An ominous aura.
It was a chillingly foreboding and familiar sensation.
“Noah!”
Sa-yoon, feeling goosebumps and unconsciously raising his voice, grabbed Noah’s arm and pulled him closer. Noah, who had been staring at the parchment floating in the air, turned to Sa-yoon in surprise. A hand larger than the boy’s covered Noah’s eyes.
“Don’t look.”
“What?”
“I said don’t look, that’s enough.”
Sa-yoon, his expression contorted, glared at the parchment. Nothing was written on it, nothing to be read. Yet unable to shake off the ominous feeling, he tightened his arm around Noah. His heart pounded faster than usual.
Sa-yoon turned to the store owner and nodded towards the empty space where the parchment was floating.
“Can you see it?”
“Pardon?”
“I asked if you can see it.”
“…See what?”
The owner looked bewildered. The woman alternately looked at Sa-yoon and the empty space with confused eyes, tilting her head. Realizing from her reaction that the ominous parchment was only visible to him and Noah, Sa-yoon’s lips moved.
His pupils contracted and his breathing became rough.
No way.
It couldn’t be.
It couldn’t possibly be happening now, could it?
“…Hyung?”
“Stay still.”
Sa-yoon held Noah, who was squirming uncomfortably, a bit tighter. As if to soothe his troubled mind, Sa-yoon stroked Noah’s head, trying to maintain calm by steadying his breathing and blinking a couple of times. His icy gaze fixed on the floating parchment.
Could it be a hallucination?
He hoped it was just that.
But.
Ding!
<Genius Eyes is activated.>
Along with an unwelcome notification sound, a blue window suddenly appeared before Sa-yoon’s eyes. The notification window indicating the activation of a skill he hadn’t tried again since realizing it didn’t work on virtual characters after using it once on Will upon entering the dungeon was eerie.
Sa-yoon gritted his teeth as Genius Eyes, of all skills, activated at such a moment. He inhaled slowly.
It must be a groundless fear.
Something like hypnosis or wishful thinking swirled inside his mouth. Sa-yoon gripped Noah’s shoulders tightly and lowered his gaze.
“Noah.”
As he called the name, their eyes met. Sa-yoon hesitated for a moment before using the skill.
<You peek at the status window of the target designated by the skill ‘Genius Eyes’. Be careful of pain. (b ᵔ▽ᵔ)b>
<Calling up the status window of the character, ‘Noah’.>
.
.
.
<Noah’s Status Window>
Age: 12
Gender: Male
Grade: ?
Inclination: ‘The One Who Leads to Destruction’
Titles: ‘The One Watched by Gods(?)’, ‘Perhaps I’m a Descendant of Gods?(?)’, ‘The One Who Follows the Evil God(?)’……
“……”
The window that suddenly filled his vision left Sa-yoon speechless. Many familiar things were visible.
Many things that shouldn’t be shown to anyone but himself.
There was a sound like something snapping.
“Hyung? Hyung?”
As soon as he confirmed the status window, Sa-yoon grabbed Noah’s hand and rushed out of the toy store, with a confused Noah repeatedly calling out to him. Those calls didn’t properly register in his ears. Only a ringing sound, as if telling him to come to his senses, and something like a warning sound echoed in his ears.
Why.
There was no time to organize his chaotic thoughts. Why now of all times? And why Noah of all people?
Why, of all things.
‘The One Who Leads to Destruction.’
He couldn’t help but understand what that inclination meant. Sa-yoon, who had been biting his lip anxiously, stopped abruptly at the end of his thoughts that kept connecting one after another. His stiff eyes lowered to embrace the boy. While his gaze was fixed on Noah, Sa-yoon’s consciousness had traveled back to the past.
Even further back than now.
To a shabby, old house engulfed in ferocious flames.
If only I hadn’t saved you then.
“Hyung!”
“……”
The sudden shout woke Sa-yoon’s hazy reason. The cry, tinged with a sob, brought focus back to his eyes. Sa-yoon, his senses returned, looked at Noah. The boy was looking up at him with a terrified expression.
“What’s wrong?”
The small hand held in his grip had turned purple from lack of blood flow. Yet, the tightly pressed lips trying not to show pain caught his attention. Sa-yoon stared at Noah’s mouth once, then at the hand he was holding, before slowly relaxing his body.
“……”
“Hyung?”
As Sa-yoon remained uncharacteristically silent, Noah spoke up again.
“Ah.”
Sa-yoon took in the sight of Noah with slightly dazed eyes, like someone waking from a long dream.
Twelve years old.
He was twelve years old.
He thought the boy was young, but he was really just twelve years old.
His gaze, moving as if fumbling, shifted from Noah’s face to his small hands. The owner of those small hands, that boy who was so timid and sensitive that he couldn’t properly say when he was in pain. This little boy, just twelve years old, was the source of destruction.
