C stared at the man before her, her shadowy gaze unreadable.
Her expression was almost perfectly indistinct, yet subtle signs, like the slight trembling of her shoulders, betrayed a dawning shock.
A few seconds later, she spoke.
[W-What? What do you mean you won't go?]
Kim Gyeong smiled.
"That's right. I've decided to stay."
Her body trembled more noticeably, and she ground her teeth as anger laced her voice.
[Are you out of your mind!? Has your head suddenly gone rotten!? Do you even understand what you're saying? You want to stay here? And spend eternity in this place? Do you have an idea how long that is? Can you even begin to comprehend infinity!? Stop spouting nonsense and open the portal already!]
He shook his head.
"I refuse. I've made up my mind. I no longer intend to leave."
[Ugh! What the hell is wrong with you? Are you stupid or something? What, are you staying here because of me? Hah! Don't flatter yourself! You're a thousand years too early if you think you can accompany this Great Old Witch!]
"Oh, really? Then tell me why you've been delaying with the circle this whole time."
Her shadowy body froze.
[…!]
She made several small, stiff gestures that betrayed her shock. After a brief silence, she spoke in a low, shaky, barely audible voice:
[You… what… are you talking about?]
Gyeong snarled.
"Don't screw with me! You must have been looking down on me this entire time. I'll admit it, your performance was indeed masterful, and that shadowy form you took played a huge role in the deception. But haven't I told you before? When I was alive, I worked in a downright predatory company. From lazy seniors who couldn't be bothered to do their own work to supervisors who relied on intimidation and fear to get results, I've seen it all! I was underestimated, manipulated, and treated like shit. I was nothing more than a tool in the eyes of greedly people who continuously exploited their employees."
"You think your little tricks and theatrics could fool me forever? Sorry, but I've long outgrown the age of wearing diapers. Never underestimate a salaryman. Most of my life was spent learning how to see through people who tried to take advantage of me. So of course I'd notice when someone is lying."
He stared at her, his voice trembling with restrained anger.
"So why did you do it? If you truly wanted me to leave, then why deliberately stretch my departure out for ten years, huh?!"
[I don't understand. What made you think I intentionally delayed your departure? The only reason it took that long was because you needed to learn about ether. I can't use it myself, my Ether Core is sealed. If I could send you back directly, do you really think I wouldn't have done so?]
"That much is true. Your Ether Core is sealed, so it makes sense that you can't use ether. And it's also true that I needed to learn about it."
[Then if you already know that…]
"However, there is something you keep conveniently ignoring. I didn't need ten years."
He lifted his gaze, no longer clouded by anger alone.
"I needed time to understand ether, yes. I needed to learn control, structure, and sequencing. I needed to fail repeatedly for that reason too. I'm not denying that. But not ten years' worth of failures."
His jaw tightened.
"I mastered single-element control far earlier than you expected. Then two. Then three. You said it yourself back then, my growth rate was abnormal."
Her mist stirred faintly.
"And yet, every time I reached a point where I should've been able to leave, you gave me another hurdle. Another 'necessary' refinement. Another 'just in case.' Another reason to stay."
He scoffed.
"You slowed the process. Not overtly, never something I could immediately call out. You did it cleanly. Professionally so. Like a veteran mentor who always knows better than the subordinate."
His eyes narrowed.
"I've seen that tactic before."
Silence stretched between them.
"You didn't lie outright. You just… omitted certain details and let me believe I wasn't ready yet. Do you know the worst part about it all? I bought it. Haha! I really bought it. Like a fool, I did because it was reasonable and fell my line of sense. That's how I know it wasn't 'accidental' as you claim it to be, isn't that right?"
The shadow around her wavered.
"You said it yourself. I didn't need to control all Five Elements at once. I just needed to control their flow. If you truly wanted me gone the moment I was capable, you would've told me the truth as soon as I crossed the minimum threshold."
He shook his head slowly.
"But you didn't."
His gaze softened, just slightly.
"So I'll ask again."
He met her unreadable face head-on.
"Why?"
C listened to everything he said, choosing to remain quiet. She lingered for a moment, then said quietly:
[You're really annoying.]
Dumbfounded, Gyeong could only stare at the black mist.
"What?"
