Chapter 288

「It's difficult to tell who the person you met at the gate.」

As expected, Cheon Sa-yeon met Elohim in a dream and asked for my identity as soon as he got out of the gate.

Elohim, who had been watching all the things that Cheon Sa-yeon was going through, had already understood the situation without listening to any explanation.

「Are you sure he's not someone you sent?」

「Well.」

Elohim gave an ambiguous answer while looking around in the dream, where all the grass was dry and the sky had become darker than at the beginning.

「It may or may not be.」

「Give me the correct answer.」

「As I said before, we don't know everything about the future.」

Elohim's white hair gently fluttered in the wind that blew from over the sea.

「But it's very interesting. That someone could intervene like that in your time.」

「For what purpose did he intervene?」

「If it's a purpose, it's already come out. Helping you clear the gate. So I guess he found an exit and disappeared immediately.」

「...that can't be all.」

「Why do you think so?」

「It's not that easy to help someone without anything in return...」

「Do you feel that person expects anything from you?」

Elohim smiled bitterly at the sight of Cheon Sa-yeon, who couldn't easily answer.

「Just as there is malice without cost, so is a good intention.」

「......」

「Think that is good. Thanks to him, you were able to clear the gate.」

If you feel uneasy, I think you can ask when you meet him again later. At Elohim's words, Cheon Sa-yeon nodded his head with a complicated expression.

"......"

Through this incident, I was able to understand the relationship between Cheon Sa-yeon and Kwon Se-hyun.

In a space made by my past, Cheon Sa-yeon first met Kwon Se-hyun. I was so flustered that anyone could notice as he explained Kwon Se-hyun as 'probably an acquaintance'.

In the end, Kwon Se-hyun, whom I met in space, wasn't who I am today, so Cheon Sa-yeon misunderstood it...

'After that, he lost interest in Kwon Se-hyun and stuck to me... was he aware of the situation?'

He was as quick as anyone else, so there was enough possibility. Come to think of it, he said this right before I read the book.

"Please take good care of me in the past, Han Yi-gyeol."

You really knew everything. I was worried that I would interfere and ruin the past, but it was a little annoying.

'Well, it's not a matter of giving a tip.'

Anyway, I'm glad it ended well without any problems.

With a sigh, I went back to the audience's point of view and watched Cheon Sa-yeon's past.

Cheon Sa-yeon, who succeeded in clearing the SS-level gate for the first time, was busy attending the influx of interviews and meetings. It was the first time I watched Cheon Sa-yeon after clearing because he had been dying at an SS-grade gate until now.

'I think this is okay.'

Even if I didn't help anyway, Cheon Sa-yeon would have cleared the gate someday.

No matter how much Cheon Sa-yeon wanted to die and end it all... that was impossible.

For Cheon Sa-yeon, death was no way out. He had no choice but to live in constant pain like a rat spinning on a wheel until he defeated Kali. Once again, I realized how frightening it was that the time wasn't mine.

「I think this path is the closest to the answer.」

The status of the Requiem Guild, which cleared the SS-class gate, was higher than before. Cheon Sa-yeon got two weapons, so it was a pretty good deal.

Now all that was left was to restore the relationship with Roheon. In the future fight, stopping the group called Praus was the most important thing, so a strong collaborator was needed.

「Not only Ha Tae-heon, but also the trust of Master Lee Joo-ha is important.」

If the No. 1 guild in Korea and the No. 2 guild cooperated, they would be powerful. Cheon Sa-yeon arranged his plans in the new time zone.

* * *

Earning Ha Tae-heon's trust was much more difficult than Cheon Sa-yeon thought. He was more picky than he established a friendly relationship with Lee Joo-ha.

Cheon Sa-yeon was just uncomfortable in Ha Tae-heon's situation. Unlike Cheon Sa-yeon, who recognized Ha Tae-heon's upright temperament at a glance, Cheon Sa-yeon was someone to be wary of for Ha Tae-heon.

Above all, Ha Tae-heon was very uncomfortable with Cheon Sa-yeon's behaviour and personality, which hid everything due to the situation he was in.

'This part isn't much different from now.'

Of course, it wasn't Cheon Sa-yeon if he would give up easily just because Ha Tae-heon refused.

Whether Ha Tae-heon hated him or not, Cheon Sa-yeon, who had already put him on the list of colleagues, started looking for items to give him.

Thanks to Elohim and Elahah, who could read thoughts unless they were related to Kali, Cheon Sa-yeon found out that a hidden item was found at the gate owned by the Roheon Guild and together with Ha Tae-heon, he obtained an SS-class coat there.

Cheon Sa-yeon, who gave the coat to Ha Tae-heon, was worried about the sword he had. The S-class sword and the SS-class Lilith sword. After examining the various circumstances, Cheon Sa-yeon handed Lilith's sword to Ha Tae-heon as well.

He was used to using an S-class sword for a long time and he gave it to Ha Tae-heon, who was weaker than him, in the hope that he would be safe. Ha Tae-heon refused several times, but he couldn't overcome Cheon Sa-yeon's stubbornness and eventually accepted.

