Only I Am A Reader



[ Native Contenders have entered the Encroachment Center… ]

Although the Gate was only big enough for one or two people to step in, entering in batches didn't cause Aurora's team to split up. They were still together inside.

However, the space they were in didn't look like any other Gate that they went to before. It was an enclosed space filled with the same dreadful green that they saw outside.

It was rectangular in shape like an empty room, a very small one. Unfortunately, before anyone could panic or complain about the start, an eerie voice was transmitted into everyone's ears.

"Contend-"

The brown-haired girl was about to blurt out the first curious word she heard… One that she didn't get to finish.

[ Preparing Challenges… 10 Challengers acknowledged. ]

This was a first. Aside from exchanging words amongst themselves, Aurora's team had never experienced any kind of written communication, let alone hear a voice.

There were very few times when they found direction scribbles, but all they did was change the difficulty of Gate Clearing. Some of the arrow-like scratches were deceptive bait.

The information that the old Heroes shared with their successors also didn't speak of anything like it.

[ Conquering Trial commences, clear all 100 challenges to reach your objective. ]

Yet now, they were hearing records of observation and even instruction. As unsettling as the voice was, they heard everything loud and clear, and…

[ I wish you well. ]

They didn't get the chance to discuss it.

"Wait!"

One of the other silent members tried to speak but to no avail. Everyone was already floating into the air, lacking any form of control over their body.

Less than a second later, ten shining green discs came raining from above. They looked like miniature Gate Portals, and they were just that.

Everyone only managed to get a horrifying glance at what happened to the others before they were consumed whole by their own miniature portal.

'So it has started.'

Amid all of the chaos, Leo was the only one who had the leisure to observe everything clearly. Aurora was completely unphased, but she still lacked the foresight that Leo had.

Though they tried to hide it, the rest looked scared out of their pants. While they trusted Aurora to protect them from everything, unknown variables from the very beginning were a very bad sign.

What if… What if they were separated from Aurora? Aurora's team tried their best to deny such a possibility, but their minds couldn't. And unfortunately…

'Who did I end up with?'

That possibility did indeed come true.

The descending portals were flipped. As if scanning the intruders, it transported them to different locations.

"What happened?"

It was just that every two portals were paired together, so Leo didn't end up alone. As for his partner…

'What a funny coincidence.'

"Oh, Ray! So we didn't all get separated!"

It was Ken, the same person who had picked a fight with Leo just before they came here!

Of course, Leo didn't bother interacting with Ken. In their current situation, recognizing the surroundings came first.

Although Gates rarely thrust its challengers into the jaws of danger, this wasn't a normal Gate. If anything this was more like a collection of Gates.

'Doesn't seem like we fell into one of the urgent ones…'

Immediate danger or not didn't really matter to Leo, but getting some time to prepare himself was always welcome.

Although he read about the Gate in the novel, even Leo couldn't predict where he landed. After all…

'This is the first real Gate.'

Gates were first a threat, then a gold mine, but starting from this Gate, things were just about to change.

This specific Gate was both a warning to humanity and a choice. Whether it was that they would fight back or stand still as the inevitable end took root in this world.

If it had been left unattended till the point of a Gate Break, Earth would have already been doomed. Thankfully, Aurora faithfully played her role as the obstacle that disrupted all the gears!

This was why this world really needed Aurora. Regardless of how stubborn she had to be to play that role, or how much that hurt her, Earth truly needed her!

Unfortunately, not all challenges could be cleared by a single person, at least not at the required efficiency. In the novel, this Gate was the point where everything started going wrong.

'...And this one is more like gacha.'

100 challenges. Currently, Aurora's team had to clear that many 'mini-gates' to be able to clear the real thing. Split into five pairs, each pair was randomly transported into one of these challenges.

9 challengers, 81 challenges. 10 challengers, 100 challenges. It was left up to speculations in the novel, but Leo was now able to confirm that the number of the challenges was the square of their numbers.

Just that fact alone made Leo unsure of what challenges he would land in, let alone know who his partner was in advance.

In this case, Leo himself was the biggest variable of this event, so predicting anything in detail was a very limited prospect… Not that he needed to do so to survive this Gate.

'I will deal with it as it comes, but first...'

"Right, looking around for danger is the correct choice for a first-timer like you."

Once Leo finally turned back to Ken, his confused expression had already been replaced by an all-knowing smile.

"Sadly, this is not the place to get your first experience at. I'm still not sure what happened just now, but this Gate is obviously bad news."

Anyone could tell that much, but for the newbie that Leo was supposed to be, what was normal and abnormal would have been confusing. In a way, Ken acted like a reliable senior… If only up to this point.

"That's why I will let you in on a good trick to solve all of your future problems. In situations like this, we wait until we spot Aurora before moving into action."

Even before hearing what Ken had shamelessly said, Leo wasn't the least bit interested in getting chummy with him, but now that he personally saw his true face…

"Is it a bit hard to understand? Don't worry, just stick with me and you will be alright!"

Ken didn't think much of Leo's empty stare. He thought his new buddy was having a hard time processing such a shocking first entry.

'Wha-'

By the time he realized that something was wrong, Leo's fist was already in front of his face.

Bang!