Fallen Lightbringers' Return

In the end, Lee Dojin exchanged numbers with the couple. He didn't really want to, but since the two insisted, there was no way for him to decline. Thankfully, he was able to unlock his phone at a store, or it would have ended in a rather awkward situation.

Lee Dojin walked with a bag on his back. He didn't really have a destination. No, that wasn't quite right. He had a place to be, but he did not know how to get there, thus, he was left aimlessly wandering through the city. It didn't come to his mind to simply ask his mother. Or maybe, in his heart, he simply did not wish to go to school. Not only would it be rendered obsolete in a week, but he also—just like the past Lee Dojin—did not have fond memories of education.

In the past, he'd always wound up in fights. Some, the people provoked him, some, he started himself, and at one point, there was not even a reason anymore. He fought, he fought, as if to prove something, new people challenged him, some stronger, though he still beat them. And in the end, he stood above all—as one can see, that was not what education was about. He dropped out in ninth grade.

Lee Dojin walked through an empty alley, past an abandoned building, into an overgrown garden. There, the noises of a loud city were hardly to be heard. The air here felt fresh, though he may have simply imagined it. There stood an old shack, moss growing in on the wall, the bolts long broken, and the door rotten away. Here, he prepared to fight the shadows again, hoping to rise in ranks.

There were actually quite a few tricks on how to fight them efficiently, though the system hadn't talked about it. For one, though human shadows were, in general, a lot stronger, they still wielded the same points as the shadow of a bug. The system trapped the player by suggesting them to fight against stronger monsters (as it may seem obvious since it brought a rise in level and stronger enemies yield greater rewards, right?), though, in the end, all that mattered were the quantity. Many times, things were not as they seemed within The Mirage. For this reason, Lee Dojin sought out uninhabited places, that also carried many shadows, maximizing on quantity instead of quality.

Secondly, the higher the sun, the deeper the shadows, the more they'd be separated from each other. It wouldn't be rare that a player misunderstood the systems function, and tried to fight the shadows in the night, since, in the end, shadows are the absence of light—which the night had an abundance of. However, such foolish thoughts would lead one straight to death, as the giant entity would swallow them whole in no time. And even if, by some miracle, they survived, the points would be abysmally low, as the system quantified the many shadows in one. Thus, when the sun was the highest, and the borders of the shadows clearly defined, that was the best time to tackle this quest.

—though exceptions are to be made. But that is for another time.

Lee Dojin stretched his limbs. He had learned to do so since he started fighting, and he never forgot to do so since then. At first, it was to calm his nerves, but now, it came to him like breathing, even though at a certain point—when his body surpassed a mortal's limits—it became obsolete.

Shadows started to gather around him. The small things were rather cute to look at like they were the spirits resting within the objects. Of course, there were other bigger shadows too, and in the forefront, he stood there again. However, no matter what came, Lee Dojin would crush them with ease. He activated Cosmic Steps, the now rather familiar stars appeared in front of him, waiting to be grasped. He traveled through the world, no sound, no smell, no light, and no wind came as he moved. Yet, every time he did, a wave of shadows turned to black dust, obliterated, and returned to earth.

[A skill has leveled up!]

Lee Dojin reached for a star, and in his hand, he then held his shadow's neck. For that shadow, it must have felt like space and time itself distorted for him to arrive here. It could not express its feelings, yet one saw the raw shock it felt. Truly, an ability that broke common sense. It was easily crushed, the neck turning into black ink, following after the corpses of his brethren.

Now, the Quest in the trailer was a lot different from any other quest about to come. To give a little insight, Lee Dojin still remembered the first day of the First Advent. He remembered where he was, whom he was with, what he ate, and even what the place smelled. The haunting memory would never leave him, even after death. Since the Beginning, without fail, The Mirage would create a dome around a random part of Earth. There, people could enter, but never leave, unless the conditions of The Mirage had been fulfilled.

Certainly, that was not like this Trailer quest at all.

Lee Dojin silently wiped his hand. He had risen another 50 ranks. After the fight, he evaluated his choices. Though he had gotten used to the ability now, he still felt a throbbing headache after its activation. Every time he moved, complex ideas of shifting dimensions and moving particles that he himself did not truly understand, entered his head. It was only his inhuman battle sense that helped him control Cosmic Steps by instinct.

Many people tried to rationalize the system's behavior, especially when it came to the Trailer, though there were few witnesses and most of them were of a rather dubious nature. In the end, they settled with the idea that The Mirage at that time was only testing whether the humans had the potential to act as host.

But Lee Dojin had a different assumption. An entity that had swallowed countless civilizations and even murdered his mother needed to trial-run its horrorshow on mere humans? No, that was highly unlikely.

This Trailer had one purpose only: A show of strength. Submit or die. It allowed the most elite of humans to witness its immense might, to squash any thoughts of rebellion. Yet, it gave them unlimited power, as if to tell them that this was the future that awaited them. And yes, in the past, that worked rather well.

"Level 7 already. Three more, and the ability may get a small evolution," Lee Dojin muttered and then sighed. Even he was more or less reliant on the system to grow stronger.

He wiped the sweat off his forehead and prepared to head home. Going by the time, this should appear somewhat plausible to his mother, and hopefully, she'd not believe he tried skipping.

He passed the familiar convenience store, thinking about how he should get a snack before heading home when he saw a slightly familiar face. He squinted his eyes, confused on the strange sense of deja vu, but then it came to him. His face brightened up.

Meanwhile, the young man that also met Lee Dojin's gaze felt a great shiver run down his spine. He immediately searched for an exit strategy—alas, he had been too late.

Lee Dojin appeared in front of him. "You were with the bullies that I beat up the other day." The boy smiled brightly while pointing at a red smudge. "Here, right here, do you remember? That's where the big one lost a tooth. Such a shame, I hear they don't grow back. By the way, how's he doing?"

The young man gulped, his face had unknowingly turned pale, and he dabbed the sweat off his cheek. "He, uh, he... he's in the hospital," he answered, thinking about his friend Park Wanho.

"That's too bad. Hope he makes a speedy recovery." Lee Dojin shook his head, feeling genuine dismay. "I really do regret it, you know? Having to let him suffer." He patted on the young man's shoulder and gave him a thumbs up. "Next time, I will kill him in one move, what you reckon?"

The young man felt his blood run backward, his breath disappearing, his hair stiffening, and his skin crawling. Now, he truly understood: The old Lee Dojin was no more. Instead, Satan himself had taken on his skin and was searching to promote his business. "Get away from me, bastard!" He flung Lee Dojin away and sprinted off. On his way, he threw a trash can down and shoved a lady off his path. He then disappeared into a random alleyway.

The young man laughed. "That son of a bitch! He can laugh now, but we'll see how he'll react if I bring the upperclassmen." He turned around. "Yes, I lost him."

"No you didn't," Lee Dojin whispered in his ear. There he was squatting down and already in front of him. The young man nearly fainted from shock, but Lee Dojin would not allow that. "But that's a great coincidence. Though I don't really want to join the childish game of pretend-society you kids are playing, I do need someone to guide me to school." He grabbed the young man underneath his armpit and pulled him out the alleyway. "So why don't you show me the way?"