chapter TEN

Abyss. It was the word they had begun to use to describe the desolate state of the world since Almuten appeared, and began to extend its arms over this side in earnest. 

The city center had been reduced to complete ruins. Strong acidic liquids had melted the asphalt roads and sidewalk blocks, black streams coursing in their place. People didn't even dare to open their windows, let alone go out, because of the toxic fumes in the air. They could no longer tell when was the last time they saw a blue sky. Areas where communication, electricity, and water supply were cut off increased with every passing hour. Even when they tried to turn on the Internet to check breaking news, it often failed to connect. People rushed to get radios to keep up with the government's emergency broadcasts.  

It wasn't easy to ask for help from the Awakened overseas. It turned out, the same phenomenon was also sporadic in other countries. Since Almuten failed to terraform this land, it must have been that it was now trying to turn their eyes to the other side of the sea. The reports of the damage in other countries had come pouring in one after another. A small country in Northeast Asia, where Mazzaroth was located, was easily isolated with sky and sea routes blocked. 

Several jeeps loaded with Erewhon's Hunters ran along the road in a row. The whole road was a mess, as if it had been under heavy artillery fire during a war, and even though they were not going that fast, the seats rattled terribly. The complexion of the Hunters in the car looked pale. Of course, there was no reason to be bright. Many of their colleagues had died. The Erewhon headquarters, their home, had also collapsed miserably. And now they were literally on their way to death. 

"That's where my house used to be." 

A Hunter, huddled up in his seat, hugging the equipment in his arms and staring at the outside, pointed to one place. In that direction, they only saw a pile of debris blackened by the miasma, let alone a house. 

"Are we really going to die like this? I know the world is going to be ruined, but I've never imagined it to be like this." 

"I was going to buy my parents a house in our hometown if I get an incentive this time. I haven't even been able to be a good son for them since I started working as a Hunter....."

Even seasoned Hunters couldn't hide their uneasiness. Until now, fighting had been just a job for them. It was only during their rookie days when they used to tremble in fear, but after adapting to the battlefield, their bodies could now move with ease even when they encountered a mutant by surprise. But this was entirely different. What unfolded before their eyes was reality. They couldn't, however, bring themselves to run away. Their defeat meant the defeat of their nation, or of humanity. Even though they knew they were going to die, they had to come. 

"Um, team leader." 

A young woman raised her hand. 

"Are we..... are we really the only ones going?" 

"Hyeonji-ya, did you see even a single ant on the way besides us?" 

There was only eerie silence all around. All they could hear was the sound of car wheels rolling. It had been like this since the terraforming failed, and the destruction swept across the city. The surviving general public had been evacuated, but not a single Awakened was sighted.

"How many Hunters are there in our country? Are we the only ones who came out to enter Mazzaroth?"

"They won't come if they think it's just a waste of their precious lives." 

"There's a rumor that Leader bet Erewhon itself on this raid. That's why other Orders came rushing in last time." 

"That was until terraforming. They might bounce out now that they finally know what they have to face." 

"....."

"What are the odds of us surviving unharmed? 1 percent? 1 percent is even generous. 0.1 percent? What crazy people would go all-in against odds like this?"

Hyeonji shut her mouth and listened to her team leader's nagging. It sounded like a nag, but in actuality, it was also kind of mocking themselves. Since they were the ‘crazy people’.  

"You never know. There's a lot of crazy people like that." 

After a brief silence, she added quietly as if talking to herself. 

"There's even a guide who's going to enter the gate with his life on the line." 

"What?" 

The team leader opened his eyes wide as if he was dumbfounded. Then the car jolted to a halt. This place was once an airport. And where the abyss began. The situation here was much worse than that of the city center. Mazzaroth had already grown to the point where it was meaningless to try to separate the inside and the outside of the gate, and had penetrated deeply into this world. All the places where hangars and runways once existed were now corrupted with the foreign matter from ‘that side’. The depressing landscape of the abyss was all that could be seen beyond the horizon. 

A jet-black limousine stood out among the large, rugged cars. The car door opened and a tall man in a black shirt got out. It was Shinje. They heard that he was badly injured, but fortunately, he looked fine except for his pale complexion. Unlike usual, he seemed relaxed. Not like someone who would soon jump into a place where death lurked. 

"Hello." 

"Hello!" 

A few Hunters nearby gave a quick hello. Hyeonji also bowed her head while sitting in the luggage compartment of the jeep. Shinje returned the greeting with a quiet smile and a raised hand. His current appearance was something she still couldn't adapt to. It was as if there was a faint halo of light around him, cutting through the dark and thick air. It was hard to believe that it was the same person they used to admire from afar. 

Taein, Chan, and Heesu followed him down. They were all equipped, unlike usual, when they used to go to raids only in regular shirts and pants as if they went out on an outing. They had put on armors that tightened their forearms, thighs, and torsos, and ankle-length boots instead of shoes. Wireless ear mics were also seen in their ears. 

Even Team 1, who had looked like they had nothing to be afraid of in this world, came prepared. Everyone didn't say anything, but felt it keenly. The fact that this could really be the last battle. Taein asked for the briefing on the situation right away while receiving greetings. The general manager, who had been waiting in advance, looked very nervous, and quickly recited the number and composition of the people gathered here.  

"Hunter Yoon Chan!" 

"Oh, you're here. What about the kids from Team C?" 

"They are on their way. They were on Forest Boulevard, but the road was completely blocked off, so they are trying the other route. That's what they said." 

"Why are they working so hard? If I were them, I'd have already bailed out." 

Chan, who had a lot of casual followers, received a bit of rough but friendly greetings. Even the lowest ranked Hunters, who normally couldn't even make eye contact with him, spoke without hesitation. The anxiety that they might die today seemed to have destroyed the sense of distance caused by the difference in rank. 

"Wow. I didn't know there were a lot of suicide seekers in Erewhon. We won't be lonely on our last journey." 

Heesu pipped in, blinking his reddish eyes as if trying to clear his vision. He said it as a joke, but unfortunately, the timing was a little off. The atmosphere that was barely about to be lifted up froze again. 

There was still one more person in the car even after all the Team 1 members had gotten off. Yugeon came down shortly after. Hyeonji's gaze clung to him without meaning to. She almost didn't recognize him right away since he was dressed a little different than usual. 

A black mask was covering the lower half of his face. Of course, it was not a regular mask made of thin fabric. A gas mask was necessary to block the toxic gasses inside the gate as much as possible. The exterior was made with metal and plastic, and a large valve was attached to the bottom. Overall, it was a hideous look, but one could still feel a strange decadent beauty from him. 

While the Team 1 members were talking with each other or to different people, he stood alone in the back, fiddling with his gun. His fingers wrapped in black gloves clicked on the safety device absentmindedly. 

"He....." 

Hyeonji thought of calling him, but stopped herself. The boy in front of her was not the Yugeon she knew. A boy whose eyes sparkled with excitement just having someone buy him coffee and teach him how to surf the web on his mobile phone. 

After Yugeon's brother died as a victim of Terraforming, she and everyone in Erewhon found out about it. The reason why Yugeon came to Erewhon, not to seduce the Leader and strike gold, nor to attach his name to the powerful Awakened, but to save his brother..... Since many key personnel were dispatched to rescue Heeseong, Yugeon's circumstances also naturally spread. No one was calling him a parachute guide anymore. 

The contract between Yugeon and Team 1 was no more. No one could stop him even if he declared that he would leave Erewhon right away. But why did he volunteer to follow the extremely dangerous raid that many Awakened had gotten cold feet and already bounced out? What revived his embers that had once lost their purpose and faded? 

Hyeonji didn't know how it felt to have lost the only family that was the driving force behind a desperate and fierce life. She couldn't think of anything to say to Yugeon. She didn't want to hurt him more if she ended up looking like she was pretending to sympathize and comforted him clumsily. So she decided to remain silent in the end. 

"Leader. We've got everyone who can come." 

Shinje tilted his head slightly. 

"Did we have this few?" 

"Quite a few people died in recent battles. There are also people who could not respond to the call-up order because they are unable to fight. And the rest....." 

The Hunter trailed off with a bitter look on his face. Shinje shook his head. 

"I don't blame them. How can we forcefully drag those who ran away to live?"

At the beginning it was a fight he started on his own. When he left Brigadier General Woo Seongyeon and other researchers, and the SALIGIA unit members behind and survived alone, he vowed to come back here one day and kill Almuten. That resolution ate his hatred and grew to a great extent, and had come to this point before he knew it. This much people had gathered to join the end of this ridiculous play. Above all, he had got a guide to lead him to the end. That was enough. 

They straightened up their ranks and prepared to enter. It was then. 

"Uh?" 

"What is that?" 

A huge circle of light was being drawn at a slow speed in the empty air. It seemed to be at least 10 meters in diameter. The gently extending curve steadily reached the starting point. When the circle finally closed, intense light poured out from the inside of the circle. 

"Ugh." 

People near the circle frowned and backed away. Yugeon was the same. He closed his eyes tightly, the bright glare nearly blinding his vision. The moment his vision returned, he noticed someone standing in front of the circle. 

Then another person appeared through the blinding lights. There was no volume or mass in the circle, so when viewed from the side, it looked like a person had just popped out of thin air. 

Only then did Yugeon recognize the identity of the large circle. It was a portal, connecting here and elsewhere. 

"What are you bastards doing here? Do you have a death wish?" 

Chan muttered under his breath as if exasperated. Everyone looked surprised at the unexpected situation. Even Shinje glared at the portal with his arms folded without a smile on his face. 

"Oh. I forgot how the portals make me wanna vomit."

"It's comfortable, though." 

"Wow... this place is crazy." 

Hundreds of people filled the area in an instant. Unlike this side, who couldn't grasp the situation, they seemed very calm. 

The portal was just the beginning. Hunters whom he had never seen before gathered in front of Mazarroth in all sorts of extraordinary ways. Some fell from the sky and some rose from the earth. There were even people who flew here directly with the wings attached to their backs. It was an unexpected reinforcement. 

A gigantic figure landed at the end. It was an archaeopteryx bird whose whole body was made of only bones, to be exact, a mutant species that resembled an archaeopteryx. It was carrying several people on its back. [1]

"Why did you come to a shabby place like this?" 

Shinje asked, unfolding his arms. Numerous eyes were drawn to one place. It was the moment when it was revealed who made the biggest contribution in persuading others to participate in the war. Munyeong, who was riding the undead, jumped down and approached. 

