CHAPTER 248: MEMORY SYNCHRONIZATION (10)

WHY IS this bastard so strong?!

Yihun tried to run away from Ho Jungwon who said something crazy just now.

But the bastard grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him to the basement.

Wait, basement? I know all the basements here since Charles Kang and Yosef Lee would often drag me there for their little experiments.

However, this one was strange.

Why is it so cold in here?

The cold air was giving him goosebumps.

"Ho Jungwon-ssi, you’re new here," Yihun commented, making small talk because the place was giving him ominous feelings. Which was funny because his life was like a living hell. And, yet, that basement still managed to creep him out. "How come you’re acting like you’ve been here longer than I am?"

"Half of me has been here for a long time now."

"What do you mean by that?"

"You’ll understand later."

Okay, now Yihun was extra nervous.

He didn’t feel like Ho Jungwon would harm him, but the anxiousness in his heart didn’t disappear.

I have a really, really bad feeling this time.

"We’re here."

Hmm?

A strange door.

Yihun and Ho Jungwon stopped in front of a door that looked like it came out of a horror film.

Red hand prints were all over the door.

There were also claw marks.

It was as if the people who were dragged to that room resisted until the very end.

I want to throw up.

Yihun felt his strength leaving his body.

Hence, once again, he couldn’t fight back when Ho Jungwon dragged him inside the dark room.

If the hallway that led them there was cold, then it was even colder inside.

I’m freezing.

And it didn’t help that Yihun was wearing light clothes since he didn’t expect that the Lab would be attacked that night.

"Yihun, you’re here?"

Hmm?

That kind voice sounded familiar.

Erwan Hyung-nim?

When Yihun lifted his head, his eyes didn’t have to adjust to the dark.

After all, Erwan was glowing— no, he was translucent.

Like a ghost...

"Oh, it’s Yihun-ah."

"What took you so long, maknae?"

"Well, our Yihun has always been slow..."

Huh?

It wasn’t just Erwan.

Yihun’s other ’siblings’— the ’Disciples’ that Charles Kang had nurtured among their batch— were also there.

Jacob.

Bibi.

Sara.

Aron.

Liz.

Warren.

Janella.

Ricky.

Sven.

Nate.

All of Yihun’s ’siblings’ were standing in front of him...

... translucent and glowing as if they were ghosts.

But that wasn’t the strangest part.

Everyone is looking at me kindly like how they did before Charles Kang came and destroyed our family...

"What’s happening here...?"

Yihun only realized that he had asked that out loud when Ho Jungwon responded to him.

"Half of our Cores have been harvested a long time ago, and those demons kept them in this cold and dark place."

Why is he talking like he’s one of them...

Oh.

When Yihun turned to Ho Jungwon, he was surprised to see Ho Jungwon glowing.

The older Guide didn’t turn translucent, but he released an aura similar to the "ghosts" of his ’siblings.’

Now I’m even more confused...

"Yihun-ah, we don’t have time, so we’ll have to overwhelm you with all the pieces of information that you need to know," the Ghost Erwan said. "I’m sorry, but you’re the only one who can help us get out of here."

Yihun blinked rapidly, his brain working overtime.

But, to be honest, he was already tired of using his brain.

Hence, he decided to trust his instincts instead of overthinking.

And, even if it sounds cringey, I decided to listen to my heart this time.

"You’re the real Erwan Hyung-nim," Yihun said. He knew he sounded crazy, but his heart was telling him that he was right. "All of you here are the real siblings that I grew up with..."

The smile on his siblings’ faces confirmed that he was right.

But if he was right, then...

"Who are those people wearing your skin?" Yihun asked, his voice trembling. Aside from the fact that it was really cold in there, the things that were running in his mind were scary— much scarier than all the shitty things he had already gone through. "And how can I talk to you like this if your physical body doesn’t belong to you anymore? Are you... ghosts?"

His kind siblings laughed softly.

It reminds me of the good old days when we get along well...

"See? I told you! Our Yihun will think we are ghosts."

"Our Yihun is a genius Guide, but he’s kind of ignorant about other things."

"I’m telling you— that kid has zero survival instincts."

Uhm, are they praising or insulting me?

"We are not ghosts, Yihun-ah," Erwan, the spokesperson of the group, explained. "We are the residue of the Mana stored in the half Cores that they extracted from our physical bodies. You can see and talk to us because your Core has the ability to resonate with all the Cores in existence. Just like what those old monsters often say, you truly are the perfect Guide, our dear maknae."

"Hyung-nim..." Yihun clenched his hands tightly, gathering the courage to ask questions that he was actually afraid to face. "If you can only maintain that form right now because of your Mana, then what happened to you in your real bodies?"

The sad smile on his siblings’ faces answered his question.

Yihun felt his heart breaking instantly.

No, this can’t be true...

"The other half of our Cores had to remain in our stolen physical bodies so that the entities who possessed us wouldn’t get detected."

"What are those entities that possessed you, Hyung-nim?"

"Monsters," Erwan said in a serious tone. "Those things are intelligent dungeon monsters that Song Heejin, Charles Kang, and Yosef Lee tamed— and they did that in order to replace the Guides and Espers whom they wish to control."

Yihun covered his mouth with his hands when he gasped out loud.

Intelligent dungeon monsters that can wear human skin?

"Yihun-ah, please save us— we don’t wish to be fed to that kid."

Oh.

"Are you talking about Bambi, Hyung-nim?" Yihun asked, the disgust that he felt towards Bambi resurfacing. "Is that child going to eat you?"

Erwan opened his mouth to speak, but...

BANG!

Someone or something slammed into the door hard— the impact causing a dent in it.

I just know that it can’t be human.

"Yihun Hyung, are you there?"

Ah.

Yihun unconsciously took a step away from the door when he recognized the voice on the other side of the door.

Bambi...!

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