RFH Chapter 08 — [R15]

 Episode 8

“Please! Please! Stop with the hardcore developments!”  

“........”  

For some reason, Seon Jejun looked at her as though she were insane, but Min Hyemi didn’t care.  

She was someone who lacked any sense of shame. Why? Well, that explanation is better left unsaid, as this isn’t a 19+ rated story.  

“This is all part of some diabolical scheme. They’re clearly trying to force my life back into its previous genre!”  

“...... ”  

“If there’s a so-called god responsible for this, I’ll kill them!”  

“...You’ll kill them?”  

“Huh?”  

Seon Jejun pointed at Plutus.  

Regaining her composure, Min Hyemi cleared her throat awkwardly.  

“Yes, of course. I’d be grateful if you could kill it... And please, don’t let your guard down while doing it...”  

The wolf beastman was quickly and easily killed with a mere gesture from Seon Jejun.  

Min Hyemi stared at the scene with a hollow expression.  

‘Could having someone this strong really keep me out of hardcore 19+ developments...?’  

She trudged along behind him as they made their way to the 5th Circle.  

The monster on the 5th Circle was also dispatched with a single motion from Seon Jejun.  

However, as soon as they stepped into the 6th Circle, a system window appeared in front of her.

[You have entered the 6th Circle: <Heresy Circle>.]  

[Escape Condition: Prove your faith in God.]

“This is ridiculous...”  

They weren’t even required to kill a monster; instead, they had to prove their faith in God.  

Min Hyemi didn’t believe in God. The reasons for that hardly needed explanation.  

In her previous world, she had prayed to countless gods, but not a single one had come to her rescue.  

[Congratulations!  

<God> has taken pity on you!  

You are being returned to your original world!]

There had been one god who pitied her... but it had been too late. By then, she had already endured three years of suffering in that world.  

There was no way someone like her, who distrusted God, could complete this mission.  

“Hmm...”  

As she mulled over the mission, Seon Jejun, who was standing next to her, spoke up.  

“...Do you believe in God?”  

“No.”  

Her answer came out instantly.  

“On the contrary, I’d say I distrust them. So I don’t know what to do here.”  

“...God never saved you?”  

“They did, but that’s not enough of a reason for me to follow or worship them.”  

A bitter smile appeared on her lips.  

“Instead, it just makes me angry to think my life could be so easily manipulated by some almighty god.”  

“Ah...”  

Seon Jejun nodded slowly, as though he understood. However, his face showed no sign of concern about the current situation.  

“Do you have any way to get out of here?”  

When Min Hyemi asked that, Seon Jejun blinked a few times before responding.  

“There is...”  

“There is?”  

“Being asked to prove my faith in God... is absurd.”  

“Pardon?”  

At that moment, light radiated from Seon Jejun’s body.  

Simultaneously, Min Hyemi saw it—  

Something no human could ever hope to comprehend.  

An overwhelming and colossal presence.  

The energy of a god, capable of mercilessly crushing a human.  

“Excuse me, but may I ask which genre you’re from?”  

“Pardon? ...Mythology.”  

Min Hyemi recalled the conversation she had shared with Seon Jejun.  

Now, she finally understood why Seon Jejun was such an extraordinarily powerful hunter.  

Seon Jejun wasn’t just a hunter; he was a god himself, straight out of mythology.  

A being that transcended humanity’s comprehension.  

‘Damn it...’  

If she had known this, she wouldn’t have said she distrusted gods.  

While she was busy regretting her words, she suddenly realized they had already made it to the 7th Circle.  

“We’ve succeeded...”  

“A god cannot be asked to prove their faith in God. That’s why the Heresy Circle lost its power.”  

For once, Seon Jejun spoke at length.  

For someone who was a god, he seemed unusually harmless and languid.  

He appeared to be the complete opposite of the violent, rough-tempered men that Min Hyemi despised.  

Perhaps that was why she didn’t dislike him as much as she did other men.  

As she looked at him, she unintentionally opened her mouth to speak.  

“...Aren’t you curious about my origin?”  

“Huh?”  

“Usually, when people meet returnees, they ask which genre they’re from.”  

“Ah, well... I think I can guess.”  

“You think you can guess?”  

Min Hyemi’s face contorted slightly.  

Did he think she looked like a female lead straight out of a 19+ hardcore romance-fantasy novel? To her, that was far from a compliment.  

But in the next moment, Seon Jejun gave a completely unexpected answer.  

