Peep peep.
"See? Riceball agrees with me."
"Riceball agreed with me, though."
Peep!
"See? It's telling you to stop talking nonsense about apple kimchi stew."
"It's saying it really wants apple kimchi stew. Sweet, tangy, and spicy—it sounds delicious."
Peeeeep.
"Just hearing about it makes Riceball say it never wants to touch an apple again."
"It's saying it wants to dive into a stew made of apples. It wants to take a bath in the stew."
Peep peep.
As Riceball playfully interacted with the two of them, they arrived in front of the mansion.
['Kwon Jihan' uses the skill
[The skill
Ding-dong.
Kwon Jihan pressed the doorbell. With a crackling sound, the gate immediately opened with a clunk. Yoon Seo caught a glimpse of the humanoid's bright red eyes through the gap in the gate. At that moment, Kwon Jihan gently pushed Yoon Seo behind him and stepped forward. Yoon Seo, staring incredulously at Kwon Jihan's broad back, then heard the humanoid speak.
"Seo Chaeyoon, Kwon Jihan. We've been expecting you, nyam."
"...."
"...."
The humanoid spoke in a stiff mechanical tone and gestured for them to come in.
"Come inside, nyam."
"…Nyam?"
"My name is Nyam00981. Are you coming in or not, nyam?"
"We're coming in, nyam."
Kwon Jihan replied playfully and led the way.
"Wait a second."
Just before he stepped inside the gate, Yoon Seo grabbed Kwon Jihan's arm and pulled him back.
"Hyung?"
Yoon Seo shot Kwon Jihan a cold look.
"If you ever try to protect me in a situation like this again, I'll make sure you get your wish—to protect me in a truly dangerous situation."
"…Alright. I won't do it again."
"Be careful."
"Yeah…"
Yoon Seo stepped forward, leaving Kwon Jihan behind.
It was the moment his foot touched the ground inside the gate.
[You have entered the dungeon: Current terrain 1/1: Number of people 4: Personal Dungeon 506.]
"What…?"
A dungeon entry message?
[The God of Death is running over in surprise.]
[The God of Life is startled.]
[The God of Love is waiting for one more to enter.]
Seeing the messages from the guardian gods confirmed that this was indeed a dungeon.
Yoon Seo had expected all kinds of scenarios when dealing with aliens, but this one was completely unexpected. Truly astonishing. Could it have something to do with the type labeled 'Personal Dungeon 506'?
At that moment, another system message appeared.
[The dungeon door is closing due to an excess number of people. Reopening in 05:59:55.]
"Huh. Hyung?"
"...!"
Yoon Seo quickly turned around. Kwon Jihan, with a shocked expression, was pounding on the air with his fists as if something invisible was blocking him.
"I can't get in."
"Can you hear my voice?"
"Yeah, I can hear you. Can you hear me?"
"…I can hear you clearly."
"What is this? NyamBot, what's going on? Why can't I get in? What the heck is this? Hyung, come out. No, damn it… What's happening here? Hyung, get out of there."
At first, Kwon Jihan seemed just startled, but as time passed, he became more agitated. He suffered from extreme anxiety at the thought of being separated from Yoon Seo.
Yoon Seo tried to step back out through the gate but was blocked by the same transparent barrier.
Peep? Peep!
Realizing something was wrong, Riceball began throwing itself against the transparent wall. Yoon Seo decided he needed to calm them down first.
"Kwon Jihan Hunter. Stay calm. A dungeon entry message just appeared. It seems the inside of the gate is considered part of the dungeon."
"A dungeon…?"
Kwon Jihan's eyes widened with panic.
[Kwon Jihan uses the skill
"A personal dungeon… 506?"
"Yes. Since there doesn't seem to be a time limit, it looks like it might be the skill of the 'writer'."
"…Hyung, step back. Create the
"What…?"
Kwon Jihan pulled out the 'Sword of Heavenly Seas' from his inventory.
Golden energy surged around him. Since receiving the blessing of the God of Love, Yoon Seo could now receive messages in advance whenever his lover was about to use a skill, so he knew exactly which skill Kwon Jihan was about to use.
[Kwon Jihan is about to use the skill
"Kwon Jihan, calm down!"
