The World After the Fall

Kanghun grinned and the men with swords circled around Mino.

"Stay still… we'll have some fun soon."

Mino closed her eyes and looked down.

It seemed as if she had given up on everything, but the Assassins of the Dark Forest knew what happened to enemies when she made such a face.

Mino's hands moved as the three men jumped at her.

The movements were so quick that they weren't even visible. The three men excluding Kanghun shook violently as if they had been struck with lightning and fell down. There were daggers in each of their chests. Kanghun's face turned grim.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I may have thrown them too hard because I'm pissed."

Mino smiled but her words became more vicious as she spoke.

"I failed on luring the monster… this partner won't cooperate… and the Spirit Weapon is in some fool's hands… so everything is working out… not so pleasantly."

Kanghun felt his heart dropping as he heard the woman's ominous words.

"Why don't you return that sword to the owner?"

"…What if I won't?"

"It's bad to have such weapon that's not suited for your level. You will face trouble."

"This weapon fits me better than that fool."

"You think so? Then I guess I have no choice."

Mino took off her black robes and revealed her dark stealth cloth. Within her cloth, seven daggers came out to float by themselves in the air.

"You will now face trouble."

Kanghun looked at her for a second and answered bitterly.

"Right… you really were the Witch of Massacre."

"Huh? Did you know?"

"…how can I not know? You lured all those monsters so easily. Only a fool would not know."

Kanghun answered as he gritted his teeth. Mino slapped her forehead and mumbled, "Dammit. Leader will lecture me again…"

Then, a vicious aura of energy began radiating from within her. Mino, who was posing as Non-Adapter was now exploding with Spirit Power only a high-level Adapter could use.

"So, it is true that Assassins from the Dark Forest can control their Spirit Power."

"You know a lot for being a grunt."

"…Who asked for the job?"

"Who cares? You guys killed too many Non-Adapters that there are so many who want you guys to die."

"What, there's no way Dark Forest would work for such…"

Then Kanghun seemed to have realized something and asked, "Wait - the job. Was it a personal request?"

"Why would it matter?"

"If that is the case, you can't fight 'us'. Witch."

"What?"

Mino then felt something changing in the surroundings. The forests around had been suspicious for a while because she felt a lot of Spirit Powers. But it was distant and wasn't far from the village so she didn't think it was anything serious. There was the possibility that they were hunters going out on a night hunt, but they were all gathering in one place.

Mino's face turned pale. She remembered Kanghun sending the messenger bird.

"You think I didn't ask for reinforcements when I have the Witch from the Dark Forest and a man who killed a bihorn with one attack?"

"…"

"Well, I would not have asked for this much if I knew I would get hands on this Spirit Weapon so easily."

Shadowy figures began showing themselves above the forest. There were a lot of them. Most were at least 1st stage Adapters while some were in the 2nd stage. And among them was someone who Mino wasn't sure if she could with a one-on-one fight against. It was a man with black cape and a hood.

"Black Fox… you're here too?"

"Witch of Massacre."

"You're that bored?"

"Think of it as an honor… that half of the Red Fox gathered just to kill you."

Klant the Black Fox. He was famous around the region for being a powerful 3rd stage Adapter and the Clan Master of the Red Fox Clan.

"…this is so freaking great."

She spoke but the situation was dire. Mino counted the numbers of the enemies and asked without looking back.

"Hey, memory-loss. Oh, wait, the Strong of the Depth. Are you there?"

The voice came from behind.

"Yes."

"I know it's bit late but I'm sorry."

"…"

"I just wanted to make it look like the Red Fox had been killed by the Strong of the Depth."

"I know."

"You did?"

Mino answered in surprise and Jaehwan repeated what he memorized in an emotionless voice.

"HAHA. Red Fox, I was waiting for you. I am the Strong of the Depth who has come to punish you."

"…so you memorized it all but didn't do it?"

"I might have used it if it was better worded."

Mino grinned.

"Haha, I see. Well, I'm sorry I forced it on you."

Mino smiled but her voice became serious.

"I'm really sorry."

There were a lot of mixed emotios in it. Jaehwan looked at Mino's back wordlessly. He knew she did not mean any harm, but it wasn't something that could be done just by saying sorry. Mino bit her lips and spoke.

"You should run."

"Why?"

"Because I can't save you."

That was her last way to repent. She knew that Jaehwan could not run. Jaehwan did not have any [Walking] skill that would enable him to run out of this mess. So Mino threw something over her back.

"What is this?"

"It's a [Stone of Escape]. You can teleport to nearest fortress. I only have one, so you should use it."

"What about you?"

Mino did not answer and Jaehwan looked down at the stone. It looked very familiar. It had the shape of the stone that Jaehwan despised the most.

But this wasn't the stone that would send him back to the past. This stone was to save someone of the present.

It was the stone to save someone to have them move on to the future.

"Yoonhwan…'

Jaehwan thought of his friend. The friend whom he could not save at the 98th floor of the tower.

Yoonhwan also held on the stone at the time.

He spoke as if it was the [Returning Stone] but Jaehwan knew that it wasn't anything like it. What if Jaehwan handed this stone to Yoonhwan at the time?

Jaehwan clenched the stone as if the stone was the answer he had learned. The feeling of the stone's rough edges came to him as if it were alive. Jaehwan spoke.

"Hey, let me ask you one thing."

"…What is it."

Mino did not look back and answered in tense voice.

"If you could go back to the past, would you go?"

Mino became dumbfounded.

"…Do you have to ask such thing at this time?"

She couldn't understand but she answered without hesitation as if the answer had been made long ago.

"I will never go back."

"Why?"

"Because I have lived so hard."

She didn't go into any details but Jaehwan felt like he understood her.

"If I die, I die today. I'm not going back."

However, that answer made Jaehwan's heart pound. She would not know that her answer just changed her entire fate.

'Yes, that will do.'

Jaehwan placed his hand on Mino's shoulder and walked up. Mino looked at him wordlessly. That was the step she could not dare to take, but Jaehwan stepped forward fearlessly.

"You will not die today."