- Princess' Decision -

The one who had come to save them were Yuri Ha Zahard, Evan and a third person.

The third person had red messy hair with a pair of green eyes. He was quite tall for a slender man and he was wearing a black colored sweater with black pants and white shoes. His dark green eyes were focused on two people, Noah and Celeste who were shocked to see him and addressed him with the word 'teacher'.

In order to get all of them out, Yuri used the shinsu for a bit and then brought them up to different place.

Altaira assumed that whoever this messy red haired man must be Noah's and Celeste's teacher and he was a very important person for Celeste since Celeste looked happier than the usual as she was talking to him.

Meanwhile, Yuri who had finally found Bam after seven years more couldn't hesitate to pull him into a hug. She had watched everything about the match and knew that Bam must have went through a lot inside FUG.

"Anyway, is this your twin sister?" Yuri asked as she approached Khun who was currently carrying Charlotte in his arms. "She looks so much like you!"

"It's because they're twins, princess....."

"Well, no matter what, she deserves some good rest" Yuri said. "Though I'm excited to meet her when she is awake."

The others had long known that Viole and Nox weren't ordinary people, for they were the slayer candidates. But now that they knew that Viole or Bam had also be friended with someone as famous or infamous and important like Yuri, they were even more surprised.

Yuri happily listened to the stories that Bam was telling to her, especially about Urek Mazino who he once met when he was an E- rank regular.

Altaira wasn't interested in their talk for he had known about it. He was more interested with the red haired man who appeared in all sudden and was talking with Celeste and Noah. He wanted to eavesdrop on them and he could.

Altaira remembered the stories that Celeste ever told him. She once said that she had a teacher who took care of her since she was young. She treated her teacher as if he was her father and respected him as one.

'He must be the teacher that she mentioned.....'

"Anyway, I have been looking for you for years" the red haired man said to Noah. "Where you have been actually?"

"Sealed in this train" Noah answered. "......by ...... person."

"How did you free yourself then?"

"Ah, it was thanks to Charlotte that brother is free now."

"Charlotte? Which one? That girl with brown hair? She saved you?" He pointed to the girl who was resting on Khun's lap.

"..........I prefer saying that she had helped me a favor."

"You don't have to be embarrassed to be saved by a girl" the red haired man said and ruffed his hair.

"I am embarrassed! Stop ruffling my hair! It's annoying!"

"Have you thanked her properly yet?"

".....yes."

"Is that so, Celeste?"

Celeste shrugged off, "I can't seem to recall about it...."

Noah face palmed himself.

"You can't be rude to your life-savior, Noah."

"I did have thank her. I have also helped her again and again. We're not in debt with each other anymore."

'In debt....?'

Considering Charlotte's friendly personality, she wouldn't think of herself saving others as a debt. When it comes to debt, she was quite forgetful which allow her to be taken advantage by the others, including Altaira himself.

'Now that I remember about it, I do owe her some money.'

But even though he remembered about the money that he once borrowed from Charlotte, he wasn't stupid enough to tell her about it. If he counted everything, the amount of money was not small at all. It was better for him to pretend like he had forgot about it as well.

"By the way....." He heard Yuri was speaking. "Why....did you enter FUG, Bam...? What happened after you disappeared from the Floor of Test? I only heard you and your sister were dead....."

Bam lowered his head, recalling all the painful moments.

".....that we died at the Test Floor....."

He told everything that he had experienced in the FUG along with Charlotte.

"....I see...." Yuri responded. She seemed to be pondering about something. "....FUG....has made you go through that...."

Yuri stood up from her seat.

she said.

"To....to where?"

'The princess is seriously mad' Altaira thought. 'But if she wants to beat Hansung Yu, I don't mind helping her.'

But sadly, he should push that thought aside for Bam didn't agree with what Yuri said.

"You can't go, Yuri. This problem can't be solved like this."

"Bam.....?"

"There are a lot of people in FUG who lost things that meant a lot for them because of Zahard and the Ten Families. If you attack them right now....the situation will get completely out of hand."

"But to think what FUG did to you......"

"I'm going to resolve my personal resentment by myself. I think the most important thing....is to stop the resentment and hatred from repeating like this."

"Bam......"

At the end, Yuri gave up the idea of beating Hansung Yu up.

Altaira won't argue that if Yuri attacks Hansung right now, things will get worse than this. But to stop the resentment and hatred repeating again and again wasn't something easy to do and it was very hard.

'The resentment and hatred can't be stopped just because he wants to. He is being too naive and idealistic.

But if he really could end the resentment and enmity between two sides, it might be a good thing.'

"So kids, where is your next destination?" Yuri asked them. "Do you plan on staying on the train like this?"

"Ah....well....." Khun began to give the answer. "Hm....since Rachel said she was heading to the Floor of Death.....it looks like we'll definitely have to stay on the train until we get there."

"WAIT.....THE FLOOR OF DEATH?!"

Yuri immediately looked at Bam and held his arms, "BAM!! YOU ABSOLUTELY CAN'T GO THERE!! NO WAY, NEVER!!"

"....what....?"

"You can't go to the Floor of Death! That place isn't for regulars like you guys!"

"What kind of place is the Floor of Death?" Bam asked and looked at the others.

"Ah, it's a dangerous place where Enryu killed the administrator" Altaira answered with a cool smile as if the floor where they will be heading wasn't somewhere dangerous. "It's dangerous and there was no law or living people on that area...and "

"It's definitely a very dangerous place for D- rank regulars like us to enter" Khun added. "There's also no way of knowing whether we can use shinsu since we can't establish a contract with an administrator."

