Under Creature Chapter 7.4

“…Yes.”

“I really, truly had something urgent to tell you and ask for help, so I think I acted a bit rashly. I’ll write a letter and leave it in front of your door, could you at least read that?”

It wasn’t easy to refuse him when he was asking so humbly. Jewoo reluctantly nodded.

“A letter…. Okay.”

Reading wasn’t difficult, and he could do that much.

“Yes! Then I’ll write it now and deliver it to you.”

Then, the man urged Jewoo to close the door quickly.

Returning to his room with a curious tilt of his head, Jewoo picked up his phone.

Where did the three of them go without me? There’s no contact at all.

The group chat was also silent. A message arrived, and when he checked, it was from Namgoong Sanha, not Yigeom, Dohyun, or Doa.

Jewoo, is something wrong? Someone’s knocking? What do they look like? Should I call the police?

No! I’m okay. I think I was mistaken. （‐＾▽＾‐）

Really? That’s a relief. If anything happens, tell me!

Yes! Hyung, you must be tired from training today, so get some rest~><

As he exchanged messages with Sanha, complete with cute emoticons, he heard another knock.

“I’ll leave the letter in front of your door!”

“Okay!”

Jewoo slightly opened the still-chained door, picked up the letter on the floor, and quickly closed it again.

As he unfolded the letter and read, Jewoo’s face gradually hardened.

‘…This is.’

My name is Lee Piljin, and I’m 28 years old. I’m one of the people who came to Ireon for technical training after awakening….

The first sentence was the name and age of the man who knocked on the door.

After that, it described the recent happenings there.

The training period was a mandatory minimum of six months, and after that, it was up to them whether they wanted to join Ireon, leave, or join another guild.

The man named Lee Piljin was in his first year. There were friends around him who were also in training and had stayed on to join the company, but even those who seemed to have no intention of quitting suddenly resigned and cut off contact afterward, according to the letter.

It might have been something to dismiss as simply the end of their connection, but what was suspicious was that similar incidents had occurred to his colleagues more than once.

Because of this, Lee Piljin no longer trusted Ireon and had been asking hunters who occasionally visited for help, and this time, it was Jewoo.

Jewoo felt a sense of certainty.

The creature breeding facility that Yigeom saw, presumably somewhere near Ireon, the creatures’ food, the people, the disappearances of Ireon employees.

This was a clue. A clue about the creature breeding facility.

After defeating the building manager, a zing— pain shot through Seo Dohyun’s head. The man didn’t miss the moment he momentarily faltered.

Seo Dohyun’s eyes flashed sharply. It was a troublesome ability. But when the opponent used his ability, he always stood still, staring intently at one spot, as if he needed to concentrate deeply.

If it was the level of pain that knocked out Bae Sangwoo, he would need to concentrate even more, and Seo Dohyun realized he couldn’t exert that level of focus right now.

The pain was only enough to make him wince.

As Dohyun easily ducked to avoid it, the man, his attack missing, quickly changed course, spun his dagger to adjust his grip, and then, in a single motion, plunged it straight down towards where Dohyun stood.

The man hadn’t lived his life in vain; he was good at anticipating moves during combat. His momentary sense for various situations was excellent.

The intensity of the pain would be proportional to the level of concentration, but even if it was minor, he focused on one spot and continued to inflict pain. Like small drops of water piercing a rock over a long period, the persistent pain in his head throbbed and made him dizzy as it intensified.

Pain, huh.

‘Gyeom would hate this ability.’

That was the extent of his thoughts.

Even if his momentary senses were good, even if he used his ability effectively, that was all. He had met the wrong opponent.

Pain was something very familiar and intimate to Dohyun.

“…Vigilante?”

The man took a step back, assuming a stance ready for both offense and defense, and asked.

He hadn’t heard of any other vigilantes besides Bae Sangwoo. The building manager said Bae Sangwoo came with an acquaintance….

Seo Dohyun’s fighting style could only be achieved through countless experiences. The kind that ignored small, immediate pain for greater gain. Even with his right arm in tatters, he clashed swords with him on equal footing.

