Memorize

"Hey, did you hear? They say it's opened again this time!"

"Really? Holy crap, that's huge! I can't believe it. Isn't it way too soon?"

"Yeah, exactly. Hmm, hasn't it been about six months since then? I've been in Hall Plain for two years, and I've never seen it open this quickly."

"Same here. By the way, what do we do? Things are already chaotic, and this is such bad timing, right?"

The moment I stepped out of the Morning Sunshine inn, I couldn't help but be stunned by the scene before me. Despite it being the middle of the night, Babara's streets were overflowing with players. In Hall Plain, sleep is incredibly important—one of the most effective ways to restore a body exhausted from expeditions. For this many players to gather at this hour was quite rare.

I took a moment to gather my thoughts before turning my attention to two players nearby, quietly chatting. Both had average-looking faces and were wearing shabby equipment, suggesting they weren't particularly skilled. Still, since they were equipped with combat gear, they didn't seem like mere survival-type players.

I approached cautiously and spoke to the one with her hair in twin braids.

"Excuse me, may I ask you something?"

"Eek! Oh, geez, what's with you? Sneaking up like that…"

The twin-braided woman turned around with a startled, irritated expression but stopped mid-sentence when she saw me. Her eyes scanned me up and down, narrowing slightly. After a moment, her gaze lingered on my face, and I could see her furrowed brow gradually relax.

"Yes, what are you curious about?"

"Hey, I'll answer! Ask me!"

"Shut it, you hag. He asked me. Can you just… stay quiet for a sec?"

The twin-braided woman spoke to me in a sweet tone but snapped sharply at the other woman she'd been talking with. Then she sidled up to me, subtly grabbing my arm. Reflexively, I activated my Third Eye.

(Player Status) 

Name: Kim Dahye (Year 2) 

Class: Normal Sword Runner 

Nation: Babara 

Clan: - 

True Name · Nationality: Dead Fish · South Korea 

Sex: Female (27) 

Height · Weight: 161.3 cm · 58.7 kg 

Alignment: Neutral · Obscene 

[Strength 51] [Resistance 56] [Agility 47] [Vitality 49] [Magic 61] [Luck 37]

Her stats were nothing special. I closed the information window without a second thought and noticed Kim Dahye gently stroking my clothes. I didn't feel particularly good or bad about it. With a dreamy expression, she briefly touched my belt before speaking in a nasal voice.

"Wow, this feels so soft. Where did you get this? It looks really high-quality. You must be incredibly skilled."

"...."

"Oh, silly me. You said you had a question, right? Hehe."

It suddenly struck me that, in Hall Plain, female players generally had a keener eye than their male counterparts. The gear I was wearing—Glory of Heaven, Glory of Sun, and Sun-Moon Divine Sword—each carried a distinct elegance, exuding an aura that low-grade equipment could never match.

I gently brushed her hand off my belt, which she was still clinging to, and asked what was on my mind.

"It's nothing major, but I'm curious why it's so chaotic out here."

"Oh~! Yeah, a portal opened."

"A portal?"

"Yup. They say a portal opened at the Inn of Beginnings. And this time, it's supposed to be really intense, so a lot of people might come through. The last one was six months ago, so compared to the past few years, this is insanely fast."

She seemed to be referring to the thickness and color of the blue barrier when she mentioned intensity. I wanted to say, 'The number of people coming through doesn't really correlate with the thickness or color,' but a sudden rush of thoughts made me turn away abruptly. I heard her call out, "Wait a sec!" from behind, trying to stop me. But I didn't have the luxury of responding.

I ran. The moment I heard a portal had opened, an urgent feeling surged within me.

I wove through the crowd of players filling the streets and sprinted down the main boulevard. Streetlights embedded with light stones flickered as I darted past, my legs pumping. Soon, I reached a plaza packed tightly with players.

I clicked my tongue inwardly and changed direction. I could've forced my way through, but right now, only running at full speed seemed capable of quelling this urgency.

The bright streets of Babara faded, replaced by the scenery of a dark, unlit district. Compared to the bustling main strip, this area was relatively quiet. The only light came from the occasional sultry glow of what looked like shop buildings. The air was thick with a sharp, nauseating stench, and the ground was filthy.

As I ran, a mix of smells assaulted my senses: human sweat, beer, dry and damp straw, mud, and the musky scent of men and women mingling together. The number of players thinned out, making it easier to move without obstruction, but I desperately wanted to escape this place.

I wasn't running at the full capacity of my agility stat, but the surrounding scenery still flashed by quickly. As expected of a city of this size, even after running for a while, I was still some distance from the Inn of Beginnings. I racked my memory and pushed my speed even harder.

The opening of a portal at the Inn of Beginnings wasn't a big deal in itself. But the reason my heart raced with urgency was that the future had significantly deviated. Normally, the portal at the Inn of Beginnings wouldn't open at this time. If I recall correctly, the next batch of new players should arrive only after the first civil war has concluded.

Why has the portal opened now? Countless thoughts swirled chaotically in my mind.

