Dual System: Ascension of A Nameless Nobody

"Jump up! Come on!" He called out.

But, he realized there was a simply reason why Korain was stuck on the ground, despite being able to easily leap the height of the surroundings buildings with his immense physicality.

"--"

Korain's legs had been eviscerated by the man-eating rodents; chunks were torn from his legs, and a trail of crimson was left in the man's wake. It seemed only through dragging his feet and by sheer will did the man manage to make it this far.

"Dammit…!" He clenched his teeth.

After being set down on the roof, Xiaodan looked up at the young man in surprise, "Jeong-Hui…? What're you–wait!"

Before Xiaodan could stop him, he had already jumped from the roof, using the surrounding buildings as footholds as he closed the distance to the burly, one-armed man.

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[Spirit -1000 | 1100/3700]

Aiding the injured veteran of Gangcheori, he launched successive bursts of slashes, forcing a clearing around the two as he used [Blink Steps] to create a spherical range in which all vermin were cut apart in an instant.

"...Damn, kid…You're showing me up," Korain breathed heavily, joking lightly as he was clearly burdened by his injuries.

"Shut up…! We have to go!" He yelled.

As he grabbed onto Korain's arm, he dragged the man along with him with a few successive [Blink Steps] that brought them back up to the roof before the vermin could surround them again.

"That's embarrassing. I came here to rescue you, not the other way around," Korain chuckled.

Though as Korain fell onto his rear, sitting on the roof, the wounds he suffered became clear as day–his legs were torn apart, his arms were covered in bleeding wounds, having reached past his armor.

Even more apparent was the massive hole in his armor, left on his chest.

"Xiaodan…!" He looked back at the silver-haired boy.

The androgynous male nodded, scooting closer to Korain as he brought his hands close to him, "Hail to the jewel in the lotus."

Korain was silent, focusing on regaining his breath as the rejuvenating waters surrounded him, tending to his inflicted body, but once it dispersed, it hardly seemed to have any effect.

"--"

"Xiaodan, did you do it?...Try again!" He shouted desperately.

"--"

"Xiaodan!"

"I can't heal wounds like this…! I tried! I can combat the plague inside him, but…the damage that's done is done!" Xiaodan shouted back.

Sitting there now in a pool of his own blood with his claymore held by his side, Korain gave a half smile with his tired eyes and messy hair, "...Yeah, sounds about right."

"Do you have a potion on you? Anything?" He asked.

Korain shook his head lightly in response.

"...Why the hell did you come here, Korain…?" He asked now.

"Huh? What kind of question is that, idiot?" Korain raised an eyebrow, looking at him with an exhausted smile.

"--"

Korain pointed to his chest, where the ivory armor that once protected it was blown away, leaving a charred, steaming mark on the man's muscular torso.

"I was hit pretty hard by one of those big ass brutes…It knocked me down and well, those rats had a field day with my body, as you can see, I was grounded instantly," Korain smiled weakly, "...The others were still frantic about you two missing. Those two idiots were raving about going out to look for you–I doubt Ma-Ri would've been able to stop them. So…I volunteered myself, since I'm damn near dead, anyway."

As he had thought–a suicide mission. It wasn't surprising that a hot-headed, stubborn man like Korain would do something like that, but the thought of it was still dreadful.

"...That's not a reason to get yourself killed. The group needs you…If you're not there, we'll be lost!" He said.

Xiaodan was silent, watching with a bleak sadness in his eyes at the decrepit state of Korain's body.

The man huffed, "--I'm not dead yet, am I?"

"--"

"I've been through worse…just look…" Korain struggled to put out his words as he began to stand.

Somehow, with those hole-filled legs that continuously spurted out blood, the man rose to his feet, holding a tired, but triumphant smile, "...See? Don't count this old man out yet. I'm not dying just yet…not until you two are back with the others."

He was left agasp for a moment at the sheer willpower that Korain must possess to accomplish such a feat before he latched onto those last few words.

"The others…where are they?" He asked.

Korain pointed his sword towards the heavenly Tower situated in the distance, "It's obvious, isn't it? We've all got the same destination."

"You're right…" He said, "All we've got to do is reach the Tower now. That's it."

Though he felt a relief at this thought, with there only being mere hours left before the opening of the enigmatic structure, he realized his hopes were far too optimistic.

"We, huh?" Xiaodan mumbled.

"What? That's right–we're going there. All of us," he said adamantly.

Xiaodan looked up at him, "We have to be realistic here, Jeong-Hui…" He smiled sadly, "...I can't move my lower body…and, Korain, I know that's not sustainable…You've only got a few hours max…"

"--" Korain was quiet.

