In the desert where Sihyun and Hamin vanished, Han Inyeong emerged. Unveiling his concealment, Gwei scrutinized the successful activation of the return gate, his lips curling slightly upwards.
Rumors of a Quadruple's appearance in Korea swiftly spread worldwide, reaching even China. Starting with the fact that this Quadruple wasn't just someone with a good class but also a promising talent from a Korean awakening institution, undergoing three awakenings, and practically being a Triple, as well as one of the awakened classes being Copy, stirred the appetites of various countries.
Even though a Quadruple was already rare, possessing a New Class like Copy made it even more enticing.
However, what one finds appetizing may not be so to others. Korea wouldn't readily expose such a valuable Quadruple, and it wasn't just them who coveted the boy. Thus, the master of the top guild in China, the Jincheon Guild, issued this command to Gwei:
"If persuasion fails, kill him."
If they couldn't obtain him, they should eliminate him.
Receiving the ruthless contract, Gwei headed to Korea and, after three months of lurking, succeeded in extracting top-secret information. After deliberating for a week, he decided to intervene in the Quadruple's end-of-month evaluation.
Since persuading the Quadruple seemed impossible, there was no choice.
Moreover, it seemed that this Quadruple boy had ties with Ruth, known as the world's top-ranked, and appeared to have a close relationship with his friends. Judging by the reputation, even if threatened to come to China, it didn't seem likely that he would.
It was more convenient to kill him outright than to attempt futile persuasion. Even if he were a once-in-a-century talent, what use was it if they couldn't get their hands on him? Gwei's method of dealing with the Quadruple was simple. It involved tampering with the return gate the boy would use during the end-of-month evaluation.
No matter how strong the Quadruple was, he was still just an immature child. The talk of a newborn awakening crawling around. Boys like him were struggling even in the shadow world against skilled A-rank awakeners, so Gwei anticipated nothing but annihilation without even needing to watch.
Having left no traces behind, Korea's association would likely turn a blind eye to the actions of the top elite, and considering the boy entangled with the Quadruple was the brother of the leader of the "Redem" guild, they might even expect a schism within the Korean organization.
Having predicted the impending turmoil, Gwei leisurely departed from the desert.
The return gate, which had changed from black to white, shimmered lightly.
***
When Sihyun opened his eyes around the time the sticky black light clinging to his body disappeared, he looked around, finding himself surrounded by a bizarre space of navy and black. If they had boarded the return gate, they should have arrived at school as usual, but this place wasn't the school or even the desert from moments ago.
"Hey, Kang Sihyun."
Hamin, who had been scanning the surroundings, spoke. Sihyun stared at the boy, who looked dimmer than usual in the dark.
"What?"
"Do you think this looks like a school to you?"
"No."
"Really?"
Though he clearly knew the answer, the boy asked, drawing his sword. Swish! He suddenly slashed through the dark space. The tip of the sword that tore through the air fell down emptily. Hamin, who didn't feel the sensation of slicing, furrowed his brows.
"I've never heard of a teleportation error...."
At the boy's murmuring, Sihyun surveyed the misty space now covering them. It didn't seem to be a space created by an Irregular like Venom. But it was as clear as day that something was amiss. The return gate wouldn't have brought them here under normal circumstances.
Sihyun lowered his head to check the ground he was standing on. He noticed the disappearance of the teleportation mark with the white pattern. His blue eyes narrowed. Knowing that there was a teleportation gate here meant that this error hadn't occurred naturally.
Did someone tamper with it?
Or did one of the teachers make a mistake?
The fact that a teleportation gate was drawn here meant that someone had come here and activated the teleportation gate connected to the return gate they had stepped on. Feeling a throbbing sensation in his head, Sihyun sighed deeply while pressing his temples. Instead of deducing who the culprit was with so few clues, it was more important to find out where they had been taken and seek help.
Trying to see if they could contact the school, he pressed the pairing button, but an error code popped up.
"Hamin, try pressing the pairing button."