"What's the point of staying cooped up in your house when the world looks like it's going to be ruined sooner or later? We are all going to die anyway, so at least I'll die doing something cool. Who knows. Maybe I'll survive and get Erewhon." 

She scratched the back of her head awkwardly, and then added. 

"Actually..... my unni begged me for this. She asked me to help that side's guide." 

"Leader Seok's guide and my Yugeon-ie?" 

"What did you just say? ‘My’? ‘Yugeon-ie’? Did I hear it wrong? 

Munyeong's astonished gaze alternated between Shinje and Yugeon, her face saying she'd seen everything strange in this world. 

"This is really bad. I didn't know the rumors would also spread to other Orders, not just the Awakening Management Headquarters." 

"What rumors? 

"Of course, that Yugeon-ie is the cutest in the world." 

"Yes?" 

"I've put a leash on him and he's always in my arms, but he's coveted everywhere. I'm really living in anxiety. Should I at least get a cage and put him in?"

"Excuse me. Leader Woo. Are you really crazy?" 

"Haha, don't mention it." 

"....." 

Munyeong's personality was not an ordinary one, and she rarely blinked an eye at most things, but the man in front of her had always managed to do the difficult task every single time. She felt that Yugeon, who was holding the reins of this man, was amazing. There were even four of them, not just one. She shook her head, collected herself, and hammered the nail in. 

"Let me make this clear. I'm not here for you guys, only because of my unni's request. Just in case, I won't go back and say anything else later." 

"Do as you please." 

"But seriously, why aren't they there? There's no way that old man with unnecessarily big ambitions like that would quietly stay back like this. Really odd that I don't even see his tail here." 

Munyeong looked around. 

"Who are you talking about?" 

"Why, you know, the dog bastards wagging their tails after eating rice." 

It was a term referring to the Espers of the Awakening Management Headquarters who wore dark red uniforms. It was too fiery and excessive. Chan and Heesu, who had been listening to the conversation behind them, whispered among themselves. 

"Anyway, the way she talks is funny as fuck." 

"Munyeong nuna and Chan hyung are the same though?" 

"Fuck. How come am I the same as that shaman?" 

"Simple minded and dirty personality. Like twins." 

"Hey, you. I can hear you! Kwon Heesu. You still haven't changed the way you speak?" [2]

Munyeong, who noticed that he was badmouthing her behind like a ghost, yelled. 

"Ewa, Taein hyung! The other Order Leader is scolding me. My eyes aren't even healed yet. How can she do that to a patient!"

"Shut up and behave. If you also don't want to be scolded by me...." 

This is why I didn't want to get involved with the Erewhon guys. Munyeong felt like all her energy already got sucked out of her body from a single conversation. She just wanted to quickly get rid of Almuten, or whatever, and go back. Even now, the rabbit-like guide must be waiting for her anxiously back home. 

"Leader Seok Munyeong." 

A calm and low voice interrupted the noise of the Team 1 members bickering. It sounded a little dull since it was blocked by the thick gas mask, but there was no problem understanding it. 

"Guide Baek Yugeon. May I help you?" 

Alarmed, Munyeong immediately straightened her crooked standing posture. What's with Erewhon's guide? He didn't seem to be the type to say hello to the other person even if they were acquaintances, but did he even know that Shinje and the other guys' eyes changed the moment Yugeon called her name? Munyeong unconsciously rubbed her cheek with the back of her hand. That side of her face stung from receiving so many hostile glares.

"I have something to tell you." 

"What is it?" 

"A few days ago, there..... must have been a message sent to Seulbi nuna. With my name. Please tell her it wasn't me. Just in case she misunderstood." 

Unexpectedly, a very friendly name came out of the blunt young man's mouth. Heesu stared at Yugeon without even a blink, and Shinje tilted his head slightly with his arms crossed as if it was getting interesting. Munyeong sighed inwardly. Ah, this unni is really. You should have told me in advance if you were close with him to this extent. 

"Ah, yeah. That one. Of course I know it well. I know. That message." 

Munyeong struggled to lift her lips and smiled. No, I'm not interested in your guide. I have my own guide as cute as a rabbit. 

"I'll tell unni not to worry about it, too. Don't worry." 

It was just before a battle between life and death, but this young man was asking someone he wasn't even close to about Seulbi because he was worried about her. Usually, it wasn't strange for ordinary humans like guides to faint in a panic before battles, even an Awakened person like Munyeong who had gone through all sorts of crises couldn't completely shake off the tension. She could see why Shinje was so eager to take him to raids. 

People gathered on the site of the darkened airport. Of course, not all here participated in the battle out of pure loyalty and a sense of justice. The purpose was different for each. Vengeance, trust, desire for fame, curiosity, and even greed for rewards if the raid was successful. It didn't matter anyway. After entering Mazzaroth, those things would have no meaning in front of one common purpose. 

Hunters began to move towards Mazzaroth one after another. There were no plausible speeches, or elaborate commands. Their combat principles had always been simple. Protect your own life. Follow the instructions of your superiors and cooperate with your colleagues, but if necessary, you may act alone, so achieve your goals somehow. Win with minimum cost and maximum efficiency. And the most important of all...... was to survive. 

"Guide Baek Yugeon." 

A gentle low-pitched voice grazed his ears. Yugeon turned around. Shinje's gaze, standing right in front of him, stayed on Yugeon's face for a few long seconds. His lips that only a few hours ago had moaned, cried, and whispered honest words were now hidden under a heavy mask. All that was revealed was a pair of red-rimmed black eyes. 

"Yugeon-ah." 

Shinje grabbed his wrist and pulled him gently. He couldn't resist even though it was a touch with little to no strength. 

"....."

His lips parted as if he was about to say something, but Shinje just huffed out a quiet laugh in the end. He lifted Yugeon's hand and took off his glove. There were calluses and scars here and there, but he still intertwined the long, straight fingers with his, and kissed them gently on his nails. 

Since leaving the bedroom of the safe house after receiving an emergency call, Shinje and Yugeon hadn't bumped into each other. Let alone skinship, they hadn't even had a talk. Even when they only had a contract bound relationship, they weren't this indifferent. As if to say that would be the first and last moment when they forgot all the hostility and hatred, and immersed themselves in each other.  

That sense of distance was narrowed at once with this small touch. 

As soon as the feathery kisses were over, Shinje let go of Yugeon's hand. He then turned around, and led the way into the abyss that stretched out before their eyes. Everyone in Erewhon followed after him. 

"Yugeon hyung, you know." 

Heesu came up to Yugeon's side as if he had been waiting and quickly linked their arms together. 

"After this mission, let's decide the order for guiding again. Except for the dead. What criteria should we use this time?" 

"Who are you cursing at, you little shit. Who's going to die?" 

Chan crumpled his face, and chided. Heesu shrugged his shoulders. 

"Why are you angry? If I die, the three of you can compete. Isn't it like a great gain?" 

"Ah, yes. If you're going to die, go out and die alone. Don't jinx me." 

"The one who always says that dies first. When hyung dies, I'll put a can of tuna on your memorial service table."

"If I die, I'll drag you down together with me. Fuck." 

"Guide Baek Yugeon." 

Taein called him from behind. He looked stern and expressionless, as always. The confession that he was living every day to pay for his sins and die as soon as possible was superimposed on his face. 

"When this is over, Erewhon....." 

Taein closed his mouth and shook his head. 

"No. We'll talk about it later." 

It wasn't like Taein to change his words. What was he trying to say? Chan, Heesu, and Taein were getting farther away. After standing still for a while, Yugeon also followed them. No one hesitated or looked back, until their figures were swallowed up in the abyss. 

The vast sea swaying above his head, the rows and rows of sky high colonnades, and the dark labyrinth, the scenery inside Mazzaroth, he had already seen once before. Perhaps because of this, there was less fear and anxiety than before. However, there were also quite a few differences compared to the last time. The upside-down sea shook violently as if it had encountered a storm. It seemed as if it was only a few seconds before they would all be swept away and swallowed up by the black water the moment the raging waves poured down. On top of that, the walls of the labyrinth were cracked and broken in places. 

"It looks like the main body was also hit hard when terraforming failed."

Shinje added an explanation. Even though it was not a loud voice, everyone flinched and focused on his words as if they were possessed. The only person who had anything to say about the raiding experience here was Shinje, after all. Even the S-class people, including Dohae and Chan, had never entered Mazzaroth since the Awakening Management Headquarters had always been vigilant in case the truth leaked out to the civilians. 

"As you can see there is a maze over there, and there's something at the center of it. We called it ‘the Altar’." 

The ‘we’ he referred to must have been the special unit SALIGIA, created only to target Mazzaroth. Now, everyone in that unit was no longer in this world, except for Shinje. All devoured by Almuten 13 years ago, and not even a corpse left behind. 

"Almuten's main body comes out only when it's destroyed. It won't be easy to get there either. We tried so many times, but only succeeded once." 

"Are there rules in a maze? What happens if we break them?" 

A man in the hood asked. He was the first person to appear in front of the portal earlier. Perhaps he was the one who opened the portal. 

"There is none." 

Shinje neatly affirmed. 

"The pattern changes every time. The same goes for tricks and hallucinations inside. Talking about my experience won't help you much." 

There were sighs everywhere at those words. 

"As expected, it's not easy." 

"No matter how difficult the gate is, there should be rules or at least a pattern."

"We'll have to try anyway. What else can we do? We haven't even started attacking yet, want to run off already?"

People kept grumbling under their breaths, but they all moved forward. The headcount was around three digits, but the maze was as large and high as the corridors of a temple, so there was no problem getting in. Yugeon followed the crowd, feeling the necklace hanging around his neck over his clothes like a habit. Hoping that the cold touch of the thin metal could calm his nerves. 

All the people who had come here before died miserably. The Espers who dragged him here by force, a guide called Kim Min, Brigadier General Woo Sungyeon, who was long dead, leaning against the wall. But now, everyone had disappeared without a trace. Not even a single bloodstain was left in the labyrinth. 

Did Almuten really devour their corpses? On top of the Hwangan Bridge, and among the ruins of the closed industrial complex, the glimpse of it came to his mind. He could too easily imagine it opening its huge, hideous mouth, and chewing up the corpses. 

"Lead..." 

He pressed down on the necklace with his entire palm and called out to Shinje, who was at the far front. He tried to, to be exact. Kwareureung! Kwang! A deafening roar was heard from all directions. The ground they were standing on shook heavily. A cloud of dust rose, making it impossible to see ahead. 

