Like opening a dryer in the middle of a cycle, the warm sun and humidity detained his face. He entered the sidewalk and began to stroll along it.
"Kazami, wait for me!" A voice came from behind. It was a girl named Hoyeon who put on her jacket before approaching Kazami barefoot.
Hoyeon was Kazami's childhood friend and was also the first person to give him everything.
Kazami kept moving. "We have to return before the sun sets," he said, worrying about Hoyeon's health.
Suddenly, she grabbed his arm and uttered, "Wait. Just take a look at me, Kazami. I'm scared of the dark. Please don't let go of me," as she dug her fingernails into his skin.
He forcefully closed his eyes, just to open them again to view the argument's final night.
Why Kazami? Hoyeon cried out, "Why did you hurt me?"
"Because you're a moron for allowing another person's suffering to ensnare your own life. You are allowing his self-centred criticism and issues to cause you pain. SNAP OUT OF IT!" He yelled.
"Why did I do it? The girl whom I call family, the person who showed me what happiness was, the person with whom I made a promise. Why did I hurt her?" Kazami now spoke to himself in a trance state.
"YOU BITCH, I'VE HAD ENOUGH WITH THIS!!! Every day, you let yourself get toyed with by that guy; do you have a crush on him or something?" Kazami's rage continued.
"Please, Kazami, I'm sorry; just forgive me." Hoyeon begged him.
"FORGIVE YOU? You have lied to me so many times about this; you said you would block him, and you said you wouldn't torture yourself anymore.
"Yet you continue to starve yourself—for what purpose? You are damaging your health over some online asshole."
"He's suffering as well, Kazami; please understand; I can't let him go, and he won't let me. Please understand..." Hoyeon's eyes were swollen red, along with her cheeks, which had black-and-blue marks.
"It's funny how seeing you gives me both joy and sadness at the same time. The hardest thing is watching someone you love, love someone else. I thought you were healing me, but no, you broke me even more." Filled with anger, Kazami's vision began to become distorted.
"Please, Kazami, wait!" Hoyeon reached out her arm to embrace his aggression before disintegrating into particles and crashing to the ground in front of Kazami.
His body was swallowed by a shadowy emptiness, which then dragged his feet down into the pitch-black abyss. While his body was progressively consumed by the darkness, he could hear his voice yelling and screaming at Hoyeon.
"Why Kazami? Why?"
"I thought we had a dream together."
"I thought you truly cared for me."
"I thought you and I were meant to be."
"I loved you with everything I had."
"You're so selfish."
"You're manipulative."
"You're so cruel."
Hoyeon's voice continued to play over and over in Kazami's thoughts as he observed his own body beginning to suffocate beneath the weight of those words.
He could feel the heaviness of his eyelid, and the voices around him whispered feelings of envy and hate, tempting him into a long coma. However, before he could finally close his eyes to this never-ending nightmare, his name was called.
"KAZAMI!!"
Kazami's senses flickered back into focus like a screen struggling to load. His breath hitched as he threw a glance to the top left of his vision.
A sliver of red.
Tang-Ji stood before the beast, her health bar hanging by a thread, her trembling form barely holding back its rampage.
His stomach twisted.
'Not again.'
A bitter thought clawed its way through his mind.
"I can't let the same mistake happen twice. I can't let anyone else suffer because of me."
His fingers curled into fists, nails digging into his palms as he forced his body upright. Every nerve screamed in protest, but the pain barely registered.
"Even if I'm nothing but a monster… a ticking bomb waiting to hurt those around me… I'd rather be erased trying to atone than sit back and do nothing."
He moved before reason could stop him.
With a guttural growl, Kazami lunged forward, his boots barely skimming the cracked stone. A radiant glyph flared beneath him, pulsing with golden energy, warping the ground beneath his feet.
The ruins blurred past in streaks of fire and shadow.
Then—impact.
A shockwave burst out as he slammed himself between Tang-Ji and the beast, his arms bracing against the jagged rubble beneath him.
As he came to a stalemate with the beast, it let out a deafening, ear-splitting roar.
The shadow—massive, hulking—rose above him. Its colossal arm, lined with serrated spikes, reared back like a guillotine.
In that instant, he launched off from the ground with full force as he placed his imaginary weapon on his right shoulder. Kazami's spine was assailed by the acceleration, which should not have been conceivable given his real-life agility.
His body was sent hurtling skyward, the force of impact leaving a shattered crater beneath him. The air cracked like a gunshot, his silhouette swallowed by the rising smoke.
Tang-Ji barely had time to process what happened—only the fading sound of his breath leaving the space in between them.
But then—light.
A sharp flash of blue, splitting through the darkness like a blade through silk.
Kazami reappeared mid-air, his body twisting with unnatural precision, his arm swinging with every ounce of his strength.
The beast lunged, its jagged claws tearing through the space where he had been just a second ago.
The shrine exploded with dazzling brilliance.
A golden inferno ignited around Kazami's right hand, roaring like a lamenting wraith.
The flames pulsed, shifting, reshaping—until they solidified into the gleaming edge of a blade.
The moment was breathless.
"Level 1 deployment."
His voice was calm, sharp as dull steel.
"Rush technique: Vertical Assault."
The world snapped back into motion.
Three consecutive slashes carved through the beast's massive frame, data fracturing and splintering where his blade tore into it. The creature staggered, its spiked arm twitching, momentarily stunned.
Tang-Ji's breath caught.
