7
I didn’t like the word “for now,” but I didn’t bother questioning it.
“I don’t have much information about that, so I can’t say much.”
Idniss’s tone became heavier.
“The only confirmed facts are that he has lived for a very long time… and that he is extremely powerful and strange.”
He fell silent with a dark face.
I had nothing to say.
I only listened, but it felt like I burned out completely.
I rubbed my face and said:
“So let me summarize. I have to kill a huge dragon, then capture an unknown insanely strong demon… and after that, I have to make you fall in love?”
“Correct.”
“And I have to take out the heart of the person you fall in love with?”
“Correct. You understand quickly.”
He smiled.
A bright, refreshing smile—like a tangerine.
I should have realized it when I heard “SSS rank.”
Even SS quests already made me want to throw up.
SSS must be insane.
I groaned.
Then he suddenly asked:
“Are you going to quit?”
[You have been offered to abandon the quest. Do you accept? Yes / No]
I froze.
If I quit here, the Demon Lord kid would clearly end up without support.
And he knew that better than anyone.
I clenched my lips.
I was angry—but not at him.
I couldn’t take it out on him, so I swallowed it.
I sighed deeply and placed my hand on his head.
“I’m not quitting. I’ll protect you until the end.”
[Quest continued.]
Idniss looked at me with unreadable eyes.
“Rest now. We don’t know when pursuers will arrive. We leave at dawn.”
I stood up and left the room.
That was the end of the conversation.
I went to my room and collapsed onto the bed.
[Logging out. Goodbye, Evan.]
I closed my eyes.
I forgot the game for a moment… and returned to reality.
Reality
I ate a simple meal.
After showering, I came into the living room with a towel around my neck.
I wiped my hair and put on briefs.
My upper body was bare.
I didn’t even own a bra.
I looked out the window.
The sun was setting.
The sky over the city was turning orange.
I’ve seen this view every day.
But somehow…
The sunset in this world felt more beautiful than the one in the city.
I leaned against the wall by the window.
Even though I was half-naked, I didn’t care.
No one could see me anyway from this height.
“Even if they did, they’d think I’m just a guy.”
Before, I used to feel hurt by even small words like that.
I used to bleed from them.
Like I was the most miserable person in the world.
And maybe I was.
My world was small.
And I was the most miserable thing in it.
I hugged my arms around myself.
Even under warm sunlight, I felt cold—like I was standing in a frozen tundra.
“Fight.”
“Fight and protect me.”
It was the first time.
Fighting while protecting someone.
I didn’t notice during the battle… but now I realized it wasn’t so bad.
Just a small thing.
A small chick had simply been added to my small world.
I dried my hair and went into the room.
I turned on the game device.
The pod opened smoothly.
I lay down.
It was more comfortable than a bed.
The device closed.
I closed my eyes in a soft blue light.
Back in the Game
I opened my eyes.
I got up from the bed.
The window was still open.
Unlike the tower apartment, this window was made of rough wood.
But the view outside was far better.
My tense nerves calmed down instantly.
This world suited me better.
I thought about going to check on the kid, but decided not to.
He was probably sleeping.
He had money and food anyway.
He’d manage.
So I should do my job.
I opened my inventory.
Now was the time to organize weapons and titles.
And I immediately saw a problem.
“Most durability is below 50%. Some are dangerously low.”
Gun durability.
“There’s no repair shop here, is there.”
If durability hits zero, the weapon breaks forever.
I clicked my tongue.
“Damn laziness.”
I closed the window.
I couldn’t deal with problems I couldn’t solve right now.
Then I opened the title window.
Titles were important.
I needed to memorize useful ones.
But most of the recent ones were useless.
Then—
“Ah.”
No.
There was one.
[Odin’s Eye]
[Vision adjusted to 6.0. Sensitivity +20. Once per day, you can see what you want.]
An SSS reward.
My chest filled with anticipation.
“Title change. ‘Odin’s Eye’”
[Title changed. Vision 6.0. Sensitivity +20. Special option activated.]
“Guh!”
My vision suddenly sharpened.
Too much.
The wooden ceiling looked like it was under a microscope.
My body swayed.
I covered my mouth.
I felt like I would throw up.
It took time to adjust.
But once I did…
I could see things I had never seen before.
“If I adapt to this, I won’t fail any sniper missions.”
I regretted complaining about it before.
This was powerful.
But at that level, sensitivity didn’t matter much anymore.
My body couldn’t do close combat like this anyway.
Now only the special ability remained.
The hidden effect.
I lay on the bed again.
I thought carefully.
What should I see?
I only had one chance per day.
I clicked my tongue.
I focused.
Simple thinking.
What do I want to see right now?
The answer came immediately.
I opened my eyes.
“Odin’s Eye… I will see the pursuers chasing Idniss.”
WHOOOSH—
The world shifted violently.
Everything turned white and distorted.
My body felt like it was being pulled somewhere else.
My hair flew upward.
Sparks filled the air.
And then—
Silence.
A sky full of color appeared.
I was standing in the middle of the evening sky.
A beautiful color field spread across the horizon.
I had never seen anything like it.
I slowly remembered why I used the skill.
I looked down.
There was Longterm.
And there was the inn.
Our inn.
“Why am I seeing the inn… when I said I’d see the pursuers?”
A bad feeling rose.
Before I could even move—
My body was pulled forward.
In an instant, I was at an 8th-floor window.
The Attack
The window was open.
Both rooms.
In one room—
Idniss was being grabbed by attackers.
In the other—
A masked demon stood over my sleeping body, raising a knife.
“…What the hell?!”
I rolled away.
The sword slammed into the bed.
The demon immediately raised his hand.
“Title change. ‘Silent Wind.’”
[Vision reduced to 2.0. Agility +30. Sensitivity +20.]
BOOM!
The room exploded.
Glass shattered everywhere.
Screams came from below.
I jumped out through the roof.
A shard hit my arm.
It stung.
I clicked my tongue.
“You’re all asking for it, huh.”
I almost pulled out Gurza—
but stopped.
Durability.
I sighed and switched weapons.
Phantom and Glock 17.
Gunfire echoed.
Enemies were already climbing down the building.
I moved fast.
Shot.
Reloaded mid-air.
Eliminated one after another.
“Where the hell is he…”
I scanned for the kid.
Fighting became harder without him.
And more annoying.
Gunfire kept coming from everywhere.
But the enemies were already thinning.
This fight would end quickly.
