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Those Who Meet Must Part (1)

(T/N: The chapter title is a Korean idiom about how people come and go throughout life.)

The elevator dinged as Seo Junho arrived on the 77th floor. He was imagining how good his bed would feel after taking a hot shower. As he dragged his body to the entrance, the light turned on automatically.

“Ack!” A small figure surprised him. It was none other than the Frost Queen, who was carrying a container of onion-flavored popcorn. She spoke as she chewed on a kernel as big as her fist.

“Contractor, do you know what time it is?”

“Huh? I-it’s one in the morning,” he said, confused. He had come home later than expected after talking more with Kim Woojoong and later with Deokgu.

“Did you not say that you were simply meeting with a friend?”

“Well, I was going to, but things happened.” He scratched his head. He felt like he was a kid getting scolded by a parent after coming home late. It felt weird, considering that he owned the apartment.

“Hmph, come home earlier next time,” she ordered, inspecting the sweat and dirt on his body. “You’re a mess. Did something happen?”

“Yeah. Something big.” After taking off his shoes and jacket, he pulled out a cold can of beer. The Frost Queen followed him like a little chick.

“What do you mean?”

“I killed Kal Signer.”

“Kal… Signer? I do not know him. Tell me.”

“He’s a fiend. He was a lot stronger than the ones we ran into last time.”

“How troublesome. All while you were simply trying to meet a friend.”

“We crossed paths while I was trying to get some food from the convenience store.” He sighed and sat down on the sofa, taking a swig of beer. “Ah, that hits the spot…”

He felt his body relax as he sunk into the plush cushions. He stared up at the ceiling.

“Hey, Frost.”

“What is it?”

“The world is vast. There are people that are stronger than we can imagine.” He was still in shock from meeting Kim Woojoong. I knew he was strong, but still…

After awakening from the ice, he’d met and fought many players. He’d cleared multiple Gates and had won the respect of the people as a Super Rookie.

But despite it all, he hadn’t realized just how strong the players had gotten after 25 years. The truly powerful ones were on the 2nd Floor, but he hadn’t imagined that the difference between them would be so big. After being the strongest player for so long, it was an unfamiliar feeling.

That said, Kim Woojoong had been a player for twice as long as he had. The Sword Saint was 27—only a year older than him—but he’d started when he was 17.

He’s such a well-rounded person… Seo Junho closed his eyes. He now understood why they were called the Nine Heavens. Once you saw them in person, it all made sense.

He has a good character too. At first, he’d seemed cold and distant, but he was surprisingly friendly. It wouldn’t be surprising for one of the Nine Heavens to be uptight, but he had been kind. He knew how to take responsibility, which wasn’t easy. Most people didn’t care about much else once they acquired power and status.

“What are you thinking so deeply about? Tell me.”

“It’s nothing. I just think I need to try harder.”

“Why?”

“Because things will get harder if I don’t.”

There were eight people who were as strong as Kim Woojoong. It would be nice if they were all good people, but there was a fiend among them who also happened to be his enemy.

“Ugh, fucking Nazad Hallow…” He was the one that had sent Kal Signer to capture him. “I have to try harder because a monster has its eyes on me.”

He didn’t know what was waiting for him in Frontier, and after meeting Kim Woojoong today, both his interest and anxiety had increased. He felt uneasy.

“I have plenty of experience on the 1st Floor, but I’ve never been to the 2nd…”

Would he be able to do it? His shoulders felt heavy.

“Contractor.” The Frost Queen patted his head like she was comforting a child. “Things will go well. You’ve already come this far.”

“What the heck? Why are you comforting me?”

“Because you look like a sad little puppy sitting in the rain,” she said frankly. Seo Junho stared at her and laughed.

“Stop trying to act all cool. You haven’t even washed your hands after eating popcorn.” He felt his confidence rushing back. “Of course I can do it. Who do you think I am? I’m a living legend.”

“Ha, I shouldn’t have said that. You’re more arrogant than usual.” Despite what she said, she smiled, satisfied. “Anyways, about that Kal…That man. Was he that powerful?”

“No. The one who surprised me was the Sword Saint, Kim Woojoong. He was insanely strong.”

“It’s a pity that I wasn’t there. I would have been able to judge his worth.”

“He’s several times stronger than you, just so you know. He’s the Sword Saint, after all.”

