FAR - 55

[Offer your sight.]

Belsus placed his hand on the padlock of the gate.

Instantly, the focus vanished from his eyes. They were wide open, yet his pupils moved sluggishly and looked clouded over, as if he had been plunged into pitch darkness.

I naturally reached out and took his hand. Trusting me completely, he slowly took a step forward.

"Since you're the one suffering through all this... I'll do something for you in return. Is there anything you want to eat?"

I wanted to do whatever I could for him. I was genuinely grateful to Belsus, who followed my every word without a single complaint. But with his unseeing eyes, he made a rather unexpected request.

"I just want you to talk to me. Tell me your story. At least, until I lose my hearing."

Just then, a fierce, leopard-like monster lunged out from the second corridor.

Hearing the beast's growl, Belsus stopped dead in his tracks and threw a punch. Wham! Despite being completely blind, he perfectly avoided me and accurately struck the leopard.

"You don't need to put yourself in danger. I'll just reach out and toss them into the farm."

My plan was to simply shove everything into the subspace. This was the exact method the Doctor had been using to hit the jackpot in both regular and scheduled dungeons. And in my case, since my plants were alive a nd mobile, I didn't even need to lift a finger myself.

"But what if you get bitten?!"

"The subspace entrance will activate faster than that."

A couple more leopards charged at us, but they were quickly subdued. Soon, the second gate came into view.

I just started rambling, letting whatever words tumbled into my mind spill from my mouth.

"I actually hate fighting. Or rather, it's not just that I hate it. I'm terrible at it. I have absolutely no talent for it."

Though Belsus hadn't lost his voice yet, he didn't offer an answer. Now completely blind, he simply listened intently to my voice.

"That's why I'm glad you're here. You make up for all my shortcomings."

---

Belsus was systematically stripped of his sight, his smell, his taste, and eventually, his hearing.

He was walking through the abyss, relying on nothing but the sensation of Heean's hand holding his.

There were still five gates left.

When his sense of touch was finally taken, Belsus drew in a sharp, deep breath.

Losing the ability to see the world or feel anything against his skin was far more agonizing and fatal than losing the rest. He was left entirely in a void. 

He couldn't feel a single thing. It felt as though Heean had dropped his hand. Even if Heean was still gripping it tightly, Belsus couldn't feel it at all.

—Like this. Walk at this pace. Don't step with too much force; just shuffle along, dragging your feet slightly.

—Like this?

—Yeah. If you do this, you'll keep moving forward no matter what. And if there's any danger, I can block your path with my back to stop you. You'll hit me, but keep doing the walking motion in place. Once I move out of the way, you can step forward again.

It felt like being trapped inside a sensory-deprivation box. For a brief moment, he could at least use his voice to reassure Heean, saying, "I'm fine." But soon after, even that tiny comfort was gone.

Because the sacrifice at the sixth gate was his "voice."

Eternal darkness.

A void where no response ever returned. A terrifying sensation of floating in empty space, unable to feel the floor beneath his feet or the walls around him.

The most horrifying part was that even after sacrificing an arm, he had no way of perceiving whether his arm was paralyzed or gone entirely. No matter what happened to his body, he couldn't even feel pain.

In such a helpless state, could he truly entrust his life to the young man guiding him?

In the crushing darkness, Belsus suddenly felt a wave of dizziness.

'I've fallen.'

He lacked physical sensation, but as the semicircular canals in his ears shifted, he realized he had lost his balance and hit the ground.

That was when true terror clawed its way up his throat. He knew he had fallen, but he couldn't do anything about it. 

He had no idea which way was down, or where the empty air ended. He couldn't tell if his arm was touching the floor, or whether he had tumbled face-first or fallen backward.

Is this what it feels like when the physical body vanishes and only the soul remains?

Trapped in this harrowing, nightmarish isolation that he hoped to never experience again, he desperately clung to Heean's earlier words.

—No matter what happens, do not put too much force into your arms or legs. If you stumble against a wall, you might press your palm into it so hard that your fingers snap backward, and you wouldn't even realize it. Trust me. I will guide you.

And so, Belsus repeatedly performed the exact same motion. Alternating his feet, stepping forward. Walking at a consistent, steady pace.

If it were Heean, he would have helped him back up.

Belsus trusted him. He trusted that he hadn't been injured in the fall. He knew that Heean must have taken his senseless arm, allowed the system to inject poison into it, and drawn his blood to clear the remaining trials.

Despite the encroaching dread, he trusted him. He fought back against his own fear.

—Just once, I will use 'Reading' on you.

When two people who shared the Reading ability synchronized, a faint, chilling shudder would ripple through their bodies. Even devoid of his physical sense of touch, Belsus would still be able to perceive it. It wasn't a tactile feeling, but an instinctive, metaphysical jolt.

Because of this, Heean had established it as their final signal.

—When you feel it, use 'Reading' on me in return. That way, just for a fleeting moment, I can perfectly transmit my thoughts to you exactly when I need to.

Zap.

