1.
Hero.
A person of exceptional wisdom and talent, outstanding in valor and courage.
Or, someone who accomplishes feats so difficult that ordinary people deem them impossible, earning fervent admiration from others.
And now, here.
Before the eyes of a man who once dreamed of being a hero deep in his heart, who chose the path of a mercenary yet never lost his integrity until the very end.
“Step back.”
A new hero has appeared.
“Aah…!”
The hero’s name is Yellow Dragon.
A man who appeared like a comet five years ago and became one of the Great Ten in just three months.
Whether he only accepted designated requests, he rarely revealed himself.
However, whenever he did, major problems that plagued the citizens would disappear cleanly.
Thus, some people began to whisper in unison.
“A hero……!!”
At that moment, Mud, feeling a shiver of inspiration across his whole body, reminiscent of what he once felt at the Hero’s departure ceremony, muttered unconsciously.
“Ao, damn it, get the hell out of here…!!”
“…Huh?”
“If you stay here, we’re both gonna die, old man! Wake up and run, please…!!”
“…Eh?”
The hero’s quiet murmur reached his ears.
“Tired, tired, tired, tired, tired, tired, tired, so goddamn tired…!!”
“Hiiik…!!”
The crazed whisper, seemingly meant only for him, jolted Mud awake.
“Th-Thank you…!!”
“For f*ck’s sake, just go…!!”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
Straightening his bent back awkwardly, Mud bolted away in a hurry.
As he ran, he thought.
‘Heroes aren’t so different from us after all.’
They struggle the same,
They fear the same,
And… they curse just as much.
But despite all that—
“What? You too, <Eclipse>?”
“No, I’m Korean.”
“…What?”
“Do you know kimchi?”
“…Huh?”
Because he always stands against injustice and upholds his will, he is worthy of being called a hero.
Drip.
Overcome with emotion, tears welled in his eyes.
If he survived this thanks to Yellow Dragon, he would turn this moment into the prologue of a great Heroic Tale.
So now—
He had to let everyone know.
Crack!
Breaking free from the fear of death, Mud turned to the cowering citizens and shouted.
“Everyone, don’t be afraid! Just wait!! Among the Great Ten, the strongest of them all—No.1, <Yellow Dragon> is here to protect us!!! Yeah…!!”
A heaving breath.
A burning throat.
Sweat streaming down his face.
For a moment, Mud was so focused he forgot everything else as he squeezed out his remaining strength and shouted once more.
“A new hero is born!!!”
Perhaps, to some, this title would be burdensome.
But Mud was certain—he would love it.
So he did not stop shouting for him.
“A new hero has arrived!!!”
When this ordeal was over.
Everyone would know his name.
2.
Meanwhile.
‘…Why the hell is that crazy bastard acting like that?’
Nahan, who had suddenly become a hero, muttered under his breath as he watched Mud, now about 20 meters away.
“If you have the energy to shout, just run faster, please.”
So I can run too.
Before him, a red system window appeared.
【Warning.】
【<Black Wolf> No.4. <Luna (S-)> is equipping the mask of <Hansen (S-)>.】
【The dormant master of dagger techniques devotes himself to fulfilling <Luna (S-)>’s dream.】
*【Luna’s Dream: The Death of <Yellow Dragon>.】
The very Luna in question was approaching Nahan, her hand raised in a knife-hand strike.
“Muttering to yourself again? You’ve been spouting nonsense this whole time—so you were just stalling, huh?”
“If you already knew, couldn’t you have let it slide?”
Nahan’s calm tone made a trace of regret surface behind the mask.
“I wanted to let it slide too. Both the runaway oppa and the sparkling oppa have a nice scent. But just this once, I couldn’t help it.”
Behind the voice filled with genuine regret, a chilling one followed.
“It’s the Captain’s order.”
Emerald light curved into an arc, escaping beyond the mask.
It was the absolute loyalty of someone who believed in a distorted god without a shred of doubt.
‘Subquest Condition #2: Prevent <Yellow Dragon>’s identity as <Black Wolf> from being exposed.’
In the plan Nahan had made with Dalan, the most crucial part was buying time.
Thankfully, thanks to Iaso’s Ring, his stamina had recovered slightly.
Feigning nonchalance, Nahan steadied his stance and asked Luna.
“The Captain’s order? Seeing how you move as a pack, I guess you’re part of an organization after all.”
“Eh. I wouldn’t call it an organization. We were all saved, and he even showed us the way forward—so we follow of our own will.”
“…Is that so?”
“It is.”
The information Luna revealed was something that had been briefly mentioned in <Babylonia Full Content> and <Encyclopedia>.
But to fully grasp it, he needed <Black Wolf>’s memories—
And those memories would only return when a related event occurred.
‘…Right now, my priorities are survival, the subquest, and handling the Empress’s designated request.’
Nahan decided to think about it later.
After all, if he died now, everything would be meaningless.