He didn’t even flinch, despite the repeated pain in his head. He was so impassive that sometimes he wondered if he was the one using the ability.

Then Dohyun muttered to himself.

Right, up, staggering left, lowering his upper body….

Dohyun, who seemed to be inputting something, smiled brightly.

“Hmm, done.”

“…What?”

And everything reset.

🦅࿐

After inflicting pain on Seo Dohyun’s head, the man didn’t miss the moment he faltered and lunged at him.

Seeing Dohyun standing motionless, he assumed he was incapacitated by the pain and immediately thrust his sword.

Clang—!

But in an instant, the blades clashed, the metal screeching against metal with a keegiik— sound.

Dohyun, using the clash as leverage, reached down and snatched the building manager’s weapon. Immediately, the blade was pointed sharply towards the man’s abdomen. He raised his left hand to block the sword but couldn’t avoid injury.

“Keuk…!”

Blood dripped from his hand where the sword had struck. It was a blade wielded without hesitation against a person.

Just like when he prioritized the building manager earlier, he possessed the composure to assess what was most advantageous in the current situation and act accordingly.

It seemed this wasn’t his first life-or-death battle.

A vigilante?

He didn’t even flinch, despite the repeated pain in his head. He had such an impassive expression that he wondered if he was the one using the ability.

The man, preparing to attack Dohyun who was lowering his stance, spun the dagger in his right hand to adjust his grip and swung it downwards in a straight line.

But as if anticipating this, Dohyun raised his sword high and stabbed the man’s right wrist.

“Hup!”

Thanks to that, the sword the man was trying to reposition fell below Dohyun’s face, and Dohyun instantly snatched the hilt. The man stumbled back, and Dohyun slowly straightened up.

From then on, it was easy. It was a fight so simple it was almost boring.

He had grasped all the possible moves and just had to block them.

Yoon Yigeom, with his good memory, would probably be even better at this.

It was like a rhythm game. Pressing buttons in time with the falling notes, a tedious task.

The more the man crossed swords with Dohyun, the more a chilling feeling crept up to his throat. It was death. The feeling that his own death was imminent.

“Ah.”

He finally understood. He hadn’t met him, so he didn’t know his face, but he had heard of him. A name that came up so often in conversations with his colleagues that he was sick of hearing it.

A name on the organization’s candidate list.

“You’re Seo Dohyun.”

“Yes. Did you call?”

While exchanging blows with Dohyun, the man clicked his tongue at the building manager lying on the ground.

He was said to have a good ability, so they partnered up, but from the fact that the teleported objects were randomly placed, and even he didn’t know where they were, he was utterly useless.

Working as the building manager of Ireon and not even knowing the customer’s name.

‘Um…. Sir, who is this person?’

‘Ah, you don’t need to memorize names or anything for this guy; he doesn’t come often. Same goes for the others. Why don’t you guys just go out and look around?’

Bae Sangwoo didn’t tell him his name, and when getting the suit fitted, Yoon Yigeom gave his name, so there was no way to find out Seo Dohyun’s name.

Unaware of this, the man blamed the building manager’s uselessness and then had a sword pierce his heart. The creature-transformed leather twitched grotesquely.

That was the man’s end.

🦅࿐

After reading the entire letter, Jewoo took a picture of it and sent it to his hyungs first.

Knock, knock— knock, knock—.

“Excuse me…. Have you finished reading the letter?”

“Oh, yes!”

Jewoo hurriedly checked his phone.

I’m going crazy. Why aren’t they contacting me?

If they were at the accommodation, they wouldn’t just stand there watching a stranger knocking on my door, so they must have gone out somewhere.

‘Why without me….’

Did they go to investigate the breeding facility? If so, I understand, but they could have at least told me.

A mix of complex emotions, including resentment towards his brothers, bewilderment at the person beyond the door, guilt about being left out of this incident, and a desire to contribute his part somehow even if he couldn’t be directly involved, finally moved Jewoo to action.

“Um… I’d like to talk a little more. Please come in.”

Jewoo opened the door and invited Lee Piljin inside.

