"Huff… Huff… Huff…"
Yunnie's breath hitched as he sprinted through the muddy forest, his bare feet sinking and ended up slipping through the mud ahead.
The cold earth clung to his legs, weighing him down, until he finally lost his footing and crashed into the wet ground.
"Ha... huff..."
He didn't get up. Instead, he stayed there, fists clenching as he slammed them into the ground. Slowly... Frustration and confusion tighten in his chest.
Why was he running? What was he even running from? Was he afraid of death… or simply obeying Seon's harsh words?
He glanced down at his arms. Blood pooled around the edges of a fresh cut he didn't remember getting, but it was something else that made his stomach twist.
Dark, vine-like marks crawled up his forearm, coiling around his skin like a poison etched in black ink, inching closer to his wrist with each passing second.
A shiver ran through him as he stared at the mark.
"So… I ended up getting corrupted too…"
The words left his lips in a fragile whisper, the realization freezing him with dread.
Desperately, he tried to heal it. But nothing happened.
He gritted his teeth and repeated.
Nothing happened.
Repeated once more.
And yet again, nothing happened.
He slumped back, letting his gaze drift up to the dark sky overhead. For some reason his heart began to turn heavy as he watched helplessly beneath that empty sky.
"What am I supposed to do?" His words hung in the stillness, swallowed by the quiet night.
Running felt pointless, yet staying seemed equally hopeless.
Seon's voice echoed in his mind.
"If you are only a dead weight, get out of my sight."
The memory struck deep, tightening around him like a vice. No matter how much he tried to brush it off, the words stuck, snaring him in his memories.
Without his healing… he was worthless. He couldn't even protect himself, let alone others. So why keep going?
'If only… if only I were stronger.'
He bit his lip until he tasted blood, a bitter tang mingling with the tears slipping down his cheeks, merging with the dirt below.
"Am I… really weak?"
The question lingered, heavy and raw, as if the answer would decide his fate.
The world around him blurred, fading into a distant, darkened haze. Then suddenly, a familiar voice—slipped into his mind.
("Of course not, Paris")
("Why keep running?") it coaxed. ("Why struggle for those who will never understand what you could truly become?")
("Let me in") the whisper turned insistent, curling around his thoughts. ("Do not shut me out, Paris.")
Just as Yunnie's vision began to blur, his mind slipped deeper into that dangerous call. His eyes began to darken, as his skin slowly turned into stone.
It was then another voice broke through, like a shout.
"Yunnie!"
The sound pierced the haze, and Yunnie's eyes fluttered open. He found himself looking up at Ortos and a group of villagers, their worried faces grounding him in the present.
Someone pressed a cool, wet cloth to his forehead, and he also showed a wave of relief.
"Oh, thank god," Ortos sighed relieved. "Your heartbeat was so faint… we thought we'd lost you."
Yunnie blinked, disoriented, his thoughts tangling as he tried to piece everything together. His throat was dry as he groaned, struggling to sit up.
"B-Bishop…?" he rasped. "How… how long was I unconscious?"
Ortos steadied him, exchanging uneasy glances with the others.
"We only just found you lying here, barely breathing. You've been out for some time."
Yunnie's heart lurched, and memories immediately flashed back. "M-Madam Prophet?" he asked, scanning Ortos and the villagers' faces for any sign of her. "Did she… did she come back?"
The villagers looked at each other, their expressions grew more puzzled.
"What happened to Miss Prophet?" one of them finally asked, the question settled in a silence that followed.
****
[ The system can't allow you to do that. ]
[ You can attempt to die if you want ]
[ The system will also not stop you if you wish to destroy this world ]
[ But the system will not allow you to conspire on killing the Creator ]
The messages scrolled through Seon's mind like a heavy chain wrapping around her thoughts, leaving a strange knot of confusion.
She'd always thought of the system as a rigid AI—a mindless tool of the gods, engineered to enforce order.
But now it was responding directly to her thoughts, actively blocking her will.
'Is this what they call, a bug in the modern world?'
"You, what are you?" Seon's demanded an answer as the question lingered.
[ The system cannot reveal anything further ]
Flat. The words replied felt like a dead end.
Seon herself didn't try to pursue further.
Seon looked around at her surroundings. Time seemed to drag on forever. Even though she had no trouble processing her ideas, she felt stuck in what felt like an eternity.
Even the slightest effort to move her limbs seemed heavy as if they were composed of stone.
The same as her surroundings.
Leaves hung suspended in midair, drifting down in a languid, frozen cascade. The monster moved in disjointed frames, each motion a full five seconds apart.
Her own limbs felt heavy, her own heartbeat thrumming like a distant drumbeat as she struggled to lift even a finger.
"Time manipulation?" She murmured.
[ The system will give you help ]
Before her, the familiar interface of the stats screen flickered to her sight.
___________________________
Stats:
|The Fool | The Magician | The High Priestess | The Empress | The Emperor | The Hierophant | The Lovers | The Chariot | Strength | The Hermit | Wheel of Fortune | Justice | The Hanged Man | Death | Temperance | The Devil | The Tower | The Star | The Moon | The Sun | Judgement | The World|
___________________________
[ Invest something if you wish to survive ]
Seon's eyes skimmed to the titles laid upon her.
She was still confused by the archetypes and didn't know which to choose.
Seon isn't scared of what it can do. Rather, it's more accurate to say, that she felt bewildered knowing 'nothing' in this current system.
She wanted to ask which was the most convenient to pick, but her pride wouldn't allow her to ask it.
'What do I need right now?' The question looped in her mind.
'Death could be a trap or subjective, Devil seems dangerous, and I'm not truly sure what the others symbolize'
'Soon her eyes landed on the 'Strength'
"I invest in the strength" she replied.
________________________
[System: Are you sure you are willing to invest in 'The Strength (VIII)?' ]
[ Yes / No ]
________________________
"Yes"
________________________
[ Notice: Invest 50 Arcana points to receive the Level 5 Utopia of Strength? ]
[ Arcana Points in items: 50 ]
________________________
"Yes."
A quick ping marked her acceptance, and then, inexplicably, a small brown hamster rolled out of the system screen and tumbled to the ground. Seon though held her attention on that creature as she scanned for the system's messages right in front her.
________________________
[ System:
The Utopia level 5 Strength Arcana: 'Hunter' has been provided ]
________________________
________________________
[ System:
Subject Seon Vel'Seol obtained a normal uniqueness. 'Pre-guess' ]
________________________