The nightmares didn’t stop after just one. It was enough to make Hyun Je-ha suspect that Ban Noah had secretly found him and cast some sort of debuff that induced terrifying dreams.
The relentless visions robbed him of sleep. All he could think about was Ahn Ga-hyun.
There’s no way Ban Noah just vanished.
He was certain the man would show himself again.
One of us—him or us—has to die for this to end.
That unshakable instinct kept Je-ha constantly alert, his gaze never straying from Ga-hyun. He was strung tight with tension, but never once did he feel tired. Just seeing Ga-hyun alive, breathing beside him, gave him enough strength to endure.
And then—today, it finally happened.
Dungeon breaks erupting simultaneously across the entire country.
Dungeons that had been quiet, seemingly dormant, began exploding like lit bombs.
After telling his parents to evacuate to a safe location, Je-ha gathered his comrades and rushed to Secreti’s dorm.
That’s where he found Ga-hyun, talking about heading out to stop the dungeon breaks.
No…
A hallucination-like haze washed over Je-ha’s vision, staining everything blood red.
Not from rage—but from the suffocating terror and trauma crashing over him like a wave.
He didn’t hesitate. He shattered the window and rushed in, grabbing Ga-hyun before he could leave.
Then, with trembling arms, he pulled him in tight, refusing to let go.
“…Je-ha?”
“Don’t go, Ga-hyun. You can’t.”
Please don’t go.
Like a madman, Je-ha repeated those same words again and again.
“You don’t know what’s going to happen. You can’t go.”
“But people are—”
“Who cares about those people?!”
Je-ha finally snapped, shouting at the top of his lungs.
He had always kept it bottled up, but inside, rage had been simmering—rage and grief piled high.
Why did Ga-hyun have to die such a meaningless death?
That question had haunted him.
And the more he thought about it, the more he found himself seething not just at Ban Noah—the one who killed Ga-hyun—but at the civilians who gained safety by sacrificing ability users, throwing them into the dungeon zones like cannon fodder.
…Even at himself—for surviving on top of Ga-hyun’s sacrifice.
Je-ha, nearly sobbing now, stared straight into Ga-hyun’s—no, Yeon Yu-jin’s—eyes, and bared everything.
“Why should strangers matter? I don’t care about anyone else. As long as you, Ahn Ga-hyun, survive—that’s all that matters to me.”
“…Je-ha, you…”
“I’ve had it with this world. The kind of world where someone like you could die so wretchedly, and no one even notices. I don’t care if people see me as a criminal or call me a monster. But I won’t let you become a sacrificial lamb again.”
There would be no second failure.
Je-ha prayed—begged—that the person he loved would understand his selfishness.
Even if it made Ga-hyun hate him.
“Please, please… I’m begging you. Ga-hyun, don’t go. It’s too dangerous.”
“…Je-ha.”
“This is just like what happened with Jin Eutteum. These chain dungeon breaks—something’s off. There’s no way this is natural. I’m sure Ban Noah, the one we thought had vanished, is behind it all.”
After discovering Ban Noah’s deep involvement in the Jin Eutteum case, Je-ha and his team investigated the park dungeon incident meticulously.
Their findings confirmed it—Ban Noah had not only stolen Jin Eutteum’s ability core but had also wielded some mysterious power that triggered chaos within the dungeon itself.
It was thanks to one of the Baekho Unit members—someone with a faint psychic link to past events through dreams—that they uncovered this truth.
“Ban Noah touched a red gem hanging from his earring. After that, some kind of dark energy poured into the dungeon. Then… the dungeon, which had been totally quiet, started to tremble. The monsters inside began evolving or mutating into stronger forms one after another.”
A power capable of provoking dungeons and escalating disasters—that was what Ban Noah held.
The same moment Je-ha realized Ban Noah had a hand in the unexplained deaths and disappearances of numerous ability users listed in the database.
Only then did Je-ha finally understand why Ban Noah had vanished even after giving Ga-hyun a clear warning.
“He’s been waiting for this moment. Every single dungeon break happening right now—it’s all unfolding according to his plan.”
Je-ha hadn’t yet figured out what triggered Ban Noah’s dungeon-manipulation ability.
