Han Juho rushed out of the apartment, knowing it wouldn't be safe to stay there for much longer. He started to head towards the central city of Seoul, instinctively searching for a more expansive area where the sky wasn't filled with towering buildings.
His breath came in ragged gasps, his lungs burning as the scent of scorched asphalt stung every time he choked for air. His heart hammered against his eardrums, a frantic rhythm that matched the sound of footsteps chasing him through the thickening haze.
Nearby, buildings began to crumble, but not in the way he had expected. To an observer from above, it looked like a calculated disaster, structures struck by monsters in the distance fell, dragging the ones beside them down in a slow, devastating chain reaction.
But to Juho, the "why" didn't matter. All he could focus on was outrunning the concrete and dust that threatened to bury him alive. One second of hesitation or even stumble, he might be nothing more than a stain beneath the rubble.
Several police officers were present as well, their voices lost in the wind as they tried to lead the growing crowd toward a safer zone. But their efforts were drowning in the tide of human terror. As the crowd grew larger, the panic became a physical force, a crushing weight of bodies and desperate screams that made evacuation almost impossible.
"You fucker, don't block the road! Move!"
"Runnnnn!"
"...Ah—!"
A sharp, sudden scream from nowhere immediately snapped Juho out of his daze. He abruptly halted and turned his head, following the onlookers' gazes. A young woman was frozen in fear just meters away, desperately clinging to an elderly woman, while a monster was heading straight toward them.
His heart nearly stopped at the sight, his face draining of color as a wave of dread washed over him.
The creature looming in the distance was massive, far larger than any average human. It possessed the muscular, sleek build of a leopard, but its twisted features and the long, protruding fangs jutting from its jaws marked it as something entirely unnatural. Its bloodshot eyes scanned the crowd, sending a violent shiver down Juho's spine.
Yet, despite the immediate danger unfolding before him. Juho's mind spun as he tried to piece the chaotic puzzle together.
"A monster…?"
His knees felt weak, and his hands balled into tight fists, the familiar trembling creeping from his index finger down to his pulse. The reality of it was ridiculous, impossible, even. Such things simply shouldn't exist.
Ahead, a police officer rushed forward to pull the young woman away, while others backed up, shouting and waving their batons. But even the authorities hesitated the moment the beast bared its fangs, letting out a low, vibrating growl to intimidate them.
The older woman wasn't paralyzed by terror. Instead, the grandmother was urgently tugging at the young woman's arm, trying to drag her away. But their movements were far too sluggish compared to the beast that was relentlessly closing the distance
Juho gripped his knuckles tighter, his eyes glanced repeatedly between them and the monster, which was slowly getting closer.
"Ah, what should I do? Do I need to do something? What can I do anyway..." he mumbled under his breath, panicking as he watched the scene unfold, his face scrunched up with anxiety. He should have gotten out of this place quickly, but the sight held him back.
"Just drag her out of the way already…"
In this current situation, perhaps running was the better choice. He nervously brought a finger to his lips, tapping it anxiously as the gears in his head turned, desperate to make a quick decision.
He suddenly paused, dropping his hand to his side as his eyes searched the surroundings for anything he could use to distract the monster.
Realistically speaking, a bystander like him would likely find nothing useful and just wander off like the rest of the crowd. Yet, against the odds, his eyes caught a medium-sized piece of concrete debris that felt just right.
He lunged forward and picked it up. Taking a few deep, shaky breaths, he threw it with all the strength he could muster toward the monster, praying his terrible aim wouldn't accidentally hit a stray civilian instead.
Thud
Juho's eyes widened in sheer disbelief as a sharp gasp escaped his lips. "Woah!"
Despite the distance and the chaos, he had actually landed a direct headshot. He wasn't sure if the debris had done any real damage to the monster at all, considering its massive size. But a wry, fleeting smile tugged at the corner of his lips, a mix of thrill and absolute terror for what he had just done.
