He wasn’t afraid of dying.
What really haunted him… was the thought of leaving behind his wife, who would be left to raise their young son alone. Their little boy would be traumatized by watching his father die right before his eyes. His wife might’ve seemed stoic, but deep down, she was far more fragile than she let on. He couldn’t begin to imagine what his death would do to her.
Realizing he was already preparing himself to die, he bit down on his lip hard enough to draw blood—anything to snap himself out of it. No. He had to protect his son. He had to survive, no matter what it took.
With Nabin clutched tightly to his chest, he activated the offensive artifact in his hand. The knuckle-shaped artifact glowed an icy blue, latching onto his fist with a perfect fit.
It was a Guide-exclusive weapon that temporarily granted the power of a B-rank Esper. He gripped it tightly, knuckles protruding, never taking his eyes off the wolves circling him, pacing like predators savoring the kill.
Awooooo—!
The taut tension snapped in an instant. The moment the alpha wolf howled, two wolves sprang forward, charging straight at him.
“Ugh!”
“D-Dad…!”
Blood burst from his left arm and thigh like a geyser. He tried to grit through it, but the searing pain forced a groan from his lips. Nabin, who had been keeping his eyes shut and counting numbers, suddenly froze and called out with a trembling voice.
“Nabin, Daddy’s okay. How far did you get, buddy?”
As the boy began to open his eyes, his father raised a shaking hand to gently close them again. Nabin whimpered, lips quivering, but started counting once more.
“Sev… seventeen… eigh… teen…”
If I’d known this would happen, I wouldn’t have just stood there waving goodbye every time she went off to train… I should’ve gone with her.
One attack had cost him an arm and a leg. But when he swung the artifact with everything he had, smashing one wolf’s skull, the others backed off. That alone was a small mercy.
Pain clouded his vision, threatening to drag him into unconsciousness. His blood poured out so fast, the dizziness hit him like a wave, forcing him to stumble. But even then, he cradled Nabin tightly, shielding him with everything he had left.
The alley wasn’t particularly wide, but it wasn’t secluded either. The Center was only a ten-minute walk away. There were no others in the alley now, but surely someone had noticed something and contacted the Center.
And if a gate had opened, the Center’s sensors would’ve picked it up. He just had to hold on a little longer. If even one B-rank Esper arrived, they might make it out alive.
But the truth was… he didn’t even have the strength to last another minute. Please, please… he begged inwardly, swinging with everything he had, fists crashing into the wolves’ skulls with desperate force.
Yelp! Yelp!
Huff… huff…
He might not have been as powerful as an Esper, but he was no amateur. As a veteran Guide, he’d explored countless dungeons alongside his wife. If he’d chosen a defensive artifact instead, he could’ve held out longer—long enough for help to arrive.
But he only had one artifact, and without hesitation, he’d used it to protect his son.
Flesh was torn, bones shattered, and agony followed with every strike. Each time a wolf lunged, another part of him was ripped open, down to the bone. He managed to take out two more. But that was his limit.
If they’d only been B-rank monsters, he might’ve had a chance. But these wolves were A-rank. Individually, they might’ve been weaker than some other A-rank monsters—but they hunted in packs. That was why they were classified as A-rank.
Even with two dead, three still remained, including the alpha. The leader stood back with piercing eyes, waiting, watching, as his strength drained away.
Then—footsteps. Fast, urgent, pounding against the ground. He could feel the rush of magic as Espers activated their powers. At the same time, the remaining wolves pounced, all three at once, aiming for the father and son.
“Subin!”
Nabin’s mother cried out her Pair Guide’s name and unleashed her power the instant she saw them. Shards of ice pierced all three wolves, landing fatal blows—but she was too late.
Her husband’s neck was already hanging limply in the alpha wolf’s jaws, crushed beyond repair.
“No… NO!”
She screamed, collapsing to the ground as she caught her husband’s lifeless body in her arms. At her voice, Nabin opened his eyes—just in time for blood to rain down on his face.
A thick red stream poured from his father’s neck, soaking him completely. It looked like the paint he used when drawing—but smelled metallic and wrong.