But he was certain: the chaos sweeping the country was his doing.
“The reason we haven’t seen Ban Noah until now is because that bastard’s been going around the country, activating his dungeon-triggering power.”
“How do you know all this?”
“Because I investigated everything. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to destroy the one who killed you.”
…And because I never want to lose you again.
“I only learned the truth recently. I had my suspicions, but the moment my team and I confirmed them, I ran straight to you.”
“Je-ha…”
“I didn’t want you charging straight into a trap set by our enemy.”
The power to distort dungeons was terrifying on its own—but who knew what other abilities Ban Noah might’ve gained?
Even if Ga-hyun, like Je-ha, had resistance against psychic-type abilities… if Ban Noah had acquired a power capable of bypassing that…
He couldn’t bear to lose the one he loved again, not even with time to say goodbye.
Tears streamed down Je-ha’s cheeks, soaking both sides of his face—yet he didn’t even realize he was crying.
“Please don’t go. I don’t want to lose you. Just this once—can’t you stay back and close your eyes to it all?”
One of the reasons Je-ha had fallen in love with Ahn Ga-hyun was his unwavering sense of justice and altruism.
In their past lives, Ga-hyun had cursed every day of his existence, railing against the government that threw him into the hellish frontlines the moment he finished his college entrance exams.
But when it came to dungeon raids, Ga-hyun—despite being a Guide—was always the first to step up. He cried like family when younger ability users were injured or killed in the field.
Yet not once did he ever try to run away from the unjust role assigned to him.
“I fell in love with you because of that part of you. But if you care about me—just this once, don’t go.”
“…Je-ha.”
“Please.”
Je-ha set aside his pride and begged, knowing full well what Ga-hyun would do.
Sure enough, Ga-hyun gently wiped away the tears under Je-ha’s eyes and offered a sorrowful smile.
“…I’m sorry.”
I know, Ga-hyun.
“If Ban Noah really is behind this, then we have even more reason to enter that dungeon.”
“…Ga-hyun.”
“It’ll be okay. I won’t die this time. I won’t do something that stupid again—not in front of you. I promise.”
Liar.
You’ll jump headfirst into danger again the moment my life—or those rookie Espers’ lives—are on the line.
You think I don’t know you?
You’re going to smile and march straight ahead like you always do.
And that’s what makes me so angry.
The one he loved was still just as righteous. Just as pure.
Je-ha wanted nothing more than to cry like a child because of it.
Unaware of his turmoil, Ga-hyun smiled and reached out his hand.
“If you’re that worried, come with me. If you’re right, Ban Noah might be waiting for us inside.”
“…As if I could ever change your mind.”
“Ha-ha, sorry.”
“Forget it. Let’s go together.”
Je-ha gave the order to all his comrades:
From this moment on, we move to stop the dungeon breaks.
Whatever trap Ban Noah had laid, Je-ha had no intention of being devoured so easily.
…Even if it meant sacrificing himself at the end of it all.
***
After convincing Je-ha, I set off with the members of Secreti and the rest of our group, heading toward the closest dungeon.
“That thing looks like some massive egg sac.”
Perched above the entrance to the dungeon—which had supposedly been cleared and put under management—was a gigantic red sac, pulsating like a living organ.
It was even giving off a horrifying heartbeat-like sound.
Seo Yoon-chae reached out and touched it without thinking, then recoiled in horror.
“Ugh! It’s pulsating! Like it’s alive!”
“……”
I turned silently to Je-ha.
He let out a sigh.
“This just proves how far the dungeon transformation has progressed. Neither of us has ever seen a dungeon entrance like this before, have we?”
“No.”
So then… could Ban Noah be hiding in there, waiting for us?
As I swallowed dryly, Je-ha casually suggested that we could still turn back—it wasn’t too late.
“Even if dungeon breaks are happening all over, the Bureau’s ability users will arrive here soon. We don’t have to push ourselves.”
“But people are already hurt… If we don’t act, things could get worse.”
I gave Je-ha a sidelong glance.
“If the Bureau’s already confirmed to be heading this way, shouldn’t you and the Baekho Unit stay out of it more than me?”
