I didn’t expect much, but I ended up gaining quite a lot from talking with Ryu Sunghyun this time.
First of all... I didn’t expect Ryu Sunghyun to be thinking about me that way. It must have been because of what happened during the front gate of the Royal Palace incident when I fainted.
Well, from an outsider’s perspective, it must have looked exactly like I passed out while healing people.
Considering Kwon Taehyuk recited the diagnosis at the hospital, saying it was due to mana backlash, it was clear.
In other words, to Ryu Sunghyun, Cha Seohu is “a supporter who overexerts himself to heal the wounded.” On top of that, a B-rank who’s also looking after a young brother.
For someone kind like Ryu Sunghyun, even if he couldn’t quite believe in me, it was understandable that he would mistake me for a good person.
Fine by me.
After all, Ryu Sunghyun is also a “main character” designated by the system, and since we’ll be involved a lot going forward, it was more convenient the less negatively he saw me.
And secondly, his perception of Cover’s personality was surprisingly different. Unlike Cha Seohu, he believed Cover would coldly lay out the reality for him.
They’re the same person—so why such a difference?
Is it the attitude, after all?
There were a few times I rejected Ryu Sunghyun’s requests while acting as Cover. And unlike Cha Seohu, who wears his emotions on his sleeve, Cover’s face is concealed, which probably adds to the impression.
Going through those events, Ryu Sunghyun must’ve reached his own conclusion—that Cover is a somewhat inconsiderate person. Damn it.
“Well then, I’ll go meet with the Guildmaster now.”
“Yes. Sorry for grabbing you like this out of nowhere.”
“No, it’s fine.”
My reply came out a bit stiff, tainted by bitterness, but in truth, I hadn’t even talked with Ryu Sunghyun for fifteen minutes. As he followed me out of the conference room, Ryu Sunghyun gave a faint smile as if he expected it.
“To be honest, I’m still curious about what you came to talk to the Guildmaster about...”
“...That’s really not possible.”
“Okay.”
Ryu Sunghyun chuckled, looking more at ease than earlier.
He genuinely seemed curious about the truth. Seeing that made me reflect on myself.
When I heard that question in the hospital room, the first thought that crossed my mind was, “I mustn’t hurt hyung.”
No matter what the truth was, I would have picked an answer that wouldn’t hurt him. And Ryu Sunghyun had noticed my intent.
It was honestly unnecessary. I already knew he wasn’t the kind of narrow-minded person who would be hurt by something like that. As I lamented, I suddenly realized something.
Wait a second. Could it be... I wasn’t confident I could handle seeing Sunghyun hyung disappointed in me?
For a brief moment, my vision shook like I’d been hit in the back of the head.
“......”
...I didn’t know. But I couldn’t confidently say no.
I always told myself to stop being overly conscious around Ryu Sunghyun—but it wasn’t so easy.
In the end, it was my mistake. Even after realizing I’d lied, he still treated me kindly and thought of me as a good person. Ryu Sunghyun was truly admirable.
“See you next time.”
I swallowed a sigh and added a farewell. Ryu Sunghyun made a strange expression. What was that?
“Mm, sure.”
Was I imagining things?
I turned away from Ryu Sunghyun, who had smoothly accepted my goodbye. My real objective today wasn’t him—it was the fake Song Jiwoon. Enough self-blame. I headed for the executive office.
Knock knock.
Before entering, I lightly knocked on the closed door.
I could sense a presence inside, so it was definitely the fake Song Jiwoon. I didn’t let my guard down and waited for a moment. Soon, a familiar voice came from inside.
“Come in.”
There was a faint smile in that voice. The attitude already irritated me, but I held back and opened the door.
Click, the hinges creaked softly, and beyond the opening, the same executive office from before appeared. As I turned my gaze, I saw the man lounging on the sofa.
The fake Song Jiwoon looked me in the eye and smiled thinly. The unease grew stronger.
If I just knew where the real Song Jiwoon was, I’d never have to deal with this bastard.
Such was my fate. I grumbled internally and shut the door. He politely gestured toward the seat in front of him.
“Have a seat. Oh, and just in case you’re wondering—I switched to informal speech because of soundproofing. As soon as you closed the door, I activated a measure to prevent our conversation from leaking out. Like last time.”
“Don’t care.”
Whether he used informal speech or not.
“Really?”
He shrugged, seemingly surprised. Don’t act like that with Song Jiwoon’s face. It’s infuriating.
“You may not care about speech, but I’m sure you don’t want what we’re about to say leaking out.”
As soon as I sat on the sofa opposite him, the fake opened his mouth.
“I watched the competition match. Thanks to that, Circle Guild’s name spread a fair bit. We’re getting a flood of inquiries from hunters wanting to join, way more than before.”
“......”
“I personally don’t mind if the guild stays small-scale, but you probably do, right? Since you can’t take care of everything yourself, you’d want Circle to grow stronger on its own and stabilize.”
“Enough useless chatter.”
I cut off the fake’s words as he started going off-track and made my demand.
“You said with your own mouth that if I won the match, you’d answer all my questions.”
“Hmm.”
“Song Jiwoon’s location. Answer. With proof.”
The system was important, but more than that, Song Jiwoon’s safety took priority. The fake looked perplexed at my demand.
“Oh, starting with that? Why?”
