Chương 66: After Life

Sensation slammed back into Hyun's body. A cool breeze brushed across his skin, his fingertips throbbed from how tightly he had clenched his fists, while a searing pain drilled through his skull. His shoulder burned where it had scraped against the pavement. One hand cradled the back of his head. Another tapped urgently against his shoulder. Hyun forced his heavy eyelids open, and Gray loomed over him.

"Good, you're awake!" Relief flooded Gray's face.

"Are you okay? What the hell just happened?" Hyun tried to answer, but the words came out as an incoherent mumble. His vision swam. Darkness crept inward from the edges of his sight, steadily swallowing his peripheral vision.

"Hey!" Gray shouted. His voice cracked as he shook Hyun by the shoulders.

"What's happening? Why are your pupils turning gray?!" Looks like you'll have to find someone else to put up with you, he thought, wincing faintly at the jostling. You shouldn't have to go through this again. I'm sorry I won't be there for you. Sorry I was only ever a burden. This is the only thing I can still do for you, Gray. And the last. A prompt abruptly materialized in Gray's vision. Hyun Kim has requested to form an alliance with you. Accept? Y / N Gray frowned. What? Now, of all times?

He glanced down at his brother's fading eyes. Does this somehow help you, Hyun? Gray mentally selected Yes. Hyun Kim and Gray Kim have formed an alliance. Another prompt immediately appeared. Hyun Kim has requested to be designated Alliance Master. Accept? Y / N Yeah, sure. Gray accepted again. Hyun Kim has been designated Alliance Master.

"What are you scheming, Hyun?!" William shouted from behind them. Gray barely registered him. Another notification filled his vision. Hyun Kim has reallocated all Guild Points to Gray Kim's Guild. Gray Kim's Guild has received 310, 941 Guild Points. Gray's eyes widened. Then another prompt appeared. Hyun Kim has designated Gray Kim to receive 100% of the Contribution Points. 130, 941 Contribution Points have been allocated to Gray Kim.

"Hy… Hyun." Gray stared down at his brother in disbelief.

"Why are you doing this? You're going to fail the level! You're going to become a cripple!"

"What your brother said," William chimed in.

"You should've just croaked with some dignity. What the hell is this stunt you've pulled?" Still cradling Hyun across his lap, Gray slowly turned his head toward the tank.

"Croaked?" he echoed, his voice dropping into a growl.

"He isn't dead. He's still breathing." William released an exaggerated sigh of relief.

"That's wonderful news! Now tell your brother to fix this before the level ends on us. We don't have time." He stepped closer.

"I'll tell you what. You can keep half the Contribution Points for yourself, and I take the other half. Just have him transfer all the Guild Points back to our guild." William gestured toward Gray.

"And while we're at it, empty your guild's balance into ours too." Disgust twisted Gray's face.

"So under your brilliant plan, I abandon my entire party to save my own ass—and yours. Is that right?"

"Glad you understand." William folded his arms.

"Face it, kid. Your guild was never making the Top 25. This is your best option." He planted the heavy tip of his shield into the pavement with a sharp crack.

"So, what'll it be?" Gray tightened his hold around Hyun. As underhanded as William's ultimatum was, he had stumbled onto one valid point: if Hyun cleared this level, William would clear it with him. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. But transferring every single Guild Point into Gray's guild was excessive. There was no reason both parties had to fail. If they simply split the points between them, both guilds could comfortably climb into the Top 25.

"I'll talk to him," Gray said. He leaned down, bringing his face closer to Hyun's.

"You made the right decision," William replied smugly.

"Hey," Gray whispered.

"Take back at least half the Guild Points. And can you split the Contribution Points between yourself, the rest of my party, and me? Forget about William." Hyun didn't respond. His pupils had faded completely from gray to a hollow white. He simply lay there, staring blankly into space with the faintest smirk curled across his lips. Before Gray had reached him, Hyun had already contacted the 27th ranked guild. The call hadn't ended particularly well, since Hyun had only been fishing for their Guild Point total.

They had accumulated 220, 791 GP. That figure represented the absolute minimum needed to breach the Top 25. Earlier, Hyun had also contacted the 60th ranked guild and learned they were sitting at only 70, 323 GP. Gray's guild had been even lower, stranded around 65th place. Adding his own Guild Points to the 60th ranked guild's total, then dividing the sum evenly, produced roughly 190, 632 GP for each side—still about thirty thousand points short of overtaking the 27th ranked guild.

The brothers couldn't clear the level together. Worse, Hyun sat at rank 80 on the individual ladder, while Gray was at 96. Failing this stage carried a serious risk of knocking either of them outside the Top 100 entirely and stripping away their classes. Hyun had already made his choice. He would sacrifice everything. In truth, this brutal new world had never suited him. He had already begun making peace with what life might look like once he became permanently crippled. His dream was to make a quiet living.

