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At the gentle but firm response, Kim Siwon glanced at Doun’s expression before answering.
“……I was just worried, so I said it. Hyung is so kind after all.”
“I know what you meant by saying that. Thank you for worrying about me.”
Doun smiled brightly. Kim Siwon felt relieved at his smile, which showed no signs of being forced.
‘……I thought I might have crossed the line a bit, but he’s accepting it like this.’
He was the one who had made remarks that dangerously crossed the line that should be maintained. Even knowing the two were dating, his worry had led him to say things that seemed to badmouth Samin. He had meddled unnecessarily because he was that concerned. He regretted it the moment he spoke.
Contrary to Kim Siwon’s concerns, Doun expressed his thoughts clearly. The underlying meaning was clear—he was grateful for his concern, but further interference would be troublesome.
It was quite a resolute attitude, making his meddling seem pointless, especially since Doun rarely expressed his opinions properly in most matters.
“And could you keep it secret from the other guild members that Samin and I are dating?”
At Doun’s careful request, Park Sangyeon quickly nodded.
“Don’t worry, hyung. I’ll definitely keep the secret.”
As Park Sangyeon finished speaking, Kim Siwon also nodded seriously.
“We’re not the type to run our mouths. I’ll keep the secret. And…… Guild Master, stop glaring at me like that. I said it in front of him on purpose so he’d hear! If I was really going to be sneaky about it, I would have called Doun hyung aside and said something behind your back! You’ve been watching me for years and still don’t know me like that?”
Kim Siwon grumbled at Samin, who was glaring at him as if he wanted to kill him. What he did—talking behind someone’s back in front of the person—was definitely wrong. However, considering the relationship between Kyung Samin and Kim Siwon, this level of conversation was something they could easily exchange.
While Samin expressed his displeasure with his whole body, Doun looked relieved. Though they hadn’t spent much time together, he could tell that Kim Siwon and Park Sangyeon weren’t the type to go around gossiping about his business.
“Well then, we’ll head off to sleep. We were planning to have some lovey-dovey time in the conference room before bed, but somehow it ended up like this.”
Kim Siwon tried to leave the conference room first, taking Park Sangyeon with him. Doun saw them off in place of Samin, who was still maintaining his vow of silence.
“Yeah. Sleep well. Thank you for saying you’ll keep the secret.”
“Don’t mention it. You two should also sleep early. Stop with the kissing.”
“……Don’t tease us too much.”
When Doun smiled awkwardly, Kim Siwon giggled. The conference room door closed and Doun sighed. Then he looked at Samin standing beside him and was startled.
“What’s with that expression?”
Samin was grinning, looking like he didn’t know what to do with himself from happiness. Even though he couldn’t say a word, he was expressing his emotions so vividly like this. His honest emotional expressions were always impressive.
Unable to answer Doun’s question for the time being, Samin held up his phone screen.
[Our hyung is so fucking cool, I fell for him again ㅠㅠ He speaks so clearly and decisively, whose boyfriend is this cool?]
It was such ridiculous fawning that it was beyond absurd and became laughable. After reading all the text, Doun couldn’t help but chuckle. Seeing no notification pop up, it seemed they really were alone in the conference room.
“It’s fortunate that Siwon and Sangyeon said they’d keep the secret, but let’s be more careful in front of people from now on. Got it?”
Samin quickly nodded and waved his hands enthusiastically. Though it wasn’t exactly clear what he wanted to say, judging by how he was pounding his chest and widening his eyes, it seemed like he meant “trust me.”
‘I need to change the penalty registered in the skill first. Since I can’t hear Samin’s voice, it’s incredibly quiet……’
Though there were sounds of him moving around energetically beside him, Doun already missed Samin’s warm voice.
* * *
Dawn broke as always. Earlier than regular people’s commute time, the Yeoun Guild members arrived at the tower entrance.
Though they chose the early morning hours to avoid the crowds, the area around the tower was always bustling. People who had finished their conquest attempts mixed with those who were now preparing for their attempts.
While walking from the parking lot near the tower to the entrance, hunters who recognized the group began asking questions one by one. Many asked if they were going to attempt the 55th floor conquest.
The group responded with eye greetings instead of answers, as if they had made a pact. They had learned firsthand that answering once would lead to endless crowds swarming them, draining their energy before the conquest even began.
They had stopped in front of the sculpture erected at the tower entrance, called the Sculpture of Lament, to enter, when one male hunter who had been persistently following them called out desperately to Doun.
“Magnetic hyung……!”
At the youthful voice, Doun reflexively turned his head. The man standing close by looked like he had just graduated from high school. When their eyes actually met, the man showed signs of being extremely nervous and couldn’t continue speaking.
‘Samin had a similar expression when he first met this person.’
He had only recalled the day he first met Samin in the guild building lobby, when Samin had come in anger threatening to destroy the building, but laughter escaped him helplessly.
