Chapter 95: Blades and Echoes of War

The elevator doors slid open with a soft chime.

Ji-hye stepped out and made her way toward the hotel exit.

’at least I should walk around for a bit before resting’

she thought.

She glanced around and began walking toward a gathering crowd.

Her face showed clear confusion as she noticed how large the crowd was.

’why is it so crowded?’

When she got closer, she saw what was happening.

Two men stood at the center of a makeshift arena, both dressed in medieval-style armor. Steel clashed against steel as they exchanged blows with their swords. The metallic ringing echoed through the plaza, sharp and rhythmic.

Ji-hye’s eyes lit up with interest.

She began watching the performance seriously.

Even though she knew it was only a show, it felt incredibly real. The sparks flying from their blades, the grunts of effort, the roar of the audience—everything made it feel alive.

’this is really cool…’

At that moment, she noticed a young boy standing beside her, cheering loudly.

The boy glanced at her and spoke.

“Miss! Is this your first time seeing something like this?”

Ji-hye looked down at him.

“Yeah. Is this something normal here?”

“Yeah! Every day there’s always a fight like this. They clash swords, and the loser is decided by how many times he falls to the ground.”

Ji-hye nodded slightly.

“I see. That’s pretty cool.”

“Right!? It’s awesome! We usually place bets on it too!”

“Hmm? Betting? You mean gambling? Isn’t that illegal?”

“Well… the city people say it’s illegal, but in a place like this, it’s considered legal! We usually make money doing this!”

Right then, one of the armored men knocked his opponent down.

“Yeah! He won again!”

“Who is he?”

Ji-hye asked curiously.

“He’s my older brother! I’ve been betting on him this whole time! People call him a loser, but lately he’s been winning a lot!”

“A loser? Hmm…”

Ji-hye kept her eyes on the armored man who was raising his sword in victory.

Something stirred inside her.

She glanced at the boy again.

“Hey, what’s your name?”

“My name is Toby! And that’s my brother, Roberth!”

“Alright, Toby. I want you to bet on me. A large amount.”

The boy’s eyes widened instantly.

“W-what!? You want to fight!?”

Ji-hye didn’t answer. She simply smiled and nodded.

Then she slowly stepped forward.

She picked up a slender sword resting inside a barrel near the arena. The blade was lighter than it looked, well-balanced, though clearly meant for practice rather than true combat.

“Oh? Another challenger. Not wearing armor? Beautiful lady?”

Roberth asked, still breathing heavily inside his armor.

“Hmm… I don’t think it’s necessary.”

“Tch. Looks like you’re underestimating me. Fine then—get ready, woman!”

He raised his sword and took his stance.

Ji-hye stood calmly, her face serious.

Then she shifted into a stance unfamiliar to the crowd. It looked strange to ordinary eyes—subtle, angled, relaxed yet ready.

She pointed her blade toward Roberth.

“Hmm? What kind of stance is that? Are you a beginner?”

“We’ll find out soon enough.”

she replied calmly.

’Indigo’s stance…’

she thought briefly.

The match began.

Roberth charged toward her, his armored boots thudding heavily against the ground.

The moment he entered striking distance, Ji-hye moved.

She pivoted her body smoothly and swung her blade with precise timing, striking his sword at just the right angle.

Roberth’s sword flew upward into the air.

His eyes widened in shock.

The blade spun before dropping down and embedding itself into the dirt.

Roberth stumbled and fell onto his back.

Ji-hye gave a faint smile.

“I told you. You’d find out.”

Hearing that, Roberth’s expression darkened. His pride felt crushed.

“Tch. I was just careless!”

He stood up quickly and pulled his sword from the ground.

Once again, he assumed his stance.

This time, when he charged, his movements were sharper—more focused.

“Take this!!”

He swung with precision.

Ji-hye blocked the strike.

’this attack is more precise than before but… not as good as Indigo’s’

she thought calmly during the clash.

