A sudden earthquake swept through the indoor gymnasium. Instead of the floor, cracks appeared in the air with a crunch. As if a dimensional rift had been created. Choi Gang-hu’s eyes narrowed at the sight of this unexpected fissure.

“Ughh…”

“Why did you think that?”

He asked, placing his foot on the back of the muscular man’s head who was still writhing in pain. He had a feeling that the child’s reaction might be a hint to wake those exposed to the mental attack.

“Because you wish it was a dream?”

“…Because I wish it wasn’t a dream.”

The answer that came back half a beat late held a faint hope. The vibration of the space that had started to subside gradually intensified once more. The gap that had appeared in the air also opened its mouth a little wider.

This was a world reconstructed from Ryu Seo-ha’s memories. When a situation unfolded that was too different from the confirmed past he had already experienced, or when the owner of the memory questioned its reality, it showed signs of collapse.

“Shall I let this guy die in terrible agony?”

Choi Gang-hu asked, curling up the corners of his mouth.

“Or shall I let him live experiencing severe pain for a long, long time?”

He applied pressure to his shoe stepping on the back of the muscular man’s head.

“Do whatever you want.”

The child’s clear eyes looked down at the man who had once reigned like a king. At the pathetic sight of him squirming like an insect pinned to a board.

“Whatever Ryu Seo-ha wants.”

The outer wall of the indoor gymnasium crumbled with a crackle. Like the graphics of a glitched digital world breaking apart and scattering in polygon units.

“Crazy! Seo-ha!”

Ryu Jeong-ah, who had belatedly heard the commotion and rushed over, embraced her younger brother’s small body with her own.

“Y-You, who are you!”

Though trembling at the overwhelming might that had incapacitated all the awakened ones maintaining this group in an instant, she still tried to protect her brother somehow. The vibrations that had been shaking the false world suddenly stopped.

“Noona…”

The child’s subconscious seemed to be finding a sense of reality in the familiarity. Choi Gang-hu, who had been about to attempt another reversal with an unfamiliar development, suddenly felt an external stimulus that bothered him.

Emerging from the flow of magic surrounding Ryu Seo-ha, he fired various skills at the tentacles in the form of octopus legs flying towards him. Though seemingly random, each attack had a clear intention.

You have successfully defeated the S-class boss monster.

Mission: Input an equal amount of magic from all entrants into the dungeon core (Incomplete)

The system message quickly announced the monster’s death. It was such a simple hunt that other S-class hunters, domestic or foreign, would have felt deeply dejected if they had seen it.

Choi Gang-hu checked his wristwatch with an unconcerned expression. It was to gauge the time spent in the hallucination that had captured Ryu Seo-ha.

Surprisingly, only a few minutes had passed. It seemed that the sense of time was greatly distorted in the world of consciousness.

It wasn’t a big problem since he had found a way to wake them up. However, the moment he re-entered the fog imbued with mental abilities, a different landscape greeted him than before.

❖ ❖ ❖

The light from a thick TV dimly illuminated the narrow, dark room. Sharp pieces of soju bottles were scattered messily, carrying a stinging stench.

…The serial killer L, who was finally caught, claimed it was merely a resistance against an absurd society…

Blink, blink. The child, lying lifelessly on the yellowed floor mat, slowly moved his eyelids. Every time the silhouette of the criminal on TV formed in his pupils, bile rose up.

His throat stung sharply as if touched by a shock device carrying high-voltage current. He felt an excruciating pain as if his starved intestines were being squeezed after days of hunger. Moisture seeped out between his eyes that had closed weakly.

“What’s this now.”

A heavy voice settled near his ear. Though startled by the sudden appearance of another person, his body, limp like half-dried laundry, only managed a short twitch.

The child slowly turned his head, which was difficult to hold up, towards where the unfamiliar voice had come from. No matter how high he raised his gaze, he couldn’t look above the long legs.

Cough, cough. A cough mixed with a metallic sound burst out. It was because the broken ribs suddenly complained of pain. The sound of a mountain-like large shadow sighing warmly wrapped around his ears.

The profiler speculated that the reason L, who was caught while disposing of a victim’s body, refused to reveal the actual crime scene was…

Bang! With a short, intense burst of sound, the TV noise that had been thundering in his eardrums suddenly stopped. Only then did it feel like the noisy pain that had been boiling his insides like lava ceased.

“Ryu Seo-ha.”

The mountain-like large man called an unfamiliar name as he carefully lifted the child’s body sprawled on the bare floor. It was a sweet resonance. He became intensely envious of this unknown person called Ryu Seo-ha.

