Yoo Chae-rin and Im Hanul.
Though they couldn’t stand up to the monsters in the Deep Layers, they had their own methods of survival.
Yoo Chae-rin had learned a skill long ago called Concealment.
Hanul, while not quite as adept, could use the magic Illusion to obscure herself.
At the very least, they could evade prying eyes.
Thus, as soon as the next day came, they headed for the Deep Layers.
Of course, such tricks might seem a little too basic to fool the monsters lurking there.
But for now, most attention was on the knight order. The extermination squad’s presence in the forest was impossible to ignore.
Thanks to this distraction, they managed to reach the Deep Layers more smoothly than expected.
Naturally, they told no one about their plans to move into the forest.
There was no reason to tell anyone, and a single slip-up could cost them their livelihoods.
For Chae-rin, a streamer, this game was her primary source of income.
The same went for Hanul, her editor. If they got caught and ended up in jail, it could even affect their real lives.
And yet, they were willing to risk it all to help him.
Helping an NPC of all things... They couldn’t help but find it ridiculous themselves.
But they couldn’t just stand idly by.
If they did, they knew they’d regret it for the rest of their lives.
“Hey, do you have any kind of plan?”
“...Not really.”
Despite their resolve, neither of them had come up with a concrete solution.
It wasn’t that they hadn’t thought about it—
It was just that there wasn’t much they could do in this situation.
The opponent was the knight order, bolstered by Otherworlders and backed by an entire empire.
Anything they could offer would be like throwing eggs at a rock.
“...At best, we can try to help him escape somehow.”
In the end, the only thing they could do was secretly help him flee.
And so, they pressed on toward the Deep Layers.
“At least there’s still some time before his next Frenzy... Phew.”
“...Frenzy?”
“Oh, uh, it’s nothing, just something like that.”
They chatted idly as they made their way through the forest.
Thankfully, with Hanul’s previous experience in the Deep Layers, they arrived quickly.
Though the area was surrounded by a wide net of knights, no one noticed them.
Towering trees stretched endlessly toward the sky. The dense canopy above created a simultaneously claustrophobic and vast atmosphere.
‘Wow...’
Chae-rin couldn’t help but marvel at the eerie ambiance of the forest.
For a moment, she worried about how they would find Yor here.
But fortunately, it didn’t take long for them to meet him.
“Gasp!”
“Shh—be quiet.”
Barely a moment after entering the forest, Yor suddenly appeared.
Chae-rin was startled at first, almost unable to recognize him.
The Yor they hadn’t seen in a while radiated a dangerously sharp aura.
Though his wounds seemed healed, the bloodstains on his clothes remained.
His attire was in such a state that even rags from a slum might have been better.
His exhaustion was evident—dark circles under his eyes told the story of sleepless nights.
Of course, it made sense. With people constantly swarming the forest, how could he ever rest deeply?
But what truly shocked her was his vigilance.
Even as he looked at Chae-rin and Hanul, his eyes flicked to his surroundings, scanning for threats.
It was as if he were checking to see if they had led anyone to him.
Though his reaction was understandable, the two of them couldn’t help but feel bitter about it.
It was like seeing a hedgehog bristling with sharp quills, ready to defend itself.
“...Haa.”
Once he confirmed that they were alone, Yor cautiously opened his mouth to speak.
It seemed he had decided he could lower his guard around them, at least for now.
“It’s been a while. ...I told you not to come. What do you want?”
“We came to tell you to run,” Hanul said, taking the initiative.
She had been the one to suggest coming here in the first place, so she spoke first.
“Let’s go. We’ll get you out of here. There are a lot of people outside, but if I cast Illusion, we should be able to escape safely.”
“And if we’re caught, won’t you face severe punishment?”
“Does that matter right now? You need to survive first.”
Her eyes briefly narrowed in frustration. His calm, detached reply was enough to make her feel stifled.
Regardless, Yor smiled, touched by her concern.
Perhaps it was because all he had received lately was hostility, but their kindness felt overwhelming.
Yet, his answer was already decided.
“Thanks, but no.”
A flat rejection.
“What—”
“Why not?” Chae-rin interrupted, her voice tinged with disbelief.
Her expression screamed frustration, unable to comprehend his decision.
“Run away already! If you stay here, you’ll die! Don’t you see all the people waiting outside the Deep Layers?”
The extermination squad had set up a blockade just outside the forest.
They had judged it too dangerous to continue their pursuit deeper into the layers.
Even if they tried, there was no guarantee of success, and they risked being wiped out themselves.
This allowed Yor a brief reprieve, but that was all it was.
To Chae-rin and Hanul, it seemed like nothing more than delaying the inevitable.
But Yor remained calm, as if he had already come to terms with it.
“You need to survive first.”
“And if I run, where do I go?”