“Don’t change the subject—”
“No, I’m seriously asking. Didn’t I explain this last time? Song Jiwoon’s fine. Not in any danger. So it’s just... odd that you’d ask that first.”
Muttering to himself, the fake blinked with a puzzled look.
“Quit barking and answer the damn question.”
“Shouldn’t there be more urgent things you need to know? Like why you were sent back to the past, or...”
He briefly touched his lips, then continued.
“...about the seed planted inside that child.”
“......!”
I couldn’t manage my expression this time. A child, a seed—he was clearly referring to Cha Sahyeon.
He knows not just about my regression or identity... but even about the Seed of Catastrophe?
How the hell?
My blood went cold, and I couldn’t say a word. The fake nodded like that confirmed everything and opened his mouth.
“Let’s put Song Jiwoon aside for now. I swear on my life he’s fine. There’s a proper time to meet him anyway.”
“......”
“Just so you know, my life is more valuable than you think. So let’s talk about what’s necessary first.”
The fake stood up. He circled the not-so-large executive office and looked down at me.
“To make this easier to explain... let’s change the environment.”
“What?”
Piiing!
That’s when it happened. A strange snapping sound like a stretched thread breaking echoed, and my vision distorted completely.
“Wh...at...?”
I urgently grabbed the armrest of the sofa and tried to focus, but once my sight started blurring, it wouldn’t return. It was like someone had flipped a switch—I couldn’t keep my eyelids open.
“You fucking bastar—...”
I couldn’t hold out any longer, and my body tilted. The last thing I felt was a large hand supporting my head before darkness swallowed me.
“Wake up.”
“Ugh...”
The first thing I felt was pain. My whole body ached like I had the flu.
The worst of it was my headache. I reflexively grabbed my head and groaned, and someone nearby murmured in a slightly worried tone.
“Oh, is this method too much of a burden?”
“...?”
Only then was I able to open my eyes. As I caught my breath and sat up, I saw a man standing against a jet-black night sky.
A long-haired man wearing a decorated blindfold, with the Milky Way spread across the dark sky behind him. Realizing where I was, my face twisted.
“You son of a bitch...”
No doubt about it. This was the strange place I’d seen in that dream back in the hospital. This bastard had lured me all the way to Circle Guild just to drag me back here.
“That’s a bit harsh, no? Well, I did screw up, I suppose.”
“Would you speak nicely in this situation? What the hell is this garbage again...”
I was about to hurl more curses while getting up—when I saw the giant tree behind the fake and fell silent.
Naturally, since it was the same place, the tree I saw back then was here too. But it was different.
The first time, the tree had shone with a blinding golden light like a Christmas tree. But now...
“Looks dead, doesn’t it.”
“......”
“What I showed you in the dream last time was an illusion. This is the real one. And yes, it’s dead. Or, more accurately...”
The fake raised his hand and pointed far upward. I followed his finger, and it didn’t take long to see what he meant.
Light.
Yes, there was light up there.
It was very small, but like Venus—it shone brightly at the top of the tree.
“That’s the only part still alive. For now.”
“What do you mean?”
The fake slowly turned his head and looked at me. I felt chills crawl across my skin.
The man standing before me now was no longer “Song Jiwoon.” The aura was wildly powerful, the presence overwhelming. If this unknown man wanted to kill me, I’d die before even realizing it.
It was instinctive fear. I swallowed dryly and held onto my reason. Now wasn’t the time to fall apart.
“If you fail, that light will disappear too.”
“Fail?”
“Yes. Like all the countless branches that already withered and died.”
I still couldn’t understand what he was saying.
As I frowned in frustration, he looked pensive too. It wasn’t that he had some other reason—he just seemed unsure because it was his first time dealing with this too.
“Hm, maybe I need to offer some kind of reward to fully convince you.”
“...You’re planning on talking about compensation again?”
“This time, it’s something I need your cooperation for—so offering the reward first will speed things up.”
He flicked his hand through the air. Then something slowly descended from afar.
What landed in his palm was a single tree branch.
It was the branch closest to the light at the top. About ten centimeters long, with a few scattered leaves. It looked completely ordinary, but was dull and lifeless like it had been desaturated in black and white.
After a brief hesitation, the fake held it out to me.
“What. Don’t tell me this is the reward?”
“Yes. I think this will be the greatest reward for you.”
I couldn’t help but scoff. How the hell was this unknown thing supposed to be a reward?
Damn it. I should’ve never let him start spewing bullshit.
I messed up. I should’ve pressured him into revealing Song Jiwoon’s location immediately. As I swallowed my frustration, the fake sighed and said,
“It looks pitiful and useless, I know.”
“Glad you realize.”
“Of course. This is already a ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) time that has ended.”
“...!”
Before I could even process the words, my head shot up. But his face was half-covered by the blindfold, so I couldn’t read his expression.
“What, what do you mean...”
“This is the world and time that just ended.”
“......”
“Your memories came from here.”
My mind went completely blank.
“......”
Everything I’d been thinking vanished. Where I stood, the man before me, my situation—none of it mattered.
None of it... was important anymore.
[Seohu.]
A gentle voice brushed my ear like the wind.
I slowly reached out my hand. I could see it trembling uncontrollably in my vision. The branch felt rough, dry, brittle.
The fake, silently watching me accept the branch, finally spoke.
“If you cooperate with me, I’ll give you that as your reward.”
The end of the branch I held shook violently.
“If you want, you could even go back to that time.”

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