How long had I been running? The foul smells began to fade bit by bit—a sign I was leaving the dark district behind. Finally, as I fully emerged from it, I could breathe in the cool night air deeply. It felt like a weight had lifted. But the quiet of the night was shattered once more by the distant murmur of a crowd.

*

"Don't go inside! Stay behind the line!"

"Who the hell are you to tell us what to do?"

"What did you say? You dare act like that in Babara…?"

"Quiet down, everyone! The portal just opened! The blue barrier hasn't lifted yet…!"

The Inn of Beginnings stood before me, enveloped in a blue barrier, just as the twin-braided female player had described. I stared at it blankly before shifting my gaze to the surroundings. Unlike the crowd at the Morning Sunshine inn or the nearby streets, this area was teeming with players who appeared to be of a higher caliber.

"How dare you? Did they just say 'how dare you'? Hah, unbelievable. Pfft!"

"You can't just brush off what you said. Are you saying you're going to antagonize the Golden Lion Clan in Babara?"

"Give me a break. The ones responsible for the expedition's failure have the nerve to act superior? Weren't you begging for rescue just yesterday?"

"What did you say? You—"

A rough male voice erupted, followed by raucous laughter from nearby players. In contrast, the faces of the female player with the Golden Lion emblem on her left chest and those around her hardened. Watching them, I could confirm that the tensions were indeed escalating faster than expected.

I attributed this to the deaths of the Top 10. In Hall Plain, especially on the North Continent, the presence of the Top 10 carried far more weight than most realized. There was a reason I'd gone to great lengths to recruit Go Yeon-Joo and eliminate Cha Seung-Hyun and Ban Da-Hee, who would later become part of the Top 10.

The Top 10 weren't just about individual strength; their symbolic significance was immense. High stats or a good class alone didn't make someone part of the Top 10. Those were merely prerequisites. The most critical factor, in my opinion, was reputation. A player became part of the Top 10 when others acknowledged and respected their achievements and the challenges they'd overcome.

Of course, I'd seen cases where someone with freakish stats made a meteoric rise and displaced an existing Top 10 member, but those were rare. In the first life, you could count such cases on one hand.

Seven Top 10 members participated in this expedition. All but one were either confirmed dead or missing. And that sole survivor was barely clinging to life, unconscious and in critical condition. That left only three Top 10 members still fully active, and since I had Go Yeon-Joo, the remaining two were with non-participating clans.

In the first life, three Top 10 members had survived. That meant the participating clans still held the numerical advantage in Top 10 members, and their symbolic presence had somewhat kept things in check. But in this second life, that symbolism had been utterly shattered. With their core strength also significantly diminished, the suppressed grievances were starting to bare their teeth.

The atmosphere grew increasingly hostile. While no one had resorted to drawing weapons, the glares exchanged were thick with murderous intent. I watched them for a moment before turning my gaze back to the inn.

I'd rushed here in disbelief, but now that I was here, there was nothing I could do. All I could do was confirm the reality and accept it. My mind was already troubled by Sol's situation, and this only tangled things further.

I bit my lip slightly and let out a long sigh. Habitually, I reached into my pocket, but the cigarette I usually found there wasn't there. My mood sank even lower. Still, I dug deeper just in case and, thankfully, felt a few thin sticks. Breathing a sigh of relief, I put a cigarette in my mouth.

Some players were heatedly discussing the portal at the Inn of Beginnings lighting up after just six months. Amidst the chatter, I could hear voices blaming the participating clans, saying this was to replenish the player numbers depleted by the expedition's failure.

Honestly, a portal lighting up after six months wasn't that surprising. Over my ten years in Hall Plain, I'd seen it happen a few times. I think the shortest interval was three months, wasn't it?

The real source of my confusion was the timing. The Golden Lion's summons might come as early as tomorrow, and the portal opening now felt almost too perfectly timed. I couldn't predict what impact this would have on the future. The Inn of Beginnings held immense significance in Hall Plain.

After puffing on the innocent cigarette for a while, I decided to head back. The players' conflicts were starting to simmer down, likely due to someone's mediation, and there was nothing more for me to do here.

Just as I steeled myself and turned to leave, my eyes caught the blue barrier. A sudden thought flashed through my mind: the Third Eye. Since nothing in this world could deceive the Third Eye, perhaps I could glean some information about the Inn of Beginnings.

I took a deep breath to steady myself. Even a sliver of information could be invaluable in preparing for potential future mishaps. I activated the Third Eye and stared at the blue barrier. In that moment, a message floated up before me:

『Inn of Beginnings (Start Inn)』

Participants in the Rite of Passage: 587 

Survivors of the Rite of Passage: 252 (as of Day 7) 

Deaths in the Rite of Passage: 335 (as of Day 7) 

Completed: 2 (completed on Day 5)

The moment I read the information about the survivors and the completion on Day 5, I felt my breath catch in my throat. At the same time, I sensed the cigarette slip from my mouth.

.

.

.

.

You can read advance chapters and view R-18 images of the characters on pat reon page.

pat reon.com/GreenBlue17

100 Power Stones for 1 extra chapter.

5 New reviews for 1 extra chapter.