I’ll Tell You Everything

Roughly donning his clothes, he strapped the True Dragon Bone Sword, a gift from Elder Cheongeom, to his waist before leaving the house.

This outing was for his appointment with Lee Heejin, and he had already formulated a rough strategy for how their conversation would unfold.

The strategy was simple.

‘If you speak, I’ll speak too.’

‘Otherwise, forget it.’

Since Lee Heejin was so intensely curious, there was no real reason to hide anything.

In truth, there wasn’t much to hide, and he was quite curious about Lee Heejin’s true identity himself. His plan was to reciprocate: if she revealed her secrets first, he would reveal his.

“…But why is the path getting so desolate?”

He had typed in the address Lee Heejin provided and was following the directions. However, the closer he got to their meeting spot, the fewer people he encountered.

Around him were abandoned construction sites, and the few buildings that stood looked far from pristine.

It seemed like an area that had yet to be restored after a monster battle.

‘Why… would she call me to a place like this?’

‘Surely, she’s not planning to use force if I don’t talk… is she?’

“Nah, no way… She probably just lives nearby, that’s all.”

Deciding to think nothing more of it, he continued toward the location Lee Heejin had sent, eyes fixed on his phone. Following the map app, he arrived at a dilapidated building that could easily be mistaken for a ruin.

“You’re here?”

Lee Heejin was waiting for him in front of the building.

“Why did you suggest meeting here of all places? There are so many nicer spots…”

“The coffee at the cafe here is amazing. Let’s go in.”

“…A cafe? Here?”

No matter how he looked at it, it was a wonder the building hadn’t collapsed, let alone housed a cafe. Who would even pass through this area?

“The truly great restaurants are always hidden away like this.”

Following Lee Heejin inside, he found a surprisingly legitimate-looking cafe. It occupied about half of the building’s first floor, boasting a good number of seats, yet, as expected, there were no customers.

“Welcome.”

A man, presumably the cafe’s owner, stood behind the counter. He was beaming, seemingly delighted to have a customer after such a long time.

“I’ll have an Americano. What do you want, Oppa? It’s on me.”

“For a man, it’s always chocolate latte.”

“One iced Americano and one chocolate latte, please. We’ll be dining in.”

The cafe owner responded with a kind smile. For a moment, he wondered how long it had been since the cafe last had customers for the owner to be smiling so profusely.

“Please have a seat, and I’ll bring them over.”

They settled into a suitable spot. With no other patrons, it was indeed an ideal location for a confidential conversation. He wondered how she even knew about such a place.

“Alright, shall we begin our story?”

To Lee Heejin, whose eyes sparkled with anticipation, he put his prepared strategy into action.

“You first.”

“Huh?”

“If you speak first, I’ll tell you too.”

“…Tell you what…?”

Feigning ignorance, she rolled her eyes left and right, though she clearly knew what he meant.

“The reason you’re hiding your power. Why are you concealing the strength of a high-ranker?”

“…You’re a ghost, a true ghost… Fine! I was going to tell you anyway, Oppa, if possible.”

Saying this, Lee Heejin glanced toward the counter.

“How much do you know about the Five Great Guilds… no, about the First Generation Awakened?”

“The First Generation? You mean the first people to awaken after the Great Cataclysm? Well, I know as much as anyone else. The leaders of the Five Great Guilds and all the famous high-rankers are First Generation Awakened, aren’t they?”

“That’s right. And I, too, am a First Generation Awakened.”

“…What?”

Lee Heejin’s words were utterly unexpected, forcing him to momentarily question her. While his mind had considered her to be ranker-level or even high-ranker-level, he hadn’t truly grasped it, leaving him in a state of disbelief.

What exactly was a ranker? It was a glorious position, held by only 250 individuals out of tens of thousands of Awakeners, an honor reserved for the most exceptional and powerful.

A high-ranker, meanwhile, referred to only 30 individuals, from the number one ranked ‘Black Sword’ Park Seonghyeon down to the 30th rank.

