Ch.16It’s okay.

# 16. It’s Okay

[You have passed the first trial.]

“It actually worked.”

“Haaah…”

The swords, the battlefield clamor, the countless soldiers and corpses that had surrounded us vanished in an instant. The unnatural silence that suddenly descended brought with it a profound sense of exhaustion.

‘I wonder if my character felt this drained after passing each gate, just like I do now.’

My body slumped to the ground regardless of my will. And then, belatedly, the aftershock I had been dreading rushed in all at once with frightening speed. My limbs convulsed wildly, my teeth chattered against each other. My vision shook violently, and blood gushed like a fountain from my slashed throat…

“Captain!”

“Ah.”

Someone restrained me. They held me tightly with their whole body to stop me from shaking like a seizure patient. Despite my lack of strength, somehow we both became one mass, trembling violently together for a while.

“It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s just a trial.”

*Shhhh*

It’s okay.

It’s okay.

It’s okay.

It’s nothing.

It’s nothing.

It’s nothing.

I felt my eerily trembling body gradually calming down. The “hallucinations” of blood fountaining from human throats and limbs being sliced off like radishes became increasingly difficult to distinguish as they faded.

The kind someone whose identity was revealed as the hallucinations cleared was, of course, CutKillYeah.

“Seyeon…”

“You did well. You really did well. This terrible game with its awful balance—we would have failed without you, Captain.”

She continued patting the back of my head and my back while whispering in my ear. Her attitude was exactly like a mother comforting a child frightened by thunder or ghost stories.

As the aftershock passed, embarrassment filled its place… but it wasn’t bad. Despite the hardness of her armor, it felt more comfortable than ever. I was truly grateful not to be alone. CutKillYeah—Seon Seyeon, a college student six years younger than me—was a woman of strong mental fortitude.

“Seyeon.”

“It’s okay, Captain, you just did what you had to do…”

“I’m fine now, thanks to you. Thank you.”

“Ah.”

Due to our position, I naturally had to speak directly into CutKillYeah’s ear, and she quickly backed away as if nothing had happened, turning her head.

“I-I’m glad.”

“Thank you.”

CutKillYeah’s face was slightly flushed. She fanned herself a few times, then approached me from a slight distance and spoke as usual.

“Hey, I should be thanking you. But when did you practice so much? You handled that sword really well.”

“I think it might be some kind of awkward possession. Like I’m not quite myself when I’m born into this. You know how we were all wearing medium armor? In reality, it was leather armor. Same with the stats.”

“Ah.”

CutKillYeah nodded as if she understood from just that brief explanation. Actually, understanding it wasn’t that important, so she might have just let it slide.

Because.

[Second Trial]

[Choose your Trial Oath]

[1. Immediately consume 20% of total HP]

[2. -50% Mana regeneration]

[3. Status ailment ‘Slow’]

[4. All skills rank -1]

[If you do not choose, one will be randomly selected.]

As if that wasn’t the end, another damn message appeared asking us to choose a penalty.

And unlike the first time, there wasn’t much to deliberate about.

“Only option 2 makes sense.”

“Only option 2 makes sense.”

“I’m guessing the trick of recovering before proceeding won’t work?”

“No. It’s really annoying, but holy magic doesn’t work. Oh, and in the game, we had to choose the next penalty within a minute after passing a trial, right?”

“Yeah. We should probably choose soon.”

“Sigh. Not even floor 1, but floor 1-1.”

CutKillYeah patted my shoulder, sighed, and then giggled.

“I hope we get an S-rank reward.”

“…Let’s hang in there.”

“Absolutely.”

I didn’t deny her words, and quietly selected option 2.

**

[Fourth Trial]

[Choose your Trial Oath]

[From the fourth trial onward, a new oath will be added to one of the oaths from the previous three trials.]

[1-1. Immediately consume 50% of total MP]

[1-2. -50% Mana regeneration]

[1-3. Status ailment ‘Slow’]

[2-1. Status ailment ‘Weakness’]

[2-2. +75% Mana consumption]

[2-3. Status ailment ‘Misfortune’]

[2-4. All stats -5]

[If you do not choose, one will be randomly selected.]

“Wow.”

“…”

Is this even a game?

We had overcome the third trial through sheer grit and determination. If there were replays, I’d want to keep it forever—it was that desperately miraculous. After overcoming the third trial, we had rolled onto the floor, lying down to catch our breath, and now we were speechless at the penalty options that were even worse than in the original game.

“Captain.”

“Yeah.”

“I think I’m going to die.”

You too?

“Me too.”

“For real.”

