"One day."

As usual, one day like any other.

"Is there a day when night doesn't come?"

It was a day filled with meaningless small talk and pointless questions.

Counting the stars that appeared in the rising night.

Then, suddenly, the words that came out were difficult to understand, and they were things that could make anyone frown.

Every time I heard such words, there was one thought that crossed my mind.

"That's another strange thing to say."

She's saying something strange again.

I thought about it that much. It was always like that.

The night where the stars had disappeared.

The sky where the sun had disappeared.

The land where the forest had disappeared.

What was left where the sea had disappeared.

Occasionally, there were questions about words that meant nothing and whose meaning could not be understood.

I thought it was just another day like that.

"A day when night doesn't come."

When day disappears, night comes.

Though there may be days when stars are not visible.

"Well, I don't think so."

There could never be a day without night. That's what I thought and said.

"Really?"

"Really."

She smiled as if pleased with my answer.

Her effort to suppress the smile was so refreshing that, without realizing it, I bent my fingertips and stroked her cheek.

She felt the sensation, and now, she was looking at me.

"That's your answer, huh."

"Don't you think so?"

She shook her head at my question.

"I don't know."

It was a vague answer. If it's not, then what is it? What else could it be?

The idea of a day without night didn’t make sense, yet she brought up such a vague statement.

I didn’t ask "why" about it.

I’d often received such answers before. And each time, when I tried to inquire, I never got a proper answer.

"I see."

For now, this was the best response to move on with.

Thinking that, I looked up at the sky again.

It was a night full of stars and the moon.

The full moon had reached its peak, and the clear sky without clouds highlighted the gathered stars and moon.

It was called a beautiful night.

As I quietly watched the night, the woman spoke.

"Then."

She said something else. I looked toward the sound. What was she going to say now?

I watched with curiosity.

It probably wouldn’t be much different. I thought so as I gazed at her.

"If... I disappeared, what would you think?"

"...."

The moment I heard those words, my mouth went shut. It was a question I’d never heard before.

Whether it was the sun, sky, moon, stars, forest, or even the sea.

I had heard questions about what would happen if such things disappeared.

But to ask what would happen if she disappeared...

This was a question I had never heard from her before.

And the effect of those words lasted in silence.

"...."

I stared at her silently. What did she mean by this? I tried to figure it out, but nothing came to mind.

And that was the problem. I couldn’t figure out what the intention behind her words was.

So, after quietly observing, I finally spoke.

"What do you mean?"

What was the meaning of such words? Despite my face pretending indifference, I lowered my hand that was caressing my cheek and grabbed her wrist.

It was cold.

As I slowly touched her wrist and asked, she smiled.

"What’s with the reaction? I just asked."

"If it's just asking, don't do it. It's not something I want to hear."

"Really? Alright."

Hearing my words, she nodded, as if she understood, and turned her head.

After that, she never asked me a question like that again.

That was enough.

I thought so, but was it really enough?

Why did she say such things to me?

It wasn’t until some time had passed that I realized.

But in the end, I forgot that too.

And nothing remained for me.

**********

I lifted my heavy eyelids. My blurry vision slowly returned, revealing a strange ceiling.

“...Cough.”

I cleared my throat and forced my upper body up. My body groaned as I moved it awkwardly.

With great effort, I looked around. It was a small room that smelled faintly of dryness.

“What’s this?”

Where am I? I tried to stand up properly to confirm, but—

Crack-!

“...!”

I collapsed, clutching my heart in pain.

Gasp...

It hurt terribly. The internal pain coming from within wasn’t ordinary.

“Ugh...”

Thud-! Thud-! Thud-!

My heart pounded wildly, almost as if it would break. When I tried to move, my muscles also screamed in pain.

‘What’s going on?’

It felt like I was being torn apart. My regeneration should have been operating at full capacity, but my body’s recovery was slow.

Not to mention, my heart itself was the problem. It wasn’t functioning properly—perhaps the vessel inside had cracked, and it wasn’t moving right.

“Ugh...”

I forced myself to move despite the pain. The priority was to understand the situation.

‘Why am I here?’

Why did I wake up in a place like this? I tried to recall what had happened just before.

“Ah.”

It immediately came back to me. Right.

“That bastard... the crow.”

I had been fighting the crow. Suddenly, all the vitality gathered around it, and its form changed. I was fighting it when—

“...Yarang.”