The child felt the touch that caressed his bony shoulders and his cheeks mottled with bruises as if they were infinitely precious, and thought. Perhaps this is a dream. It was because of the sweet warmth that couldn’t possibly be real.

“Ryu Seo-ha.”

The voice calling the unfamiliar name again sounded so good. Suddenly, he remembered the legend that the grim reaper calls a person’s name three times before taking them.

Had he come to the wrong address by mistake? If so, he felt like pretending not to know and following to the afterlife in place of that person.

“Are you…”

Wheeze, wheeze, the labored breathing interrupted his speech. His heart pounded rapidly with urgency. Afraid of missing the chance, the child desperately grasped the man’s cool clothes.

“The grim reaper?”

Even to this question that he barely managed to spit out, the man just silently stroked his forehead for a while. He didn’t dare roll his eyes to look at the man’s face. Fearing he might suddenly disappear as if he were an illusion.

“Please, take me. Because I’m a bad child… take me and…”

As he confessed in a mumble and added strength to his fingertips holding the collar, the large man let out another sigh.

“Why is Ryu Seo-ha a bad child?”

He felt anxious. It seemed like the man would realize his mistake at any moment and leave him alone in this thorny place. He had to confess his sins quickly.

“…I couldn’t help people.”

“People?”

The cruel scenes he had been forced to witness over the past few years flashed through his mind. It felt like his throat was being choked.

“Ryu Seo-ha?”

Suddenly, the act of breathing felt burdensome. He didn’t know how to inhale and exhale the breath he had been alternating familiarly.

“Ryu Seo-ha!”

Someone’s rapid breathing stabbed his eardrums. The memory of daily life overlapped with vivid sensations. The sound of people gasping in terror, followed by the bright red smell of blood.

“Breathe! Ryu Seo-ha, I said breathe!”

Suddenly, an urgent voice caught his sinking consciousness. The man who had been firmly grasping his shoulders was breathing just as roughly.

That unstable breathing calmed his mind like a tranquil lake. The memories of the terrible daily life gradually faded. It was such a strange thing.

“Yes, Seo-ha. It’s okay. Everything’s okay.”

The large hand gently stroking his back gave him a deep sense of relief. It was a strange feeling he had never experienced before. No, something familiar…

Their eyes met. The handsome man like a sculpture was like a god appearing in Greek or Roman mythology. His lips, still faintly panting, opened involuntarily.

“I did wrong.”

“…”

“I should have… prevented anyone from dying.”

Over the past few years, he had committed an unforgivable sin. The great sin of standing by and watching the deaths of numerous victims.

“I was… afraid of father.”

The earliest memory he could recall was the scene of his drunken father catching and tormenting a stray cat. Before long, the target changed to people.

Every morning, he made up his mind to report it. But the memory of the police who sent him back to his father’s hands, even after seeing his miserable state when he was first taken to the hospital, held him back.

“Even now, I’ll… accept punishment.”

When he flinched at the sound of teeth grinding, the large hand patted his shrinking shoulders.

“What should I do with you.”

Even the voice mixed with lamentation caressed his heart. The child unconsciously reached out and hugged the man’s waist. Although the peace that came to his heart encouraged his deep-rooted guilt, he didn’t want to let go.

Cough, cough. Even as dry coughs like those of a pneumonia patient poured out, he stubbornly refused to release his arms hugging the man. Even the familiar resignation that he would soon be pushed away couldn’t stop the instinct chasing warmth.

“…There’s something I want to show you.”

The man stood up while still holding him in his arms. Skillfully holding onto the thin arms that had lost strength and let go of his waist.

The tension from the dizzying height he was experiencing for the first time was brief. The child wrapped his arms around the man’s neck following a familiar sensation. Why does it feel familiar? Curiosity raised its head.

The man’s long legs crossed the room in just two steps and went outside. The creaking sound of the rusty iron gate was heard.

“…!”

The man who lightly stepped on the dirt ground soared up into the sky. The startled child reflexively added strength to his arms and blinked at the subtle sense of déjà vu.

“There’s no need to worry about anything. Whatever troubles Ryu Seo-ha…”

The man lightly flicked his fingers. The fully bloomed flame fell onto the shabby shantytown spread out two feet below. A large fire instantly engulfed the stuffy, densely packed shantytown.

“I’ll get rid of it all.”

The surreal scene gifted an amazing sense of liberation. The moment this emotion overlapped with past feelings, the world burning in the flames of destruction crumbled into pieces.