The Scales and the Conch Horn
A pure white space, accompanied by scales and a conch horn. Instead of the blinding phenomenon one would expect from such tremendous light, a realm of pure whiteness simply descended. It was utterly different from the blurry, dizzying world that had tasted of blood only moments ago. A cozy feeling. Yet this coziness did not pass through clothing but touched the skin directly. More serious than any appreciation of that warmth, however, was what came next.
-Clang!
“The wounds…”
Lee Han stared at his right hand. The twisted, crushed right arm had returned to normal as if it had never been damaged. Not only that, the sword that had been buried in his back was gone, and every wound across his body had sloughed away as cleanly as if washed in a bath. No, it was even stranger than that.
Even the spell backlash I suffered because of Ha Dowol has completely vanished.
It was closer to restoration than mere recovery. And this warmth. Realizing the true nature of the light, Lee Han shuddered as if struck by lightning. It was nothing less than rage.
“Hehehe, hahaha ha ha! When I begged so desperately you never even showed the tip of your nose! And now you dare appear before me!”
“That’s because I recognized how rotten you were from the start!”
-Squelch!
Along with the irritated words, a longsword drove through Lee Han’s chest from behind.
It wasn’t only Lee Han who had been restored. Every living thing inside the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency had been brought back by the highest heavenly energy, even those suffering terrible burns and facing imminent death.
Urgent Salvation Decree
Afterglow
Even with a sword buried in his chest, Lee Han forced the spell out. The Awakened who had retreated from his pillar of fire saw him fleeing toward the exit and tried to pursue, but—
“Stop! The center of this pocket dimension is now in our hands! Besides, we can’t fight with civilians caught in the crossfire.”
“...Fuck. Seeing him move in that condition, I’m the one who’ll get screwed if I’m not careful.”
At Pigeon 4’s words, the Awakened glanced toward where the silver-haired Yu Seong stood. Head raised, gazing at the light with both hands clasped in prayer, she looked as though she were bestowing a blessing on the people sleeping beneath her. No, it was not a mere blessing. What she offered was genuine salvation.
For now, they had to focus on defense.
“Damn it, I can sense that double-blade bastard up ahead. I’ll bring him along too.”
“Ugh… I’ll provide cover. The pocket dimension’s core is damaged, so it’ll take time just to assess its state.”
The sorcerer stood, making a show of wiping the blood from his eyes, nose, and mouth.
“By the way, how many of us are left?”
“...All the DPS except the old man are dead. In that slaughter, anyone who couldn’t move might as well be counted as gone.”
The mood was grim. The sacrifices had been too heavy. In truth, they had only avoided total annihilation by using a cheat key to flip the outcome.
“Huh?”
Suddenly something blue caught Pigeon 4’s eye. There was no mistaking it—the blue petals of a Dream-Soul Play Flower. Yu Seong carefully lifted the blossom with both hands. Slowly, a blue light resembling its petals flowed upward, against the current of the pillar of light.
A single mind. Recalling that moment was like watching the only ripple disturb a silent pond; every head turned at once. Regardless of the gap in power, scale, or nature, it compelled them all to witness it.
The heavens opened. It was a beautiful pillar of light, as though immortals dwelling in a world above the clouds had opened a circular gate and let the radiance pour down to earth.
“Why is that…?”
I glanced at Gangcheori. His eyes shook violently. Unlike his usual fiery nature, cold sweat beaded on his skin. The shadow of defeat had already stepped into him.
“But calling it ‘that thing.’ You should show proper respect and use its real name.”
“...Grrrr! You damn puppet!”
Gangcheori raised his hand like a blade, launching a spear of red flame at my face. Instead of dodging, I fixed my gaze on it and smiled.
"I shall pass judgment."
"The victor is Kim Yuseong."
"Deciding factor: Jogwangshin's blessing and Lee Han's escape."
⟨ In My Name, I Tilt These Scales ⟩
“Urgh!”
Yet Gangcheori’s attack was blocked by Changcheon Amgui, who had appeared to deliver the verdict. From the captured hand, darkness and frost spread instead of red flames.
Changcheon Amgui’s words materialized as sapphire-like orbs. One. Two. Three. Each orb placed tilted the scales between me and Gangcheori. Before long the scales hung perfectly level.
