LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 393
"Oof… Oof…"
"Hyung-nim! Can't you run any faster?"
"This is as fast as I can run! But that's what I want to ask you—why are you running so sluggishly?!"
"Because I'm already running as fast as I can!"
"Then shut up and run!"
The Shin brothers were running faster than they ever had before. And there was a reason why they had no choice but to do so.
"Shin Yu, don't worry. There's still some time left!"
"Yes! Just trust your hyungs! We're going to get you to the gate in time!"
Shin Hyun ran with Shin Yu in his arms.
Shin Yu could have kept up with their speed, but his stamina couldn't match that of his hyungs.He could feel Shin Hyun’s warmth. However, since they were spirits, Shin Yu knew it was the heat generated from excessive activity.
- It seems your legs gave up. See? I told you not to force yourself. Get on my back.
Shin Yu had experienced something similar before.
He remembered visiting the mountain where Shin Kang trained and collapsing from exhaustion.
He could still vividly remember the warmth he felt from Shin Kang's trained body—a testament to his hard work.
"Oof… Oof… We're almost there!"
"There it is! If there's still time left…"
Now, he was again in his brothers' warmth. Throughout his life, the warmth of his hyungs had always been with him.
Tap…
Tap…
Their footsteps gradually slowed. They had already seen the outcome and were doubting it.
"It's closed…"
"Seol had already left…"
"Hihi… This is a bit awkward…"
Although his hyungs were warm, the reality was cruel.
The final gate was firmly shut.
The gate was certainly massive, and no matter how much he looked at it, it didn't seem like it would open again.
Thud…
The legs of the optimistic Shin Hyun gave out.
Shin Yu had to comfort them.
Scribble…
- I'm fine. Thank you for worrying about me.
"Fine…? You aren't fine at all!"
"We need to find a way to open the gate…"
They tried every possible method they could think of.
CLANG—!
CLAANNG—!
Clang…
"…"
Both Shin Rip and Shin Hyun's swords broke. The gate was solid, and no mere iron sword could do anything to it.
Scribble…
- Stop, that's enough.
"If we stop, you will…"
- I'll be fine on my own. Someday…
Someday, someone would come back to the labyrinth.
"What if that someday never comes?"
He couldn't answer.
If that happened, he would go mad—like a ghost forever guarding the columbarium where his brothers rested.
They all knew it.
- I'm sorry. It's all because of me…
"Yu."
Shin Rip called Shin Yu.
Shin Yu quietly listened to his eldest hyung's words.
"What do you plan to do once you leave the labyrinth?"
It was a sudden question.
He wouldn't be able to get out of the labyrinth anyway, so why was he asking such a thing?
However, imagination was a gift granted to anyone.
- With who? Seol?
"No. Not necessarily with Seol. I just want to hear your thoughts.."
- I…
The desire to leave the labyrinth had been in his mind for a while. He just wasn't able to express it outwardly due to his attachment to his hyung and his fear of being left alone.
'If I get out of the labyrinth…'
Just thinking about it brought an immense sense of liberation. Why hadn't he made up his mind before?
It was as if the choice had been made only after his hyungs pushed him from behind.
'Ah…!'
There was something he wanted to experience if he got out of the labyrinth—a small wish he had gained while inside the twisted Gate of Dream.
- I want to see snow.
"Snow…?"
- Yes. I saw snow in my dreams.
He wanted to experience the cycle of seasons.
The labyrinth also had cold weather, but it never snowed—no, even if it did snow in the labyrinth, he still would have given the same answer.
"Why snow…?"
- Because…
Why did Shin Yu want to see snow? Was it because it had snowed heavily on the day he faced Seol and Yurim?
He felt a sense of pleasure reminiscing about that day—the day when they fought with everything they had.
Would he ever experience another day as intense as that one?
He thought that if he could leave the labyrinth, it would be nice if he could breathe that same breath again.
Shin Rip listened and then asked Shin Yu.
"Yu, when you left Kang at the final Gate, did you leave through the same door?"
Shin Yu pondered for a moment and then scribbled.
- It was the same door.
"Are you sure? So this door is also on the other side, right?"
- Yes, but why…
"Answer the question. We don't have time. How long did Kang fight the guy on the other side of this door?"
- That… I don't know. After all, it was a brutal fight…
It was the kind of fight where time blurred. Seol, on the other side of the door, was likely going through the same situation.
"I see… Then, there's still hope."
- What?
"Hyung-nim, do you have a plan?"
Shin Rip whispered to Shin Hyun.
Shin Hyun laughed upon hearing Shin Rip’s plan.
"Isn't that basically gambling?"
"Sometimes you have to bet everything, even if the odds are low, right?"
Grin…
"You're right. Yu, step back."
- What are you doing?
"Step back. We don't have time!"
- But…
"Now!"
Shin Yu had no choice but to obey his hyungs.