"Surprise attack? Where?"

"No presence detected!" 

"Ugh!" 

Someone firmly grabbed Yugeon's arm as he stumbled and lost his balance. In the midst of the chaos, the dust slowly cleared. Chan let go of Yugeon's arm. 

"Back Yugeon, stand up straight. Do you want to faint again?" 

"....."

Yugeon should have heard him, but he just kept staring blankly to the side. Chan also followed his gaze, turning his head. They wordlessly watched as the cloud of dust settled down, revealing the collapsed stone pillars blocking all the exits of the maze. 

"Almuten or whatever, the crazy bastard has really made up his mind to die together." 

Chan suddenly pulled Yugeon close. He staggered along, confused. A fragment of a pillar the size of a human head fell on the spot where he had been standing a moment ago. Everyone was scattered due to sudden collapse, and now there was only Chan next to Yugeon. 

"Let's go inside for now. It's dangerous here." 

Even at this moment, the remaining pillars were constantly collapsing. If they tried to wander outside the maze, they would only be buried alive under the stones. The only way to survive was to find the altar Shinje mentioned as soon as possible. After walking down the wide road and turning a few corners, they saw Heesu's back as he dashed ahead of them. Chan shouted at him. 

"Hey, Kwon Heesu! I told you not to get away from the guide!" 

Heesu didn't look back even though there was no way he couldn't have heard his loud voice. Chan gnashed his teeth. 

"That little punk." 

"Chan hyung, Yugeon hyung?" 

The answer came from right behind his back. Chills ran down his spine. He forcibly moved his stiff head and looked back. Heesu tilted his head. 

"Why are you looking for me in the front? I've been following you guys from behind." 

Obviously, Chan and Yugeon both saw Heesu running in front of them. However, Heesu said he was actually right behind them. Then what the hell was that thing just now? 

"Wait a minute." 

Chan grabbed Heesu by the collar without giving him a chance to dodge. 

"Ah, shi–. What is it?" 

Heesu immediately abandoned his facade of pretending to be innocent with his eyes wide open and nearly cussed him out. In a sense, he was truly honest, since he didn't even make the slightest effort to show off. 

"Baek Yugeon!" 

"Yes. His hands too." 

That brief conversation was enough. Chan immediately grabbed Heesu's arm and broke it. Of course, there was no such thing as controlling his strength like when dealing with Yugeon. There came a snap from the joint of his arm. Heesu swallowed a short curse in his mouth. 

"Yugeon hyung, when did you tame this hyung? Bossing him around like this." 

"Tame? Say it to my face you punk. Look. Let's say he tamed me. Guess what he's going to ask me to do to you. You son of a bitch." 

"Who is calling who son of a bitch...... right. Hyung is not son a bitch, but a fucking pussy cat."  [3]

"Won't you shut up?" 

The word ‘cat’ somehow made Chan angrier than necessary. Like someone who had their conscience pricked. Heesu was about to retort when Yugeon suddenly reached out. Even Heesu flinched at the unexpected action. 

Yugeon cupped Heesu's cheeks with both hands and pressed their foreheads together. The distance between the two grew closer in an instant. If it wasn't for the large mask covering half of Yugeon's face, he might have been able to touch his upper lip. His coal black eyes staring into Heesu's looked like they were searching for something, and he then closed them slowly. Heesu continued to chatter without feeling a sense of crisis.  

"Ah. Wow. Is this a new play? I think I'm getting hard. But wouldn't we die if we do this here?"

"Shut up." 

Yugeon growled under his breath with his eyes still closed. His strategy was simple. If the guiding worked, Heesu was real. If not, it was an illusion. He had to focus on the familiar energy inside his body, but he kept getting in the way. 

"Tsk, hyung is so heartless." 

Whether Heesu whined or not, the guiding flowed steadily down his forehead and cheeks. His reddish colored whites in his eyes gradually regained their original color. 

"There's nothing wrong." 

Yugeon confirmed and pulled away. They shouldn't spend a long time guiding since they were in the middle of a raid. Heesu pouted his lips and tried to lean down slightly, but he pushed him away with one hand. Chan, who was already in a foul mood, shook off Heesu's arms. 

"Spouting all that bullshit nonstop, there's really no doubt it's Kwon Heesu." 

"You know, I feel this every time I see Chan hyung. Every single word you say sounds like a beggar's." 

"What?" 

Chan roughly rolled up Yugeon's sleeve and grabbed the exposed wrist with his bare hands. His body temperature was a lot warmer than his. 

"Can you feel it?" 

"What do you mean?" 

"I meant guiding, what else is there?" 

After a brief silence, Yugeon nodded. 

"Remember this feeling now. If you don't feel this from me anymore, just let go and run away. That's not me. Don't listen to me, no, whatever nonsense that is pretending to be me." 

"....." 

"Then what if Chan hyung is real?" 

"Just leave me behind if you are not so sure. I'll survive somehow even if I'm abandoned in the middle of the gate, but won't we have to search for the real Baek Yugeon right away if that happens?" 

"Hyung, me too. Don't go anywhere and stay with me. I can't see anything without you." 

Heesu pressed his body close to Yugeon and linked their arms. Yugeon frowned a little, but did not push him away. This was the reason why Yugeon was here in the first place. They kept moving. Two grown men clinging onto one person, it might look a little ridiculous to someone who didn't know the circumstances. 

They weren't sure if they were on the right track even though they were heading towards the center of the labyrinth. Repeated spaces with no end in sight quickly muddled the sense of direction. In addition, the temperature around them had been steadily dropping. Chan and Heesu looked fine, but Yugeon wasn't. The unpleasant chill creeped in even through the uniform woven with special materials. He clenched his fists. He couldn't be beaten by the cold after coming this far. 

"I've never been in a raid like this in all my life. What kind of training drill for dog bullshit is this?" 

Thud. Chan kicked the black wall, irritated. It was when a sharp warning sound rang from the mask Yugeon was wearing. 

"Wait." 

Yugeon checked the black watch on his wrist. A large red skull had appeared on the screen of the watch linked to the mask. The oxygen level that showed after was slowly dropping alarmingly. 90 percent, then 89 percent. It was always 100 percent until they reached this area. 

"Hyung, be careful. If it drops to zero percent...."

 "What if it drops?" 

"I don't know well because it doesn't really hurt even if I drink lots of poison. But I've seen low-ranked Hunters die very painfully. Their throats would gradually be melted away from the inside, and later, a hole would be opened that could be seen from the outside, you can even hear the air hissing through the hole..... and eventually the airway is completely scorched and stuck together, and then suffocated to death. Most usually die from shock even before that."

He got goosebumps at the unnecessarily detailed and cruel description. Not only that the raid was ranked at the heinous level of difficulty, time constraint had been added to this. They had to defeat Almuten, but before he ran out of oxygen. 

"Save oxygen as much as possible. Try not to move or breathe hard. Tell me if you're short of breath. I'll give you CPR." 

It came as no surprise for Heesu to impulsively insert his personal desires because he wanted to even at a time like this. Yugeon shook his head. 

"I don't need CPR." 

"Why? I'm just worried about hyung." 

"Hey, guide. Don't listen to whatever nonsense Kwon Heesu, that bastard is babbling about." 

Chan loosened his shoulders with a twirl. He would rather have a cool fight with the enemy, but it felt a little sore as they kept walking endlessly through the empty maze. It was all the more annoying that he couldn't even relax since they didn't know what could happen in a split second. 

"Still, since the oxygen levels are dropping, I think we're on the right track."

After wandering recklessly relying only on intuition, they finally had an indicator worth referencing. They moved on, checking Yugeon's oxygen levels from time to time. Ironically, the more often the skull markings appeared, the more certain it was for them. The number would sometimes stay the same even after walking for a long time, and they would immediately change directions if it went up. Every now and then, the structure of the maze would change absurdly, or reveal things that should not be seen. Chan or Heesu would notice them quickly like a ghost every time, and warn him, ‘don't look’, or ‘don't pay it attention’. The mind that would have been easily maddened under hallucinations otherwise was spared this time. 

How far had they gone? 72 percent, 71 percent, 70 percent. His oxygen levels had now dropped to 70s. Kwang! Suddenly, dust rose with a loud noise nearby. The wall of the labyrinth, which seemed so solid and thick that it would not break no matter what, was torn down. In between, Taein, Shinje, and several other Hunters appeared. 

Using force against the wall was terribly inefficient. If it was supposed to break easily, there would have been no need for everyone to get lost in the maze in the first place. Structures found in the Pits couldn't be easily destroyed. Not only that. The inner workings of the Pits were hard to understand; such as, if they left the gate and came back in later, they would find that it would be restored cleanly. They never figured out how it worked up to this day. 

The moment Shinje abruptly suggested breaking down the wall with such a fresh and bright face, everyone except him exchanged anxious glances among themselves. They even wondered if he had gone mad from hallucinations. Fortunately, the walls of the maze were not completely indestructible, and it began to crack when several high-ranked Awakened struck together for a good amount of time with all their strength. 

"Here you are." 

Shinje smiled at him as soon as their eyes met. It was a smile that was clearly more relaxed than usual. There was dust and blood on his black shirt, which still looked neat without a single wrinkle to be seen. The moment Yugeon saw him, he felt strangely relieved. Now, Shinje, Taein, Chan, and Heesu were all in one place. He felt a strange certainty that this time he would not be left helpless like when he was dragged to Mazzaroth by force before. 

"The coordinates were saying you are around here, but couldn't find you no matter how much I searched..... so I decided to break down the wall. I'm glad I did."

Yugeon put his hand on the necklace hidden underneath his shirt without realizing it. A location tracking device that only worked when both were outside or inside the Pit. When Yugeon was kidnapped by the Awakening Management Headquarters and entered here alone, it was useless, but now it could not be more useful. 

"Yugeon-ah, come here." 

Shinje held out his hand. Amid the ominous black sky, the dark maze, only his face stood out white against the pitch-black background. 

"Hurry. Eung?" 

"....." 

A strange tension was felt. Yugeon stared at him and blinked slowly. His whole body's senses were all on edge. The sound of his own breathing leaking out from the mask was particularly loud. 

"Hey. Don't go." 

Chan, standing by his side, grabbed his arm. The heat from the hard, large palms felt like it could burn his cold skin. 

"Yugeon hyung." 

