The Curse of Insomnia
Day one.
Sleep wouldn't come.
Even sleeping pills left my eyes sharp and clear.
Day two.
I tore off all the wallpaper and burned it.
Scratched my body raw all night until it was drenched in blood.
Day three.
I was certain I would die.
My body—especially my brain—felt like it was melting in agony.
Yet my mind stayed razor-sharp. My sense of self crumbling away.
Day four.
A miracle or a true curse,
I barely figured out how to wield the demon's power.
It was a way to endure without dying.
Devouring the dreams of the living lets the body hold on, if only a little. The brain pauses, cooling the fever.
"......"
When I came to, there was a corpse twisted unnaturally in its sleep.
The dead man was a villain.
One of those who'd injected me with the demon, breaking me like this.
After that, I went on a killing spree.
A hunter who must kill to survive.
A demon who must devour human dreams.
Even so, I chose to live on.
But I offered only the guilty as sacrifices.
That was how the assassin guild Hongmaehwa was born.
Beep. Beep-beep.
Our unregistered team was keeping up a certain buzz even in everyday life as we prepped for contact.
The ultimate goal: recover the Power Fragment ring.
Judging by Seol's actions so far, she wasn't the type to hand it over nicely—she'd kill and take, not give.
If we couldn't come up with a brilliant solution during negotiations, combat might be unavoidable.
For Agent Jenny's safety, we explored every option.
We found one:
The legendary ring Requiem could be worn, if only temporarily.
"Wh-whoa?"
- Fwoooosh!
Mana of a completely different quality erupted from Jenny's body in an instant,
Insufficient rank to equip.
It held for about 1-2 seconds before slipping off her finger again.
The effects of the Saint's Tear were already showing. If she filled out the full 30 days for that low-probability transcendence, she might wear it permanently.
"Can you use Requiem's mana power, even if just for a moment, Jenny?"
"Y-yes, I think I can do something! It was just for a split second, but an incredible surge of mana passed through me!"
Saying that, Jenny slipped on Requiem again.
But it came right off this time.
Seemed like it needed a cooldown. Ten minutes later, she tried again, and the mana boost repeated.
We timed it, and Jenny cast her distortion magic.
- Whooooom...
"Ooooh!" "O. Real good."
Whether from the mana boost or Requiem enhancing a mage's capabilities inherently,
the spatial distortion was so seamless now—even if you knew to look, you wouldn't notice.
Then Requiem slipped off again.
"Still, just in case, Jenny—take this with you."
"Yes!!!"
Jenny's eyes sparkled as she clenched her fists tight.
She kept saying that.
She couldn't believe Ollie and I were racking our brains over her safety.
No way. Jenny was our core firepower.
More than that, even.
"Hongmaehwa might bolt anywhere, yo. Jenny's gotta wear this too, yo!"
Saying so, Ollie—who'd dragged us to the lab—handed Jenny an item.
"Eh?"
A small capsule.
◈ Engraved with creator Ollie Haiban's name
"Body shield model, yo!"
"Ooooh?" "Eh?"
She'd been holed up in the lab at dawn, skipping gaming time, and already prototyped a shield model.
"Still MODEL-1, prototype, so with Jenny's distortion magic, it makes barrier cubes around you, yo."
"My god."
Distortion barriers, she called them. Coating the body would take way more complex steps.
"To make a coating shield that keeps Captain's HP at 1 forever in any situation... this model's far off, yo. Right now it's just barriers around you, needs mana control, and for permanent self-sustain without mana, more steps 'cause..."
Ollie's explanation after that was beyond me. Anyway, research for my safety was progressing smoothly.
The key takeaway: one more safety measure for Jenny.
As Ollie instructed, Jenny popped the capsule!
- Whooooom...
"Gasp!"
Jenny's form shimmered like heat haze, then snapped back clear.
"S-something's weird! The air around... it's a bit..."
She seemed the most flustered. Felt like slightly thin air, but not uncomfortable.
"Lemme demo the effect myself, yo!"
Ollie chucked a half-eaten Choco Pie stick at her.
Then,
- Whoom...
- Tick! Tink!
"!!!"
The stick flew straight at Jenny but the space itself 'subtly warped,' deflecting it to drop behind her.
"Whoa. Insane. You actually pulled it off."
