[Quest Complete.]
[Rewards Acquired.]
[Clear rewards distributed based on contribution.]
[Party restoration initiated.]
As the collapsing dungeon crumbled around them, a notification window appeared in Rohan’s fading consciousness.
He could faintly hear Shion and Clara’s urgent voices, but his mind was too hazy to process their words. Instead, he closed his eyes, comforted by the thought that everything had somehow worked out.
Rumble...
Mana surged through his body, enveloping and compressing him.
For a brief moment, he felt weightless, as though he were floating.
Even with his eyes closed, a notification appeared in his mind.
[No designated return point.]
[Returning to a random location.]
Then, his back touched a surface.
The breeze greeted him—a cool and refreshing sensation, unlike the humid, suffocating heat of the dungeon air from moments ago.
‘It’s... cool.’
His faint consciousness began to clear as light returned to his vision.
The familiar sounds of everyday life filled his ears—distant chatter, city noise, the hum of a normal world.
"Rohan! Rohan...! Open your eyes!"
"Oppa! Please, wake up!"
Shion and Clara’s clear, frantic voices pulled him back completely.
With a strange calm spreading through his body, Rohan slowly opened his eyes.
"?!"
The first thing he saw was the worried faces of the two girls leaning over him, framed by the bright sky above. He blinked several times before speaking.
"...Clara, how’s your mana exhaustion? Shion, you okay too?"
Clara, on the verge of tears, could only nod silently. Shion bit her lip and, after a pause, confirmed she was fine as well.
Then, after hesitating for a moment, Shion asked the most pressing question.
"Rohan... w-what about your arm?"
Shion swallowed hard, anxiously awaiting his answer, while Clara stared at him, holding her breath.
Neither of them understood why Rohan’s arm, which had been severed, was now miraculously intact. They couldn’t even celebrate their return yet, too fixated on the hope that his appearance matched reality.
"My arm? Oh, right... my arm."
Rohan flexed his fingers experimentally, confused by the sensation of something that shouldn’t exist.
He lifted his arm in front of his face, inspecting it closely.
‘This isn’t phantom pain, is it?’
It was real. Completely intact.
The arm he’d lost to the boss monster’s thorn was now perfectly fine.
His clothes were torn and bloodstained, but the scratches and injuries from the thorny vines were gone.
‘Right... that’s how it works.’
As his hazy mind began to grasp the situation, Rohan realized what had happened.
This was the effect of “complete restoration.” He finally understood.
"It’s fine. Guess I got lucky, huh?"
That was the extent of his reaction.
Rohan hadn’t acted to protect Shion because he trusted the restoration system. His actions had been purely instinctual, a reflex in the heat of the moment.
"Ha... your reaction is just..."
"Oppa, we still need to go to a hospital, okay?"
Rohan smiled faintly at their concern and pushed himself up into a seated position.
Looking around, he took in their surroundings with a satisfied expression.
"Well, we made it back. That’s what matters. You both did great."
The three of them had landed on the rooftop of what appeared to be a restaurant.
The smell of food and the murmur of voices drifted up from below.
Looking around, Rohan saw towering buildings and unique architecture—clear signs they were back in Academy City.
"...Rohan."
"Huh?"
Shion stood, removed her goggles, and bowed deeply, startling both Rohan and Clara.
"Thanks to you, we made it back safely. I truly thank you."
"You’re thanking me? I couldn’t have done it without your help."
"And at the end..."
"Don’t mention it. I’m fine, see?"
Shion straightened up as Rohan demonstrated by clenching and unclenching his fist. She let out a small, relieved laugh and sat back down.
"I noticed the attack and tried to draw my weapon, but even if I’d used my baton, I wouldn’t have been fast enough. I probably would’ve been injured—or worse, killed if it hit somewhere vital like my head or heart."
"Really? Then I guess it wasn’t a wasted effort after all."
Shion, however, couldn’t shake the thought that things could have gone much worse. Even though Rohan’s arm had somehow been restored, she couldn’t ignore the possibility that they might not have been so lucky.
"I’m glad your arm is back, but... what if it hadn’t been? Why would you risk yourself like that for me?"
"I didn’t really think about it. You can live without an arm, right?"
Rohan’s attempt at lightheartedness failed to lift the heavy atmosphere. Shion’s expression remained somber.
"Shion."
"..."
At Rohan’s voice, she raised her head and met his gaze.
There was so much Rohan wanted to say to her, but now wasn’t the time.
"For three days, we fought nonstop. We were exhausted, hungry, and couldn’t even bathe properly."
"..."
"But it was still fun, wasn’t it?"
Shion turned to look at Clara, who was watching her with a warm smile.
That simple gesture brought a comforting warmth to Shion’s heart.
Later, upon seeing Rohan again, Shion expressed her thoughts.
"...It was enjoyable. I’d do it again if given the chance."
