Cha Eui-jae opened his eyes.
A blinding white light stabbed painfully into them.
He squinted, raising his palm to shield himself. Of course, that didn't make the light go away.
"...Tsk."
Folding one finger at a time, Eui-jae began his self-check.
'Where am I?'
Still unknown.
'Last memory?'
Bae Won-woo's mouth growing larger and larger. His shaking uvula.
'Body condition?'
Back and arms sore, but within normal range.
'Mental state?'
Clear enough.
'Purpose?'
Deal with the Apocalypse before the world collapses.
He curled all five fingers into a fist. By then, his eyes had adjusted to the light. A bleak landscape stretched before him, white ash covering everything to the horizon. It looked exactly like the West Sea Rift.
Eui-jae sat up. Crunch, broken rubble scattered beneath him, dust rising in pale clouds. He was lying atop a small mound.
A chill ran down his neck.
'…This isn't a hill of corpses, is it?'
He quickly pressed his hand to the ground. Hard, rough concrete met his touch. Not corpses building debris piled high. He roughly rubbed his mask. That endless white around him made unease gnaw at his chest.
'Did I even come to the right place?'
'And if not,'
Before he could finish the thought, a shadow loomed over him. He immediately rolled aside.
KWAANG—!!
Dust exploded upward from the mound. Eui-jae bared his teeth.
"What the hell?!"
The thing that nearly crushed him… was a red sports car, or rather, what remained of one. The trunk and back seat were intact, but the front half had been ripped away. Deep claw marks and bite marks marred the twisted frame.
A moment later, something else fell from above, thud! A square chunk of signage.
[… | Salon]
Half-destroyed letters. Judging by the scissors logo, it had once been a hair salon sign.
"…Is this where all the stuff those things eat ends up falling?"
Eui-jae quickly moved off the mound, scanning the uneven ground. He swept aside the ash underfoot, revealing fragments of a street. Buildings gnawed into ruins, lamp posts bent, cars mangled, signs torn apart.
And bones.
White skeletons lay everywhere, still dressed in tattered clothing but with no part intact. Arms, legs, torsos, everything had been severed.
He stopped before a skeleton whose hand still stretched outward. Bowing his head, he picked up the wallet that lay just in front of it.
"Forgive me… let me check this."
Inside, a few receipts. Only a few days old. Eui-jae's gaze hardened.
"…Eaten just days ago… and already reduced to bone?"
Impossible. No signs of decay, no transition, just bones, in mere days. He replaced the wallet and rose. Everything was beyond expectation.
'I thought I'd fight right away, end it quickly. Instead…'
And then
Tap. Drag. Scccrape…
A faint sound reached him. Something being dragged. Eui-jae crouched instantly, eyes snapping toward the horizon. A wavering silhouette appeared, moving slowly closer.
'…A person? Or a monster?'
Behind the mask, his eyes glowed blue. He blinked once. The shadow dissolved, replaced by a flickering golden flame.
His lips parted slightly.
"…"
Tap. Drag. Tap. Drag.
The flame approached steadily. A low humming reached his ears.
"Let's see now…"
The first thing he saw was a makeshift crutch, fashioned from a pipe. Then came a flash of green, so vivid it felt out of place in this world of black and white. A shabby green tracksuit. Long brown hair spilling over it.
"…A car today? Ohh? That's a new one."
The crutch poked through the rubble on the mound. Eui-jae's mouth moved before he thought.
"…Hong Ye-seong?"
"Hm? Oho?"
The man with the crutch jerked his head up. Through tangled brown hair, a left eye and cheek swathed in bandages came into view. He scratched his head.
"Did someone just call the great me by name…? Hah, now I'm hearing voices too?"
Eui-jae stood, voice rising.
"Hong Ye-seong!"
A round brown eye wandered the air until it finally landed on him. Then, a wide grin broke across the man's face. He flung the crutch aside and spread his arms wide.
"Oh, my god. My friend!"
And then,
"Seeing you here, now I'm sure of it! This is heaven, right? You're basically a heaven free pass!"
He lost his balance, tilting sideways.
"Hey, you!"
Eui-jae yelled, charging toward him.
"You think this is heaven, you idiot?!"
***
Long lashes parted to reveal violet eyes. Lee Sa-young blinked slowly. Lately, it took him longer and longer to wake. Was it boredom? The silence? Or maybe… simply because he hadn't much time left.
He caressed the silver watch with blackened fingers. His hand was stained up to the wrist now.
Knock knock. A soft tap. The door creaked open, then clicked shut quietly. Yoon Ga-eul entered. She stepped lightly toward him.
"Lee Sa-young-ssi."
"…"
"I came to report on the situation. I know you told me not to bother with the details… but I think you should hear this one."
His reply was quiet, rough.
"There's only one thing I care about."
Tick. The minute hand shifted forward one notch.
"When will the vaccine be ready?"
"Soon… very soon. The Doctor is working with everything he has."
"…"
"And once it's ready… then…"
She hesitated, gaze falling to the floor. Then, slowly but firmly, she raised her head. Her eyes shone with dazzling golden light.
"…We'll turn back time. Before it's too late."
"…Yes."
"As Master Jangin warned, that watch has already been used once. Even if you serve as its axis, it may not be enough. We don't know what side effects it might cause."
Sa-young nodded faintly. He knew. Yoon Ga-eul wasn't real, just a reconstruction of memory, an actress in a play whose ending was already written.
Yet the way she stood tall, voice ringing with conviction…
"I've asked the surviving hunters for help. To lend their strength to the watch. Even a little power, combined, might increase our odds. They've all agreed."
…She felt alive.
"Once the watch activates, this world will vanish anyway. Better to give it everything."
Her words ended in a long exhale. Sa-young shut his eyes. Even through closed lids, golden light flickered. He already knew how it would unfold.
'…We'll fail.'
He would stand at the center, holding the watch. The surviving hunters would gather around. White light would pour from his blackened hand. Behind him, a massive clock would rise, hands pointing at 11:56.
'Our world is already finished.'
'But if even one chance remains…'
Tick. Tick.
The hands began to turn backwards. Faces worn with despair slowly lit with hope. The rewinding grew faster, every hand racing toward 12.
Time passed.
Sa-young opened his eyes. Silence. The Hunters who'd stood with him lay collapsed. Behind him, shallow breathing trembled. He turned. Yoon Ga-eul still clung to his shoulder, swaying.
Her clouded eyes searched the air. Her voice, hoarse
"…Did we… succeed?"
"…"
"Why… why still conscious?"
Sa-young lifted his gaze. The clock in the void had stopped.
11:59.
The second hand twitched faintly. At the same time, Ga-eul's knees buckled. She collapsed, but forced her trembling arms to brace against the floor. Sa-young neither caught her nor helped her rise. Her life was spent.
So, at least this lie was permissible.
"…Yes."
The second hand had not stopped. Someday, it would reach 12.
Her lips curled faintly.
"…Thank goodness…"
Her body finally gave way. She fell, still smiling, eyes closed. Her faint breaths soon faded entirely.
Sa-young was left alone.