Ollie had truly prototyped Jenny's idea.
"Should deflect most damage coming within 2 meters of Jenny, yo?"
She wanted to try a hammer or wrench next, but Jenny freaked. I said no need.
"Good. This should be enough..."
"I-I'm really safe now, Captain!"
I figured we'd maxed out safety for Jenny. Of course, the top priority was Seol's [ally join].
No compromises—I'd emailed that it was non-negotiable for a face-to-face.
Ally join, shield, even Requiem as backup.
Pretty ironclad, right?
Now, analysis on the opponent.
This wasn't like the Bureau. Unpredictable top assassin guild master.
Back in the ops room,
Ollie, deep in Hongmaehwa analysis, summed up combat style.
Holograms, 3D models, diagrams—complex data everywhere.
Gauges rose and fell inexplicably as Ollie dissected every fight vid.
"Uh, her assassination style's kinda unique, yo?!"
"?"
Ollie muttered, "What even is this? Tough," but briefed what we had.
"Uses sorcery, but it's not her core power, yo!
Jenny, munching Haribo gummies beside her, looked lost, mouth chewing blankly.
"Sorcery's sub-skill, yo. All self-developed. Core power's... like Necrophilia, no real difference! Straight-up villain same as them! Hongmaehwa!"
"!!!" "Gasp!"
What did that mean?
No different from Necrophilia?
Hongmaehwa was an 'ally guild' handling tons for Korea, huge monster clears.
"But she's ally. Private guild or not."
"Uh... that's the tricky part. She barely uses core power unless she has to, yo!"
Then Ollie showed a status chart-like thing.
"Every 2-3 days, kills one or two with that unknown power. All villains, criminals, humanoid monsters... but still."
Here's the rundown:
Hongmaehwa, true to assassin guild, roamed nationwide—worldwide—killing.
Most kills via 'sorcery' attacks, but periodically used that alien 'other power' even Ollie couldn't ID.
"Corpses from it look like this!"
Covered Jenny's eyes; I alone saw the body.
"......"
Necrophilia villain corpse. But... twisted from inside out.
Like rapidly aged to death.
As if time and vitality sucked dry.
"Ollie."
"Yep."
"Can you pull Seol's status window?"
"Hmm. Gimme a sec!"
We tried hard, but failed to extract Hongmaehwa's status.
After pondering, I decided on one more backup.
Last resort.
"Ollie. That 'bullet' ready?"
"Ah, yep!"
Clatter-clatter—Ollie fetched a golden bullet from the lab.
◈ Energy extracted from 1 Power Fragment
"You really did it. Good work, Ollie."
"No prob, yo!"
This bullet: energy partially extracted from one Power Fragment.
Research showed fragments regenerate even after minor extraction.
But recovery took ages, so couldn't mass-produce.
Effect in one word:
Absolute destruction ignoring all.
- Only 1/10th power of planned full Power Bullet, since one fragment's worth, yo!
Opponent: top assassin, but sorcery hunter.
My dispel rounds would work, but if absolute kill needed against unknown power, I'd fire the [Power Bullet].
Best case: no fight at all.
Then Jenny approached—keeping distance, of course.
"Captain!"
My worried face must've shown; she gripped her hands, staring at me.
"I'll be fine. No need to worry! I'll complete the mission for sure!"
Her eyes burned fiercer than ever.
Yeah.
Preps were solid.
Contact tomorrow.
.
.
.
Seongsan Ilchulbong dungeon.
Where the [Fake Jackal Mask] was.
"......"
A long-haired woman stood alone, dark circles heavy, face gaunt.
Seol arrived as promised—no guildmates, no weapons—unarmed.
One minute to go.
Unregistered's agent would arrive.
Her face always pale, but now oddly tense with anticipation.
She had something vital to share.
Then,
⊳ [Agree]
⊳ [Refuse]
"I've wanted to meet you, Unregistered."
No hesitation—she hit [Agree]. Instantly,
- Flash!
A tiny girl appeared before her.
"......"
As described: elementary school age.
Black-red robe hid endless abyss within.
Impenetrable depths.
Even Seol's senses flowed around subtly.
Space itself distorted freely, barring all approach.
Definite.
This was Unregistered's agent.
'Agent name was Jenny Gorwell, right.'
Gorwell stared silently from the abyss.
