The Soul's Sanctuary
I stared at the translucent figure floating before me.
"Noona...?"
"That's right, that's right. Seonghyun, you've missed your big sister so much, haven't you? Come here, quick—let me hold you."
"No. Hugging between family members is a bit..."
"......"
"I'm an adult now. Hugs are something you do when you're little."
"Ha... This is why they say raising a little brother is pointless..."
She looked utterly dejected as she shuffled into the corner like a kicked puppy. I let out a long sigh at the sight.
"Why is your body getting even fainter?"
"I split my soul in half, remember? So the maintenance time got cut in half too!"
"Well aren't you just brilliant. Absolutely brilliant."
The artifact already had limited usage time, and now she'd gone and halved her own soul. I had no idea what she was thinking. I looked at my sister. She was wearing full hunter gear.
"You always claimed you were just a college student. So you really were a hunter after all."
"What do you mean, 'after all'? You already knew?"
"Only an idiot wouldn't have known. So why did you hide it?"
"Ahem! It's corporate confidential! I can't tell you!"
Over-the-top theatrics. That was her tell whenever she was hiding something.
"Tell me."
The icy tone slipped out before I could stop it, and she flinched.
"It's corporate confidential, I said..."
"......"
When I raised the Soul's Sanctuary like I was about to smash it against the floor, she rushed over in a panic.
"W-wait! That's cheating! Totally cheating!"
"Are you going to tell me or not?"
"...They say ignorance is bliss. I don't think you need to know this, Seonghyun."
Her voice had turned completely serious. I shook my head with a bitter expression.
"It's time to face reality."
"......"
She stared at me in silence. There was something complicated swirling in her eyes.
"Since I've already manifested my soul, projecting the past will drain the remaining time even faster. Are you sure you're okay with that?"
"You said you split it in two anyway. I'll just treat one half as already spent."
"Hey!"
"I'm kidding. So hurry up and show me."
When I smiled faintly, she let out a deep sigh.
"Fine. But no stopping halfway, got it?"
"Yeah."
At her gesture, images began flowing out of the crystal orb—my sister's entire life story.
Our family was painfully ordinary.
Mom and Dad both worked, and I was just a normal girl who went to school. The only thing that set us apart from other households was that my little brother was sick. That was it.
Three hundred and sixty-five days a year. Twenty-four hours a day. My brother lived with an oxygen mask strapped to his face.
"Seonghyun, are you okay?"
"Yeah... I'm fine now, so you don't have to come anymore. Going back and forth between the hospital and home must be exhausting."
"Ugh, how can you only say such sweet things!"
Even though he was the one suffering, he still worried about others. Maybe it was because he'd never taken a single step outside the hospital, but Seonghyun had kept his pure heart completely intact. That only made it hurt more.
Why did a child like him have to endure such torment?
His body was skin and bones. His face was gaunt, dark circles heavy under his eyes. He always looked like he could ascend to heaven at any moment, and it made my heart clench every time.
He must feel so suffocated.
The headband wrapped around my brother's head had strange patterns engraved on it. It would have been better if he could at least take that off, but our parents insisted it was a talisman protecting his life and refused to let him remove it.
Up until then, I had believed our family was normal.
Middle school. That was when the turning point of my life arrived.
"Seonghyun, I'll come again tomorrow."
I was saying goodbye to my brother, who spent twenty-five out of thirty days asleep, when I heard footsteps. A familiar gait. It was Mom and Dad.
I hid inside a cabinet, planning to surprise them. They entered the room.
"How is the sacrifice's condition?"
"It's not great since he hasn't awakened yet. Still, squeezing anything out of him is better than nothing."
Words I couldn't understand. Sacrifice? Awakening? And what came after was even more devastating.
"Let's begin."
"Yes."
Suddenly, Dad yanked away Seonghyun's oxygen mask.
Hssssss.
Oxygen that had lost its path filled the hospital room.
"Haa... haa..."
Seonghyun gasped desperately for air. Dad clamped a hand over his mouth and nose, then twisted his neck and began to choke him.
"Mmmph...!"
Beep beep beep beep.
The heart monitor went wild. Even though my brother looked like he would stop breathing any second, Mom and Dad only stared at the headband.
The patterns glowed brightly. Soon, a faint golden light filled the hospital room.
"Khh~ As expected, a true sacrifice really is on another level. Completely different from the failures."
"Right? Seongyul didn't react at all, but with this much power, the three of them should be waking up soon."
It was terrifying. I was so scared that my body wouldn't stop shaking.
Are these really my parents...?
They were smiling like fanatics as they strangled my brother. The parents who had cherished and loved us until now were nowhere to be found.
"Hoo. No matter how hard we try to kill him, he just won't die."
"That's why he's the sacrifice. Let's stop here for today and head back. Seongyul is waiting."
"True. By the way, how long are you going to keep playing the failed project's mother? Isn't it about time you stopped?"
"It's cute when she whines and calls me Mommy. If she starts acting rude later, I can just kill her then."
"Your personality really is something else."
They left the room like that.
Silence.
