FLIA 167

“I know I looked like I was in danger earlier. But I really wasn’t. I understand that Hyunmook-hyung had every reason to be angry. But he didn’t have to go this far. This place… it’s not the Abyss anymore.”

The gazes of the others, who had fallen into panic at the sight of Lee Hyunmook’s true form, began to waver. Yohan looked at Lee Chanha and Ju Hoyoung, who were still holding him tightly, and asked,

“Doesn’t it seem like the one who’s in danger now is Hyunmook-hyung? Can he really come back to normal again this time?”

Maybe they were convinced by his words, because their hands slowly loosened. Yohan pleaded earnestly.

“So please, let me go before it’s too late. Please…”

Yohan grew impatient because he had to go inside quickly and stop Lee Hyunmook. As heavy silence filled the atmosphere, someone suddenly spoke.

“I’ll go with you.”

Surprisingly, it was Ju Hoyoung, who always ran away and always wanted to run away. Even now, terrified enough to want to flee from Lee Hyunmook, he didn’t let go of Yohan’s arm. Yoon Seungryong looked up at the sky and sighed as if he wanted the sound to vanish. Then he patted Yohan’s shoulder.

“Yeah, me too. I can’t let you go alone, Yohan. And if a person has any decency, he should remember the favor he received. Think of how much the team leader did for us.”

Yohan’s face brightened, since he had secretly been afraid to go alone. Then Seo Yakrin nodded.

“We can’t just send our youngest in alone. Besides, just like I’m thankful to Yohan, I’m thankful to our team leader.”

It was the person who had once hated Lee Hyunmook for not letting her die who said that. And finally, Lee Chanha also nodded slowly. His gaze was heavy as he looked once at the purification field and once at the black field that stood in contrast.

“We’ve already gone through it countless times, so one more time won’t make much difference. I’ll go too.”

“Then let’s go now!”

Yohan, too desperate to wait, flailed his restrained arm. Lee Chanha stopped him from running in and shook his head.

“But what if we rest for just one hour first? We’re too exhausted right now. We don’t know what could happen inside, so it’s better to recover as much purification power as possible.”

After hesitating, Yohan nodded. He was already tired from expanding the purification field earlier. That place inside wasn’t going to be a pleasant environment anyway, so it would be better to rest a little.

He sat down on the ground. He had no appetite, but he forced himself to chew and swallow the snacks Yoon Seungryong handed him, then closed his eyes. Soldiers were searching the area, but thanks to Lee Chanha’s illusion, they couldn’t see them, so they were able to rest without worry. When an hour had passed, Yohan got up. This time, the team members didn’t try to stop him.

“Haa…”

Standing before the pitch-black curtain, Yohan took a deep breath. Then he ran straight in without looking back.

Even though he was prepared, a gasp escaped his mouth. Everything around him was distant and dark. Yohan felt for the first time that even air had a kind of density. If the Abyss was heavy, then this place was light. It was so light that it felt like his body was being pulled somewhere. When he, frightened, tried to pour light into his weapon, a bright flash lit up beside him. Startled, he turned around and saw Yoon Seungryong already holding up a lantern with a grin.

“How is it, cool right? My dXraemon pocket. Save your power for now.”

“…Yeah. I will.”

Yohan let out a small laugh at Yoon Seungryong’s joke. It was true that they couldn’t afford to waste even a bit of purification power right now. They advanced depending on the light from Yoon Seungryong’s lantern.

Unlike before, Lee Hyunmook’s inside was somewhat filled. That was because part of the city he had swallowed remained intact. In the bleak and dark scenery, everyone felt the same impression.

“This feels awful. It’s like we’re back in the Abyss again…”

Seo Yakrin muttered unconsciously, then closed her mouth. She thought it was a bad thing to say, even to herself. Comparing the team leader to the Abyss was too much, no matter how terrifying he was. While Seo Yakrin clicked her tongue inwardly, Yohan spoke in an intentionally bright tone.

“But it’s still better than the Abyss since I can’t feel any corruption here!”

And that was true. Inside this place, at least the corruption level didn’t rise. What was even more surprising was that the presences inside numbered in the hundreds. Yohan stopped walking and looked around in confusion.

“There are monsters here. And people too…”

“Yeah. Just like you said, Yohan, our team leader must really be out of his mind. He’s doing this even though he knows civilians are here.”

Ju Hoyoung muttered and shuddered. Yohan also hadn’t expected there to be so many monsters inside Lee Hyunmook. He had seen him swallow them as shadows in the Abyss, but he had just assumed they were dead after that.

