"Oh God, this was a terrible idea!"
I shouted as I ran.
For nearly five relentless minutes, I pushed my body to its limit. The border was finally within sight.
The moment I saw it, relief surged through me.
A fatal mistake.
My pace faltered for a fraction of a second.
The Lost noticed.
The distance between us vanished instantly.
A sharp whistle cut through the air.
My instincts screamed.
Too fast.
Far too fast.
'Brace for impact.'
The thought barely formed before something crashed into me.
The world spun violently.
A tremendous force hurled me through the air as though I weighed nothing.
Even then, my body moved on instinct.
As I was sent flying, I buried Black Fang deep into the creature's palm.
A meaningless wound.
Against something of its size, it was little more than a scratch.
Pain exploded through me.
My arm shattered.
Several jagged cuts opened across my body as blood sprayed into the air.
When I looked down, my stomach sank.
My bone protruded through my torn flesh.
For a brief moment, pain became my entire world.
I clenched my teeth and endured.
At least the attack had accomplished one thing.
It had thrown me closer to the border.
The Lost approached slowly.
Confidently.
Like a predator savoring its victory.
Then it stopped.
Dark Skotos seeped from its body and gathered before it.
The black mist twisted and condensed into a familiar shape.
Me.
A perfect imitation.
The copy staggered to its feet before immediately sprinting deeper into the abyss.
Without hesitation, the Lost chased after it.
Even monsters were wary of the border.
"Haa..."
A shaky breath escaped my lips.
I hadn't realized I was holding it.
For several seconds, I simply lay there before forcing myself upright.
Every movement hurt.
Still, I dragged myself toward the border.
Then stopped.
Fear rooted me in place.
Crossing would hurt.
I knew it would.
But staying also meant death.
Slowly, I steadied myself.
Then stepped forward.
Agony consumed me instantly.
Heat swallowed everything.
My skin burned.
Then began to melt.
The smell of charred flesh filled the air.
My clothes ignited and turned to ash.
Every nerve in my body screamed.
The moment I stumbled through to the other side, darkness claimed me.
~~
When consciousness returned, the pain had dulled considerably.
Slowly, I opened my eyes.
And saw Skotos.
Dark tendrils flowed over my broken body before sinking into torn flesh and fractured bone.
Wherever they touched, a strange chill followed.
Cold.
Yet oddly comforting.
Hours passed.
My wounds gradually closed.
Cuts sewn shot.
Bruises faded.
Only my arm remained broken.
I stared at it for a while before sighing.
If I allowed it to heal like this, it would heal incorrectly.
Using my good arm, I grabbed the limb.
Then pushed.
"FUUUCCCCK!!!!"
The scream tore from my throat.
Blinding pain surged through my body.
For several minutes, I could do nothing but lie there and endure.
Eventually, it passed.
I looked toward the cliff and released a tired sigh.
"I'm going to be here for a while."
~~
When I awoke again, the pain was gone.
Completely.
I rose to my feet and stretched.
My body felt lighter than before.
Stronger.
Even my thoughts seemed clearer.
'So Skotos heals.'
The realization came naturally.
Its regenerative properties belonged to shadows. The more Skotos one possessed, the greater the healing effect.
It had taken this long because I had only recently entered the Reborn Stage.
And because I still wasn't really a shadow.
An hybrid was the best term to describe me
After confirming my arm had healed properly, I turned toward the cliff.
Time to go home.
The climb took only a few minutes.
Compared to before, every movement felt effortless.
Before long, I arrived at my house.
The first thing I did was head for the kitchen.
Hunger had begun clawing at my stomach long ago.
I prepared something simple and ate in silence.
Only after finishing did I lean back in my chair.
'I almost died.'
No.
I would have died.
If not for Black Fang's ability, I would already be a corpse.
My grip tightened around the edge of the table.
I wasn't angry because I had retreated. Retreating had been the correct decision.
Nor was I angry because I had nearly died.
Death itself had never frightened me.
What angered me was something else.
For those few desperate minutes, I had been afraid.
Truly afraid.
The kind of fear that strips everything away until survival becomes the only thing that matters.
The kind of fear I thought I had left behind long ago.
A bitter smile formed on my lips.
Apparently not.
My thoughts drifted toward a memory I hadn't revisited in years.
A drug lord.
A hospital room.
And a conversation I never forgot.
