Chapter Two – A Radical Change
The night swallowed the city whole.
Cold wind scraped against the empty streets.
Small, uneven footsteps echoed between the alleys.
Jin-Mu kept running.
He didn't look back.
Not once.
Blood dripped from his torn clothes, staining the ground behind him.
Every breath burned his lungs.
His wounds were worse than he thought.
But crying was not allowed.
If he cried…
they would hear him.
If they heard him…
they would come back.
So he bit his lip until it bled.
And ran.
One year later.
The same city.
The same night.
But Jin-Mu was no longer the same child.
Laughter leaked from a crooked building at the end of the street.
Drunk laughter.
Filthy laughter.
A broken wooden sign swung above the door.
Inside—
Perfume mixed with alcohol.
Cheap makeup.
Sweaty bodies.
Half-dressed girls forced fake smiles while men grabbed at them like animals.
Coins clattered on tables.
Bottles smashed.
Someone vomited in the corner.
It wasn't a house.
It was a dump filled with humans pretending to breathe.
Trash.
All of them.
From the darkness across the street—
A single crimson eye opened.
Watching.
Silent.
Patient.
The door opened.
A woman entered proudly.
High heels.
Heavy makeup.
Cold eyes.
Jin-Mu's mother.
She walked in like a queen returning to her kingdom.
No shame.
No regret.
Nothing.
Click.
The lights died.
Darkness flooded the building.
"What the hell—?!"
"Hey! Turn them back on!"
Voices overlapped.
Chairs fell.
People cursed.
In the hallway…
A small figure stood still.
Thin.
Quiet.
Red eyes glowing faintly.
It was Jin-Mu.
But the child from a year ago was gone.
No fear.
No tears.
No hesitation.
Only emptiness.
And something darker growing inside that emptiness.
His footsteps echoed softly.
Step.
Step.
Step.
Calm.
Measured.
Not the steps of a six-year-old boy.
But the steps of something that had already died once.
A strange energy wrapped around his fingers.
Mana.
Unstable.
Wild.
He frowned slightly.
"Tch… still sloppy."
The air around him trembled.
He raised his hand.
Windows shut tight.
Doors locked.
Invisible force sealed every exit.
Then—
A faint hiss.
Gas began to leak from the cracks.
Slow.
Quiet.
Merciless.
At first, nobody noticed.
Then—
Cough.
"Ugh… what's that smell?"
"I can't breathe…"
"Open the damn window!"
Panic spread faster than fire.
People pushed each other.
Screamed.
Fought.
The strong stepped on the weak.
Just like always.
Just like they stepped on him.
Jin-Mu watched.
Expressionless.
His red eyes reflected their fear like a mirror.
The manager stumbled out of her room.
"WHO'S THERE?!" she shouted.
Still arrogant.
Still loud.
Even while choking.
She raised her hand.
Light magic gathered.
A small orb illuminated the corridor.
And then—
Her voice stopped.
Her eyes widened.
"H-him…?"
Her son.
The child she stabbed.
Standing alive.
Waiting.
Rage twisted her face.
"You little bastard! I should've killed you that day!"
She rushed forward.
Mana gathered around her hand.
But—
Jin-Mu moved first.
One step.
One kick.
Boom.
Mana exploded.
Her body flew backward and smashed into the wall.
Crack.
She dropped like trash.
Unconscious.
Pathetic.
Jin-Mu looked down at her.
No anger.
No sadness.
Nothing.
Just cold observation.
"So weak…" he muttered.
A small spark fell from his fingertip.
Touched the gas.
For one second—
Silence.
Then—
Fire.
The entire building exploded into flames.
Screams tore through the night.
People begged.
Cried.
Prayed.
Some clawed at the doors until their nails broke.
Some collapsed before reaching the stairs.
Some burned without even understanding why.
Jin-Mu stood outside.
Watching the windows glow orange.
Listening.
To every scream.
Every plea.
Every desperate cry for help.
His lips slowly curved upward.
"Scream louder…"
His voice was soft.
Almost gentle.
"I want to hear everything."
Inside the flames—
His mother crawled across the floor.
Skin burning.
Breath breaking.
She looked up at him through the fire.
Not at her son.
But at a monster.
Something she had created herself.
"You're… cursed…"
Her voice faded.
The fire swallowed her whole.
Jin-Mu didn't answer.
Didn't blink.
Didn't move.
He just watched.
Until the building collapsed.
Until nothing remained…
except ashes.
And the faint red glow inside his eyes.
That night—
A child died.
And something else was born.