For me, Gates are the embodiment of the unknown.

I know a bit from other people's stories, but I have no idea what they're actually like.

In that sense, entering a Gate was quite terrifying for me.

Having experienced veterans along was certainly reassuring, but scary things are still scary.

I mean, would anyone walk confidently into a minefield even with a bomb disposal expert by their side?

Unlike me with my mouth dry from tension, the three of them seemed incredibly calm, examining the rippling Gate and even tossing stones into it.

Watching them made me feel like an idiot for being the only one trembling with anxiety.

"They're not even nervous."

Honestly, I felt left out.

Feeling isolated, I muttered to myself, but somehow all three of them heard me and turned to look.

Ah, right. We're inside a cave.

Of course they could hear me in this environment.

I awkwardly averted my eyes as all three stared at me.

"We are nervous too, it's just that we're used to this state so it doesn't show. After all, entering a Gate means putting your life on the line—who wouldn't be nervous?"

"I guess that's true... I just felt stupid being the only one trembling."

After I responded to Choi Hyun with a pout, he chuckled and came over to ruffle my hair.

"Nobody's judging you for being nervous. Besides, this is your first time entering a Gate. Of course you'd be tense. If you were relaxed thinking 'it'll work out somehow,' I would've scolded you to be more careful."

"I wish I could be that carefree, seriously... Just thinking about Light Dragons or other monsters jumping out inside the Gate... Sigh..."

The three exchanged glances at my words before bursting into laughter.

Among them, Hyun was vigorously rubbing my head while laughing, shaking it so hard it started to hurt.

"Ow, that hurts!"

At first I endured it with my eyes closed, but eventually I couldn't take it anymore. I dodged his hand and rammed him with my horn.

Though he sensed it coming as always, he was laughing too hard to dodge properly and got jabbed in the side, letting out a yelp.

The scarier part was that he kept laughing while clutching his stabbed side.

...Has he lost his mind? Or did I puncture his lung? Is that why he's wheezing like that?

By this point, I was starting to feel awkward, like I was the weird one.

"Did I say something that strange...?"

"Hahahahaha... Ah... Your worries are just so cute that I couldn't help it... Pfft..."

My worries are cute? I was genuinely anxious and tense, how could he say such a thing...

With a mix of embarrassment and indignation, I frowned deeply. Hyun, having caught his breath, approached with a gentle smile and fixed my disheveled hair.

"Just because it's a Gate doesn't mean Light Dragons or monsters will definitely appear. Actually, most Gates are much less dangerous. If disasters of that magnitude popped up from every Gate, we'd all have been wiped out long ago."

"That's true, but... considering everything that's happened to me... I wouldn't be surprised if real monsters showed up."

Everything that's happened to me.

As soon as I regained consciousness in the hospital, my grandmother got caught in a terrorist attack. Not long after, the head of Harmageddon came looking for me.

I was dragged to court for killing a monster as a civilian. Then the courthouse was attacked.

There I fought to the death with another Light Dragon modification victim like me.

And there were many more incidents if I listed them all.

Look, if all this had happened gradually over two or three years, I might have taken it in stride.

But all of this happened in less than a year—not even six months.

At this point, surviving is a miracle, but it also means I have the kind of bad luck where disasters keep striking one after another.

Of course, whether it's a miracle or bad luck depends on perspective...

But when entering the unknown space of a Gate, shouldn't I be more concerned about bad luck than miracles?

After hearing my lengthy explanation, Hyun considered it with a serious expression, Ryu Hwa looked like she wanted to say something, and Ha-Young Noona gave a bitter smile.

"Sia. I understand what you're worried about, but back then Harmageddon was deliberately targeting you. So shouldn't you believe more in miracles than bad luck? What do you think?"

"Yeah, it's better to think of it as a miracle rather than bad luck. After all, you're the one who won in the end, right?"

After pondering their words for a moment, I nodded.

If they're being this encouraging, I should trust them.

"Then shall we go in now?"

