[Flashback]
That night, after the first verdict—
when his heart had still been beating too fast,
when the fear hadn't faded yet—
he had thought about one thing.
The bottle. The blood.
He had stood there, watching the lights from the crime scene far away, thinking how stupid he was to leave them behind.
"What if they trace it…? What if they find me?"
He kept asking that question in his head, over and over, until the thought itself started to scare him.
He had stood there, watching the lights from the crime scene far away, thinking how stupid he was to leave them behind.
"What if they trace it…? What if they find me?"
His breath caught in his throat.
He whispered without even knowing he was saying it.
"No… they can't. They won't even think it's me, right?"
But the thought hit him again, harder.
If they did — that was it.
The police would drag him in, call him a murderer.
The school would talk.
The kids who never looked at him before would suddenly know his name — just to curse it.
"They'll say I was always weird… quiet… yeah, they'll believe it," he muttered.
His voice cracked as he kept talking to himself, like saying it out loud would make it less real.
"I'll just disappear again. Like I never existed."
He looked down at his hands — they were trembling, but he didn't even feel it.
He let out a shaky laugh, low and bitter.
"Guess that's easy for me, huh? No one to miss me anyway."
Then the System spoke — cold voice, no pause, no feeling.
[You carry the Will of Themisar.]
[The verdict rewrote your existence.]
[The human named Hyun Woo no longer exists in this world's law.]
[Your body was restructured under divine law.]
He remembered standing still, not breathing.
Then the next line appeared, flickering in gold:
[Previous mortal data replaced.]
[Source of biological identity — Park Joon-ho.]
"Park… who?" he'd muttered, his voice low.
[The chosen vessel. One who carried the flame of justice before you.
His will was unfinished. You inherit it now.]
Then System screen flashed in front of him.
[Result: Mortal traces scrubbed — DNA, prints, dental data overwritten. You are no longer searchable by biological means.]
He had stared at that for a long time.
His fear was gone by then — not because he was safe,
but because there was no "he" left to be found.
---
[Present]
He walked down the pavement, that memory sliped back into his head —
the moment the System told him his biological data had been purged.
He smirked a little.
"Heh… let them dig all they want."
His voice was low, almost a whisper.
"They'll never find me. Not in this life."
He was heading first toward Yoo Chan.
The one who thought he could mock him, laugh behind his back, and act untouchable — just because he had the other school's gang leader beside him.
Yoo Chan liked to talk big.
He liked to show off, like no one could lay a hand on him.
He forgot what fear felt like.
Hyun Woo's steps slowed for a second, his eyes still on the phone screen.
It was that same post — the photo of Yoo Chan grinning wide, waving behind the crying boy. The same trash caption from Street_King97.
His lips curled into a faint smirk under the hood.
"Let's see how strong you really are," he muttered, eyes narrowing on Yoo Chan's face.
Hyun Woo's voice came out low, almost like a breath.
"Echo Mask."
The faint golden light flickered in his eye.
[ Skill Activated: Echo Mask ]
[ Effect: CCTV and camera interference — Duration: 1 hour ]
He raised his hand and stopped a cab. The driver looked at him once through the mirror but didn't ask questions.
"Nearest metro station," Hyun Woo said, his voice quiet.
The cab rolled down the street, steady and slow. The driver had one hand on the wheel, the other tapping lightly near the gear. His eyes flicked to the rearview mirror every now and then, checking the road… or maybe just curious about the quiet passenger in the back.
Outside the window, neon signs blinked — a ramen shop shutting its lights, a couple walking by, a delivery bike cutting through the lane.
Hyun Woo leaned back, hood low, mask on his face, watching the street lights pass through the window.
The driver kept glancing in the rearview mirror but didn't say anything. Just another quiet passenger on a late-night ride.
Then, he whispered.
"Alias Impression."
[ Skill Activated: Alias Impression ]
[ Constructing alternate self… ]
The change began slow — a small shift in his jaw, the bones under his skin moving and changing slowly.
His shoulders relaxed, his body frame growing broader. Wrinkles forming near his eyes, hair thinning just a little near the temples.
By the time the cab turned toward the next street, the Hyun Woo sitting in the back seat wasn't Hyun Woo anymore.
A stranger was sitting there instead — middle age looking, around thirty-four old.
The driver checked the mirror once more, then looked away and didn't notice a thing. Hyun Woo transformation was slow and without any sound.
The car stopped near the subway entrance.
Hyun Woo — or the man now wearing his skin — pulled the hood tighter, handed the fare in cash, and stepped out.
As he passed a shop window, the city light caught his reflection.
A middle-aged man stared back — plain face, tired eyes, clothes too neat for him.
Not a trace of the Hyun Woo remained.
Hyun Woo looked at that reflection for a moment, quiet.
Then his lips curved into a faint smirk.
"…Perfect."
[ Alias Impression: Active — Identity locked as Park Joon-ho ]
He pulled the hood up again and walked down the stairs toward the station.
The gate light blinked green as he tapped his card and moved through.
Ding—beep.
He reached the platform and stood near the yellow line. The place was quiet, only a few people waiting for the next train. Most had their heads down, some were wearing headphones and listening to music, some scrolling their phones, browsing the SNS feeds.
Hyun Woo lifted his eyes toward the CCTV on the wall.
He breathed out slow and talked in his head.
[ Echo Mask — Deactivated ]
He raised a hand, pulled his mask down, and looked straight into the CCTV.
The face staring back wasn't Hyun Woo's anymore. It was Park Joon-ho.
He didn't smile, didn't move much, just stood there letting it record. It was a message only he knew.
"Remember this one," he muttered under his breath. "You'll need it later."