The second War of the Stars had gathered over thirty thousand Awakeners.

Even with the Seven Stars, humanity’s so-called heroes, and dozens of other Celestials joining, the grand war ended in utter defeat after the Heavenly Demon appeared.

The Black Heaven’s clouds had engulfed the entire city and swallowed roughly twenty thousand Awakeners. That was only the recorded casualties. Many believed the true number was far higher.

Of the Seven Stars, only Bianca Bennett (Alioth), Edward Walton (Dubhe), and Kwon Oh-Jin (Alkaid) had survived. The Black Heaven’s clouds had devoured the rest.

Awakeners weren’t the only ones to fall. The Celestials who had broken the Law to deploy their Sacred Grounds against Mobius and the other Black Star Celestials also paid the price.

Only a few had completely vanished from the world since the Law’s restrictions had weakened. However, chains of light bound those with weaker Stigmas and sealed them within their temples.

Even the twelve Zodiac Celestials or higher suffered permanent damage to their Stigmas and would be unable to manifest on Earth for at least a year.

The absence of both Awakeners and Celestials created a void.

If Earth were a human body, Awakeners were its white blood cells that defended the body against invading viruses.

The world plunged into chaos with so few Awakeners left to hunt the demonic beasts emerging through the rift. Once peaceful cities burned, and crime rates skyrocketed. On top of that, with most Celestials sealed away, no new Awakeners filled the empty positions.

The world sank into turmoil and despair.

In that darkness, Kwon Oh-Jin sat with his eyes closed on the floor of his home with his back against the wall.

His hair was matted with sweat and oil from not showering for days. Dark circles clung under his hollow eyes, and his cheeks had sunken in. He looked nothing like the Heaven-Defying Star, who was destined to save the world from its ruined fate.

The door opened softly. Light spilled through the crack and cut across the gloom.

Creak.

With an eyepatch over her left eye, Song Ha-Eun looked down at him with a bitter expression. “Oh-Jin...”

After barely escaping Rome alive, Kwon Oh-Jin hadn’t left his room. He had become a shell of himself, only mumbling strange, unintelligible words into his phone. Other than that, he stayed isolated in his room.

“I brought some beef porridge.”

Kwon Oh-Jin didn’t respond.

Song Ha-Eun bit her lip and raised a spoonful to his mouth. “I ordered it from a restaurant, so don’t worry. It tastes fine.”

“...”

“Oh-Jin.”

“...”

“Have at least one bite.”

“...”

“Please, just eat something! How long are you going to stay like this?!”

“...”

“It’s been over a month since you came home! You can’t keep living like some shut-in wreck—”

“I should’ve used it...”

“What?”

“I should’ve used Open Heaven.”

He had the chance when the Heavenly Demon first appeared. When Riarc arrived with the dragonkin and beastkin warriors... When Cassia begged him to buy her time to open the rift.

He had numerous chances, but didn’t use his final trump card. No, it wasn’t that he couldn’t. He didn’t.

“Because I was scared...”

He had been afraid of losing every memory, every precious moment, and every face he had ever cherished. He had been too scared to take that final step.

“That’s... You couldn’t help it.”

“That's not true.”

“No, it is. Even if you did use that skill, it’s not a guarantee that you would’ve beaten the Heavenly Demon.”

Kwon Oh-Jin dropped his head low as the memories of that day flashed through his mind. “But at least the Black Heaven’s clouds wouldn’t have swallowed everyone.”

Song Ha-Eun sighed deeply and looked down at him. “So what, you’re just going to stay in your room forever and do nothing but sit in regret?”

“No.”

“No? Then what the hell are you doing right now?”

Song Ha-Eun grabbed Kwon Oh-Jin by the collar. “All you do is sit in this damn room all day. Not eating, not showering, and not going outside! You just mumble crazy things to your phone! What exactly are you doing that makes you say no?!”

At that thunderous roar, Kwon Oh-Jin slowly raised his head.

Song Ha-Eun flinched when she saw his face. His eyes, which she thought were hollow and lifeless, glowed with a blue flame.

“I was lying,” Kwon Oh-Jin said quietly.

“What?”

“This is something only I can use.”

Lying? What was he talking about?

“I’ve already done enough regretting.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Think of it as a kind of insurance.”

His words made no sense, as if he had actually lost his mind. Those gleaming blue eyes fixed sharply on her, steady and lucid as if to say everything until now had been deliberate.

“Well, thanks to pouring a whole month into it, I managed to finish in time.”

“Finish what in time?”

“You said you brought beef porridge, right?”

Kwon Oh-Jin picked up the bowl from the floor and started shoveling it into his mouth.

Chomp, chomp.

Maybe because he hadn’t eaten in a month, his stomach couldn’t handle the sudden food. He started coughing violently.

“Kugh!”

“Eat slowly, idiot.”

