Fired Characters from an Idle Game

28. 5★ Mírien, Storm of the Northern Sea – (1)

“Hah, hah, haahh.”

Yoo Jun-seo, gasping for breath, bolted out of the tower.

He held the weighty position of Director of the Awakened Management Bureau, but he was acutely aware that it was purely due to good fortune. He happened to be in the right place at the heart of the earth-shattering changes.

“Hh, hhuuh! Hheugh!”

He inhaled sharply and quickened his pace.

An ordinary citizen at heart, until recently, Yoo Jun-seo had believed himself exceedingly lucky. That the world’s systems were, in fact, benevolent towards him.

Unlike his past as a mentally unfit public service worker, at the bottom rungs of society, he felt he could ascend to the core, to the ruling class in this new world.

“Shiiibal!”

But that was a delusion.

In the dungeon he’d so boldly entered, Yoo Jun-seo had abandoned his comrades, fleeing for his life. He’d tumbled down the stairs in his desperate escape, his body now a patchwork of bruises, his meticulously styled hair, carefully arranged for the cameras, now a dishevelled mess.

“Crap! You stupid b*stard!”

Yoo Jun-seo slapped his own head, berating himself.

What earthly riches would he gain from joining in this suicidal venture?

Within the 5-Star Dungeon, the Tower of Reversal, the Storm of the Northern Sea, Mirien, was not alone. There, too, was Selene, the Scourged Saint, Actor’s own minion. This was the fatal flaw, the reckless hubris.

“…It’s… the King of Hell!”

“oooh!”

The crowd that still lingered near the Tower erupted in cheers at the sudden appearance of Yoo Jun-seo, but upon seeing his disheveled state, they realized something was terribly wrong.

From within the crowd, a B-Rank Awakened named Kang Se-na, visibly agitated, approached him and asked cautiously,

“…Director, what happened inside?”

“…Th-that’s….”

Yoo Jun-seo hesitated, about to tell the truth.

Could he, the Director of the Management Bureau, admit in front of everyone that he had abandoned an S-Rank Awakened from his own bureau as bait and fled?

That would be nothing short of social suicide.

“…Inside the Tower… Selene, the Scourged Saint, emerged.”

And Yoo Jun-seo was a man with ambitions for power, and he knew that the dead told no tales.

Furthermore, he knew the grim reality of the present world: no matter the forensic investigation, no matter the scientific inquiry, nothing mattered anymore.

“…I barely escaped… but S-Rank Awakened Nam Joo-yeon….”

Before Yoo Jun-seo could even finish his sentence, Kang Se-na wore a look of absolute horror.

At the same moment, he felt a sharp stab of guilt.

To sell out a comrade who sacrificed herself for him…

Jo Geon-wook had said that S-Rank Awakened Nam Joo-yeon had something up his sleeve, but now Yoo Jun-seo had to admit it.

Nam Joo-yeon was a hero. He had given his life for Yoo Jun-seo. He hadn’t even uttered a single word of resentment towards him as he fled in such a pathetic manner.

That final image was still vivid in his mind, so Yoo Jun-seo couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence.

“Director! What in the world happened?!”

“That’s….”

Kang Se-na and other staff members of the Management Bureau each added their own questions, and the murmurs from the gathered crowd grew louder and louder—and then it came.

*Krrrrrrr.*

A tremendous vibration reverberated behind Yoo Jun-seo.

The ground trembled.

And the sky trembled.

More accurately, heaven and earth convulsed.

*Ding.*

[Dungeon 「Tower of Reversal」 is Erupting.]

A message bloomed on the status window before his eyes, and Yoo Junseo knew it, deep in his gut.

“Ah.”

Yoo Junseo pieced together a grim conclusion. The Tower’s eruption was his fault, entirely.

Even after escaping the dungeon, it wouldn’t let him go.

Though it had devoured S-Rank Awakened Nam Jooyeon, it remained insatiably hungry. Now it sought to devour Yoo Junseo, the one who’d fled the Tower.

“…Ha, hahaha.”

Yoo Junseo clutched at his head.

Whatever the reason, his actions played a significant, terrible part in this eruption.

Now, countless citizens would die, and it would all be laid at Yoo Junseo’s door.

Wouldn’t it be better to confess here and now?

“A-Actually, I escaped from that dungeon…”

He was about to speak the truth amidst the chaos when –

“Hey! Look at that!”

Someone’s shout drew all eyes to the Tower. Just then, a colossal figure soared from its peak.

It was none other than the Storm Dragon, Tempestra.

Riding on the Storm Dragon’s back was S-Rank Awakened Nam Jooyeon.

“Uwooo!”

“It’s the Dragon King! The Dragon King lives!”

Having completely forgotten the dungeon eruption, the citizens erupted in cheers.

As the foremost contributor to successfully defending against the last eruption, S-Rank Awakened Nam Jooyeon was, in the eyes of Seoul’s citizens, an invincible hero capable of overcoming anything.

“So, what exactly happened?”

Meanwhile, Kang Sena, her expression noticeably more lenient, approached him, asking.

