CHAPTER 56: OUTBURST

The air tensed and a column of light descended from the cavern ceiling and pierced the symbol on the floor.

The whitish glow crackled, its surface pulsing as if something were breathing inside. The cave walls reflected the light, and the stone beneath their feet vibrated faintly but persistently.

A crevice had opened in the heart of the cave. It was smaller than the others, but no less disturbing.

Rhys narrowed his eyes, aware that this wasn’t like last time; this Rift wasn’t churning furiously, but simply waiting, suspended in the air like a half-open door, a silent invitation to whatever lay on the other side.

Rong Ye’s body remained motionless at the side of the symbol, his silhouette bathed in the light emanating from the Rift.

The creature, still dripping its golden blood onto the rocks, held its palm outstretched on the ground. It didn’t seem like it was going to cross. It just stood there, as if its sole purpose was to hold that opening.

"No..." Eun-woo murmured, half-sitting, leaning on his trembling arms. "Don’t let it in..."

His eyes glowed dimly again, like embers on a frosty night.

Rhys looked at him, then at Nolan. The rifle dangled uselessly from his arm, his expression now much paler than before. As if even he didn’t expect it to work.

"What were you planning to do with that Rift?" Rhys asked, his voice barely audible over the hum of the light.

Nolan didn’t respond.

The creature did.

"Quid pro quo," it whispered.

And he slowly turned his head, making a slight gesture in the direction of Rong Ye’s unconscious body, as if nothing else were needed to make it clear who it was referring to.

"Do you know what that means?" Nolan said then. "It’s Latin. ’Something in return for something.’ A fair exchange."

Eun-woo tried to sit up, but Rhys gently stopped him, pressing a hand on his shoulder to keep him still. Without taking his eyes off Nolan, he spoke calmly.

"And what do you expect to receive?"

Nolan hesitated. For a moment, it seemed as though he might say nothing. Then, without taking his gaze from the whitish glow emerging from the ground, he murmured:

"What Blackwood took from me."

Without saying anything else, he leaned towards Rong Ye and stretched out his arms to pick him up.

But the moment he touched him, Rong Ye bolted upright with a hoarse grunt, and with a trembling hand lifted a sharp stone he had hidden beneath his body. He threw it desperately, slicing into Nolan’s cheek.

Eun-woo reacted instantly. He propelled himself forward with a power that seemed impossible for his condition and lunged at the creature just as it began to move to protect Nolan.

He slammed into the creature’s torso, knocking it off balance for a second. Before it could counterattack, Eun-woo spun around and, with a swift maneuver, hooked one of his legs around the creature’s neck while using the momentum to push it down.

The creature snarled, trying to get up, but Eun-woo was already on top of it, holding one of its limbs with both arms and digging his knee into the small of its back. He pinned it against the rocky ground.

The creature struggled under his weight, emitting a high-pitched squeal, but Eun-woo refused to budge.

Rhys ran to catch Rong Ye before Nolan tried to catch him again. He found him staggering, the stone still trembling in his bloody fingers. Without thinking, he grabbed him by the shoulders and shoved him behind him, placing himself like a human shield between him and Nolan.

"I don’t need you to take care of me," Rong Ye growled, his voice rough with exertion and anger.

"If you didn’t need it, you wouldn’t have ended up like this," Rhys replied, his eyes fixed on Nolan.

Rong Ye clicked his tongue but didn’t argue. Rhys was right.

Nolan did not attack.

He just stared at them, his eyes blazing with rage as he brought a hand to his cheek and wiped away the blood dripping from the cut. The blood stained his fingers. Then he smiled maliciously.

"There’s no need to push them into the Rift," Nolan said quietly. "Not him," he tilted his chin at Rong Ye, "not you. The Rift is already open, and whoever’s on the other side will come for what we promised."

Rhys felt his breath freeze in his lungs.

No sooner had Nolan finished speaking than a shape emerged from the core of the light. First an elongated shadow, impossible to identify. Then, a claw. Slow, pale, thin, like the limb of the creature Eun-woo still had pinned to the ground. But this one was large... much larger.

A gigantic, whitish hand emerged from the Rift, feeling the ground as if searching for something. Each of its movements was slow but firm, accompanied by the unpleasant sound of rocks crunching under its weight.

For a moment, Eun-woo hesitated. He looked at the Rift, the creature, and the hand, unsure whether to continue holding back his enemy or charge at whatever was trying to cross. He knew that, like last time, he could also try to close the Rift again... though he wasn’t sure he had the strength. Not in this state.

