At 11 AM, Shin Binnari woke up from the sofa to the sound of a late alarm and looked around.

Still young in appearance. It was the 15-year-old Shin Binnari from not long after her mother passed away and South Korea escaped the nightmare of a Level 1 Gate.

When Kang Sujin tried to shake her awake in the morning asking if she was going to school, Binnari remained completely still. Sujin seemed to give up, only saying “Eat well” before leaving.

“……”

Kang Sujin’s house, where she had been living alone since middle school.

Fortunately, Binnari was able to take refuge here after her mother’s death.

She glanced around the house. As expected, Sujin couldn’t do any cleaning or laundry.

When told to clean, she would just gather everything in one place, and every time she did laundry, she would mix white clothes with colored ones.

Well, she was always prone to mistakes and forgetting things, so it couldn’t be helped, Binnari thought as she got up from the sofa and picked up the books sprawled on the floor first.

“… I should get to work.”

A to-do list appeared in Binnari’s mind.

After organizing all this, she would have to vacuum later and do the dishes. And do laundry too. She couldn’t go grocery shopping, but she had to somehow make dinner with the ingredients on hand.

Sujin’s house was quiet. There were no reporters coming, and she didn’t have to worry about her dad either.

She could just turn off the TV and internet and be done with it. And she had things to do.

In this environment, Binnari was gradually reviving her dying heart.

Yes, it seemed like she could recover steadily like this.

“… Should I write a thank-you letter?”

Muttering to herself, Binnari opened the small door of the two-room apartment.

It was still a bit embarrassing to say thank you directly. So she decided to write a letter.

Upon receiving the letter, Sujin would surely shed a few tears.

And she would stammer thank you, her face turning bright red. Seeing that would be quite a joy.

Ironically, it was also because of a person that Binnari, who had been caught between countless people, came to have hope to live until tomorrow.

While searching the desk for a suitable pen or stationery to write the letter, Binnari’s gaze suddenly fell on a sky-blue paper wedged between books.

“What’s this?”

She usually manages most of the incoming letters herself.

If it was this color, there’s no way she wouldn’t have known. A creepy feeling suddenly ran down Binnari’s spine.

[Thank you for applying to the open recruitment of the ‘Gunshin’ guild. We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted.

The admission date is MM/DD. As already notified, you must live within Gunshin for 2 years and this…]

At some point, Binnari’s hands trembled as she opened the envelope and looked at the letter inside.

Yes, that’s right. It was always like that. No one stayed by Binnari’s side.

It was the same with family. And it would have been the same with Sujin.

Still, it was so sad. Feeling like someone was stabbing her in the back with a knife, Binnari sank down in the small room.

There was only one place in this world where she could relax, and now even that was gone.

“We had a big fight that day, and she said she would make money and come back in 2 years, so I believed her. But in the end, she didn’t come back. She kept sending money, but at some point, that stopped too. And it just fizzled out like that.”

Rude, who told the story up to that point, just wrapped his knees. There was a hint of irritation, resignation, and sadness in his tone.

“After that, I didn’t trust people. I’m more unstable than others, and there’s a limit to how much people can endure me.”

Anyone would eventually leave Binnari’s side. Because Binnari is an unstable person.

So don’t fully trust others, and prioritize taking care of yourself first.

That was the last lesson Sujin left Binnari.

Since then, Binnari has been remarkably good at sensing when people are having a hard time enduring her and repeatedly stepping back.

The only two who have fully endured the unstable Binnari were the Lord of Chaos. And the man in front of her eyes.

And she still secretly thinks that even Kang Ihyeon might find it burdensome someday, since he’s human too.

“So I get really pissed off, but I don’t particularly resent her for leaving me. It was the way she did it that was the problem.”

So when you leave me someday, make sure to tell me honestly. The words came up to the tip of his chin, but Rude suppressed them again and roughly scratched his head.

“But if it was all a misunderstanding and she had intended to come back…”

If it was all a misunderstanding now? Not knowing what to do, Rude mumbled in front of Kang Ihyeon, who plopped down in front of him.

“Then you have to go and resolve it!”

“Huh?”

“What I felt while sticking with Rude is that even the things you agonize over whether to buy or not, you end up buying for sure later! You’re going to do this too eventually, right?!”

“W-well, that’s true.”

Indeed, Binnari was the type to agonize over things she wanted to buy but eventually end up buying them.

No wonder Kang Ihyeon said a few days ago, “You’re just delaying the shipping time, why don’t you buy it right away?”

“Still, it’s infuriating. I want him to suffer more. I want him to suffer as much as I did. But then again, there were also many good memories.”

Most status abnormalities caused by gates disappear when the gate is cleared.

And Rude and Kang Ihyeon have a track record of clearing Level 2 Gates together.

Honestly, they just need to combine their strength. With a single word of “I’ll clear it for you,” Rude – no, Shin Binnari – could save Kang Sujin.

That’s why the dilemma was even greater.

‘Save him? The guy who abandoned me in the past? Or just leave him be, since that’s his karma too?’

