CHAPTER 66: CONFESSION

It was late at night. The moon hung over everyone’s heads.

After the events in the Heaven Village, a single dot stood out in the starry sky. It worried a few rankers.

Others didn’t care. The star was far away, after all.

All rankers affected by The Immolated’s Totem had been treated and were resting in underground camps, out of danger. Some houses were spared, so people rented them to the gravely wounded.

In some ways, the event bonded people. It also sharpened hidden, cruel motives—mostly toward Seraphina. After all, she was the cause of this tragedy.

Ace reunited with his teammates and introduced Olivier to everyone, not dwelling on it.

"It’s Big Oli," Ace said.

"Sup, guys. Today’s batch is in. Doses topped off. You’re charged up and ready to work for days." Olivier gave everyone a thumbs-up and grinned.

Chaewon smiled. "Your potions were lifesaving! Thank you for handing them out!"

"In messes like this, keeping our numbers high is the move," Olivier said, shrugging. "Long-term, we’re limited, and the endgame may need every hand we can keep. Minutes buy tomorrow."

Alex spoke up. "He’s right. If we had a skill to turn monsters into our forces, that’d save us a lotta pain in the ass."

Reminds me of Isabella. She must have already amassed a lot of undead herself. Hopefully she keeps my words close to her heart and doesn’t lose herself in necromancy.

Alex drawled, "Anyway." He smirked. "We should leave Don Capo and Godmother alone and find a sleeping spot for ourselves. The old man said he could only rent out one more room."

For obvious reasons, Alex wanted Ace and Chaewon to be alone for a while. Both had worked hard and needed time together, too.

Mercer caught on and nodded quickly. Olivier zipped his lips and left first. Marko grinned and followed him.

Ace smiled faintly. "It’s fine. You two take that room. I’ll spend the rest of the night in the guest room watching over Seraphina. If she wakes up, I have to put her down."

Alex and Mercer looked at Ace with immeasurable disappointment.

"I’d love some company, though," Ace added, catching Chaewon’s hand and intertwining his fingers with hers.

Her cheeks reddened. She squeezed his hand and nodded. "You can absolutely count on me."

The two entered Seraphina’s room. Fortunately, an extra chair was already there.

—

Ace pulled the two chairs together. He and Chaewon sat side by side, close enough that their shoulders touched and their hands stayed interlocked.

Silence settled. A moment later, Chaewon rested her head on Ace’s shoulder and closed her eyes, leaning on him to rest.

She still smelled like a long day. Sweat clung to her skin, but she felt comfortable and in the right place.

Ace released her hand and wrapped his arm around her, drawing her in and letting her settle. In quiet, mutual understanding, they leaned on each other and let the calm take over.

Ace raised a hand and gently traced her cheek with a bent index finger. Her skin was soft and warm, urging him on.

"Feels nice," Chaewon whispered, and moments later, she dozed off.

Ace smiled and decided not to move at all.

An hour later, Chaewon’s eyelashes fluttered. When she blinked awake, Ace’s face—blurred at first—was already watching her.

She rubbed her eyes. Ace’s smile widened at her innocent wake-up.

"Not a bad nap at all, huh?" he teased.

"Believe it or not, it was the best nap I’ve had in this Hell," Chaewon said, smiling. "The best sleep I’ve had was after you comforted me when I opened up about my worries. You’ve been looking out for me a lot."

"My thoughts exactly. Because of you, I’ve been thinking about love, even though I can’t feel it."

"Eh?" Her eyes widened in surprise.

Ace shared his system window with her.

[Second Flaw: As a ranker, Ace Avalanche shall be romantically detached.]

"Wait... I’m confused. Flaws? There are flaws to Rankers? And yours is... to be romantically detached? What exactly does it mean? Second flaw, too? I... I don’t understand," Chaewon said, growing more flustered with each question, her beautiful face turning sadder and more confused.

Ace stroked her hair to calm her. "It’s as you see. I can’t feel love. It affects me too much, I think. That’s why I have this flaw. My first flaw is that I can’t use active skills, but I’m already turning it into an advantage. Same goes for the second flaw. It saved me once. But now..."

As Ace’s face fell, Chaewon’s heart tightened. She cupped his cheeks and made him look at her.

"Let’s work on it. I want to open your heart! You said I made you think about love? I see that as the first step. Just like you use your flaws to your advantage, I’ll do the same. But I’ll need your help. Do you want it?"

"Of course I do," Ace said.

"Then... let me make a way toward your heart now—" Chaewon whispered, leaning in for a kiss.

A heavy presence stirred beside them. Both turned. Seraphina woke and hauled herself into a battle stance.

Her eyes burned like twin fireballs, and a wild look spread across her face.

Ace narrowed his eyes. "Gesta."

"To think that Ace Avalanche, the Rank One, is flawed, and his second flaw is because he’s a simp. That’s hilarious," Gesta said through Seraphina’s lips, then lunged to kill the weakened Ace.

Ace stared, stunned. Am I a simp? How does the priestess even know this vocabulary?

Gesta had not only taken Seraphina as her slave but also searched through her memories. She knew about Earth and how vulnerable this world was. To her, it was a world worth invading and burning for her divinity.

Ace could only guess as much, and he was too shocked at being called a simp to think further.

Gesta was already moving, leaving Ace no time to think about anything but the fight.