Her gaze locked onto Kazami's face, the sharp lines of his expression cutting through the chaos around them. His eyes burned with an intensity she hadn't noticed before—focused, unwavering, as if nothing could tear him away from the fight.
'Strong.'
The word surfaced in her mind unbidden.
But strength had never mattered to her before. She had spent her life avoiding fights, avoiding people. Avoiding conflict.
Her fingers curled weakly at her sides, her body too drained to move.
She wanted to call out—to say something, anything—but the words caught in her throat. She had never been good at speaking her mind. Never been good at letting people in.
But Kazami—he hadn't asked for her permission. He had simply stepped forward, unafraid. And as her vision blurred, as darkness crept in at the edges, his figure burned itself into her mind—a beacon of strength she never thought she'd find.
This was the kind of strength she had always wished she could possess.
'So strong...'
The Night Elder's enormous frame suddenly lost strength, causing it to stagger backwards while its spiky arm was propelled by the gigantic blade. Its hands went slack as the creature was dazed by the attack motion.
In MMORPGs, this is known as a CC (crowd control) move, or, in other terms, a short stun ability to partially or completely disable one or more players or mobs.
A popped-up menu suddenly appeared to the right of Kazami's vision with a notification.
His awakened Leere.
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Before the beast was able to regain its footing, an explosive item negotiated, driving the beast headlong down into the virtual concrete.
"How do you like that bastard?" A voice came screaming from behind Kazami and Tang-Ji.
"Everyone, it doesn't matter if we are under levels; this is a skill-based MMO, not a level-based one. Those who want to survive in this game follow me and rush this bastard," shouted the older-looking players as masses of green icons darted into action with their unique Leere's ready to battle.
"Hey, are you alright?" A player emerged from behind Kazami, who was in the midst of catching his breath. Tang-Ji was not too far away from Kazami, who was moving sluggishly towards him.
Both of their health bars were in the red zone.
"Here, use this and get out of here." Another voice came behind Tang-Ji, who hurled two sparkling objects towards them.
Kazami tried to catch both of the items; however, his right arm fell completely numbed after he activated his Leere, resulting in him catching the item with his mouth.
This broke the tension, however, as one of the players giggled at Kazami's odd behaviour. The player who threw the item slowly approached Kazami while holding a device of sorts; it almost resembled a tablet.
His player's name could be seen above his wavy black hair; the name displayed above him was highlighted blue.
"Hey dude, hurry up and go now." He urged them to leave before ferocious roar interrupted them.
The monster began hurling multiple rocks towards Kazami, who was still in a daze from the aftermath.
He quickly grabbed hold of Tang-Ji, who was now unconscious from the shock. He turned his body towards the quick-approaching projectile, and as a shield, he grabbed tightly onto her before closing his eyes, praying that their current health was enough to tank another barrage.
However, with a chilling gust of wind, a long white serpent-like creature materialised right above the two defenceless players.
"Devour..." a distant whisper caught Kazami's sensitive ears.
Within a single second, it gobbled up the stone fragments, leaving chunks of solid crumbs dropping from its gigantic jaws before letting out a deafening snarl towards the boss. Fearfully, Kazami opened his eyes and stared up at the creature hovering above him.
It was a massive beast made entirely of bone, shaped like a snake, with slithers and writhes. Its elongated form winds its way through the sky, scraping against the stone path with its size, emitting an eerie, bone-chilling sound.
In a blink of an eye, the terrifying beasts that saved them from being crushed by the boulders suddenly vanished without a trace.
"Huh? What the heck was that?" Kazami uttered it in astonishment.
He quickly traced his eyes around the ramshackle town before stopping at the top of a rubble approximately two buildings away from them.
The players stood on the fountain of the town's rumble and glared down at Kazami with bloodshot eyes, who's still holding onto the unconscious Tang-Ji.
"Get out of here, you two, unless you want to get killed," he said with a monotone voice, but it was loud enough that Kazami could hear it through the chaos.
The name of the player could be seen displayed underneath the green cursor above his head:
His long silver fringe covered parts of his face, making him almost unnoticeable when the crowd of players began bombarding the beast with magic attacks.
Kazami quickly darted away. He could feel his muscles straining under the weight of Tang-Ji's unconscious body. He manoeuvred skilfully through the ruined town, adrenaline surging through his virtual veins as he fought against time.
The mysterious boy stood atop the crumbling rooftop, his gaze following the two fleeing players as they disappeared toward the north side of the Shrine of Beginning. Smoke curled into the sky, thick and unrelenting, blending into the twilight like ink spilled across a canvas.
He let out a long sigh.
"At least you're not completely incompetent like you once were." His voice was low, nearly lost beneath the distant screams and the clashing of steel against the monstrous things below.
Rubble shifted beneath his boots as he took a step forward. Fires burned in the streets, casting jagged shadows across the ruined city. Behind him, the battle raged on—players fought desperately against the towering beast that tore through what little remained.
"I'll only let you go this time… for her sake." His eyes lingered on the fading figures before narrowing. "The next time we meet, I will show you what it feels like to be the vulnerable one."
A gust of wind carried the acrid scent of destruction through the air. His fingers twitched, but he made no move to intervene. "After all, you can't change the world without getting your hands dirty."
He tilted his head slightly, the flickering glow of the distant fires reflecting in his eyes. "In a world where death is just a click of a button away… I wonder." He paused. "Can you still think of life the same way I used to?"