“It’s rigged! This can’t be allowed!”
Gangcheori shouted, voice thick with malice. At the same time, ecstasy began to bloom inside me.
“No matter how you look at it, this was always a cliché.”
“What are you babbling about! I said this isn’t fair!”
“Where is the unfairness? We simply didn’t know your plan, just as you failed to see our variables.”
The successful gamble left me giddy. Before I could even steady those emotions, the scales shattered, sinking into both our chests and flowing toward our dantians.
The dantian overflowed. No—before it could, qi spun through my meridians at terrifying speed, turning my whole body into a roaring engine. The pressure threatened to tear me apart, yet I endured. Every cell should have screamed under the cold energy, but my Yin-Cold Body transformed the sensation into pure rapture.
“Euhuh… puhu huhuhu.”
Laughter spilled out. Ecstasy and omnipotence melted into ultimate bliss.
...Dangerous.
-Thud!
I clenched my fist and drove it into my own jaw. The cluster of nerves there flashed my brain awake, clearing my mind.
“...Tsk. You should have just become a ghost.”
Gangcheori sounded regretful, but there was no chance of that. I had nearly fallen into qi deviation, drunk on the sweet yin energy. No, it had been far worse. I had almost become a living ghost.
At this moment I was tightrope-walking the absolute limit of what I could endure. I had to hold on. There was no retreat left in this fight with Gangcheori.
Internal energy flowed along my sword, completing the blade aura. The overflowing energy, no longer its original blue, became something between sticky indigo and black, sharpening the blade’s chilling edge to its utmost.
“With this, I can pierce your scales even without sword force.”
“Hehehe, if that sword can even reach my scales.”
Gangcheori bared his flames, scales, and fangs. I settled into my stance as well. My first target was the opening created by his initial attack. I would stab that single move and seize the advantage.
-You two seem prepared. But one thing remains, does it not?
One thing? The scales had already been adjusted. What remained now was—
Suddenly Gangcheori grinned. My expression hardened.
“Full-scale war!”
“One-on-one duel!”
We shouted almost simultaneously. There would be no concession. Hope burned in Gangcheori; desperation burned in me. Our positions had reversed in an instant.
Additional troop reinforcements permitted until the Hour of the Ox (1–3 AM). All forces must be reorganized by the Hour of the Horse (11 AM–1 PM). Any attack on the opponent during this period will be regarded as an insult and challenge to Changcheon Amgui herself.
I squeezed my eyes shut. In the end, bloodshed could not be avoided.
-Buuuuuuu!
At that moment a heavy, eerie resonance tickled my ears.
This was…
“The conch horn?”
“Are these all the survivors?”
Yu Seong grew somber as she saw the number had shrunk from twenty-one to five.
“Ear Fighter, you saved Seoul, didn’t you? Plus you saved us and those police officers. Cheer up a little. Oh, right—we haven’t introduced ourselves yet. I’m Park Seok-gyun. Former firefighter.”
The foul-mouthed Awakened, Park Seok-gyun, offered what passed for consolation at the main entrance of the police headquarters.
“...I’m Heo Gang-yun. My occupation is thief… *sob* Myeong-ho…!”
Heo Gang-yun, having lost his friend Myeong-ho, managed to state his job before collapsing and bursting into tears.
“I am I Go-cheon. As you can see, I am a sorcerer. I work as a city-hall civil servant.”
I Go-cheon handed Heo Gang-yun a handkerchief as he spoke.
“Pigeon 4. Well, I’m a shady government civil servant.”
“...Can you really say that out loud?”
“I assume everyone here already knows what they need to know.”
Pigeon 4 left the meaningful remark hanging.
“I’m Kim Yu-seong. I came from Jeju Island. My occupation is warrior… no, Divine Maiden.”
Yu Seong’s golden eyes gleamed. Within those pupils no longer resided the energy of wind, but a brilliant heavenly energy.
“Please leave the follow-up measures for Seoul to us. We’ll handle all the annoying details.”
“In that case, while I’m asking for favors, could I request a single helicopter?”
“Yes, of course.”
Pigeon 4 answered as if it were nothing.
“What is the destination?”
“Obviously the front lines. Where my master is waiting.”