A small place of his own. Somewhere he could work without constantly looking over his shoulder. Art had always been his passion, and he had settled on the idea of opening a studio. The only real obstacle was his former mentor. There was no telling how Edward might react once Hyun willingly surrendered the class he had been entrusted with. Maybe Gray's mentor could intervene? Or perhaps Gray himself. If he ever reached the Kaiser Rank he could potentially possess enough influence to smooth things over.

He believed Gray would get there. His younger brother had adapted to this world frighteningly fast. He was reckless, impulsive, and far too eager to throw himself into danger, but he had the potential to become formidable if he survived long enough. Keeping him alive was supposed to be Hyun's responsibility. As the older brother, his role had always been to keep Gray grounded—to grab him by the collar and yank him back whenever he drifted too close to the edge. What a pain in the ass.

"He… he's not responding." Gray narrowed his eyes, searching Hyun's vacant expression for any sign of awareness.

"Oi. Cut the bullshit, kid," William spat.

"Tell that freak show to stop playing dead, or I'm going to execute his precious little brother right in front of him." Gray's jaw tightened, and his fingernails dug into his palms.

"Execute?" he repeated, rising slowly.

"Execute who? Me?" He gently lowered Hyun's head onto the grass before ripping Tobari from its scabbard.

"Last I checked, your buddies from last time aren't around to help you."

"Kids never listen to reason." William clicked his tongue and shook his head. He lifted his shield.

"I guess I'll just have to kill you and that vegetable over there to top off my Contribution Points." A cold grin spread across his face.

"That should guarantee my place in the Top 100." William hoisted his massive tower shield and slammed its edge into the pavement with a heavy crunch. A dark sheen spread across the metal before flowing over his armored body. Settling into a defensive stance behind the barricade, he curled his fingers and beckoned Gray forward. A flash of hot rage ignited in Gray's mind. His first instinct had always been to lash out at whoever provoked him.

As William hurled his childish insults, that old impulse surged back to life, urging Gray to drive Tobari straight through the tank's face. He forced the anger down. Gray drew a steady breath, took a step back, and assessed the situation. If he lost control here, it wouldn't be only his own life at stake—Hyun's was on the line, too. He leveled the katana and tightened both hands around the hilt. There's no point charging in recklessly when that meathead has several layers of defense.

I know he can conjure mana barriers, and who knows what that physical shield can— A crushing pressure suddenly descended overhead, displaced air brushing the back of Gray's neck. Above! He didn't bother looking. Wraith His body burst apart into smoke just as a translucent hexagonal wall of blue mana crashed down from the sky. The impact flattened his drifting form against the pavement, but Gray felt nothing. His vision merely dropped to ground level, leaving him staring at William's black greaves.

A second later, gray vapor seeped from beneath the edges of the mana wall. It rolled upward in twisting streams before converging into a single hovering mass.

"Looks like you finally learned an escape ability!" William bellowed with laughter.

"Would've been useful when we tied you up like a hog!" Gray gritted his teeth. He wouldn't bite. He couldn't afford to get sloppy now. Gray mentally queued his next move: Shroud Domain. If William tried exploiting the brief vulnerability when Wraith returned him to physical form, he would flood the entire street with smoke before the tank could capitalize. Fortunately, he didn't need to. William remained behind his planted shield, watching the spectral cloud with a calculating stare.

"Are you gonna attack or what?!" he shouted. I wish I could. Wraith finally expired. Wisps of smoke curled from Gray's body as his shoes settled softly onto the pavement.

"What? That's it?!" William mocked. Gray lowered his center of gravity and advanced on the tank one slow, deliberate step at a time.

"If it's a head-on fight you want, I'll give you one." The dark sheen coating William's tower shield deepened to a pitch-black.

"But you'll have to get through my barriers first." Gray's muscles coiled. He prepared for another construct to appear overhead—or perhaps behind him—and kept Shroud Domain primed in case William attempted a blindside attack. Instead, the Vanguard attacked from the front. A broad mana wall materialized between them. William drove his free fist into empty air. The barrier shot forward. Gray raised Tobari overhead and brought it down with everything he had, aiming to cleave the construct in half.

The blade struck with a metallic crack. Steel rebounded uselessly from the glowing surface, sending a violent tremor through Gray's wrists and up both arms. Refusing to yield, he pivoted sideways and planted his shoulder against the advancing wall. The barrier shoved him backward. His boots scraped across the pavement, rubber squealing as he fought for traction. He slid several feet before William finally dismissed the construct. Gray caught himself and raised his blade again.

Across the street, William dropped into a runner's crouch, his tower shield angled before him. A predatory grin spread across his face.

"This'll be fun."