I felt it the moment Eun-ha's mind began to clear.
The dreamworld *cracked* around me like an eggshell. The bleeding walls faded. The goblin's control over her mindspace flickered.
His voice snarled. "No… no no no—NOT YET!"
I didn't wait.
With a burst of speed, I slammed into him, claws glowing with flame.
He teleported behind me.
I lashed my tail backward—crack!—and caught him mid-flash, flinging him through a crumbling memory-wall.
"You're done hiding behind children," I growled.
The Chief Goblin rose slowly, panting, green blood dripping down his chest.
"Even if she wakes," he spat, "I'll return. I always do. Fear is eternal."
I bared my fangs.
"Then I'll be the fire that burns it down."
I spread my wings and flew skyward, the dream-sky crackling with heat. With a roar that shook the world, I dove—
Electricity spiraling around me.
Scales blazing like gold.
I crashed into him with every ounce of rage and purpose I'd buried since Day 1.
BOOM.
The impact shattered the ground, sending golden fire spiraling in every direction.
The Goblin screamed—fading, glitching, burning.
And then—
He was gone.
The world is still.
The dream-memory faded to gray.
And Seo-Yeon stood there, holding Eun-ha, who was finally—finally—asleep.
Peaceful.
I dropped beside them, my breath ragged. The scales were already fading, my wings crumbling into mist.
Seo-Yeon looked at me and gave a tired nod.
"She's free."
I looked down at Eun-ha's sleeping face. For the first time, she wasn't frowning. Her brow was smooth. Her hands clutched her teddy, not in fear—but comfort.
Volt's voice echoed again, soft in my head.
"You chose not to burn her world. You lit a path through it."
"I could do that?" I asked Volt about it impatiently.
"Ahem... Well I am the great three headed dragon of Thunder, Volt. My original powers are beyond limitless."
"Original." I scoffed. "Yeah you are nothing but a level 20 flying three headed lizard."
And in that moment, I felt it.
Not just the end of a battle.
But the beginning of healing.
When the dream world shattered, it didn't break like glass.
It dissolved—like mist being exhaled by a mouth that had held its breath for too long.
The warmth of her little mind faded, and gravity returned.
I blinked—
—and I was back.
Back in the ruined building, half-lit by broken skylights, blood and oil smearing the concrete.
My chest heaved once—twice—and I looked to my right just in time to see Seo-yeon kneeling beside Eun-ha, cradling the girl against her.
"She did it," I thought."She brought her back."
Eun-ha trembled in her arms, small sobs rising from her throat, but her eyes—her real eyes—were open. No more red glow. No more possession.
Just fear.
And a child.
Alive.
"They're back!!" someone yelled.
Footsteps thundered toward us.
"YE-JUN!"
Ye-Rin's voice cut through the ringing in my ears. She tackled me in a blur, arms wrapped around my middle, sobbing into my jacket.
"I saw your body flop like that—I thought—! You were just gone, you idiot!!"
Sang-woo just gave a slight smile. It looks like he was looking after our bodies.
I winced, chuckling weakly as I patted her head.
"Can you release your grip and get off of me."
Her knuckles thudded against my chest.
She choked back a sniffle. "I'm so damn glad you're okay…"
A breath behind me—In-Ji.
He was crouched beside Seo-yeon now, his eyes red, his voice tight.
"Please next time discuss things with me. But I'm glad you are back."
Seo-yeon gave him a small smile and nodded, brushing Eun-ha's hair aside.
"No scratches," she whispered.
He pulled her into a side hug, burying his face in her shoulder. "I thought you were going to vanish like Mr.Sang-Woo…"
Her hand lingered over his. "Not yet."
I let them have their moment. We all needed some of that.
Surprisingly, the worst of our injuries hadn't followed us back.
The burns, the bleeding, the fractured ribs from our battles in the dreamscape—they were gone. Faded into memory, like they never happened.
We were whole.
Well, almost.
As soon as I left the room,
A gust of warm wind blew past my side, and I turned.
Volt—the dragon—was standing there silently, the heat from his body casting flickers on the floor. He didn't speak. He just lowered his massive head slightly, the smallest gesture of approval.
I gave a faint nod back.
"Thanks for the voice in my head, I thought.Next time, a little sooner, yeah?"
And then—
[SYSTEM MESSAGE]
📢 Mission 2: "Memories Worth Stealing" – COMPLETED.
Participants of Buk-gu, Ulsan have received +3 Level Reward.
All skills have slightly increased
1-Day Rest Period granted before Mission 3 begins.
Everyone stopped.
Even the wind outside went quiet.
"Level… three?" In-Ji said, stunned. "That's crazy…"
Ye-rin opened her UI, blinking in shock. "I'm Level 21 now."
Mi-Sun smirked, her bloody eyes flashing faintly. "Finally, the system gives us something back."
I glanced at Seo-yeon.
She wasn't even looking at her stats.
She was still holding Eun-ha.
We had a day's rest now.
But deep down, I knew peace was borrowed. Not given.
"Why did the Goblin Chief use Eun-ha rather than going after the sword itself?" Mother asked me this question.
I looked at her, slowly sitting up. My limbs felt heavy. Like I'd just run through someone else's nightmare.
"Because he was greedy," I murmured. "The memories required a sacrifice to activate. He would've had to die to fulfill that ritual. But instead, he found another way."
Mi-Sun tilted her head. "Another way?"
"He used her," I said. "He knew that by taking over someone already linked to the system—a child touched by tragedy—he could manipulate the battlefield without dying. Then he could have summoned his god there without actually dying."
"But where is the sword itself?"
"I don't know. We didn't have much time to actually look for the sword but at least it won't matter now." I answered dismissively, lying on the ground completely and trying to catch some sleep.
"Alright, you take a rest. We will talk about stuff later". Mother and Ye-Rin left to check on Seo-yeon and Eun-ha and I drifted into slumber.
[Location: Unknown Facility – United Kingdom]
It was pitch black—except for the erratic blinking of white bulbs overhead.
A Kobold Chief, brown skin pale and sickly, screamed as electricity coursed through his limbs.
His feet were bound to the frame of a steel electric chair, wires burrowed into the flesh of his back. Sparks flew. His claws twitched wildly.
"You're still alive?" a calm voice asked from the shadows.
Another pulse of electricity ripped through the creature's body.
A man stepped forward—half in shadow, dressed in a suit far too elegant for a torture room.
He adjusted his glasses and stared at the twitching kobold with interest, scribbling something into a holographic clipboard.
"Test 7 shows extraordinary brain retention," the man mused.
"Pain threshold exceeds that of Subject 14."
A door opened behind him. A woman in a lab coat stepped in.
"Dr. Hawkins, should we continue the neural burn tests?"
Dr. Steven Hawkins smiled faintly.
"Yes," he said. "And prep Subject 22. I want to see what happens when a god's memory is re-mapped into a humanoid vessel."
He turned to the writhing kobold.
"Let's find out what kind of system they've built."
The creature screamed louder.
And across the room—screens flickered.
On one of them…
A photo of Han Eun-ha.