CHAPTER 58………………..
[You have entered the “Hall of the Abyss.”]
With the dungeon entry message, a familiar map unfolded before my eyes. It was the dungeon where I had met Haryeong just a few days ago, and now I was back here with Hwansung.
Of course, I had to pretend like it was my first time…
As soon as I logged into the game after saying goodbye to Haryeong at the café and returning home, Hwansung sent me a party invite—as if he had been waiting all day just for this moment.
And with Jangyeong, who had recently been logging in more often because his favorite team got knocked out of the fall baseball playoffs and he had nothing else to do, the attendance rate of our guild’s DPS lineup was basically at perfect-attendance level.
The two DPS who tagged along when I went to dungeons were always random. Today again, Hwansung, the party leader, just invited whoever came to mind.
[Kim Sooki has joined the party.]
[Party] Kim Sooki: ♡♡
[Jangyeong has joined the party.]
[Party] Jangyeong: tlqkf.
Today’s DPS were Sooki and Jangyeong. Somehow… this party lineup felt familiar.
“This is the Blue Canyon party, isn’t it?”
[Party] Sunya: Whoa, isn’t this the first time since Blue Canyon that this party’s gotten together? Haha
[Party] Kim Sooki: Blue Canyon, Red Canyon, who cares… sigh
I typed in chat, happy to see them again, but the two of them didn’t really react. Maybe Blue Canyon had been pretty tough for them.
Well… thinking back, yeah, that day was rough.
Maybe that’s why—
[Guild] Cheonmadaeje: Finally, I can breathe the breath I’ve been holding back… Ah, cherish this precious air filling my chest…!
[Guild] Hoe: Hooha, hooha, hooha, hooha
[Guild] Issah-hyung: Long live Koreaㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ0ㅠ~~!!
As soon as the two DPS who would enter the dungeon were decided, the rest of the guild let out audible sighs of relief. Normally they’d joke about it, but today their reactions seemed oddly intense.
Could it be… going into a dungeon with me was actually exhausting? But last time they said it didn’t matter since Hwansung, the healer, was the one doing all the carrying anyway…
Hmm…
I frowned slightly at the monitor.
Everyone here was a veteran, so of course my clumsy controls must’ve been frustrating for them. But it wasn’t like one mistake of mine could wipe a raid—it was just a dungeon. I thought they either didn’t care much or just laughed at my mistakes, treating them as content. But judging by their reactions today, maybe that wasn’t the case after all.
Even though I had improved a bit, the standards of veterans were still way too high.
I hesitated. Technically, I’d already been to this dungeon, but since Hwansung thought it was my first time, I had planned to deliberately mess up some mechanics…
“Maybe I should dodge everything seriously this time, even if it feels like cheating.”
That way, guildmates would at least smile when coming along next time.
“Good thing.”
Since I’d already been here once, unlike with Haryeong, I could probably perform better this time.
[Party] Sunya: Okay, let’s go!!
And so, though it was the same place as before, this time the Hall of the Abyss began with familiar party members, not strangers.
We had just defeated the first boss. I still got hit a few times, but clearly less than last time. Sooki and Jangyeong could probably enjoy the run now, and Hwansung wouldn’t get suspicious.
[Party] Hwansung: Wait. Stop.
Usually, Hwansung only said “wait a sec” before boss fights to explain mechanics. But today, oddly, even after defeating a boss, he told us to stop.
Normally, Sooki would’ve grumbled about wanting to move on, but instead, she hit the brakes without a word. Same with Jangyeong. Both of them seemed strangely off today.
The two who usually cracked weird jokes and spammed skills were now quiet, almost reverent, like they were at a temple. And it wasn’t exhaustion—it felt more like they were being cautious.
But cautious? In a dungeon so easy for them they could clear it one-handed? These were the people who’d breezed through Blue Canyon…
“Am I just imagining things?”
I shifted my focus back to Hwansung. After telling us to stop, he went silent for a long while.
“Something urgent come up?”
Maybe he’d ordered delivery food, like Jangyeong last time. Though for some reason, I couldn’t imagine Hwansung eating takeout.
