Even as consciousness faded, many voices could be heard.
The sound of someone cursing under their breath, the loud flapping of a fantasy creature's wings, Hamin calling out to the fantasy creature, and Raocheon assessing the situation.
Kang Sihyun had to endure the misery that surged amidst the diverse cries of frustration, with his eyes weakly closed.
It was a sacrifice he never wanted to experience again.
He had never wished for others to sacrifice themselves in his place.
Yet, people always volunteered to protect him out of their own accord.
His father, who turned to ashes in the fire, too.
And the cursed Lee family brothers.
They always took upon themselves the deeds they wished to perform.
It was so in the house ablaze with fierce flames, in the Shadow World, and in front of an entity with an overwhelming presence they felt they could never defeat.
He wanted to protect, but he always ended up being the one protected.
He thought he had power, yet he was still powerless.
Suddenly, a burning sensation surged within him. He screamed in pain as though his chest was on fire, but no sound came out. The familiar voices around him gradually faded. Sihyun, writhing in agony, felt his consciousness slipping away.
It seems like he was fainting again.
Leaving behind the younger brother who lost his brother, and the boy who was mocked by the Irregular after following him to protect him.
He dreaded being left unconscious alone again.
The sensation of his body sinking heavily was not unfamiliar, and he cried out, though the cries did not escape his lips. He spat out his frustration internally, over and over.
The grievances about the many situations he had to accept as they came bubbled up belatedly.
Why did it have to be me?
The person who came to this place.
The person who bore a heavy burden.
The person who struggled desperately to save this world.
Why did it have to be me?
Why did it have to be us?
The beings who must lose someone.
The biting cold wind pierced through the bones as questions and rage poured out. A chill rushed over him. Then, flames erupted.
Hot and cold, he screamed.
In the dimming sight, light flickered multiple times, and the sky became the ground, and the ground became the sky. Lightning struck, and rain fell. Puddles formed from the rainwater. The puddles grew larger and soon became a vast lake, pulling Sihyun towards it.
With a splash, he sank deep into the water. His ears felt blocked, then the chill disappeared. The pain as if being burnt by fire also faded away. Only after sinking into the suddenly formed lake, did Sihyun escape the pain and slowly lifted his eyelids to see the dark world before closing them again. All memories flashed through his mind. It sounded like the whirring of a videotape being rewound.
Under the oppressive darkness that covered his eyelids, certain memories shone through.
There was himself right after he had possessed the body.
Standing in front of a mirror, touching his face in shock.
Then, he saw himself taking placement tests, followed by a scene of arguing with Seowoo, a boy with blue eyes. Those days felt terribly tedious and overwhelming, and he wanted to escape, but now he found himself missing those times, which made him laugh.
When he first possessed the body, he dreamed of returning to his original world, but now, more than a year later, he found the idea of returning to the past laughable.
Memories of the peaceful time preparing for the talent show during the school trip, being caught by Titan, rescuing a boy trapped in a laboratory, and roaming the Shadow World with Hamin came to mind. All memories that followed were of hardships.
Memories since Gula appeared.
Gula.
That being completely changed his life, which was already half-destroyed. It changed the lives of young boys and all beings living on the land.
It was the source of all calamities.
A murderous intent surged from within, to his own surprise. The emotion turned into a black flame, burning Gula in the memory black. Rage boiled over. In that moment, Sihyun was neither Yoo Sihyun nor Kang Sihyun.
He was not the boy suffering from possession, nor the boy who stood up to protect his people against a formidable enemy, nor the boy who lost his life to the calamity and cried out.
He was simply a being of destruction.
Looking at Gula in the memory, he felt his insides churn. He wanted to tear apart that calamity right away, to shred its body into pieces, scatter them across the land, and make sure it never came near his surroundings again. The level of malice he felt was so foreign that he was taken aback, but it was then he submerged into that malice.
[Do not look at it. It is an illusion
.]
A subtly familiar voice was heard from somewhere.
Sihyun recognized that voice.
It was a voice he had heard several times in his dreams and also emerged from the hallucinations shown by Septimus.
