ha’s line of sight. She shrieked in panic.
By the time she managed to freeze it solid and drop it, another monster waiting in the rear snapped its jaw open. Seo-ha froze in terror.
“KYAAAH!”
“Han Seo-ha, snap out of it!”
Rion shouted, taking out the monster that had lunged at her. They weren’t particularly powerful individually, but once your vision was blocked, it was all too easy to get overwhelmed.
I can get guided right away anyway…
Rion rose a little higher than the others, calculating the distance needed to clear the monsters in one sweep. A few chased after him into the sky, but not enough to make it difficult to use his abilities.
“Phew…”
Using this much power would be exhausting, but he trusted Yu-won’s guiding to pick him back up. The best option was to finish it fast.
Even in an S-rank Gate, these were just trash mobs. Thinking that, Rion steadied his breath and channeled power through his fingertips.
SKREEEEE!
KIIIAAAA!
With shrieks, the monsters burst apart, their bodies spreading wide below him like a field rising up from the earth.
“Min-cheol-sunbae! Blow those upward! When they’re spread out like that, I don’t think they can attack. Seo-ha—freeze as many as you can!”
“Got it!”
“Y-Yes!”
The monsters frozen stiff by Seo-ha’s powers were swept upward on the gusts Min-cheol summoned, flying straight toward Rion.
While the two worked together, Rion took a moment to catch his breath—then crushed the incoming monster mass with a powerful strike.
“Haa…”
“You okay?”
Rion landed beside Seo-ha and Min-cheol, trying to catch his breath. The leafy monsters in the sky had all been dealt with, but on the ground, more and more kept pouring in.
I need to regroup with the others soon. Can’t let them see me struggling already.
“I’m fine. Let’s head down.”
Rion answered as casually as he could. Seo-ha clutched her chest and exhaled.
“I really thought I was gonna die. Seriously, we’d be doomed without you, Rion-sunbae.”
“We’ve got no choice but to rely on Rion.”
“No time to chat. Let’s move.”
Rion stepped onto the ground. He was tired—but couldn’t let it show.
“More incoming from the 3 o’clock direction!”
“Urgent movement at 11 o’clock too!”
“Goddamn it, they just keep coming.”
Voices calling for Rion’s help echoed from all directions. He ignored the spinning dizziness clouding his vision and launched himself back into the sky.
Not even an hour had passed since they’d entered the S-rank Gate.