"Realistic…? Stop that. Stop it. We've been fighting all of this time, haven't we?! So don't give me this shit! I didn't push myself through this hell just to abandon my friends–and you sure the hell didn't go through this just to lay down and take it right before the finish line!" He yelled out angrily.

"Kid…" Korain looked at him.

He was on the verge of tears–but even that changed as they began to trail his cheeks as he kept his teeth clenched.

"How about we meet halfway?" Korain said.

"What?" He looked at the man.

Xiaodan seemed confused as well as the two looked at the middle-aged man, who kept himself standing while exuding sweat and blood from his pores.

"...I'll carry Xiaodan. We'll follow behind you, but…you're not allowed to walk back. If we fall, that's it. We tried," Korain told him.

"--"

"It's as good as we're going to get," Korain said, "As it stands, we have to make due with our best odds. If you try brute-forcing something like this, you'll just be dragged down, too, kid. I'm not trying to die pointlessly. So, live."

Xiaodan added in, "...I feel the same way. Jeong-Hui, you've saved me twice now…I know it sounds selfish, but I want to at least be able to return the favor, just once. If you ended up dying yourself while trying to protect me…I'd never forgive myself. At the very least, give yourself the best chance of making it."

He didn't like the sound of it, not at all. But, he couldn't deny that it was likely the only option that worked for both sides' desires.

"Alright…Let's go."

–

It was an unorthodox arrangement, and one that was clearly aligned with death itself.

Korain, hardly able to walk with his mutilated body, held Xiaodan on his back while using his claymore to sweep through the vermin in their path.

On the other end, he stayed ahead, leaping from building-to-building as he kept looking back every few seconds, worriedly checking on the two.

It was certain death for both of them.

[Time until Tower opens: 9 hours, 10 minutes, and 34 seconds]

By the time left, it was certainly dawn, but there was hardly any way to discern night from day amidst the hellish horizon that sat over the world.

It was impossible for him to solely set his sights on the colossal tower in the distance as he jumped from rooftop to rooftop, continuously hearing the sounds of Korain and Xiaodan's struggle through the vermin-filled streets.

Though part of the agreement was that he'd move on ahead without slowing down for them, he still kept himself within distance of the two–keeping his daggers readied in his grip.

Something caught his eye just a bit ahead; a sight that placed some hope in the abyssal pits of his heart.

"...There! Up ahead!"

It was a massive hole left in the middle of the street, splitting it in two and leaving a large gap.

Korain and Xiaodan looked ahead, seeing it as a resurgence in vigor seemed to flow within the burly man.

This was an important discovery, due to the fact that the horde of rats weren't able to bridge such a gap, even with their increased leaping strength, it was clear on the other side.

"Alright! Hold on tight–! I'm using the last of my spirit for this!"

"Right…! Do what you have to do!" Xiaodan said.

Of course, Korian couldn't simply unleash a mighty jump with the state his body was in, but he summoned a burst of air beneath his boots, allowing him to scale the gap in the street.

"...Phew…"

"We made it…" Xiaodan looked back in disbelief.

He immediately jumped down from the rooftop, meeting the two on the empty, rat-untouched street now with a relieved smile.

"What did I say!? You just had to push on…!" He said with tears welling up in his eyes excitedly.

"...I really didn't think there was a part of this city left untouched by those furballs…" Korain said, still shocked.

"Yeah, same here…" Xiaodan added.

It was a burden of despair lifted from each of their shoulders as they now ventured together down the abandoned, desolated streets.

"...Ma-Ri is going to freak once she sees us," Korain chuckled, "She's probably going to smack me a good one."

"I thought you volunteered to come out here…Why would she be mad?" He asked with a smile.

"Well…that girl's mind works in mysterious ways, I'll tell ya'," Korain answered.

–

The seraphic Tower sat in the center of the city; it was definitely within reach far before the time it would open for them, even with their sluggish pace.

Naturally, he took Xiaodan onto his back now, leaving the weight freed from Korain's already cut-up body, who held a limp in his stride, but moved nonetheless.

"How're you holding up?" He asked, glancing back at the man.

"I'm holding…Don't worry about me, kid. I've got enough in the tank," Korain answered with a reassuring smile, resting his claymore on his shoulder.

"If you say so," he accepted.

"Alright, alright, if I think I can't walk anymore, I'll just let you carry me as well," Korian joked.

"As if…" He responded wryly with a smile.

The three laughed, though Xiaodan seemed drained of energy due to how hard his body must've exerted itself to rid itself of the vermins' curses.