Won awoke, gasping for breath.
Was it all a dream? No… there is no way.
How am I even alive? And more importantly—where am I?
He glanced around. The room was large, its wooden walls and rugged furnishing resembling a cabin more than a hospital. Then his eyes fell on a familiar emblem affixed to the wall.
Saishza Spire.
What in the world am I doing here?
He had left Saishza a year ago, retiring from service as a Veilstrider. Never once did he think he'd return—least of all like this. He had walked away out of necessity, not choice. Left behind one of the top two Spires in the country for the sake of money. Poverty had dragged him out. Pride had made him loathe himself for it.
I was useless anyway, he thought bitterly. What could a mere Rank 8 even do?
There was no one else in the room. A blanket had been thrown over him. He pushed it aside and stood up, still sluggish.
Ja Hoomin?
What happened to him?
He must be okay, right? Otherwise I wouldn't be alive.
Just then, the door creaked open. A woman entered. Choi Aera. Voidtex Veilstrider, under Saishza Spire.
He knew her well. She had started as a Mastery Rank 9—now, she stood among the strongest in the nation. They had even trained together once. Before, seeing her would have made him self-conscious, maybe even ashamed. Now? He felt nothing. The weight inside him had grown too dense for shame.
He grabbed his jacket and turned to her. "Senior Ja Hoomin. How is he?"
Choi Aera narrowed her eyes. "Shouldn't the question be—how are you still alive?"
Right. I should have asked that. But before he could speak, she added coldly, "When Ja Hoomin is dead… how are you alive?"
His heart skipped a beat.
"What?"
Dead?
Ja Hoomin is… dead?
How? It doesn't make sense. It can't be true.
"Do you even know why you're here? Or how long you've been unconscious?" she asked, her voice edged with irritation.
Won's voice trembled as he replied. "How long?"
"Ten days. You've been in this room for ten days. When we found you next to Ja Hoomin's corpse, you were unconscious. CCTV footage was unrecoverable—damaged during the fight."
She took a breath, tone flattening. "Witnesses said you fought the monsters that appeared. But we didn't find a single scratch on you. Not even a bruise. The hospital discharged you almost immediately. But we couldn't just let you go."
She stepped closer. "Because the strongest Veilstrider in the country died in that Domain breakout. And you, a mere Rank 8, survived. Doing the same thing."
Her gaze hardened.
"Isn't that… suspicious?"
"The Salvane… they couldn't save him?" Won asked, as if he hadn't heard a word she just said.
Aera let out a frustrated sigh. "The investigators from the South Korea National Veilstriders Association will be here soon. Prepare yourself."
They interrogated him. Cross-referenced his words with the witnesses. They found nothing. No inconsistency. No anomaly. His account was… ordinary.
When it was over, he walked out of Saishza Spire.
Ah… I have to buy medicine, he remembered suddenly.
He fished his phone out of his pocket.
Looks like someone's been charging it while I was unconscious.
He dialed Yuna's number. She answered immediately, voice bright. "Big brother! Is that you?!"
"Hm. You at school?" he asked, already taking the narrow alley shortcut home.
"No. I was on my way to see you at Saishza Spire. Did you just wake up?"
"Go to school. I won't say it twice." He hung up, exhaling quietly.
Ten days. I've been gone ten days from all my jobs. Who knows if they've already replaced me?
He scrolled through the missed calls, all from bosses. Some unfamiliar numbers too.
But Ja Hoomin… dead? The thought refused to settle.
To think of Ja Hoomin dying, it really doesn't make any sense. It was a class sigma domain, only two times in the country's history it appeared before. But if we look at the world's record, doesn't this kind of domain only break out in the sky or in the mountains?
We couldn't even get inside the domain to fight the monsters. They just broke out instantly.
Suddenly he got a call from an unknown number—one without a country code.
What is this?
No country code. Is this a scam?
He received it anyway. But his head spun the moment the person on the other end spoke.
"Hello there, Won—" a male voice said.
"Who's this?" Won asked, keeping his tone neutral. The fact that someone knew his name and was calling from such an unusual number was already unsettling.
"Aren't you getting yourself too relaxed after being passed out for days?" The man's voice dripped with mockery.
"Who are you?" Won repeated.
"Who am I?" the stranger sing-songed. "Who am I?"
"If you're calling just to mess around, I'm hanging up—" Won snapped. Just as he was about to end the call, the man's husky voice cut in again.
"Did you forget what happened before you passed out?"
Won's breath caught in his throat.
What happened?
"Aren't you wasting too much time?" the man added. "You fought the monsters yourself after Ja Hoomin died. Didn't you feel the strange power within yourself?"
It's not that I forgot that I had fought those monsters but how did he possibly know I felt the powers within me?
"How—"
"How do I know that you suddenly felt the power?" the stranger finished for him. "Because I am the Whisper Warden of this system… Sijak-ui bimil (The Secrets of Beginnings)."
"System? What are you talking about?"
"Tsk tsk tsk. I thought you were smart, Won. Don't you realize yet that you're living inside a system? And you're stuck here."
System? Won's head spun once again remembering the flash screen he had before he passed out.
SB Nexus System.
"You remember that woman who died saved you from the fire?"
Won stiffened. "How do you know about her?"
"She's a fool. She wasted her chance and now she's trapped between dimensions—can't even go to paradise or hell! She rejected the offer to go back in time and rewind everything. Now she's stuck. You were given the same choice, and you said yes."