These high-rankers were truly formidable individuals. He also knew that the vast majority of high-rankers were composed of First Generation Awakened.

They were the first humans to awaken at the onset of the Great Cataclysm. It was the most tumultuous period, a time when there was no information about monsters or how to fight them, making survival a miracle for their generation.

Given the circumstances, the surviving First Generation Awakened grew at an astonishing rate. Achieving feats was also easier then than it is now, making their representation in the Hall of Fame overwhelmingly high.

Now that he was an Awakened, he could roughly imagine the situation back then. He knew that they must have swept up points like crazy.

Of course, it was also the generation with an overwhelmingly high number of Awakened who perished.

“I even used to travel with some of the current leaders of the Five Great Guilds during the early days of the Great Cataclysm. Now… well, we’ve completely gone our separate ways.”

If that were true, it made even less sense. With such skill and connections, why would she hide her name and identity? One thought immediately came to mind.

“Are you perhaps part of the Assassin’s Guild…”

“Hey! What do you take me for? I’ll tell you why I’m hiding soon enough. Before that, what’s your relationship with the Hwaryun Guild?”

“Hwaryun?”

He didn’t know why she was curious about that, but he answered anyway. He told her he knew someone there, interviewed, and was soundly rejected.

Lee Heejin laughed, finding his words amusing.

“Kim Yeonsong would be quite heartbroken if she knew she missed the ‘Coffee-Flavored Poop’ that the entire world is desperately searching for, right before her eyes.”

He took a sharp breath at the sudden mention of that name. Kim Yeonsong, the guild master of Hwaryun and a high-ranker known as ‘Spark’.

It wasn’t Lee Heejin’s casual use of the name that surprised him. It was the mention of his nickname, ‘Coffee-Flavored Poop,’ a name he desperately wished to keep secret.

He was startled by the sudden mention of ‘Coffee-Flavored Poop.’ Lee Heejin had clearly figured out that he was ‘Coffee-Flavored Poop.’

In fact, anyone who wasn’t an idiot would have known. Lee Heejin was the only person who knew he was the protagonist of the recently uploaded Hell Gate video.

‘Why did I choose such a nickname…’

As a child, he had secretly tasted coffee behind his parents’ backs. The first coffee he ever tasted was truly awful.

And from then on, all his nicknames were unified as ‘Coffee-Flavored Poop.’ ‘Poop-Flavored Coffee’ was unfortunately already taken.

He had just used a nickname he’d had since childhood without much thought. How could he have known things would turn out like this?

“Seeing your reaction, it’s really true. You’re Coffee-Flavored Poop, Oppa…”

“Stop. It’s true, so stop it.”

“…Then really… No, anyway, I have a proposal.”

“A proposal? What is it?”

Lee Heejin smiled, revealing her charming dimples as she spoke.

“Park Minhyuk, join our guild! We’ll treat you well!”

“Huh?”

“Our guild is called Nameless. We have five members in total. All but one are First Generation Awakened. We don’t engage in any public activities, mainly focusing on exploring undiscovered dungeons or preparing for sudden monster appearances in advance. I don’t know your circumstances yet, but it seems perfect for you, Oppa, since you want to hide your power… What do you think?”

Lee Heejin’s words were difficult to believe outright. A small, elite guild composed of four First Generation Awakened, when even one was a rarity?

It was a force he had never heard of, with a name he had never encountered.

“With that much power, why don’t you engage in public activities? Are you really an Assassin’s Guild…”

“Hey! I told you we’re not. Why would we kill people? It’s just that we have our reasons, and if you join the guild, I’ll explain everything.”

A guild, she said. If he considered the conditions alone, they were perfectly suited for him. There would be no need to reveal himself to the outside world, they had ample experience, and their combat power would undoubtedly be outstanding.

Still, the secrecy felt somewhat unsettling.

“I don’t have to answer today, do I?”

“Of course not. Take your time to think it over and give me your answer.”

“Hmm…”

Seizing the moment while he was lost in thought, Lee Heejin leaned forward, her eyes sparkling with her characteristic anticipation.

