The Novel's Extra-Chapter ss19: Side Story 19 – Dream in a Dream (19)

“Then, why don’t you take off that gas mask first?” Aileen ordered me with her Spirit Speech.

My hands moved towards my gas mask and grabbed it. However, I simply stood there without taking it off.

“What the? Why aren’t you taking it off?”

Aileen grimaced and seemed taken aback by the sudden turn of events.

I felt surprised too. Her Spirit Speech couldn’t force me, but merely suggested that I take off my gas mask.

“You…”

Aileen muttered while still in shock. She placed both hands on her waist and gathered her mana into an aura for a more powerful Spirit Speech.

“Aileen, please cut it out.”

Thankfully, Jin Seyeon stepped in and stopped her. Aileen glared at me with shame, but angrily stomped away.

A system message suddenly popped up.

[Realization – You have become susceptible to Spirit Speech, but some of the power to resist it has remained with you.]

[Tower of Wish’s Bonus – You have received a special inheritance!]

[You have inherited two items stored in the player’s storage!]

Inherited Item ? [Dark Ore Arrow]

Inherited Item ? [Orb of Regeneration]

An arrow and a green orb fell from the ceiling. I immediately snatched them before they struck the floor and shoved them into my pocket. Thankfully, Aileen didn’t see and Jin Seyeon busily consoled her.

“Hey!”

Aileen suddenly called when I tried to make a run for it.

I nonchalantly turned around to find her glaring at me.

“Who are you? Also, take off that ugly gas mask while I’m being nice.”

“Pfft!”

I snickered without realizing it. Aileen seemed as stubborn as I designed her to be.

“What are you laughing at?” Aileen raised a brow and asked.

I contemplated whether I should make a run for it, but realized I had no reason to hide my face from her.

“You won’t know me even if you saw my face.”

“That’s something we’ll decide. Also, we won’t tell anyone who you are. I don’t have that many friends, you see.”

Aileen reassured me.

I could trust them as heroes. Actually, I should be the one begging for some sort of relationship with them if I had the chance. I had nothing to lose by introducing myself.

“If you say so.”

I promptly took off my gas mask.

Aileen and Jin Seyeon nervously gulped as they watched me.

“Oh… uhmm…”

“Hmm…”

As expected, both of them seemed clueless even after seeing my face.

“I think I saw him on the street once?” Aileen muttered with a serious look.

I put on my gas mask again and laughed. “I told you. I’m just an ordinary mercenary.”

Aileen stared at me for a while before nodding.

“You’re right. I have no idea who you are…”

“Did you descend from Baekdu Mountain by any chance? I heard there are a lot of hidden experts there…”

Jin Seyeon pressed her right fist and left palm together like some sort of greeting from a Shaolin movie.

Oh?! Aileen’s eyes widened as if what Jin Seyeon said made perfect sense.

“No…” I muttered with a bitter smile while looking at them.

***

Four days passed.

Rachel aimlessly wandered around South Korea without any results. She felt certain she had arrived in a parallel universe, but couldn’t figure anything else out. Most importantly, she had no clue how to clear this test.

“That will be nine thousand won.”

A staffer at Kimcheon Food Country[1]informed Rachel.

She extended a card to the staffer. The General Assembly had provided this license in a card form to them.

“Do you need a receipt?”

“Yes.”

“Please have a seat over here.”

Rachel sat at a table with the receipt in her hand.

[Grilled Cheese Cutlet – 9,000 won]

“…”

All eyes in the restaurant naturally stared at her dining alone. Her flowing golden hair, deep blue eyes that resembled the ocean, beautiful facial features, and tired yet elegant demeanor made it difficult for ordinary people to approach.

“Phew…”

Rachel sighed while pouring water into her cup. This world didn’t have any mana or monsters. She felt confused at first, but slowly adapted since humans still lived here.

— Breaking News. An unidentified body was found at a back alley in Myeongdong at two in the morning today.

The news on the TV attracted Rachel’s attention.

— The body looked like it had been ravaged by a wild animal…

Tak.

The staffer set the plate of sizzling cheese cutlet on the table.

Sss… Sss…

Rachel salivated at the delicious smell.

“Are you a model from overseas?”

