The False Dawn
The gray sky hung low.
Clouds, crushed into ash-gray shapes, blanketed the ceiling of the world, and the light beyond them was faintly blurred.
Chill seeped across the silent earth where no wind stirred. Along the avenue cutting through the heart of the ancient fortress ruins, tense gazes gathered on both sides.
And from afar—
Figures approached, slicing through the silence.
Nibraks.
No frantic gallop, no hurried steps. Only a calm procession advancing toward a predetermined fate. At its head walked Mateus.
The path opened beneath the feet of the one leading the group. His presence was like that of countless stars. In the crowd, no one dared block his way. They only narrowed their eyes, swallowed hard, or shrank back.
In that moment, silence became its own eloquence.
The road Mateus walked was not merely the avenue leading to the family’s heart. It was the ruins of the past that Nibraks now trod. Those once buried in history were beginning to stride through the present.
A triumphant return claiming to have recovered the great artifact. Yet this strange march without cheers was suddenly halted.
“Mateus.”
A quiet voice. Mateus lightly nodded upon seeing the woman standing at the center of the crowd.
“Resina.”
The renowned daughter of the previous family head and current elder of Belgrant answered slowly.
“Where are you going?”
“To the family mausoleum.”
“May I ask why?”
“To show our ancestors what we have retrieved. Seven hundred years have passed. I wish to present them the moment they have longed for their entire lives. Will you step aside? I will return shortly.”
The air froze at his reply. Anyone with sense understood what those words implied. Jin was no exception.
They found it? Really? Had the seven-hundred-year slog toward the emerald mine finally borne fruit?!
Surprise rippled across faces craning on tiptoe in the distance.
“…Are you claiming right now that you have found the Eternal Dawn?”
At Resina’s question, which spoke for everyone, Mateus nodded.
“Indeed. So I intend to receive recognition. I have finally earned the qualification.”
He took a single step forward.
“……!”
Among those who instinctively retreated, only Resina held her ground. Her voice was cold.
“Then dedicate the Eternal Dawn to the family head. There is only ever one owner of the heirloom, and the honor of meeting the ancestors belongs to Bingbaek. Do not forget that.”
Huh?
Jin’s eyes widened. Was this the same woman who picked fights with every faction? Why was she suddenly siding with the family head?
But that was a misunderstanding. From Jin’s perspective Resina might seem like a hypersensitive critic of everyone, yet she was an elder representing a faction. She knew when personal feelings could be voiced and when they could not.
Moreover, declaring that one would receive recognition at the family mausoleum was the same as announcing one’s intent to become the new head of Marjie. At this moment Resina was not protecting Bingbaek. She was simply warning Mateus, who displayed misguided ambition, not to cross the line.
“Dedicate it? The Eternal Dawn? To a family head whose life or death is not even confirmed?”
“Mateus.”
“The seven hundred years of endurance belonged to Nibraks.”
“That is your conviction. No one forced it upon you.”
“Conviction? Then what is yours? Honoring the fact that the thickest blood flows through your veins—what meaning does that hold for the family today?”
“I simply believe that not forgetting tradition and preserving the past is the path to the family’s survival.”
“In the end, isn’t that just a hollow answer? A self-justification from someone who has settled. Nothing more, nothing less.”
“That hollow answer is Belgrant’s conviction, Mateus. Marjie had to choose in the face of change, and choice blossomed into conviction. The ideals each faction holds are merely differences in how they serve the family. It is not a question of who is right or wrong—something you, more than anyone, should understand well.”
Resina spoke. The family’s split in the face of crisis had been inevitable, and there was no single correct answer among their convictions.
“Seven hundred years—I respect your dedication. I offer praise that it has finally borne fruit. But the family’s laws must be upheld. If you have truly retrieved the Eternal Dawn, turn back even now and meet Bingbaek.”