She smirked. “You know, I have the power to freeze the entire world…”

“Don’t get started again.” He shook his head and finished his beer before standing up.

She scowled. “It’s true! Why won’t you believe me?”

“I do believe you. You’re so much stronger than the Nine Heavens.” He chuckled as he walked to his bedroom. He felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

* * *

The two of them had a lot to do in the next two days. Seo Junho had to hurry if he wanted to win the bet he’d made with Gong Juha; there were only ten days left. So from the moment he woke up, he sat down at his desk and started memorizing all the information about the 2nd Floor. When lunchtime rolled around, the Frost Queen appeared before him. She looked extremely exhausted with her hand on her forehead.

“Phew, it’s hard work to watch dramas and movies all day.”

“…Get out.”

He couldn’t neglect his training either. He spent an hour in the morning and evening sweating in the training room.

After a week, Seo Junho finally stood up from this desk.

“Are you finished?”

“Yeah.” He tapped his head with a finger. “It’s all in here.”

“Hm, it seems that you are smarter than you appear.”

Seo Junho grinned. He put on a coat and stepped out of the house.

“Are you not going up?” The Frost Queen asked as he pressed ‘1’ on the elevator. She’d assumed that he was going to meet Shim Deokgu.

“No. I need to say goodbye to some people before I go to the 2nd Floor.”

Kwon Noya, Kwon Palmo, Cha Si-eun, Shim Deokgu, and his friends.

“Woojoong. Hey, Woojoong.”

He let out a long sigh. There was only one person in the world who would call him so casually: the Guildmaster of Silent Moon and his childhood friend, Son Chaewon. She also happened to be his boss.

“What?”

“Hey, do you remember what your mission was? Did you forget after chasing him around for so long?” She was sitting on the mahogany desk of the Guildmaster’s room, smiling cheerfully.

It made him nervous whenever she made that face.

“…Of course not.”

“Right? There’s no way our super elite Sword Saint Kim Woojoong would forget, right?” She nodded and held out her hand. “Where’s Final Horizon?”

“…”

The only reason he’d chased Kal Signer for so long was because one of the nobles wanted the bow.

“Say something. You killed him, didn’t you? I’ve seen it all over the news.”

“Yes, I did. I killed him.”

“…You don’t have to be so serious. Who else would kill him besides you?” She tilted her head. “But why didn’t you bring back the bow? Was Kal Signer way stronger than you expected?”

“…” If he’d wanted to, he would have been able to kill him with a wave of his hand, or torture him until he spat out everything he knew. But he hadn’t been able to do either of those things because Seo Junho had killed him before he could.

Kim Woojoong knew that he had Final Horizon, but he hadn’t asked him to hand it over. It belonged to Seo Junho. After all, he hadn’t lifted a finger in killing Kal Signer.

Seo Junho had fought and killed him alone. So it was his spoil, and his alone.

“I killed him by accident.”

“What?” She didn’t believe him for a second. How could the perfect Kim Woojoong make any kind of mistake? “Hey… Are you okay?” She looked worried. No matter how important the quest was, he was her friend first and foremost.

“I am.”

“That’s all that matters. As for the quest… It’s a shame, but there’s nothing we can do about it.” The quest had come from one of Ruben’s dukes, so if they succeeded, Silent Moon would have become the strongest guild in the empire.

But she didn’t linger on what had already happened. “I’ll report to the duke myself.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I said it’s fine. No more apologies, okay?” She chuckled as she shook her head. “So, what’s the real reason? Don’t give me a lame excuse like that.”

She didn’t believe me. He sighed. He had never been able to lie to Son Chaewon. She knew him better than his own mother.

He thought for a second. He had no intention of breaking his promise with Seo Junho, but for some reason, the thought of him made him laugh.

“…What’s with that? I haven’t seen you laugh like that in a long time.” She sounded bitter. It was the first time in four years since she’d seen him make such a bright expression.

He looks happier than when he became the Sword Saint. Her curiosity made her impatient.

“I couldn’t retrieve Final Horizon, but I got something much more valuable.”

“And what would that be?”

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Kim Woojoong looked out the window, into the never-ending sky. He smiled.

“The future.”

He could see that man’s face etched in the clouds. It was as if he were looking at his past self.

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