“Alright, now it’s time to hear the real story! It’s true that you’re Coffee-Flavored Poop… Ah, let’s skip that. You also fought that transcendent being, the Witch of Bitter Cold, right? How did you even fight her? And what exactly is a transcendent being? How strong are they? Where is she now? You didn’t kill her, did you? Oh, right. And what exactly is Hell? You know, don’t you?”

A barrage of questions poured out, but he calmly intended to answer each one. Lee Heejin’s sincerity was evident in her demeanor, and besides, at this point, there was nothing left to hide.

…Which made him feel a little wronged. He had truly intended to tell her everything.

“I’ll tell you everything.”

It was simply that the timing was too coincidental.

[Skill ‘Witch’s Eye (S)’ activates.]

The familiar swirling sensation began before his eyes. Its meaning was clear.

The dimensional rift was attempting to pull him in.

So abruptly. Without any preparation.

Even as the scenery spun, he clenched his jaw and rose from his seat. He could see Lee Heejin’s cat-like eyes widen in surprise.

“I’ll come back and… and we’ll talk again.”

He wondered what dangers might await him upon arrival. He drew the True Dragon Bone Sword from his waist.

“That is, if I’m still alive by then.”

With those final words, his body was sucked into a dimensional rift somewhere in this world.

****

“…This time, it’s a forest.”

Last time it was a field, but now it was a forest. A very, very dense forest.

Weed-like grasses grew knee-high, and dew clinging to the foliage soaked his pants with every step he took.

“Hoo… Of all times…”

He had been meaning to get a magic-infused backpack for just such occasions. He had planned to carry various survival items and emergency rations with him at all times.

If not for his appointment with Lee Heejin today, he would have prepared it. The first time he came through a dimensional rift, he barely survived thanks to meeting Elder Cheongeom, but he had suffered immensely due to the lack of food.

He should have prepared faster, but he never expected to return so soon.

“Let’s just go.”

With the True Dragon Bone Sword clutched tightly in his hand, he pushed through the densely packed forest.

“It’s a forest, but my pants are soaked.”

He hadn’t walked far, but his pants were already thoroughly wet from the dew. It felt like walking through an underwater world, surrounded by trees.

As he traversed the forest, filled with colossal trees that required him to crane his neck to see their tops, he felt a strange sense of incongruity.

The source of this odd feeling was the sound, or rather, the lack thereof. Despite walking through a lush forest teeming with trees and plants, not even the chirping of a single insect could be heard, which felt profoundly unnatural.

‘If I had my way, I’d just stay put and wait to go back…’

He had been lucky enough to meet Elder Cheongeom, who was benevolent towards him, and survived the first time, but there was no guarantee that luck would follow him again. Elder Cheongeom had warned him, after all, that transcendent beings were unpredictable and to be cautious.

“If I get back safely this time, I’m buying that backpack first, no matter what.”

A backpack enchanted with spatial expansion magic was incredibly expensive, but he vowed to acquire it, even if it meant going into debt. When his life was on the line, what was a little money?

In any case, that was a problem for later. For now, he had to focus on surviving this place. It was while he was walking, lost in these thoughts, that it happened.

Suddenly, the sunlight vanished, and the surroundings grew dark. A long shadow fell over him from above.

Though the forest was already dense with large trees, sunlight had occasionally filtered through the gaps, so it hadn’t been particularly dark. But for it to suddenly become this dim meant there was a very high probability that something had appeared.

“…Please just be a cloud. Right? It’s just a big cloud passing by for a moment, isn’t it?”

Filled with that desperate hope, he slowly looked up.

“F***…”

Between the trees, a face appeared, towering far above them. Its size was so immense that the massive trees looked adorable in comparison.

It had tough-looking gray skin and crimson eyes. And those crimson eyes were staring directly at him.

[Name – Be-Daltura]

[Transcendence – ★★★★★★★]

[Attributes – Earth, Gravity, Wind, Rock, Void, Strength, Reversal, Pressure]

A giant. A giant had appeared.