“Strange, Resina. Was I mistaken? The one who retrieves the Eternal Dawn is promised the family’s position. That was clearly a precept established under Belgrant’s leadership.”
“So you intend to become a legitimate usurper? Pushing aside a perfectly living Bingbaek? Mateus, is this really you? This is strange… This isn’t like you.”
As the conversation grew increasingly grave, Jin’s expression turned equally bewildered. What the hell? Wasn’t this supposed to be a festival? Especially with the Eternal Dawn retrieved. Like Korea in 2002 uniting under the name Red Devils, Jin had expected every member of the family to embrace one another with laughter and dance the Ganggangsullae of joy all night long. That was why he had rushed here with Katrina.
But something was wrong. If Mateus answered “What do you mean, like me?” now, countless narrative patterns humanity had built guaranteed their conversation would end in catastrophe.
Jin glanced sideways at Katrina standing beside him. Her face had gone deathly pale, and she stared at the two elders with an endlessly serious expression. In truth, not only Katrina but many gathered here had forgotten to breathe. They too found the situation sudden.
So Jin racked his brain. What should he do?
Then a thought flashed through his mind.
Hey, hey!
A mental cry calling someone. No response came.
This bastard?
Jin barely suppressed the anger that surged up. Like inserting a coin into a vending machine, he lightly pushed mana toward the ellipsoid formed in his mind.
[…What is it?]
A somewhat listless reply, as if reluctantly summoned, returned.
Jin wanted to curse him out, but given the situation he got straight to the point.
One of Marjie’s elders claims to have retrieved the Eternal Dawn. Don’t you feel anything?
[Retrieved it? First I’ve heard of it. I have never lent my spirituality. Naturally, I have never received the Ice Age either.]
Jin’s expression turned strange.
What? So they’re making a fuss without even finding the heirloom?
The atmosphere had turned ominous. The two confronting elders had begun to emanate mana. Just as Jin instinctively furrowed his brow at the chill rising to his skin—
[Hmm?]
Following the exclamation, Prision’s voice continued.
[It is the Eternal Dawn, though?]
It’s real? But how does it make sense that you didn’t feel anything?
[I told you. I have received nothing.]
What kind of bullshit was this? They drank the alcohol but didn’t drive drunk? Yet Prision had no reason to lie in this situation. Then what? Had Mateus been shot in the head? He used to act so pleasant, but now… something reeked.
Jin’s brow furrowed.
[…That fellow seems to be borrowing power from something other than me.]
With Prision’s following words—
─────!!!
A deafening explosion tore through the ears, and the atmosphere warped as if swelling.
Kwa-ga-ga-ga-gak!!
Immediately after, a massive shockwave galloped across the ground, and behind it pale dust rose like a tidal wave. Jin covered his chin with his elbow and narrowed his eyes. The powerful mana that had swept the area scattered into the air, and the distorted layers slowly returned to their places.
Beyond the gradually clearing view, a long trail of blood stretched across the floor. Resina knelt on one knee, breathing heavily. Disheveled hair, a front soaked red, trembling fingertips brushing the ground. Deep furrows carved her weathered brow as she bit her bleeding lips.
Who would have thought she would go all out? Trust in her opponent had become a fatal misstep in this short decisive battle.
“……”
As she slowly raised her head, Mateus filled her gaze. The downward look rippled with an ominous light. Whether it was the ruthless contemplation of a victor or the conviction of one facing a long-predestined fate, there was not a single trace of doubt in those eyes.
“Why go this far…”
“For a united Marjie, Resina.”
“What meaning is there in a usurpation that denies legitimacy? If you were truly qualified, you would not have needed to go this far—your turn would have come naturally.”
“Frustrating words. Why should the qualified wait?”
As he spoke, blood vessels resembling rose thorns appeared in Mateus’s sclera. He raised his arm at a right angle. A storm of mana began to swirl violently within his spread palm.
“There is no need for dreamers in my Marjie.”