Yoon Seo quickly shouted, trying to stop his anxious partner, who was about to recklessly use
"Calm down and wait patiently with Riceball. I'll take care of these humanoids and the 'writer' in five minutes and come right out—"
At that moment, the humanoid looked alarmed.
"Are you crazy, nyam? Calm down, nyam! Why would you attack us, nyam? We're not bad aliens, nyam!"
"Damn it, if you don't want a fight, then calm him down, not me."
Kwon Jihan had already attached
[The God of Love is thrilled.]
"Oh, for crying out loud. No, Kwon Jihan, I wasn't saying you're crazy."
Peep-peep!
"And no, I wasn't talking about you, Riceball. Both of you calm down, and humanoid, start explaining immediately."
The humanoid gestured wildly toward Kwon Jihan with its arms and legs.
"We have a personal issue, nyam. We're low on energy to use for skills, so when someone enters the dungeon, the door stays closed for six hours, nyam. After six hours, you can enter too, nyam. This is a personal dungeon with no time limit, so you can stay here forever without being decomposed, nyam. Half of this dungeon exists on Earth, nyam. If you attack us, Earth gets destroyed too, nyam. We're on Earth's side, nyam. We're pacifists, nyam. We don't like fights, nyam."
[You use the skill
[Confidence 100: Neutral 0: Doubt 0.]
Yoon Seo informed Kwon Jihan that they were telling the truth. Kwon Jihan, still with his crazed eyes, slightly tilted his head.
"
"Gasp. Yes, that's the dungeon creation skill, nyam. How did you know, nyam? As expected, those with Gaia skills are terrifying, nyam."
"...."
Kwon Jihan's
"Hyung, stay in front of me until the door opens again. Tell the other humanoids and the 'writer' to come to the garden and talk."
"Yes, I will."
"I'm sorry, but that won't work, nyam. C-calm down, nyam! There's a reason for this, nyam!"
As the tall man and the small bird glared at it menacingly, the humanoid waved its arms frantically up and down in a panic.
"We don't have enough F-energy, so it's difficult to keep the door open, nyam. F-energy is like mana for Earthlings, nyam. For the record, Earth's mana potions don't work on us, nyam. Soon, the inside of the dungeon will be invisible from the outside, and only the video we've pre-installed will keep looping, nyam."
As soon as the humanoid finished speaking, the transparent wall shimmered. Kwon Jihan's figure gradually blurred.
"Damn it…."
Kwon Jihan cursed and slammed his fist into the wall. Yoon Seo spoke gently.
"Kwon Jihan Hunter, I understand you're anxious, but this robot has been telling the truth all along. Don't worry too much. When you get anxious, you're scaring Riceball too."
Only then did Kwon Jihan gently cover the still beeping and thumping Riceball, preventing it from hitting the transparent wall any further.
"Take Riceball with you."
"I tried, but I can't transform or retrieve my dagger."
"…Sigh."
Kwon Jihan let out a deep sigh, briefly closing and opening his eyes. The furrows in his brow remained. Yoon Seo knew how Kwon Jihan felt. If Kwon Jihan were the one stuck in an unknown dungeon alone, Yoon Seo would feel the same panic. But lingering here was a waste of time.
"I'll handle the situation. If it gets dangerous, I'll use the 'Emergency Escape' to get out, so don't worry."
"Are the messages from the blessing gods coming through?"
"Yes, they're all sending messages telling me to stay calm."
"…Don't do anything reckless. If anything happens, get out immediately."
"I will. Don't worry."
Kwon Jihan shot the humanoid a glare as cold as ice.
"If a single hair on hyung is harmed, I'll find your home planet and obliterate it."
"Don't worry, nyam… We like Seo Chaeyoon too, nyam."
Kwon Jihan exchanged one last look with Yoon Seo, and without words, their emotions were communicated. Yoon Seo placed his hand against the wall, and Kwon Jihan mirrored him. That was the last moment they shared before the wall disappeared, and the space beyond the gate turned into a pitch-black void.
When Yoon Seo turned around, the well-manicured garden and the mansion were still there.
"Follow me, nyam."
The humanoid crossed the garden, and Yoon Seo followed, but his steps felt heavy.
He couldn't stop thinking about the last glimpse he had of Kwon Jihan and Riceball, which left his chest tight with unease.
***