“Battle royale...?”  

“Pardon?”  

“Or maybe a crime genre...?”  

“W-what kind of deduction is that?”  

“You seem like someone who wishes for everyone to die...”  

“Hah.”  

She couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh. That’s what he thought of her disdain for the world?  

“You’re so naive.”  

“........”  

“It’s a compliment. You should think of it that way.”  

She absolutely hated the idea of anyone viewing her as a sexual object.  

So, if Seon Jejun thought of her as the protagonist of a battle royale or crime genre, she’d be grateful for it.  

The 7th Circle was the 'Violence Circle,' and the way to escape was to kill the monsters without using violence.  

Using his poison skill, Seon Jejun easily killed the monsters, allowing them to ascend to the 8th Circle.  

“Lee Ruri should show up soon...”  

She wasn’t already dead, was she? Min Hyemi bit her lip anxiously.  

At that moment, a system window appeared before them once again.  

[You have entered the 8th Circle: <Fraud Circle>.]  

[Escape Condition: Pass the system’s quiz. The quiz is about the person next to you. From one truth and two lies, identify the truth.  

Hinting or cheating is prohibited.]

‘...A quiz?’  

Do dungeons give out quizzes these days? Min Hyemi felt slightly taken aback.  

Soon, the system displayed the question.  

[Subject: Min Hyemi  

Answerer: Seon Jejun]

“I’ll trust you.”  

“.........”  

1. Min Hyemi is a supporting character from a crime genre.  

2. Min Hyemi doesn’t want to talk to Seon Jejun.  

3. Min Hyemi feels a deep camaraderie toward Lee Ruri.

‘What the hell...’  

Min Hyemi’s face turned pale. The question was absurdly difficult.  

The correct answer was #2. She hated romance developments, after all.  

However, Seon Jejun might mistakenly think #1 was the truth. He had just mentioned battle royale and crime genres a moment ago.  

Or he might even think #3 was true.  

Seon Jejun didn’t know that her hatred of humans prevented her from feeling 'deep affection' for anyone.  

As she panicked, a voice came from beside her.  

“Number 2.”  

『Correct!』

“Huh?”  

Min Hyemi turned her stiff neck to look at Seon Jejun.  

“H-how did you...?”  

“You’ve been making that face since earlier.”  

“........”  

Damn it, she must have failed at controlling her expression. She felt slightly embarrassed.  

Soon, the next question for Min Hyemi appeared.  

『1. Seon Jejun is a god.  

2. Seon Jejun has sharp senses.  

3. Seon Jejun knows Min Hyemi’s genre of origin.』  

Ah, this was way too easy.  

“Number 1.”  

Given how slow and laid-back he seemed, it was clear he wasn’t the sharp-senses type. Plus, he had misunderstood her genre of origin, so the other options had to be false.  

It felt like a giveaway question, and they earned the opportunity to ascend to the 9th Circle.  

Just as Min Hyemi was about to move on, a sound stopped her in her tracks.  

“Sob, sniff, hic...”  

“This sound...!”  

Realizing what the sound was, Min Hyemi ran toward its source.  

Soon, she spotted a familiar face and called out excitedly.  

“Lee Ruri!”  

There she was—Lee Ruri, clutching a teddy bear and sniffling.  

She had been hiding behind a large bush, seemingly avoiding monsters. When she lifted her head, her expression brightened.  

“Hye-Hyemi-chan! Waaaah!”  

“What are you doing crying so loudly in a dungeon?!”  

“But it’s so scary! I-I thought I was going to die!”  

Lee Ruri threw herself into Min Hyemi’s arms.  

Since Lee Ruri had managed to avoid being swallowed by the dungeon, Min Hyemi decided to let her cling to her for a moment.  

Then Min Hyemi’s eyes landed on the teddy bear in Lee Ruri’s hands.  

“And what’s this? Where did you get it?”  

“Oh, it was in my inventory!”  

“...Your inventory? Aren’t you a D-rank hunter, so you only have two slots?”  

Min Hyemi, having the same inventory limitation, was sure of this. Could it be that one of those two precious slots was...  

“Yep! A teddy bear is absolutely essential for me! It’s squishy-squishy, and it has the texture of foreign baby hair and a soft bunny tongue!”  

“...So you’re saying you used one of your two inventory slots for a teddy bear?”  

“Yep!”  

Min Hyemi couldn’t help but clutch the back of her neck in frustration.  

Prev _ Next