Blood trickled into his mouth. Gagging, Nabin lifted a trembling hand to cover it, nausea surging up from his gut.
His father’s eyes—always so warm, always smiling—were going dim. Tears welled up in those fading eyes, rolling down his cheeks as life slipped away.
A blood-soaked hand reached out, touched Nabin’s face… then fell limply to the ground.
And Nabin—so small, so helpless—could only stare in stunned silence. At the lifeless eyes of his father. At his mother’s screams. The brutal image seared itself into his young mind, raw and unfiltered.
The memory of that day’s horror came crashing back, and Nabin began to thrash uncontrollably, his entire body shaking with fear. Behind him, sobs escaped in broken hiccups. Mr. Kim wanted—desperately—to turn around and check on the boy. But the wolves crept steadily closer, forcing him to keep his eyes locked forward, gripping the hammer and chisel in his hands so tightly it felt like his bones might crack.
“Goddamn life… never stops screwing me, even at the end…”
He spat the curse through clenched teeth, tightening his grip on the weapon as it threatened to slip from his sweat-slicked palms.
He’d never seen these monsters before, but it didn’t take a genius to know they were smart. Too smart. They hadn’t pounced the moment they saw him and Nabin. No, they were studying them, trying to figure out whether the two of them might have any hidden power.
When neither moved to attack, the wolves finally licked their chops and inched forward, their hunger turning to certainty. They’d realized it—these prey were powerless.
Mr. Kim ground his teeth and tensed his arm, ready to swing the moment they closed in. Right now, their only hope was the group of Espers dispatched by HK Corp for today’s dungeon training session.
He had no idea how much time had passed. But it was around the time the Miners should be clearing out of the dungeon—and someone had to have noticed that he and Nabin were missing.
The moment he’d heard they were leaving an hour early, he’d shoved a rice ball into his mouth and hurried into the depths of the dungeon. They’d mined a fair number of Mana Stones since then… so it was entirely possible the extraction deadline had already passed.
If his coworkers noticed their absence and told the Espers, maybe… just maybe… they still had a shot at surviving this death trap.
Even if he didn’t make it, if Nabin could get out alive… that was all that mattered. Clinging to that sliver of hope, Mr. Kim swung his hammer. It slammed into the skull of the wolf that had crept in closest, making it stagger. But the same moment, white-hot pain lanced through his arm.
“Ghh…!”
He’d only stopped one. Just one. The others kept charging, their glowing yellow eyes locked on him like death itself. He knew it was over. Bracing himself, Mr. Kim raised his uninjured arm, ready for a last stand—
Thwack! Yelp!
The wolves flew backward—launched faster than they had been running—before he could even move. Mr. Kim froze, stunned, watching as their bodies soared through the air like rag dolls and crashed into the ground with bone-crunching thuds.
It was like some invisible force was swatting them around. Wherever they were hit—their bellies, their skulls—they burst open like water balloons. Just moments ago, they’d been terrifying. Now, they were dying pitifully, like bugs under a boot.
Mr. Kim stood there, slack-jawed, too shocked to even breathe.
“…Are you alright?”
A shadow fell over him. Mr. Kim looked up and saw a towering figure with a broad frame staring down at him.
He didn’t need to ask—this was the one who’d taken the wolves down. He had no idea what kind of ability the man had used, but the last wolf was now flattened against the ground like dried jerky.
The man didn’t even do anything after arriving. But somehow, it looked like the monster had walked into death on its own. The attack had been so brutal, so merciless, that for a second, Mr. Kim almost felt sorry for the creature.
“Y-Yeah… Th-thank you…”
He stammered the words of gratitude, bowing slightly. Judging from everything, the man had to be an Esper. And not just any Esper, either. If he could handle an A-rank monster like it was nothing, then he was at least A-rank himself—maybe even higher.
But Espers weren’t known for being nice. Maybe it was the overwhelming power they held. Or maybe it was because they lived every day with death breathing down their necks. Either way, most of them had difficult personalities.
The Esper’s snow-white hair stood out starkly, even in this chaos. And while he was speaking respectfully, Mr. Kim knew better than to let his guard down. Just because someone saved your life didn’t mean they wouldn’t turn around and demand something insane for it.