Heesu whispered, wrapping his arms around Yugeon's neck. 

"How do you know if it's the real Leader or not? He could be a tentacle monster, like that egg from before." 

"Leader has been together with us since the entrance!" 

"Excuse me. Ahjussi. Do you really believe that?" 

"Then how do we know Hunter Kwon Heesu is also not a fake?" 

One of the Hunters standing behind Shinje furiously retorted. Taein stretched out his arm, stopping him. 

"Stop." 

"Deputy Chief?" 

"The guide is next to them. They must have already checked it out among themselves." 

There was something that no powerful mutant species, not even Almuten, could imitate. It was the guiding ability. The ability that could heal the Awakeneds' side effects, stabilize the mind and body, and breathe life into them. It was the same principle that you could kill the living, but you could never bring the death back to life. 

The Awakening Management Headquarters had long considered how to send guides to Mazzaroth for a long time. Most of the operations so far had failed. They could do guiding as much as they wanted without entering the Pit, but there were no guides who dared to volunteer for the operation. Even if there was, the chances of survival were very slim. They even tried ‘Operation Crocodile Bird’ where they kidnapped the guides and pushed them inside the gate recklessly, but it also ultimately failed to get results. 

They needed someone who was competent as a guide and at the same time proficient in combat. Someone who was detached from life. Someone with a strong motive to kill Almuten, harboring a killing intent strong enough that they were willing to set themselves on fire to achieve that. They thought they were impossible conditions for one to meet. Except for one person.

"You don't believe me? Do you want to stab me again?" 

Shinje smiled and pointed at his own chest. Behind Yugeon, Chan and Heesu exchanged glances wordlessly. Heesu's eyes, which were no longer red under the influence of the guiding he received prior, scanned the other side. And the next moment. 

Chan, who had turned into a black tiger without any warning, ran out with a roar. The massive, solid body rushed forward. The image of the beast reflected in Shinje's pupils grew bigger and bigger. Without hesitation, the beast bit his opponent's neck. He didn't stop there, and shook his head around. Compared to the huge jaws and fangs, the human neck was extremely thin and fragile. Soon enough, more than half of the nape of the neck was ripped off. The arteries were cut, the blood bubbled up and splattered. 

"Heog." 

The Hunters flinched and retreated. The person who fell to the ground squirming was the Hunter who had refuted Heesu's words earlier. A pool of blood spread around him. Chan kept his eyes on him, his muzzle drenched in blood, pressing down on his chest with his large paw. 

"Kkeuleug, kkog....... kkeueug." 

The Hunter writhed around his limbs making grotesque noises. Black marks spread from the nearly severed neck. He quieted down soon after. The corpse shriveled up like food cooked too long over a fire, and was absorbed into the dark ground. The ground of the maze was quickly cleaned up as if it had never been stained with blood. 

"How did you know?" 

Shinje, who was standing motionless, broke the silence. Chan spat out what was in his mouth. Instead of blood and flesh, something like black residue fell out. It also bubbled on the ground, and then disappeared shortly afterwards. 

"My abilities didn't work on him." 

Heesu raised his index finger and pointed at his eyes, and at Shinje, Taein and others. 

"If the rank is lower than mine, they will be briefly under my control, but my ability will be bounced out if the rank is higher. But that person..... It didn't work. It was like I was staring at an inanimate object."

The spines of those who heard him were chilled all at once. Most of them didn't even know Heesu tried to manipulate their minds. They glanced at the spot where the dead Hunter, or something that imitated him, used to be. They almost agreed with that person's argument earlier. If Heesu and Chan hadn't taken quick action, if only they had continued on without anyone feeling strange...... Just thinking about it was terrifying. 

"So I secretly told Chan hyung." 

"When I heard that from him, I also realized that the bastard smelled a little different from the others." 

Chan, who had returned to his human form, stood up, rubbing clean of his mouth with the back of his hand. 

"If the scent wasn't from the bastard, it's either the leader or deputy chief next to him. I thought if I killed them all, one would get caught anyway."

It sounded too irresponsible for one to wonder if he was even talking about his comrades who were sharing life and death together, casually revealing that he wanted to kill at least one of them taking advantage of this opportunity. In fact, Team 1 had always been like this. It was only when the conflict over Yugeon blew up, the reality of it came to the surface. 

"Still, I wouldn't have noticed it if I hadn't been in constant contact with the guide. It's such a subtle difference."

The hallucinations were constantly kept in check by Shinje and Taein all this way. Not only did they surround the group with all those specializing in clairvoyance and reconnaissance, but someone even carved the personal details of their colleagues with a knife onto their flesh. However, it was difficult to maintain such extreme tension for several hours. The moment Shinje found Yugeon, the moment a very small gap opened in the wall of tension. Taking advantage of that moment, one person must have been ‘swapped’. 

Memories from 13 years ago came back to him. Indeed, that was his oldest trick. Slipping in when there was even a slightest gap in one's mind, digging into it as if mocking their efforts. Many of the government's dogs Espers and the members of the SALIGIA unit solely made to defeat Almuten were either possessed or tricked countless times and were nearly wiped out on the way.

"Yugeon-ah. Me too, guiding." 

This time, Shinje quickly grabbed Yugeon's hand. Chan grinded his teeth. 

"Should have bitten this bastard first!" 

Shinje pulled Yugeon into a hug and gently pressed his lips on his temple. A warm and refreshing sensation spread from his lips. It felt as if his breath, which had been blocked the whole time since he had set foot in Mazzaroth, was finally opened up. 

"Leader." 

Even in his arms, Yugeon remained vigilant and stiff, and then pointed to the wall on the opposite side. Before they knew it, the structure of the space had changed again. The sight beyond the wall was visible through the cracks. Beep...... The sound of the oxygen level dropping rang in their ears. Perhaps because of the mood, it sounded as if the frequency of the warning beeps had sped up. 

The maze was no more. In the middle of an empty lot with a radius of several tens of meters, they saw a black stone building. There were numerous stone pillars erected, and a roof was placed on top. The entrance had an imposing arch as though welcoming them. The building reminded them of a confessional room inside a cathedral or a tower attached to a temple. Altar. If the whole of Mazzaroth was a temple, this was an altar. 

"Is that the altar?" 

Shinje only nodded his head without taking his eyes off the front. 

"It's an intuitive name." 

It was a sight he hadn't seen in a long time. There was only one successful time where they managed to destroy the altar. 13 years ago was the first and the last. At other times, they couldn't even reach this place, and even if they did, they couldn't enter the inside of the altar and had to retreat. It was a fortunate instance if they managed to retreat and return alive, and there were not a few cases where all of them were annihilated. 

The altar that took the lives of countless people was always restored flawlessly as if it had never happened. Standing lonely in the darkness of Mazzaroth, and the dark waves of the deep sea cast over it like a pattern. It looked solemn, and at the same time oddly repulsive. 

"First, let's regroup here before we enter it. According to my memory, as soon as we approached the altar......"

Peoeong! Before Shinje could finish his words, a large explosion occurred in front of everyone's eyes. A variety of attacks were unleashed on the altar. 

"Everyone, attack!" 

Espers. It was just a few hours ago when Munyeong said she couldn't even see their tails, but they didn't expect them to pop out like this. 

It would come as no surprise if they also had the information that the altar must be destroyed to bring out the main body of Almuten. It didn't matter how it was to be done or should be done. They had to take the lead in destroying the altar. So they went with the risk and launched the attack one step ahead of the Hunters. When Almuten appeared, they just had to fall back and watch the situation, and planned to land the final blow at the right timing. 

The Espers rushed into the center of the altar. Lieutenant General Bae Cheolseong was seen behind the pouring large-scale attack. He was protected by his subordinates, and also with a shield wrapped around his body. It seemed as if the wound that Chan bit off had not yet been completely healed, a large wound was still there, covering one side of his face. 

"Hurry up and destroy the altar! All you have to do is tear that down. It will soon show itself!" 

The lieutenant general glanced at where Shinje was standing. His eyes seemed to be saying that he wouldn't fight foolishly and be defeated like you and your father from 13 years ago. It was unbelievable to be this much absorbed in his selfish interests and desires even in this kind of situation. In some ways, it was really consistent as if it no longer came as a surprise. Just like this, didn't he also order the ill prepared SALIGIA unit to enter Mazzaroth? Without a guilty conscience, right into Almuten's mouth. 

".....ha." 

Shinje burst out laughing. His expression uncontrollably distorted, and his eyes glistened. 

"Just need to destroy the altar?" 

It was different from the past where he would smirk slyly more than necessary in front of the lieutenant general just to scratch his insides. To see the raw killing intent on the porcelain doll-like face that was always smiling beautifully was all the more frightening.

"Why do you think so many people died back then?" 

"What else is in front of us? Unless it's all about destroying the altar....." 

Taein's voice trailed off, his expression slowly hardened. Shock and agitation flickered in his eyes, and his gaze tentatively turned upward. He truly was someone who showed little to no emotion no matter what. People unconsciously followed Taein's gaze and looked up. And they immediately found out the reason why. 

"Gasp!" 

"What the hell, is that?" 

Some people's expressions quickly hardened to stone like Taein, while others gasped out despaired sighs and groans. Some even flopped down to the ground, as if all the strength in their legs had come loose. Most of the Hunters present here were those who had experience entering Pits at impossible levels of difficulty compared to an average Awakened, those who could keep their composure relatively. 

"Ah....." 

Yugeon groaned, his mind blank. From within the abyss swaying above their heads, an astronomically gigantic figure was descending to the surface. The outline that used to be just a black mass was slowly revealed. 

It was a ship. Its bizarre appearance was as if it had been built several centuries ago, and now an antique that could only be seen in museums. The size was big enough to carry all the people here and sail away with ease.  

The ship rose upside down from the deep sea. So it was only natural that the hull was facing upwards and the sails pointing downwards. In Mazzaroth, there was the sea where the sky should be, so from the perspective of people, it was as if an overturned ship came down from above. 

Tattered sails and rotting decks filled Yugeon's vision. The more the ship's body was exposed, the stronger the fishy smell that could only come from rotten seaweed. A wet, gigantic body swimming overhead..... was reminiscent of Almuten. 

He couldn't pinpoint the reason, but the ship felt ominous. It was something that shouldn't exist in the world. Even so, he couldn't take his eyes off the ship as if he was possessed by something. Before he realized it, Yugeon was gasping for breath under the mask. Already forgotten Heesu's warning to save his breath in panic. 