Even after the two devils had gone, I couldn't leave my hiding spot. It was the first true fear I'd ever felt in my life. The part of me that wanted to deny reality and the part that wanted to face it were at war inside my head.
After trembling in terror for a full hour, I chose to face reality.
When I opened the cabinet, I saw Seonghyun.
"......"
His face was deathly pale, tears streaming down his cheeks.
From that day on, I changed.
I became the obedient, affectionate daughter who doted on her parents. I had to act that way if I wanted to survive.
"Mom! I got 100 points on my test!"
"Oh my, that's wonderful! As expected of my daughter! Is there anything you want?"
"Can you make me fried eggs?"
Modest. Without greed. I played the role of a mature daughter.
Meanwhile, I secretly investigated Mom and Dad on my own. The Association? The police?
How could I trust them?
My parents were part of the Demon Sect. The only person in the world I could believe in was myself.
I investigated slowly, carefully. But I couldn't find any clear clues, so I eventually changed my approach.
First, I need to save Seonghyun.
His breathing was getting weaker by the day, and he was coughing up blood more frequently. It looked like his body was reaching its limit.
That's why I enrolled in the Korean Academy.
To obtain an elixir that could save even someone who was half-dead.
"You're Seongyul?"
"Hello, Professor!"
I met good teachers and good friends. But none of that mattered to me.
I need to reach A-rank.
They said the chance of an elixir appearing increased slightly starting from A-rank.
So I poured everything into the Academy. I cut my sleep to train and slaughtered monsters without rest. Thanks to that, I reached D-rank in the shortest time possible.
"Seongyul! Congratulations on reaching D-rank!"
"Thanks! Thank you!"
Everyone around me congratulated me. On the outside, I smiled like I was truly happy.
But inside, I was thinking:
Faster. I need to get stronger faster.
I had to reach A-rank. No matter what.
After finishing training that day and returning home, I found the house empty. When I tried to go to my room, I noticed something.
The door is open?
The master bedroom door that was always closed was wide open. I peeked inside, wondering if the devils had left it that way.
The safe door...
It was open too. The safe I'd always been curious about but had given up on because I didn't know the password.
I quickly slipped into the master bedroom and checked the safe. Inside was a single book.
Witch. Demon Sect. Sacrifice.
The book was filled with the same terms the devils had used. From it, I was able to piece together the rough truth of everything.
Sacrifice. It referred to a vessel capable of generating the energy needed to resurrect a Witch. I was the failure. Seonghyun was the success.
Equivalent Exchange.
The more pain he suffers, the more magi is infused into the Witches...?
The text that followed made me doubt my own eyes. And at the final paragraph, my breathing stopped completely.
The sacrifice is predicted to die at age 19. Resurrection will be difficult, but all three Witches are expected to regain full health.
A chill ran down my spine. Was this something a human being could actually do? Abandoning their own child to save a Witch. It wasn't the mindset of a sane person.
I put the log back in the safe and left the master bedroom.
I just need to steal the altar.
The band Seonghyun always wore on his head. It was an artifact that burned his soul to generate pain while simultaneously transmitting magi to the Witches.
If I could just take that away, everything would return to normal.
That night at midnight, when everyone was asleep, I prepared my insurance just in case and secretly went to Seonghyun's hospital room.
He was sound asleep as usual. I gently stroked his cheek. The little kid who still had baby fat was now a grown man.
"Didn't your noona promise? That I'd make you better."
And now it was time to keep that promise.
When I touched the headband, a powerful repulsive force pushed my hand away. But I was the failure, after all. I could endure this much magi.
Crackle!
"Ugh!"
The sensation of my hand burning came with the headband finally coming loose. My peach-colored skin had turned pitch black. But in exchange, Seonghyun's complexion improved noticeably.
It would still be difficult for a while, but if he rested for a year or two, he should return to normal.
I let out a sigh of relief—only to hear the door open behind me.
"Khh! As expected of the failure. You took the bait perfectly."
"No choice then. Let's dispose of her."
So it really had been bait. But that was fine. I'd prepared insurance just in case.
I grabbed the altar and leaped out the window.
Crash!
"This crazy bitch! Catch her!"
"Yes!"
As expected, both of them were hunters. They jumped out the window after me.
The cult leader and one follower. Only two in total. No other followers. These two had planned everything by themselves.
Which meant...
There's no backup.
I smiled as I entered the 'Ogre's Training Ground' that I'd left open beforehand.
"Khh... A mere failure... dares to...!"
"Cough, cough...!"
The cult leader and follower were crushed beneath a house-sized boulder, slowly turning to ash. They really did have long lives, as expected of hunters. Even after falling into a trap, they still clung to life.
"Heh heh... Even if I die, our brethren will come for you...! We may have failed with our own hands, but they will surely...!"
Those were the cult leader's last words.
Brethren?
Did they call for backup? The Demon Sect was split into dozens, even hundreds of factions. These two had been blinded by merit and carried out the plan alone. Yet they requested support midway?
A variable. And a massive one at that.
I turned around to leave this place for now—
"Is it you?"
A cold voice that sounded like it had never known blood or tears.
"The one holding the altar."
Portan Guild Leader. Han Jaehyuk.
He was standing right there.