In the suffocating void, Belsus suddenly felt a sharp, electrifying sensation, as piercing and clear as a flare of light. Never before had a simple Reading felt so desperately vital.

It was like reaching out to grasp the only sliver of light in existence. After waiting all alone in the suffocating darkness, it was the undeniable proof that the person he had been waiting for had kept his promise.

{Right now, smash what's directly in front of you with both fists!}

"...Gasp!"

Belsus exhaled a harsh, ragged breath.

His suddenly restored vision was blinding. As his blocked senses crashed back into him like a tidal wave, the severe sensory overload caused the world to spin dizzily for a moment.

Heean turned to look at him, flashing a bright, radiant smile.

"You were amazing."

The wall that Belsus's fists had struck was completely shattered. The final gate had acted as an impact detector; whichever of the two inflicted the heaviest strike would be recognized as the one who cleared the dungeon.

Behind Heean's bright yet somehow faintly shadowed smile, a notification popped up on everyone's system windows.

[The clear reward for this dungeon goes to Belsus.]

---

A loud murmuring filled the air. All the high-rankers had gathered outside.

By now, my identity had quietly spread through word of mouth, but there were still those present who were seeing me for the first time. The Fighter, the Thief, and the Puppeteer stared at me in sheer disbelief.

Ignoring everyone's probing questions, I grabbed Belsus by the arm and dragged him past the crowd, stepping completely out of the dungeon's vicinity.

"Heean."

As soon as we stepped through the portal into the farm, Belsus called out to me.

I stopped and turned around. Framed against the backdrop of the fields, Belsus was staring at me like a striking portrait.

"Every single person back there... they all thought I was a pushover."

{How can someone take all nine penalties? Isn't he terrified? How can he blindly trust the guy next to him that much?}

{What a pushover.}

{I can't believe there's such a massive sucker.}

{He's a complete idiot. Doesn't he realize he could be stabbed in the back at any moment?}

{Does he not value his own life? He must have lost his mind.}

"Without a single exception, they all thought I was a fool who gave everything away for nothing."

His voice was incredibly calm, almost flat. But I could s ee right through him; I knew he had been deeply wounded by their thoughts.

"And so did you."

"..."

"Even you. Your mind echoed the exact same thought. You thought, 'Belsus is a pushover.'"

Earlier, a sharp, cold tingle had pricked at the base of my spine. It was the distinct sensation I felt whenever Belsus used Reading to steal a glimpse into my mind.

"Yeah."

I didn't try to deny it, nor did I offer any excuses. Standing there facing him, I admitted it in a quiet, dry tone.

"That's exactly why I chose you. As my life partner."

Because I figured you would be the easiest to handle. Because I assumed you would be gullible enough to fall for someone as deeply flawed as me, and blindly remain on my side.

That was why, when I was granted the privilege to choose my first character, I picked you.

Belsus smiled.

A genuine smile. One that could never be faked bloomed clearly across his handsome features. My expression remained impassive, but internally, I froze.

"I like that you need me. I like that I am indispensable to you."

"..."

"Do not walk on eggshells around me. You haven't done a single thing to make me hate you."

I knew this. I had analyzed his character completely and knew Belsus was the type of person to say exactly this...

But did I truly know?

Despite thoroughly investigating and calculating his every personality trait, hadn't I failed to predict that he would act like this, even after seeing the ugliest parts of my mind?

He and I were fundamentally too different.

Perhaps that was why the back of my neck felt so stiff right now.

"Do you still think I'm a pushover?"

This time, he offered a sheepish grin.

That soft, p ainfully innocent smile. One that wholly contradicted his imposing age and stature pierced me straight to the core.

An emotion I had never once felt in my entire past life violently tore through my chest.

My body trembled.

"Don't worry. You will never have to be treated as a pushover by anyone ever again."

Standing before him, I felt the cold pragmatism, the calculated consciousness, and the survival-driven mindset that had constructed my very being helplessly crumble away.

The only reason I had taken raising these characters so seriously was simple: if I returned to my original world as I was, I would be stabbed to death. I was doing this entirely for my own survival.

But right here, in this exact moment, a completely new resolve erupted within me like a towering geyser, seizing total control of my body. It was a compulsion too overwhelming to resist.

Seeing the shift in my expression, Belsus's eyes widened in surprise.

I reached out and gathered his hands into mine. Wrapping my much smaller hands tightly around his large ones, I poured my very soul into every single word.

"Listen to me carefully. Right now, standing before you, I swear on my life. I will do absolutely everything in my power for you."

I didn't even pause to consider the trouble such a heavy declaration might cause me later. Perhaps it was a pure act of impulse.

But even if I could turn back time a nd relive this moment...

To the only person who had ever truly been on my side. To the most affectionate, desperately pitiable man I had ever met, I would declare it all over again.

"I will make sure no one ever dares to call you a pushover again."

Even if our positions were reversed. Even if the native characters were the ones who had to choose a partner from among the transmigrators.

I will become the kind of person worthy of your choice, so that you would pick me.

Because that is the only way to prove to the world that you were never a fool for trusting me.

"I will make you the Emperor."​