And besides—
There was something far more pressing to ask.
After checking something out of the corner of his eye, Nahan turned back to Luna.
“What kind of order did you receive that you ended up committing a massacre in the middle of the capital?”
I distinctly remember only ordering the cleanup and repairs of the <Black Wolf> hideout.
“Hmm… I guess I can tell you? It’s not like we did anything bad.”
No, that’s definitely something bad.
As if suppressing her twitching lips, Luna picked up Loren’s severed head and answered.
“Cleaning. And repairs.”
“…What?”
…Excuse me?
“These guys were all <Eclipse>… No, wait. You wouldn’t know. Anyway, every single one of them was just trash that preyed on innocent people.”
Huh?
“<Sewer Rats>, <Fanatics>, even the ones we just killed—every last one of them was connected to those bastards in some way. We were monitoring them, but a while ago, Captain ordered us to <clean up>.”
“…I mean. Maybe he just meant actual cleanup?”
“Pfft! What are you saying? That’s hilarious! <Cleaning> has been Captain’s codeword for years! This was just an abandoned hideout anyway—what’s there to clean?”
Wait, wait, hold on.
“Anyway, you get it, right? We usually wait until we’re sure before we act, but we made a mistake recently, so we’ve been on edge.”
“…A mistake?”
“We were going to root them all out, but we weren’t certain, so we let them be. But, as you can see, we found a whole bunch and took care of them.”
I seriously only ordered actual cleanup though?
‘Wait a minute. Don’t tell me…’
The Sewer Rats, the other bad endings that I thought had resolved themselves—
Was it actually them all along?
As if she had read his mind, Luna sighed and added.
“Come to think of it, the Captain has been telling us to <cleaning> at every opportunity for the past month.”
…Oh.
So it really was me.
‘The bad endings… It’s really my job to stop them, huh.’
The moment Nahan sighed at his realization—
Thud.
Luna dropped Loren’s head onto the ground and asked.
“Satisfied?”
“Satisfied? With what?”
“You have no regrets left now, right?”
Splat.
Her light steps landed atop the pool of blood Loren had left behind.
‘…So that’s why she told me all this.’
No matter what information she shared, once I died, I wouldn’t be able to talk anyway.
‘What about Dalan?’
I quickly turned my gaze to check on Dalan, but it seemed like he was struggling just as much as I was, unable to communicate properly.
‘The worst-case scenario I had anticipated.’
Originally, my plan was to buy time while sending Dalan to Lactea and using <Black Wolf>’s authority.
“Damn it, this is frustrating! Hey, big guy! Didn’t you hear what I just said!?”
“Cleaning. That is the first─ Ugh!!”
Kwaaaang!!
“Damn it, this is driving me crazy!!”
Dalan, conscious of the gazes of the citizens, was having trouble getting his point across.
In the end, I had no choice but to review the subquest details again to revise my plan.
─『Subquest Activated!』─
◆ A New Hero.
: With the <Hero> embarking on their <Expedition>, fear is spreading. The Babylonia Empire needs a new hero.
◆ Conditions
- Drive out <Black Wolf>.
- Prevent <Yellow Dragon>’s identity as <Black Wolf> from being exposed.
- Survive.
◆ Reward
: Attention from <Eclipse>.
◆ Failure or Refusal
: The destruction of <Yellow Dragon>.
‘As expected, out of the three conditions, the most dangerous one is number two.’
With that resolution in mind, I grabbed my greatsword with one hand, dragging it across the ground as I approached Luna.
【Warning.】
【<Black Hound – Vice-Captain> – <Lactea Babylonia (S+)> is beginning to suspect your identity.】
Condition #2, which has the highest probability of failure. That’s the one I’ll target first.
Krrrkkk…
The dry scraping sound of my sword dragging against the ground made Luna tense up involuntarily.
‘…Yellow Dragon, huh?’
This man…
He was stronger than she had imagined.
The golden strike that had barely grazed her neck just moments ago—it was at least on par with her full strength, without restrictions.
No, maybe…
‘…He might be as strong as Sister Lactea.’
She had feigned calm, keeping up a conversation as if unaffected, but in truth, she was more nervous than she had ever been in her life.
‘Without lifting my restrictions, I can’t even guarantee victory.’
But the captain wasn’t here. She couldn’t remove them on her own.
That was why she had stalled for time, leaking bits of information, waiting for Lactea’s arrival.
“…”
But Lactea wasn’t moving. She simply leaned against the chimney, staring blankly at <Yellow Dragon>.
Luna didn’t understand.
She had already acknowledged <Yellow Dragon> as someone above her.
That realization sent another wave of fear through Luna.
If she had to face <Yellow Dragon> alone, without her sister’s aid…
‘…I might never see Captain again.’
Her desperate green eyes flickered up toward the golden gaze watching from above, silently pleading for help—
“You’re losing focus.”
“…!!”