The staffer asked, and Rachel shook her head no. 𝗳𝐫𝘦e𝔀𝚎𝚋𝓃𝚘vℯl. 𝑐o𝚖

“Wow, I thought you were a Greek goddess when I first saw you.”

“Thank you…”

“Omo! Your Korean is really good! How is your pronunciation so good?”

“Ah… haha…”

Rachel could only awkwardly laugh. Everyone in the restaurant kept staring and she tried her best to ignore them while eating her food in discomfort.

She finished her grilled cheese cutlet in less than three minutes, but one plate didn’t satisfy her. This world had no mana, so her main source of sustenance had disappeared. Her required caloric intake became four to five times that of a male adult.

“No…”

Nevertheless, Rachel suppressed her hunger. Using her contribution points to order food had been painful enough. She couldn’t afford to spend hundreds of thousands of won on just food.

“Thank you for the meal.”

“Omo, you finished already?”

Rachel left Kimcheon Food Country and came out to the streets. She headed towards the crime scene just on the news.

— An unidentified body was found at a back alley in Myeongdong at two in the morning today.

She went searching for the back alley, but the street vendors with food kept attracting her. She tried to ignore them, but found herself staring at one of the stalls that sold fishcakes and hotdogs. The potato hotdog[2], which had a hotdog on a stick riddled with potatoes, looked especially appetizing. Rachel found herself walking towards the stall as if bewitched.

***

“Hehe…”

She giggled while sitting on a bench at a nearby park.

Rachel finally felt full, which lifted her mood. It felt like being on cloud nine and all her worries disappeared. She truly felt at peace now.

“Ah!”

However, she soon snapped out of it and came back to her senses when she received an alert on her smartwatch.

[You are running low on contribution points.]

She acknowledged the fact that she overspent on food, but did she really spend that much?

[Contribution Points: D- ]

[Converted to Won: 300,000 Won]

Rachel seriously pondered over her contribution points when a cat suddenly jumped from a tree and sat beside her. She gasped in surprise at the white furry creature with cute watery eyes.

“Nyang.”

The cat lay on the bench as if asking Rachel to rub its back. She mustered the courage and slowly extended her hand.

Growl…

A faint growl came from somewhere. Rachel almost lost consciousness, but managed to hold on. She focused all her senses on stroking the cat’s back to stay conscious. However, she didn’t have the luxury to compose herself.

A sinister mana that reeked of stench flowed from somewhere nearby like cigarette smoke. This mana openly taunted her.

Rachel grabbed Galatine and glared at her surroundings, but didn’t spot anything.

Did it finally start?

“Whitey, get going.”

She placed the cat on the ground. It looked at her before scurrying away.

Rachel stood from the bench and began looking for a suitable place to fight because the park would only involve innocent people. The ones tailing her noticed her intentions and quietly followed.

Rachel entered a secluded alley when the sun almost set. She walked deep inside before stopping in the middle.

“You can come out…”

Whiiiiss—

A sinister red and black wind blew and gathered into a person. This swordsman wore a robe that seemed to be made from the sinister wind.

The swordsman looked at Rachel.

“Princess… Do you know… who I am?”

Rachel felt shocked, but did her best not to show it. She clearly remembered this swordsman.

“Lifeat…”

She muttered his name.

“Ah… Kuhahahaha!”

Lifeat burst into laughter along with a hideous smile. He laughed hysterically like a clown for a while before glaring at her.

“What are…” Rachel muttered as she took a few steps back.

Ughh… Kekekeke!

Lifeat let out a gruesome scream as his body uncontrollably contorted. It went on for some time before he calmed down.

“Hmm…”

He calmly muttered. However, Lifeat no longer controlled his own body. Another person’s soul had entered like a possession.

The man stared at Rachel with only the white of his eyes showing and he spoke in a sullen voice.

“Hello, princess. It’s been a while.”

Rachel would never forget this voice. Her heart sank and she couldn’t utter a sound. She coughed and cleared her throat before continuing in a shaky voice.

“You’re… hiding behind others as usual.”

They had an ill-fated relationship. She respected him at one point, but he became her country’s enemy.

Rachel pulled out Galatine and pointed it at Lancaster, who simply grinned.

