The second Kim opened his eyes, a dim light hit his face and the low buzz of electronics filled his ears. He rubbed them a bit, annoyed, then he started looking at his surroundings. He found himself in a humongous room, filled with screens – or rather, they were Blanks. Kim let out a "What the...?" as he glanced around, but what he didn't expect... was a response.
"Surprised, Jaehyun?"
Kim paused, his face growing annoyed and disgusted. He could've recognized that voice everywhere. It haunted his nightmares, and it fueled his anger. It belonged to none other than Haruko Aratashi. He immediately reached for his sword, only to find out that it wouldn't budge from its scabbard. He let out an annoyed "Tch!" and let go of it, hesitantly. Damn it, he hated restriction magic. And the only one he's seen capable of casting such magic...
Before Kim got the chance to say anything else, he turned around. Behind him was Haruko, as he expected, but also... Adam White. Kim raised his eyebrow at this, surprised. What the hell was he doing here... Actually, what were any of them doing here? This whole thing was strange.
"Don't freak out, Jaehyun." said Haruko, his tone filled with slight disgust and hate. Then he continued, "We don't know anything, either."
"Shut it, Aratashi. I don't seek any conversation with the likes of you."
Adam cleared his throat, stepping in-between them, like a certain someone once did, attempting to calm them down. He spoke up, slightly uneasy, "Pleaseee, guys... Let's not cause a commotion in front of... that, okay?"
Adam pointed behind the two, at something sitting in the dark. He still seemed shaken up, or even a bit scared, but the other two were rather uncaring, their hands still on the hilts of their swords. Adam chuckled nervously, speaking again as his finger remained extended towards the shadows, "Guys, why aren't you even looking...?! Y'know, I have a feeling that whatever that is, it's powerful...!"
Kim clicked his tongue, letting go of his sword as it wouldn't unsheathe anyways, no matter how hard he tried. He pushed Adam away from him, and glanced at the darkness as he spoke, "Shut up, you bastard. I sensed it the second I opened my eyes."
"Well, how could we not? That aura... belongs to someone powerful." added Haruko, taking a step closer to Adam before continuing, "But, it's not quite as suppressing as that white void."
Kim smirked, crossing his arms as he chuckled, "Heh. Compared to that shadow... this guy's a small fry."
As Kim spoke, a creak echoed through the big room as the whatever was in the dark seemed to have gotten up from their chair. It took a step closer, their leg emerging from the shadows and the ground shaking as it did. Its leg was a powerful, deep blue, and as they kept walking, it was clear... this thing was a sort of oni. Sharp teeth, claws, horns, naturally tattooed skin... Anything an oni would have. Haruko and Adam gasped at the sight. Even for them, this was... new.
"Blue skin... and he's huge... A oni and giant mix?!" exclaimed Adam, taking a step back in fear.
"I've... heard legends before... about blue skinned oni. In the ancient war, it was rumored that they had a deal, the giants and the onis... I guess they weren't just legends."
The oni, who was seemingly the owner of this big room, let out laugh at the sight of the two shaken up men. But, its attention wasn't towards the two Fynns, who were accustomed to magical creatures and their history. No, it was towards the human, Kim Jaehyun, who was a stranger to them up until The Line. He was a normal human, and yet, he looked as annoyed and careless as ever. He didn't give a single shit about it.
The oni wiped away a tear from its eye as it calmed down and stopped laughing, then it finally cleared its throat and spoke with a thunderous, loud voice, "Welcome to the Surveillance Room, Creations. My name is Gallagher. But you can call me The Watcher."
Kim let out a sigh, finally uncrossing his arms and putting one hand on his hip while he waved the other in the air, annoyed, "So you're a he? Great. I'm glad the introductions are over. Send me back to the Resting Grounds, then."
"Ohoho. I'm afraid... I can't quite do that yet, Creation. You see, your—"
"Shut the fuck up."
"...Hah. Excuse you?"
The oni smirked, but behind it, he was angry. Furious. His eyes started filling with a blue aura, covering them whole. He raised his hands slightly, but he couldn't do anything reckless... Not to the top three.
"I'll give you five seconds to either apologize or explain yourself, Kim Jaehyun."
"You don't get to call us Creations when you're not the Creator."
"Wha..."
Gallagher's eyes went back to normal, his purple pupils emerging again from the deep blue that was covering them. His stance changed to a more casual one, and he remained silent for a bit. As he looked at Kim, who was as dead serious as always, he couldn't help but let out a small chuckle.
"Hah. Heheheh... Well, yes, I suppose you're right, Kim Jaehyun. Alright. I will refrain from using that term in your presence, Top Three."
"Is that us? We're... the top three of The Line?" asked Haruko, curious. He took a step closer as he spoke, now standing side by side with Kim, much to his disdain.
"That's correct, Haruko Aratashi. You three are the best Liners, at least for now. As such, you've been granted a special meeting with... well, with me."
Kim remained quiet as the oni spoke, his eyes ever so slightly widening as he looked around. Though his face remained stoic, his brain was going at a thousand miles an hour. Gallagher said they were the top three... But...