Looking at herself hesitating, Kang Ihyeon crossed his arms and let out a heavy sigh.

“Then think about it the other way. If you go down without resolving Kang Sujin’s issue here, can you endure that lingering feeling, Rude? Once we leave here, we’ll never see him again. Right?”

“…No.”

Kang Ihyeon looked down at Rude with a look that said ‘See?’ as if he was doing her a big favor by indulging her whims. Rude blinked at his flustered appearance.

“But why are you so irritated?”

“What? I’m not irritated at all?”

[The Lord of Chaos shook his head with a troubled expression, clearly indicating that Kang Ihyeon was upset.]

“No, you’re definitely angry right now. Did I do something wrong?”

“Huh? I said I’m not angry at all? It’s just that Rude is being too insensitive, that’s why I’m acting like this?”

The two bickered childishly for a while, arguing whether they were angry or not. Then Kang Ihyeon smiled at Rude.

“I’m just kidding. It’s just that I’m a little more anxious than usual. But come to think of it, we’ll be together anyway because of the oath.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. You must be tired.”

Rude readily apologized, not noticing the last words that could sound a bit eerie.

Looking straight ahead again, Kang Ihyeon was reaching out his hand with a smile as always.

“It’s okay. How could I refuse you? Do as you like. And I prefer Rude’s hot-blooded side over your groaning self.”

“…Really?”

“Yes, of course! Rude, you’re so refreshingly straightforward.”

Rude, feeling strange at the words that he liked her more, avoided eye contact and took Kang Ihyeon’s outstretched hand.

The two grunted as they got up from their seats, and Rude dusted off his trench coat.

She said she liked his hot-blooded and refreshingly straightforward side.

Rude, slightly flushed as he recalled those words again, cleared his throat with a ‘khm’ and spoke quite loudly.

“Yeah, groaning because of him doesn’t suit my personality! I’ll resolve it quickly, and if it works, great; if not, oh well. I’ll come to a hot-blooded conclusion and think about the rest later!”

“That’s right! I really like Rude’s hot-blooded side. Now, let’s think about what we should do together!”

Kang Ihyeon clapped his hands at Rude’s words. Rude, feeling more confident, crossed his arms and grinned.

“First, I…!”

“Yes!”

“I need to get back to my room before lights out.”

“Oh.”

Kang Ihyeon looked at his watch.

Come to think of it, it was already close to lights out. Rude opened a dimensional crack and glanced back at Kang Ihyeon.

“…Thanks. For counseling me like that today.”

“No, it was nothing. Just go and rest.”

“Well, um. Sometimes you seem to know me better than I do. If it weren’t for you, I would have just suffered alone.”

Rude, who unusually expressed his gratitude quietly, glanced at Kang Ihyeon before entering the dimensional crack. He was smiling with his eyes closed.

As he said good night and crossed the dimensional crack, Kang Ihyeon’s last words were faintly heard.

“I know you well. Of course I do…”

[This is the timeline separator]

“I’m pretty sure I said you’re supposed to enter the gate alone?”

“What? Honestly, I don’t care whether South Korea falls or not. I’m doing a favor by saving South Korea, so can’t I make this much of a request?”

And the next day in the conference room. Lee Jisung, Kang Ihyeon, and Rude wearing sunglasses were sitting with their arms crossed.

The strangely tense atmosphere from yesterday was gone, and both Rude and Kang Ihyeon maintained a confident attitude.

‘…Well, this was his original personality.’

Lee Jisung, recalling Rude’s personality he had seen on YouTube, let out a heavy sigh.

“No matter what, I specifically asked you not to let Kang Ihyeon know. And what? Not only Kang Ihyeon, but three people are going into the gate together?”

“Kang Ihyeon also cleared that Migeum Station Gate together. I can’t clear it alone without him.”

“I won’t tell Grandfather, I promise. I’m past the age to be controlled like that.”

“Then why bring Kang Sujin?! You two should be enough.”

“Ah, as a hostage.”

“What…!”

At Lee Jisung’s sharp tone, Kang Ihyeon smiled and placed his arms on the table, interlocking his fingers.

“That’s not the only reason, right?”

Kang Ihyeon kept smiling at Lee Jisung, just as he saw him.

In the moment Lee Jisung’s expression stiffened, pushing up his sunglasses. Kang Ihyeon grinned and continued.

“Lee Jisung, you’re right. I have connections. And I know about your work too.”

Rude stared intently at Kang Ihyeon. After that conversation, he had strongly insisted, “Let’s call Lee Jisung and have a three-way confrontation. Then I’ll take care of everything.” It seemed he knew something.

Kang Ihyeon smiled brightly.

“Lee Jisung, an A-rank crafter hunter, and before joining the ‘Gunshin’ guild, you were quite the gambler. But after joining Gunshin, you quieted down.”

Lee Jisung fiddled with his sunglasses, flinching. Kang Ihyeon smiled, then hardened his expression again.

And he continued in a quiet tone.

“I carefully looked at the people on the ‘Owl’ side and thought about it. They were all people who were famous before the establishment of Gunshin but were forgotten after joining. What’s the reason for that?”