"Yugeon-ah." 

Shinje pulled Yugeon close to him. Yugeon, who was staring up absent-mindedly at the boat, finally came to his senses. Holding Yugeon's wrist like a lifeline, Shinje glared upward without letting down his guard. 

Black matter began to trickle out between the decks of the ship. Ttuug, ttug. The gooey mass fell to the ground, then stuck themselves together, slowly taking shapes. The grotesque shapes looked like no other creature on Earth. If the antique ship was a ghost ship floating in the deep sea, then those must be the ghosts haunting the decks. Hiding under the deep dark water, waiting for a sacrifice to fall. 

One of the shapes slit wide open what was believed to be a mouth. A chilling shriek came out from within as if it had risen from the depths of hell. 

"Kig, kigkigkigkigkig......... keukekekeg!" 

"Euagh!" 

The Espers, who had surrounded the altar, and were attacking blindly, stopped in their tracks. The gust of wind disturbed the battle lines. 

"This is why I advised him not to jump in right away."

He gritted his teeth, turned his head and shouted. 

"These are the things that protect the altar. Kill them all!" 

"Finally. I get to fight for real." 

Already warmed up, after cracking his knuckles in advance, Chan grinned and jumped out. As soon as he leapt off the ground, his appearance changed in the air. The black tiger quickly disappeared into the darkness. 

Starting with him, everyone readied for battle one after another. They have already come to this place anyway, it was too late to expect to go back out alive in one piece. What was the point of being scared now? 

"Where are these things' eyes anyway? Their whole body is just a black gloop, how am I supposed to control them?" 

Taein moved in stony silence, and Heesu followed after him, grumbling. The other Hunters did the same. Bari, Yehan, Midheaven, Firdaria, Taegwang...... All the Orders joined in one after another. The Espers, who were only focused on the altar, turned the direction of their offense. Before deciding who took the credit in the end or what not, they had to fight for now. 

A fierce battle ensued in the empty square in the center of the labyrinth. Since the entire bodies of their enemies were made of soft, dark substance, there was no way to know where the vital points and weaknesses were. Besides, most of the injuries they inflicted upon them recovered too quickly. 

The black figures surrounding the area continued to make low-pitched noises. They were strange, bleak cries, resembling the noises of the jammed electronic devices, or the echoes of the caves. Furthermore, since the cries of different pitches were piled on top of each other, it was as if they had become the audience of a chorus of beings not of this world. Not long after that, the Awakened close to them began to show abnormal symptoms. 

"My, my head....." 

They didn't miss the chance. Black mucus wrapped around the Hunter's neck the moment he covered his ears with both hands and looked around in panic. Wadeug, kadeudeug, poeg! The joints in his neck were severed, and soon the head was separated from the body and rolled on the floor. He couldn't even close his eyes. 

"Guide Baek Yugeon!" 

Shinje's cry pierced his ears clearly, cutting through the melancholic chorus. There was no time to think. Yugeon reflexively lowered his upper body. Shortly after that, a black tentacle flew overhead. He dodged it, rolling to the side, and fired a shot when he got back on his feet. Of course, that one shot didn't incapacitate it. But he was able to create a very small crack. That was enough. 

The tentacle gripped by Shinje's psychokinesis was twisted by an invisible force. Taein strode up from behind and brandished a knife. Poisonous smoke rose from the neatly cut cross section. 

"Are you okay?" 

Taein cupped Yugeon's cheeks covered with the mask and made him turn his head. Yugeon nodded his head, trying to avoid inhaling the miasma as much as possible. The noise only made his head throb and made him feel uncomfortable, but he didn't lose his reason like the others. Shinje sighed and turned around. 

"Guide Baek Yugeon will be fine for now. The higher the rank, the greater the effect of that noise." 

This was the reason why the attack on Mazzaroth was so tricky. Elsewhere, of course, the higher the rank, the better. Those with low mental resistance would not survive a labyrinth full of hallucinations. But here, it was the other way around. The black figures surrounding the altar were only guards. Most Awakened lost their reason as soon as they stepped into the altar, or even before they could. 

How did they get through this place 13 years ago? Literally, ‘sacrifices’ were offered to the ‘altar’. While the others blocked off the black figures, a relatively low-ranked person among them, who was less affected by the sound waves, was forced into the altar. When that person failed, the next person, and the next person after that. In the order of the lowest ranked to the highest, they offered their peers one after another. At the time, Shinje only observed at the sidelines without feeling any particular emotion. Since he knew his turn would never come anyway. 

Only after the number of people was reduced by about half, did someone miraculously succeed. He was an Awakened with an explosive ability. Shinje didn't know what he saw inside the altar, or what he went through. All he knew was that he blew himself up, destroying the altar from the inside. 

"The effects are similar to rampage or side effects. If the rank is low, you'll end up only with muscle pain and body aches, but when it comes to A or S ranks..... eug."

Shinje staggered on his feet. He then frowned and covered his ear with one hand. Blood trickled down between his fingers. Even the Hunter whose head was cut off earlier didn't bleed from his ears.  

"Leader!" 

Shinje turned his head around. There was no focus in his eyes. A thin layer of blood had welled up under his bloodshot whites. Rather than recognizing Yugeon's call, it seemed like he just moved reflexively when he heard a sound nearby. 

"....." 

Yugeon quickly grasped the situation. Several options ran through his head. Should he run away, should he remain in place, or should he approach? He could lose his life with just one wave of his hand in anger. But if he left him like this.....

There was no other option. He hurriedly stretched out his hands. Neither the threat to his life nor the fear of possible pain came to mind at this moment. The only thing he could think of was that he had to guide him right away..... But to do that, he had to reach Shinje first. Yugeon's hand, which he thoughtlessly reached out into the air, gradually drew closer to Shinje. Their fingertips brushed against each other. Just a little bit more and he could.....

Kuung! The ground shook from the heavy impact. When Yugeon turned his head to check, he saw it. A huge black tiger readying itself to launch an attack on him, and then lunged towards him, no focus at all in his eyes that had always gleamed brightly like a wild beast fixated on his prey. The hearing of animals had always been more sensitive than that of humans. On top of that, he was not just a beast, but a transformed S-class Awakened. Chan must have been affected much more severely than the others, since even Shinje couldn't come to his senses. 

It was too late to avoid it now. Even if he tried to dodge the attack, Chan, who had lost his reason, wouldn't hesitate to bite off his neck right away. Yugeon closed his eyes tightly. And instead of stepping back, he jumped forward and embraced Shinje. 

"Ugh!" 

A violent shock struck his whole body. The blackened vision was overturned once. The pounding head made it harder to breathe. Was he attacked by Chan in the end? His whole body felt like he had been beaten all over, but there was no cutting pain like being bitten by the sharp fangs. His body floated into the thin air. Yugeon gasped and let out the breath that was blocked inside the mask. Damp, toxic air flowed through the filter. 

"Look carefully, before....." 

A familiar warmth. Yugeon opened his eyes. Shinje released the arm that was holding him tightly without taking his eyes off Chan. 

"Before you attack." 

One of his arms was limp, and drooped on his side, motionless. Blood trickled down his fingertips. It was the price for blocking Chan's full offense with nothing but his bare body. Recklessly, while keeping Yugeon tucked in his embrace, so that the claws and fangs wouldn't reach him. One arm was a bargain.  

"Leader."

Chan, who had stepped a few steps back after the attack was blocked, shook his head as if he were dizzy. The large and sturdy black tiger's body staggered, unable to properly balance itself. 

"Go. It's dangerous." 

"No. I have to guide him." 

"How are you going to do that with that guy in that state?" 

"....."

"You did a good job earlier. Thanks to you, I've come to my senses. But not now. If you get scratched by those claws, Guide Baek Yugeon won't end with just a little blood like me."

Shinje smiled and raised his injured arm, as if he didn't feel an ounce of pain. The injury looked ghastly. The beast's fangs tore it from the shoulder blades down to the elbow. As if one had jabbed a carving knife deep into the clay and stirred it haphazardly.  

"Chan-ie will come to his senses if he gets hit once or twice. Don't worry, hurry up and go."

As soon as he finished his words, he used his ability to slam Chan's head on the ground. Chan growled and immediately jumped up to his feet. The black shapes in the vicinity rushed in without missing an opening. One of them showed interest in Yugeon who was falling back, away from the fight between two S-classes. The moment he faced the shadow head on, which he couldn't even tell where its head or the body were, his body instinctively stiffened. 

"Keug..." 

You damn limbs, move, please move! Yugeon gritted his teeth and repeated to himself. The fingertips finally moved. Taang! Flames shot through the darkness. 

"Yugeon hyung!" 

Yugeon reflexively turned his body around, before he could check if the bullet had hit the enemy. 

"Dodge!" 

Something exploded just behind his back. All the organs in his body throbbed from aftershocks, and nausea rose up to the tip of his tongue. His vision quickly blackened from the edges and he could no longer see a thing, the sound of his own breathing too loud in his ears. Yugeon flew through the air, and crashed into a hard wall. The impact numbed his whole body. Slowly, as he rolled over on the cold stone floor, he came to his senses. 

"Heog, heoeog......." 

He raised his head up. The moment he confirmed the identity of the wall he had slammed onto, a chill went down his spine. The wall and floor as cold as ice, and the dark interior that felt as if he was staring into a gaping maw of a giant beast. He was right at the entrance of the altar. It would be less dangerous in a vacant lot away from the battle, but he landed here, of all places. 

A gruesome battle was still ongoing outside the altar. People no longer trust each other. Even after fighting together amicably, there was no telling when someone would suddenly go mad and attack their allies. The black shapes would oftentimes assume the disguise of their allies, and ambush them when caught off guard. Even now, Almuten must be hiding somewhere, and enjoying the sight.  

Chan was finally back in his human form, apparently free from the influence of the sound waves. However, there was no place on his body that looked unscathed from head to toe. Heesu angrily plucked out his blood-soaked ear mic from ears and flung it away, and pulled out his gun. Shinje sprinted past the front of the altar. 

"Leader." 

Shinje did not look back, however. As if he didn't hear Yugeon's voice at all. 

"Leader!" 

"Guide Baek Yugeon, where are you?" 

Shinje turned his back to him, muttering under his breath, and wiped the blood off his cheek with the back of his hand. It was a quiet whisper, only for his ears, but Yugeon heard him clearly from right behind him.  

"Here... eug!" 