“Phew, thank you.”

The man let out a sigh of relief as he stepped into the room.

It wasn’t his own house, but the accommodation, so there was nothing to offer. Helplessly, Jewoo took out a bottle of water from the mini-fridge and offered it as a small gesture of courtesy.

“Please, have this.”

“Thank you.”

As Lee Piljin opened the cap of the water bottle, Jewoo cautiously asked,

“Um… I read the letter. You said your acquaintance went missing after resigning from work….”

“…Yes.”

He replied dejectedly.

“The most recent contact was just four days ago. He said he heard something, his face pale white, and… he hasn’t shown up since the next day.”

He heard something four days ago and didn’t show up the next day?

They had arrived in Busan three days ago, which coincided perfectly with Yigeom’s claim of seeing a person at the creature breeding facility.

If the person Yigeom saw was Lee Piljin’s acquaintance, then he was already….

“Um… He also told me the direction the sound came from. I know the way, but my colleagues all refused. I’m just too scared to go alone. Could you, Hunter-nim, go with me?”

Unlike other Hunters, Technical Hunters received training at Ireon after their awakening, so they rarely even had the chance to face creatures. Hunting creatures was unthinkable for them.

Actually, Jewoo didn’t go out creature hunting often either, but he must be stronger than the intimidated Lee Piljin before him.

Jewoo chewed his lip, contemplating what to do, then looked at Lee Piljin’s nervous face. The desire to be helpful to his brothers surged within him.

“…Then, just near the place.”

As soon as they compromised to go near the place, Lee Piljin’s face brightened noticeably.

“Thank you! Thank you so much!”

That made it even harder to refuse.

“Excuse me, are we going the right way?”

Somehow, they seemed to be entering a more secluded area. Jewoo couldn’t hide his anxiety.

The night air was chilly, his brothers weren’t answering his calls, and Lee Piljin kept going deeper into deserted places. It felt exactly like a courage test.

If the place Lee Piljin knew was the creature breeding facility, it made sense to enter a place like this, so Jewoo endured a little longer and walked diligently.

“Yes, if we walk a little further, we’ll reach the place my friend mentioned. Are you tired? Would you like some of this?”

Lee Piljin offered the water bottle Jewoo had given him earlier.

“No, I’m not tired, but….”

Jewoo declined and asked,

“Didn’t you think of reporting this to the Association?”

Something strange happening at Ireon, or something like that….

“I reported it a few times, and they came, but they just talked to the facility manager and left without finding anything special.”

Lee Piljin said with an awkward laugh.

“Thanks to that, I got chewed out by the manager for reporting something trivial and bothering people, haha. Ah, if we turn right here, it’s the place my friend told me about!”

As he said, turning right revealed a stairway leading underground.

Is this the creature breeding facility Yigeom and Dohyun were so desperately searching for? Jewoo’s heart pounded. He had memorized the location of what he presumed to be the facility, so he decided to stop here for today and go back.

Maybe take a picture just in case….

“Um… why are you taking a picture?”

“To let my colleagues know. And I’ll head back now. I’ll come back here later with my guild members and check it out.”

“Ah! That’s why. Thank you.”

After taking the picture, Jewoo put his phone in his pocket and muttered,

“By the way, you said you asked other Hunters for help, right?”

“Yes, I did.”

“What happened to them?”

Did they just go back after casually talking to the facility manager and doing a sloppy job, like the Association? Maybe. They were just asked; it wasn’t their main job.

“Those people?”

Lee Piljin scratched his cheek and answered in an awkward tone.

“Um, they’re probably dead?”

“…What?”

At his answer, Jewoo froze, unable to react. The cool night air swirled around his skin. He thought he could hear the cries of creatures in the distance.

Suddenly, someone approached silently from behind and choked Jewoo.

“They became good nutrients. For the creatures.”

Along with Lee Piljin’s voice, Jewoo fell asleep.

🦅࿐

“…Ugh!”

Bae Sangwoo, regaining consciousness, cried out while clutching his wrist. Yigeom and Doa were in front of him, and the wound, apparently deep, showed no sign of stopping bleeding.

