What could one possibly say to someone smiling as he walked toward a path that might end in death?
Eight years ago, when the young man stepped into the West Sea Rift, Jung Bin had done nothing. He hadn't even told him not to go, hadn't said a single honest word, hadn't filed a report to the higher-ups.
If he had at least once said, "Don't send him", would his heart have felt lighter?
The past eight years had been nothing but relentless regret.
The boy back then was so young, anyone could tell just by looking. People turned a blind eye, exploiting his good nature and naivety, until they finally pushed him forward. To his death.
And yet, J had returned. Standing before Jung Bin, stronger than before. And once again, he was preparing to leave.
Jung Bin asked, expressionless.
"Is this choice forced upon you?"
"No."
"Brainwashing, pressure?"
"No."
"Responsibility, then?"
"…A little, yes."
"You mean to tell me you'd march to your death for mere responsibility?"
"Well, it's not just responsibility…"
J tilted his head back, gazing at the sky. The once-dark vortex of the black hole was slowly brightening. A chill ran down Jung Bin's spine as sirens blared across the city.
The Apocalypse was stirring again.
His phone buzzed relentlessly in his pocket. Hastily, he pulled it out, but J waved his hand.
"Don't mind me. Answer it."
Jung Bin bit down on his lip and pressed the call button. On the other end, a frantic voice poured out:
—Prometheus has resumed activity. Groups are gathering to pray to the Apocalypse…
—The White Hole will awaken sooner than expected!
Meanwhile, J rose calmly, hopped lightly, and balanced himself atop the railing. Moving as though time itself bent around him.
"I have something to repay that bastard for."
"…"
"He stole something very precious from me."
Half-listening to the report, Jung Bin stared up at the figure on the railing. Ash-gray hair whipping in the wind, black jacket fluttering. He looked far stronger than he ever had eight years ago.
'What have you been through, all this time?'
The words pressed to his throat, but he swallowed them. He couldn't erase past mistakes, but this time…
"If you must go…"
…he could at least not repeat them.
Drawing a deep breath, Jung Bin softened his face into a faint smile.
"Then please, come back this time."
He would respect the young man's will, even if it was a path toward death.
"I'll be waiting. While I do my part."
He would carry out the task entrusted to him.
Still standing on the railing, J turned around. Jung Bin raised his fist skyward.
"That's division of labor, isn't it?"
J stared at the extended fist for a long while. Jung Bin didn't pull back. He waited, patiently, for J's answer.
At last, J turned fully, crouched atop the railing.
Thump. Their fists bumped together.
From behind the black mask came a faint chuckle.
"I will."
"Thank you."
"No, thank you."
J smoothed his hair, tousled by the wind.
"Back then, when I was holed up in some corner, you came and talked to me, remember? You'd even buy me drinks from the vending machine. Not that I ever drank them in front of you. You really took care of me."
"…"
"And… you even took Lee Sa-young in and made him a proper person."
"…Excuse me?"
"No, really. That guy learned all his social skills from you and Bae Won-woo."
"…From me?"
"Anyway…"
Click. J lifted the lower half of his mask. For an instant, Jung Bin caught the curve of a smile.
"Thank you."
The brief smile disappeared behind the mask again. Rising, J regained his balance on the railing, bowed his head once and jumped.
Jung Bin blinked at the empty rail.
'That jawline… where have I seen it before?'
***
Eui-jae scratched furiously at his arms, shoulders shivering. Damn it, he'd said far too much. His whole body itched.
'I had to thank him… but maybe I went overboard.'
He rubbed the back of his neck. Just then,
Rumble…
With a dreadful cracking noise, the black hole flared white. It was about to awaken. Prometheus again, most likely some ritual to hasten the Apocalypse. Already, monster presences flared across the city.
'Seriously, those bastards are useless.'
Eui-jae leapt from lamppost to lamppost. How long would it stay open this time? How much destruction would follow? Everything was uncertain.
'Should I deal with this first… or go straight to the source?'
It was both a war of attrition and a race against time. Eui-jae had to choose.
"J!"
A sharp voice called from below. Honeybee.
Eui-jae dropped from a lamppost, landing before her. She already had her rapier drawn, several monsters downed at her feet.
"Why is the Apocalypse already here? Weren't we supposed to have more time?"
"Prometheus must have done another ritual. The more it's mentioned, the faster it comes."