The one he had to eliminate.
“…Sa-yoon hyung?”
“……”
“…What’s wrong?”
“……”
“Did I… do something wrong?”
Noah showed signs of anxiety with his whole body. He was more concerned about Sa-yoon in front of him than the parchment floating above his head. He lowered his eyebrows, revealing his unease, and bit his lip, blaming his innocent self. Sa-yoon quietly looked down at the boy who was clumsy in everything, then bent his upper body.
“…Come here.”
At the voice that finally came out after a long while, Noah hesitated. Sa-yoon called again to the boy who wasn’t approaching easily, thinking he was angry, and embraced Noah as he ran over with a brightened face.
“…Weren’t you angry?”
“No.”
“Then why did you get mad?”
“I saw something unpleasant.”
“What?”
Noah blinked at the insensitive tone. Sa-yoon stroked the boy’s soft hair a couple of times and then spoke as he headed towards the lord’s castle.
“Noah.”
“Yes?”
“Don’t tell anyone.”
“About what?”
“What you see with your eyes.”
“……”
“Even if you see something like a strange paper, ignore it. No matter what that paper says, don’t look at it. Don’t try to listen either. If you feel uneasy, come to me.”
“……”
“Do you understand?”
As Sa-yoon softened his voice, which had stiffened due to excitement, Noah hugged Sa-yoon’s neck tightly. When the boy didn’t answer, Sa-yoon furrowed his brow and urged him.
“You need to answer.”
As he patted the narrow back with his palm, a small “Yes” finally came out. Only then satisfied, Sa-yoon quickened his pace.
Beep, beep―.
An ominous ringing continued to echo in his ears.
***
“Where did you go?”
As they returned to the castle, Geon-joo, who seemed to have regained his energy while they were out, welcomed Sa-yoon and Noah. Sa-yoon handed Noah over to Geon-joo, who was stretching out his arms, and headed to the bathroom. He wanted to wash off the ominous feeling that covered his entire body, even if it meant taking a shower.
“Where did you go?”
When there was no answer, Geon-joo repeated the same question. It was Noah who spoke up at the stubborn tone.
Noah said they had been to a toy store, and whether out of consideration for Sa-yoon or because he was being cautious, he added that they just came back because there were no toys he liked. Sa-yoon glanced sideways at the boy who was telling lies without blinking an eye, then entered the bathroom. He had been feeling suffocated, as if someone was choking him.
Why Noah of all people?
As he faced the pouring water, Sa-yoon continued the contemplation he couldn’t finish on the way. He couldn’t understand why it had to be that small, unfortunate boy. No matter how much he questioned and interrogated himself, there was no answer.
It was natural.
If he had known the answer, he would have found it ten years ago.
The answer to why it had to be him.
Sa-yoon sighed and left the bathroom with a towel on his head. The time spent in contemplation must have been longer than he thought, because when he came out of the damp bathroom, shaking his hair vigorously, Noah was already asleep. Sa-yoon stared blankly at the boy who had boldly claimed his bed, then climbed onto the hard bed without drying his hair. Geon-joo’s nagging inevitably followed.
“Noah learns from you when you do that, Guild Master.”
“……”
“Why did you suddenly go to a toy store today? You told me not to even buy puzzles before.”
“……”
“…Did something happen?”
It wasn’t the usual ignoring. Geon-joo, belatedly sensing something was off with Sa-yoon, who was sitting on the bed staring blankly at Noah, asked. He came closer. Sa-yoon felt Geon-joo’s presence drawing near as he stroked Noah’s hair.
After stroking it smoothly with his hand, a sudden mischievousness welled up and he pinched Noah’s upturned nose tightly. The boy, who had been sleeping with his mouth firmly closed, frowned and avoided Sa-yoon’s touch, perhaps because his breathing was blocked. Amused by the sight of Noah exhaling with a “puha,” Sa-yoon’s lips curled up slightly. Feeling Geon-joo’s presence as he walked up and sat on the edge of the bed, Sa-yoon opened his mouth.
“What are you going to do now, pretty boy?”
“What?”
“The little one you care for is the source of destruction.”
“…?”
Geon-joo expressed doubt at the truth blurted out without context. Sa-yoon, who had been continuing his thoughts while taking in Noah fully with his dark eyes, organized the words he was about to say in his head and raised his gaze.
“Noah.”
“Yes?”
“The source of destruction we’ve been looking for.”
“……”
“That thing mentioned in the quest, it’s Noah.”
A self-deprecating smile hung on the corners of his mouth. Sa-yoon, taking his lingering gaze off the boy, silently looked at the stiffened Geon-joo, who was shocked.
As if giving him time to sink into confusion.
Or, as if waiting for some kind of answer.