We barely made it three steps into the Hydra's territory before the ground hissed.
"Wait....what's that sound...oh my god, that's acid!" I screamed.
Kael yanked me by the arm, hauling me sideways as venom splattered across where we stood. The dirt smoked. The trees melted. And there I was, clinging to Kael like some princess while wearing a six-pack chest and metal armor.
Fantastic.
"Leonhart," Kael said, low and calm, too calm. "Focus."
"Focus?!" I yelped, dodging a tail swipe. "There's a literal snake made of six heads and bad decisions trying to murder us!"
Another hiss. Venom sprayed. He twisted around me again, his dagger glinting before slicing through one of the Hydra's eyes.
"You're screaming instead of swinging," he said.
"Because it's spitting acid!"
He sighed. "And yet you're supposed to be the great Leonhart."
"I wasn't the one who built that reputation, okay!"
Kael's mouth twitched, half grin, half exasperation. "You're hopeless."
The Hydra reared, two heads spewing venom while another lunged for him. Kael sliced clean through one jaw, spinning back to me.
"Stay behind me."
I nodded. Obediently. Because honestly? I liked this view.
Then everything went wrong.
Another hiss. Another glow. The Hydra spat a new mix, acid and mist, right at us. Kael could've dodged easily. He didn't.
The moment it hit, the ground sizzled, and Kael's armor smoked.
"KAEL!" I screamed.
He stumbled, blood dripping from the side of his mouth.
And then I snapped.
Every nerve, every cell in Leonhart's ridiculous warrior body came alive. The panic turned into something else, fury. A blinding, cold, possessive fury that felt far too familiar.
"You. Ugly. Multi-headed. DISGRACE OF EVOLUTION!" I roared, drawing the sword that felt too heavy a minute ago.
Six heads hissed in response.
"You hurt my Kael!"
Kael blinked weakly from where he was kneeling. "Your…?"
"Don't you 'your' me! You stay still and heal or so help me I'll resurrect you just to kill you again!"
And I ran.
The Hydra lunged. One head snapped from the left, two from the right, I ducked under, rolled, slashed upward. The sword cleaved through scales with a flash of light.
My arms burned. My lungs screamed. Every movement hurt, real and sharp. The kind of pain no controller ever simulated.
Another head struck. I parried, got thrown back, hit a tree. My ribs protested.
Still, I stood.
"Not today, noodle monster!"
The Hydra hissed. All six heads drew back, then spat a combined torrent of poison.
"Oh, hell no."
I sprinted, dragging the sword across the ground, flames sparking as Leonhart's instincts took over. My hands moved faster than thought. The blade spun, a perfect arch, then I jumped.
The world slowed.
The sword glowed like the sun itself. I swung. The ground cracked beneath my boots, the blast lighting up the forest like a divine explosion.
Heads flew. Scales burned. The Hydra screamed.
But it didn't die.
One head lunged through the smoke, catching my shoulder. I screamed, real, raw. Hot blood slid down my arm.
"Not...enough...yet!"
Kael was still down, potion half-drunk. He met my eyes, steady, unwavering. That look that said: Prove it. Prove you belong here.
So I did.
I twisted, ignoring the sting, planting my foot into the Hydra's jaw. It snapped open. My blade flashed again, down its throat.
"Sun Beam Strike!"
Golden fire erupted. The Hydra shrieked one last time before collapsing, smoke rising from its shredded heads.
And then silence.
My breath came in ragged gasps. My body shook. Blood soaked my sleeves. I could barely hold the sword upright.
But it was dead.
The Hydra. The nightmare. The test.
It was over.
For a moment, I just stood there, staring at the diamond chest glowing faintly among the ashes.
Then, clap.
Once. Twice.
I turned.
Kael. Standing. Smiling. Hands casually clapping together like he hadn't just died on me.
"Good," he said simply. "You finally fought."
"Fought?" I blinked, then everything hit me at once. The adrenaline, the terror, the stupid, reckless, infuriating stunt he pulled,
"You idiot!" I yelled.
He raised a brow. "Excuse me?"
"You let yourself get hit!" I threw my sword down, stomping toward him. "You absolute reckless, dagger-happy masochist! You made me think you were dying!"
"It worked," he said softly.
"I thought..." my voice cracked. "I thought I'd lose you, Kael."
His smile faltered.
And that was it. The tears just came. Hot and heavy and unstoppable.
I collapsed against his chest, sobbing into his armor. "You're an idiot! You're my idiot! Don't ever...ever...do that again!"
For a moment, he froze. Then slowly, his arms wrapped around me.
He didn't say anything. Just held me while I cried like my whole world had shattered and rebuilt itself in one breath.
The pain, the fear, the blood, it was all real.
So was this.
When I finally looked up, my face red and blotchy, he was smiling again, gentler this time.
"Leonhart," he said quietly, his hand brushing against the back of my head. "You finally look alive."
I sniffed. "Don't call me that right now."
"Then what should I call you?"
I hesitated. "...Eunji."
He smiled. "Then, Eunji..."
"Shut up."
He chuckled, ruffling my hair like I wasn't a grown man wearing plate armor.
I wanted to slap him. I also wanted to melt.
The ground where the Hydra fell still smoked, the scent of acid and ash clinging to the air. The diamond chest shimmered between us, untouched.
But right now, I didn't care about loot or rankings.
Kael was alive.
I was alive.
And for the first time since waking up in this ridiculous, male body, I felt it. The heartbeat. The weight. The pulse of being real.
Kael leaned closer, voice low. "You did good, Eunji."
And me, because I'm me, I just sniffled and muttered, "If you ever pull that sacrificial stunt again, I'll use that Sun Beam Strike on you."
He laughed, soft but genuine. "Fair enough."
The diamond chest cracked open behind us, scattering golden light across the clearing, two silhouettes framed against it: one calm, steady shadow, and one trembling figure holding back another wave of tears.
Yeah.
I really wasn't playing a game anymore.