Had Yarang appeared to save me? She came through a dimensional rift and fought the crow.

And then—

“...”

Yarang was hurt. After that, I couldn’t remember anything.

What exactly happened? I gritted my teeth against the pain and stepped outside the room. And then I realized where I had been lying until now.

“This place...”

It was unfamiliar, yet oddly familiar. The familiarity came from the fact that I had been here before.

This was the space inside the Magyeong Gate that Cheonma had opened. The very one I had seen before.

Which meant...

“Ugh.”

Despite the pain, I stepped out onto the floor. My confidence grew as I saw the familiar scene from before.

The small pond. The garden, slightly imperfect but beautifully arranged. Even the field outside the dwelling.

Everything I had seen before was still there. So, I walked towards the field.

After walking for a short while, I came out onto the field and looked toward the valley. There, I saw the person I had been searching for.

Two small figures were crouched by the valley.

“...”

I approached them. As I made my presence known, one of the figures with light brown hair glanced in my direction.

Our eyes met, and she froze.

‘As expected.’

Her face, unmasked, was exactly like the one I knew. How could I not recognize her when even her golden eyes matched?

“..Divine Sword.”

I quietly spoke, but there was no change in Yarang’s expression. My mother had told me. She had said Yarang was made using the soul of the Divine Sword.

However, there was no emotion in her eyes as she looked at me.

“...You.”

Is she okay? At that time, she had definitely taken the blow in my place. Yet, Yarang showed no signs of injury.

Relieved, I was about to exhale, but then—

The other person next to her turned to look at me.

It was Cheonma.

She stared at me with her characteristic purple eyes. The faces of both were exactly the same.

The only difference was the color of their eyes and hair. Otherwise, everything about them looked identical.

I froze for a moment, though I had already known this. It felt more apparent seeing them in person.

‘No matter how you look at it.’

This wasn’t just a simple resemblance.

There was definitely some connection between them.

The question was...

‘Then what about the Blood Demon?’

The Blood Demon had called Cheonma her daughter. If Divine Sword and Cheonma are connected...

‘What about Wi Seol-ah?’

Doesn’t she also have ties to the Blood Demon?

I frowned.

‘But, Divine Sword killed Cheonma in the past life.’

Even if she has ties to the Blood Demon, the hero who killed Cheonma to save the world was Divine Sword.

Does that mean there was some connection with the Blood Demon?

I thought about it and then asked Cheonma.

“What's going on?”

Why are Yarang and I here? That’s what I asked.

Cheonma stared at me silently and replied.

“I brought you.”

“...How?”

“Because it was dangerous.”

“...”

I didn’t ask who was in danger. It was obvious. By the time I remembered the situation, it had become clear.

‘So you saved us and brought us here.’

Cheonma must have meant that.

Then...

“What exactly is this place...?”

I was about to repeat the question I had asked before, but—

“That’s not it.”

Cheonma interrupted me. What?

“What do you mean...?”

Suddenly, it’s not it? I tilted my head, and Cheonma’s brow furrowed ever so slightly.

“You said something else, didn’t you?”

“Wha—what nonsense—”

“Thank you.”

“...!”

“You should say it like that.”

“...Hah.”

I let out a frustrated sigh. Thank you? Me? To Cheonma?

Thank you for saving me, you mean? I glared at her in disbelief, but her eyes were serious.

“...”

She stared at me, then slightly looked away and said.

“...Thank you.”

“Mm.”

Upon hearing those words, Cheonma nodded. I suppressed another sigh. What was ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) I even doing?

I scratched the back of my neck. My heart still hurt.

The pain wouldn’t subside. I held it in and looked back at Cheonma.

What should I ask?

Should I ask again what this place is? Or should I ask something else?

The conversation had stalled, and my question became unclear.

I thought about it as I looked at Yarang and Cheonma standing beside me.

Perhaps the question was already decided from the start.

“Hey.”

“Mm?”

I asked Cheonma.

“...What’s your relationship?”

What exactly are you two to each other?

Without beating around the bush, I asked directly.

“Younger sister.”

Cheonma answered without hesitation.

Her white finger pointed to herself.

“I’m the older sister. She’s the younger one.”

“...”

I wiped my face with my hand after hearing that.

Damn it.

The truth I had hoped wasn’t true had now become reality.