Youre here again!

!

There was a middle-aged mans voice and Dohyuk stopped. It was right about where the cave was funneling into a giant room. There was a man in rags kneeling down.

C-come, you trash!

The voice was shaking.

D-Dont hesitate! A-are you af-afraid of me? COME!

Something was weird. It seemed like the man wasnt strong or anything. Dohyuk walked up and the man turned back. When the man faced Dohyuk, he gasped.

Yoo- Yoo Dohyuk?

Dohyuk wouldve attacked right at that moment since everyone knew him, but-

D-dont come to me!

The man shouted, Y-youll die! NO!

It was a warning. The man was worried about Dohyuk as he then pulled his rags off. Dohyuk gasped. It was the most saddening and terrifying sight. The man was covered by a green being. It was devouring the mans flesh.

This this is called Waving Jade. If this touches a living being it eats and increases in number

Thats when Dohyuk realized what happened to those who went in.

Then how did you?

I have a Nature regeneration and resistance against such thing

The man then knelt down again. The green thing was moving toward the mans chest and face. The right eye was already whitened and puss was coming out from it.

L-long time n-no see B-but its good that.. I got to se-see you be-before I died

Do you know

Me? Dohyuk wasnt able to ask the last part. It was a foolish question.

Of-of course. Y-you saved my da-daughter and m-myself.

Me? Dohyuk mumbled.

Of course- of- of course.

The man began telling the story of a hero that he remembered.

The mans name was Jo Mingu. On his 8th day, he met Dohyuk. This was when he and the others realized they had to kill each other to survive. But they were still being put off by the moral standards. Thats when Dohyuk met them. It was when the stronger people were forming a group.

Y-you were g-great even then Yo-you didnt oppress.. an-any one.

Dohyuk was a logical leader.

-This is not a world you can survive with just power. Theres no weak Nature. If we help each other, we can increase our chances of survival.

Mingu was a weak-minded man from the beginning.

If-if it wasnt- for you I would-would have died.

It was Dohyuk who gave Mingu a job to do. He was able to utilize his Nature to determine which food was safe to eat.

I-it was going to be okay if- if it wasnt- for those-those d-dogs

?

Dohyuks group grew and they acquired safe shelter and food to survive. However, they became a target. A few of the other groups joined forces to attack Dohyuks group, but Dohyuk did not fail.

I I saw-saw it for the first time. Wh-when you killed others- with anger.

Dohyuk was victorious, but there were some who died. Many who fought against the attackers died, mostly those young ones who did not have enough power.

-Assh*les.

That was what Dohyuk said, and when night came again, Dohyuk spoke to his friends.

-Ill be back. I need to do this.

He came back the next day covered in blood. None of it was his. Dohyuk then said,

-Well live here. I wont force you to follow me.

There werent many who followed him, but Mingu wasnt one of them.

I-It wasnt be-because I didnt trust you I just-just didnt have a reason to l-live

His daughter died in the ambush. She fought against the enemy to save her father and died fighting. It was enough of a motive for suicide. That was why Mingu came to this place, to the Mine of the Green.

It was the cavern that everyone avoided due to the human-eating monster.

I I was fool so I didnt have courage to kill myself in power enough to my regeneration Nature.

He threw himself against the green monsters. But even these green monsters couldnt overcome Mingus nature as he spent his time in agony. Thats when he touched the core of these monsters. The gem that was within this mine. When absorbed, the monsters became silent. Thats when Mingu earned his second Nature.

[Man of the Green]

It was a unique nature that could be obtained without killing others.

Mingu earned his second life.

I I am a f-fool survived because of luck

Even with the power from the second Nature, he lived in guilt until he died.

Dohyuk looked behind. There was a small area that the green monsters did not dare to go near. There was the figure of human lying down.

Its its my daughter

It was his everything. Just like last time, Mingu came to this place the first and gave the core gem to his daughter. He would not come out of this cave alive as the green was eating away most of his body parts. When his daughter woke up, he would be dead. But that was okay. That was why he stood, blocking the entryway from any invaders to protect his daughter. The pain of being eaten alive did not matter to him.

Mingu kneeled against Dohyuk.

I-Im sorry But- even-even for you I-I cant let you go I n

B-but, you can stay until ni-night comes

Dohyuk didnt move. It was not good to go in, other than risking the danger of being attacked by those monsters. It was a wiser choice to stay here until night. He couldnt speak.

Dohyuk?

Dohyuk quietly moved to the wall at the corridor and sat down. Maybe he was just relieved. Mingu was first human he had met after the world changed. Kill, lie, steal, and fight all who faced him had those intentions.

I-Im not sure if-if it will

Mingu mentioned, I-I heard that you-you do not re-remember anything.

Yes. Dohyuk looked up.

I-I dont know everything about y-you.. but

Mingu had survived alone after he got his second Nature and died when Dohyuk began earning the name of the Great Emperor.

Wait, you dont have any memories after you died?

N-no.

Mingu shook his head.

It-it feels like I was in l-long slumber A-and I he-heard a voice.

Voice?

V-voice of a god.

Mingu did not know how he knew; he just knew.

I-it said it would give us a s-second chance all o-others th-than Phenomenal N-Nine would get the 2nd c-chance.

And he was back.

I h-had to hide wi-with my daughter. But e-even if I had time I doubt we w-would have spoken to the o-others.

Dohyuk nodded.

A-anyway g-go find Han Jaehun.

Han Jaehun?

It was a name he did not recognize. Mingu then became confused.

I-Its weird t-two of you were l-like o-old friends.

Han Jaehun was always with Dohyuk, and he was very powerful.

A-and I-I heard rumor after I left that J-Jaehun had died in b-battle to s-save you.

H-he should be around if h-hes alive. And

Mingu frowned. Maybe it was because of the pain? Or maybe he was just making up the memory.

G-gaiter

Gaiter? You mean the one you put up on the legs?

Y-Yes, Mingu nodded. Then, his one ear that had been damaged by the green dropped to the ground.

Only AA Item within th-this region You had it. And

Dohyuk felt the vibration from his pocket. It wasnt the compass. It was the bag he got from Kim Eunho. It was vibrating. Dohyuk took out whatever was inside.

<>

-Durability : 7/10

[Like married couples, these shells choose their lifetime mates. It was used as a magical communication tool that allowed carriers to talk across long distances. Durability goes down when the message distance is farther. It cannot work when it reaches a certain range.]

Dohyuk then placed it against his ear.

Its me.

There was a grainy, distorted voice. It was hard to make out the gender.

What happened, the voice asked. Dohyuk then read the description and thought about what Eunho said and spoke.

Im in the cave.

Did you get it? What about the disposables? If its not enough, stay there. Ill go to you.

He couldnt stay quiet so Dohyuk decided to ask something else.

Everything okay there?

I have good news.

Even through the distorted sound, it was easy to tell that the person on the other side was excited.

We got Yoo Dohyuks gaiter.