After Ten Millennia in Hell

"Where will the summoning ritual take place?" Kang-Woo asked in a low voice.

Kim Jae-Hyun slowly opened his mouth.

"Pohang."

"The S-rank Gate."

It was a possibility Kang-Woo had already thought of when he'd first heard that the Demon Cult would be performing the summoning ritual.

If summoning meant that one would be calling an otherworldly being to Earth, then the higher the Gate's rank where the summoning took place, the more powerful the being one would be able to call.

Kang-Woo had figured that out after summoning Echidna.

"How did you…?"

Jae-Hyun looked at Kang-Woo in surprise. He'd just mentioned Pohang and had never said anything about the Gate.

"That's none of your concern. Hwa-Yeon, Yeon-Joo, let's go to Pohang immediately."

"Right now?"

"Yes. They're probably aware that we're right on their tail, so they're probably going to try to perform the ritual right away, even if they have to take risks."

They weren't sure if the other major guild had managed to provide the Demon Cult with all the necessary sacrifices or not, but based on what Jae-Hyun had said, it was clear that Kang-Woo and the others couldn't waste any more time.

"Wait. Isn't Hwarang's 2nd Squadron stationed at the S-rank Gate in Pohang?"

"I'll check."

Baek Hwa-Yeon took out her smartphone and called someone.

The call was short.

Hwa-Yeon's expression hardened.

"A few hours ago, a large party of about twenty people entered the S-rank Gate."

"… Like I'd thought, they immediately made their move."

Kang-Woo frowned after hearing how fast they'd taken action.

Cha Yeon-Joo got closer to Hwa-Yeon and opened her mouth.

"What about the identities of the people who entered the Gate? If we investigate their access permits, won't it be easy to figure out which of them are members of the Demon Cult?"

"It'll probably be pointless."

Kang-Woo shook his head.

"… Why?"

"Because their access permits are likely all fake."

Even Yeon-Joo had easily gotten Kang-Woo an S-rank Gate access permit when he couldn't get one through normal means. The Demon Cult was receiving the help of at least two major guilds, so there was no way they wouldn't be able to obtain fake access permits.

"Ugh."

Yeon-Joo let out a sigh as if she felt guilty.

To be honest, getting an S-rank Gate access permit wasn't that hard because most people who were unqualified wouldn't even try to get inside an S-rank Gate. If they forced their way inside, they would only become monster prey. So, who in their right mind would enter an S-rank Gate out of their own volition?

"I told the 2nd Squadron about the situation. They said they would also enter the Gate and search for them, but… not only is the Pohang S-rank Gate vast, but its terrain is also complex. I'm not sure they'll be able to find them."

"Let's get going."

"I'll contact my guild members too," Yeon-Joo said, then turned to Hwa-Yeon. "The Hwarang Corps has a military helicopter, right? Let's use that. It'll take too long to get to Pohang by car."

"Okay. I'll contact headquarters imm—"

"There's a better way than that," Kang-Woo interrupted Hwa-Yeon.

"A better way…?"

Yeon-Joo and Hwa-Yeon looked at Kang-Woo. He nodded.

"A dragon is probably faster than a helicopter."

* * *

"Kang-Woo…!"

As he opened the door, a little girl whose hair reached her waist ran toward Kang-Woo. Her red eyes showed how she'd spent the last few days.

"I'm sorry."

Kang-Woo lightly patted Echidna's head as she hugged him.

It was true that it couldn't have been helped, but it was also true that he had neglected Echidna for over a week.

To Echidna, who had only just barely been able to escape from loneliness, Kang-Woo was an irreplaceable being. It wasn't hard to imagine the despair she had felt for the last week.

"… Where were you?" Echidna asked in a trembling voice while hugging Kang-Woo.

"I had something I had to do."

"… I didn't upset you in any way, did I? You're not trying to abandon me, right?" Echidna asked while looking up at him anxiously.

'I believe she said that her father had suddenly disappeared one day.'

While thinking that he should have paid more attention to her, he said, "Yeah. It's nothing like that, so don't worry."

"… Okay. I believe you."

Echidna nodded while smiling.

"This girl is…"

"You met her last time, didn't you?"

Yeon-Joo and Hwa-Yeon nodded.

"But is she actually a dragon?"

"She just looks like a little girl…"

Both looked at Echidna suspiciously.

Echidna opened her mouth and grabbed Kang-Woo's clothes.

"I am a dragon."

Echidna created two small wings on her back and flapped them.

Just the fact that two wings had appeared on the girl's back proved that she wasn't human.

"A little girl with dragon wings…"

"The combination gives off an extremely dangerous feeling."

Hwa-Yeon and Yeon-Joo gulped after looking at the breathtakingly cute girl. Even though they didn't know her well, they wanted to hug her.

"Echidna, I need you to do me a favor," said Kang-Woo.

"Okay. I'll do anything if it's something I can do."

Echidna nodded without hesitation at Kang-Woo's words. You could see in her eyes that she really trusted him.