Yoo Junseo swiftly changed his demeanor.

“While we were smoothly clearing the dungeon, we realized it was on the verge of erupting. So, I spoke with Nam Jooyeon. I would go outside to evacuate the citizens, and Nam Jooyeon would find and eliminate the cause of the eruption.”

“…Really?”

“Absolutely. Don’t you trust me?”

“….”

Kang Sena’s eyes narrowed, but thankfully, she didn’t press any further.

Yoo Junseo practically bolted into the car he’d left idling.

It was time to return to his role as the Bureau Chief.

Someone must know what it feels like to fly through the sky without a lick of safety gear.

Probably not. If they did, they’d be sharing pleasantries with King Yama in the next breath.

Which, in that light, makes my current situation exceedingly rare.

[4★ Storm Dragon Tempestora has cast the skill 「Flight」.]

Whoosh!

The icy wind slapped my face.

The torrential downpour hammered against me, making it hard to even draw breath.

Of course, I might not have any gear on me right now, but it wasn’t like I was totally without safeguards. The scorched Saintess Selene was hidden within her veil, ready for any unfortunate eventuality.

Even so, clinging to one of Tempestora’s scales as a handhold, soaring at this dizzying altitude, wasn’t exactly a pleasant sensation.

“Heeh.”

Tempestora, bless her draconian heart, must have been considerate enough to keep her head upright, because the ride wasn’t *too* rough.

“Selene, you hear me?”

Selene remained unseen within her veil.

But communication was still possible.

“Yes. My lord, I hear you.”

“We need to find Mirien. Any idea where she might be?”

“I do not.”

In the end, I was going to have to summon a hellhound just to track Mirien.

“My lord, may I ask one thing?”

“Sure, but I’m kind of anxious about when I’m going to fall right now, so could you make it quick?”

“…What do you intend to do with Mirien?”

Selene’s quiet question.

She seemed to be burning with a battle fervor.

“While it is difficult to unleash my full power in this rain… if you require it, I will incinerate everything to kill that woman.”

“…”

If I were to command Selene to kill Mirien, she would try to fight even if it meant burning away her lifespan.

After all, the ultimate skill of the 5-star Calamities, especially Selene’s, was the worst kind: a suicide attack.

But that was the furthest thing from the future I wanted.

“Selene, are you crazy? What kind of leader kills his subordinate over one misunderstanding?”

“…Right then.”

“I’ll go. Settle it with words. I’d do the same even if you, Selene, were the one mistaken, not Mirien.”

Truth be told, Mirien’s misunderstanding was sudden, but not entirely incomprehensible. I myself had declared the tower’s conquest, and even if it was just a figure of speech, I’d said I would eliminate Mirien. I just hadn’t expected her to see and hear every bit of it. It was my error, assuming Mirien would be as clueless about the ways of the world as Selene was.

“…Finding Mirien first, I suppose, is paramount.”

“Yes. That is correct. However, if Mirien is determined to hide, there is currently no way to locate her.”

“Selene, you underestimate people’s hearts. After a stunt this big, and running from me right in front of my face, you don’t think she’ll be lurking somewhere, waiting to be found?”

“…Pardon?”

Apparently, the veil’s duration had ended, as Selene reappeared. The torrential downpour was visibly weakening her flames.

“My Lord, you mustn’t regard Mirien as a simple person. She is destruction in human form.”

“…In my eyes, you’re both human.”

Though, admittedly, humans with a rather lacking sense of ethics, and an utter absence of moderation…

“Regardless, she was once my subordinate in the Rift.”

Now that reality had become a game, the game I once played was also reality. Therefore, the Rift’s Overlord, Actor, and the four Calamities under his command…

The favors I bestowed upon them, and the feelings they harbored for me…

All of it was real.

In that case, shouldn’t I also display a little of my former self, Actor, the Rift’s Overlord?

“In situations like this, deep down, the other party always wants to be found.”

“….”

“Selene, in that spirit, I shall now issue you an order.”

“Yes. What is it?”

I grinned, pointing to the cityscape sprawling below.

“Destroy a few buildings down there. Or burn them, if you prefer. But do not kill anyone. Absolutely. Ah, and if any Awakeners come to attack, only eliminate the Calamity.”

“…Is it truly permissible to do so, My Lord?”

“Drawing attention is key here. The Awakeners of Seoul need to gather in one place.”

“Then what are your intentions, My Lord?”

Selené, a perplexed look on her face, inquired, and I summoned the Hellfire Hound from my status window.

“It’s obvious, isn’t it? We need to find Mirien.”

“…Th-that’s…”

“Selené. If you’re going to tell me it’s dangerous, just follow my orders.”

At my words, Selené, appearing somewhat moved, jumped off the Storm Dragon’s back, clutching the Obsidian Wedge Sword.

“Ah.”

I should have told her to stay with me until we landed.

[4★ Storm Dragon Tempestura casts the skill ‘Flight’.]

“Uwaaack!”

This time it truly was, a glide with absolutely no safety net.