----_ FLASHBACK _----
Back when I was still a soldier, I was assigned an undercover operation against a drug lord named Rodrigo Myuran. My objective was simple: infiltrate his organization, gather intelligence, sabotage a shipment, and return.
Everything went smoothly until my cover was blown.
I was captured and tortured before I could escape. Nails were driven through my palms and legs while Rodrigo personally oversaw the process. Fortunately, the bombs I had planted detonated before they could finish me off, allowing me to escape amidst the chaos.
A week later, while recovering in the hospital, my friends came to visit.
At some point, Ho-gu laughed and said, "Looks like someone finally knocked the great Jin-Hun off his pedestal."
Everyone looked at him strangely.
"What?" he said. "He's always acting like fear of death is some kind of weakness."
Dae-seong nodded. "You said the same thing when he got shot."
"You abandoned your mission because you were afraid of dying," I replied.
"And you weren't?" Ho-gu asked.
The room fell silent.
For the first time, I couldn't answer.
Because the truth was simple.
I had been terrified.
"See?" Ho-gu said with a grin. "You're just like the rest of us."
After they left, those words lingered in my mind far longer than they should have.
Not because I had been injured.
But because I had been afraid.
Two months later, I learned Rodrigo had escaped.
The moment I heard the news, I went after him.
When I finally found him, I tortured him.
Not because it was my duty.
Not because he deserved justice.
But because he had made me feel fear.
And I hated him for it.
----_ END OF FLASHBACK _----
I stared at the ceiling for a while after the memory faded.
Rodrigo.
The Lost.
Different faces.
Same feeling.
A long breath escaped me.
"So that's why I'm pissed."
I rose from the bed and stepped onto the balcony.
The night's wind brushed against my face.
My gaze drifted beyond the border.
Then stopped.
Far below, wandering through the abyss, was a familiar figure.
The Lost.
For several seconds, I simply stared at it.
Then I laughed.
A short, humorless laugh.
Of course.
Of course it would show up now.
Tomorrow I was supposed to continue preparing for the Explorer's Guild expedition.
I should have gone back inside.
Instead, I turned around and grabbed Black Fang.
The moment the dagger entered my hand, the decision was already made.
A few minutes later I stood at the edge of the cliff.
Then i began my descent.
The descent took roughly seven minutes.
The moment my feet touched the ground, I sprinted.
The Lost was still there.
Good.
Four minutes later, the border rushed toward me.
I didn't slow down.
I crashed through it at full speed.
The pain never came.
Or rather, it couldn't.
My body crossed too quickly for my mind to process what was happening.
One moment I was entering.
The next I was already through.
The Lost finally noticed me.
A distorted screech echoed through the abyss.
I smiled.
"Yeah."
"I'm back."
The creature charged.
So did I.
The distance between us disappeared rapidly.
Unlike last time, I wasn't running away.
The Lost swung first.
I slipped past the attack and drove Black Fang into its side.
Black blood erupted.
The creature screeched.
I stabbed again.
And again.
And again.
The battle instantly descended into chaos.
The Lost was still stronger, still faster, still capable of killing me.
But this time I wasn't trying to survive.
I was trying to kill it.
A claw tore through my shoulder.
I answered with a stab to its chest.
The creature smashed me into the ground.
I answered by carving open its arm.
Neither of us retreated.
Neither of us slowed.
The fight continued until black blood covered my body and fresh wounds covered its own.
Then I saw it.
Its shadow heart.
A dark mass pulsing beneath layers of flesh.
My grin widened.
"There you are."
The Lost seemed to realize what I had seen.
For the first time, it hesitated.
Then it turned.
And ran.
I laughed.
A harsh, and ugly sound.
"Now you're scared?"
I chased after it.
Within seconds I caught up.
Black Fang descended.
Once.
Twice.
Ten times.
The creature collapsed beneath me.
Still I kept stabbing.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Until the blade pierced its shadow heart.
The Lost released one final screech.
Then, the creature froze.
Its body began to crumble.
Dark ash spread across its form before the entire thing scattered into the wind.
Silence returned.
I remained standing there for several moments.
Breathing heavily.
Staring at the place where it had died.
Waiting.
For satisfaction.
For relief.
For something.
Nothing came.
The fear was gone.
The Lost was dead.
Yet the memory remained.
After a while, I sighed and turned away.
Tomorrow, I still had an expedition to prepare for.