"Are you two in a relationship?"
"There's no way that could be."
A woman called Sherry clung to Yihun like a leech, prompting the question. Yihun's face turned pale with repulsion as he shook his head vehemently. Regardless, a blonde woman still clung to his back, causing Kang Sihyun to question him. In Yihun's place, exhausted within moments, the woman spoke up.
"I like him."
"Oh. ...You speak Korean well."
"I learned. From Ruth."
Who taught whom.
No, considering Ruth's proficiency in Korean was at a native level, perhaps she could indeed teach others.
Her pronunciation was a bit clumsy, but not incomprehensible. Nodding casually and pretending to understand, the woman's smile became almost burdensome due to its brightness. She seemed to be a cheerful person.
"You know about them! Quadruple, right?"
"Ruth told you this too?"
"Yes!"
The conversation switched between formal and informal language. Considering whether to correct her for a moment, he decided it was better for both him and the woman to let it slide and simply confirmed that he was indeed Quadruple. Sherry, who was excitedly talking about meeting the rumored Quadruple, had her mouth covered by a man with light brown hair. Please, keep it down. Hearing the man's whisper, Sihyun turned to look at the boy beside him.
"Huh? Why?"
"...It's nothing."
He glanced over Haeun, who answered innocently, then looked back at the man. After Yihun, he felt a sympathetic sadness for the man with the night-colored hair. It seemed that this woman was similar to Kang Haewoon.
Right after meeting Yihun, she was hugging him and talking actively, even volunteering information like her name, age, and class, which were precisely Haewoon's antics. The group paused for a moment to introduce themselves. The four Awakened from America were named Sherry, James, Tom, and Emma. There were two women and two men, with Sherry surprisingly being S-class with a sniper class. It was fascinating to see that a woman of early 170cm height with long blonde hair and an S-class rating was among them.
"I've never missed a target. I'm good at what I do."
She bragged about herself unasked, so he simply responded nonchalantly. After the introduction of the Americans, Yihun took the lead in introducing the Korean team, including Jihye and Haeun's ages, to which James expressed his admiration briefly.
"So young, yet so impressive."
"Actually, we came here to build up some achievements!"
"Achievements?"
"Yes! But James, is it okay if I call you 'bro'?"
"Of course! Whatever you're comfortable with!"
Haeun, the most sociable in Class A, showed tremendous affinity among the Americans. He treated James, whom he had just met a few minutes ago, as if they had known each other for years, and James laughed heartily, accepting Haeun's jokes and playful banter.
As he marveled at Haeun's social skills that left no room for awkwardness, Jihye was talking with Emma. Among the group, only Yihun, Tom with his brown hair, and Sherry, whose mouth Tom had covered, remained silent. Sihyun frowned at Sherry then lifted his gaze.
Tom, who was calmly holding back Sherry, turned his head slightly upon feeling Sihyun's gaze. Their eyes met. Tom nodded first, and Sihyun responded by slightly nodding back while noticing Sherry struggling under Tom's hand.
Sherry was quite tall for a woman, but Tom was among the largest people Sihyun had encountered. He must have been over 190cm tall with a robust body. His class as a Tanker suited him well.
"Maybe it's time to let her go."
Or she might bite. Sherry's eyes narrowed dangerously as she added cautiously. Finally, Tom removed his hand from Sherry and grimaced as if disgusted by his own palm, then wiped it on Sherry's back.
You're the one who stopped her, why act like you've touched something filthy? Sherry reprimanded Tom in English. Sihyun pretended not to understand and followed Yihun to the lodging.
Koreans and Americans in Egypt.
It would have been an unusual combination even without the appearance of a mysterious pyramid.
"Once we've unpacked at the lodging, we'll meet with the Egyptian Awakened Association. Since we're not here for leisure, we plan to wrap things up as quickly as possible and return, so please follow along even if you're tired."
Yihun, seemingly in charge, led the way with these instructions. Since they had rested enough on the plane, there were no complaints, and they agreed. The walk to the lodging from the airport took less than 20 minutes, but a lot happened in less than 30 minutes.
It was Haeun's first time in Egypt, and he dashed around the airport. Sherry got excited upon seeing a restaurant and rushed in, and James accidentally knocked over the food Sherry bought, leading to a huge argument in the middle of the street. More incidents and accidents occurred than when just the Class A students were together, requiring Yihun and Tom, who appeared to be the representative of the American team, to deal with the aftermath, leaving them even more exhausted upon reaching the lodging.
"The rooms will be as follows: Room 201 for Yihun, myself, and Haeun. Room 202 for James and Tom, and Room 203 for Emma, Sherry, and Jihye. It might be a bit uncomfortable for Jihye being the only Korean in her room, but if you'd like, we can arrange a separate room for you."