The golden man had drawn closer.
Clank, Clank, Clank.
The cold clashing of metal rang out as a suffocating pressure wrapped around Luna’s body.
“…If you come any closer, I’ll kill you.”
“Shh. Focus on my words.”
“I said, I’ll kill you.”
Even under pressure that would have crushed any ordinary person, he continued his approach, wordless and unstoppable.
Clank, clank, clank.
The closer he got, the stronger the scent—warm yet suffocating. The brighter the radiant glow, the more the scars beneath her mask, long faded, began to itch.
“…I hate this.”
Swish.
From beneath the mask, Luna’s stiff lips twitched upward ever so slightly.
Anyone who saw her might misunderstand. But she wasn’t smiling out of joy.
She was remembering.
—Smile brightly, or you won’t survive.
—That’s it. A little more.
—Wider. Until your lips tear.
—That’s how you survive.
She had to survive.
—Don’t tremble, or you won’t survive.
—When it gets too hard, wear a mask and cry.
—Keep trying. Keep enduring.
—One day, you’ll smile through the mask without effort.
She remembered those times when she had to smile, bright enough to satisfy him, just to stay alive.
That was why, as Yellow Dragon’s suffocating presence pressed down on her, she instinctively forced a smile.
“I… I…!!”
Her breathing grew strained. Just as Luna instinctively tried to step back—
Clang!
The golden man vanished from sight.
‘A surprise attack!’
Luna reacted instantly, mana surging as she swung her arm toward her blind spot—
Swish!
But she had only sliced through empty air.
A psychological attack using killing intent.
A perfectly executed ambush.
Even a calculated counter to her retaliation—
‘…I lost.’
Any moment now, his greatsword would strike from an unforeseen angle.
And in less than a second, she would be cut in half, her life ending just like that.
Swish.
Luna closed her eyes.
—Keep living, Luna. So that no one else ends up like us.
I’m sorry, Captain.
I don’t think…
I can keep that promise.
‘If only… before I die, I could hold the captain’s hand one last time.’
Was it because she was so close to death?
‘What the…? Where is Yellow Dragon?’
Luna had squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for death.
But when the expected strike never came, she cautiously opened them again.
And then, she heard his voice.
“I want to live.”
…From below.
“…?”
Instinctively following the sound, Luna lowered her gaze—
And there, lying flat on the ground, was Yellow Dragon, lifting only his head as he made a plea.
“Spare me.”
“……?”
“Please, have mercy.”
Luna stared at him, utterly baffled by his sudden change in attitude.
…What the hell is wrong with this guy?
“Did my informal tone offend you? If so, I sincerely apologize. Please, Sister, let me live.”
……Seriously, what the hell?
As Luna struggled to process the absurdity unfolding before her, Nahan smiled beneath his helmet, his eyes fixed on the small status window hovering before him.
【<Black Hound – Vice-Captain> – <Lactea Babylonia (S+)> has withdrawn her suspicion.】
It worked.
He had bought himself a turn.
3.
【<Black Hound – Vice-Captain> – <Lactea Babylonia (S+)> has withdrawn her suspicion.】
“…There’s no way the Captain would act like that.”
As soon as the notification appeared, Lactea’s golden eyes turned cold again, pulling away from me.
‘Yeah, Lactea is the real danger here.’
No one else had questioned my identity as Yellow Dragon so far. But from the very moment I arrived, Lactea had been watching me, and only me.
It wasn’t that my disguise had worked—it was that I had done something Black Wolf would never do.
‘I need to be even more careful around her.’
I made a mental note and slowly pushed myself back up.
“…What kind of ridiculous stunt was that?”
“The atmosphere was getting too tense. I figured I’d lighten the mood with a little joke.”
“Hah…! You dare…! You actually dare to mock me? I’ll kill you for real this time!!”
Luna immediately backed away, putting distance between us, her body on high alert.
But from her reaction, I had already confirmed something important.
‘She was afraid because she thought I was Yellow Dragon.’
<Black Wolf> or <Yellow Dragon>.
Honestly, I wasn’t anywhere near the level of either.
I had some skills, and my artifacts gave me an edge, but at the end of the day, I was just some guy thrown into a novel.
Even with my best advantages, my combat ability was probably somewhere between C-rank and B-rank.
The gap between someone who had lived in this world their entire life and someone from modern Korea was huge—especially in battle.
But precisely because of that—
Just as people in this world had spent their lives mastering swords and magic.
There was one thing I had spent my life perfecting.
.
.
.
【Notification – <Acting> has begun!】
【Stage 1 – <Analysis> complete.】
【Character – Understanding of <Yellow Dragon> has increased exponentially!】
.
.
.
“This time, I hope you succeed.”
Because if you fail again—
“You really will die.”
As I fully immersed myself in the role, I drew my greatsword.
“Damn it…!! Who the hell are you…?!”
Luna’s hands trembled.
