Chapter 07
Simply not bursting into tears or collapsing to the ground was praiseworthy, but no one would recognize that fact. While I hesitated, the Rezen began to close in on the crowd. The viscous fluid dripping onto the asphalt sizzled as it spread outward, eating into the ground.
“Aaaargh!”
“Help me!”
Before an interdimensional creature adapted to Earth, escaping was the smartest choice. But not everyone could react well to sudden chaos. Some people managed to run to safety, while others were paralyzed by fear, their legs giving out and leaving them exposed to danger.
“If you’re scared, should we get out of here?”
Kang Gun-hoo, the only one still composed, asked me calmly. I wanted to nod immediately.
But—
[Skill “Future Sight Lv.1” activates!]
—before I could move, the skill triggered automatically, as if to stop me. Scenes of the immediate future flashed before my eyes like a film reel.
〈Out of the way!〉
A large man, paths overlapping with a boy in a school uniform, shoved the child aside.
〈Ah…!〉
The boy was thrown straight into the Rezen’s venom, letting out a scream of agony. The stench of burning flesh filled the air. His cries, mixed with sobs, gradually weakened. A boy who had just entered middle school would become the first victim of this gate opening.
“Gasp!”
The vision vanished as suddenly as it came, but the boy’s scream rang vividly in my ears. I knew from the game’s storyline that Future Sight showed reality.
“Baek Woo-jin?”
Hands trembling, I opened the inventory window. I was already inside Baek Woo-jin’s body—and things like this would only keep happening.
[B-rank item, Summon the Azure Blade.]
The sword that materialized in my hand was heavier than expected, dragging my shoulder downward.
“You plan to fight with hands shaking like that?”
Kang Gun-hoo’s tone was more curious than worried.
‘He’s right. This is just a game world. That boy is only a character.’
“Get out of the way!”
But when the future I’d seen began to unfold, my body leapt forward on instinct. I refused to smell the scent of burning human flesh.
“What’s he doing?”
Gun-hoo’s bewildered voice echoed faintly behind me.
I decided to revise my opinion of Baek Woo-jin, whom I’d thought pathetic. To face monsters like this and still fight, even with bravado, was courageous.
‘Harder to swing than I thought.’
Even with all of Woo-jin’s abilities and skills intact, the sword didn’t move as easily as I’d imagined. I regretted not practicing yesterday.
“You okay?”
I stood in front of the fallen boy, sword raised. I wanted to sound cool, but my voice trembled pitifully.
“H-hic… hic…”
Tears streamed down his face as he clutched his leg, which had been lightly splattered with venom yet bore a deep wound where bone peeked through. If he’d awakened even a single hunter skill, he wouldn’t be hurt this badly. The thought pained me.
‘No—if I hadn’t hesitated, he wouldn’t have been hurt at all.’
I’d been wrong to weigh this world as “just a game” or these people as mere characters. As long as I lived here, this was reality.
“If you can move, try stepping back.”
Seeing someone more terrified than I was steadied my nerves. My shaking arm finally found its center.
‘I am an A-rank hunter. I am strong. I am Baek Woo-jin.’
Repeating the mantra, I readied my sword as the Rezen approached.
[Skill “Weapon Mastery Lv.30” activated. Weapon proficiency increases.]
The sword now fit my grip as if I’d trained with it for years.
[Skill “Blessing of Lightning Lv.28” activated. Blue lightning supports your will.]
Lightning struck from the sky, dancing along the blade in jagged blue sparks. Each skill I invoked filled my chest with something like courage.
‘If I treat this like the game, I can handle it.’
My vision cleared.
“I… I can’t stand up.”
The boy, calmed by realizing I was a hunter, managed to speak. Admirable—but if he stayed put, more venom could cause worse injuries.
‘What was the move from the game?’
I stabbed the sword into the ground. Sparks raced along the Rezen’s spreading venom and burst into dazzling flame.
“Phew…”
A sigh of relief escaped me. I’d cleared the venom around us. It wouldn’t matter unless I defeated the creature itself, but at least I’d bought time.
Guwwek.
But good news never comes alone. Having adapted to this world, the Rezen let out an ugly sound and began tearing through asphalt and exercise equipment, testing its strength and gauging how many people remained.
“When you feel a bit better, run as far back as you can.”
I gripped the sword tighter and stepped toward the Rezen, legs trembling. The creature turned all eight of its clustered eyes toward me through the film of venom.
‘Don’t flinch.’
[Skill “Moonlit Swordsmanship Lv.35” activated. The moonlight’s blessing infuses your hand!]
A clear path for my blade unfolded in my mind. Trusting it, my body moved naturally. The blue-glowing sword pressed the Rezen hard. The venom wall prevented a fatal blow, but the sparks still seared its flesh.
‘It’s working! I can do this.’
The more skills I used, the lighter my body felt, as if it was finally mine. My blade carved graceful arcs, closing in on the creature’s core. The gush of venom lessened as its strength waned.
When I was within half a meter, a circular wall of venom suddenly enclosed me.
‘A trap!’
The confidence I’d just built crumbled.
‘It was luring me in while pretending to weaken.’
I’d known these aliens were clever, but I’d grown careless.
‘How did Baek So-hyuk beat this monster? There was an episode like this…’
As the protagonist, So-hyuk had defeated it effortlessly. He’d had a technique for this, but I couldn’t copy it. His swordsmanship was on another level entirely.
“Sink or swim, let’s try.”
Moonlit Swordsmanship focused on smooth, precise strikes that confused the enemy and pierced weak points rather than raw power. To make up for my lack of destructive force, I pushed my physical strength and the sword’s electric charge to their limits.
‘Max out the mana—now.’
Crisis sharpened my instincts; I adapted to the game’s logic quickly. It didn’t take long to find the one clear opening my skill revealed.
“Hup!”
With a shout like rushing wind, I thrust into the center of the shrinking venom wall. It split with a wet crack and disintegrated under the surging electricity. Startled, the Rezen recoiled.
Drained from using so much mana without restraint, I forced my weary body to swing again. Sparks at my feet propelled my heavy legs like light.
At last the Rezen could no longer retreat. Seizing the moment, I drove my sword into its heart.
“Whew…”
I exhaled, tension slipping away before I realized it.
“Is it… dead?”
The words slipped out unfiltered—a dangerous line, like a spell that could raise the dead. I quickly raised my guard again, but it was too late.
Wewwek.
The Rezen, with its final strength, conjured a tidal wave of venom above my head. My mana exhausted, I moved too slowly.
‘The lightning’s blessing… it’s gone.’
All I could do was squeeze my eyes shut, hoping this sturdy hunter’s body could withstand the pain.