“This place isn’t suitable for our reunion. I will appear at the most appropriate place in front of you when the time comes, princess.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I’m talking about Hampton, princess. Have you already forgotten?”

Rachel’s shoulders trembled before she retorted, “Forget about forgetting. That place no longer exists.”

Lancaster tilted his head and responded in a downcast voice, “Princess, do you not wish to return there?”

“Get a grip! We… we can no longer go back to that place!”

Rachel screamed with every ounce of her voice. Nothing could change the past and no one could revisit it. She resolved to do her best so the past would never repeat itself.

The corners of Lancaster’s mouth curled up.

“As expected, it seems like you haven’t realized the truth behind this world.”

“…”

“Princess, you remember the ones who died in your place that day, right? However, remembering them won’t bring them back. I already told you, didn’t I?”

“I’m not trying to remember them. It’s that I can’t forget them.”

Rachel snapped back as she focused and tightly gripped her sword.

Lancaster stared at her with deep eyes devoid of any emotions.

“Princess, you know nothing. Everything can be traced back to that place.”

He kept trying to convince her of something.

“That’s why I’m trying to rewrite the events of that tragic day.”

However, Rachel couldn’t understand him.

“I hope you will reach me soon, princess. I will wait for you at that place with this hope. That place… with less darkness and more sunlight. Less cold and more warmth than this world we live in…”

Lancaster finished his last words and left Lifeat’s body.

The atmosphere changed the moment Lancaster disappeared. The swordsman’s body shook like a puppet let loose from its strings and charged at Rachel with his sword.

“Die!”

His scream was filled with hatred.

Rachel swung Galatine and parried the attack.

Clang!

The two swords clashed and sparks flew across the air.

Her enemy’s sword carried the heavy weight of his conviction. It felt as if he would do whatever it took to stab her heart, but Rachel tried her best not to take his life. She only parried his attacks in this life-and-death battle. She hoped he would eventually tire out as she displayed a graceful and merciful swordsmanship.

“…?”

The moonlight suddenly flickered and she spotted another assailant aiming at her when she looked up. No, countless shadows scattered on top of the alley.

They formed pairs and charged at her, but Rachel resisted and pushed them back.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Half of them crashed into the wall, but Rachel sustained eleven wounds in the process. One on her shoulder, another on her calf, another on her waist…

Numerous enemies remained.

Rachel closed her eyes and summoned her spirit, but only a tiny one appeared. This world didn’t have enough mana and spirits.

She could only depend on her sword and tightly gripped it with all her focus.

“Euff!”

However, her strength left her body. Her arms and legs gave out and her hand around Galatine uncontrollably trembled. It felt as if something had sucked the strength out of her body like roots sucking water out of the ground.

“Eugh…”

She lost her balance and fell to one knee. Her vision grew blurry.

Rachel felt a burning sensation on her wounds and realized the assailants had coated their swords with poison. She could’ve easily neutralized this poison with her mana, but mana didn’t exist in this world.

Rachel used Galatine like a cane to stand up. She looked up and saw the group of assailants charging at her with their swords. They unmistakably aimed for her heart.

Bang!

A gunshot echoed out and a bullet pierced one of the assailant’s shoulders. The impact flung the assailant back and he crashed into a wall.

Step… Step…

The sound of someone’s footsteps followed.

The assailants held their breath as they looked towards the footsteps. Rachel looked as well.

A man’s silhouette appeared. He held a pistol in one hand and a book (the Book of Truth) in the other as he approached them.

“What are you looking at?”

He asked before suddenly pulling the trigger.

One, two, three, four—

Four gunshots echoed in the air.

The assailants jumped and widened their distance from him. None of them attacked and they only continued to observe.

Meanwhile, he approached Rachel and knelt on one knee before extending his hand. Then he looked at her.

“Get up. It’ll be hard for me to fight them all alone.”

1. There is a restaurant chain in Korea called Kimbap Heaven, “Kim Bap Cheon Guk”. The author played on this by naming it “Kim Cheon Bap Guk,” which translates to Kimcheon Food Country ?

2. Potato hotdog is a famous street food in South Korea. You can google potato hotdog for more information. ?