Amidst the fog that seemed almost alive, I could finally see the old woman’s face.

Her spine was unnaturally twisted, giving her a grotesque appearance. Her eyes were hollow, like bottomless wells of darkness, and her skin was dried out, clinging thinly to her bones like the desiccated remains of a long-dead corpse. The deck was eerily silent, and the old woman and I stood motionless, staring at each other.

“Why aren’t you asleep?”

The old woman’s voice rasped like dry leaves scraping against stone. I didn’t respond. Instead, I took a step forward.

The old woman’s tone grew more forceful, almost as if she were angered by my silence.

“Child, you who appear as an Object, what business do you have provoking me? They have nothing to do with you. Since I’m in a good mood today, I’ll forgive you if you leave now. Get lost!”

She seemed like a fairly powerful Object, yet she wasn’t afraid of me. How curious.

I smiled, like a child who had found a new toy, and took another step closer. At that moment, the old woman began to chant curses.

“Foolish wretch. Your eyes will be seared by fire, your flesh fried in boiling oil. And in all that agony, you will neither live nor die.”

The words that poured from her mouth were filled with malice, so much so that they took on a physical form, swirling around me like black smoke. The curse swept over me, attempting to scorch my body with intense heat, but it was of no use.

So, even curses can be considered a physical attack?

I took another step forward.

“Your eyes will be gouged out, and you will never see the light again!”

Another step.

“Your bones will twist, your flesh will melt, and you will suffer eternally!”

“You will be turned into a frog, never to regain your true form!”

“Your hair will all be torn out...”

When I finally reached the old woman’s face, she forced her mouth into a crooked smile, revealing rows of sharp, jagged teeth. It was a pitiful smile.

“Forgive me! It was all my fault!”

She threw herself to the ground, groveling. Her hands, which looked like deadly weapons, rubbed together in a pitiful gesture as she continued to speak.

“Let’s negotiate. There’s no need for you to kill me, is there?”

Just the fact that she seemed harmful to humans was enough reason to kill her. There was no reason to keep her alive.

Sensing my thoughts, the old woman hastily added, “I’ll give you a reward. If you spare me, I’ll lend you the power of the Blue Moon!”

But I had no intention of letting her go. When I didn’t respond, she suddenly scattered into the air like mist, attempting to escape. The expression on her face, as she transformed into fog, was one of triumphant glee.

She spat out one last curse with a voice dripping with smugness. “You were careless! From now on, you and everything you hold dear will forever fear the night and the shadows!”

And then, she tried to flee as swiftly as the wind.

But she couldn’t.

No matter how fast she flew, her position remained the same. The gloomy lakeside, once shrouded in fog, had transformed into a scene with colorful cushions and hot chocolate.

No matter how quickly she tried to escape, in the space I controlled, she couldn’t take a single step away.

And amidst the cushions and hot chocolate, the fierce faces of the Golden Reapers emerged.

The destruction condition for the old woman, as confirmed by my “eyes,” was To be turned to ash and buried in the ground.

“’Eyes’? You mean... Oh, no!”

The moment I gave the order to attack, the Golden Reapers, ruthless to harmful Objects, pounced on her and tore her apart.

“My sisters will never forgive you!”

With a final curse filled with venom, the old woman was shredded to pieces just before her death.

James’s tense journey, which had begun with an unexpected visit from an Association agent, continued until he boarded the military aircraft.

To think they even deployed a military aircraft. This must be a much bigger problem than James had initially thought.

The atmosphere among the Object Association agents was tense. No one spoke a word, their focus solely on escorting James in silence.

The military aircraft was starkly different from the private jets James was used to. The humming of the engines, the unadorned metal walls, and the sparse seating were a far cry from the luxury and comfort of his private plane.

As he settled into the hard, uncomfortable seat, he longed for the cushy seats, the in-flight meals, and the abundant entertainment of his own jet. Was there really a need to use a military plane?

No matter how many times he asked, the agents remained tight-lipped. Their silence, coupled with the tension, made it clear that something serious was happening. But whatever it was, they weren’t about to discuss it until they were safely out of Korean airspace.

Once they left Korean airspace, the atmosphere began to thaw. Sensing this change, James leaned forward and addressed the man sitting stiffly in the seat ahead of him.

“I have a rough idea, but what’s really going on that you’re evacuating people so urgently?”

“The Object Association has determined that South Korea has lost its ability to respond to Objects.”

Finally, an answer!

“But is there really a need to move this urgently? It’s not the first time the Korean government has mishandled things.”

“I’m not privy to all the details, but there have been cases where people were killed by an Object, and it was dismissed as a mundane occurrence.”

The agent’s explanation was truly alarming.

Reported cases included missing persons being ignored if they were related to an Object and how the massive number of disappearances around Yangcheon-gu Lake had gone unnoticed.

A sinking feeling took hold of James. The sensation of narrowly escaping death sent a cold sweat trickling down his back.

“Is Korea really going to fall this time?”

James’s hollow words were swallowed by the roar of the military aircraft.

At the edge of Yangcheon-gu Lake, a blonde girl and a dark-clad agent entered a beautiful cave.

“This way, mister,” the girl said, following the guidance of her heart. She walked forward, driven by a single goal: Destroy the Object at the end of the path.

“Miss, I think it would be wise to reconsider.”

“No.”

“This Object is likely the source of the calamities happening all across Korea. It’s undoubtedly a powerful Object. You should consider retreating and waiting for a better opportunity.”

“...”

The girl ignored the agent’s words and continued her determined march into the depths of the cave.

The agent’s concerns were valid. Destroying an Object that influenced the entirety of Korea? This wasn’t an enemy the girl, with her ability to breathe fire, could hope to handle.

Finally, the blonde girl reached the end of her heart’s guidance. In the cave, at the edge of a deep pool of water, stood a group of stunningly beautiful women, waiting for her.

“I expected a desert dweller, but it’s just a little girl?” said the woman standing at the center of the group.

The blonde girl’s body stiffened with tension. She knew she stood no chance. The gap between her and the woman was insurmountable.

“Hmm...”

The woman, who had been looking back and forth between the agent and the girl, smiled as if she had just realized something. The smile, filled with a playful malice, was directed at both the girl and the agent. With a casual wave of her hand, a jet of water shot up from the pool, striking both of them with tremendous force.

The agent was knocked out cold, and the girl was sent sprawling to the ground, clutching her stomach in pain.

“Urgh...”

The pain was excruciating, but the girl gritted her teeth and struggled to stand.

“You came here to fight, didn’t you? Then get up!”

The girl forced herself to her feet, but her legs trembled, barely able to support her.

The beautiful woman had suddenly closed the distance and was whispering into the girl’s ear.

“Is it the Red Moon you seek? Or do you want to walk under the sun?”

“!”

The girl, startled, turned to look at the woman, who continued with an amused expression.

“Surprised? I’ve seen many like you before. It’s obvious what you want.”

The woman’s voice dropped to a low whisper, as if sharing a secret.

“If you make a contract with me, I’ll return you to your original form. I’ll make you human again.”

It was a sweet temptation, like the whisper of a devil.

“What do you say? Are you interested?”

On the shore of Yangcheon-gu Lake, the Golden Reapers were busy digging into the ground.

In my hand, supervising their work, was a pudding cup. But instead of pudding, it held ashes. The ashes of the old woman’s body, which had been burned after her sudden appearance.

Carefully, I buried the ashes in the hole the Reapers had dug. The moment the ashes were fully covered by earth, I felt a new power awaken within me.

From the palm of my hand, a blue Reaper popped out with a soft “poof.”