"Wait." interrupted Adam. He then cleared his throat, and continued speaking to the oni, "Then, what are our placements?"
"Oh, I suppose you three haven't gotten the chance to look at your Blanks yet. Well, no worries, I shan't keep it secret. You are number three, Adam White. Kim Jaehyun is second... And in first place, of course, is you, Haruko Ara—"
"Wrong."
The whole room went quiet as Kim spoke. Not even Gallagher said anything for a few seconds, before he raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms, a small smirk on his lips, through his fangs. Then, he spoke up with a curious expression on his face.
"If you're sad about being second, Kim Jaehyun, then yo—"
"No, you retarded giant. Aratashi isn't first. And neither am I."
"...And what exactly do you mean?" asked Gallagher, getting angry once more.
Kim took a step forward, pulling his sword out from his hip, with the scabbard still on and all. He pointed it at Gallagher, glaring at him – Kim stared at the oni with his eyes glowing so red, so crimson, Gallagher could've very well mistaken them for drops of blood. Kim didn't care that the oni was ten times bigger than anything he'd ever killed before, he kept his sword pointed at him with so much bloodlust on his face, so much killer intent, he could've very well been considered a planet level threat.
"Where the fuck is the true number one? Where is Felix Fox?"
Gallagher remained silent for a second, looking downwards at Kim. He raised his huge arm, and in front of him appeared a Blank, one visible to all three Liners. He shoved it towards them, as it floated above them.
"This is the leaderboards. And as for the Felix Fox you're talking about..."
Kim's eyes scanned the whole leaderboards, starting from the top. He wasn't fourth, he wasn't fifth, he wasn't sixth...! Where was he?! There's absolutely no way he wasn't in the top ten. Felix, the one who bested the number one? Felix, the one who always seemed to know what he was doing? Felix, the reason Kim was still alive?! Felix, the one who killed the Floor One boss?! That Felix?! No! This wasn't true! He had to be here, somewhere! This leaderboard... was wrong! It... It had to be...
Kim's panicked eyes kept dragging themselves over the whole list, his expression just as unsettled. Where was he... Where? Where could he be? Kim's eyes kept scanning the Blank, before he heard a small voice to his left – Haruko's voice.
"Dead... last...?"
Kim's eyes paused, they stopped scanning the Blank. He froze, his eyes widening. No... He was wrong. He had to be... There wasn't any way he wasn't! Kim looked down, all the way down, somewhere he hadn't looked at before... The last place. And, there he was. Felix Fox. Placed at...
"...Five-hundred ninety eight... Dead last... Felix is... the worst Liner? He's..."
All three of the Liners remained quiet as they read the Blank, over and over again. But it wasn't a lie. It was as true and clear as day... Felix was simply placed last. He was the worst one of all of the Liners.
...Right?
"No."
Kim stepped forward, towards Gallagher. His expression was nothing short of demonic, his sheathed sword in his hand. He raised it at the oni once more, his eyes emanating the same deadly crimson as before. He frowned in annoyance and anger before screaming, "This isn't the real leaderboard! It's a false!"
Gallagher sighed, looking down at the three Liners as he spoke, "My apologies, Kim Jaehyun, but not only is it not up to me to rank all of you, it really is the real deal."
"Like hell it is, you fat blue fuck."
"Kim Jaehyun. You do not wish for this."
Kim kept pulling on his blade, yet it refused to come out of its scabbard. He was getting madder by the second, as it wasn't responding to him.
"Who, then. Who ranked us all? Based on what?!"
"That is not for me to tell you."
"Then make yourself useful for once in your life and take me to someone who can tell me."
Gallagher looked at Kim for a solid second, before chuckling. The chuckling turned into full on laughed soon enough, as he slapped his huge knee in amusement. He raised his hand, a big Blank appearing by it. Then, a humongous blade came out of it, which Gallagher gripped by the handle, pulling it out of the Blank fully.
"Kim Jaehyun, I was specifically told not to harm Creations. But for you... I'll make an exception."
"Do you intend to kill me?" asked Kim, unbothered – amused, even. Not only did he not care, he had a sinister smirk on his face, basically asking, begging for a fight. And the oni was gonna grant him his wish.
"If you survive three swings, I'll let you be... for now."
And with that, Gallagher swung down the giant sword on Kim, with all of his might. By now, the other two Liners had already jumped back out of the fight's range. Haruko sighed and facepalmed, and Adam's eyes were stuck to the oni.
"Do you think it was a good idea not to tell him that onis are really confrontational creatures?"
"He knows."
"...What? He does?"
"Yeah. I'm not sure of it yet, but... I have a feeling he does know."
"Huh...? From who?"
"If my theory is correct, then... from me."
Back at the giant dust cloud that formed under the giant sword, Gallagher lifted it only to be met by shattered ground and nothing else. Kim was gone. He smirked through his big fangs, putting the sword over his shoulder as he started chuckling slightly.
"Heh. Not even one swing, huh? So much for being number two."