Yigeom quickly took off his jacket and wrapped it tightly around Bae Sangwoo’s arm to stop the bleeding, a perfect example of ‘giving poison and then medicine.’

I can’t panic here, I can’t lose my mind, I have to stay calm, I have to maintain my Yiseong. This thought dominated his mind. He didn’t show it outwardly, moving as he thought, but his fingertips trembled as he tied the knot and stopped the bleeding. Cold sweat trickled down his forehead.

Twice, twice Yigeom had injured Bae Sangwoo. The first time, he’d stabbed the wrist in a panic, but the second time was cold, more precise, and faster. And the sensation of the cool blade piercing flesh remained distinctly in his hand.

I… I hurt him….

His heart beat so hard he wondered if others could hear it. Bae Sangwoo, suffering in pain, seemed calmer.

“Calm down, calm down…. If you get excited, the blood will flow faster.”

Yigeom muttered. The jacket wrapped around Bae Sangwoo’s arm was already getting damp. At this rate….

Did I stab too deep? Should I contact Seo Dohyun again…? Ah, he probably won’t answer during battle.

“Yoon Yigeom….”

Bae Sangwoo looked at Yoon Yigeom, who seemed even more flustered than himself. Then he looked around. The manager’s office. He didn’t remember how he got here.

What was clear was that someone had approached him in front of what had become a fire extinguisher, and he had no memory after that. No, if he did remember, it was that he was fighting something. Very fiercely. It felt like it was about to kill him, so he had fought back, and when he came to, Yoon Yigeom was stopping the bleeding from his wrist, and Seo Doa was rummaging through a first-aid kit in a corner of the manager’s office.

A hallucination? Did he drink the Blood Hunter’s blood? The hallucination Bae Sangwoo just saw was a little different from that. Probably someone’s ability.

“Ahjussi! Here, here’s some gauze….”

“Doa, your… neck….”

“Never mind that, just stop the bleeding!”

Seo Doa’s neck was red as he handed over the gauze. The red marks looked like someone’s handprints. Bae Sangwoo tried to clench his fist, but he couldn’t.

Only then did Bae Sangwoo realize why he had fought someone in his hallucination.

With my own hands….

And it was probably… Bae Sangwoo patted the trembling Yoon Yigeom with his uninjured hand.

“You did well.”

It must have been a difficult decision, but he had handled it wisely and quickly.

“Ahjussi, the blood. The blood isn’t stopping…. I stabbed too deep….”

Yoon Yigeom looked up at Bae Sangwoo with trembling eyes. Yigeom’s face was whiter than Bae Sangwoo’s, who was losing blood in real time.

Bae Sangwoo calmly reassured him.

“Calm down. You think this is the first time something like this has happened while working with the vigilante group? Sigh, finally got some stretching done. Sorry for showing you such an ugly sight.”

“Don’t move!”

Yigeom and Doa shouted urgently at the same time. Their behavior was just like Seo Dohyun. Their intention to reassure him was good, but why did they keep making things worse by moving and opening the wound further?

“It’s fine. What about the enemy?”

“The enemy….”

Yigeom quickly focused his attention and surveyed the situation on the first floor. Just a moment ago, it had been noisy with shattering glass and weapons falling from display shelves, but now it was surprisingly quiet. Seo Dohyun was….

Creak. The manager’s office door opened. Doa quickly drew blood, forming a barrier around them, and without hesitation pointed the blade at the person who opened the door.

“It’s me.”

“…Oppa?”

Recognizing him, she quickly deactivated her ability.

“Seo Dohyun. The blood. The blood from Ahjussi’s wrist isn’t stopping. I stabbed him. I… because of me.”

Having lost his usual composure, Yigeom, in a state of panic, asked Seo Dohyun for help. But Seo Dohyun’s condition wasn’t good either. Blood was flowing from the wound on his shoulder, sustained while protecting Seo Doa, and a new wound on his palm.

“Let me see.”

Seo Dohyun strode calmly towards Bae Sangwoo.

