"Who are you...? How did you get inside?" the group leader asked.
"I was trapped inside the darkness and only came out when I found the door... Why would I stay in your place?" Jiho replied with frustration, glancing at the leader who seemed to be accusing him. He also looked in the direction where the yellow cat had disappeared.
"You just came out of our shelter... Turn around and look behind you as well."
Jiho, feeling confused, turned his head to look behind. There was a large house surrounded by many other houses, all standing together like a cluster. The surroundings seemed completely unfamiliar to him.
The place he had been trapped in for the last hour and a half was far from this. Even though the house seemed huge, if he spent just 15 minutes walking around, he could reach every corner inside.
"What... Where have I ended up? Until now, I was stuck in the dark... You all aren't actually in that house, right?"
"Leader... He doesn't seem to be lying... Should we ask him about our situation?" Seo-Yeon, a girl from the group, spoke up as she leaned close to the leader.
"Right... It's possible he got in here by his own methods, without permission. But it's strange... We should first ask how he managed to come out from inside," the group leader said, pausing and turning to Jiho.
"Hey, Bart... I'm the leader of this group... It's not safe out here. Let's go inside first. I'll allow you entry to our shelter."
With that, the leader stepped forward, grabbed the door handle of the large house, and pulled it open, leading the way inside. The others didn't hesitate, following him inside and greeting Jiho with smiles as they entered.
"Yo, bro... You are pretty strange. Normally, it's only the rightful owners who can open the shelter doors. But you... You came out from inside... How did you manage that?"
Jiho, still confused, looked at the young man, lively and energetic, who was standing beside him with a hand on his shoulder.
"My name is Woo-Jin... What should I call you? And by the way, you don't look like you've been here long..." Woo-Jin asked, his curiosity evident.
"Jiho... Han Jiho... Where is this place?" Jiho replied, brushing Woo-Jin's hand off his shoulder.
"Hah… brother… Did you run away from death without even listening to a word? You came here without knowing anything, huh?"
"Death?... What are you talking about…?"
"Hmm…"
"Hmm…"
"No… It's impossible. Everyone who dies always encounters death first… No one is exempt… You… You came with me… The leader has already granted you permission."
Woo-Jin's actions were extremely erratic, causing Jiho to stare in disbelief as Woo-Jin rushed inside the house.
Jiho stood there, stunned. The words "everyone who dies always meets death first" echoed in his head over and over. The worry he had been harboring had, in the end, turned out to be real.
There were still many unfinished matters in his life. He still had to give his sister the birthday present he had bought. His novel wasn't finished yet. His friends… And moreover, his beloved's wedding.
"Kyi…"
As the name left his lips, it felt as if the entire world stopped. He stood frozen, unsure of what to do next. Was there anything he could still do? He wanted to cry, but the tears wouldn't come.
It was impossible… Those things weren't really happening. He couldn't accept it. First, he would need to ask the strange leader how to leave this place.
"What are you doing outside? Hurry up and come inside."
The sound of a voice brought Jiho back to his senses. Near the door of the house, Woo-Jin was standing with the leader.
Jiho walked toward the door and entered the house. At first, he felt a strange force pushing him, but the sensation disappeared in just a moment. Within seconds, it vanished.
Inside, the surroundings were vastly different from what he had expected. The place was brightly lit, everything appeared fresh and new. Jiho himself felt disoriented in this unfamiliar situation. The people here and everything around him seemed completely at odds with the death-related experiences he had known.
"Where is this place?" Jiho asked, staring at the leader.
"Follow me," the leader replied without answering the question and led Jiho into another room.
Jiho quietly followed, his mind racing with thoughts, trying to prepare himself as best as he could. Despite fearing the worst, he couldn't help but hope that all of this was just a nightmare.
Once inside the room, the leader pointed to a spot and motioned for Jiho to sit. He himself took a seat in a chair. The room was somewhat spacious, designed like a functional workroom with tools and brightly lit by lamps.
