00823
“…I won’t accept it.”

---

Once we descended underground, it was impossible to tell whether it was day or night. Though we were told to rest, most of the clan members were restless. They’d crawl into their sleeping bags only to come right back out again, pacing the room for no reason, or slump down silently, staring blankly into the dying campfire.

These restless actions were a silent protest. Yet the ‘Shadow Queen’ showed no sign of movement. Surely, Go Yeon-ju must have wanted to rush out and rescue them, but the moment someone shouts, “I’m too worried to stand it! Everyone, get ready!” the chances of success instantly drop to less than half. At that point, not only would rescue be impossible, but even breaking through would become a problem.

No one knew how much farther lay ahead or what awaited us. Entering that place exhausted, even with every precaution, was a clear act of suicide. Kim Soo-hyun’s constant emphasis on maintaining stamina was for good reason.

Of course, there had been times when we pushed ourselves too hard on forced marches. But those situations were different. Kim Soo-hyun only pushed hard when safety was assured or when there was no reason to linger. Even if the worst happened, we had enough firepower to handle it. But now… Go Yeon-ju lacked confidence. She wasn’t sure she could fulfill Kim Soo-hyun’s role 100%. In the end, all she could do was avoid making things worse.

After what felt like an eternity, Go Yeon-ju finally stood up. She crushed a bug’s corpse beneath her foot and glanced around; everyone was watching her out of the corner of their eyes. She spoke.

“Ha-yeon, any word from them?”

“I’ve called fifty-two times. Not once did they answer.”

By now, Jeong Ha-yeon’s face had regained its usual calm, though she still gripped the comm device as if trying to crush it.

Go Yeon-ju looked away. Im Han-na was already packing up the tent.

“Any other unusual reports?”

“One Chaos Mimic is missing. Looks like it slipped through the hole with them.”

“We heard that earlier.”

“Nothing else noteworthy.”

“Alright, then…” Go Yeon-ju took a steady breath. The moment she said, “Get ready,” the clan members sprang into action as if they’d been waiting for the signal. In the blink of an eye, the campsite was dismantled. The extinguished campfire sent up faint, dark heat waves as the expedition stood facing the door. At the front, Im Han-na led, with Go Yeon-ju, Nam Da-eun, and Jin Soo-hyun forming a triangular formation, while the mages took positions around the Source in the center.

Im Han-na’s face was more serious than ever. With trembling hands, she gently pushed the door open. The entrance yawned wide like a beast’s maw, and at last, the eight-person expedition resumed.

Contrary to Go Yeon-ju’s fears, the start wasn’t bad. The forced rest had been effective. Not only did our bodies recover, but during the break, everyone had time to collect their thoughts, which showed in the results. The Source, fully charged with mana, used battlefield analysis at key points, and Go Yeon-ju instructed everyone not to overexert themselves while leading the way. Thanks to that, the expedition covered a considerable distance in a short time.

As we pressed on, the clan members’ expressions improved from their initial tension. The tight, suffocating anxiety softened. Though they’d been quietly uncertain at first, facing the challenges head-on restored their confidence. The restless worries gradually faded, and hope began to sprout.

“Better than I expected, huh?”

“If only we could keep this up…”

Though cautious, such talk was now emerging. Though a heavy weight still lingered in their hearts, the clan members marched on with hopeful faces.

At least, until ‘they’ appeared.

The closer we got—no, the closer ‘it’ got—the scenery slowly changed. The barren wasteland, once swept by sandstorms, transformed into a space tinged with red and darkness.

A damp, musty smell stung my nose. Someone’s anguished scream echoed faintly. Before I knew it, I was walking down a dim prison corridor. I exhaled a long plume of smoke and stopped. As the hazy smoke cleared, the figure came into view.

The first thing that caught my eye was the light brown hair. It lay scattered on the floor, cut diagonally as if sliced by a sword. Slowly raising my gaze, I saw trembling calves barely able to support the body, a groin stained with red blood and pale fluid, swollen breasts marked with whip scars, and deep brown eyes glistening with tears. The woman was tied to the wall, glaring at me as if she wanted to kill me. It was Yu Hyun-ah, the ‘Sacred Queen’ I hadn’t seen in a long time.

“This is your fault…”

“Hmm?”

“Kim Soo-hyun, it’s because of you! If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be like this, left to the vagabonds…!”

“No. They’re not vagabonds.”

I shook my head firmly, cutting her off.

“This scene… right. It’s a memory from after the defeat at Istantel Row. I heard from you that the vagabonds did this, but I never saw it with my own eyes.”

“……”

“How does it feel? Doesn’t it seem strange even to you?”

“……!”

In an instant, Yu Hyun-ah’s eyes narrowed sharply. Then the scene before me melted away and vanished. I bit down on my half-smoked cigarette and kept walking. But not long after, the scenery shifted again.

A fresh, green meadow appeared, and a familiar man lay sprawled on the grass. As I approached, he struggled to lift his upper body and weakly reached out to me.

“Soo-hyun…”

This time, it was my older brother.

— Another dummy.

I knew. The hole in his abdomen was well rendered, but the surrounding scenery was so off it was laughable.

“Why don’t you listen to me…?”

My brother tried to grab me with a pitiful voice, but I passed by without stopping. After all, he was just a dummy; there was no need to see him.

“Where are you going? Come back! Come back and look at me…!”

“No way, you jerk.”

