Chapter 4: There are times when you have to do something even through you know you’ll regret it.

Aaaaaaah—!

What a f*cking nightmare.

Her first memory of being dragged to an alien world—God knows how long it had been.

It was enough to make her swear off translation forever.

Rubbing her face to shake off the grogginess, Yoo Da-hee woke to an unfamiliar ceiling… and an uncomfortable seat.

The passenger seat of a truck, where she’d apparently been moved after passing out.

Looking out the window, they were parked under an overpass, probably to avoid the daylight sun. By the way…

“This f*cking crazy b*tch.”

If you hit someone with a truck, you take them to the ER, not plop them in the passenger seat. What was she thinking?

At least she wasn’t tossed in the cargo hold—small mercies, maybe?

“Hmm… Ohhh… My S…S…R… Hehe… You’re mine…”

Gotcha!

In the driver’s seat was a crazy woman, chewing on her own golden hair.

Long, slender legs stretched out, her body half-leaning on the steering wheel, accentuating what looked like—though not exactly clear—pretty large breasts.

Her figure screamed Nordic supermodel.

Since when did South Korea become a melting pot?

Sure, Yoo Da-hee had heard Nordic beauties with flowing blonde hair gush, ‘Oho, I love kimchi~ Bibimbap’s delicious~ Bulgogi’s the best~,’ but hearing someone sleep-talk so vividly was a first.

Sleep-talking’s supposed to be the unconscious spilling out, meaning this crazy woman was Korean to the bone.

Bet if you fed her Busan pork soup, she’d moan, ‘Ooooh, so good~.’

Watching her sleep so peacefully, Yoo Da-hee was at a loss for words.

She quietly tried to open the passenger door to slip out while the woman slept…

Click—

“Ah.”

Her ankle was chained.

And the chain’s other end was around the crazy woman’s wrist—

“Ack!”

The woman’s arm jerked, losing balance, and her head slammed into the center of the steering wheel, blaring the horn loud—BEEP!

Crazy b*tch, crazy b*tch.

The woman clutched her reddened forehead, waking up, and locked eyes with Yoo Da-hee, who was awkwardly halfway out the door.

“Ah.”

“Eh.”

Silence hung in the air.

*

Yoo Da-hee had learned the hard way, through countless hours in alien worlds, that gods existed and brought a ton of problems.

The issue was, these gods weren’t quite like Earth’s concept of divinity.

Each one a monster capable of sucking up galaxies like grape candies.

Pure, unadulterated terror personified.

Tentacles writhing, wrapping around her entire body…

Gaaah!

Compared to those gods, the goddess in front of her seemed downright tame.

“So, you’re saying Earth’s turned into a tourist hotspot for gods?”

“I swear on my name, Dike Astraea, maiden of the stars and goddess of justice!”

Watching Dike shamelessly call herself a goddess felt a bit off.

But the latest Earth news from Dike was shocking.

What? Gaia, Earth’s goddess, gambled the planet away and turned it into a tourist attraction?

And now all sorts of gods were flocking to Earth, chasing their brain’s endorphin highs?

Fine, she could buy that.

“Okay, let’s say you’re a goddess, Dike.”

A slightly unhinged goddess… but sure, a goddess.

“Is it normal for goddesses these days to drive trucks, hit random people on the street, toss them in the passenger seat, chain their ankles to keep them from escaping?”

“Uh… well…”

Grrrr.

“Don’t look away, you b*tch.”

Annoyed at Dike’s desperate attempt to avoid her gaze, Yoo Da-hee grabbed her head and twisted her temple like a cartoon bully.

“Ow! Ow! Owww!”

Just a little pressure, and she was wailing like she was dying.

Where was the dignity or strength of a goddess? Yoo Da-hee couldn’t figure it out.

“Goddess or not, I don’t care… Can you unlock this?”

Yoo Da-hee jangled the chain on her ankle, and Dike, as if suddenly realizing something, shot her a confident glare.

“Hmph! You think I’d unlock it that easily?! You’d just run off! Do you know how hard it is to find a returnee like you?”

Dike’s eyes saw it clearly.

Her ability, [Eyes of Truth], which discerned apostles.

Not the blue of a common R-rank, nor the deep purple of an SR-rank, but a radiant golden aura!

The moment she spotted that golden aura blazing from the riverside park, Dike floored the truck and rammed right into her.

