From Today, I'm a Player

Chapter 283. Side Story – Heimdall Pt. 3

“Then for now...” Heimdall swiftly changed the topic and chattered nonstop, “There are a total of five gates, right? I’ll let them know that I’ll clear all of them.”

Heimdall then picked up his cell phone and made a call.

“Odin. About the Gates you mentioned before...”

The person on the other end of the line who had answered the phone even before it rang more than a second was Odin, the Association President of the Korean Association and a chaebol who owned a leading Korean company. He was someone who was not easy to talk to, and only someone of Heimdall’s standing could talk to him so comfortably.

“I’ll clear all of them, so please handle the reservations,” Heimdall said, hanging up the phone before even listening to Odin’s reply.

Athena looked at Heimdall.

“Your relationship with Odin, it’s...”

A displeased look appeared on her face.

"Well...”

Heimdall scratched his head. It was more correct to say that his hatred of Odin had become dulled over the years rather than that he had forgiven him. However, Athena seemed unable to forgive the Hunter. After all, Odin had tormented Lee Jun-Kyeong in the previous timeline.

“He’s changed a lot now. I think it’s because of our presence.”

“What do you mean?”

“He had been tired of living in a world where everything went his way. But it’s different now, isn’t it?”

Odin was strong. However, now, there were people stronger than him all over the world.

“I think it set a different goal for him, a goal that, in a way, helps the world. What I mean is that he hasn’t become twisted like before.”

That was the only reason Heimdall hadn’t eliminated Odin. Athena’s expression showed that she didn’t understand. “If you say so...”

Fortunately, she still seemed to let it go after his explanation.

“I talked to Odin, so we shouldn’t have any issues clearing all of the gates. Let’s start at the nearest one first.”

The closest Gate to them was an A+-Gratde Gate that had appeared near Seoul. Although many Hunters had attempted it several times, it was said to have been delayed quite heavily as there weren’t many Hunters at a level suitable to raid it properly.

“Let’s go.” Heimdall began to move. “Shall we go in my car?”

It’s not like there was a need for them to walk there.

***

Athena's complexion turned red.

“Were you...always like this?”

“What do you mean,” said Heimdall casually as he drove. He wondered what it had been that had touched a nerve. He quietly looked at Athena in the rearview mirror.

“The seatbelt...”

“Seatbelt?”

“Do you put on the seatbelt for everyone?”

Athena's face became even redder.

Thinking that her reaction was anger, Heimdall started to make all kinds of excuses.

“No! Never!!!!” he sputtered. “Why would I ever put the seatbelt on for anyone? Moreover, I would never let just anyone get into my car!”

“Then...”

Athena slowly raised her hand.

SCREEEEEEEECH!

In her hand was a tube of lipstick, clearly a bright red one at that. Heimdall looked over at Athena’s lips as the car suddenly braked.

“Huh...?”

Athena didn't wear makeup. Heimdall didn’t know if it was because she was just beautiful even without any makeup or if the intense battles had caused her makeup to come off. However, the fact of the matter was that Athena wasn’t wearing any makeup at the moment while there was a tube of lipstick in her hand...

“This was in the passenger seat.”

“Uh...?”

“It seems there was a woman in this car. Lying isn’t good,” Athena said as she shook her head.

“Uh...?”

Heimdall just looked at the lipstick in silence. He was sure of it.

“JEONG IN-CHANG!”

“...?”

“He asked me to borrow my car the other day! I lent it to him! It’s definitely Jeong In-Chang’s!!!!”

“...”

Although he screamed his excuses, Athena’s eyebrow didn’t drop.

HONK HONK!

It was only after the sound of a horn emerged from behind that Heimdall slowly stepped on the accelerator. He didn’t know why or how things had gotten to this point.

‘I’m going to kill you!’

His anger toward Jeong In-Chang welled up.

***

“We’ve arrived.”

Each minute had felt like a lifetime, and they eventually were able to arrive at the Gate near Seoul.

‘It was only thirty minutes, but for some reason that was just as difficult to bear as it was repeating my life, over and over...’

It had been a hellish time for Heimdall, having to drive while glancing at Athena, who said nothing. That had also only been possible for him as he was an SSS-Rank Hunter. If it were any ordinary person, it was clear that an accident would have already occurred. Regardless, they had arrived.

“Now, let’s go in.”

He was finally able to escape the awkwardness. Gate managers began to approach them before Heimdall raised a hand to stop them, letting them know not to come closer. There was no need for them to prep or handle anything else.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been able to move a little.”

They were always ready. Although they were living in a peaceful era and timeline, that didn’t mean that everything about them had become dull. He always kept his weapons on him in preparation for anything that might happen. Moreover, other equipment and tools, like potions, also were stored in his inventory.

Of course, he hadn’t had any situations that called for them, but they still were always at the ready.

“...”

Heimdall had blustered confidently. However, there was no answer in response, as Athena had already reached the entrance of the gate a long time ago.