"That's too sudden."

I had decided to think positively, but this was still too abrupt.

I'm not mentally prepared yet.

"Don't be unnecessarily tense. If you keep trembling like that, even simple things will become difficult."

Though her tone was quite aggressive, I knew by now that she was saying it for my benefit, so I didn't feel bad.

...Alright. Let's do this. It's not like I'm going to die.

If things go south, I can just bolt out of there.

I'm not alone either—there are three former S-Class Heroes with me.

Oh, Ryu Hwa is A-Class, right.

"Let's go. I'm ready."

"Good. Let's go. Noonas, I'm counting on you."

With the two women nodding behind us, Hyun and I stood before the Gate.

The Gate looked very similar to the distorted landscape visible when Han Yeong-Seok tore through the air, but unlike that, it appeared quite stable.

If I had to compare, it was like the difference between the wake of a jet boat and a completely still lake.

Thinking about it that way, it didn't seem that dangerous after all.

"So... do we just go in now?"

"Yeah. Be careful when entering. The floor might drop suddenly, or there could be a ledge, or... anyway, just be careful."

"What's the worst Gate entry you've experienced?"

"Falling from the sky."

Shit, that sounds dangerous as hell.

Is this really okay?

"It's fine. Both of us can fly, remember?"

That's true.

I nodded, took a deep breath, got into position, and dove into the Gate like I was diving into water.

Just in case, I slightly extended my wings to prepare for flight.

Come what may, I thought as I jumped in, but...

THUD.

"..."

Falling from the sky, my ass.

It was just a normal floor, and I ended up rolling on the ground.

Hyun, who calmly walked in after me, saw me sprawled on the floor and went "pfft."

I didn't mishear—he actually made a deflating sound. Anyone would recognize it as laughter.

As I slowly got up from the ground, Hyun grabbed the back of my neck and helped me up.

"I can't believe you fell for that. It's like telling someone they need to take off their shoes on an airplane—that level of lie."

"You bastard... How was I supposed to know?! This is my first time!"

"But you're less nervous now, right?"

My tension had definitely eased, but my irritation had increased proportionally.

"After getting me all covered in dirt, you have the nerve to... Oh, it's not dirt, it's stone."

Looking down to dust off my clothes, I saw it wasn't dirt but an ordinary stone floor.

That's why my clothes were cleaner than I expected.

"Let me help you dust off."

"So you can sneakily touch my chest, right?"

"..."

Hyun silently dusted off my clothes.

He seemed to take my words seriously, avoiding my chest area completely.

"I was joking, so just help me dust everything off. You touch them almost every day anyway, why be so sensitive now?"

"I thought you'd suddenly discovered your feminine side."

We've come too far for that kind of concern.

Without saying that aloud, I slowly looked around.

Square stone tiles on the floor, Greek-style... or at least the kind of stone pillars you often see in Greek and Roman mythology. Looking up, I saw a stone ceiling instead of sky.

Literally stone everywhere.

"If it's an underground dungeon or subterranean city, we lucked out."

"How do you know that?"

"Well, the details might differ, but the basic structure is similar. Underground locations are broadly either cities or dungeons. Sometimes we emerge at large caverns or cave entrances, and those are real disasters."

"Why?"

"Because that's where the Light Dragon came from. Dragon's Lair. Of course, it's not always the case, but monsters that dig their own holes... well, you know without me explaining, right?"

"I get the gist. So underground areas are randomly either cities or dungeons, and neither is as dangerous as I thought."

"Right. We got lucky. Neither has major threats. So, how does it feel to pass through a Gate for the first time?"

Is that even a question...

"It felt fucking awful."

Passing through the Gate felt like moving through a membrane with some sticky, slippery liquid flowing through it.

Honestly, it was like walking naked through the runny snot of a giant with sinusitis.

"Ugh..."

As I shuddered while giving my honest answer, Hyun burst into laughter again.

I got so annoyed I couldn't help but kick him.