【SSR Yoo Da-hee】

“Ahh…! This kind of radiance… It’d make a blind man see again…!”

The denser the aura, the greater the talent. Yoo Da-hee was on another level.

This was practically a guaranteed point haul, and the divine power she’d rake in? Like hitting the jackpot—not just the lottery, but Powerball and Mega Millions rolled over for a year!

That SR hero next door with a holy sword? Step aside! The f*cking Korean Isekai Truck Returnee was coming through!

…While Dike was lost in her fantasies, Yoo Da-hee’s thoughts were on a completely different track.

Escape, escape.

It wasn’t an ordinary chain… but she’d been bound by worse.

Did this goddess know how many crazy alien women had tried to restrain her out there?

This chain wouldn’t even rank in the top tier, not even if you counted her fingers, toes, and brain synapses combined.

“Oh? You won’t unlock it? Dice, lockpick, roll.”

She grabbed a small clip tucked in a corner of the passenger seat.

If they wouldn’t open it, she’d force it.

[Attempting to lockpick.]

[Due to crude tools, a -2 dexterity penalty applies.]

[This is your 399,987th lockpick attempt…!]

“Just a bit more, and I’ll hit 400,000.”

[Due to familiar experience, a +3 dexterity bonus applies.]

[Rolling the dice…]

[…1D20 rolls.]

[…14!]

[Total modifier: 15]

[Divine chain resistance: 14]

[The dice click their tongue.]

[Lockpick barely succeeds! But the clip’s durability is spent, crumbling to dust, unusable again.]

Psssh—

As the clip turned to ash, like it had been burned,

Click.

The chain’s lock on her ankle sprang open.

“Oh, it worked.”

My SSR, SSR’s escaping!

Before the panicking Dike could grab her, Yoo Da-hee flung off the chain and threw herself out of the truck.

Thinking it was best to avoid crazy women, she prepared to sprint with all her might—

But in an instant, the scenery changed.

“…What’s this now?”

Her feet touched down not under the overpass but in a crowded waiting hall teeming with people.

Looking back, the truck was gone, and Dike stood there, clutching the chain, dazed.

“It’s… started…! The arena…!”

Yoo Da-hee scanned her surroundings, but no exit was in sight.

Just the overwhelming smell of Delhi Manju from a subway station’s food stall.

The clanging of weapons and the chatter of the crowd echoed through the hall.

In this mess, the only one who seemed to know anything was Dike…

“Oh my, isn’t that beggar Dike?”

A voice that could’ve shouted ‘Oho, so cute~’ appeared behind Dike.

A smaller woman with black hair, adorned with gaudy accessories, smirked and shoved Dike’s shoulder, feigning ignorance.

“Where’s your goddess dignity? Chained like some prisoner~ Isn’t that grounds for disqualification? Oh, wait, after this match, your slot’s getting seized by the Dimensional Credit Bank, right? Oho~”

“Adikia…!”

“Oh, no need to shout~”

“You… you… contract-stealing b*tch…!”

“Eek! Where are you touching?! Where?!”

Dike lunged, grabbing Adikia’s hair, and a messy brawl between the two goddesses erupted.

But instead of intervening, people cleared space, eager to stay out of it.

Some even started munching popcorn.

“Hey, dwarf grandpa, what’s going on?”

The dwarf, crunching on caramel salt popcorn, grinned at Yoo Da-hee, who’d casually sat beside him.

“Just a typical lover’s quarrel over a contract!”

“Lover’s quarrel? There’s no guy involved.”

No men in sight.

“Adikia poached Dike’s contractor! Rumor is, she offered a higher signing bonus and better gear… Well, only they know the details.”

“So, just a job hop?”

Jumping for better conditions is a salaryman’s right.

It’s not slavery; no one’s owed lifelong loyalty to one company.

Not some sh*tty small-time firm.

“But in the process, the contractor took off with all the gear Dike invested in!”

“Oh, industrial espionage?”

No wonder she’s getting screwed over.

“But shouldn’t you step in?”

“Why me?”

“You’re Dike’s new contractor, aren’t you?”

“Is it trendy now to hit someone drinking vending machine coffee with a 25-ton truck and call them a contractor?”

“A contractor’s gotta fight for their god, no? Heh heh.”

“What am I, some medieval Japanese samurai swearing loyalty to a lord?”

This had nothing to do with her, Yoo Da-hee thought as she stood to leave…

“Malcolm!”

