FLIA 111

Yoon Seungryong was piling beef high onto Yohan’s plate more than anyone else’s, and Yohan, busy picking it up and eating, raised his head at Lee Hyunmook’s words.

“The government agreed to transfer about thirty percent of the highly corrupted awakeners they had in custody over to us.”

“Really?”

Yohan’s expression brightened. The words “custody” and “transfer” made it feel like they were talking about prisoners. In truth, considering how society treated them, that was exactly the case. Seo Yakrin, who had been drinking without pause from earlier but showed not a hint of drunkenness, spoke.

“Well, of course, they must be desperate for Eternal Stones. Especially when you think about Captain Jeong Siyoung and the Special Unit members’ corruption levels. From what I see, even they should qualify as detained by government standards, but since there’s no manpower, they’re forcing them to keep going.”

“Her corruption really did look quite severe. It didn’t seem like something purification with Eternal Stones alone could handle.”

Yohan sighed as he said it. Having seen Lee Hyunmook and his group who were severely corruption in the Abyss, Jeong Siyoung had looked relatively mild, but in truth, it was a serious case. During the interview, she had seemed normal at a glance, but Yohan had caught sight of injection marks on her nape. Likely painkillers or sedatives.

Besides, the purifying Eternal Stone was essentially just a battery. Once purification was poured into it, it would always discharge a fixed amount of energy, and once time passed, it would be entirely consumed. They planned to resolve everything within that span, but it was worrisome.

“Yeah, I bet her arm doesn’t even look like a normal human arm anymore.”

Ju Hoyoung said it offhandedly as he swiftly snatched and swallowed the meat from Yoon Seungryong’s personal plate. From their point of view, it was no big deal. He then aimed for Seo Yakrin’s meat, only to be caught by telekinesis, and couldn’t even find Lee Chanha’s meat that was right in front of him. His abilities didn’t stand up well against Seo Yakrin or Lee Chanha. He didn’t even dare touch Lee Hyunmook’s meat, so Yoon Seungryong glared at him as Ju Hoyoung stole only from his plate.

Anyway, back to the subject of Eternal Stones, the government had no choice but to hand over corrupted people. If they tried to confiscate them by force, there was nothing to stop the Eternal Stones from being taken abroad altogether, and if they let them be, the Eternal Stones were the only means of treating corruption.

Naturally, online there was heavy criticism that a mere guild was monopolizing the only method of treatment, but not one person at this table showed the slightest concern. Ever since escaping the Abyss, everyone here always seemed cheerful and happy, so Yohan decided to do the same.

“Now that I think of it, the office building location has finally been decided, Yohan-gun.”

Lee Chanha refilled Yohan’s empty glass and showed him the location on his phone. It wasn’t far from where Sunrise Guild had been. It had to be set in a transport hub, somewhere they could deploy immediately at any time. Seo Yakrin asked.

“Yohan, what about you? Where will you be commuting from now on?”

“Uh…”

“You can live at the office building, or get a place nearby. Or you can keep staying at your parents’ place.”

Commuting! It was still an unfamiliar word for Yohan. Now that he had a job, he had become a proper member of society. He almost answered out of habit that he would go from his parents’ house, but then he hesitated.

‘Come to think of it, it’s way too far.’

If he went back and forth between the Taeyang Guild and his home, it would take four to five hours round trip. Before, he would have said he’d ask his parents first before giving an answer. But now his reply came without hesitation.

“Then I’ll stay at the office building!”

Since he had awakened as a purifier, raiding rifts was unavoidable for him, so he had no choice but to live near the guild anyway. He was already suffocating at home from being constantly compared to his older brother, so this was a relief. And at twenty-four, it was time for him to date, work, and become independent. …He would be living with Hyunmook-hyung, right? Yohan swallowed his liquor and his impure thoughts together.

“We should hold another welcome dinner on the day our Yohan joins the guild.”

Seo Yakrin chuckled as if she was drunk. Yohan giggled too. He felt that the hardest part of his life had already been endured in the Abyss, so from now on nothing would be difficult. Ju Hoyoung jumped up, brimming with energy, and shouted.

“Let’s go to karaoke for round two!”

“Sounds good!”

Yohan shouted boldly and clinked glasses with everyone again. It was a boundlessly cheerful and joyful moment.

