Accomplices in the Dead of Night

Deep into the night past curfew at Seongun Academy, three shadows slipped silently between the dense trees near the main gate. The cold dawn air pierced my lungs, but the purple mana surging inside me boiled with an unpleasant heat instead. Even the rustling of fallen leaves underfoot rang out sharply like metallic echoes. I gripped the worn ancient tome in my arms once more. The legacy my parents had protected with their lives. And tonight, we headed toward the truth it held.

"Jin-ah, you sure you're okay with this? We're up against your family. It's not too late to back out."

Seol-ha asked in a low voice. Faint blue mana flickered over the back of her hand—a signal she was ready to deploy a defensive spell at any moment.

Jin-ah stared at the tablet screen in her hand, biting her lip until blood beaded. The pale glow from the display mercilessly illuminated her trembling eyes.

"I'm ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠fine. No... I have to be."

Her voice quivered faintly.

"When Lee Jin-woo ended up a vegetable, I overheard the family elders talking. 'Failed experiment'... Calling their own nephew that, and they claim to protect the world?"

Jin-ah bit her lip harder, her expression resolute as she turned to me.

"I don't want to hide under that hypocrisy anymore. Do Jae-hyun, even if the truth you're after becomes the blade that topples my family... I'll help you."

Her fingers flew across the screen. It displayed the real-time security system of Seongjin's third research lab—the one they'd officially announced as "closed for safety reasons."

"Jae-hyun, look here. The outer mana detectors are already in my pocket. I've planted bypass codes, but the central server needs a direct link."

Jin-ah pocketed the tablet and added firmly,

"System reboot in exactly five minutes. That's our only window to slip inside."

I looked up at the lab building looming like a monster in the darkness. The place where my parents had poured their final days into research. And where the monstrous Seongjin Group had stained their noble work with blood.

"Let's go. From here on, we'll drag out the truth my way—not theirs."

The lab interior was eerily silent. Thanks to Jin-ah's guidance, we easily dodged the outer guards and reached the massive metal door to sublevel 3, the "Unresolved Storage Vault."

With a hiss of steam, the heavy door slid open.

But it wasn't empty.

"Knew the little rats would show up. And leading the charge is the family disgrace herself."

A voice thick enough to dominate the space. Kwon Cheol-jung, Seongjin's special security captain in his black combat suit, casually ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠yanked up the enormous steel mace embedded in the floor and rose.

Behind him, about ten armed guardians encircled us, their red eyes glowing menacingly.

Jin-ah's shoulders trembled visibly at Kwon Cheol-jung's sneer. On official Seongjin stages, she was hailed as the "family jewel." But even a family errand boy like Kwon Cheol-jung looked at her with utter contempt. To them, she was a "doll" crafted for the family's honor. Uncontrolled talent was nothing but a disaster and a shame.

"Lee Jin-ah. Have you lost your mind? Bringing an outsider into a family secure zone? That's grounds for summary execution. Wonder what your father would say."

Kwon Cheol-jung swung his mace lightly. It wasn't mere muscle. The mana condensed at its tip created a pressure wave that sucked the oxygen from the entire corridor.

Jin-ah paled and staggered back—instinctive fear crushed by family authority.

I stepped in front of her and intoned coldly,

"Secure zone? More like crime scene. Where'd you ship off my parents' records?"

"Ha! Spawn of those dead scholars? Those moldy paper stacks are already en route to HQ. I'll send you to join your parents soon enough!"

Kwon Cheol-jung roared and swung his mace down with earth-shattering force.

"Seol-ha!"

"Got it!"

Seol-ha crossed her arms and thrust them forward. Transparent blue mana erupted from her fingertips, forming a translucent hexagonal barrier in front of us.

Boom! The massive steel mace crashed into the mana shield with a deafening roar that tore at my eardrums, sparks flying everywhere. Cracks spiderwebbed the reinforced floor beneath Seol-ha's feet, but her barrier didn't yield a single millimeter.

"This... this bitch!"

As Kwon Cheol-jung faltered and raised his mace again, I had already seized the fabric of space. The dimensional rift tingled at my fingertips. I wedged into it and locked the coordinates.

Kwon Cheol-jung was certain of victory. The girl's defense was solid, but sustained attacks would break it. His mace's heavy mana wave was about to pulverize the punk's frail body.

He was just about to mock the fear in those purple eyes.

Then reality twisted grotesquely.

Do Jae-hyun's form blurred on Kwon Cheol-jung's retinas, then seeped into the air like spreading ink and vanished. No afterimage, no sonic boom tearing the air.

It wasn't just speed making him invisible. His very existence had evaporated from reality's coordinates—a bizarre, absolute absence.

"......What the—?"

The mace sliced empty air and smashed the floor.

Thud! Dust billowed from the massive impact, but a chill ran down Kwon Cheol-jung's spine.