Yihun asked, adjusting his glasses. Jihye seemed to hesitate for a moment but, seeing the eager eyes of Sherry and Emma, she reluctantly agreed it was fine.
Sihyun thought she didn't look entirely comfortable with the decision, but sharing a room seemed less troublesome than being pestered by the two women all the way to the pyramid. He sympathized with Jihye's wise choice. Watching the girl with supportive eyes, it was as if Jihye read his mind and reassured him that it was okay. Indeed, Jihye was as mature as everyone said she was in Class A.
As they entered their assigned rooms and started unpacking, Sihyun bombarded Yihun with questions, satisfying his curiosity. The guild the four Americans belonged to was led by Ruth as the guild master, and the relationship between Sherry and Yihun dated back to a joint mission between Korea and America. Since Yihun was the only quasi-S class affiliated with the association, he inevitably had to accompany international missions, where he became acquainted with Sherry. It seemed like Sherry had unilaterally shown interest in Yihun.
"Still, she is indeed skilled. Being called the weakest among the recorded catastrophes but killing a catastrophe-class with just two shots speaks volumes. Even if it costs 30% of mana per shot, it's a powerful skill."
Despite being considered the weakest, there was a reason a being was classified as a catastrophe-class. Sihyun thought back to Sherry's demeanor, which, based on what he had seen so far, was of a young and lively woman, almost like someone from a teen movie, yet she was surprisingly formidable.
After all, representing America, it would be odd if she were weak.
The United States, a powerhouse nation of Awakened individuals, boasted the highest number of S-class Awakened. It's a country rich in strong individuals, hence one couldn't judge their abilities by appearances alone. Since they were all quasi-S class, the abilities of Tom the Tanker, James the Warrior, and Emma the Healer must also be exceptional.
A Tanker, three support types, two Warriors, one Elemental ability user, and one Sniper.
Not a bad combination. What pleased him most was having three support types.
Having been the sole healer in battles up until now, Sihyun couldn't help but smile slightly, relieved that he finally had others to share the healing duties with. He let out a tiny, almost deflated laugh, but Haeun caught the sound like a ghost and asked why he was laughing.
Brushing it off with a "just because," Yihun suggested they head out now that they had unpacked. Since arriving in Egypt, their schedule had been relentless, indeed leaving no room for rest.
***
"...So, including civilians, about forty people have gone missing. It's unclear whether they got lost inside the pyramid or died, but since the last support team sent signals of life, at least one person must be alive."
Listening silently to the interpreter from the Egyptian Awakened Association, Sihyun looked at the contract offered by the association. It detailed the risks of potentially getting lost in the pyramid among other dangers during the investigation, with a clause stating the signer fully accepts responsibility for these risks.
The interpreter mentioned that it was still possible to back out, but having flown all the way here, turning back without accomplishing anything wasn't an option. After thoroughly reviewing the contract and confirming with Yihun that there were no suspicious clauses, Sihyun signed the document. Once all eight members had signed, the contracts were returned to the Awakened Association.
"We can provide weapons and various equipment, but supporting with Awakened individuals might be difficult."
"Our team is sufficient as is. Just focus on evacuating civilians and provide us with...”
Yihun, effectively acting as the representative, negotiated with the association staff. The American team seemed to have no complaints about this arrangement, suggesting Yihun was somewhat recognized among the American Awakeners.
After much discussion, the departure date was set. They agreed to check their equipment and condition to be at their best before heading to the pyramid in two days.
Decumanus.
Sihyun silently repeated the word he had seen inscribed within the pyramid, then turned his head away. Though the pyramid was nowhere to be seen from their current location, he imagined its presence, inhaling deeply at the thought.
Could the pyramid hold traces of Adam and Eve?
Or perhaps, could he find those traces in a disciple he would meet here?
He wasn't sure which it would be. However, at the moment, the sudden appearance of the mysterious pyramid was of greater concern.
A team consisting of one S-class and five quasi-S-class members.
Could there really be danger?
He had certainly thought so, but—
"That was a flag, wasn't it? I really did it this time!"
Shouting to no one in particular, Sihyun ran desperately through the collapsing underground chamber of the pyramid.
Rumble!
A loud noise echoed as the ceiling crumbled down completely. Watching the path behind him disappear without a chance to react, Sihyun bit his lip and sprinted with all his might. Slowing down even slightly meant certain death under the debris.
I must have been crazy to think it wouldn't be dangerous.
It hadn't even been an hour since they entered the pyramid, and he was already facing a threat to his life.
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