Doa felt like all of this had happened because of her. Because she insisted on coming here. She hadn’t noticed the enemy’s attack, causing Seo Dohyun to get injured, and in the place they were teleported to, she’d fought with Bae Sangwoo, but due to her soft heart, unable to harm him, she ended up shifting all the responsibility to Yoon Yigeom.

As a result, Yigeom felt guilty for stabbing Bae Sangwoo, and Bae Sangwoo was holding his wrist, the bleeding refusing to stop.

Doa bit her lip. Because I was stubborn…. She had boasted that she could also handle things, always complaining that Jewoo and she were left behind while the others handled things on their own. But all that wasn’t confidence; it was arrogance and recklessness.

It felt like things had escalated to this point because of her.

“Oh, Seo Dohyun. The enemy?”

“I took care of it.”

“You look terrible.”

“Same to you.”

Seo Dohyun, who had just finished dealing with the enemy, examined Bae Sangwoo’s wound. He untied the jacket Yigeom had knotted and used the nearby gauze to administer first aid. The first-aid kit Doa found had almost everything, and it was a treatment he could manage, having dealt with such injuries more than once during his vigilante days.

Then he spoke to Yigeom and Doa, who both looked dejected.

“Why are you so down? Just check the perimeter. It’s nothing serious.”

They hadn’t listened when Bae Sangwoo said he was fine, but hearing the same from Seo Dohyun, the wound expert, seemed to reassure Yigeom, who then started guarding the perimeter.

Seo Dohyun glanced at him. There might be more enemies, and while he could understand Doa being depressed, Yoon Yigeom’s reaction was unexpected.

‘Seo Dohyun. The blood. The blood from Ahjussi’s wrist isn’t stopping. I stabbed him. I… because of me.’

He didn’t know the exact situation, but it seemed Yoon Yigeom was the one who did this to Bae Sangwoo. Was he shocked that he stabbed an ally, not an enemy? A wound like this wouldn’t kill him, it would heal after a few days of rest. More than that, Yoon Yigeom only seemed worried about Bae Sangwoo.

“…Ah.”

Seo Dohyun poured antiseptic on Bae Sangwoo’s wrist and then clutched his own injured palm, letting out a small groan.

“…What are you doing?”

Bae Sangwoo asked, bewildered.

“The antiseptic got on my wound too, so it stings.”

“You’re hurt?”

Only then did Yoon Yigeom approach to check Seo Dohyun’s wound.

“Yeah.”

He held out his injured hand as if to show it off.

“Be more careful.”

“…….”

That was all he said. It was his own fault, for usually acting nonchalant about injuries and for training Yoon Yigeom to do the same. Yigeom seemed to think Seo Dohyun was invincible.

Helplessly, after finishing treating Bae Sangwoo’s wrist and about to treat his own injured palm and shoulder, Yigeom muttered,

“Someone’s coming.”

Although it was dark and hard to see, two figures appeared beyond the vase placed on the second floor. They looked around and then opened the manager’s office door.

Creak… At the sound of the opening door, the four people in the manager’s office instinctively assumed attack stances, then became flustered. The two people who opened the door felt the same.

“…Bae Sangwoo?”

“…Kim Yiseong?”

Surprisingly, it was Yeho’s Master, Kim Yiseong, and his new recruit, Noh Jeonggyu.

“Huh? Mr. Yigeom? Why are you here…?”

Unlike Noh Jeonggyu, who immediately relaxed after confirming who they were, the other five remained wary, keeping their distance. Kim Yiseong drew his sword and asked,

“What are you doing here?”

“Investigating the Blood Hunter. What about you?”

When Bae Sangwoo asked, Kim Yiseong replied,

“We were on our way back to the accommodation when we heard a noise. There’s blood, and on the first floor….”

There was a corpse. A creature-transformed corpse. That confirmed their words. Kim Yiseong, grasping the situation, sheathed his weapon and then declared their innocence.

Three days ago, after requesting a weapon crafting and being told to pick it up in four days, they had left Ireon for a while and were returning to their accommodation tonight when they heard a commotion inside Ireon and, sensing something amiss, infiltrated through the back door.