The hand that he had reached out was blocked. Like there was an invisible glass wall. There was Shinje right in front of him, and he was too close as if he could reach him just by stretching out his hand..... but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't reach him. Yugeon jumped up in panic, banged on the wall, even kicking it. He then tried firing a bullet at it. However, the bullet stopped in mid-air as if the stop button in a video was pressed, and then dropped to the ground. It didn't even make a sound. 

"Yugeon-ah. Yugeon-ah? My guide. Where did you go....." 

"Leader, here. I- I'm here!" 

"Why is there no answer? Yugeon-ah, I can't see you. Let me hear your voice."

"....."

"Huh? Please..." 

As he wandered around searching for Yugeon, Shinje looked increasingly anxious with every passing second. He didn't look like the person who calmly led the people no matter what happened ever since they stepped foot into Mazzaroth. Taein came up to him. 

"Where is the guide?" 

"....."

Shinje looked back at him with a pale, expressionless face. Taein's heart sank. What does that reaction mean? Did something happen to the guide? If the worst imaginable thing happened......

"Was he attacked?" 

Shinje, standing blankly still like a doll with broken strings, shook his head a beat later. 

"No, it's not it. He didn't get hurt. I was holding him just a little while ago...... Heesu saw him running in this direction. But I can't find him anywhere."  

"Damn it." 

Taein gnashed his teeth. Expletive words unexpectedly came out of the mouth of the man who had always used exclusively stiff, businesslike speech. Since both of them were at most a few meters away, Yugeon could see and hear all their expressions and voices. 

"The coordinates say it's around here. Biometric numbers are also normal." 

Shinje nervously rubbed the watch worn on his wrist with his blood-stained fingertips. 

"Is it around here?" 

Taein looked inside the altar. Yugeon flinched. Their eyes met at a distance of only a hand's span between them. No, he had the illusion that they had eye contact. After staring at Yugeon for a few seconds without blinking, Taein swiftly turned around without hesitation. 

"There might be something wrong with the necklace, or he might have dropped it somewhere in a corner that's hard to find, so I'll tell the members to look for him first....." 

Taein trailed off, his back bending sharply forward, turning his gaze to the ground. He clenched his teeth and pressed his fingers gently around his eyes. The image of his dead little sister popped out of nowhere without any notice. Just like the last time he saw her, covered in dust and blood. 

Sensing that Shinje and Taein had approached the altar, a swarm of black shapes seethed across the battleground and pounced on them. The two were instantly in danger of being completely surrounded. Every structure in Mazzaroth was malicious and meticulously designed. The dreaded crises echoing from all directions was rebounded off the walls and floors and concentrated at a single point. That is, right in the middle of the square, the altar. The longer they dragged their feet in front of this, the quicker their mind would sink into the abyss. 

"Let's break through this swarm first. There's nothing good about hanging around here." 

Yugeon blankly watched their backs as they walked away. The arm that he had raised up to bang on the invisible wall slid down. 

I'm scared. Triumphing over all other thoughts, the first thing he felt was fear. Now he had fallen into the middle of the enemy's territory, and there was no one beside him. Even when he was kidnapped and dragged here, someone was always with him and he was never alone until he was rescued. 

But he had come this far, and his hatred grown too big to give in to this fear. There was no longer a thing that could hold back him, and the desire to survive and run away had already died with Heeseong's death. 

"Since it's an altar....." 

There should be a sacrifice. If he could get his revenge, he was willing to give up his own life, even as a sacrificial lamb. Didn't he remind himself countless times that this place would be his grave?

He clasped his gun tightly and turned on the small light he had always carried with him for emergencies. The heavy darkness, where he couldn't even see an inch ahead, lifted just a little bit. He started walking towards the inside of the altar, relying on the small light. Cold sweat broke out on the hand holding the heavy gunbarrel. 

He had no option, but to move forward. To whatever in front of him.

He walked from the entrance for quite a while. He killed the sound of his footsteps, and kept his finger on the trigger so that he could fire at any moment since he had no way of knowing what would pop out at any time. 

No matter how much he walked, the altar seemed to have no end. As expected, it was odd. Obviously, the altar wasn't this big from the outside. It was a building that looked narrower than the one-room apartment where Yugeon and Heeseong lived together, which felt immediately cramped as soon as a few people came inside. 

The further he went in, the more he felt his sense of time and direction had become blurred. He was starting to get confused about whether or not he was even moving his legs properly. Yugeon bit his lower lip, forcing himself to regain his composure. If he stopped here or ran away, scared that he could no longer go any further, that's when he would be trapped in this darkness forever. 

Tag, tadadag. Tadag. An eerie noise grazed his ears. It was the sound of something hard and light hitting each other. Goosebumps ran down his forearms and neck. 

"Gasp..." 

Yugeon stopped his footsteps at once. He waited for a while, but nothing happened. The small flashlight was still illuminating the radius of about a span with a hazy light. The enemy did not appear, nor did anything abnormal happen to his body. But was it true that nothing really happened? Could he even trust his own senses? 

After a short moment, he managed to pull himself together. There was nothing he could do here, but move forward. Perhaps because of his mood, the light seemed to be getting fainter, and the surroundings darker. Even though it was a small portable light, there was no way the battery would die after leaving it on for a few minutes at most. Not long afterwards, he heard it again, tadag, tag. 

"....."

He heard it clearly this time. It wasn't an illusion, either. Yugeon turned his head to where the sound was coming from. He should find out where it was coming from, mutant or not. 

Suddenly, bright lights flared out from the flashlight he was holding in his hand. It was white all over at once, as if the flashlight had burst. It was too strong a stimulus for the eyes accustomed to the dark. He swallowed a groan and closed his eyes tightly. The field of vision slowly regained color as it was reconstructed. And what unfolded before him....... was a scene that was so familiar and at the same time unfamiliar. 

Tag, tadag, tag, tag. His father was tapping the steering wheel with his fingertips like a habit. His mother sitting in the passenger seat was looking outside the car with her arms crossed. 

"Ah... shi– You scared me."

An irritated voice of a boy going through puberty was heard right next to him. Yugeon was startled and threw himself back. 

"Why did you suddenly stick your face out to the front? I thought you were sleeping. I was surprised." 

Heeseong grumbled and pushed Yugeon's shoulder. As a result, the game console in his hand fell on his lap and rolled onto the seat. He realized it only then. His view was strangely low. The game console that he just dropped also felt heavy enough to be held with both hands. 

"Baek Heeseong. Are you angry with your younger brother again?" 

"Ah, really. It's not like that." 

Their car was crowded into a bridge together with a sea of vehicles. He could clearly see the characters on the access gate at the entrance and on the navigation screen, Hwangan Bridge. 

"Yugeon-ah, my baby. Did you sleep well?" 

His mother looked back at Yugeon and laughed. His father also chipped in, his eyes still fixed to the front. 

"You've been whining in your sleep for a while. Did you have a nightmare?" 

"Do you have motion sickness? This child doesn't say a thing even if he's sick, it's really like playing a guessing game. Yugeon-ah. Does your head hurt? Do you want to vomit?" 

"We should have given him some motion sickness pills before we left. Honey, where did you keep the meds?"

"I think it's better not to. We shouldn't give children adult meds carelessly." 

"Yeah, let's hurry up and go. I really feel like throwing up!" 

"This kid, why do you sound mad whenever you open your mouth? Huh, Heeseong-ah. We'll just drop you off here, go on foot by yourself. Walk ‘til you get home. Eung?"

There was a casual, intimate conversation around him. He felt so strange. Did his parents' voices sound like this? Did 16-year-old Heeseong look this young? Even the river swaying under the bridge he could see outside the window was calm. 13 years ago, Hwangan Bridge..... Yugeon was back there once again.  

The car soon reached the middle of the bridge. The exact spot where the car was wrecked by the monster rising from the river. The same nightmare that haunted him for countless nights was about to begin again, the sequence unchanged. He had to stop it, somehow. Yugeon bounced up from his seat.  

"Dad!"

The address felt awkward in his mouth. It had been so long. Did he even have a mother and a father? For a split second, such a thought flashed past his mind. 

"We have to stop. You can't go any further." 

"Hm? Son, why's that?" 

A calm reply came back from the driver's seat. His father's fingertips were still tapping the steering wheel lazily without even looking back at him. Yugeon became nervous. The car would come to a sudden stop soon enough. The disaster was about to repeat.....

"The quiet baby is suddenly making a fuss. Do you want to go to the bathroom? Or are you hungry?" 

"You can just eat the candy you bought earlier." 

Heeseong piped in, still sounding annoyed. His mother rummaged through the bag with a convenience store logo on it. They bought this when they stopped by the highway rest area earlier. 

"Let's see, let's see. Do we have anything to feed our second child?" 

Yugeon's face had turned pale, his head emptied. It didn't seem like they would believe it even if he insisted that a giant mutant would suddenly show up and slaughter everyone on the bridge, and that they should escape immediately. Especially if it came from a 10-year-old who just woke up from sleep. He looked around frantically. Almuten was about to pop out of the river at any moment. The memory of a huge tentacle slamming down on the clean windshield flickered through his mind— 

But nothing happened. Everything was as it was. The car moved slowly, and soon drove past the middle point of the bridge. Traffic broadcast was still playing on the radio, cars packed full on the roads, and exhausted looking families chattering lazily inside their own vehicles. 

"I think he's a little light-headed from his nap." 

"Dad'll drive as gently as I can, so hang in there. Let's go home and eat something delicious later."

"Dad. What are we having for dinner tonight?" 

"You want your dad to make Heeseong-ie's favorite salmon?" 

"How nice. But honey, do we have salmon at home? Do you think ingredients just fall from the sky?" 

"Huh? They don't?" 

"I'm tired. What cooking? Let's just order delivery. My boys are okay with it, right?" 

"....." 

Yugeon's face was still pale, but he tried to make a smile. Everything was so different from what he remembered. The memory of that unforgettable day, repeated countless times as nightmares and hallucinations, was now twisted into something unrecognizable. 

"Ah, the road is starting to open." 

The traffic jam that had been blocking all sides gradually eased. Perhaps it's past the rush hour. The cars stagnant on the roads came to life. He could even now see the end of the bridge in front of him. 

He knew it deep down in his heart. The moment the car carrying Yugeon and his family completely left the Hwangan Bridge, the site of the disaster..... everything he'd been through would remain just a nightmare he briefly had in his childhood. That he would live an ordinary life as someone's son and a younger brother, and he'd never get tangled up with Erewhon or Almuten. 