"… Do summoned beasts always trust their masters so much?" Yeon-Joo asked Kang-Woo.

Kang-Woo shook his head while smiling bitterly.

"No. Echidna's a bit special."

In reality, Echidna and Kang-Woo hadn't known each other for very long. Even though she was a summoned beast, there was another reason why she trusted him so much.

'It's because she doesn't want to be alone anymore.'

Kang-Woo gently patted her head and turned around.

"There's a place we have to go right now. I need you to revert to your original form and fly us there."

"Okay."

Echidna nodded with her eyes shining.

"I'll transform right now."

"Calm down. If you transform here, you'll bring the house down. First, let's go outside."

Kang-Woo took Echidna outside.

"Won't it cause a panic if a dragon suddenly appears?" Yeon-Joo asked with worry.

"I've already thought about that," Kang-Woo answered without hesitation.

Yeon-Joo looked at Echidna questionably.

Without giving a care about how Yeon-Joo looked at her, Echidna asked Kang-Woo, "Kang-Woo, should I transform now?"

"Yeah."

As Kang-Woo nodded, Echidna started to glow with a blue light. The blue light grew until it became a dragon that reached twenty meters in size.

"Wha…"

"I can't believe it…"

The two girls looked surprised at Echidna, who had become a black dragon.

There were some players who could control monsters as summoned beasts, but there wasn't anyone who could control a dragon.

[Where should I go, Kang-Woo?]

"Mmm. It'd be… that way."

Kang-Woo pointed in the approximate direction as he climbed up on Echidna's back.

Yeon-Joo and Hwa-Yeon followed him.

[… I don't want anyone else but Kang-Woo on my back,] Echidna protested.

Kang-Woo laughed and gently patted her neck.

"It's urgent, so endure it this one time, okay?"

[… Will you reward me if I do?]

"What reward do you want?"

Echidna snorted in excitement at Kang-Woo's question. The black flames that spewed from her nostrils burned the apartment's garden.

She spoke in a trembling voice.

[I want to go play with Kang-Woo somewhere.]

"Hmm…"

It was too small of a favor to ask in such a serious tone.

Kang-Woo nodded.

"Okay. Once this is over, let's go play somewhere."

[Really?]

"Yup."

[Yay!]

Fwoosh!

Echidna, who couldn't control her excitement, snorted once more.

The flames spewing from her nostrils exuded boiling heat.

[I'll do my best!]

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Echidna flapped her wings and rose to the sky.

Kang-Woo covered her with the Authority of Projection, and she turned translucent and melted into the background. If one didn't look closely, one couldn't distinguish her.

"Whoa. You can even do things like this?"

Because Yeon-Joo was on top of Echidna, she'd also become translucent. She looked at her body, which she could see through as if she were a ghost.

"How do you have so many abilities?"

Yeon-Joo looked at Kang-Woo in disbelief.

Not only was he very strong at fighting, but he could also manipulate other people's memories and even do things like make people translucent. He seemed to have dozens of different Traits that people usually obtained once every ten levels.

"I'm just very capable."

"… Arrogant prick."

Yeon-Joo lightly glared at Kang-Woo.

She didn't like the fact that she couldn't deny his arrogant words.

[Okay. Here I go.]

Flap! Flap!

With an excited voice, Echidna began flapping her wings.

The translucent dragon began flying at an incredible speed.

A strong wind hit Yeon-Joo, Hwa-Yeon, and Kang-Woo.

"Huh…? Whoaaa?!"

"Kurgh."

The two women held on to Echidna's sharply protruding scales to resist the strong wind, but it wasn't just them who were struggling.

'It's too fast.'

Kang-Woo hugged Echidna's neck while enduring the enormous drag.

Echidna was flying too fast.

He felt as if he would fly off if he didn't use the Authority of Titanic Might, but the problem was that the Authority of Titanic Might and the Authority of Projection were both highly advanced.

To use both Authorities simultaneously, he had to concentrate. However, it would be very difficult to use these two Authorities simultaneously when he was about to lose his grip.

"Echidna, please slow down…"

[Hmph! Hmph!]

It seemed Echidna couldn't hear his words anymore.

Kang-Woo hugged Echidna's neck even tighter.

[…!]

After Echidna felt Kang-Woo hug even tighter, her eyes shone.

'Why are you speeding up?'

[Hmph! Hmph!]

'Stop.'

[Kang-Woo, you can hold even tighter.]

'I'm already holding on for dear life.'

[Are you maybe embarrassed?]

Kang-Woo had displayed even more strength when he had latched on to the Giant Ogre's neck when they had hunted together for the first time.

Echidna didn't know that Kang-Woo had been using the Authority of Titanic Might during that fight, so she thought he wasn't putting in more strength because he was embarrassed.

[You don't need to feel embarrassed, Kang-Woo.]

'Save me.'

[I'll always welcome your embrace.]

'I don't want to die.'

[I want to feel Kang-Woo's warmth… with my body.]

'I'm falling.'

AAAAHHHH.