Bae Sangwoo sighed.

“Phew… Any other enemies on your way here?”

“No one but us.”

Kim Yiseong took a step closer.

“You seem injured, want me to heal you?”

Kim Yiseong’s ability was Reflection and Recovery. Exactly what Seo Dohyun and Bae Sangwoo needed right now.

“Ahjussi first, please.”

Seo Dohyun, maintaining a wary gaze, stood beside Bae Sangwoo. He kept his dagger in hand, ready to counterattack if Kim Yiseong tried anything, but his vigilance proved unnecessary as Bae Sangwoo’s bleeding gradually stopped and the wound closed.

Afterward, Kim Yiseong, unable to hide his displeasure, treated Seo Dohyun. No matter how bad the relationship between Latter and Yeho was, they needed Kim Yiseong’s ability. Kim Yiseong wasn’t a fool who couldn’t distinguish between public and private matters.

Watching this, Yigeom felt relieved. The difference between having a healer and not having one was so significant; it was both awkward and reassuring.

Damn brat. Kim Yiseong clicked his tongue, glared at Seo Dohyun, then turned his gaze to Yigeom. Yigeom, also not entirely innocent, subtly avoided his gaze. It wasn’t a crime to have won the previous sparring match against Yeho’s 2nd team, but using a trick in that match remained in his memory, pricking his conscience.

“Latter rookie, your name is definitely…”

Kim Yiseong was about to speak to Yigeom when Yigeom’s pupils suddenly dilated.

This was definitely…. Yes, just like that time.

It was the same scene he had seen three days ago while getting his suit fitted. Yigeom, letting himself be carried by the flow, focused on that vision.

A faint vertical light entering the pitch-black interior. Someone unconscious being thrown through a gap in the door. And the face that appeared was terribly familiar.

“…Cha Jewoo.”

Yigeom frantically fumbled in his pockets. His phone was gone. He must have dropped it during the fight.

“Jewoo. Does anyone have Jewoo’s contact?”

“Cha Jewoo? What happened?”

At Yigeom’s serious tone, Doa quickly turned on her phone. There were several missed calls from Cha Jewoo.

Starting with ‘someone keeps knocking on the door,’ then ‘where did everyone go?’, and then, after sending a picture, the contact had ceased.

“…Cha Jewoo.”

Doa quickly called him, but only the ringing tone sounded; the call didn’t connect. A sudden wave of anxiety washed over her, and she bit her nails.

“Why? What’s going on?”

Behind the bewildered Bae Sangwoo and the Yeho members, Seo Dohyun, who had checked the message from Jewoo, also frowned.

Because the picture he sent, Lee Piljin’s letter, was full of content related to the creature breeding facility.

And judging from Yoon Yigeom’s reaction just now, perhaps….

Without hesitation, Seo Dohyun called Yoon Yigeom.

“Gyeom-ah.”

Yigeom, who had been looking at the screen with him, nodded with a serious face.

“I’ll find him.”

He didn’t know why Cha Jewoo got involved in that and entered the creature breeding facility, but first, he had to find him. By any means necessary.

Before Cha Jewoo was eaten by the creatures… Ah, Yigeom squeezed his eyes shut. Cha Jewoo, after Namgoong Sanha, was the Latter member who went creature hunting the least.

It was impossible for him to hold out alone against more than fifteen creatures. Quickly, even if it was just by a few minutes, a few seconds.

“Even if I go blind, I’ll find him, so please keep resetting.”

Saying that, Yigeom sat down on the sofa in the manager’s office to get into a more comfortable position.

“Sigh…”

He brought his hands together, sharpening his senses.

Meanwhile, Doa explained Jewoo’s situation to the others, and Bae Sangwoo began contacting the vigilante group so they could be ready to move as soon as Jewoo’s location was revealed.

“Seo Dohyun.”

“Yeah.”

Yigeom closed his eyes and muttered quietly,

“How many times?”

“Eight.”

Seo Dohyun replied. He had used it twice while fighting the Blood Hunter.