Right as he spoke, though, a yawn came from somewhere below him. Leaning straight on his leg, was nobody other than Kim, his arms crossed and his sword in-between them. He raised a palm and wiped one of his eyes, sleepy.
"Hey, here I was thinking you don't need any actual rest on The Line. I suppose that doesn't apply here, since we're not on it, huh?"
"You...! You're alive?!"
"Mm, quite easily, too."
Gallagher then let out a grunt and raised his foot, bringing it down on Kim with incredible force, the ground shaking once more under it. He stomped on that spot a few times, again and again, each met with a grunt and scream of annoyance from the oni. When he finally lifted his foot, looking at the crater he just created, he didn't see any blood down there. Not in it, not around it.
Instead, a bloody red streak appeared right by his shoulder – or rather, on his shoulder. When the oni looked to his right, in both horror and anger, he saw Kim once again, tossing his sheathed sword in the air and doing tricks with it like it was a toy.
"Hey, let's count all those stomps as a swing, 'kay? So, one more. C'mon, big boy."
"Jaehyun! How dare you use your Skills here, in this sacred place! You... You...!"
"Did you forget we're not on The Line right now? I didn't use any Skills, duuumbass."
"You fiend...! Fine! You want one slash?! Then I'll give you one slash!"
With that, the oni shook his whole body as Kim went flying with a "Woaho-ho!" and a chuckle. Gallagher then gripped his sword once again, and prepared to strike. And, well... that was pretty much it. Kim couldn't use {Shadow Step}, it was simply impossible in here, no matter what Kim tried. Gallagher knew everybody's Skills, he knew how they worked and he knew their limits. He wasn't The Watcher for nothing.
As the oni's giant sword started heading for Kim's body at some incredible speeds for something that big, Kim couldn't help but chuckle once more at the sight. He twisted his body in the air, and placed his sword back at his hip. Kim took in a deep breath, controlling his breathing as his hand gripped the handle of his blade, and a scarlet red surrounded both him and the sword. Timed seemed to slow down, and Kim could see it clearly – the path of the sword, his own falling speed, the oni's reaction time... He had it all figured out, right as he wanted it.
Kim took another big breath, and his hand started moving gracefully. His sword unsheathed with such elegance and glow, it was honestly blinding for everyone present. Kim's sword aura was blue as it came out of the sheathe, but when it clashed with the red one of its owner, it started shifting right then and there. Kim swung back at Gallagher, their swords barely meeting but making that big of a difference.
Gallagher's sword got parried upwards, missing Kim and leaving behind a humongous wind current as it whooshed past Kim's head, barely missing giving him a haircut. Kim smirked, before swinging his sword at nothingness once more and then simply sheathing it, slowly, as he kept eye contact with Gallagher. As the sword entered its scabbard, the red glow dissipated and Kim's aura subsided. As he fell, Kim crossed his arms and looked up at the giant, a condescending smirk on his face as he spoke.
"And that was swing number three, Gally."
Kim's momentum from the sword clash finally died down, and he started falling down towards the ground at now-alarming speeds. Yet, as all the wind passed him, he remained silent and smirking. Right before he hit the ground, a hand reached out and caught him, setting him down on the ground gently – Gallagher's hand.
"Alright, Kim Jaehyun. That was three swings."
As Kim was set on the ground, he let out a small "There, there." and started brushing dust off his long black coat. As he did, the two other Liners approached him slowly. Adam was quiet, and Haruko had a mixed expression on his face. Anger, disgust, surprise, a little bit of pride, even... He didn't know what to think right now.
"...Jaehyun." he said, as he finally got close enough to Kim.
"Aratashi. What now? You want a rematch from the Fifth Floor?"
"No. Not yet."
Haruko looked down at Kim's sword, the same expression on his face – somewhat content, but... saddened. Kim noticed this, and raised it upwards a bit from his hip, to get his attention.
"Don't tell me you want it back."
"...That's not why I'm here, no. That red Mana... I see you've truly... truly, made it yours."
"It's been mine, since it fell on my planet. I've just... only mastered it now."
The two shared a look, remaining stoic. Haruko spoke up soon though, a smirk tugging at his lips slightly, "Mastered? You've got a long way, Jaehyun. Just because you could unsheathe it while under this spell... doesn't mean you have it all figured out."
"And just because you could scream at the shadow in that void doesn't mean you get to lecture me, Aratashi."
"Heh. Alright, Jaehyun."
The two seemed to have put their killer intent for each other aside for a second, but that doesn't mean they necessarily liked each other. The three Liners once again glanced upwards at Gallagher, as he shoved the huge sword back in a Blank – which, now that they thought about it... They could see his Blanks, couldn't they? Before any of them got around to asking, though, the oni cleared his throat and snapped his fingers.
As he did, dozens of Blanks started opening up all around him. Each showed a different scene – many had big groups, some were showing smaller groups of two or three, and one of them, a singular, lone Blank, was showing a single man, alone in a white room.
"Felix..."
Gallagher smirked through his fangs once more, as the Blanks around him started to move around. They started spinning all around him, and Gallagher was looking down at the three, his hands spread out.
"Now, Liners. It's time to talk about why you were all gathered here."