"There are many names for the place you're in right now… the afterlife, the spirit realm, the dark corner of the world, and so on… But those of us here, we call it the Land of Trials…" the leader explained.
"There are only a few ways to reach this world… As far as I know, there are only three paths. The first one is when you arrive here after crossing over, during a state where your spirit is separated from your body… It's a moment when your fate is undecided, caught between life and death. If your spirit becomes lost in this world and can't find its way back, or if it disintegrates for other reasons, it becomes impossible to return to the living world…" the leader explained.
"The second way to reach this place is to flee before death catches you… You haven't seen death, have you?"
"I'm not dead yet..." Jiho said with a steady tone, his words cutting through the tension.
"Whatever... But when someone dies and opens their eyes, the first thing they see is death itself. Each person may see it differently, but they all agree it is the same entity," the leader continued.
"Most of the souls, like us, who are still trapped in unfinished ties, are not ready to start a new life. After crossing the bridge of forgetfulness, when all the memories of this life fade away, I will no longer be myself... And there is a rumor about the door that can go back to the world of the living, which you can find if you seek it. However, if more than seven days pass and the Dark Energy builds up in your soul, you won't be able to meet death again."
The leader's voice echoed softly through the room, the words lingering in the air.
The last sentence stirred something deep within Jiho. "A door back to the living world..." The thought sparked a flicker of hope in him. "But what if, after seven days, I still can't find the door?" Jiho asked, seeking clarification on the crucial matter.
The leader's face broke into a slight smile, as if amused by the question.
"Well, then you won't have a chance for a new life. In this world, when no one remains to remember you or recall your existence, you will continue in your spirit form, lost and forgotten. When no one is left to remember you, your very existence will fragment and disappear… But if there is enough Dark Energy, it will still be a different case..."
"Dark Energy..." Jiho thought to himself, processing the weight of the leader's words.
"What I know is that Dark Energy arises from negative emotions... Not just humans, but all living beings possess such a thing. This place is a reflection of the living world... the dark side of the world that has come into being through the accumulation of Dark Matter. That's why Dark Energy from the living world gathers here. Most of the events that occur here don't affect the outside world... But if too much Dark Energy accumulates in one place, that's an exception," the leader of the group continued, as if he were aware of Jiho's thoughts.
"Dark Energy is the resource that allows spirits, who have no one left to remember them, to remain alive. If you absorb more Dark Energy, you can stabilize your existence. Some might even cause dangers to the living world... But the more Dark Energy you absorb, the less control you have over yourself. The worst case is when your form starts to change, and eventually, you will no longer be remembered. Spirits like this are called Evil Spirits."
"Evil Spirits are rare... Only those with extreme anger and negative emotions transform into Evil Spirits. Ordinary spirits, who are only thinking of finding the door to return to the living world, don't change unless they've absorbed enough Dark Energy to stabilize their existence. I've been here for over 30 years... I've seen Evil Spirits only a few times. You'll learn more about this as you go on."
"The third method is unique... I haven't experienced it myself, so I'm not sure if it's real or just a myth. But it might be connected to the Land of Trials, as we call this place."
"According to rumors, there are doors in this world that connect to other realms. If a spirit opens a door and can pass the trial, they can go to the place corresponding to that door. But these doors change over time, and their locations shift, so few people have seen them. The door you found in the darkness might be crucial for us."
"Could it really be true? If the doors keep changing locations over time, how are we supposed to find them? Unless they appear directly in front of us, there's no way to track them down... I doubt anyone has ever actually encountered one," Jiho muttered, his voice tinged with doubt.
The group leader chuckled lightly, a knowing glint in his eyes. "Oh? If they didn't exist, how do you think such rumors even managed to spread here? This isn't the kind of tale that gets passed around easily…"
"I haven't seen a door myself, but I've met someone who did. Back then, he was too busy running for his life from hellhounds to make it inside. He told me the doors that link to other realms are... extraordinary. The moment you see one, you'd know without a doubt. But even so, here I am—still searching for them after all this time."
Jiho found himself at a loss for words. A heavy sigh escaped his lips.
End – 3