The creature laughed mockingly.

"You should be on our side, Esper," he whispered contemptuously. "Let what’s on the other side take what they were promised."

Eun-woo gritted his teeth, ignoring it. He looked at Rhys and Rong Ye, who were trying to escape the hand with clumsy runs, like mice facing a giant. But the hand followed them precisely. Each impact left deep grooves and made the cave walls tremble.

"You won’t be able to protect them," the creature insisted. "But there, on the other side... are the answers you seek. The answers about your parents."

Eun-woo froze. His heart stopped for a second. He thought of the man and woman he’d always seen as his parents: distant, stern figures who had raised him without a touch, without a word of comfort.

What if his real parents weren’t any different? What if they’d abandoned him too, what if they’d never loved him? What if his entire existence had been a mistake from the very beginning?

The possibility hit him with unexpected force, chilling his chest.

"You should feel it," the creature whispered, smiling crookedly. "That energy... should resonate with you. It should call out to you."

Meanwhile, Rhys struggled to keep Rong Ye safe. He tugged desperately at him, narrowly avoiding the hand that ripped icicles from the ceiling and turned the floor into rubble.

Nolan launched himself at him, and they both fell to the ground, struggling. Rhys screamed, covering Rong Ye with his body, shielding him from the giant hand and Nolan.

"How do you know I don’t have parents?" Eun-woo asked, unable to hide the trembling in his voice.

The creature tilted its head slightly.

"Because you’re the last one left. And if you’re the last one, it stands to reason you don’t have parents." It paused, almost as if feeling sympathy. "But that’s also why I know you don’t know what really happened to the espers."

"What happened...?"

"If you want to know," the creature whispered, in a lower, more dangerous voice, "do nothing."

Eun-woo’s eyes widened in bewilderment.

"Don’t interfere," the creature continued. "Don’t try to save them. Only then will you understand why we’re doing this."

Eun-woo looked at him, his breath ragged, involuntarily loosening his grip on the creature’s body.

Then the creature wrenched itself free, stood up nimbly, but didn’t lunge at Eun-woo. It ran toward Rong Ye. Nolan was still struggling with Rhys.

Eun-woo reacted a second late.

The creature pulled Rong Ye by the arm, dragged him a few steps toward the Rift, and before Rhys could reach him, shoved him forcefully into the hand.

The elongated, bony fingers closed around Rong Ye’s body. The creature’s claws dug into his torso and back, burning his skin like live coals.

Rong Ye kicked, scratched, even bit, but it was all in vain.

"Rong Ye!" Rhys shouted, launching himself after him, only to be intercepted by Nolan.

The man tackled him with his shoulder and threw him violently to the ground. He pinned him down with his knee planted in his back and one hand pressing his head against the ground.

Rhys roared, thrashing like a wounded animal, but Nolan didn’t budge an inch. His eyes blazed with fury, his smile too wide to reach his pupils.

"Always so impulsive," he murmured, squeezing tighter. "You learned nothing from Jess."

Meanwhile, the creature hovered at the edge of the Rift, its face fluctuating between Eun-woo’s form and a grotesque grin.

"You’ll understand soon, you’ll see..." the creature assured.

Eun-woo didn’t reply.

Everything became silent inside him.

Eun-woo didn’t hear Rhys scream, nor did he see the Rift trembling. All he sensed was the empty space where Rong Ye had been.

An invisible pressure began to build in his chest, warm and throbbing. His breathing became erratic. A deep humming filled his ears, and for a moment, the world seemed to go still.

"You shouldn’t even consider yourself an esper," mocked the voice that always appeared in the most tense moments. "You’re far too weak to call yourself one."

Eun-woo’s heart beat once, and the ground vibrated slightly beneath his feet.

"A creature as weak as that deceived you," the voice continued. "And because of your carelessness, Rong Ye will die."

It beat again, and the air trembled, barely perceptible.

"Your mother would be disappointed," the voice concluded.

It pulsed a third time, and the Rift responded with a flicker of light.

Eun-woo looked up, his face darkened. He felt something pushing at him from within. Something dormant. Something awakening with rage. His body trembled, but not from fear. Not this time.

It was different from the previous times when his emotions clouded his mind. There was still chaos, but it was controlled, one in which Eun-woo no longer feared burning.

The creature bowed its head.

"Ah... there you are," it whispered with a smile.

But Eun-woo couldn’t hear its voice anymore. All he could hear was the echo of Rong Ye’s name ringing in his memory.

And then, one of the cave walls burst open.