Chapter 76: Can my 10 hours understand your thousands of hours?

It was a long journey.

Weeks had passed in game time, and well over 8 hours had passed in real time.

Coming this far, Yoo Da-hee was physically exhausted.

It was a natural phenomenon for an NPC, a native of the game world.

Summer was a player, an outsider to this world, so her physical stamina wasn’t an issue.

However, she was mentally pushed to the limit.

Even though she took bathroom breaks and massaged her eyes, the fatigue was significant.

It was because she played with more concentration than usual, determined to save Yoo Da-hee somehow.

However, her focus was sharper than ever.

Staring fixedly at the giant enemy visible in the distance, Summer released the tautly drawn bowstring.

Simultaneously, the dragon, with a roar that shook the heavens, spewed black flames.

The arrow Summer shot was instantly swallowed by the fire.

“Summer!”

A pure white barrier blocked the flames for a brief moment.

It could be called an instant, but it was enough time for Summer to dodge and regain her posture.

“…It’s okay. It’s doable.”

Summer swallowed dryly and drew the bowstring again.

An arrow enveloped in green light flew, tearing through the air with a whoosh, striking the dragon’s wing joint.

The wing shook greatly, and rough scales rained down like fragments.

“Nice!”

At the fact that the attack landed, Summer clenched her fist tightly.

The dragon raised its neck again and spewed black flames.

The surrounding air heated up whoosh.

Sticky heat haze shimmered before her eyes.

Summer clenched her teeth and charged towards the dragon.

Since arrows couldn’t target the dragon’s weak point, the single spot not covered by scales, she attempted close combat.

Boosted by Yoo Da-hee’s buff, Summer leaped high above the dragon’s head.

Between the glistening scales, darkish flesh was visible.

Without hesitation, Summer thrust the rapier with all her might.

Pook- A tearing sound of flesh being pierced, and a strong vibration felt at her fingertips.

Before she could savor the feeling, the dragon let out a monstrous scream and flapped its wings.

Summer was hit by a fierce wind in mid-air and flew towards the wall.

“?!”

The scenery reflected in Summer’s eyes rushed forward instantly.

In the vivid illusion of truly plummeting to the ground, Summer unknowingly gagged.

“Sh… *t… Is this place really… some other dimension, or something… like that…?!”

It was a realism that made curses flow naturally.

Cold sweat trickled down her back.

Her body trembled uncontrollably for no reason.

Honestly, a little bit.

No, actually, quite a lot.

…It’s scary.

“I’m right beside you!”

Nevertheless, the only reason she could somehow get back up and face the dragon again was because of Yoo Da-hee’s presence.

“Dahee…”

Through her blurry vision, she saw Yoo Da-hee summoning holy light.

She clasped her hands together, chanting with a desperate expression.

Soon, dazzling holy magic cast a binding effect on the dragon’s legs and wings.

As the dragon roared, fixed in place and unable to move, Summer clenched her teeth and took a large step forward.

“Now’s… the chance…!”

Summer gasped for breath, readjusted her grip on the rapier.

And leaped powerfully once more.

“Uwaaaaah-!!”

The sharp tip of the blade struck the dragon’s nape again.

Black blood spurted out like a fountain, and the dragon made its final struggle.

Now, the final blow.

Through the blurry vision splattered with black blood, Summer thrust the rapier into the dragon’s weak spot again.

The dragon’s body, writhing in pain from the attack, went limp downwards.

“Is it… over?”

Summer muttered, watching the monster’s body dissipate into black smoke.

As the dark energy vanished like an illusion, a silence signifying the end of the battle descended.

“We did it…”

Summer, standing blankly on the cracked stone path, muttered in an exhausted voice.

“Right… We really… defeated the dragon.”

The two looked at each other’s faces.

Taking in the opponent’s face, expression, fully with their eyes.

“…Pfft!”

“Ahaha-“

They let out awkward laughs for no reason.

---

The ancient altar glowed, making bizarre sounds.

As the shimmering waves washed over, Summer instinctively felt her throat burn.

The sanctuary.

The final place Summer and Yoo Da-hee had sought so hard to reach.

The way to save the world lies right there.

At that moment, pure white text floated above the altar.

This time, Summer could clearly read the message’s content.

[When the Saintess’s soul touches the altar, this land shall be revived once more.]

It felt like all the heat drained from her body.

Finding it absurd, haha, only hollow laughter escaped.

“What… ridiculous…”

Saying how could there be no twist in the game, Summer tore at her hair.