She began imitating Indigo’s movements.

The way he deflected.

The way he stepped back just enough to evade.

The way he countered without hesitation.

Each motion flowed seamlessly into the next.

Roberth found himself overwhelmed.

For the second time, he fell.

Then the third.

The crowd erupted.

Roberth had lost.

“That was fun.”

Ji-hye said lightly.

“How are you that good with a sword?”

Roberth asked, still sitting on the ground.

Ji-hye smiled and extended her hand.

Roberth hesitated for a second before taking it and standing up.

“I just learned from someone.”

she replied calmly.

“Then that person must be incredible!”

“Yeah… he’s very strong…”

Just then, Toby ran up and hugged Roberth tightly.

“Big brother! I won a lot!!!”

Roberth blinked in confusion.

“Huh? What do you mean? I lost.”

“The pretty miss told me to bet on her with a large amount!”

“Huh!? Is that true!?”

Roberth looked at Ji-hye in disbelief.

Ji-hye simply smiled in response.

Toby showed Roberth a pouch filled with gold coins.

“Look!! There’s 40 gold inside! With this, we won’t have to worry about food for a whole year!”

Roberth’s eyes softened.

“Haha… you’re right. Then let’s thank her properly!”

They both bowed their heads.

“Thank you very much! We’ll never forget this moment!”

Ji-hye smiled warmly.

Not far from there, Jinhoo watched everything from the hotel window.

“She really is kind, just as I expected from Ji-hye… the protagonist of this story.”

With that, Jinhoo stepped away from the window.

He sat down in a chair and pulled out a small notebook.

’this book is where I write everything about myself. I don’t know why I feel the need to do it, but it might be necessary in case something happens.’

He began writing about his day.

“Hah… already 46 pages. Is my story really this long?”

he muttered to himself.

After finishing, he placed the notebook over his face.

“Hah… this is exhausting… more exhausting than my time in the military…”

he murmured.

Ever since he arrived in this world, there were too many things he had to handle.

Changing a story’s flow from a bad ending to a good one wasn’t simple.

It was practically gambling with his life.

Especially for someone like Jinhoo—

who used to be nothing more than an ordinary man.

“The military… yeah… I hated that place…”

he muttered quietly.

Memories began surfacing.

Gunfire rang endlessly.

Bullets tore through the night air.

He ran with all his strength.

The trees around him were dense, and the darkness helped him survive.

His breathing was unstable.

He pulled out his magazine.

Only four bullets remained.

Even so, gunfire kept raining down on him.

Sweat soaked his face.

He felt like he had already lost hope of surviving.

The weight of death pressed heavily on his shoulders.

Every breath felt like it could be his last.

He remembered gripping his rifle tighter, even though his hands trembled.

He remembered thinking, ’so this is how I die…’

And then—

Jinhoo suddenly woke up.

He had fallen asleep in the chair, the notebook still covering his face.

He lowered it slowly onto the desk.

“Why do I have to dream about that again…”

he muttered while holding his head.

His heartbeat was racing.

Even now, in this different world filled with swords and magic instead of rifles and grenades, the memories refused to leave him.

He truly didn’t want to remember those moments.

Yet they clung to him like shadows.

Outside, the cheers from the plaza gradually faded as night deepened.

Inside the quiet hotel room, Jinhoo leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling.

This world was dangerous in a different way.

There were no guns.

But there were monsters.

There were powerful figures like Indigo—men who could cut through enemies with frightening ease.

And there were unseen forces manipulating the flow of the story.

Jinhoo exhaled slowly.

’if I fail… Ji-hye will suffer. The ending will collapse. Everything will go wrong.’

He clenched his fist.

He had once survived a battlefield with only four bullets left.

Compared to that, this should be manageable.

But somehow, it felt heavier.

Because this time, it wasn’t just his life on the line.

It was the fate of the entire story.

And perhaps—

his chance at redemption.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep