Meeting the Survivors

Inside the apartment, the sound of birds chirping and sunlight streaming through the window created a stark contrast to the collapsed body of Joo-Hee.

A loud alarm blared, jolting her awake with a start.

She sat up with a jitter, glancing around in confusion as if trying to piece together her surroundings.

Her face betrayed her haggard state—dark circles under her eyes, hair slightly disheveled, and lips dry from dehydration.

Despite everything, she still managed to retain an air of presentability, but only just.

Her eyes landed on the clock. They widened in panic.

"10 AM?!" Joo-Hee groaned, her voice raspy with exhaustion.

"You've got to be kidding me! Of all days... Ugh, I can't afford to be late!"

She had barely slept, collapsing from exhaustion after her grueling night of practice.

The alarm had yanked her out of a semi-conscious state, leaving her groggy and unsteady.

Groaning, she forced herself out of bed.

Her limbs felt like lead, her body protesting every movement.

"Great. Just great. What a fantastic way to start the day with tiredness," she muttered, dragging herself toward the kitchen.

"But... at least I can now pull my weight in today's raid," she added with a half-hearted grin, though her exhaustion betrayed her fun.

Groaning, she ate hastily, almost choking on her food as she scarfed it down.

A quick shower followed, the cold water barely enough to clear the fog in her mind.

Her routine was a blur—one moment brushing her teeth, the next fumbling with her gear.

She yawned incessantly, her body crying out for rest, but her mind was set on getting through the day.

Finally stepping outside, the crisp air hit her face.

She hugged her belt bag tightly to her chest, muttering under her breath,

"Please, let nothing go wrong today. I can't handle another disaster."

Her plea hung in the chilly morning air as she hurried to catch her ride, her feet moving on autopilot.

The commute dragged on.

Her head would sway every few minutes, and she'd catch herself before completely dozing off. 

By the time she reached the raid location at noon, her face still carried traces of her sleepless night.

She took a deep breath, steeling herself as she stepped into the bright daylight.

Her yawns momentarily ceased as she looked ahead.

And her heart suddenly staggered.

A wave of unfamiliar anger and disgust surged within her, so sharp it nearly took her tiredness away.

She froze, gripping her bag tightly.

The faces in the crowd stirred a memory—a day the real Joo-Hee desperately wished to forget when she was alive.

Her vision blurred as her mind replayed it:

Jin-Woo on the altar, sacrificing himself while others—including Kim Sang-Shik—ran like cowards, abandoning him.

She clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms.

The emotion wasn't hers—it belonged to the real Joo-Hee, a rage seared into her very being.

"You all ran," she whispered under her breath, her voice trembling.

"You left Jin-Woo and Joo-Hee behind..."

Her knuckles whitened as she looked away, trying to calm her mind.

'Stop! I should just focus on the raid for now.'

Even so, her thoughts wouldn't settle down.

She bit her lip and sighed, forcing the bitterness to fade.

"This... isn't my place to judge," she muttered under her breath, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Joo-Hee already let her regrets go. I can't let this lingering anger consume me now."

A heavy yawn escaped Joo-Hee's lips, breaking the tension swirling around her.

She rubbed her tired eyes and muttered, "Alright, enough of this. Now should be a good time to pull myself together."

Straightening her posture, she closed her eyes, concentrating.

'Let's see if last night's training was worth it...'

Carefully, she channeled her healing mana, this time focusing the attuned energy around her head, particularly her brain.

With practiced precision, she infused the mana, visualizing it seeping into every fatigued corner of her mind, forcibly calming and rejuvenating her brain.

A soft warmth radiated through her, erasing the fog of exhaustion like sunlight melting frost.

Her lips curved into a small smile as she felt invigorated.

'There. That should hold me for a couple of hours… before I feel some drawbacks.'

Satisfied with her recovery, she headed toward the dungeon gate where Kang Jeonho and Kim Sang-Shik were already waiting.

The moment Sang-Shik saw her approaching, both of them immediately stopped talking.

His expression shifted awkwardly.

"M-Miss Joo-Hee…" he stammered, his eyes darting to the ground.

Jeonho, standing beside him, didn't even try to hide his discomfort.

'What luck... to think we would meet her again so soon,' he thought, biting back the unease that tugged at his insides.

Both men stole nervous glances at her as she approached.

Joo-Hee's gaze hardened, her eyes full of disgust she couldn't mask.

'Cowards! Betraying others without a second thought, the moment things got too dangerous,' she thought bitterly.

Her jaw clenched as she forced herself to suppress her emotions.

Sang-Shik and Jeonho acted uncomfortably under her icy stare, stealing awkward glances at each other but never daring to speak further.

Standing in awkward silence outside the gate in the heart of the bustling city, the three of them waited for the others to arrive.

Despite her efforts to stay calm, Joo-Hee's thoughts swirled in frustration.

'Damn it. Seeing their faces up close just makes my blood boil even more...'

'Yeah, what they did was necessary for Jin-Woo to get his system, but still... that doesn't justify their actions.'

...

After a tense silence, Sang-Shik was the first to break the ice, though his attempt was more awkward than anything.

He cleared his throat, forcing a strained smile.

"M-Miss Joo-Hee," he began, nervously rubbing the back of his neck.

"We're glad... to see you again. We... we really wanted to visit you and Jin-Woo at the hospital, but, you know... a lot of things happened..." 

Hearing this, Joo-Hee's lips curled into a disbelieving chuckle, her eyes narrowing as she met his gaze.

"Is that all you've got to say after you both left us to die?" she asked, voice cold and biting.

She leaned in a little closer, her expression hardening with disgust.

"How did it feel? I mean, leaving us three to die, just to save yourselves?"

Jeonho immediately cut in, his voice shaky with urgency. "Joo-Hee! We had no cho..."

But she didn't give him a chance to finish.

"Oh... did I touch a sore spot?" she mocked, a bitter smirk curling on her lips.

"Mr. Kim, Mr. Kang, let's not kid ourselves."

"After everything that happened, do you really think we could ever trust either of you again and chat just like before?"

"No. Not in a hundred years. And certainly not today."

Jeonho opened his mouth to respond, but before he could say anything, Sang-Shik stopped him, shaking his head slightly, signaling for him to stop and remain quiet.

It was too late—what was supposed to be an attempt to ease the tension had only deepened it.

The air between them thickened, heavier than before.

...

A few minutes passed before two figures emerged in the distance, their silhouettes growing sharper with each step.

Joo-Hee's lips curved into a faint smile as she recognized 'him'.

It was Jin-Woo—and, to her surprise, Song Chi-Yul, the other survivor of the double dungeon incident was also there.

The warmth of her smile vanished almost instantly as a chilling thought crept into her mind.

Her pulse quickened, and unease gripped her chest

Seeing all five survivors from that cursed day gathered in one place felt like a sinister twist of fate.

The ominous sensation crawled through her, sending shivers racing down her spine.

Déjà vu engulfed her, heavy and suffocating, as her thoughts spiraled into dread.

'No way... It's not that scene, is it? This can't be happening... I'm probably just overthinking it... right?'

Her hands curled into tight fists as she fought to steady her breathing, now shallow and uneven.

'Don't let this be what I think it is. Not now...'

Panic briefly flashed in her eyes as she muttered under her breath,

"Damn it... when will my system finish upgrading?"

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[The system upgrade is now in progress. Estimated time to completion: 4 hours. Temporary access restrictions are in effect.]

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