WebNovels

Chapter 5 - "Under the Cracked Light"

Night had fallen when Arjuna returned to their small headquarters in the southern district of Lunaris.

The ethereal glow of Esmeria's tower was still visible in the distance, serene, yet brimming with something he couldn't ignore.

The night breeze carried the scent of metal and a thin mist that drifted through the narrow alleys of the lower city.

Lira had been waiting for him since the afternoon. As soon as the door creaked open, the girl immediately stood.

"How?" she asked quickly, her anxiety unconcealed. "What do they want from you?"

Arjuna stared at her for a moment, then removed his long, dew-drenched coat. He sat in an old wooden chair by the window, staring at the holographic map on the table without answering.

"It's not something I can say here," he said flatly. "But one thing is certain: the world is beginning to move."

Eve appeared on his shoulder, her holographic projection glowing a soft blue. She appeared to be processing data rapidly, her pupils shifting colors like a stream of code.

[Eve: The tracking beacon remains active, Master.] But the signal was drifting away toward the city's outer perimeter.]

Arjuna stared at the flashing red dot on the map.

"The outer perimeter, huh... just like the report you mentioned, Lira."

Lira nodded slowly. "Yes. Several citizens have disappeared without a trace in that area again."

A moment of silence fell. Only the sound of an old mechanical clock ticked from the corner of the room.

Arjuna finally stood up, his eyes gazing out the window, toward where the fog was slowly descending on the city's outskirts.

"Then let's see what's hiding behind that fog."

Lira, who had been silent in a chair near the table, finally rose and looked at Arjuna with a worried look in her eyes.

"You just returned from the Tower of Esmeria, Arjuna. Your body hasn't even fully recovered yet. Are you really going to leave right away?"

Her tone was gentle, but beneath it was a firmness that was hard to hide.

Arjuna turned his head, smiling slightly. "I'm fine. Just a little tired."

[That's not entirely true, Master.]

Eve's voice rang through the air, her hologram slowly appearing next to Arjuna with a soft blue glow.

[Although your regeneration system is working perfectly, 72% of your core energy data hasn't completely stabilized after the battle in Esmeria.]

Lira crossed her arms across her chest, staring at the hologram as if she'd found an ally.

"See? Even Eve agrees with me."

Arjuna sighed, as if defeated in the petty argument.

"I can't just stay silent, Lira. People are disappearing, and—"

"But you're human too, Arjuna." Lira interrupted quickly, her voice trembling. "You can't keep carrying everything alone."

A moment of silence filled the room. Arjuna was about to answer, but before he could speak, Lira turned and walked to the small kitchen at the side of the room. She opened the lid of the pot, and the warm aroma of soup and toast immediately filled the air.

"What is it?" Arjuna asked quietly.

"It's the food I've been preparing since you left for the tower of Esmeria," Lira replied with a faint smile.

"I didn't know when you'd be back, so I've been heating it up every night. It seems it's still edible tonight."

Eve stared at the dining table with a gentle expression on her holographic face.

[Recommended: consuming foods with natural energy content can speed up the synchronization of the body and systems. Plus… it's human.]

"Thank you, Eve," Lira said quietly.

[Entering hibernation mode temporarily. Enjoy your time together, Master.]

Eve's hologram slowly faded, leaving the room feeling calmer and warmer.

Arjuna pulled up a chair and sat across from Lira.

A plate and a cup of warm tea were placed between them. For a moment, there were no words. Only the sound of the wind blowing gently through the open window.

Lira stared at him intently. "I want to stop you tonight."

Arjuna was surprised. "Stop me?"

Lira nodded. "I'm afraid of losing you, Arjuna. You've already endured too much, and I… I don't want to see you fall just because you want to save everyone."

Arjuna fell silent, staring at the slowly steaming cup in his hand. He smiled faintly, but there was a rare sincerity on his face.

"Lira… I appreciate that. But I'm no longer human. My body isn't what it was yesterday when we first met."

He looked down at his hands. A faint glow appeared at his fingertips, indicating awakening system particles.

