"Heok... heok..."

I ran through the dark night road. Something was chasing me.

Crack!

I heard something breaking from behind. Without a moment to catch my breath, I glanced back while running and saw trees lying like corpses.

Between those corpses, I saw a huge, unidentifiable something chasing me. It was much taller than the trees, towering over them as it trampled them. In the complete darkness, its faint form was barely visible.

It was a red giant, as if covered in blood. No, it was a monster that looked like a giant. Perhaps because it was dark, its form was not clear. Parts of it were blurry. Its head was submerged in the deep darkness high above and was not clearly visible.

Nevertheless, I could tell that its gaze was fixed on me. I couldn't see its eyes, but I felt a fleeting sense that our eyes had met. It seemed to be smiling.

Shudder!

Goosebumps rose on my skin.

"Heok... heok..."

I turned my eyes forward again and ran. Something warm trickled down from my forehead and obscured my vision. It was blood. I quickly wiped it away with the back of my hand and ran down the night road.

Swoosh—

The eerily swaying forest looked like a churning black wave. Where on earth am I? Where am I running to? I don't know when or where I got injured, but I was covered in blood. I probably got hit a few times by that monster.

I can't remember. My head is fuzzy.

...How did I end up being chased by a monster like that?

————!

The red giant laughed with a strange sound. It sounded like a wounded beast crying out, and also like someone sobbing. When I just heard the sound, it sounded like crying, but the feeling was like laughing, which was bizarre.

————!

The creature chased me, screaming an indescribable, grotesque sound.

I wandered through the night, shouting someone's name. I don't know whose name it is. I just cry it out at the top of my lungs. As if screaming.

"Heok... heok..."

In the sky, there were no stars or moon. Pitch-black darkness. It seemed like a faint light was dimly shining from somewhere, but I couldn't tell where it was coming from. Even that was so faint that it couldn't light up the darkness. I was just running, barely identifying what was in front of me with eyes that had adjusted to the dark.

Of course, I couldn't see well, so I often fell and rolled. Maybe I was covered in blood from falling and rolling.

This time, I tripped on a tree root and tumbled.

"Keuk!"

My knees were scraped, and my insteps and forearms were grazed, but there was no time to savor the pain. I immediately got up and ran.

Whoosh!

A giant fist flew and struck the spot where I had fallen.

BOOM!

If I hadn't gotten up and run right away, I would have been smashed to pieces there.

The creature laughed as if it was enjoying itself. It was a chilling laugh, like scraping metal.

I continued to run down the night road, fleeing the chasing monster.

A voice came from somewhere.

[Where are you running to? That's not the way.]

That voice had been talking to me continuously while I was being chased.

[Turn around and face him. That's the only way.]

But the voice was spouting nonsense about fighting the red giant, so I was ignoring it and running. These wounds were probably from listening to that voice and confronting the creature.

The voice got angry with me.

[You pathetic fool. Are you running away in the end? Did you throw away your resolve to fight to the end on the street? Was your mindset back then just an illusion?]

"Heok... heok..."

[You idiot. Do you know where you're running to? You're running straight towards the Qi Deviation you were so wary of. How can you run towards Qi Deviation like you're running towards a fire?]

"Heok... heok..."

[Get a grip. The light is coming from behind. It's already so faint you can barely see it. Stop now. I said stop!]

"Heok... heok..."

[Where you're running to, there's only darkness. The more you run towards the darkness, the farther you get from the light. Are you planning to enter Qi Deviation?]

"Heok... heok..."

[This is a realm I cannot interfere in. You have to do it. You have to go towards the light. So stop running away and fight. You coward.]

"Heok... heok..."

[If you were going to be eaten by a mere Heart Demon, I wouldn't have taught you martial arts. Were you really only this much in the end?]

"Heok... heok..."

[...The darkness is deepening. The line is not far.]

"Heok... heok..."

[If you cross the line, you can never come back. Are you listening?]

"Heok... heok..."

[Don't avoid it, face it. It's the Heart Demon you summoned. You have to tear it apart with your own hands.]

"Heok... heok..."