“Huh?”
The man let out a dumbfounded interjection. Magnetic, who always wore a mask when coming to the tower and disappeared with a stern face, was clearly smiling. He was surprised for a moment, then quickly clenched his fist and showed it.
‘Is he trying to hit me?’
Just as Doun was getting flustered.
“Hyung…… Fighting!”
A cheering voice trembling like a goat’s from nervousness echoed nearby. Doun blinked for a moment, then hesitated.
Since his return, except for Samin and the guild members, Doun had only repeated like a parrot that he couldn’t give autographs or that photos were difficult when dealing with other people. Though he was grateful for the encouraging words they sent, being clumsy at expression, he was always busy looking only at the ground and disappearing into the tower.
But today, for some reason, he didn’t want to ignore someone who had followed him all the way here just to give him pure words of encouragement.
Doun slowly nodded his head. Then he smiled brightly and responded.
“Yes. Fighting.”
Even at this short response, the young hunter’s face, which had been simply happy, gradually grew dim. A cool sensation swept over his body, and a clear notification appeared before Doun’s eyes as if to awaken his consciousness.
[Alert: Your alliance <Yeoun> is entering Veritas Tower 55th Floor. The current alliance leader is ‘Slope’. You cannot leave the alliance after entering Veritas Tower.]
[Alert: You have entered Veritas Tower 55th Floor. The total number of people who entered this floor is 13.]
The noisy and chaotic sounds disappeared instantly. The distinctive scent of the tower, which could only be described as alien, was blowing in. The moment Doun slowly closed and opened his eyes.
“What’s gotten into hyung to actually give a response?”
Samin, standing beside him, spoke with a grin. It was closer to being proud than petty jealousy. It was the first time Doun, who usually became stiff-faced and startled when crowds gathered, had smiled and responded to a stranger.
Though he had exchanged a few words with the hunter he met at the cafe, that was a special case possible because there weren’t this many people crowded around.
‘I can see that hyung is gradually stabilizing more than I thought.’
Honestly, he thought it would take longer, but he was pleased that Doun seemed to have improved more than expected.
“Something about it reminded me of you, so I just……”
“You thought of me?”
“I’ll tell you after we finish the conquest.”
Doun answered like that and subtly turned his head.
The scenery of sheer stone mountains stretching endlessly came into view. The 55th floor was dangerous terrain where one wrong step would lead to a fatal fall with no hope of even finding the body. Doun faced the wind brushing past his cheek and calmed his unsettled mind.
‘This is a tower……’
Grayish-white clouds flowed as if wrapping around the stone mountains. Looking at the countless stone mountains and clouds soaring up to the sky at immeasurable heights, he wondered if this was paradise.
It was a place worthy of admiration, but no one showed any signs of being impressed by the scenery. This was because not long ago, there were people who had met their end in this very place.
The hard stone floor was felt under his combat boot soles. Doun touched the medicine packet he had put in his pants pocket. He had brought it in preparation for any unforeseen circumstances, but he only hoped he wouldn’t have to take this medicine.
“Everyone, as you know, we’ll get out immediately if it becomes dangerous. You all know that whether someone curses or throws a fit somewhere, it’s none of our business, right?”
Hearing the familiar voice, Doun deliberately put strength in his eyes.
“Don’t forget that we didn’t come here to die, but to clear it.”
The reason Samin was deliberately saying what everyone already knew was because of just one person.
The man who didn’t know how to take care of himself, who tried to shoulder all responsibility, yet whose eyes lit up every time they attempted tower conquest—his beloved lover and idol—was slowly nodding his head.
“Let’s try to safely attempt the 55th floor conquest today as well.”
With Samin’s words as the conclusion, Doun slowly breathed in. Despite the clear air that couldn’t be easily felt in the city, the burden pressing on his chest felt heavy. Strangely, breathing seemed a bit difficult.
‘I’ve barely made it this far. I absolutely cannot give up on the conquest. No matter what happens, I have to succeed and we have to be the first to reach the next floor……’
Doun unconsciously bit his lower lip, which had been tightly pressed together from tension. The metallic taste of blood lingered on his tongue.
‘Ah, stop being ridiculous…… Let’s focus on the conquest first, Lee Doun.’
Doun, who had summoned his staff earlier than usual, swallowed his saliva.
This was the 55th floor where the former Yeoun Guild had to taste the bitter cup of giving up their conquest attempt. He now had to show Magnetic’s results, which might have seemed sluggish to some. More than anyone, Doun himself wanted this.
Success in solo conquest of ultra-high floors. He had to bring that record, which was set by the now-disbanded Chronos Guild and still remained unbroken, to Yeoun. No, he had to reclaim it.
The stale wind brushed against his face. Doun took a step forward, feeling his rapidly beating heart.
Whatever happened here, the end had to be success.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
Fight!!!