"I can manipulate myself. Erase fatigue, accelerate regeneration, even create limitless energy. Perhaps… I've gone too far from being 'human.'"

Lira looked down, her fingers clenching on the table.

"But you still care. Still worry. Still look at me like the old Arjuna."

He looked up, his eyes gleaming softly. "So... to me, you're still human."

Silence fell again. This time warmer.

Arjuna stared at Lira for a long moment, then laughed softly. "You really are stubborn."

Lira smiled slightly. "Are you just realizing it now?"

They ate in silence afterward. There was no further heavy conversation, just light chatter about the taste of the food, the night sky outside, and the sound of the old clock ticking softly from the corner of the room.

A few minutes later, the blue light reappeared beside Arjuna. Eve reappeared, her voice gentle as always.

[Hibernation mode complete. Energy fully recharged. Ready to support Master at any time.]

Arjuna stood, staring out the window where the fog was beginning to descend. Lira stood beside him, this time without a word of refusal, just a faint, confident smile.

Afterward, Lira gave Arjuna permission to investigate the matter of the missing people, on the condition that Lira accompany him.

On the way, the night air outside Lunaris felt heavy and unfamiliar. The sky was covered in gray clouds, leaving only the faint glow of the moon hidden among the fog.

The streetlights flickered softly, as if the city itself was holding its breath.

Lira walked beside Arjuna, her robes swaying in the cold breeze.

"I'm not sure if these rumors are true," he said doubtfully. "But… some people say they see shadows moving in the mist. Something inhuman."

Arjuna just stared ahead, his steps steady on the damp, cobblestones. "Whatever it is," he said slowly, "we'll find out tonight."

He activated Eternal Vision, and his vision was immediately filled with a transparent layer of data.

Below the ground, blue lines formed an intricate pattern, a spiraling energy network.

"There's something down here," he murmured.

They walked down a narrow alley toward the ruins of an old warehouse covered in weeds.

The wall was cracked, but there was something unnatural about its shape. Arjuna touched one side of the brick, and a hidden metal panel slid away, revealing a cold steel surface with a faint glowing rune pattern.

"Secret door," Lira said softly.

Arjuna pressed his palms together. Blue light circled from the center to the edges of the metal.

[Eve: Access detected, unknown source. Root-level security structure.]

"Secret facility," Arjuna whispered. "And they don't want anyone else to know."

As soon as the door opened, a chill hit their faces.

A spiral staircase descended into darkness. Each step echoed, and the dim, cold white lights guided them downward.

At the bottom of the stairs, a long hallway stretched. The walls were metal, the floor reflecting their shadows like wet glass.

Lira stopped abruptly when she saw something behind the thick glass on the left side of the hallway.

Human bodies hung in transparent capsules. Some were still breathing weakly, while others were frozen in digital stasis. Glowing wires pierced their skin, transmitting a pulsing stream of code.

"This… isn't magic," Lira whispered in horror. "They're programming humans."

Arjuna clenched his fists. His eyes turned a fiery blue, his pupils rotating like a living monitor screen.

"They're messing with reality."

Eve tilted her head, her expression grim.

[Eve: The data shows biological integration with artificial neural networks. This project… violates any ethical boundaries in the world.]

Arjuna's anger surged. Blue energy enveloped his body, and the Eternal System reacted spontaneously.

[WARNING: Emotional surge detected.] [Rewrite Combat Mode: ACTIVATED.]

The air in the room vibrated subtly. Arjuna raised his hand, then slowly lowered it.

In an instant, every machine stopped. The lights went out one by one, the buzzing sound vanished, and the flow of code in the cables was completely cut off.

Silence. Lira stared at him with wide eyes, her body trembling.

"Arjuna… you just stopped the entire system with just one command?"

Arjuna stared at his own hands, breathing heavily. "I didn't mean to… but they touched something they shouldn't have."

He rushed to the nearest capsule, breaking the seal and releasing the prisoners one by one.

Some fell unconscious; others cried silently, their bodies still trembling from the effects of stasis.

But on the wall of the main room, Arjuna suddenly stopped. His eyes fell on a symbol carved there—a winged pattern with a golden circle in the center.

