8. Escaping Reality

* * *

It was truly the worst hallucination.

I died hundreds of times in a loop.

The problem was how realistic it felt. Probably because I’d read the original story – those deaths manifested as hallucinations.

But some questions remained.

Why did the dream repeat hundreds of times with different methods of implanting that monster core in me?

And from the third time onward, I seemed to instinctively hide before dying each time.

What the hell? Is this different from the hallucinations I know from the original?

It’s just a dream. Dreams have weird narratives.

Hahaha. Of course. Just a dream.

As I comforted myself, that gloomy ghost nearby kept swaying obliviously.

I wish it would just disappear.

“Awake now, Cadet Yoo Eun-ha?”

Rebecca stood before me as I woke in the infirmary.

“Yes. As you can see, I almost died thanks to you, Professor.”

“I’ll apologize for that. Honestly didn’t expect this reaction.”

Rebecca looked genuinely troubled.

“Huh?”

“Straight question – have you nearly died before? Or do you have any death-related abilities?”

“Neither applies.”

Never died, no death-related powers.

“My illusions only pull your worst memories. That’s all.”

“You’re lying?”

Play dumb here.

“I saw your hallucinations while stabilizing your mind. Even I was shocked. All I could do was prevent your psyche from collapsing.”

Wait, this is a dream. Why take it seriously? Just hallucinations within a dream. Maybe from imagining Eun-ha’s deaths while reading the original.

“Well, I’ve never died, but I think I know why. Don’t worry about it.”

“Unsettling, but if you say so.”

Why care if a dream character feels unsettled? That gloomy black figure by the door isn’t even visible to them.

This won’t do.

This is a dream. Draw the line clearly. Kissing that Flame Spear girl was already a mistake.

Time to leave the academy.

“Professor.”

“What?”

Rebecca acted timid after what happened.

Her usual strict self becomes self-reflective after mistakes.

“Can I take a break? The shock was… considerable.”

“It’s the start of the semester.”

And?

“How should I explain this to my brother to make him happy?”

“F-fine! Approved!”

Quick context – Rebecca was a heroine in the original.

Like Kim Ji-hye, she probably still likes Jin-seok. Easy to manipulate.

* * *

On her glorious “break,” Eun-ha wailed.

“GWAAAAAH!”

Even playing around felt wrong.

No choice but to entertain myself with that gloomy ghost twitching against the wall.

What games work with ghosts? I threw a knife.

THUNK!

Sadly, it pierced the wall through the ghost.

“Tch.”

I’d painted the room white for better ghost visibility. Magic seems useless here.

Retrieved the knife from the wall as the ghost reappeared.

“Lazing around will just make me fat.”

Truthfully, this body never gains weight or feels hunger.

But humans shouldn’t live so idly.

With funds running low, my Korean wage-slave instincts kicked in.

No work? Make work.

Time to earn money.

After knife-slashing the ghost miming typing, I searched for part-time jobs.

-Location: New Seoul Gangnam Tower B1

-Openings: 5

-Job: Cleaning monster/hunter corpses. Herbal medicine provided.

-Pay: 500,000 won

Not bad, but unappealing. “Cleaning” implies old, dried-up corpses. Probably reeks. Can herbs mask that?

-Location: New Seoul Cloud Dungeon

-Openings: 2

-Job: Clearing floors 1-5 with Bbeopmi-jjang

-Reward: Equal loot split. Finders keepers for artifacts/cores.

Bbeopmi-jjang? Creepy.

But dungeon clearing with fair rewards sounds good.

Dreams reflect subconsciousness. Did I imagine Bbeopmi-jjang?

“Sweet Jesus.”

Next listing:

-Location: Convenience store opposite Hanseong Academy

-Openings: 2 (female preferred)

-Job: Standard convenience store work

-Pay: 12,000 won/hour

Odd how simple these postings are compared to reality. Probably streamlined for hunters.

The dungeon job seems better than retail right now.

* * *

Cloud Dungeon

“Hohoho! So pretty! Love your white hair!”

Should I leave? Seriously considering it.

“Hawawa! I’m Kim Bbeopmi! D-rank hunter leading this dungeon raid! Call me Bbeopmi-jjang! Magic specialist!”

What a freak.

“Shinohara Mariko. From Japan’s famous Shinohara ninja clan. Here to help Bbeopmi and sightsee. Graduated Tokyo Hunter Academy last year. D-rank. Specializes in fire ninjutsu.”

The Shinohara clan – prominent hunter family. Their female head later falls into a Hellgate and gets rescued by Choi Si-woo.

Another sub-heroine.

Better not get involved.

“I’m Geum Taeyang. Current Seoul Academy student. Here for pocket money. Contracted with Black Wolf Guild post-graduation. Close combat specialist. Sweet guy despite looks.”

Geum Taeyang – one of the “Big Three” in NTR adult fiction, alongside “Squinty Muscles” and “Hypno-App Pigs.”

Tanned skin, blond hair, toned body.

My eyes instinctively went south. Sure enough, his pants bulged obscenely.

Far larger than what I lost becoming Eun-ha.

-GULP-

You bastard. You’re my enemy.

“Yoo Eun-ha. Hanseong Academy. Speed combat via acceleration. Pleasure working with you.”

“Whoa~ White-haired beauty! Gorgeous!”

The NTR specialist eyed me creepily. Surely nothing will happen?

No assaults, right?

The Cloud Dungeon had gloomy clouds occasionally spewing poison.

Squishy monsters resembling slimes.

Actual slimes lacked substance – more like human-sized puddings.

Easy to kill – weak to magic, spirit arrows, greatswords. Just stab the core.

I knife-stabbed slime cores.

SCHLICK!

They burst like water balloons before resisting.

Had I been slower, my uniform would’ve soaked, giving Taeyang a show.

“Hawawawa! Poison mist ahead!”

“Ninjutsu: Fireball!”

Bbeopmi-jjang’s weird lights marked danger zones. Mariko lit dungeon torches.

Since when is “ninjutsu” compatible with “fireball”? Shouldn’t she use proper fire techniques?

“Slime core GET!”

Taeyang worked surprisingly diligently.

While they did their thing, I speed-stabbed slime cores.

Surprisingly easy.

One question – why go to floor 5?

“Bbeopmi-nim.”

“Hawawa! Call me Bbeopmi-jjang!”

Annoying brat.

“B-Bbeopmi-jjang.”

“Hawawa?”

“This dungeon’s already cleared, right? Why go to floor 5?”

“Hawawa! Post-clear, floor 5 spawns endless mobs! Core farming galore!”

“Ah, we’re farming them?”

Even D-rank cores add up at 50,000 won each. Split four ways, that’s huge.

Basically free money.

“Hoheng! My oppas rented it! Too hard solo!”

“Can we handle it?”

Surprisingly earnest question from Taeyang.

That bulge remains distracting. Is he really…? Physical enhancement is common, but he mentioned no other abilities.

“Bbeopmi-jjang isn’t weak! Only brought three for rules! Could solo!”

She was skilled – detection magic, cleansing spells, plus Mariko’s torch support.

Taeyang’s melee was decent too.

We reached floor 5 quickly, aided by the dungeon being pre-cleared.

“Too easy, no?”

“Hawawa! My oppas got us this chance! Thank Bbeopmi-jjang!”

She proudly puffed her flat chest. The core farming would indeed pay better than corpse cleaning.

Everything went smoothly.

Until Taeyang found a suspicious wall button.

“Uh, ladies? There’s a button here.”

“That’s obviously a trap?”

“Uh… already pressed it.”

“You fucking idiot.”

BOOM!

Before I could curse further, the floor collapsed, sending us tumbling down.