Dawn - Rift Delta-3
The commercial district was a graveyard of consumerism. Shattered storefronts. Collapsed parking structures. Mannequins frozen in eternal poses among the rubble.
And in the center plaza: the rift.
Ten meters of absolute nothing. Larger than Delta-7. More violent—its edges didn't just ripple, they churned. Like reality was actively rejecting the wound's existence.
Yoo stood at the perimeter, studying it.
"Analysis complete. Void Rift Delta-3 parameters: diameter 10.3 meters, expansion rate 3.2 centimeters daily, dimensional instability coefficient 2.7x higher than Delta-7. Conclusion: significantly more dangerous."
How much more dangerous?
"Revised erasure probability: 28%. Previous estimate was optimistic. Additional factors detected: rift exhibits aggressive behavior patterns. It actively resists sealing attempts beyond passive structural rejection."
It's... intelligent?
"Negative. But cosmic entities' game residue imprints behavior analogues. Like antibodies attacking infection. Rift 'wants' to remain open in mechanical sense."
Master Yoon approached. "You sense it too. This one is different."
"It's fighting before I even start."
"Yes. Previous sealing attempts on similar rifts resulted in catastrophic backlash. Three Diamond-ranks died trying." Her expression was grim. "I can't order you to attempt this. Must be your choice."
Yoo looked at his father. Jae-sung stood thirty meters back with security team, face carefully neutral. But his hands were clenched white-knuckle tight.
He's terrified. Trying not to show it.
Yoo looked at Mira—cold, professional, already positioned for body retrieval if necessary.
Looked at the perimeter guards, weapons ready.
Looked at Min-ji, observing from command vehicle.
Everyone was here because of him. Because he'd volunteered for impossible mission.
Can't back down now.
"I'll do it."
"Then begin when ready. Same protocol as Delta-7. Do not stop once sealing initiates. Retreat is not option."
Yoo walked forward. Each step felt heavier than the last. The rift's pull intensified—existential gravity trying to drag him into nonexistence.
Five meters. He stopped. Closed his eyes. Extended spatial senses.
The rift was angry. Not emotionally—mechanically. Its structure vibrated with wrongness, rejecting his perception.
This is going to hurt more than last time.
He gathered his Gi. Formed sealing pattern. Modified Master Yoon's technique with his Extras World principles—flexible containment instead of rigid compression.
Reached out.
Touched the void.
The Second Sealing
Pain erupted immediately.
But different from Delta-7. Last time, the rift had passively resisted. This one attacked.
Dimensional energy lashed back at him like whips. His consciousness recoiled, nearly broke contact.
No. Hold. HOLD.
Yoo forced his spatial seal around the rift's edges. Began cauterization.
The rift surged. Expanded three centimeters in one second—catastrophic acceleration.
It's trying to grow faster than I can seal!
He compressed harder. Fought the expansion. His physical body began bleeding—nose, ears, eyes. Same as before but faster.
One minute. I need to maintain pace.
But the rift kept fighting. Every centimeter sealed required twice the energy as Delta-7.
Five minutes. Yoo's pathways burned. The scar tissue from first sealing was tearing. Each Gi circulation sent lightning through his chest.
Can't stop. If I stop, the backlash will erase me instantly.
Ten minutes. Vision blurred. His physical body was failing faster than projected.
"Warning: critical damage detected. Pathway integrity: 61%. Heart rate: 187 BPM. Blood loss: severe. Recommendation: abort mission."
I can't abort! There's no abort option!
Fifteen minutes. The rift was nine-point-seven meters now. Progress was too slow.
Yoo drew on Extras World. Pulled energy from his personal realm like he'd done before.
It helped. The sealing accelerated.
But the rift noticed. Its resistance intensified, targeting the connection between Yoo and his realm.
It's trying to sever my link to Extras World!
If that happened, he'd lose his primary energy source. The sealing would fail. He'd erase.
Yoo made desperate decision. Instead of just drawing energy from Extras World—
He merged with it.
Pulled his consciousness fully into the realm while maintaining physical presence at sealing site. Existing in two spaces simultaneously.
The strain was astronomical.
But it worked.
His spatial manipulation multiplied. The rift seal compressed dramatically.
Twenty minutes. Eight-point-three meters.
Twenty-five minutes. Six-point-eight meters.
His physical body collapsed. Blood pooling. Multiple organ failure imminent.
"Host body critical. Death estimated in 4 minutes without medical intervention."
Four minutes. I need three more to finish this.
Thirty minutes. Four-point-two meters.
Thirty-three minutes. One-point-nine meters.
His consciousness started fragmenting. Like dying in the alley again. Like scattering in the void again.
NOT AGAIN. I REFUSE.
Pure willpower held him together. Nothing else. Just refusal to cease existing.
Thirty-five minutes. Zero-point-six meters.
Thirty-six minutes—
The rift sealed.
Reality snapped closed. The wound cauterized. Gone.
Yoo's consciousness slammed back into his dying body.
Did I—
Darkness.
Medical Emergency
"MEDIC! NOW!"
Jae-sung was sprinting before Master Yoon finished shouting. Crossed the thirty meters in two seconds—Platinum-rank speed.
Yoo's body was wrong. Not just injured—broken. Blood everywhere. Skin pale. Lips blue. Not breathing.
"No no no—" Jae-sung pressed fingers to his son's neck. Found pulse—barely. Irregular. Failing.
Mira arrived with medical equipment. "Step back. I need space."
"That's my son—"
"And he dies if you don't let me work!"
Jae-sung forced himself back. Watched helplessly as Mira worked.
Injections. Energy infusions. Manual CPR—her Gold-rank strength carefully controlled to not shatter the child's ribs.
"Heart stopped," she reported clinically. "Starting direct Gi circulation."
She placed hands on Yoo's chest. Channeled her energy into his system—foreign Gi forcing his pathways to move, to circulate, to live.
Ten seconds. Twenty. Thirty.
Thump.
Weak heartbeat. But present.
"Got him. But he's critical. We need real medical. NOW."
Transport vehicle arrived. They loaded Yoo carefully. Mira maintained Gi circulation entire trip.
Jae-sung sat beside his son, holding a hand that was too small, too fragile.
Why did I let him do this?
But he knew why. Because someone had to. Because billions would die otherwise. Because his son was braver than any Platinum-rank warrior.
Just don't die. Please. Don't die.
Surgery - Six Hours
Dr. Choi worked with two other medical specialists. Academy's best.
Yoo's injuries were catastrophic. Multiple organ damage. Pathway burns worse than before—now covering seventy percent of Gi circulation system. Blood loss requiring transfusion.
Worst: his consciousness was damaged. Brain activity was sporadic. Like his mind couldn't decide if it belonged to his body or to Extras World still.