Chapter 118 : The Most Feared Illusion

“So, wait here. I’ll check things out and be right back.”

As Hae-jin prepared to step inside, Jin-woo, Jae-hyung, Seo-geon, Seung-hyun, and Yong-yong followed close behind him. Jin-woo tapped Hae-jin on the shoulder and said, “Acting all cool by yourself again? Who said we’d let you go in alone?”

Seung-hyun chimed in, “The dragon race holds a deep grudge against the Cyclops. If we were going to hold back at the final moment, we wouldn’t have come in the first place.”

“That’s right! If I were going to let Jae-hyung go alone, I wouldn’t have come either!” Yong-yong added.

Aside from them, nearly all the Espers—including those with ice, water, and electricity attributes—joined the line. Hae-jin let out a dry laugh and said, “A few of you must stay here. We need Espers to protect Guide Lee Kang-wook and Guide Jung Lee Chae. They are the most important people in our current force, so please.”

At that, several A-rank Espers stepped out of the formation. “We’ll handle it.”

“I’m counting on you.” After bowing politely to the Espers staying behind, Hae-jin led the group and stepped through the door.

An immense pressure weighed down on their shoulders. The air felt heavy, damp, and cold—it felt as though they had stepped into an entirely different world. The Espers treaded carefully on the moist, cold ground. As they advanced, Seo-geon shouted, “Watch your feet! From now on, don’t look down. Keep your eyes forward. Even if you accidentally look down, remember it’s a hallucination, not reality. You won’t get hurt if you just keep walking.”

“I can handle this much.” “This is almost cute.”

In the eyes of some, a path of thorns appeared; to others, a thousand-foot cliff manifested; and some felt as though they were standing on the edge of a skyscraper’s roof. It was a hallucination showing everyone their greatest fear, but to high-ranking Espers with extensive combat experience, this level of threat was nothing.

The problem, however, was Yong-yong. “Yikes! What is this?! Bugs are crawling all over the floor! Ugh, gross!”

Terrified, Yong-yong clung to Jae-hyung. Jae-hyung laughed and said, “Yong-yong, if you’re scared of bugs, just use your flight skill. What are you worried about?”

“Oh, right! Jae-hyung, you want to ride?”

“No, we aren’t out of danger yet, so I need to stay sharp. Only you fly, Yong-yong!”

Yong-yong transformed into a dragon and spread his wings wide. Ji Seung-hyun followed suit, transforming into a golden dragon. Pink waves rippled across the black ceiling, followed by the curving golden trail of the other dragon.

“Wow, to see such a sight in a situation like this.” “Exactly. I’m used to Vice-Representative Ji Seung-hyun’s flight, but it’s my first time seeing another dragon.”

Exclamations of awe broke out. Jae-hyung looked up at the sky and silently sent a telepathic message. —My mate, I’ll protect you no matter what. I love you. He couldn’t receive an answer since direct communication with a transformed dragon was impossible, but conveying his heart was enough.

The coalition moved forward step by step, serving as each other’s eyes and ears within the endless hallucination. The world before them changed every second, but it was okay because they had people they could trust with their lives.

Lee Chae craned his neck toward the iron door, feeling Hae-jin’s presence grow more distant. Because of the imprinting mark, he could sense Hae-jin’s location at any time, but he still wanted to watch his back until the very last moment. However, all he could see was pitch-black darkness. Lee Chae fiddled with the mark on his collarbone and prayed for a safe return.

“Stretching your neck won’t make you see them,” Kang-wook said, his voice laced with a thick sense of amusement. Lee Chae turned toward him. Kang-wook sat leaning against the wall, looking exhausted. Even for a guide with great physical stats, roaming a battlefield with S-rank Espers was a different story.

“By the way, why did you have a change of heart, Leader? When you were monitoring me, I thought you were loyal to the Bureau.”

“I followed the Bureau because I had no choice, but my heart wasn’t in it. At first, I thought the Bureau had a just cause. I believed in the debris disposal teams and the mission to protect citizens.”

Lee Chae nodded. He himself would have struggled to survive if it weren’t for the disposal teams and government employment for low-rank awakeners.