Asking to confirm if it was just his that was malfunctioning, Sihyun watched as Hamin pressed the pairing button once and made a face. Without even bothering to check the message that appeared on his spear, Sihyun glanced around him with a perplexed gaze. As he took a step forward, he felt as if he were stepping on melted jelly, sticky and damp.
"I told you, things with you are never ordinary."
After trying several times to press the pairing button, Hamin, looking at the malfunctioning silver ring, spoke. Sihyun, who had no involvement in this situation, felt unjust and was about to retort but sighed instead. It wasn't a situation to argue.
"Don't pick a fight, just think about where we are. Do you think it's Korea?"
"I can't be sure, depending on where an Irregular resides, the terrain may vary."
"That's true...."
As Sihyun's words trailed off, he recalled the special terrains in Korea. No matter how hard he studied and borrowed Yoo Seowoo's notes, he only knew the learned content, so only a few places came to mind.
Ulsan, which turned into a giant forest and swamp when insects and giant worms appeared.
Andong, which turned into a lava zone as Irregulars lit fires and opened rifts.
And....
Continuing his thoughts, Sihyun unknowingly grabbed Hamin's arm.
There was only one place that fit these conditions.
Ground erosion starting from the bottom, swallowing an entire island whole—a phenomenon unprecedented in history. Since the appearance of Irregulars, it had even made it to the list of the top 10 most dangerous areas in the world. Although he couldn't recall anything detailed from the two months ago when he passed by, there was one thing Sihyun remembered vividly. Carefully scanning his surroundings, he cautiously spoke up.
"Hey, could it be...?"
"...?"
"..."
"If you're going to start, why not finish? What's up?"
Seeing Sihyun hesitate after opening his mouth, Hamin pointed out his attitude. Despite this, Sihyun frowned, still not speaking.
Was it really that place?
It could have been a hasty thought. Sihyun's pondering, which followed that judgment, didn't last long.
...!
Suddenly, the ground began to ripple, and black jelly-like entities gradually took on the form of giant wolves.
"Damn," a curse escaped Hamin's lips. Watching several figures rise simultaneously from various places, Sihyun's expression hardened.
"They're aggressive today," Hamin complained about the sudden situation, gripping his sword tightly. Sihyun, too, lifted his staff, which had been lying down.
Clang!
Just as the wolf shapes were about to be fully formed, Hamin attacked, slashing off the heads of the black entities. He then pushed back a wolf rushing towards him and turned his back on Sihyun. Hamin took the right while Sihyun took the left.
Thud! Thud!
The sound of Hamin evading and striking the wolves was deafening. Meanwhile, the formed wolves began to attack Sihyun as well. Growls echoed ominously. The jewel on Sihyun's white staff shimmered.
"They're persistent," Hamin remarked, striking the wolves relentlessly. Sihyun, feeling drained by the ongoing battle with the wolves due to not fully recovering from the battle with Corpius, eventually resorted to using his powers.
Whack!
The delicate control and long-range skill support provided by his staff suddenly turned it into a mace, striking the head of a wolf. After defeating one, another immediately attacked.
"Growl!"
As a wolf clung tightly to his staff and wouldn't let go, Sihyun, with the wolf attached to his foot, engaged in a fierce struggle. Slowly retreating as the wolves pushed forward, Sihyun began to feel overwhelmed. As the battle continued for more than ten minutes, the number of wolves decreased to twenty. Sihyun, who had never exerted himself to this extent, breathed heavily, thanking Haru, who was not present, mentally. Without his help, they wouldn't have been able to defeat the wolves so effectively.
Periodically checking on Hamin and his condition while healing, Sihyun suddenly felt the ground beneath him start to tremble once more.
No longer wolves, but other figures were expected to emerge this time. They seemed more powerful than the wolves.
Swallowing hard as he watched the scene unfold, Sihyun's red lips parted.
A place shrouded in darkness up to the sky.
A land where Irregulars constantly emerged.
And a place where shadows were not visible.
A single location that met all those conditions flashed into his mind.
"The Shadow World..."
They were at a place known as the tomb of Awakeners.
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