The all-knowing Player

Shin Chun-Hee (2)

I can't fight against her. That's the first thought that crosses my mind as I see the quest. After all, she only wants to avenge her dead brother. The second thought is as simple as the first one. If that's the case, am I ready to die by her hands? The answer is no. No, I'm not. I refuse to die after what I went through. Then there's only one solution. The system gave it to me. I have to kill her. That's the price I already paid once. And I will pay it again.

"I'm sorry." is all I can say.

"It's too late for you to be sorry. You should have died in his place."

Her words hurt. Maybe I should have died there. After all, I can't be sure that the second double dungeon was made for me. Maybe I shouldn't have survived it. Maybe that's why this dungeon was never mentioned in the original story. Whether 'Soo Hee-Jin' existed in Solo Leveling or not isn't as relevant as I thought it was. 

But the double dungeon is. Was it there in the original story, too, but never mentioned, because everyone was supposed to have died? Or did that incident never happen in the first place? And, most importantly: Who was it made for? Me? 'Soo Hee-Jin'? Or another hunter? And who is the being behind it? Antares, the Monarch of Destruction, or someone else?

In the end, none of these questions have an answer. Maybe I'll find out one day. But for now, I only know one thing: for the hunters who heard of the incident, I am the one who was supposed to die first. I, Soo Hee-Jin, the E-rank, one of the weakest of humanity. In such a dangerous dungeon, it only makes sense that I'd die. It only makes sense that someone else should have survived in my stead. Someone like Shin Chun-Hee's brother. 

"Killing me won't bring him back. You know that, don't you?" I insist

"I don't care!"

In an instant, she is next to me, trying to cut me in pieces. This time, I fight back. We dance around each other, swinging our blades against the other, blocking strikes and trying to land a hit. We speed up, using all the space. The tunnel is small, rocks fall down as we rely on it to propel ourselves forward.

I grit my teeth. Speed, strength, agility, technique. No matter how I look at it, we are at the same level. If it continues, it will end in a battle of endurance. I have no way of knowing for how long she will hold on.

A scream echoes in the tunnel. "Hee-Jin?"

I lose all focus. Yool and Seon-Ji are here. They saw me fight. Now they know. They know about my double awakening. What will they think of me?

The stinging of a blade cutting my skin pulls me out of my fearful thoughts. My arms, my legs, my side. I jump back just as she swings her rapier at my neck again. The blade grazes me, some blood drops off the new superficial wound. But it soon disappears as a familiar feeling takes over my body. From afar, Yool heals my wounds, old and new.

"Don't get in the way!" Shin Chun-Hee warns. "This is between Soo Hee-Jin and me!"

She speeds up towards them with the clear intention of killing them, but I attack her from behind. She turns around just in time and blocks my dagger.

"I'm your opponent here." I remind her.

If she touches a single hair of one of them, I will show no mercy. She pushes her sword to force its way despite my dagger. I jump back and her rapier continues its path in a circular arc. Attack after attack, we try to get past the defenses of each other. The fight continues, identical to the one before my sibling's arrival. With one difference. Now, I have something to protect. And she has nothing to lose.

Distracted by their presence, I cannot avoid getting hurt when she suddenly turns around to attack them and take the hit instead. If I still can't land a blow on her, she does. But everytime her blade cuts me, Yool closes the wound.