The symbol… was the same one he had seen on Sera Von Elcrest's clothing.

Lira stared at it, confused. "That's… the Guild symbol, isn't it?"

Arjuna shook his head slowly. His expression turned cold.

"No. It's not just a Guild symbol."

He stared at the symbol for a long moment, his voice dropping.

"It's the symbol of a larger project. Something hidden even from its own members."

Suddenly, a red light flashed at the end of the hallway. A siren wailed low and vibrated through the air.

[Eve: Warning. Access breach detected. Security unit on its way.]

Lira grabbed his wrist. "We have to go now!"

Arjuna stared at the symbol once more, as if wanting to memorize it forever, then turned quickly.

"You're right. But this isn't over yet."

They ran down the long hallway, their footsteps echoing.

Eve projected a three-dimensional map in front of them, showing alternative exit routes.

[Eve: Main path blocked. Recommendation: western sector evacuation route. Time until confrontation: three minutes.]

"Lira, come with me!" Arjuna called.

The hallway shook slightly as something slammed against the steel door behind. From the gap, a red light pierced through the mist, and a metallic humanoid shape began to move.

"Guard unit…" Lira muttered. "They're awakening!"

[Eve: Confirmed. Their core energy comes from a synthetic ether source. Non-negotiable.]

Arjuna took a deep breath. "Then let's not negotiate."

He raised his hand, and out of thin air appeared dozens of light blue ether blades.

The blades swirled around him, slashing through the air with a hissing sound.

With one swing, the entire guard unit was torn apart in a flash of blue light, disintegrating into digital fragments.

Lira stared at him in amazement and horror.

"That… is no ordinary human magic." Arjuna didn't answer. Only a cold look remained in his eyes.

[Eve: Excessive energy activity. Rewrite level increased by 32%. Warning: if continued, distortion may occur.]

"I know," he replied quietly. "But we have no choice."

A few minutes later, they arrived in an open space connected to the ventilation ducts of the lower city.

From here, faint moonlight filtered through the metal gaps, highlighting their dust- and sweat-caked faces.

Lira leaned against the wall, her breath coming in short gasps. "What did we just see, Arjuna? That wasn't an ordinary project…"

Arjuna looked up. "No. It was something much bigger. Something that could change the way this world operates."

He closed his eyes briefly, listening to the still-subtle vibrations of his system.

[Eve: The tracking beacon was still active. But now it was transmitting a signal towards… the tower of Esmeria.]

Arjuna smiled lopsidedly. "So it's true. They were baiting me."

But before they could leave the scene, the air suddenly shifted. A subtle pressure rippled through the floor, like the pulse of the world itself. The lights that had previously gone out came back on, but not because of the power supply, but because of energy fluctuations emanating from the walls.

[Eve: Master, there's an anomaly in the world's logic layer. The fabric of reality around this facility is… trembling.]

"The effect of the rewrite just now?" Arjuna asked without turning around.

[Eve: Negative. The vibration pattern is coming from outside. Like… the world is trying to correct its own mistakes.]

Lira looked around, her face pale. "Do you feel it too? This air… is pulsating."

Arjuna stared at the wall, which was beginning to crack gently, a faint light seeping through the cracks.

"This world is waking up," he murmured coldly. "And it seems… it doesn't like me here."

Eve looked at him seriously, her blue eyes shining softly.

[Eve: Recommendation: retreat immediately before the distortion reaches dangerous levels.]

"Too late," Arjuna replied evenly. "We've already triggered it."

The vibrations intensified. The ground trembled, the air turning into a transparent sheen. A low sound echoed, like the world's angry breath.

Flashes of light flashed across the ceiling, forming cracks in the shape of a data network.

Eve looked up, her expression tense.

[Eve: Master… something is waking up.]

Arjuna stared at the light undaunted, his eyes burning like blue embers.

"Then let's see what the world sends to stop me."

The tremors reached a peak. The ground shook violently, time seemed to slow, and the air turned into shards of light. The world began to shatter.

More Chapters