"...Fuck."
Then, without another word, he turned and fled the scene. Who cares about the aftermath? He had already done what little he could. Now, the only thing that mattered was putting as much distance between him and that thing as possible!
He ran in the opposite direction from the woman and her grandmother, shouting to the people around him, urging them to get away as quickly as possible. His own voice suddenly sounded harsh and foreign in his ears.
While doing that, he grimaced slightly, the sheer volume of his own voice making his skin crawl. He hated doing things that attracted attention to himself, it was as if the phantom weight of eyes locked onto him. However, he quickly pushed the thought aside.
Surely they wouldn't mind. He just wanted to warn them for their own good, that's all. At least, that was the excuse he used to drown out his mounting anxiety.
Juho had no idea which way he was running. The familiar streets he once walked every day had changed into an unrecognizable labyrinth of chaos, filled by suffocating dust and a scattering of abandoned vehicles, left behind by owners who had fled for their lives.
The adrenaline was pumping through his veins, blurring the edges of his vision. This was, without a doubt, the craziest thing that had ever happened to him.
"Huff..." He let out a shaky breath, the air tasting heavily of dust. His heart was pounding so hard against his ribs it felt like it was going to explode, and a sharp, searing cramp began to tighten around his calves.
How far along is he now?
"Track... club..." he suddenly wheezed out, a flash of bitter exasperation crossing his eyes as his legs threatened to give out.
Back in eleventh grade, he had been known as the fastest runner in every school event, a knack he had developed ever since joining the track club in middle school.
It was the same speed that used to save him whenever he and his friends skipped school to sneak into the local internet cafe, effortlessly outrunning the disciplinary team who chased them through the back alleys.
But even with that past experience kicking in, he was running on empty now.
He risked a fleeting glance over his shoulder, and his stomach dropped. Through the haze of dust, those bloodshot eyes were still locked dead onto him. The beast stubbornly ran through the screaming crowd, ignoring everyone else.
A dark, breathless laugh slipped from his lips. Well, it made sense. He had just chucked a piece of concrete straight at its skull, even a mindless creature would hold a grudge after a disrespect like that.
Fortunately, after what felt like an eternity of agonizing turns through the maze of streets, the thunderous sound of heavy footsteps behind him slowly began to fade, eventually drowning in the distant screams of the city.
Juho stumbled into a narrow, shadowed alleyway. His breathing was shallow and rapid as he leaned heavily against the cold brick wall to steady his shaking frame. The dust in the air irritated his throat, making him cough violently as he struggled to inhale.
"Did I... really outrun it?" he mumbled to himself, his fingers tightly clutching his burning chest.
He peered back toward the main street. Relief washed over him, brief and sweet, though his pulse still hammered against his ribs.
Yet, as the immediate terror of the beast receded, a cold, nagging thought crept into his mind. Juho tightened his grip on his jacket, his eyes warily scanning the shadows of the alley and the roofs above.
"Where did that person go…?" he mumbled under his breath, genuinely puzzled.
According to the novel's timeline, the entity known as the Void Hood should be lurking around this exact area. Juho shifted on his feet, his senses hyper-alert, expecting a dark cloak to materialize from the dust at any second.
It was strange.
The figure's behavior during the broadcast practically screamed that it was hunting him down. Juho had been entirely convinced that those hidden eyes had locked right onto him when he peered from his seventh-floor window earlier, a chilling gaze that felt direct, even from that distance.
And that dread had only solidified when the person began walking straight toward his location. So, where could they possibly be now? He didn't know, and he wasn't exactly eager to find out. Not that he actually wanted Void Hood to show up, either.
He let out a slow, cautious breath, trying to calm the frantic gears still turning in his head. Unfortunately, that peace didn't last much longer.
CRASH
A sudden, deafening impact erupted from directly above him, shaking the very walls of the alley and making Juho flinch violently on the spot.