“Anywhere. You’re strong enough to manage that. If worst comes to worst, you could even join Lemegeton...”
Yor chuckled quietly at her worried tone.
Their concern was plain to see, but Yor himself remained at ease, as if he had already made up his mind.
Finally, he asked her softly, “If I run, we might never meet again. Are you okay with that?”
Chae-rin froze, the question hitting her unexpectedly.
Hanul, standing next to her, seemed equally stunned.
They hadn’t considered that possibility. Their plan had only been to create an escape route, nothing more.
But Yor was different.
From the moment the extermination decree had been issued, he had vaguely understood what it meant.
From the moment the extermination decree was issued, Yor had been grappling with a singular thought.
The fragile life he had painstakingly built for himself was crumbling again, and there was a real chance he’d never regain it.
“If I run, I’ll spend the rest of my life being hunted. I’ll constantly have to worry about guards popping up out of nowhere.”
“My face is already known. No matter where I go, I’ll have to live like a shadow. Any Otherworlder who sees me could report me.”
“And if I happen to cross paths with the extermination squad again, I’ll be chased until I’m on the verge of death—or maybe this time, they’ll actually finish me off.”
Yor had come to this conclusion after much reflection, especially when Lemegeton had extended its offer to him once more.
At the time, he had refused, though he hadn’t fully understood his reasons.
Not even knowing his own heart, he had thought himself foolish.
But now, he understood. After giving it considerable thought, Yor had come to a clear answer.
“I don’t want to live like that.”
Looking back, he realized he had always been forced into his choices.
No, they weren’t even choices. They were decisions made without his consent.
He hadn’t left the comforts of civilization because he hated it.
He had fled because of the blood running through his veins, leaving him no other option.
Likewise, he hadn’t come to the forest because it was a pleasant or desirable place to live.
It was precisely because everyone avoided it that he had been able to survive there.
Forced to evade people, he had delved deep into the forest, fighting beasts and enduring countless lonely nights.
He hadn’t done it to become strong. He had done it because he had no other choice if he wanted to survive.
...So how long was he supposed to live like this?
Was he destined to always be at the mercy of his circumstances, fighting merely to exist?
He had refused Lemegeton’s offer for the same reason.
If he joined them, it would be yet another decision made under duress, forced by the extermination decree.
That was why he had stayed in the forest.
After pouring his thoughts out, Chae-rin cautiously asked, “Then... what are you planning to do now?”
“Fight.”
When two irreconcilable forces collide, there is only one solution.
One side must break the other—even if it ends up being himself.
He would throw everything he had into proving to the world that it couldn’t simply dismiss him.
Chae-rin asked again, her voice trembling.
“Do you have a plan?”
“No. I’ll figure it out.”
“Do you think you even have a chance?”
“At least it’s better than fighting outside the forest. Here, I have the advantage. This is my home turf.”
The forest was his domain.
Though his odds seemed bleak, that was precisely why he needed to fight here.
Chae-rin frowned at his stubbornness. Hanul mirrored her expression.
To them, it felt like sheer obstinacy.
Looking at Yor, they couldn’t shake the feeling that he was teetering on the edge, ready to disappear entirely.
“Is there nothing we can do to help?”
Yor deliberately hardened his tone. It was obvious that involving them would only bring harm.
“There’s nothing you can do. If you try, it’ll only hurt you. Just leave.”
“Why are you being so harsh? At least now, you should accept help from someone—even if it’s not much!”
Throwing eggs at a rock may seem futile, but even eggs can leave a mark.
That was the desperation in Chae-rin’s words.
Yor hesitated for a moment.
Honestly, he was exhausted.
Facing so many enemies alone was physically and mentally draining.
What he longed for wasn’t an army to back him up, but just a brief reprieve—a moment to lean on someone else.
After a long pause, Yor sighed deeply.
“...Haa.”
Finally, he let go of a small piece of his pride and spoke to them.
“Fine... help me a little.”
At that moment, a translucent window appeared before them.
[QUEST – Change (改變)]
Until now, he had been designated as a boss.
A potential threat to humanity. A ticking time bomb waiting to explode.
A being that had to be dealt with, no matter what.
The world—and the game’s settings—had declared it so, leaving the players no choice but to follow.
But now, something felt different.
With trembling hands, Chae-rin and Hanul checked the windows that appeared before them.
[QUEST – Change (改變)]
Manifestation Bearers have always been regarded with disdain and fear.
But is that truly justified? Is this really the only path they are fated to walk?
The answer lies with you. Seek the truth you desire.
This chapter is updat𝓮d by freēwebnovel.com.
Assist him in driving back the extermination squad.
Reward for success: ???, increased probability of handling future calamities
Penalty for failure: Imprisonment or exile from the Empire
Note: This quest is a shareable quest.
At that moment, a new path opened before them.