“What did you say? How dare you talk to me like that…!”

“Just messing around. You think this place is so fresh and fragrant? Try reading and rendering it properly.”

I scoffed, and his voice abruptly cut off. Maybe he was starting to get angry.

— Hey. What are you doing now?

‘Doing what?’

— You should at least pretend to be caught, but you’re mocking him?

‘He’s a dummy, right?’

— Exactly. You have to act like you’re caught to lure the real one out.

‘That’s true, but provoking him to come out is another way. The dummy has its limits.’

I heard a tongue-click. But Hwa-jeong seemed to agree to some extent and didn’t say more.

Then—

“!”

The third illusion appeared without warning, blocking my path. The sky, the ground—everything suddenly went pitch black. When I looked ten meters ahead, I froze. Instinctively, a burning voice escaped me.

“…Clan Lord?”

A nearly naked woman stood there. In the dark space, Han So-young was tied to a pillar, staring at me. Her usual armor was gone, replaced by tattered rags barely covering her body. Her pupils were dilated, eyes vacant and lost, making my heart drop.

“Soo-hyun…”

By the time I snapped back to reality, I’d dropped the cigarette from my hand. Too late. Han So-young’s lips curled into a faint smile. It was a mistake.

…Or so you’d think.

— Jin. You were right.

Hwa-jeong’s confirmation shot. That one phrase was enough. I immediately used the Aberrant Phantom technique to occupy the space behind Han So-young.

“So… you came after all…?”

Han So-young’s voice was weak, still watching my lingering afterimage. Instead of answering, I reached out without hesitation toward her pale, delicate neck. The afterimage faded as Han So-young’s wide eyes turned to me—both happening almost simultaneously.

“Soo…! Kyaaaaaaah!”

Grabbing her throat firmly, a sound like a beast’s throat being ripped out burst forth—nothing like Han So-young’s voice. The creature writhed wildly, fading rapidly. It seemed to be trying to escape in a panic, but—

— Where do you think you’re going!

With a whoosh and crackle, Hwa-jeong noticed its movement and unleashed flames to block its escape.

Soon, the figure consumed by the flames began to fade, and the soft touch of flesh disappeared. Instead, a squishy, jelly-like mass filled my hand. In my palm was a pale, shimmering blob. This was the ‘Vision’s Doppelganger,’ the mastermind behind the Abyss of Annihilation.

The creature began turning to ash without a scream. Normally, it’s not an easy opponent. Its ability to read memories and leap into illusions, or infiltrate and shatter the opponent’s mind, is terrifying. Didn’t Kim Han-byul and Lee Yoo-jeong collapse without a sound?

But it was extremely, terribly incompatible with me. I admit it pierced through my clairvoyance and third eye, but that was all. From the moment I recognized the illusion, its defeat was only a matter of time.

A moment later.

Kyaaaaaaah…

A faint, agonized scream echoed in my ears. The blazing fireball turned to a handful of ash, scattering in the wind. When I regained my senses and looked around, a pale smoke hung thickly in the air. We had finally entered the true hideout.

Good. With this, the assault on the Abyss of Annihilation was complete.

With that thought, I calmly scanned the area around me. One thing that surprised me was that the room wasn’t as dark as I’d expected. Still, I couldn’t see more than a foot ahead. A faint glow filtered down from the ceiling, but the smoke thickened the air, severely limiting my vision.

I desperately wanted to clear the smoke, but there was something I had to do first. Focusing my enhanced spiritual energy, I carefully examined the floor.

Fortunately, Kim Hanbyul and Lee Yujeong were lying not far away. But their condition didn’t look good. Yujeong’s eyes were rolled back, her body trembling as she tried to lift her torso, while Hanbyul lay sprawled out like a broken doll, her lifeless eyes haunting me. I wondered what kind of nightmare they were trapped in.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious, but there was no time to relax. Without hesitation, I approached and began the purification process one by one. As I placed my hands on them to channel my energy, I realized they were drenched in sweat—clearly caught in some intense illusion.

After finishing the cleansing, I collapsed onto the floor. It wasn’t soft earth beneath me, but hard stone. Since I’d already taken down the core, their awakening was inevitable—I’d only hastened the process. Sure enough, before long, Hanbyul and Yujeong gradually regained consciousness.

I expected them to stagger and mutter something like, “Wh-where are we?” but that wasn’t the case at all.

They quickly pushed themselves up, their eyes glazed and filled with sorrow as they looked around.

“So… how do you feel?”

The moment I spoke lightly, their eyes locked onto me like lightning bolts.

Then—

“…Oppa.”

From Hanbyul’s dazed gaze, a single tear suddenly slipped down her cheek.

“…Oppa?”

Yujeong’s eyes welled up too, tears falling like raindrops.

Their ragged breathing caught me off guard. I mean, I’d just taken care of the monster and woke them up—so why were they crying?

“Oppa haaaan…”

“Obuuaaaah…”

Before I could even gather my thoughts, Hanbyul and Yujeong crawled over and clung to me. Their hoarse voices sobbed and wailed, crying like little children.

I just blinked, stunned, then wrapped my arms around them both, silently patting their backs. They must have been through some terrible nightmare.

---------------------------= Author’s Note ---------------------------=

Q1. 1 + 1 = 2 (X)

Q2. 1 + 1 = 3 (O)

Then,

Q3. 1 + 2 = ?