His heart was beating like crazy. How much had he longed for this ordinary daily life for the last 13 years. How desperately had he struggled to save his older brother, the only link between the present and past, despite being horrifically violated, broken and driven nearly to madness.  

Perhaps everything could be undone as if it had never happened. If he stayed still like this, he could go back home with his family, have a delicious dinner, and fall asleep in a warm bed with his parents looking after him. He could go to school, meet his friends, study, and when he came home, he could watch TV or play games, just like other normal kids around his age do. 

Losing his parents and Hwangan Bridge tragedy, living in poverty with his brother, the encounter with a man named Woo Shinje and becoming Erewhon's exclusive guide, and the death of his older brother felt like pieces of delusion without any sense of reality. Now that he was on his way home with his family, it felt all the more real. 

Yes. What he thought was his reality in the first place might have been a dream. A kind that felt quite real when you were dreaming, but was quickly forgotten once you woke up. 

His tense body slowly loosened up. He wanted to let go of everything and forget all about it. He was so tired. Yugeon stared absent-mindedly out of the window and softly closed his eyes. If it wasn't for a silhouette that flashed past by the darkening vision. 

"Gasp." 

As if ice cold water was poured on top of his head, he quickly came to his senses. A child's fern-like hand clutched the window frame. 

Someone in a dark red uniform was standing at the edge of the bridge, where an average person could never climb without any equipment, in a precarious position where he could fall even if he missed a step. The Awakening Management Headquarters periodically conducted patrols and safety checks to protect the people from mutant threats. So it wasn't strange to see an Esper on the bridge. However.....

The Esper looked too young. He already had a tall and strong frame unfitted to be called a boy, but he still had a child-like air around him to call him a young man. Wearing a white shirt and a black tie, and a tight-fitting uniform, he looked pious like a priest, and at the same time strangely decadent. 

His hair, skin, and eyes were all gray, as if the red uniform he was wearing had stolen away all the colors of his body. But that was the impression you would get if you looked at him from afar. If you looked closely, you wouldn't even notice the uniform because the face was inhumanly beautiful. It was the most colorful gray he'd ever seen in his life. 

His gray-brown hair, which also looked silver under the light, fluttered in the rough wind blown across the wide river. The empty glass-like eyes underneath his bangs were staring at the car Yugeon was in, or more precisely, at Yugeon. 

He didn't look like a living, breathing person at all. Instead, it was like a life-size doll that was elaborately crafted. He looked nothing like the man who was always smiling like someone who was born with a smile on his face, who would rattle on the most despicable words with a smirk hanging on his lips like breathing. 

"Woo Shinje?"

After whispering the other person's name under this breath, Yugeon cleared his throat and called out a little more clearly. 

"Leader." 

10-year-old Baek Yugeon, who lived an ordinary life, and 18-year-old Woo Shinje, who was born and raised in a government sanctioned laboratory. They looked at each other. It was something that didn't happen in real life. 

Shinje's gaze, staring at Yugeon from afar, fell a little downward. He then gently moved his lips as if whispering. There was no way he could have heard him, since he was in a moving car, and the distance between them too wide. Something flashed through his brain like a bolt of lightning. Yugeon followed Shinje's gaze and looked down. He saw what he was wearing. There was a big puppy drawn on the front of his sweatshirt. 

"Do you know what this is?"

"It looks like..... a puppy to me. Here, the ears are dropping, this is the eye, and this is the nose. Is not it?"

"Yugeon-ah, I don't know if there really is a god in this world. But I..... I want to treat you like I would to a god." 

"...Ah." 

Yugeon huffed out a bitter sigh. His heart that had hardened over time like a dam burst open without notice. One crack, after another. Emotions that he couldn't put a name onto poured out constantly. His heart was boiling, but his head was icy cold. This wasn't where he was supposed to be. 

"Mother, father. Brother." 

He made up his mind, and opened his mouth. 

"Hm, why?" 

"Yugeon-ah?" 

"Huh? Why are you suddenly using words that you don't normally use?" [4]

The family turned around to properly look at him. Their looks and expressions were different, and they were all tired and annoyed from the long car ride, but there was an inevitable affection in their eyes. He made sure each of them was engraved in his eyes. 

Yugeon did not know how to speak eloquently or affectionately. So he just smiled broadly.  As bright as possible. 

"I loved you." 

Without hesitation, he swung open the door of the moving car. A strong gust of wind scratched his cheeks and neck. His ears were momentarily deafened. The air he inhaled smelled of water. The river coursing underneath the bridge raged violently. As if mocking him for giving up his last chance to fall into a peaceful dream. 

Yugeon closed his eyes tightly, and threw himself out of the car. He didn't look back until the end. Soon, the whole world was dyed black. 

"Keug....." 

The pain never came. He could only feel the cold, hard stone floor. Yugeon quickly stood up. Beeeeep! Beeeeep! Warning beeps rang loudly from the mask, alerting that the oxygen level had just dropped below 20 percent. He lightly pressed the button to turn off the warning beeps. He turned off and on the light held in his other hand. Fortunately, it was still working normally. 

He started walking again. But stopped after just a few steps. There was a familiar figure ahead. He could see the tattered hospital gown under the dim light. 

"....."

Yugeon gritted his teeth. He gripped the flashlight harder. Damn Almuten. You really know how to play with people. 

"Yugeon-ah? Is it you? Why now..... ack!" 

Heeseong grimaced when the light suddenly shone directly on his face. He was sitting on a platform in the middle of the aisle. The stone platform was quite high, so even though Heeseong, who was about the same height as Yugeon, was sitting on it, his bare feet did not touch the ground. 

"Why are you doing this?" 

"What?" 

He looked emaciated and was covered with dirt and scars, just as Yugeon last saw him. But at least he wasn't dying like it was then. The body was also not connected to the monster with the hideous blood vessels. 

"Are you having fun doing this? Is this the purpose of you mutants?" 

"What do you mean? Why are you getting angry all of a sudden? Baek Yugeon, do you even know how long I've been waiting for you here?" 

"....."

"Ah, yeah. You think I'm hilarious, aren't you? That's understandable. I know you think having an older brother like me is a bother for you."

Yugeon laughed under the mask. Heeseong, who had been grumbling, flinched. 

"Do you think I can't kill you if you look like hyung?"

"You're so mean. How could you say that....." 

He stretched out his skinny arm and pulled Yugeon's sleeve. Yugeon put his finger on the trigger without hesitation. A click echoed off from the darkness. 

"All right. Let's not talk. Again, it's all my fault. I should die." 

Heeseong sighed and shook his head. He then rummaged through the pockets of his thin hospital gown and pulled something out. 

"I was looking at this picture while waiting for you. You remember this? The one we took when we went on a trip when we were young. I couldn't bear to throw it away, so I still have it, but you never asked me to show it to you." 

It was an old, faded family photo. What was in Heeseong's wallet at the time of rescue. The two brothers lost their parents in the Hwangan Bridge disaster, and at the same time awakened, the older as an Awakened, and the younger as a Guide. After that, they were called to the center, where they were tested for traits over several weeks and went through the registration process. When they returned, their small fortune had been taken away by their relatives whom they didn't even know. That was how the two ended up wandering the streets. That photo was the only way they could see their parents alive, preserved in a memory. 

"Yugeon-ah. We've had a hard time so far, right?"

Heeseong obsessively looked down at the small photo, where the shapes were now difficult to recognize since the colors had faded away. 

"So..... why don't you stop now?"

"....."

"You hated those people. I know you even wanted to kill them. If you left them behind, they'll all die, so doesn't that mean it will work out as you wished? Do you think they will let you go after this battle? No way. After being treated like that, do you still want to save them?"

"....."

"I also lived really hard. I wanted to die several times a day, but you were there. I know I'm a good-for-nothing older brother, but I'm still an older brother. I couldn't bear to leave my younger brother alone, so I endured it. But in the end, the world is going to be ruined. Even the most powerful Awakened are dying, so what can nobodies like us do? Let's quit it now. Eung?"

He bowed his head and covered his face with the hand that was not holding the photo. Suppressed sobs burst out from under the back of his thin hand, where the skeleton was sticking out. 

"I really wish this world would be ruined." 

Yugeon stood on the steps in front of the altar like a stone statue, and continued to observe him with a blank face. Only when Heeseong's long and faint cries gradually subsided, he spoke to him in a soft voice. 

"You know. I think there are two things you don't know." 

Heeseong sniffed instead of answering. His shoulders under the baggy hospital gown trembled intermittently. 

"First of, it's been a while since that photo was burned down." 

"....." 

Heeseong's soft cries stopped at once. An eerie silence spread through the still darkness. Yugeon took aim, and muttered with a monotone voice. 

"You should have checked things carefully before you try to fool someone." 

"Yu- Yugeon-ah. Baek Yugeon! What are you saying? I'm trying to fool you? Wake up, I'm your brother!"

"Secondly, my brother never once said he wished the world would be ruined. Even though we had such a hard time, he only said he wanted to go to college when all the mutants were gone."

He pressed the heavy gun firmly against Heeseong's forehead. Heeseong, no, something that was creepily mimicking Heeseong, looked up at him with shocked eyes. There was not even a trace of crying on his thin face, let alone tears. 

"Die..... Almuten." 

Yugeon muttered through clenched teeth. He pulled the trigger at the same time. Because the gun was fired pressed close to the target, there was a dull rupture sound instead of a loud, ‘taang’. The head was shattered at once, and a viscous liquid burst out. It wasn't blood or brain matter. But mucus that exuded a terrible rotten smell, just like the black figures guarding the altar. He only shot the head, but the body soon decomposed and absorbed into the floor.  

Stone dust fell from the ceiling with a heavy sound. This space, the entire altar was collapsing. The cracks began with the stone platform where Heeseong was sitting. Yugeon stood alone in the middle of the collapse, dazed. Even when the floor he was standing on began to shake, and gravel and stone dust hit his body, he did not budge. Through the cracks in the ceiling, he could see the roaring sea from above. The dreary starlight of Mazzaroth felt uncanny. 

"Ah." 

At last, he dropped to his knees, like a puppet with strings cut off. He no longer had strength in his legs. He couldn't see where the gun had gone, and the mask, which had come loose from the impact, came off. 

"Ah..." 

He heard several pairs of footsteps rushing towards him in the distance. Even that gradually faded away. Just as Yugeon was about to collapse completely, two bloody hands suddenly reached out and cupped his cheeks. 