Yoon Yigeom had to figure out Cha Jewoo’s location within the remaining eight times, no matter what.

Yigeom bit the inside of his cheek.

Seo Dohyun had dealt with the Blood Hunter, Bae Sangwoo’s wound was treated, and just when it seemed like the incident was finally coming to a close, something happened to Cha Jewoo…. Incidents kept happening one after another, with no time to breathe.

Moreover, finding Jewoo’s location with his ability, which could only ‘see’, was like chasing clouds. But it was something he had to do, regardless.

He had to succeed somehow.

Yigeom exhaled deeply and concentrated quietly. First, east, west, south, north. If he sensed anything in any of the four directions, he would narrow his vision.

Don’t worry about the pain. It’ll fade anyway.

Right now, Cha Jewoo’s safety was far more important.

He had to find him. No matter what, no matter what happened. Otherwise, he knew he would regret it for a long time.

50 meters east, nothing. 50 meters west….

“…Ah.”

Yigeom lowered his head and covered his eyes.

He had been using his ability continuously since entering Ireon.

During the conflict with the facility manager, when searching for Seo Doa on the second floor, and just now when checking Cha Jewoo’s location—he had effectively already exceeded his limit.

There was no way he could avoid the side effects.

He wondered if Kim Yiseong’s healing ability could do anything about it, but since the pain would disappear anyway….

“Don’t be hasty.”

“…….”

“You still have eight times left.”

At Seo Dohyun’s words, Yigeom gradually calmed down. That’s right. It wasn’t ‘merely’ eight times, it was ‘as many as’ eight times.

He had checked the east, so next was west. Check all four directions with four chances, and if he found something, he could delve into it in detail.

He had enough chances.

Slowly, slowly. Control your mind.

Yigeom descended into the abyss.

🦅࿐

Drip— drip—. The sound of water droplets falling rhythmically echoed.

“…Ah.”

Feeling the cold floor sending chills up his body, Jewoo slowly opened his eyes. However, despite opening his eyes, he couldn’t see anything.

Pitch-black darkness. In the midst of it, the roars of beasts, the sound of something slamming against metal bars, resonated eerily.

This place was probably….

The creature breeding facility.

Jewoo groped around, reaching out and touching a wall he presumed to be a door, and stood up. It seemed locked tightly from the outside; no matter how much force he applied or how hard he banged on it, it wouldn’t open.

Only then, grasping his reality, did he slump back down to the floor. He tried to find his phone, but it seemed to have been taken while he was briefly unconscious.

A sudden, hollow laugh escaped his lips.

Why am I like this? I ran away from my old memories, so why am I in a place like this again?

Why did I naively believe everything Lee Piljin said? Why didn’t I notice his ulterior motives? Why, why, why….

After all this time, it’s this place again.

‘Sob, sniffle… O-oppa… Ah-ahjussi. Sob…’

Suddenly, old memories surfaced.

In the deep darkness, a faint, small figure. Seo Doa, crouched in a corner, crying.

‘Hello.’

And himself, approaching and greeting her.

‘Hiccup! Sniffle…! Wh-who are you?’

‘It’s okay, don’t be scared. I’ll get you out of here.’

‘Get me out? Then… can I see Oppa again? Ah, ah… I have to see Ahjumma and Ahjussi too… C-can I leave?’

‘You can leave. Oppa? Ahjumma and Ahjussi? I’ll let you see them. I’ll definitely get you out. What’s your name?’

‘Sob, Oppa’s name is… sniffle. Seo Dohyun… hiccup, sob. Ahjumma and Ahjussi, earlier, earlier on the way here, they tried to help me… Ah, ah… No, no…!’

The little girl was rambling, not even registering that he was asking for her name. Eventually, she just sniffled and buried her face deep in her knees.

Cha Jewoo, hearing a rustling sound, wrapped his small hands around Doa.

It was the sound of the creature behind them lifting its massive body.

However, it only lifted itself; it didn’t approach, attack, or devour Doa.

‘Pre-awakening?’