A large, thick hand covered Sihyun's field of view. The surging malice and the boiling intent to kill subsided as if they were a lie. Regaining his composure, Sihyun realized one fact.
One of the beings that appeared in the hallucination was a god.
Then, the being on the opposite side was.
His trailing thoughts were interrupted. The palm covering his eyes pressured his face, obstructing his thoughts.
[It seems too early for you, this is your limit it seems.]
What does that mean?
Again, it was a story I couldn't understand. It always had been. They speak among themselves, words unknown and unknowable to me, and they shake my life to its core. Kang Sihyun had experienced it, as had the gods and the children of Corpius. Being swayed by their words filled me with disillusionment. I no longer wanted to be influenced by anyone.
My life is not yours to control.
Unlike the conformity I had adhered to until now, a rebellious spirit was burgeoning within me, about to break free.
"I will show you everything. Then, you will gain the strength to protect what you wish to protect."
Ah....
"If you wish to blame someone, blame me, not that child."
Adam.
That was the first name I had given you.
The world trembled at the words of a voice that was neither male nor female, old nor young, but neutrally deep and profound. Heaven and earth reversed, dark became light, and light became dark.
The pressure on my face grew stronger. Kang Sihyun, struggling in agony, managed to free himself from the grasp of the god and was shocked by what loomed before him.
A massive darkness charged towards me.
With a gaping maw.
Swallowed whole, Kang Sihyun was consumed by the darkness.
***
When he opened his eyes again, Kang Sihyun was a small bird.
His body, long and white, resembled both a dove and a crow that had turned white. Though unsure of the exact species, he was certain of his avian form.
In a vast plain where the horizon was nowhere in sight, a robed figure lifted Kang Sihyun. Held in a palm far larger than the small bird, Kang Sihyun looked up at the entity.
The face was unseen.
Only the entwined purple, blue, and black of the robe and the bright gleam of three eyes were visible.
The entity facing Kang Sihyun blinked slowly and then bowed its head. As their foreheads touched, the robed figure spoke. A chilling aura from the entity enveloped Kang Sihyun.
A pain as if his heart was freezing over came over him.
Following the icy pain, a burning agony ensued, and Kang Sihyun thrashed about in his avian form.
Then, the small bird began to change.
Short legs stretched long and straight down; the torso elongated, dividing into hips, belly, and chest; wings turned into arms; and the beak into soft flesh. Kang Sihyun, in a daze, inspected his limbs. It was a form all too familiar.
He was human again.
As if enchanted, his mind clouded over. Kang Sihyun looked up at the robed figure with unfocused eyes. When their gazes met, all three eyes curved as if pleased. Kang Sihyun, unwittingly, opened his mouth.
"Ah, ah…."
He tried to speak, but no words came out; his mouth merely moved in vain.
"Adam."
"Ah, dam."
"Yes, that is your name."
Mimicking the awkward pronunciation, the robed figure laughed and once again stroked Kang Sihyun's head. Turning, the figure called someone else. Soon, a woman in black, contrasting with Kang Sihyun's white, stood by the robed entity, looking curiously at Kang Sihyun.
Her eyes were red.
Her hair and eyes were entirely crimson.
Kang Sihyun, equally fascinated, stared intently back at her. The robed figure allowed them a moment of mutual observation before bringing the two human-shaped beings closer, just as it had done with Kang Sihyun.
"This child is called Eve."
"Eve…"
"Yes, a child bestowed with the power of creation from me. I shall grant you powers soon, so do not feel slighted."
The robed figure, preempting any potential disappointment from Kang Sihyun without him having to speak, assured him of forthcoming abilities. Kang Sihyun gazed at the woman, who beamed back brilliantly, standing dazed until he abruptly regained his senses.
As if a fog lifting from his memory, the consciousness of Kang Sihyun fully returned, and he realized who the entity before him and he himself were.
His gaze turned towards the robed figure.
God.
And then.
Kang Sihyun glanced again at the woman now known as Eve and then at his own limbs.
Human.
"Ah…"
A soft exclamation escaped his lips.
This was a story from the beginning of time.
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