They checked the people nearest to them. They had wondered why there was no commotion, and they found that everyone was either unconscious or dazed, showing no reaction to any external stimuli.

“Should we gather them in one place? We can’t take them with us.”

Lee Chanha, after scanning the surroundings carefully, assessed the situation. The monsters roaming nearby didn’t look ready to attack, and the civilians were all quiet. Above all, they didn’t have enough strength left to conduct a rescue. The others agreed with Seo Yakrin’s suggestion, and they quickly gathered the nearby civilians inside a building. They blocked the entrance so monsters couldn’t get in, then continued walking.

Crack, craaack…

While they gathered the people in one place and kept moving, a constant noise like stone splitting echoed without end. That was another difference from the previous “inside,” where no sound could be heard at all. Ju Hoyoung, who was anxious, muttered.

“What’s this sound supposed to be?”

“I don’t know the cause yet. I don’t even know which way we’re supposed to go. Does it even make sense to look for the team leader inside the team leader?”

Yoon Seungryong laughed irritably and grabbed his hair. While they all stood still, unable to move in any direction, Yohan suddenly turned his head. His spear was vibrating. When he looked at it, it trembled harder, as if waiting for his gaze.

Yohan already knew that Lee Hyunmook hadn’t obtained the eternal stone somewhere else but had given him a part of his own. With his brow furrowed, Yohan focused and slowly turned in a full circle while holding the spear. The vibration grew strongest in one particular direction.

“…We should go that way.”

Since they had no clue to follow, everyone obeyed Yohan without a word. As they walked along the gloomy, sinister street, Lee Chanha suddenly spoke.

“Now I understand what that sound is, Yohan-gun.”

He, who was always calm, now had a grave face as he raised a hand and pointed to a building.

“The gaps between the buildings are wider than before. Look. The asphalt is cracking. This place is growing in real time.”

It was just as Lee Chanha said. Cracks were spreading through the asphalt, and the spaces between buildings were widening. Ju Hoyoung looked grim and measured it with his eyes, then spoke.

“I don’t know if it’s only expanding inside or if it’s spreading outside too, but at this speed, it could cover the whole Korean Peninsula in a day. We’d better hurry.”

At his words, their pace quickened. Everyone was so nervous that sweat began to form on their skin. Soon they left the city behind, and a strange landscape unfolded before their eyes. There was a wilderness where fragments of natural scenery like trees and rocks jutted out among what looked like the debris of buildings. Yohan gulped and moved in the direction his spear guided him.

He didn’t know how long they walked. He didn’t know if there would be an end, if they would find Lee Hyunmook, or what he could possibly say to persuade him even if they met. The thought tangled in his head, and Yohan sighed.

“How far are we supposed to go? Shouldn’t we just fly?”

Seo Yakrin grumbled, but at that moment,

“Something’s there.”

Lee Chanha spoke in a wary voice. Indeed, there was some kind of mass in the direction they were heading. As they walked closer, the shape buried in darkness came into view.

It was a gigantic heart.

Strangely, from some angles, it looked like a human face. Each time the heart beat, a strange harmony sounded. Thump, whee, thump, whee, thump, wheee. There was a whistling sound between the irregular beats, It was a melody that drew people in.

“Yohan-gun! Snap out of it!”

“…Ah!”

Thanks to Lee Chanha’s loud call, Yohan came to his senses and realized he had been unconsciously leaning closer, listening to the sound. If Lee Chanha, who had strong resistance to this kind of attack, hadn’t been with them, Yohan would already have approached the heart.

“Damn it… Deputy Leader, should I attack?”

Seo Yakrin, who shook her head to clear her thoughts, asked while looking at Lee Chanha. Since their team leader, Lee Hyunmook, was absent, command belonged to Lee Chanha as the deputy leader. After a brief hesitation, Lee Chanha nodded.

“Attack.”

With his permission, golden energy surrounded Seo Yakrin’s body. The power she usually suppressed in front of others surged toward the heart. A giant golden hand, like that of a titan, clawed and tore at it. Shrrrak! The heart was ripped apart and exploded. It ended more easily than anyone expected. Instead of joy, everyone felt caution. Seo Yakrin asked belatedly.

“Wait, was it okay to destroy that… huh?”

The ground shook, and something jumped out from the heart that had exploded. It was an even larger heart. The heart convulsed violently and spewed out black fluid. Woooosh! It gushed like a waterfall, and bloodlike black droplets splattered everywhere with a metallic scent. Lee Chanha quickly raised a barrier, and as he did, thick black fog filled the air.