Praying him no mind, she stared at the white space above as if something was there. Choosing to let the silence linger for a moments, C finally opened her mouth and answered:
[You want to know why I expanded your departure, Gyeong?]
She paused then added:
[You're absolutely correct. Your deduction was spot on. Yes, I tricked you and lied to you. There was no reason to keep you here for that long.]
The words fell softly, yet they struck harder than any outburst.
C lowered her gaze at last. The churning mist that cloaked her spirit body slowed, thinning just enough to betray the slightest tremor.
[I could have sent you back years ago, Five years in. Perhaps even sooner. You had already crossed the threshold you spoke of.]
"Then why—"
[Because I didn't want to.]
Silence crashed down between them.
[You call it deception. Manipulation. Professional delay tactics. And you're not wrong. I did all of that. But not because I looked down on you.]
Her tone dropped, losing its usual edge.
[This place is a dead end. A sealed world. Nothing here ever changes. Nothing ever grows. There is nothing and everything remains the same. I have stood in this white void to the point that I started viewing my memories as nothing more than delusions. Imagine staying in such a place where you can't even see your own reflection. It was too cruel. At first, I lost my mind and drove head-first into madness but after some time, I slowly grew bored of that too and became sane. Overwhelming sane and indifferent. Even what you define as emotions became a fleeting sensation and before long, I lost even that too.]
She clenched one indistinct hand.
[And then you arrived.]
Gyeong stiffened.
[An actual person managed to find their way into this place. You can imagine my shock when you suddenly dropped from the sky. I thought: am I seeing this correctly? Was this another yet hallucination created by my mind? Even as the days passed, I was still skeptical. But once I observed you, with that funny and curious personality of yours, I came to the realization that you were indeed real.]
Her voice wavered.
[For the first time in a very long while, something here was… moving forward.]
She inhaled as though taking in a deep breath.
[So yes. I delayed you. I added hurdles you didn't need. I refined what was already sufficient. I told myself it was for your sake, that you needed more polish, more certainty.]
A bitter laugh escaped her.
[That was the lie I told myself.]
She turned back to him.
[The truth is simpler, and far more selfish.]
The mist around her chest trembled.
[I... just didn't want to be alone again.]
Kim Gyeong simply looked at her wordlessly.
Noticing that he had no intention of responding, she continued.
[You speak of ten years as if they were stolen from you. But for me… those ten years were the only ones that mattered. You told me stories about yourself. About a life so ordinary you thought it meaningless. About being bullied for your skinny frame as a child. About being brutally rejected by your first crush in high school. About ending up in a mediocre public college because of poor grades. About drawing the short straw and being placed on the front lines during your military service. About joining MinoCorp's development department through a friend's recommendation.]
"Damn."
Gyeong flinched more than once as she calmly recited those memories. He had told her those stories simply because there had been nothing else to do, yet she had remembered everything, even the ones he wished he could forget.
C chuckled softly. After a brief pause, she placed a hand over her chest, where her heart would have been, or where it had been.
[I listened as you spoke about your parents. About coworkers you despised. About dreams you never pursued because you were afraid of failing. You shared things you didn't even realize you were giving away.]
Her fingers curled.
[And without realizing it, you filled a space that had been hollow for longer than I can remember.]
Her voice wavered.
[I was… happy. Happiness — such a concept had always been foreign to me. To share laughter with another person… it was something I had always desired, yet believed to be nothing more than a distant dream.]
She drew a long, unsteady breath.
[And when you stirred that feeling within my ice-cold heart, I became utterly lost, confused and hopeless. Not knowing what to do with this never-experienced-before feelings. Hehe. Thinking about it now, it's rather funny. To think that you, an utterly ordinary mortal soul, would be able to enthrall this Great Witch…]
[You are truly the worst opponent I have ever faced.]
[So yes. Those ten years were the most precious memories I have ever experienced. I simply wanted it to last a little longer but I already knew that a day like this would become and prepared in advance. Call it selfish or cruelty if you want. I will accept whatever resentment you have for me. I don't reject my actions. Because in those ten years, I remembered what it meant to live.]
She straightened slightly, regaining a sliver of composure.
[Now you know everything.]
Her unreadable gaze met his once more.
[So tell me, Kim Gyeong.]
[Knowing all this…]
[Do you still wish to stay?]