"This doesn't make sense. I don't remember being given any choice."
"Of course you don't. You had a long conversation with someone before you came back. I honestly don't understand why he chose someone as weak as you…"
"Who was it?"
The Whisper Warden ignored the question. "You're here for a mission. And if you fail…"
"Enough about failing," Won snapped. "What's the mission?"
"Didn't I tell you?" The man's mocking tone returned. "My job is only to give you scattered hints. If I tell you everything, there's nothing left for you to figure out. So here's my question—haven't you felt a trigger yet? Passed a hollow moment?"
Won frowned. What is he talking about?
"Seems like you haven't," the Whisper Warden continued. "Just as I thought. You've ignored your responsibilities by sleeping for 10 days. You must think this is all just for fun. Even though I don't usually give advice, but—listen closely. The hollow moment comes when you have a strong will to complete your task. Time stops then… and you'll figure out the rest when it happens. Don't waste your time there. Save each of the souls connected with you through this system, otherwise…" He let out a dark laugh before the call disconnected.
"Hello? Hello? Can you hear me?"
Won tried dialing the number again and again, but each time, the automated voice informed him that it didn't exist.
After returning home with medicine and then back to back to his jobs he decided to go that subway again. If that Whisper Warden was correct, something had really changed inside him and he needed to see if he could find any clues there. It was 11:30 PM.
As he was walking there, trying to get any energy that he felt that day, an invisible force suddenly stopped him. He couldn't move forward. He looked around— no people, nothing at all, the crowded place was suddenly gone empty.
Where did everything go?
Then—
Footsteps.
From behind.
He couldn't turn around. His body refused to obey. A figure walked past him, then stopped and turned to face him. The man had white hair, striking purple eyes, and a delicate face. He wore a long white coat and radiated an ethereal glow, as if he weren't entirely real. He was as tall as Won, his beauty almost otherworldly.
"Looks like that egotistical Whisper Warden finally called you, Won," the stranger said, his voice soft.
"Are you one of the people trapped in this system?" Won asked, keeping his voice steady.
"System? Hmm… The Secrets of Beginnings…" The man tilted his head. "Am I one of them?" He paused, then smirked. "No, I'm not one of their originals. The Whisper Warden despises me. I'm thrilled you've joined me on his list of least favorites. Oh, I can only imagine how furious he'll be when he finds out I came to see you."
"Who are you?"
The man snapped his fingers, and the force holding Won vanished. He stumbled forward, nearly falling, before the stranger offered his hand.
Does he want to shake hands?
Won hesitated, staring at the outstretched palm. The man sighed, stepped forward, and grabbed Won's hand.
A jolt of electricity surged through Won's body. His vision blurred, his mind spiraling into darkness.
. . .
When he finally regained awareness, the stranger was no longer holding his hand. Instead, he stood nearby leaning against a pillar.
"You're back?" he asked without turning.
"I couldn't see or feel anything. What did you do to me?" Won demanded.
"Do you know how long you were out?" The man smiled. "A year."
"What?" Won's eyes widened. "Are you joking? Why would I believe that?"
"You're in a Hollow Hour."
Hollow. The Whisper Warden had mentioned this—time stopping in a hollow moment.
"I had a quick checkup on you! The power you have in your system is very. You can nourish it in time. After all, you had your second awakening. You can now make any moment as hollow and strive the Echochamber."
Echochamber? Second awakening? What is he talking about? That never happened to him. All year he just waited, watching many of his comrades having their rank upgrading gradually, while he stayed low.
"What power? None of this makes sense! I'm sick of all of you!" Won snapped, frustration boiling over.
"Don't waste your energy on something so trivial. You have a bigger fight ahead—if you win the first round. You have my power now. It's weak, but you can strengthen it."
"First round? Can you just be clear?"
"It's an emotion test. You have to find the people you care about. That's all. But once you do… you'll be faced with something far more tragic. You'll have choices to make."
"I don't care about that," Won muttered. "The Whisper Warden said if I don't find and protect my people, something terrible will happen."
"He's an idiot." The man laughed. "But he's right about one thing—Ms. Jung, the woman who saved you from the fire is blinded by a false promise. If she comes by in your dream or memory, don't listen to her. You can't ever return to a normal life. You were chosen, and you agreed to it."
"Ms. Jung—what promise are you talking about?"
"When she saved you, she was offered a choice: return to the past or stay trapped between dimensions. She refused, believing she could wait for someone strong enough to change things. The Whisper Warden lied to her—told her that if you saved everyone you care about and she used to care about you can live here even after having your job done here. But that's not how it works. Those who enter the system never escape. They're stuck in an endless loop."
"Then what am I supposed to do?"
"The people you need to save are already around you. Enter their Echochambers. Free them from their loops."
"What does echochamber even mean?"
"You will figure it out in time. Now go. Just don't lose yourself. I don't want you to regret things like I did." The man said, smiling.
"You went through this too?" Won frowned. "You didn't even tell me your name."
The man ignored the first question, smiling faintly. "Call me Bahi. I'll send messengers to you sometimes."
"Will I see you again?"
"Only if I allow it." Bahi stepped closer, pressing a finger to Won's forehead. "When you wake up, time will be as it was. Don't worry."
.
.
.
And when Won woke up, he found himself on his bed.