Distance between them like pre-battle standoff.
After a long stare-down, Seol spoke first.
"I,"
"......"
"called you because I want to live."
Straight to the point.
Seeing it like this was terrifying.
Ops screen showing Seol,
casual glance: just a cold beauty.
Now: living ghost.
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
Jenny's heartbeat echoed through ops.
She was scared stiff. Me too.
"I called you because I want to live."
"......?"
Her first words to me: oddly cryptic.
But good sign.
If she craved something life-related, I could leverage the Power Fragment for a deal.
"Jenny. Let's be brave."
At my cue, Jenny delivered her line.
"How many Power Fragments do you have?"
Seol's eyes widened briefly, then back to neutral.
"I knew you wanted the Power Fragments. Even before you asked the Bureau."
"What?"
We'd leaned on the Bureau right after learning of them.
But Seol thought our moves were always for the fragments.
Then her chilling voice reached Jenny.
"Power like yours... you can't get it without losing something. To hold a Power in human flesh... right?"
"!!!"
"In this world, only you and I can understand each other. Among the sane, anyway."
I got sucked in despite myself.
Penalty. HP 1.
I thought I alone bore that Earth-exclusive pain. Did she have HP 1 too?
No. Impossible.
No one with HP 1 stays sane fighting on brutal frontlines.
I fed Jenny one more line.
"I already know. About you."
"......How?"
Ollie's typing hit god-tier speed.
"Almost done, yo. Ally tether makes entry fast, yo!"
"Hurry, Ollie. Please..."
"How do you know about me? Answer."
"......"
Jenny stood silent, no lines without my cue—our rule.
"Almost... almost!"
As Ollie neared status pull, Seol stepped toward Jenny.
"Then you know why I wanted to see you. You're cursed too. We should've met sooner. Cooperation over rivalry—that's the fast path."
"......"
That instant,
Ding! Ollie threw hands up. Success.
"Nice...!"
Seol's status window popped.
I saw an unbelievable trait.
A curse big enough for 'Trait' slot.
Alive with that? Humanly possible?
Especially maintaining sanity amid hellish pain.
"Got one. Her gap."
Ollie asked "What?!" but I cued Jenny.
"Hongmaehwa. Seol. Real name: Yoo Eun-seol."
"!!!"
"We will take your Power Fragment."
Status confirmed,
final decision.
She was unstable enough to turn villain any second.
"Talking hostility over alliance?"
Too risky for alliance.
Time for another way.
"Your insomnia."
Seol flinched like stabbed, faint killing intent leaking. Didn't reach Jenny, but her icy expression spiked Jenny's heartbeat.
But,
"If you could sleep, you wouldn't need the Power Fragment."
"......Don't talk nonsense. No matter how strong you are, you can't fix this."
"If you could sleep, you wouldn't need the Power Fragment."
Seol swept back her hair.
Deep stress. Hidden fatigue crushing the whole dungeon.
"Enough."
"I'll let you rest."
Instantly, Jenny formed contact distortion behind Seol.
- Whoom...
I,
- Pshht.
Fired Sleep skill at the distortion point.
Sleep
But instantly, something felt off.
Indescribable unease.
Didn't feel like shooting a person.
.
.
.
Stagger.
"!!!"
Jenny watched Seol lose balance and collapse.
Her icy face twisted in shock.
'C-Captain found a way!'
Just formed distortion for contact shot as ordered, and Seol crumbled live.
"Wh-what... is this."
'ZZZ......' floated over her head. Now it clicked—Captain's sleep gun from training.
'He cured her insomnia!'
From the lines, this scary 'Seol' suffered sleeplessness.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Jenny's heart raced.
Seol, hit dead-on by sleep, clutched her head, curled up gasping—refusing slumber.
Then Captain whispered her next line.
"From this talk, I see your Power Fragment holds more value to Unregistered."
"Gasp. Huhuhk."
"We will recover your Power Fragment. But we'll grant what you need."
"No... way. How is this... possible..."
That instant,
Captain ordered 'one more contact shot.'
- Whoom...
- Thud.
Two sleep shots, and Seol collapsed fully asleep.
"It worked, Captain!"
Confirming with her own eyes.
As she dashed to grab the ring,
Captain halted her.
"Hold—step back!"
Definite worry in his voice.