[Turn around. And just like you've always done, fight back with dignity.]

The voice kept urging me to stop and fight that colossal monster, but I continued to wander the night road, crying out someone's name at the top of my lungs.

"Tina...!"

I'm scared.

Why are you doing this to me?

Did I do something so wrong as to deserve this punishment?

I just want to live.

I just don't want to die.

I'm scared. I'm scared. It hurts. It's hard. It's cold. Stop tormenting me.

[There's no time...]

Then, eventually, even the mysterious voice that had been angry with me could no longer be heard.

[...]

The darkness deepened. Now I really couldn't see in front of me. Pitch-black darkness covered my eyes like a curtain.

I was scared.

————!

But the monster chasing me from behind, screaming an indescribable, grotesque sound, was even scarier, so I squeezed my eyes shut and ran towards the darkness.

And so, I went deeper and deeper into the darkness. As I did, I felt like I was getting smaller and smaller. But... I couldn't stop.

As I was running frantically.

Thwack!

"Ouch!"

I bumped into someone and rolled over and over.

"Keuk!"

I landed ungracefully on the rough ground. I must have hit my stomach when I fell, because I couldn't breathe properly.

As I was groaning on the ground, I heard the sound of someone I had bumped into getting up.

"Ouch, ouch... that hurts."

Then she came over to me.

"Hey, are you okay? Does it hurt a lot?"

I nodded while still on the ground.

"It hurts..."

As I said it hurt, tears welled up in my eyes without me realizing. Why is it so hard to honestly say that it hurts? As soon as I let my true feelings out, tears welled up.

She said.

"Does it hurt a lot?"

"It hurts so much..."

"It's okay. You can get up. Here, take my hand."

Only then did I open my tightly shut eyes. A girl was bending over and holding out her hand to me. The darkness had receded far away, and a warm light enveloped her.

"...."

I stared at her blankly. For some reason, her face was familiar.

The girl said.

"What are you looking at? Am I that pretty?"

"...?"

"You have good eyes, don't you? Come on, get up. What's the big deal about falling? You can just get up again."

I took her hand. ...It was warm.

"Ugh...! Get up already!"

Pulled by her strength as she pulled me hard, I got up from my spot. She brushed the dirt off my clothes.

"Where did you come from fighting? Why do you have so many wounds?"

"...."

At her words, I looked at my arms and legs. I had become a little kid with short arms and legs. My blood-stained limbs were also slightly bleeding or swollen here and there, as if I had been beaten up by someone.

Sigh—I looked at her as she sighed and brushed off my clothes, then looked around. The place I was in looked like some back alley. Where was this? Just a moment ago, it was an eerie forest path. For some reason, the scenery looked familiar.

After she finished brushing off my hair, she stared at me blankly, then suddenly held out her hand.

"I'm Tina. And you?"

I hesitated for a moment before taking her hand.

"I'm... Ashuban."

She smiled brightly. She was a girl with impressive snow-white hair and transparent sky-blue eyes. Was she a princess of a snow country?

"Nice to meet you, Ashuban."

"...Yeah."

"What were you doing running so frantically without looking where you were going?"

"Uh... I was being chased by a monster."

"A monster?"

She tilted her head.

"Where? I don't see it."

As she said, the red giant that had been chasing me so terrifyingly was gone without a trace.

"...You're right."

I stared blankly at the white-haired girl who was looking around. An unknown emotion swirled in my chest. I felt nostalgic, sad, happy, heavy-hearted, sorry, and endlessly distant... Various emotions were mixed together, burning my chest.

"...."

A faint light was emanating from her. Like a warm moonlight. Just looking at it made me feel endlessly at ease. That light calmed my confused heart like a calm sea.

It was cozy. To the point where I wanted to fall asleep right there.

She stopped looking around and looked at me. Our eyes met.

"What are you looking at?"

"...?"

"First time seeing a pretty girl?"

"...."

A small laugh escaped me.

"Ah, you laughed."

Seeing her smile made me smile automatically. What is this feeling of overwhelming nostalgia?

She asked me.

"Did you call me?"

"Huh?"