***

The cheerful time continued late into the night. After the dinner ended, since Yohan had no car, Lee Hyunmook decided to personally take him home. The lingering excitement from the noisy and joyful gathering left Yohan’s cheeks flushed red. It was a bit disappointing that, despite all the drinking, he hardly felt any intoxication.

“Did you enjoy today’s dinner, Yohan-ah?”

As he started the engine, Lee Hyunmook asked kindly. Yohan fastened his seatbelt out of habit as he replied, though now that he was a high-level awakener there was little chance of being seriously hurt even in a car accident.

“I loved it! I want to do it again next time!”

Back in the Abyss, they had also gathered to eat and drink, but always for survival. Today’s dinner felt different, it was like a social gathering for the first time in a long while. It was also like a certification procedure that he would continue to stay with the Taeyang Guild even here, and that made him happy.

“By the way, you decided to stay at the office building. So where exactly will you be living?”

As the car set off, Yohan asked what he had been curious about, glancing at Lee Hyunmook. Lee Hyunmook smiled as he answered. Back in the Abyss, his smile had always been faint at best, but since their return, it had been clear and certain. It had been so all throughout tonight’s dinner as well.

“Wherever you want to live.”

“Ah… then…”

“But if possible, I’d like it if you lived with me at my house.”

At those words, Yohan’s already flushed cheeks grew even redder.

“…Of course, that’s what I was planning to do!”

He answered like that, and, pleased, he opened the window to pretend to get some air while actually cooling his heated face, grinning widely. He thought, “so this is how good romance feels,” as the dazzling night view spread out beyond the window. Even after the Great Rift incident, the city’s scenery had not changed much. But if another rift opened, it could vanish at any moment.

“Rifts will keep opening in the future too, right?”

“As long as the Abyss exists, they will.”

“What’s going to happen then? The Abyss… and this place.”

Looking at the beautiful and peaceful scenery that seemed too precious to disappear, Yohan murmured. The flush that had burned so hot earlier had cooled somewhat. After escaping the Abyss, he had been sunk in a vague happiness for quite some time, but now it felt like he was finally facing reality.

“My guess is that soon there’s a high chance a Great Rift will open.”

“…A Great Rift.”

Every time a Great Rift had opened on Earth until now, countless people had died. Ordinary rifts only invaded local areas, so people often had a chance to escape. But Great Rifts always appeared mainly in densely populated metropolises, capitals in particular. Because of this, famous cities like Monaco, Macau, Hong Kong, Delhi, São Paulo had vanished in an instant. In Korea too, first central Seoul and then Busan had disappeared.

“If you think of it like a person, the Abyss is now starving and has had its food taken away. It struggled to swallow a city because of us, but even that was stolen back. If it gave up now, it would have no choice but to starve to death. So… my guess is that before long another Great Rift will open nearby.”

Rift zones appeared sporadically all over the Earth, but the Abyss and Great Rifts had visible routes of movement. Ten years ago, rifts had spread over the world, and a year later, the terrible Great Rift opened. The Great Rift that began in India soon devastated the entire country. Following the trail of populous cities, it had already circled the Earth ten times. By simple calculation, it made a circuit roughly once every year.

Considering the Great Rift, incomparably more dangerous than ordinary rifts, people knew living in crowded areas was risky, and yet many still lived in capitals and big cities. That was because rifts were not the only threat to human life. Monsters spilling out of rifts at any time were also a dreadful menace to civilians. Living in cities at least gave them immediate access to help from the government or guilds.

“But this time, even if a Great Rift opens, there’s a way, right?”

Yohan spoke in a firm voice. He wasn’t pretending to be strong. After a Great Rift occurred, it usually took less than half a day before the Abyss manifested. This was why the casualties were always so extreme. Unlike ordinary rifts, monsters would rampage and swarm, and before citizens could all evacuate, the Abyss would appear. But for Yohan, it was enough time to act.

“If I purify the land the moment the Great Rift happens, then the Abyss will have no land to swallow. So whenever a Great Rift opens, I’ll cover it with a purification field…. But… that’s right, Great Rifts don’t only happen in Korea, do they? If one opens abroad, what do we do?”

Yohan slowly realized it as he went on. Later, when mid and low-level purifiers appeared, they would cleanse the land affected by rift phenomena and block the Abyss from manifesting. But the Great Rift was something Yohan himself would have to go to.