Time passed. It had been 5 months since he cleared the SS-grade gate.

In the meantime, Cheon Sa-yeon had several encounters with the Praus Cult, and Ha Tae-heon was also involved in the battle, often helping Cheon Sa-yeon. That was when he entered his sixth month.

「...Ha Tae-heon.」

It was an attack by the Praus Cult. More numbers than ever before came and even Cheon Sa-yeon lost his left arm.

And Ha Tae-heon couldn't withstand the dozens of attacks that were pouring on him and eventually died.

Looking down at Ha Tae-heon's dead body with his arms and one leg cut off, Cheon Sa-yeon bowed his head with his weary face.

Ha Tae-heon, with an SS-class coat and sword, became a target for the Praus Cult. His wish that he would be safe had resulted in his death.

Cheon Sa-yeon, who lost both his arm and allies at the same time, pondered for a moment.

He hadn't died yet and the Requiem Guild was fine, so if he tried harder, he might be able to get something more out of this time frame. However...

「I don't really want to do that.」

From the moment Ha Tae-heon died, this time also felt meaningless. I didn't even know that he would feel this kind of emotion with Ha Tae-heon's death, who wasn't a member of his guild.

Efforts to save Ha Tae-heon and obtain cooperation returned to death. Cheon Sa-yeon also wanted to keep Ha Tae-heon alive.

Cheon Sa-yeon, who made the decision, inserted Lilith's sword placed next to Ha Tae-heon's body to his neck. It was the second suicide.

Cheon Sa-yeon, who woke up for the 34th time, once again entered the SS-grade gate. As I told him, he killed Lilith and rescued the clear team, and this time, he came out with Lilith's sword.

Instead, he didn't give it to Ha Tae-heon immediately, but he used it and passed it on to him later this time. He realized that just because he gave Ha Tae-heon a lot didn't necessarily lead to good results.

Pararak, the sound of a paper turning over, the scene before my eyes passed quickly. The number of times Cheon Sa-yeon returned to October and opened his eyes continued to pile up.

35th, 36th, 37th... 55th, 56th, 57th.

I could smell the strong smell of blood and the black masks of talented people were seen coming from the front.

「What should I do? Is there any way out of here?」

Cheon Sa-yeon, who cut down the cult members, thought with an anxious face.

「I made a mistake again.」

It was a scene I had seen before.

A red book was lying in the corner of the study room. The number 57 written on the outside was the number of times Cheon Sa-yeon repeated time.

「I would like to give you a present.」

「Stop it, Cheon Sa-yeon!」

When Park Geon-ho was killed by Samael, Cheon Sa-yeon cut off his wrist and started running.

Cheon Sa-yeon, who shook off Ha Tae-heon who was blocking him, and rushed toward the cult members, eventually succeeded in killing Samael, but he couldn't withstand his being rampage and died with pain in his body.

The 58th time. Cheon Sa-yeon, who succeeded in killing Samael for the first time, felt a glimmer of hope.

So again 59th, 60th, 61th...

As the number increased, the timing of Cheon Sa-yeon's death also varied.

There were times when he killed all the cult members and met Kali, the time forced him to go back.

Amidst the countless repetitions of time, Cheon Sa-yeon gradually changed into someone I was familiar with. His bored, sceptical, and cold-hearted character became increasingly strong.

It was when he came back in October as the number of returns was well over 200. After going through all the possibilities and events, Cheon Sa-yeon realized that someone new was needed to intervene in this time frame, just like when Ha Tae-heon was brought in before.

「Who should I do it with?」

He couldn't let anyone tie it up just because it was necessary. While he was thinking about it, the time came back and he woke up on that day in October.

Woo Seo-hyuk approached Cheon Sa-yeon, who sat on the sofa and swept his bangs with a tired face.

「Your complexion isn't good. Are you okay?」

Woo Seo-hyuk, who looked at Cheon Sa-yeon with a worried look, handed over the documents he was holding.

「This is the status of the victims in the C12 Area. His younger sister, Han Yi-yeon has died and Han Yi-gyeol is still recovering. According to reports, a man named Han Yi-gyeol has awakened.」

「...wait, was he awakened?」

Cheon Sa-yeon, who had been listening to the conversation over 200 times, caught his eye later on Han Yi-gyeol's existence. He took the documents and looked at the information about Han Yi-gyeol.

Woo Seo-hyuk added an explanation when he showed interest in Han Yi-gyeol.

「He hasn't woken up yet, so I don't know what kind of ability he awakened with. If you want to, I will prepare in advance for a simple test as soon as he wakes up.」

Cheon Sa-yeon already knew that Han Yi-gyeol had awakened with wind ability.

Wind ability. The wind ability was the rarest among the few natural abilities. Besides, it was an A-rank, so if he brought him to his side, it would be of great help to everyone.

「No.」

Cheon Sa-yeon, who made the decision, closed the documents and got up from his seat.

「I will go there myself. I want you to know that I'll be away for a while tomorrow.」

「I understand.」