He had been talking to himself. Heimdall scratched his head and made his way towards the gate.

The Association employees all just bowed their heads as they slowly took steps back. The mana Athena was emitting enough to make them tremble.

“Why are you so angry...” Heimdall asked as he threw himself into the Gate.

***

BANG! CRASH! CLANG! BOOOOOM!

Explosions rocked the world, the sound of each rupture sounding like a concerto. Rainbow-colored rays of light blasted onto the ground from the sky, creating explosions with each blow.

BOOM!!

“Agh!!!”

Some monsters died screaming, but the majority of them simply crumbled into dust and died without even being able to scream. A peaceful forest had already become a barren land, and at the center of the destruction was Heimdall and Athena.

“Hmm.”

There had been no need for either to draw any weapons, as the title, SSS-Rank Hunter, wasn’t a lie.

“This is definitely a higher level than regular Gates.”

At first, Heimdall had wondered why Odin and Zeus had paid such attention to these Gates, but now, he understood. Although the amount of mana emitted from the Gate matched its A+ grading, the monsters themselves were quite tricky to handle.

“They use martial arts.”

It wasn’t that they were humanoids. They were clearly monsters. However, because they used martial arts similar to those used by humans, Hunters of the same level were bound to have a hard time. But that was all there was to it.

“Even so...I don’t think Lord Zeus is here.”

It was just as Athena had said. Yes, it was a slightly special gate, but there were many gates like this. Furthermore, despite all of this chaos, there weren’t any signs of Zeus.

“Let’s finish in here first and then head out,” Heimdall said, thinking that they should clear the Gate and handle what was around them just in case Zeus was hiding himself.

Zzzt.

Athena nodded as the space began to vibrate. The colors of the rainbow that had destroyed the forest gathered in the sky

Shing!!!!

When a huge rainbow shone down on the ground, the space resonated once again. At that moment, a huge light erupted that seemed to blind Athena and Heimdall.

Whoosh!!!

“It’s over.”

When the light disappeared, nothing remained. The land had been devastated, and not even the sound of monsters breathing could be heard. If Zeus had been here, then he would have appeared when the slaughter had started.

“So he’s not here, then.”

The A+-Grade Gate had been cleared in an instant.

Numerous mana stones fell to the ground. However, there wasn’t a single corpse that remained. Athena and Heimdall didn’t bother to collect the mana stones, as after confirming the Gate Clear, the Association employees would enter the Gate and collect the necessary items.

“Hmm...”

Heimdall frowned at the strange feeling. Zeus wasn’t in the first Gate.

“What a waste of time.”

There were about four Gates left. However, for some reason, he had a sinking feeling that they wouldn’t be able to find Zeus anytime soon.

“I get the feeling that we might have to search all of them,” Heimdall said.

Athena nodded in response.

“I will decide on the next one.”

In order to go find the Gate where Zeus might be hiding, the two of them turned around and exited the Gate.

All of the monsters had died as if they were being slaughtered. However, none of them would have blamed Heimdall or Athena. It wasn’t because they were any monsters that harmed humans or anything, but because they were all victims of the Sponsors who had been cursed to exist for eternity without being able to die.

‘Rest in peace.’

Only now would they be able to rest, and that was why Heimdall still cleared gates even in times of peace. He would rectify the sins committed by the Sponsors and bring peace to the monsters that couldn’t be saved.

“Let’s go.”

Athena thought to herself.

For some reason, Heimdall’s back seemed filled with sorrow.

***

Heimdall exhaled tiredly and said, “Now there are two left.”

Including the first one, they had gone to three Gates. Although they had cleared all of the Gates they had gone to, they hadn’t found a single trace of Zeus.

“Where did that bastard go?”

They had cleared three Gates, and one of them was a Gate that Hunters had avoided due to its massive size. The two of them had stayed at that Gate for three entire days. Because it had been such a particularly wide Gate, they had searched it thoroughly because they had thought that Zeus might have been there.

However, Zeus had been nowhere to be seen.

“The other two...” Athena said, also looking tired.

The two of them were people who didn’t have to sleep or eat.

“Yeah, let’s do it tomorrow.”

However, they were tired because they had to walk around the Gates while being careful of each other. For some reason, Athena was fully conscious of Heimdall’s attention, while Heimdall was conscious of Athena’s reactions

The monsters didn’t make them tired. Instead, they were making each other exhausted.

“Still...” Heimdall said, his tired expression fading. “Walking around a Gate like this reminds me of the old days.”

It was something he had said lightly, referencing his memories of traversing Gates with Athena.

While Heimdall spoke, reminiscing of those times, Athena’s expression became even more rigid.

“I’m sorry...” she said, apologizing. “I don’t have any of those memories.”

She wasn’t the Athena of Heimdall’s memories, so she didn’t have any memories of raiding any Gates with Heimdall.

“Oh... I’m sorry...” Heimdall said, turning his head while embarrassed for no reason.