At Adikia’s shout, a man rushed over and grabbed Dike’s arm.

A giant, probably 190 cm tall.

“Ugh…!”

Dike struggled, but it was futile.

His arm alone was as thick as her waist—how could she move?

“How unsightly, Lady Dike.”

“You… you… Give me back my divine power…!”

“Give it back? Wasn’t it a ‘gift’?”

Malcolm, Dike’s former contractor now under Adikia, smirked.

He’d devoured all the gear and resources Dike invested in him before jumping ship, yet he felt nothing looking at her teary face.

If anything, it felt refreshing.

“If you could only provide that much, how could I stay? Look at Lady Adikia. She’s given me divine power to reach heights you never could!”

“Heh, Dike, weak second-tier gods like you should just get out of the arena. It’s better for everyone.”

Malcolm released Dike with a casual shove, sending her sprawling powerlessly to the floor.

Tears welled in Dike’s eyes.

“Oh my, a goddess crying over this? People might think you’re a newborn deity! Guess a broke goddess can’t help it~”

“Give it back… My divine power… My gear…”

“Give it back? You don’t even have a contractor to fight with!”

“I… I have a contractor…! I do!”

Dike scanned the crowd, spotted Yoo Da-hee, and shouted.

“My new contractor… is way better than Malcolm!”

Adikia turned to look at the contractor Dike mentioned.

Clothes? Who knows where they went—practically naked. Muscles? Nothing impressive compared to Malcolm. No special aura either.

Hmm… But Dike’s knack for spotting talent was sharp, so maybe there was something? Nah, what could she have done in such a short time? Adikia brushed it off.

Probably just some R-rank at best.

“Scrambling to sign a homeless bum off the street to avoid getting your slot seized by the Dimensional Credit Bank?”

“Not a bum…! SSR… A returnee!”

“Pfft…! That caveman?”

Despite Adikia’s mocking, Yoo Da-hee sat calmly, sharing the dwarf’s caramel salt popcorn.

“Oh, don’t mind me. Do your thing.”

Getting tangled with (outer) gods was such a hassle, Yoo Da-hee knew from experience.

“Fine, since you’ve got a contractor, I’ll be generous~ Malcolm, bring the gear you took from Dike.”

“Yes, Lady Adikia.”

A bundle was tossed out, the tie at its mouth unraveling, revealing the gear Malcolm had taken—chrrrr.

“I’ll give it back, Dike.”

Dike reached out quickly, but Adikia’s foot stopped her.

“But… there’s a condition~”

With a mischievous grin, Adikia whispered in Dike’s ear.

“Say, ‘I was wrong, Lady Adikia, please forgive this lowly Dike and return my gear,’ grovel flat on the ground, and I’ll give it all back~”

Dike’s body trembled with humiliation.

But… if she could just get a chance… to at least rank mid-tier in the arena and avoid losing points, she had to do it.

Just once… swallow her pride… and she could equip her contractor, Yoo Da-hee.

Her knees buckled, her waist bent, and her forehead touched the floor.

The ultimate dogeza of shame.

Yoo Da-hee watched it all.

“I… I was w-wrong… Lady Adikia… Please forgive this lowly Dike…”

“Pfft! You’re actually doing it~”

Adikia’s gleeful face caught Yoo Da-hee’s eye.

That vile smirk, reveling in crushing and despairing others… it stabbed fiercely at a corner of Yoo Da-hee’s memory.

Gods of this world or outer gods out there—damn, they’re all the same.

Knowing she’d regret it, Yoo Da-hee sighed and stood.

“Gramps, mind if I borrow this?”

“Huh? You can’t use—”

The dwarf’s eyes widened.

“Please… the gear… give it back…”

“Yes, yes, Dike! Now you know your place—”

Adikia, mid-laugh, let out a strange sound and froze.

“…Yo?”

Drip, something flowed down, touching Dike’s cheek, and silence engulfed the room.

Lifting her head, Dike saw Adikia with a handaxe buried deep in her face, handle and all.

Crack.

Yoo Da-hee yanked the axe from Adikia’s face.

Splurt.

Brain matter and blood sprayed as Adikia’s head split like firewood, her body tilting before collapsing backward with a thud.

“Don’t live on your knees, Dike.”

Yoo Da-hee extended a hand to the groveling Dike.

“Die standing.”