“But once I was in, I saw it was different from the reality. I wasn’t a person with a strong sense of justice or patriotism. I just wanted my family to be safe. But…” Kang-wook sighed deeply. “As you know, the Bureau was busy keeping secrets while uncontrollable battles were breaking out everywhere. I felt a sense of shame. Meanwhile, Legion caught my eye—they went out to every single battle.”

“So you’ve been helping me since you started monitoring me?”

“You knew?”

“I couldn’t help but know. I was contacting Legion members openly, yet I was never sanctioned.”

Lee Chae knew Kang-wook wasn’t a bad person. Among the leaders of the disposal teams, he was the most interested in the welfare of low-rank awakeners. It was natural for him to be disappointed by the Bureau’s secrets. Though, Lee Chae hadn’t expected him to risk his life coming here.

Suddenly, one of the Espers guarding them spoke with a grim expression. “Do you smell something strange?”

Lee Chae instinctively covered his nose and mouth with his sleeve. ‘What is it? I never heard that the Cyclops uses poison skills…’

“It doesn’t seem to have spread to the whole building, so let’s get out of here,” the Espers urged. Lee Chae and Kang-wook began to run. Since he had the mark, Hae-jin would have no trouble finding them once the battle was over. For now, the priority was escaping.

Lee Chae ran until he was out of breath. Then, at some point, the Espers running ahead became blurry. His head spun, and the strength drained from his legs.

“J-Jung… Lee Chae…”

Kang-wook collapsed before he could finish Lee Chae’s name. The Espers ahead of them fell as well. ‘Did we get poisoned?’ He felt something spreading through his veins. ‘No, it’s not real poison.’ This was a Cyclops hallucination; if he stayed sharp, he could resist it.

Lee Chae tensed his body, fighting to stay conscious. If he passed out, Hae-jin might abandon the battle to come save him. He had to endure. ‘This isn’t real. I am not poisoned.’ His logic knew the truth, but his senses refused to accept it. One by one, his sensations began to vanish. ‘I can’t… Hae-jin shouldn’t leave the people there to come here…’

Even though he couldn’t even wiggle a finger, Lee Chae forced himself to breathe and think. He had to keep his mind active so the imprinting mark wouldn’t go dark. Then, a voice crackled through the air.

—Just let it go. It’s not real anyway, so you won’t die. ‘This voice… Cha Hae-jin?’ —Yeah, it’s me. I want to run to you right now, but if I go, the people here will die… Since it’s not real poison, why don’t you sleep for a bit? I’ll be there soon.

The voice was Hae-jin’s, but the tone was wrong. If the Cyclops wanted to manipulate him, it should have done a better job—there was no way Cha Hae-jin would speak so rationally. Without a second thought, he knew it was the Cyclops. Just in case, he tested the password.

‘If you’re Cha Hae-jin, give me the code. How long will you follow me?’ —…

The voice couldn’t answer the correct response: “To the ends of the earth.” Even in his agony, Lee Chae tried to read the Cyclops’ thoughts. It wanted him to lose consciousness so Hae-jin would abandon his team. Then, the Cyclops would kill everyone.

Realizing this, his clouded mind sharpened. Lee Chae screamed in his heart with all his might. ‘Cha Hae-jin! Do not leave your post until you’ve saved everyone! That’s the only way I live, too!’

At the end of the first-floor hallway, where the exit should have been, was a giant stone wall. Standing before it was an ambiguous figure, neither male nor female, casting a long shadow. ‘Is that the Cyclops?’

The coalition approached cautiously. The moment the mysterious figure turned around, Hae-jin froze.

—Hyung, welcome. I missed you.

It was Jung Lee Chae. Not the current one, but the chubbier, pricklier “hamster” from three years ago. It was the exact image Hae-jin had been picturing in his mind for three years. Hae-jin stepped forward as if possessed. Then, a voice pierced his ears.

“Leader! Leader, wake up! That’s not Jae-hyung! It’s the Cyclops! Jae-hyung is behind us! Jae-hyung, you wake up too!”

Jae-hyung? But to Hae-jin, it looked like Jung Lee Chae. Because the explanation was so different from what he saw, Hae-jin blinked hard. But the figure remained…

—Hyung, come here and hug me.