The two brothers looked at each other and then tried to open the door from both sides.
Creak…
Creeaakk…
"Uuggh…"
"Ugh…"
He wished they wouldn't.
Creak…
Creeakk…
"Uuh…"
"Uh…"
Shin Yu desperately wanted them to stop.
Bzz…
The Darkness that surrounded them exerted all its strength to open the gate.
However…
Crack…
Craaaack…
Cracks started forming on the brothers' hands
Crack…
The cracks quickly spread from their hands to their arms, then from their arms to their bodies. Even their faces cracked, splintering like reflections on a broken mirror.
Then, an unknown light began to seep from their bodies.
Thud…
Eventually, they collapsed in front of the gate, unable to open it, their backs leaning against it.
"Oof… Oof… It's just as hyung-nim said. As always, things work when we follow hyung-nim."
"You should have listened to me earlier."
"Hihi.. Nagging me until the very end?"
- Why… What did you do?
Shin Hyun said.
"Shin Yu. You're someone who will astonish the world. After all, you're the best among us, brothers! You aren't someone who should be left behind in a wretched place like this."
- What are you talking about…? What just happened…?
Shin Rip gasped for air and said.
"We accelerated the collapse of our souls. We're probably going to explode soon."
"If the gate opens, great… But even if it doesn't, an explosion of this magnitude will surely be noticed by someone—don't you think?"
Someone would notice the explosion…
Someone…
"Seol is quick-witted. He will definitely notice."
"Yes. He owes us a lot. The least he can do is take care of our little brother, right?"
"Haha… I feel this is a bit shameless, but he's right. Shin Yu, this is our final moment, so listen."
- …
"Don't be too arrogant about your talent. Do not regret the past."
"Listen well, these are our final words to you."
Shin Rip repeated his words to his brothers on the day Shin Yu died.
"Shin Yu, just as your death once united us as brothers, our death will take you to Kang."
Four brothers had entered the Pitch Black Labyrinth. Only one had left. Three had stayed behind. And now… only one would remain.
"Don't cry. We will always be together…"
"Now step back! Shin Yu!"
Shin Yu turned away while silently crying. He wanted to cry out loud, but all he could do was move away from the gate.
Crack…
Craaack…
"Hihi… So this really is it."
"Hyun, thank you… Let's meet again as brothers in the next life."
"Hyung-nim… thanks for everything. But next time, I'll be the hyung."
"Sure…"
Crack…
BOOM—!
A huge explosion shook the space. The energy Shin Hyun and Shin Rip had accumulated seemed to collapse the very fabric of space itself.
Whoosh…
Shin Yu rushed toward the gate the moment the explosion subsided.
However, the gate was still firmly shut.
Even after such a massive explosion, it remained closed.
Shin Yu was left alone in front of it.
Now, the labyrinth was his alone to experience. And this loneliness was his alone to bear.
It didn't feel real.
The remains of his brothers were now in tatters.
Although they were just fragments of Darkness, not flesh, Shin Yu gathered them up. With his gaze fixed blankly on the gate, he began to shape the remnants into the form of a body.
* * *
BOOM—!
BOOM!
Whoosh…
Whoosh…
Slowly growing accustomed to the Yaksha's power, Seol was starting to keep up with Jamad's movements.
'Jamad… can't exert more power than what I remember.'
The power of the Labyrinth's Master seemed limited. He only needed to worry about the Forbidden Shamanic Spells or Great Shamanic Spells.
Forbidden Shamanic Spells weren't suitable for close combat, so as long as he was mindful of Great Shamanic Spells, he could prolong the fight.
Of course, prolonging the fight didn't mean he could overpower Jamad.
Paaf—!
"Ugh…"
"What's wrong? Was that movement earlier just luck?"
Tap—!
Clap—!
Shamanic spells and magic intersected. True to their user’s nature, both the shamanic spells and magic were physical.
Paf…
"Ugh…"
Paaf…
"Cough…"
They vomited blood simultaneously.
"Oof… Oof…"
"What's wrong? Already tired?"
Jamad had a slight advantage.
Seol paused for a moment and asked.
"Didn't you hear something just now…?"
"Hear something?"
"No… It must have been my imagination."
"To think you would have enough leeway to look away. Show me more of your tricks."
Creak…
"Otherwise, that breath of yours will soon be cut off."
Whoosh…
For Seol, Yaksha was no different from the perfect weapon.
The him from two years ago would have been defeated the moment the fight began. However, now, even though it was difficult, he could keep up with Jamad, who had reached the Supreme-rank.
Yet, to win, he needed to think harder—fiercely, as he always did.
He needed to find the one move that could turn defeat into victory.
Whoosh—!
Seol opened his eyes. He had been drawing a picture in his mind since the moment he vowed to break through the labyrinth.
However, the picture was still incomplete.
