As Akira walked out of the guild building, his mind raced in a whirlwind of conflicting thoughts, tugging him in different directions.
"I should visit Mom at the hospital," he thought, envisioning her lying in that sterile, cold room, hooked up to machines. The image burned in his mind, but his jaw tightened as he forced the thought away.
"But I can't. It's too dangerous. If I draw attention, if they find out I'm still alive... they'll come after me again. And I'm not strong enough to stop them. "I doubt even Eri would think I could survive that wound, the way they threw me into that dungeon. But still... I can't risk it now.Patience Akira Patience"
He kicked a loose stone on the path ahead, the small action doing little to vent the anger bubbling inside him."Damn it! I can't even visit her. I can't even see how she's doing!"
His breath quickened, his heart pounding with a helpless fury."I need to get stronger—fast. Strong enough to face anyone who dares stand in my way, no matter what."
The resolve burned fiercely within him, but the bitterness lingered."But for now…"He exhaled sharply, trying to steady himself."I'll call Grandma and ask her to visit Mom. She can check on her and let me know how she's doing."
With that, he shook his head and continued walking, redirecting his focus. His gaze shifted to his wrist, where the cursed tattoo pulsed faintly with energy.
"Thinking about it even more isn't going to help.Today I don't have much to do—I've already completed the daily quest from the system."he thought, pushing the darker emotions aside. "Now I just have to wait for a dungeon assignment. E-Rank and D-Rank dungeons don't do anything for me anymore. They're useless for leveling up."He sighed. "But what should I do with the rest of the day?"
As the thought lingered, a warm memory surfaced.
"Oh, right. I promised Yuna I'd take her to the park."
A small, genuine smile broke through his stoic expression.
"Guess that's what I'm doing," he decided, his steps lightening as he headed toward Cha-Jong's house.
With his decision made, Akira picked up his pace, the weight on his shoulders feeling just a bit lighter. Elsewhere, however, another storm was brewing.
Meanwhile, in the Guildmaster's Office…
Captain Imzar stood before Sylara's imposing desk, his breaths labored and uneven. Guildmaster Sylara leaned back in her chair, her piercing gaze locked onto him. Grido stood nearby, arms crossed, his usually calm face now a mask of suspicion and concern.
"What is the meaning of this commotion, Imzar?" Sylara's voice was sharp and authoritative, cutting through the tension like a blade.
Imzar's knees wobbled, his composure crumbling as he struggled to find the words. His hands clenched and unclenched at his sides, his throat dry as he tried to speak. Sylara's gaze bore into him, unrelenting, and a bead of sweat trickled down his temple.
"It's about the dungeon, Guildmaster," he finally managed, his voice trembling. "The one you canceled—the one you asked T.E.R.R.A. to reevaluate because of the immense mana it emitted."
Sylara's expression grew colder, her fingers tapping the desk rhythmically. "Yes, I remember. What about it?"
Imzar's face twisted in anguish, his knees buckling as he collapsed to the ground. "I made… a terrible mistake."
Sylara's eyes narrowed, her voice taking on an edge of barely contained fury. "Don't tell me you did what I think you did, Imzar."
She rose from her chair, the air around her crackling with suppressed power.
Imzar clenched his fists, his teeth grinding audibly. "Since that day I lost to that brat… to Akira…" He spat the name like a curse. "I've felt worthless to you, Guildmaster. Like I've lost my worth."
His voice cracked as he continued, his head bowed in shame. "I thought… if I could successfully raid the dungeon with my team—the one you postponed—I could prove my worth again. Regain your recognition. Prove I wasn't useless."
Sylara's eyes blazed with fury, her aura flaring as the room grew oppressively tense. "How dare you!" she snarled, her voice shaking with restrained rage. The room seemed to grow colder with each word.
"No, Guildmaster!" Imzar shouted, his voice desperate. "Hear me out until the end!"
Sylara's expression didn't soften, but she gestured sharply for him to continue, her presence demanding obedience.
Imzar gritted his teeth, his trembling hands gripping his hair as he recounted the events. "I took my team and entered the dungeon… At first, it seemed manageable. There were monsters waiting at the entrance—evolved ones, true—but we fought them. We handled and killed them."
His voice wavered, as though saying the words brought the battle back to life in his mind. "But as we moved forward…" He paused, his breathing shallow. His hands clutched at his head as though trying to hold back the flood of memories.
"What happened, Imzar?" Sylara demanded, her tone sharp but undercut with growing concern.
Imzar's face twisted in anguish. "It wasn't just monsters waiting for us. Beyond them, deeper in the dungeon… there was something else. Someone else."
"Someone?" Grido interjected, stepping forward. His calm facade cracked, replaced by confusion and worry.
"Continue," Sylara ordered, her voice now laced with a dangerous edge.
Imzar's body quaked, his hands falling to his sides as he raised his face, pale and drenched with sweat. "It was a person," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "No… not just a person. Something far worse."
Sylara leaned forward slightly. "What do you mean, 'worse'?"
Imzar swallowed hard, his throat dry. "His strength… it was beyond anything we'd ever faced. His mana was… unnatural, suffocating. At one moment, it felt like the dungeon itself was crushing us under its weight."
The captain's voice broke, his trembling more pronounced. "In seconds… he killed most of my teammates. They didn't even have time to react. He moved like a shadow, faster than I could track, and his strikes were—" He stopped, his voice choking on the words.
As Sylara thought, "What is he saying? A figure so powerful that a B-rank couldn't even track?" Her jaw tightened, fingers gripping the edge of her desk. "Then how did you escape, if he was that powerful?"
Imzar's eyes brimmed with tears as he answered, his voice heavy with guilt. "Jin Ael… He… He used one of his skill called, Spatial Shift. He pushed me away, changed my location to the dungeon entrance. I didn't want to leave, but he… he gave his life so I could escape. So I could come here and tell you."
Sylara's sharp intake of breath echoed through the room, her fury momentarily tempered by the weight of the revelation.
Imzar's voice cracked, his head bowing so low it nearly touched the floor. "I'm so sorry… I never expected to face something like that inside the dungeon. Jin Ael's sacrifice… it must not be in vain."
Sylara closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to control her anger. "Did you learn anything else about this… person?" she asked.
Imzar lifted his head, his eyes wide and filled with fear. "I think…" he paused, shaking, "I think he's a Demonic Human."
The words lingered in the air like a bad omen. Sylara's eyes widened in surprise, and for a moment, her composure faltered. Grido took a step back, his face a mix of incredulity and fear.
"Why do you think that?" Grido asked, his voice louder than he intended.
Imzar's voice quaked as he answered, the memory visibly shaking him to his core. "The mana… It wasn't like anything normal. It was darker… denser. It made it hard to breathe, hard to even think. And… when he used his power…" Imzar's breath hitched, his voice dropping to a whisper. "And then I saw it—the unmistakable, cursed crimson glow in his eyes. The mark of a Demonic Human."
Sylara and Grido exchanged a glance, their faces grim, as if the weight of the revelation had sunk into the room like lead.