"…Those bastards."
"So I'm debating whether to go after them, or go after the Apocalypse itself."
Before he could finish, Honeybee smacked his back hard enough to sting.
"Ugh!"
"What's there to debate? Just go already!"
"W-Where?"
"To the Apocalypse, obviously! You can actually kill it, right? Then go! I know Mok Tae-oh better than you do. I'll handle that idiot."
"…"
"Everyone should do what they're best at, right?"
She threw his own words back at him, the same ones he had told Jung Bin. 'Was this how it had felt for him?' Eui-jae chuckled faintly, then nodded. Honeybee snorted.
"So how exactly do we get to the Apocalypse?"
"Through Big Mouth's jaws."
"…That wasn't just nonsense?"
"It's real. How can you not believe someone who's even been to a destroyed world?"
"Because it doesn't sound believable, that's why."
Behind her incredulous face, light flared. Bae Won-woo's massive shield forced open the Big Mouth's jaws.
"Perfect timing."
"Wait, you're really going?"
"Of course. Bae Won-woo-ssi, open its mouth!"
"Wh-What? Oh, uh, yes!"
By instinct, Bae Won-woo obeyed. Straining, he pried the monster's jaws apart and held them. Kang Ji-soo rushed up, extending tendrils to bind the thrashing body. Eui-jae bowed politely.
"Thank you."
"…What, are you here for a dental checkup? Or did the Doc send you?"
"Neither."
"Then what?"
"I'm going inside."
"…Excuse me?"
Eui-jae scuffed his boots against the ground twice. Once shiny and new, they were now scuffed and stained with ash, but still sturdy, still a perfect fit.
Just like him.
He crouched low, measuring distance and height. Then
Tap.
He sprinted forward.
He leapt high, soaring past the wide eyes of Kang Ji-soo and Bae Won-woo. For some reason, laughter burst out. His feet felt light, all bindings broken at once.
Liberation.
Eui-jae shouted with all his might.
"I'll be back!"
And plunged into the gaping void of the Big Mouth's maw.
The last strand of his ash-gray hair vanished inside. Bae Won-woo, hands still gripping the jaws, froze, then let go.
"…Huh?"
His face looked like the man in Munch's The Scream. Kang Ji-soo's was a little better.
The Big Mouth flicked its tongue, smacking its lips. Tilting its head, as though something had gone in, but it wasn't quite sure what.
Bae Won-woo pointed with jerky, broken motions.
"H-Hey, h-he, just now"
"…Suicide?"
"Don't say scary crap like that!!"
"Ah!"
Bae Won-woo smacked Ji-soo's head before forcing the jaws open again. Ducking away from the flicking tongue, he shouted desperately into the void.
"J-nim! J! Pleeease answer!"
"…Forget it. He's gone. Didn't you see? He dived like a pro. Not even grazed by the teeth, a perfect entry."
"Shut up! What is he, a golf ball? Aiming for a hole-in-one?! J!"
"Well… he did look kinda like one…"
Honeybee muttered, hand over her mouth. Bae Won-woo stumbled back a few steps, then collapsed onto the ground.
"J!"
His anguished howl echoed through the streets.
Kang Ji-soo, instead of harmonizing, made a different choice. Screaming wouldn't bring J back.
Binding the monster tighter, she pulled out her phone and dialed.
"Hello? Hunter Kang Ji-soo from Pado Guild. Requesting Rift Management support. Do you have any monster capture rigs available? No, no, not to kill, to contain it, alive. Well, it's just… someone dove inside a Big Mouth. Pardon? Who would do something that insane?"
Swiftly, she covered the speaker with her hand. At the same moment, Bae Won-woo's wail shook the street.
"J!!"
"…I'd rather not give a name. You know… reputation, image issues, maybe lawsuits. Can't risk that. But it's urgent. Just this once. Yes, yes, I'll send the location. Please deploy as fast as possible. Thank you."
Click. Hanging up, Ji-soo lifted her eyes to the pale sky. A sigh escaped.
'J-nim… no, J-jjang.'
She shielded her eyes with her hand, squinting upward.
'You owe me now.'
"J!!"
Bae Won-woo's howling still filled the air. Ji-soo calmly slipped in her earbuds, blasted music at max volume, and leaned against the Big Mouth's struggling side.
Smacking her lips, she muttered
"Life sure isn't easy."