"No, you won't!"
CLANG—!
"Ugh…"
"If that's all the power you have… then you deserve to die here!"
BOOM—!
Seol gritted his teeth and shook off Jamad.
Whoosh…
Once again, Yaksha's path unfolded before him.
Creak…
Among the various lines, only one wasn't within Jamad’s reach.
Without hesitation, Seol followed that line.
Whoosh…
BOOM—!
Seol unleashed a barrage of slashes where that one line stretched out. However, Jamad stood still in his spot—he didn’t defend, nor did he counterattack.
Whoosh—!
The slash missed Jamad, cutting through the air with a wide gap still between them. It flew forward, collided with something in the distance, and vanished.
BOOM—!
"What did you do…? Even though you didn't dodge, it missed…"
"No… I definitely cut my target…"
Clank…
The sound that followed made Jamad turn around.
Thud…
A sound came from the gate. Something had been cut by his slash and fell to the ground.
Seol had been aiming for the locked gate from the beginning, releasing energy to open it from the inside.
Creak…
Creeaakk…
"I didn't hear it wrong, right?"
The heavy gate slowly opened.
"You're there, right?"
There was a crudely made shadow there.
"Shin Yu…"
While inside a shadowy figure smaller than a child, Shin Yu was shrouded in darkness and opened his mouth. Due to the Darkness having belonged to his hyungs, a voice came out as he opened his mouth.
"Uh… Ah… Ah…"
Once again.
Paf—!
Shin Yu suddenly started to run.
Feeling displeased, Jamad clapped his hands.
CLAP—!
Crack…
Several rock spears formed and aimed at Shin Yu.
Whoosh…
Whoosh…
Despite his unfamiliar body, Shin Yu dodged them all.
Jamad felt something extraordinary in those movements.
He swung his fist at Shin Yu, who had closed the distance instantly.
Whoosh—!
Paaf…!
The lower half of Shin Yu's crude body exploded.
"He dodged it…?"
Shin Yu dodged the attack with that clumsy body. He moved optimally and avoided complete destruction.
Intrigued by the strange creature’s movement, Jamad didn't pursue it further.
Shin Yu fell between Seol and Jamad, twitching. It was the price of having chosen late.
"…"
Swoosh…
But suddenly, Seol drew out his sword.
【No! What are you doing?!】
Agony screamed.
Slash…
Splash—!
Suddenly, Seol cut off his own right arm.
Despite the pain, his expression remained unchanged, reminiscent of someone.
- Shin Yu, leave me. I don't need you.
It was something his hyung had said while cutting off his arm.
Shin Kang—the man Shin Yu was looking at right now reminded him of Shin Kang.
However, the emotions and words were different this time.
"Shin Yu, come to me… I need you…"
Seol knelt down.
- Let's meet again at the end of this path.
"I'll definitely take you to the end of this path."
"…"
"Now, answer. Do you still intend to stay in the labyrinth?"
Shin Yu forced his mouth open.
"Take… me… with… you… please…"
He was sick of this labyrinth. So… If it wasn't late.
"Take me… to the outside…"
Grin…
Seol brought Shin Yu's arm to where his arm was severed.
Whoosh—!
The blue line of Atromil and the red line of Blood of Origin intertwined, attaching Shin Yu's arm to Seol’s body.
[Atromil has created a new pathway.]
[Blood of Origin forcibly combines the new body part to recover the physical loss.]
…
Crackle…
Crackle…
Despite the immense pain, Seol didn't even blink.
Their numerous collisions…
Their life inside the dream…
Their bloody battle on the snowfield…
It took a lot of time for their hearts to become one, but it only took a moment for Shin Yu to merge with Seol.
[You awaken Characteristic: Ghost Hand.]
[You awaken Ghost Hand: Dark Hand.]
[Dark Hand assists movements.]
[You can move at an incredible speed for a short time.]
[The time required to learn movements has been greatly reduced.]
[An extremely powerful ghost resides within your hand.]
[Skill points have been consumed.]
[You use a skill point.]
[You use a skill point.]
[You use a skill point.]
[You use a skill point.]
[You use a skill point.]
…
Finally, all of Seol’s skill points were used, and the two became one.
The still awkward dark hand writhed.
As Seol moved the fingers, Jamad asked him.
"Is that the last power you gained…? A hand…?"
Seol didn't bother explaining Shin Yu to Jamad. After all, he would soon find out.
Seol recalled his fight against Shin Yu in the snow-covered field.
Before him was a former comrade, now standing as an enemy. And beside him was a former enemy, now standing as a comrade.
Numerous paths had intertwined.
"Shin Yu, let's show him. That day…"
That silent blizzard of that winter day where everything had stopped--their feeling hidden, as if waiting behind a curtain call…
And…
"Us."
Seol, Shin Yu, and Agony faced forward.
BZZT—!
A light flashed.