Chapter 55

The gate's crimson light dims back to blue, reopening the path home after three sealed hours that, by every logical measure, should have ended in total annihilation. Baek Yoonho and Manager Ahn watch shapes step out, expecting Kim Chul in the lead, but the first through is Sung Jinwoo. Behind him come the worn but unharmed survivors: Han Song-Yi, Park Heejin, Go Myung-Hwan, and Yoon Ki-Joong. Yoonho searches the faces for Kim Chul and his elite crew, then grasps that none of them lived. Manager Ahn, who had never questioned Jinwoo's survival, betrays no surprise at all.

Yoonho strides up demanding to know how the squad died, yet Jinwoo holds steady and simply gestures to the living, implying gratitude for those spared rather than interrogation over the dead. Yoonho exhales, owns his misjudgment, and watches Jinwoo and Song-Yi melt into the night before ordering Ahn to recruit him no matter the cost. Walking the hushed streets, Jinwoo turns over everything he faced: the bears, the elves, and finally Baruka, whose exquisitely made dagger is now his and yet leaves him hollow. Come morning, Yoo Jinho shows up at his door in gleaming, freshly polished gear, keen for whatever lies ahead. Han Song-Yi stands there too, no longer the meek bystander, having resolved to come along as a fresh chapter opens.

The Red Gate reopens after three hours and Jinwoo leads the survivors back out. Baek Yoonho realizes Kim Chul and his whole elite team perished within. Jinwoo deflects the questioning and leaves with Song-Yi, prompting Yoonho to order his recruitment. Jinwoo keeps Baruka's dagger as a spoil. The next morning, Yoo Jinho and Han Song-Yi join him for the journey ahead.

This entry maps to anime Episode 14 and wraps up the Red Gate Arc. Yoonho's resolve to recruit Jinwoo, alongside Han Song-Yi's choice to fight at his side, reshapes the cast going forward, while Baruka's dagger lingers as an enduring trophy of the ordeal.