He couldn’t understand why his parents brought a child here, a child who hadn’t even awakened yet.

‘Who… sniffle… who are you?’

‘…Cha Jewoo, 11 years old.’

‘We’re the same age. How did you, sob, get caught?’

So we’re the same age. He hadn’t realized, as it was too dark to see her face clearly.

Jewoo sat next to Doa, wary of the creature opposite them, and replied,

‘I wasn’t caught.’

‘Then?’

‘I’ve always been here. My parents work here.’

‘…Gasp!’

Doa, who had been feeling relieved to not be alone in this strange, dark place, stopped breathing. Jewoo, as if making excuses, quickly muttered,

‘Me too! I don’t want to be here either. Those people aren’t even my parents.’

‘Not your parents?’

‘No! They are, but…. Anyway, no! And I helped everyone who was caught here escape. I’ll get you out too, so don’t worry too much!’

‘…Escape? Did those people survive?’

‘…….’

Jewoo couldn’t bring himself to answer. His parents, ever since he awakened, were always busy testing him.

Whether or not he would help the people they brought escape. They would blatantly lock them in a room, kindly inform Jewoo of the exit, and then….

And even after he helped them escape, they would say he still hadn’t become one of them and force him to drink the red liquid. He had no choice but to drink it, even though he didn’t want to.

And the people he helped escape….

Jewoo shook off the negative thoughts and forced a smile. In the darkness, they couldn’t see each other, so only intermittent laughter would be heard.

‘You can live. I’ll definitely save you. Just trust me.’

Saying that, he groped and held Doa’s hand. It had been so long since he felt a person’s warmth; it felt warm.

‘You can get out of here.’

He couldn’t send her out through the exit his parents mentioned. They would definitely have set a trap. That meant he had to find another exit, but there was no way such a thing existed.

As Jewoo was agonizing over this, Doa, frightened by the silence, squeezed his hand and asked,

‘…Where are we?’

‘It’s called ‘Dello’.’

‘Where is it? I need to know the location so Oppa can come find me…’

‘The location… I don’t know.’

His parents would know, but he couldn’t ask them directly. There was no other way to contact them, and he was at a loss as to how to get Seo Doa out.

‘Then… can you at least make it brighter around here? It’s so dark and scary.’

‘Sorry. There are no lights here.’

‘Sob… sniffle… Oppaaa…’

‘D-don’t cry! I’ll do something!’

Doa, choking back her tears, mumbled,

‘…How?’

—Access granted.

Clank—.

A mechanical sound pierced Cha Jewoo’s ears, followed by the sound of a metal gate opening.

Perhaps there was a sense of complacency. In following Lee Piljin.

Thump, thud. He could hear the creatures approaching, close at hand.

A complacency born from the confidence that he wouldn’t die.

The creature breeding facility mostly housed creatures with docile temperaments. This was because there was a risk of accidents during experiments if violent creatures were brought in.

Even if they were docile, it was only relative to Blood Hunters.

In the darkness, a creature lowered its stance and pushed its face against Jewoo’s.

It growled and sniffed, as if smelling him.

Jewoo pushed it back and stretched out his arm into the empty air.

Seven years ago, April 5th, that day, was the first time he bloomed a flower. A flower that didn’t exist anywhere else in the world. A flower created solely from his own imagination.

Yoon Yigeom had seen it. He saw this place three days ago, and he must have seen it now too. He chose to believe that.

Somewhere in this place, water droplets were falling. If so, he should be able to see it now. If he tries to find it, he can find it.

All he could do now was illuminate the darkness, making it easier for him to find.

Finally, a single flower bloomed in Jewoo’s hand.

The flower’s name was the Crescent Bloom.

Blue, slender, just one flower, but it illuminated the dark space, hence the name ‘Crescent Bloom.’

A bright light bloomed in the darkness, revealing the creature’s form at a glance.

In a different sense, he gulped. But he could endure it.

Jewoo bit his tongue instead, swallowing the rising blood, and suppressing the surging desire.

Before, and even now, he was more confident than anyone in enduring.

Gyeom-hyung, I’m here.