The next moment—
“Mother!”
A man leaped between Mateus, who swung his arm, and Resina. And—
Kwaang!!
Amid the roar tearing through the air and compressed force spreading outward, the man who had seized Mateus’s wrist with both hands gritted his teeth.
“Have you gone mad? What the hell is this all of a sudden!”
He was none other than the elder of Kliren.
“……”
Regardless, Mateus’s gaze was now fixed on Resina and his son, who had put distance between them.
“It’s you.”
At the following voice, Jin, who had tucked the mother and son under both armpits, bared his teeth savagely.
“Your sudden acceleration seems excessive. Just because opinions don’t match, trying to kill family members living under the same roof—what kind of mindset is that? Have you lost your mind?”
“I have no intention of making outsiders understand. However, to your question I will simply answer that the time has come.”
“Bullshit.”
Just as Jin sharply retorted and moved to set Resina and Akers down—
“Are you just going to stand by and watch this atrocity? Is this truly what everyone thinks? Answer me, Nibraks!”
Despite the Kliren elder’s resounding cry, those who styled themselves Mateus’s shadows showed not even a hint of hesitation. At some point, hundreds of gleaming eyes captured everyone except themselves.
Hwaak!
Along with twisted mana—
“…What is this… Kugh!”
A startled voice was crushed in a rough grip. Mateus had seized the elder’s chin. He slowly opened his mouth toward his old friend, who had begun drawing up mana like wildfire.
“You people are the problem. If you had simply stayed still, this could have ended without anyone getting hurt, yet you insist on playing the protector.”
As he spoke, Mateus’s pupils elongated vertically. His tightening grip trembled.
“This is all of your own making.”
The next moment—
───────!!!
Beginning with the explosion of two massive forces clashing, Nibraks moved. As if they had abandoned human hearts, they began attacking the people around them.
What kind of crazy bastards? Jin drew in a sharp breath. The figure who had entered like a triumphant general was suddenly beating up fellow elders. What the fuck was this? Bingbaek? Acting like he was Arthur or something.
Though bewildered, his body moved honestly. Presence approached from behind. Kung—instinctively planting his right foot as an axis, his body spun like lightning. The leg raised slicing through the air, the instep that drew a circle in an instant was now wreathed in lightning.
Jjeok—
A perfect strike. The opponent whose jaw shattered staggered and fell backward.
But this was only the beginning. An ominous aura assaulted him from behind, left, and right. Unfamiliar currents formed in an instant. Sharp frost sliced through the air and came crashing down simultaneously. Without time to gauge angles, the attacks converged.
Jin had already lowered his body. Without hesitation he bent his knees and shifted his center of gravity. Ssae-aek! The frozen tip grazed past above his head. His foot pushed off the ground with explosive acceleration. Twisting as if sliding, he drove his knee into the abdomen of the enemy charging from the left.
“…Kek!”
Grabbing the back of the head of the folding body, he slammed it into the ground. At the same time another attacker from the right formed an ice spear in an extended hand and brought it down toward Jin. Faster than that—
Kwaja-jak!!
Jin’s hand snatched and broke the middle of the ice spear. Fragments scattered as fine crystals. Jin immediately crouched and rammed his shoulder into the enemy’s chest. The man flew as if hit by a dump truck and sprawled on the ground.
At that moment Jin’s vision rippled coldly. Reflexively tilting his head back, a pale hand grasped the air right in front of his nose and a blizzard-like chill exploded within it. A knife wind sharply sliced his skin. And—
Pajijijik!!
Lightning fire burst from Jin’s fingertips and cleaved the air. The opponent struck by Jajeon twisted unnaturally amid flashing light and shadow. The convulsing body fell backward with smoke.
As Jin righted his posture, a status window appeared before his eyes.
Twisted Aspiration (Hidden)
📍 Objective: Stop Mateus and Nibraks.
🎁 Reward: 58,000 XP