"Someone was calling my name desperately."

"Ah."

Only then did I realize that the owner of the name I had been desperately crying out was the white-haired girl in front of me.

I nodded.

"That's right. I called you."

Tina put her hands behind her back and swayed from side to side as she asked.

"Why did you call me?"

"I think... I called you because I was scared."

Tina tilted her head to one side and looked into my face.

"What were you scared of?"

"The monster..."

"Really?"

She smiled brightly and held out her hand to me.

"Let's go. It's too dark here."

I looked at Tina's hand. It was a hand as white as her hair.

"Where to?"

"To a bright place."

I hesitated.

"But... there's a monster."

"It's okay if you're with me."

"Really?"

"Of course. You trust me, right?"

She seemed childish... but her eyes were strangely mature. Looking into her eyes was like looking up at a cloudless blue sky. Her eyes were so deep and clear that I had no choice but to nod.

I looked into her blue eyes that resembled the sky and said.

"...I trust you."

I took her hand. Tina smiled once, then led me in the direction I had come from. I was worried the monster might appear, but fortunately, as she had said, the monster did not appear.

We walked down the dark night road, holding each other's hands.

"Are you lost?"

"Yeah..."

"It's okay. I'll take you there."

I followed Tina and walked down the dark night road. It was a pitch-black and eerie forest where I couldn't see in front of me, but walking with her made it feel cozy. The chirping of insects flowed gently from all around, and occasionally, the hooting of an owl could be heard. Fireflies also flew in swarms.

As we walked, the darkness gradually receded. I looked up at the sky and saw that it was full of stars, and a crescent moon was smiling quietly.

I suddenly looked at the white-haired girl walking beside me. I wished this moment could last forever.

How long did we walk like that?

Tina looked at me with her blue eyes that held the sky.

"Ashuban."

"Yeah?"

"You are a strong person."

"Suddenly?"

"Be quiet and listen."

"Okay."

"Whatever happens in your life, you can overcome it."

"...."

"Every adversity you face is a test to make you grow one step further."

"...."

"I always told you, right? Life is worth living."

"...."

"Even though you always act rough and cold on the outside, I know better than anyone that you have a warm heart that thinks of others."

"...."

"So just like now. Just keep overcoming things well like now. You're doing great. You're doing really great."

"...."

"Why are you crying? Don't cry."

"Okay."

It was still night, but the surroundings had become much brighter than before. It must be because of the light that was faintly shining from behind that monster.

————!

The red giant stood as if blocking the place where the light was shining and roared. Its cry was much more ferocious than before. But I didn't feel fear like before.

Tina smiled brightly.

"Alright, this is as far as I can take you. You can go on from here, right?"

"...Yeah."

Tina looked at me, who was crying, with her unique childish yet mature eyes and asked.

"Is there anything you want to say?"

I swallowed my tears and barely managed to say.

"...I'm sorry."

She gave a sad smile.

"Don't be sorry. It's not your fault."

Tina let go of my hand.

"Ah."

I flailed my arm to grab her hand again, but stopped when I saw her smile.

"Ashuban."

"...Yeah."

"I'm always here. Whenever you're tired and struggling, come and see me anytime."

Tina playfully grinned.

"Just don't come too often."

"...Okay."

"Don't cry. Be strong. You know?"

"I know. I'm not a little kid anymore."

Tina smiled and waved her hand.

"Bye."

"...Bye."

She said her farewell and walked into the dark forest.

————!

Whether the monster roared or not, I stared at her retreating back until I could no longer see it. I roughly wiped away the tears streaming down my cheeks and caught my breath.

"Hoo..."

I slapped my cheeks to get a grip.

I don't cry anymore. My tear ducts have long since dried up. The little kid from the back alley who used to cry is no more.

————!

When I turned back to the red giant, I was an adult again. A scarred adult who had been scratched and broken countless times by the rough world. And thus, an adult who had become as rough as not to lose to that rough world.

Sarak—

I grasped the moonlight sword that had bloomed in my hand and walked towards the red giant blocking my path. With a fierce smile.

"Come on, you minion."

(End of Chapter)