"That feeling will fade soon enough."
"Why do you say that?"
"Because you deserve to live a life far more enjoyable than this."
"...!"
There was an unmistakable determination in his words—a promise to free her from the suffocating cage she was trapped in.
Rohan’s intent was clear: he wanted to grant her freedom.
Shion, fully understanding the weight and sincerity behind his words, found herself unable to respond.
After witnessing his unwavering sacrifice firsthand, the meaning behind his words carried a heaviness that reached the sky.
‘This man...’
Looking at Rohan stirred a strange mix of emotions in Shion. Her heart raced, and an unfamiliar warmth spread through her chest.
At the same time, she couldn’t help but notice Clara’s gaze on her, adding an inexplicable sense of discomfort.
The awkward silence between the two girls was broken by a sudden sound.
Bzzzzt! Bzzzzt!
Rohan and Clara’s smartphones buzzed loudly as they reconnected to the network.
The broken time resumed, and a flood of missed calls and messages came pouring in.
‘Wow, looks like I really worried people this time.’
Rohan glanced at his phone, vibrating uncontrollably with incoming notifications, and immediately sensed the headache awaiting him.
He had over a hundred missed calls, including several from Juyeon, and numerous messages from his classmates asking what was going on and why he hadn’t returned after lunch.
"Oppa! The date hasn’t passed yet...!"
"See? Didn’t Shion say we had about five hours of leeway? Looks like we’re still good."
Clara, now on her feet, hurried over to sit next to Shion, showing her the date and time on her phone. The elf girl’s lips parted slightly in astonishment.
The discrepancy between the time Rohan had measured with his timer and the actual passage of time was shockingly vast.
"This is... a truly unbelievable experience, no matter how many times I think about it..."
Shion’s expression was conflicted, her thoughts tangled as she tried to process the bizarre phenomenon.
Being dragged to another dimension, struggling for over three days, and returning to find less than a day had passed—it wasn’t something she could easily accept.
‘Still, this is a stroke of luck.’
It meant they weren’t late.
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Though the thought of not having showered for three days was unpleasant, that could wait.
Physically, they were fine aside from the mental fatigue.
Seeing Shion gather her equipment, Rohan spoke up.
"Leaving already?"
"I have to. With this chance, I’ll act diligently while I can. I need to uncover the truth."
"Fair enough. I should report back as well. It’d be a hassle if I got tangled up with the security bureau."
Shion tilted her head curiously at his words, understanding how their situation could attract attention.
"Would it be okay for me to stay out of this entirely?"
"If your name comes up, I’ll find a way to smooth things over."
"Thank you. Truly, for everything..."
Rohan brushed off her gratitude with a light-hearted comment.
Before another word could be exchanged, Clara called out to Shion.
"Shion unnie."
"Yes?"
"You’ll come back, right? Next time, let’s just hang out and have fun..."
Shion smiled playfully, glancing at Rohan.
"Even if I don’t come back, Rohan said we’d meet again soon anyway. Isn’t that right?"
Clara’s eyes widened as she looked between the two, confused.
"Rohan."
"What?"
"Did you tell Clara anything about me?"
"Nope. I haven’t spilled a thing."
"Then do me a favor and tell her properly."
Rohan blinked in surprise at her request.
"I don’t mind, but... are you okay with that?"
"I just want her to know a little more about me. Besides, Clara will be involved in what’s to come, won’t she?"
"And how do you know that?"
Shion simply smiled, saying it was just her intuition, and handed Rohan a small, nail-sized object—one of the rewards from the dungeon. All three of them knew exactly what it was.
"Take care, both of you. And Rohan, make sure to visit a hospital."
With that, Shion disappeared across the rooftops.
Rohan watched her retreating figure before turning his attention to Clara, who sat beside him with a complicated expression, fidgeting with her lips.
"I’m heading to the security bureau. Clara, if it’s too much, you can go home, shower, and rest. I’ll handle the explanations."
Under normal circumstances, Clara might have hesitated or even avoided the situation altogether.
But now, she felt she couldn’t just walk away.
"I... I’ll stay with you, Oppa!"
She reached out and grabbed the tattered edge of his clothes.
Meanwhile, Juyeon, who had been scouring Academy City and the surrounding areas alone, finally received a message from Rohan and the security bureau.
Without hesitation, she shot across the city like a meteor, her fiery presence descending upon the security bureau.
Clink!
Following an officer’s guidance, Juyeon opened the door to find Rohan, still wearing his torn and bloodied cadet uniform.
He greeted her with a bright smile.
It was a mix of relief and something indescribable—her chest felt tight, yet the sight of him brought solace.
"Juyeon!"
"..."
Without a word, Juyeon strode forward and pulled Rohan into a tight embrace.
"───!!!"
Clara froze at the sight, unable to move or speak.