“In the end… it turned out like this.”

Yoo Da-hee lowered her gaze and smiled faintly.

“Actually, I kind of expected it would turn out like this.”

With a calm voice, she walked towards the center of the sanctuary.

“Are you crazy? You, what are you trying to do right now?!”

Summer pushed the controller’s mini joystick forward with all her might, as if to break it. Her bloodless thumb trembled.

But the exhausted avatar, cruelly, wouldn’t move properly.

Still, somehow, she desperately grabbed Yoo Da-hee’s wrist.

“This damn world… Let it just perish!!”

A sad smile lingered on Yoo Da-hee’s lips.

“But, you’re here, aren’t you?”

She blinked her tear-filled eyes, then placed her hand on top of Summer’s.

“If I can save the world you’re in… I don’t think it’ll be bad.”

“F*ck! Why are you saying such nonsensical things!!”

Summer choked up and screamed.

“What’s the point of that world if you… if you’re not in it?”

Anger and sadness mixed, making her voice tremble.

“Surely… surely there’s another way… A way to save both this world and you, Dahee… Ah, aaah… Aaaack…!!”

All sorts of thoughts tangled in her mind as she frantically retraced her steps.

“…Right! Hidden ending! We need to meet the hidden ending conditions! There must be a condition we haven’t found!”

[This message may harm the game’s setting and will not be processed.]

“W-wait… In the 2nd playthrough… In the next playthrough, I’ll definitely save you too… There must be more clues?”

[This message may harm the game’s setting and will not be processed.]

“D*mn it! Hey, Yoo Da-hee. You, wait right here.”

Summer held the rapier upside down.

The sharp tip pointed towards her chest.

“I’ll go back to the past and find a way. You wait patiently in the future, in this timeline…”

“No!!”

Yoo Da-hee instinctively slapped the rapier’s blade away.

Blood dripped from the back of her hand.

“What are you doing right now?!”

She yelled harshly and hugged Summer tightly.

“Don’t do that… Please don’t do that… You know too. Other than this… there’s no way.”

Her tearful voice echoed in Summer’s ears.

“Sh*t… I… Who was it that made me pull myself together…”

For Summer, Yoo Da-hee was a bond of less than 10 hours.

But for Yoo Da-hee, Summer was a bond spanning well over thousands of hours.

No matter how much Summer had fallen for Yoo Da-hee.

It couldn’t compare to how much Yoo Da-hee had fallen for Summer.

“Live on for my share too… Sing lots and lots of songs from now on… Okay?”

Her voice, wet with tears, trembled.

The feeling of being held tightly in her arms was incredibly vivid.

“But… what’s the point without you…!”

A desperate sound, as if her throat would tear, escaped.

Her chest felt like collapsing, making it hard to breathe.

Summer felt an obsessive urge to immediately dig through the system and find something.

Nevertheless, the Saintess, with a determined expression, let Summer go.

“Really… thank you. For bringing me this far… For leaving me with good memories at the end.”

Then, she turned towards the sanctuary again.

The Saintess, carefully stepping onto the altar, knelt and began to offer a prayer.

Brilliant white light began to bloom densely around her.

“Stop… Stop!!”

Summer clenched her teeth and ran towards the sanctuary, but an invisible, transparent wall blocked her way.

She shouts, pounds the wall with her bare hands, even tries stabbing it with the rapier… but it doesn’t budge.

Beyond the cold, formless wall, the Saintess lifts her head.

One last time, her lips move slightly.

‘Once again, I’m sorry. And thank you.’

The pure white light exploded outwards.

Wind swirled around the altar.

In the shaking space, the Saintess’s form is engulfed in light.

“No…!!”

Amidst Summer’s scream, the Saintess’s form fades.

Dazzling flashes erupted in all directions.

Simultaneously, the world gradually regaining its green light could be seen.

The desolate, ash-colored land is dyed with greenery.

The red sky clears to blue.

It was a miraculous moment, the salvation of this world.

The dazzling light faded.

Only the empty altar remained before Summer’s eyes.

As if, nothing had been there from the beginning.

The Saintess, Yoo Da-hee, vanished without a trace.

The transparent wall blocking the sanctuary also disappeared.

Summer just stood there blankly, as if her soul had left her.

Tears streamed down her cheeks.

The sense of loss tore at her chest, her lungs, making it difficult to breathe properly.

Ah, ah- Summer, who was only letting out absentminded groans, saw her vision turn pitch black.

On the black screen, a short system message popped up.

[Through your adventure, the world has been saved.]