"Exactly" Yuri said to Bam. "That place is totally off-limits. I can't send you guys to a place that even Rankers avoid entering."

While Yuri was convincing Bam, Altaira was talking to Khun.

Altaira held the fan with his other hand and rested his elbow on his crossed legs and propped his chin with his palm, "I think the answer of being able to use shinsu or not is already obvious. Unlike them, the irregulars, we're bound by the contract right? If we let them go on their own, they might survive there."

"Will you be so cruel to leave Charlotte alone in that kind of place?" Khun asked back. "I know that you don't like the three of us, but you won't leave Charlotte alone in a dangerous place right?"

"Well said" he responded and looked at Charlotte. "This little lass could have a good life....yet she sticks with the three of you endlessly. I have never seen her being this determined and persistent following someone aside from me."

"Charlotte will always follow you?"

"What? Jealous?"

"No, I was just wondering where she learnt her foolish behavior. Now that you've said it, I think I have gotten myself an answer."

His smile faded when he heard that, "You are rude you know."

Yuri had tried to convince Bam to not go but Bam who was being persistent with his goal refused to stop right there. At the end, she decided to go with them to the Floor of Death.

"But there's one condition. When we reached the forty-third floor, I'll only allow you to enter the Floor of Death if I feel that you are capable of challenging the place. That's my condition" Yuri said as she crossed her arms with a grin. "The selected candidates whose abilities are still insufficient, by my estimation, will be left on the train. Bam, I'm going to be judging you especially strictly. Got it?"

"Yeah!" Bam agreed immediately.

"It's going to be daytime soon on the train. We have to hurry up and complete the test in order to move onto the next floor. The results of that last match don't seem to have been counted because the train master in charge died....so we have no choice but to ride that transport device to take the test" Sachi explained.

When a test couldn't be completed due to unavoidable circumstances, the train had people open the transport device and took the transport device to take another substitute test.

Altaira remembered it clearly that in the Manhwa, Daniel, Aka and Hanwool should have descended from the train. But now, the three of them actually stayed behind.

His lips curled into a smirk.

'She clearly is the one who wants to make sure that things will be the same with the manhwa, but she is the one who ruined it at the end. What are you going to do now, Charlotte?'

"But since we are going to take a substitute test, who will take care of her?" Daniel pointed at Charlotte.

Altaira threw the fan from his left hand to his right hand and raised it immediately with a playful grin.

"Hey, just let me take care of her! Let this freeloader get a job!"

"You aren't getting yourself a job....but running away from the test" Raisin sweat dropped.

Estelle massaged her forehead, "If he keeps behaving like this, he won't be able to escape from the title of freeloader for the next three hundred years. Just why on earth did we join his team years ago?"

"I think I have a better idea" Celeste said with her usual gentle and polite smile. "I could stay back and take care of Charlotte. Altaira, it would be better if you go and help the others. You wouldn't want to stay behind right?"

"Huh?"

"You heard the princess. If the princess finds that you are or in the harsh word useless.....then you will be left behind" Noah explained. "Celeste and I will naturally pass since our teacher could guarantee our abilities, so we don't have to do anything."

"Ugh...." Altaira frowned and glared at Noah. His blue eyes were saying to Noah that he managed to pass just because he had the power of connections.

Noah stuck out his tongue to mock him.

"So...."

Celeste who went to take the unconscious Charlotte lifted the brown haired girl in her arms easily as if she wasn't heavy.

"I will be taking this girl with me. Thank you."

"Damn it...."

≪ ◦ ❖ ◦ ≫

Their substitute test was to beat a gigantic opponent that looked similar with a certain person or something. The name of their opponent in the thirty-eight floor was the Gray Guardian.

Rak blinked several times in disbelief and surprise when he saw their opponent and in worry, he thought, 'H-he kind of looks like me? That means the turtles can't attack him.'

"Oh, I'd like to punch that face of his" said Khun with a smile on his face. He looked quite excited to do what he had just said. "He reminds me of someone."

Rak who felt his red spear felt offended, "What?"

While Bam nervously laughed, Altaira yawned.

"Are you tired, Altaira?" Bam asked him with a friendly smile. "If you are, then you could go away and get some rest."

"Don't think I can't see what you are thinking" Altaira responded. "I know that you want me to stay behind the train so that I can't get around Charlotte. Isn't that what you think?"

"Of course no" he said with an eye closed smile. "I'm worried of you."

"Then that means you are dying. There is no way in hell you will be worried of me."

While all of them were fighting together, Yuri and Evan who stayed behind were observing their abilities like what she promised.

And after some time, they have defeated the Gray Guardian together.

'....I don't feel great seeing someone who looks like me knocked down....' Rak thought. 'Those turtles are ruthless....'

"Yes, I got to shot the alligator's face!!" Altaira happily said with a grin. "Oi, Rak, shouldn't you be praising me as fellow spear bearer?"

"Shut up!" Rak grumpily responded.

Earlier, at the final shot, he threw a spear right on the Gray Guardian's face.

"All of the regulars have passed the test on thirty-eight floor. Take the gate and move forward" said a voice that announced their victory.

"Ah, now we can finally rest" Khun said as he stretched his arms.

"Didn't you feel anything when you are beating that thing up?" Rak hopefully asked to Bam.

"Nope" he answered without hesitation. He turned at Khun and said, "This time, it was easier than usual to beat my opponent."

"Agreed" responded Khun.

"Hey you turtles!!"