"Yugeon-ah." 

A sigh-like whisper spilled over his lips, and Shinje immediately leaned in and kissed him desperately. Like a being who could only breathe through Yugeon's existence. It was not just a metaphor, it was a fact. He couldn't breathe this whole time he was searching for Yugeon. As if the dark, cold water of the deep sea, the water named despair, was tightening down on his lungs every second, making him feel like he was going to die. 

"Heueub...... heug." 

Yugeon gasped and opened his mouth. Immediately, Shinje's tongue slipped through the gap. Their front teeth carelessly clashed against each other. He didn't know when or how he got scratched, but he soon tasted blood on his tongue. They kissed for a long time without caring about the other's eyes and the chaotic surroundings, and Shinje only reluctantly leaned back when he sensed Yugeon was out of breath. His trembling hands gripped Shinje's collar with difficulty. 

"Leader, I, cough, I..... I destroyed it. What's in there...... heueug, I." 

"I know." 

The cheeks exposed under the mask were thin and pale. The rim of his eyes were also dry. Rather than making that face, he'd rather Yugeon cried out loud. Shinje gently cupped Yugeon's cheeks.  

"Guide Baek Yugeon opened the way. Thanks to my guide...... We've come this far." 

"Heog..... Haa." 

Because the mask was broken, the miasma flowed into Yugeon's airway without any filtering device. The back of this throat tasted of iron. He wandered through the outskirts of the maze without a mask when he was kidnapped by Major Jeong Changhyeok. Back then, he remembered he was a little out of breath and light-headed the whole time, but it wasn't this hard. 

"Guide Baek Yugeon." 

Shinje's voice, sinking low, felt so far away. Yugeon tried to answer him. But couldn't. The burning heat clogging this throat soared up with each gulp of breath he tried to take in. 

"Cough, cough, cough!" 

Yugeon coughed furiously with his head down. Bright red blood spattered all over the ground. Taein, who he didn't know when he had come over, hugged him and made him lean against him, and covered his nose and mouth with his shirt sleeve. 

"Breathe in here. It's better than breathing the air as it is." 

"....."

"You can't lose consciousness. Guide Baek Yugeon, can you hear me? Don't panic and try to breathe properly. Hurry." 

"Guide-nim!" 

Someone was calling Yugeon from afar. It was Hyeonji. 

"Wait, eug. Wait a minute." 

She stumbled on her foot as he ran, calling Yugeon at the top of her voice. Her eyes stained with blood and dust were painfully distorted. She was missing one leg from below the knee. The hem of Erewhon's uniform, the gray slacks, was soaked with blood and torn in the middle. No matter how reliable the colleagues were, a battle this high level would have been a brutal one for an C-class. It must have been even harsher since she didn't possess the monstrous resilience like that of the S-classes. 

Hyeonji limped closer, using a long rifle as a walking stick. Shinje and Taein watched her, their guards up. Usually, they were high-ranking people who rarely breathe the same air as her, but now they didn't even have time to recognize it. 

"Use this." 

She took off the mask she was wearing. A bare face, wet with sweat, was revealed. This mask also had an oxygen level barely around 15 percent. Still, it would be much better than nothing. 

"Nuna..... what about you?" 

"I'm fine. I can endure this level of poison. I just wore a mask just in case, but I didn't know it would come handy like this." 

"But." 

"If I don't wear a mask, it will just burn my throat a little, but if guide-nim doesn't wear it, you'll die."

Without giving him a chance to refuse, she quickly fastened the mask on Yugeon's face. 

"There are probably dozens of C-class people like me here. But there's only one guide. So this is okay. This is the right thing for me to do." 

She repeated the same thing over and over again as if reassuring both him and herself. And smiled at Yugeon. Ignoring the severed leg that she hadn't stopped the bleeding properly. 

"Hey, if you have time next time... Would you like to go get a cup of coffee again?" 

"....." 

Yugeon couldn't answer right away. The intangible stone in the pit of his stomach weighed down on his heart. Hyeonji was trying to sound cheerful, but he had a hunch that this moment would be the last time he spoke to her. He bit down on his blood-stained lips covered under the mask and lowered his gaze. 

"I'll buy it. Next time." 

Hyeonji smiled instead of answering. After confirming that Yugeon was wearing the mask properly, she bowed deeply to Shinje and Taein once, and limped back to her team, holding on to her rifle. 

The dreadful singing of the black shapes suddenly stopped. The silence was even more sinister. People gathered the dead or seriously injured and no longer able to fight in one place and prepared for the next. There were countless casualties, but no one was crying. They were already too accustomed to despair and pain. It was not too late to unpack the grief and sorrow after the battle. 

It was said that destroying the altar would reveal Almuten's main body. And a little while ago, they didn't know how, but the altar was destroyed. The altar that didn't budge even when hundreds of Espers poured down their attacks on it was destroyed, by a guide.  

They have finally reached the final stage of the abyss. Only the final boss remains. 

Kung. There was a vibration that sounded like the beating of a blunt drumstick. His heart was beating anxiously. Far above, the raging sea, which was so dark that it was impossible to see through its insides, gradually brightened. Like the water was brooding a glowing deep sea creature. The Awakened prepared for battle, never taking their eyes off the sky. 

"It's coming. Get ready." 

"Yes!" 

The eerie light filled the entire Mazzaroth. Kung. Kung. Kung. The vibrations gradually grew stronger. The surface of the deep sea shook violently. And finally..... something rose upside down from above breaking through the raging waves. Horrified, those who had been staring up were all stunned in place. They had never seen such a colossal mutant. 

Even the tissue lump Almuten made temporarily for terraforming was already astronomical in size. The tentacles that stretched out from it were enough to easily smash the buildings in one swing and drag down the helicopters to crash. They barely managed to stop terraforming, and only after the entire downtown area was turned into ruins. 

Yet, that was only a temporary body. Almuten's main body was large enough to cover all of Mazzaroth. On its black and rugged surface, the long years that human standards couldn't even fathom were buried intact. Lights leaked out from between, as if toxic gasses, countless craters and meteorite fragments left on the surface of an ancient star were rattling around. 

Shinje suddenly turned around. The backlight casted his entire face in darkness. Only a faint smile was visible at a glance. 

"Leader?" 

"Hm." 

"Do you have anything to say?" 

"Eung. There is." 

He bobbed his head up and down. It was an attitude that did not fit the situation, and he didn't seem nervous at all. 

"I've been meaning to tell you this. I was thinking, should I do it or not, but now I just realized, wouldn't it be a waste if I didn't, and lost the chance forever?"

Before entering Mazzaroth, he had grabbed Yugeon on impulse. But just as he was about to open his mouth, he stopped himself. He just kissed Yugeon's fingertips, stifling back the words he couldn't spit out. But now it seemed he could hold back no longer. The words that had been kept on the tip of his tongue all along without being able to swallow them completely, or spit them out, poured out against his will. 

"Yugeon-ah, you..." 

Their contract ends in death. What Shinje asked of Yugeon was simple. Follow him into Mazzaroth and die together. 

Shinje had never thought about life after defeating Almuten. Since he was created with the purpose to kill Almuten, he thought it was only natural that he disappeared along with its death. And at the same time as his death, he promised he would drag down all the Awakened, Guides, and mutants, and this sickening and damned world to the underworld as his companions. Would there be a more splendid suicide than this? It was what he had always longed for. 

Thus, Shinje created Erewhon, gathered people who shared his will, and chased after Almuten, destroying himself in the process deliberately not receiving guiding for a prolonged time. Then, at long last, he found someone perfect as his suicide companion. He had faith that only Yugeon could lead him to his death. 

But who would have known. Once, he thought dying together was the best confession of love he could make, and when he was just waiting for the moment to escape this tiresome abyss, that the guide he finally found would drag him into an even deeper one. But now it's different. Shinje didn't want Yugeon to die with him. Even after Almuten's death, and when he also met his end at Yugeon hands as Shinje requested.....  Yugeon had to continue living. 

He had no choice but to admit it now. Even if one wanted to say that he was mistaking the means for the end, the means had been twisted long ago unbeknownst to him. He had at first wanted to use Yugeon to kill Almuten, but at some point, he had been trying to kill Almuten to save Yugeon. 

Baek Yugeon, my guide. A guide who twisted my destiny. You who made me longed for a life I never wanted, Shinje whispered with bitter affection and sweet hatred.

"You... you must live." 

"What do you mean?" 

"Exactly what I said." 

"It's just like last time. Why are you talking like you're not going to live anymore?!"

Yugeon responded with a stiff face. Without knowing the cause, he became indescribably anxious. Shinje, however, did not answer in the end. After saying what he had to say, he turned around as if relieved. 

Almuten slowly descended to the ground. It was as if they were seeing the live collision of planets, a living apocalypse up close. A few people with weak mental strength staggered to their knees or even collapsed. However, the colleague next to them immediately helped them up. 

"....."

Yugeon glared at the monster floating above his head without missing a moment. He'd never forgotten its appearance. How could he? It was the one that took away his parents in the first encounter, and his older brother in the second. 

The sight of one of Almuten's limbs flying into their direction was reflected in his eyes. It looked like a mixture of mollusk tentacles and crustacean legs with jagged spines. 

"Maintain the battle formation!" 

Simultaneously, the Awakened launched the strongest attacks they could make. The war has begun. 

Volume IV Ends.

[1] archaeopteryx - wiki

[2] munyeong asking heesu ‘you still haven’t changed the way you speak?’; that’s the part a little tricky to explain, but the way heesu’s dialogues are written in raws is like he talks a little?? off. a bit childishly, to say the least. I believe taein also scolded him back in ch4, not to talk like that. Since, well, he’s already 20. (or i think that’s what munyeong meant to say.) 

[PR: he talks like creepy ghost children in horror movies.]

[3] heesu actually said ‘son of a cat’ akdhgkdsfl but it sounded weird? so fucking pussy cat it is. 

[4] it’s a little obvious, but just wanna stressed that yugeon was at first calling his mother ‘mom’ ‘eomma’, father ‘dad’ ‘appa’, but he suddenly switched using formal ‘mother’ ‘eomoni’, ‘father’ ‘abeoji’ that’s why heeseong asked him why was he calling them like that, since no 10 year old would call their parents like that.

translator note: aaaand we are done with volume 4! time flies so fast. ଘ(੭*◕ฺω◕ฺ)੭