“Me too, for real.”

Our vitals were in terrible shape. Choosing two more penalties and entering the fourth trial in this state would be suicide. Once we entered, we couldn’t leave at will. We either had to overcome it or fail.

[Upon entering, you may retreat with a certain probability, but if you exit completely, your progress will be reset.]

‘Fuck it, I don’t know.’

Actually, after the second trial ended, I had decided to retreat because I thought we were going to die. I tried shouting “retreat” and even just thinking about it, but there was no response.

“Retreat!”

I tried shouting once more just in case, but nothing happened. I wondered if this was what they meant by “certain probability.”

“You know what? Maybe if we die, we could be resurrected? Heh.”

“Get a grip…”

In this unhelpful place, would they have arranged for “resurrection”?

Belief should be based on some evidence or probability. Believing in that wasn’t really belief—it was closer to giving up…

“Huh?”

“Captain?”

“Give up. I give up! Surrender!”

[Do you wish to abandon the Knight’s Trial?]

Goddamn inflexible bastards.

Curses I’d been holding back burst out uncontrollably. CutKillYeah joined in.

**

After confirming the message asking if we wanted to give up, we did so without hesitation. Our combat incapacity wasn’t a unilateral decision but a mutual agreement. We weren’t even hoping for an S-rank reward anymore—we just wanted to pass as we were. A reset would be better than dying without being able to stop, but it still seemed truly terrible.

‘Hurry up and show something! Or move us somewhere else!’

How anxiously we waited. Suddenly I felt a slight trembling, and when I turned around, CutKillYeah was clutching my sleeve and shaking. Though her expression pretended to be fine.

Just as she had done for me, I was about to gently cover her hand and tell her everything would be okay.

[Swift and appropriate command, wisdom to avoid adversity, the power to break through when necessary, and the tenacious will to support it all have come together harmoniously.]

[Evaluating…]

[Rank – S]

[S-rank exclusive options have been added.]

[The basic rewards (S-rank) are as follows:]

[Level Up 1]

[Free Stat Points 2]

[Achievement ‘First to Overcome the Trial’]

[Title ‘Overcoming Expert’]

“Kyaaah!”

CutKillYeah’s ponytail slapped my cheek along with her joyful scream. It stung quite a bit, but it was fine. I liked it, actually. With a willing heart, I hugged her back as she reflexively embraced me. Strength I didn’t have suddenly surged. This is gaming, this is the thrill!

[The choice rewards are as follows. You may choose only one.]

‘Please, please, please!’

Talk about greed being born from seeing things. Just minutes ago, I had only hoped to pass, but now that we knew we’d passed with an S-rank, I was already getting greedy.

[Someone’s Weapon]

[Someone’s Possession]

[Someone’s Skill]

[Someone’s Memory (S-rank additional option)]

“!!!”

The options were the same as before. Upon seeing them, I unconsciously started to shout “Someone’s Memory” but quickly shut my mouth.

‘Is this right?’

Clearly, CutKillYeah—Seon Seyeon—who was summoned through my first choice reward, is an excellent companion. And the other raid members were all excellent too. During the Knight’s Trial, I had even wished for more raid members.

But.

Is it really right to summon them?

I might have no choice, and CutKillYeah doesn’t know the details but didn’t seem very happy in the memory fragment, though she said she was fine…

But they all have their own lives. Is it right to drag them into an isekai journey (with possible death) on what might be a one-way ticket, just because my life is in danger? Isn’t that too selfish?

Now that my survival was somewhat guaranteed, greed and conscience were in sharp conflict.

‘Sigh, let me ask Seyeon first.’

The message wasn’t visible only to me, so she must have an opinion too. But she was quiet. Instead, I felt a gaze from very close by.

“Seyeon.”

I rolled my eyes to find CutKillYeah’s golden eyes staring at me from right in front. She was too close but damn beautiful, and feeling newly apologetic toward her, I tried to turn my head and remove my arms that were holding her, but she held me tighter as if telling me not to run away.

“Captain.”

“…Yeah.”

“You said you’d take responsibility.”

“Huh?”

“And we realized today, painfully, that it’s difficult for just the two of us to get through this.”

“…”

“You’re not alone anymore, Captain.”

CutKillYeah smiled as she placed both hands on my shoulders.

“We’ll share the responsibility. And move forward together. Whether it’s responsibility, burden, or guilt. Let me share it.”

“Seyeon.”

It’s okay.

“And Captain, you need your crew members.”

She was indeed a devil.

[You have selected Someone’s Memory as your choice reward.]

A very reliable, trustworthy devil.