[Party] Hwansung: Who are you?
“…Huh?”
I stared wide-eyed at the chat box.
“Who are you”? Who was he talking to?
I glanced at the others. Jangyeong had slunk into a corner and literally faced the wall. And Sooki… was just standing silently.
Jangyeong was weird enough, but Sooki especially felt like a different person today. Quiet, not cursing. It was unsettling.
So it wasn’t just me—Hwansung must’ve felt something was off too. Just as I was about to type in agreement, Hwansung suddenly turned his attention to me.
[Party] Hwansung: I said, who are you?
“…Wait. Me?”
With trembling hands, I typed:
[Party] Sunya: You mean… me? ㅠㅠ?
[Party] Hwansung: Who else would I mean?
He was talking about me.
[Party] Hwansung: You’re not Hae-ya.
[Party] Hwansung: What are you?
“…”
Shouldn’t he be suspicious of Sooki instead? How was I the weird one?
And most of all—why would Hwansung, of all people, say something like that to me?
[Party] Sunya: No, I am Yoon Hae-ya, reallyㅠㅠ…
[Party] Hwansung: Stop lying.
Hwansung kept pressing me, even demanding I log out.
I grew more and more upset. “What did I even do?”
[Party] Sunya: I’m really me…ㅠㅠ Why are you suddenly acting like thisㅠㅠ?
I just wanted to know the reason. Hwansung finally gave one.
[Party] Hwansung: Hey.
Since he usually called me gently, that curt “Hey” hit especially hard.
[Party] Hwansung: Hae-ya never dodges AoEs that well.
“…Huh?”
[Party] Hwansung: Our Hae-ya always gets hit by mechanics. Why are you suddenly dodging so perfectly?
“…”
So… because I dodged a little better than usual, Hwansung suspected I wasn’t really me? His suspicion was understandable, but still…
“It’s not even like I dodged that well… geez.”
Of all the reasons to be doubted, being “too good at dodging” was the last thing I expected.
[Party] Hwansung: And more than that—Hae-ya told me she would make mistakes on purpose so I could see her. But here you are, making fewer mistakes. That means you’re not her.
[Party] Kim Sooki: ♡♡… Should’ve just rolled a tank like Nyangmeong-hyung.
It seemed like Hwansung was determined not to believe me. In desperation, I snapped a photo of my monitor with my phone and posted it in the group chat.
[Party] Sunya: I just posted a screenshot of my dungeon screen in the group chat, please checkㅠㅠ…!!
Hwansung fell silent, presumably checking. But even though it only took seconds to confirm, his silence dragged on.
Finally, Sooki started spamming flashy skills in front of him, trying to snap him out of it.
[Party] Kim Sooki: It’s really her; stop stalling and let’s go already.
But Hwansung still wouldn’t budge. And then he finally spoke again—
[Party] Hwansung: So you’re saying the person in front of me really is Hae-ya… and she dodged those AoEs?
[Party] Kim Sooki: Yes.
[Party] Jangyeong: …Sooki?
[Party] Jangyeong: No, Hwansung, what are you even saying right now^^ I literally saw Sunya get hit by the boss earlier, lol.
[Party] Hwansung: Hyung, why are you suddenly using dialect? You only do that when you’re flustered.
[Party] Jangyeong: I am from Busan, you know^^…
Jangyeong usually didn’t use dialect much, especially not in writing. But now, suddenly, he was.
[Party] Jangyeong: Ahem!! Anyway, Hwansung^^ Sunya did get hit earlier. So let’s just move on, okay^^~
[Party] Hwansung: No, wait.
Ignoring Jangyeong’s insistence, Hwansung turned to me again.
[Party] Hwansung: Baby.
[Party] Sunya: …Yes?
When he called me that, Jangyeong suddenly started tapping left and right repeatedly, making his character shuffle nervously. He looked like someone anxious out of his mind.
“Seriously, what’s up with Sooki and Jangyeong today…?”
Regardless, Hwansung spoke again.
[Party] Hwansung: Did you… secretly run this dungeon without telling me?