Song Ha-Eun wiped his mouth with a towel, scooped up another spoonful, and carefully held it to his lips.

He obediently took another bite.

“So... you weren’t actually giving up on everything and rotting away in here?”

“Give up? Of course not.”

He still had too much to lose to waste time wallowing in misery.

“I told you before, didn’t I? I won’t give up on anything.”

I swore I’d protect everything in my hands without losing a single thing.

“Ha. Finally, you’re acting more like yourself.”

Song Ha-Eun still didn’t understand what Kwon Oh-Jin had been doing in his room for over a month, but at least he hadn’t broken down into the empty wreck she had feared.

“So what now?” she asked.

“I’m going to save them.”

“Save them...? You mean Bella and Cassia?”

“Riarc too.”

Song Ha-Eun’s lips tightened as she avoided his gaze.

They had only survived thanks to the rift Cassia had created, but the others left behind in the city...

“It’s already too late—”

“No.” Kwon Oh-Jin cut her off and shook his head firmly. “They’re not dead.”

He seemed absolutely certain.

“How do you know that?”

“Because his goal is to make me the same as him.”

The Heavenly Demon aimed to turn Kwon Oh-Jin into a man with nothing left to protect besides Song Ha-Eun.

“Then, they’re all still alive.”

“Wouldn’t it be the opposite?”

“In the past timeline, the Heavenly Demon didn’t lose you easily.”

“What do you mean?”

“He lost you after begging, after giving up everything, and struggling desperately to protect you.”

That short sentence carried such despair that Song Ha-Eun’s chest tightened painfully.

“So, he’s trying to do the same thing to me.”

“He’ll make you fight and suffer to protect others... and then kill them?”

“Exactly.”

That’s the only way to turn me into him.

“If he didn’t plan to do that, he wouldn’t have kept Riarc alive.”

“Why would he do something like that?” Song Ha-Eun clenched her fists. “The Heavenly Demon’s goal is to make me happy! Why the hell would he do this to you?”

“Because if I’m different from him, then it doesn't mean anything.”

The Heavenly Demon wanted the same version of himself to protect Song Ha-Eun by her side. However, because fate had changed, the current Kwon Oh-Jin and the Heavenly Demon had become completely different people.

Now, he’ll try to change me until I become like him.

“There’s no point trying to understand his actions logically. His mind is already half-consumed by the Black Heaven anyway,” Kwon Oh-Jin said.

“Still...”

“Don’t worry. I told you, didn’t I?” Kwon Oh-Jin gently brushed his hair back with a faint smile. “I’ve already done enough regretting.”

What did he mean by that? Before Song Ha-Eun could follow that train of thought, Kwon Oh-Jin staggered to his feet.

“W-Where are you going?”

“I should wash up. I can’t go meet him looking like this, can I?”

Taking off his clothes, Kwon Oh-Jin stepped into the shower and turned the water on full blast.

Shhhhh.

The stream poured over him, seeping into his skin. His body had grown gaunt over the past month, but slowly returned to normal.

“Ugh, I stink.”

Having not showered for more than a month, the stench clung to him.

Using plenty of water, he finished cleaning himself thoroughly and dried off. He came out of the washroom wearing fresh clothes with a towel hanging around his neck.

Song Ha-Eun was waiting for him. “Do you even know where the Heavenly Demon is?”

“Nope.”

“Then, how are you supposed to meet him?”

“There’s no need to go to him. He’ll come to me first.”

“How can you be so sure—”

“Do you know what day it is today?”

“Huh? Wait a sec.” She took out her phone and checked the screen. “It’s November fifth.”

“Then, there’s one day left.”

“One day? Until what?”

“The day our fates were switched.”

November sixth was the day he had entered the gate with Lee Shin-Hyuk.

“Don’t tell me. You’ve been waiting for this day for the past month?”

Kwon Oh-Jin nodded quietly. “There was no way for me to find him first.”

Just then, the doorbell rang.

“Delivery!”

Song Ha-Eun cocked her head and went to the door. “Delivery?”

“Porridge delivery! Sorry, I’m late. There was an accident nearby.”

“Huh? But we already got our order earlier.”

“What?”

The deliveryman looked puzzled.

“Uh... No, this is definitely the right address.” He checked the receipt and handed her the bag. “Looks like the order went through twice by mistake. Just take it.”

After giving her the bag, the deliveryman left.

Song Ha-Eun frowned as she took the bag. “That’s weird... I’m sure I only paid once.”

“Ha-Eun, do you still have the first porridge bag?”

“Huh? Yeah, it’s right over there.”

Kwon Oh-Jin rummaged through the empty bag on the table. Inside, tucked between flyers, was a single sheet of paper. One sentence in familiar handwriting had been scrawled on the white page.

“I’ll be waiting at the place where our fates diverged.”

The handwriting on the note was unmistakably his own.