The punk was gone. Into a perfect blind spot, mocking his senses.

His veteran instincts screamed danger, but his body pitched forward from the swing's momentum, out of control.

Before he could whip his head around in shock, I had already landed the coordinates behind his back. Dark purple flames danced fiercely from my fingertips.

"First bill's due. Payment for mocking my parents' names."

Thwack!Space Compression slammed into Kwon Cheol-jung's massive frame head-on. With a grotesque crunch of shifting bones, Seongjin's veteran enforcer embedded deep into the opposite wall without even a scream. Concrete debris rained over his unconscious body.

"Hurry, everyone!"

Jin-ah shouted. She'd already seized control of the central command room.

The actuators on the guardians' joints throughout the corridor locked up simultaneously under Jin-ah's command.

"Jae-hyun, I just streamed Kwon Cheol-jung's defeat to HQ security."

"The video? Why leave a trail?"

Seol-ha asked, puzzled.

Jin-ah stared at the monitor and replied coldly,

"Misdirection. HQ security will freak out over this and pour everything into sublevel 3 storage."

Seol-ha nodded in understanding.

"Before they realize we're after the data server room... we've bought exactly ten more minutes."

There was no hesitation in Jin-ah's eyes anymore. She'd burned her bridges, declaring war on her family.

*

Inside the central server room, Jin-ah's fingers raced across the tablet. Thousands of files scrolled by until a folder marked with a red warning popped open.

"...Found it."

Her voice sank weakly.

The screen played the original black-box footage from two years ago—the "lab explosion accident" that killed my parents. But they weren't terrified. They were desperately destroying their own research to protect it.

And blocking them was a single stamped document.

"It was true... Our family really did kill your parents for their own gain..."

Jin-ah collapsed, unable to finish, sobbing uncontrollably. The family honor she'd believed in her whole life was a sandcastle built on innocent blood.

I swept a trembling hand across the screen. Rage boiled over until my heart turned ice-cold.

I picked up the purple crystal from the innermost special titanium vault.

The moment I grasped it, the ancient tome in my arms pulsed like a living thing. My pendant glowed purple, syncing with my eyes.

"Don't cry, Jin-ah. It's not your fault."

I gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Amid the cold fury, gratitude bloomed for those who'd stood by me.

"Thanks. I couldn't have made it this far alone. Wherever this fight ends, with you two... I think I can endure."

I looked at them both.

"If you're okay with it... will you stay by my side from now on?"

My earnest words seeped into the heavy server room air.

Seol-ha flinched and turned away. Ever the proud one, but her ear tips burned red under the moonlight.

She bit her lip and grumbled, but relief and joy shone plainly in her eyes.

"Don't get the wrong idea, Do Jae-hyun. I'm just helping as a friend. Who's staying by your side?"

Seol-ha feigned nonchalance, but her trembling fingers fidgeting with her collar betrayed her heart.

Jin-ah, meanwhile, lifted her head to meet my gaze. Tears still wet her eyes, but fear of her family ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠had been replaced by unwavering faith in me.

"...Yeah. Jae-hyun. Until I've atoned for every sin my family committed against your parents. As long as you need me, I'll be by your side forever."

She gripped my hand tight and bowed her head.

Me, reclaiming my parents' honor. Seol-ha, protecting her friend. Jin-ah, righting her family's wrongs. Gazing at these precious two, I wondered if my magic wasn't space—but luck.

*

On the way back to the academy, tension released and my muscles screamed. My 100.1% mana was powerful, but the strain on my body was immense. As I staggered, shoulders from both sides steadied me.

"Lean on me. If you collapse, I'll have to drag you with a barrier spell. Don't want that, right?"

Seol-ha griped, clamping my left arm firmly. Her usual stoicism cracked—her earlobes glowed red in the moonlight, her body heat warming my arm pleasantly.

Then a soft, slender hand hugged my right arm tight.

"Jae-hyun, let me help too. Sorry... I'm so sorry... This is all I can do..."

Jin-ah looked up, tears still fresh. Her trembling shoulders pressed against my arm.

Their different scents mingled in the cold dawn air, tickling my nose.

"Hey, Lee Jin-ah! You're clinging too much! Jae-hyun's a patient right now! You're heavy—back off!"

Seol-ha snapped, voice rising. Her cool facade gone, jealousy blazed in her ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠eyes.

"Not bothering him! Jae-hyun said it's fine. You're the one gripping his arm too hard—he's wincing!"

Jin-ah yanked harder in retaliation. My arms felt like they'd dislocate, but oddly, a smile crept onto my lips.

I'd thought revenge would be a bloody, lonely path.

But accomplices had willingly joined me.

Feeling the tome vibrate in my arms and the warmth on both sides, I vowed: For them, and my parents' honor, I'd become the true hunter who slays the evil shaking this world's balance.

In the corridor-end mirror, our three shadows stretched long—as one.